For thanksgiving, my favorite all time prayer of thanksgiving in the midst of suffering; it was written by a priest in a concentration camp, and it shines with all the grace of God.
Glory to God for All Things:
Kontakion 1
Everlasting King, Thy will for our salvation is full of power. Thy right arm controls the whole course of human life. We give Thee thanks for all Thy mercies, seen and unseen. For eternal life, for the heavenly joys of the Kingdom which is to be. Grant mercy to us who sing Thy praise, both now and in the time to come. Glory to Thee, O God, from age to age.
Ikos 1
I was born a weak, defenceless child, but Thine angel spread his wings over my cradle to defend me. From birth until now Thy love has illumined my path, and has wondrously guided me towards the light of eternity; from birth until now the generous gifts of Thy providence have been marvelously showered upon me. I give Thee thanks, with all who have come to know Thee, who call upon Thy name.
Glory to Thee for calling me into being
Glory to Thee, showing me the beauty of the universe
Glory to Thee, spreading out before me heaven and earth
Like the pages in a book of eternal wisdom
Glory to Thee for Thine eternity in this fleeting world
Glory to Thee for Thy mercies, seen and unseen
Glory to Thee through every sigh of my sorrow
Glory to Thee for every step of my life's journey
For every moment of glory
Glory to Thee, O God, from age to age
Kontakion 2
O Lord, how lovely it is to be Thy guest. Breeze full of scents; mountains reaching to the skies; waters like boundless mirrors, reflecting the sun's golden rays and the scudding clouds. All nature murmurs mysteriously, breathing the depth of tenderness. Birds and beasts of the forest bear the imprint of Thy love. Blessed art thou, mother earth, in thy fleeting loveliness, which wakens our yearning for happiness that will last for ever, in the land where, amid beauty that grows not old, the cry rings out: Alleluia!
Ikos 2
Thou hast brought me into life as into an enchanted paradise. We have seen the sky like a chalice of deepest blue, where in the azure heights the birds are singing. We have listened to the soothing murmur of the forest and the melodious music of the streams. We have tasted fruit of fine flavour and the sweet-scented honey. We can live very well on Thine earth. It is a pleasure to be Thy guest.
Glory to Thee for the Feast Day of life
Glory to Thee for the perfume of lilies and roses
Glory to Thee for each different taste of berry and fruit
Glory to Thee for the sparkling silver of early morning dew
Glory to Thee for the joy of dawn's awakening
Glory to Thee for the new life each day brings
Glory to Thee, O God, from age to age
Kontakion 3
It is the Holy Spirit who makes us find joy in each flower, the exquisite scent, the delicate colour, the beauty of the Most High in the tiniest of things. Glory and honour to the Spirit, the Giver of Life, who covers the fields with their carpet of flowers, crowns the harvest with gold, and gives to us the joy of gazing at it with our eyes. O be joyful and sing to Him: Alleluia!
Ikos 3
How glorious art Thou in the springtime, when every creature awakes to new life and joyfully sings Thy praises with a thousand tongues. Thou art the Source of Life, the Destroyer of Death. By the light of the moon, nightingales sing, and the valleys and hills lie like wedding garments, white as snow. All the earth is Thy promised bride awaiting her spotless husband. If the grass of the field is like this, how gloriously shall we be transfigured in the Second Coming after the Resurrection! How splendid our bodies, how spotless our souls!
Glory to Thee, bringing from the depth of the earth an endless variety of colours, tastes and scents
Glory to Thee for the warmth and tenderness of the world of nature
Glory to Thee for the numberless creatures around us
Glory to Thee for the depths of Thy wisdom, the whole world a living sign of it
Glory to Thee; on my knees, I kiss the traces of Thine unseen hand
Glory to Thee, enlightening us with the clearness of eternal life
Glory to Thee for the hope of the unutterable, imperishable beauty of immortality
Glory to Thee, O God, from age to age
Kontakion 4
How filled with sweetness are those whose thoughts dwell on Thee; how life-giving Thy holy Word. To speak with Thee is more soothing than anointing with oil; sweeter than the honeycomb. To pray to Thee lifts the spirit, refreshes the soul. Where Thou art not, there is only emptiness; hearts are smitten with sadness; nature, and life itself, become sorrowful; where Thou art, the soul is filled with abundance, and its song resounds like a torrent of life: Alleluia!
Ikos 4
When the sun is setting, when quietness falls like the peace of eternal sleep, and the silence of the spent day reigns, then in the splendour of its declining rays, filtering through the clouds, I see Thy dwelling-place: fiery and purple, gold and blue, they speak prophet-like of the ineffable beauty of Thy presence, and call to us in their majesty. We turn to the Father.
Glory to Thee at the hushed hour of nightfall
Glory to Thee, covering the earth with peace
Glory to Thee for the last ray of the sun as it sets
Glory to Thee for sleep's repose that restores us
Glory to Thee for Thy goodness even in the time of darkness
When all the world is hidden from our eyes
Glory to Thee for the prayers offered by a trembling soul
Glory to Thee for the pledge of our reawakening
On that glorious last day, that day which has no evening
Glory to Thee, O God, from age to age
Kontakion 5
The dark storm clouds of life bring no terror to those in whose hearts Thy fire is burning brightly. Outside is the darkness of the whirlwind, the terror and howling of the storm, but in the heart, in the presence of Christ, there is light and peace, silence: Alleluia!
Ikos 5
I see Thine heavens resplendent with stars. How glorious art Thou radiant with light! Eternity watches me by the rays of the distant stars. I am small, insignificant, but the Lord is at my side. Thy right arm guides me wherever I go.
Glory to Thee, ceaselessly watching over me
Glory to Thee for the encounters Thou dost arrange for me
Glory to Thee for the love of parents, for the faithfulness of friends
Glory to Thee for the humbleness of the animals which serve me
Glory to Thee for the unforgettable moments of life
Glory to Thee for the heart's innocent joy
Glory to Thee for the joy of living
Moving and being able to return Thy love
Glory to Thee, O God, from age to age
Kontakion 6
How great and how close art Thou in the powerful track of the storm! How mighty Thy right arm in the blinding flash of the lightning! How awesome Thy majesty! The voice of the Lord fills the fields, it speaks in the rustling of the trees. The voice of the Lord is in the thunder and the downpour. The voice of the Lord is heard above the waters. Praise be to Thee in the roar of mountains ablaze. Thou dost shake the earth like a garment; Thou dost pile up to the sky the waves of the sea. Praise be to Thee, bringing low the pride of man. Thou dost bring from his heart a cry of Penitence: Alleluia!
Ikos 6
When the lightning flash has lit up the camp dining hall, how feeble seems the light from the lamp. Thus dost Thou, like the lightning, unexpectedly light up my heart with flashes of intense joy. After Thy blinding light, how drab, how colourless, how illusory all else seems. My souls clings to Thee.
Glory to Thee, the highest peak of men's dreaming
Glory to Thee for our unquenchable thirst for communion with God
Glory to Thee, making us dissatisfied with earthly things
Glory to Thee, turning on us Thine healing rays
Glory to Thee, subduing the power of the spirits of darkness
And dooming to death every evil
Glory to Thee for the signs of Thy presence
For the joy of hearing Thy voice and living in Thy love
Glory to Thee, O God, from age to age
Kontakion 7
In the wondrous blending of sounds it is Thy call we hear; in the harmony of many voices, in the sublime beauty of music, in the glory of the works of great composers: Thou leadest us to the threshold of paradise to come, and to the choirs of angels. All true beauty has the power to draw the soul towards Thee, and to make it sing in ecstasy: Alleluia!
Ikos 7
The breath of Thine Holy Spirit inspires artists, poets and scientists. The power of Thy supreme knowledge makes them prophets and interpreters of Thy laws, who reveal the depths of Thy creative wisdom. Their works speak unwittingly of Thee. How great art Thou in Thy creation! How great art Thou in man!
Glory to Thee, showing Thine unsurpassable power in the laws of the universe
Glory to Thee, for all nature is filled with Thy laws
Glory to Thee for what Thou hast revealed to us in Thy mercy
Glory to Thee for what Thou hast hidden from us in Thy wisdom
Glory to Thee for the inventiveness of the human mind
Glory to Thee for the dignity of man's labour
Glory to Thee for the tongues of fire that bring inspiration
Glory to Thee, O God, from age to age
Kontakion 8
How near Thou art in the day of sickness. Thou Thyself visitest the sick; Thou Thyself bendest over the sufferer's bed. His heart speaks to Thee. In the throes of sorrow and suffering Thou bringest peace and unexpected consolation. Thou art the comforter. Thou art the love which watches over and heals us. To Thee we sing the song: Alleluia!
Ikos 8
When in childhood I called upon Thee consciously for the first time, Thou didst hear my prayer, and Thou didst fill my heart with the blessing of peace. At that moment I knew Thy goodness and knew how blessed are those who turn to Thee. I started to call upon Thee night and day; and now even now I call upon Thy name.
Glory to Thee, satisfying my desires with good things
Glory to Thee, watching over me day and night
Glory to Thee, curing affliction and emptiness with the healing flow of time
Glory to Thee, no loss is irreparable in Thee,
Giver of eternal life to all
Glory to Thee, making immortal all that is lofty and good
Glory to Thee, promising us the longed-for meeting with our loved ones who have died
Glory to Thee, O God, from age to age
Kontakion 9
Why is it that on a Feast Day the whole of nature mysteriously smiles? Why is it that then a heavenly gladness fills our hearts; a gladness far beyond that of earth and the very air in church and in the altar becomes luminous? It is the breath of Thy gracious love. It is the reflection of the glory of Mount Tabor. Then do heaven and earth sing Thy praise: Alleluia!
Ikos 9
When Thou didst call me to serve my brothers and filled my soul with humility, one of Thy deep, piercing rays shone into my heart; it became luminous, full of light like iron glowing in the furnace. I have seen Thy face, face of mystery and of unapproachable glory.
Glory to Thee, transfiguring our lives with deeds of love
Glory to Thee, making wonderfully Sweet the keeping of Thy commandments
Glory to Thee, making Thyself known where man shows mercy on his neighbour
Glory to Thee, sending us failure and misfortune that we may understand the sorrows of others
Glory to Thee, rewarding us so well for the good we do
Glory to Thee, welcoming the impulse of our heart's love
Glory to Thee, raising to the heights of heaven every act of love in earth and sky
Glory to Thee, O God, from age to age
Kontakion 10
No one can put together what has crumbled into dust, but Thou canst restore a conscience turned to ashes. Thou canst restore to its former beauty a soul lost and without hope. With Thee, there is nothing that cannot be redeemed. Thou art love; Thou art Creator and Redeemer. We praise Thee, singing: Alleluia!
Ikos 10
Remember, my God, the fall of Lucifer full of pride, keep me safe with the power of Thy Grace; save me from falling away from Thee. Save me from doubt. Incline my heart to hear Thy mysterious voice every moment of my life. Incline my heart to call upon Thee, present in everything.
Glory to Thee for every happening
Every condition Thy providence has put me in
Glory to Thee for what Thou speakest to me in my heart
Glory to Thee for what Thou revealest to me, asleep or awake
Glory to Thee for scattering our vain imaginations
Glory to Thee for raising us from the slough of our passions through suffering
Glory to Thee for curing our pride of heart by humiliation
Glory to Thee, O God, from age to age
Kontakion 11
Across the cold chains of the centuries, I feel the warmth of Thy breath, I feel Thy blood pulsing in my veins. Part of time has already gone, but now Thou art the present. I stand by Thy Cross; I was the cause of it. I cast myself down in the dust before it. Here is the triumph of love, the victory of salvation. Here the centuries themselves cannot remain silent, singing Thy praises: Alleluia!
Ikos 11
Blessed are they that will share in the King's Banquet: but already on earth Thou givest me a foretaste of this blessedness. How many times with Thine own hand hast Thou held out to me Thy Body and Thy Blood, and I, though a miserable sinner, have received this Mystery, and have tasted Thy love, so ineffable, so heavenly.
Glory to Thee for the unquenchable fire of Thy Grace
Glory to Thee, building Thy Church, a haven of peace in a tortured world
Glory to Thee for the life-giving water of Baptism in which we find new birth
Glory to Thee, restoring to the penitent purity white as the lily
Glory to Thee for the cup of salvation and the bread of eternal joy
Glory to Thee for exalting us to the highest heaven
Glory to Thee, O God, from age to age
Kontakion 12
How often have I seen the reflection of Thy glory in the faces of the dead. How resplendent they were, with beauty and heavenly joy. How ethereal, how translucent their faces. How triumphant over suffering and death, their felicity and peace. Even in the silence they were calling upon Thee. In the hour of my death, enlighten my soul, too, that it may cry out to Thee: Alleluia!
Ikos 12
What sort of praise can I give Thee? I have never heard the song of the Cherubim, a joy reserved for the spirits above. But I know the praises that nature sings to Thee. In winter, I have beheld how silently in the moonlight the whole earth offers Thee prayer, clad in its white mantle of snow, sparkling like diamonds. I have seen how the rising sun rejoices in Thee, how the song of the birds is a chorus of praise to Thee. I have heard the mysterious mutterings of the forests about Thee, and the winds singing Thy praise as they stir the waters. I have understood how the choirs of stars proclaim Thy glory as they move forever in the depths of infinite space. What is my poor worship! All nature obeys Thee, I do not. Yet while I live, I see Thy love, I long to thank Thee, and call upon Thy name.
Glory to Thee, giving us light
Glory to Thee, loving us with love so deep, divine and infinite
Glory to Thee, blessing us with light, and with the host of angels and saints
Glory to Thee, Father all-holy, promising us a share in Thy Kingdom
Glory to Thee, Holy Spirit, life-giving Sun of the world to come
Glory to Thee for all things, Holy and most merciful Trinity
Glory to Thee, O God, from age to age
Kontakion 13
Life-giving and merciful Trinity, receive my thanksgiving for all Thy goodness. Make us worthy of Thy blessings, so that, when we have brought to fruit the talents Thou hast entrusted to us, we may enter into the joy of our Lord, forever exulting in the shout of victory: Alleluia!
(repeat Kontakion 13 and Alleluia three times)
Ikos 1
I was born a weak, defenceless child, but Thine angel spread his wings over my cradle to defend me. From birth until now Thy love has illumined my path, and has wondrously guided me towards the light of eternity; from birth until now the generous gifts of Thy providence have been marvelously showered upon me. I give Thee thanks, with all who have come to know Thee, who call upon Thy name.
Glory to Thee for calling me into being
Glory to Thee, showing me the beauty of the universe
Glory to Thee, spreading out before me heaven and earth
Like the pages in a book of eternal wisdom
Glory to Thee for Thine eternity in this fleeting world
Glory to Thee for Thy mercies, seen and unseen
Glory to Thee through every sigh of my sorrow
Glory to Thee for every step of my life's journey
For every moment of glory
Glory to Thee, O God, from age to age
Kontakion 1
Everlasting King, Thy will for our salvation is full of power. Thy right arm controls the whole course of human life. We give Thee thanks for all Thy mercies, seen and unseen. For eternal life, for the heavenly Joys of the Kingdom which is to be. Grant mercy to us who sing Thy praise, both now and in the time to come. Glory to Thee, O God, from age to age.
_________________________________________________________
Happy Thanksgiving!
In Christ,
Macarius
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Monday, November 24, 2008
Romans 1:11 - 17
Romans 1:11 - 13
For I long to see you, that I may impart some spiritual gift, so that you may be established - that is, that I may be encouraged together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me. Now I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that I often planned to come to you (but was hindered until now), that I might have some fruit among you also, just as among the other Gentiles.
This is fairly straightforward, but significant. First, St. Paul asserts his apostolicity, declaring that he has a spiritual gift to impart to the Roman Christians that they may be properly established. This gift does not come independent of the laity, however. The Bishop leads from within the Church, not over the Church. It is our mutual faith, incarnate in the laity and overseen by the bishop, that establishes us. You cannot have one without the other. The laity, independent of guidance, will each turn to their own opinions - nothing will be established because there will be no order. The bishop, independent of laity, cannot have a Church to establish. We must always remember that we are in God's house - God asks us to serve one another, and so the bishop serves us, and we serve the bishop through our obedience and support. Thus we establish one another.
St. Paul also makes a critical emphatic point here: his preaching is to the Gentiles. It isn't exclusively to the Gentiles, but he is certainly not a Judaizer. This is important because the entire theme of the book of Romans is this Judaizing heresy of the early Church.
Romans 1:14 - 16
I am a debtor both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to wise and to unwise. So as much as is in me, I am ready to preach the gospel to you who are in Rome also. For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.
St. Paul herein reveals the heart of his message in this epistle - his thesis statement, if you will. First, St. Paul is an apostle and missionary of the Church. This should confirm to us the importance of preaching the gospel to all people. In particular, St. Paul makes certain to say his debtor to the "wise" (as the Judaizers would have been in their own eyes) and the "unwise" (as they doubtless thought of the Gentiles). "[The Gospel] is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek."
It is not to the Jews alone that salvation is promised; the Messiah is for all people - the Jew first, and also for the Greek (the Gentile).
Romans 1:17
For in it ((the Gospel)) the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith."
A few critical things we must comment on here, as now we enter the part of Romans that begins to talk about the nature of this Gospel which is the salvation of Gentiles and Jews alike.
FIRST: St. Paul is, in this letter, contrasting the views of the Judaizers with those of the Church. The Judaizers said that one must first become a member of the Jewish culture / ethnicity (represented in Jewish law) in order to become a Christian, since Christianity is a sect of Judaism. The Church, at the Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15) disagreed. It says that Judaism was chosen because it would give birth to the Christ, but that the Christ belongs to all peoples. One does not need to be Jewish in order to be of Christ, because it is by FAITH (not Jewish cultural law) that we become Christ's.
SECOND: Faith, here in the very sentence, is revealed as an ACTION. Notice he says the just shall "live by faith." You can't live by a cognitive belief. Rather, one lives by something only if one does what that thing compels. Faith is, therefore, intimately connected to action in the salvific sense. So when, in this Epistle, St. Paul discusses faith versus works, what he is contrasting is the ACTION motivated by faith versus the ACTION motivated by the Jewish cultural law. St. Paul does NOT contradict St. James - rather they agree. Faith without works is dead, for the just shall LIVE by faith (not merely believe it and call that sufficient).
Think of it this way: faith is, ultimately, TRUST. We are called to trust God. This sense in our culture that faith is a cognitive belief in the existence of God (as in, we have faith against all evidence that God is real), is an empty and satanic faith. It deprives faith of its power. YES, we must believe that God exists. To be certain, we believe that. I don't, personally, think that requires us to check our brains at the door - on the contrary, I think atheists are the ones committing grave philosophical errors (it is nearly impossible to prove a negative), though I can see how agnosticism is a philosophically defensible position.
But faith? Faith is Trust. The two words are identical in the Greek (pistis). The creed says, if translated this way, "I TRUST in One God... And One Lord Jesus Christ... and in the Holy Spirit..."
If I trust God, then I must act on that trust. If I trust God, and someone cuts me off when I'm driving, then I trust that God's providence allowed that. If God's providence allowed that, then my only reaction can be to THANK God. Anger, rage, swearing... these will show up nowhere. If someone is my enemy, it is only because God's providence allowed that. And if God's providence allowed it, then I trust it is ultimately for my good, even if I don't know how. And if I TRUST God, then I am thankful for that enemey - indeed, I love him or her. I love my enemies if I have faith. If I have faith, I trust that God has made each person in His image, and that it is by God's will alone that they live. I trust, then, that God has made each person, each moment, a complete and utter free gift of his grace - a miracle of creation. I cannot help but love and love absolutely if I have the eye of faith.
In so much as we don't act this way - with absolute love towards God (whom we Trust) and neighbor (whom we love by our trusting God) - then we don't have faith. Those who preach that we should have faith alone are partially correct. Absolute faith, lived absolutely, will produce moral action (though the spiritual life is also about unity with God, and faith is but one part of this process). We cannot just "pray a sinner's prayer," though, and call that salvation when our lives are still full of rot, pride, anger, and sin. REPENT and believe is the first command of Christ, and the just - those who have been justified - will LIVE by faith.
In Christ,
Macarius
For I long to see you, that I may impart some spiritual gift, so that you may be established - that is, that I may be encouraged together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me. Now I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that I often planned to come to you (but was hindered until now), that I might have some fruit among you also, just as among the other Gentiles.
This is fairly straightforward, but significant. First, St. Paul asserts his apostolicity, declaring that he has a spiritual gift to impart to the Roman Christians that they may be properly established. This gift does not come independent of the laity, however. The Bishop leads from within the Church, not over the Church. It is our mutual faith, incarnate in the laity and overseen by the bishop, that establishes us. You cannot have one without the other. The laity, independent of guidance, will each turn to their own opinions - nothing will be established because there will be no order. The bishop, independent of laity, cannot have a Church to establish. We must always remember that we are in God's house - God asks us to serve one another, and so the bishop serves us, and we serve the bishop through our obedience and support. Thus we establish one another.
St. Paul also makes a critical emphatic point here: his preaching is to the Gentiles. It isn't exclusively to the Gentiles, but he is certainly not a Judaizer. This is important because the entire theme of the book of Romans is this Judaizing heresy of the early Church.
Romans 1:14 - 16
I am a debtor both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to wise and to unwise. So as much as is in me, I am ready to preach the gospel to you who are in Rome also. For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.
St. Paul herein reveals the heart of his message in this epistle - his thesis statement, if you will. First, St. Paul is an apostle and missionary of the Church. This should confirm to us the importance of preaching the gospel to all people. In particular, St. Paul makes certain to say his debtor to the "wise" (as the Judaizers would have been in their own eyes) and the "unwise" (as they doubtless thought of the Gentiles). "[The Gospel] is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek."
It is not to the Jews alone that salvation is promised; the Messiah is for all people - the Jew first, and also for the Greek (the Gentile).
Romans 1:17
For in it ((the Gospel)) the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "The just shall live by faith."
A few critical things we must comment on here, as now we enter the part of Romans that begins to talk about the nature of this Gospel which is the salvation of Gentiles and Jews alike.
FIRST: St. Paul is, in this letter, contrasting the views of the Judaizers with those of the Church. The Judaizers said that one must first become a member of the Jewish culture / ethnicity (represented in Jewish law) in order to become a Christian, since Christianity is a sect of Judaism. The Church, at the Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15) disagreed. It says that Judaism was chosen because it would give birth to the Christ, but that the Christ belongs to all peoples. One does not need to be Jewish in order to be of Christ, because it is by FAITH (not Jewish cultural law) that we become Christ's.
SECOND: Faith, here in the very sentence, is revealed as an ACTION. Notice he says the just shall "live by faith." You can't live by a cognitive belief. Rather, one lives by something only if one does what that thing compels. Faith is, therefore, intimately connected to action in the salvific sense. So when, in this Epistle, St. Paul discusses faith versus works, what he is contrasting is the ACTION motivated by faith versus the ACTION motivated by the Jewish cultural law. St. Paul does NOT contradict St. James - rather they agree. Faith without works is dead, for the just shall LIVE by faith (not merely believe it and call that sufficient).
Think of it this way: faith is, ultimately, TRUST. We are called to trust God. This sense in our culture that faith is a cognitive belief in the existence of God (as in, we have faith against all evidence that God is real), is an empty and satanic faith. It deprives faith of its power. YES, we must believe that God exists. To be certain, we believe that. I don't, personally, think that requires us to check our brains at the door - on the contrary, I think atheists are the ones committing grave philosophical errors (it is nearly impossible to prove a negative), though I can see how agnosticism is a philosophically defensible position.
But faith? Faith is Trust. The two words are identical in the Greek (pistis). The creed says, if translated this way, "I TRUST in One God... And One Lord Jesus Christ... and in the Holy Spirit..."
If I trust God, then I must act on that trust. If I trust God, and someone cuts me off when I'm driving, then I trust that God's providence allowed that. If God's providence allowed that, then my only reaction can be to THANK God. Anger, rage, swearing... these will show up nowhere. If someone is my enemy, it is only because God's providence allowed that. And if God's providence allowed it, then I trust it is ultimately for my good, even if I don't know how. And if I TRUST God, then I am thankful for that enemey - indeed, I love him or her. I love my enemies if I have faith. If I have faith, I trust that God has made each person in His image, and that it is by God's will alone that they live. I trust, then, that God has made each person, each moment, a complete and utter free gift of his grace - a miracle of creation. I cannot help but love and love absolutely if I have the eye of faith.
In so much as we don't act this way - with absolute love towards God (whom we Trust) and neighbor (whom we love by our trusting God) - then we don't have faith. Those who preach that we should have faith alone are partially correct. Absolute faith, lived absolutely, will produce moral action (though the spiritual life is also about unity with God, and faith is but one part of this process). We cannot just "pray a sinner's prayer," though, and call that salvation when our lives are still full of rot, pride, anger, and sin. REPENT and believe is the first command of Christ, and the just - those who have been justified - will LIVE by faith.
In Christ,
Macarius
Friday, November 21, 2008
Same Sex Marriage and the Church
Though I am an untrained theologian who has not studied the church fathers on this subject, I have found myself often in discussions with people over the issue of homosexuality. It's an important issue within the Church, and (at the request of a friend) I'm going to post what I typically say in response to questions about why the Church doesn't allow practicing homosexuals to commune / marry. This is my opinion. That is to say - it makes sense to me, but I'm not confident enough to say that it is "the" Orthodox reply to this question. My conclusions are Orthodox, however, and perhaps that is in some way sufficient.
I struggle, as I'm sure many do, in the way I phrase my perspective because I want to avoid communicating any hatred or denigration of those who have same-sex attraction (whether they follow through on that attraction or not). It is a sensitive issue, full of difficult and powerful emotions - an issue which can strike to the core of people's identity (though sexual orientation strikes me as an odd source for one's identity; perhaps that's part of the problem?).
In general, if asked, I say "I don't believe the Church should perform sacramental marriages for people of the same gender." I refrain from saying anything about accusing homosexuals of deviance or sin, as this issue requires a more nuanced delicacy to avoid coming across as hateful and judgmental. If asked why, I generally ask if the person has some time and an open mind, then launch into something like the following...
Our theology of marriage begins, as all things do, with the Holy Trinity. We profess that God is love in His essence - love within Himself. This, however, cannot be a narcissistic sort of selfish love of one monad unto Himself. Rather, as we are called to imitate that love, we know that love to be other-centric and self-denying. This is manifested in the great mystery of the Triune God. He is Father loving Son loving Spirit. While there is hierarchy in the relationships (Father as fountainhead of divinity) they are co-equal and of the same nature, fully God. One God, Three Persons, Perfect Hierarchy, Perfect Love. Notice also that it within the Trinity each person has their distinctness - they own thus-ness.
We must understand this love to have any hope of understanding human love. We were made for relationship - specifically relationship which is ascetic (that is, teaches us to be other-centered and thus helps break down our own ego). Furthermore, we were made for relationships that, while having hierarchy, are so perfect in their love that the hierarchy fades to the background and we see functional (and true, thanks to the perfection of this love) equality. Human love can never achieve the fullness of union that the Divine Love has by essence, but we can begin to imitate it. This is what it means for us to become one with one another. Marriage is the divine sacrament in which these principles of love find fulfillment as an icon of the Divine Love. This principle does not have any direct bearing on homosexuality in the Church, though it does set up the sacramental nature of marriage. As all sacraments, it is a real symbol, not an empty one. It makes manifest - makes incarnate - that which it represents. At its best, marriage makes the Trinity accessible to the world.
There is another divine relationship, however, to which marriage is also an icon: that of Christ to His Church. Ephesians directly relates that to marriage. We have, as prophecy, the words in Genesis that speak of a man leaving His father (in heaven) and His mother (on earth) to join with His wife that the two may become one flesh. This certainly speaks of earthly marriage, but you can see how it prophecies and finds fulfillment in Christ.
At what point do we understand ourselves to have become one flesh with our Lord and Bridegroom? Well, He became man in the Incarnation, joining the divine and human natures so that we may participate in His divine energies. We also enter, iconically, into His death and resurrection (and thus the energies of His resurrection - His saving grace) by baptism. We recieve the grace of His forgiving hand in confession. We recieve the Spirit - even as He had it (as a man) - in our personal Pentecost: Chrismation. Chrismation makes us into "little annointed ones" - we become little Christs. Those who are ordained become icons of Christ in His role as priest, revealing in the liturgy the things of heaven, serving the faithful as Christ served His disciples.
The fullness of our oneness with Christ, however, in this lifetime, is fulfilled in the eucharist. This is the eros love of this wedding between Christ and Church - the foretaste and full realization (for those who have eyes to see) of the feast of the bridegroom. Certainly we look forward to the 2nd coming, but the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand today - Christ came to save this world - and the eucharist is our full participation in that. Here, our Lord comes to us in the flesh, and we take the body of our Lord into ourselves, and we become one flesh with Him. If there is no physical union, there is no marriage (hence why we still call Mary the bride unwedded). We are Christ's bride. We are one with Him.
It is that physical-eucharistic womanhood that so clearly ties the icon of marriage to the male-female relationship for me. It's about more than leadership within a relationship (since the Christian leadership is really about self-death and service anyway). It's about our way of loving Christ (submission in voluntary love) and our way of become one with Christ physically (by recieving His body into ourself).
Marriage is, therefore, an icon of this love. Here we have the man, who is to be like Christ to His wife - so loving of her as to give the totality of his life to her benefit. He is to give her all his dreams, all his hopes. To make his life about her life. To serve and not to demand. To die to himself. This is to be done no matter what she does in return, for if we demanded that our wives reciprocated we would be hypocrites. Christ Himself has the worst bride possible - think of all the sins we commit! We must thank God that He has provided us with such a model of a husband, for we, as a bride, must be a hideous harlot and adultress, yet He dies for us.
Here also we have the woman - the one who recieves the body of her lord in that act of vulnerability and love, who embraces the totality of who he is and submits to him. That is both a physical and emotional recieving, embracing, and submitting. Here we have hierarchy, but hierarchy which, when lived out with the love that is the Divine Love, fades into non-existence and becomes perfect love.
Here is one level on which homosexuality is "wrong" (or spiritually unhealthy / not-an-icon-of-the-kingdom). Two men cannot represent Christ and the Church. The Church is uniquely feminine in its noblest sense. To take that from her is to distort the image, indeed to rob women of their womenhood. Furthermore, Christ is uniquely male (in so much that He became a boy), and though God is in essence gender neutral (by human standards) within the context of this typology, God is the male. Two males or two females distorts the image and is, therefore, not the sacrament of marriage. With no sacrament, there is to be no sex. Therefore, since the Church cannot marry two men or two women (as they don't form the correct and given icon of Christ and the Church) two men or two women ought not to have sex outside of that marriage. Since there is no communion of those having sex outside of marriage, there is no communion for those living in homosexual relationships.
Another level exists to this, though. The eucharist is not just unitive in nature. It is life producing. We have Christ born in us by the grace of the sacrament of eucharist, and by that birth we become more Christ like. In this, again, we have a woman as our model (for in so much as we are the Church, we are feminine). Mary, the Theotokos, is our model and hope. She, by the "yes" she gave to the incarnation, became one with the Holy Spirit, and by that union and at the good will of the Father, she bore the Son physically in her womb.
She BORE Christ and had Christ BORN from her. By this union, she became more Christ like. She is truly the icon of the bride of God! In this way, she is an icon of the Church.
Homosexual union cannot produce life - not naturally, anyway - but heterosexual union (generally) can. It fulfills the eucharistic Christ-Church icon to its fullest. And by giving birth to children (the prayers for which, by the way, are all over the marriage sacrament - most who see an Orthodox wedding are suprised by how much focus is paid to having children) we learn, again, to be self-sacrificing in our love. It becomes about the child, not about 'me.' This again, goes back to our understanding of Divine Love within the Trinity. Because homosexual union can never produce such a miracle, it cannot recieve the prayers of the sacrament of marriage and, once again, becomes sex outside of marriage. Remember that for the Orthodox, the prayers of the Liturgy are considered fertile ground for theology - the enshrine the tradition - if anyone doubts that the Church doesn't marry people of the same gender, read the marriage sacrament. It would make ZERO sense.
Now, what about those who cannot have children from within hetero-sexual relationships. The first point about how man-woman = Christ-Church still suffices on its own.
However, I also accept the idea of the miraculous births God accomplished for the infirtile. It fits so perfectly into this typological understanding. Who is it that produces life in us? Well, it may be explanable biologically, but ultimately it is a miracle of God. The "miraculous" births remind us of that. Keep in mind that Mary was celibate, yet was a perfect icon of marriage to God. There are celibate men and women in the Church for whom she is an icon of their life (along with John the Baptist and Christ Himself). Some marriages choose to live as brother and sister (St. John of Krondstadt did this). I think the principle is this: the marriage sacrament, if we are going to make general rules about it, cannot be between man and man or woman and woman because no possibility of producing new life exists. Because it is possible (even if unlikely) between man and woman, the church can marry them. Beyond that, it is up to God.
To put it another way, the Church, in the sacraments, is the immediate joining of this world to the New Kingdom. It is the invasion of this fallen world with that perfect one. In this sense, it is of itself a miracle that we have sacraments. They bring us into a unique state of being - into contact with Christ and His Heaven.That said, I think the iconography of the Church, as a window into Heaven, is helpful here. You'll notice that most physical infirmities are absent from icons (unless those icons depict a specific historical event, in which case they aren't so much looking at the present state of Heaven as at Heaven's [real and present] remembrance of a key event of salvation). In heaven, such products of the fall as physical ailments will be absent. Human mortality will be no more.
The Church is, therefore, eschatalogical in it's approach to the sacraments, and, in being eschatalogical it is deeply optimistic. The sacraments are acts of hope. So when we marry a man and a woman, we do so because ontologically - in an unfallen world - they'd be able to produce life from their iconically eucharistic union. That is to say, we don't take into account the failures of the fallen world when partaking of sacraments precisely because those sacraments are not the matter of the fallen world. It is precisely by refusing to allow the evil and suffering of this world to compromise, in ANY way, our actions or eschatalogical optimism, that we imitate Chirst on the cross.
In other words, we must look at the potential marriage couple from the perspective of the Kingdom (Without the lense of the fall) and see them as man and woman, capable of producing life. From that, it is up to God. The fall is indeed real, so when the sacrament is complete, perhaps there will be no children. But in our eschatalogical optimism and kingdom-oriented view we don't see them this way. By nature, man and woman can produce life together, where as people of the same gender cannot.
Hope that helps!
In Christ,
Macarius
I struggle, as I'm sure many do, in the way I phrase my perspective because I want to avoid communicating any hatred or denigration of those who have same-sex attraction (whether they follow through on that attraction or not). It is a sensitive issue, full of difficult and powerful emotions - an issue which can strike to the core of people's identity (though sexual orientation strikes me as an odd source for one's identity; perhaps that's part of the problem?).
In general, if asked, I say "I don't believe the Church should perform sacramental marriages for people of the same gender." I refrain from saying anything about accusing homosexuals of deviance or sin, as this issue requires a more nuanced delicacy to avoid coming across as hateful and judgmental. If asked why, I generally ask if the person has some time and an open mind, then launch into something like the following...
Our theology of marriage begins, as all things do, with the Holy Trinity. We profess that God is love in His essence - love within Himself. This, however, cannot be a narcissistic sort of selfish love of one monad unto Himself. Rather, as we are called to imitate that love, we know that love to be other-centric and self-denying. This is manifested in the great mystery of the Triune God. He is Father loving Son loving Spirit. While there is hierarchy in the relationships (Father as fountainhead of divinity) they are co-equal and of the same nature, fully God. One God, Three Persons, Perfect Hierarchy, Perfect Love. Notice also that it within the Trinity each person has their distinctness - they own thus-ness.
We must understand this love to have any hope of understanding human love. We were made for relationship - specifically relationship which is ascetic (that is, teaches us to be other-centered and thus helps break down our own ego). Furthermore, we were made for relationships that, while having hierarchy, are so perfect in their love that the hierarchy fades to the background and we see functional (and true, thanks to the perfection of this love) equality. Human love can never achieve the fullness of union that the Divine Love has by essence, but we can begin to imitate it. This is what it means for us to become one with one another. Marriage is the divine sacrament in which these principles of love find fulfillment as an icon of the Divine Love. This principle does not have any direct bearing on homosexuality in the Church, though it does set up the sacramental nature of marriage. As all sacraments, it is a real symbol, not an empty one. It makes manifest - makes incarnate - that which it represents. At its best, marriage makes the Trinity accessible to the world.
There is another divine relationship, however, to which marriage is also an icon: that of Christ to His Church. Ephesians directly relates that to marriage. We have, as prophecy, the words in Genesis that speak of a man leaving His father (in heaven) and His mother (on earth) to join with His wife that the two may become one flesh. This certainly speaks of earthly marriage, but you can see how it prophecies and finds fulfillment in Christ.
At what point do we understand ourselves to have become one flesh with our Lord and Bridegroom? Well, He became man in the Incarnation, joining the divine and human natures so that we may participate in His divine energies. We also enter, iconically, into His death and resurrection (and thus the energies of His resurrection - His saving grace) by baptism. We recieve the grace of His forgiving hand in confession. We recieve the Spirit - even as He had it (as a man) - in our personal Pentecost: Chrismation. Chrismation makes us into "little annointed ones" - we become little Christs. Those who are ordained become icons of Christ in His role as priest, revealing in the liturgy the things of heaven, serving the faithful as Christ served His disciples.
The fullness of our oneness with Christ, however, in this lifetime, is fulfilled in the eucharist. This is the eros love of this wedding between Christ and Church - the foretaste and full realization (for those who have eyes to see) of the feast of the bridegroom. Certainly we look forward to the 2nd coming, but the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand today - Christ came to save this world - and the eucharist is our full participation in that. Here, our Lord comes to us in the flesh, and we take the body of our Lord into ourselves, and we become one flesh with Him. If there is no physical union, there is no marriage (hence why we still call Mary the bride unwedded). We are Christ's bride. We are one with Him.
It is that physical-eucharistic womanhood that so clearly ties the icon of marriage to the male-female relationship for me. It's about more than leadership within a relationship (since the Christian leadership is really about self-death and service anyway). It's about our way of loving Christ (submission in voluntary love) and our way of become one with Christ physically (by recieving His body into ourself).
Marriage is, therefore, an icon of this love. Here we have the man, who is to be like Christ to His wife - so loving of her as to give the totality of his life to her benefit. He is to give her all his dreams, all his hopes. To make his life about her life. To serve and not to demand. To die to himself. This is to be done no matter what she does in return, for if we demanded that our wives reciprocated we would be hypocrites. Christ Himself has the worst bride possible - think of all the sins we commit! We must thank God that He has provided us with such a model of a husband, for we, as a bride, must be a hideous harlot and adultress, yet He dies for us.
Here also we have the woman - the one who recieves the body of her lord in that act of vulnerability and love, who embraces the totality of who he is and submits to him. That is both a physical and emotional recieving, embracing, and submitting. Here we have hierarchy, but hierarchy which, when lived out with the love that is the Divine Love, fades into non-existence and becomes perfect love.
Here is one level on which homosexuality is "wrong" (or spiritually unhealthy / not-an-icon-of-the-kingdom). Two men cannot represent Christ and the Church. The Church is uniquely feminine in its noblest sense. To take that from her is to distort the image, indeed to rob women of their womenhood. Furthermore, Christ is uniquely male (in so much that He became a boy), and though God is in essence gender neutral (by human standards) within the context of this typology, God is the male. Two males or two females distorts the image and is, therefore, not the sacrament of marriage. With no sacrament, there is to be no sex. Therefore, since the Church cannot marry two men or two women (as they don't form the correct and given icon of Christ and the Church) two men or two women ought not to have sex outside of that marriage. Since there is no communion of those having sex outside of marriage, there is no communion for those living in homosexual relationships.
Another level exists to this, though. The eucharist is not just unitive in nature. It is life producing. We have Christ born in us by the grace of the sacrament of eucharist, and by that birth we become more Christ like. In this, again, we have a woman as our model (for in so much as we are the Church, we are feminine). Mary, the Theotokos, is our model and hope. She, by the "yes" she gave to the incarnation, became one with the Holy Spirit, and by that union and at the good will of the Father, she bore the Son physically in her womb.
She BORE Christ and had Christ BORN from her. By this union, she became more Christ like. She is truly the icon of the bride of God! In this way, she is an icon of the Church.
Homosexual union cannot produce life - not naturally, anyway - but heterosexual union (generally) can. It fulfills the eucharistic Christ-Church icon to its fullest. And by giving birth to children (the prayers for which, by the way, are all over the marriage sacrament - most who see an Orthodox wedding are suprised by how much focus is paid to having children) we learn, again, to be self-sacrificing in our love. It becomes about the child, not about 'me.' This again, goes back to our understanding of Divine Love within the Trinity. Because homosexual union can never produce such a miracle, it cannot recieve the prayers of the sacrament of marriage and, once again, becomes sex outside of marriage. Remember that for the Orthodox, the prayers of the Liturgy are considered fertile ground for theology - the enshrine the tradition - if anyone doubts that the Church doesn't marry people of the same gender, read the marriage sacrament. It would make ZERO sense.
Now, what about those who cannot have children from within hetero-sexual relationships. The first point about how man-woman = Christ-Church still suffices on its own.
However, I also accept the idea of the miraculous births God accomplished for the infirtile. It fits so perfectly into this typological understanding. Who is it that produces life in us? Well, it may be explanable biologically, but ultimately it is a miracle of God. The "miraculous" births remind us of that. Keep in mind that Mary was celibate, yet was a perfect icon of marriage to God. There are celibate men and women in the Church for whom she is an icon of their life (along with John the Baptist and Christ Himself). Some marriages choose to live as brother and sister (St. John of Krondstadt did this). I think the principle is this: the marriage sacrament, if we are going to make general rules about it, cannot be between man and man or woman and woman because no possibility of producing new life exists. Because it is possible (even if unlikely) between man and woman, the church can marry them. Beyond that, it is up to God.
To put it another way, the Church, in the sacraments, is the immediate joining of this world to the New Kingdom. It is the invasion of this fallen world with that perfect one. In this sense, it is of itself a miracle that we have sacraments. They bring us into a unique state of being - into contact with Christ and His Heaven.That said, I think the iconography of the Church, as a window into Heaven, is helpful here. You'll notice that most physical infirmities are absent from icons (unless those icons depict a specific historical event, in which case they aren't so much looking at the present state of Heaven as at Heaven's [real and present] remembrance of a key event of salvation). In heaven, such products of the fall as physical ailments will be absent. Human mortality will be no more.
The Church is, therefore, eschatalogical in it's approach to the sacraments, and, in being eschatalogical it is deeply optimistic. The sacraments are acts of hope. So when we marry a man and a woman, we do so because ontologically - in an unfallen world - they'd be able to produce life from their iconically eucharistic union. That is to say, we don't take into account the failures of the fallen world when partaking of sacraments precisely because those sacraments are not the matter of the fallen world. It is precisely by refusing to allow the evil and suffering of this world to compromise, in ANY way, our actions or eschatalogical optimism, that we imitate Chirst on the cross.
In other words, we must look at the potential marriage couple from the perspective of the Kingdom (Without the lense of the fall) and see them as man and woman, capable of producing life. From that, it is up to God. The fall is indeed real, so when the sacrament is complete, perhaps there will be no children. But in our eschatalogical optimism and kingdom-oriented view we don't see them this way. By nature, man and woman can produce life together, where as people of the same gender cannot.
Hope that helps!
In Christ,
Macarius
Monday, November 17, 2008
Advent Fast Begins
I always enjoy this time of year - the fall leaves are out, and the starkness of the trees matches the mood of the feastly fast: austere, yet full of beauty.
During this fast, I'm reading Romans. I'll post my musings here, though I'll be reading only in the NKJV, so I'm not sure that some of the particulars will pan out if the text is read in the Greek.
Romans 1:1-4
Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of Holiness, by the resurrection from the dead.
The Apostle declares himself a bondservant - that is to say that he, though a leader of the Church, is merely a servant in the household of another. As Metropolitan Jonah has said, "episcopos" means "head servant" or "overseer of the slaves" - like a head butler. The Apostle confirms this - the leaders of the Church are here to serve it, not lord over it. Christ alone is Lord. They are only "dressed up" like a noble when in liturgy - and then because they are the ICON of the True Lord in Heaven. They are called, as St. Paul is called - they don't self-elect. If we nominate ourselves or self-promote, then we are full of pride. The desire to be clergy can be dangerous, if it makes us into Pharisees who desire to be the center of attention.
The Old Testament is here called "Holy Scriptures," and we are reminded that all of the Old Testament prophesies of Christ. It is to be read typologically, through the Apostolic lense of Christ's incarnation, death and resurrection. Any other reading (historical-critical, for example) is incomplete if it doesn't develop and deepen into this Apostolic / Patristic view of the Scriptures.
Jesus, the Messiah, the Anointed One of God, the Christ - this man is the Son of God and the Lord. Unless there is any doubt, St. Paul makes clear that this Son of God - the Lord (which is to say, God) - became flesh. He states "according to the flesh" and "born of the Seed of David." This indicates both that the Lord became flesh, but was also properly called the Messiah and the Christ because of His lineage from David.
We know that He is the Son of God because the Holy Spirit reveals it, both through the Holy Scriptures and the Prophets (inspired by the Holy Spirit) and through the Resurrection and its proclamation by the Apostles (St. Paul, who here declares it). No one could rise from the dead of His own accord unless He were life in Himself - that is to say, unless He were God. The Holy Spirit, revealing the Resurrected Christ, confirms Him as the Son of God and God.
Romans 1:5 - 6
Through Him we have recieved grace and apostleship for obedience to the faith among all nations for His name, among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ.
The "Him" in this case is Jesus Christ, the Son of God. This confirms that St. Paul believes Christ is God, since in verse 1 He says that he was separated to the gospel of God - and this is also called the gospel of Christ.
This calling, this grace, is "for obedience to the faith" - no bishop, nor any apostle, can alter the faith of Christ. Nothing can be added to it; nothing can be taken from it. Rather it is sealed. The tradition is Apostolic in that it is delivered to us by the Apostles, but they are obedient to Christ's revelation.
The most important part of these two verses, though, is that this obedience is "among all the nations for His name." Remembering that this letter is being written to the early community in Rome, St. Paul is affirming that the Gospel is for all humanity. "The Nations" refers to the Gentiles - the Romans and Greeks and other ethnicities present in the multi-cultural metropolis. This statement would have been radical to St. Paul's Judaizing opponents, whom he has in mind throughout this letter (indeed, the letter seems half addressed to them).
The Romans, in their entirety - both Jews and Greeks - are called as part of this obedience to the faith among the nations. There is no distinction between them.
Romans 1:7
To all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be Saints
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ
Those in Rome are beloved by God and called to be Saints (that is, called to be holy and set apart for God). This is one of the few points in scripture where the word "saint" carries the meaning we use it with today. Called to be saints can be seen as implying that they are not yet saints, but rather are in the process of becoming saints.
This is part of the "already, but not yet" sense of the Kingdom. It is at hand, and in so much as we are in Christ we are saints. Our baptism and the eucharist effect sainthood in us by clothing us in Christ and filling us with Christ, and our repentance unites us to Christ's holiness. However, we should never pretend that this process is complete so long as one ounce of sin remains in us. We are to be slaves of Christ's, and obedient slaves do nothing outside the commandments of their masters. Such should we be. In so much as we sin, we remain "called to be saints" - exhorted by their example (and first by the example of Christ), but aware that we remain outside the Gates of the Kingdom and must knock in humility in order to enter.
Here again we see the co-equality of the Father and Son. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is said to give grace and peace on the same level as the Father. Indeed, it would an insult (from an Arian, Judaic, or Muslim point of view) for ANYONE'S name to be included alongside God's in this way, unless that person were God. Therefore, St. Paul cannot be a Muslim, nor a Jew (in the modern sense) nor an Arian, since he boldly (and by the inspiration of the Spirit) places Christ's name adjacent to the Father, and even calls Jesus "Lord" in this context. Within the first 7 verses of Romans, Paul reveals himself as "trinitarian" (Christ, the Son of the Father, revealed by the Holy Spirit; is coequal to the Father) and "incarnational" (the Son of God, who is God, became flesh). The Nicene Council invented nothing, but remained true to the teachings of the Apostles. In so much as we adhere to that Tradition, we adhere to the teachings of the Apostles, and by them, the teachings of Christ.
Romans 1:8-9
First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world. For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of His Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers...
God is thanked through Jesus Christ because only in the Eucharistic sacrifice of Christ can we have access to God in order to thank Him. Jesus Christ bridges the gap between man and God in the Incarnation and on the Cross (whereby He conquered death, the last barrier between God and man). Herein also is the gospel called "of His Son" (Jesus Christ), confirming what was implied in verses 1 through 5. Paul was called by the Gospel of God, which is the Gospel of the Son of God, which implies that the Son of God is God.
St. Paul prays continuously, setting an example for us. Prayer is not requesting stuff from God. Prayer is the means by which we open our hearts / minds / souls / "nous" to God. It is the act of being present to the presence of God, not in awareness, but in communion. Praying continuously is, therefore, nothing short of what it means to be saved, since if we truly prayed continuously, we would be (necessarily) filled with the presence of God and in full communion with God. This is theosis.
More to come in subsequent days, or perhaps latter tonight. My hands are tired. I'm most excited about getting into the later chapters of Romans.
Forgive me,
Macarius
During this fast, I'm reading Romans. I'll post my musings here, though I'll be reading only in the NKJV, so I'm not sure that some of the particulars will pan out if the text is read in the Greek.
Romans 1:1-4
Paul, a bondservant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, separated to the gospel of God which He promised before through His prophets in the Holy Scriptures, concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of Holiness, by the resurrection from the dead.
The Apostle declares himself a bondservant - that is to say that he, though a leader of the Church, is merely a servant in the household of another. As Metropolitan Jonah has said, "episcopos" means "head servant" or "overseer of the slaves" - like a head butler. The Apostle confirms this - the leaders of the Church are here to serve it, not lord over it. Christ alone is Lord. They are only "dressed up" like a noble when in liturgy - and then because they are the ICON of the True Lord in Heaven. They are called, as St. Paul is called - they don't self-elect. If we nominate ourselves or self-promote, then we are full of pride. The desire to be clergy can be dangerous, if it makes us into Pharisees who desire to be the center of attention.
The Old Testament is here called "Holy Scriptures," and we are reminded that all of the Old Testament prophesies of Christ. It is to be read typologically, through the Apostolic lense of Christ's incarnation, death and resurrection. Any other reading (historical-critical, for example) is incomplete if it doesn't develop and deepen into this Apostolic / Patristic view of the Scriptures.
Jesus, the Messiah, the Anointed One of God, the Christ - this man is the Son of God and the Lord. Unless there is any doubt, St. Paul makes clear that this Son of God - the Lord (which is to say, God) - became flesh. He states "according to the flesh" and "born of the Seed of David." This indicates both that the Lord became flesh, but was also properly called the Messiah and the Christ because of His lineage from David.
We know that He is the Son of God because the Holy Spirit reveals it, both through the Holy Scriptures and the Prophets (inspired by the Holy Spirit) and through the Resurrection and its proclamation by the Apostles (St. Paul, who here declares it). No one could rise from the dead of His own accord unless He were life in Himself - that is to say, unless He were God. The Holy Spirit, revealing the Resurrected Christ, confirms Him as the Son of God and God.
Romans 1:5 - 6
Through Him we have recieved grace and apostleship for obedience to the faith among all nations for His name, among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ.
The "Him" in this case is Jesus Christ, the Son of God. This confirms that St. Paul believes Christ is God, since in verse 1 He says that he was separated to the gospel of God - and this is also called the gospel of Christ.
This calling, this grace, is "for obedience to the faith" - no bishop, nor any apostle, can alter the faith of Christ. Nothing can be added to it; nothing can be taken from it. Rather it is sealed. The tradition is Apostolic in that it is delivered to us by the Apostles, but they are obedient to Christ's revelation.
The most important part of these two verses, though, is that this obedience is "among all the nations for His name." Remembering that this letter is being written to the early community in Rome, St. Paul is affirming that the Gospel is for all humanity. "The Nations" refers to the Gentiles - the Romans and Greeks and other ethnicities present in the multi-cultural metropolis. This statement would have been radical to St. Paul's Judaizing opponents, whom he has in mind throughout this letter (indeed, the letter seems half addressed to them).
The Romans, in their entirety - both Jews and Greeks - are called as part of this obedience to the faith among the nations. There is no distinction between them.
Romans 1:7
To all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be Saints
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ
Those in Rome are beloved by God and called to be Saints (that is, called to be holy and set apart for God). This is one of the few points in scripture where the word "saint" carries the meaning we use it with today. Called to be saints can be seen as implying that they are not yet saints, but rather are in the process of becoming saints.
This is part of the "already, but not yet" sense of the Kingdom. It is at hand, and in so much as we are in Christ we are saints. Our baptism and the eucharist effect sainthood in us by clothing us in Christ and filling us with Christ, and our repentance unites us to Christ's holiness. However, we should never pretend that this process is complete so long as one ounce of sin remains in us. We are to be slaves of Christ's, and obedient slaves do nothing outside the commandments of their masters. Such should we be. In so much as we sin, we remain "called to be saints" - exhorted by their example (and first by the example of Christ), but aware that we remain outside the Gates of the Kingdom and must knock in humility in order to enter.
Here again we see the co-equality of the Father and Son. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is said to give grace and peace on the same level as the Father. Indeed, it would an insult (from an Arian, Judaic, or Muslim point of view) for ANYONE'S name to be included alongside God's in this way, unless that person were God. Therefore, St. Paul cannot be a Muslim, nor a Jew (in the modern sense) nor an Arian, since he boldly (and by the inspiration of the Spirit) places Christ's name adjacent to the Father, and even calls Jesus "Lord" in this context. Within the first 7 verses of Romans, Paul reveals himself as "trinitarian" (Christ, the Son of the Father, revealed by the Holy Spirit; is coequal to the Father) and "incarnational" (the Son of God, who is God, became flesh). The Nicene Council invented nothing, but remained true to the teachings of the Apostles. In so much as we adhere to that Tradition, we adhere to the teachings of the Apostles, and by them, the teachings of Christ.
Romans 1:8-9
First, I thank my God through Jesus Christ for you all, that your faith is spoken of throughout the whole world. For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel of His Son, that without ceasing I make mention of you always in my prayers...
God is thanked through Jesus Christ because only in the Eucharistic sacrifice of Christ can we have access to God in order to thank Him. Jesus Christ bridges the gap between man and God in the Incarnation and on the Cross (whereby He conquered death, the last barrier between God and man). Herein also is the gospel called "of His Son" (Jesus Christ), confirming what was implied in verses 1 through 5. Paul was called by the Gospel of God, which is the Gospel of the Son of God, which implies that the Son of God is God.
St. Paul prays continuously, setting an example for us. Prayer is not requesting stuff from God. Prayer is the means by which we open our hearts / minds / souls / "nous" to God. It is the act of being present to the presence of God, not in awareness, but in communion. Praying continuously is, therefore, nothing short of what it means to be saved, since if we truly prayed continuously, we would be (necessarily) filled with the presence of God and in full communion with God. This is theosis.
More to come in subsequent days, or perhaps latter tonight. My hands are tired. I'm most excited about getting into the later chapters of Romans.
Forgive me,
Macarius
Friday, November 14, 2008
From the Baghavad Gita
World Religions remains one of my favorite subjects of all time, for several reasons. First, I'm an academic at heart and I love studying and learning - God's world is fascinating and I want to experience all of it. Second, and more importantly, we as Orthodox profess that God IS Truth. This means that anywhere you find Truth you've found God, and that any seeker of the Truth is, ultimately, a seeker of Christ and a fellow companion on that journey. That shouldn't stop us from proclaiming the fullness of the Truth in Orthodoxy, but neither should we fear the words of other religions, so long as we think critically about what we are reading.
I was reading the Baghavad Gita, which, aside from some of its metaphysical claims (about reincarnation and the nature of deities), is a remarkably Orthodox text about what it means to be a spiritual human being, and I ran across this passage. I struck me how aptly this describes the ideal of an Orthodox ascetic, and with the fast approaching it seemed appropriate. I've "translated" (interpreted) a few words to make it more accessible to a Christian reader. Those appear in paranthesis.
From the Second Canto, line (shokta) 54 - 72:
Arjuna asked: "Who is the man of dispassion, Krishna? Who is steady in devotion? How does he speak, rest, walk?"
Krishna answered: "He has shed desire; he is content in the soul, by the soul. He is steady. He endures sorrow. He does not chase pleasure. Attachment, anger and fear do not touch him. He is not selfish.
He does not rejoice in prosperity. He is not saddened by want. He can recall his senses from their objects as the tortoise pulls in its head. He is serene.
Objects scatter away from the good but lazy man, but desire remains. In the perfect state, however, desire also goes. Yes, it is true that the violent senses rock the reason of the wisest man, but the steadfast man thinks of (God), and commands his desires. His mind is stable, because his desires are subdued.
Meditation on objects breeds attachment; from attachment springs covetousness; and covetousness breeds anger. Anger leads to confusion, and confusion kills discernment; discernment gone, choice is rendered impossible; and when moral choice fails, man is doomed.
But a person who is established in firmness, free from pleasure and repugnance, traversing experience with his senses restrained -- such a person finds tranquility. When tranquility comes, sorrow goes; a person whose wisdom is tranquil is truly stable.
The wavering person does not grow. Without growth, there is no peace; without peace there is no bliss.
The mind is swayed by the senses; they destroy discernment, as a storm sinks boats on a lake. Only that man can be described as stead whose feelings are detached from their objects. What is night to others is daylight to the restrained man; and when dawn comes to others, night comes to the perceiving sage.
The ocean, deep and silent, absorbs a thousand waters. The saint absorbs a thousand desires, and finds peace -- which the satisfier of the senses cannot.
Undistracted, passionless, egoless - he finds peace.
Peace is to be in (God), Arjuna, to suffer no more delusion. In peace is eternal unity with (God), the peace of enlightenment."
Hope you find that as much of an exortation as I did.
In Christ,
Macarius
I was reading the Baghavad Gita, which, aside from some of its metaphysical claims (about reincarnation and the nature of deities), is a remarkably Orthodox text about what it means to be a spiritual human being, and I ran across this passage. I struck me how aptly this describes the ideal of an Orthodox ascetic, and with the fast approaching it seemed appropriate. I've "translated" (interpreted) a few words to make it more accessible to a Christian reader. Those appear in paranthesis.
From the Second Canto, line (shokta) 54 - 72:
Arjuna asked: "Who is the man of dispassion, Krishna? Who is steady in devotion? How does he speak, rest, walk?"
Krishna answered: "He has shed desire; he is content in the soul, by the soul. He is steady. He endures sorrow. He does not chase pleasure. Attachment, anger and fear do not touch him. He is not selfish.
He does not rejoice in prosperity. He is not saddened by want. He can recall his senses from their objects as the tortoise pulls in its head. He is serene.
Objects scatter away from the good but lazy man, but desire remains. In the perfect state, however, desire also goes. Yes, it is true that the violent senses rock the reason of the wisest man, but the steadfast man thinks of (God), and commands his desires. His mind is stable, because his desires are subdued.
Meditation on objects breeds attachment; from attachment springs covetousness; and covetousness breeds anger. Anger leads to confusion, and confusion kills discernment; discernment gone, choice is rendered impossible; and when moral choice fails, man is doomed.
But a person who is established in firmness, free from pleasure and repugnance, traversing experience with his senses restrained -- such a person finds tranquility. When tranquility comes, sorrow goes; a person whose wisdom is tranquil is truly stable.
The wavering person does not grow. Without growth, there is no peace; without peace there is no bliss.
The mind is swayed by the senses; they destroy discernment, as a storm sinks boats on a lake. Only that man can be described as stead whose feelings are detached from their objects. What is night to others is daylight to the restrained man; and when dawn comes to others, night comes to the perceiving sage.
The ocean, deep and silent, absorbs a thousand waters. The saint absorbs a thousand desires, and finds peace -- which the satisfier of the senses cannot.
Undistracted, passionless, egoless - he finds peace.
Peace is to be in (God), Arjuna, to suffer no more delusion. In peace is eternal unity with (God), the peace of enlightenment."
Hope you find that as much of an exortation as I did.
In Christ,
Macarius
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Bishop Jonah elected Metropolitan
Incredible.
Fr. (Bi! MP!!) Jonah is my spiritual father. He gave the homily at my wedding. He catechized me and baptized me in the waters near Point Reyes. It was his gift of discernment that helped me find the blessedness of marriage - it was he who directed me away from the monastic life. He is a genuine father to me, and a dear friend.
I cannot believe that he is Metropolitan. The man is so young! It thrills me to think that he could be Metropolitan for 40 years. I've heard him rail against the disunity of American Christianity; I've had the privelege of hearing him give several homilies on the patristic vision of the spiritual life... He's a mystic, a genuine Orthodox Christian in the ancient tradition.
I am sad to be losing him - he is still my father, but he will be so busy that I can't imagine bringing simple requests about changes in my fasting obediences to the Metropolitan...
But I cannot think of anyone better. Anyone. He's American (Californian), a convert (like a significant portion of the active Orthodox Christians in this country), a missionary, and an eloquent teacher. He's a BUILDER. Look at what he has built - he's served and started mission parishes and a very successful monastery. We need that.
Praised be to God! Many years to the new Metropolitan. Many, many years. I hope he still stops by the other diocese occassionally so I can at least give him a hug.
Check out the OCA website for some of his homilies from the council. The one he gave BEFORE the election is probably what got him elected, and is so powerful... It's rare to hear someone declare simple, unadulterated truth and to call us to action on that TRUTH.
Many years, Mp. Jonah!
In Christ,
Macarius
Fr. (Bi! MP!!) Jonah is my spiritual father. He gave the homily at my wedding. He catechized me and baptized me in the waters near Point Reyes. It was his gift of discernment that helped me find the blessedness of marriage - it was he who directed me away from the monastic life. He is a genuine father to me, and a dear friend.
I cannot believe that he is Metropolitan. The man is so young! It thrills me to think that he could be Metropolitan for 40 years. I've heard him rail against the disunity of American Christianity; I've had the privelege of hearing him give several homilies on the patristic vision of the spiritual life... He's a mystic, a genuine Orthodox Christian in the ancient tradition.
I am sad to be losing him - he is still my father, but he will be so busy that I can't imagine bringing simple requests about changes in my fasting obediences to the Metropolitan...
But I cannot think of anyone better. Anyone. He's American (Californian), a convert (like a significant portion of the active Orthodox Christians in this country), a missionary, and an eloquent teacher. He's a BUILDER. Look at what he has built - he's served and started mission parishes and a very successful monastery. We need that.
Praised be to God! Many years to the new Metropolitan. Many, many years. I hope he still stops by the other diocese occassionally so I can at least give him a hug.
Check out the OCA website for some of his homilies from the council. The one he gave BEFORE the election is probably what got him elected, and is so powerful... It's rare to hear someone declare simple, unadulterated truth and to call us to action on that TRUTH.
Many years, Mp. Jonah!
In Christ,
Macarius
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
First Post
Hello all,
This blog is mostly for my friends (those both in real life and online), who share with me a deep love of traditional Christian theology.
I'll post reflections / ideas here, as well as use this to coordinate retreats to monasteries or during Holy Week.
I will keep very little personal info here. If you know me, you know how to contact me. I chose the name Macarius a while ago for my online identity in theological discussions. It is a name I considered at my baptism, and also considered it as a potential name if I had become a monk. It means "little warrior" (where as Mark means "warrior). It is also the name of a great monastic saint.
More to come later. Welcome to my blog :-)
In Christ,
Macarius
This blog is mostly for my friends (those both in real life and online), who share with me a deep love of traditional Christian theology.
I'll post reflections / ideas here, as well as use this to coordinate retreats to monasteries or during Holy Week.
I will keep very little personal info here. If you know me, you know how to contact me. I chose the name Macarius a while ago for my online identity in theological discussions. It is a name I considered at my baptism, and also considered it as a potential name if I had become a monk. It means "little warrior" (where as Mark means "warrior). It is also the name of a great monastic saint.
More to come later. Welcome to my blog :-)
In Christ,
Macarius
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