| Туманное утро во Франции, урожай тыкв из США, прогулка с малышами в Царском Селе Самое красивое время года в подборке фотографий со всего мира 1. Олень на рассвете. Деревня Городиловичи, Белоруссия 22 октября 2017 года Sergei Gapon/AFP/Getty 2. Путешественники наслаждаются теплым осенним днем в Швейцарии 12 октября 2017 года Denis Balibouse/Reuters 3. Орво, Франция 17 октября 2017 года Stephane Mahe/Reuters 4. Тыквы выставлены на продажу на ярмарке Maple Acres в Пенсильвании 17 октября 2017 года Matt Rourke/AP 5. Солнце садится за виноградником Остховен недалеко от Страсбурга, Франция 17 октября 2017 года Christian Hartmann/Reuters 6. Дети играют в листве в городе Алма-Ата, Казахстан 13 октября 2017 года Shamil Zhumatov/Reuters 7. На ярмарке Maple Acres в Пенсильвании 17 октября 2017 года Matt Rourke/AP 8. Китайские фермеры убирают урожай риса в восточной провинции Цзянсу 23 октября 2017 года AFP/Getty 9. Птицы на закате в Канзас-Сити, США 18 октября 2017 года Charlie Riedel/AP 10. Вид с воздуха на кукурузные поля в штате Висконсин, США 25 сентября 2017 года CC BY-SA PJ Nelson 11. Двухлетняя девочка и ее мама гуляют по туннелю из деревьев на старой римской дороге неподалеку от городка Халнакер в Великобритании 16 октября 2017 года Dan Kitwood/Getty 12. Силуэты дубовых листьев на фоне солнца во Франции 16 октября 2017 года Loic Venance/AFP/Getty 13. Человек идет через утренний туман в Лионе 12 октября 2017 года Jeff Pachoud/AFP/Getty 14. Женщина гуляет с малышом в Царском Селе 17 октября 2017 года Olga Maltseva/AFP/Getty 15. Парк Хумлегорден, Стокгольм 18 октября 2017 года Jonathan Nackstrand/AFP/Getty 16. Осенние деревья в Висконсине Фото сделано с помощью дрона 17 октября 2017 года CC BY-SA PJ Nelson 17. Пара фотографируется напротив стены, увитой плющом, в Лондоне 16 октября 2017 года Carl Court/Getty 18. Солнце поднимается над статуей Христа во Франции 17 октября 2017 года REUTERS/Christian Hartmann 19. Осеннее утро в швейцарской деревне |
| 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) |
| Today we celebrate the birthday of one of the most unusual and important people in the history of our faith: St. John the Baptist. He has the titles of prophet, forerunner, and baptist because he fulfilled all three roles, speaking the word of the Lord as he prepared the way for the coming of Christ, calling God’s people to repentance and baptism, and even baptizing the incarnate Son of God at the very moment when the Holy Trinity was revealed by the voice of the Father and the descent of the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove upon the Lord in the Jordan. We shall make a few comments on a passage that Saint Sophrony wrote about Saint John the Baptist. The Lord exalted Saint John the Baptist and bore testimony that he is the greatest among them that are born of women, because he made himself the least (see Matt. 11:11). Although he had all the glory in Israel and many people even considered him to be Christ, he put himself under the shoes of the Lord and witnessed that he was unworthy to unloose the latchets of Christ’s shoes (see Luke 3:15-16, Mark. 1:7 and Acts 13:24-25), and that ‘Christ must increase, but I must decrease’ (cf. John 3:30). We must not forget that we fell from pride and the greatest virtue that our Lord has manifested in order to save us is His humility, the opposite of that which makes us perish. It is indeed the humility of Christ that saves us, His greatest gift which enables us to find healing from our fall. The Lord Himself sets forth humility as a condition in order to learn anything divine: ‘Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart’ (Matt. 11:29). If we learn the humility of Christ, we will be able to perceive two realities: the divine reality and the human reality. We will perceive the presence of God in everything and in everyone, and we will also perceive the falsehood in us. Christ is the Light of the world, ‘which lighteth every man that cometh into the world’ (John 1:9), for every man has the image of God in himself. God has planted in man the potential to know his Creator and to unite with Him and, if we see His image in every person, we can honour and love every human being as ourselves. However, if we are to perceive that image in the others, we need to be humble, for humility attracts grace and grace is the light of life. Without humility we remain blind and can understand nothing divine and nothing human. |
| Holy Baptism First place among the Sacraments of the Orthodox Church is occupied by Holy Baptism, by which a man, who has come to believe in Christ, by being immersed three times in water in the Name of the Holy Trinity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit), is cleansed through Divine Grace of all sins (Original Sin and personal sins) and is reborn into a new holy, and spiritual life. First place among the Sacraments of the Orthodox Church is occupied by Holy Baptism, by which a man, who has come to believe in Christ, by being immersed three times in water in the Name of the Holy Trinity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit), is cleansed through Divine Grace of all sins (Original Sin and personal sins) and is reborn into a new holy, and spiritual life. This Baptism serves as the door through which man enters into the House of Eternal Wisdom – the Church – for, without it, a man cannot be united completely with the Savior, become a member of His Church, receive the other Sacraments, and be the heir to Eternal Life. As the Lord Himself said, in His discourse with Nicodemus, Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the Kingdom of God (John 3:5) This Sacrament of Holy Baptism, however, is not the same as the baptism performed by St. John the Baptist, for although this baptism of John was from heaven (Mark 11:30), it was only a prototype of Christ’s Baptism: I baptize you with water; but He Who is mightier than I u coming…; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire (Luke 3:16). The baptism of John prepared a man for the reception of the Messiah and His Kingdom (Matt. 3:1-2; Luke 1:16; 3:3). John’s baptism was, in effect, a baptism of repentance (Mark 1:4; Acts 19:4) and not in the Name of the Holy Trinity. Therefore those baptized by him were not reborn through the grace of the Holy Spirit and had to be rebaptized later (Acts 19:35). The Sacrament of Holy Baptism was instituted by Our Lord after His resurrection, when He appeared to His disciples and said. All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age (Matt. 28:18-20). The necessity of this baptism was further stressed by the Savior when He said to them. He who believes and is baptised will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned (Mark 16:16). |
| Jesus and the Jordan River SOURCE: Jerusalem Post By Beata Adonia, TRAVELUJAH Visit one of the most famous biblical Christian sights where Jesus was said to have been baptized. Jordan River Baptism Photo: Travelujah For further information about Christian tourism and Holy Land tours contact info@travelujah.com . The Jordan River flows through the Jordan Rift Valley into the Kinneret and then continues down into the Dead Sea with no outlet. It is a place of many important biblical events. However, for most Christians the first association with the river would be the scene of Jesus Christ being baptized by John the Baptist. According to the Christian faith, the Jordan River is considered the third most holy site in the Holy Land, just after Nativity Grotto in Bethlehem and Golgotha in Jerusalem, because it is the site of the most important event of Jesus’ life - his baptism and beginning of his ministry. It was John the Baptist who decided to baptize people in the Jordan River. Many scholars think that he might have been influenced by the Essens, who like John, were leading an ascetic life in the wilderness of Qumran or EinGedi. One of their principal religious rituals was a daily immersion in water to regain purity. The Jordan River represented a perfect mikva of continuously running water. John is also commonly referred to be a precursor of Jesus, and the Gospel of Matthew describes him as the person mentioned by Isaiah in his prophecy: “A voice of one calling in the wilderness,‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.’” (Isaiah 40:3) John also announced that Christ - the Messiah is coming, with the words: “I baptize you with water for repentance. But after me comes one who is more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” (Matt. 3:11) Jesus’ Baptism and its meaning Christ was baptized in the Jordan River by John the Baptist. Baptism with water, practiced since the beginning of the Church, represents admission into the Christian community and is essential for salvation. " Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God. " (John 3:5) In Christianity, baptism is a sign of “repentance and forgiveness of sins” (Mark 1:4) and the beginning of the life in Christ within the Church. Christians are baptized in the name God: “Father, and the Son and the Holy Spirit” (Matt. 28:19). As well, through baptism Christians associate with the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus: “And this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you […] by the resurrection of Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 3:21) |
| Take fasting seriously as a very important aspect of Lent. Think of fasting not simply as an item of diet, but as something related to the fall of humankind, and at the same time as a victory through Christ. We fast for forty days in Lent before Holy Week not merely as an exercise, an ascesis, but also because there is an important Christological significance attached to fasting. We have forty-day fasting models from both the Old and New Testaments. In the Old Testament, Moses fasted for forty days on Mount Sinai before receiving the Ten Commandments (Exodus 34:28, Deut. 9:9, 9:18) and Prophet Elijah fasted for forty days on Mount Horeb (3 Kingdoms 19:8). Both of these instances are connected with an encounter with God at the end of their fasting. In the New Testament, we have the forty-day fasting in the desert by our Lord Jesus Christ (Matt. 4:1-11, Mark 1:12-13, Luke 4:1-13). At the end of the forty-day fasting by Christ in the desert, there are the well-known “Temptations” of Christ, the first of which is related to eating: And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But he [Christ] answered, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God’” (Matt. 4:3-4). Is this event in the life of Christ in any way connected to the Fall of Adam? Indeed, the Fall of Adam was caused by an eating situation, yet the victory of Christ also happened through an eating situation. While Adam said “yes” to the temptation and ate (Genesis 3:1-6), Christ said “no” to the temptation and did not eat. This is why the fasting of the forty-days during Lent is not simply a matter of abstention or an issue of diet, but is a major Christological and soteriological situation; the fall of humankind, and then the restoration through the victory of Christ. So let us take fasting seriously and prepare ourselves for a blessed encounter with God. 3. Reconsider our life of prayer |
| All too often, a priest acts as if he were a secular leader, a board president, a CEO of a non-profit, a manager of an organization. To be sure, priests do hold a position of authority in the Church. But what kind of authority is it? What kind of headship? Photo: Konstantin Diachkov I really like the Roman Bishop’s official title: “the servant of the servant of God.” Regardless of how it is realized in the life of any particular pontiff, the title itself is very much Christ-centric and conveys the correct idea: a priest or a bishop receives his authority from Christ, and it is His, Christ’s, authority, not the priest’s. So, in order to find out how a priest is to exercise his authority, we must look at how Christ exercised His authority and learn from His example. “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government will be upon his shoulder…” (Isa. 9:6) What is “the government upon shoulders”? Is it some kind of epaulettes or shoulder boards—the usual symbols of government? Not quite. He was “bearing his own cross” (John 19:17), “He bore the sin of many” (Isa. 53:12). Is this the image of a general in epaulettes?—“He had no form or comeliness that we should look at Him, and no beauty that we should desire Him. He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces He was despised, and we esteemed Him not” (Isa. 53:2, 3). A secular leader acts on the following principle: “Come to me, all ye to whom I have not yet ordered anything, and I will give you duties.” Christ says: “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28). Who is the greatest in a secular kingdom?—He whose hat is the tallest and servants are many. But when Christ was asked who was the greatest in the kingdom of heaven, “calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them…” (Matt. 18:1, 2). “And he sat down and called the twelve; and he said to them, ‘If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all’” (Mark 9:35). |
| Message of His Holiest Beatitude, Theophilos III, Patriarch of Jerusalem Behold the Virgin, begetting God in flesh, in the city of Bethlehem, inside the Cavern, the entire universe has been enriched, rejoice and dance, associate with servants - for the Lord has come near everyone. (Matins Oikos 20, December) The one, holy, catholic and apostolic Orthodox Church of Christ, across the world, celebrates today a miraculous and sublime event which transcends every human intellect and concept. It celebrates the event of the birth in flesh of the Son and Word of God, our Saviour, Jesus Christ, incarnate and made man from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary. This event, God the Father had wanted since centuries ago and for it He had prepared men through His holy prophets and “the Law as guardian” (Gal. 3, 24) in His Holy Scriptures and the Holy Spirit. “But when the fullness of time had come” (Gal.4, 4) during the reign of Caesar Octavius Augustus, he revealed so in this very city, Bethlehem, “which is by no means least among the rulers of Judah” (Matt. 2, 6), and in this plain cavern. Here, in this land, God the Father had deigned that His hitherto fleshless and timeless Son be born in flesh and appear in time. Here came the Magi from the East, led by a bright star, and saw an infant in the arms of the Virgin and worshipped Him, offering Him their presents of ‘gold, frankincense and myrrh” (Matt. 2, 11). The Shepherds worshipped Him too, those living in the fields near the town of the Shepherds. Here too the angelic hymn of peace was heard from the heavens: “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favour rests” (Luke 2, 14). And this happened because God, who had made man, never ceased to love and seek him, even when man was distant from Him. God sought man in his complex, endless and pointless philosophical quests, and in his sinful and pernicious achievements, but He did not decline him; instead, according to the god-bearing saint Cyril, Archbishop of Alexandria, “He appropriated humanity and, without confusion, incorporated flesh and received man” (On the Right Faith, PG 76, 1181D) during the mission in the world and the incarnation of His Son. |
| John Anthony McGuckin Blessing Rituals JEFFREY B. PETTIS In the Scriptures the concept “to bless” means to give favor. For example, in Genesis 27.11 Isaac receives the favor or blessing (Hebrew, brch) of his father Jacob. In Numbers 24.1 Balaam prayed and “saw that it pleased the Lord to bless Israel.” With both of these examples blessings occur as an automatic action apart from moral conditions or expectation. There also occurs the liturgical blessing of persons ( Num. 6 .22ff.) and of food ( 1Sam. 9.13 ; cf. Matt. 14.19). The Greek Septuagint and the New Testament translates this concept of blessing as eulogeo (“to speak well of”). In Luke 1.64 the mouth of the dumb Zachariah was opened and he “spoke praises” (elalei eulogon) to God (also Acts 3.26). Eulogeo may also mean to ask for the bestowal of special favor, especially by the act of calling down God’s gracious power. In Hebrews 7.1 the high priest Melchizedek, the King of Salem, meets Abraham returning from battle and blesses him (see also Luke 24.50f.; cf. Gen. 14.19; 1 Clem. 15.3). Rooted in the biblical tradition, the Orthodox Church continues the tradition of offering blessings on persons and objects associated with the life in Christ (icons, worship-related objects such as holy water or crosses, or objects related to the believer’s lifestyle), and reserves the “sacramental” character of the blessing by seeing it as appropriately given by a bishop or a priest. A believer approaches for a blessing with a gesture of the hands in cupped shape. The bishop or priest signs the believer’s head with the sign of the cross and invokes the name of God over them. Ritual objects are blessed with special priestly prayers and the making of the sign of the cross over the article three times with the sprinkling of holy water. Many times during the liturgy the celebrant blesses the people with the cross or with the hand held in the shape of the name of Jesus: again delineating that the blessing is “In the Name” of the Lord. The Orthodox Service Book contains many priestly blessings; for guarding someone from evil influence, to secure a home and a family’s godly endeavors, for the blessing of houses, farms, schools, wells, and so forth. The blessing ceremony of a foundation of a new church is of an especially solemn character, its ritual prescribed in the bishops’ service book. In many cultures of Eastern Orthodoxy parents also bless the young, laying their hands on their heads and using the simple declarative: “God bless you.” In daily prayers the believer can often call upon God’s blessing, as for example in this commonly used nighttime prayer: “Into thy hands, O Lord, |
| Holy Eucharist The central place among the Sacraments of the Orthodox Church is held by the Holy Eucharist - the precious Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. The central place among the Sacraments of the Orthodox Church is held by the Holy Eucharist – the precious Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. In modern times the Holy Eucharist is celebrated in the Orthodox Church at the following Liturgies: 1. The Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom – the usual Liturgy of Sundays and Weekdays. 2. The Liturgy of St. Basil the Great – celebrated on the Sundays of Great Lent and certain Feast Days. 3. The Liturgy of St. James the Brother of the Lord – celebrated on October 23 (St. James’ Day) in certain places only (e.g., Jerusalem). 4. The Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts – celebrated on Weekdays of Great Lent and Holy Week. (At this Liturgy there is no consecration of the Holy Gifts, but rather Communion is given from the Gifts consecrated on the previous Sunday – hence Pre-sanctified.) The Savior Himself said, I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me shall not hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst… If any one eats of this bread he will live forever; and the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is My flesh (John 6:35,51). At the Last Supper, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and broke it, and give it to the disciples and said, ‘Take, eat; this is My body’. And He took a cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink of it, all of you; for this is My blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins’ (Matt. 26:26-28; cf. Mark 14:12-16; Luke 22:7-13; 1 Cor. 11:23-30). This institution of the Eucharist by our Lord is the means whereby we become united with Christ and with each other as a church, for, as St. Paul says, the goal of every Christian is to grow up in every way into Him Who is the head, into Christ, from Whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every joint with which it is supplied – makes bodily growth and upbuilds itself in love (Eph. 4:15-16). This is so since Christ is the head of the Church, His body, and is Himself its Savior (Eph. 5:23). We become part of the Mystical Body of Christ by our communion of the Holy Eucharist. As St. Paul says: The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread (1 Cor. 10:16-17). |
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