| Tweet Нравится Sermon on Cheese-Fare Sunday, the Remembrance of Adam’s Expulsion from Paradise Archimandrite John (Krestiankin) In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit! The quickly flowing river of time rushes on to eternity. Only the Holy Church and God’s feasts stop this motion momentarily, as if counting the time. And our entire life, from our birth to departure from it, is reflected in this yearly cycle; it reminds us and calls to us, “Know yourself, look inside yourself, O man. Who are you, how do you live, and what awaits you ahead? You are rushing headlong with this flow of time to timelessness, to eternity.” So it is every day, every year. Was it so long ago that the cry of the human heart, languishing in sins, rang out it the Church, “Open unto me the doors of repentance, O Giver of Life”? Our hearts trembled—the fast was already in the air. But now, the weeks of preparation for our field of repentance in Great Lent have passed, when: —the Pharisee and the publican were the mirrors of our souls; —we called out to the Heavenly Father with the voice of the prodigal son, recognizing also our distance from the Truth, our departure to a faraway land: “O God, I have sinned against heaven and before Thee; make me one of Thy hired servants.” —a reminder of the terrible and glorious Last Judgment of the Lord, when the books shall be opened and all secrets revealed. Not yet frightening us, it calls us to knowledge of ourselves, to repentance. Now we are at the last day of the threshold before Great Lent. On this day, the Church remembers the terrible tragedy that happened to mankind at the dawn of its history—its expulsion in the person of our forefather Adam from the face of God; the expulsion of Adam from paradise. The vale of tears and sadness—the earth—received the outcast, so that at God’s commandment the transgressor would reap thorns and thistles, so that he would eat his bread in the sweat of his brow, so that in pain, tears, and sadness he would give birth to his children and feed them, so that he would reap all the bitter fruits of his disobedience to the Heavenly Father. |
| An Orthodox Christian " s Struggle Our Faith Last Updated: Feb 8th, 2011 - 05:50:02 An Orthodox Christian " s Struggle By Anonymous Orthodox Christian Oct 15, 2009, 10:00 Discuss this article Printer friendly page Source: OrthodoxyToday.org Photo: http://orthophoto.ru When Matthew Shepard was brutally killed in 1998, people who called themselves Christians stood outside the church during his funeral picketing, proudly holding signs that affirm God " s hatred of homosexuals. Should it be surprising that many people with same-sex attraction feel a deep hostility to Christianity, when the kind of " Christianity " they have been exposed to is so full of contempt? Do we Christians really think we can lead these people to Christ by treating them with cruelty, rather than compassion? The true Gospel is one of love, not hate. On the other end of the spectrum, there are those who advocate the homosexual lifestyle, while calling themselves Christians. The Episcopal Church and other churches have abandoned whatever roots they had in historic Christianity, affirming what the gospel clearly calls sin. The Orthodox Church, in its holy wisdom, goes to neither extreme. Homosexuality is denounced as sinful, and rightly so. But the Orthodox Church does not condone any sort of violence or judgmentalism towards those who struggle with homosexual temptations. In this modern day mess in which so many churches feel compelled to go one way or the other, Orthodoxy remains an abode of sanity, rooted in ancient Christian tradition. As someone who has attractions to members of the same sex, and as a baptized and professing Orthodox, I have found myself in a spiritual " tug-of-war. " The wisdom of the world seducively holds out its hand, inviting me to dive in and live this lifestyle. My faith and my Church, however, stand firm in the conviction that the homosexual life is not a normal life, nor a healthy life, nor a God-pleasing life. There really is no pressure, though, neither from the world or from God. Orthodox do not adhere to predestination. I have free will, as do all other sinners. I have the choice to live my way or God " s way. My struggle, in many ways, is not much different than that of an alcoholic, or a compulsive gambler, or a married man who is tempted by other women. We either struggle to overcome these sins or we do not. Whichever choice we make, we will answer for it when we stand before the dread judgment seat. |
| Aphorisms of Elder Sophrony (Sakharov) The following words of Archimandrite Sophrony (Sakharov) were recorded by various Athonite monks. “I am neither Greek nor Russian; I am an Athonite.” “I have been wearing a cassock for sixty years, but whenever I meet an Orthodox Christian or any other person, I bow my head low before him.” (Thereby the Elder wished to indicate that he feels himself to be the most unworthy.) “Theology is the content of our prayers.” “The Fathers of the fourth century left us certain prophecies, according to which in the last times salvation will be bound up with deep sorrows.” “We must have the determination to overcome temptations comparable to the sorrows of the first Christians. All the witnesses of Christ’s Resurrection were martyred. We should be ready to endure any hardship.” “Psychology brings the greatest evil to mankind today, because this science does not take into consideration Divine revelation, according to which man is created ‘in the image and likeness of God.’” “All of us, at every moment of our lives, are in absolute need of Divine grace, which is given to man through pain and effort. When we pray in the morning, pray in the evening, and pray every moment – then we have the right to say: ‘Lord, do not leave me; help me.’” “It is essential to read the Gospel, that incomparable book. Then our life will be built up on the basis of the Word of God. And we will begin to think and make decisions in the spirit of the Divine commandments. How beautiful, when one begins to think like the Creator of this world!” “When we begin to lead the Christian life, all our labor, all our struggle [podvig] is directed towards accepting even our enemies with love. In this consists the Christian’s martyric witness.” “The earthly life is for us a continual Judgment of God. If we follow Christ’s commandments, then the Grace of the Holy Spirit will come to us; but when we embark on them (even in small ways), God leaves us and we feel that abandonment about which outsiders do not even know. They do not understand what abandonment by God is.” |
| Archangel Michael and All the Bodiless Powers Celebrated Today On November 21 (8) we celebrate the feast of the Archangel Michael and the Other Heavenly Bodiless Powers. Here is a portion of the synaxarion reading for them from the OCA website . The Synaxis of the Chief of the Heavenly Hosts, Archangel Michael and the Other Heavenly Bodiless Powers: Archangels Gabriel, Raphael, Uriel, Selaphiel, Jehudiel, Barachiel, and Jeremiel was established at the beginning of the fourth century at the Council of Laodicea, which met several years before the First Ecumenical Council. The 35th Canon of the Council of Laodicea condemned and denounced as heretical the worship of angels as gods and rulers of the world, but affirmed their proper veneration. A Feast day was established in November, the ninth month after March (with which the year began in ancient times) since there are Nine Ranks of Angels. The eighth day of the month was chosen for the Synaxis of all the Bodiless Powers of Heaven since the Day of the Dread Last Judgment is called the Eighth Day by the holy Fathers. After the end of this age (characterized by its seven days of Creation) will come the Eighth Day, and then “the Son of Man shall come in His Glory and all the holy Angels with Him” (Mt. 25:31). The Angelic Ranks are divided into three Hierarchies: highest, middle, and lowest. The Highest Hierarchy includes: the Seraphim, Cherubim and Thrones. The Middle Angelic Hierarchy consists of three Ranks: Dominions, Powers, and Authorities. The Lowest Hierarchy includes the three Ranks: Principalities, Archangels, and Angels. All the Ranks of the Heavenly Powers are called angels, although each has its own name and position by virtue of their service. The Lord reveals His will to the highest ranks of the angels, and they in turn inform the others. Over all the Nine Ranks, the Lord appointed the Holy Archangel Michael (his name in Hebrew means “who is like unto God”), the faithful servitor of God, as Chief Commander. He cast down from Heaven the arrogantly proud Lucifer and the other fallen spirits when they rebelled against God. Michael summoned the ranks of angels and cried out, “Let us attend! Let us stand aright before our Creator and do not consider doing what is displeasing unto God!” |
| As the End Draws Near – Silence Source: Glory to God for All Things Archpriest Stephen Freeman 24 January 2022 St. John the Baptist said of Christ that His “ winnowing fork is in His hand.” (Lk 3:17) That farm implement is a tool for separating the wheat from the chaff, that is, to separate the edible part of the wheat from the husk that is to be discarded. It is, in that sense, an instrument of judgment . The character of Christ, who is the Image according to which we are created, is such that human beings are more fully revealed to be what they are as they draw near to Him (or as He himself draws near to us). There was a point in time when the eleven disciples did not know Judas to be a traitor-in-waiting. Indeed, they trusted him enough that he served as their treasurer. Christ, we are told, always knew Judas to be what he was, but patiently bore with him until he was revealed as a betrayer. In a similar manner, I think, there is evidence that Christ also saw the other disciples to be what they were to become. Simon is named “Peter” long before he evidenced anything of a “rock-like” character. He was loud, opinionated, capable of trying to correct Christ at any number of points. There’s nothing rock-like in such behavior. Nevertheless, I suspect that, in the presence of Christ, Peter felt some stirring of the rock within himself. In His presence, those who could not walk felt the stirring of strength in their limbs, just as blind eyes strained towards the light of sight. Unbelieving individuals discovered an ability to believe they would have thought impossible. Christ’s presence reveals us. That the winds and the seas obeyed Christ’s voice was not contrary to their nature – it was the fulfillment of their nature – as they at long last heard again the voice of Adam (now the Second instead of the First) command them. They groaned and travailed across the ages, waiting for the glorious liberty of obedience . At the voice of Christ, the winds and sea became their true selves. |
| A Time of Preparation: On The Beginning of the Nativity Fast In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit! Once St. Gregory the Theologian, praying in the church in Constantinople on the feast of the Nativity of Christ, addressed the people with an enthusiastic speech that began with these words: “Christ is born! Come out to meet Him! Christ descends from Heaven in order to raise us up!” St. Gregory was not only a great theologian of the Church, but also a great poet and composer of church hymns. His words: “Christ is born! Come out to meet Him” was so beloved by the inhabitants of Constantinople, that each time they repeated them, and even created from them a hymn that precedes the feast of the Nativity of Christ. From this Sunday we have already begin to chant these irmosoi: “Christ is born! Glorify Him! Christ is from heaven; go and meet Him.” The Nativity Fast has begun, and we are preparing ourselves for the Feast of the Nativity of Christ. We should not think that the feast is just a pleasant time when we can rejoice, congratulate one another, and be comforted in our sorrows! No, the Feast of the Nativity of Christ is a reminder that the Lord came to earth to die and suffer along with us, so that each one of us would receive eternal life, so that each one of us might join in salvation. And this feast is a day of choice: some accept it, and others reject it. For us, who have received the Word of Christ, preparing for the feast is a preparation for encountering the Lord Himself! Yes, He Himself as it were comes anew to earth in order to visit you in your life, to ask you how you lived, that you might bring out the treasure of your heart and your deeds. Christ is born, go out to meet Him, prepare yourself for Him! The Lord Himself, in various parables, spoke of how people should prepare for this encounter. In Holy Scripture, in the Prophet Amos, there are these fearsome words: “Prepare to meet thy God” (Amos 4:12). This does not mean that we need to prepare ourselves only for God’s Last Judgment, but that the Lord comes here and now to each one of us. He comes and requires of us an account, just as the master required of those to whom he had given the talents. We should not think that the Lord’s parables contain anything superfluous: in them, each words counts. |
| Christ’s counsel to Nicodemus that “ye must be born again” (John 3:7) with its assertion that one must be born again to enter the Kingdom of God is arguably the favourite verse of Protestant Evangelicals. It certainly formed the bedrock of Evangelical preaching and the goal of such preachers as Billy Graham. The phrase left the subculture of Evangelicalism and entered the conceptual landscape and the vocabulary of mainstream American culture with the (then) Presidential candidate Jimmy Carter, who surprised the mainstream media with his candid admission that he had been born again and that this formed the foundation of his life. The phrase “being born again” is now almost synonymous with Protestant Evangelicalism, and often functions as a kind of verbal denominational tag. Since the phrase also appears in the baptismal liturgy of the Orthodox Church (when the priest refers to the baptismal candidates as those “wishing to be born again through my unworthy ministry”) it is worth asking two questions: 1) “What precisely does it mean to enter the Kingdom of God?” and 2) “What does it mean to be born again?” The answers are not quite what Dr. Billy Graham might have thought during his preaching crusades. What is the Kingdom of God? For some people, “entering the Kingdom” (or “seeing the Kingdom”; Christ uses both terms in His conversation with Nicodemus) is synonymous and indistinguishable from being saved from the fires of hell and having eternal life. Given the identity of such concepts, this means that everyone who has not been born again is eternally lost and will be damned at the Last Judgment. Such a conclusion was, in Dr. Graham’s time anyway, held by almost all of those urging their hearers to become born again, and it added an unmistakable note of urgency to Evangelical preaching. In this model, everyone on earth was lost and lived in the certainty of future damnation unless they could be plucked like a brand from the burning through becoming born again. I would suggest however that this is not quite what the Scriptures teach. The concept of the Kingdom of God is not to be equated with a kind of eternal fire insurance, but is richer, deeper, and more complex. When one looks away for a moment from Evangelical presuppositions (and those of western Christianity generally) to those of first-century Judaism (and the writings of St. Paul), one sees a subtle difference. |
| Common Pro-Abortion Cliches and the Pro-Life Response Family life : Abortions Last Updated: Feb 8th, 2011 - 05:50:02 Common Pro-Abortion Cliches and the Pro-Life Response By Valerie Protopapas Oct 12, 2009, 10:00 Discuss this article Printer friendly page Source: Department of Youth, Young Adult, and Campus Ministry Orthodox Church in America It has been said that those who define an issue, own that issue. Nowhere is this more evident than in the critical issue of abortion. Abortion propaganda has been presented as fact by, among others, the media and the medical and legal professions for so many years that the public, including many of those who support life, have come to believe this rhetoric and consider these premises as fundamental realities in the abortion situation. Let us examine the most important and prevalent of these premises and refute their intentional deception. A women has the right to control her own body This is the primary feminist premise for abortion rights. It presents the contention by radical feminists that abortion is an essential part of their struggle for power; that power being equated as the ability to control in the most basic way, a woman " s reproductive functions. Feminists recognize that the most obvious and telling difference between men and women is a woman " s ability to bear life. In order to efface that difference, they believe that women should have the political and legal power to decide whether or not they want to be pregnant at any given time. However, a critical analysis of their argument reveals several inconsistencies: To being with, the very fact that a woman has a " crisis pregnancy " demonstrates that she, for whatever reason, lost " control " over her body. There are those who have said that, had she exercised " control " in the first place, she would not be pregnant. However, those in the pro-life movement make no moral judgments in this matter since there always exists the possibility that the pregnancy was due to an external force over which she had no control. |
| Cross My Heart-Hope to Die The Great Khan of China said to the Jesuit priest that he found it to be very strange that people of the West took an instrument of torture and made it into the chief symbol of their Faith. The Cross of Christ has always been a mystery to many and a scandal to others. In former days, I use to think that the Cross of Christ was just something upon which we hung our sins so that we wouldn’t have to suffer for them later. That was a rather shallow view of it. Jesus made it more -he said that we would have to deny ourselves, pick up a cross and follow him. I realized that the Cross that stood on Calvary had to move from Calvary into my heart. Well, that has been a struggle because while my heart wants to live forever and is grateful for all the Jesus did for me, the heart also wants to pursue its own pleasures, dreams, and ambitions. To have the Cross in my heart and the self-denial that follows is directly opposed to those hopes, dreams, ambitions, desires and fantasies. For this reason, though sin is hard to bear, the Cross is very hard to bear. After all, it is an instrument of death and so it compels me to die to myself. Frankly, that’s the last thing my self wants to happen. The Fathers have much to say about what it means to have the Cross in the heart. One example is my mental life. My mind is rather unruly and undisciplined. I let thoughts and fantasies roll in and out of it with little resistance. As a result, negative and judgmental thoughts pop up. Human nature being what it is, I can let those negative thoughts develop until I find myself in a depression. How would the presence of the Cross challenge this? St. Paul said, “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” (Philippians 4.8) Now, having been in Cognitive Therapy in the past, it seems to me that St. Paul was the first Christian Cognitive Therapist. The point is that my self denial means that by the grace of the Cross, I have to turn from thinking about whatsoever is dishonest, unjust, impure, ugly, of bad report. For me, that became an act of self-denial. For so many years, I had negative thoughts drilled into me until I came to believe that this was my true self. I thought that to think of good things was “Pollyanna,” and totally out of touch with reality. I repeated the negative voices until I began to believe them and depression was my constant friend. God, in His mercy, began to show me that this was not my true self, but that I also had to mentally turn from what had become the mental habits of my life. Therapy certainly helped, but it was Orthodoxy that gave me the key to begin crucifying my mental self. |
| He came to himself – what does this mean?The two things we must know to be saved. Homily on the Prodigal Son In the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Amen. The Church gives us another example today, about repentance. It tells us another part of the story. This is the Sunday of the Prodigal Son, and is yet another Sunday that prepares us for the Great Fast. We are coming quickly upon it. Next week will be the Sunday of the Last Judgment, after which we stop eating meat, and after that is the Sunday of Forgiveness, and we then begin the fast, the following day. The church has had something very important to say about repentance the past few Sundays, if you have been listening carefully. There have been three aspects of repentance that have been shown to us. One aspect is humility. We saw the publican whom, in our mind’s eye, we may consider to be Zacchaeus , and we saw how his humility saved him. This was humility with knowledge, because with humility comes knowledge of God. Although he was humble and would not look up to heaven, he was still bold in his prayer to ask God for mercy, because he knew God would give him mercy. The Sunday before, we saw Zacchaeus. We saw that he was a very bad man, but he changed. Repentance involves changing the way you live, the way you think. It also involves making restitution. It is not that restitution will save us. There is nothing that we can do to earn our salvation. Restitution is something that should come from deep within us. We should desire to make ourselves better in those things in which we have been lax. Whether our sin be depriving a man of his goods, as Zacchaeus did, or unclean thoughts, or any other sin, whether our sin be an internal sin, or an external one, or whether it has affected other people or affected no one except ourselves, we must desire and struggle to be better. Now we see another aspect of repentance that is so important today, especially in light of what we are going to read and contemplate next week. That is, God receives a man’s repentance. This may seem to be an obvious statement, hardly worth making, but in actuality, many people do not really believe God will receive their repentance, or that they can truly change. We can see how marvelous God’s mercy is in this parable we have before us. |
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