| Эта проблема привлекла к себе внимание Европейского суда по правам человека (ЕСПЧ) в Страсбурге, который начал расследование по семи жалобам родителей, у которых отняты дети ( ). «Разноликая любовь» - как основа политики Норвегии Основой политики современного норвежского государства является так называемая «идеология гендерного равенства», которая де-факто признает право педофилов «на любовь». Это отрицается юридически. Но фактически эта идеология признает, что в половом отношении все имеют право на всё. Даже Норвежская лютеранская церковь в апреле этого года приняла «историческое решение» венчать однополые браки и написать для этого специальную церковную службу ( ). В условиях такого «полного раскрепощения» остается только делом времени, когда педофилия в Норвегии будет официально узаконена. Норвежское государство - от детских садов и школ до госучреждений - буквально пропитано духом «нетрадиционной любви». Сторонники традиционной семьи в меньшинстве и боятся поднять свой голос. Да и как возразишь, если центральная и местные власти принимают обязывающие документы в защиту прав секс-меньшинств типа «плана действий борьбы против дискриминации» гей-сообщества, который утвердили власти коммуны города Берген ( ). В этом документе, который я взял лишь в качестве одного из многочисленных примеров, говорится, что «школе, как месту, которое охватывает детей и молодежь, отводится важная роль в качестве распространителя этих знаний и отношений». Что могут сделать сторонники традиционной семьи, если посты в высших эшелонах власти Норвегии занимают лица, открыто признающие себя «геями», но при этом, как сказано выше, скорее всего педофилы. В мае 2008 года (то есть, в период премьерства того же Й.Столтенберга, при котором трудился О.Люсбаккен) в Музее истории культуры в Осло состоялась презентация книги " Gay kids - Kule barn som også finnes " - «Дети-геи - особые дети, которые тоже существуют» ( для редакции - см. фото ). В этой книге собраны детские фото и воспоминания ведущих норвежских политических и государственных деятелей, которые определили себя как геи с раннего возраста ). Среди них - бывший министр финансов Пер-Кристиан Фосс (Per-Kristian Foss), известная на всю страну ЛГБТ-активистка Карен-Кристин Фриеле (Karen-Christine Friele), директор Норвежского совета по культуре Анне Осхейм (Anne Åsheim), председатель городского правительства Осло Эрлинг Лае (Erling Lae) и многие другие. |
| Ап. Павел ( 2Кор.5:18–19 ; Кол.1:20–22 ; Еф.2:15–16 ). Мы изложили правильное понимание догмата Искупления, как оно вытекает из основных источников христианского учения. Обратимся теперь к голосу Вселенской Православной Церкви времен послеапостольских. Здесь прежде всего мы остановимся на творениях мужей Апостольских, как воспринявших благовестие Христово непосредственно от св. Апостолов. Мы знаем, что мужи Апостольские в своих творениях писали лишь о том, что требовалось современной им жизнью Церкви. В то время вопрос об искуплении не дебатировался, и потому они не писали специально об искуплении. В их творениях мы находим лишь отдельные мысли о значении Голгофской жертвы. Однако и по ним можно выяснить достаточно подробный и точный взгляд мужей Апостольских на Искупление. Так, у св. Ап. Варнавы (†72 г.) читаем, что Он, Христос, облекся плотию для того, чтобы ее – этот сосуд Своего Духа принесть в Жертву за наши грехи, предать его на смерть (Epist. s. Barn. с. 5, 7). Св. Климент, епископ Римский (†101 г.) пишет: Иисус Христос сделался плотию для нашего спасения (2 Соч., 19)… Он дал Кровь Свою за нас и плоть Свою за плоть нашу и душу Свою за души наши (1 Соч., 47)… драгоценна пред Богом Кровь Его, которая была пролита для нашего спасения (1 Соч., 7)… Он стал Первосвященником наших приношений, заступником и помощником в помощи нашей (1 Соч., 36). Св. Игнатий Богоносец говорит епископу Поликарпу: Ожидает Того, Кто выше времени, безвременного, невидимого, но для нас сделавшегося видимым… для нас подвергшегося страданию, все ради нас претерпевшего (Ad Ephes., 15)… Он Самого Себя принес за нас в приношение и жертву Богу (Ephes., 1)... Он стал Спасителем нашим и Первосвященником, Которому вверено Святое Святых (Philad., с. 9). Св. Поликарп, епископ Смирнский, повествует: Он, будучи вечным Первосвященником, явился во плоти… грехи наши вознес на Теле Своем на крест, претерпел за нас самую смерть… и чрез то даровал нам спасение, не но делам нашим, но по воле Божией (de Philip с. |
| Но как Бог реагирует на вражду к Нему человека, об этом св. Иоанн Златоуст многократно повествует в своих творениях, где говорит о наказаниях от Бога на грешников, о гневе Божием на согрешающих и т. п.!.. И впервые Сам Бог дал возмездие первым людям за их вражду к Нему, проявленную в нарушении Его заповеди. Он изгнал их из рая. Они были отчуждены от древа жизни и внесли в мир смерть. О примирении нас с Богом, во Христе, в Его Голгофской жертве, особенно повествует св. Ап. Павел (2 Кор. 5:18—19; Кол. 1:20—22; Еф. 2:15—16). Мы изложили правильное понимание догмата Искупления, как оно вытекает из основных источников христианского учения. Обратимся теперь к голосу Вселенской Православной Церкви времен послеапостольских. Здесь прежде всего мы остановимся на творениях мужей Апостольских, как воспринявших благовестие Христово непосредственно от св. Апостолов. Мы знаем, что мужи Апостольские в своих творениях писали лишь о том, что требовалось современной им жизнью Церкви. В то время вопрос об искуплении не дебатировался, и потому они не писали специально об искуплении. В их творениях мы находим лишь отдельные мысли о значении Голгофской жертвы. Однако и по ним можно выяснить достаточно подробный и точный взгляд мужей Апостольских на Искупление. Так, у св. Ап. Варнавы (†72 г.) читаем, что Он, Христос, облекся плотию для того, чтобы ее — этот сосуд Своего Духа принесть в Жертву за наши грехи, предать его на cмepmь (Epism. s. Barn. с. 5, 7). Св. Климент, епископ Римский (†101 г.) пишет: Иисус Христос сделался плотию для нашего спасения (2 Соч., 19)… Он дал Кровь Свою за нас и плоть Свою за плоть нашу и душу Свою за души наши (1 Соч., 47)… драгоценна пред Богом Кровь Его, которая была пролита для нашего спасения (1 Соч., 7)… Он стал Первосвященником наших приношений, заступником и помощником в помощи нашей (1 Соч., 36). Св. Игнатий Богоносец говорит епископу Поликарпу: Ожидает Того, Кто выше времени, безвременного, невидимого, но для нас сделавшегося видимым… для нас подвергшегося страданию, все ради нас npemepnebшero (Ad Ephes., 15)… Он Самого Себя принес за нас в приношение и жертву Богу« (Ephes., 1).. Он стал Спасителем нашим и Первосвященником, Которому вверено Святое Cbяmыx (Philad., с. |
| He was getting frustrated. He got behind them and tried to shoo them toward the barn, but they only became more frightened and scattered in every direction except toward the barn. Nothing he did could get them to go into the barn where they would be warm and safe. “Why don’t they follow me?!” he exclaimed. “Can’t they see this is the only place where they can survive the storm?” He thought for a moment and realized that they just wouldn’t follow a human. “If only I were a goose, then I could save them,” he said out loud. Then he had an idea. He went into the barn, got one of his own geese, and carried it in his arms as he circled around behind the flock of wild geese. He then released it. His goose flew through the flock and straight into the barn—and one by one, the other geese followed it to safety. He stood silently for a moment as the words he has spoken a few minutes earlier replayed in his mind: “If only I were a goose, then I could save them!” Then he thought about what he had said to his wife earlier. “Why would God want to be like us? That’s ridiculous!” Suddenly it all made sense. That is what God had done. We were like the geese…blind, lost, perishing. God had His Son become like us so He could show us the way and save us from the storm of sin and self-destruction. As the winds and blinding snow died down, his soul became quiet as he pondered this wonderful thought. Suddenly he understood why Christ had come. He now understood Christmas. Years of doubt and disbelief vanished with the passing storm. He fell to his knees in the snow, and prayed his first prayer: “Thank you, God, for coming in human form to get me out of the storm!” Indeed nothing is voiceless in the world. God hears always in all created beings His echo and His Voice. Fr. Bakas is dean of Saint Sophia Cathedral, Los Angeles, and a faculty member of Loyola Marymount University School of Theology. Source: Orthodox Observer, December 2011 Tweet Donate Share Code for blog “Jesus and the Geese at Christmas” |
| There was once a man who didn’t believe in God, and he didn’t hesitate to let others know how he felt about religion and religious holidays. His wife, however, did believe, and she raised their children to also have faith in Jesus Christ the only begotten Son of God, despite his disparaging comments. One snowy and windy Christmas day, his wife was taking their children to church in the farm community in which they lived. They were to talk about Jesus’ birth. She asked him to come, but he refused. “That story is nonsense!” he said. “Why would God lower Himself to come to Earth as a man? That’s ridiculous!” So she and the children left, and he stayed home. A while later, the winds grew stronger and the snow turned into a blizzard. As the man looked out the window all he saw was a blinding snowstorm. Then he heard a loud thump. Something had hit the window. He looked out, but couldn’t see more than a few feet. When the snow let up a little, he ventured outside to see what could have been beating on his window. In the field near his house he saw a flock of wild geese. They were flying south for the winter when they got caught in the snowstorm. They were just lost and stranded on his farm with no food or shelter, just flapping flapping their wings and flying around in low circles, blindly and aimlessly. The man felt sorry for the geese and wanted to help them. The barn would be a great place for them to stay, he thought. It’s warm and safe; surely they could spend the day and wait out the storm. So he walked over to the barn and opened the doors wide, then watched and waited, hoping they would notice the open barn and go inside. But the geese just fluttered around aimlessly and didn’t seem to notice the barn or realize what it could mean for them. The man tried to get their attention, but that just seemed to scare them and they moved further away. He went into the house and came with some bread, broke it up, and made a bread crumb trail leading to the barn. They still didn’t catch on. |
| Every evil, and every natural disaster that has happened throughout history, is the result of the human ignorance or disobedience to God’s teachings. This may surprise us, and be hard for some of us to understand. But there is a spiritual connection between human sins and the natural order of the world. Science can not show or explain this connection. However, the science of ecology does indicate the destructive results on nature caused by selfish human decisions. Some people ask, “Why doesn’t God just take away human freedom and force us to live by His teachings, and therefore stop all the evil?” If He did, human beings would become just another species of animal (maybe something like talking chimpanzees without fur), and that is not what God wanted when He created us. Human disobedience to God increased as time went by, and it became harder and harder for people to even know the difference between good and evil. Death became the earthly destiny of every human being, and every day became a struggle to control the fear of death, since our strongest desire is to live forever. Human beings became trapped in an evil situation, and could not by themselves escape no matter what or how hard they tried. The more they ignored God, the more they forgot about His teachings. The more they forgot about His teachings, the more disobedient they became. And the more disobedient they became, the more bad things happened. Now I want to tell you a little story that I heard a long time ago. I don’t remember where I heard it, but I have never forgotten this story, and it has a special meaning for us. I don’t remember it all, but it goes something like this: There once was a farmer who had a new barn on his farm. One day a big flock of birds, apparently flying south for the winter, all landed in his barnyard. It was evening and a big storm was blowing in. It got so bad that the flock of birds was in great danger. The farmer became concerned about the welfare of the birds and he went out and opened the barn doors and then tried to shoo the flock of birds into his barn where they would be safe. But the birds would not go in. They were frightened of him as well as the storm, and so would just scatter around the barnyard and become more and more in danger. After many tries at shooing the birds in, the farmer became so concerned that he prayed to God: “O Heavenly Father, please turn me into one of those birds and make me their leader so that I can lead them into my barn where they will be safe from all harm.” |
| About Pages Проекты «Правмира» Raising Orthodox Children to Orthodox Adulthood The Daily Website on How to be an Orthodox Christian Today Twitter Telegram Parler RSS Donate Navigation Christ Has No Place in This World Now Either Igumen Peter (Meshcherinov) 26 December 2013 An Interview with Igumen Peter (Meshcherinov) Question: The circumstances in which Christ was born were, from a worldly point of view, dreadful. No accommodations were found for His Mother, let alone a midwife. The child was born in winter in a cave with animals – equivalent to being born today in an unheated basement with cats. Why did God allow such extremes for His new-born Son? Is there some hidden meaning in this? After all, even the average birth in such conditions is not as dramatic. Igumen Peter: Every Nativity, after the night Liturgy in our tiny village church, I go to the cow barn. It smells bad, it’s hot and dirty, and the mindless cows stand and chew their cud… it was in such completely unromantic conditions (and not in a puppet-like “manger,” sleek and glossy) that Christ was born. No place was found for the pregnant young woman in the inn, so she had to go to a barn to give birth. You ask whether there is some hidden meaning here. In Christianity, there is nothing hidden; everything is obvious. But of course there is meaning, clear and very rich meaning. In one of the hymns of Nativity it says: Heaven, calling the Magi by a star, brought the first fruits of the nations to Thee, an Infant lying in a manger; scepters and thrones did not astonish them, but utter poverty; for what is meaner than a cave, what humbler than swaddling clothes? In which there shone forth the wealth of Thy Divinity. O Lord glory be to Thee! (Hypakoe, 3 rd Ode) The fallen world has its own values: “scepters and thrones”; the majority of people lives according to these values, according to the elements of this world. Christ emphatically rejects these values. He, from the very beginning of His life on earth, acts contrary to that which the world values: he becomes the son not of an Emperor, but of a carpenter; He is born not in a palace or even, as you said, in average conditions, but in a barn of all places, in “dire poverty.” And the people who come to Him are not those whom the world considers notable, important, respectable, or authoritative. In modern language: neither presidents nor ministers; neither film directors nor church hierarchs; neither security forces nor actors; neither businessmen nor athletes; neither pop and rock singers nor priests. Those who come to worship the newborn Savior are pagan wise men – from who knows where – and simple shepherds. Here, too, there’s nothing romantic: imagine strange modern people searching for the truth in some sort of Himalayas; whereas ancient shepherds and herders I can imagine very well. |
| And this is the very first good tiding that our Lord gives us. What joy and freedom there is in this! All that the world considers great, significant, and valuable is of absolutely no significance before God – and this is the best case scenario; the Gospel is much harsher: that which is highly esteemed amongst men is abomination in the sight of God (Luke 16:15). What happiness it is to learn that God needs neither position, nor status, nor fortune, nor honor, nor rank – but only you, whoever you are! And not only to learn this, but to be convinced of it in deed, to see with one’s own eyes: God lying in a barn! They found no place for Him in the inn. And we shouldn’t delude ourselves. There isn’t any place for Him in the world now, either. Even now, this terrible situation, as you characterized it in your question, is more than relevant; in fact, it’s relevant above all for us, Orthodox Christians. In the very event of the Nativity, there is a strong and painful question for every Christian, and for the entire Church: Where are you? Where are all of us? Are we in the same inn of this world, which Mary and the Child pass by because there is no room? Or are we in the barn with the Savior and the most unexpected people: heathen and commoners? Here one of the most dangerous temptations for the Orthodox is on display: a temptation that we, in my opinion, are experiencing at the present time. In the heads and hearts of quite a few Orthodox there is a certain “backlash” following the period of persecution, which says that the Orthodox should have authority, power, wealth, importance, influence, and prestige. It almost isn’t noticed that all this is very ambiguous and dangerous; it’s like a thin boundary beyond which church life begins to follow the elements of this world! So when an Orthodox Christian begins to occupy himself with his importance, wealth, influence, and prestige, then he absolutely needs to run as quickly as possible into a poor barn, have a look, and remind himself: it is here, in the feeding trough, that there is the only power of faith, its only authority, power, riches, influence, and prestige. And, I think, it was so that we’d never forget this that God allowed His Son to be born in such an extreme situation. |
| About Pages Проекты «Правмира» Raising Orthodox Children to Orthodox Adulthood The Daily Website on How to be an Orthodox Christian Today Twitter Telegram Parler RSS Donate Navigation “Awake, Though That Sleepest”: On the Foolish Rich Man Archpriest Alexander Men (+1990) 30 November 2014 And He spoke a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully. And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said, This will I do, I will pull down my barns, and build greater, and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years, take thy ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich towards God” (Luke 12:16-21). The Parable of the Rich Fool by Rembrandt, 1627. In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit! The Gospel parable of the foolish rich man seems to us strange and incomprehensible at first: it would seem that there was nothing bad in someone who had a rich harvest building himself another barn where he could store his grain. He could not cast it outside, where the grain would rot in the rain and would be good for no one. It was probably not the rich man’s mistake that he built a barn and there put all the collected bags of harvest, but rather that he felt himself confident in the future, because he had extra. After all, he told himself: “Well, eat, drink, and be merry; everything will be well now.” But the Lord said to him: “Fool! This very night your soul will be taken from you.” The man thought one thing, but something else was inscribed for him. But this is still not the meaning of the parable. Anyone can die suddenly, but that does not mean that he should throw away all his concerns. When one plants a tree, can one be certain that one will live to see how it grows and gives forth fruit? But nonetheless we plant it; nonetheless we labor. This means that this man’s primary mistake, his sin, was that he settled down, grew confident, and told himself: “Eat, drink, and be merry.” He did not think that human labor is that which needs to be done for others; it is above all laboring for others. On the day that he finished his building, he did not even think about doing anything else for other people. He thought that his riches were given to him so that he could eat, drink, and be merry. |
| Visitors may tour the construction site and new sanctuary, meet the clergy and learn more about the Russian Orthodox Church from 1 to 5 p.m. Friday and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday. Russian food will be served and the St. Innocent choir will perform both days. Cardoza has waited 20 years to build a new church on the 2.5-acre wooded plot just south of Rogue River. In 2008, the original St. Innocent chapel — a converted barn — was dismantled to make way for the temple. Archbishop Kyrill of San Francisco, the ruling bishop of the Western America Diocese, consecrated the site and the cornerstone was laid. During the recession, the building project came to a screeching halt. There were no organized fundraisers or pleas for financial support of the project originally estimated between and Over the years, financial contributions, donated materials and volunteer labor came in “as hearts were touched.” In the meantime, 30 to 35 parishioners regularly traveled 11 miles to worship at St. Catherine’s Russian Orthodox Church, a converted barn on Cardoza’s Wimer property. The seven-year wait was a test of faith. “Our church is literally built on faith,” says Polina Leiser, a parishioner who with her husband, Patrick, has served on the building committee. “We started when we had no money. “Behind this beautiful building are many years of intense prayers and hard work, tears and disappointments. Building a church without funds is stressful, and I know it’s been very hard on Father (Cardoza) … but he keeps going anyway. He just prays, puts God first, and encourages us to keep moving forward.” In 2015, the church received several sizable donations to break ground and begin construction. The church’s temple foundation of 80 feet by 35 feet was poured, and the 10-foot walls of the church’s basement fellowship hall erected in late 2015. At nearly 2,200 square feet, the church will be almost four times the size of the original St. Innocent church. The tallest point of the church — a gold-plated dome and cross — will reach approximately 34 feet. |
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