| Metropolitan of Belarus urges Instigators of the Ukrainian crisis to remember the Last Judgment Minsk, April 21, 2014 Head of the Belarusian Orthodox Church Metropolitan Paul of Minsk and Slutsk has reminded those stirring up confrontation in the Ukraine of the Last Judgment. This statement was made by Metropolitan Paul on the Belarusian ONT television channel. " It is not only Ukrainians who are guilty of what is going on (in the Ukraine),” he said, “but also those who are instigating unrest in this country, stirring it up with financial support, arms, and ideology are guilty as well. " The metropolitan has suggested that these people ought to act according to their conscience. " We all will appear before God on the Day of Judgment,” noted head of the Belarusian Orthodox Church. And then it will be revealed who financed, who supported, who fomented unrest, and who warred. " Which foreign instigators the Metropolitan was referring to remained unspecified by the TV channel. Earlier, before his appointment to the post of head of the Belorussian Orthodox Church, Metropolitan Paul had criticized protests in Russia, noting that intelligence services of the West had been responsible for them. He also warned organizers of so called " color revolutions " , that Moscow would possibly take extreme measures in response to external pressure. " If they keep on plaguing us, and our people are driven into a corner, then, in despair, we will have no choice but to open the Chernobyl tap... And in this case everyone will suffer: Americans as well as prosperous Europeans. And they actually have something to lose, " stressed the hierarch. Metropolitan Paul has been head of the Belarusian Orthodox Church since December 2013. He arrived at the republic from Russia, where he had been head of the Metropolia of Ryazan. Previous to his appointment in Ryazan, Metropolitan Paul also served in the Department of External Relations of the Moscow Patriarch, and in the MP mission in Jerusalem. He was head of the Moscow Patriarchate parishes in the United States from 19921999, after which he was appointed bishop of Vienna, Austria. 23 апреля 2014 г. Смотри также Комментарии Mykhayl 28 апреля 2014, 03:00 Quote: " the Ukraine " ; end quote. AKA Little Russia? Quote: " we will have no choice but to open the Chernobyl tap... And in this case everyone will suffer: Americans as well as prosperous Europeans. " ; end quote. Chornobyl tap! What " s that? Христос Воскрес! Воскресни, Мы в соцсетях Подпишитесь на нашу рассылку |
| Rasputin mysterious figure, requires serious study—Bp. Tikhon (Shevkunov) Moscow, March 20, 2017 Photo: RIA-Novosti Speaking at the State Historical Museum on Saturday, March 18, in a lecture entitled “The February Revolution of 1917: What Was It?” deputy abbot of Sretensky Monastery and chairman of the Patriarchal Cultural Council Bishop Tikhon (Shevkunov) encouraged the gathered crowd to draw lessons from the tragic events of the past. During the course of the talk, the topic of Gregory Rasputin was broached, who Bp. Tikhon called an “absolutely mysterious figure.” The head of the patriarchal council said he believes it necessary to conduct a “serious study” into the personality of Gregory Rasputin, whose memory has been intimately connected with that of the family of Russia’s last tsar, holy Martyr Nicholas II. In his talk he warned against making hasty judgments about Rasputin, touching upon those who are pushing for his canonization, reports RIA-Novosti . “There’s a whole group that’s trying now to declare Rasputin a saint. But wait—everything has to be very seriously investigated here. I don’t want to categorically say ‘no’ to anyone. Of course it is a question demanding the most serious research,” the bishop stated. Speaking for himself, Bp. Tikhon said that Rasputin “remains a completely mysterious figure: we meet such people in history, and we will know about them only at the Last Judgment.” “Truly he helped stopped the bleeding of the heir—Alexei Nikolaevich, and in this he was completely indispensable for the royal family, but there also exist objective facts … that speak about certain extremely unpleasant moments in his behavior… He was an unusual man, and often these testimonies offered to us dispute other facts and testimonies,” Vladyka noted. “They used him for undermining the government, and that is absolutely clear,” he said, calling again for serious research. He also noted that in his time, some members of the Church hierarchy related to Rasputin negatively, and some quite affectionately and respectfully. 20 марта 2017 г. Подпишитесь на рассылку Православие.Ru Рассылка выходит два раза в неделю: Смотри также Комментарии Castrese Tipaldi 21 марта 2017, 14:00 but there also exist objective facts … that speak about certain extremely unpleasant moments in his they are .....? In my poor understanding, the glorification of the holy man Gregory Novy (called Rasputin) and the removal of the mummy still glorified by many from the sacred heart of Holy Rus " are the stumbling blocks preventing Russia form completing her repentance and be made whole. Мы в соцсетях Подпишитесь на нашу рассылку |
| 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 Sermons, Lectures The Fear of Scandal 01 March 2022 Archimandrite Varnavas Lambropoulos Do You Want to Meet God? 28 February 2022 Priest Luke A. Veronis The First and Last Judgments 27 February 2022 Fr. Jeremy He Waits For Us 21 February 2022 Fr. James Guirguis Digging Ourselves Out of the Pig Pen 20 February 2022 Fr. Gabriel Bilas The Feast of Presentation and the Candle of our Souls 15 February 2022 Fr. James Guirguis Not Becoming A Modern Pharisee 14 February 2022 Archpriest Geoffrey Korz Praying with Humility: Our “Cell Phone” to the Heavenly Father 13 February 2022 Dcn. Michael Schlaack Our Friend Zacchaeus 06 February 2022 Fr. James Guirguis Am I the First Among Sinners? 04 February 2022 Priest Luke A. Veronis Previous 1 … 5 6 7 8 9 … 107 Next News 30 September His Holiness Patriarch Kirill Contracted the Coronavirus 4th Plenary Session between ROC and Coptic Church Held 29 September His Beatitude Metropolitan Tikhon Calls for Prayer for Those Facing Hurricanes Ian and Fiona 28 September Patriarch Kirill: The Church Prays for the Fraternal Strife to End as Soon as Possible Besides intellectual instruction, young people also need prayer, Patriarch Daniel says as new academic year begins 27 September The Synodal Residence in New York hosts the Council of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia Voluntary Blood Donation Takes Place in Churches in Serbia 26 September The work of the Church in society is quiet, but full of hope and love, says the Director of Lumina Publications 25 September Epistle of the Council of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia 23 September “The models par excellence are the great hesychast saints,” says Romanian Orthodox Bishop of Oradea Commentary All commentary Other media The Word of the Day How to Deal with Sin Ramblings of a Redneck Priest Party Etiquette Praying in the Rain Humility By Accident More RSS About Contact Us Donate Pravmir.ru © 2008-2024 Pravmir.com Developed by Hamburg Church Studio Design by — |
| John Anthony McGuckin Psychosabbaton JEFFREY B. PETTIS The Greek word psychosabbaton (“soul Sabbath”) refers to the Saturdays in the Orthodox liturgical year set aside for a special remembering of the departed. On these “Sabbata” days special hymns are added to the divine service to commemorate the dead. The designation of the day of Saturday stems from its symbolic association with Christ’s own entombment on that day. The designated days include the Saturday of Meatfare week, or the second Saturday before Great Lent; the Saturday before the Sunday of the Last Judgment; the second, third, and fourth Saturdays of Great Lent; the Saturday before Pentecost; and the Saturday prior to the Feast of St. Demetrius the Great Martyr. The divine service on these days has special hymns selected for the commemoration of the dead. Usually the memorial observance of the Panikhida follows the divine liturgy on Saturday morning, but it may also occur after Vespers on the preceding Friday evening (vigil of Saturday). Prayers are offered for the repose of those who have departed and for the comfort of the living. The service has a penitential emphasis, in that it calls believers to humility before the reality of the brevity of mortal human life. The service may include the use of the ancient tradition of Kollyva, a liturgical meal blessed and taken in memory of the dead. A service celebrated on behalf of an individual on these days will usually take place at the grave site, but memorial services for all the faithful who have departed occur in the church, as do services for those whose graves may be located at a far distance. In some cases the Saturday liturgy takes place in the cemetery chapel. The Orthodox Church additionally recognizes and prays for the dead on the holiday called “The Day of Rejoicing” which falls after St. Thomas Sunday in the post-Pascha Bright week. SEE ALSO: Death (and Funeral); Kollyva REFERENCES AND SUGGESTED READINGS Krueger, D. (ed.) (2006) Byzantine Christianity. Minneapolis: Fortress Press. Langford-James, R. (ed.) (1975) A Dictionary of the Eastern Orthodox Church. New York: Burt Franklin. Читать далее Источник: The Encyclopedia of Eastern Orthodox Christianity/John Anthony McGuckin - Maldin : John Wiley; Sons Limited, 2012. - 862 p. Поделиться ссылкой на выделенное |
| Michael Prokurat, Alexander Golitzin, Michael D. Peterson Скачать epub pdf LENT LENT. There are technically four “lents,” or fasting seasons, during the liturgical year of the Orthodox Church: the Great Lent consisting of “forty days” preceding Holy Week and Easter, the Apostles’ Fast preceding the Feast of SS. Peter and Paul (June 29th), two weeks preceding the Dormition of the Theotokos (August 15th), and the forty days in preparation for the Nativity of Christ (December 25th). It is Great Lent, however, that enjoys both chronological and liturgical primacy, and was the model for the others. A fasting period of up to a week preceding the paschal vigil appears as early as the 3rd c. Believers, according to the Apostolic Tradition (q.v.), were expected to share in the catechumens’ preparation for their Baptism (q.v.) during the Easter Vigil. The 4th c. expansion of Christianity saw this period extended to essentially its present dimensions, as is evident in the account Egeria (q.v.) gives of Lent in late 4th c. Jerusalem. As presently observed, the Orthodox Lent includes six weeks of fasting, less the Saturday of Lazarus and Palm Sunday, which begin the Holy Week commemorating Christ’s suffering. For four Sundays prior to the fast, reckoned as beginning on a Monday, the themes that are to predominate during the forty days are brought to the believers’ attention through the reading of the Gospel lessons of the Pharisee and Publican (humility), Prodigal Son (repentance), the Last Judgment (righteous deeds and the memory of death), and forgiveness. Each of the lenten Sundays is also devoted to a particular theme. The first commemorates the final victory over iconoclasm (q.v.) in 843, the second remembers Gregory Palamas (q.v.), the champion of asceticism, the third the Holy Cross, the fourth Joh n Climacus (q.v.), and the fifth the great image of repentance, Mary of Egypt. Church services during this period reflect the themes of repentance (q.v.), godly sorrow, and entrance into the Church. They are longer, make greater use of Old Testament readings (reflecting also Lent’s origins as a preparation for Baptism), and in Russian employ melodies in the minor key and vestments of somber hue. Perhaps the characteristic service par excellence of Great Lent is the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts. Since the Byzantine Church forbade the celebration of the Eucharist (q.v.) during the weekdays of the fast, communion was-and is-provided the faithful through an evening service, essentially Vespers, on Wednesdays and Fridays. The communion is taken from a eucharistic host consecrated the preceding Sunday, hence the “presanctified” in the service’s title. Читать далее Источник: The A to Z of the Orthodox Church/Michael Prokurat, Alexander Golitzin, Michael D. Peterson - Scarecrow Press, 2010. - 462 p. ISBN 1461664039 Поделиться ссылкой на выделенное |
| That, therefore, which the whole Church of the true God holds and professes as its creed, that Christ shall come from heaven to judge quick and dead, this we call the last day, or last time, of the divine judgment. For we do not know how many days this judgment may occupy; but no one who reads the Scriptures, however negligently, need be told that in them “day” is customarily used for “time.” And when we speak of the day of God’s judgment, we add the word last or final for this reason, because even now God judges, and has judged from the beginning of human history, banishing from paradise, and excluding from the tree of life, those first men who perpetrated so great a sin. Yea, He was certainly exercising judgment also when He did not spare the angels who sinned, whose prince, overcome by envy, seduced men after being himself seduced. Neither is it without God’s profound and just judgment that the life of demons and men, the one in the air, the other on earth, is filled with misery, calamities, and mistakes. And even though no one had sinned, it could only have been by the good and right judgment of God that the whole rational creation could have been maintained in eternal blessedness by a persevering adherence to its Lord. He judges, too, not only in the mass, condemning the race of devils and the race of men to be miserable on account of the original sin of these races, but He also judges the voluntary and personal acts of individuals. For even the devils pray that they may not be tormented (cf. Mt. 8:29), which proves that without injustice they might either be spared or tormented according to their deserts. And men are punished by God for their sins often visibly, always secretly, either in this life or after death, although no man acts rightly save by the assistance of divine aid; and no man or devil acts unrighteously save by the permission of the divine and most just judgment. For, as the apostle says, There is no unrighteousness with God (Rom. 9:14) and as he elsewhere says, His judgments are inscrutable, and His ways past finding out (Rom. 11:33). In this book, then, I shall speak, as God permits, not of those first judgments, nor of these intervening judgments of God, but of the last judgment, when Christ is to come from heaven to judge the quick and the dead. For that day is properly called the Day of Judgment, because in it there shall be no room left for the ignorant questioning why this wicked person is happy and that righteous man unhappy. In that day true and full happiness shall be the lot of none but the good, while deserved and supreme misery shall be the portion of the wicked, and of them only. |
| Archpriest Maxim Kozlov There are several theological visions of the Last Judgment, including a fairly popular opinion: at the Last Judgment you will be asked what kind of person you are, and not how many prayers have been read and how well you have fasted. How will the Last Judgment take place, what will be most important, how will the Lord measure our lives and how will we justify ourselves? Archpriest Maxim Kozlov reflects. In order to answer what the Last Judgment is, we should first try to answer: what is our salvation? There are two main reductions of the Christian doctrine of salvation, which patristic theology does not agree with and which it is not identical with. There is one view, perhaps not formulated anywhere as a confessional doctrine, but religiously and psychologically very widespread: salvation is what can be earned. This is something that you can deserve. Or at least you can collect some combination of bonuses, points, good deeds that can be presented, with the words: “Of course, I have sinned, but here is the list, here is the charter with which I have come, please consider it as a mitigating circumstance.” A similar attitude was common in Western Christianity in the Middle Ages, but it is sometimes found among Orthodox believers in various forms: “I’m a thief, but I’m building a cathedral”, “To pray for forgiveness of a sin, you need to visit 40 liturgies” and so on. The second reduction introduced by the classical Protestants is that the true believer is already saved, and the rest, in general, doesn’t matter. Because if you fall away from faith, you will show that you did not truly believe. If you seriously sin, you will show that you are not one of the selected. There is also a modern view, very widespread in the near-religious or para-religious consciousness, that absolutely everyone will be saved. This is perhaps the prevailing point of view, adjacent to such cliches as that all religions say about the same thing, that God, one way or another, is the same for all religions. In the framework of such a worldview, talking about the Last Judgment is something educational and pedagogical. Indeed, God is kind, he loves everyone, how can He not save someone? |
| Patriarch Kirill: Repentance Is the Core and True Meaning of Fasting Photo: Press service of Patriarch Kirill/foto.patriarchia.ru Sincere repentance before the Lord for one’s sins, repentance as changing one’s thoughts, feelings and life, constitutes the core and true meaning of fasting, said His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia after celebrating the Divine Liturgy at St. Alexander Nevsky Monastery on March 7, 2021, Meatfare Sunday and Sunday of the Last Judgment. “Why exactly do we remember the Judgment of God today? It is because we are standing before the Holy Lent – the Great Lent. And the memory of the Judgment suggests that nothing will be hidden from what we have done before God and there is only one opportunity to receive the mercy of God on us and ask Him for the forgiveness of our sins, which is obtained through one’s sincere repentance before God. Indeed, repentance is the core and the true meaning of fasting: sincere repentance to the Lord for our sins, repentance as changing our thoughts, feelings, and our life,” His Holiness Patriarch Kirill said in his sermon. “We do not know when the Lord will reveal His final Judgment to the entire human race. Some people are very concerned about the Second Coming, and pastors often have to answer questions from believers who ask them about the Last Judgment with great interest and concern. And my answer to all those who ask questions on this topic would be this: each of us will be judged by God, and before this judgment, each of us has less and less time, because personal judgment over us will be completed after our heart stops beating. The Second Coming – eschatological and all-embracing – will be manifested to all human generations and the entire universe. In our personal life, it will be interrupted by a simple, yet very special act of our death, because after death we will appear before the face of God. This will be our Judgment, and in order for us to have the hope of salvation, of receiving the mercy of God, there is no other way than to find strength in ourselves and truly repent before God,” the Patriarch stressed. |
| Скачать epub pdf Last Judgment 14 February 1988 In the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Today's parable is so familiar to us that we may well not even notice its message. And it speaks to us of two things. It reminds us of the fact that a day will come when we will stand face to face with the Living God, and then judgment will come upon us. Not that God waits for us to judge and condemn our evil deeds; but when we will stand before God Who is all beauty, and discover how we have made ugly His image in us, when we will stand before God Who has loved us s o much and realise how little love we have given Him – will t h a t not be a judgment? This happens also in our earthly relations. At times we discover that someone loved us so deeply, so truly, and we took e v e r y t h i n g that was given us – all the love, all the warmth, all the tenderness, all the care, all the sacrifices, that we accepted the l i f e of the person who was day after day renouncing himself or herself for our sake without responding, taking for granted that the love that was offered us was our due, our right. And then one day comes when this person dies, and we realise that we have taken, taken ceaselessly, and never given a sign of recognition, never made this person feel that we understood how deeply, truly, generously we were loved. And then (?), we are face to face with an ultimate judgment about ourselves: too late, too late!.. O, the person who has loved us has forgiven us all along, and now in eternity this person says before God the words which Christ said as He has been crucified: Father! Forgive! They did not know w h a t they were doing . But how painful the judgment is, our judgment upon ourselves, the sense that we could have made the loving one s o happy – and we have not done it. This is a judgment much more severe than any court of justice, something that will and should hit us day after day more directly at the heart of hearts than any formal condemnation. It is not according to our faithfulness to commandments, it is according to whether we have learned to love that we will be judged. |
| The Last Judgment, Giotto di Bondone. 1306 Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it… And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened… And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. (Rev. 20:11-12) The theme of the Last Judgment of God’s creation has been the subject of many books, lectures, sermons, and conversations. However, its relation to the First Judgment of creation is seldom discussed. The First Judgment In Genesis chapter one, we see God creating the earth and calling it “good” over and over. When He reaches the end of the last day of creation, He looks upon all His work and judges it as “Very good” (Gen. 1:31). This is the First Judgment of creation, when all was natural – meaning it was all exactly as God designed it to be. But as we know, mankind fell into sin, and “the wages of sin is death” (Rom. 6:23). Death, decay, corruption, sickness, and many other problems entered humanity, and through us, to the rest of creation (cf. Rom. 8:20, St. Symeon the New Theologian, Discourses, 28-29). This fall into sin and death is unnatural for creation. So, we, along with creation, entered a sub-natural state. When we say, “I am only human,” we misjudge the glorious state of what it means to be a truly healed human. The Cure The Son of God, the second Person of the Holy Trinity, took upon Himself our humanity so that He could heal it of sin and death. He became sin for us to reconcile us to God (cf. 2 Cor. 5:20-21). In doing so, He began the work of creation’s restoration. For all creation is restored in and through us, the Church. Depart: I Never Knew You Our Lord tells us at the Last Judgment, many will appear before Him and be shunned. These will be people who did great works in God’s name, yet their lives were not in accordance with the Gospel. To these people, our Lord states the fearful words, “I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity” (Matt. 7:23). It parallels another passage of the five wise and five foolish virgins. By virginity, we can understand it to mean those who kept themselves pure from the ways of the world. When “the door was shut,” they knocked but were not allowed entry. They cry out, “Lord, Lord, open to us!” Then the dreadful words are spoken, “Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you” (Matt. 25:1-13). Apparently, even being rigorous about purity is not enough. |
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