| Chapter 12.– Whether the Fire that Came Down Out of Heaven and Devoured Them Refers to the Last Punishment of the Wicked. The words, And fire came down out of heaven and devoured them, are not to be understood of the final punishment which shall be inflicted when it is said, Depart from me, you cursed, into everlasting fire; Matthew 25:41 for then they shall be cast into the fire, not fire come down out of heaven upon them. In this place fire out of heaven is well understood of the firmness of the saints, wherewith they refuse to yield obedience to those who rage against them. For the firmament is heaven, by whose firmness these assailants shall be pained with blazing zeal, for they shall be impotent to draw away the saints to the party of Antichrist. This is the fire which shall devour them, and this is from God; for it is by God " s grace the saints become unconquerable, and so torment their enemies. For as in a good sense it is said, The zeal of Your house has consumed me, so in a bad sense it is said, Zeal has possessed the uninstructed people, and now fire shall consume the enemies. Isaiah 26:11 And now, that is to say, not the fire of the last judgment. Or if by this fire coming down out of heaven and consuming them, John meant that blow wherewith Christ in His coming is to strike those persecutors of the Church whom He shall then find alive upon earth, when He shall kill Antichrist with the breath of His mouth, 2 Thessalonians 2:8 then even this is not the last judgment of the wicked; but the last judgment is that which they shall suffer when the bodily resurrection has taken place. Chapter 13.– Whether the Time of the Persecution or Antichrist Should Be Reckoned in the Thousand Years. This last persecution by Antichrist shall last for three years and six months, as we have already said, and as is affirmed both in the book of Revelation and by Daniel the prophet. Though this time is brief, yet not without reason is it questioned whether it is comprehended in the thousand years in which the devil is bound and the saints reign with Christ, or whether this little season should be added over and above to these years. |
| —But many people these days talk about just such negative experiences… —It has become bon ton in certain Orthodox circles to say that a person has " over-prayed " : he reads a prayer rule, canons, kathismas, and is just too pious. This is pronounced like a diagnosis. But we are taking the role of judge upon ourselves, for the most part not out of an abundance of spiritual discernment, but rather out of our own weak faith, slothfulness, and self-love. Out of self-defense, our lazy comfort consciously paints a picture of some Feropont from Brothers Karamazov—do you remember that cruel and foolish ascetic of Dostoevsky's? You know, there is great danger in the fact that we eagerly over-emphasize and exaggerate such morbid instances, and use them, unnoticeably to ourselves, to defend our laziness and indifference. In general, such pernicious generalizations and wrongful stereotypes are circulating more and more in church spheres: if old ladies are church-goers, then they're mean witches; if they are young people, then they have complexes; if they are adults, then they are unlucky in life; if they are altar attendants, then they have abandoned their families for the sake of the church; if they are monks, then they are money-grabbers and reprobates. —But this does happen to be the case sometimes… —Who would argue? You can't say that it never happens, that it's not true. However, why should you use a stubbornness worthy of better application to convince yourself and others that such a state of affairs is particular to our Church? I once took a tour through Orthodox forums, and I was simply put out by how cynically and viciously Orthodox people, who consider themselves quite educated in religious matters, relate not only to the clergy, whom they disdain utterly, but even to the most pious laypeople. —They say, " Orthodoxized " and " Orthodoxy of the brain " … —These terms, I'm afraid, have not come from somewhere out there, but from within Orthodox spheres. Only one of " our own " could jab with such sophistication. Nevertheless, these phrases have gained enthusiastic popularity in our midst. This is a truly alarming phenomenon in our Christian community. Furthermore, we ourselves gradually begin to look at ourselves and at those around us through a prism of such humiliating descriptions. |
| 267 Power of expulsion Mommsen objected to the suggestion in the account of Paul’s adventures at Philippi that the local magistrates, in ordering the release of Paul and Silas, ordered their expulsion from the city. 268 This implies that they possessed something akin to the governor’s power of relegatio, expulsion from the province. The wording of Acts does not quite bear out Mommsen’s interpretation. ‘Do they now secretly cast us out? Let them come in person and escort us out of the city.’ The original message given by the gaoler was: ‘The magistrates have ordered your release. Now come out and go in peace.’ Finally the magistrates came in person and begged Paul and Silas to leave the city. Mommsen is too sharp with the author here. Doubtless the local magistrates, far from the eye of authority, were capable of exceeding their powers. The Sardinian affair showed the difficulty with which governors enforced the respect for law on local authorities in other provinces. 269 In Pliny’s Letters to Trajan there are other examples of the violation of municipal statutes and proconsular edicts by civic authorities. 270 But the only precise parallel to the affair at Philippi comes from a late source, the Sententiae Pauli, on the treatment of itinerant seers or soothsayers, ‘Primum fustibus caesi civitate pelluntur’. ‘The custom is to give them a beating and drive them out of the city.’ Only if they persist are they formally put on trial. 271 But this usage cannot be brought down, in evidence, to an earlier age. CIVIC INDICTMENTS AND CIVIC GOVERNMENTS The affair at Philippi is more revealing. 275 It is the first clash between the apostles and non-Jewish interests involving the ordinary citizens of a commune, which was in fact a Roman colony. Hence it is natural that the clash takes the form, not of a riot, as at Iconium or Antioch, where the quarrel was within the Jewish community, but of a formal indictment before the municipal magistrates. The power of local magistrates to administer limited personal punishments has already been discussed. |
| During the pogroms in 2008 in India, 500 Christians were killed. The opposition Hindu nationalist party ‘The Bharataya Janata Party’ (BJP), which actually controls several states, has waged an active war against Christianity. On February 20 and 21, 2011, a wave of clashes between extremists and the Christian minority swamped Batala in the state of Punjab. Members of Christian communities in India continue to be attacked by organized groups of radical Hindus. In 2011 in India, there were 2141 registered cases of violence against Christians. According to the report presented by the Catholic Secular Forum, attacks on Christian by extremist Hindu groups are taking place at present in almost all the states of India. The authors of the report assume that the real number of cases of anti-Christian violence in India which took place last years must be three times as many. The statistics they presented is based on the information publicized by the mass media. In 2012, new cases of discrimination against Christians and attacks on Christian educational institutions were registered in India. Early in February, about 100 Hindu radicals attacked the campus of the Jesuit University of St. Joseph in Anekal near Bangalore, Karnataka state. I should address the causes of the growing persecution of Christians in recent years. Since your schooldays you remember that the causes of the persecution of Christians in old times can be divided in the three groups: social, religious and political.To a considerable extent these causes have remained the same, with certain reservations. We understand by social causes the poorly motivated hatred of the crowd. Heathen writers and Christian apologists unanimously testify that the emergence and spreading of Christianity was met by the population of the Roman Empire with unanimous hatred on the part of both the lower strata of the society and the educated class. ‘What damage do we do to you, Hellenes? Why do you hate us like the most out-and-out scoundrels who follow the word of God?’ Tertullian questioned. ‘How many times the mob hostile to us has attacked us, thrown stones and burnt our houses. They do not spare Christians, even dead ones, pulling out dead bodies from coffins to abuse them, to tear them to pieces’, cried out this Christian writer of the 3d century. The hatred of the throng towards Christians grew especially at times of social troubles. In some sense, the events repeat themselves since the psychology of the crowd, if this crows is consumed with hysteria, does not change whatever the religion those who make up the crowd may be. The crowd needs an enemy to take it out on him; the otherness of Christians excited and excites the hatred of ‘this world’. |
| And for the same reason it is said, as I have already quoted, by this same prophet, The earth of the wicked shall fall. It is obvious that those translators who use a different word for men do not mean to include only males, for no one will say that the women who sinned shall not appear in that judgment; but the male sex, being the more worthy, and that from which the woman was derived, is intended to include both sexes. But that which is especially pertinent to our subject is this, that since the words All flesh shall come, apply to the good, for the people of God shall be composed of every race of men – for all men shall not be present, since the greater part shall be in punishment – but, as I was saying, since flesh is used of the good, and members or carcasses of the bad, certainly it is thus put beyond a doubt that that judgment in which the good and the bad shall be allotted to their destinies shall take place after the resurrection of the body, our faith in which is thoroughly established by the use of these words. But in what way shall the good go out to see the punishment of the wicked? Are they to leave their happy abodes by a bodily movement, and proceed to the places of punishment, so as to witness the torments of the wicked in their bodily presence? Certainly not; but they shall go out by knowledge. For this expression, go out, signifies that those who shall be punished shall be without. And thus the Lord also calls these places the outer darkness, Matthew 25:30 to which is opposed that entrance concerning which it is said to the good servant, Enter into the joy of your Lord, that it may not be supposed that the wicked can enter there and be known, but rather that the good by their knowledge go out to them, because the good are to know that which is without. For those who shall be in torment shall not know what is going on within in the joy of the Lord; but they who shall enter into that joy shall know what is going on outside in the outer darkness. Therefore it is said, They shall go out, because they shall know what is done by those who are without. |
| In the first half of 2020, there was no significant difference in the dynamics of RSV and influenza in the northern hemisphere. Restrictive measures in most countries began to be introduced after the cold season began to decline. But Australia closed borders, obliged people to limit contact, introduced mandatory wearing of masks, home schooling and remote work just in the middle of spring, when the cold season begins in the southern hemisphere. But unexpectedly, it never appeared in 2020. As Australian epidemiologists found out , the number of influenza infections fell by 99.4%, RSV – by 98%. Considering that during the pandemic, doctors tested patients with respiratory symptoms much more often than in previous years, this decrease cannot be explained by the insufficient volume of analyzes – there were just noticeably more analyzes than usual. The obvious reason for the disappearance of influenza and RSV is general quarantines, masks and a ban on mass gatherings and unnecessary contacts, in general. The example of geographically isolated Australia clearly showed that these measures work perfectly not only against SARS-CoV-2, but also against respiratory viruses in general. By September 2020, there were no intra-community transmissions of the coronavirus in the country, so the measures began to gradually loosen up. And then the most interesting thing occurred. Since the end of September – that is, in the middle of the Australian spring – there has been a sharp increase in the number of RSV cases on the mainland. Another article , published by Australian epidemiologists, provided data on RSV up to the end of December – and the number of reported cases had already exceeded the usual peak of RSV, which in Australia occurs in mid-July, and there is no sign of slowing down. Moreover, another parameter of RSV epidemics has radically changed. It is the age of the sick. Usually, the bulk of patients who come to the attention of doctors because of the virus are babies from 7 to 12.5 months. In 2020, the average age of children with detected RSV turned out to be much higher – 18.4 months. |
| It should be pointed out that even before the independence of Ukraine was declared, the Russian Orthodox Church in October 1990 granted independence in governance to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church. The status, which the Ukrainian Church received at that time and enjoys to this day, provides for full independence in all its internal affairs including the election and consecration of bishops, establishment and abolishment of dioceses, canonization of saints and many other things. At the same time, according to this status, the self-governed Church in Ukraine preserves spiritual unity with the Moscow Patriarchate. But even this unity with the Russian Church, which does not presuppose any administration from Moscow, was rejected by not numerous but very active nationalistic groups. Having adopted their rhetoric, the Ukrainian authorities set themselves the task to obtain autocephaly for the Ukrainian Church. The implementation of this plan appeared not easy in a situation when a majority of the episcopate, clergy and laity of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church did not support the idea of autocephaly. However, the authorities of the country soon found an ally in the person of then Metropolitan Philaret (Denisenko) of Kiev and All Ukraine. For Metropolitan Philaret, the prospect of becoming the head of an autocephalous Church was attractive for at least two reasons. First, it met his power ambitions since, as the locum tenens of the Patriarchal throne and one of the most obvious candidates in the 1990 Patriarchal elections, he still failed to become Primate of the Russian Church due to the least number of votes for him. At the same time, Philaret was aware of his shaky situation as many Ukrainian bishops and clergy were dissatisfied with his dictatorial manner of governance, and there were even more of those who heard about the Metropolitan of Kiev’s private life incompatible with the monastic vows. The status of Primate of an autocephalous Ukrainian Church was seen by Philaret as a guarantee of immunity and life-long ruling and gave hope for becoming eventually the Patriarch, though not that of Moscow but of Kiev. |
| Particularly, Open Doors, through its “Free to Believe” campaign, is rallying concerned Americans to press their representatives to reach out to countries that abstained from last year's GA vote on the resolution. Countries that abstained included Belize, Brazil, Cameroon, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ghana, Guatemala, and Zambia. Open Doors is also targeting countries that voted “yes” last year but are not member states of the OIC, which boasts itself as the second largest inter-governmental organization in the world after the United Nations and claims to represent “the collective voice of the Muslim world.” Presently, OIC's member states and allies have a majority in the 47-nation U.N. Human Rights Council, but if nations such as the Dominican Republic and Thailand change their " yes " votes to " no " this year and are joined by some of those who abstained in 2009, a defeat of the resolution is possible. “It is important to encourage key countries to change their vote on the resolution,” Open Doors noted. “These countries are not easily influenced by American citizens. But, they are more receptive to pressure from our legislators. That’s why Open Doors is urging persons to send a message to their legislators, asking him or her to ask key countries to change their vote on the Defamation of Religions Resolution,” the watchdog group added. According to Open Doors, an estimated 100 million Christians worldwide suffer interrogation, arrest and even death for their faith in Christ, with millions more facing discrimination and alienation. Christians in Muslim-dominated countries, especially, are facing increased persecution. Over the last few weeks churches in Indonesia have been attacked and forced to close and a mob of Pakistani Muslim extremists shot and beat dozens of Christians, including one cleared earlier of “blasphemy” charges. As part of its campaign, Open Doors has launched a website on which it has provided a sample letter for people to send that includes the necessary information for elected officials to lobby the target U.N. country missions. |
| It happened in the late 1960’s. As everyone knew, all citizens of the Soviet Union were supposed to participate in the elections. They brought a ballot box to the monastery and placed it in the refectory, where the brothers dropped their votes, grumbling, after the mid-day meal, under the Superior’s observation—rendering to Caesar that which is Caesar’s. Well, somehow the first secretary of the Pskov regional committee of the Communist Party found out that some ignorant monks had been allowed the ridiculous privilege of voting for the invincible block of communists and nonpartisans in their very own historically outdated monastery, and not at the polling station. The first secretary of the Pskov regional committee of the Communist Party was full of disdain, and castigated his inferiors mercilessly for such condescension toward a non-laboring element. He then commanded speedily that henceforth and forevermore, the black-robes shall come to vote for the Supreme Soviet of the USSR like all other soviet people—at their local polling station, according to their place of residence! It was then that Fr. Nathaniel whispered in the ear of the Father Superior that extraordinarily subtle advice. On election day (and this was on a Sunday), after the festal Liturgy, the monks solemnly processed through the monastery gates. Two by two, in an extensive line, heartily singing the troparia, the monks processed through the entire town to the polling station. Heavy religious banners furled over their heads, crosses and ancient icons were born at the fore, in the usual ecclesiastical manner. But that was not all. Just as before any important work, the clergy began by serving a moleben, right there in the polling hall. The mortally frightened bureaucrats tried to protest, but Fr. Alipy sternly cut them off, ordering them not to obstruct citizens in the fulfillment of their constitutional duty as their custom dictates. After casting their ballots, the brothers then returned to the monastery in the same solemn procession. |
| The US-backed Kiev aviation authorities re-directed international passenger airlines to fly over war zones bristling with anti-aircraft missiles while Kiev’s jets bombed the rebellious cities and towns. One flight was shot down and nearly 300 civilians perished. Immediately an explosion of accusations from Kiev blaming Russian President Putin flooded Western media with no real facts to explain the tragedy/crime. War-crazy President Obama and the slavering prime ministers of the EU ejaculated ultimatums, threatening to convert Russia into a pariah state. ‘Sanctions, sanctions, everywhere . . . but first… France must complete its billion sale to the Russian navy.’ And the City of London exempts the Russian oligarchs from the ‘sanctions’, embedded as they are in London’s money-laundering, parasitical FIRE (Fire, Insurance and Real Estate) economy. The Cold War has returned and has taken an ugly turn… with exceptions…for business. Confrontation among nuclear powers is imminent: And the maniacal Baltic States and Poland bray the loudest for war with Russia, oblivious to their positions on the front lines of incineration… Each day Israel’s war machine chews up more bodies of Gaza’s children while spitting out more lies. Cheering Israeli Jews perch on their fortified hills to celebrate each missile strike on the apartments and schools in the densely populated Shejaiya neighborhood of besieged Gaza. A group of orthodox and secular entrepreneurs in Brooklyn have organized group tours to visit the Holy Sites by day and enjoy the Gaza pyrotechnics by night . . . night goggles to view the fleeing mothers and burning children are available at a small extra charge… Again the US Senate votes unanimously in support of Israel’s latest campaign of mass murder – no crime is depraved enough to ruffle the scruples of America’s leaders. They hew close to a script from the 52 Presidents of the Major American Jewish Organizations. Together they embrace a Beast from the Apocalypse gnawing on the flesh and bones of Palestine. |
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