February 23/March 7, 2004
Beloved Clergy and Parishioners in the Lord, Grace and Peace be with you.
SUNDAY OF THE SECOND WEEK OF THE GREAT FAST
The Reading is from the Epistle of Saint Paul to the Hebrews [§ 304]. 1 10“Thou, O Lord, in the beginning founded the earth, and the heavens are the works of Thy hands [Ps. 101(102):25]. 11“They shall perish, but Thou remainest; and they shall all become old as an outer garment [Ps. 101(102):26], 12“and as a covering Thou shalt roll them up, and they shall be changed. But Thou art the same, and Thy years shall not fail [Ps. 101(102):26, 27].” 13But to which of the angels hath He said at any time, “Sit Thou on My right, until I should place Thine enemies as a footstool of Thy feet [Ps. 109(110):1]”? 14They are all ministering spirits being sent forth to minister for the sake of those who are about to inherit salvation, are they not? 2 1On this account, it is necessary for us to give heed more abundantly to the things which were heard, lest ever we should slip away. 2For if the word spoken by angels was confirmed, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense, 3how shall we escape, if we neglect so great a salvation, which received a beginning to be spoken of by the Lord, and was confirmed to us by those who heard?
Commemoration of Saint Gregory Palamas
The Reading is from the Epistle of Saint Paul to the Hebrews [§ 318]. Brethren:
7 26Such a High Priest was fitting for us: holy, guileless, undefiled, Who hath been separated from the sinners and hath become higher than the heavens, 27Who hath no need daily, even as the high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for his own sins, then for those of the people; for this He did once for all after He offered up Himself. 28For the law appointeth men high priests who have weakness; but the word of the oath, which is after the law, appointeth the Son, Who hath been perfected forever.
8 1Now in reference to the things being spoken of, the chief point is: We have such a High Priest, Who sat down on the right of the throne of the majesty in the heavens, 2a Liturgist of the holies and of the tabernacle, the true one, which the Lord pitched, and not man.
SUNDAY OF THE SECOND WEEK OF THE GREAT FAST
The Reading is from the Holy Gospel according to Saint Mark [§ 7]. At that time:
2 1Jesus entered into Capernaum after some days; and it was heard that “He is in the house.” 2And straightway many were gathered together, insomuch that there was no longer room, not even at the door. And He was speaking the word to them. 3And they come to Him, bearing a paralytic who was borne by four. 4And not being able to come near to Him on account of the crowd, they uncovered the roof where He was. And after they dug it out, they let down the bed on which the paralytic was lying. 5And Jesus, having seen their faith, saith to the paralytic, “Child, thy sins have been forgiven thee.” 6But some of the scribes were sitting there and reasoning in their hearts, 7“Why doth this One thus speak blasphemies? Who is able to forgive sins except One, God?” 8And straightway, Jesus, having fully known in His spirit that they were reasoning thus within themselves, said to them, “Why are ye reasoning these things in your hearts? 9“Which is easier, to say to the para!
lytic, 'Thy sins have been forgiven thee,' or to say, 'Arise, and take up thy bed and be walking'? 10“But in order that ye may know that the Son of Man hath authority to forgive sins on the earth”–He saith to the paralytic, 11“I say to thee, 'Arise, and take up thy bed, and go thy way to thy house.'” 12And straightway he arose; and having taken up the bed, he went forth before all, so that all were amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never saw it thus.”
Commemoration of Saint Gregory Palamas
The Reading is from the Holy Gospel according to Saint John [§ 36]. The Lord said to the Jews who had come to Him:
10 9“I am the door; by Me if anyone should enter, he shall be saved, and shall go in and go out and find pasture. 10“The thief cometh not, except that he might steal, and slay, and destroy. I came that they may have life, and may have it abundantly. 11“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd layeth down his life for the sheep. 12“But the hireling, who indeed is not a shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep and fleeth; and the wolf seizeth them and scattereth the sheep. 13“Now the hireling fleeth, because he is a hireling and careth not about the sheep. 14“I am the good shepherd; and I know those that are Mine, and am known of those that are Mine. 15“Even as the Father knoweth Me, I also know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. 16“And I have other sheep which are not of this fold; them also it is needful for Me to bring, and they shall hear My voice; and there shall be one flock and one Shepherd.=!
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In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Although this is the Sunday of Saint Gregory Palamas, and Bishop Gregory's nameday, yet because Vladyka is on the verge of leaving on a trip, we are including here for your edification a sermon on the Sunday of Orthodoxy by Saint Tikhon, the Patriarch and New-martyr. The sermon was written when he was the Archbishop of America at the turn of the century.
The Sermon of St Tikhon on the Sunday of the Triumph of Orthodoxy: This Sunday, Brethren, begins the week of Orthodoxy, or the week of the Triumph of Orthodoxy, because it is today that the Holy Orthodox Church solemnly recalls its victory over the Iconoclast heresy and other heresies and gratefully remembers all who fought for the Orthodox faith in word, writing, teaching, suffering, or godly living. Keeping the day of Orthodoxy, Orthodox people ought to remember it is their sacred duty to stand firm in their Orthodox Faith and carefully to keep it. For us it is a precious treasure: in it we were born and raised; all the important events of our life are related to it, and it is ever ready to give us its help and blessing in all our needs and good undertakings, however unimportant they may seem. It supplies us with strength, good cheer and consolation; it heals, purifies and saves us. The Orthodox faith is also dear to us because it is the Faith of our Fa!
thers. For its sake the Apostles bore pain and labored; martyrs and preachers suffered for it; champions, who were like unto the saints, shed their tears and their blood; pastors and teachers fought for it; and our ancestors stood for it, whose legacy it was that to us it should be dearer than the pupil of our eyes. And as to us, their descendants - do we preserve the Orthodox faith, do we keep to its Gospels? Of yore, the prophet Elias, this great worker for the glory of God, complained that the sons of Israel have abandoned the Testament of the Lord, leaning away from it towards the gods of the heathen. Yet the Lord revealed to His prophet, that amongst the Israelites there still were seven thousand people who have not knelt before Baal (3 Kings 19 LXX]). Likewise, no doubt, in our days also there are some true followers of Christ. 'The Lord knoweth them that are His.' (2 Tim 2.19) We do occasionally meet sons of the Church, who are obedient to Her decrees, wh!
o honor their spiritual pastors, love the Church of God and the beauty
of its exterior, who are eager to attend to its Divine Services and to lead a good life, who recognize their human failings and sincerely repent of their sins. But are there many such among us? Are there not more people, 'in whom the weeds of vanity and passion allow but little fruit to the influence of the Gospel, or even in whom it is altogether fruitless, who resist the truth of the Gospel, because of the increase of their sins, who renounce the gift of the Lord and repudiate the Grace of God?' 'I have given birth to sons and have glorified them, yet they deny Me,' said the Lord in the olden days concerning Israel. And today also there are many who were born, raised and glorified by the Lord in the Orthodox Faith, yet who deny their Faith, pay no attention to the teachings of the Church, do not keep its injunctions, do not listen to their spiritual pastors and remain cold towards the divine services and the Church of God. How speedily some of us lose the O!
rthodox Faith in this country of many creeds and tribes! They begin their apostasy with things, which in their eyes have but little importance. They judge it is 'old fashioned' and 'not accepted amongst educated people' to observe all such customs as: praying before and after meals, or even morning and night, to wear a cross, to keep icons in their houses and to keep Church holidays and fast days. They even do not stop at this, but go further: they seldom go to church and sometimes not at all, as a man has to have some rest on a Sunday (...in a saloon); they do not go to confession, they dispense with Church marriage and delay baptizing their children. And in this way their ties with the Orthodox Faith are broken! They remember the Church on their deathbed, and some don't even do that! To excuse their apostasy they naively say: 'This is not the old country, this is America, and consequently it is impossible to observe all the demands of the Church,' as if the wor!
d of Christ is of use for the old country only and not for the whole w
orld. As if the Orthodox Faith is not the foundation of the world! 'Ah, sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evil doers, children that are corrupters: they have forsaken the Lord, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel into anger.' (Is 1.4) If you do not preserve the Orthodox faith and the commandments of God, the least you can do is not to humiliate your hearts by inventing false excuses for your sins! If you do not honor our customs, the least you can do is not to laugh at things you do not know or understand. If you do not accept the motherly care of the Holy Orthodox Church, the least you can do is to confess you act wrongly, that you are sinning against the Church and behave like children! If you do, the Orthodox Church may forgive you, like a loving mother, your coldness and slights, and will receive you back into Her embrace, as if you were erring children. Holding to the Orthodox Faith, as to something holy, lo!
ving 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.' (Mt 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' (Lk 16.15), 'go ye therefore and teach all nations' (Mt 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. Once 'a vision appeared to Paul in the night, there stood a man from Macedonia and prayed him, saying, come over into Macedonia, and help us,' (Acts 16.9) after which the apostle started for this country !
to preach Christ. We also hear a similar inviting voice. We live surro
unded by people of alien creeds; in the sea of other religions, our Church is a small island of salvation, towards which swim some of the people, plunged in the sea of life. 'Come, hurry, help,' we sometimes hear from the heathen of far Alaska, and oftener from those who are our brothers in blood and once were our brothers in faith also, the Uniates. 'Receive us into your community, give us one of your good pastors, send us a priest that we might have the Divine Services performed for us of a holy day, help us to build a church, to start a school for our children, so that they do not lose in America their faith and nationality,' those are the wails we often hear, especially of late. And are we to remain deaf and insensible? God save us from such a lack of sympathy. Otherwise woe unto us, 'for we have taken away the key of knowledge, we entered not in ourselves, and them that were entering in we hindered.' (Lk 11.52) But who is to work for the spread of the Orthodox!
Faith, for the increase of the children of the Orthodox Church? Pastors and missionaries, you answer. You are right; but are they to be alone? St. Paul wisely compares the Church of Christ to a body, and the life of a body is shared by all the members. So it ought to be in the life of the Church also. 'The whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.' (Eph 4.16) At the beginning, not only pastors alone suffered for the Faith of Christ, but lay people also, men, women and even children. Heresies were fought against by lay people as well. Likewise, the spread of Christ's Faith ought to be near and precious to the heart of every Christian. In this work every member of the Church ought to take a lively and heart-felt interest. This interest may show itself in personal preaching of the Gospel of Christ!
. And to our great joy, we know of such examples amongst our lay
brethren. In Sitka, members of the Indian brotherhood do missionary work amongst other inhabitants of their villages. And one zealous brother took a trip to a distant village (Kilisno), and helped the local priest very much in shielding the simple and credulous children of the Orthodox Church against alien influences, by his own explanations and persuasions. Moreover, in many places of the United States, those who have left Uniatism to join Orthodoxy point out to their friends where the truth is to be found, and dispose them to enter the Orthodox Church. Needless to say, it is not everybody among us who has the opportunity or the faculty to preach the gospel personally. And in view of this I shall indicate to you, brethren, what every man can do for the spread of Orthodoxy and what he ought to do. The Apostolic Epistles often disclose the fact, that when the Apostles went to distant places to preach, the faithful often helped them with their prayers and their offer!
ings. Saint Paul sought this help of the Christians especially. Consequently we can express the interests we take in the cause of the Gospel in praying to the Lord, that He should take this holy cause under His protection, that He should give its servants the strength to do their work worthily, that He should help them to conquer difficulties and dangers, which are part of the work, that He should not allow them to grow depressed or weaken in their zeal; that He should open the hearts of the unbelieving for the hearing and acceptance of the Gospel of Christ, that He should impart to them the word of truth, that He should unite them to the Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church; that He should confirm, increase and pacify His Church, keeping it forever invincible, we pray for all this, but mostly with lips and but seldom with the heart. Don't we often hear such remarks as these: 'what is the use of these special prayers for !
the newly initiated? They do not exist in our time, except, perhaps, i
n the out of the way places of America and Asia; let them pray for such where there are any; as to our country such prayers only needlessly prolong the service which is not short by any means, as it is.' Woe to our lack of wisdom! Woe to our carelessness and idleness! Offering earnest prayers for the successful preaching of Christ, we can also show our interest by helping it materially. It was so in the primitive Church, and the Apostles lovingly accepted material help to the cause of the preaching, seeing in it an expression of Christian love and zeal. In our days, these offerings are especially needed, because for the lack of them the work often comes to a dead stop. For the lack of them preachers can not be sent out, or supported, churches can not be built or schools founded, the needy amongst the newly converted can not be helped. All this needs money and members of other religions always find a way of supplying it. Perhaps, you will say, that these people are richer than ourselves. This is true enough, but great means are accumulated by small, and if everybody amongst us gave what he could towards this purpose, we also could raise considerable means. Accordingly, do not be ashamed of the smallness of your offering. If you have much, offer all you can, but do offer, do not lose the chance of helping the cause of the conversion of your neighbors to Christ, because by so doing, in the words of St. Iakovos, 'you shall save your own soul from death and shall hide a multitude of sins' (Jas 5.19-20). Orthodox people! In celebrating the day of Orthodoxy, you must devote yourselves to the Orthodox Faith not in word or tongue only, but in deed and in truth.
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After reflecting and receiving more information on “The Passion of The Christ”, I want to share with you more thoughts.
It seems I was wrong when I said that this movie is reputed to be very accurate, in that it was an attempt to follow most closely the Scriptures. The script. Apparently I was wrong. Mel Gibson put aside the Scriptures and decided he was going to follow the narration of Anne Catherine Emmerich's book about the Passion. This was a Roman Catholic nun who had many dreams or apparitions contrary to the Scriptures, which she recorded. You see how far the Roman Catholics are from the Orthodox? If anyone of our faithful had any such dream, they would immediately be told to cast it away from themselves, and pray that it be blotted out from their memory, for it is obviously not from God since it contradicts the Divine truth as revealed to us in the Holy Scriptures.
Because Mel Gibson chose the Gospel according to Emmerich, rather than the Gospel according to the Evangelists, therefore this explains the inaccuracies of this film. The theme, however, was Christ and His sufferings. Although inaccurate, yet we behold how it affects the good emotions of the people of this country. Everybody is going to see this movie in droves, and it is going to be one of the most successful movies made. Again, I wish to tell our people, however, that this movie is not for you. We do not need to behold the imagination and ideas and listen to the words which authors are putting into the mouths of sacred personages. We do not need to see an actress portraying the Virgin Mary. The Virgin's beauty and holiness surpass beyond all imagination whatever Hollywood can produce through an actress. We call the Virgin Mary “full of grace” and “more honorable than the Cherubim and more glorious than the Seraphim.” What actress can justly portray the Queen of !
Heaven? None. And our mind should not imagine that we see such an attempt. What then can be said of Christ, Himself, and an actor?
I want to share some thoughts about the way we depict Christ on the Cross, and the way the Latins depict Him.
The Orthodox East, and indeed, the Orthodox of the Roman Church (before 1054), have always depicted Christ as victorious in and over death. He is on the Cross, standing on the footstool, where His feet are nailed. He is depicted as if holding up the Cross. He is depicted not only holding up Himself, but as God, the whole world. He is nailed to the Cross and pierced in the side, and we see this in the holy icons, and the blood from His extremities flow down from the nails and fall on the skull of Adam, which is always depicted beneath the Cross, because He was crucified at Golgotha, the place of the Skull of Adam. His side, when it is pierced, shows two gentle streams, one of blood and one of water, flowing out from His right side. He looks like God incarnate and crucified and it is a wonderful and insatiable sight to behold. Blood is only depicted on the portions of His hands, feet and side. Above His head, holy Tradition prescribes that He is labeled “The King of Glory”. And indeed, He is at the height of His glory, redeeming man, and giving us the sign of the Cross. True Byzantine iconographers, in the purest expression of Orthodox art, do not put upon His head a crown of thorns. Indeed His hair is even shown well groomed. Thorns are contrary to the glory of this icon. This icon shows Christ crucified and indeed dead, but one only realizes this because His eyes are closed, which in Orthodox iconography communicates the state of death. This death for us is life and hope and joy and peace and salvation.
Let us reflect a little on the modern day Latin depiction of Christ crucified, as expressed even now through the movie “The Passion.”
Here we behold the figure of a man who is brutalized. Every part of his body is disfigured and bloody. His hair is disheveled. He is hanging on the Cross as if He is a body without any power. You look upon this crucifixion as an object that would lead us to total despair. Above His Cross is written, “The King of the Jews,” but He is not only the king of the Jews. He is the King of the world, and indeed, the King of kings. But we see Him depicted, not as a King, but as a criminal, punished and executed. But there was no sin in Him. But in their depictions, He looks like sin indeed was in Him. This depiction causes us to turn away from this sight. It is not a vision of hope, but of despair. It is not a vision of life, but death. There is no peace when one beholds this depiction of the Latin West. Every part of His body is red with His blood and abhorrent to the dignity that belongs to Christ. We should honor Him as our God incarnate, but never dishonor Him by depicting Him as one broken and powerless to save Himself. This is showing dishonor. Even the way they cover His nakedness shows dishonor. The Latins put a skimpy, torn, dirty rag on Him; while the Orthodox put on Him a large, clean, dignified cloth.
So we see the difference in the Christianity of the true Church and the others. The dignity shown to Christ in the true one is unsurpassed.
Church / Monastery News:
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This past week we had a baptism. Zosimos Seraphim was baptized into the Holy Orthodox Church. He comes from the country of Columbia, from the city of Ibague. He's thirty-two years old, and has been in this country for twenty-two years. He was a former traditional Roman Catholic, and has been searching for the truth for the last four years. After his baptism, he said that for the first time in his life, his mind, heart and soul were unity. He sensed a feeling completeness. Please pray for him, as he is about to enter the monastic life.
Vladyka Gregory had his nameday this week, and Vladyka Valentine sent him this message.
Dear Vladika Gregory,
We heartily congratulate you on the occasion of Your nameday. We wish you health, salvation, and prosperity in all that is good for many good years to come! Met.Valentine, Ab. Theodore, Ab. Seraphim, Bp. Irenarch, and all of our Fathers.
Now that work is almost complete in the new building, and most of us are settled in, Vladyka is planning some trips. This week he and Father George are going to install icons in Southern California. A trip to Florida is also in planning. Vladyka Metropolitan is also planning to come to America after Pascha.
Question Box:
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Q. I know you only talk about tithing once a year, which I greatly appreciate. How important is it for Orthodox Christians to tithe?
It is very important. All the fathers speak about this as part of our way of life. Here is a reference from the Old Testament. In the book of the Prophet Malachi we read the following:
8Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.
9Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation.
10Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
It is clear from the revelation of this prophet, that God expects His tithes. Not because He needs them from us, for His is the earth's and the fullness thereof, but because we need to show our hope and dependence on Him in a way that is concrete to us and costs us something. A tithe means ten percent. Ten percent is really a bargain when you compare it to what most people pay in taxes, and you see what they get in return for paying them. God is promising much more in the here and now, and life eternal to those who show this faith in His providence. All holy people from the Old Testament period offered some kind of sacrifice to God, and even though they may have had to wait and be patient for a while, they were richly recompensed both in their earthly life and in the next one. Consider the sacrifices of Abel, Abraham, Moses, David, Solomon, Sts. Joachim and Anna, and how God rewarded them. Now consider those who neglected their sacrifices or, even though they made them, m!
ade them half-heartedly, like Cain or Ananias and Sapphira. Do you think that less is expected from us who live in the Christian age? Not less is expected, but more, for we are commanded to love God with ALL our mind, and with ALL our heart, and with ALL our strength. Would you like to receive the wonderful blessings of God, Who knows well how to reward His Saints? In verse ten of this prophecy of Malachi, He is daring you to test Him. Give your tithes, or give even more liberally, and get ready to see what the Lord can do in return. He wants to bestow upon us who hope in Him, out of His goodness, but He wants us to trust in Him. Will you rise to this challenge?
Please pray for:
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Our Vladika Metropolitan Valentine, Father Dionysios' daughter, Helen.
Calendar of Events for Upcoming Week:
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This is the third week of the Great Fast. Let us persevere.
Through the prayers of our holy fathers, Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on us and save us. Amen.
In Christ,
+Bishop Gregory, and those with me.
