Byzantine, Texas

This was sent to me and deserves a read. You can read the Calivas article here . We can all agree that we are living in unusual times. However, the nature and extent of the illness that we face, and the proper response of the Church, is a matter of much disagreement. We have seen various responses to the COVID-19 epidemic: calls to close our Churches as infectious vectors, and demands to open them as places of spiritual healing. Directives a) ordering the cessation of sacramental life as part of an effort to “flatten the curve,” and cries for access to the divine grace that flows forth from those very mysteries; b) calling for the restriction of “at-risk persons,” and serious questions about the validity of such controls, c) instructions to liturgists to wear personal protective equipment during the celebration of the divine services and the distribution of the holy Mysteries, and uncertainty about the fitness of such practices. Who has been championing what and on behalf of whom? The ...

( Orthodox Times ) - Mount Athos will reopen on June 1 following the decision by the Holy Community. However, the entry permits will be issued sparingly in terms of administration. Fifteen entry permits will be issued for each large monastery while there will not be more than five people in the sketes. In the relevant encyclical, it is also mentioned that pilgrims will not be able to spend the night in other monasteries , but a short pilgrimage tour may be allowed.

A very enjoyable man to speak to with the added glorious benefit of Texan roots. Most decidedly a very surprising and sad event for his family, friends, and parishioners. My prayers for all who were blessed to have known him. Please consider helping with their GoFundMe. ( Antiochian ) - Christ is risen! With great sadness, yet with hope in the Resurrection, Fr. Thomas Zain, Vicar General of the Antiochian Archdiocese, announces the sudden passing of Fr. John Guy Winfrey, 58, the pastor of St. Katherine Mission in Burleson, Texas. Father John’s passing on Monday, May 25, 2020 marks the third death of a priest of the Archdiocese in the past week. “Father John was a good friend who goes back to the beginning of my priesthood in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. Although a few years older than me, he came to St. Tikhon’s Orthodox Theological Seminary with his wife Beverly and three young children – Danielle, Gregory and Mary – when I was a new priest. We formed a lasting friendship and shared a ...

( NCR ) - In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Pope Francis March 27 characterized the worldwide trauma as: "God's call on people to judge what is most important to them and resolve to act accordingly from now on." Can this occasion also be a time of deeper communion among us? Catholics, Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox hierarchs, pastors and faithful agree that the Eucharist, the body and blood of the Son of God, is the most precious gift of God to the church.  It is of paramount importance to us! Nevertheless, while sharing the same belief in the supreme importance of the Eucharist, we still refrain from sharing the bread and cup with each other because of doctrinal divergences. Perhaps this pandemic is an occasion for those committed to fostering the unity of Christians to consider a leap forward: Would the Catholic, Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox Churches consider an expansion of sacramental sharing, especially eucharistic sharing, on a reciprocal, ordinary basis? A b...

( Pravmir ) - Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre has reopened to visitors after a two-month closure due to the coronavirus pandemic. The church, situated in Jerusalem’s Old City, is the site where many Christians believe Jesus was crucified, entombed, and resurrected. The Christian authorities managing the site closed it to visitors in March to prevent the spread of Covid-19, but clerics maintained prayers inside the shuttered church throughout its closure. On Sunday, church authorities limited entrance to 50 people at a time, and required that those entering the cavernous site maintain social distance and avoid touching any of the church’s stones, icons or other religious items. A typical day before the virus outbreak would bring thousands of faithful who kissed or placed their hands along the church’s surfaces. As priests from the various Christian denominations entered the church, a handful of faithful waited outside for the basilica’s church to open for the public....

From the Antiochian Archdiocesan publication The Word, an article entitled " Fighting the Right War: Protecting the Lives of Our Unborn Children " by Chris Humphrey, Ph.D. It is a commonplace among military historians that the Allied armies of the First and Second World Wars prepared in each case to fight the last war. The steady advance of troops towards the enemy made sense, before the First World War and the Maxim machine gun put an end to that. Trench warfare made sense, before the mechanized blitzkrieg, or "lightning war," of the Second World War made lines of trenches useless. The same is true when we think of great evils, of moral conflicts in which many, many lives are lost. If you want to depict a really wicked enemy in some piece of fiction, someone whom everyone knows they should hate, you make him a Nazi, a relic of the past. In the Twentieth Century, Nazism and Communism both offered alternative views of human beings and societies, and justified at...

( AOB ) - Today, the Executive Committee of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States of America met via video conference and determined that a direct appeal to several Governors be made to insist on the equitable treatment of religion in the reopening of certain States. In the appeal, the Hierarchs of the Executive Committee noted that the “founders of our country wisely protected the free exercise of religion precisely because of the vital role played by communities of faith in providing their members faith, hope, and comfort, and their communities love, service, and charitable outreach during times of trial such as these.” They also noted that “religious institutions provide for social and emotional cohesion, important rites of passage, and participation in the mysterium of human existence that expresses meaning and purpose, and are as vital to the common good as the reinitializing of the economic engines that provide the means of material life.” Finally...

WASHINGTON ( AP ) — President Donald Trump on Friday said he has deemed churches and other houses of worship “essential" and called on governors to allow them to reopen this weekend despite the threat of the coronavirus. “Today I’m identifying houses of worship — churches, synagogues and mosques — as essential places that provide essential services," Trump said during a hastily arranged press conference Friday. He said if governors don't abide by his request, he will “override" them, though it's unclear what authority he has to do so. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had prepared reopening guidelines for churches and other houses of worship weeks ago, but the White House had refused to release them until Thursday when Trump abruptly changed course. “I said ‘You better put it out.’ And they’re doing it,” Trump said Thursday at a Ford Motor Co. plant repurposed to make ventilators in Michigan. “And they’re going to be issuing something today or...

( Life in Ukraine ) - The Day of Vyshyvanka is a new Ukrainian nationwide celebration intended to preserve ancestral traditions of creating and wearing embroidered ethnic clothing. This holiday is celebrated on the third Thursday of May. The Day of Vyshyvanka is original and self-sufficient, it doesn’t have any state or religious bases. One sparking idea gave start to national holiday in 2007. Since then Ukrainians have specific day to put on embroidered clothes when going to kindergarten, school, university or work place. Short history of Day of Vyshyvanka Nationwide action ‘Day of Ukrainian vyshyvanka’ was launched by a student of history, political science and international relationships faculty in Chernivtsi National University Lesya Voroniuk in 2007. She noted that students often wear embroidered clothes in University and suggested choosing single day to wear vyshyvanky altogether. The first Day of Vysyhyvanka took place in 2007 when several dozens of students co...

I plan to use the term "cult units" wherever possible from now on. ( Basilica.ro ) - Considering that, from May 15, 2020, the state of emergency and the applicability of the Military Ordinances that limited essential aspects of the public religious life of the faithful cease, following consultation with the Romanian Government, the Romanian Patriarchate sends the following instructions to the cult units of the Romanian Orthodox Church regarding the access of Orthodox believers to places of worship and cemeteries, and their participation in divine services: Access of the faithful to the places of worship People who have access to the church, for individual prayer and Confession, will respect the distance of 2 m, waiting in a single row. The distance of 2 m between two people is to be observed from entering until exiting the church. It is recommended for seniors, people with significant health problems and persons from high-risk groups to stay at home during divine serv...

If you are curious how this is done, see the below video. ( Orthodox Times ) - The religious services will be conducted with the participation of faithful from May 15. After consulting with the competent authorities, the Metropolis decided to implement a number of hygiene rules with the aim of conducting religious services without difficulties with the participation of faithful. The Metropolis decided that the Holy Communion would be offered according to with the Typikon of the Divine Liturgy of St. James while emphasizing that the priests will be given details. The Metropolis of Austria also announced that during the services the ratio of one person per 10 square meters in the temple will be strictly observed, with the faithful keeping at least a 2 m distance between them, wearing masks. The church employees will clean and disinfect regularly the surfaces and various equipment. Before entering the church there will be antiseptic while the Metropolis recommended that vulnerabl...

( ROCOR ) - On Tuesday, May 12, 2020, on the eve of the Mid-Pentecost, a teleconference of the Synod of Bishops of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia took place, chaired by His Eminence Metropolitan Hilarion of Eastern America and New York, First Hierarch. Participating in the call were: His Eminence Metropolitan Mark of Berlin and Germany; His Eminence Archbishop Kyrill of San Francisco and Western America, Secretary of the Synod of Bishops; His Eminence Archbishop Gabriel of Montreal and Canada; His Eminence Archbishop Peter of Chicago and Mid-America; His Grace Bishop Irenei of London and Western Europe and His Grace Bishop Nicholas of Manhattan, Deputy Secretary of the Synod of Bishops. Монреальский и Канадский Гавриил и Чикагский и Средне-Американский Петр, епископы Лондонский и Западно-Европейский Ириней и Манхэттенский Николай. Opening the session, Metropolitan Hilarion greeted the members of the Synod on the continuing celebration of the Pascha of Christ, wishing ...

( Orthodox Times ) - The march of the pandemic revived a forgotten – by most people in Greece and the rest of the West today – figure of the ecclesiastical Orthodox life. It is Saint Corona (St. Kron or St. Kronpeth)- protector of those suffering from diseases and other epidemics. We have the opportunity to be reminded of the existence and significance of this saint by the Archieratic Commissioner of Bavaria, Protopresbyter of the Ecumenical Throne, Fr. Apostolos Malamousis, who, speaking to “Orthodoxi Alithia” (Orthodox Truth), states, among other things, that the church of Saint Corona in the town of Arget, 35 km from the city of Munich. Saint Corona lived in Italy, in the middle of the 2nd century AD. She was the wife of a military man during the reign of Emperor Antoninus. When her husband died in 160 AD, she herself became a widow. She was present at the martyrdom of St. Victor, whom she even urged and encouraged not to be discouraged and to endure his martyrdom with cou...

The toolkit lets you put in your zip code to see what regulations are in place. It's actually quite interesting. As states like Virginia and Wisconsin and others are set to change their restrictions soon, it will be worth checking out if they provide timely updates as states begin to open up again. Also, know that I hear your concerns sent to me on Twitter and email. Some of you are quite scared, but many more of you are quite angry and disappointed by the response of the hierarchs. Regardless of how this issue gets resolved, I trust and hope that the Church is going to be doing a lot of reflection on the decisions it made in response to this novel interruption. ( AOB ) - “Feed My Lambs” To the Orthodox Christian Faithful of the United States of America: Christ is Risen! Truly He is Risen! In this time of global pandemic, the majority of the Faithful of our Churches have been withheld from receiving Holy Communion and attending Divine Services in order to safeguard their ...

You might enjoy the Liturgical Handbook of the Practices of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad . ( ROCOR-EU ) - When an antimins is being transported from one place to another, how is this done? When, from time to time the antimins may require to be taken off of the Holy Table in order to be transported to another place in order for a Divine Liturgy to be celebrated, with the Bishop’s blessing, in a place that does not have an antimins, it is always transported fully folded within its customary protective red cloth (as on the Holy Table), and this is placed in a pouch or clean bag that is worn around the Priest’s neck. The antimins is never packed into a suitcase or box, or transported in some other way. Ideally, the Priest should wear his epitrahil when transporting the antimins from one place to another (e.g. from the central Holy Table in a church to another of its Holy Tables that does not have its own antimins), since we ought not touch the antimins without wearing vestment...

This letter is long. It might be the longest set of directives I have yet seen not put out by a synod. ( OCA-DEPA ) - Beginning the Discussion ---the Process to Open our Parishes. Where there is no counsel, the people fall; But in the multitude of counselors there is safety. (Proverbs 11: 14) Dear Rev. Frs., esteemed members of the parish councils and faithful, Christ is Risen! Indeed, He is Risen! I pray you are all in good health and doing well. Let us pray for all who are infected with the coronavirus known and unknown, our healthcare workers, first responders and all who provide for the public welfare, as well as who are suffering adversity because of this virus. May the Lord grant rest and blessed repose to those whom the virus has taken from among us and all those who reposed in the Lord and were not given the fullness of our usual services. Let us especially remember those who lost loved ones and were denied the presence of their brothers and sisters in Christ during thei...

NEW YORK ( GOARCH ) – On Thursday, May 7, 2020, His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America convened the Holy Eparchial Synod via videoconference, in order to discuss and decide on a process for the reopening of parishes. During the meeting, the Hierarchs expressed solidarity and empathy for the pain and loss felt by the Faithful of late, especially the loss of a traditional Holy Week and Pascha. Based on the current reopening plans that are being executed around the country, it was decided that each Metropolitan would be responsible for the reopening of his local parishes in accordance with local health and public safety mandates, which might vary significantly within an individual Metropolis. Noting the importance of recommencing with Holy Communion, each Hierarch will make determinations for parishes in accordance with local guidelines for social distancing, preparation of the churches and attendant facilities, and any and all best practices for the local clergy to observe. ...

( RFE ) - A controversial mosaic featuring Russian President Vladimir Putin will not be displayed inside a new cathedral dedicated to the nation’s armed forces after the Kremlin leader reportedly expressed opposition to the idea. Recently leaked photos of work on the massive Resurrection of Christ Cathedral -- which is scheduled to open outside Moscow ahead of the May 9 holiday that celebrates the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II -- showed a partially completed mosaic featuring Putin, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, General Chief of Staff Valery Gerasimov, and several other Russian officials. Russian media reported on May 1 that the image of Putin was taken down, citing officials of the Russian Orthodox Church. The Russian leader’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said on April 26 that Putin was aware of the mosaic but felt it was early to evaluate his work with such a depiction.

I thought I'd post the OCA's directives just for visibility. If anything can be said about the OCA, they always strive for transparent and comprehensive documentation. ( OCA ) - In order remain vigilant in all ways, the churches should strictly maintain the following preventative measures: 1. Members of the Church should become familiar with the symptoms of the novel coronavirus, COVID-19 (fever, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, chills, repeated shaking with chills, muscle pain, headache, sore throat, new loss of taste or smell), and, if these symptoms present themselves, both seek medical help immediately and self-isolate. 2. In terms of preventing the spread of this virus, the best advice is to follow CDC directives, which currently include: wash hands thoroughly and frequently, cover your coughs and sneezes, avoid sharing personal items, wear a mask, and maintain a social distance of six feet. 3. Churches must have hand sanitizer readily available at...