ROCOR Eastern Diocese pastoral conference

The interesting bit is the visit to St. Tikhon's.

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Pastoral Conference and Lenten Retreat

March 1-3, 2010 · St. John the Baptist Cathedral · Mayfield, PA

Sunday, February 28th:

6:00 PM: Check-in at Nichols Village Hotel

Monday, March 1:

9:00AM – 10:45AM – Registration and light breakfast in the parish hall

11:00AM – Moleben in St. John’s Cathedral, greeting by His Grace, Bishop George of Mayfield, and Archpriest John Sorochka; opening address of His Eminence, Metropolitan Hilarion

12:00PM – Lunch

1:15PM – Presentation by Archpriest Artemy Vladimirov: Pastoral Struggles in the 21st Century

2:30PM – “Diocesan Life: A Year in Review - 2009”

4:00PM – Free Time

4:30PM – Presentation by Deacon Andrei Psarev: 50th Anniversary of the Repose of Archbishop Vitaly (Maximenko)

5:30PM – Dinner

6:45PM – Panihida for diocesan bishops and pastors, Great Compline, evening prayers

Tuesday, March 2:

8:45AM – Arrive at St. Tikhon’s Monastery

9:00AM – Greeting of Met. Hilarion at St. Tikhon’s Church; general photo

9:30AM – Monastery tour: seminary, museum, bookstore

12:00PM – Lunch

1:15PM – Depart for St. John’s Cathedral

2:30PM – Presentation by Archpriest Artemy Vladimirov: Pastoral Struggles in the 21st Century

3:45PM – Pre-Communion Prayer Rule in St. John’s Cathedral

5:00PM – Dinner

6:15PM – Litany for the Departed, Matins, Confession

Wednesday, March 3:

8:00AM – Hours & Hierarchal Liturgy of the Pre-Sanctified Gifts

12:00PM – General photograph of conference participants

12:20 PM – Lunch in the parish hall

1:00PM – Thanksgiving moleben in the parish hall; departure

New Bible study coming from Diocese of the Midwest

CHICAGO, IL (OCAMW) - A new collection of bible studeis titled "The Living Word" is under development for the Diocesan Parish Health and Development Ministry. The collection is edited by Fr John Matusiak and is being piloted at St Joseph Orthodox Church, Wheaton, Illinois. Click here to view more about the collection.

St. Nersess Seminary hosts Met. Jonah talk

(St. Nersess Seminary) - His Beatitude Metropolitan Jonah, leader of the Orthodox Church in America, will deliver a lecture at St. Nersess Seminary on the relations between the Eastern Orthodox and the Oriental Orthodox Churches. The lecture is scheduled for Monday, March 8, 2010 at 7:30PM.

His Beatitude will also offer his own thoughts about the role of the Armenian Church in the reconciliation of the two ancient church families. The Metropolitan's talk is part of the Seminary's 2010 Public Lecture Series, entitled The Armenian Church: A Distinctive Christian Voice.

The Orthodox Church in America was established in 1794, when a small group of Russian Orthodox missionaries landed on Kodiak Island, Alaska. Today the self-governing church comprises over two million faithful, many of whom have come to the Orthodox faith from other Christian denominations.

Metropolitan Jonah was born James Paffhausen in Chicago, Illinois, where he was baptized into the Episcopal Church. He was received into the Orthodox Church in 1978 at Our Lady of Kazan Moscow Patriarchal Church, San Diego, while a student at the University of California, San Diego. After completing studies at UCSC, he attended St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary, graduating with a Master of Divinity degree in 1985 and a Master of Theology in Dogmatics in 1988. Having begun doctoral studies at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, he travelled to Russia, where he joined a Russian Orthodox monastery and was ordained a priest-monk, receiving the new name, Jonah.

Returning to the United States, Fr. Jonah served a number of missions and established several Orthodox monasteries in California and Hawaii.In the spring of 2008, the Holy Synod of the Orthodox Church in America elevated Fr. Jonah to the rank of Archimandrite. Later that year he was consecrated bishop. On Wednesday, November 12, 2008, Bishop Jonah was elected Archbishop of Washington and New York and Metropolitan of All America and Canada at the 15th All-American Council of the Orthodox Church in America, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

"In the short time since his election as head of the Orthodox Church in America, His Beatitude has shown himself to be an outspoken advocate for the full reconciliation of the Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Churches," said Fr. Daniel Findikyan, Seminary Dean, who was a classmate of the Metropolitan's at St. Vladimir's Seminary. "We are honored indeed to have His Beatitude visit St. Nersess."

The lecture is free of charge and open to the public. A reception will follow.

For further information, contact the Seminary by email or by calling (914) 636-2003. Click here to download a brochure containing the complete schedule of lectures.

Snow Day at St. Vladimir's Seminary

(SVOTS) - St Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary cancelled classes today, 2-26-10 for the second time in fifteen years. Approximately 18 inches had fallen by this morning, and snow is forecast to continue through to Saturday evening.

Fr John Behr (Dean), seen pacing the campus, was thoroughly enjoying the break. “There’s more rejoicing over one snow day than over weeks of scheduled vacation,” he observed. “It’s a wonderful to have a gratuitous break in the routine – and the campus looks beautiful.” Indeed it does!

See the beauty of the campus for yourself in the Seminary Snow Day Pictures.

Manga saints

An ode to winter, "Slow Snow"

UAOC processes in Lviv

LVIV (RISU) — On the Sunday of the Triumph of Orthodoxy, February 21, 2010, the faithful of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church organized a religious procession in the western Ukrainian city of Lviv. The procession was attended by 80 priests of the Lviv Eparchy of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church (UAOC), 5 centers of the Lviv Stauropegion Brotherhood of St. Andrew the-First-Called-Apostle, Ukrainian Cossacks, and about a thousand faithful led by Archbishop Makarii of Lviv of the UAOC.

RISU was told by the deputy head of the Lviv brotherhood, Yurii Fediv, that the event was aimed to revive ancient Eastern traditions and to pray for the health and good of the citizens.

“For the first time since 1700, when the Lviv Orthodox Eparchy accepted the union with Rome, the Orthodox community of the city conducted a religious procession with icons, relics of the great martyr and healer Panteleimon, Great Martyr Mercury, St. Anastasia of Constantinople and parts of the Holy Life-Giving Cross, and church banners along the central streets of ancient Lviv,” noted the brotherhood’s representative.

The procession was started with a public prayer in the Stauropegion Church of the Assumption of the Holy Mother of God of the UAOC. After that, the procession passed along the streets of the city. The Gospel and the Canon of Christ were read near each church on the way. The procession was met by the parishes of the Assumption of the Mother of God of the Armenian Apostolic Church, the Church of the Transfiguration of Our Lord Jesus Christ of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, and the Church of the Assumption of the Mother of God of the Roman Catholic Church. The senior priests of the mentioned parishes read the Gospel. Bishop Makarii of the UAOC expressed gratitude to the priests of the neighboring parishes for meeting the procession and the joint prayer.

The priests served a requiem service near the monument to the great poet Taras Shevchenko. The procession ended with a service in the Church of Assumption of the Mother of God of the UAOC.

Icon of Theotokos of Bethlehem to travel to Ukraine

KYIV (RISU) - According to the web site of UOC-MP, Holy Synod of the Orthodox Church of Jerusalem Replied to Request of the Head of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP), Metropolitan Volodymyr for Bringing the Icon of Theotokos of Bethlehem to Kyiv. RISU's Ukrainian-language web site posted this story on 23 February.

The official letter by Patriarch Theophilus III of Jerusalem came to the address of Metropolitan Volodymyr, which goes: "...As a sign of appreciation of the good feelings of your heart towards the Patriarchate of Jerusalem, the Holy Synod adopted a decision on bringing to Kyiv the holy Icon of Theotokos of Bethlehem that will be accompanied by the rector of the Church of St. Jacob's Well Archimandrite Justine.

27th Annual Pysanky Festival in Fort Worth

(Orthodox Beacon) - St. Barbara Orthodox Church in Southwest Ft. Worth is pleased to announce its 27th Annual Pysanky (Ukrainian Easter Egg) Festival on March 19 and 20.

The event features intricately decorated chicken, goose and ostrich eggs for sale with traditional Ukrainian motifs. Eggs are docorated by members of the Church; skilled craftsmen will be on hand to demonstrate this wonderful and ancient folk art. In addition, other Pysanky supplies, instructional books and related gift items will be available. Hours for the festival: 9 to 6 on Friday, and 9 to 5 on Saturday.

Admission is free. The Church is located at 5201 Altamesa, Ft. Worth, 76133. More information may be obtained by contacting the Church at (817) 294-0325 or by visiting the website at: www.saintbarbarafw.org.

OCA launches "Wonder" youth blog

SYOSSET, NY (OCA) - In response to a growing need for content and materials geared towards young adult and college ministry, the Orthodox Church in America's Department of Youth, Young Adult and Campus Ministries has launched a new blog, "Wonder."

The blog, accessible at www.ocawonder.com, is also of value to those who minister to this age group.

"It is our hope that this project will give our youth a 'good defense' for the tough questions and harsh realities that this world offers," said Protodeacon Joseph Matusiak, department chair. "We hope these articles will spur discussion and provide material for those engaged in campus and young adult ministry."

Every month, "Wonder" will feature four articles on a specific theme, blending theological and academic articles with practical ideas for ministry.

"Suggestions and submissions from readers are always welcome," said Mr. Andrew Boyd, a department member who co-moderates the blog. "We're hoping that the blog will generate dialogue and two-way communications.

For additional information, contact Protodeacon Joseph at jmatusiak@oca.org.

Moscow Inter-Council Presence’ Commission meets

(mospat.ru) - On 24 February 2010, the first session of the Inter-Council Presence’ Commission on Theology took place at the Moscow Patriarchate Department for external church relations. Metropolitan Philaret of Minsk and Slutsk, Patriarchal Exarch of All Belarus and chairman of the Synodal Biblical-Theological Commission chaired the session.

The Commission consists of 18 persons, including Metropolitan Hilarion, chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for external church relations, other archpastors of the Russian Orthodox Church, professors and teachers of the theological schools, clergymen and laymen.

In his introductory address Metropolitan Philaret spoke about compiling the contemporary Catechism of the Russian Orthodox Church and the efforts undertaken for the development of Biblical science. He informed the members that the presidium of the Inter-Council Presence charged the Commission on Theology to consider the following themes:

• theological comprehension of the creation of the world and man;
• correlation of science and faith;
• attitude of the Church to the various translations of the Holy Scriptures;
• publication of materials that facilitate understanding of the texts from the Holy Scriptures used in divine services.

The participants adopted the order of the Commission’s work and decided to hold seminars with theologians and experts to thoroughly consider the theme on the agenda at the Moscow and St. Petersburg Theological academies, St. Tikhon’s Orthodox Humanitarian University, and the Institute of Philosophy of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Thanks to modern communication technology, the materials will be available to all members of the commission, thus enabling their direct participation in compiling a final document.

A Byzantine sense of humor

(Boing Boing) - I've been reading the oldest joke book in existence, the Philogelos, a Byzantine book written in about 400 AD. It's full of knee slappers. The book is mostly quips from two guys, Hierocles and Philagrius, about whom little is known.

Like network television, Byzantine comedy is mostly based on the fortunes and foibles of a gallery of stock characters: the drunk, the miser, the braggart, the sex-starved woman, as well as a classic type known as the scholastikos, variously translated as "pedant," "absent-minded professor," or "egghead."

There's a great video here, in which Brit comedic legend Jim Bowen does ancient Byzantine material in a modern comedy club. (Well, it's not Oswald Patton, but Bowen's stuff is 1600 years old)

Examples:

Scholasticus meeting a friend exclaims, "Why, I heard you were dead!" The other replies, "Well, I tell you that I'm alive." "Yes," persists Scholasticus, "but the man who told me so is more truthful than you!"

More yuks on the next page

A son says to his father, "Base man! Don't you see how you have wronged me? If you had never been born and stood in the way I should have come into all my grandfather's money."

An Abderite saw a eunuch talking with a woman and asked him if she was his wife. When he replied that eunuchs can't have wives, the Abderite asked: "So is she your daughter?"

Some of the jokes are no longer unstandable as funny because of differences in customs and lifestyle. For instance there's a lot of jokes about lettuce. Byzantines loved lettuce jokes because they evidently were dirty jokes. (Maybe they associated the way lettuce looks with parts of the human anatomy?)

An intellectual was eating dinner with his father. On the table was a large lettuce with many succulent shoots. The intellectual suggested: "Father, you eat the children; I'll take mother."

The monks of St. Tikhon's Monastery

H/T: Opuscula Theologica

West Coast bishops hold annual meeting

Met. Jonah speaks to St. Tikhon's seminarians

AOI has a series of video clips up of Metropolitan Jonah's Lenten lecture at St. Tikhon's Seminary this year. The rest of the videos can be found here.

Fr. James Coles, thrasher

H/T: Scholé

Archbishop Karim speaking at St. Nersess Seminary

(SNAS) - His Eminence Mor Cyril Aphrem Karim, Patriarchal Vicar of the Syrian Orthodox Church of the Eastern United States, will speak at the Seminary this Monday, February 22, 2010. His topic will be the place of the Armenian Church within the Oriental Orthodox Churches.

Mor Cyril's presentation is part of the Seminary's 2009-2010 Public Lecture Series entitled, The Armenian Church: A Distinctive Christian Voice.

Gifted Church Leader

Born in Kamishly, Syria, His Eminence was appointed as leader of the Syrian Orthodox Church in the Eastern United States on March 3, 1996. In addition to seminary studies in Lebanon and Syria, the Archbishop has advanced theological degrees from the Coptic Theological Seminary in Cairo, Egypt and St. Patrick's College in Maynooth, Ireland. During his years as hierarch of the Archdiocese, Mor Cyril has overseen the establishment of of ten new churches. He has also made extraordinary efforts to minister to the youth, meeting with them often in retreats and conferences.

Over the past decade, Archbishop Cyril has also distinguished himself as an ecumenist very much concerned about Christian unity. He has served on both the Executive and Central Committees of the World Council of Churches. Moreover, he has been an active member of the Executive and Governing Boards of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA and serves as a Vice Chairman of the Standing Conference of Oriental Orthodox Churches in America. In recent years he has been instrumental in the establishment of Christian Churches Together in the USA, a new and promising ecumenical body.

Sister Churches

The Syrian Orthodox Church and the Armenian Church are sister churches. Together with the Coptic Orthodox, Ethiopian Orthodox and Malankara Indian Orthodox Churches, they comprise a family of ancient eastern churches known as the Oriental Orthodox Churches. "These five churches are in full sacramental communion," says Fr. Daniel Findikyan, Dean of St. Nersess. "This means that although we are each autonomous, we have the closest possible relationship among Christian churches. Faithful from one church may receive Holy Communion and other sacraments freely in other churches of the family."

Shared History

Historically, Armenians and Syrian Orthodox have lived as neighbors in Asia Minor and the Middle East for milennia. Sadly, this common history included Genocide. Syrian Orthodox were massacred alongside Armenians during the years surrounding the turn of the twentieth century.

In cities like Edessa (Urfa) and Dikranakert, they often inter-married. As a result, it is not uncommon to encounter Armenian speakers in Syrian Orthodox churches and communities.

Archbishop Karim is a dynamic church leader who plays an active role in the ecumenical movement, not only in the United States, but throughout the world.

"As we explore the particular message and mission of the Armenian Church in this year's lecture series, we wanted also to hear the perspective of our closest sister church," said Fr. Findikyan. "We are delighted that Sayidna Karim accepted our invitation."

Free Lecture is Open to the Public

Monday night's lecture will take place at 7:30PM at the Seminary. A reception will follow.

The lecture series has been subsidized by the Edward and Anita Essayan Educational Fund of St. Nersess Armenian Seminary.

The art of Russian bell-making

(RT) - The trick to making a perfect bell is in the ingredients, such as clay, horse manure and cow hair. However, one has to know the proportions, which bell-makers will not disclose to a stranger at any cost.

At more than a thousand degrees centigrade it is hard to imagine how molten metal will transform into an exquisite and world-class instrument. Each has an individual shape, and for each new bell, the whole process starts from scratch.

What makes them so special is the voice – unique for each and every bell.

“We can influence the main tone, but there are different timbres that make it sound special,” says Nikolay Shuvalov.

“I don’t even know what influences this. Perhaps it’s the mood of the molder and the caster that matter. I also noticed that humidity, and even the moon phase affect the sound,” says Nikolay, explaining the nuances of his art.

It is that special sound that has made Nikolay Shuvalov's small bell foundry in the Yaroslavl region in Central Russia a lucrative operation. Originally, he cast small bells in his backyard. Nikolay says they sounded like old buckets, but luckily his early failures did not discourage him.

“It was my curiosity, in addition to my ear for music, which is absolutely indispensable, and some education, including in physics, chemistry, theory of strength of materials, mathematics and even, to a certain extent, economics.”

It is not all down to science, however. In order to truly perfect the process, Nikolay and his team employ some old world technology that may be considered a bit strange by modern standards.

“I won’t mention all the ingredients. In general, it’s our local clay, sand, and different supplements as horse manure, cow hair and others. It’s vital that everything is used in the right proportions,” points out bell designer Anatoly Rodinsky. “Otherwise, ‘the porridge could be spoiled with butter’.”

The molds where the bells are cast are made entirely by hand, but also using a combination of exact science and ancient artistry. And it is this careful attention to detail and expert craftsmanship that make these bells in demand all around the world.

“Our main clients consist of Orthodox churches in Russia, the former Soviet Union states and such Orthodox countries like Serbia, Greece, Finland, Slovakia, also Germany. Recently we began to supply our bells to the US,” says Nikolay Shuvalov.

It takes about two months to make a three-ton bell, with many people take part in the process: designers, molders and casters. So the final quality depends on everybody’s work. Quality work that everyone involved can take pride in.

St. Paisius Orthodox Monastery in Arizona

From Again & Again...

When one mentions Orthodox monasteries in Arizona, the Greeks comes to mind. But, for those of you who didn’t know, there is also a Serbian one. St. Paisius Orthodox Monastery is a women’s coenobitic community which follows the traditional rule of monastic life. The monastery was founded in 1993, and is dedicated to St. Paisius Velichkovsky, who dedicated his life to collecting and translating the texts of the Philokalia as a means of preserving the teachings of the Holy Fathers on the hesychastic way of life. The sisterhood is currently comprised of about twenty sisters. The Holy Liturgy is served daily in the monastery, and the daily cycle of services is conducted primarily in English. To support themselves, the sisters publish spiritual texts, make prayer ropes, and offer to over 1000 guests who visit the monastery each year a fully stocked bookstore. They also labor in cultivating the earth and tending the monastery’s flock of purebred milk goats and other animals in order to be as self-sufficient as possible. Since 1995, the sisterhood has welcomed teenage girls who wish to live and study at the monastery. The monastery home school is dedicated to the Protection of the Theotokos. The sisters tutor the girls in their studies and offer supplementary classes. Some of the students have chosen to remain as nuns in the monastery, while others have married and started their own families.

Situated in the High Sonoran Desert at the base of Mount Graham, the monastery is in the process of building to meet the growing needs of the monastic community and the faithful who visit. This includes plans to build a church, a trapeza (or dining hall) and kitchen, and then continue with a full monastery enclosure. An Orthodox cemetery was established in 2004 for the faithful.

The above is from their My Space page (here). Judging by the picture here, however, it seems as though considerable progress has been made with building plans.

Religion & Ethics Newsweekly covers the Lenten Fast

(RENews) - In general, the purpose of fasting is preparation for an important event that takes place at the end of the fast, and this is true not only of Great Lent, but of the other fasting periods as well.

The very cause of the fall of man was an act of disobedient eating.

Fasting is voluntary, but it’s expected unless you’re physically unable to. What I hope to achieve is weakening myself physically so that it’s easier for me to remember that I depend for my very existence and for my daily sustenance on my Creator. I want to deemphasize the day-to-day material world and to emphasize spirituality.

There’s a strict fast, which means abstain from everything for, obviously, short periods of time, and this applies to the preparation for every Holy Communion.

The basic fast is abstain from meat, and meat includes fish with backbone, dairy products, animal byproducts, oil, and wine.

It affects my daily life, there’s no question. When you reduce the amount of food you’re eating, and your blood sugar drops, and you become a little bit lightheaded, you are very much prone to lower concentration.

There is a spiritual and a physical dimension to the fast. It doesn’t do you any good to not have the kinds of food that are prohibited and forgo the period of introspection and deep contemplation of your own spiritual state.

Theosis is what happens to those who run the earthly course successfully and are given their salvation at the end of this life. Fasting plays a role in theosis. It is the process by which we are perfected and made divine. We all become little “anointed ones,” little Christs.

WCC establishes Council of Christian Church Leaders of Iraq

(WCC) - "With great hope and deep satisfaction" the World Council of Churches (WCC) has welcomed the news that a Council of Christian Church Leaders of Iraq has been established.

"In our view, it is a development that augurs as much for the future of the churches in Iraq as it does for Iraq as a nation," the WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit wrote in an 18 February congratulatory message to the members of the new body.

The council includes all patriarchs, archbishops, bishops and heads of churches in Iraq from the 14 Christian communities registered in Iraq since 1982, belonging to the Catholic, Eastern and Oriental Orthodox as well as Protestant traditions.

The aim of the new council, according to its bylaws, is "to unite the opinion, position and decision of the churches in Iraq" on issues related to the churches and the state.

The council intends to do so "upholding and strengthening the Christian presence, promoting cooperation and joint action without interfering in private matters of the churches or their related entities".

In a press release announcing the creation of the new council, the founders highlighted the importance of Christian education and of dialogue with the Muslim community in order to "promote the acceptance of the other".

"Iraqi Christians have never viewed themselves as simply a minority community who stand for their own interests. They have always shown their deep rootedness in the history and civilization of Iraq," Tveit wrote in his message to the founders of the council.

The WCC general secretary congratulated them "for formulating a vision that is unequivocally committed to the advancement of all Iraqi citizens. From this standpoint, the council’s plan to engage in promoting ecumenical initiatives and dialogue and partnership with Muslims is an essential assertion."

The WCC letter also expresses the solidarity of churches all over the world with the Iraqi Christians: "We commit ourselves as a fellowship of churches from around the world to accompany you in the arduous tasks that face the Iraqi churches in the rebuilding of your nation."

The formation of the council of church leaders comes at a time when sectarian violence, including many deadly attacks on Christian citizens and churches, continues to be a major problem in Iraq and is forcing many members of religious minorities to flee their homes.

The representatives of the 14 churches that founded the council at a 9 February meeting in Baghdad unanimously elected Archbishop Dr Avak Asadourian of the Armenian Orthodox Church in Iraq as general secretary (pictured above right). Archbishop Basilius Guirgis al-Qass Moussa of the Syrian Catholic Church was elected deputy general secretary.

At a February 2009 meeting in Lebanon co-organized by the WCC, Iraqi church leaders had "pledged to work together on establishing an ecumenical forum for all Iraqi church leaders that allows them to speak with a common voice to religious and political authorities inside and outside of Iraq."

Ecumenical Patriarch promulgates encyclical

(Ecumenical Patriarchate) - Our most holy Orthodox Church today commemorates its own feast day, and – from this historical and martyric See of the Ecumenical Patriarchate – the Mother Church of Constantinople directs its blessing, love and concern to all of its faithful and dedicated spiritual children throughout the world, inviting them to concelebrate in prayer.

Blessed be the name of the Lord! Those who endeavored over the ages to suppress the Church through various visible and invisible persecutions; those who sought to falsify the Church with their heretical teachings; those who wanted to silence the Church, depriving it of its voice and witness; they all proved unsuccessful. The clouds of Martyrs, the tears of the Ascetics, and the prayers of the Saints protect the Church spiritually, while the Comforter and Spirit of Truth leads it to the fullness of truth.

With a sense of duty and responsibility, despite its hurdles and problems, as the First-Throne Church of Orthodoxy, the Ecumenical Patriarchate cares about protecting and establishing the unity of the Orthodox Church, in order that with one voice and in one heart we may confess the Orthodox faith of our Fathers in every age and even in our times. For, Orthodoxy is not a museum treasure that must be preserved; it is a breath of life that must be transmitted and invigorate all people. Orthodoxy is always contemporary, so long as we promote it with humility and interpret it in light of the existential quests and needs of humanity in each historical period and cultural circumstance.

To this purpose, Orthodoxy must be in constant dialogue with the world. The Orthodox Church does not fear dialogue because truth is not afraid of dialogue. On the contrary, if Orthodoxy is enclosed within itself and not in dialogue with those outside, it will both fail in its mission and no longer be the “catholic” and “ecumenical” Church. Instead, it will become an introverted and self-contained group, a “ghetto” on the margins of history. This is why the great Fathers of the Church never feared dialogue with the spiritual culture of their age – indeed even with the pagan idolaters and philosophers of their world – thereby influencing and transforming the civilization of their time and offering us a truly ecumenical Church.

Today, Orthodoxy is called to continue this dialogue with the outside world in order to provide a witness and the life-giving breath of its faith. However, this dialogue cannot reach the outside world unless it first passes through all those that bear the Christian name. Thus, we must first converse as Christians among ourselves in order to resolve our differences, in order that our witness to the outside world may be credible. Our endeavors for the union of all Christians is the will and command of our Lord, who before His Passion prayed to His Father “that all [namely, His disciples] may be one, so that the world may believe that You sent me.” (John 17.21) It is not possible for the Lord to agonize over the unity of His disciples and for us to remain indifferent about the unity of all Christians. This would constitute criminal betrayal and transgression of His divine commandment.

It is precisely for these reasons that, with the mutual agreement and participation of all local Orthodox Churches, the Ecumenical Patriarchate has for many decades conducted official Panorthodox theological dialogues with the larger Christian Churches and Confessions. The aim of these dialogues is, in a spirit of love, to discuss whatever divides Christians both in terms of faith as well as in terms of the organization and life of the Church.

These dialogues, together with every effort for peaceful and fraternal relations of the Orthodox Church with other Christians, are unfortunately challenged today in an unacceptably fanatical way – at least by the standards of a genuinely Orthodox ethos – by certain circles that exclusively claim for themselves the title of zealot and defender of Orthodoxy. As if all the Patriarchs and Sacred Synods of the Orthodox Churches throughout the world, who unanimously decided on and continue to support these dialogues, were not Orthodox. Yet, these opponents of every effort for the restoration of unity among Christians raise themselves above Episcopal Synods of the Church to the dangerous point of creating schisms within the Church.

In their polemical argumentation, these critics of the restoration of unity among Christians do not even hesitate to distort reality in order to deceive and arouse the faithful. Thus, they are silent about the fact that theological dialogues are conducted by unanimous decision of all Orthodox Churches, instead attacking the Ecumenical Patriarchate alone. They disseminate false rumors that union between the Roman Catholic and Orthodox Churches is imminent, while they know well that the differences discussed in these theological dialogues remain numerous and require lengthy debate; moreover, union is not decided by theological commissions but by Church Synods. They assert that the Pope will supposedly subjugate the Orthodox, because they latter submit to dialogue with the Roman Catholics! They condemn those who conduct these dialogues as allegedly “heretics” and “traitors” of Orthodoxy, purely and simply because they converse with non-Orthodox, with whom they share the treasure and truth of our Orthodox faith. They speak condescendingly of every effort for reconciliation among divided Christians and restoration of their unity as purportedly being “the pan-heresy of ecumenism” without providing the slightest evidence that, in its contacts with non-Orthodox, the Orthodox Church has abandoned or denied the doctrines of the Ecumenical Councils and of the Church Fathers.

Beloved children in the Lord, Orthodoxy has no need of either fanaticism or bigotry to protect itself. Whoever believes that Orthodoxy has the truth does not fear dialogue, because truth has never been endangered by dialogue. By contrast, when in our day all people strive to resolve their differences through dialogue, Orthodoxy cannot proceed with intolerance and extremism. You should have utmost confidence in your Mother Church. For the Mother Church has over the ages preserved and transmitted Orthodoxy even to other nations. And today, the Mother Church is struggling amid difficult circumstances to maintain Orthodoxy vibrant and venerable throughout the world.

From the Ecumenical Patriarchate, this sacred Center of Orthodoxy, we embrace all of you lovingly and bless you paternally, praying that you may journey in health through the holy period of contrition and asceticism known as Holy and Great Lent in order that you may become worthy of celebrating the pure Passion and glorious Resurrection of our Savior Lord with all faithful Orthodox Christians throughout the world.

Sunday of Orthodoxy 2010

+ Bartholomew of Constantinople

Fervent supplicant to God for all

We interrupt your regularly scheduled programming ...

... to say how much I love the Olympics.

USA's gold medallist Lindsey Vonn poses for photographers in the finish area during the Women's downhill event on February 17, 2010. (FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP/Getty Images)

'I'd rather be a virgin martyr than marry you.'

TROUGHWOOD, New York (Onion Dome) - St. Vladyka's Press has released a new book, Dumped But Dispassionate: Orthodox Men Recovering From Rejection, a spiritual advice book on how to recover from the loss of being told to take a hike by lovely Orthodox women. The book encourages men to have unwavering faith in God, try to learn from the experience, and resist the urge to shout "IS OUTRAGE! I WANT TO BE ENGAGED!"

The book includes dumping diaries, in which men relate how, exactly, their sweeties gave them the boot. Here are some of the things they said:

"I'd rather be a virgin martyr than marry you."

"You and I together make as much sense as a Lenten cheesecake."

"Our relationship has me so depressed I'm inhaling incense."

"You said that you share my love of Orthodox music, but all you can sing is ninth tone."

"Go to the outer darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth!"

"Send me postcards from Athos."

"If you don't leave me alone, I'll make you like Origen. I've got an oyster shell and I'm not afraid to use it!"

"The way you look at me makes me want a full-body headscarf."

"I kissed you on February 14th because it was Forgiveness Sunday, not because I'm your Valentine. Get over it!"

"The lives of saints tell of Fools for Christ, but you're just a Fool for Everything."

"You'd be cute in a klobuk."

"I do love you, but it's just agape now."

Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts

SCOBA speaks on path to "canonical order and unity"

(SCOBA) - Now to Him Who by the power at work within us is able
to do far more abundantly than all that we can ask or think,
to Him be glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, for ever and ever. Amen. (Eph. 3:20-21).

February 21, 2010
The Feast of the Sunday of Orthodoxy


The Hierarchs of the Standing Conference
of the Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas

To all the Clergy and the Laity of the Holy Orthodox Churches in the Americas

Beloved Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

We, the Hierarchs of the Standing Conference of the Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas, greet you on the Feast of the Sunday of Orthodoxy with words of the Holy Apostle Paul that were selected by the Primates of the worldwide Orthodox Church to close their Message proclaimed on October 12, 2008. Indeed, we glory in our God whose love for us exceeds every thought or imagining that could enter our minds or hearts. As the Apostle Paul says in another place: Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him (I Cor. 2:9).

In the historic Synaxis and in the Message that was declared by it, the Primates of worldwide Orthodox Christianity proclaimed the following with one voice and one heart:

As the Primates and the Representatives of the Most Holy Orthodox Churches, fully aware of the gravity of the aforementioned problems, and laboring to confront them directly as "servants of Christ and stewards of God's mysteries" (1 Cor. 4:1), we proclaim from this See of the First-throne among the Churches and we re-affirm: ... our desire for the swift healing of every canonical anomaly that has arisen from historical circumstances and pastoral requirements, such as in the so-called Orthodox Diaspora, with a view to overcoming every possible influence that is foreign to Orthodox ecclesiology. In this respect we welcome the proposal by the Ecumenical Patriarchate to convene Pan-Orthodox Consultations within the coming year 2009 on this subject, as well as for the continuation of preparations for the Holy and Great Council. In accordance with the standing order and practice of the Pan-Orthodox Consultations in Rhodes (beginning in 1960), all Autocephalous Churches will be invited.

With this common declaration, and the subsequent consensus achieved at the Pan-Orthodox Consultations that took place last year in June and December in Chambésy, Switzerland, the way forward to Orthodox canonical order and unity in the Western Hemisphere has been mapped out in a substantive way. This should be a cause for joy among all the faithful, as it demonstrates the kind of progress that SCOBA has always looked for, but by itself, never could achieve. SCOBA has had great accomplishments in its fifty-year history, and the growth of Pan-Orthodox Agencies and ministries shows the willingness and the need to work together. Nevertheless, SCOBA has always been an organization without the mechanism and authority to forge a comprehensive way forward.

Now we have arrived at a truly watershed moment in the life of the Church in the Western Hemisphere. In the week in which we celebrate the Descent of the Holy Spirit on the glorious Feast of Pentecost, the canonical Orthodox Bishops who live in North and Central America will gather in order to proceed with the roadmap that has been agreed to by world-wide Orthodox Christianity (see material at http://www.scoba.us/chambesy.html). The issues are many and complex, but SCOBA is fully committed to the process that will form a successor body, an Assembly of Bishops of the Holy Orthodox Church in the Americas that will have both the authority and methodology to effectuate real progress in the establishment of canonical Church order in the Americas.

This Sunday of Orthodoxy, as we gather throughout our communities and parishes, let us with fervent prayer entreat the Lord of all to grant us His grace and His wisdom. Let us pray for this coming Assembly of Orthodox Christian Bishops, that it will bring forth the fruits of unity and Orthodox faithfulness. Let us pray for the pious and Orthodox Christians everywhere, and for our unity in Christ, power at work within us is able to do far more abundantly than all that we can ask or think, to Him be glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, for ever and ever. Amen.

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Huneycutt pre-Lenten lecture now available for purchase

Some people asked when the January Fr. Joseph Huneycutt lecture would be made available. It is now available for purchase as a CD or DVD here. I would also recommend looking over the other titles (e.g. Archimandrite Zacharias is very popular).

Another report from the Met. Kallistos lecture tour

This is the second reposting of a blogger's experience at one of the stops on the Metropolitan Kallistos US Lenten lecture tour. The below is from The Divine Life. Thanks to a reader for sending me a heads up on the post.

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Last night I attended a talk by Metropolitan Kallistos Ware entitled “An Insider’s View: Catholic-Orthodox Dialogue Today”. Metropolitan Kallistos is a member of the Joint Coordinating Committee for the Theological Dialogue between the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church, which is the official committee charged with ecumenical talks between the Catholic Church and Orthodox Churches at the highest levels.

Kallistos gave a very informative and engaging talk. After reviewing a brief history of the Joint Committee, he then focused on its work over the past few years. He noted that the last official dialogue about reunion – the Council of Florence in the 15th century – spent months discussing the filioque and purgatory, but only 10 days on the role of the pope in the Church. Now there is a recognition by all parties that the papacy is in fact the most significant obstacle to unity, so the Committee has decided to focus on that.

The most significant document that the Committee has produced is the Ravenna Document (2007), in which the Orthodox participants, for the first time, acknowledge the universal primacy of the bishop of Rome. As the Metropolitan emphasized last night, this was incredibly significant. Of course, what “universal primacy” means is still hotly debated.

(In fact, one of the most telling moments of the night was the final question. Someone ask Kallistos what the Orthodox mean, in practical terms, by “universal primacy”. How would it actually be practiced in the real world? The Metropolitan responded by noting that the Orthodox are very clear on what universal primacy is NOT, but have not really decided on what it IS.)

Another topic the Metropolitan discussed was the three levels of authority in the Church, as emphasized by the Ravenna Document: local, regional, and universal. He lamented the fact that the Western Church has practically ignored the regional level, and stated that a reclamation of that understanding in the West was necessary for a true understanding of universal authority within the Church. As a Western Christian, I admit that I have never had much appreciation for regional authority within the Church, so I’ll have to consider that more in-depth myself.

An important aspect of how authority is practiced in the Church, both in the East and the West, is the concept of “protos”, which means “first”. The Church is hierarchical, and therefore in every grouping in the Church, there must be a “protos”. For example, the bishop is the “protos” of his diocese. The Patriarch is “protos” among the bishops in his patriarchy. The pope is “protos” among all the bishops in the universal Church. Both Catholics and Orthodox accept this structure. But what does it mean to be “protos”? How is that role exercised? Metropolitan Kallistos pointed out Apostolic Canon 34 as a model for the role of “protos” in the Church. Apostolic Canon 34 states,

The bishops of every nation must acknowledge him who is first among them and account him as their head, and do nothing of consequence without his consent…but neither let him (who is head) do anything without the consent of all.

It should be obvious that the problem arises from the second part of that Canon. In fact, this appears to be in direct conflict with Vatican I, which states that “definitions of the Roman pontiff are of themselves, and not by the consent of the church, irreformable”. But Metropolitan Kallistos is hopeful that this Canon will be a way in which the Church can find a mutually agreeable means for the pope to practice universal primacy.

Metropolitan Kallistos also mentioned the recently leaked draft from the Committee about the papacy in the first millennium, which I analyzed here. He was very disappointed that the draft was leaked and felt strongly that the person who leaked it, thus breaking an agreement of confidentiality, should be removed from the Committee, if discovered. While respecting the need to honor a confidentiality agreement, I asked him if the very practice of confidentiality in this situation is healthy. After all, the reason the Council of Florence failed to bring about union was because the common people in the East rejected what was presented to them as a done deal. They had no involvement in the process. Would it not be better to make the Joint Committee more open to the public, thus allowing more people to be invested in it, and therefore making it more acceptable to the members of the various churches?

Kallistos agreed that it is vitally important that the leaders of the churches make these discussions a reality in the pews, and admitted that they had not done a good job of that. He asked how many people in the audience had actually read the Ravenna Document, and only about 10-15% of the audience had (and this was an audience deeply engaged in this issue). He did think it important to keep the discussions confidential during the process of creating a document, for many things in the draft might be eventually rejected and he saw no point in people getting upset about something that might eventually getting discarded. A valid point, but personally I think in today’s interconnected world more openness would be beneficial. There are times in a discussion that I say something without fully understanding the effect what I propose will have on the thing being discussed. I may also discuss something outside the scope of the discussion ('scope creep' to borrow a secular term) or something the dialogue is not ready to take on. If you were to publish my comment made in the process of creating an important document, that contextomous quotation could derail the entire process. I'm all for transparency, but the value of frank discussions in resolving issues cannot be marginalized. Otherwise you'll end up with grand hierarchs bloviating rehearsed speeches at each other instead of listening to differing opinions.

All in all, it was a wonderful talk, and I hope and pray that Metropolitan Kallistos is blessed with many more years of service to the Church.

OISM event held at St. Tikhon's Seminary

(STOTS) - St. Tikhon's Seminary hosted this semester's Orthodox Inter Seminary Movement (OISM) event on the weekend of February 5th and 6th. Students representing St. Vladimir's, Holy Cross, St. Herman's, Jordanville, and Christ the Savior Seminaries were present. Dr. Christopher Veniamin was the main speaker. OISM elections also took place, resulting in the election of a new President.

Reading labels, an amusing take

From Pithless Thoughts:

OK. So, one of the issues that modern culinary technology presents us with is "reading labels" for Lent. Back in the day, there were no canned foods, chemically cloned flavors, hermetically sealed wrappers, governmentally required labelling, the FDA, Food Police and trace ingredients that bind, harden, smooth and flavor our food. If you got a fish or a loaf of bread or something made of corn, it pretty much was a fish, bread or made of corn. Technology has made fasting a science and the playground of Phariseeism and obsessive compulsive attention to details. Take my beloved Pop Tarts, f'rinstance. Over FIFTY ingredients in a crust and some jammy stuff between them. Check it out:

ENRICHED FLOUR (WHEAT FLOUR, NIACINAMIDE, REDUCED IRON, THIAMIN MONONITRATE [VITAMIN B1], RIBOFLAVIN [VITAMIN B2], FOLIC ACID), SUGAR, DEXTROSE, VEGETABLE OIL (SOYBEAN, PALM, COTTONSEED AND/OR HYDROGENATED COTTONSEED OIL† WITH TBHQ AND CITRIC ACID FOR FRESHNESS), CORN SYRUP, WHEY, CRACKER MEAL, HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP, COCOA, CONTAINS TWO PERCENT OR LESS OF CORNSTARCH, COCOA PROCESSED WITH ALKALI, SALT, LEAVENING (BAKING SODA, SODIUM ACID PYROPHOSPHATE, MONOCALCIUM PHOSPHATE), MODIFIED CORN STARCH, MONO- AND DIGLYCERIDES, SODIUM STEAROYL LACTYLATE, GELATIN, DRIED EGG WHITES, DATEM, PARTIALLY HYDROGENATED SOYBEAN OIL†, MODIFIED WHEAT STARCH, XANTHAN GUM, NATURAL VANILLA FLAVOR, CARAMEL COLOR, SOY LECITHIN, CALCIUM PHOSPHATE, COLOR ADDED, NIACINAMIDE, REDUCED IRON, VITAMIN A PALMITATE, PYRIDOXINE HYDROCHLORIDE (VITAMIN B6), RIBOFLAVIN (VITAMIN B2), THIAMIN HYDROCHLORIDE (VITAMIN B1), FOLIC ACID.

If I'm keeping the fast "strictly"... OOPS!!! look at ingredient numbers 31 through 33... Lactylate, gelatin and dried egg whites!!! DANG... not fast worthy. So WWSJTFD? (What would St. John the Faster Do?) Well dear blog readers, I am here to help you with a primer on the historical/dogmatic/liturgical method of fasting. (Please consult with your spiritual Father before applying any of these rules to your Lenten discipline.)

So, here is a survey of the fasting rules that have applied at various times in Orthodox history.

You can eat something if a NON-fasting ingredient shows up on the list after this:

1. The Shema Rule: ("Our God is One" from Deuteronomy, for the biblically illiterate): You can eat anything that has non fasting ingredients after the first ingredient listed. Since Orthodoxy is a fulfillment of Judaism, and God is "one nature", this is a REALLY handy rule. (Pop Tarts would be fastworthy by this rule, so you get the idea. Hmmm... it just occurred to me, so would a bacon double cheeseburger without the hamburger patties, which is much better than a BLT without the bacon.)

2. The Nicene Constantinapolitan Rule: (Also known as The Incarnational (God with meat) Two Natures Rule): You can eat it if the non-fastworthy ingredient shows up after TWO ingredients.

3. The Trinitarian Rule: After 3 ingredients.

4. The Angelic Ranks Rule 9 (because we aspire to the angelic life): After 9 ingredients.

5. The "Lord Have Mercy Rule" of Matins/Hours: After 12 ingredients. (Pop Tarts are still "IN").

6. The "Lord Have Mercy Rule" of Russian or Monastic Vigil: After 40 ingredients. (Pop Tarts are OUT).

7. The "Lord Have Mercy Rule" of Russian/Monastic Litia/Vigil: After 300 ingredients. (You may eat only organically grown potatoes for Lent, but only if the fertilizer is certified to be free of non-fasting trace ingredients... which is why the Russians allow Vodka during Lent... YEAH!!!).

I hope this helps. Blessed Lent to all.

Translating this blog

Of late I have gotten a lot more readers from bloggers in Europe (primarily Greece). To aid in reading this blog I've added a translation widget to the sidebar to the right. I hope it gets some use, but if it doesn't at least it's not taking up too much blog real estate.

How not to ask a question

Rod Dreher recently wrote an article entitled 'Pews vs. standing: an Orthodox controversy.' I'm not quite sure I see the point of it. It was hard for him to get used to standing during the liturgy when he converted, but now that he does it he shores up his new position on standing by cutting out a blurb from another article on the topic.

If you're Orthodox this is a known entity not really meriting much discussion. I don't see Greek parishes ripping out pews donated by families who remember their great-grandfather paying to have them installed.  He could visit a parish and ask someone about getting them removed, but he had better be fleet of foot enough to outrun some wildly gesticulating yayas.

If you're Protestant I could easily see how you could be offended by the tone. The implication is that he is worshipping more completely than they are - he's participating while the Protestant world is unwittingly doing it all wrong.

If you're Catholic the idea seems to be that what you are doing now is a departure from the original tradition. Does he expect a billion Catholics to have the chairs pulled out from under them? Sitting and kneeling on kneelers attached to those pews is as customary to Catholics as the shifting of weight from foot to foot while standing is to an Orthodox believer.

Thoughts?

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(Beliefnet) - My family came into Orthodoxy in a parish without pews. St. Seraphim's Cathedral in Dallas observes the traditional Orthodox custom of parishioners standing for the entire two-hour liturgy, though there are chairs lining the sides of the worship space for those who cannot or who don't wish to stand for the service. There is no shame in sitting down; it's just not done by most people. Small children typically sit at their parents' feet for most of the service. When we first started attending St. Seraphim's, this practice was so off-putting; we couldn't imagine standing up for so long! But we did, figuring that something that has been done for so many centuries must have something to teach us. Before long, we came to appreciate standing, and it came to be the most natural thing in the world to us.

Before moving to northward, a number of folks told us that Orthodoxy in this part of the country is different from Orthodoxy in the OCA Diocese of the South. One thing we'd notice is that most Orthodox churches have pews. The Greek Orthodox in America accepted pews some decades ago (indeed, the big Greek parish in the Dallas area has pews today), as an attempt to acculturate its congregations to American standards (more historical info on this here). Today, in both the OCA and Antiochian jurisdictions, you find churches with pews (though the well-known Antiochian parish of the Holy Cross in Maryland does not have them). Let me stipulate here that I do not think that Orthodox Christians who worship in pews are in any way spiritually inferior to those who stand during the liturgy; in fact, at St. Stephen's Cathedral (OCA) in Philadelphia, most of the congregation stands anyway, in front of their pews! But I must say that having worshiped in both styles, I strongly prefer the traditional way. This essay from an Orthodox site explains why this liturgical form is not just empty traditionalism, but trains our way of experiencing God in the liturgy. I'm a bit off-put by the slight sarcasm in the essay, but I do think this point in particular is very true:

1) Pews teach the lay people to stay in their place, which is to passively watch what's going on up front, where the clergy perform the Liturgy on their behalf. Pews preach and teach that religion and spirituality is the job of the priest, to whom we pay a salary to be religious for us, since it is just too much trouble and just too difficult for the rest of us to be spiritual in the real world of modern North America. Pews serve the same purpose as seats in theaters and bleachers in the ball park; we perch on them (even during the Litanies which are the specific prayer of the People) to watch the professionals perform: the clergy and the professionally-trained altar servers, while the professionally-trained choir sings for our entertainment.

Yesterday I mentioned to Julie that I didn't like pews, because they made me feel as if I were part of an audience watching a performance on the altar. Without pews, I felt more like someone gathered around a bonfire. The author of this essay puts it more harshly than I would, but the insight is essentially the same. You wouldn't have convinced me several years ago when I first walked into an Orthodox church that the experience of worshiping without pews would make me feel more integrated into the liturgy (as opposed to merely tired from standing), but having worshiped this way for almost four years, I've experienced the difference, and love it! It makes one feel personally more integrated into the liturgy, I find.

Roman Catholics used to go to mass like this too, but it appears that the Reformation also brought pews into Catholic churches as well (Byzantine Rite Catholics generally still observe the older tradition of standing during mass, though I've attended two Byzantine Rite churches in the US that have pews). It surely must strike most American Christians as interesting, at the very least, to think that pews in Christian churches are a relatively recent innovation in the history of Christianity. For three-quarters of our history, most Christians stood at corporate worship.

Let me ask my Orthodox readers for their thoughts on having pews inside our churches. I'd also like to hear from Catholic and other non-orthodox readers on the topic.

Antiochian Archdiocese launches parish news section

(Antiochian Archdiocese) - The editors at Antiochian.org have launched a dedicated section of pages for parishes under the "Parishes" drop down button in the top menu. In addition to the already existing list of parishes, the three new pages feature news from parishes around the U.S. and Canada, resources for building missions and strengthening established parishes, and help for parish web editors. A centerpiece of the new section is a fascinating roundtable discussion between six mission parish priests, who share what they've learned about effective mission building.

Has your parish hosted a conference or sponsored an outreach event? Did your community just break ground for a new building? Share it with us! Readers of Antiochian.org are encouraged to submit their parish news and photos for posting, as well as suggested resources, via the editor's box: editor@antiochian.org.

Forgiveness Sunday

H/T: Tales of the Wild Babushka

On church ownership in Western Ukraine

LVIV (RISU) — “Allegations that the Greek Catholics violently took away Orthodox churches are absolutely untrue. They simply returned them to its owner. And we in letters to the top authorities mention that such assertions we heard, but where is the proof that those are your churches? Please let someone give some notarized and reliable evidence because we do not know of any,” Patriarch Lubomyr, the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC), reported in an interview to the magazine Glavred.

According to the Institute of Church History of the Ukrainian Catholic University (UCU), before the beginning of World War II the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church counted 2,387 parishes with the 3.6 million faithful, including 2,352 eparchial priests, 31 men’s and 121 women’s monasteries, and monastic houses. Under the care of the Church operated a theological academy and three spiritual seminaries where 480 students studied.

In addition to the already well known fact that Lviv’s “council” of 1946 was a pseudo-church event organized by the state authority of the USSR with the active participation of organs of state security, the Institute of Church History presented a series of documents that were found as evidence of this fact in the Branch State Archive of the Security Service of Ukraine and the Central Archive of Public Organizations of Ukraine.

“To organize an Orthodox eparchy in Lviv, to put at its head a bishop with the title of Bishop of Lviv and Ternopil who will unite Orthodox parishes of Lviv, Stanislaviv, Drohobych, and Ternopil regions… To organize inside of the Uniate Church an initiative group that will declare the breaking with the Vatican and call the Uniate clergy to convert to Orthodoxy,” such directives were set by the Instruction № 58 from the 15th of March, 1945, which were made by the head of the Council on Matters of the Russian Orthodox Church of the Council of Ministers of the USSR, G. Karpov, and was personally ratified by Joseph Stalin for the realization by the combined efforts of the party administration, state structures, and organs of state security in collaboration with the Russian Orthodox Church.

The fact of mass proselytization, that is the universal establishment of the supported religion, is also confirmed the letter of G. Karpov from September 24, 1949, to the leader of Central Committee of the Communist Party (Bolsheviks) of Ukraine N. Khrushchev, in which is reported: “From 1946 to August 1949 were reunited 3,001 Uniate parish churches, 1,242 priests, 463 deacons, and 1,018 psalmists in the Zakarpattya, Drohobych, Lviv, and Stanislav regions.”

After the long-term prohibition of legal activity, the UGCC was renewed in November 1989 on the basis of a decision of the Council on Religions of the Council of Ministers of USSR, in which the Church was allowed to register and found communities. In relation to this, Patriarch Lubomyr noted in his interview for Glavred that “the then president of the USSR Gorbachev went to Pope John Paul II and knew that in Rome he would be asked the following question: and what is with the Greek Catholics? Therefore, the Soviet government about a week before the visit set the directive regarding the registration. But what happened? If people in some community said that they want to remain in the Orthodox Church, they were not reregistered. And about a thousand communities at once said that they want to return to the Greek Catholic Church.”

According to the Information Department of the UGCC, more details with materials from the Soviet archive about the destruction of the UGCC, and also other documented testimonies from the period of prohibition, the underground activity, and revival of the Church can be found in the exhibition dedicated to the 20th anniversary of the legalization of the UGCC, which is coming to an end in Kyiv. (Starting February 14, as part of the exposition program, the photo exhibition “Toward the Light of Resurrection through the Thorns of Catacombs” will continue in the museum of the city of Brody, in the Lviv region).

Mmmm... bacon.

From Pithless Thoughts:

Serbian Church removes Bishop Artemije from position

Belgrade (Earth Times) - The leadership of the Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC) said Saturday that it has stripped controversial Bishop Artemije of authority over the Kosovo eparchy. The SPC Synod appointed a replacement, Atanasije, to provisionally govern the eparchy until the canonic procedure against Artemije is concluded, Bishop Irinej (Bulovic) said after the Synod adjourned.

Speaking for the SPC, he told reporters that the Synod concluded Artemije "showed inability to govern and ... was responsible" for shortcomings in fiscal and material accounting in the eparchy.

The SPC "will seek criminal responsibility of people from Bishop Artemije's surrounding," he said. The Synod had discussed Artemije after it ordered a commission to review his documents on Wednesday.

Artemije's conduct had however been under SPC scrutiny long before, in 2006, when the Synod ordered the first a probe into his running of the Kosovo eparchy, then ordered him to shut down suspicious businesses.

The bishop Artemije remained defiant and carried on, but the SPC could do little as he did have supporters within the church, which was then headed by the ailing Patriarch Pavle.

Pavle died in November and the new patriarch, Irinej, immediately ordered the move against Artemije.

Serbs in Kosovo, including their church, have been receiving funds from Serbia within Belgrade's fight against the secession of what it considers its heartland.

With its majority Albanian population, Kosovo nevertheless declared independence two years ago and was recognized by leading Western nations.

Artemije, 75, insists that the campaign against him was orchestrated by the US and the West because of his hardline opposition to Kosovo's secession.

Local observers believe that some political and church circles agree with Artemije. Around 200 people braved the blizzard Saturday to demonstrate in his support in front of the Patriarchate in Belgrade.

Experts on the church explained that the ruling on Artemije must be confirmed by the SPC bishopial assembly and, in case he appeals, by the church court.

Iraqi govt. planning to build mosque on Ezekiel's tomb

(American Thinker) - A short fifteen-minute drive outside Kerbala, Iraq, one can witness the frontlines of the clash between East and West, Islamism and progress. There, in the small town of Al-Kifl, lies -- at least at the time of this writing -- the 2,500-year-old Tomb of the Prophet Ezekiel. But for the first time in recorded history, the Tomb is threatened not by the collateral damage of war, nor the ignominies of thieves and bandits, but by a planned, government-authorized, and taxpayer-funded demolition.

The Jerusalem Post and various watchdog groups have reported that the Iraqi Cultural and Antiquities Authority are implementing plans to erect a mosque on top of Ezekiel's Tomb. Last month, the process began as the ancient Hebrew inscriptions adorning the inside of the Tomb were defaced, perhaps irrevocably, and covered over by plaster.

With the not-so-distant memory of the Taliban's destruction of Buddhist statuary in Afghanistan still in mind, the impending Islamification of the Jewish shrine of the Tomb might seem like the product of a uniquely modern cultural phenomenon. But in reality, the history of Ezekiel's Tomb reflects the millennial ebb and flow of Islamic power.

It was only once the Ottoman period ended that the tomb was wrested from Islamic control and returned to Jewish custodianship; and, strangely, it was under the Ba'athist Saddam Hussein that the site was restored and actually protected from destruction. But today, as Islamist power congeals across the globe, the Tomb faces perhaps its greatest and most imminent threat.

This current threat mirrors Ezekiel's own prophetic life -- and in this way, it is a continuance of his prophecy. Ezekiel prophesied in a turbulent and uncertain time in Jewish history, leading a defeated people from the destruction of Jerusalem to the rivers of Babylon. He was on the forefront of a cultural war, where his vision of a new Jewish reality-in-exile could confront those who wished to forget the tragedies of their past, wipe away their identity, and disappear.

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Maronites celebrate Year of St. Maron

From Radiate His Light...

The year 2010 is very special to all of us who are in any way connected to our Maronite Church. His Beatitude Patriarch Nasrallah Peter Cardinal Sfeir has declared 2010 the year of Saint Maron.

How are we going to observe the special occasion? The examinations of our roots are both spiritual and cultural. Maron had no idea that almost 2000 years after his death, he is being remembered far from the land of his birth. He was a hermit, who wanted to remain hidden in a life of prayers and meditation. He was a light shining in darkness and we know a light cannot remain hidden.

The Church that grew from his followers and his monastery became known throughout the area. He was a priest as well as a hermit. His holiness and miracles attracted many followers. For Saint Maron, everything was connected to God our Father, and God is connected to all things. Maron did not separate the physical and the spiritual world and he used the physical world to deepen his faith and spiritual experience with God. He lived his life in the open air exposed to the forces of nature such as: the sun, rain, hail and snow. He wanted to know God’s presence in all things. By transcending such elements, he felt intimate with the Heavenly Father. He freed himself from the physical world and entered a mystical relationship of love with God.

Our recent Maronite Synod reminded us that the Maronite Church is not an ethnic group nor is it a political party; rather, it is a church with all the same responsibilities to evangelize the world like any Catholic Church. From the beginning, the Maronites were a missionary group and this should not change with us. We must be the modern day apostles of Maron and spread the Faith wherever we are. It is laity as well as religious who must carry the message of Christ with all whom they come in contact. In our own lifetime, we realize that the hermitage of Annaya and the Holy Valley of Saints still give us witnesses to the Maronite virtues that exist today.

Let us plan now to celebrate the Year of Saint Maron with a fresh spirit and vitality that was shown by the early followers of this great Saint.

+ Bishop Robert Shaheen, D.D.
Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon

Romanian Church issues appeal to "unity and dignity"

(Basilica) - At the beginning of the year 2010, proclaimed by the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church as Anniversary Year of the Orthodox Creed and of Romanian Autocephaly, in the context of the 125th anniversary of the moment when the Romanian Orthodox Church became autocephalous and of the 85th anniversary of the elevation to the rank of Patriarchate, the hierarchs of the Holy Synod are reaching out and addressing a Heartfelt appeal to all Romanian Orthodox clerics and faithful abroad, who are, without blessing, in other sister Orthodox Churches or in non-canonical church structures, to restore their direct communion with their Mother Church, under the canonical jurisdiction of the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church.

The realization of this desideratum is the fulfillment of the provisions of the Bylaw for the Organization and Functioning of the Romanian Orthodox Church, which mentions that the Romanian Orthodox Church is the Church of the Romanian people and encompasses all Orthodox Christians in Romania and the Romanian Orthodox Christians abroad (article 5), and the canonical and pastoral organization of the Romanian Orthodox faithful outside Romania is ensured by the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church (article 8). This principle is in full accordance with the decision of the Panorthodox Preconciliar Conference of Chambésy-Switzerland (June 6-13, 2009), which specifies that each autocephalous Church has the right to shepherd its own diaspora.

The above-mentioned principles are expressing the duty of the Romanian Orthodox Church and are based upon the 16th Canon of the 1st Ecumenical Council (325), which contains the principle that no diocese is allowed to receive under its jurisdiction Orthodox clerics and faithful, without the blessing of the Church (diocese) to which they belong.

To this end, we are mentioning that the process of returning of the clergy and faithful of different nationalities to their Mother Churches (such as in the Moscow Patriarchate and the Serbian Patriarchate) has already started for a long time and has shown that, through shared responsibility and ethnic Orthodox solidarity, the conjunctural historical feuds, based on past political motives, can be overcome.

Now, when 20 years have passed since the fall of the Communist regime in Eastern Europe, when Romania is a member of the European Union and of NATO and in the context of an unprecedented activity of the Romanian Orthodox Church abroad, through the reorganization and foundation of numerous dioceses across the world, we think that there are no more real reasons to reject the call of the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church to unity and Romanian Orthodox communion.

We are confident that this attitude of Romanian Orthodox resurrection and reconciliation will consolidate and intensify the pastoral-missionary, social-philanthropic and cultural-educational ministry of the Romanian Orthodox Church everywhere, strengthening at the same time the Romanian Orthodox dignity, through the liberation of some Romanian Orthodox from considering themselves 'searchers of canonical shadows' among strangers.

We are regretting that, for several reasons, some of our Romanian Orthodox brothers have sought other Orthodox jurisdictions, during Communism, but what was understandable in the past has become unreasonable and regrettable in present times, amounting to estrangement of Romanians from one another, up to their church division.

Being confident that our appeal to unity and Romanian Orthodox dignity will be received with joy and responsibility, as a desire for communion and brotherly cooperation, we are sharing with everyone our utmost respect and fatherly blessing.

Another joint Rome-Moscow project

(Interfax) - “Today the Moscow Patriarchate and the Roman Catholic Church prepare a number of joint projects in the field of culture as, for example, the Days of Russian Spiritual Culture in Vatican in spring 2010,” Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia writes in his article published in the Expert magazine.

According to the Russian Church Primate, Christians need to find “new language and new creative ways to preach Christian values in modern-day conditions of the constantly changing world so that this sermon can be heard and properly taken,” the article further reads.

The Patriarch noted that first of all, he meant cooperation between the Roman-Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church “as they have shared views on actual problems of social and economic ethics, bioethics, family, personal morality and others.”

“As we understand that Europe is facing serious challenge of losing its personal civilizational and cultural identity, it becomes very important to mutually search for new opportunities to make Christian values attractive for a modern-day European,” Patriarch Kirill stresses.

A report from the Met. Kallistos lecture tour

As mentioned earlier, Metropolitan Kallistos (Ware) is in the US on a Lenten lecture tour. Here is the first of what I hope will be a flurry of blog posts on his visit. In fact, if you don't have a blog, but want to report on one of the visits, just send me the text and I will post it.

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From Lord, I have cried unto Thee...

The evening of Wednesday, 10 February, I was blessed to be able to attend a lecture by His Eminence Kallistos (Ware) of Diokleia at Sts. Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Cathedral in Richmond, VA. The event was this year's offering by the Hellenic Society Paideia of Virginia, and the title of the presentation was Athens and Jerusalem: Hellenic Paideia and the Greek Fathers.

We (my wife and a friend) made the trek to Richmond from Newport News - only about an hour-and-a-half's drive - in the wake of a blizzard. Earlier in the day, a fast-moving squall carrying loads of snow swept through Virginia, leaving roads a mess and plenty of cars wrecked. By the time we left, though, the sky and the roads were equally clear and dry.

We arrived to find a nice-sized crowd gathering in the social hall just outside the side-entrance to the nave of the cathedral. There we met with my mother-in-law who lives in the Richmond area, and others from our neck of the woods that had made the trip. Amidst the sea of mini-reunions and quick introductions, there was the occasional cassock floating here and there. It was a mixed and excited crowd. Before long, we funneled into the cathedral and took our seats; we were all pleasantly surprised to see the cathedral filling to near-capacity, despite the day's dreary weather...

Complete article here.

Ukrainian churches of Canada

http://www.ukrainianchurchesofcanada.ca/

An Informal Discussion of History, Architecture, and Art in the Ukrainian-Canadian Context

Welcome to the Ukrainian Churches of Canada Web Site. This site is committed to exploring the glory and the beauty of Ukrainian churches. Its goal is to increase awareness of Ukrainian churches in this country; to provide a small amount of historical background; promote discussion regarding trends of architecture and art; and to help in the preservation of churches that form the very foundation of Ukrainian-Canadian culture.

This work is dedicated to our Ukrainian ancestors who, over a hundred years ago, began to immigrate in large numbers to Canada in search of a better world in which to raise their families. They took a great gamble but fruits of that gamble have been sweet.