# Orthodox Church of the Mother of God: Mays Landing, NJ \(f\. 1966\)

> Welcome to the official website of the Orthodox Church of the Mother of God, Joy of all the Sorrow \- We are a growing parish in the Diocese of New York and New Jersey, of the Orthodox Church in America \(OCA\)\.We are in historic Mays Landing, New Jersey, easily reachable near where Route 40 meets Route 50 in Atlantic County\.

Generated by Yoast SEO v27.9, this is an llms.txt file, meant for consumption by LLMs.

## Pages
- [Welcome](https://churchmotherofgod.org/)
- [News](https://churchmotherofgod.org/news/)
- [test](https://churchmotherofgod.org/test/)
- [Purpose](https://churchmotherofgod.org/purpose/): \<h3\>Purpose\</h3\> \<p style="text\-align: justify;"\>As the local community of the\<strong\> Church of the Mother of God\</strong\>, this parish, exists for the purpose of worshiping God according to the Holy Scriptures and Tradition of the Holy Orthodox Church, to encourage union with God among the members of the parish, to seek out the lost, the searching, and the un\-churched and to strive to bring them into union with the Church, to provide religious education to its members and potential members, provide charitable aid, and \<strong\>to defend, promote, and witness to the\</strong\>\<strong\>Orthodox Christian Faith in southern New Jersey\</strong\>\.\</p\> \<p style="text\-align: justify;"\>This website is a tool to help in this purpose\. Primarily to publicize our existence in southern New Jersey, and hopefully, encourage people to \<strong\>\<em\>"come and see"\</em\>\. \</strong\>\<strong\> \</strong\>\<br /\>\<br /\>\<strong\>The many pages on this website contain information we hope is helpful\. \</strong\>\</p\> 
- [Day](https://churchmotherofgod.org/day/)

## Feed Items
- [Financial Health Initiative Begins Second Cohort with Expanded Participation](https://churchmotherofgod.org/wprss_feed_item/financial-health-initiative-begins-second-cohort-with-expanded-participation/): The Office of Pastoral Life of the Orthodox Church in America has launched the second cohort of the Financial Health Initiative, a program designed to support the financial well\-being and stability of its clergy households\.

Cohort 2 began June 1, 2026, with 36 clergy households…
- [His Beatitude Metropolitan Tikhon presides at 50th Anniversary Celebration of Christ the Savior–Holy Spirit Church](https://churchmotherofgod.org/wprss_feed_item/his-beatitude-metropolitan-tikhon-presides-at-50th-anniversary-celebration-of-christ-the-savior-holy-spirit-church/): On Saturday, June 6th, 2026, at the invitation of His Eminence Archbishop Daniel of Chicago and the Midwest, His Beatitude Metropolitan Tikhon traveled to Cincinnati to preside at the 50th Anniversary celebration of Christ the Savior–Holy Spirit Orthodox Church\. Upon arrival in…
- [His Eminence Archbishop Michael and St\. Tikhon’s Pilgrims Received by His Beatitude Archbishop Stefan in Macedonia](https://churchmotherofgod.org/wprss_feed_item/his-eminence-archbishop-michael-and-st-tikhons-pilgrims-received-by-his-beatitude-archbishop-stefan-in-macedonia/): On Wednesday, June 10, 2026, His Beatitude Archbishop Stefan, Primate of the Macedonian Orthodox Church – Ohrid Archbishopric, welcomed His Eminence Archbishop Michael, Archbishop of New York and the Diocese of New York and New Jersey, Rector of St\. Tikhon’s Orthodox Theological…
- [Orthodox Church in America Holds Planning Meeting for Lilly Endowment New Churches Initiative](https://churchmotherofgod.org/wprss_feed_item/orthodox-church-in-america-holds-planning-meeting-for-lilly-endowment-new-churches-initiative/): On June 9–10, representatives from across the Orthodox Church in America gathered in Springfield, VA, for a two\-day planning meeting as part of the Church’s participation in the Lilly Endowment’s New Churches Initiative\.

Earlier this year, the Orthodox Church in America was invited to…
- [Strong Parish Support Fuels Early Registration for First Clergy Wives Retreat](https://churchmotherofgod.org/wprss_feed_item/strong-parish-support-fuels-early-registration-for-first-clergy-wives-retreat/): Clergy wives from across the Orthodox Church in America are registering for the 2026 Office of Pastoral Life Clergy Wives Retreat, “Come Away and Rest,” which will be held July 27–30, 2026, at Antiochian Village Conference and Retreat Center in Bolivar, PA\.

With less than three weeks…

## Articles
- [Brief Catechism](https://churchmotherofgod.org/articles/brief-catechism/): \<h3 style="text\-align: center;" align="center"\>A Brief Catechism of the Orthodox Catholic Eastern Church\</h3\> \<p style="text\-align: center;" align="center"\>\<sub\>\<b\>Compiled by Archimandrite Anthony \(Repella\)\</b\>\</sub\>\</p\> \<p style="text\-align: center;" align="center"\>\<sub\>\<b\> Published By V\. Rev\. Basil J\. Repella 1946\</b\>\</sub\>\</p\> \<p style="text\-align: center;" align="center"\>\<b\>\<sub\>God\<span style="padding: 0pt; color: black; display: inline; font\-size: inherit;" class="\_\_mozilla\-findbar\-search"\>'\</span\>s Blessing and my Approval to the usful Book\.\<br /\> \+ METROPOLITAN THEOPHILUS\<br /\> Archbishop of San Francisco, Metropolitan of all America and Canada\.\</sub\>\</b\>\</p\> \<p style="text\-align: center;" align="center"\> \</p\> \<h3\>\<b\>I\. INTRODUCTION\</b\>\</h3\> \<dt\>Q\. 1\. What is a Catechism?\</dt\> \<dd\>A\. A Catechism is a short exposition of the doctrines of the Lord Jesus Christ in questions and answers\.\</dd\> \<dt\>Q\. 2\. Why is the teaching of the Lord Jesus Christ necessary for us?\</dt\>
- [Holy Pentecost](https://churchmotherofgod.org/articles/holy-pentecost/): \<h3\>Holy Pentecost\</h3\> \<p\>In the Church's annual liturgical cycle, Pentecost is\<em\>\<strong\> "the last and great day\."\</strong\>\</em\> It is the celebration by the Church of the coming of the Holy Spirit as the end \- the achievement and fulfillment \- of \<img src="https://churchmotherofgod\.org/wp\-content/uploads/2009/06/icons\_holy\_trinity\.jpg" alt="Pentecost " title="Pentecost " align="right" /\>the entire history of salvation\. For the same reason, however, it is also the celebration of the beginning: it is the "birthday" of the Church as the presence among us of the Holy Spirit, of the new life in Christ, of grace, knowledge, adoption to God and holiness\. \<br /\>\<br /\>This double meaning and double joy is revealed to us, first of all, in the very name of the feast\. Pentecost in Greek means fifty, and in the sacred biblical symbolism of numbers, the number fifty symbolizes both the fullness of time and that which is beyond time: the Kingdom of God itself\. It symbolizes the fullness of time by its first component: 49, which is the fullness of seven \(7 x 7\): the number of time\. And, it symbolizes that which is beyond time by its second component: 49 \+ 1, this one being the new day, the\<em\> "day without evening"\</em\> of God's eternal Kingdom\. With the descent of the Holy Spirit upon Christ's disciples, the time of salvation, the Divine work of redemption has been completed, the fullness revealed, all gifts bestowed: it belongs to us now to "appropriate" these gifts, to be that which we have become in Christ: participants and citizens of His Kingdom\.\</p\> 
- [Icon of the Ascension of Our Lord](https://churchmotherofgod.org/articles/icon-of-the-ascension-of-our-lord/): \<p\>\<img style="float: right;" src="https://churchmotherofgod\.org/wp\-content/uploads/2010/06/thumb\_Ascension\.jpg"  alt="Icon of the Ascension " title="Icon of the Ascension" class="icon" height="128" width="113" /\>\</p\> \<h3\>Icon of the Ascension of Our Lord\</h3\> \<p\>This Icon of the Ascension of Our Lord, is found on the Iconostas of our church, in the row of great feasts\.\</p\> 
- [Heaven and Hell in the Afterlife According to the Bible](https://churchmotherofgod.org/articles/heaven-and-hell-in-the-afterlife-according-to-the-bible/): \<h3\>Heaven and Hell in the Afterlife According to the Bible\<o:p\>\</o:p\>\<span style="color: black;"\>\</span\>\</h3\> \<h3\> \</h3\> \<p class="MsoNormal"\>\<span style="color: black;"\> \</span\>\<b\>\<sup\>By Peter Chopelas\</sup\>\</b\>\<o:p\>\</o:p\>\</p\> \<p style="text\-align: justify;"\>The idea that God is an angry figure who sends those He condemns to a place called Hell, where they spend eternity in torment separated from His presence, is missing from the Bible and unknown in the early church\. While Heaven and Hell are decidedly real, they are experiential conditions rather than physical places, and both exist in the presence of God\. In fact, nothing exists outside the presence of God\.\<span id="more\-1120"\>\</span\>\<o:p\>\</o:p\>\</p\> \<p style="text\-align: justify;"\>This is not the way traditional Western Christianity, Roman Catholic or Protestant, has envisioned the afterlife\. In Western thought Hell is a location, a place where God punishes the wicked, where they are cut off from God and the \<st1:place w:st="on"\>\<st1:placetype w:st="on"\>Kingdom\</st1:placetype\> of \<st1:placename w:st="on"\>Heaven\</st1:placename\>\</st1:place\>\.  Yet this concept occurs nowhere in the Bible, and does not exist in the original languages of the Bible\.\<o:p\>\</o:p\>\</p\> \<p style="text\-align: justify;"\>While there is no question that according to the Scriptures there is torment and \<b\>“gnashing of teeth” \</b\>for the wicked, and glorification for the righteous, and that this judgment comes from God, these destinies are not separate destinations\. The Bible indicates that everyone comes before God in the next life, and it is because of being in God’s presence that they either suffer eternally, or experience eternal joy\.  In other words, both the joy of heaven, and the torment of judgment, is caused by being eternally in the presence of the Almighty, the perfect and unchanging God\.\</p\> 
- [St\. Thomas Sunday](https://churchmotherofgod.org/articles/st-thomas-sunday/): \<h3\>St\. Thomas Sunday\</h3\> \<p\>\<sup\>\<b\>By Archbishop Dmitri of Dallas and the South \</b\>\</sup\>\</p\> \<div align="center"\>\<b\>\<sup\>\(The following is a brief reflection on the Gospel reading for the Sunday after Pascha, John 20:19\-31\)\</sup\>\</b\>\</div\> \<div align="center"\>\<b\>\<sup\> \</sup\>\</b\>\</div\> \<p dir="ltr" align="left"\>When the disciples had gathered on the new Passover \(Pascha\), the Lord’s Day or Resurrection Day, Jesus entered the room where they were – \<b\>"the doors being shut\.\.\.for fear of the Jews"\</b\> – stood in the midst of them and showed them His hands and side\. Christ then greeted them with that salutation, retained by the Church through the ages, with which the priest greets the faithful at each of the important parts of the Divine Liturgy and other services: \<b\>"Peace be unto you\." \</b\> Twice our Lord delivers this message of peace to His disciples that\<b\> "first day of the week\." \</b\>We are reminded in this of the Savior’s words before the Crucifixion: \<b\>"My peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you"\</b\> and \<b\>"these things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace\."\</b\>\<sup\> \(John 14:27; 16:33\)\</sup\> The Resurrection, of which the beloved disciples were witnesses, was the confirmation of Christ’s entire life of prophecy and sacrifice\. It was a reassurance that the peace He had come to give the world was not vain or imagined\. Nor was it peace on strictly a human level, for example the \<i\>absence \</i\>of war or strife among men\. Rather this peace was the \<i\>presence \</i\>of the Prince of Peace in the midst of human existence\. It was the long awaited reconciliation between God and man, and in God a profound "union of all men" as children of the Most High, a peace that the world is unable to provide or understand\.\</p\> 

## Documents
- [Bulletins from 2026](https://churchmotherofgod.org/documents/bulletins-from-2026/)
- [Bulletins from 2018](https://churchmotherofgod.org/documents/bulletins-from-2018/)
- [Fasting Brochure](https://churchmotherofgod.org/documents/fasting-brochure/)
- [Vespers Brochure](https://churchmotherofgod.org/documents/vespers-brochure/)
- [The Truth of Orthodoxy Brochure](https://churchmotherofgod.org/documents/the-truth-of-orthodoxy-brochure/)

## Salvation History
- [Entry into the Temple of the Most\-holy Virgin Mary](https://churchmotherofgod.org/histories/entry-into-the-temple-of-the-most-holy-virgin-mary/): \<h3\>The Entry into the Temple of the Most\-holy Virgin Mary\.\</h3\> \<p\>When the Virgin Mary reached the age of three years, Her pious parents prepared to fulfill their promise\. They called together their relatives, invited friends the same age as their daughter, dressed Her in Her finest clothes, and accompanied by the people singing hymns, they brought Her to the Temple in Jerusalem to be consecrated to God\. Her friends and Mary Herself walked with burning candles in their hands\. Led by the chief priest, the priests, while singing hymns, came out of the Temple to meet them\.\</p\> 
- [The Royal Ministry of Christ in His Church](https://churchmotherofgod.org/histories/the-royal-ministry-of-christ-in-his-church/)
- [Descent of the Holy Spirit](https://churchmotherofgod.org/histories/descent-of-the-holy-spirit/): \<h3\>The Descent of the Holy Spirit\</h3\> \<p align="JUSTIFY"\>The tenth day after the Ascension of Jesus Christ was the fiftieth day after the Resurrection of Christ\. It was the Jews’ great feast of Pentecost, which commemorated the giving of the Law on Mt\. Sinai\.\</p\> \<p align="JUSTIFY"\>All the apostles, the Mother of God, the other disciples of Christ, and other of the faithful were all together in one room in Jerusalem\. It was the third hour of the day by the Hebrew reckoning of hours, according to our system — nine o’clock in the morning\. Suddenly a sound came from Heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting\. There descended on them tongues that looked like fire, which rested on each one of them\. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak languages previously unknown to them\. Thus the Holy Spirit, according to the promise of the Saviour, descended on the apostles in the form of \<em\>tongues of fire\</em\> as a sign that He gave the apostles the ability and zeal to preach the teachings of Christ to all peoples\. He descended in the form of fire as a sign of the power to cleanse sins and to sanctify and warm souls\.\</p\> 
- [Last Judgment](https://churchmotherofgod.org/histories/last-judgment/)
- [Word and Spirit](https://churchmotherofgod.org/histories/word-and-spirit/)

## Prayers of the Church
- [Anaphora Prayer \(St Basil\)](https://churchmotherofgod.org/prayers/anaphora-prayer-st-basil/)
- [Psalm 22 \(23\) \- The Lord is my shepherd,](https://churchmotherofgod.org/prayers/psalm-23-22/)
- [Sunday Troparia and Kontakia \(hymns form the Octoechos\)](https://churchmotherofgod.org/prayers/sunday-troparia-and-kontakia-hymns-form-the-octoechos/)
- [Prayer of the Righteous Simeon](https://churchmotherofgod.org/prayers/prayer-of-the-righteous-simeon/)
- [Psalm 142 \(143\) \- A Prayer of Confidence in the Lord](https://churchmotherofgod.org/prayers/psalm-142-143-a-prayer-of-confidence-in-the-lord/)

## Scripture Readings
- [Acts 11:19\-26,29\-30 \(5th Sunday of Pascha\)](https://churchmotherofgod.org/scripture-readings/acts-1119-2629-30-apostles/)
- [Ephesians 5:9\-19 \(26th Sunday after Pentecost\)](https://churchmotherofgod.org/scripture-readings/ephesians-59-19-26th-sunday-after-pentecost/)
- [John 1:35\-51 \(BRIGHT WEDNESDAY\)](https://churchmotherofgod.org/scripture-readings/john-135-51-bright-wednesday/)
- [Matthew 11:27\-30 \(Saint\)](https://churchmotherofgod.org/scripture-readings/matthew-1127-30-saint/)
- [John 15:17\-27; 16:1\-2 \(St\. George\)](https://churchmotherofgod.org/scripture-readings/john-1517-27-161-2-st-george/)

## Terminologies
- [OF THE SAINT](https://churchmotherofgod.org/terminologies/of-the-saint/)
- [CLASSES OF FEASTS](https://churchmotherofgod.org/terminologies/classes-of-feasts/)
- [CHIROTONIA](https://churchmotherofgod.org/terminologies/chirotonia/)
- [CHALICE](https://churchmotherofgod.org/terminologies/chalice/)
- [CHAIN\-RINGING](https://churchmotherofgod.org/terminologies/chain-ringing/)

## Galleries
- [2026 Pysanky class](https://churchmotherofgod.org/bwg_gallery/2026-pysanky-class/)
- [2005 Church Blessing](https://churchmotherofgod.org/bwg_gallery/2005-church-blessing/)
- [2025 Archbishop visit](https://churchmotherofgod.org/bwg_gallery/2025-archbishop-visit/)
- [2004](https://churchmotherofgod.org/bwg_gallery/2004/)
- [Archbishop Michael visit 7/20/2024](https://churchmotherofgod.org/bwg_gallery/archbishop-michael-visit-7-20-2024/)

## Albums
- [St Nick](https://churchmotherofgod.org/bwg_album/st-nick/)

## Articles Categories
- [Orthodox Church](https://churchmotherofgod.org/articles_category/orthodox-church/)
- [Saints and Icons](https://churchmotherofgod.org/articles_category/saints-and-icons/)
- [Worship](https://churchmotherofgod.org/articles_category/worship/)

## History Categories
- [Salvation, The Kingdom of Heaven](https://churchmotherofgod.org/histories_category/salvation-the-kingdom-of-heaven/)
- [New Life, Church History](https://churchmotherofgod.org/histories_category/new-life-church-history/)
- [Death and Resurrection, Redemption](https://churchmotherofgod.org/histories_category/death-and-resurrection/)
- [The Son of God, the Incarnation](https://churchmotherofgod.org/histories_category/the-son-of-god/)
- [The Law and the Prophets, Preparation](https://churchmotherofgod.org/histories_category/law-and-the-prophets/)

## Prayers of the Church Categories
- [Text of Prayers](https://churchmotherofgod.org/prayers_category/text-of-prayers/)
- [Troparia and Kontakia](https://churchmotherofgod.org/prayers_category/troparia-and-kontakia/)
- [Orthodox Psalter](https://churchmotherofgod.org/prayers_category/orthodox-psalter/)
- [Canticles \(or Odes\)](https://churchmotherofgod.org/prayers_category/canticles-or-odes/)

## Scripture Reading Categories
- [Daniel](https://churchmotherofgod.org/readings_category/daniel/)
- [Ezekiel](https://churchmotherofgod.org/readings_category/ezekiel/)
- [Baruch](https://churchmotherofgod.org/readings_category/baruch/)
- [Jeremiah](https://churchmotherofgod.org/readings_category/jeremiah/)
- [Isaiah](https://churchmotherofgod.org/readings_category/isaiah/)

## Optional
- [Sitemap index](https://churchmotherofgod.org/sitemap_index.xml)