OCA - AFR team up to cover All-American Council

(OCA) - Ancient Faith Radio [AFR] has partnered with the Orthodox Church in America to offer the faithful informative podcasts before and during the 16th All-American Council October 31-November 4, 2011. In advance of the Council, AFR will release a weekly series of interviews with OCA leaders. Various topics related to this important gathering will be discussed.

AFR’s staff will also be on-site at the Council and produce timely recordings of the Council’s proceedings throughout the week.

In the first interview — now posted on the OCA’s web site and AFR’s web site, His Beatitude, Metropolitan Jonah offers a brief history of the All-American Council, explaining its central purpose and his goals and hopes are for this year’s gathering (see here and embedded below - documents for AAC available here).

During the first week of October, His Grace, Bishop Benjamin of San Francisco and the West, will discuss his role as host bishop and the significance of convening the Council in the Northwest.

In later podcasts, Archpriest Eric G. Tosi, OCA Secretary, will provide detailed information about the Council, Archpriest John Pierce will discuss Seattle’s relationship to Orthodox Christianity, and Metropolitan Council member Priest John Vitko will outline the Strategic Plan.

Russian delegation visits Rome

(mospat.ru) - On September 29, 2011, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, DECR chairman, met with Pope Benedict XVI at the pontifical summer residence in Castel Gandolfo.

They discussed a wide range of issues concerning the bilateral relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the Moscow Patriarchate.
After their tete-a-tete talk, Metropolitan Hilarion presented to Pope Benedict his retinue including Archpriest Dimitry Sizonenko, DECR secretary for inter-Christian relations, Fr. Antony (Sevryuk), rector of the Parish of St. Catherine in Rome, Archpriest Igor Vyzhanov, a cleric of St. Catherine’s, Fr. Ioann (Kopeikin), assistant to the DECR chairman, Mr. V. Yakunin and Mr. S. Plastilin, Orthodox sponsors, and Mr. L. Sevastyanov, executive secretary of the St. Gregory the Theologian Charity.

Metropolitan Hilarion presented the Pope of Rome with an icon of St. Benedict of Nursia and an album on frescoes by St. Andrew Rublev.

Guest post: Greece's Dostoevsky

The following is the first in a series of four guest posts from Herman A. Middleton, author of Precious Vessels of the Holy Spirit: The Lives and Counsels of Contemporary Elders of Greece (featuring eight Greek Orthodox monastic elders), and translator of the recently released Greece's Dostoevsky: The Theological Vision of Alexandros Papadiamandis (a study of one of modern Greek literature's finest writers). It is about his new book that he now writes. (The second, third, and fourth posts will be posted elsewhere, for which see below.)

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I have been working on a translation of Dr. Anestis Keselopoulos's book, Greece's Dostoevsky: The Theological Vision of Alexandros Papadiamandis for quite some time now. The book is a study of the living (lived/experiential) theology found in the short stories and novels of one of Greece's greatest fiction writers of the past 2+ hundred years.

I was first introduced to Papadiamandis through Dr. Keselopoulos's pastoral theology class while a student at Aristotle University in Thessalonica, Greece. It is often the case at Greek universities that the professor uses one of his own books for the course, and in this case we read Greece's Dostoevsky. I was attracted to the book initially because, unlike many theological books, it both provides profound insights while being an engaging and enjoyable read.

Too often, theological books discuss theology in the abstract. Church doctrines, which were developed through the vibrant spiritual and liturgical life of the Church and Her faithful, are often presented as abstract teachings based on Biblical passages. Greece's Dostoevsky is unusual in this regard. Dr. Keselopoulos discusses doctrines and theological concepts within the framework of lived theology, connecting often seemingly abstract concepts to everyday life.

Keselopoulos addresses issues that are at the heart of Church life, issues that are of particular concern to the Church in America and in the West, more generally (I will discuss the contents of the book in a later post). Rather than addressing these issues detached from actual life, Keselopoulos bases his ideas on examples taken from Papadiamandis's stories. This is the ideal book for a class in pastoral theology, as it provides concrete and living examples of spiritual and theological truths. PapadiamandisÕs characters, the clergy and faithful in his stories, were based on the many priests and parishioners he knew from his childhood on the island of Skiathos and from his time in Athens.

Read more »

I love this face...

(MSNBC) - A baby is baptized during a mass baptism ceremony in Tbilisi, Sept. 29, 2011. About 450 children were baptized by the Georgian Orthodox church during a mass baptism ceremony at the country's main cathedral Holy Trinity.

On high-back vestments

I have never been a "fan" (if such word can be used in this context) of high-back vestments. It's probably a result of my upbringing having been a high-backed-less one; one tends to like what one has grown accustomed to and eschew perceived other-ness. They have also always recalled to my imagination, of all things, the Monascheiwans from movie The Fifth Element (vide supra).

Many things said about Orthodox vestiture, practices, and paraphernalia are conjecture or educated guesses that have been handed down as gospel. That said, I'm happy to see learned discussion that attempts to get at the facts over symbolizing, mystifying, or repeating half remembered explanations. The below is from the Orthodox PSALM Yahoo! Group:

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As much as I hate to say it (being a priest who will only ever wear low-back phelonia) Fr. Dn. Sergius is correct: the high-back phelonion is rather closely related to the original conical phelonion/chasuble.

There are two "creation myths" about the high-back phelon, both of which, I am convinced, are untrue. The first one, admittedly the older one, is that the Russians invented it to keep the wind off of their necks during the cold winters. What I had always been told. While this idea conjures up images of shivering priests in drafty wooden churches and admittedly has a certain charm, I don't think it has any historical basis. If the Russians wanted warm necks, they should have just hopped over the border to Armenia and ordered a vagas or two!

The second "myth" is, as far as I can tell, of more recent origin and spread thanks to Ancient Faith Radio and the "opinionated tailor". In this version, the high-back phelonion is Athonite and was created by monks who wanted to have "one-size-fits-all" phelonia.

I think the reality is much less deliberate than either of these ideas. We know that the original form of phelonion was conical in shape, and pretty uniform through East and West for 1000 years, give or take. It was a cone of fabric with a hole cut out of the top, but unlike the "poncho" chasuble worn in many RC churches today, the neck was scooped out, leaving--you guessed it--a high back.

If you look at a Western conical chasuble, like this one from the 11th century...

St. Vitalis chasuble, bell shaped originate from 11th century and is now in St. Peter archbishop abbey, Salzburg.

...and compare it with a 15th century Russian phelonion....

...it is abundantly clear that the Athonites nor the Russians invented the high-back. The only difference between the St. Vitalis Chasuble and the Russian model is that the latter has a slightly wider neck and the addition of buttons to shorten the front.

Here is another example of a Western-style conical chasuble on a priest:

For more photos of Russian phelonia over the centuries, see here.

So, yes, the Russians shortened the front, and widened and stiffened the neckline. Maybe they even did that to keep the cold off their necks. But I think the evolution of the high-back was much more gradual and less deliberate than many would like to think.

S'Bohom!

Fr. David

I had to post this...

The Orthodox Leader: On parish websites

Fr. Basil over at The Orthodox Leader has started a discussion about the merits (and reservations) that are worth considering when designing a website.

This is a topic near and dear to my heart (see here, here, and here). You can also watch a video on making a good parish websites put out by the OCA's Midwest diocese here.

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The church website. That a church should have one is all but axiomatic in our current context. This, of course, has happened in a fairly short span of time. As recently as a dozen years ago, most parishes didn’t have one. Now, it is considered far more important than the pages-formerly-known-as-yellow, and a cornerstone of parish outreach activities. As a leadership matter, however, the church website does present a number of challenges that merit consideration. I’ll begin by summarizing the positive elements of the church website. First and foremost, it is cheap. Hosting at a good provider, with sufficient space and bandwidth, can be had for under $100 per year. Nothing else come close to the value one receives for such a paltry price. Secondly, a website is malleable. There is no production deadline for changes in the ad copy. Changes and additions to the parish schedule can be made, and they are instantly visible to the world. Errors (spelling or otherwise) can be corrected immediately, rather than deferred to the next week’s printing.

The web has also become ubiquitous. Most of our readers have access to at least one computer at home or in the office, and ever-growing numbers carry them about on their person, in the form of smartphones. (One immediate consideration, though, is that many church websites look awful when viewed on mobile devices.) This ubiquity and constant accessibility means that a great many people, myself included, have discarded printed phone directories in favor of search engines. In fact, catering to the dwindling minority of parishioners without web access, such as restricting critical information to printed materials instead of email or website, has a perverse result in an era of electronic communication. Namely, it relegates the parish newsletter to “junk mail,” as “real mail” (bills, bank statements, personal communications) is increasingly delivered electronically. The newsletter may be a jewel, but it comes in a pile of material destined for the recycle bin. The prospects for it being read aren’t good...

Complete article here.

Oriental Orthodox, Orthodox, and Catholics meet in Germany

(mospat.ru) - On the initiative of Pope Benedict XVI and on the invitation of the German Bishops’ Conference, a meeting took place on September 24, 2011, between the Pope of Rome and members of the Orthodox Bishops’ Assembly in Germany and representatives of Oriental (non-Chalcedonian) Churches, at the Seminary of Freiburg.

Participating in the meeting from the Russian Orthodox Church were Archbishop Longin of Klin, ROC representative in Germany, and Archbishop Feofan of Berlin and Germany.

In his welcoming speech, Pope Benedict XVI pointed in particular to closeness between the Roman Catholic Church and Orthodoxy, referring among other thing to the fact that they have preserved the old church structure through centuries. He also spoke of the age-old division between Christian East and Christian West and the primacy of the Pope of Rome as one of the serious reasons for this division.

Pope Benedict XVI gave special attention to the common efforts made by the Catholic and Orthodox Churches to protect human life from conception to natural death and to the value of marriage and family.

According to Pope Benedict XVI, he came to know and love Orthodoxy as far back as the time of scientific studies in Bonn and later when he was Archbishop of Munich and Freising. Since that time he followed with interest and sympathy the development of Orthodox parishes in Western Europe including Germany, where there are 1.6 million Orthodox and Oriental Christians. The Pope welcomed the active cooperation among the Orthodox in Germany including the establishment of an Orthodox Bishops’ Assembly a year ago, which unites bishops of the canonical Orthodox Churches in Germany.

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Turkish PM meets with Abp. Demetrios

NEW YORK (GOARCH) - Archbishop Demetrios of America met on Friday with the Prime Minister of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, during the visit of the Prime Minister to New York City on the occasion of the opening session of the United Nations. In a candid meeting which lasted 45 minutes, the Archbishop, Exarch of the Ecumenical Throne in America, thanked the Prime Minister on behalf of the Greek Orthodox Church of America, for certain favorable actions which the Turkish Government has taken involving the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. Namely, the recent decision to return properties owned by minorities in Turkey, the implementation of a process by which Hierarchs of the Ecumenical Patriarchate can apply for Turkish citizenship, thus creating a larger electoral body for Patriarchal elections, the ability afforded to the Ecumenical Patriarch to conduct religious services at various historic churches and monasteries in Asia Minor and Pontus, most recently at Panagia Soumela near Trabzon on the Black Sea, and finally the return of the Orphanage on the Princess Islands.

In addition, the Archbishop reiterated to the Prime Minister the long-standing request of the Ecumenical Patriarchate to re-open the Theological School of Halki which has been closed for 40 years. In the discussion that followed, the Prime Minister thanked the Archbishop for his visit and assured him that the Government will continue to address issues concerning the rights of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and of the other minorities in Turkey.

Accompanying the Archbishop during the meeting with the Prime Minister were Mr. Michael Jaharis, Vice-Chair of the Archdiocesan Council, Dr. Anthony Limberakis, Commander of the Order of St. Andrew, Mr. John Catsimatidis, Chairman of the Religious Freedom Committee of the Order of St. Andrew, Mr. Dennis Mehiel a member of that Committee and Rev. Fr. Alexander Karloutsos, Assistant to the Archbishop for Public Affairs.

A continued thawing of Moscow-Rome relations

Patriarch Kirill sends well-wishes Pope Benedict

Moscow, September 27 (Interfax) - Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia has expressed his respect towards Pope Benedict XVI.

"I am rejoicing at the opportunity to meet with you as the high representative of the Catholic Church and the Holy See in order to express my respect and fraternal love to His Holiness. I would like you to express these feelings on my behalf," the Patriarch said at a meeting with Pope's Personal Representative Cardinal Jozef Tomko in Moscow.

For his part, the Cardinal spoke of the spiritual revival in Russia.

"We see how cathedrals are being revived, this is a sign of the revival occurring within the believers. You, Your Holiness, are both the sign and the leader of this renewal and revival of the faith here," he said.

The Cardinal delivered to the Patriarch the Pope's cordial and fraternal greetings.

Tomko has arrived in Russia to attend the festivities on the occasion of the centenary anniversary of the Catholic Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception of the Holy Virgin Mary in Moscow.

Russian delegation visits Rome

(mospat.ru) - In the evening of September 27, 2011, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate’s department for external church relations, arrived in Rome for an official visit, with the blessing of His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia.

At Ciampino airport he was met by Fr. Antony (Sevryuk), rector of the church of St. Catherine in Rome and secretary of the administration of the Moscow Patriarchate parishes in Italy, Mr. N. Sadchikov, Russian ambassador to the Vatican, and Fr. Milan Zust of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity.

The DECR chairman is expected to meet with Pope Benedict XVI, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, Secretary of State, Cardinal Kurt Koch, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, Cardinal Jianfranco Ravasi, president of the Pontifical Council for Culture, and Cardinal Angelo Scola, Archbishop of Milan. The visit will be concluded with participation in a concert of Russian church music held as part of the Year of Russian Culture and Language in Italy. The concert will be held in the Basilica of Santa Maria delle Grazie and expected to be attended by Ms. S. Medvedeva.

Metropolitan Hilarion is accompanied by Archpriest Dmitry Sizonenko, DECR secretary for inter-Christian relations, Fr. Ioann (Guaita) of the DECR, Fr. Ioann (Kopeikin), assistant to the DECR chairman, and Mr. L. Sevastyanov, executive director of the St. Gregory the Theologian Charity.

Papal legate in Moscow

Patriarch Kirill (right) and Cardinal Jozef Tomko (left)

(mospat.ru) - On September 26, 2011, His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia received Cardinal Jozef Tomko, Pope Benedict XVI’s legate to the celebrations marking the centenary of the Catholic Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception.

Cardinal Tomko was accompanied by Archbishop Ivan Jurkovic, apostolic nuncio to Russia, Mgr Visvaldas Kulbokas, first secretary of the Holy See Representation in Russia, and Fr. Viktor Jakubov (Slovakia), assistant Cardinal Tomko.

Patriarch Kirill warmly welcomed the high guest who came to Moscow for the celebrations held by the Catholic community in Moscow. Having mentioned that from 1985 to 2001 Cardinal Tomko was prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, His Holiness stressed that missionary service was one of the priority tasks for the Russian Church today and introduced the guest to the system of theological education and training for priesthood in Russia. He also noted that the Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church encountered today the same challenges of the secular world and this gave the reason for developing cooperation between the two Churches.

In his turn, Cardinal Jozef Tomko thanked Patriarch Kirill for the warm welcome and conveyed to him greetings from Pope Benedict XVI. He made special mentioned of the fact that Patriarch Kirill enjoyed a great spiritual authority in the West where very many lend an attentive ear to his words. He also expressed hope for further development of dialogue between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church.

In conclusion of the meeting, which was held in a warm and friendly atmosphere, the sides exchanged presents.

Exaltation of the Holy Cross at the Optina Monastery

Bestow on us the Invincible trophy, Your weapon of Peace!

New bishop comes to America

Bp. Daniil of Dragovitsa

(AOB) - With the blessing of His Holiness Maxim of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church - Bulgarian Patriarchate and according to the decision of the Holy Synod, Bishop Daniil (Trendafilov Nikolov) of Dragovitsa has arrived in New York City to take up the position of Vicar to Metropolitan Joseph of the Bulgarian Eastern Orthodox Diocese of the USA, Canada and Australia.

His Grace was born on March 2nd, 1972. In 1991 he completed his secondary education in his hometown of Smolyan; in 1996 he undertook studies in English philology at the State University in Sofia; and in 1997 he enrolled in the Theological Faculty of Sofia from which he graduated in 2002. In 1997 he became a novice of St. George Monastery in Hadzhidimovo, where on August 7th, 1999 he received the tonsure and the next day was ordained a hierodeacon. In 2004 he was ordained a hieromonk, and on July 1st, 2006 was elevated to the rank of archimandrite. On January 20th, 2008 he was consecrated to the sacred episcopacy and assigned as Vicar Bishop to the Metropolitan of Nevrokop. By a June 15th, 2010 decision of the Holy Synod of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church - Bulgarian Patriarchate he was appointed Vicar Bishop to the Metropolitan of the USA, Canada and Australia.

The Digital Dead Sea Scrolls

UAOC - UOC-KP agree to work towards unity

(RISU) - On 14 September, 2011, in the Kyivan Patriarchate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Kyivan Patriarchate, a meeting was held between the head of the Kyivan Patriarchate, Patriarch Filaret and the head of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church, Metropolitan Mefodii. The meeting was also attended by President (2005-2010) Viktor Yushchenko.

As the result of the meeting, the primates signed a joint statement regarding the fruitfulness and usefulness of the meeting and agreement to make steps to resume the dialogue between the two Churches as to the restoration of unity of the Orthodox Church in Ukraine. The statement was published by the press-service of the Kyivan Patriarchate (see here).

Nanny state now targeting private businesses

H/T: Creative Minority Report

Section 5

Whether behaviour can be properly categorised as disorderly is a question of fact. Disorderly behaviour does not require any element of violence, actual or threatened; and it includes conduct that is not necessarily threatening, abusive or insulting. It is not necessary to prove any feeling of insecurity, in an apprehensive sense, on the part of a member of the public (Chambers and Edwards v DPP [1995] Crim LR 896). The following types of conduct are examples, which may at least be capable of amounting to disorderly behaviour:

• causing a disturbance in a residential area or common part of a block of flats;
• persistently shouting abuse or obscenities at passers-by;
• pestering people waiting to catch public transport or otherwise waiting in a queue;
• rowdy behaviour in a street late at night which might alarm residents or passers-by, especially those who may be vulnerable, such as the elderly or members of an ethnic minority group;
• causing a disturbance in a shopping precinct or other area to which the public have access or might otherwise gather;
• bullying.

As the Greeks see it

H/T: Monomakhos

Rome calls for Orthodox and Catholics to fight for life

Freiburg, DE, Sep 24, 2011 (CNA) - Pope Benedict XVI has urged Catholic and Orthodox Christians to work together to defend human life and promote the traditional family.

“The common engagement of Christians, including many Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox Christians, makes a valuable contribution to building up a society equipped for the future, in which the human person is given the respect which is his due,” said the Pope at a meeting with Orthodox leaders in the German city of Freiburg Sept. 24.

At the Archdiocese of Freiburg’s seminary, the Pope highlighted areas where co-operation is particularly needed in order to reverse “the present climate, in which many would like, as it were, to ‘liberate’ public life from God.”

In the pro-life struggle both Catholic and Orthodox can “speak up jointly for the protection of human life from conception to natural death.” They can also work together to promote “the value of marriage and the family,” particularly when defending “the integrity and the uniqueness of marriage between one man and one woman.”

There are an estimated 1.6 million Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox Christians in Germany today.

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Catholic bishop to limit Eucharist to under one kind

Imagine trying this in an Orthodox setting. I'm reminded of the kerfuffle from the swine flu scare of a few years back (see here). The idea of using plastic spoons or other non-standard methods of distribution was enough cause for much energized debate in Churches both East and West that I can't fathom what would happen if the faithful came up only to find a "dry" chalice.

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(USA Today) - What? No wine? The Bishop of Phoenix Thomas Olmsted is crossing wine out of Communion at most Masses, limiting how often the chalice is offered to holy days and special occasions, writes Michael Clancy at the Arizona Republic.

Olmsted bases his unique decision on the Church's new translation of the liturgy for the Mass, called the General Instruction of the Roman Missal, and other church documents, which he says don't really require folks in the pews have wine as part of the Eucharist. The Catholic Church teaches that the bread and wine, when blessed by the priest, become the body and blood of Christ.

Clancy writes

The option of offering both bread and wine for Communion has been in place since 1975. Catholics never have been obligated to take both and, until 1975, the practice had been forbidden since the mid-1500s.

The dicocesan press release says

... bread alone makes it possible to receive all the fruit of the Eucharistic grace."

One diocesan priest, Rev. James Turner, told Clancy,

The majority of priests were stunned and aghast at the announcement, and I hear some are planning to meet to see how best to respond. While the bishop has the authority to make this policy change, there is no scriptural, theological or sacramental rationale that makes any sense.

Olmsted is a stickler for Church authority. He was last in national headlines in December when he stripped Catholic credentials off a Phoenix hospital founded by nuns when he disagreed with the hospital's decision to permit an abortion to save the life of a young mother with a life-threatening heart condition.

Clancy points out,

..No other diocese in the country is known to be following suit, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops told TheArizona Republic.

The new Missal -- a more formal, literally translated text and melodies for the prayers, chants and responses in the Mass -- goes into use in the English-speaking world Nov. 27, the first Sunday of Advent. But the diocesan release didn't say how soon Phoenix Catholics could expect to see less of the chalice.

Rejoice, O thou phoenix ever arisen from thy very ashes!

Olyphant Church Emerges from Ashes of Tragedy

(STOTS) - This past Saturday September 17th could just as have easily occurred on March 4th because it represents in the minds and lives of the local community no less of a “Triumph of Orthodoxy.”

Saturday marked a celebration several years in the making when the holy altar at All Saints Church was re-consecrated by His Grace Bishop Tikhon, after having been destroyed by a fire in 2006. The fire took not only the altar area but also damaged almost all of the Holy Icons which adorned the walls of the parish.

This was possible do to the efforts of the faithful at All Saints and specifically the hard work of Fr. David Cowan (STOTS Alumnus 2007)and his wife Matushka Tamara. Their tireless efforts guided the community in Olyphant through one of the most difficult things a parish can ever face.

The banquet following the event was a festive one filled with people celebrating like only a true family could at the end of a long and hard fought journey. Our thoughts and prayers are with them during this time of renewal and may God continue to bless and allow this very literal “Trial by Fire” to continue to be a source of strength and vitality in their parish community.

Service Photos

Banquet Photos

Orthodox-Maronite leaders meet in Lebanon

BALAMAND, Lebanon (Daily Star) - Leaders of Lebanon’s Maronite Church held talks Tuesday with Greek Orthodox Patriarch Ignatius IV Hazim, the head of the country’s second-largest Christian community, in a bid to strengthen Christian unity as political instability sweeps the Middle East.

Maronite Patriarch Beshara Rai underscored the need for dialogue and unity among Christians, as well as between Christians and Muslims, particularly under the current circumstances in the region.

“We see wars and divisions today as events unfold in neighboring Arab countries. Thus we need to meet and unite our people and urge solidarity among all Christians and Muslims,” Rai told reporters at the Greek Orthodox patriarchate at the monastery of Balamand in northern Lebanon.

“All religious sects should consider themselves one family … our religion is based on love,” Hazim said.

Rai added that his visit was aimed at strengthening bonds with the Greek Orthodox Church to encourage Christians to maintain their presence in the Arab world.

“We hope to intensify our meetings, particularly under the current circumstances, not only with other Christian sects but also with Muslims to serve the interest of people,” Rai said.

A statement released following the meeting said participants agreed that Christians looked forward to seeing states where all citizens enjoy equal rights and duties and live in freedom without religious discrimination.

“Both patriarchs underscored the importance of urging the international community to support national and just Arab causes, particularly the Palestinian cause,” the statement also said.

The statement highlighted the historic role that Christians played in the Middle East on both cultural and national levels.

“Both patriarchs stressed their rejection of the so-called ‘protection’ of any faction by another one, because only the state should be responsible for enforcing justice and protecting people,” the statement added.

The life of a monk

St. Timothy and Orthodox-Catholic relations

TERMOLI, Italy, SEPT. 14, 2011 (Zenit.org) - Paul's beloved disciple was a source of unity for Catholics and Russian Orthodox last Friday, as representatives from both Churches gathered around St. Timothy's relics in Termoli, Italy.

The Orthodox delegation included Archbishop Zosimo of Elista and Bishop Aristarh of Kemerovo.

The papal nuncio to Great Britain, Archbishop Antonio Mennini, also attended the event, recalling his long tenure as the nuncio in Russia. The local bishop, Gianfranco De Luca, welcomed the group.

The delegations are developing a plan for Bishop De Luca to take the saint's skull to Russia for Orthodox Lent, while an Orthodox bishop will lead the delegation that will return the relic to Termoli. Patriarch Kirill of Moscow will finalize the plan.

Bishop De Luca gave the Orthodox bishops two small relics of St. Timothy, while his Orthodox guests presented him with an icon and a relic of St. Seraphim.

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"Conversations With Our Bishops" series reminder

The Assembly of Bishops website is still posting interviews with bishops (for background, see earlier post on this here). I again recommend you take a listen to one or two podcasts. These are frank discussions about the future of Orthodoxy in America well worth your time. The page is linked here.

OCA group that visited Slovakia & Czech Lands interviewed

(OCA) - During the last week of August 2011, His Grace, Bishop Benjamin of San Francisco and the West and Archpriest Eric G. Tosi, OCA Secretary, visited the Orthodox Church of the Czech Lands and Slovakia. His Beatitude, Metropolitan Jonah, was to have joined them, but due to the repose of His Eminence, Archbishop Dmitri, he remained in the US.

Below, Father Eric shares his impressions of the visit with oca.org.

Complete article here.

Russian Church seeks to overcome schisms

I wished for more meat on this news release, but there have been previous dispatches that have touched on how to handle people wanting to return to the Church, the nature of the current schism, and future plans which put this post in perspective - an update on an ongoing process.

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(mospat.ru) - The ROC Inter-Council Presence’s commission for opposing and overcoming church schisms met for a regular session on September 19, 2011, at the Kiev Laura of the Caves.

The chairman of the commission, His Beatitude Metropolitan Vladimir of Kiev and All Ukraine, sent the participants a message of greetings, assuring them of his prayers for the success of their work and noting that the main factor of their work lies in ‘the profound awareness of the abnormality of the situation when the faithful find themselves outside the saving fold of the Orthodox Church’. One of the causes of this situation is the cooling of love and the penetration of the church fold by ‘the spirit of this age – the spirit of division and pride’. For this reason, to make their work a success the commission members ‘should be filled with the spirit of unity, peace, patience and all-forgiving love of Christ’. Only this way the commission will be able ‘to offer the conciliar mind of the Russian Orthodox Church canonically right and evangelical in spirit ways of overcoming internal church divisions and schisms’.

Reminding the commission that ‘to pray for the preservation of church unity and to heal divisions is a duty of every bishop, priest and lay Orthodox Christian’, His Beatitude wished the commission ‘successful work and worthy fruits of joint efforts for which it members will not be ashamed before the Head of our Church – our Lord Jesus Christ and before His Holiness the Patriarch, the Inter-Council Presence’s Presidium and Councils of the Russian Orthodox Church’.

Due to an operation Metropolitan Vladimir had undergone, the commission was chaired by his deputy, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate’s department for external church relations.

The meeting was also attended by Archbishop Mitrofan of Belaya Tserkov and Boguslavsk, chancellor of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church; Archbishop Alexander of Pereyaslavl-Khmelnitsky, head of the UOC department for external church relations; Bishop Markell of Beltsy and Falesht, Archpriest Nikolay Balashov, DECR vice-chairman and secretary of the commission; Archpriest Andrey Novikov, secretary of the Odessa diocesan administration; Hegumen Serapion (Mit’ko), Rev. Ioann Miroliubov, Rev. Maxim Plyakin, and Mr. A. Maler.

The commission considered the improved draft document ‘On the coordination of work to consolidate church unity and to prevent church schisms’ and approved it with amendments and additions. The commission members also considered the progress made in drafting a document ‘On measures for overcoming consequences of the 17th century church division’ and agreed to continue working at it.
The commission also discussed a further work plan.

The participants in the meeting lifted up a prayer for a speedy recovery of His Beatitude Metropolitan Vladimir of Kiev and All Ukraine.

A special petition for College Student Sunday

Again we pray, for the hearts, the minds, and the lips of our college students, that they may receive the power of Your law and successfully comprehend the useful things which will be taught them, and so they will understand Your perfect will and contribute to the building up of Your Holy Church. Deliver them from every snare of the enemy, preserve them in the true faith in righteousness and purity all the days of their lives, that they may grow in wisdom and in the observance of Your commandments, and may be revealed as worshipers of Your name and heirs of Your Kingdom. Bless also their teachers, O Lord, bless the Orthodox Christian Fellowship, its chaplains, student leaders and beneficiaries; and may they always proclaim the word of Your truth.

Ukrainian Church delegation visits Mt. Athos

(UOC-MP) - On September 14-16, chairman of the Department for External Church Relations of the UOC Archbishop Alexander of Pereyaslav-Khmelnytskyy and Vyshneve visited the Holy Mount Athos, heading the pilgrimage trip from Ukraine.

During the tour the pilgrims climbed the top of the Mount Athos (about 2030 m above the sea level).

Here, at the Church of Transfiguration of Our Lord at the top of the mount, archbishop Alexander celebrated the Divine Liturgy. Note that the majority of the pilgrimage group were the parishioners of the Holy Transfiguration Church of Kyiv in Teremky residential area, where Vladyka Alexander is rector.

Met. Jonah visited St. Nicholas Patriarchal Cathedral in NYC

(ROC-USA) - Met. Jonah of Washington visited Abp. Justinian of Naro-Fominsk at the St. Nicholas Patriarchal Cathedral in New York. Abp. Justinian presented Met. Jonah with an engolpion bearing the image of St. Tikhon of Zadonsk.

A "commitment ceremony" in lieu of marriage

I'm not sure I understand. Why not get a religious marriage and not have a civil component if the worry is about splitting up money. I find this idea unsettling and I think it deserves some conversation.

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Watch the full episode. See more Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly.

An interesting icon to remember 9/11

The below is an icon I noticed when perusing the Ukrainian Greek Catholic website The Way (ШЛЯХ). While I understand the sentiment, I'm rather uncomfortable the icon's composition. The Theotokos bore the Christ Child in her womb. The Pokrov/Intercession/Agia Skepi/Holy Protection type icon (if any icon would be appropriate here) would be more fitting. Thoughts? Website article is here.

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St. Tikhon's Bookstore & Press website gets a facelift

http://www.stspress.com/

It finally happened; the St. Tikhon's Bookstore & Press website has been updated. Things seem to be better organized, the search tool actually works, and the shopping cart now holds your items reliably. I have to admit that, before this update, I had always thrown my hands up in the air and simply called the bookstore to get a quick answer or order submitted in less time than it took to wade through the web of confusion. While St. Tikhon's website was difficult, St. Vlad's website has always been easy. On the flip side I have always been able to contact the people at St. Tikhon's, and yet St. Vladimir's Press has not answered one of my emails in some 4 months.

 If you want to see this blog's comparative list of online retailers, see here.

On the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church property dispute

Update: The government has promised to step in and the hunger strike has ended (see here).

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Kolencherry, Kerala, India (OOC) - The oldest churches in India, the Syrian Orthodox Church of the East in central Kerala is in the grip of an intense feud. The fight between rival factions of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church is now spilling onto the streets. The bone of contention is the ancient church in Kolencherry, which both warring Orthodox and Rebel Jacobite factions claim as theirs. The trouble has become worse, after a recent court order, which handed over control of the church to the Orthodox Church headed by Catholicos of the East H.H.Beselios Paulose II.

Trouble began when the Orthodox Church decided not to share ownership of the church with the rivals, preventing them from entering the premises. The Orthodox faction demanded that the Rebel Jacobite faction abide by the district court order.

The dispute over the right to worship further led the head the Orthodox Church, HH Baselios Marthoma Paulose II to launch a hunger strike on Sunday.

Not budging from its stand, the Jacobite faction under Catholicos H B Baselios Thomas I as well began a prayer strike programme near the shrine.

The Orthodox Church wants the government to implement the court order immediately. Father Dr K M George from the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church says, "There is a clear court verdict. If the government implements the order, the matter will be solved." But the Jacobite faction say they cannot be ousted from the church. Geevarghese Mor Coorilos from the Rebel Jacobite Syrian Christian Church says, "We have been worshiping here for ages. We cannot be suddenly told that you have no right here and you should go away and build a new church."

The church is believed to be the shrine of St Peter dating back to the 7th century. It is considered holy to both factions of the Malanakara Church. But after the skirmishes between the two groups, it has now been closed for worship. There are concerns that if a settlement is not reached soon, the tension between two groups will flare up. Since there have been violent clashes between the two factions in the past, police have been deployed in large numbers to prevent any violence.

With tensions rising believers say it now time to end the hostility. Joseph Zachariah a devotee of the Orthodox Church says, "I think this is disgraceful for the entire Christian community. What we need is an amicable settlement. We should end all this."

A curfew was Sunday declared at the tension-gripped Kolenchery.The district collector meanwhile has sought the intervention of the mediation cell of the High Court to resolve the dispute. District Collector P I Sheik Pareeth told the court that the dispute had become a law and order issue and would worsen with more people joining the protests.

Blessing of the police in Ukraine

H/T: Again & Again

Monastery a "symbol of peace" on Georgian-Russian border

Tbilisi, September 15 (Interfax) - Georgia has opened a new monastery on its border with Russia.

On Thursday, Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II of Georgia, consecrated the Monastery of the Holy Archangels Michael and Gabriel, situated in the Darial Gorge, and led the first worship service in a church in it.

"This is a very significant church. It stands on the border with Russia. Russians are mostly Orthodox, and when a guest comes from there he will see he has come to an Orthodox and peace-loving country," Ilia II said during the opening ceremony for the monastery, at which Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili was present.

The monastery must become "a symbol of peace, unity, peaceful relations between Georgia and Russia," the Catholicos said. It would put up travelers, and political leaders would be able to hold talks there, he said.

He expressed hope that Georgia and Russia would restore good-neighborly relations.

Cross to adorn new Russian currency

A wonderful change and, to my mind, not just symbolic. It is also fitting that this came out as the New Calendar celebrates the Elevation of the Cross.

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Old (2001) bank note.

Moscow, September 15 (Interfax) - Depiction of Orthodox crosses appeared on a new 500 ruble banknote issued on September 6.

Official website of the Bank of Russia represents a drawing of the new banknote, on its backside crosses crown churches of the Solovki Monastery. The previous banknote depicted the monastery in its "Soviet" variant without crosses.

Depictions of cupolas and crosses appeared at the banknote after Patriarch Kirill's petition to Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, head of the Synodal Department for Church and Society Relations Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin told Interfax-Religion on Thursday.

New (2011) bank note.

He reminded that once when the Patriarch visited Solovki a local resident keen on Solovki history and culture came up to him and attracted his attention to this banknote where the monastery is depicted as in times of Solovki reservation camp without cupolas and crosses on the main churches.

"Then that man at the Patriarch's presence drew cupolas and crosses to the churches and urged everyone to do the same. A small public movement has even resulted from it. It was the time when I also drew crosses on this banknote," Father Vsevolod confessed.

He believes it wonderful that today state authorities and the Central Bank took the decision to correct this mistake and "the monastery is depicted in its beautiful site in which pilgrims and tourists see it."

The Church in Alaska, drilling, and the danger of politics

Someone sent me this story a little while ago. I have reposted it below. Also, the blog Monomakhos has an editorial on the situation (available here) that asks some probing questions and, of course, delivers some critiques.

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(Alaska Dispatch) - In January, three clergy members from the Orthodox Church of America traveled on a plane owned by one of Alaska's wealthiest, most prominent citizens to various villages in Southwest Alaska. When they disembarked they headed to frozen waterways in each community. There they stood on the ice and dipped their hand into a hole -- carved out of ice and in the shape of the Cross -- and blessed the water, an annual ritual celebrating the sacredness of the natural world.

Among the group was Bishop Benjamin Peterson of San Francisco, interim leader of the Alaska diocese. Two Alaska-based priests joined him. One of them was Father Michael Oleksa, among the most well-known and beloved religious leaders in the Last Frontier.

Some of the trip was videotaped and is now being used in an anti-Pebble mine campaign. Oleksa, chancellor of the Alaska diocese, oversees 95 churches and of late has been the public face for a group urging Lake and Peninsula Borough residents to vote yes on an initiative that would hurt Pebble's prospects for development.

The Pebble deposit sits several miles from a couple of rural villages. It's the biggest undeveloped gold and copper deposit in the world, according to the geologists working to bring online a Pebble mine. It happens to be in the Bristol Bay watershed of Southwestern Alaska -- one of the largest commercial fisheries in the world. Critics say that if built, the pristine area would be forever changed, its prized salmon fishery downstream from the deposit possibly decimated. Proponents say a future Pebble mine would bring economic development to an impoverished region; that the ore can be mined responsibly and without impacting Bristol Bay's salmon or Pacific herring populations.

The stakes have been high and the fight dirty since 2004, when Canada-based Northern Dynasty Minerals entered the scene purchasing development rights to the fortune that is the Pebble deposit: more than 100 million ounces of gold, now valued at close to $2,000 per ounce, along with more than 80 billion pounds of recoverable copper resting deep under the tundra and billions of pounds of molybdenum.

But the most recent Pebble political fight -- over a local vote that has the potential to mothball the mine -- is even dirtier. This time, the Orthodox Church, the most powerful church in the area, has gotten involved. And accusations are flying against Oleksa, the beloved priest.

On one side of the fight, Pebble supporters are accusing Oleksa of leveraging the issue to financially benefit his church. An email that's been leaked to the media proves Oleksa's motivations, Pebble supporters believe.

For his part, Oleksa is accusing pro-Pebble forces of potentially hacking into his emails, and trying to co-opt him with a job offer so that he wouldn't fight the anti-mining initiative.

One thing is for sure: the fight is not about to let up anytime soon. Fortunes are at stake. A subsistence way of life could potentially be at stake. And neither Oleksa nor the pro-Pebble forces are going to go down without a big, bruising battle.

Read more »

Russian delegation meets with Pat. Abuna Paul of Ethiopia

(mospat.ru) - On September 14, 2010, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate’s department for external church relations, met with Patriarch Abuna Paul of Ethiopia. In a warm and friendly atmosphere they discussed topical problems of inter-Christian cooperation and made a high assessment of the relations that used to tie the two Churches in the past.

Abp. Justinian of Naro-Fominsk visits ACROD Cathedral

(ACROD) - On Wednesday, September 14, 2011, His Eminence Archbishop Justinian of Naro-Fominsk and Administrator of the Patriarchal Parishes in the USA visited Christ the Saviour Cathedral following a clergy conference and nearby Antiochian Village. Pictured above, Abp. Justinian with students and faculty of Christ the Saviour Seminary.

Met. Isaiah of Denver on tattoos

(GOA-Denver) - Protocol 11–12
The Reverend Clergy, and
The Pious Faithful of
the Holy Metropolis of Denver
Beloved in the Lord,

It appears that the interest in tattoos and tattooing has become very popular among young people as well as adults of both genders in today’s society.

Coptic wrist crosses.

In ancient times, tattoos were restricted to slaves and people of servitude, and were limited to symbols and numbers, much like the branding of animals today. During the years of the Nazis in Germany, the Jewish people were forcibly tattooed to distinguish them as a lower class of people and even as enemies of the state. Even today, in certain parts of Africa, Christians are expected to have a tattoo of a cross on their foreheads in order to set them apart them from the larger Moslem population. In short, tattoos were used as a visible sign of deferment to the higher authority which controlled the government or the kingdom. In regard to Christians who must have crosses on their foreheads, this can be tolerated by the Church for practical reasons.

In past generations, tattoos were restricted to seafarers and sailors as a mark of distinction in their travels. As a matter of fact, the word tattoo is derived from the military term for the sound of a bugle used to inform sailors and soldiers that it was time to return to their quarters. For the past several decades, tattoos have also been used by those who identify themselves as belonging to motorcycle clubs and to youth gangs. Lately, however, we see the use of tattoos by those who wish to make a public statement not only regarding their place in society, but moreso in order to express a narcissistic expression about themselves. In other words, they wish to announce to others who they are and what they believe, from loving their mothers or their lovers to loving God.

Are tattoos, then, acceptable in the Orthodox Church?

Read more »

A seminary update...

Periodically, I'll post updates on how seminary life is going. If it proves edifying for readers I'll keep it up.

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I had a few preconceived notions as one might imagine about life up here. I expected it to be cold; I've already worn a sweatshirt on one early morning drive to seminary for Matins. Food is necessarily quite different and small town living, while I love it, is an adjustment. There is not a FedEx Office on every corner, a UPS Store in every shopping center, or all the ethnic fare I'm used to treating the family to. The courses I expected to be difficult have proven to be so. "Seminary translations" are always a bit different than parish use. But, truly, the largest adjustment has been my time away from the wife and family.

Before moving up North from the Lone Star State I worked from home, and, while I had an office, I came out to visit with the family when I could. Now I spend my waking hours at the seminary and the time away pulls at the heart strings a bit. So I was delighted to discover during a meal the first week of classes an icon written over the water fountain (to join in the comedy of this icon's placement, read the scroll's text) in the trapeza. My wife's patron saint is the Samaritan Woman, St. Photini (Svetlana). Now as I eat meals she is invariably at my side. I can remember her during meal time prayers, stop for a moment to kiss the icon as I walk to class, and think about her when I go get water throughout the day. It's an unexpected blessing I treasure immeasurably.

Alone she is now facing all the children, all the cooking, all the cleaning. Alone she is trying to keep our itinerant dog from bolting out of the house - whenever the door is opened by an unwary child - to explore neighbors' yards, smell everything in sight, and chase rabbits. Alone she makes trips to doctors, shops at supermarkets, and meets with teachers at schools. And yet she is not alone in her prayers. As I pray for her and our family she does the same. Together in prayer, if separated by some few miles, we ask God's protection and direction. Written on the wall is a reminder to pray constantly for her as I know she does for me. Seminary life is difficult for families (as Fr. Chad Hatfield alluded to this in his orientation talk at St. Vlad's just a few weeks ago), but if we are guided by Him I have faith we'll come out of this experience strengthened in faith and, in an odd paradox, closer to one another.

Podcast on Orthodox Christian Parenting given in Houston

I encourage listening to these sessions. Fr. John Peck is a gifted speaker and St. Joseph's in Houston,TX is a blessed parish with a special place in my heart.

While I'm mentioning this podcast, I am glad to have the opportunity to also mention Fr. James Early's (assistant pastor of the parish) podcast "Teach Me Thy Statutes." Also, Fr. John is the administrator of a number of influential websites. Do take a gander:

• Good Guys Wear Black
• Journey to Orthodoxy
• Preachers Institute

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(AFR) - On September 10, 2011, St. Joseph Antiochian Orthodox Church in Houston, Texas, hosted the 2011 Orthodox Christian Parenting Retreat. The speaker was Fr. John Peck, priest at St. George Greek Orthodox Church in Prescott, Arizona, and the topic was “Orthodox Christian Parenting in the 21st Century."

Session One

Session One

Session One

Session One

Patriarch Daniel of Romania visited Germany

(basilica.ro) - His Beatitude Daniel, Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church paid a canonical visit to the Romanian Orthodox Archdiocese of Germany, Austria and Luxemburg during the last few days.

Metropolitan Jonah at UN General Assembly

(OCA) - His Beatitude, Metropolitan Jonah, was among the religious leaders invited to attend ceremonies marking the opening of the 66th session of the United Nations’ General Assembly at the Church of the Holy Family here Monday, September 12, 2011.

Met. Hilarion on who will be at the pan-Orthodox meeting

(RISU) - The head of the Department of External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate, Metropolitan Ilarion (Alfeiev) of Volokolamsk in an interview to the Russian magazine Portal-Credo commented on the situation connected with the future inter-Orthodox Council to be held with the participation of all the autocephalous Orthodox Churches of the world.

In answer to the question if “such Churches as the Kyivan Patriarchate, Greek Old Style, True Orthodox Church” will be invited to the All-Orthodox (Ecumenical) Council, the metropolitan said: “What you call “alternative Orthodoxy” we call a schism. There were no precedents of invitations of representatives of schismatic organizations to inter-Orthodox meetings so far and I think there will be no such things in the future.”

According to the bishop, schismatics are imposters, that is people who assume a dignity which is not theirs according to the canonical order of the Church. “Just imagine that a group of people appears today one of whom proclaims himself President of Ukraine, another one the Premier and call their structure the government of government in exile. Would they be invited to international meetings? I think no. Exactly the same is with representatives of schismatic structures and so-called “alternative” Churches,” said the hierarch. A similar issue with the priestesses issue of the Roman Church in the US. I can't call myself a priest any more than I can call myself the head of Ford, demand admittance into its headquarters, and ask for the keys to my company car.

According to the portal Religion in Ukraine, the vivid example by which the bishop wanted to illustrate imposture is applicable to the activity of Protopriest Dymytrii Sydor (Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Moscow Patriarchate) of the Transcarpathian city of Uzhhorod who is the leader of the Sub-Carpathian Seim of Rusyns and who formed his own government headed by “Premier” Petro Hetsko. Neither Fr. Sydor nor Petro Hetsko consider themselves imposters and represent their organization at international conferences. For example, in autumn, 2010, Protopriest Dymytrii Sydor received from Patriarch Kirill of Moscow a blessing and participated in the European Russian Forum where he made a report on “facts of discrimination, ethnocide with clear manifestations of genocide of the Rusyn nation inUkraine.”

In the interview to Portal-Credo, Metropolitan Hilarion also stated that during his meetings with the heads of the Eastern Patriarchates, the situation in Ukraine “was not discussed in detail even though it was touched upon at some meetings.”

The metropolitan is certain that the way of overcoming the schism is through repentance and return to the Church communion. At the same time the hierarch does not exclude the possibility that the problems of the schism “may be discussed also at the inter-Orthodox level.”

Moscow asks Rome to do more as precondition of meeting

(Reuters) - A senior leader of the Russian Orthodox Church on Monday called on the Vatican to do more to resolve outstanding disputes so that a meeting between Pope Benedict and the Russian Patriarch could take place.

In an exclusive interview with Reuters, Russian Orthodox Metropolitan (Archbishop) Hilarion, urged the Vatican to show "some signs" of readiness to resolve a decades-long conflict between Orthodox and Catholics in Ukraine that has been blocking a meeting of the two world religious leaders.

An unprecedented meeting between Benedict and Patriarch Kirill could begin to heal the 1,000-year-old rift between the Western and Eastern branches of Christianity, which split in the Great Schism of 1054.

Since the break-up of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s, the Russian Orthodox Church has accused Catholics of using their new freedoms to poach souls from the Orthodox, a charge the Vatican denies.

But the biggest bone of contention concerns the fate of many church properties that Soviet leader Joseph Stalin ordered confiscated from Eastern Rite Catholics, who worship in an Orthodox rite but owe their allegiance to Rome.

Stalin gave the property to the Russian Orthodox Church but after the fall of communism, the Eastern Rite Catholics took back more than 500 churches, mostly in Western Ukraine.

"Not very much was done or is being done in order to solve this problem," said Hilarion, who is head of the external relations department of the 165-million-member Russian Orthodox Church and one of the closest aides to Patriarch Kirill.

"As soon as we have this understanding, we will be ready to begin preparations for such a meeting," he said.

Read more »

Video update on "Monastery fire" in Washington state