| Is God’s grace received only by members of the Church or can there be grace outside the Church? Are only Orthodox Christians saved? Before we address these questions, let us explain briefly what grace is. “Grace is the Uncreated Divine energy or power of the Holy Trinity, given to us from God the Father, through God the Son, by God the Holy Spirit.” The Holy Trinity always acts in creation through a common action. Without God’s grace there is no salvation, no spiritual life, no eternal life. Although grace is simple and one, it bestows different gifts to those who partake of it, depending upon the need of each one, and upon one’s degree of receptivity. We partake of God’s grace primarily, though not exclusively, through the Holy Mysteries (Sacraments), especially through Baptism and Holy Communion, and through the ascetical life, primarily prayer. Grace is God’s gift to man, includes existence, life, intelligence and salvation. According to the teachings of Saint Gregory Palamas, the entire creation partakes of God’s Divine energies. Everything partakes of God’s Creative energy (inanimate objects). Certain beings partake also of God’s animating energies (living creatures). Furthermore certain beings partake of God’s reason-bestowing energies (intelligent beings, men and Angels). Finally “only those among the Angels who kept their rank, and those among men who returned to the supernatural dignity given above to the intelligent beings partake also of God’s deifying energy and grace” (Saints and Angels). This last grace is the grace of which we speak here. Is this saving, sanctifying and deifying grace found outside the Church? According to the teachings of the Orthodox Church we obtain God’s grace only in the Church, for outside the Church, the Body of Christ, there is no sanctifying grace, the grace through which we obtain salvation or union with God, is found only in the ark of salvation, the Holy Church, the theanthropic Body of Christ, because Christ is OUR Savior and our Salvation. The position of the Church has been stated once for all through Saint Cyprian of Carthage: |
| Pascha, Easter, Resurrection Sunday….April 1st or 8th? I was baptized and raised Orthodox just like my father. Conversely my mom was Catholic and therefore, almost every year there were two Resurrection Sunday celebrations in our family. From a kid’s perspective this was great but spiritually, it always left me a bit conflicted. What added to that burden was our Orthodox priest’s Resurrection Sunday sermon which always was an explanation about why ‘we’ were celebrating the correct date and everybody else was wrong. His explanation always used the argument of Passover and Easter needing to be in the right chronological order. Of course, this made sense historically but, I was still conflicted out of empathy for my mom. I would always ask my dad, ‘why does he have to preach about the correct date. Isn’t it most important that we simply acknowledge & accept the resurrection?’. My dad would agree and just chalk it up to tradition. As my faith grew so did my Biblical understanding for neutralizing this conflict. I believed the date for celebrating the resurrection was less important because as believers we were really celebrating Jesus’ Resurrection everyday and I still know that to be true but not long ago, something made the date of the Resurrection more significant in my mind. I was chatting about this very topic with my friend and sister in Christ, Tanya Feygin. Tanya had been studying Christ’s fulfillment of the Old Testament feast days as outlined in Leviticus 23. In the course of her study, she came across the historic reasoning for the difference in Resurrection Sunday celebration dates and shared it with me. (1) It was not only eye opening information but, a bit shocking as well. Apparently all Christians used to celebrate the Resurrection according to the Orthodox calendar tradition. It wasn’t until 325 A.D. at the Council of Nicea that a decision was made to change the date. That decision was made specifically to separate the Resurrection of Jesus from Passover and Christianity from it’s Jewish roots. The ruler Constantine obliged the Council and sent out a letter to all those who were not able to be present informing them of the decisions made, including the decision to reject Passover and to instead celebrate Easter. From historical documents, here’s an excerpt from the emperor Constantine’s letter… |
| Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church Meets with the Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians Source: DECR Photo: mospat.ru On April 2, 2019, His Holiness Kirill, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, met with the Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos Karekin II of All Armenians, at the patriarchal residence in the St. Daniel Monastery in Moscow. Taking part in the meeting were also Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate department for external church relations (DECR), Archimandrite Philaret (Bulekov), DECR vice-chairman, Hieromonk Stephan (Igumnov), DECR secretary for inter-Christian relations, Rev. Alexander Volkov, head of the Patriarchal Press Service, and S. Aleferov, DECR staff member. The high guest was accompanied by Archbishop Ezra Nersesian, head of the Russian and Novo-Nakhichevan diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Proto-Archimandrite Shage Ananian, head of the international relations department of the Holy Echmiadzin, Rev. Vagram Melikian, head of the Holy Echmiadzin press office, and Father Anania Tsaturian, secretary to the Patriarch. Welcoming His Holiness Karekin II, Patriarch Kirill said, ‘Whenever we meet, we have an opportunity for a talk about the bilateral relations between our two Churches, which, by God’s mercy, are not darkened by anything and are developing as they should between brothers. We give a high value to the level of the relations established between our two Churches.’ Patriarch Kirill expressed gratitude for the participation of a delegation of the Armenian Apostolic Church in the celebrations devoted to the 10 th anniversary of the 2009 Local Council and for the congratulations on the anniversary of the patriarchal enthronement, noting that in the period since that time, the relations between the two Churches developed further and can be described as very positive. He also extended condolences upon the recent demise of the Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople Mesrob II, 64, who passed away on March 8 after a prolonged disease. |
| Новости Пасха. Воскресение Христово. Осталось 17 дней Афонский Старец Гавриил о сегодняшних днях. Имеющий уши да услышит. Имеющий уши да услышит. Старец Гавриил о сегодняшних днях. 13.01.2016 г. Комментарии Всего комментариев: 20 2018/11/03, 20:06:18 Батюшка Гавриил!Прошу ваших молитв об укреплении сил телесных и душевных.Столкнулась с большими материальными затруднениями:работаем с мужем в основном на погашение долгов.Сил совсем не хватает.Надежда уже во все только Божью помощь. Спаси Вас Господи,батюшка, и низкий поклон от нас,белорусов! 2017/02/02, 14:48:40 Our dear father Gabriel! Very much I ask your holy prayers to our Lord Jesus Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary for us RB Vladislav, not idle Angelina baby Macarius, Romance, Darius, Cyril and Tatiana to me, a great sinner. Strengthen and save you, Lord. Common to you and many of the summer. Forgive me, a sinner. р.Б. Татиана 2017/01/24, 15:36:16 отче Гаврииле! Прошу ваших молитв о здравии духовном и телесном рабов Божьих Веры, Артемия, Кирилла, Ольги. 2017/01/15, 00:07:44 Нам бы всем понять для начала что такое хорошо а что такое плохо Если бы не было монахов то и совесть бы долго нас искала Мы живы и живем только ими и нашими верующими бабушками и дедушками Спаси Господи всех монахов и отца Гавриила 2016/12/29, 23:27:56 Старче Гаврииле, прошу ваших молитв к Господу Богу нашему, Пресвятой матушке Богородице и всем святым за Ирину, Владимира, Наталью, Александра и всех сродников. раба Божия Ирина 2016/10/31, 08:19:47 Старец Гавриил благословите меня на добрые дела! 2016/10/24, 15:23:01 Ф. М. Достоевский о славянских " братьях " России. ...не будет у России, и никогда еще не было, таких ненавистников, завистников, клеветников и даже явных врагов, как все эти славянские племена, чуть только их Россия освободит, а Европа согласится признать их освобожденными! И пусть не возражают мне, не оспаривают, не кричат на меня, что я преувеличиваю и что я ненавистник славян! Начнут же они, по освобождении, свою новую жизнь, повторяю, именно с того, что выпросят себе у Европы, у Англии и Германии, например, ручательство и покровительство их свободе, и хоть в концерте европейских держав будет и Россия, они именно в защиту от России это и сделают. |
| Скачать epub pdf Содержание The Orthodox Liturgical Order: The Product of Historical Cause and Effect, or Divine Inspiration and Guidance? The Constantinian era The mysteries and the sanctifying element in sacred rites The hierarchy and the mystery of the priesthood. The invocation and glorification of Saints Church feasts Conclusion Throughout its history, Russian theological science is accused of falling too much under the influence of the non-Orthodox West. The influence of Latin scholasticism on Kievan theology lasted until the beginning of the 19th century. If later theological science freed itself from this influence, then reproaches were heard of another nature, i.e., that our theologians were not independent, that they were often limited by «copying the Germans,» as Metropolitan Anthony expressed it. This characterization was unpleasant; but, since this dependency did not destroy the general Orthodox direction of theology, it did no real harm. What can one do if the historical and theological science of the West was extensively developed long ago while ours was still embryonic? Due to necessity we had to draw from these sources, and, having drawn from them, we obviously became dependent on them. More important is the fact that the study of sources concerning all facets of church history, even Eastern sources, predominantly belonged to and belongs to the West. In our tragic era when Russian theological science is nearly obliterated, the study of the Orthodox East has passed exclusively into the hands of Western theologians and historians. Their study is done carefully and, in the majority of cases, with love. Nevertheless, one should never forget how unique genuine Orthodox consciousness is, how independent, and how full it is of its own inimitable spirit. For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? ( 1Cor. 2:11 ). The words of Apostle Paul can be applied to the Church. The Western man who is not a member of the Orthodox Church, even if scholarly, is in no position to penetrate the spirit of the Church, the spirit of Orthodoxy. |
| Accept The site uses cookies to help show you the most up-to-date information. By continuing to use the site, you consent to the use of your Metadata and cookies. Cookie policy Metropolitan Hilarion speaks at the opening of the conference on Ss Nicholas of Japan and Innocent of Moscow: Culture of the Peoples of Russia, Japan and America November 8, 2017 – An international academic reflection-action conference on Ss Nicholas of Japan and Innocent of Moscow: Culture of the Peoples of Russia, Japan and America, took place at the Russian embassy in Tokyo. It was held on the occasion of the 220 th birthday of St. Innocent (Veniaminov), Metropolitan of Moscow and Kolomna, Apostle of Siberia and America, spiritual father of St. Nicholas of Japan, Equal-to-the-Apostles. It was organized by the Russian Ministry of Culture as part of the Russian Seasons project, with the support of the Department for External Church Relation (DECR) of the Moscow Patriarchate and the assistance of the Russian diplomatic mission in Japan and the Tokyo representation Rossotrudnichestvo – the federal agency for the affairs of the Commonwealth of the Independent States and compatriots residing abroad and for internal cooperation. The conference was addressed by Russian ambassador to Japan, Ye. Afanasyev, who pointed to the significance of the church academic forum as clearly stressing the spiritual foundations of the Russian-Japanese relations. Metropolitan Hilarion opened the work of the conference with his paper on St. Nicholas Equal-to-the-Apostle and St. Innocent of Moscow – Saints Who Bind Nations. He said in particular, ‘The present meeting gives us an opportunity to address the spiritual sources of ties between Russia, Japan and America – the Pacific countries – the ties based on the Orthodox faith which was brought to this part of the world by Russian missionaries. Our meeting takes place in the year marking the 220 th birthday of a faithful son of the Russian Orthodox Church and outstanding missionary named as the apostle of Siberia and America for his missionary work – St. Innocent of Moscow. It was St. Innocent who, with already 40 years of apostolic service behand him, managed to show to still young, 24 year-old Hieromonk Nicholas (Kasatkin) in which direction his efforts should be exerted, on what he should focus his work so that his chosen service of the Japanese people might produce positive results. |
| Accept The site uses cookies to help show you the most up-to-date information. By continuing to use the site, you consent to the use of your Metadata and cookies. Cookie policy Position of the Moscow Patriarchate on the problem of primacy in the Universal Church The problem of primacy in the Universal Church has been repeatedly raised during the work of the Joint International Commission on Theological Dialogue Between the Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church. On March 27, 2007, the Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church instructed the Synodal Theological Commission to study this problem and draft an official position of the Moscow Patriarchate on the problem (Minutes, No. 26). Meanwhile, the Joint Commission at its meeting on October 13, 2007, in Ravenna, working in the absence of a delegation of the Russian Church and without consideration for her opinion, adopted a document on the Ecclesiological and Canonical Consequences of the Sacramental Nature of the Church. Having studied the Ravenna document, the Russian Orthodox Church disagreed with it in the part that refers to synodality and primacy on the level of the Universal Church. Since the Ravenna document makes a distinction between three levels of church administration, namely, local, regional and universal, the following position taken by the Moscow Patriarchate on the problem of primacy in the Universal Church deals with this problem on the three levels as well. According to the apostolic teaching, the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come.And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church ,which is his body (Eph. 1:17-23). The Church, which is on the earth, represents not only a community of those who believe in Christ but also a divine-human organism: Now ye are the body of Christ, and members in particular (1 Cor. 12:27). |
| A couple of days ago‚ I was having a conversation with a friend of mine‚ a very accomplished Byzantine chanter‚about the interpretation of various pieces of liturgical music. During our conversation he made a comment that stuck with me: it is actually easier to manage a virtuoso interpretation than to chant a simple‚ yet profound‚rendering of the same hymns. The reason he said is that initially the chanter has a zeal to learn all the complicated items‚ to discover all the aspects of the music‚ but later on‚ when he understands that this is not regular music‚ but liturgical music‚ and‚ when he is finally able to join the meaning of the hymn with the melody‚ only at that point‚ true simplicity comes up on the surface on its own. Simplicity is not‚after all‚ a lack of skill‚ but comes out of a deeper understanding‚ out of a humility of the chanter who becomes now a humble instrument that transmits to others the truth that the Holy Fathers expressed in the hymnology that he interprets. In the desert of Egypt‚ during the times of St Anthony the Great‚ lived an elderly monk named Paul. Paul used to be a farmer and upon the leave-taking of his unfaithful wife‚ he sought monasticism with St Anthony. Initially St. Anthony rejected him‚ in order to test him‚ but after seeing his unwavering will (he waited three days outside of St. Anthony’s cell for an answer) he accepted him as a fellow laborer of Christ. Paul‚ who came from humble origins‚ lived a very modest‚ yet pious life‚ and so he was called The Simple. Being simple‚however‚ did not mean he was lacking spiritual knowledge‚ on the contrary‚ he received great spiritual gifts‚ including the power to cast out demons. It is said that at one-point St. Anthony‚ refused to heal a possessed young man saying‚ “I cannot help the boy‚ for I have not received power over the Prince of the demons. Paul the Simple‚ however‚ does have this gift.”‚ he did help the boy‚yet praying in the true simplicity : “Lord Jesus Christ‚ through the prayers of my father Anthony‚ cast out this demon”. |
| Heeding the Message of St. Gregory: On the Second Sunday of the Great Fast Today, the second Sunday of the Great Fast, the Orthodox Church worldwide celebrates the memory of St. Gregory Palamas, fourteenth-century Archbishop of Thessaloniki and one of the greatest Fathers of the Orthodox Church. Until this century, because of the influence of the West—the Jesuits in eighteenth-and nineteenth-century Russia and the Lutherans who were appointed as the Ministers of Religion under the first King of Greece, a German Lutheran, placed in power in Greece after its liberation from the Turkish Yoke at the beginning of the nineteenth century—, St. Gregory Palamas was a virtual mystery to Orthodox theologians. This man, whom we hymn as “ ho phoster tes Orthodoxias ” (the “Enlightener of Orthodoxy”) and “ to sterigma tes Ekklesias ” (the “Pillar of the Church”), taught and lived our Faith in a purity which, except in the hidden confines of monasteries and in the hearts of the simple people—who could not articulate what they knew of Orthodoxy—, was lost to the neo-Papism of Patriarchalism, Western notions of “officialdom,” and to nationalism and ethnicity, which are nothing more than a return to heathenism. Even the life of this great Saint is obscured by modern Western ideas. One of the few commentaries on his life, in a book dedicated to the Pillars of Orthodoxy, refers to him as a member of the “Palamas” family, as though this great Saint were remembered for the nobility of his parents, who were, indeed, members of the Imperial Byzantine Court. Many names at the time, of course, were not like family names as we know them today, and the name “Palamas” was an honorific name derived, not from St. Gregory’s bloodline, but from the Greek word for “clapping,” thus meaning that the Saint’s family was lauded and honoured. And so, this worldly honour was transformed by St. Gregory into spiritual honour, which we commemorate when we refer to him as “Palamas,” one applauded for his spiritual stature. Nor was St. Gregory Palamas influenced by the Bogomils, as the theologian Father John Meyendorff so wrongly taught; neither did he teach an innovative theology, as many modern Orthodox theologians teach. Rather, he codified and wrote about the deep, mystical theology of the Orthodox Church which is, indeed, a teaching passed down through the Fathers, both in writing and by word of mouth, from the time of the Apostles. |
| In recent years much research has been carried out showing stress and burn-out is one of the major health problems facing people, especially males. Chronic and unrelieved stress, when not recognized can and does have serious physical, emotional, and even spiritual consequences. Such physical ailments as tension or migraine headaches, ulcers, chronic backache, hypertension, stroke, and heart disease are commonly regarded today as stress-related. Spiritually, the toll can include difficulties with prayer, worship and the loss of motivation, joy, enthusiasm and peace. It’s the “burn-out syndrome.” Although priests today may experience the same high stress found among other professional groups, some of the causes are unique to the priesthood. Priests preside over communities of the faithful which must attempt to mediate the Gospel message and Orthodox Christian Tradition to a culture whose institutions are undergoing profound change. These ecclesial communities have also undergone change and growth, and have had their own share of turmoil division and pain. Priests under stress are characterized by “too much” in their lives, even too much of a good thing. Typically the person under great stress has too many deadlines, tries to do too many things at once, can be highly disturbed by delays and generally is characterized by endless “shoulds,” “musts,” “oughts,” and “have to’s” in life. The never ending parish expectations often conflict with the central purpose of the teachings of the church. What does one do first? The priest must be a great liturgist (with commanding voice and presence); he must be a great preacher and motivate the congregation, but never over “ten minutes on the pulpit.” He must be a great administrator (mostly with unpredictable volunteers which include the parish council and various parish committees). He must be a great fund raiser, be a social worker, educator, spiritual father, counselor, politician, be bi-lingual, never lose his temper or raise his voice, must treat everyone alike and show no partiality. He cannot admit to personal problems or difficulties. He must be humble (which some see as weakness in our secular society), must be spiritual and holy but put on a great Greek Festival and now more than ever in this economy, he is expected also to use his office as an employment agency. This list can go on. Every parishioner has his or her own list of what makes for a good priest. To please everyone and keep the peace, the priest who is suffering with “burn-out” generally works harder, not less. He tends to take on more duties but seems to accomplish less. The work he once did with joy has become a burden, zeal and motivation having given way to compulsion. Because of this, one begins to feel guilty and inadequate, unappreciated and unloved. |
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