Homily on the Divine Ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ (St. Gregory of Nyssa)

My beloved spiritual children in Our Risen Lord Jesus Christ Our Only True God and Our Only True Savior,
CHRIST IS RISEN! TRULY HE IS RISEN!

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HOMILY ON THE DIVINE ASCENSION OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST
By Saint Gregory of Nyssa

Saint Gregory of Nyssa's brief homily on the Divine Ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ is perhaps the most ancient witness of this feast's existence, and he does not hesitate to call it the "Great Celebration". The literal reading of the title is "Concerning that festive day which is said to be consecrated in the of the Cappadocians: the Ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ." On the other hand, there is little allusion to Christ Ascension into heaven; the homily turns out to be more a commentary on Psalms 22 and 23. Because of this, it is not difficult to see that Saint Gregory's sermon was most likely composed about the same time as his Commentary on the Inscriptions of the Psalms.

With the theme of Christ's Ascension in mind and despite the fact that it is scarcely mentioned, Saint Gregory brings his readers' attention at the end of his homily to this mystery which allows us "to obtain citizenship (politeia) with God in Christ Jesus our Lord." He earlier refers to such politeia which is "in accord with virtue" and which allows us to ascend "that mountain of His royal dwelling." Here the practice of virtue, ascent, and restoration all combine in order to describe that citizenship won by the passion, death, Resurrection, and Ascension of Jesus Christ.

How agreeable a companion is the Prophet David in all life's ways! Not only has he wonderfully joined to it every spiritual stage of life but has included every type of advancement! He has played with those who infants according to God, struggled with men, instructed youths, supported those in old age and performed every type of service for all sorts of people. He was a weapon for those engaged in combat, an instructor for athletes, offered a wrestling school for persons occupied with contests, was a crown of victory, supplied joy for those at table and consolation for persons in grief. Everything according to human life was included to partake of this grace. What power of prayer had David dispensed? What cheer at feasts did the Prophet not adorn? We must now see that the Prophet enhances our great celebration in yet another way while he has provided us in an appropriate manner with joy by referring to the Psalms (cf. Ps. 22). Through one sheep he bids that God nourish you, to lack no good thing, to reside in green grass, to have the water of rest, nourishment, shelter, a path, road and the Good Shepherd Who generously takes care of all of your needs (cf. St. John 10:11).

In every circumstance, he instructs the Church because you must first be a sheep belonging to the Good Shepherd through instruction in the good to keep the divine laws of doctrine and be led to the fountain. In this way, you may be buried with Him (cf. Romans 6:3-4) through Baptism in death and not fear such death. This is not death itself but its shadow and symbol. "If I walk in the midst of the shadow of death I will not fear evil because you are with me" (Psalm 22[23]):4). Then the Spirit consoles with a rod (for the Spirit is the Comforter) and sets a mystic table before the demons who afflict men through idolatry. The table of the Spirit is inimical to theirs. The Spirit next anoints the head with oil and offers wine to gladden the heart (cr. Psalm 103:15) with the sober inebriation for the soul, situating our thoughts in eternity instead of temporal concerns. A taste of inebriation brings an abrupt halt to life's incompleteness through sudden death and extends our residents in God's house to the length of days.

Such a greater, more perfect joy has been bestowed upon us in one of the Psalms which rouses the soul (cf. Psalm 23). If possible, we will briefly explain its meaning to you. "The earth and its fullness belong to the Lord" (vs. 1). Oh man, what can be new if our God has been seen on earth and lived with men? Because the earth is His creation and He made it, it is not unusual nor unbecoming to see the Lord come to what is His own" (cf. St. John 1:11). He was not in a strange world but in the earth which He had established upon the foundation of the seas and fixed a good passage for the rivers. What was the reason for His presence? Having cast the ruin of sin away from you, He ascended the mountain of His royal dwelling in His chariot and then opened up a way of citizenship for you in accord with virtue. You cannot ascend that mountain unless you are innocent in the company of virtues and are washed from every evil deed, pure in heart without vanity in your soul nor inflict your neighbor with grief. The blessing of this ascent is a prize, and the Lord bestows His mercy which He had stored up. "This is the generation seeking Him" through virtue ascending on high and "seeks the face of the God of Jacob" (Psalm 23:6).

(To be continued)

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"Glory be to GOD For All Things!" -- Saint John Chrysostomos

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With sincere agape in Our Lord's Resurrection,
The sinner and unworthy servant of God

+Father George

The Divine Ascension of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ

My beloved spiritual children in our Lord Jesus Christ Our Only True God and Our Only True Savior,
CHRIST IS RISEN! TRULY HE IS RISEN!

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THE DIVINE ASCENSION OF OUR LORD AND SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST
By His Eminence Metropolitan of Nafpaktos HIEROTHEOS

The Lord's events are not separate from one another, nor are they rationalized. All feasts of the Lord are saving events of the Divine Economy, for it was by them that Christ arranged the salvation of the human race. Christ became man, He taught, He suffered, He was resurrected and ascended into heaven. There is a remarkable oneness among them. The Ascension is the last feast of the Lord, it is the end of the Annunciation and the Nativity.

Yet in the Holy Fathers of the Church, there is a slight parallel, by economy, among the feasts. We ay by economy, because if Christ had not become incarnate, the Resurrection and the Ascension would not have taken place. And if He had not risen from the dead, the Incarnation would have appeared to be in vain.

Saint Epiphanios, Bishop of Cyprus, analyzing the greatness and the value of the feast of the Ascension, says that many people who do not know the greatness of this feast regard it as lower than the others. However, just as the head is the jewel of the body, so also the feast of the Ascension is an embellishment of all the feasts. It is the fullness of all the feast of the Lord. A first feast is the awe-inspiring and wonderful Nativity of Christ in the flesh. Second is the feast of the Theophany (Epiphany), which has a great vision of God than the first. The third feast is the Resurrection, which was shown to be more glorious than the preceding ones because death was conquered, but even this did not have the fullness of joy, because Christ was still on earth. However, the feast of the Ascension filled the world with rejoicing, because when Christ opened the heavens, He showed us an extraordinary sight, "our flesh lifted up on the kingly throne" at the right hand of God the Father. So the value of the Ascension is in the fact that the human flesh which was deified (theosis) by its union with the divine nature of the Logos/Word, is seated on the kingly throne, at the right hand of God the Father.

By His Incarnation Christ deified (theosis) human nature, but men did not have much knowledge of the greatness of His Glory, and that is why they misunderstood Him, slandered Him and finally crucified Him. But when Christ ascended into Heaven, then men gained perfect knowledge of Christ. Thus the incarnation, with the Ascension which followed, filled the world with the knowledge of God (Saint Diadochos of Photike).

But Saint Athanasios the Great, referring to the two feasts of the Lord, those of the Resurrection and the Ascension, says that the feast of the Resurrection grants to men the prize of victory over death, while Christ's Ascension lifts man up to heaven, and since it changes man's way of life on earth, it makes heaven accessible to him. Therefore victory over death is one thing and another is the ascent of human nature to the Throne of God. This is precisely why through this event one can see the superiority of the Ascension, or to express it better, the perfection and fullness of the Divine Economy.

Another difference between the Resurrection and the Ascension is that the Disciples did not see the beginning of the Resurrection, but only the end, for no one saw Christ at the moment when He came out of the tomb, but He was only seen afterward when He manifested Himself to them. By contrast, at the Ascension, the Disciples saw its beginning, that is to say, they saw Him taken up to Heaven, and they looked towards heaven to be informed of its end (Macarios of Philadelphia).

By His Resurrection, Christ conquered death and gave the gift of resurrection to all. All will be resurrected on the day of Christ Second Coming, both the righteous and sinners, but not all will be taken up. Only the righteous, the deified (theosis) will be found worthy of this great experience. The Apostle Paul confesses: "And those who have died in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord" (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17).

Thus all will be resurrected, but only the righteous will be taken up, will be caught up in the clouds to meet Christ coming from heaven. This shows a greater communion and unity with Him. That is why, from the soteriological point of view, the Ascension is regarded as a greater feast, precisely because he who has a share in the Ascension has a share in deification (theosis).

(To be continued)

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

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With sincere agape in Christ's Holy Resurrection
The sinner and unworthy servant of God

+Father George

Wisdom. Arise. Let us Hear the Holy Gospel...

My beloved spiritual children in Our Risen Lord Jesus Christ Our Only True God and Our Only True Savior,
CHRIST IS RISEN! TRULY HE IS RISEN!

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WISDOM. ARISE. LET US HEAR THE HOLY GOSPEL...

"All Scripture is inspired by God" (2 Timothy 3:16)

"If any earthly king, our emperor," says Saint Tikhon of Zadonsk (1724-1783), "wrote you a letter, would you not read it with joy? Certainly, with great rejoicing and careful attention." But what, he asks, is our attitude towards the letter that has been addressed to us by no one less than God Himself? "You have been sent a letter not by any earthly emperor, but by the King of Heaven. And yet you almost despise such a gift, so priceless a treasure." To open and read this letter, Saint Tikhon adds, is to enter into a personal conversation face to face with the Living God. "Whenever you read the Gospel, Christ Himself is speaking to you. And while you read, you are praying and talking to Him."

Such exactly is Our Orthodox Christian attitude to the reading of Holy Scripture. I am to see the Holy Bible as God's personal letter sent specifically to myself. The words are not intended merely for others, far away and long ago, but they are written particularly and directly to me, here and now. Whenever we open the Holy Bible, we are engaging in a creative dialogue with the Savior. In listening, we also respond, "Speak, Lord, Your servant hears," we reply to God as we read (1 Kings 3:10); "Here am I" (Isaiah 6:8). (Source: How to Read the Bible by His Eminence Kallistos Ware of Diocleia)

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God's Answers to Man's Concerns

Abiding in Christ--John 15:5; 1 John 2:28; 2 John 9

Afflictions--Job 5:17; 2 Corinthians 4:17

Anger-- Psalm 37:8; Prov. 16:32

Answered Prayer-- 1 Kin. 18:37; Psalm 91:15; Luke 11:9

Backsliding--Proverbs 14:14; Matthew 24:12; Hebrews 10:38

Christ's Love--John 13:1; Romans 8:35; 1 John 3:16

Divine Deliverance--Daniel 6:22; Job 5:19; 2 Timothy 4:18

Doubt--Matthew 14:31; Mark 4:40; Luke 24:25

Faith--Romans 10:17; Ephesians 2:8; Galatians 5:6

Forgiveness--Psalm 130:4; Matthew 6:14; Acts 5:31

God's Care for You--Gen. 28:15; Psalm 121:4; 2 Timothy 1:12

God's Grace--Romans 4:16; Romans 9:16; Titus 3:5

Kindness-- Romans 12:10; 1 Corinthians 13:4; Ephesians 4:32

Love to Neighbors--Mark 12:31; Romans 13:10; James 2:8

Mercy-- Prov. 11:17; Matthew 5:7; Luke 6:36 2:16

Obedience-- Josh. 11:15; 2 Kin. 18:6; Acts 26:19 51]

Patience-- Psalm 40:1; Isaiah 33:2; Acts 1:4

Prayerfulness--Luke 2:37; Luke 6:12; 1 Thess 3:10

Prayerlessness-- Isaiah 43:22; Dan. 9:13; Zeph. 1:6

Pride--Proverbs 16:18; 2 Chr. 32:25; 1 John 2:16

Repentance-- Psalm 50[51]; Luke 13:2,3; Acts 3:19; Acts 17:30

Spiritual Strength-- Isaiah 40:31; Isaiah 41:10; Ephesians 3:16

Sin and Confession-- Proverbs  28:13; Jer. 3:13; 1 John 1:9

Spiritual Growth-- Ephesians 4:15; 1 Thess. 3:12; 1 Peter 2:2

Salvation-- John 3:16; Romans10:9-13; Ephesians 2:8-10

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As your priest, I urge and encourage all of you to begin to read and study the Holy Bible. How can anyone claim to be a Christian and not to have read the Holy Scripture in an entire lifetime? How can a Christian strive to know our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ without knowing His Divine Commandments and Teachings? It is never too late to start! The key to the Kingdom of Heaven is found in the Sacred Scripture of Our Holy Church.

I am not asking you to memorized passages from the Holy Bible or to go through it in a short time. Begin by reading the Gospels and slowly begin to read the epistles of Saint Paul. Just read a few verses each day. You will find comfort, you will find hope, you will find love, you will find the grace of God; you will find answers to your personal or family problems, you will find spiritual direction; you will find courage, you will find salvation.

You are not expected to give a theological interpretation or commentary. "Ανω σχώμεν τάς καρδίας" "Let us lift up our hearts" (Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom)

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

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With sincere agape in Our Resurrected Lord and Savior,
The sinner and unworthy servant of God

+Father George

The Forerunner-May 19-Sunday of the Paralytic

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Let us Pray to the Lord...

My beloved spiritual children in Our Risen Lord Jesus Christ Our Only True God and Our Only True Savior,

CHRIST IS RISEN! TRULY HE IS RISEN!

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Let us pray to the Lord. Kyrie eleison.

In Orthodox Christian Tradition one can distinguish two aspects of prayer - the personal prayer which is done privately and the catholic prayer which is done collectively in the realm of public worship by many Christian believers together. These two kinds of prayer are really inseparable. Every Orthodox Christian will be saved as a faithful member of the Ekklesia (Church), as a member of the Body of Christ, together with the other Christian believers. But of course, salvation will always be realized through the personal repentance (metanoia) the personal faith, and the personal prayer of each member of the Church.

Here are few prayers for your edification and salvation:

Morning Prayers

Having risen from sleep, I thank You, Holy Trinity, For because of Your Great Goodness and forbearance, You have not become angry with me the careless sinner, Nor did You destroy me together with my transgressions. Rather, You have shown me Your usual Loving-kindness; And when I was prone to despair, You raised me up To keep the morning watch and to praise Your dominion, And now, enlighten the eyes of my mind, Open my mouth to recite and reflect on Your words, To understand Your Commandments and to do Your will. Accept also my heartfelt confession As I sing and praise Your All-Holy Name, The Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Now and forever and to the ages of ages. Amen.

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Evening Prayer

(Saint Basil the Great)

Blessed are You, O Lord God Almighty, You have illumined the day with the light of the sun And the night You have brightened with the rays of the fiery moon; You have made us worthy to go through the day And to approach the beginning of the night. Hear our petitions and those of all Your people, And forgive us all our voluntary and involuntary sins. Receive our evening prayers, And send down upon the people of Your inheritance The multitude of Your mercy and compassionate love. Encompass us with Your Holy Angels. Arm us with the weapons of Your Righteousness. Outline us with the mark of Your Truth. Guard us by Your power. Deliver us from every circumstance and influence of the adversary, Grant us once again, O Lord, that this present together with the approaching night, and all the days of our life, Will be perfect, holy, peaceful, sinless and without any scandalous imaginations. We pray for this through the intercessions of the Holy Theotokos and all the Saints who have pleased You through the ages.  Amen.

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O Christ Our God, At all times and at every hour, in heaven and on earth, You are worshipped and glorified; You are Long-suffering, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate, You love the righteous and have mercy upon the sinners; You call everyone to salvation through the promise of future blessings; Receive, O Lord, our prayers at this hour And direct our life toward Your Commandments. Sanctify our souls; make our bodies chaste; Correct our thoughts; purify our intentions; And deliver us from every grief and pain that comes from evil. Encompass us by Your Holy Angels, So that guarded and guided by them We may attain to the unity of the faith And to the knowledge of Your inapproachable Glory, For You are blessed unto the ages.  Amen.

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Prayer To God The Holy Spirit

Heavenly King, the Spirit of consolation, the Spirit of Truth, You are everywhere present and You fulfill all things, You are the treasury of virtues and the Giver of Life, Come, and dwell in us, Cleanse us of every stain, And save our souls, O Holy Spirit of God.

 Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, Have mercy on us. (3 times) Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Now and forever and to the ages of ages. Amen.

 All Holy Trinity, have mercy on us. Lord, forgive our sins, Master, pardon our transgressions, Holy One, visit and heal our infirmities for the glory of Your Name.

 Kyrie eleison. Kyrie eleison. Kyrie eleison.

 Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Now and forever and to the ages of ages.  Amen

 Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy Kingdom come They will be done on earth as is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, And forgive us our transgressions, as we forgive those who transgress against us, And lead not into temptation, but deliver us from the Evil One. For Thine is the Kingdom and the power and the glory, of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and to the ages of ages.  Amen.

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To The Theotokos

Exceedingly Glorious and Ever-virgin Theotokos: Bring our petitions before your Son, and Our God, and implore Him that through you, He will save our souls. Amen.

To The Guardian Angel

Holy Angel, companion of my soul and my whole life, do not abandon me nor depart from me because of my weakness and sin. Do not allow the wicked demon to overcome me by the oppression of this mortal body. Restrain and strengthen me and guide me in the way of salvation. O Holy Angel of God, guardian, and protector of my wretched soul and body, forgive me everything in which I have grieved you all the days of my life, and in which I have sinned in the day just past. Protect me during the coming night and keep me from every influence of the enemy, that I may not anger God in any sin. Intercede for me to the Lord that He may strengthen me in His fear and make me worthy to be a servant of His Goodness. Amen

 Through the prayers of our Holy Fathers, O Lord Jesus Christ Our God have mercy on us and save us. Amen.

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Christ is Risen!

In His Diakonia,

+Father George

The Divine Ascension

My beloved spiritual children in Our Risen Lord Jesus Christ Our Only True God and Our Only True Savior,
CHRIST IS RISEN! TRULY HE IS RISEN!

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THE DIVINE ASCENSION
By His Eminence Metropolitan of Nafpaktos HIEROTHEOS

Forty days after His Resurrection Christ ascended into Heaven, where He had been previously, according to His own words to the Disciples before His Passion  "Does this offend you? What then if you should see the Son of Man ascend where He was before? (St. John 6:61-62). Of course, this does not mean that Christ, as God, was not in heaven during the time of His incarnation, but that He would go up even with His human flesh. Moreover, His coming down from heaven is meant as Divine condescension and not as a change of place.

In the time between His Resurrection and Ascension He appeared many times to His Disciples, to whom He revealed the mysteries of the Kingdom of God, according to the words of Saint Luke: "to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the Kingdom of God" (Acts 1:3).

The Feast of the Lord's Ascension has great meaning and importance for the Christian and spiritual life because it is connected with the deification (theosis) of every person. In what follows, presenting the central Christological points of this great feast of the Lord, we shall also establish its great value.

First, we must see exactly what Holy Scripture says about the Divine Ascension. The Old Testament makes prophecies about this great event, and the New Testament presents it. We are not going to quote all the passages, but just the most indicative ones, because in the analysis which follows we shall also be looking at other passages which speak of Christ's Ascension.

Just as we have prophecies about all the happenings of the Lord in the Old Testament, this is true for the Divine Ascension as well. The Prophet Ezekiel saw a vision, which certainly refers to Christ's Ascension: "Then the glory of the Lord departed from the threshold of the temple and stood over the cherubim. And the cherubim lifted their wings and mounted up from the earth in my sight" (Ezekiel 10:18-19).

Prophecy relating to this great event of the Lord is reported chiefly in the psalms of David. In one of them, it says: "God has gone up with a shout, the Lord with the 16:19) sound of a trumpet" (Psalm 47:5). And another psalm says: "He bowed the heavens also, and came down with darkness under his feet. And he rode upon a cherub and flew, He flew upon the wings of the wind" (Psalm 18:9-10).

Christ's Ascension is mentioned many times in the New Testament. We shall look at this at three particular points.

First, is the teaching of Christ Himself. In His speech to the Disciples before His Passion He said the following: "I came forth from the Father and have come into the world. Again in another situation, Christ gave assurance: "No one has ascended to heaven but the one who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of man who is in heaven" (Saint John 3:13).

Secondly, we see the Ascension in the stories of the Evangelists, who refer to this event. Concretely, it is told by the Evangelist Mark (St. Mark 16:19) and by Saint Luke, both in his Gospel (St. Luke 24:50-53) and in the Acts of the Apostles, which he himself wrote: (Acts 1:3 and 9-11). The details of the event of the Ascension and of the way in which it happened are described in the Book of the Acts of the Apostles which we shall look at in what follows.

Thirdly, there are many Apostolic passages which show the Apostles' assurance about this event. Especially in the early Church, the Ascension constituted one of the characteristic points of the Symbols of the baptistries, that is to say, they comprised the confession of faith before Baptism. The Apostle Paul, referring to the central points in Christ's work of absolution, the work of the Divine Economy, also includes the Ascension: "God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen by the Angels, preached among the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up in glory" (1 Timothy 3:16). Referring to the power of the Father, he says that it "worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places" (Ephesians 1:20). Elsewhere we have said that the power of the Father is also the Son's power. After Christ cleansed us from sins "He sat down at the right hand of the majesty on high" (Hebrews 1:3), and indeed Christ gave the promise to all who were united with Him that they too would sit on the throne of His Father: "To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with me on my throne, as I also overcame and sat down with my Father on His throne" (Revelation 3:21).

From these passages which have been cited it is very clear that the Church attaches great meaning to the event of the Divine Ascension, because, as we shall see below, Christ's Ascension expresses the deepest meaning of the spiritual life. (Source: The Feasts of the Lord)

(To be continued)

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

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With sincere agape in His Holy Resurrection
The sinner and unworthy servant of God

+Father George