| John Anthony McGuckin Paradise PETER C. BOUTENEFF The Greek Paradeisos (cf. the Persian Pardez, meaning “enclosure”) in the Septuagint refers to any enclosed garden (cf. Num. 24.6 ; Neh. 2.8; Eccl. 2.5 ; Jer. 29.5 ), but remains particularly associated with the Garden in Eden ( Gen. 2–3, 13.10 ; also Is. 51.3 ; Ezek. 28.13 ). In Second Temple Jewish literature (e.g., 1 Enoch 60.8, 23, 61.12; Apoc. Abraham 21.3, 6; 3 Baruch 4.10) as well as in the New Testament ( Lk. 23.43 ; Rev. 2.7), Paradise comes to refer also to the destination of the righteous, whether it is an earthly or heavenly topos. St. Paul’s mystical experience which associates Paradise with the Third Heaven ( 2Cor. 12.2–3 ) has deeply influenced the Greek patristic literature, and is frequently cited. PARADISE AS THE GARDEN OF HUMAN ORIGINS Paradise as the earthly garden in Eden, into which the first-created humans were placed, and which Genesis 2 locates on Earth (in what is modern-day Iraq), is treated variously in the Greek fathers. Theophilus of Antioch, almost unique among the early writers for the absence of a typological (christological) exegesis of the Paradise narrative, is concomitantly almost unique in attempting to pinpoint the chronological dating of the events narrated in Genesis 1–3 (as did Eusebius of Caesarea, in his Chronicle, no longer extant). Conversely, and possibly following Philo (cf. Laws of Allegory 1.43), Origen practically mocks anyone who would interpret Paradise as an actual place with physical trees and chewable fruit (On First Principles 4.3.1). Precisely this notion, however, featured strongly in Ephrem’s Hymns on Paradise (Brock 1990). Gregory of Nazianzus is open and provisional in his interpretation: God placed the human person in Paradise, “Whatever this Paradise actually was,” and introduced him to trees which Gregory supposes might represent contemplation (theoria) (Oration 38.12). Contemporary Orthodox theologians tend to follow the fathers in paying scant attention to the question of the physical historicity of the Paradise of Genesis 2–3 , focusing rather on its existential significance or more often on its christological sense. |
| Craig S. Keener The Son from Above. 3:1–36 IN THIS SECTION, JESUS REVEALS to Nicodemus that he is the Son from above (3:13, 16), and John reiterates this point (3:31, 35–36). Jesus likewise continues the theme of true purification (3:5) from 2:6, which again contrasts forcefully with mere Jewish water rituals (3:25), even those of the Baptist (3:22–26; 4:1–2). Nicodemuss partial faith continues the theme of 2:23–25, but contrasts starkly with the fully reliable witness of John (3:21–36) and the responsiveness of the sinful Samaritan woman (4:1–42). Nicodemus and the Heavenly Witness (3:1–21) The warning against untrustworthy believers depending merely on signs (2:23–25) leads directly into the following paragraph: Nicodemus professes a measure of faith in Jesus based on his signs (3:2, repeating the σημεα ποιεον of 2:23), but has not yet crossed the threshold into discipleship; 4742 he is at most a representative of some open-minded dialogue partners in the synagogues (hence perhaps the use of plural verbs, though cf. comment on 3:11). 4743 John invites his audience to contrast Nicodemus " s slow response here to the ready response of the Samaritan woman in 4:7–29, who is able to overcome her misunderstanding in the course of that dialogue. 4744 (Several of Johns narratives involve the pattern of sign, misunderstanding, clarification, and response.) 4745 In the course of the Gospel, however, Nicodemus, who came out of darkness into light (3:2,21), moves from secret discipleship (3:1–2; 7:50–52) 4746 to true, complete discipleship (19:39–42). 4747 John presents several models of a journey to discipleship, of which Nicodemus is one; 4748 Nicodemus will eventually join the Samaritan woman among disciples. 4749 If 3:1–21 is the discourse explicating the sign of 2:1–11, it shows that true relationship with God involves neither waterpots nor the earthly temple (a theme revisited in both cases in 4:10–14, 20–24, 28), but the water of the Spirit (3:5) and the revealer from above (3:11–21). |
| It is reasonable, I suppose—or at least natural—for modern students of religion to wonder how the earliest Christians, all of them Jews, were able to reconcile their belief in the divinity of Christ with the monotheism enshrined in Israel’s Sh’ma’. Indeed, historians of Christian thought have devoted many studies to that inquiry. Looking at the apostolic writings through the lens of this inquiry, I gain an interesting impression of the earliest Christians: Their confession of the divinity of Jesus, while it was difficult, seems not to have been complicated. First, the recorded difficulty of the apostles was not an impasse of reason (“How can this Jesus be both God and man?”) but a failure of perception (“They did not understand about the loaves, because their hearts were hardened”—Mark 6:52; Cf. 8:13-21). Second, when they did arrive at this profession, in due course, the journey was not complicated. Their arrival did not result from a subtle mental process (“Well, let’s see, perhaps He is one person in two natures.”) but from an immediate experience involving both Jesus’ identity and their own destiny: “You have the words of eternal life, and we have come to believe and to know that You are the Holy One of God (ho Hagios tou Theou)” (John 6:68-69). It is most significant that the two verbs introducing Peter’s confession—“to believe and to know”—are expressed in the Greek perfect tense: pepistevkamen kai egnokamen. The nuance of the expression is subtle; the apostles, when they reflect on what they now confess, perceive that they already know the identity of Jesus. Even though they have not figured it out, they discover it is already an established conviction—a prior, implicit knowledge of Jesus’ identity. Peter, faced abruptly with the question of leaving Jesus (“Will you also depart?”), immediately discerns why he and the others cannot do it: They know who He is! Abandoning Him, they would forfeit eternal life. We should go further in this reflection, I think. Why else would Jesus ask the apostles, “Will you also depart”? Jesus needs information on this score? Hardly. He poses the question, rather, and thus puts the apostles on the spot, precisely in order to bring their minds to the realization of what, in fact, they have already come to know. His question to them raises to the conscious surface of the apostles’ minds a conviction to which they already adhere. It is not proper to speak, in this case, of “doctrinal development.” The apostles are not trying to find the right words to confess a complex and knotty idea. |
| Tweet Нравится Pan-Orthodox Council: The Mission of the Orthodox Church in Today " s World Source: DECR Communication Service February 28, 2016 The contribution of the Orthodox Church to the attainment of peace, justice, freedom, brotherhood and love between peoples and the removal of racial and other discrimination. Draft of document of the Pan-Orthodox Council approved by the Synaxis of the First Hierarchs of the Local Orthodox Churches in Chambésy, January 21-28, 2016. Published in accordance with the Resolution of the Synaxis of First Hierarchs . The Church of Christ lives in the world but is not of the world (cf. Jn. 17:11 and 14-15).The Church is the sign and image of the Kingdom of God in history, proclaiming the good news of a " new creation " (II Cor. 5: 17) and of a new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness (II Pt. 3:13), of a world in which God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain (Rev. 21:4-5). It is with this hope that the Church lives, and foretastes it in particular when the Divine Eucharist is celebrated, bringing " together " (I Cor. 11: 20) the scattered children of God (Jn. 111: 52) without regard to race, gender, age, social status or any other station into a single body where there is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus (Gal. 3:28; cf. Col. 3:11). In this foretasting of a " new creation, " of a world transfigured, the Church lives in the countenances of her saints who, through their spiritual endeavors in Christ, have already in this life revealed the image of the Kingdom of God, proving and affirming by this that the hope of peace, justice and love is not a utopia, but the substance of things hoped for (Heb. 11:1), attained through the grace of God by means of the human person’s spiritual endeavors. In finding constant inspiration in this hope and the foretasting of the Kingdom of God, the Church cannot remain aloof from of the problems of the human person in each historical epoch, but shares his concern and everyday problems, taking upon herself, as the Lord did, the pain and wounds, the cause of which is evil that is active in the world and, like the Good Samaritan, with a word of patience and comfort (Rom. 15:4, Heb. 13:22) and through active love, pours upon his wounds oil and wine (Lk. 10:34). Her word, addressed to the world, has as its aim first of all not to judge and condemn the world (cf. Jn. 3:17) and 12:47), but to offer it as guidance the Gospel of the Kingdom of God, hope and the assurance that the last word in history is not evil, no matter what form it may take, and that we should not allow evil to dictate the course of history. |
| Synodality and Primacy during the First Millennium: Towards a Common Understanding in Service to the Unity of the Church Source: Pan-Orthodox Synod September 23, 2016 From the fourteenth meeting of the Joint International Commission for Theological Dialogue between the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church, Chieti, 21 September 2016 ‘We declare to you what we have seen and heard so that you also may have communion [koinonia] with us; and truly our communion [koinonia] is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. We are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.’ (1Jn 1:3-4) 1. Ecclesial communion arises directly from the Incarnation of the eternal Word of God, according to the goodwill (eudokia) of the Father, through the Holy Spirit. Christ, having come on earth, founded the Church as his body (cf. 1Cor 12:12-27). The unity that exists among the Persons of the Trinity is reflected in the communion (koinonia) of the members of the Church with one another. Thus, as St Maximus the Confessor affirmed, the Church is an ‘eikon’ of the Holy Trinity. At the Last Supper, Jesus Christ prayed to his Father: ‘Protect them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one’ (Jn 17:11). This Trinitarian unity is manifested in the Holy Eucharist, wherein the Church prays to God the Father through Jesus Christ in the Holy Spirit. 2. From earliest times, the one Church existed as many local churches. The communion (koinonia) of the Holy Spirit (cf. 2Cor 13:13) was experienced both within each local church and in the relations between them as a unity in diversity. Under the guidance of the Spirit (cf. Jn 16:13), the Church developed patterns of order and various practices in accordance with its nature as ‘a people brought into unity from the unity of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit’. 3. Synodality is a fundamental quality of the Church as a whole. As St John Chrysostom said: ‘“Church” means both gathering [systema] and synod [synodos]’. The term comes from the word ‘council’ (synodos in Greek, concilium in Latin), which primarily denotes a gathering of bishops, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, for common deliberation and action in caring for the Church. Broadly, it refers to the active participation of all the faithful in the life and mission of the Church. |
| Sermon for the Feast of the Apostle Matthew 2015 The Apostle and Evangelist Matthew, like the Evangelist John, was one of the twelve Apostles, whereas the Evangelists Mark and Luke were of the Seventy. The Apostle Matthew was first called Levi, as we are told in Luke’s Gospel. As Peter was called Simon ( cf. St. Mark 3:16, St. Luke 6:14) and Paul was called Saul ( cf. Acts 13:19), each of them receiving a new name from Christ. Levi was a tax collector (i.e., publican) and spent his days in the tax collector’s booth (i.e., custom house), in Capernaum, collecting money from his fellow citizens. We can understand the type of employment Levi had, and how his countrymen thought of his trade, by reading what he wrote regarding publicans in his Gospel. We find that the word “publican” is used as a derogatory term and is often synonymous with “sinner” and “heathen.” For example, Matthew writes that if we love others as they love us we do not deserve a reward because even publicans do the same (St. Matt. 5:46-47). He also mentioned that Christ was viewed negatively because he was accused of eating with publicans and sinners (St. Matt. 9:10-11; 11:19). Another reference is made when he writes that if a Christian is corrected by an elder of the Church but does not listen, he is to be treated as a heathen and a publican (St. Matt. 18:17). Lastly, we see that publicans are even grouped with harlots, when Jesus, speaking to the Pharisees, said: “Verily I say unto you, that the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you” (St. Matthew 21:31). One day while Levi was applying his trade in the custom house, Jesus walked by and, upon seeing him, said, “Follow me.” It is said of Levi that at that moment, “he left all, rose up, and followed Him” (St. Luke 5:27, cf. St. Matthew 9:9). Next, the Apostle Luke writes: Levi made him a great feast in his own house: and there was a great company of publicans and of others that sat down with them. But [the] scribes and Pharisees murmured against his disciples, saying, “Why do ye eat and drink with publicans and sinners?” And Jesus answering said unto them, “They that are whole need not a physician; but they that are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” (5:29-32) |
| In the Prophet Hosea, we find this definition of God: “I am God, and not man.” If God, Who has reason and will, as is clearly reflected in the Bible (3 Kings Kings] 3:28; Job 12:13, 16; Proverbs 3:19-20; Sirach 1:1, 5; 15:18, 42:21; Esaias [Isaiah] 11:2; 28:29; Luke 11:49; Romans 11:33; 14:26; 1 Corinthians 1: 21, 24; 2:7. Will of God: Psalm 106 11; Wisdom 6:4; Mark 3:35; Luke 7:30; Acts 20:27; 1 Peter 2:15; 3:17; 4:2, 19; 1 John 2:17; Romans 1:10; 8:27; 12:2; 1 Corinthians 1:1; 2 Corinthians 8:5; Ephesians 5:17; 6:6; 1 Thessalonians 4:3; 5:18; Hebrews 10:36; Revelation 17:17), is not man, this means that He is a being of another order, located by His nature beyond our world. He, as philosophers and theologians say, is transcendent with respect to the world. This transcendence – that is, God’s natural distinction from the physical world – is described in the Bible by the word “Spirit.” “God is a spirit” (John 4:24. Cf., Genesis 1:2; 6:3; 41:38; Exodus 15:10; 31:3. Numbers 11:29; 23:6; 24:2; Judges 3:10; 6:34; 11:29; 13:25; 14:6, 19; 15:14; 1 Kings Samuel] 10:6, 10; 11:6; 16:13; 19:20, 23; 2 Kings Samuel] 23:2; 3 Kings Kings] 18:12; 1 Paralipomena Chronicles] 15:1; 2 Paralipomena Chronicles] 15:1; 20: 14; 24:20; Neemias [Nehemiah] 9:20; Judith 16:14; Job 4:9; 26: 13; 33:4; Psalms 32 50 103 138 142 Wisdom of Solomon 1:7; 9:17; 12:1; Esaias [Isaiah] 11:2; 32:15; 34:16; 42:1; 44:3; 48:16; 61:1; 63:10–14. Ezekiel 11:1, 5; Aggeus [Haggai] 2:5; Zacharias 4:6; 7:12; 2 Esdras 6:37; Matthew 1:20; 3:16; 4:1; 10:20; 12:31–32; 28:19. Mark 1:10, 12; 3:29; 13:11; Luke 1:35, 67; 2:26; 3:22; 4:1, 18; 11:13; 12:10, 12; John 1:32–33; 3:5–6, 8, 34; 6:63; 7:39; 14:17, 26; 15:26; 16:13; 20:22; Acts 1:2, 5, 8, 16; 2:4, 17–18, 33, 38; 5:3, 9; 7:51; 8:29; 9:31; 10:19; 11:12, 28; 13:2, 4; 15:28; 16:6–7; 19:6; 20:22–23, 28; 21:11; 28:25. 1 Peter 1:2, 11–12, 22; 5:5; 8:9, 11, 14–16, 23, 26–27; 11:8; 14:17; 15:13, 16, 19, 30; 1 Corinthians 2:10–14; 3:16; 6:11, 19; 12: 3–4, 8–11, 13; 15:45; 2 Corinthians 1:22; 3:3, 17–18; 5:5; Galatians 3:5, 14; 4: 6; Ephesians 1:13, 17; 2:18. 22; 3:5, 16; 4:30; 5:9; Philippians 1:19; 1 Thessalonians 1:5–6; 4:8; 2 Thessalonians 2:8, 13; 1 Timothy 3:16; 4:1; 2 Timomhy 1:14; Titus 3:5; Hebrews 2:4; 3:7; 6:4; 9:8, 14; 10:15, 29; Revelation 2:7, 11, 17, 29; 3:6, 13, 22; 14:13; 22:17). |
| 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. |
| 1 Написано в конце 1341 или начале 1342. 2 Cod. Monac. Gr. 223. 3 Apud Palamas, Antirreticos 3, 4, 7 (ред. P. Christou 3, 165—166). 4 Ibid., 3, 2, 12ss. 5 См. Carit. 4, 9; PG 90, 1049B. [р.п. I, с. 135]. 6 Amb. Io. 7; PG 91, 1172A. 7 Ibid. 10; PG 91, 1172A. 8 Ibid. 41; PG, 91, 1305. 9 Carit. 4, 4 и 5; PG 90, 1048D. [р.п. I; 4 и 5, с. 134]. 10 Amb. Io. 23; PG 91, 1260C. 11 Amb. Io. 42; PG 91, 1329A. Ср. L. Thunberg, Microcosm and Mediator. The theological anthropology of Maximus the Confessor, Lund 1965, 78—81. I.-H. Dalmais, La theorie des logoi des creatures chez S. Maxime le Confesseur, в: RSPhTh 36 (1952) 244—249. 12 Commentary to On the Divine Names 2, 3; PG 4, 352. 13 Amb. Io. 7; PG 91, 1080A. 14 Ibid.; PG 91, 1081C. 15 Opusc. 23; PG 91, 264—265. 16 Cap. Theol. 1, 68; PG 90, 1108C. [.п. I; 68, с.226]. 17 Ibid. 48—49; 1100C-1101A. [.n.I; 48, 49, с. 222]. 18 Amb. Io. 7; PG 91, 1072B. 19 Amb. Th. 5; PG 91, 1057B. Cf. Thunberg, 94. 20 De fide orth. 3, 15; PG 94, 1048. 21 Opusc. 3; PG 91, 45D. 22 Ibid. 16; PG 91, 192. 23 Ср. J.-M. Garrigues, Maxime le Confesseur. La charite, avenir divin de l " homme, Paris 1976, 91f. 24 Carit. 3, 25; PG 90, 1024B. [.п. I; 3, 25]. Бог, приводя к бытию разумное и умное существо, по высочайшей благости Своей сообщил тварям четыре Божественные свойства, их содержащие, охраняющие и спасающие: бытие, приснобытие, благость и премудрость: два первыя даровал существу, а два последния — нравственной способности; существу — бытие и приснобытие, а нравственной способности — благость и премудрость, дабы тварь была тем по причастию, что Он сам есть по существу. Посему и сказано, что человек сотворен по образу и по подобию Божию. Сотворен по образу Сущего, яко сущий, Присносущего, яко присносущий, хотя и не безначально, впрочем бесконечно. По подобию Благаго, яко благий, Премудраго по естеству, яко премудрый по благодати. По образу Божию есть всякое существо разумное, по подобию же одни добрые и мудрые. Прим. пер. Привожу два варианта перевода этого текста. |
| Archive Congratulation sent by Primate of the Polish Orthodox Church to His Holiness Patriarch Kirill on his 75th birthday 20 November 2021 year 14:47 His Beatitude Sava, Metropolitan of Warsaw and All Poland, congratulated His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia on his 75th birthday. Your Holiness, For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain… I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far (Phil. 1:21, 23). With these words St. Paul calls all, especially the archpastors of the Church, to focus their life around Christ. For in Him we live and move and have our being… (Acts 17:28). Each day of our life belongs to Him. Our life and our death are in His hands (cf. Phil. 1:20). Christ leads us through earthly life to today’s Golgotha and puts us, just as He did St. John, at the foot of the cross and asks us what else we can do for the Church. He has made everything, and we should preserve these inexhaustible reaches received on Golgotha, i.e., the faithful standing with Him in the evening of our life and in the morning of our resurrection. With the Easter’s “Christ is Risen”, we raise the depressed world and it becomes new. Never before has our service of Christ been so important as it is today. Concern for the healthy Orthodox ecclesiastical family has become for us the primary task of our archpastoral ministry. Faith, hope, love and wisdom are our success. Humbleness and unity are our fortress. The Word of God is our sword. The destiny of our Church is victory and resurrection. Everything passes while Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever (Heb. 13:8). He is the corner stone. We and our Church are the foundation built on it. Your Holiness, today marks the 75 years of your life on earth and this year marks the 45 years of your episcopal ministry and 12 years of your Patriarchal service. Your Holiness, you, like a solid foundation, hold the walls of the Russia Orthodox Church. You take upon yourself all the blows of the wave of the modern world. Under your wise archpastoral omophorion the Russian Church is developing, and attention is given in much of this to the whole Orthodoxy, which is in crisis today. I congratulate Your Holiness on your 75th birthday and wish you much spiritual joy, good health and successful fight for the salvation of many. I remember with gratitude the visit of Your Holiness to the Polish land. Your Patriarchal blessing and witness to the Lord’s truth before our society stands to this day. May the Lord save you for this! Once again, I greet you on your 75th birthday, brotherly embrace Your Holiness and exclaim, Many Years of life to Your Holiness! With love in Christ, + Sava, Metropolitan of Warsaw and All Poland Календарь ← 7 December 2023 year |
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