| For in that manner He spoke as He chose, some things through Isaiah, some through Jeremiah, some through several prophets, or else the same thing through this prophet and through that. Further, whatever is found in both editions, that one and the same Spirit willed to say through both, but so as that the former preceded in prophesying, and the latter followed in prophetically interpreting them; because, as the one Spirit of peace was in the former when they spoke true and concordant words, so the selfsame one Spirit has appeared in the latter, when, without mutual conference they yet interpreted all things as if with one mouth. Chapter 44.– How the Threat of the Destruction of the Ninevites is to Be Understood Which in the Hebrew Extends to Forty Days, While in the Septuagint It is Contracted to Three. But some one may say, How shall I know whether the prophet Jonah said to the Ninevites, " Yet three days and Nineveh shall be overthrown,» or forty days? Jonah 3:4 For who does not see that the prophet could not say both, when he was sent to terrify the city by the threat of imminent ruin? For if its destruction was to take place on the third day, it certainly could not be on the fortieth; but if on the fortieth, then certainly not on the third. If, then, I am asked which of these Jonah may have said, I rather think what is read in the Hebrew, Yet forty days and Nineveh shall be overthrown. Yet the Seventy, interpreting long afterward, could say what was different and yet pertinent to the matter, and agree in the self-same meaning, although under a different signification. And this may admonish the reader not to despise the authority of either, but to raise himself above the history, and search for those things which the history itself was written to set forth. These things, indeed, took place in the city of Nineveh, but they also signified something else too great to apply to that city; just as, when it happened that the prophet himself was three days in the whale " s belly, it signified besides, that He who is Lord of all the prophets should be three days in the depths of hell. |
| The date of Pascha changes from year to year because it depends on the lunar year, which does not correspond exactly to the solar year. The lunar calendar was used by the Hebrew people—and is still used by the Jews today—but it was not adopted by the Christian Church, except for calculating the date of Pascha. This was necessary so that the historical connection between the Old Testament Passover and and the New Testament Pascha would always be maintained. The great feasts that depend on Pascha are: The Lord’s Entry into Jerusalem—commonly called Palm Sunday—which occurs one week before Pascha; Ascension Day, which falls forty days after Pascha; and Pentecost, which occurs fifty days after Pascha. The period before Pascha can be divided into three parts. The first three weeks are called preparatory weeks because the Church prepares us during these weeks for the ascetic struggle of Great Lent. The second section is the Holy Forty days, which is a time of intensified prayer and fasting. The third section—Passion Week—is ushered in by the two feasts of Lazarus Saturday and Palm Sunday. The Holy Forty days together with Passion Week make up Great Lent The whole cycle of moveable feasts is extremely rich liturgically. Many Orthodox Christians are acquainted with the richness of the first half of this cycle—the Great-Lenten half—but very few people experience the richness of the second half—the half that begins with Pascha. Most churches usually offer more services during Great Lent; but the reverse is often true after Pascha. This period has become a time to take a rest from Church. Usually very few services are scheduled after Pascha and the number of people who attend services tends to drop off significantly. This attitude is absolutely opposed to the true mind of the Church. In fact, if you look closely at the structure of the services after Pascha, you see that they are almost a mirror image of the services before Pascha. The Church calls us to rejoice spiritually in Christ’s Resurrection to the same extent that we prepare for it during Great Lent. |
| It is it that allocates for us each week particular days (Wednesdays and Fridays) for fasting and repentance. Over the course of the year it allocates special times, four fasts, for the same purpose. You see that a week has already past since we entered the days of the Holy Forty Day Fast. The Orthodox Church does everything to make our soul tremble and shutter during these great and holy days, to make it feel the filth of its sinfulness, and to ignite a thirst for purification, renewal, and sanctification. The Holy Church, through its penitential Lenten services – with their moving melodies, prayers, and bows – calls us to repentance and reconciliation with God. At no other time is the Lord as close to our sorrowful souls and suffering consciences, “knocking” at our hearts (cf. Revelation 3:20), as during precisely these holy days. We all know that only by spending Great Lent strictly, only by purifying and sanctifying our souls through repentance, will we be able to greet the Paschal night joyfully and solemnly, when our renewed and resurrected souls will, with the entire universe, triumphantly sing hymns to the Risen Savior, not knowing where we are, whether in heaven or on earth. Who makes and creates this ineffable blessedness and heavenly joy for us? It is our Orthodox Church alone, which bears and preserves our Orthodoxy. Let us, then, beloved brothers and sister, preserve our Orthodoxy, just as our pious ancestors did, let us live and be saved, bearing honorably the great name of Orthodox Christians. Amen. Translated from Russian . You might also like Triumph of Orthodoxy Sunday by Fr. Thaddaeus Hardenbrook Code for blog Since you are here… …we do have a small request. More and more people visit Orthodoxy and the World website. However, resources for editorial are scarce. In comparison to some mass media, we do not make paid subscription. It is our deepest belief that preaching Christ for money is wrong. Having said that, Pravmir provides daily articles from an autonomous news service, weekly wall newspaper for churches, lectorium, photos, videos, hosting and servers. Editors and translators work together towards one goal: to make our four websites possible - Pravmir.ru, Neinvalid.ru, Matrony.ru and Pravmir.com. Therefore our request for help is understandable. |
| Jeremiah, like Isaiah, is one of the greater prophets, not of the minor, like the others from whose writings I have just given extracts. He prophesied when Josiah reigned in Jerusalem, and Ancus Martius at Rome, when the captivity of the Jews was already at hand; and he continued to prophesy down to the fifth month of the captivity, as we find from his writings. Zephaniah, one of the minor prophets, is put along with him, because he himself says that he prophesied in the days of Josiah; but he does not say till when. Jeremiah thus prophesied not only in the times of Ancus Martius, but also in those of Tarquinius Priscus, whom the Romans had for their fifth king. For he had already begun to reign when that captivity took place. Jeremiah, in prophesying of Christ, says, The breath of our mouth, the Lord Christ, was taken in our sins,Lamentations 4:20 thus briefly showing both that Christ is our Lord and that He suffered for us. Also in another place he says, This is my God, and there shall none other be accounted of in comparison of Him; who has found out all the way of prudence, and has given it to Jacob His servant, and to Israel His beloved: afterwards He was seen on the earth, and conversed with men. Some attribute this testimony not to Jeremiah, but to his secretary, who was called Baruch; but it is more commonly ascribed to Jeremiah. Again the same prophet says concerning Him, Behold the days come, says the Lord, that I will raise up unto David a righteous shoot, and a King shall reign and shall be wise, and shall do judgment and justice in the earth. In those days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell confidently: and this is the name which they shall call Him, Our righteous Lord. Jeremiah 23:5–6 And of the calling of the nations which was to come to pass, and which we now see fulfilled, he thus spoke: O Lord my God, and my refuge in the day of evils, to You shall the nations come from the utmost end of the earth, saying, Truly our fathers have worshipped lying images, wherein there is no profit.Jeremiah 16:19 But that the Jews, by whom He behooved even to be slain, were not going to acknowledge Him, this prophet thus intimates: Heavy is the heart through all; and He is a man, and who shall know Him? Jeremiah 17:9 That passage also is his which I have quoted in the seventeenth book concerning the new testament, of which Christ is the Mediator. For Jeremiah himself says, Behold, the days come, says the Lord, that I will complete over the house of Jacob a new testament, and the rest, which may be read there. |
| Accompanying the photographs and objets trouvés are two films by Guez, again revolving around his family and their community. The first, Watermelons Under the Bed , shows snippets of daily life for Guez’s elderly grandparents. As they discuss the impacts of the Israeli state on their lives, Yaqoub is seen peeling prickly pears and testing a watermelon for soundness. Both fruit are imbued with symbolism for both Palestinians and Israelis, and the film is laden with memory, nostalgia and the ongoing issue of belonging and identity for Palestinians who grew up in the State of Israel. They had to “dance between the drops,” as one family member puts it, afraid that talking publicly about “politics” will lose her son his job. Intimate moments The multi-channel video piece and photographic series 40 Days , meanwhile, is a homage to the aforementioned Yaqoub Monayer, showing a few intimate moments from the last days of his life and his funeral, before turning to the ceremony held 40 days after death in the Orthodox church. Here, the domestic detail of Watermelons and the earlier section of 40 Days are contrasted with the grandeur of the church service, with its incense, golden ornaments and crimson robes. It evokes a deep sense of the ancient traditions within which the daily life of this community is embedded. We also see the bright wreaths of Yaqoub’s funeral rotting on his grave, and witness the high concrete walls and fencing which surround the graveyard in which he is buried, to protect it from the same vandalism which his pictures documented. And we see Samira sorting the photographs of that vandalism, tearing them apart where they have gotten damp and stuck together. As she goes through them, the closeness of the diminished community to which she belongs is emphasized as she recognizes the graves of her mother and other relatives. The destruction becomes deeply personal as well as culturally and politically tragic. “Minority within a minority” “We are a minority within a minority,” says one of the speakers in Watermelons about Christians in the Middle East. “Nobody would think twice if we were massacred. We are the weakest people in the region.” |
| And therefore we must explain how we are to understand the words, as in the primitive days, and as in former years; for perhaps he alludes to the time in which our first parents were in paradise. Then, indeed, intact and pure from all stain and blemish of sin, they offered themselves to God as the purest sacrifices. But since they were banished thence on account of their transgression, and human nature was condemned in them, with the exception of the one Mediator and those who have been baptized, and are as yet infants, there is none clean from stain, not even the babe whose life has been but for a day upon the earth. Job 14:4 But if it be replied that those who offer in faith may be said to offer in righteousness, because the righteous lives by faith, Romans 1:17 – he deceives himself, however, if he says that he has no sin, and therefore he does not say so, because he lives by faith – will any man say this time of faith can be placed on an equal footing with that consummation when they who offer sacrifices in righteousness shall be purified by the fire of the last judgment? And consequently, since it must be believed that after such a cleansing the righteous shall retain no sin, assuredly that time, so far as regards its freedom from sin, can be compared to no other period, unless to that during which our first parents lived in paradise in the most innocent happiness before their transgression. It is this period, then, which is properly understood when it is said, as in the primitive days, and as in former years. For in Isaiah, too, after the new heavens and the new earth have been promised, among other elements in the blessedness of the saints which are there depicted by allegories and figures, from giving an adequate explanation of which I am prevented by a desire to avoid prolixity, it is said, According to the days of the tree of life shall be the days of my people. Isaiah 65:22 And who that has looked at Scripture does not know where God planted the tree of life, from whose fruit He excluded our first parents when their own iniquity ejected them from paradise, and round which a terrible and fiery fence was set? |
| From Moscow the Holy Fire, which pilgrims say does not burn in the first minutes after it has been lit, is “distributed” among churches in containers similar to those used to transport the Olympic flame. The Holy Fire is brought to Russia from Israel every year since 2003. This year it will be taken for the first time to Crimea, a former Ukrainian region that became a part of Russia last month. Every Orthodox church in Russia holds Paschal liturgies on the night of Holy Saturday that last well into Easter morning. Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, who heads the Russian Orthodox Church, will lead the divine service in downtown Moscow’s Christ the Savior Cathedral, traditionally attended by top Russian officials. Preparation for Easter celebrations begins in the Russian Orthodox Church on Holy Saturday – the last day of Holy Week, also known in Russia as Passion Week. On that day, people come to churches in great numbers to have paschal cakes and eggs blessed by priests. In Eastern Christianity, the Holy Saturday is the mournful day on which Christians bewail the Jesus Christ, who died on the cross on Good Friday. The Easter divine service starts shortly before midnight. At midnight, the solemn festive procession with crosses and icons starts, with priests and believers going around the church and glorifying the Resurrection. The procession is often attended by nonbelievers attracted by its splendor. The service lasts into the early hours of Sunday. The Resurrection of the Savior symbolizes his victory over sin and death and the birth of a new world redeemed by his Passion. This year, it is marked by the Eastern Orthodox and Catholic churches on the same day, which sometimes happens although the churches use different calendars. Easter is preceded by a long period of fasting. The fasting period before Easter in Eastern Christianity lasts 48 days. The first 40 days of the period are called Great Lent, symbolizing Jesus spending 40 days in the wilderness before being tempted by Satan. In the Orthodox tradition, all days are included into the day count. |
| 10426 Wagner, Baptism, 219,229; for the typical story, see Vermaseren, Cybele, 91. 10427 Cf. Otto, Dionysus, 79–80,103–19. 10428 E.g., Homer I1. 5.339–342, 382–404, 855–859, 870; on the death of Pan in Plutarch Mor. 419.17, see Borgeaud, «Death.» 10429 Fragments of dithyrambic poetry (ca. 1 B.C.E.) in Sei. Pap. 3:390–93. 10430 E.g., Apollodorus 1.5.3; cf. Guthrie, Orpheus, 31. 10431 See documentation in Gasparro, Soteriology, 30 n. 16. 10432 E.g., Conzelmann, Theology, 11; cf. Case, Origins, 111; Bultmann, Christianity, 158–59; Ridderbos, Paul, 22–29. 10433 Burkert, Cults, 100. 10434 E.g., Apuleius, whom Dunand, «Mystères,» 58, interprets thus. 10435 In Grant, Religions, 146. 10436 E.g., Davies, Paul, 91. 10437 Wagner, Baptism, 87. Thus Heracles sought initiation so he could capture Cerberus in Hades (Apollodorus 2.5.12). 10438 Gasparro, Soteriology, 82. 10439 Bousset, Kyrios Christos, 57. 10440 For the vegetative association see, e.g., Ovid Metam. 5.564–571; Gasparro, Soteriology, 29, 43–49; Ruck, «Mystery,» 44–45; Guthrie, Orpheus, 55–56. 10441 Cf. Metzger, «Consideration,» 19–20; Ring, «Resurrection,» 228. 10442 Boussefs Hellenistic parallels (Kyrios Christos, 58) are unconvincing (cf. Nock, Christianity, 105–6; Jeremias, Theology, 304; Fuller, Formation, 25). Many think that the LXX is a more likely source ( Hos 6:2 ; Jonah 1:17; cf. 1Cor 15:4 ; Nock, Christianity, 108), though it is unlikely that the early Christians would have noticed elements favoring it had the «third day» not been their initial experience. (Rabbis associated Hos 6with the resurrection of the dead; see p. Sanh. 11:6, §1; cf. McArthur, «Day,» 83–84.) 10443 Cf. Thucydides 2.34.2 for honoring Athenian war dead. 10444 Some later traditions suggest the retention of the soul for three days after death (until the soul sees the body begin to decompose; Gen. Rab. 100:7; Lev. Rab. 18:1; though cf. Dola, «Interpretacja») or required three days of purgatory before preparation to appear before God (3 En. 28:10; cf. Apoc. Zeph. 4:7) or that one confirm the actuality of the person " s death within three days (Safrai, «Home,» 784–85). This might possibly fit a broader idea expressed in three days of mourning (Apollonius of Rhodes 2.837). |
| The first part of the committee’s task—identifying the practices currently in use and establishing comparative lists—has been completed. The committee began its work in 2011 by identifying 11 fields of pastoral practice to be surveyed. The committee requested, from each jurisdiction, the official written procedures for each of these fields. Analysis of the documents revealed that many jurisdictions have no centrally articulated, official, written policy for certain fields of pastoral practice. With that information, the committee decided to focus on six areas where adequate documentary data could be gathered: baptism, chrismation and conversion; marriage; confession/communion; holy unction/anointing; funerals and memorials. A matrix of topics for each area of practice was developed and then a questionnaire sent to the chanceries of each member jurisdiction of the Assembly. The questionnaire had two purposes: to give all jurisdictions the opportunity to verify the Committee’s findings, and to give each jurisdiction the opportunity to provide information that the Committee was not able to discover from the documents it had collected. The committee now faces the final part of its assignment: where differences in practice do exist, to propose models for resolution that are consistent with canonical practice. To prepare for this formidable task the committee held a meeting at Antiochian Village in Ligonier, PA, November 3-5, 2014. One of the outcomes was the formation of six subcommittees that correspond with the six areas of practice. The subcommittees—led by a hierarch and comprised of consultants—are now revisiting areas of consensus and divergence and developing recommendations. The subcommittees will share their recommendations at a meeting scheduled for May 2015, with the goal of producing a final report with recommendations. The committee recognizes and desires that each subcommittee should be as broadly representative as possible – a microcosm of American Orthodoxy. With that in mind, the subcommittees will consult with others to ensure that all opinions are represented. |
| The author of the second project was Alexander Petryaev, Russian Consul in the city of Bitola, Macedonia. His project, which in many provisions echoed Belyaev’s plan, did not imply Athos’s accession to one of the Orthodox countries. Power would have remained in the hands of the patriarch and disputes would have been resolved by means of agreement between the Patriarchate and the Russian Consulate with the participation of diplomats from other Orthodox states. A memorandum prepared by an official of the Russian Embassy in Constantinople, Boris Serafimov, assigned the dominant role to the Russian patronage. As was emphasised in the document, the monasteries that did not belong to Russians, nevertheless depended in their existence on the money raised in Russia or on revenues from estates in Russia. A conclusion was made that non-Russian monasteries would fall into neglect without the help of the Russian Empire. Serafimov believed that over time many of the seventeen Greek monasteries would become Russian. “Having preserved the old Orthodox Athonite way of life, our monks will find themselves in a better situation,” he wrote. As for administrative organisation, the memorandum stipulated that the Orthodox countries would in turn delegate their representatives to Athos. Thus Athos would have come under the patronage of Russia, and Western powers should not interfere in the affairs of the purely Orthodox institution. Another project, which stands apart, was put forward by a legal adviser of the Russian Embassy in Constantinople, Andrei Mandelstam. Leaving aside the ecclesiastical aspects of the matter, he drew up a legal text forty-eight pages long. According to that document, Athos was to be declared a neutral territory under the spiritual guidance of the Patriarch of Constantinople and governed jointly by the six Orthodox states (condominium). Civil authority would have been exercised by six commissioners. As the memorandum noted, there were supposed to be twelve representatives in all: five from Russia, three from Greece and one from each of the rest countries. The commissioners would have had a gendarmerie at their disposal, staffed by the countries in proportion to the number of their representatives. A Synaxis as the body of monastic self-government would have been given unlimited religious and limited financial power. In Mandelstam’s opinion, Athos should have all defining characteristics of a state, such as its own territory, subjects, executive and judicial authorities. Place of residence was to be the only factor determining citizenship. All pilgrims would have been regarded as foreigners. For reference, Mandelstam used examples of other state formations, namely the Republic of Cracow (1815), Moldavia and Wallachia (1856), and Crete (1899). The idea was that the collective condominium of the six states, with Russia at the head, would have allowed to avoid national conflicts. |
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