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For over 100 years worship
for Milwaukee's Arabic Catholic immigrants has focused
around the icon of St. George brought
from Ain Bourdia, Lebanon in the 1890's. On Sunday April
28th, 1996 Wisconsin's only Melkite Catholic Church had a
special celebration to commemorate St. George's feast
day.
During the Divine Liturgy the
Ain Bourdia icon of St. George was carried through the
church during the Little Entrance and placed on a table
before the iconostatis. Following the service there was a
grand procession of the entire parish lead by chief
server, Joseph Schneider carrying the Cross, servers Andy
Geiger and Aaron Davel carrying the Ripedia,
concelebrants Fr. Greg Schissel and Fr. Steve Wiese
incensing the way, and Fr. Philaret Littlefield carrying
the beloved icon. The congregation was headed by Cantor
Kevin Miller who lead the parishioners in singing the
Troparian or St. George alternated by Christ Is Risen.
The procession wound its way through the church, then out
the front doors, down Seventeenth Street, back to State
Street and the front of the church, and then into the
church hall through the basement stairs.
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Parish Council President
Joseph Makhlouf emceed the program and started by
introducing the honored guests. Emily Herro (the oldest
living member of the parish's founding family) shared her
family's history with icon and told of the icon's journey
from Ain Bourdia to Milwaukee. Paul Stamm then briefly
explained the nature of the Internet and how the image of
our icon was going to be shared with the world. Mary
Herro, whose husband donated the icon to the church in
the 1970's, then "turned the image on" allowing
both the assembled congregation and the world to share
the electronic version of the St. George of Ain Bourdia.
In what may
have been another "cyber-first" for the Milwaukee congregation, Father
Philaret Littlefield then incensed and blessed the
electronic image. Using the ritual prayers normally
reserved for the blessing of a traditional icon, Father
Philaret commended the icon to the whole of the world -
that all who see it will be called to St. George's
example and Christ's message.
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