Byzantine, Texas

As someone who is related to some Presbyterians I can attest to these and other silly replacement formularies being actually used. Things like " Mother, Child, and Womb. " [Queue liturgical dance music.] It's of course absurd. One is reminded of the Eastern proclivity for invoking the Trinity with much more consistency for almost all prayers. To the Eastern mind particularly and the orthodox Christian in general any sort of replacement is anathema and rings of paganism. VATICAN CITY, 29 FEB 2008 ( VIS ) - Made public today were the responses of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith to two questions concerning the validity of Baptism conferred with certain non-standard formulae. The first question is: " Is a Baptism valid if conferred with the words 'I baptise you in the name of the Creator, and of the Redeemer, and of the Sanctifier', or 'I baptise you in the name of the Creator, and of the Liberator, and of the Sustainer'"? The second q...

I used to watch Firing Line as a child. I'm sure this was partly due to my interest in what he and his panel had to say and partly as a result to my mother's regulations on watching PBS on the weekend so that no cooking show went unwatched. I watches as my Yan Can Cook as I did Mr. Buckley in all candor. This quote from a Wall Street Journal article quite amused me and highlighted his rapier wit. Throughout, Buckley was rarely angry or grim. A famous debate in 1978 with the Gipper on the Panama Canal included the following exchange: Reagan: "Well, Bill, my first question is why haven't you already rushed across the room here to tell me that you've seen the light?" Buckley: "I'm afraid that if I came any closer to you the force of my illumination would blind you."

I believe him when he says he wants to make faith central to the EU member countries. At the same time he refuses to meet with the leader of most of the people he is often talking to. Regardless of his opinion of the state of the Rome-Moscow relationship, His Holiness needs to make joint declarations and work openly to spread the Gospel even if things like territorial concerns continue to act as a roadblock to ecumenical discussions. ( Directions to Orthodoxy ) Moscow, February 28, Interfax - The Commonwealth of Independent States' European countries must not be passive onlookers in the European processes, Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia said. "I am convinced that the Christian heritage and its presence in the life of society can provide a solid foundation for relations between Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova on the one hand and the European Union on the other," Alexy II said during talks with President of the European People's Party Wilfred Martens a...

( RISU ) - Kyiv — the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC) Patriarch Lubomyr (Husar) will publish his address on traffic safety by the end of February. The UGCC Catholic Head is preparing the document at the request of the Synod of Bishops of UGCC Kyiv-Halych Supreme Archbishopric in response to Ukraine’s Internal Affairs Ministry. According to a report from the UGCC Information Department, the address’ main idea is a clear definition of careless use of vehicles, speed excess, and traffic regulations violations as a sin which one should not only be aware of but also confess to a priest and take responsibility for.

Canonical territory is a touchy subject as you can imagine. It doesn't help that the Catholic Church and many of the Orthodox churches have a differing understanding of what territory means and how applicable it is to the very mobile populace of today. Moscow, February 26, ( Directions to Orthodoxy ) Interfax - The issue of the status of Catholic dioceses in the Orthodox lands as well as the issue of the status of the Orthodox dioceses in traditionally Catholic countries requires a "serious and elaborate discussion" in terms of the Orthodox-Catholic dialog , Bishop Hilarion (Alfeyev) of Vienna and Austria, Representative of the Russian Orthodox Church to the European Institutions, told Interfax-Religion on Tuesday. "Many Western people think that the concept of a 'canonic territory' has lost its sense altogether in modern situation because Orthodox believers coexist side by side with Catholics, Protestants and representatives of other faiths," he said. R...

I found this interesting. With the stream of Putin-Church news articles in recent months this is the first one I have seen that shows anything other than a tightening relationship between the two. I worry about this close relationship turning into something unhealthy - something that might place the Church at odds with the West as a political arm of the State. This is not me being anti-Slavic ( Hospodi Pomiluj! ). This is me worrying about a return to the rhetoric of old and the growth of a strange new nationalism . Moscow, Feb. 25, 2008 ( CWNews.com ) - Russian President Valdimir Putin has announced that Russian Orthodox seminarians are obliged to do mandatory military service, Vatican Radio reports. Putin's policy announcement appears to put the government on a collision course with the leadership of the Russian Orthodox Church. The Moscow patriarchate in the past has threatened to expel any seminarians who use firearms or engage in military service.

Normally I don't like riders on congressional bills as they're full of pork-barrel spending in the like, but I can quite easily get behind this use of the procedure. Whether you believe it is because they could do it (as the Mint claims) or as a step towards removing it completely (as a lot of activist groups claimed) the U.S. Mint moved "In God We Trust" from either face of the US dollar coin to the edge of the coin. You can imagine the furor that arose. As a response the huge consolidated spending bill added a rider that moved "In God We Trust" back to a coin face. Below is part of an article on the issue. Link to article here . The first four coins, honoring George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams and James Madison, were released during the course of 2007, with the motto on the edge, except some "error" coins that inadvertently were released by the Mint without the edge lettering. The 2008 series will honor James Monroe on Feb. 14, John ...

Two programs from the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese: NEW DISTANCE LEARNING PROGRAM BEGINS: The Department of Religious Education is beginning a pilot distance learning program. Living Great Lent taught by Rev. Dr. Alkiviadis Calivas will be available on-line at http://learn.goarch.org/moodle beginning February 19. Participants will need to register on-line to have access to the five video presentations by Fr. Calivas, a series of readings, and questions for discussion. The course will be facilitated by Dr. Anton C. Vrame, Director of the Department of Religious Education, and Rev. Dn. Markos Nickolas, a doctoral candidate in pastoral theology at Boston University. While an individual can register for the course, the course is designed for groups that can meet to discuss the presentations and readings. The course material will be available from February 19 to April 4 to encourage learners and groups to complete the five session program within seven weeks. Fr. Calivas is Professor emeritus...

The Pope of Rome met with Armenian Church leaders to honor St. Gregory the Illuminator . Video clip is here .

H/T: Fr. John Whiteford

I looked up this declaration found here . Can I say that we don't need to bring back the Byzantine Empire? Wading through the EU document indices is byzantine enough to force me to pull my hair out. The bar the EU sets up continues to be out of reach. I'm all for continuing the dialogue as tool for moving Turkey towards a more free system of governance, but I also look with concern at the things that have not changed (treatment of non-Muslims and the media) and those worrisome things that are changing (the headscarf for example). Brussels, Feb. 20, 2008 ( CWNews.com ) - European Union officials have called upon the government of Turkey to ensure religious freedom by granting legal recognition to faiths other than Islam, the KAI news agency reports. Religious freedom has been a pivotal concern in discussions on Turkey's bid for entry into the European Union. EU officials are now asking for guarantees that minority religious groups in Turkey will have the right to train and s...

Amusingly, I have family in Beijing. They're leaving the country for the duration of the Olympics. Having been there myself I can only imagine the chaos of thousands of foreigners surging into the cities, towns, and villages of the mainland. I remember when a tour bus I was on passed what was obviously a brothel. Embarrassed our handlers to no end. But I digress, the only attention China needs on its curtailing of religious freedoms is being exposed for their harsh treatment of believers and not a feel good trip where the Communist party gets a stamp of approval filled with pictures of His Holiness shaking hands with potentates. February 21, 2008 ( Christianity Today ) - A trip by Pope Benedict to China would be "unthinkable" at the moment because there is not enough religious freedom there, a Vatican official said on Wednesday. Pope Benedict has made improving ties with Beijing a major goal of his pontificate and last year a senior figure in China's state-controlled ...

Vatican City, Feb 19, 2008 / 10:53 am ( CNA ).- Yesterday, Pope Benedict XVI spoke to the members of the executive committee of the International Union of Superiors General, telling them that “when communities have chosen to return to the origins and live in a way more in keeping with the spirit of the founder,” they see positive signs of renewal. The religious superiors were gathered at the Vatican to discuss "some particularly relevant and important aspects of consecrated life." The Holy Father launched into some of the most pressing problems for religious communities. "We are all aware how, in modern globalized society, it is becoming ever more difficult to announce and bear witness to the Gospel", he said. "The process of secularization which is advancing in contemporary culture does not, unfortunately, spare even religious communities.” If you can play "nun or women's basketball coach?" you know you have a problem. An attempt to be more '...

A one-day ikon conference will be held at Saint Basil's in North Texas (Irving, TX) on Saturday, March 8 from 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Admission is free and lunch will be offered. There will be three presentations: The History of Ikonography The Spirituality/Theology of Ikons The Production/Creation of Ikons The Day will end with the chanting of Vespers in the Church. Everyone is invited. Driving Directions: Directions to St. Basil the Great 1118 E Union Bower Rd. Irving, TX 75061 Your Address (street, city state)

I found this article very depressing. After a few back and forths from the two churches, this is the latest news article. There have also been many blog posts from both sides as a result of this and earlier articles. Moscow, February 19, Interfax - The Moscow Patriarchate doesn't share the optimism of Walter Kasper, the president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, regarding the outcome of a meeting between Orthodox and Catholics in Ravenna. Earlier, the Vatican official said in an interview with the Our Sunday Visitor magazine, while commenting on the final document adopted by the Ravenna meeting of the Mixed Orthodox-Catholic Theologian Commission, that a "real breakthrough" had been accomplished in the dialogue between the two Churches. "I don't share Cardinal Kasper's optimism about the Ravenna document and deem it premature," Bishop Hilarion of Vienna and all Austria, who represents the Russian Church in European international o...

An oddity of my brain forms "shapel" in my head instead of "chapel" as a result of watching Lilies of the Field one too many times. Regardless, I'm pleased to see the much awaited chapel of my alma mater the College of Saint Thomas More will break ground next week. The Chapel if Christ the Teacher at The College of Saint Thomas More with The Shrine of Saint Thomas More and The Shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham On Friday, February 29 at 2:00 p.m. the Most Reverend Kevin Vann, Bishop of the Diocese of Fort Worth, will bless the beginnings of the new college chapel at 3001 Lubbock Avenue. Celebratory refreshments will be available in the Refectory (3008 Lubbock) before and after. The Visitors, Chancellor, and Fellows especially hope that many of those whose generosity has made the new chapel possible will be able to share in this happy occasion. The floor plans for the new chapel are posted here .

As there is no Orthodox Blog Awards, I emailed the Catholic Blog Awards people to get an Eastern Christian section added. Considering the numbers involved, the possibility of an Eastern Catholic getting an award is small. Here's their response. I have hope for next year. Joseph, Thanks for the request. Since nominations have already started it would be imprudent to add a category at this time. We will however keep your suggestion in consideration for next year. Thanks, Joshua LeBlanc

At least once a day I have to add a word to my Firefox browser's dictionary or go to the OED for a definition as the normal resources (built-in OS X dictionary, Merriam-Webster Online, Onelook) don't have a very liturgical or religious-minded lexicon. To share the wealth (and as I'm a calendar "Word a Day" junkie) I'm going to put these words online. phyletism : An excessive emphasis on the principle of nationalism in the organization of church affairs; a policy which attaches greater importance to ethnic identity than to bonds of faith and worship; (originally) spec. the claim of the Bulgarian Church to jurisdiction over Bulgarian nationals in all parts of the world. This claim led to the condemnation passed in 1872 by the Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Constantinople, and to a schism between the Greek-speaking Orthodox churches and the Bulgarian Church which lasted until 1945.

Here's a guest response by Mrs. Darcy (a frequent commenter on this blog) to a post on Per Christum . It's posted here as it didn't fit in their comment box. Comments of course welcome: Sometimes I read a post and I get a bit frazzled. Sometimes I follow the links in said post ... and go nuts. This is me. This is not everyone. I have two distinct pet peeves (though, who am I kidding, I'm a woman, pet peeves are hard-wired into the menagerie of circuits called my brain). The first: reading antiquated material out of it historical context or inserting modern assumptions or prejudices in historical works. The second is hiding the Church from catechumens for reasons of personal prejudice or anxiety that they might be scared off by some discipline, history, or even moral precepts. David B. from Per Christum has asked the question: "Is the epistle to Diognetus antisemitic?" This was prompted by a post from Meg at News of the Dea . Meg is partaking in the Chu...

"Holy God, Holy and Mighty, Holy and a Zombie... no wait... what?" On Light of the East Radio an intriguing discussion between Fr. Maximos and His Eminence Metropolitan Nikitas of the difficulties for the Eastern Church with culture and translation of the true faith to the people of Asia and Hong Kong in particular. Go to the episode #172 from the above link or iTunes podcast.

Found this today. You can also sync to it by going to webcal://www.icalx.com/public/pahiker/Byzantine%20Catholic%20Calendar.ics .

Things the Orthodox can and do say that other churches/communities don't or won't. Geneva, February 14, Interfax - The values of other religions, just as secular ones, should not be advocated by the heads of Christian Churches, said Bishop Hilarion of Vienna and Austria, who represents the Russian Orthodox Church at European international organizations. "Our role is not to protect Sharia law, to glorify an alternative style of behavior or to preach secular values. Our sacred mission is to announce what Christ announced, to teach what his disciples taught," Bishop Hilarion said at the opening of a session of the World Council of Churches (WCC)'s Central Committee in Geneva. He was commenting on a recent statement by Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams that it was inevitable that several aspects of Sharia law will have to be included in British law. His speech caused a public uproar in the UK. "Many Christians around the world are looking up to Christian l...

BARCELONA, Spain, FEB. 13, 2008 ( Zenit.org ).- A donation from Spanish religious congregations of more than 5,000 books to the Orthodox Academy of Moscow has been received as "another sign of the good relations" between the two Churches. That is how Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, the president of the Department of External Affairs of the Moscow Patriarchate, described the donatio n. Jesuit Father Emilio Benedetti told ZENIT how the donation came about: "During the entire month of October 2007, I had the satisfaction of helping Father Dionisyos Shlenov, professor of the Orthodox Theological Academy of Moscow, and Father Valeri, archivist of the Patriarchate of Moscow, to select the books." The volumes are duplicates donated by Jesuit theology faculties from universities in Barcelona, Madrid, Bilbao and Granada. Benedictines from Montserrat and Claretian fathers from Barcelona "also donated a series of excellent works," Father Benedetti sa...

Byzantine Ramblings pointed out this helpful tiered system of fasting. The complete article is here and I recommend it as it has special points of warning and helpful advice, but I post the convenient "levels" below. At the hundred dollar level there's a commemorative tote-bag. THE MINIMAL DEGREE : The first week of Lent abstain from meat. On all Wednesdays and Fridays in Lent abstain from meat. Holy Week: abstain from meat, fish, dairy products (including milk, butter, eggs, etc.) and oil. This includes all day Holy Saturday, the strictest fast day of the year. The fast must be continued even after you have received Communion on Holy Saturday morning. THE LIGHT DEGREE : The first week of Lent abstain from meat, fish, dairy products (including milk, butter, eggs, etc.) and oil. On all Wednesdays and Fridays in Lent abstain from meat. Holy Week: abstain from meat, fish, dairy products (including milk, butter, eggs, etc.) and oil. This includes all day Holy Saturday, the s...

Let me say that the most enjoyable bit is at the end.

Found A Byzantine Christian in a Postmodern World today. An excellent post on the afterlife is here . It's full of insight, quotes, and is highly recommended.

How does a country on the one hand bend over backwards for the extremes of the left and the right and hope to provide for the great moderate field at the same time? Can you back special ethnic courts one day (with surgical removal of basic punishment practices like stoning, removal of appendages, etc.) and then cast aside the beliefs indigenous to your society and hope to continue to exist? Is this a result of guilt for their colonial past? Can they continue to squash all opinions that might judge anyone else for anything while at the same time monitoring everyone and attempting to create a national ID card database? How very Orwellian. Someone needs to send V for Vendetta to their government officals. London, Feb. 12, 2008 ( CWNews.com ) - An Anglican bishop has been ordered to pay a heavy fine and undergo “equal-opportunies training” for refusing to approve the hiring of an openly homosexual man for a post in youth ministry. The Cardiff Employment Tribunal on February 11 settled a d...

One wants to fast "correctly." Trying to obey the fulness of what is expected of the faithful Eastern Christian here is a list of the expectations from Orthodox Wiki (a great resource, but rather slow on the whole). The Byzantine Catholic Church has a generally more lenient Great Fast than many Orthodox churches do, but I opt for the more strict obedience. Original purpose: The original purpose of the pre-Pascha fast (now known as Great Lent) was the fasting of catechumens who were being prepared for baptism and entry into the Church. However, it quickly became a time for those who were already Christian to prepare for the feast of the Resurrection of Christ. It is the living symbol of man's entire life which is to be fulfilled in his own resurrection from the dead with Christ. It is a time of renewed devotion: of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. It is a time of repentance, a real renewal of minds, hearts and deeds in conformity with Christ and his teachings. It is the ...

Interesting article picked up by Reason & Revelation on BBC's Channel 4 show Unreported World . Unreported World exposes a dark side to Egypt that the authorities don't want foreigners to see: a secretive society of around 40,000 people literally living in rubbish in a Cairo ghetto overrun by rats and disease. Reporter Evan Williams and producer James Brabazon are some of the first journalists to film inside the ghetto where tens of thousands live with garbage stacked to the roofs of their multi-storey homes - eking out a living recycling the rubbish by hand. It's a sight rarely seen by outsiders, and almost definitely not by the million British Tourists who visit Egypt every year. This group is unique for another reason. They're part of Muslim Egypt's Christian minority; a community claiming to be besieged by persecution, extremism and a creeping Islamisation in Egypt's security services. Here's one video (see the rest at the above Reason & Revelat...

Lesson #2: When your wife says, "Honey! The kids drew in the family bible!" The proper response is not "That's ok. It wasn't a good translation anyway."

In a new series titled "Lessons Learned" I'm going to recount 'educational moments' in family life. Lesson #1: Toddlers like putting their hands in toilets and are not discerning about the state of the toilet they choose to play in.

A worthy read by Byzantine Ramblings on the place of religion in general and the clergy in particular and politics. It seems especially apropos considering the passing of Archbishop Christodoulos who was himself very vocal on the government of Greece to the consternation of more than a few politicians. Normally I'd post starter snippet of the aforementioned letter to the editor by the good Father, but it is best read in its entirety and defies cut-and-paste exegesis. That said, I thought these passages poignant and true: The coherence between what a religion preaches and what it demands in practice constitutes its internal integrity. The charge of hypocrisy is rightly laid at adherents of a religion when their practice and behavior betrays an incongruity with what the religion believes and proclaims. When a religion itself is discovered to be fully incongruent in its practice versus its belief people rightly deem it a cult and a scam. Inevitably, what at the micro level is the pro...

The last post reminded me of the short but well done set of podcasts from Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church. Here is the podcasts page .

( NTOM ) - On Sunday March 16th at 6:00 pm, an unprecedented event will take place as Metropolitan Isaiah of the Greek Orthodox Jurisdiction, Bishop Basil of the Antiochian Jurisdiction, and Archbishop Dmitri of the O.C.A. Jurisdiction will concelebrate the first Lenten Vespers at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church in Dallas, TX.

( UOC ) - On Wednesday, February 6 His Beatitude Metropolitan Volodymyr received Cardinal Renato Raffaele Martino at his request. Cardinal Martino heads the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace and Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People, and is now concluding his visit to Ukraine, the aim of which was to present the Ukrainian translation of the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Roman-Catholic Church. In the course of the visit which took place at the residence of Primate of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra Cardinal Martino told His Beatitude Metropolitan Volodymyr about the work on Compendium, which was finished in 2004, and noted that the Ukrainian language was the 36th language this book had been translated into. "We believe that this Compendium can be a platform for the dialogue not only for Christians of different confessions, but for all the people of good will, who share our doctrine of value and dignity of the human personality, si...

( Directions to Orthodoxy: Orthodox News) Senior clergy elected Metropolitan Bishop Ieronymos of Thebes as the new leader of Greece's influential Orthodox Church on Thursday to succeed the late Archbishop Christodoulos, the church announced. Church bells rang out and the lights outside Athens Cathedral, where 74 bishops had gathered for the vote, came on to announce the election of a successor to the popular Christodoulos, who died of cancer last month. Ieronymos, 70, won 45 votes after two rounds in an election that began Thursday morning. Four bishops of the 78-member Holy Synod, the church's governing body, were absent, the church said in announcing the results. "I accept this high office and honor to uphold the holy traditions of the Greek Orthodox Church," Ieronymos said in accepting the post. He was one of the main contenders for the church leadership in the previous election in 1998, when Christodoulos eventually triumphed over him after three rounds of votin...

I pray that he be as engaging and ecumenical as his predecessor of blessed repose. ATHENS, Greece, Feb. 6 ( UPI ) -- The Church of Greece, commonly known as the Greek Orthodox Church, is preparing to select a new leader. A total of 75 bishops are expected to gather Thursday in Athens for a Holy Synod, Ekathimerini reported. Four candidates are vying to succeed Archbishop Christodoulos, who died last week. The bishop of Thebes, Ieronymos, and the bishop of Sparta, Efstathios, appear to be the leading candidates, Ekathimerini said. Anthimos, bishop of Thessaloniki, and Ignatios of Dimitrios are also running. While the candidate bishops are trying to secure support among their colleagues, they are keeping low profiles. The synod at the Metropolitan Cathedral in Athens begins with a religious service. At 9 a.m., the cathedral gates will be closed and voting will begin after officials have determined that there is a quorum. Successive secret ballots will be held until a candidate receives m...

Last week a popular local radio show on NPR called Think had the president of Planned Parenthood on. Normally this show is thought provoking and rather balanced. The host asks piercing questions and is capable of encapsulating complex issues into a few immediately understandable sentences. So I was shocked when Cecile Richards was given numerous soft pitches. But wait! There's always the callers, right? Nope. There was the older woman wanting to remind other older women that they can get STDs, too. There was the family friend who knew the guest's mother. You get the idea. So, what does a listener do? This listener emailed in: "Think" staff, I was surprised by the tenor of your conversation with the head of Planned Parenthood of America. As a dutiful listener to your show I can only call this segment a "fluff piece" ill-befitting a program that usually contains enlightened and well reasoned discourse. It seemed to this listener that Ms. Boyd's primary go...

If love does not climb, it falls. If, like the flame, it does not burn upward to the sun, it burns downward to destroy. If sex does not mount to heaven, it descends into hell. There is no such thing as giving the body without giving the soul. Those who think they can be faithful in soul to one another, but unfaithful in body, forget that the two are inseparable. Sex in isolation from personality does not exist! An arm living and gesticulating apart from the living organism is an impossibility. Man has no organic functions isolated from his soul. There is involvement of the whole personality. Nothing is more psychosomatic than the union of two in one flesh; nothing so much alters a mind, a will, for better or for worse. The separation of soul and body is death. Those who separate sex and spirit are rehearsing for death. The enjoyment of the other's personality through one's own personality, is love. The pleasure of animal function through another's animal function is sex sep...

Here are the rules: 1. Pick up the nearest book ( of at least 123 pages). 2. Open the book to page 123. 3. Find the fifth sentence. 4. Post the next three sentences. 5. Tag five people. Nearest Book: Through Their Own Eyes - Liturgy as the Byzantines Saw It by Archimandrite Robert F. Taft, S.J. Three Sentences: I'm not sure Justinian wasn't swimming up stream, because if you look at all the illustrations in all the miniscules and manuscripts, as well as the rubrics, it's quite clear that in the Byzantine tradition, the prayers - and those rubrics are still found in the anaphora of St. Basil; Why? Because there was a liturgical law formulated by Anton Baumstark years ago that [says:] "Liturgies less frequently celebrated remain more conservative." So the anaphora of St. Basil says that the priest prays klinomenos - bowing. Fr. Taft likes his run-on sentences. In his defense this is from his oral Q&A session after presenting a paper. Now... whom to tag in turn.