Byzantine, Texas

( Vimeo ) - Filmed, edited, produced and directed, by Ted Liedle. This has been one of the most interesting and fun projects I have done in over 40 years of production. I have grown to love these people. Prior to my experience with this Orthodox community I had some previous glimpses. I led a film team into Eastern Slovenia in 96 and we filmed a procession through a Balkan village to the local Orthodox church--very lovely and impressive. In 2011 I was embedded as press in Afghanistan where I met a US Army Reserve Chaplain setting up for an Orthodox service in a chapel at Bagram Airfield. I found him kind and articulate about Orthodoxy, and noted the lack of polemics in our discussion. My many conversations with Fr. Theophan at St. Innocent were also void of polemics, and very interesting. I filmed mostly using a Sony NEX VG20 large chip camera with an f 3.4-5.6 18-200mm lens. Slo-Mo of the censer was shot with a Panasonic Lumix FZ200 at 120 fps. The Lumix has an f 2.8 25-600mm le...

When was it decided the second Sunday of Lent would be dedicated to St. Gregory Palamas? Who decided this? Why? The below from the Holy and Great Monastery of Vatopaidi provides some background. Also below a video by Met. Kallistos (Ware) on St. Gregory Palamas (H/T: Choosing to Look East ). ( Vatopaidi Monastery ) - St. Philotheus (Coccinus), Patriarch of Constantinople, was one of the most distinguished and most prolific bishops of the Orthodox Church. He was born round about the end of the 13th century in Thessaloniki, very probably of a mother of Jewish descent. From an early age he studied with Thomas Magistrus, and had the good fortune to acquire a profound knowledge of ancient Greek and Christian literature. He soon abandoned the world and became a monk. After staying at the Sinai Monastery – we do not know for how long – he came to Mount Athos and took up residence initially at the Vatopaidi Monastery, where he met and formed spiritual bonds with St Sabbas ‘the fool for Christ...

Since I have received a few emails on the topic, here is a good explanation of the dating of Pascha. A Paschalia is available here . ( GOARCH ) - The long-awaited common celebration of Pascha on April 15, 2001 by all Christians has come and gone. It was in 1990 when this coincidence last occurred and will be in 2004 when it occurs again. In anticipation of this common observance by all Christians, much was said and written. What was stressed was the need to keep alive the momentum of the occasion. Unless we all understand the significance of this event, it will remain nothing more than a peculiarity of the calculations related to the date of Pascha. In one sense, that is what it is. But in another sense, it is the convergence of all that we as Christians in the East and West profess regarding the centrality of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ as the cornerstone of our faith. Nothing challenges the credibility of this fact to non-believers more than the scandal of our division o...

( OCMC ) - The older we get, the more grateful we become for the gifts our parents have passed on to us. That which we may barely comprehend when we are children can become the very rock that sees us through life’s greatest trials or the source of life’s greatest joys when we get older. So it is with the Orthodox faith - the greatest gift that parents can impart on their children. From July 19 to August 1, 2013, the Orthodox Christian Mission Center (OCMC) is sending a team comprised of Orthodox families from North America to offer parent workshops, children’s programs, family activities and ministry outreach to Albanian church leaders and their families. Three to four families are still needed to serve on this team that will strengthen and encourage Orthodox Christians in a country that is predominantly non-Christian. Another immediate need is for support staff to participate on the short-term mission team scheduled to offer healthcare in Uganda from May 29 to June 12, 2013. Two ...

I receive almost weekly emails asking after the status of Met. Jonah. Here is the most recent information from the minutes of the Spring Metropolitan Council meeting available here (PDF). ( OCA ) - Metropolitan Tikhon delivered his attached report (vide infra) regarding all aspects of his ministry since his election at the 17th All-American Council in November 2012. He also provided an update on ongoing discussions with Metropolitan Jonah towards a final resolution of his status and future ministry within the OCA. Specifics of the financial settlement package for Metropolitan Jonah will be presented to the Council for approval later during this meeting. Extensive discussion concerning Metropolitan Jonah’s situation and other matters took place. The hierarchs stressed the Holy Synod’s pastoral concern for Metropolitan Jonah. In response to questions, the chancellor and hierarchs provided explanation on the development of policies on the transfer of unordained monastics as well as t...

( Campus Reform ) - On Saturday afternoon, Yale hosted a “sensitivity training” in which students were asked to consider topics such as bestiality, incest, and accepting money for sex. During the workshop, entitled, "Sex: Am I Normal," students anonymously asked and answered questions about sex using their cell phones, and viewed the responses in real time in the form of bar charts. The session was hosted by “sexologist” Dr. Jill McDevitt, who owns a sex store called Feminique in West Chester, Pa. Survey responses revealed that nine percent of attendees had been paid for sex, 3 percent had engaged in bestiality, and 52 percent had participated in "consensual pain" during sex, according to an article published in the Yale Daily News on Monday. Event director Giuliana Berry ’14 told Campus Reform in an interview on Monday that the workshop was brought to campus to teach students not to automatically judge people who may have engaged in these sorts of activiti...

( Wicked Local ) - Watertown Police reported that the a Greek Orthodox church in Watertown was robbed sometime between Wednesday night and Thursday morning. According to Watertown Police Lt. Michael Lawn, the thieves may have used the back door of the Taxiarchae/Archangels Greek Orthodox Church in the heist. According to Lawn, the robbers stole a safe, chalices and Holy Bibles from the church on Bigelow Avenue. Lawn said the theft most liklely took place between 10 p.m. on Wednesday ant 8 a.m. on Thursday. A represenative from the Taxiarchae/Archangels Greek Orthodox Church would not comment on the case when contacted on Thursday afternoon. "Somebody broke into the basement boileroom door on Elton Avenue," Lawn said. "They entered the church offices, ransacked the office, tipped over a counter top and stole the safe, which was bolted to the counter top and contained cash." Lawn said the thieves also stole a number of chalices and Bibles off of the alta...

This is very saddening. I wake up every morning open to the expectation that He will return that day. It's an idea I've impressed upon my children from the beginning. We are no longer plodding along from day to day, but open (and I hope living a life reflective of that daunting reality) to the reality of His judgement beginning at any moment. ( Pew Forum ) - Easter is one of the most important religious holidays of the year for many Christians – a time to celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. According to a 2010 Pew Research Center survey, roughly half (48%) of Christians in the U.S. say they believe that Christ will definitely (27%) or probably (20%) return to earth in the next 40 years. Somewhat fewer (38%) say this definitely will not happen (10%) or probably will not happen (28%).

We have a long way to go on this front. I once tried to coordinate a YES trip and hit a wall of jurisdictional reluctance far beyond what I had expected. I've seen different jurisdictional youth groups try to get together for events only to be torn apart by difference in fasting rigor - As one priest said, "If you don't want to eat pizza on Friday you Russians can go do something else." A family might live just a few miles away from another jurisdiction's camp and not qualify for a scholarship for their children because they don't attend one of that jurisdiction's parishes. We continue to have towns with multiple small youth groups doing much of the same work, but operating divided upon ethnic identifiers. My list could go on and is well documented on this blog. Hopefully there is sufficient desire and will to enact meaningful coordination and integration across jurisdictional lines. ( AOB ) - New relationships and unity among Orthodox Christian you...

( The Telegraph ) - There's a quaint Anglican concept of the universal Church known as the "branch theory". This claims that there are three main branches to apostolic Christianity: Roman, Orthodox and Anglican. It's much favoured by Church of England clerics who aren't very keen on "Romans", as they call Catholics, and convey their anti-Papist sentiment in pro-Orthodox code, forever banging on about the riches of Byzantine spirituality, the mystical power of icons, etc. Richard Chartres, the Bishop of London, is an example of this breed. What these pro-Orthodox Anglicans don't stress is that ordaining women priests was just as great an obstacle to unity with Constantinople and Moscow and it was to unity with Rome. And women bishops? Metropolitan Hilarion, head of ecumenical relations for the Moscow Patriarchate, delivered a pretty blunt message to the new Archbishop of Canterbury last weekend (H/T Gillibrand): The introduction of the instituti...

( YLE ) - A former Orthodox minister has lodged a complaint with the Parliamentary Ombudsman, challenging the Orthodox church’s laws of celibacy. Kuisma Suopela filed the complaint after he was defrocked as deacon of the Oulu diocese when he married for a second time. At the end of 2012 a bishop’s conference removed Suopela’s minister’s rights and demoted him to the level of a layman. The caucus deemed that according to the church’s celibacy laws, the widower priest should have lived a life of celibacy, rather than remarry. While the Orthodox religion may ordain married men as priests, it bans ministers who become widowers from tying the knot a second time once they have been ordained. “The bishops took the view than canonical law takes precedence over secular laws. On that basis they can bypass secular laws, violate workers rights and even basic human rights. We have to consider this. According to Orthodox canonical law – or rather the bishops interpret the canonical law suc...

From the invaluable resource orthodox.net, " Why is the curtain left half open? " If the closing of the curtain halfway at the Presanctified Liturgy has nothing to do with veiling the already-consecrated Lamb, while leaving the unconsecrated wine unveiled, then what is the basis for this unique rubric? The hypothesis that the curtain is used to veil the consecrated Gifts during the Presanctified Liturgy contradicts the use of the curtain at the full Divine Liturgy, where the curtain is closed fully after the Great Entrance, when the Gifts are not yet consecrated, but is opened for their consecration and remains open after their consecration until the communion of the clergy. Nikol'sky, in his "Aid to the Study of the Liturgical Typicon of the Orthodox Church," writes as follows: 'At the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts, after the transfer of the Holy Gifts, the curtain is partly closed (its first half) and opened (its second half). It is closed f...

I tend to agree with Fr. Thomas Hopko on this point. Because we can have innumerable icons on the walls in our modern age, that doesn't mean we should do so. Nor does an abundance of icons mean they will be treated with their due respect. Nor do I think, as Fr. Hopko states, that icons should be on books, booklets, clothes or the like. Icons are icons and not adornments. ( AFR ) - As we celebrate the Triumph of Orthodoxy and the victory over iconoclasm, Fr. Tom Hopko gives a personal reflection on icons and their use and misuse.

( OCA ) - His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon, delivered the homily at the celebration of Sunday of Orthodoxy Vespers at Saints Peter and Paul Antiochian Orthodox Church on Sunday evening, March 24, 2013. Clergy and faithful from parishes across the US capital region attended the service, marking the restoration of icons to their proper use in the Church’s liturgy in AD 842.

Pan-Orthodox Vespers, as I have experienced it in travels across the US, has the same general feel every time I go. You often see the same faces over and over. They are the same people you see at local conferences, the same people who sing in pan-Orthodox choirs, that attend ordinations, etc. Somewhere in the room is a noisy baby or one that likes to throw things. This has at times been one of my brood. Some people dress up and others are in t-shirts and blue jeans (in the South you will definitely see sandals). At the periphery of the sanctuary are the people (usually 2-3) who disdain pews and refuse to be near them. There is the person who is supposed to take pictures of the event and the 5-10 people who choose to augment the photographer's efforts with their own camera-phone portfolios - these photos pop up on Facebook or blogs that same night, which is a solid week or more before the official photos are posted. There are never enough service booklets. The people that get ...

( Fund for Assistance ) - "Holy Cross Monastery - a story of survival" is a documentary about the life and difficulties of a small English-speaking Russian Orthodox monastic community in the mountains of West Virginia. The film shows daily life at the monastery and the far-reaching effect this small impoverished community has on the monastery's neighbors and pilgrims and even the world.

( NBC News ) - Obama meets Greek Orthodox Patriarch Theophilos III (3rd left) during a tour of the Church of the Nativity.

( OCA ) - His Eminence, Metropolitan Hilarion [Alfeyev] of Volokolamsk, who chairs the Moscow Patriarchate’s Department of External Church Relations, welcomed His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon, Primate of the Orthodox Church in America, for the celebration of the Great Kanon of Saint Andrew of Crete at Rome’s Russian Orthodox Church of Saint Catherine on Wednesday evening, March 20, 2013. Accompanying Metropolitan Tikhon was Archpriest Eric G. Tosi, OCA Secretary. Both hierarchs were in Rome for the Installation of Pope Francis, held one day earlier. Saint Catherine Church was recently built in the vicinity of the centrally located Vatican to serve the city’s growing number of Russian and other Orthodox Christians. At the conclusion of the service, Metropolitan Hilarion offered formal greetings to Metropolitan Tikhon. The English text, translated by Alexis Liberovsky, OCA Archivist, appears below in its entirety. Greeting of His Eminence, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokol...

Vatican City ( AsiaNews ) - The ecumenical patriarch of Constantinople has invited Pope Francis to travel with him to the Holy Land next year to mark the fiftieth anniversary of the embrace between Patriarch Athenagoras and Paul VI, the pioneers of Catholic-Orthodox dialogue. During their private meeting, Bartholomew and Francis explored possible paths towards unity, including theological dialogue, environmental defence, and a visit to the Fanar, after going through proper diplomatic channels. Earlier, when the pontiff met Christian and other religious leaders, Bartholomew I was the only one who addressed Pope Francis. For the patriarch, Christians must bear witness in a credible way through "Church unity" in order to cope with the world's economic crisis and to counter "worldly trends" that limit life to its earthly horizons. Bartholomew's words reflect the pontiff's notion of stewardship, which he presented yesterday during his inaugural mass. ...

From Fr. Ted's blog " Reading The Scriptures in an Orthodox Manner ": One of the common concerns for devout Orthodox Christians is the desire to read the Scriptures in an Orthodox manner. Especially many converts are concerned about this – they learned the importance of the Scriptures in the Christian tradition from which they came, but now that they have become Orthodox Christians they want to know how to read the Scriptures within Orthodox Tradition. They embraced Orthodoxy welcoming its understanding of Christ, the Holy Trinity, and salvation but now want to make sure they also read the Bible through an Orthodox perspective rather than retaining perspectives on Scripture learned from their days in other Christian traditions. While Orthodoxy claims to understand the Scriptures through the Patristic Tradition that does not readily translate to a quick and easy interpretive trick or exegetical method. For the Fathers saw the Scriptures as a treasury of the ric...

( National Review ) - The Irish Independent reports : A government official said an alternative plan to raise the 5.8 billion had been drafted and was to be presented to the troika. It would raise money from domestic sources, including pension plans and subsidiaries of foreign banks active in Cyprus. One of those domestic sources may be the country’s influential Orthodox church. Its head, Archbishop Chrysostomos II, said he would put the church’s assets at the country’s disposal, saying it was willing to mortgage its assets to invest in government bonds. The church has considerable wealth, including property, stakes in a bank and a brewery. The Daily Telegraph quotes the archbishop : The entire wealth of the Church is at the disposal of the country…so that we can stand on our own two feet and not on those of foreigners. That’s the spirit.

( Vatican Radio ) On Wednesday, March 20 2013, Pope Francis received several dozen representatives of the various Christian Churches and other world religions, who attended the Pope’s inauguration. Among them were several leaders from the Orthodox Church, Orthodox Oriental Church, the Anglican Communion, and various Protestant churches, including the Lutheran, Baptist and Methodist churches. Representatives from the Jewish and Muslim faiths were also present. Please find below Vatican Radio's translation of the Pope's discourse: Dear Brothers and Sisters, First of all, heartfelt thanks for what my Brother Andrew told us. Thank you so much! Thank you so much! It is a source of particular joy to meet you today, delegates of the Orthodox Churches, the Oriental Orthodox Churches and Ecclesial Communities of the West. Thank you for wanting to take part in the celebration that marked the beginning of my ministry as Bishop of Rome and Successor of Peter. Yesterday morning,...

I post on the Ukrainian situation on occasion and often forget to give any context. The UOC-MP is the universally recognized body tied to Moscow. The UAOC and UOC-KP are not and have not unified because of conflicts in a few areas (chiefly the UAOC request for the removal of the UOC-KP patriarch as a precondition). ( RISU ) - Last week in an interview to Kp.ua, the Administrator of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Moscow Patriarchate (UOC-MP) Metropolitan Antonii (Pakanych) of Boryspil spoke about the prospects of the dialogue with the Kyivan Patriarchate, Religion.in.ua reported. In his interview, Metropolitan Antonii stressed that the UOC-MP is prepared to carry on the dialogue with the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church (UAOC) and the Ukrainian Orthodox Church-Kyivan Patriarchate (UOC-KP) and that the UOC-MP “now has an official dialogue with the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church.” He admitted that no dialogue with the Kyiv Patriarchate has been launched and that “only ...

More information available here . The Orientale Lumen Conference agenda provides a balance of three components: a variety of prayer services for the soul, plenary speeches by leading theologians and ecumenists for the mind, and opportunities for fellowship for the heart. Attendees include lay persons, clergy, theologians, and church leaders who interact on an informal basis and learn from each other's traditions. Orientale Lumen XVII - Washington, DC - June 17-20, 2013 "Vision of a Reunited Church" Plenary Speakers Metropolitan Kallistos of Diokleia Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, Oxford Archbishop Cyril Vasil' (invited) Congregation for Eastern Churches, The Vatican Metropolitan Christopher (invited) Orthodox Church of the Czech and Slovak Lands, Prague Sr. Dr. Vassa Larin University of Vienna, Austria Deacon Sabatino Carnazzo Institute of Catholic Culture, McLean, VA Dr. Sebastian Carnazzo Our Lady of Guadalupe Seminary, De...

Here is who attended per the official documents. I'll add stories for each group as they become available. Ecumenical Patriarchate His All Holiness BARTHOLOMEW (Ecumenical Patriarch) His Eminence Metropolitan GENNADIOS His Eminence JOHN (Metropolitan of Pergamon) His Eminence Metropolitan TARASIOS Mr Karlos Irakli TARINAS Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Alexandria and All Africa His Eminence Archbishop SERAPHIM Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East His Eminence Metropolitan SILUAN Russian Orthodox Church His Eminence Metropolitan HILARION His Excellency Bishop SERGY Hieromonk ANTONIY Patriarchate of Georgia His Eminence Metropolitan GERASIME Reverend Father Gia ZVIADADZE Reverend Father IOANE Serbian Orthodox Church His Eminence Metropolitan AMFILOHIJE Protopresbyter Obren JOVANOVIC Protodeacon Igor BALABAN Patriarchate of Romania His Eminence Metropolitan IOSIF His Grace SILUAN Revd Deacon EFREM Orthodox Church of Cyprus His Em...

The UK (and the EU more generally) is often a good indicator of how things can proceed, if unobstructed, in the US. Metropolitan Jonah warned his flock about where things would go if things they were left to fly on their current trajectory. Hopefully this bird strike will catch someone's attention. ( Christian Institute ) - A local council has been accused of trying to edge out school chaplains, with its Deputy Leader wanting to keep out chaplains who back traditional marriage. Scottish Borders Council Deputy Leader Catriona Bhatia raised concerns about chaplains who may be “anti-gay marriage”. She insisted that religions are entitled to their views about traditional marriage, but they should not be introduced in schools. ’Stay away’ She said: “Parents may be comfortable with religious observance around Christmas, but a particular chaplain may be anti-gay marriage and introduce that into their service. “How do we know what the content will be of the chaplain’s service?...

H/T: St. Elias blog I'll leave the odd flute music to the side before I go further, but let me say that the very reason Pat. Sviatoslav believes the new Pope of Rome will be ecumenical is the very same reason the Orthodox (especially the Slav) Churches are not coming to the table. Regardless of your take on the Eastern Catholic Churches, one must admit that they are a point of contention between the two sides; the bridge-building theory has not fared the test of time well. The Major Archbishop (so named in no small part as to not cause further issues by calling him a Patriarch even if he enjoys almost all the same powers and responsibilities) will be joined with representatives of the OCA (Met. Tikhon), Constantinople (Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew), Moscow (Met. Hilarion), and other Orthodox hierarchs. Some see this as ludicrous elbow rubbing with heretics while others see it as another step towards unity. Time will tell. Returning to the flute music I am forced to ask wh...

From the blog Charming the Birds from the Trees , some helpful tips for Lent. Regardless of how you fast, fast every single day. This type of fasting helps wear down the passions and build spiritual endurance. Know exactly what the fasting regulations are and try to approximate them as best you can. Each Lent, try to be more strict yet humble. Particular concerns about fasting? Age, health issues, never fasted before, mixed-marriages? Speak with your priest. Be sure to recite the Lenten prayer of Saint Ephraim. If you cannot make prostrations just make bows or cross yourself. On weekends, we do not make prostrations and our fasting is slightly relaxed since Saturday and Sunday are holy days. The Lenten services and tones are offered only during the week – strive to participate as much as possible in these services and the spirit of lent will rub off on you. Sports and outdoor activities are not contrary to the Lenten spirit. Strive to avoid going to movies, parties, vaca...

Canon of St. Andrew of Crete available here . ( Pravmir ) - As we approach Great Lent, the time given to us specifically for repentance, the Church gives us a whole host of images to help us. St. John of Kronstadt teaches that: “Imagery or symbols are a necessity of human nature in our presently spiritually sensual condition; they explain [by the vision] many things belonging to the spiritual world which we could not know without images and symbols.” We need pictures to help us think, to help us digest and understand the truths given to us. What St. Andrew of Crete does in the Great Canon written by him, is to being to remembrance many characters of the Old Testament and a few from the New Testament. In earlier times, people knew the scriptures much more than we do. Mention a name like Korah, Datham, Hophni or Phinehas and many people would be able to tell you all about them. When they heard these names in St. Andrew’s canon, they had the opportunity to be struck in the heart an...

( OCA ) - The Holy Synod of Bishops of the Orthodox Church in America held its spring session at the Chancery here Tuesday through Thursday, March 12-14, 2013. In addition to His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon, who chaired the sessions, other members of the Holy Synod in attendance were His Eminence, Archbishop Nathaniel; His Eminence, Archbishop Nikon; His Eminence, Archbishop Benjamin; His Eminence, Archbishop Alejo; His Grace, Bishop Melchisedek; His Grace, Bishop Michael; His Grace, Bishop Alexander; His Grace, Bishop Mark; and His Grace, Bishop Irenee. “It has been a little over a month since my enthronement in Washington, DC on January 27, and this report will serve as my monthly review for that time period,” said Metropolitan Tikhon in his opening address. “It is still my hope to provide my brother bishops with regular updates on the most crucial matters affecting the Orthodox Church in America in order to increase our level of communication and reduce the amount of time...

Frederica Mathewes-Green to the rescue. See here at the Lenten Resource Center.

( Holy Resurrection Cathedral ) - Holy Resurrection Serbian Orthodox Cathedral in Chicago is set to launch a School of Liturgical Chant drawing from the Serbian Octoechos (Osmoglasnik) and hymnography of the Zbornik - an Anthology of Church hymns, the Cathedral clergy announced today. The School will be open to all interested parishioners with classes and practices to be held on Mondays at 7PM starting on March 18th. “Participating in church life bears gifts several times over and one of these is the gift of chanting,” explains Jovan Anicic, the Cathedral cantor who will be leading the School. “St. John Chrysostom emphasizes the beauty of the human voice in glorifying the Lord and, according to him, there is no musical instrument whose sound can even be compared to the human voice.” “Above all liturgical chant has an educational character,” Anicic continues, “as the Apostle says: let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in ps...