Friday, November 30, 2007
Happy St Andrew's Day!
And has anyone ever seen a simple fisherman catch people like fish? O, how great is the power of the crucified Christ! O, how great is the beauty of Divinity! There is nothing in the world as supreme as apostolic grace. Human life has seen much that is truly extraordinary and surpasses understanding. It saw Noah's ark remain afloat during the deluge and the destruction of mankind. It saw Moses commanding the elements. It saw water made hard as rock and the bottom of the sea opening up. It saw manna being sent from heaven in place of bread. It saw the movement of the sun being stopped by human prayer, and the day made longer by the prayers of Joshua. It saw a chariot fleeting through the air, and the prophet Elias carried away in it. Human life has seen many such great and amazing events. But there has never been anything like the apostles. They, being the servants of the Word, communed with the One Who, as God, cannot be depicted. They followed in the footsteps of the One Who is everywhere. They sat together with the One Who cannot be contained anywhere. They heard the voice of the One Who created everything with His Word. They traveled all over the world. They destroyed idols like savage beasts, chased away demons like wolves. They united the Church into a flock, they gathered the faithful like wheat. They weeded out heresies like chaff and sowed the word of God like the good seed...O, the great glory of Andrew! O, the depth of Apostolic wisdom! O, the fullness of his love! Let us glorify, dear brethren, this wondrous Apostle, and let us love the One Whom he had found, Christ the Messiah.-- St John Chrysostom, Eulogy to St Andrew the First-Called Apostle
Thanks to FWD from Fr Josiah Trenham.
Also known as my wife's birthday (and 2 days past our 20th anniversary).
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Thursday, November 29, 2007
HOUSTON: Clergy Association Benefit
St Romanos ChoraleChristmas Benefit Program
for the
Orthodox Clergy Association
of Greater Houston
Saturday, December 8th - 7:00 PM
Tickets - $10
Refreshments served following the performance.
St George Orthodox Church
5311 Mercer at Bissonnet
713-665-5252
In anticipation of the Nativity of Christ, this concert will expose the beauty and spirituality of Orthodox Christian worship services to non-Orthodox and Orthodox Christians, alike. Proceeds from this concert will help the Orthodox Clergy Association in their joint missionary and outreach projects, especially their broadcast, audio & electronic media efforts.
The purpose of the Orthodox Clergy Association is to find tangible ways to express Orthodox Christian unity, to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and to facilitate communication and fellowship among the brotherhood of Orthodox Clergy in Southeast Texas.
Thanks for your help!
For tickets & sponsorship info call 713-665-5252.
We hope to see you there!
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Wednesday, November 28, 2007
A Book About Confession, Repentance ... and more!
The new book DEFEATING SIN - Overcoming Our Passions and Changing Forever, by Fr Joseph Huneycutt is an ambitious project which tackles a difficult and complex topic with seeming ease. The topic of the passions occupies many pages of writings by a multitude of Church Fathers and is one of the more difficult to grasp completely.Fr Joseph has done a masterful job of collecting some of these writings and by weaving together excerpts from Fathers both ancient and modern with commentary of his own, he presents a tapestry that is clear, concise and within the grasp of most readers. He has indeed taken a complex topic and made it very understandable. His presentation is also more than simply an academic treatise on the passions for he weaves in throughout a pastoral understanding of how to use this knowledge in the process of spiritual growth. In reading this book I was inspired by the clear and yet deep picture of the passions, how they affect our lives and how we can conquer them in our own lives.
I would recommend this book as an important part of the library of any Orthodox Christian, and particularly as a resource for pastors as they strive to shepherd their flock into the safe fold of the Kingdom of God.
-- Archpriest David Moser,
St Seraphim of Sarov Orthodox Church (ROCOR)
Order a signed copy of DEFEATING SIN through PayPal in the side margin (at left) or -- unsigned, multiple copies -- through the publisher at Regina Orthodox Press.
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The Baptists are Coming! The Baptists are Coming!
IVANOVO, Russia (BP)- Southern Baptist missionary Mel Skinner keeps an empty whiskey bottle somewhere in his family's apartment in central Russia.In the fall of 1999, local women at a restaurant gave whiskey and chocolate to Skinner and his family as a gift to welcome them to Ivanovo. At the time, the Skinners had just moved from Moscow, where they had been church planters for several years. Though he later dumped out the whiskey, he still tears up at the memory of the gift.
"They came up to the table and said, 'Excuse me for interrupting your meal,'" he recounts. "'We just wanted to say thank you for coming to our café. We noticed that our day was better after you've been into our café than it was before you came in.' God used all that to just confirm to us this is the place He wanted us to be."
Reception to the Gospel in the cities can be as frigid as a typical Russian day in January. But in the middle of a welcomed Russian summer -- with temperatures usually in the 70s to low 80s and the sun shining until after 10 p.m. -- Skinner brushes off any thoughts about the harsh winters or the struggles to spread the Gospel.
"Somebody once talked about the number of times somebody needs to hear the Gospel to be saved, to make that rational decision to trust your life to Christ," Skinner says. "I don't know what that number is, but most of these people have never had any kind of Gospel access."
Many cling to the Russian Orthodox Church, which Skinner and local believers contend is more about tradition and obligation than true faith.
"Russia is an Orthodox country, but ask them what it means to be Orthodox, and they don't have an answer," says a local believer who accepted Christ after developing a friendship with Skinner.
"Why go to the church and light a candle when no one can tell you why they light a candle?" he asks. "They light a candle, go get drunk and don't remember lighting the candle."
Rumors about Baptists -- and any other group besides Russian Orthodox -- often circulate in Russia. Baptists are seen as a cult, Skinner says. Some believe Baptists kill and eat their young.
Read it all here.
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Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Doomsday. But why May?
I've poked around a bit and, other than those things mentioned below (fear of money, TV, and bar codes), I've yet to discover what these folks believe. Sure, we've heard they're all holed up and waiting on Doomsday in May, but why? Are there any news stories that inform us as to how they came up with this forecast? No, I don't wish to join ... I just get a little weirded out anytime a Government starts calling a religious group a bunch of kooks. And get a load of that pic that accompanies the story (below). Why, gee ... isn't that the image that some outsiders have of Orthodoxy any way? Why on earth would they use that graphic?
I know, I know. It's All. About. The Children. But you can't tell me that there's not other children living in equal squalor (and oddness) somewhere in the USSWere. Something just seems a bit left of kilter here.
Members of the so-called ‘True Russian Orthodox Church’ have shut themselves in Russia's Penza region for about two weeks now.
Others are now living in a house in nearby Nikolskoye, built by cult leader, Pyotr Kuznetsov
“Pyotr Kuznetsov is a very wise man. He interprets the Bible so well that we believe he’s a prophet,” Nikolay Ponedelnik, a cult member says.
The cult members have rather unusual beliefs: they don’t like to handle money, they refuse to watch television, and they say bar codes and tax codes are a sign of the anti-Christ.
Still, the line between traditional religion and cult organisations is thin. Many define it by the affects had on the people within the organisation rather than by details of belief or conduct.
The whole article.
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Monday, November 26, 2007
BEWARE: The Golden Compass
The movie version of The Golden Compass, the first volume of Philip Pullman's controversial trilogy entitled "His Dark Materials," is slated to open nationwide on December 7th. Though the book's anti-Christian element has been watered down in the movie so as not to offend U.S. audiences, the real danger of the movie is that it may encourage parents to buy and children to read the trilogy which critics say overtly denigrates Christianity and promotes atheism. Even CNN Headline News, a medium not generally recognized as a champion of conservatism, issued a warning about The Golden Compass. This past Friday Mike Galanos, the CNN Prime News correspondent who explores matters of faith, morals and values, said at the end of a review, "Buyer beware, especially if you want to nurture your kids' faith."Here's an insightful review entitled What Every Parent Should Know About the Golden Compass.
Taken from the Clergy Brotherhood email of the Diocese of Wichita and Mid-America.
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Saturday, November 24, 2007
Fasting FAQs (Your Questions)
Father,Could you please explain how to be obedient to the character in “An Empty Church Is A Peaceful Church?” More generally, how to be obedient to God and to people around you that have some authority over you (parent, boss), or even to people that are maybe not what we believe is pleasing God but they do not yet know better (as in: peer pressure).
Betty in Baltimore
* * *
Dear Fr Joseph,
What exactly do you mean by Fast?
Sincerely,
Joe Slow in Sacramento
* * *
Dear Fr Joseph,
Why are there two weeks of transition into Great Lent (Meatfare and Cheesefare) but none leading to Nativity Fast? Does this mean that the fast is not intended to be kept as strictly?
Cindy in Quincy
* * *
Hey Father,
What is the difference between Fast and Strict Fast?
Sincerely,
Suffering Seraphim in Saratoga
* * *
Dear Fr Joseph,
I have a Great Lent cookbook that says fish are always OK, yet other sources say only shellfish. What gives?
You can call me Rachael but do not call me Ray in Santa Fe
* * *
Dear Fr J,
What about Thanksgiving?
Just wondering,
Wanda in Wauwatosa
* * *
Dear Fr Huneycutt,
I do understand how important it is to follow the guidance of one’s spiritual father in the matters of fasting because of the fact that one chooses to be obedient to the fasting that God gives through the Church. But it seems that the different typicons of fasting that exist indicate a lot of variation within our Church, and I am usually at a loss to reconcile this variation with the fact that our Church is one united body that has passed on this tradition for 2000 years. How can I explain this to my non-Orthodox friends who ask why do some people fast this way and others that way, and why fish, but no meat, and why oil, etc? I’d really like to give them the big picture answer that goes beyond the simple aspect of food.
Written in blue from Sue in Kalamazoo.
* * *
Hi Father, I have a Question:
What about what some in our parish lovingly call "pharisee food"... fake sausage patties and burgers, Nayonaise, Soy Dream "ice cream", soy/rice/almond/potato starch and warm tap water milk, etc. I admit I use them a lot...but in some cases it feels a little like cheating...keeping the letter but not the spirit of the fast...depriving ourselves formally of some proscribed food group but traveling to the ends of the earth (or dark shady vegan scented edge of the city) and paying through the nose to avoid missing the flavors (or their feeble approximations) of our favorite foods.
Manuel in Miami
* * *
Dear Father Joseph Honeycutt,
When you said you would welcome questions about fasting, I wanted to write. I am a mother of 3 kids, ages 1, 6 and 8. Can you briefly explain how to lovingly encourage children to fast? My 8-year-old understands the fasting but constantly complains that he is hungry. A couple of bowls of split pea soup just don't fill him. Should children's fasting be always voluntary and to what extent do we dictate what they eat?
Pam in Pensacola
* * *
Hi,
I'm an Orthodox enquirer.
At the moment, if I eat breakfast on a Sunday morning, then go to church, thereby missing morning tea, I am feeling faint well before lunchtime. I'm also extremely cranky with my husband and children. How do Orthodox cope with the Sunday morning fast that I have heard about? Have Orthodox people experienced some extra grace to get through that time with no food or drink at all? Or have I heard wrongly about this tradition?
Cheers
Ruth Ann in the Rio Grande
* * *
Greetings Fr. Joseph:
I am a catechumen in Boise ID and am slowly coming to take in Orthodoxy, and learning all the much further there is to go. Well, my question follows, but I would say I am to timid to find my name on radio broadcast (not that I think this is sure-fire podcast material or anything).
My question lies in the asceticism of many Orthodox monastics (and Saints, though for I figure they new what they were doing) and the words of Colossians 2:11-23. Particularly confusing to me is when St. Paul emphasizes "Therefore, if you died with Christ form the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulation "Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle"". St. Paul continues getting closer to the confusion I have; we have the ending, "These things indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, and neglect of the body, but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh."
Where does this leave asceticism which Orthodoxy so loves?
All the best,
Boyd in Boise
* * *
These are the questions. For the answers (maybe not THE answers, but some answers), tune in to the Orthodixie Podcast on Ancient Faith Radio.
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Friday, November 23, 2007
Papa Say Do Mo Betta
No doubt, this is good news for everyone (except maybe Satan and those who believe the 60's were the New Jerusalem).
Why the Pope is right to purge modern music
By Damian Thompson
For decades, the standard of singing in St Peter's basilica has struggled to match that of a Gilbert and Sullivan society.
Church music in Italy is generally atrocious, and the Vatican is no exception. Since he arrived in Rome nearly 30 years ago, the music-loving Joseph Ratzinger has had to endure the sub-operatic warbling of bad 20th-century music. Now he has had enough.
The Pope, who last year appointed a new choir director of St Peter's, wants Gregorian chant, polyphony and baroque masterpieces to dominate the repertoire in the basilica and the Sistine chapel.
And, by making his preferences clear, he is sending out a message to the whole Catholic Church.
We are moving into an era of liturgical revolution. Benedict detests the feeble "folk Masses" that have remained the staple fare of Catholic worship long after they went out of musical fashion.
He wants the Church to rediscover the treasure of its heritage - and that includes Gregorian chant as well as the pre-1970 Latin Mass that can now be celebrated without the permission of bishops.
The old guard of trendy choir directors and composers (many of whom have signed lucrative contracts with dioceses) will fight his reforms every inch of the way, egged on by philistine bishops.
But younger church musicians, like young priests, are conservative in their tastes.
The next generation of choir directors have been charged by the Pope with the task of reintroducing beautiful music into church. If they succeed, then at long last the pews may begin to fill up again.
Purported Source
Another news article.
Thanks to FWD from RC pal, Tim Gibson.
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Thursday, November 22, 2007
Two on Thanksgiving
It is the duty of nations as well as of men to owe their dependence upon the overruling power of God; to confess their sins and transgressions in humble sorrow, yet with assured hope that genuine repentance will lead to mercy and pardon; and to recognize the sublime truth, announced in the Holy Scriptures and proven by all history, that those nations are blessed whose God is the Lord.
We know that by His divine law, nations, like individuals, are subjected to punishments and chastisements in this world. May we not justly fear that the awful calamity of civil war which now desolates the land may be a punishment inflicted upon us for our presumptuous sins, to the needful end of our national reformation as a whole people?
We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of heaven; we have been preserved, these many years, in peace and prosperity; we have grown in numbers, wealth and power as no other nation has ever grown. But we have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us, and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us.
It has seemed to me fit and proper that God should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged, as with one heart and one voice, by the whole American people. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November as a day of Thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens.
-- Abraham Lincoln - October 3, 1863
Thanks to FWD from Margo Elgohary.
The above proclamation seems a combination of pieces. No problem, go HERE and HERE for more!
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Tuesday, November 20, 2007
Fasting Questions on AFR
As promised last week, this week's Orthodixie Podcast will attempt to answer your fasting questions. For those late to the party, we are in the midst of the Nativity Fast (sometimes referred to as the St Philip Fast, even Advent). Those following the Julian Calendar (sometimes called the Old Calendar, even the Church Calendar) will begin the Fast on the 28th.Send your questions, comments or suggestions (funny or serious) to:
orthodixie at aol dot com
Deadline for airtime: Thanksgiving!
Then tune in to Ancient Faith Radio.
It should be fun.
The pic of the Big Boy is, shall we say, tongue in cheek.
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Monday, November 19, 2007
HALKI: Destruction of Chapel in Turkey
Istanbul (AsiaNews) – A XVII century chapel dedicated to Our Lord’s Transfiguration, which lies in front of the Halki School of Theology, was almost completely destroyed [last week] by Forest Guards. The Church had been recently restored with the permission of local authorities. Demolishers had begun tearing down the building without any prior warning, which is called for in such cases.Only at the last minute was the total destruction of the chapel avoided: following protests by the prior of Halki School and Metropolitan Meliton, director of the Ecumenical Patriarchates office for legal affairs, the prefect of the Prince Islands stopped the Forest Guards. The building however was seriously damaged.
The Prior of Halki immediately brought to the attention of the Turkish authorities that these kinds of episodes will provoke international disapproval, including that of the European Union. The Authorities response was stark: “Don’t dare to threaten us!”.
Shortly afterwards an “unknown” group smashed the windows of Holy Trinity Church in Kadikoy, ancient Calcedonia.
Diplomatic and journalistic circles mummer that cases such as these are on the increase and are not casual either: they are part of a strategy adopted by powers in Turkey who are against the nations process of integration in the European Union and are testing the Governments will to protect religious minorities.
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Sunday, November 18, 2007
Killing ME Softly (Twice)
We once had a preacher who delivered a Sunday night sermon using hunting analogies. He walked up to the front of the auditorium in hunting cap and vest, carrying a rod and reel, shotgun and other hunting props. I remember sitting in the pew, cringing in embarrassment and thinking to myself: "Just don't lay the shotgun on the communion table. Just don't lay the shotgun on the communion table." He did. That preacher didn't last long. But apparently, his only problem was that he was just a little ahead his time.That's John over at NotesFromACommonPlaceBook on
Sweatin' for Jeezus ... read it all.
And now for something
Pullman has, however, never been soft-spoken. In one famous interview with the Sydney Morning Herald in Australia, he expressed amazement that Rowling's Potter books took more flak in Bible Belt America than his own.
"I've been flying under the radar, saying things that are far more subversive than anything poor old Harry has said. My books are about killing God," he explained.
As for his own beliefs, he said: "If we're talking on the scale of human life and the things we see around us, I'm an atheist. There's no God here.
"There never was. But if you go out into the vastness of space, well, I'm not so sure."
As a writer, Pullman greatly admires Milton's 17th-century classic "Paradise Lost" ...
Meanwhile, evil incarnate has a name in Pullman's books — the "Church."
Here's tmatt's article on The Golden Compass.
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Friday, November 16, 2007
Word & Virgin - God in Human Flesh
The reason for the Nativity Fast and the festive season of Christmas is: God became flesh. God spoke, and this Word put on humanity that we might put on divinity. Or, as St Athanasius writes, “God became man, that man might become God.” Within the Virgin Mary the Word was clothed with human flesh and Christ was born: God dressed in human flesh.The first Eve, by her disobedience, bore the fruit of death to Adam, all Mankind. The new Eve, Mary, by her obedience, bears the Fruit of Life, the new Adam, her son and God, to all mankind. This, in a nutshell, is the very heart of our Christian Faith and the reason for the season, so to speak, of Christmas. It represents the difference in the fruit born of disobedience and that brought forth in obedience.
Eve, being a virgin and incorrupt, conceived the word spoken of the serpent, and brought forth disobedience and death. But Mary the Virgin answered, ‘May it be according to Thy word,’ and received faith and grace.*
Jesus, the new Adam – the “new man” – was born in the city of Bethlehem. The word “Bethlehem” means “house of bread.” The new Adam was born in the House of Bread and laid in a Manger, a feeding trough. Many times in the Gospel (eight times in John Chapter 6, alone), Jesus refers to himself as bread. Traditionally, this is reflected in the hymn Orthodox priests recite as they begin the preparation of the bread for Communion:
Make ready, O Bethlehem, for Eden hath been opened for all. Prepare, O Ephratha, for the tree of life hath blossomed forth in the cave from the Virgin; for her womb did appear as a spiritual paradise in which is planted the divine Plant, whereof eating we shall live and not die as Adam. Christ shall be born, raising the image that fell of old.**
In the fullness of time, God chose a young maiden in Nazareth to be both bride and mother. The Virgin Mary was deemed worthy of this highest calling by her faithfulness and chastity. Whereas Adam named his wife Eve, the mother of the living, God has made Mary the Mother of all Christians. Whereas all the living are kin to Adam through his blood and sin, all Christians are kin to Christ, the New Adam, through His Blood and faithfulness. St. Paul writes:
So before faith came, we were confined under the law, kept under restraint until faith should be revealed. So that the law was our custodian until Christ came, that we might be justified by faith, we are no longer under a custodian; for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ (Galatians 3:27).
It is only in being clothed in Christ that we can be in a right relationship with God. Christ clothed himself in humanity that we might be clothed in righteousness. Before Christ, there was the law. With Christ, there is no other way to stand in a right (just) relationship with God lest we be clothed in Christ. Just as our Lady the Most Holy Theotokos answered “Be it unto me according to thy word,” we, too, may take on Christ. Through the womb of the baptismal font we are born anew in Christ – marked, clothed as His own forever. Like the Mother of God before us, having been born anew in Christ, being justified by faith, we may bear Christ to the world.***
So, brothers and sisters -- clothed in Christ, during the preparatory season of the Nativity Fast, let us love one another with the same love that receives the King of Glory and wraps Him in swaddling cloths (Luke 2:12). The perfect gift cannot be found in the mall, but in the manger. The perfect gift, God is! God clothed Himself in our flesh for our salvation. The manger is a feeding trough and God is now our food. So let us prepare with eyes of faith to see the King of Glory, God in human flesh, in the manger – the chalice of our salvation! Let us receive Him into our hearts as once did Mary. Let us partake of this heavenly food and rejoice! “Let your priests be clothed with righteousness. Let your saints shout for joy!” (Psalm 132:9).
Oh! And next week on the Orthodixie Podcast -- I’m going to answer your Fasting questions! Send ‘em via email: orthodixie at aol dot com. They can be funny or serious. Anonymous? Sure; but they must be about Fasting.
It should be fun.
For the full version of this week's Orthodixie Podcast tune to Ancient Faith Radio.
* - Joanna Manley, The Lament of Eve (Menlo Park, California: Monastery Books, 1993) #37, p.82.
** - Bishop Basil [Essey], comp., The Liturgikon - The Book of Divine Services for the Priest and Deacon, 2nd ed. (Englewood, New Jersey: Antakya Press, 1994), p.245.
*** - Portions of this Post/Podcast taken from DEFEATING SIN - Overcoming Our Passions and Changing Forever, published by Regina Orthodox Press.
Prothesis Table, where the bread is prepared, St John the Baptist Russian Orthodox Cathedral, Washington, DC - Image Source
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Moore on DEFEATING SIN
Father Joseph has the unusual ability to take timeless truth, Biblical knowledge, and theology, and communicate them in a practical, and readily understandable form that has the wonderful potential of helping us to be transformed through the renewing of our minds.-- Ron Moore
International Singer/Songwriter/Speaker
More on DEFEATING SIN ...
This book has evolved over several decades of reflection that is both personal and part of our Orthodox family inheritance. This is a read that will bring many back through its pages just as memories of powerful retreats and epiphanies return to us and become once again moments of grace in an hour of need. DEFEATING SIN: Overcoming our Passions and Changing Forever is a book that will be marked up and well-worn by those who own it and no doubt shared with other Christians who long for a well of renewal and a blessed retreat.
-- The Very Rev. Dr. Chad Hatfield - Chancellor, St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Seminary
May you, reader, be blessed and enlightened and encouraged in your struggle by the wisdom contained in this book, to the glory of the All-Holy Trinity and the salvation of your soul.
-- Bishop BASIL
Order a signed copy of DEFEATING SIN through PayPal in the side margin (at left) or -- unsigned, multiple copies -- through the publisher at Regina Orthodox Press.
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Thursday, November 15, 2007
On True Fasting
It is necessary most of all for one who is fasting to curb anger, to accustom himself to meekness and condescension, to have a contrite heart, to repulse impure thoughts and desires, to examine his conscience, to put his mind to the test and to verify what good has been done by us in this or any other week, and which deficiency we have corrected in ourselves in the present week. This is true fasting.-- St. John Chrysostom
Thanks to FWD from Fr Josiah Trenham.
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Wednesday, November 14, 2007
3rd Thursday @ St George
Mediterranean LuncheonThursday, November 15th
St George Orthodox Church
5311 Mercer, Houston, Texas 77005
Held on the 3rd Thursday of every month from 11am — 2pm in the church hall.
Lunch plates are $8.00.
Menu
Thursday, November 15th Choose from:
Succulent chicken kabobs with haswa, salad, hummus and pita!
Or, (especially for those who are fasting) --
The classic favorite falafel with salad and hummus!
Invite your friends, co-workers and family!
CALL AHEAD FOR DRIVE THRU SERVICE – 713.665.5252
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HOUSTON: Advent Retreat
Why We Worship the Way We Do in the Orthodox ChurchThis Saturday,
November 17, 2007
10:00 A.M. – 4:00 P.M.
St. George Orthodox Church
5311 Mercer at Bissonnet
Houston, TX 77005
Retreat Master:
Rev. Fr. Anthony Michaels
Parish Priest, St. John Chrysostom
Antiochian Orthodox Church, Fort Wayne, Indiana
The Retreat begins with Matins @ 10:00 A.M.
10:45 –Continental Breakfast & Registration
11:15- Session 1: “The Meaning of the Trisagion Prayers & the Liturgy”
12:30 P.M. – Questions
1:00 P.M. – Lunch
2:00P.M. – Session 2: “The History of Worship (How we got here)”
3:15 P.M. – Questions
3:45 P.M. – Wrap - Up
4:00 P.M. - Great Vespers
Join us in prayer and fellowship as we prepare ourselves for the Feast of the Nativity of our Lord, Jesus Christ.
Registration: $10.00 per person – Deadline: NOW! Please call the church office today!
713-665-5252
Babysitting available call to reserve space ($5 per child).
Sponsored by the Fellowship of St. John the Divine & the Ladies Altar Society.
Image of St Philip -- a 13th century fresco of the Sopocani Monastery of the Holy Trinity in Kosovo -- courtesy of the Clergy Brotherhood email of the Diocese of Wichita and Mid-America.
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Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Nativity Fast 2007
THE NATIVITY FAST begins this Thursday, November 15th, and continues through December 24th. This Fast is divided into two periods. The first period is November 15th through December 19th when the traditional fasting discipline (no meat, poultry, eggs, dairy, fish, wine and oil) is observed on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, but with katalysis [allowance] for wine and oil on Tuesday and Thursday (some also permit fish on Tuesday and Thursday during this first period), and for fish, wine and oil on Saturday and Sunday. The second period is December 20th through 24th when the traditional fasting discipline (no meat, poultry, eggs, dairy, fish, wine and oil) is observed Monday through Friday, but with katalysis for wine and oil on Saturday and Sunday.Taken from the Clergy Brotherhood email of the Diocese of Wichita and Mid-America.
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Monday, November 12, 2007
Blah Blah Blahging ...
Over at This Side of Glory, Grace wonders if Blogs are the next 8-track tapes. For most bloggers, let me explain: Grace. Is. Old. In other words, what I meant to say is: Grace is old enough to remember 8-tracks. Realizing that this is still a foggy concept for many, I have posted a picture of Yikes! On closer observation that appears to be a pic of a compact disc! Look, if you're too young to remember those ... that's why God invented Wiki Wiki Wiki Wiki.
Grace cites an article from Christianity Today which begins ...
As weblogs proliferated earlier this decade, Andy Warhol's famous aphorism was modified to read, "In the future, everyone will be famous to 15 people." Now it looks like Warhol was right after all: Thanks to widespread blog burnout, everyone will be famous to 15 people for 15 minutes.
Read it all H E R E.
We may, indeed, be witnessing a solar flare which is nearly spent. Like mood rings, Space Dust, elephant leg jeans, and the HEY! Macarana -- all
(Boom-box cars, saggin' pants, tats & piercings are just a few exceptions that prove the rule.)
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Veterans Day
Helmsman: Blest be the boat.Crew: God the Father bless her.
Helmsman: Blest be the boat.
Crew: God the Son bless her.
Helmsman: Blest be the boat.
Crew: God the Spirit bless her.
All: God the Father,
God the Son,
God the Spirit,
Bless the boat.
Helmsman: What can befall you
And God the Father with you?
Crew: No harm can befall us.
Helmsman: What can befall you
And God the Son with you?
Crew: No harm can befall us.
Helmsman: What can befall you
And God the Spirit with you?
Crew: No harm can befall us.
All: God the Father,
God the Son,
God the Spirit,
With us eternally.
Helmsman: What can cause you anxiety
And the God of the elements over you?
Crew: No anxiety can be ours.
Helmsman: What can cause you anxiety
And the King of the elements over you?
Crew: No anxiety can be ours.
Helmsman: What can cause you anxiety
And the Spirit of the elements over you?
All: The God of the elements,
The King of the elements,
The Spirit of the elements,
Close over us,
Ever eternally
-- Anonymous, translated by Alexander Carmichael of Lismore, from Carmina Gadelica.
Image Source
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Saturday, November 10, 2007
More on the Peaceful Parish ...
My predecessor of Thrice-Blessed Memory, Metropolitan ANTONY, told me the following story:A restless and impatient priest came to him one day and said: “Your Eminence, Why don’t you assign me to a peaceful parish?” The bishop said to him: “Son, I have assigned you to so many parishes, but it seems that you cannot last in any parish. I am going to give you a new parish. Take this address, go to Third Avenue, grab a cab and give the driver this address; he will take you to a wonderful and peaceful parish.” The priest did exactly that, but the cab driver drove him to Greenwood Cemetery in Brooklyn. The priest was shocked. He returned to the bishop and said, “Vladika, you sent me to the cemetery.” The bishop said: “Yes, you wanted a peaceful parish; only dead people are peaceful, so that is the kind of parish you need.”
Read it all H E R E.
For more on the search for a peaceful church, go HERE.
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Friday, November 09, 2007
An Empty Church is a Peaceful Church
This week's edition of the Orthodixie Podcast is a little different -- I have a guest! Fr Danoslav Gregorio, pastor of St Swithun’s by the Swamp in Appleton, Indiana, joins me to talk about his new book: "An Empty Church is a Peaceful Church."Don't miss it!
(Oh, and don't be late!)
The Orthodixie Podcast on Ancient Faith Radio.
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Thursday, November 08, 2007
The Spirit & the Body
Why are you astonished since the Holy Spirit is simultaneously with us and in the heavens, and the Body of Christ is in the heavens and with us? Heaven gained a Holy Body, and the earth received the Holy Spirit. Christ came down to earth and brought here the Holy Spirit, and ascended into heaven taking with Him our Body.-- St John Chrysostom
Thanks to FWD from Fr Josiah Trenham.
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Tuesday, November 06, 2007
The Golden Compass & Paradise Lost
Y'all've no doubt heard about the new kids' fantasy movie coming out just in time for Shoppermas: The Golden Compass. It's based on a best selling (though not in the US) trilogy by Philip Pullman. It's a good versus bad story ... with God being the bad Guy.(My mind swims to an unbelievable island where God, lonely and needing work, remembers how Denzel Washington, the good guy's good guy, surprised everyone by being so very bad in Training Day. Wait. Where was I?)
The urban legend source, Snopes, does a fair job with The Golden Compass data.
Mr Pullman ain't a big fan of CS Lewis's fantasy novels where God wears a white hat. Instead, Pullman is reported to have declared the intent of his own books is to undermine Christian belief. (Gosh, now there's an idea! Hollywood, are you listening?)
The movie stars Nicole Kidman who claims to be a Catholic.
Where was I?
OH!
Here we go ... The movie stars Nicole Kidman who claims to be a Catholic.
She is reported to have said that she would never have signed on to the project if she thought the films were anti-Catholic. (I imagine Albus Dumbledore, knowing now what he didn't know then, wishes that he could renegotiate his own raw deal.)
Ms Kidman can click HERE for different directions.
Mr Pullman said: "I don't know whether there's a God or not. Nobody does, no matter what they say. I think it's perfectly possible to explain how the universe came about without bringing God into it, but I don't know everything, and there may well be a God somewhere, hiding away.
Actually, if he is keeping out of sight, it's because he's ashamed of his followers and all the cruelty and ignorance they're responsible for promoting in his name. If I were him, I'd want nothing to do with them."
Source
It should be noted that ...
While many Christians appear to be quite alarmed by the movie and books, Dr. Rowan Williams, the archbishop of Canterbury, actually supports and endorses the movie. He believes that it is not anti-Christian, as such, but rather anti-dogmatic or anti-control, issues that need to be addressed in the church.
Source
Friends, when thinking about all these things -- The Golden Compass and all -- it should be remembered that the Castaways, though they thought they were all alone ... were not. Rather, forgotten aviator Wrongway Feldman, who had disappeared 33 years earlier, was living on the island as well. Though the Professor finally got him back into the air, he turned out to be of no help to the Castaways ... as he could not remember the island's coordinates when he met up with the authorities.
(Hopefully that last paragraph is clear enough even for the directionally challenged.)
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DEFEATING SIN - Overcoming Our Passions and Changing Forever
Fr. Joseph:I wanted to both congratulate you and personally thank you for the book you wrote. There are countless truths in love ... thank God, throughout the book. However, the message, over and over, to come to one’s senses, confess, receive forgiveness, and struggle to repent is overwhelming. But, even more so ... there is but one choice: Obedience. True blessing lies not in passions but in learning to surrender even our God-Given desires over to Him. Finally, that Struggle is good ... keeps me from feeling like a failure all the time and gives me Hope to carry on in the struggle.
Thanks again for ... writing such a life-saving and life-giving book; for as you said also: evil is nothing, God always creates, His nature and love cannot be denied ...
Thank God!
-- Sent via email from a layman.
More on DEFEATING SIN ...
Bishop BASIL & Fr Chad Hatfield
Constantine Shepherd, Youth Director
Ancient Faith Radio Interview
John Maddex of Ancient Faith
Fr Michael Dahulich, Dean of St Tikhon's Seminary
Ashley Kevorkian
Archimandrite Zacharias
Fr Josiah Trenham
You can order a signed copy of DEFEATING SIN through PayPal in the side margin (at left) or -- unsigned, multiple copies -- through the publisher at Regina Orthodox Press.
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Monday, November 05, 2007
Fun to 'Cipher the BYE-Bee-El-Eee!
An Episcopal church invites a Jewish Rabbi, who also happens to be a homosexual, to help them better understand the Bible.With a bit of characterization and Jewish witticism, Rabbi Steven Greenberg made his point clear: You shouldn't use the Bible to pass judgment on others. Greenberg shared this belief during a sermon yesterday at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church on the campus of Ohio State University.
Greenberg, who was raised in Bexley and is in Columbus for five days, is America's first openly gay Orthodox rabbi. He spoke yesterday about homosexuality in the context of traditional faith as part of a lecture series sponsored by the Episcopal Diocese of Southern Ohio. He will speak about same-sex marriage at 7 p.m. today at the church, 30 W. Woodruff Ave.
He wasn't saying that the Bible is not the revealed word of God. But according to Jewish tradition, he said, God gave that word to man and entrusted him to decipher it.
"No one can say, 'It says in the Scripture,' to ground any policy," Greenberg said. "All we can say is, 'My community says this.' "
Here's the Story.
Denise Williams, a four-year member of the church, said she appreciated the sermon's meaning.
When she heard Greenberg say that the Bible is not "truth with a capital T," "at first, I was like, 'What? We're in a church,' " she said.
"But after he went on and described what he meant, I understood. It was given to us to decipher."
Any resemblance of the image of the Lego Ludo set with
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Sunday, November 04, 2007
Fr Josiah Trenham on "Defeating Sin"
DEFEATING SIN - Overcoming Our Passions and Changing Forever, like its author Fr Joseph Huneycutt, is a fantastic combination of Holy Orthodoxy and wit in 21st century clothing. I recommend it highly for those who seek a primer on how to deepen their own repentance.-- Archpriest Josiah Trenham, PhD, St Andrew Orthodox Church, Riverside, California
You can order a signed copy of DEFEATING SIN through PayPal in the side margin (at left) or -- unsigned, multiple copies -- through the publisher at Regina Orthodox Press.
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Saturday, November 03, 2007
Daylight Saviour Time
An excerpt from this week's AFR Podcast, already in progress ...Our Lord, truly God and truly Man, chose the 12, the 70, and the many women disciples. He was visited in the Garden of Gethsemene and comforted by an Angel. Aided by Simon of Cyrene, He did not bear His Cross alone.
No, our Lord does not appoint us to this work individually, but collectively. He gives us family, friends, co-workers -- in the Church.
Let us, fishers of men, labour together for the increase of the Kingdom. When, at times, there seems to be something wrong -- no light; when we have laboured all night and caught nothing -- Let us be mindful of the Good God Who provides the increase to those who love Him, answering His call to do His holy will.
We shouldn't deny reality. And the reality is ... people are seeking the Truth.
I heard about a conference speaker who'd announced that the days of the great wave of Episcopalians converting to Orthodoxy are past. In other words, Time’s Up. This brought a contrary reaction from a member of the audience: "I beg to differ. Many people are leaving their watered-down feel-good church communities and finding Anglicanism. For them, they believe they have found the Apostolic Faith. The day may come when they grow toward the Truth to the point of making their way to Orthodoxy."
Though seeking the Truth and wishing others to journey with us, we must be based in reality. And the reality is that some things just "is what they is." You can't change people. It's like the old saying ...
Listen to the Orthodixie Podcast on Ancient Faith Radio.
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TODAY: St Raphael of Brooklyn
No matter how much I have labored and no matter how much grief I have endured, I consider myself only to have done what was my duty as a Priest. Is it not to the well-being and salvation of our neighbors that we servants of God and spiritual shepherds have dedicated our entire lives?-- St Raphael of Brooklyn
Rejoice, O Father Raphael, adornment of the holy Church! Thou art champion of the True Faith, seeker of the lost, consolation of the oppressed, father to orphans and friend of the poor, peacemaker and good shepherd, joy of all the Orthodox, son of Antioch, boast of America. Intercede with Christ God for us and for all who honor thee.
Lover of the holy prayers and divine services of the Church, who can tell of the countless hours spent in their translation for the sake of thy flock? Thou didst gather pearls from the Greek and Slavonic tongues, and fashioned them into pearls of Arabic. Thou didst also teach us to pray in the language of the new world. Now standing at the throne of God, beseech Him to save our souls.
Rising from the east like a brilliant sun, thou, O holy hierarch, dost enlighten and comfort all who with faith flee unto thy paternal lovingkindness. Do thou now intercede for us, O good shepherd Raphael.
NOTE: The major commemoration of Saint Raphael is observed on the Saturday before the Synaxis of the Bodiless Powers of Heaven (November 8), which means that it may fall between November 1 and 7. It is celebrated as a Vigil Rank commemoration.
Source
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Friday, November 02, 2007
KNOWLEDGE: Material & Spiritual
If one studies a great deal in order to acquire knowledge and to teach others, without living the things he teaches, he does no more than fill his head with hot air. At most, he will manage to ascend to the moon using machines. The goal of the Christian is to rise to God without machines.-- Elder Paisios the Athonite
Thanks to FWD from Fr Josiah Trenham.
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Thursday, November 01, 2007
ALL SAINTS PARTY - Lotsa Pics
While all about on October 31st is spooky ...
One may find annual refuge at St George, Houston.
Wait! There's the priest now!
What? You don't recognize him? (More will be revealed.)
Arrgh! We don't wear no scary costumes!
Get me, Mate?
Yes, it's true, on this night, I'm fairy certain you can dress up however you wish: Yes - fairy, No - Scary.
Here's Jack ... without the box.
... and dual smiles -- here ...
... and there!
Uh oh! Identity crisis. This seems to be Batman carrying a Spidey pail ... being attacked by a ferocious pink Boa.
AFLAC!
Oh no! The time change is not till this weekend ... and yet he's already turned into a pumpkin!
... no problem, his angel will take care of him!
See what I mean? No one's afraid of a tiger who sucks his thumb!
A princess and a turtle ...
Two more princesses ...
REAL princesses ...
The Super Hero formerly known as M. Salem.
Who you lookin at? You lookin at me?
Huh?
The adults await the costume pageant parade ...
Just in time ... all the way from Asia?
From Paris ... with Bling.
Snow White regales her real life sis about little short men with beards.
Not this little short man ... he's a Mouse!
This turtle has outgrown his shell!
Miss Susie spins Miss White (whose hair is normally not black!)
Wait! Did someone call for a Princess?
Ladies & Gentlemen ... Do not be afraid!
He will not MELT in her hand!
Who you calling a princess? That's PIRATE to you, Mate!
(I kept trying to take a picture of her hand, but from some reason she kept trying to get her face in the picture!)
Okay. Despite the blonde hair color that resulted in green ...
My son went as Fr John. They say the cell phone was a dead giveaway! (Scroll up to the sepia tone pic.)
Can you guess what she's dressed as?
Think about it.
No?
Okay ... a clue ...
This is, of course, Moses. Now look back at the picture above.
Did you get it?
Okay ... I'll tell you. She's the ...
RED C!
Oops! The boss is here!
Everybody back to work!
:)
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