‘It feels like home': St. Iakovos Church in Valparaiso opens the door on new chapter

Tasha Fotopoulos was among the dozens of Greek Orthodox faithful standing in front of St. Iakovos on Saturday waiting for the Thyranoixia, or open the door ceremony.
'It's something we've been waiting for, for some time,' Fotopoulos said.
The Valparaiso mom of Lia, 3, is expecting her second baby, a boy, in the next few months and already plans to baptize him in the newly completed church.
She, her husband, Paul, and other family members have been attending services at the temporary building, just south of the new church near Valparaiso, since 2012.
Fotopoulos, whose St. Iakovos church roots go back to when it was housed in a former church school, said she likes the parish because of what she termed 'small family vibes.'
The parish, at 36 West County Road 700 North, is home to about 140-150 families, according to the Rev. James Greanias, priest at St. Iakovos.
'It feels like home. It literally includes our family and church family,' Fotopoulos said.
His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros, head of the Greek Orthodox Church of North America, began the door-opening ceremony by telling those in attendance:
'You have labored long and hard to build this spiritual home inspired by the words of the prophet and King Solomon who said I have built the exalted house, a place to dwell forever,' Elpidophoros said.
Elpidophoros used his staff to knock on the sanctuary's outer door asking to be let in.
He blessed the congregants with holy water before chanting in Greek, quoting Psalms, 'Lift up the gates, O you rulers, and be lifted up, you everlasting doors, and the king of glory shall enter.'
From inside the church came this question: 'Who is the king of glory?'
'The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord powerful in battle. Lift up the gates, O you rulers, and be lifted up, you everlasting doors, and the King of glory shall enter,' Elpidophoros answered.
Greanias called the opening of St. Iakovos Greek Orthodox Church on Sunday a 'culmination of our founding families original dreams and goals.'
'It's the hard work and sacrifice and prayers of so many throughout the years and some very major donors who helped make it happen. The church is a result of everyone's hard work, prayers and giving,' Greanias said.
The newly completed church is a 32,000-square-foot brick Basilica-style building.
The Thyranoixia celebration was followed by Hierarchical Great Vespers as parishioners entered the church after first kissing the Iakovos church icon and making the sign of the cross.
Paul Spanopoulos came to church with his wife, Denise, to view first-hand the opening of the church that many of his family members, many deceased, had had a hand in founding.
'They are here in spirit…This was the work of many Orthodox parishioners and others and it's a very spiritual feeling and both heartwarming and heartfelt to see this happen,' Spanopoulos said.
Services continued on Sunday with Orthros beginning at 8:30 a.m. followed by the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy.
Also taking part in the two-day services were His Eminence Metropolitan Nathanael of Chicago, along with His Grace Bishop Timothy Hexamilion.
The congregation, which began celebrating services in 1981 at a former Methodist Church near Valparaiso University, moved temporarily in 2007 to the old St. Paul's School gymnasium.
The congregation has been at the present building, located south of the new church, since 2012.
Greanias said he was assigned 26 years ago by His Eminence to get ready to build the new church.
'I was able to fulfill my marching orders,' Greanias said.
He also finds it personally satisfying to note that his late father, the Rev. Louis Greanias, also was responsible for opening St. Demetrios Orthodox Church in Hammond in the 1950s.
'Two Father Greanias opened two churches: St. Demetrios and St. Iakovos,' he said.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Boston Globe

a day ago

• Boston Globe

Homes in Brockton, Newton that help bring the outside in

LOT SIZE 0.16 acre BEDROOMS 5 BATHS 2 full, 1 half LAST SOLD FOR $157,900 in 1999 PROS Enter this gabled, corner-lot 1925 Colonial with Victorian-style flourishes by way of an elegant foyer with hardwood floors. The spacious living room at right features bay windows and a gas fireplace, and the formal dining room beyond has a coffered ceiling. French doors lead to a heated sunroom with walls of casement windows plus access to the backyard and a garage with wood stove. The updated eat-in kitchen has quartz counters, stainless appliances, and two-toned Shaker cabinets; there's a half bath nearby, and a mudroom exits to the side porch. Up either staircase, four bedrooms (one with access to a walk-up attic room) share a roomy bath. The basement has laundry, a family room, bedroom, and bath. CONS No central air. Advertisement 43 Ash Street in Brockton Handout Sue Hays, Keller Williams, 508-259-5116, Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up $1,575,000 50 GROVE HILL PARK / NEWTON Sunroom of 50 Grove Hill Park in Newton. Handout SQUARE FEET 2,389 LOT SIZE 0.21 acre BEDROOMS 4 BATHS 2 LAST SOLD FOR $1,207,000 in 2016 PROS This 1921 Craftsman with hardwood floors is set on a tranquil cul-de-sac in Newtonville. From the sunroom entryway, French doors open to an inviting living room with stone fireplace, recessed lights and speakers, and built-in shelves. A breakfast bar splits the dining room from the open kitchen with Shaker cabinetry, double sink, stainless appliances, and granite counters. A nearby mudroom with pantry storage leads to a side patio and fenced yard. Past a bath, the primary bedroom connects to a heated sunroom with over a dozen swing-out windows and rich wood wainscoting. On the second floor, three more bedrooms share a newer bath with double vanity. There's a family room and laundry in the walk-out basement. CONS Shared driveway. Advertisement 50 Grove Hill Park in Newton Handout Noreen Boyce, Advisors Living, 617-749-5308, nboyce@

Los Angeles Times

2 days ago

• Los Angeles Times

Why does Thai Town love strawberry Fanta? The gods have the answer

I cannot shake the sense that Los Angeles is a city of supreme spiritual significance. Perhaps I feel that way because of what I see out of my car window. The estimated 15,953 religious organizations in the greater metro area take up quite a bit of real estate, after all. Or maybe it's that once this thought took hold, I noticed divinity showing up time after time in the aisles of grocery stores. At India Sweets and Spices, I'd pick up a bag of powdered tulsi leaves, only to learn that the tropical herb goes by another name: holy basil, considered a powerful Ayurvedic medicinal plant and a frequent sacred offering. At now-shuttered Papa Cristo's, I'd cock my head at a bag of buckwheat, unable to recall a Greek recipe that uses it, then discover koliva — sweetened wheat ornamentally adorned with dried fruit and nuts, prepared to honor the passing of a loved one. So imagine my simultaneous surprise and lack thereof when I learned the lore of Thai strawberry Fanta, known as Fanta nam daeng, or 'Fanta red water,' found at spirit houses. The small shrines — constructed outside of Thai restaurants, cafes, shops, homes and parks — honor spirits' claim to the land and provide them with a place to dwell. The red Fanta, almost always a spirit house offering, flows freely in Los Angeles, considering it is home to the most Thais outside of Thailand. My resounding 'Why?' is, I suppose, a fitting question considering the higher powers at play. The answer is, as it always seems to be, all but simple. In Thai culture, ghosts, broadly referred to as phi (ผี) are commonly believed in and tended to. The list of spirits is long, each with their own physical attributes, epic folklore and methods of appeasement. Much like those on this earthly plane, the way to a spirit's heart is through his or her stomach. The list of snack and drink offerings found at spirit houses is almost as long as the list of spirits themselves. At the spirit house outside of Silom Supermarket on Hollywood Boulevard, coconut water, rice, fruit, the fermented milk drink Yakult and desserts sprout up daily as if grown from the pavement below. But red Fanta is the most perennial of these offerings. Pip Paganelli, a cashier at Thai dessert shop Banh Kanom Thai, gives me an explanation. 'In the past when we would do offerings to ghosts, it would be an offering of blood,' he says. The bubbly strawberry nectar has since replaced animal sacrifice. He also posits that red Fanta toes the line of sickly sweetness and is beloved by ghosts because of just that. Most spirits have a sweet tooth, and will gladly gobble up fruits, sticky rice and coconut cakes. Some have other theories. 'Red soda specifically is for when you pray to the kid ghost,' Kira S., another Banh Kanom Thai employee (who preferred to provide only her first name), tells me. 'It's the spirit of a boy who's passed away. If you give him offerings like toys or red soda, you can ask for things.' She's speaking of Kuman Thong, a common household deity who can be of assistance when it comes to the protection of the home, help at school or, 'say I wanted a new phone from my mom, I'd pray for that.' An answer to the pressing question of 'Why Fanta?' is a bit fuzzier and most likely has to do with the giant soda brand's longtime presence in the Thai region. Coca-Cola, the beverage behemoth that sells its products, including Fanta, in more than 200 countries, did not respond to requests for comment. 'It can be any red drink, but the red Fanta is the most common,' Paganelli says. 'There are some gods where you'd offer any black drink, like Coca-Cola. It's a Thai Hindu belief that when there's an eclipse, the god that we believe slowly swallowed the moon has dark skin. So you'd offer any black drink, food or items.' Paganelli is referring to Phra Rahu, frequently depicted as a giant black creature, jaws eagerly wrapped around a glowing planet. Although Buddhism is the leading religion in Thailand, and by proxy Thai Town, the cultivation of spirit houses and the offerings that go along with them actually originates from animism mixed with Brahmanism (an early form of Hinduism), which subsequently made its way into Buddhist beliefs. Spirits can offer protection to homes and businesses, ensure a fruitful year or safeguard the health of friends and loved ones — a sip of the Champagne of fruit sodas lubricating these prayers of course. I encountered cases of the stuff at LAX-C, known to many as Thai Costco; saw it elegantly stacked at Bangluck Market; and at Silom it stood post next to the regional Thai flavor of Fanta 'green cream,' which tastes of bananas and citrus. However at Wat Thai, the massive Thai Bhuddist temple located in North Hollywood, I paced the lush red carpet puzzled to find a lack of soda with the same hue. It was then that I was pointed to the weekend food court, where a corner stall mixes up icy cups of Hale's Blue Boy with milk or sparkling water. Hales, a Thai concentrated syrup, comes in several flavors, including red-toned salak, or snake fruit. This, I'm told, does the trick. Belief system or sugar threshold aside, trips to L.A.'s Thai groceries should not be complete without a stop by their respective spirit houses, a welcome moment for reflection. Take a look at the daily offerings; in Los Angeles, the ingredients for pious pie grow abundantly, and they might just be right in front of you.

Business Insider

4 days ago

• Business Insider

At 14, I chose a high school based on my interests at the time. I regretted it for years.

"The scientific lyceum would be the perfect fit for you," my math teacher said. My Italian teacher disagreed. She noticed I was interested in writing, so she suggested the classical lyceum. Nevertheless, subjects like Latin and Greek, at the core of the classical lyceum, were anything but appealing to me. I felt confused and pulled in two different directions. I grew up in San Marino, the third-smallest country in Europe, landlocked by Italy. I had the option to attend high school in San Marino or Italy. In both countries, at around age 14 you have to pick a high school with fixed subjects, which would set you up for your later studies. At that time, I barely knew which dance style I wanted to learn that year, yet alone what I possibly wanted to do for the rest of my life. The choice wasn't easy There are three categories of high schools: lyceums, technical institutes, and professional institutes. Lyceums prepare students for a wider university choice, while the main goal of technical and professional institutes is giving students a more practical education. If you choose a lyceum, picking the perfect one can be burdensome. While the scientific and the classical lyceums are deemed as the best ones in preparing students for the toughest university degrees, you can choose something more specific, as I ended up doing. My parents let me choose freely, pointing out that if I realized I had made the wrong choice, it would be quite easy to change schools during the first year. After much consideration, I chose the high school of human sciences, following my own interests instead of my teachers' recommendations. In addition to the core subjects of Italian, English, and math, there were also courses in theater, Spanish, political economy, law, and social sciences for me to take. As a bonus, this high school didn't have lessons on Saturdays, as many others did, so my choice was finalized. My high school allowed me to pursue artistic interests For me, high school was easy compared to junior high. I was able to maintain high grades while cultivating artistic interests like playing the guitar and singing. While I enjoyed this, it did make me worry a bit about my future studies. When I was ready for college, would I be properly prepared if I wanted to pursue, say, a scientific degree? I wasn't sure. Please help BI improve our Business, Tech, and Innovation coverage by sharing a bit about your role — it will help us tailor content that matters most to people like you. What is your job title? (1 of 2) Entry level position Project manager Management Senior management Executive management Student Self-employed Retired Other Continue By providing this information, you agree that Business Insider may use this data to improve your site experience and for targeted advertising. By continuing you agree that you accept the Terms of Service and Privacy Policy . At some point, I realized that my focus on escaping the scientific versus classical dichotomy made me neglect considering other choices. As someone passionate about foreign languages and visiting new places, maybe the linguistic lyceum could have been the perfect place for me. Socially, I was concerned about my choice as well. As a shy person in a small school, I made a few friends, but I was the complete opposite of popular. I pondered if going to a bigger school would have meant more opportunities to find people with the same artistic and cultural passions. As you can see, my mind was all over the place and I was anxious about the decision I had made for a long time. After years of doubt, I have made peace with my choice In the end, I stayed at the high school I chose. I later attended University to get my bachelor's degree in information, media and advertising and later a master's in communication and information sciences. Today I am a writer, with a background in copywriting and social media planning. My high school prepared me adequately for my life and I'm at peace with the choice I had to make as a 14-year-old. It took me a long time to completely shake off the feeling that I could have made a different choice. Therapy was helpful to reaffirm that choosing at such a young age is challenging and I made the best choice for me at the time. Nowadays, I am proud of sticking to my guns and being guided by my interests and not what other people thought I should do.