ORTHODIXIE ... Southern, Orthodox, Convert, Etc.

Recently our parish librarian reported that two Orthodox Study Bibles had gone missing from the parish library. We looked everywhere, and then it dawned on me … I said, “Look! If Orthodox people are stealing Bibles … that’s a good sign!”

You know the old Baptist trick where the pastor stands in front of the congregation and says, “Turn with me now to Second Hezechiah, Chapter 3 …"?

(I didn’t think so … Orthodox never get that joke. They always ask their neighbor: “What page did he say?”)

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrinnnnnnnnnnng!

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrinnnnnnng!


“Hello, Second Baptist Church …”

“Yes … uh, what calendar do y’all use?”

“I’m sorry … What? What calendar do we use?”

“Yes … I mean, do y’all use the Pope’s calendar?”

“Oh, no sir, we’re Baptist!”

“Oh good … well then, what time are your Easter services?”

“Uh … sir, we’ve already celebrated Easter … but our Sunday service is at ...”

The Orthodixie Podcast on Ancient Faith Radio.
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On Sunday, March 16th, the Orthodox Clergy Association of Greater Houston and Orthodox faithful gathered for Sunday of Orthodoxy Vespers, hosted this year by St George Antiochian Orthodox Church. The pastor of St Jonah of Manchuria Church, Fr John Whiteford, was the guest homilist. As it happened, that morning was also the falling asleep in the Lord of Fr John's Metroplitan, LAURUS, head of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia; this coincidence is reflected in his homily, "The Reconciliation of the Russian Church." LISTEN HERE


The gathered clergy, following the procession of icons, reciting a portion of the Synodikon.


A whole new meaning given to "Sunday-go-to-meetin'-clothes." (Clergy seated during the homily.)


Fr John Whiteford delivering the homily. (Click here to listen.)


Following the homily, the Houston area clergy, along with the St Romanos Pan-Orthodox Chorale and the gathered faithful, prayed the Trisagion Prayers for the Departed in memory of Metropolitan LAURUS.

Pics courtesy of St George SOYO webpage.
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In addition to being Greek Independence Day ...

And the Great Feast of the Annunciation (new style) ...

It's the birthday of novelist and short-story writer Flannery O'Connor, born in Savannah, Georgia (1925), the only child of a rare Catholic family in the Protestant Bible Belt. When she was five, she became famous for teaching a chicken to walk backward; a national news company came to town to film the feat and then broadcast it all around the country. She said, "That was the most exciting thing that ever happened to me. It's all been downhill from there."

Stolen from The Writer's Almanac (3/25/08)
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She was but a young maiden of Nazareth when she was visited by an angel. Unlike our first mother, who spoke with an angel in the guise of a serpent, this angel appeared as a man, Gabriel. He said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!”

One would assume that such a visit from such a being would be quite unsettling. Realizing her fear, the heavenly visitor says, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.” Our human rationale can only imagine that these words calmed her heart a bit, but then followed these: “And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus.”

Huh?

Have no fear?

Let’s be real!

The angel went on to sing the praises of this soon-to-be Son of hers. Mary was puzzled. She was a virgin; she had never been with a man. Again, more angelic consolation: “Have no fear. The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, alas, that Holy One who is to be born will be called the Son of God.”

Imagine that: Don’t be afraid …

You’re pregnant …

and God’s the father.

The angel goes on to relay more astounding news: her relative, Elizabeth, an old woman who was barren, is also expecting a child. Women, young and old – unmarried or barren – are unexpectedly expecting? Let’s be real!

Then, contrary to our worldly wisdom, the visitor says, “For with God nothing will be impossible.”

What happened next changed the course of human destiny. The response of the faithful young virgin is the beginning of our salvation: “Behold the handmaid of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” With these words, Mary, the virgin of Nazareth affects her salvation, yours, mine, and all mankind for all generations. Her obedience redefines reality. In being obedient to God, the New Eve breaks the curse of the Eve of old. In being obedient, she becomes the “Mother of God” – the Theotokos – the Mother of our salvation: the God-Man, Christ.

It was not easy. The angel said that with God nothing is impossible. He did not say, “Everything will be easy and everyone shall be perpetually happy.” He didn’t ask her if the child was a wanted child. He didn’t ask her how she was going to take care of her son. I mean, God knew she was faithful! Yet though he promised no happiness, it was good news.

Can this be real? Do not be fooled by the enemy. The first woman, Eve, was misled, as was Adam, by the lies of an angel in the guise of a serpent. They were in Paradise and sought a better life (notice the irony, seeking a better life while in Paradise) by eating the forbidden fruit. Better, like the fruit, turned bitter.

We, too, often find ourselves seeking to be like gods in eating of the tasty and deadly fruit of the enemy. This road, promising happiness and life, leads to bitterness and death. Who is this enemy? The tempting lies of Satan, sin and death are the real enemy. Yet, our Lord God is salvation and life. God is real. Angels are real. Temptation is real. Mary is real. If we believe and are obedient, salvation is real. It is realized by faith. Life eternal is real, for with God nothing will be impossible.

Let’s be real!

As the people of God, the Body of Christ – the Church – our salvation begins with Mary. Salvation for all men was wrought by the words of an obedient young girl 2,000 years ago. She is our example. She is the first Christian. She is the Mother of God. Our salvation begins with Mary’s obedience to Real Life in the Annunciation. She conceived in her womb the Lord Jesus. She conceived in her womb the Body of Christ, the Church. She conceived in her womb that against which the gates of Hell shall never prevail. In her womb Mary conceived. In reality, she conceived our Salvation.

Forasmuch as thou art a well-spring of tenderness, O Theotokos, make us worthy of compassion; Look upon a sinful people; manifest thy power as ever, for hoping on thee we cry aloud unto thee: Hail! As once did Gabriel, Chief Captain of the Bodiless Powers.

It is truly meet to bless thee, O Theotokos, who art ever blessed and all-blameless, and the Mother of our God. More honorable than the Cherubim and more glorious beyond compare than the Seraphim, thou who without stain barest God the Word, and art truly Theotokos, we magnify thee.

The Feast of the Conception of our Salvation – the Annunciation – is celebrated nine months before Christmas, March 25th.

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The visiting priest had been brought in to give a Lenten Retreat. His talk had centered on compassion and how God is merciful, understanding, loving, and desirous of our communion with Him. He spoke of how nothing – NOTHING – can separate us from the love of God other than our own cold-hearted rejection. Somewhere in his talk he mentioned that we should even offer God our junk, our anger, our disappointments.

After the presentation had ended and the Q&A was done, a woman approached, who had sat in the back.

Many of the parish regulars were surprised to see her; they thought she’d left the church long ago. They knew she’d had some family problems. Murmurs ran quietly through the crowd as she approached the visiting priest.

She walked right up to him and asked, “Did I hear you correctly? You said it was alright to offer God our anger?”

The priest stared at her for a moment trying to gather some hint as to where she was going with this. Her face was tight as stone.

He said, “Yes … yes, of course.”

It was at that moment that the murmurings found memory and folks recalled, in that instant, that this woman had lost a son – a mere teenager – all those many years ago.

She stared at the priest for a moment, then turned and walked away …

As others gathered in to greet him and ask their own questions, he watched her. His eyes followed her … all the way back to the corner of the room where there was an icon corner …

And he saw the woman lift her fists up in the air in front of the icon of Christ and say …

(and I paraphrase) …

The Orthodixie Podcast on Ancient Faith Radio.

P.S. -- I shall be away from blog/comment moderation until the Feast of the Annunciation, March 25th.
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ENCOUNTERING THE MYSTERY - Understanding Orthodox Christianity Today

by His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch BARTHOLOMEW
(Doubleday, March 18, 2008; 304 pages)

The world is in a mess and is headed for impending gloom, doom, and disaster. At least that’s one way to look at it. Another way is: The world is in a mess and is headed for an imminent, ecumenical, even interreligious, encounter. So seems the belief of His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch BARTHOLOMEW according to his new book, Encountering the Mystery – Understanding Orthodox Christianity Today.

Whatever one’s religious beliefs, Encountering the Mystery is enlightening. No matter one’s culture, Encountering the Mystery is engaging. Regardless of one’s personal and political opinions concerning the environment, Encountering the Mystery is educational. Regardless, the book is about encountering. Rarely does an encounter exist without struggle, a struggle toward understanding. Upon reading this book, my chief struggle is in trying to understand its purpose.

I suspect that it is a plea to the world at large, primarily the European Union, to embrace Turkey. Some selling points, however, fall flat:

Turkey is, after all, the only Muslim society that has come into close contact with and warmly embraced the ideals of the Enlightment and the French Revolution (p.202).

The vita of the Patriarch and the beliefs of the Orthodox Christian Church form the introductory material and early chapters of the book; the latter half is concerned with issues of poverty and pollution – personal and national – on a global scale. Whereas the information concerning Orthodox theology is concise and handy; the platform on ecology seems plodding and reads like a mixture of keynote addresses and position papers from interfaith symposia glued together within one binder.

Essentially, encounter means to meet face to face. Therefore, the title of the book presents a paradox. How is it that one meets mystery face to face? Furthermore, when one meets mystery face to face, what does one see? What does one do? One thing is for certain: comfort is not assured. In fact, this book is quite discomforting. In order to flesh this out I must make it personal, switching from an objective review to a subjective one. I mean, according to BARTHOLOMEW, encounter requires as much.

First, let’s begin with the person of the Patriarch and why some readers, especially Orthodox Christians, might be reluctant to pick up Encountering the Mystery. Although the mainstream press – even the dust jacket of this book – claims the Ecumenical Patriarch is the “spiritual leader for the world’s over 200 million Orthodox Christians,” many Orthodox Christians view this as no more than a convenient label employed by the media, and encouraged by the Ecumenical throne, to add gravitas to his position among Church and world leaders from within a once-Christian-now-Muslim land.

Secondly, most times the Ecumenical Patriarch is found in the news it is because he’s fraternizing with someone who is not Christian, much less Orthodox. When he makes news it’s usually controversial. Especially when viewed through the lens of American Orthodox converts – many of whom have chosen, after great struggle, to leave Anglicanism or Roman Catholicism, even Islam – such encounters may seem unnecessarily compromising. If you’re going to allow yourself to be called the “spiritual leader of the world's Orthodox Christians,” at least follow the tried and true script. For instance, again from the book’s dust jacket: “He is dedicated to advancing reconciliation among Christian, Muslim, and Jewish communities, and is an active proponent of environmental causes.”

“Yes, but is he Orthodox?” comes the question.

For example, closer to home, what is he doing to help unite the Orthodox Christians in the United States? Is he a help or a hindrance to jurisdictional unity in America? If he is a help, let’s see some encouragement and action! If he is a hindrance, he need do nothing more than he is already doing.

If the answer is “Yes, of course the Ecumenical Patriarch is Orthodox!” then that’s good news. Would that His All Holiness would struggle to bring his own house into order before inviting us to a group hug with those outside the Faith, especially those who have for centuries tried to destroy it. However, Encountering the Mystery will do little to further the True Faith. I can’t think of a single Seeker to whom I’d recommend the book. There are certain chapters, well written, that pertain to the Faith. But what a pity that the whole book, from the “spiritual leader of the world's Orthodox Christians” is not fitting for seeking souls.

Three names offer endorsements on the book’s jacket: Dr Jane Goodall, Dr Rowan Williams, and Madeline Albright (all three are, if I’m not mistaken, Anglicans) -- along with a blurb from Publishers Weekly. For certain, these are names known to the world. However, they seem misplaced on the cover of a book by the “spiritual leader of the world's Orthodox Christians.” Granted, Metropolitan KALLISTOS (Ware), a name known to most Orthodox Christians wrote the Forward; Dr John Chryssavgis, Theological Advisor to the Ecumenical Patriarch on Environmental Issues, wrote the lengthy Biographical Note. But, still. Who is the author’s intended audience? This is a mystery one keeps encountering.

Anyone who has paid attention knows that the Ecumenical Patriarch is basically under “house arrest” in a country dominated by the “religion of peace.” In my opinion, to truly lead the Orthodox, he needs to get out of Turkey and speak the Truth or be willing to lose his own life for speaking the Truth in Turkey. (Given all else that we know -- wink, wink -- is there any other way?)

Apparently, there is. This is the way that BARTHOLOMEW has chosen. It is the way of dialogue leading toward compromise. This, by what I read to my children in the lives of the saints each night, is not the traditional way of the Orthodox.

One cannot debate with fundamentalist Muslims, any more than one can debate with fundamentalist Jews or fundamentalist Christians. Their certainty about God renders global discourse or religious discussion almost impossible. The alternative is humble engagement and moderate conversation. It is an expression not only of a dignified respect toward other human beings but of a due response to God, who remains beyond all certainty and comprehension. Moreover, it is a reflection of a proper self-respect, inasmuch as one readily admits one's limitations and imperfections (p.186).

There's many passages, like the one above, where one might find shades of agreement, lulling one into a place of resignation, and then:

Thus, the great monotheistic religions may be said to agree not only on the one name (or the many names) of God. More fundamentally they agree on the ultimate namelessness of God. For while they may disagree on the precise content of the names themselves -- that is to say, on the details of the faith that they confess -- they agree on the mystery of God, who transcends all names and knowledge. Put more simply: while Jews, Christians, and Muslims may disagree on the partial truth that we know dimly about God, they in fact approach one another in their recognition that the absolute truth cannot be conceived, contained, or exhausted (p.189).

At one time in my life, having made mysticism a hobby, I would have stood and cheered such writing. Perhaps, even, if I'd read the above from another source, I could still appreciate the mystery. But when coupled with the following quote, I start to get nervous:

We stand before perhaps the greatest challenge of human history: namely, the challenge to tear down the wall of separation between East and West, between Muslims and Christians, between all religions of the world, between all civilizations and cultures. As stewards of this unique and exceptional historical moment, we must face the challenge of bridging the great divide and recognizing humanity and common values. This is surely God's model for the world (p.205).

See what I mean about the European Union thing? He's not talking about most backyards. In the old-fashioned days, before this "exceptional historic moment," some would say that "God's model for the world" has already been rejected by the Jews and the Muslims. However, even if one were called to metanoia -- repentance -- it does not mean the same thing as it did yesterday.

Dialogue does not imply denial of religious faith or betrayal of religious affiliation. Instead, it signifies a shift in our mind-set and a change of attitudes, what in spiritual language we call "repentance" -- or ... in Greek, metanoia, which literally means seeing things through a different perspective. This is why dialogue is the start of a long and patient process of conversation, not a fundamentalist drive toward conversion or some legal exchange of ideas like a contract. It is a way of learning how to listen in order to hear, so that Muslims can feel welcome and safe in Christian countries; so that both Jews and Palestinians may feel welcome and safe in the Middle East; so that all minorities in all places can enjoy the same rights and privileges as their neighbors (p.216).

Then there’s the whole “Green Patriarch” thing. I don’t want to trivialize humanity’s environmental missteps and, honestly, the Patriarch nowhere blames man, solely, for “global warming.” Yet, he says:

Thus the Eastern Orthodox Church proposes a liturgical worldview. It proclaims a world richly imbued by God and a God profoundly involved in this world. Our “original sin,” so it might be said, does not lie in any legalistic transgression of religious commands that might incur divine wrath or human guilt. Instead, it lies in our stubborn refusal as human beings to receive the world as a gift of encounter and reconciliation with our planet and to regard the world as the mystery of communion with the rest of humanity (p.99).

Huh? Even if I don’t fully understand what he is trying to say, I reject it. Forgive me. Then, verging on chiliasm (in many parts of the book), BARTHOLOMEW writes:

The natural environment -- the forest, the water, the land -- belongs not only to the present generation but also to future generations. We must frankly admit that humankind is entitled to something better than what we see around us. We and, much more, our children and future generations are entitled to a better and brighter world, a world free from degradation, violence, and bloodshed, a world of generosity and love. It is selfless and sacrificial love for our children that will show us the path that we must follow into the future (p.119).

God bless the children; I'm all for them! But what shall it profit a man ... I mean, I hate to go all Baptist here but, wouldn't you say that selfless and sacrificial love for God will show us the path that we must follow?

Then, after mentioning that we "'are coworkers of God' (1 Cor.3:9), and we are called to realize the divine plan of healing and reconciliation throughout the world ‘until all of us come to the measure of unity and maturity’ (cf. Eph.4:13)" -- BARTHOLOMEW writes:

Then the Spirit of God will transform this world into the kingdom of heaven, the fallen world into a new creation, and every activity into true life (p.131).

“Really?” -- I wrote in the side margin; indicating that I was, no doubt, encountering mystery here. Elsewhere, in language too PC for me to understand, he writes:

We must remind people of the significance of tolerance, which is ultimately grounded in respect for the sanctity of freedom and the sacredness of human justice (p.135).

You are welcome to explain this to me in the Comments (below).

While I'm at it -- read the following paragraph, carefully, till the end -- here's another quote:

We need faith in order to hope. We need to believe. We need to work together toward a goal, always living in hope. That is the dignity and nobility of human life. It expresses the image and likeness of God, according to which we are created. And it is the greatest gift we offer to our children: that we believe and hope in a better world, a world where war is no more, where races and religions are equally respected, where the diversity of nature is celebrated, where all people have enough, and where the language of tolerance is the mother tongue of the global family in order that the God of love may be glorified. This is the world where the "kingdom has come on earth as in heaven" [Matt.6:10 (p.231)].

No comment.

His All Holiness is well aware that his actions may cause Orthodox Christians discomfort. And, before anyone starts throwing around the word heresy, BARTHOLOMEW schools us in its proper definition:

Often, conservative Christians and other religious groups are offended by the priority that the Ecumenical Patriarch gives to dialogues with other confessions or faiths, believing that there can be no dialogue on equal terms with heretics. The word "heresy" is another term that has been misused, if not abused, in the history of religious and theological thought. I am in no way undermining the importance of theological doctrine and its accuracy ... However, it may be useful to remember here that the Greek word for "heresy" -- airesis -- does not primarily signify erroneous doctrine. Rather, it implies the conscious selection of a single aspect of truth, which one absolutizes in a fundamentalist way to the exclusion of all other perceptions of truth. We must humbly admit that all of us are guilty of this sin -- Christians, Jews, and Muslims alike. Moreover, I am convinced that the purpose of dialogue is precisely to reveal the fallacy and arrogance of this attitude. This is the kind of humility that is expected of all those in dialogue, including the Orthodox who believe that they retain the fullness of the Christian truth (p.220).

And, there it is. The book seems to elevate dialogue above conversion, confusing finding common ground with encountering the truth. (What, by the way, is the fullness of the Christian truth?) If dialogue could ever be considered a "single aspect of truth," Encountering the Mystery certainly seems to elevate it above all others. Dialogue, it appears, is the mystery we are called to encounter.

Learning to live in a spirit of open dialogue and mutual respect is the basis for acquiring the skills of living in community. It is the mystery of encounter (emphasis mine; p.193).

Don’t get me wrong, there’s many a good quote found within the pages of Encountering the Mystery; my copy has pencil scribblings and notes on nearly every page. His All Holiness writes poetically and convincingly. Furthermore, having read the book during the first week of Orthodox Lent, I posted some pertinent quotes regarding fasting and ascetical struggles on my blog and asked readers to guess the author. The answers to my query read like a who’s who among beloved Church Fathers, contemporary and popular Orthodox writers, bishops and theologians (e.g., Kallistos Ware, Ephrem the Syrian, Thomas Hopko, Nikolai Velimirovich, John of the Ladder, John Chrysostom, Silouan the Athonite, Basil Essey, Hierotheos Vlachos -- even Stephen Freeman and Clark Carlton). This is pleasantly surprising because, I suspect, some of those who commented would probably not have Encountering the Mystery on their reading list.

And yet, there are other sections of the book that, had I posted them, would have garnered guesses of Al Gore, Al Gore (and Al Gore). Which would be unfair -- some of those sections are quite good and worthy. But, we live in an age, within the Church and the world, where only certain voices are heard regardless of who is speaking. That being the case, the case could be made for Encountering the Mystery all the more. One could say that, given his background, given his experience, given his position in the Church – including his travels and ecumenical activities, not to mention being under a form of “house arrest” in a predominantly Muslim country wishing to enter the European Union – Ecumenical Patriarch BARTHOLOMEW’s voice warrants a hearing.

I just wish he’d said less. I would have liked for him to have stuck to Orthodoxy -- with the same understanding yesterday, today, and tomorrow. After all, what more should one expect from the “spiritual leader of the world's Orthodox Christians?”
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Thanks to FWD from Jean-Michel.
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"Easter is a special time in churches," the letter from the publisher says. "It's a time of celebration and thankfulness. But because of the graphic nature of the Easter story and the crucifixion specifically, we need to be careful as we choose what we tell preschoolers about Easter."

The letter continues:

"In order to be sensitive to the physical, intellectual, and emotional development of preschoolers, First Look has chosen not to include the Easter story in our curriculum. Instead, we are focusing on the Last Supper, when Jesus shared a meal and spent time with the people He loved. We have made this choice because the crucifixion is simply too violent for preschoolers. And if we were to skip the crucifixion and go straight to the resurrection, then preschoolers would be confused."

It's a story over at MereComments ...

Eric commented: I have noticed that "children's bibles" often take this same tact. Adam and Even lived in this really great garden that God made for them! Noah really loved animals (and rainbows)! Jesus loved giving children hugs! The end!

The whole story.

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Metropolitan LAURUS, first Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, has fallen asleep in the Lord.

May his memory be eternal!

I understand that His Eminence served the Presanctified Liturgy in Jordanville on Friday, and fell asleep in the Lord (in his sleep) this morning, the Sunday of the Triumph of Orthodoxy.

More details forthcoming ... HERE and elsewhere.


UPDATE: Video news ...


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The First Week of Lent ... I ended up attending my first meeting of Fasters Anonymous. It’s a 12-step group that meets in the basement of a local Catholic church. This year, since Orthodox Easter is way later than the Catholics – and everybody else, for that matter – the group had already been meeting for 5 weeks. But, given my circumstances, I had to go ...

My sponsor told me, on the way there, that some of the folks at the meeting would be Roman Catholic or Episcopalian – but, now that Lent had arrived for the Orthodox, the majority of the participants would be, like me, Orthodox struggling with First Week.

As we pulled into the parking lot, I understood what he meant ...

There were several cars with bumper stickers saying things like:

The Episcopal Church Welcomes You

Hate is not a family value ... and stuff

Then there was:

Abortion stops a beating heart

Pray the Rosary daily

and

Mary is my co-pilot

And then I saw them ... our people ... bumper stickers sporting things like:

Honk 40 times if you’re Orthodox

My Church is Older than Your Church

and, of course:

Orthodoxy: Christianity, just harder

Anyway ...

There were probably 50 people sitting round in a circle; I recognized a few. We began with a welcome from the leader ... then, this group sang a Fasting Song to the tune of the Gilligan’s Island theme song ...

The Orthodixie Podcast on Ancient Faith Radio.
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What is the Sunday of Orthodoxy?

A yearly thanksgiving is due to God on account of that day when we recovered the Church of God, with the demonstration of the dogmas of true religion and the overthrowing of the blasphemies of wickedness ...
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Metropolitan PHILIP, 1984:

Once every year, on the Sunday of Orthodoxy, the Orthodox people in America emerge from their ethnic islands to celebrate the triumph of the Orthodox Faith over the iconoclastic heresy. This victory happened in the year AD 787, 1197 years ago. I am proud of our history; for those who have no past, have no present and will have no future. There is a difference, however, between contemplating history and worshiping history ...

We are no longer a church of immigrants; the first Orthodox liturgy was celebrated in this country before the American Revolution. Many of our Orthodox young people have died on the battlefields of various wars, defending American ideals and principles. We have contributed much to the success of this country in the fields of medicine, science, technology, government, education, art, entertainment, and business.

We consider ourselves Americans, and we are proud of it—except when we go to church, we suddenly become Greeks, Russians, Arabs, and Albanians. Despite our rootedness in the American soil, our Church in America is still divided into fifteen jurisdictions, contrary to our Orthodox ecclesiology and canon law, which forbid the multiplicity of jurisdictions in the same territory ...

Read all of Metropolitan PHILIP's historic Orthodoxy Sunday Sermon.


St Patriarch Tikhon, 1903:

Holding to the Orthodox faith, as to something holy, loving it with all their hearts and prizing it above all, Orthodox people ought, moreover, to endeavor to spread it amongst people of other creeds. Christ the Savior has said that "neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel, but on a candle stick, and it giveth light unto all that are in the house." (Matthew 5, 15) The light of Orthodoxy was not lit to shine only on a small number of men. The Orthodox Church is universal; it remembers the words of its Founder: "Go ye into the world, and preach the gospel to every creature" (Luke, 16, 15), "go ye therefore and teach all nations." (Matthew 28, 19) We ought to share our spiritual wealth, our truth, light and joy with others, who are deprived of these blessings, but often are seeking them and thirsting for them ...

Here is the entire text of St Tikhon's Sunday of Orthodoxy sermon.
Thanks to FWD from Jean-Michel.

As the Prophets saw, as the Apostles taught, as the Church has received, as the Teachers express in dogma, as the inhabited world understands together with them, as grace illumines, as the truth makes clear, as error has been banished, as wisdom makes bold to declare, as Christ has assured, so we think, so we speak, so we preach, honouring Christ our true God, and his Saints, in words, in writings, in thoughts, in sacrifices, in churches, in icons, worshipping and revering the One as God and Lord, and honouring them because of their common Lord as those who are close to him and serve him, and making to them relative veneration.

This is the faith of the Apostles; this is the faith of the Fathers; this is the faith of the Orthodox; this faith makes fast the inhabited world ...

Read the Synodikon commemorating the Triumph of Orthodoxy.

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This coming Sunday morning, March 16th, His Grace, Bishop BASIL of the Diocese of Wichita and Mid-America (AOA) will join Their Eminences Archbishop DMITRI of the Diocese of Dallas and the South (OCA) and Metropolitan ISAIAH of the Metropolis of Denver (GOA) for a concelebrated Hierarchical Divine Liturgy at St Seraphim Cathedral (OCA) in Dallas, TX which will begin a joint celebration of the feast of the Triumph of Orthodoxy.

Not sure about the "dinner on the grounds" part, but ...

Then, later that evening, all three bishops will join with all the priests and deacons of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex and their congregations for the Vespers of the Triumph of Orthodoxy and the formal proclamation of the Synodikon at Holy Trinity Church (GOA).

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Signed copies available through the PayPal button in the side margin of this blog (at left), or multiple copies through Regina Orthodox Press.

And now ...

on AMAZON.
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Sin is not merely making evil choices, but in fact the result of an inability to make rightful -- or righteous -- choices. It is the state of captivity to compulsions or passions, where one is quite literally passive and not subjective, controlled and not creative, fallen and not free. It is subservience to the force of hardened habit. In contemporary language, it is called addiction. If I drink or eat whenever I like or whatever I want, I do not gain my freedom but in fact forfeit my freedom. For, in that case, I am constrained by the tyranny of passion, identified with the instinct of my nature. My "life is held captive; it is enslaved by the fear of death" (Heb.2:15).

Yesterday I posted some quotes from the same source.

Here's another quote ...

Humanity stands at the center of creation, serving as a bridge and a bond between greatness and lowliness, between sacredness and frailty, between heaven and earth. As such, the human person acts as a mediator. Yet the way of mediation, otherwise known as the process of deification (divinization, or theosis in Greek), is long and arduous. It is what the Church Fathers call the journey from the divine image, as a gift from above, to the divine likeness as the realization and fulfillment of this initial endowment.

Who's the author?
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Together with prayer, fasting is a critical form of ascetic discipline in the spiritual life. Physical practices of abstinence assist in breaking forceful habits that accrue within and harden the heart over years and even over generations. However, like the phenomenon of monasticism ... the aim of fasting is not to denigrate or destroy the body, which is always respected as "a temple of God" (1 Cor. 3:16). Rather, it is to refine the whole person, to render the faculties more subtle and sensitive to the outside world as well as to "the inner kingdom."

Fasting is another way of rejecting the split between heaven and earth.

Fasting implies a sense of freedom. Fasting is a way of not wanting, or wanting less, and of recognizing the wants of others. By abstaining from certain foods, we are not punishing ourselves but instead able to preserve proper value for all foods. Moreover, fasting implies alertness. By paying close attention to what we do, to the intake of food and the quantity of our possessions, we better appreciate the reality of suffering and the value of sharing.

Fasting begins as a form of detachment; however, when we learn what to let go of, we recognize what we should hold on to.

Can you guess the author of the above quotes?
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Just as a reminder [in other words, there's no need to stone the messenger in the ComBox (hence, the cartoon at left)], here's “The Rules of Fasting” -- beginning with the first day of the Fast, Clean Monday -- from The Lenten Triodion, translated by Mother Mary and Bishop Kallistos (Ware).

On weekdays (Monday to Friday inclusive) during the seven weeks of Lent, there are restrictions both on the number of meals taken daily and on the types of food permitted; but when a meal is allowed, there is no fixed limitation on the quantity of food to be eaten.

a) On weekdays in the first week, fasting is particularly severe. According to strict observance,in the course of the five initial days of Lent, only two meals are eaten, one on Wednesday and the other on Friday, in both cases after the Liturgy of the Presanctified. On the other three days, those who have the strength are encouraged to keep an absolute fast; those for whom this proves impracticable may eat on Tuesday and Thursday (but not, if possible, on Monday), in the evening after Vespers, when they may take bread and water, or perhaps tea or fruit-juice, but not a cooked meal. It should be added at once that in practice today these rules are commonly relaxed. At the meals on Wednesday and Friday xerophagy is prescribed. Literally, this means, “dry eating.” Strictly interpreted, it signifies that we may eat only vegetables cooked with water and salt, and also such things as fruit, nuts, bread and honey. In practice, octopus and shellfish are also allowed on days of xerophagy; likewise vegetable margarine and corn or other vegetable oil, not made from olives. But the following categories of food are definitely excluded:

1. Meat
2. Animal products (cheese, milk, butter, eggs, lard,drippings)
3. Fish (i.e., fish with backbones)
4. Oil (i.e., olive oil) and wine

b) On weekdays (Monday to Friday inclusive) in the second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth weeks, one meal a day is permitted, to be taken in the afternoon following Vespers, and at this one meal xerophagy is to be observed.

c) Holy Week. On the first three days there is one meal each day, with xerophagy; but some try to keep a complete fast on these days, or else they eat only uncooked food, as on the opening days of the first week.

On Holy Thursday one meal is eaten, with wine and oil (i.e., olive oil). On Great Friday those who have the strength follow the practice of the early Church and keep a total fast. Those unable to do this may eat bread, with a little water, tea or fruit-juice, but not until sunset, or at any rate not until after the veneration of the Winding-Sheet at Vespers.

On Holy Saturday there is in principle no meal, since according to the ancient practice after the end of the Liturgy of St. Basil the faithful remained in church for the reading of the Acts of the Apostles, and for their sustenance were given a little bread and dried fruit, with a cup of wine. If, as usually happens now, they return home for a meal, they may use wine but not oil; for on this one Saturday, alone among Saturdays of the year, olive oil is not permitted.

The rule of xerophagy is relaxed on the following days:

1) On Saturdays and Sundays in Lent, with the exception of Holy Saturday, two main meals may be taken in the usual way, around mid¬day and in the evening, with wine and olive oil; but meat, animal products and fish are not allowed.

2) On the Feast of the Annunciation (March 25) and Palm Sunday fish is permitted as well as wine and oil, but meat and animal products are not allowed …

3) Wine and oil are permitted on the following days,if they fall on a weekday in the second, third, fourth, fifth or sixth week:

• First & Second Finding of Head of St. John the Baptist (Feb. 24)
• Holy Forty Martyrs of Sebaste (Mar. 9)
• Fore-feast of the Annunciation (Mar. 24)
• Synaxis of the Archangel Gabriel (Mar. 26)
• Holy Great martyr and Victory bearer George (April 23)
• Holy Apostle and Evangelist Mark (April 25)
• Holy Apostle and Evangelist John the Theologian (May 8)
• Patronal Feast of the Church or Monastery

4) Wine and oil are also allowed on Wednesday and Thursday in the fifth week, because of the vigil for the Great Canon. Wine is allowed —and, according to some authorities, oil as well — on Friday in the same week, because of the vigil of the Akathist Hymn.

It has always been held that these rules of fasting should be relaxed in the case of anyone elderly or in poor health. In present-day practice, even for those in good health, the full strictness of the fast is usually mitigated. Only a few Orthodox today attempt to keep a total fast on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday in the first week, or on the first three days of Holy Week. On weekdays — except, perhaps, during the first week of Holy Week—it is now common to eat two cooked meals daily instead of one. From the second until the sixth week, many Orthodox use wine, and perhaps oil also, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and less commonly on Mondays as well. Permission is often given to eat fish in these weeks. Personal factors need to be taken into account, as for example the situation of an isolated Orthodox living in the same household as non-Orthodox, or obliged to take meals in a factory or school. In cases of uncertainty each should seek the advice of his or her spiritual father. At all times it is essential to bear in mind that “you are not under the law but under grace” (Rom. 6:14), and that “the letter kills, but the spirit gives life” (2 Cor. 3:6). The rules of fasting, while they need to be taken seriously, are not to be interpreted with dour and pedantic legalism; “for the kingdom of God is not food and drink, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Rom. 14:17).

Thanks to an annual FWD from Fr Mark Mancuso.
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Back in high school, my football coach required all the players who were not also on the baseball team to run track in the off season.

(Then there was that one year that we had a competing volley ball team, but that was a different time. I won't tell you what the ol’ coach thought of boys playin’ volley ball.)

Of course, his goal was to keep us in good shape. So, spring time was track time.

Now, look at me. Do I look like a track star to you?

For those of you listening by radio, let me just say: The answer to that question is “Uh … no.”

But, there I was for our first track meet – my first one ever – and, if memory serves, I believe I was signed up to put the shot, fling the discus, and maybe run the first leg of a relay race.

No biggie. Typical lineman fare.

Then the coach came in before the meet to give us a pep talk and to inform us that the little fellow who was signed up to run the 2-mile was sick … and we needed a replacement.

No one raised their hand to volunteer.

Y’all, pfffff … 2 miles? Hello? TWO ~ MILES! Come on! I could do that, I reasoned. So without further hesitation, I raised my hand. I volunteered.

My coach, a much smarter man than I, looked at me like I had six heads. The other track team members looked at me with, what I thought was, awe and admiration. A faint smile came upon the coach’s lips and he asked ...

The Orthodixie Podcast on Ancient Faith Radio.
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Mild mannered Mere-Media mogul, Jim Kushiner gushes about the Vatican's statement on valid baptism ...

There are plenty of churches we've all heard about where [for baptism the words] "cheater, strainer and beamer" are used, or something like that, by clergy-impersonators, or something like that. One of those culprits splashing water would object if he called himself The Reverend Johnson but someone else called him the relevant john. Whatever. Just use a liquid, three times, and three nouns, and it's close enough for the cigar ...

For more splainin, click: Whas up wid dat?
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If thou dost fast from food, my soul, yet dost not cleanse thyself from passions, thou dost rejoice in vain over thine abstinence. For if thy purpose is not turned towards amendment of life, as a liar thou art hateful in God's sight, and thou dost resemble the evil demons who never eat at all. Do not by sinning make the fast worthless, but firmly resist all wicked impulses. Picture to thyself that thou art standing beside the crucified Savior or rather, that thou art thyself crucified with Him who was crucified for thee; and cry out to Him: Remember me, O Lord, when Thou comest in Thy Kingdom.

-- Aposticha from Orthros (Tuesday of Cheese Week)

Thanks to FWD from Fr Josiah Trenham.
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I've moved this back to the top of the page because, now that we're fasting, it just didn't seem right to feature Rod Dreher, carnivore, anymore. :)

In his new book Defeating Sin Fr Joseph Huneycutt has provided us with a clear and, above all, practical framework for personal spiritual growth. It will undoubtedly become a favorite title for individual Lenten reading, although Church School teachers and youth leaders will also find Defeating Sin to include valuable material that can readily be incorporated into curricula or workshops. Fr Joseph has given us a great tool to help us in the daily task of "work[ing] out [our] own salvation." (Phil. 2:12)

-- Deacon David Keim, All Saints Church, Raleigh, North Carolina

Order now!

Signed copies available through the PayPal button in the side margin of this blog (at left), or multiple copies through Regina Orthodox Press.

DEFEATING SIN will help readers to better understand the disease that troubles the human soul. DEFEATING SIN will prove an invaluable aid for those engaged in spiritual warfare, helping them make that U-turn from the passions toward the virtues.

Christians of all denominational backgrounds will benefit from the ancient wisdom of the Church Fathers and the perpetual call to repentance. Orthodox Christians, Catholics, and Anglicans will find the book’s helpful guides for making a good Confession memorable, indispensable—a must!

DEFEATING SIN investigates the nature of the Passions and the saving grace of the Virtues.

- What led to the fall of the Archangel Lucifer and one-third of the heavenly hosts?
- What caused the fall of our first parents, Adam and Eve?
- What causes our own stumbling?
- How can we identify the traps and temptations of the enemy?
- How do we get back up once we’ve fallen?
- How can we struggle toward God-pleasing solutions – even the Kingdom of Heaven?

More endorsements of DEFEATING SIN.
(And here ... and here.)
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This week's Orthodixie Podcast invited "fasting songs" ... The following, sung to the tune of Terry Jacks' maudlin pop classic "Seasons in the Sun," is stolen (with gratitude) from Rod Dreher's blog:

Goodbye bacon, my trusted friend/ I've loved having you in my kitchen/ Together we've drawn out your grease/ To season my black-eyed peas./ You're so good with eggs and cheese.

Goodbye pork ribs, it's hard to die
To yourself; I'll really miss pot pie
And steaks seared on the grill.
Chicken tacos? Steel the will!
Mortify that fleshly thrill!

(Chorus)
We had joy, we had fun
We had pulled pork on a bun.
But the meat on which we dine
For two long months we must pine.

Father Joseph, pray for me
I want lamb chops almost constantly.
Though I know it's very wrong
I'll inhale a grilled foot-long
When I quit this stupid song.

Vladyka, dear, it's hard to fast
Fried tofu is pretty poor ballast
And I'm real sick of eating beans.
Emitting aromas most unclean,
The kids call me Stinky Jeans.

(Chorus)
We had joy, we had fun
We had pulled pork on a bun.
But we are called to be ascetic:
At this holy task I'm most pathetic.

Goodbye kebab and tandoori.
Meat lasagna -- arrivider-er-ci!
Beef tamales -- adios.
No more gravlax upon toast
By order of the Holy Ghost.

(Chorus)
We had joy, we had fun
We had pulled pork on a bun.
Protein's in an eight-week rut:
Endless butter from the nut.

(Chorus)
We had joy, we had fun
We had pulled pork on a bun.
For this devoted carnivore
Vegan life is a crashing bore.

(Chorus)
We had joy, we had fun
We had pulled pork on a bun.
Barbecue for me by proxy.
I'm sold out to Orthodoxy.

Send comments or alternate lyrics to Rod Dreher's blog; or post your own tune below.

Image: RD & BBQ; thanks to tmatt for the FWD.
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By request, here's some links from past posts to help in stocking up and preparing meals during the Great Fast. You can also enter "Lent" or "fasting" in the upper left corner SEARCH box for other articles, recipes and resources. (Then there's this.)

Lenten Pantry & Breakfasts

Lenten Appetizers

Lenten Soups

Lenten Sandwiches

Also by request, the lyrics to the Beverly Hillbillies Fasting Song ...

Come and listen to a story about a man well fed
A poor Convert, joined the church when he was wed,
Then one Lent he was eatin' feastin' food,
When his wife hit the roof, claiming he was rude ...
She said … SOY that is, Tofu ... just some beans.

Well the first thing you know our man he got a scare,
His wife, she said that their larder it was bare ...
Said the Farmer’s Market was the place they oughtta be
So they headed into town for some Lenten groceries.

Lentils, that is ...
and peanut butter in big Costco jars.


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Ladies & Gentlemen, prepare yourself, it’s almost that time; time to cue your favorite theme song for the upcoming Lenten Fast! Perhaps the theme song from Star Wars? Or maybe we could sing a fasting song, during this election year, to the tune of "Hail to the Chief?" Then again, there’s always the Beverly Hillbillies ...


The Orthodixie Podcast on Ancient Faith Radio.

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