| For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord " s death till he come. 1Cor. xi. 26. They that are Christ " s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. Gal. v. 24. 211 . How can we crucify the flesh with the affections and lusts? By bridling the affections and lusts, and by doing what is contrary to them. For instance, when anger prompts us to revile an enemy and to do him harm, but we resist the wish, and, remembering how Jesus Christ on the cross prayed for his enemies, pray likewise for ours; we thus crucify the affection of anger. On the Fifth Article 212 . What is the first proof and earnest given by Jesus Christ that his sufferings and death have wrought salvation for us men? This: that he rose again, and so laid the foundation for our like blessed resurrection. Now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the first-fruits of them that slept. 1Cor. xv. 20. 213 . What should we think of the state in which Jesus Christ was after his death, and before his resurrection? This is described in the following hymn of the Church: In the grave as to the flesh, in hades with thy soul, as God, in paradise with the thief, and on the throne wert thou, O Christ, together with the Father and the Spirit, filling all things, thyself uncircumscribed. 214 . What is hades or hell? Hades is a Greek word, and means a place void of light. In divinity, by this name is understood a spiritual prison, that is, the state of those spirits which are separated by sin from the sight of God " s countenance, and from the light and blessedness which it confers. Jude i. 6; Octoich. tom. v.; sticher. ii. 4. 215 . Wherefore did Jesus Christ descend into hell? To the end that he might there also preach his victory over death, and deliver the souls which with faith awaited his coming. 216 . Does holy Scripture speak of this? It is referred to in the following passage: For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he may bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened in the Spirit; in which also he went and preached unto the spirits in prison. 1Pet. iii. 18, 19. |
| How can we expose our lack of faith that keeps us from following all that is taught in the Gospel and leaves us with a luke warm relationship with God? This effort involves our willingness to acknowledge and struggle with sin. Saint Tikhon says, It is not possible to correct yourself rightly if you do not recognize the evil hidden in your heart and the calamities that proceed from it. This struggle is the mark of a true Christian…. The struggle against every sin is an unfailing necessity for all Christians who wish to be true Christians and to receive eternal salvation in Jesus Christ. Saint Paul says, do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts (Rom 6:12). This is demanded by the vows we made at Baptism. At that time we vowed (or our sponsor on our behalf did if we were infants) to labor for the Lord in faith and truth. There is no salvation for those who do not keep these vows. “A true Christian is one who wages incessant war against sin.” He is one who labors in truth and faith. Saint Tikhon lists these causes of sin: 1. The corruption of human nature. We have inherited the tendency for sin from our ancestors all the way back to Adam. 2. The devil leads man to sin. Saint Peter says, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walks about, seeking whom he may devour. Oppose him with firm faith (1Pet. 5:8-9).” Paul says, “Put on the whole armor of God, so you are able to stand against the Wile’s of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places (Eph 6:10-12).” 3. The seductions of the world also lead to sin. Jesus says, “Woe to the world because of offenses! For offenses must come, but woe to that man by whom the offense comes! (Mat 18:7).“ 4. A cause of sin is often bad upbringing of children. 5. Habits strongly attracts a man toward sin. Saint Tikhon says, “A Christian wishing to be saved must unfailingly struggle against these things.” The worst of all are the habits that we become accustomed to so sin becomes second nature. Often, we are not even aware of our poor condition. |
| In human life, different «storms» are completely inevitable. These are to be understood as: fires, earthquakes, oppression, incurable diseases, deaths of loved ones and similar ills, which always come without warning and rock human life to the core. In an instant, one can lose one’s health, family, happiness, riches, spiritual balance – everything. During such a storm, the loss of faith, despair or grumbling against God is the fall of a person. There are internal upheavals inevitable in human life which can be more dangerous than physical storms: the raging of passions, difficult temptations, torturous doubts in questions of faith, attacks of anger, jealousy, envy, fear and so on. In the given passage, for someone to fall would be to give in to temptation, to deny God, to deny his faith or to go against the voice of his conscience somehow. These inner shocks appear not only as the result of unfavorable living conditions, but partly as the result of the actions of malicious people, as well as the devil, who, in the words of the Apostle, «as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour» ( 1Pet. 5:8 ). The last trial which a person must pass through lies ahead on the day of his death. As described in the lives of several saints, when the soul leaves the body the other world opens up before it, and it begins to see both kind Angels, as well as demons. Demons try to humiliate the soul of a person by showing it the sins which it performed while living in the flesh; they are trying to convince the soul that there is no salvation. In this way they try to lead it to despair and to drag it with them into the abyss. At this time the soul’s guardian angel defends the soul from the demons and encourages it with hope in the mercy of God. If the person has lived sinfully and does not have faith, the demons can overcome the soul. This passage of the soul to God " s throne, from the place of its separation from the body, is called «tribulations.» It is possible that these are the trials that the Holy Apostle Paul describes when he encourages Christians to clothe themselves in the armor of God, in order to withstand the wiles of the devil in the evil day, «and having done all, to stand» ( Eph. 6:13 ). «The armour of God,» as explained by the holy fathers, is the combined virtues of a person; «the evil day» is the time of heavy temptation after the separation of the soul from the body. Being banished from Heaven, the evil spirits hover in the region between Heaven and earth, presenting obstacles to the souls of people on their way to God’s throne. Only after the Last Judgment will the demons be permanently confined to the abyss. |
| In particular, St Peter speaks of Christ " s descent into Hell and His preaching there to those sinners who were drowned in the waters of the Flood: «For Christ also died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit; in which He went and preached to the spirits in prison, who formerly did not obey, when God " s patience waited in the days of Noah, during the building of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were saved through water. Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you... through the resurrection of Jesus Christ...» ( 1Pet.3:18–21 ) If Christ preached in Hell, was His message addressed to all people or only to the chosen ones? According to some church writers, Christ preached only to the Old Testament righteous who were in Hell waiting for Him. For others, the message of Christ was addressed to all people, including those who lived in paganism, outside the true faith. This view is expressed by Clement of Alexandria, who maintains that Christ preached not to the righteous who were to be saved, but to the sinners who were condemned for their evil actions. The sinners who were confined in Hell must have met the Lord in order to appear before Him at the Last Judgment. Can there be an answer here to the complex question of whether or not there exists the possibility for non-Christians and non-believers to be saved? The Orthodox tradition has always asserted that there is no salvation outside Christ, Baptism and the Church. However, not everyone who during his earthly life did not meet Christ is deprived of the possibility of being liberated from Hell, for even in Hell the message of the Gospel is heard. Having created the human person with free will, God accepted responsibility for his salvation; and this salvation has been accomplished by Christ. A person who deliberately rejects Christ and His Gospel makes his choice for the devil and becomes himself guilty of his own condemnation: «...He who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God» ( John 3:18 ). |
| In the framework of salvation, sanctification and peace are closely aligned and we are instructed to seek them. “Strive for peace with all men, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord” (eirenen diokete meta panton, kai ton aghiasmon, ou choris oudeis opsetai ton Kyrion) (Heb. 12:14). Further, the New Testament closely associates the term eirene with the powerful salvific term zoe (life), which serves almost as a summary term for the whole consequence of Christ’s saving work, the very opposite of thanatos (death). Its positive, personal, social, holistic and eschatological dimensions are expressed powerfully in 1 Thess. 5:23: “May the God of peace Himself sanctify you wholly; and may your spirit and soul and body be kept sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Rarely, the New Testament understands eirene as “peace with God,” mostly in the sense of salvation and the result of reconciliation (katallage), between sinful humanity and God. Not absent, as well, from the New Testament is the sense in which eirene is concord, harmony and order among human beings, for the Kingdom is “righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” ( Rom. 14:17 ). But there is also the sense of ‘eirene’ as inner peace, much richer than the Greek and Stoic sense of the absence of disturbance (ataraxia). Peter speaks of the “inner person of the heart with the imperishable jewel of a gentle and quiet spirit” ( 1Pet. 3:4 ). The wisdom which comes from above is ‘peaceable,’ according to James 3:17 . By its association with joy, chara ( Rom. 15:13 ) and in the context of the salvation meaning of peace, as the normative human condition, peace of soul points to the content of the spiritual and moral life, and its reflection in our relations with others. Thus, in 1 Timothy, the Christian’s goal is to “lead a quiet and peaceable life, godly and respectful in every way” (hesychion kai eremon bion) (2:2). Thus, the disciples are instructed “to keep the peace” (eireneuete) among themselves ( Mark 9:50 ), and with all people ( Rom. 12:18 , 2Cor. 13:11 ). Hebrews teaches that the heavenly Father’s and the earthly parent’s discipline yield “the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it” (Heb. 12:11). Most significantly, Jesus’ Beatitudes call blessed those who are peacemakers, as establishing peace and harmony among people, in imitation, in the likeness of, and parallel to Christ’s work of salvation and reconciliation, according to which He makes “peace by the blood of His cross” (Col. 1:19). Thus, the making of peace between God and humanity and among human beings becomes a function of the loving and salvific work of God for us, but also a reflection of the will of God for the relations of human beings among each other. On this basis, the Fathers of the Church build their teachings on peace. |
| In this narration, we see both a similarity with the Biblical narration, and a fundamental difference with it. First of all the difference between the majestic and bright image of God, which appears on the pages of the Bible, and the very often repugnant image of heathen gods, cringing like dogs during the calamity, and gathering like flies at the scent of a sacrifice, catches the eye. When comparing both narrations, we clearly see the difference between the narration, which went through the furnace of the Holy Spirit, and the narration, which did not have such cleansing. The most important feature of one or the other is the presence or absence of a moral meaning in the described event. The Biblical Flood was a consequence of the universal sin of mankind. All people, except Noah and his family, fell into hopeless corporality, had discontinued any spiritual life. We can clearly picture such a life from the example of present times. God’s plan was this way being disrupted at the very root. People descended into hell, and if all mankind without exception would find itself in the same state, then there would be no hope for anyone for the eternal life in the Kingdom of God. Because of this, and not out of a momentary caprice, the Lord exterminates pre-flood mankind, saving Noah and his family and in that way, protecting mankind. But the Lord did not forget the destroyed human generations. The Holy Apostle Peter testifies: «By which also He went and preached unto the spirits in prison; Which sometime were disobedient, when once the longsuffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water» ( 1Pet. 3:19–20 ). All this, of course, is not present in the heathen Mesopotamian notes. We can only reverently give thanks to Our Lord and the Holy Spirit for the fact that He was so kind as to undertake the cleansing of human legends for the preservation of Truth. If not for this interference of the Holy Spirit, then we might have been obliged to this day to worship gods, cringing like dogs, and greedily clinging to anything edible, like flies. |
| I am clad in a coat that is spotted and shamefully blood-stained by the flow of my passionate and pleasure-loving life. I fell under the burden of passions and corruption of matter, and from then until now I am oppressed by the enemy. Having preferred a possessive and pleasure-loving life to spiritual poverty, O Savior, I am now harnessed with a heavy yoke. ( Mt.5:3 ) I have adorned the idol of my flesh with the many-colored clothing of shameful thoughts, and I am condemned. ( 1Jn.5:21 ) I have been anxiously concerned only about outward adornment, and have neglected the inner temple made in the image of God. ( 1Pet.3:3-4 ) I have buried with passions the beauty of the original image, O Savior. But seek and find it, like the lost coin. ( Lk.15:8 ) Like the harlot I cry to Thee: I have sinned, I alone have sinned against Thee. Accept my tears also, O Savior, as perfume. ( Lk.7:37-50 ) Like the publican I cry to Thee: Be merciful, O Savior, be merciful to me; for no child of Adam has sinned as I against Thee. ( Lk.18:13 ) Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: To The Trinity: One in three Persons I praise Thee, O God of all, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Now and ever, and to the ages of ages. Amen. Theotokion: Spotless Mother of God, only all-hymned Virgin, pray intensely that we may be saved. Song 3 Eirmos: Establish, O Lord, my unstable heart on the rock of Thy commandments, for Thou only art Holy and Lord. Refrain: Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy on me. Troparia: In Thee the Conqueror of death, I have found the Source of Life, and from my heart I cry to Thee before my end: I have sinned, be merciful, save me. I have sinned, O Lord, I have sinned against Thee. Be merciful to me. For there is no one who has sinned among men whom I have not surpassed by my sins. I have imitated those who were licentious in Noah’s time, and I have earned a share in their condemnation of drowning in the flood. ( Gen.6 ) Thou hast imitated Ham, that spurner of his father, my soul. Thou hast not concealed thy neighbor’s shame by returning to him looking backwards. ( Gen.9:20, 27 ) |
| Let us only recall them by reading the eighth ode of the Akathist Hymn for the Theotokos, Joy of Canada: Irmos Eight When our forebears lost paradise and brought the Church to barrenness, God proclaimed His promises prophetically through the holy women and filled it with hope. Thou, O Theotokos, art the seal of the promises, the fulfilment of the hope of the fallen Church, wherefore we cry out to Him Who came forth from thee: Alleluia. Ikos Eight In thee, O Theotokos, are the promises made manifest and all prophecy is fulfilled in Him Whom thou didst bear. The expectation of the ages has come to pass and the hope of the holy women prophets is made complete. Wherefore we cry to thee: Rejoice, with Eve, for the serpent is bruised, Rejoice, with Sarah, for the Holy Nation is redeemed, Rejoice, with the righteous daughters, for the inheritance is secured, Rejoice, with Esther, for the spiritual Haman is slain, Rejoice, with Ruth, for the gentiles are delivered, Rejoice, with Hannah, for the priesthood is perfected, Rejoice, with Elizabeth, for her son’s prophecy is fulfilled, Rejoice, with Anna, for the barrenness of the Church is healed, Rejoice, Joy of Canada. The Implications for the Liturgical Priesthood of Gender Roles as Prophecy We specify the “liturgical priesthood” because all baptised Orthodox believers are part of the “royal priesthood” (1Pet.2:9). All are members of the “royal priesthood” because only the priesthood can partake of the things of the altar, and all are called to receive the mystery of the Body and Blood of Christ — the “things of the altar” — in Holy Communion. Nevertheless, only men are called to the liturgical or “ordained” priesthood. To understand the reason why women are not enrolled in the priesthood, we must first of all put away one treacherous presupposition: that it has to do with relative value. It does have to do with roles, but here again, there is a destructive presupposition. Many people have, for centuries, equated roles with value, and they have extended the roles of men and women in the liturgical life of the Church (which deals with prophecy and revelation) to society, politics and industry __ which have nothing to do with the faith or the salvation of humanity. |
| Let us only recall them by reading the eighth ode of the Akathist Hymn for the Theotokos, Joy of Canada: Irmos Eight When our forebears lost paradise and brought the Church to barrenness, God proclaimed His promises prophetically through the holy women and filled it with hope. Thou, O Theotokos, art the seal of the promises, the fulfilment of the hope of the fallen Church, wherefore we cry out to Him Who came forth from thee: Alleluia. Ikos Eight In thee, O Theotokos, are the promises made manifest and all prophecy is fulfilled in Him Whom thou didst bear. The expectation of the ages has come to pass and the hope of the holy women prophets is made complete. Wherefore we cry to thee: Rejoice, with Eve, for the serpent is bruised, Rejoice, with Sarah, for the Holy Nation is redeemed, Rejoice, with the righteous daughters, for the inheritance is secured, Rejoice, with Esther, for the spiritual Haman is slain, Rejoice, with Ruth, for the gentiles are delivered, Rejoice, with Hannah, for the priesthood is perfected, Rejoice, with Elizabeth, for her son " s prophecy is fulfilled, Rejoice, with Anna, for the barrenness of the Church is healed, Rejoice, Joy of Canada. The Implications for the Liturgical Priesthood of Gender Roles as Prophecy We specify the " liturgical priesthood " because all baptised Orthodox believers are part of the " royal priesthood " (1Pet.2:9). All are members of the " royal priesthood " because only the priesthood can partake of the things of the altar, and all are called to receive the mystery of the Body and Blood of Christ — the " things of the altar " — in Holy Communion. Nevertheless, only men are called to the liturgical or " ordained " priesthood. To understand the reason why women are not enrolled in the priesthood, we must first of all put away one treacherous presupposition: that it has to do with relative value. It does have to do with roles, but here again, there is a destructive presupposition. |
| Local Bishops’ Council of the Russian Orthodox Church, 2000 Extracts from the “Bases of the social concept of the Russian Orthodox Church” adopted at the 2000 Jubilee Bishops’ Council of the Russian Orthodox Church 42 II. Church and nation II.1. In the contemporary world, the notion of ‘nation’ is used in two meanings, as an ethnic community and the aggregate citizens of a particular state. Relationships between Church and nation should be viewed in the context of both meanings of this word. (…) God’s chosen people of Israel are opposed to other nations throughout the Old Testament books associated in one way or another with the history of Israel. The people of Israel were chosen not because they surpassed other nations in number or anything else, but because God chose and loved them ( Deut. 7:6–8 ). 43 (…) In addition to their sharing one religion, the unity of the people of God was secured by their ethnic and linguistic community and their rootedness in a particular land, their fatherland. (…) Being universal by nature, the Church is at the same time one organism, one body ( 1Cor. 12:12 ). She is the community of the children of God, “a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people… which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God” ( 1Pet. 2:9–10 ). The unity of these new people is secured not by its ethnic, cultural or linguistic community, but by their common faith in Christ and Baptism. The new people of God “have no continuing city here, but seek one to come” (Heb. 13:14). The spiritual homeland of all Christians is not earthly Jerusalem but Jerusalem “which is above” ( Gal. 4:26 ). The gospel of Christ is preached not in the sacred language understandable to one people, but in all tongues (Acts 2:3–11). The gospel is not preached for one chosen people to preserve the true faith, but so that “at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” ( Phil. 2:10–11 ). |
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