The Home (Domestic) Church or Kat' Oikon Ekklesia

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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THE HOME (DOMESTIC) CHURCH OR E KAT' OIKON EKKLESIA

The Christian home, according to our Holy Tradition, is a sacred place. It is a holy place where God dwells and protects us. It is where our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is present and guides and leads the members of the family to ever greater spiritual heights. The Christian family is Christ-centered for everything revolves around our Savior. A Christian home is a place where the family prays together daily in front of their holy icon corner. The Christian parents teach their children by example and lead their children closer to our Christ God.

The Orthodox Christian home is blessed at least once a year by the local parish priest. The priest is not only the parish priest but a member of each and every family in his community. The Orthodox Christian home is a place of love. Christian parents rule their families with righteousness and self-sacrifice. The children are taught that our Lord Christ is their Savior as well as the Savior of the world. They are taught how to serve Him, to obey Him in everything, to trust Him, to see Him as their best friend, to turn to Him first but especially when they are faced with personal problems and/or temptations. The Christ-centered family is strong because they are united in Christ.

There should be no doubt that a Christian family is very different than a non-Christian family. Why? Christ! The secular or Gentile family is lead by different rules. The 'modern' or 'secular' family is guided by a materialistic society with worldly objectives and goals. In most cases, one can see that there is no real family unity. Each member, of the secular family, claims to be independent of each other, including parents. In general, they may not even believe in the existence of God, to belong to a religious community, to feel any need to adhere to any ethical rule or precept. It is very possible that they do not believe that there is after-life, that there is the existence of good and evil, that there is such a thing as sin, and that there is an accountability to God for all of our actions. The ambitions of the secular family are all about achieving and fulfilling their materialistic goals in life. In attaining a lucrative position or profession which will help them to have a 'good life', a life which will provide them with every good thing with little or of any personal effort or sacrifice. The secular family believes in material wealth and privilege.  It is a Godless existence.

Christianity is not 'a religion'. Christianity is an apocalypse, a Divine revelation. Jesus Christ is not another religious leader and/or the founder of another of the thousands of world religions. For the Christian, our Lord Jesus Christ is the True and Only God. He is the Son of God and the Second Person of the Holy Trinity. He is the Savior of the world. His Divine word and His Divine Teachings are the absolute Truth. By His coming into the world, He reveals to all of humanity the path to salvation and His Heavenly Kingdom. He teaches that God is love and that we should love Him and love one another. He teaches that He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end of all things. Through His Sacrifice on the Cross, death, and Resurrection, He saved mankind. Jesus Christ is the only hope of humanity. He is the Good Shepherd who leaves the ninety-nine sheep and goes after the one that is lost. No matter how often we sin against Him He forgives those who repent. Jesus Christ is the Godman, perfect God and perfect man. He desires the salvation of all men. He has promised to come again and on that Final Day to judge the living and the dead whose Kingdom shall have no end. He taught us of the existence of evil, of Satan, the Adversary of mankind whom He defeated, and whose power over humanity was destroyed by Him and rendered powerless.

The 'kat' oikon ekklesia' ('Domestic church') must be protected at all costs. When an Orthodox couple marries in the Church the couple is crowned by our Lord as the king and queen of their new royal realm, their own little kingdom. They are to rule with love and justice and when blessed by Him with children to raise them in our Christian faith. They are to instill in them the love of God, their neighbor; and when older to live virtues and holy lives. They are to teach them how to implement the teaching of our Lord Christ in their lives, to be kind to others, to have self-respect and respect for their fellow-man, to be compassionate and to give of themselves to those in need. To respect their parents, their teachers, their priest, those in authority over them, and to avoid selfishness and self-centeredness.

We live in very difficult and challenging times. All of our beliefs are constantly challenged by others who do not believe in God. We must remain strong and resolute in everything that we believe in. We must not make concessions or compromise who we are and to remain steadfast in our personal convictions. Christians throughout history would rather die than to betray Christ and/or their Christian faith. We, in the Orthodox Church, call them holy Martyrs, holy Fathers, holy Mothers, holy Confessors, and Saints. Their holy and righteous lives serve as an example for us to follow and to emulate it to the best of our ability.

Maintain the integrity of your Christian identity no matter what the circumstances. The Christian is focused on Christ always and He remains constantly in our sights. Know the value of prayer and worship. Do not allow anyone to dictate to you whether you should believe or not believe. Ignore the worldly enticements and trappings. You are a child of God and your allegiance is to Him and Him alone. Be a good and positive force in the world. A Christian is someone who constantly gives and contributes towards the general welfare of the world he lives in. Know that you have been given God-given talents to use them wisely and make a real difference in the world. Always stay alert and informed of what is happening around you.

May God bless all of you and may He bring this deadly pandemic to its end soon. Stay well and be strong in your faith. Be assured that I love you and that all of you are in my prayers.

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

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

+Father George

On The Power of Faith

Icon of the Theotokos “the healer”

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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ON THE POWER OF FAITH

"So Jesus said to them, 'Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you" (St. Matthew 17:20).

Indeed, the time has come, my dear brothers and sisters in Christ, for our personal faith to be tested. In the midst of death and fear due to the coronavirus, we come to a critical point in our lives where we definitely realize how strong or weak our faith in God is. Our fellow Christians throughout the 2,000-year history of our Church experienced countless dangers and horrific persecutions. We need only to read the Lives of the Saints and we will see how they confronted torture, trials, and death. The lives of our holy martyrs are truly an inspiration. If we need to discover a true example of how to confront the enemy and triumph, we need only to read their lives.

The enemy that threatens our very existence can take different forms, names, and rulers.  Our Lord Himself faced them head-on and destroyed them. Even with His Disciples who constantly witnessed His Divine power and miracles, He reveals their faithlessness. Jesus rebukes His Disciples' powerlessness and their participation with the "faithless and perverse generation." He asks "how long shall I be with you? How long shall I bear with you?" (St. Matthew 17:17).

The evil enemy presently is the coronavirus which is killing thousands of people throughout the world. It is a major threat and it is a real threat to us and to our loved ones too. However, how do we, as Orthodox Christian believers, respond to the threat? Are we to cower before the enemy and surrender to it? Are we prepared to face death? Are we willing to trust in God? Is our dependence only in science and the scientific community for our survival? If that is true what happened to our belief in the Almighty, Our Savior Jesus Christ? Has it been replaced by science?

We, as reasonable people, respect and adhere to the advice of the medical community, however, we believe in the words of Our Lord Jesus Christ Who reminds us always "without Me you can do nothing" (St. John 15:5). Our dependence on everything is in Him Who gave His life to save us from evil and death.  

The Christian community has always responded to the numerous calamities, famines, epidemics, wars, persecutions, pandemics and such with a greater reliance on God. At this moment I keep on recalling how the Patriarch of Constantinople and Orthodox Christians responded to the barbaric hordes that besieged the city of Constantinople. The Patriarch and the people processed with the holy icon of the Theotokos chanting and entreating her aid by chanting the solemn hymn to her known as 'Ti Ypermaho Stratigo ta Niketiria.' Soon after that, through the intercessions of the Mother of God, the miracle took place and the city and people were saved from the imminent danger.

Our Faith is a Living Faith and we must never underestimate the power of God for there is no greater Power. He can stop and destroy this virus in an instant. He, however, awaits  us to invite and seek His help. It is time that we all turn to Him in faith, prayer, and fasting. When the holy Disciples of Christ asked Him 'Why could we not cast it out?" Jesus answered, "because of your unbelief" (St. Matthew 17:19-20).

Faith is a gift of God. Seek, therefore, for Our Lord to bestow this divine gift of faith to you. When you are blessed with the gift of faith you will feel its power within you. All fear will disappear from within you and you will be able to face anything that threatens you with confidence, courage, and surety. "Do not be deceived" (1 Cor. 6:9). Be vigilant and alert for the evil one has a way of using any and every opportunity to separate us from God. 'Let us be attentive' the priest declares in the Divine Liturgy. We cannot be in a hypnotic state when there is so much physical and spiritual danger. All of us must be awake at all times and discern what is from God and what is from the evil one.

Pray unceasingly. Saint John Climcus writes, "Prayer is by nature a dialog and a union of man with God. Its effect is to hold the world together. It achieves a reconciliation with God" (The Ladder of Divine Ascent). Think of the elderly, the destitute, the poor, the infirmed, and take time to help those in need. We all need to repent for drifting and abandoning our God and Creator. The genuine Christian is a person who is sensitive to the trials and tribulations of others. Be compassionate, merciful, and generous to those that need your love.

Do you know that the world is in apostasy from God? I witnessed that fact when my family and I visited the country of Ireland last year. However, it is not Ireland alone but much of the world. You see it when you see Christian churches converted to distilleries, office space, and museums. You see it in a secular society that worships the new idols,  pleasure, and wealth. You see it in a Gentile world where everything immoral, wrong, and contrary to the teachings of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is condoned and promoted by world governments. You see it in schools where prayer and the commandments of God have been removed and replaced with meaningless programs. You see it in commerce where greed is manifested in all its aspects. You see it in our churches where the Orthodox Christians are absent from the Divine Liturgy because the commitment to Christ has been lost or replaced with sports and leisure.   

When a holy elder was asked why the world today is in distress and chaos, he answered him, because mankind has abandoned God. What do you expect when the creature stops believing in His Creator? Adam and Eve lost Paradise due to their disobedience to God.  We, too, are losing this beautiful world because of our disobedience to God. There are only two powers, God and that of the evil one. "No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon" (St. Luke 16:13).

"Thanks be to God Who always leads us in triumph in Christ" (2 Cor.14).

Please take care and be faithful.

With agape in His Service,

+Father George

On Courage

Saint Cuthbert, Wonderworker of Britain

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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ON COURAGE

"...God gave us the courage to boldly...even though we were surrounded by enemies..." (1 Thessalonians 2:1-3).

Beloved in Christ God fear of imprisonment did not keep Saint Paul from preaching the Good News. When God wants us to do something, He will give us the strength and courage to do it in spite of the obstacles that may come our way.

At a time of distress and danger we recall the divine words of the Old Testament psalms: "The Lord is my light and my salvation, whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life, of whom shall I be afraid? Wait for the Lord; be strong and let your heart take courage; yea, wait for the Lord!" (Pss 27:1,14; 31:24).  

Courage reveals our personal faith and confidence in Christ our Lord. Saint Gregory of Sinai, is the first of the "four original virtues." Courage is considered to be one of the very important virtues in our Christian faith. However, courage is shown not only in times of danger, persecution and suffering, but also when one is ridiculed and hated. The Christian believer confronts all challenges of life, no matter if they are little or great, by the grace of the Holy Spirit our God. The Saints and Martyrs of our Holy Church were eminently courageous in their lives and believed this virtue to be key to spiritual life.

Life, as we all know, is unpredictable and even threatening but we must be strong. Holy Apostle Paul wrote to the community in Corinth saying, "Watch, stand fast in the faith, be brave, be strong." Saint Paul unites strength with bravery, the emphasis turns from physical strength to a power of character. The holy Apostle Paul reminds us "watch, stand fast in the faith" (v. 13).  Faith implies that it all starts with the Almighty God, with faith in Him.  

During this crisis created by the pandemic mankind is faced with an extraordinary threat and danger. Thousands of people have lost their lives because of this virus.  However, as people of faith, we must not allow fear to overcome us as those who do not believe. We must follow the advice of physicians, scientists, specialists, experts but to do it always without compromising our Christian faith. In other words, we must do everything with prayer, with faith in God, with obedience to His Commandments, with hope and seeking the holy intercessions of the Theotokos, and Saints of God. God is present always and He is always in control of everything.  "...Rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance, and perseverance, character, and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit Who was given to us" (Romans 5:15).

Jesus tells each one of us: My strength is made perfect in your weakness! When you are weak, then I will be strong for  you! My brothers and sisters in Christ God, have hope! Be brave and be strong!  Amen.

Pray for one another and pray for physical and spiritual healing.

With agape in the Physician of our souls and bodies,

+Father George

On Hope

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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ON HOPE

The Divine Scripture has much to say about the necessity and significance of hope. First, they tell us why we should always hope in our Loving and Merciful God:

1. "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world" (St. John 16:33).

2. "For God so loved the world that He gave His Only-Begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved" (St. John 3:16-17).

3. "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us" (Romans 8:28).

4. "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose" (Romans 8:28).

5. "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?...For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:35, 38-39).

6. "But I do not want you to be ignorant, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus" (1 Thessalonians 4:13-14).

In other words, my dear brothers and sisters in Christ, no matter what happens to us, we hope that God will bring good our of evil, granting life in death. Furthermore, no person can live without hope.

Hopelessness is faithlessness. We must never despair. There are no hopeless situations in life, there are only people who have grown cold and hopeless. Have we ever felt hopeless in the depths of fear and despair? It could be because we live as if God were dead, despite our claim to be Christians. In order to be sure of our faith, we must examine our thoughts, words, and actions to see if we indeed hope in the Almighty God.

It is possible that we do hope but unfortunately it is a false hope. Humanity puts a lot of trust in different false hopes, i.e., progress, science, political systems, education, banks, business, and government. All of these are created by us to serve our earthly needs, however, all of them are secular substitutes for God and His Kingdom. They consistently disappoint us and because of it, they create greater hopelessness than ever before.

The Apostle of all Nations, Saint Paul, writes to the Romans, "For in this hope we are saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope.  For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience" (8:24-25).

"Hope is the assurance of the good outcome of our lives lived by faith in God. Hope is the power of certain conviction that the life built on faith will produce its fruits. Hope is the confidence that, despite all darkness and sin, the Light of the loving forgiveness of God is upon us to do with us and for us what we ourselves cannot do."

"Our soul waits for the Lord; He is our help and shield. Yea our hearts are glad in Him because we trust in His Holy Name. Let Thy steadfast love, O Lord be upon us, even as we hope in Thee" (Psalm 33:2022).

At times of danger and uncertainty, the faithful and believing person remains steadfast in his or her faith. Despondency is evil and deadly. Saint Isaac the Syrian writes: "...the force of despondence...overwhelms him and oppresses his soul; and this is a taste of hell because it produces a thousand temptations: confusion, irritation, protesting and bewailing one's lot, wrong thoughts, wandering from place to place, and so on".

Evagrius of Pontus, 4th century, writes: "The demon of despondency, which is called the "noonday demon" (Psalm 91:6) is more grievous than all others...It arouses in him vexation against the place and mode of life itself and his work, adding that there is no more love among the brethren, and no one to comfort him…Then it provokes in him a longing for other places..."

"The only remedy for despair is humility and patience, the steadfast holding to the life of faith, event without conviction or feeling. It is no virtue to feel weak and helpless in the presence of evil. It is no virtue to consider oneself totally at the mercy of evil and sin. It is a virtue rather to be always "rejoicing in hope, patient in tribulation" knowing and believing that the final victory is God's" (Romans 12:12).

Trust and hope in Jesus Christ, our Lord, Protector, and Savior!

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

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With sincere agape and hope in God's love for us,
The sinner and unworthy servant of God

+Father George

On Illness

Saint Cyril, Archbishop of Jerusalem

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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ON ILLNESS

Saint Ambrose of Milan says of the Christian attitude toward illness: "If the occasion demands it, a wise man will readily accept bodily infirmity and even offer his whole body up to death for the sake of Christ...This same man is not affected in spirit or broken with bodily pain if his health fails him. He is consoled by his struggle for perfection in the virtues" (Exegetical Works). Hearing this, the man of the world is quite likely to exclaim: "What an idea! How can a man 'readily accept' illness and disease?"

To an unbeliever, this is indeed an incomprehensible thing. He cannot reconcile the fact of human suffering with his own idea of God. To him, the very thought that God would allow pain is repugnant; usually he sees every kind of suffering as evil in an absolute sense.

Without the aid of Divine Revelation man cannot understand the origin and cause of pain, nor its purpose. Many people, not having help in understanding, are haunted by the fear of pain, terrified at the thought of a lingering illness, and quick to seek medical relief because they believe illness is only the result of "chance."

But even in everyday life, we know that suffering really isn't "absolutely evil." For example, we submit to the surgeon's knife in order to have a diseased part of the body is cut away; the pain of the operation is great, but we know that it is necessary in order to preserve health or even life. Thus, even on a strictly materialistic level, pain can serve a higher good. 

Another reason why human suffering is a mystery to an unbeliever is because his very "idea" of God is false. He is shocked when the Holy Fathers of the Church speak of God in the following way: "Whether God brings upon us a famine, or a war, or any calamity whatsoever, He does so out of His exceeding great care and kindness" (Saint John Chrysostom, Homily 7, On the Statues).

The God-bearing Elder Macarius of Optina, in 19th-century Russia, wrote thusly to a friend: "Being weak in health as you yourself are, I cannot fail to feel much sympathy for your plight. But kind Providence is not only more wise than we are; It is also wise in a different way. It is this thought which must sustain us in all our trials, for it is consoling, as no other thought is."

Wise in a different way...Here we can begin to see that the Patristic understanding of God's ways is contrary to the world's view. In fact, it is unique: it is not speculative, scholarly, or "academic." As Bishop Theophan the Recluse has written: "Christian faith is not a doctrinal system but a way of restoration for fallen man." Therefore, the criterion of faith--true knowledge of God--is not intellectual. The measure of truth, as Professor Andreyev wrote, "is life itself...Christ spoke of this clearly, plainly, and definitely: "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life" (John 14:6). That is "I Am the Way" of perceiving the Truth; I Am Myself the incarnate Truth (everything I say is true)...and I Am Life (without Me there cannot be life)" (Orthodox Christian Apologetics). This is very far from the wisdom of this world...

"...For we know that all creation groans and travails in pain until now" (Romans 8:22).

"The way of salvation which leads to eternal life is "narrow and hard" (Matthew 7:14). It is appointed both by our Lord's Holy example and by His Holy teaching. The Lord foretold to His Disciples and followers that in the world, that is, during their earthly life, "they would have tribulation" (John 16:33; 15:18; 16:2-3)...From this, it is clear that sorrow and suffering are appointed by the Lord Himself for His True servants during their life on earth" (Bishop Ignatius Brianchaninov, The Arena).

The Purpose of Illness

"But if we are sons, we are heirs also; heirs indeed of God and joint heirs with Christ, provided, however, we suffer with Him that we may also be glorified with Him" (Romans 8:17).

Our Savior and the God-bearing Fathers of the Church teach that our only concern in this life should be the salvation of our souls. Bishop Ignatius says: "Earthly life--this brief period--is given to man by the mercy of the Creator in order that man may use it for his salvation, that is, for the restoration of himself from death to life" (The Arena). Therefore, we must "look upon everything in this world as upon a fleeting shadow and cling with our heart to anoint of it...for we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal" (Saint John of Kronstadt, Spiritual Counsels). For Orthodox Christians, the center of life is not here, but there, in the eternal world.

How long we live, what disease or illness accompanies our death--such things are not the proper concern of Orthodox Christians. Although we sing "many years" for one another at Names-days and other celebrations, this is only because the Church in her wisdom knows that we indeed need "many years" to repent of our sins and be converted, not because a long life has any value in itself. God is not interested in how old we are when we come before His Judgment, but whether we have repented; He is not concerned about whether we died of a heart attack or cancer, but whether our soul is in a state of health.

Therefore, "we should not dread any human ill, save sin alone; neither poverty, nor disease, nor insult, nor malicious treatment, nor humiliation, nor death" (Saint John Chrysostom, On the Statues), for these "ills" are only words; they have no reality for those who are living for the Kingdom of Heaven. The only real "calamity" in this life is offending God. If we have this basic understanding of the purpose of life, then the spiritual meaning of bodily infirmity can be opened for us. (Source: The Holy Fathers on Illness by Father Alexey Young)

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

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

+Father George

Uniting Our Prayers With Those of Our Nuns of the Saint John Chrysostom Monastery

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.

You are invited by the nuns of St. John Chrysostomos Monastery to join them and other Orthodox Christians in offering the "Jesus Prayer" on your prayer rope for 15 minutes beginning at 9 pm Eastern time (8 pm Central) nightly as long as this coronavirus threat exists. There is strength in prayer when we pray together as the body of Christ. Wherever you may be at that time, please set aside 15 minutes for prayer.

May God bless and protect everyone. Amen.

With agape,

+Father George