2716 North Dobson Road Chandler, AZ 85224 (480) 899-3330
Rev. Fr. Philip S. Armstrong, Presbyter
2716 N. Dobson Rd.
Chandler, AZ 85224
(480) 899-3330
(Located South of Elliot Rd on Dobson Rd)
Church e-mail : office@st-katherine.org
Email Fr. Phil : skpriest@yahoo.com
Summer Office hours:
Effective June 1st - Sept 28th
Monday Thru Thursday
9:30am - 3:30pm
Closed from 12:00 to 1:00pm for lunch.
Inquirer’s Classes Offered (Contact our Church Office).
Sunday Service Schedule:
8:30 AM Orthos
9:30 AM Divine Liturgy
St. Katherine Greek Orthodox Church Chandler AZ 85224
For 11-24-19
For 11-24-19
ST. KATHERINE NAMEDAY VESPERS/DINNER RECEPTION
Great Vesper Service and Artoklasia 6:00pm. Following dismissal of
the service all are invited to a delicious Lenten meal in the Community
Center hosted by the Ladies of St. Irene Philoptochos
MESSAGE FROM FATHER
I’m refreshed and happy to be back in my office after my three-month sabbatical. I
thank His Eminence Metropolitan Gerasimos and our parish for allowing me this
time for rest and healing.
The month of November is upon us. It is a busy month, liturgically; there are many
feast days including our parish’s name day on November 25th.
My article in this issue of “The Spirit” will focus on the Feast Day of the Archangel
Michael and Gabriel and All the Heavenly Hosts. This feast day falls on November 8 each year. In my
many conversations with parishioners over the years the topic of angels has surfaced many times.
Much curiosity and conjecture regarding angels can be detected today. Movies and TV series with the
topic of angels, fictional of course, have proven to be quite popular. Many of our present-day fiction
writers have incorporated angels and angelic encounters into their novels. Yes, we are deeply curious
about the realm of the invisible wherein angels dwell. What does the Orthodox Church teach
regarding angels? To answer this question, I provide you with the following teaching taken from The
Prologue from Ochrid, Vol. 4, pp. 171-173: St. Nikolai Velimirovic, the
author of these volumes provides the reader an insightful commentary on angels:
November 8
The Holy Archangel Michael and all the Bodiless Powers of Heaven
The angels of God have been commemorated by men from the earliest times, but this commemoration
often degenerates into the divinization of angels (IV Kings 23:5; A.V. II Kings). Heretics always
wove fantasies round the angels. Some of them saw the angels as gods and others, if they did not so
regard them, took them to be the creators of the whole visible world. The local Council in Laodicea,
that was held in the fourth century, rejected in its 35 Canon the worship of angels as gods, and
established the proper veneration of them. In the time of Pope Sylvester of Rome and the Alexandrian
Patriarch Alexander, in the fourth century, this Feast of the Archangel Michael and the other heavenly
powers was instituted, to be celebrated in November. Why in November? Because November is the
ninth month after March, and it is thought that the world was created in
the month of March. The ninth month after March was chosen because of the nine orders of angels
that were the first created beings. St. Dionysius the Areopagite, a disciple of the Apostle Paul (that
Apostle who was caught up to the third heaven), writes of these nine orders in his book: ‘Celestial
Hierarchies’. These orders are as follows: six-winged Seraphim, many-eyed Cherubim, godly
Thrones, Dominions, Virtues, Powers, Principalities, Archangels and Angels. The leader of the whole
angelic army is the Archangel Michael. When Satan, Lucifer, fell away from God, and carried half the
angels with him to destruction, then Michael arose and cried to the unfallen angels: ‘Let us give heed!
Let us stand aright; let us stand with fear!’, and the whole angelic army sang aloud: ‘Holy, holy, holy
Lord God of Sabaoth; heaven and earth are full of Thy glory!’ (See on the Archangel Michael: Joshua
5:13-15 and Jude v. 9). Among the angels there rules a perfect unity of mind,
of soul and of love; of total obedience of the lesser powers to the greater and of all to the holy will of
God. ach nation has its guardian angel, as does each individual Christian. We must keep in mind that,
whatever we do, openly or in secret, we do in the presence of our guardian angel and that, on the Day
of Judgement, a great multitude of the holy angels of heaven will be gathered around the throne of
Christ, and the thoughts, words and deeds of every man will be laid bare before them. May God have
mercy on us and save us at the prayers of the holy Archangel Michael and all the bodiless powers of
heaven. Amen.
In Christ’s love, +Fr. Phil
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