Passion Week: "It is the Only Time of the Year When we Forget Ourselves"

My beloved spiritual children in Christ Our Only True God and Our Only True Savior,
CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND ALWAYS SHALL.

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PASSION WEEK: "IT IS THE ONLY TIME OF THE YEAR WHEN WE FORGET OURSELVES."

PASSION WEEK. It is the only time when we forget ourselves, our duties, and our requests. In the Church's hymnody of the Passion services from Holy and Great Thursday to Holy and Great Saturday, you will not find any mention of us sinners, of our downtrodden souls, of our petitions. The contemplation of Christ engrosses everything. Our attention is focused on Him alone. Therefore, for the attentive Christian, the experience of these days is a school of life in Christ and of life with Christ, which is the only true and normal condition for a Christian.

Two sorrowful and horrific actions-- the path to Golgotha and the procession to the burial cave--are the objects of our contemplation, these days. It is the characteristic of the Divine services that they make us participants of these distant and frightful events. In the garden of Gethsemane, our eyes are blinded by torches, a youth wrapped in a cloth hid among trees, and Peter was warming up himself by the fire when he was surprised by a cock crow. We peered into Pilot's window, were surprised by the many-voiced roar of the crowd, the women of Jerusalem were wailing over the beaten Sufferer, the thief was forgiven because of the final love entrusted to Holy One...And two old men and grief-stricken women found the final shelter for the Homeless One.

How vividly ones sees the faces of Christ's contemporaries, but He Himself is somehow mystically hidden, remaining inaccessible to this contemplation. But did not Saint Isaiah foretell this: "As many were astonished at thee, his visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men. So shall he sprinkle many nations; the kings shall shut their mouths at him: for that which had not been told them shall they see; and that they which they had not heard, shall they consider" (Isaiah 52:14-15). Did you notice that, in the description of the suffering of the Innocent One, the Prophet does not speak a word of sympathy for Him? Why is this so? Because all our feelings are engrossed only by the awesome amazement of God's works, which are beyond our comprehension and reveal the love of Christ, "which passeth understanding" (Ephesians 3:19). But human love we see too well, and it too is worthy of wonder, for it is a love without hope.

We look at the Cross and the Grave from Pascha; we know too, well the joy of the Resurrection, we live by it. And the solemn order of the Divine services of Passion Week, grand and mournful, but penetrated with the expectation of Pascha, its hidden joy, tinges even the Burial Shroud [Epitaphios], the last covering of the Sufferer. For us, the Burial Shroud is the banner of the Resurrection and the triumph over death and slavery, the banner of freedom and unity with God. But St. Nikodemos and the Geronda (Elder) of Arimathea, the sorrowful women, and the Mother of God were weeping tears over the bloody cloth, the modest covering of the Dead One. They saw in the Burial Shroud the clothes of the ancient Patriarch Joseph which had been wept over by Jacob: For I will go down into the grave unto my own mourning (Genesis 37:35).

Can we imagine the grief and despair of love bereft of all hope? Christ was the most beautiful and sacred being in the lives of these people, but they know that death is irreversible; they know that nobody can overcome it and they have nothing to expect and to be afraid of St. Nicodemus no longer conceals his faith in Christ. Joseph risks everything he has and gives even his tomb to the Righteous One. They have nothing to hope for and to expect, their love is stronger than fear. Even if Christ, the purest and most sacred being they have ever seen in their lives, is dead, then I will go down into the grave unto my son mourning.

Today God's overwhelming love toward man is revealed to us. But man's love for God is no less striking and admirable, and the memorial of this love is the Holy Burial Shroud in which the body of the Lover of Mankind was wrapped, wrapped with the loving hands of weak and infirm people, but faithful in love even to hell. (Pravmir.com, Orthodox Christianity and the World) Orthodox Heritage.

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"Glory Be To GOD For All Things!" - Saint John Chrysostomos

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With sincere agape in His Holy Diakonia (Ministry),
The sinner and unworthy servant of God

+Father George

Entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem: Palm Sunday and Holy and Great Week

My beloved spiritual children in Christ Our Only True God and Our Only True Savior,
CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND EVER SHALL BE.

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ENTRY OF JESUS CHRIST INTO JERUSALEM: PALM SUNDAY AND HOLY AND GREAT WEEK

We now enter the most sacred week of the year. It starts with the Feast of Jesus' entry into Jerusalem, which, as we have already said, taken with the raising of Lazarus, forms a prelude of joy and glory to the harrowing humiliations which are to follow. The Holy and Great Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of Holy and Great Week are a preparation for the Passion. They already have a strongly accented character of mourning and repentance. The Holy and Great Thursday, Friday and Saturday of Holy and Great Week belong to the paschal solemnities - each one of these days reveals to us a special aspect of the mystery of Pascha. One could even say that this mystery has three aspects, each of which corresponds to a day: the Upper Room, Golgotha, the Holy Sepulchre. Holy and Great Thursday commemorates the mystery of the Upper Room. Holy and Great Friday the mystery of Golgotha, Holy and Great Saturday the mystery of the Tomb of Christ. On Thursday, in the Upper Room, Jesus, through a sacramental action, both announces and represents, consecrates and offers what is to take place during the following days. On the Friday, at Golgotha, Jesus, by His death on the Cross, accomplishes our redemption. On the Saturday, Jesus rests in the tomb; but the Church, already looking ahead to the Feast of Pascha Sunday, speaks to us of the victory over death that our Savior has won. This anticipation of the Resurrection on Holy and Great Saturday allows us to say that the mystery of Christ's Resurrection, triumphantly celebrated on Pascha Sunday, already belongs, although incompletely, to Holy and Great Week. And so this Week constitutes a summary of the whole economy of our salvation.

It would be a great mistake to want to concentrate on one of the aspects of the paschal mystery by separating it from the others. The word 'Passover', 'Pascha', in the Traditional language of the Church, does not only designate the Sunday of the Resurrection, but it also covers the Mystery (Sacrament) of the Divine Eucharist, the Mystery of the Cross, and the Mystery of the empty tomb. Holy and Great Thursday, Holy and Great Friday, Holy and Great Saturday, and, finally, the Sunday of Pascha altogether make up one and the same unique Paschal Mystery.

Holy and Great Week confronts us with the redemptive ministry or office of the Christ, rather than with His person. It offers us the objective grace and inner experience of salvation of the Lamb of God for the sinner so that sin may be redeemed, the Sacrifice of the Cross, and God's acceptance of this Sacrifice as it is revealed by the Resurrection. We are called to let the Blood of Christ flow over our spiritual wounds, to unite ourselves to the sacrificial death of the Savior so that we may be united to His New Life.  

"...O my Savior, grant that during this Week I may come to know the profound significance of the Father's gift of His only Son, of the gift of His own life made by the Son, and of that 'greater love' which the Paschal Mystery reveals. Grant me to know, too, what to 'lay down His life', and 'greater love' implies for me.

From the first day of Holy and Great Week, we must "receive" Jesus Christ, and accept that His will is sovereign over us. The meaning of Palm Sunday lies in this welcome given to the Christ Who comes to us.

The crowd which acclaimed Jesus carried palms and branches. These branches were probably olive branches -- the most common tree around Jerusalem, Palms, and olives both have their symbolic meaning. The palm stands for victory and the olive for peace and anointing. So let us go before Jesus and pay homage both to His power and to His tenderness, in offering our victories (which are in fact His victories) both over ourselves and over sin, and our inner peace (which is His peace).

'A very great multitude spread their garments in the way...' Let us throw at Jesus' feet our garments, our possessions, our security, all our worldly goods, and also our false appearances and, above, all our ideas, desires, and our feelings. Let the King in his triumph trample underfoot everything that is ours. Let everything that we hold precious be submitted and offered to Him.

The crowd shouted: "Hosanna! Blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord". If I can say these words with complete sincerity and submission, if they mean that the impulse of my whole being goes towards the King Whom, from henceforth, I acknowledge, then, in that instant, I have turned away from my sins and have received Jesus Christ. May He be welcomed and blessed, He Who comes to me. (Source: The Year of Grace of the Lord)

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"Glory Be To GOD For All Things!" -- Saint John Chrysostomos

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With sincere agape in His Holy Diakonia (Ministry),
The sinner and unworthy servant of God

+Father George

Celebrating Saturday of Lazaros as a Family

My beloved brothers and sisters in Christ God,
Glory be to God!

The solemnities of Great and Holy Week are preceded by a two-day festival commemorating the resurrection of Lazaros the friend of Christ, and the triumphant entry of Christ into the holy city of Jerusalem. These two events punctuate Christ's Ministry in a most dramatic way (St. John 11:1-12, 19). By causing the final eruption of the unrelenting hostility of His enemies, who had been plotting to kill him, these two events precipitate Christ's death. At the very same time, however, these same events emphasize His Divine Authority. Through them our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is revealed as the Source of Life and the Promised Messiah. For this reason, the interlude which separates Great and Holy Week from the Great Fast is Paschal in character. It is the forerunner of Christ's victory over death and of the inrush of His Kingdom into the life of the world.

The Saturday of Lazaros is counted among the Major Feasts of the Orthodox Church. It is celebrated with great reverence and joy. The event of the raising of Lazaros is recorded in the Gospel of Saint John (11:1-45). The hymnography of the feast interprets the theological significance of the event. Accordingly, the resurrection of Lazaros is viewed as the prophecy in action. It prefigures both the resurrection of Christ Our Lord, as well as the General resurrection of all the dead in the end times. Thy hymns of the feast also emphasize the Biblical Truth that the resurrection as such, is more than an event. It is a Person, Christ Himself, Who bestows eternal life now upon all who believe in Him, and not at some obscure future time (St. John 11:25-26).

In addition, the resurrection of Lazaros occasioned the disclosure of Christ's two natures, the divine and the human. He manifested His Divine power by His foreknowledge of the death of Lazaros and by the final outcome, the miracle of his resurrection. Also, in the course of the dramatic events Jesus Christ displayed deep human emotions. The Gospel records His deep feelings of love, tenderness, sympathy and compassion, as well as distress and sadness. The narrative reports that He sighed from the heart and wept (Saint John 11:5, 33, 36, 38).

TEACHING OUR PARISH CHILDREN OUR ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN TRADITION

Immediately following the Divine Liturgy parents, Church School Teachers and all the children present will gather in foyer where they will be taught how to make palm-crosses by the adults. All the crosses made will be distributed to our faithful on Palm Sunday, after they have been blessed by the parish priest for everyone to take home as a visible sign of the Lord's blessing to you and your family members.

It is very important that we pass on to all of our children the Orthodox Christian Tradition and explain to them the religious significance of everything that we do in church. I, therefore, request that all of our children attend the Divine Liturgy and stay to make palm crosses.

By making palm-crosses, the children learn to give of themselves and participating in the celebration of the holy Feast of Palm Sunday, the Entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem. 

The Sacrament of Repentance/Confession will be offered to all Adults and children following the Divine Liturgy

It has been our parish tradition to encourage and offer the Sacrament of Repentance/Confession to as many children as possible. The appropriate age for children to begin confessing is 8 years old when they begin to know right from wrong.

A Lenten lunch will be offered to everyone attending.

Thank you for your support and cooperation.

In Christ's service,

+Father George

Repentance and Confession (Part II)

My beloved spiritual children in Christ Our Only True God and Our Only True Savior,
CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND EVER SHALL BE.

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REPENTANCE AND CONFESSION (Part II)

The Mysterion (Sacrament) of Confession

A Christian, at any rate, an Orthodox Christian, views repentance as a dynamic act of responsibility to God, but also to other men. It is not pining away in narcissistic self-reflection, even while implying self-knowledge and self-examination. Sin is a relational act - a break in the "I-Thou" relationship. It concerns my relationship with another person. When the prodigal son "came to himself" in the Gospel Parable (St. Luke 15), he did so in relation to his father: "I will arise and go to my father, and will say to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you" (v. 18). We repent in the face of God; and we repent in communion with others, in the Church. Repentance in the early Church was, in fact, a solemn public act of reconciliation, through which a sinner was readmitted into Church membership. Even in Buddhism, monks regularly confess their sins publicly before Buddha and the congregation the phenomenology is the same as in the Church, even if the theology or ideology is different. Sin (and evil) divides, repentance conciliates, confession affirms the conciliation. Outside the community, outside the Church repentance would settle into guilty gloom, dulling the spirit or even driving to despair: metanoia turning into paranoia.

Confession (Gk. Εξομολόγησις), too, takes place within the Church. It is not a private procedure, a treatment of some guilt-ridden individual on an analyst's couch. It is not based on an admission of guilt and certainly cannot be reduced to a feeling of guilt, of liability for conduct contrary to norms and laws which render a person subject to punishment. It is related to what is deepest in man, to what constitutes his being and his relation with other human beings as well as with God. It is a sacrament (Mystery) - "the visible form of an invisible grace" (Saint Augustine), re-establishing a bond of union between God and man, between man and man. This is why confession also takes place within prayer and the entire world. As such, confession and prayer are not merely technical terms but means and opportunities offered by the Church For overcoming sins and death. Repentance is indeed the cause and consequence of prayer, being the highest and fullest foundation for and form of prayer. "True prayer," according to Saint Anthony the Great, "is that in which one forgets that one is praying," and genuine repentance enables one to forget oneself and simply long for God, who is present in the very depth of repentance. For it is "before Him alone that one sins" (Psalm 50[51]:3-4) - this is the personal or relational aspect of both sin and repentance.

The supreme act of communion is the Divine Eucharist, the communal sharing of bread and wine, symbolizing sacramentally the reconciliation to come and the reconciliation already achieved in the here and now. Repentance and confession as sacrament seals man's change of direction from disruption to reconciliation. An examination of the early forms of confession shows that they are derived from community services and even liturgies. Since forgiveness of sins involves reconciliation in and through the Divine Eucharist, the Eucharistic prayer contains penitential elements as immediate preparation for communion.

In early Christian times the exhortation of Saint James served as a foundation for the Mysterion (Sacrament) of repentance: 'therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed' (5:16). Confession was regarded as a form of repentance and regeneration (St. Matthew 3:6; St. Mark 1:5; Acts 19:18). The actual ritual aspect of repentance was a direct result of such Apostolic testimony, at first in the form of confession before the entire church and, subsequently, before a spiritual father.

Altogether, the function of the priest should not be ignored or minimized. "All who have experienced the blessing of having as their confessor one imbued with the grace of true spiritual fatherhood," writes his Eminence Kallistos Ware, "will testify to the importance of the priest's role. Nor is his function simply to give advice. There is nothing automatic about the absolution which HE pronounces. He can bind as well as loose. He can withhold absolution - although this is very rare - or he can impose a penance (epitimion), forbidding the penitent to receive Holy Communion for a time or requiring the fulfillment of some task. This, again, is not very common in contemporary Orthodox Christian practice, but it is important to remember that the priest possesses this right...not that the penitence should be regarded as punishment; still less should it be viewed as a way of expiating an offense...We do not acquire 'merit' by fulfilling a penance, for in his relation to God man can never claim any merit of his own. Here, as always, we should think primarily in therapeutic rather than juridical terms."

The most significant effect of confession is indeed due neither to the penitent nor to the priest, but to God who heals our infirmities and wounds. It is not a matter of a let off, a clearance; it has the force of healing, of making the penitent whole. As such it is a gift from God which man must be open to receive, and learn to receive: "Let us apply to ourselves the saving medicine of repentance; let us accept from god the repentance that heals us. For it is not we who offer it to Him, but He who bestows it upon us." It is significant that the Greek for confession, exomologesis, implies not only confession but also thanksgiving (cf. St. Matthew 11:25; St. Luke 10:21): "I shall confess/give thanks to the lord with my whole heart, and tell of all his wonders" (Psalm 9:1).

Through the forgiveness of sins in confession, the past is no longer an intolerable burden but rather an encouragement for what lies ahead. Life acquires an attitude of expectation, not of despondency; and confession becomes the way out of the impasse caused by sin. In this respect, repentance is also an eschatological act, realizing in our very midst, here and now, the promises of the age to come. Looking backward would seem to imply the fate of Lot's wife (Genesis 19:26): 'No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the Kingdom of God" (St. Luke 9:62). God, Himself is revealed before us and walks in front of us. "One thing I do, forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead" (Philippians 3:13). (Source: Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America)

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"Glory Be To GOD For All Things!" - Saint John Chrysostomos

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With sincere agape in His Holy Diakonia (Ministry)
The sinner and unworthy servant of God

+Father George

Repentance and Confession

My beloved spiritual children in Christ Our Only True God and Our Only True Savior,
CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS AND EVER SHALL BE.

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REPENTANCE AND CONFESSION

Repentance is indeed an act of reconciliation, or reintegration into the Body of Christ, which has been torn asunder by sin. For "if one member suffers, all suffer together" (1 Corinthians 12:26). "Therefore, confess your sins to one another...that you may be healed" (St. James 5:16). The whole Church expresses a search for repentance in the repeated words of the Psalmist, commonly known as the "miserere" (Psalm 50[51]). It is through the faith of the community that the individual is readmitted and forgiven. "When Jesus saw their faith He said, "Man, your sins are forgiven" (St. Luke 5:20; St. Matthew 9:2 and St. Mark 2:5). "Justification" in the New Testament does not mean a transaction - a kind of deal; and repentance defies mechanical definition. It is a continual enactment of freedom, a movement forward, deriving from renewed choice and leading to restoration. The aim of the Christian is not even justification but a re-entry by sinner and saint alike into communion in which God and man meet once again and personal experience of divine life becomes possible. Both prodigal and Saint are "repenting sinners".

Repentance is not to be confused with mere remorse, with a self-regarding feeling of being sorry for a wrong done. It is not a state but a stage, a beginning. Rather, it is an invitation to new life, an opening up of new horizons, the gaining of a new vision. Christianity testifies that the past can be undone. It knows the mystery of obliterating or rather renewing memory, of forgiveness and regeneration, eschewing the fixed division between the "the good" and the "wicked," the pious and the rebellious, the believers and unbelievers. Indeed, "the last" can be "the first," the sinner can reach out to holiness. Passions are conquered by stronger passions; love is overcome by more abundant love. One repents not because one is virtuous, but because human nature can change, because what is impossible for man is possible for God. The motive for repentance is at all times humility, unself-sufficiency - not a means of justification for oneself, or of realizing some abstract idea of goodness, or of receiving a reward in some future life. Just as the strength of God is revealed in the extreme vulnerability of His Son on the Cross, so also the greatest strength of man is to embrace his weakness: "for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly, therefore, will I render glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me" (2 Corinthians 12:9). To be flawed is the illogical, perhaps supernatural characteristic of humanity in which one encounters God.

The Greek term for repentance, metanoia, denotes a change of mind, a reorientation, a fundamental transformation of outlook, of man's vision of the world and of himself, and a new way of loving others and God. In the words of a second-century text, The Shepherd of Hermas, it implies "great understanding," discernment. It involves, that is, not mere regret of past evil but a recognition by man of a darkened vision of his own condition, in which sin, by separating him from God, has reduced him to a divided, autonomous existence, depriving him of both his natural glory and freedom. "Repentance," says Saint Basil the Great, "is salvation, but lack of understanding is the death of repentance."

It is clear that what is at stake here is not particular acts of contrition, but an attitude, a state of mind. "For this life," states Saint John Chrysostom, "is in truth wholly devoted to repentance, penthos and wailing. This is why it is necessary to repent, not merely for one or two days, but throughout one's whole life."

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"Glory Be To GOD For All Things!" - Saint John Chrysostomos

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With sincere agape in His Holy Diakonia (Ministry)
The sinner and unworthy servant of God

+ Father George

Church and State

My beloved spiritual children in Christ Our Only True God and Our Only True Savior,
CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND EVER SHALL BE.

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CHURCH AND STATE

"And He said to them, 'Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's" (St. Luke 20:25).

It is a fact that our beloved country finds itself divided, in turmoil, in conflict, and afflicted with hatred. In other words, our country is, among other things, spiritually ill. As Orthodox Christians and citizens of the United States we must continue praying for the welfare of our country and the current president as we do in every Divine Liturgy: "For our country, the President, for every city and land, and for the faithful who live in them, let us pray to the Lord."

"The Church as a Divine-human organism has not only a mysterious nature not submissive to the elements of the world but also a historical component which comes in touch with the outside world including the state. The state, which exists for the purpose of ordering worldly life, also comes into contact with the Church. Relationships between state and the followers of genuine religion have continuously changed in the course of history." 

Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, Who reigns over heaven and earth (Saint Matthew 28:18) through becoming man subjected Himself to the worldly order of things, obeying also the bearers of state power. To His crucifier, Pilate, the Roman Procurator in Jerusalem, He said, "You could have no power at all against Me unless it had been given you from above" (Saint John 19:11). The Savior gave this answer to the tempting question of a Pharisee about whether it is permissible to pa to pay tribute to Caesar: "Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar's and to God the things that are God's" (St. Luke 20:25).

"Explaining the teachings of Christ on the right attitude to state power, Saint Paul, wrote: "Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same. For he is God's minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God's minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. Therefore you must be subject, not only because of wrath but also conscience' sake. For because of this you also pay taxes, for they are God's ministers attending continually to this very thing. Render therefore to all their due: taxes to whom taxes are due, customs to whom customs, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor" (Romans 13:1-7). The Holy Apostles taught Christians to obey the authorities regardless of their attitude to the Church. In the Apostolic era, the Church of Christ was persecuted both by the Jewish and Roman authorities. This did not prevent the Martyrs and other Christians of that time from praying for persecutors and recognizing their power.

Orthodox Christians can render the state (country) its due while serving God. As the Roman coin bears the image of the Emperor and is properly paid to him, so each person bears the image of God and belongs to Him. Conflict arises when the state demands of Christians what belongs only to God.

"Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 1:7). May God bless America and all its citizens!

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"Glory Be To GOD For All Things!" - Saint John Chrysostomos

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With sincere agape in His Holy Diakonia (Ministry),
The sinner and unworthy servant of God

+Father George