| Photo: Freepik.com What influences us most in our lives? Who are the people or figures who consciously or maybe unconsciously influence us? We all are surely influenced by a variety people, by certain ideologies, by contemporary movements or fads, by the things that surround us. There are societal influences, financial influences, political influences, cultural influences, and individual influences. I think of what we see on the internet and how we engage with social media. Who are the popular characters and figures who persuade countless people, who sway us and affect our worldview, our understanding of success and happiness and meaning and life itself. I googled to see who are the most famous people in the world today. Celebrities like Will Smith, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Selena Gomez, Oprah Winfrey or the Kardashian. Entertainers like Ariana Grande, Taylor Swift or Justin Beiber. Entrepreneurs like Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos or Mark Zuckerberg. Athletes like Lebron James, Tom Brady, and Cristiano Ronaldo. Politicians turned demagogues like Donald Trump (I was just in vacation at Myrtle Beach and found it quite strange how there were numerous Trump Superstores; what other politician ever had stores like that?). Even previously unknown young teenagers like Charli and Dixie Damelio have become influencers among the youth through Tiktok fame. What do these figures represent? How do they influence us, in conscious or often in unconscious ways? Do we envy their rich and famous lifestyles? Do we dream about the freedom they have to do whatever they want? And because they have an oversized platform, do we give their voice more credence and importance than we should? This past week I learned about Andrew Tate, one of the most popular social media personalities over the past six months. He is a former world champion kickboxer who probably very few people knew about back in March, and yet, over the past half year videos of him have been watched more than 11 billion times! He’s a savvy entrepreneur who knows how to market himself with his façade as a rich, tough, do-whatever-I-want man’s man who makes outrageous, misogynic, and terribly dangerous statements about women. The disturbing part, however, is that millions of people, especially male teens and young men, watch this man, find his offensive comments funny, and are unconsciously manipulated by his behavior. |
| Greatmartyr Ketevan the Queen of Georgia Commemorated on September 13 The holy Queen Ketevan was the daughter of Ashotan Mukhran-Batoni, a prominent ruler from the Bagrationi royal family. The clever and pious Ketevan was married to Prince David, heir to the throne of Kakheti. David’s father, King Alexander II (1574-1605), had two other sons, George and Constantine, but according to the law the throne belonged to David. Constantine was converted to Islam and raised in the court of the Persian shah Abbas I. Several years after David and Ketevan were married, King Alexander stepped down from the throne and was tonsured a monk at Alaverdi. But after four months, in the year 1602, the young king David died suddenly. He was survived by his wife, Ketevan, and two children—a son, Teimuraz, and a daughter, Elene—and his father ascended the throne once more. Upon hearing of David’s death and Alexander’s return to the royal throne, Shah Abbas commanded Alexander’s youngest son, Constantine-Mirza, to travel to Kakheti, murder his father and the middle brother, George, and seize the throne of Kakheti. As instructed, Constantine-Mirza beheaded his father and brother, then sent their heads, like a precious gift, to Shah Abbas. Their headless bodies he sent to Alaverdi. (Since the beginning of the 11th century, Alaverdi had been the resting place of the Kakhetian kings.) The widowed Queen Ketevan was left to bury her father-in-law and brother-in-law. But Constantine-Mirza was still unsatisfied, and he proposed to take Queen Ketevan as his wife. Outraged at his proposition, the nobles of Kakheti rose up and killed the young man who had committed patricide and profaned his Faith and the throne. Having buried the wicked Constantine-Mirza with the honor befitting his royal ancestry, Ketevan sent generous gifts to Shah Abbas and requested that he proclaim her son, Teimuraz, the rightful heir to the throne. While she was awaiting his reply, Ketevan assumed personal responsibility for the rule of Kakheti. Concerned that, if he denied this request, Kakheti would forcibly separate from him and unite with Kartli, Shah Abbas hastily sent Prince Teimuraz to Georgia, laden with great wealth. |
| On Marriage and Family Life In the fullest sense of the word the wife gives up everything for her husband. This is an important moment for any man – to take on responsibility for a young, fragile, and tender life that has entrusted itself to him, and to care for it and protect it until death tears his treasure away from him or, conversely, strikes him. Foreword There are many religious treatises to be found on monasticism, but there are too few books dedicated to acquainting the contemporary reader with the Christian concept of matrimony. And yet the majority of Christians choose the path of the wedded state, called by the Holy Fathers “the harbor of chastity.” However, our life is usually spent in worry over obtaining one’s daily bread, and the mutual limitations and sinfulness of the spouses often leave a noticeable trace on the relations between husband and wife. Gradually the feelings which had made the young lovers the happiest people on earth begin to fade, grow scanty; the light of sacrifice and chivalry begins to dim; daily routine makes communion between the spouses lackluster. The experience of the crowned royals Nicholas and Alexandra was obviously quite different. Innate nobility, purity of feelings and intentions were united with a well thought out effort to maintain and guard the union which truly became a model for their loyal subjects. While reading books, Empress Alexandra wrote out excerpts which accorded most fully with her own experience of marriage. The inner power of these notes lies in the virtuous way of life of the pious Empress, who was totally dedicated to the ideal of the family. It is for this reason that these excerpts reflect calmness, total sincerity, and celestial beauty. In our times, when the very basic human concepts of duty, honor, conscience, responsibility, and faithfulness are questioned and even mocked, the reading of these notes becomes a real spiritual event. Counsels, warnings to the spouses, thoughts on true and false love, reflections on the relations between close relatives, testimony concerning the definitive significance of the home atmosphere in determining a child’s nature – such is the circle of ethical problems with which the Empress is concerned. |
| The fiercest of struggles attacks believers, all believers, the young and the old, and these are, first, the struggle to maintain chastity and, second, the struggle with the feeling of abandonment. Let’s take a closer look at these two areas of struggle and St. Isaac’s advice on how not to be overcome by them. “ This is the fiercest struggle, the struggle that resists a man unto blood, wherein free will is tested as to the singleness of his love for the virtues….It is here that we manifest our patience, my beloved brethren, our struggle and our zeal. For this is the time of unseen martyrdom…” What is this struggle that St. Isaac speaks of and how can it be overcome? Is it some dread mysterious experience that only the very holy or only monastics or only spiritually advanced strugglers experience? No, not at all. St. Isaac names two specific areas or perhaps better, arenas, in which this fiercest of struggles attacks believers, all believers, the young and the old, the spiritually advanced and the spiritually negligent, the married and the monastic. These two areas are, first, the struggle to maintain chastity and, second, the struggle with the feeling of abandonment. Let’s take a closer look at these two areas of struggle and St. Isaac’s advice on how not to be overcome by them. What is chastity and how do we maintain it? Chastity refers to moral purity generally, but specifically to sexual purity. It does not necessarily refer to sexual abstinence. The hymns of the Church refer to Sts. Joachim and Anna as “chaste” even though they were evidently sexual active: they are the parents of our Mother Mary, God’s Birthgiver. Rather, chastity, when it is referring specifically to sexual activity, is referring to properly ordered sexuality. The struggle with chastity is the struggle with disordered passion. Disordered sexual passion is desire that is inappropriate, untimely or perversely directed. And keep in mind that the word “perverse” doesn’t mean “bad,” but rather means “twisted,” diverted from its appropriate use and purpose. So when we speak of perverted sexual desires, we do not mean bad sexual desire, for sexual desire of itself is good as God created it. We are talking about sexual desire wrongly guided or directed, sexual desire that is uncontrolled. |
| “If everyone has his own truth, where is falsehood?” A talk with Archbishop Stephan (Kalaidjishvili) of Tsageri and Lentekhi, Georgia Shio Otarashvili , Archbishop Stephan (Kalaidjishvili) —Your Eminence, you are the director of the Youth Center of the Georgian Patriarchate. Tell us please when the center was founded, and why. —This center was founded in 2006 at the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch-Catholicos Ilya II. At first we would gather in the building of the Tbilisi theological seminary and academy, but later, when the Holy Trinity Cathedral was built, the lower chambers of the building were given to us to use. Our goal is first of all to unite the religious youth so that they would more actively participate in the life of the Church. We also are trying to interest those who take part in our events, and lead them to God. These people first come to us out of curiosity, become members of the youth organizations, and then start coming to church. There are many like that. The youth center has many functions. It all depends upon the interests of the young people. They chose what interests them the most. Some only come to the talks, while others participate in projects. We have ongoing programs like, for example, “Educational Talks”. The theme of these talks is varied: philosophy, theology, and history. There are such interesting themes for young people as man and nature, Christian family and its problems, and problems of child education. We also show films on Sundays, and often have literary evenings. We invite scholars, writers, and other interesting people. Besides that, we have a competition called “We Study the Bible,” which has acquired the character of a Georgian championship. Every year about 500 Georgian schools participate in it. The teams compete with each other in their knowledge of the Holy Scripture. The first stage is at the schools and the winners go to the district competitions, then regional, then semi-finals and finals. The finalists are given prizes: first prize is a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, second and third prizes are a pilgrimage to the historical Tao-Klardjeti province of Georgia (the modern-day territory of northeastern Turkey), and fourth to seventh place winners receive a pilgrimage to the holy places of Georgia. |
| Photo: http://www.pravoslavie.ru/ In the Epistle to the Galatian church (Gal. 1:11-19), we hear St. Paul’s discussing the validity of his conversion and Apostleship. We know from the book of Acts that he was not a typical convert from Judaism to Christianity. His conversion was more significant and complete than simply exchanging a synagogue for a church. It took an encounter with Christ on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:1-6) to change St. Paul from a persecutor of the Christian faith to one of Christ’s greatest disciples, responsible for spreading the Gospel message throughout the far reaches of the Roman Empire. Like many of us who converted to Orthodox Christianity from another religious tradition, St. Paul ran into those who had doubts about the validity of his conversion. Think back to the time you told your family and friends that you were joining the Orthodox Christian Church: What was their reaction? Was it complete acceptance, total skepticism or something in between? Proving the strength of your conversion was probably even harder if you came from no “religious” background at all. To go from a man or woman of the world to a true follower of Christ is quite a change in one’s life, involving more than just getting up early on Sundays. It requires not only going to church but loving the church. It requires a total change in the way we order our lives and priorities. It might even mean having to cease certain activities or friends that conflict with our new-found faith, while also resisting the pull of our previous life. And what about your new-found church family? How might we expect them to react? If you had spent your life not just denying but persecuting the Church and its people, it would only make sense that they would be suspicious of your dramatic change in attitude. We recall from the Acts of the Apostles that it was same Paul (then known as Saul of Tarsus) who as a young man approved of the stoning of St. Stephen, the first holy martyr of the Church (Acts 7:58-8:1). Furthermore, it was while on the road to Damascus to persecute the Christians in the city that Saul was struck blind and had his life-changing encounter with Christ. |
| 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”. |
| Peacemaking and Conflict Resolution in the Church Has there ever been a parish council free from conflict? Who has not experienced rancorous divisions among fellow parishioners? Who does not know Orthodox families who have gone through acrimonious divorces? We can shrug it off, saying such conflict is “normal” and do our best to survive it. But in reality conflict often leaves behind enduring damage – severed relationships, broken ties, people left scarred and embittered. Although Christ proclaims, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God,” too often we see the children of the Church embroiled in destructive conflict and controversy. Has there ever been a parish council free from conflict? Who has not experienced rancorous divisions among fellow parishioners? Who does not know Orthodox families who have gone through acrimonious divorces? We can shrug it off, saying such conflict is “normal” and do our best to survive it. But in reality conflict often leaves behind enduring damage – severed relationships, broken ties, people left scarred and embittered. Should we Christians not do better than this? Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could respond to conflict in gracious and constructive ways? Might we learn how to handle conflict so as to build relationships rather than harm them? I believe we can – that we can learn to see conflict as a way to minister to each other and to glorify God. We can harness conflict as a transforming power toward growth and healthy change. Christ gives us a model of handling conflict constructively when a young man approaches and asks his help in settling an inheritance. Instead of behaving as a judge, Christ addresses the underlying issue: “Take heed and beware of all covetousness, for a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” He then illustrates this truth in the parable of the rich fool. (Lk 12:13-21) When faced with conflict, we often focus on what the other person has done wrong. In contrast, scripture and Church tradition call us to focus primarily on what is going on in our own hearts when we are at odds with another. In the Lenten prayer of St. Ephraim the Syrian, we are called first to see our own sins, and not to judge our brother. Why? Because according to scripture, the human heart is the wellspring of conflicts. “For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.” (Mt 15:19) The heart’s central role in conflict is vividly described in the epistle of James: |
| St. Alexander Nevsky, Russia’s Knight in Shining Armor Commemorated November 23/December 6 and August 30/September 12 St. Alexander Nevsky was Russia’s “ knight in shining armor.” His reputation as a man of exceptional valor and surpassing virtue inspired a visit by a German commander who told his people when he returned: “I went through many countries and saw many people, but I have never met such a king among kings, nor such a prince among princes.” The Russians called him their “prince without sin.” He was born just four years before the fierce Tatars, under the leadership of Ghengis Khan, came galloping across the steppes of Kievan Rus. The once flourishing city state—whose social, cultural and spiritual achievements boasted few rivals in Western Europe—had been weakened by quarrelling princes and attacks of warring tribes, and it was an easy prey for the massacring and pillaging Asiatic aggressors. Fortunately, the Mongol Horde’s primary interest in conquest was financial gain, and although it imposed a heavy tax on its subjects, they were left to govern themselves and retained their traditions and religion intact, Nevertheless, the yoke of foreign sovereignty was burdensome; individual princes were reduced to acting as feudal landlords for their Mongol lords, and inclinations toward s national unity—the dream of Grand Prince Vladimir —were stifled. A strong leader was needed if the land of Rus’ was to have any hope of healing internal strife, of throwing off the Tatar yoke, and establishing its identity as a nation state. The baneful effect of internal dissension was a lesson which came early to Prince Alexander, as he witnessed his father, Prince Yaroslav Vsevolodovich, struggle with the proudly independent spirited boyars of Novgorod, It was there that the boy grew up. Like most noble youth s of his time, he had barely learned to walk before he was lifted into the saddle. Training in the martial arts was combined with an education based upon the Scriptures. Under the influence of his mother, who was popularly called “the holy queen” on account of her piety and charitable deeds, the young prince developed a profound spiritual life. He engrossed himself for hours in reading the Old and New Testaments. |
| On the second Sunday of Great Lent, there is a great feast in the blessed city of Thessalonika, Greece. It is the feast of St. Gregory Palamas. On this day, the holy relics of the saint are taken from the Church of St. Gregory in a procession throughout the city, escorted by bishops, priests, sailors, policemen, and thousands of faithful. One wonders why his earthly remains are still held in such great veneration. How could his bones remain incorruptible more than six hundred years after his death? Indeed, St. Gregory’s life clearly explains these wondrous facts. It illustrates the inspired words of the apostles that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit (see 1 Corinthians 6:19) and that we are " partakers of the divine nature” (2 Peter 1:4). A Childhood Passion for the Eternal St. Gregory Palamas was born in the year 1296. He grew up in Constantinople (now Istanbul, Turkey) in a critical time of political and religious unrest. Constantinople was slowly recovering from the devastating invasion of the Crusades. It was a city under attack from all sides. From the west, it was infiltrated by Western philosophies of rationalism and scholasticism and by many attempts at Latinization. From the east, it was threatened by Muslim Turkish military invaders. The peace and faith of its citizens were at stake. Gregory’s family was wealthy. His father was a member of the senate. Upon his father’s sudden death, Byzantine Emperor Andronikos II Paleologos (1282–1328), who was a close friend of the family, gave it his full financial support. He especially admired Gregory for his fine abilities and talents, hoping that the brilliant young man would one day become a fine assistant. However, instead of accepting a high office in the secular world, Gregory sought “that good part, which will not be taken away” from him (Luke 10:42). Upon finishing his studies in Greek philosophy, rhetoric, poetry, and grammar, Gregory, at only twenty or twenty-two years of age, followed a burning passion in his heart. Like a lover who strives to stay alone forever with his loved one, Gregory was thirsty for this living water (see Revelation 22:17). Therefore, no created thing could separate him from the love of God (see Romans 8:39). He simply withdrew to Mount Athos, an already established community of monasticism. He first stayed at the Vatopedi Monastery, and then moved to the Great Lavra. |
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