The Miraculous Chapel of the Holy Ascension

When northern Greece was taken over by Murad II in 1430, a large Turkish population moved from Asia Minor to Western Thrace. The majority of these Turks professed Bektashism, which is an Islamic Sufi order, considered to be a distinct branch of Twelver Shi'a Islam. It was founded in the 13th century by the Islamic saint Hajji Bektash Wali. In the Balkans the Bektashi order had a considerable impact on the Islamization of many areas, primarily Albania, Greece and Bulgaria, as well as parts of Macedonia. By the 18th century Bektashism began to gain a considerable hold over the population of southern Albania and northern Greece. After the Fall of Constantinople in the 15th century, many Christians converted to Bektashism.

Unlike most Muslims who have Mosques, those who follow Bektashism had Tekke or Tekye (تكيه), a building designed specifically for gatherings of a Sufi brotherhood (tariqa). One such Tekke was the Chapel of the Holy Ascension, otherwise known as Tekke of the Forty (KIRKLAR TEKESSI), which was built in the 15th century. This chapel is located in Margariti (Μαργαρίτι), a settlement in the Xanthi prefecture of Greece. The Bektashi celebrated the feast of this Tekke forty days after the feast of St. George, which normally falls after Pascha and whom Muslims also honor.


When the exchange of populations took place between Greece and Turkey in August 1924, the Bektashi population went back to Turkey and Pontian Greeks slowly began to settle in the area. As the Bektashi were leaving, they informed the new settlers of their Tekke which they considered a holy shrine and told them of their customs and of how they celebrated its feast forty days after Pascha, which for Christians was the feast of the Holy Ascension. They were also told of the miracles that took place there from some holy water that flowed there, which it is thought dates back to a time before the Tekke when it must have been a Christian shrine. The Tekke was renamed and now bears the inscription ΘΑΥΜΑΤΟΥΡΓΟΣ ΝΑΟΣ ΑΝΑΛΗΨΙΣ ΤΟΥ ΣΩΤΗΡΟΣ (Miraculous Temple of the Ascension of the Savior).

Today people travel to this holy shrine and numerous healings are reported through the holy water which springs froth from the site. Because it is difficult to walk to the chapel, services today for the feast of the Holy Ascension are held in a church that was built 300 meters away to accomadate the elderly.

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A Horrible Barbarian Custom

Clement of Alexandria tells of a horrible custom among the barbarians. He says that when they capture their enemy, they tie him alive to the corpse of a dead man, and leave them both alone that the living and dead decay together. If only it could be said: "Thank God, that this barbarian custom is past!" In essence, it has not passed, rather, it reigns today in full force. Everyone who ties their living spirit to the flesh deadened by barbarian passions is the same as the one who ties a living man to a corpse and leaves them both to decay.

- St. Nikolai Velimirovich

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And Ascended Into Heaven...

by V. Rev. George Florovsky, D.D.

"I ascend unto My Father and your Father, and to My God, and Your God" (John 20:17).

In these words the Risen Christ described to Mary Magdalene the mystery of His Resurrection. She had to carry this mysterious message to His disciples, "as they mourned and wept" (Mark 16:10). The disciples listened to these glad tidings with fear and amazement, with doubt and mistrust. It was not Thomas alone who doubted among the Eleven. On the contrary, it appears that only one of the Eleven did not doubt - St John, the disciple "whom Jesus loved." He alone grasped the mystery of the empty tomb at once: "and he saw, and believed" (John 20:8). Even Peter left the sepulcher in amazement, "wondering at that which was come to pass" (Luke 24:12).

The disciples did not expect the Resurrection. The women did not, either. They were quite certain that Jesus was dead and rested in the grave, and they went to the place "where He was laid," with the spices they had prepared, "that they might come and anoint Him." They had but one thought: "Who shall roll away the stone from the door of the sepulcher for us?" (Mark 16:1-3; Luke 24:1). And therefore, on not finding the body, Mary Magdalene was sorrowful and complained: "They have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid Him' (John 20:13). On hearing the good news from the angel, the women fled from the sepulchre in fear and trembling: "Neither said they anything to any man, for they were afraid" (Mark 16:8). And when they spoke no one believed them, in the same way as no one 'had believed Mary, who saw the Lord, or the disciples as they walked on their way into the country, (Mark 16:13), and who recognized Him in the breaking of bread. "And afterward He appeared unto the Eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them who had seen Him after He was risen' (Mark 16:1O-14).

From whence comes this "hardness of heart" and hesitation? Why were their eyes so "holden," why were the disciples so much afraid of the news, and why did the Easter joy so slowly, and with such difficulty, enter the Apostles' hearts? Did not they, who were with Him from the beginning, "from the baptism of John," see all the signs of power which He performed before the face of the whole people? The lame walked, the blind saw, the dead were raised, and all infirmities were healed. Did they not behold, only a week earlier, how He raised by His word Lazarus from the dead, who had already been in the grave for four days? Why then was it so strange to them that the Master had arisen Himself? How was it that they came to forget that which the Lord used to tell them on many occasions, that after suffering and death He would arise on the third day?

The mystery of the Apostles' "unbelief" is partly disclosed in the narrative of the Gospel: "But we trusted that it had been He which should have redeemed Israel," with disillusionment and complaint said the two disciples to their mysterious Companion on the way to Emmaus (Luke 24:21). They meant: He was betrayed, condemned to death and crucified. The news of the Resurrection brought by the women only "astonished" them. They still wait for an earthly triumph, for an external victory. The same temptation possesses their hearts, which first prevented them from accepting "the preaching of the Cross" and made them argue every time the Saviour tried to reveal His mystery to them. "Ought not Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?" (Luke 24:26). It was still difficult to understand this.

He had the power to arise, why did He allow what that had happened to take place at all? Why did He take upon Himself disgrace, blasphemy and wounds? In the eyes of all Jerusalem, amidst the vast crowds assembled for the Great Feast, He was condemned and suffered a shameful death. And now He enters not into the Holy City, neither to the people which beheld His shame and death, nor to the High Priests and elders, nor to Pilate - so that He might make their crime obvious and smite their pride. Instead, He sends His disciples away to remote Galilee and appears to them there. Even much earlier the disciples wondered, "How is it that Thou wilt manifest Thyself unto us, and not unto the world?" (John 14:22). Their wonder continues, and even on the day of His glorious Ascension the Apostles question the Lord, "Lord, wilt Thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?" (Acts 1:6). They still did not comprehend the meaning of His Resurrection, they did not understand what it meant that He was "ascending" to the Father. Their eyes were opened but later, when "the promise of the Father" had been fulfilled.

In the Ascension resides the meaning and the fullness of Christ's Resurrection.

The Lord did not rise in order to return again to the fleshly order of life, so as to live again and commune with the disciples and the multitudes by means of preaching and miracles. Now he does not even stay with them, but only "appears" to them during the forty days, from time to time, and always in a miraculous and mysterious manner. "He was not always with them now, as He was before the Resurrection," comments St John Chrysostom. "He came and again disappeared, thus leading them on to higher conceptions. He no longer permitted them to continue in their former relationship toward Him, but took effectual measures to secure these two objects: That the fact of His Resurrection should be believed, and that He Himself should be ever after apprehended to be greater than man." There was something new and unusual in His person (cf. John 21:1-14). As St John Chrysostom says, "It was not an open presence, but a certain testimony of the fact that He was present." That is why the disciples were confused and frightened. Christ arose not in the same way as those who were restored to life before Him. Theirs was a resurrection for a time, and they returned to life in the same body, which was subject to death and corruption - returned to the previous mode of life. But Christ arose for ever, unto eternity. He arose in a body of glory, immortal and incorruptible. He arose, never to die, for "He clothed the mortal in the splendor of incorruption." His glorified Body was already exempt from the fleshly order of existence. "It is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption. It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body" (I Cor. 15:42-44). This mysterious transformation of human bodies, of which St Paul was speaking in the case of our Lord, had been accomplished in three days. Christ's work on earth was accomplished. He had suffered, was dead and buried, and now rose to a higher mode of existence. By His Resurrection He abolished and destroyed death, abolished the law of corruption, "and raised with Himself the whole race of Adam." Christ has risen, and now "no dead are left in the grave" (cf. The Easter Sermon of St John Chrysostom). And now He ascends to the Father, yet He does not "go away," but abides with the faithful for ever (cf. The Kontakion of Ascension). For He raises the very earth with Him to heaven, and even higher than any heaven. God's power, in the phrase of St John Chrysostom, "manifests itself not only in the Resurrection, but in something much stronger." For "He was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God" (Mark 16:19).

And with Christ, man's nature ascends also.

"We who seemed unworthy of the earth, are now raised to heaven," says St John Chrysostom. "We who were unworthy of earthly dominion have been raised to the Kingdom on high, have ascended higher than heaven, have came to occupy the King's throne, and the same nature from which the angels guarded Paradise, stopped not until it ascended to the throne of the Lord." By His Ascension the Lord not only opened to man the entrance to heaven, not only appeared before the face of God on our behalf and for our sake, but likewise "transferred man" to the high places. "He honored them He loved by putting them close to the Father." God quickened and raised us together with Christ, as St Paul says, "and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus" (Ephes. 2:6). Heaven received the inhabitants of the earth. "The First fruits of them that slept" sits now on high, and in Him all creation is summed up and bound together. "The earth rejoices in mystery, and the heavens are filled with joy."

"The terrible ascent...." Terror-stricken and trembling stand the angelic hosts, contemplating the Ascension of Christ. And trembling they ask each other, "What is this vision? One who is man in appearance ascends in His body higher than the heavens, as God."

Thus the Office for the Feast of the Ascension depicts the mystery in a poetical language. As on the day of Christ's Nativity the earth was astonished on beholding God in the flesh, so now the Heavens do tremble and cry out. "The Lord of Hosts, Who reigns over all, Who is Himself the head 'Of all, Who is preeminent in all things, Who has reinstated creation in its former order - He is the King of Glory." And the heavenly doors are opened: "Open, Oh heavenly gates, and receive God in the flesh." It is an open allusion to Psalms 24:7-10, now prophetically interpreted. "Lift up your heads, Oh ye gates, and be lifted up, ye everlasting doors, and the King of Glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty...." St Chrysostom says, "Now the angels have received that for which they have long waited, the archangels see that for which they have long thirsted. They have seen our nature shining on the King's throne, glistening with glory and eternal beauty.... Therefore they descend in order to see the unusual and marvelous vision: Man appearing in heaven."

The Ascension is the token of Pentecost, the sign of its coming, "The Lord has ascended to heaven and will send the Comforter to the world'

For the Holy Spirit was not yet in the world, until Jesus was glorified. And the Lord Himself told the disciples, "If I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you" (John 16:7). The gifts of the Spirit are "gifts of reconciliation," a seal of an accomplished salvation and of the ultimate reunion of the world with God. And this was accomplished only in the Ascension. "And one saw miracles follow miracles," says St John Chrysostom, "ten days prior to this our nature ascended to the King's throne, while today the Holy Ghost has descended on to our nature." The joy of the Ascension lies in the promise of the Spirit.' "Thou didst give joy to Thy disciples by a promise of the Holy Spirit." The victory of Christ is wrought in us by the power of the Holy Spirit.

"On high is His body, here below with us is His Spirit. And so we have His token on high, that is His body, which He received from us, and here below we have His Spirit with us. Heaven received the Holy Body, and the earth accepted the Holy Spirit. Christ came and sent the Spirit. He ascended, and with Him our body ascended also" St John Chrysostom). The revelation of the Holy Trinity was completed. Now the Spirit Comforter is poured forth on all flesh. "Hence comes foreknowledge of the future, understanding of mysteries, apprehension of what is hidden, distribution of good gifts, the heavenly citizenship, a place in the chorus of angels, joy without end, abiding in God, the being made like to God, and, highest of all, ,the being made God!" (St Basil, On the Holy Spirit, IX). Beginning with the Apostles, and through communion with them - by an unbroken succession - Grace is spread to all believers. Through renewal and glorification in the Ascended Christ, man's nature became receptive of the spirit. "And unto the world He gives quickening forces through His human body," says Bishop Theophanes. "He holds it completely in Himself and penetrates it with His strength, out of Himself; and He likewise draws the angels to Himself through the spirit of man, giving them space for action and thus making them blessed." All this is done through the Church, which is "the Body of Christ;" that is, His "fullness" (Ephesians 1:23). "The Church is the fulfillment of Christ," continues Bishop Theophanes, "perhaps in the same way as the tree is the fulfillment of the seed. That which is contained in the seed in a contracted form receives its development in the tree."

The very existence of the Church is the fruit of the Ascension. It is in the Church that man's nature is truly ascended to the Divine heights. "And gave Him to be Head over all things" (Ephesians 1:22). St John Chrysostom comments: "Amazing! Look again, whither He has raised the Church. As though He were lifting it up by some engine, He has raised it up to a vast height, and set it on yonder throne; for where the Head is, there is the body also. There is no interval of separation between the Head and the body; for were there a separation, then would the one no longer be a body, nor would the other any longer be a Head." The whole race of men is to follow Christ, even in His ultimate exaltation, "to follow in His train." Within the Church, through an acquisition of the Spirit in the fellowship of Sacraments, the Ascension continues still, and will continue until the measure is full. "Only then shall the Head be filled up, when the body is rendered perfect, when we are knit together and united," concludes St John Chrysostom.

The Ascension is a sign and token of the Second Coming. "This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven" (Acts 1:11).

The mystery of God's Providence will be accomplished in the Return of the Risen Lord. In the fulfillment of time, Christ's kingly power will be revealed and spread over the whole of faithful mankind. Christ bequeathes the Kingdom to the whole of the faithful. "And I appoint unto you a Kingdom as My Father has appointed unto me. That ye may eat and drink at My table in My Kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel" (Luke 22:29-30). Those who followed Him faithfully will sit with Him on their thrones on the day of His coming. "To him that overcomes will I grant to sit with Me in My throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with My Father in His throne" (Rev. 3:21). Salvation will be consummated in the Glory. "Conceive to yourself the throne, the royal throne, conceive the immensity of the privilege. This, at least if we chose, might more avail to startle us, yea, even than hell itself" (St John Chrysostom).

We should tremble more at the thought of that abundant Glory which is appointed unto the redeemed, than at the thought of the eternal darkness. "Think near Whom Thy Head is seated...." Or rather, Who is the Head. In very truth, "wondrous and terrible is Thy divine ascension from the mountain, 0 Giver of Life." A terrible and wondrous height is the King's throne. In face of this height all flesh stands silent, in awe and trembling. "He has Himself descended to the lowest depths of humiliation, and raised up man to the height of exaltation."

What then should we do? "If thou art the body of Christ, bear the Cross, for He bore it" (St John Chrysostom).

"With the power of Thy Cross, Oh Christ, establish my thoughts, so that I may sing and glorify Thy saving Ascension."

Originally published in St Vladimir's Seminary Quarterly, Vol. 2 # 3, 1954.

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God's Use of Unbelievers to Punish Believers

by St. Nikolai Velimirovich

"Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, My servant" (Jeremiah 25:9).

Is not this a difficult saying? Who can be fed by it? The pagan king, the idolatrous king, the Lord call him His servant. If the servant of God is one who knows the True God and who adheres to the law of God, how then can one be a servant of God who does not know the True God and who does not adhere to the law of God? Truly, the true servant of God is he who knows the True God and who keeps the law of God but when he, to whom God has given the knowledge about Himself and His law, perverts knowing into unknowing and law into lawlessness, then God takes as His servant that ignorant one so as to punish the apostates. For an apostate from God is worse than a pagan, and an apostate from the law of God is lower than an idolater by birth.

Therefore, when Israel, as the ancient Church of God, alienated itself from God and the law of God, God chose Nebuchadrezzar for His servant to punish Israel, the Apostate.

Therefore, when the Christian peoples in Asia and Africa through numerous heresies alienated themselves from God, God took as His servant the Arabs to punish Christians in order to bring them to their senses.

And when the Christian peoples in the Balkans alienated themselves from God and God's law, God invited the Turks as His servants to punish the apostates that by punishment to bring them to their senses.

Whenever the faithful alienate themselves from God, God weaves a whip from the unbelievers to bring the believers to their senses. And, as the faithful consciously and willingly turn away from God, so the unbelievers unconsciously and unwillingly become servants of God; the whip of God.

But God takes the unbelievers only temporarily in His service against the believers. For the land of Nebuchadrezzar, the same Lord says, He will visit it for its lawlessness and "make it perpetual desolations" (Jeremiah 25:12), then will a servant against a servant be found? For God did not take the Babylonians for a servant because of their goodness and faith, rather because of Israel's wickedness and unbelief.

O Righteous Lord, help us by Your Spirit Most-high, to always adhere to You, the One, True God and Your saving law.

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Martyrs Massacred By Latins at Iveron Monastery

Martyrs Massacred By Latins at Iveron Monastery (Feast Day - May 13)

Georgian monks began to settle on Mt. Athos in the middle of the 10th century, and a Georgian monastery, Iveron, was founded there not long after.

At that time foreign armies were constantly invading Mt. Athos. In the 13th century the Crusaders stormed through the region, and between 1259 and 1306 the pope’s private army devastated Mt. Athos several times. Monks of Zographou and Vatopedi monasteries and the Protaton were martyred for the Orthodox Faith, and the monks of the Iveron Monastery eventually met the same fate.

During this period Georgian and Greek ascetics labored together at the Iveron Monastery, and many young ascetics of the new generation began to arrive from Georgia.

The Crusaders demanded that the Iveron monks convert to Catholicism and acknowledge the primacy of the Roman pope. But the monks condemned their fallacies and anathematized the doctrine of the Catholics.

According to the Patericon of Athos, the Iveron monks were forcibly expelled from their monastery. Nearly two hundred elderly monks were goaded like animals onto a ship that was subsequently sunk in the depths of the sea. The younger, healthier monks were deported to Italy and sold as slaves to the Jews.

Some sources claim this tragedy took place in the year 1259, while others record that the Georgian monks of the Holy Mountain were subject to the Latin persecutions over the course of four years, from 1276 to 1280.

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Walking On Water?

More like running. A funny video nonetheless.



From the Description on Youtube:

Liquid Mountaineering is a new sport which is attempting to achieve what man has tried to do for centuries: walk on water. Or to be more precise: running on water. We are developing the sport from scratch. By accident we found out that with the right water repellent equipment you can run across bodies of water, just like a stone skimming the surface.

http://www.liquidmountaineering.blogspot.com/

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Praying to Saint Ascension

by Elder Paisios the Athonite

I remember an elderly monk at Esphigmenou Monastery on Mount Athos, who was so simple, that he thought "Ascension" was the name of a women Saint. He prayed to her on his komboschoini, "Saint of God, intercede for us!" Once, he had to feed a sick Brother in the infirmary and had nothing to offer him. He immediately went down the stairs, opened a window overlooking the sea, stretched his arms out and said, "Ascension, my Saint, give me a little fish for the Brother." And right away, as if by miracle, a big fish jumped out of the sea and into his hands. The others who saw him were astonished, but he simply looked at them smiling, as if he were saying "What's so strange about what you've just seen?" And then look at us. We may know everything about the life and martyrdom of the Saints, or about when and how the Ascension took place and yet, we cannot even catch a tiny little fish! These are the strange and paradoxical things of the spiritual life, which the reasoning of those intellectuals that are centred on themselves and not on God, cannot explain, because their knowledge is of this world and sterile; their spirit is ill with secularism and their mind void of the Holy Spirit.

- Source: From Spiritual Counsels, Volume 1: With Pain and Love for Contemporary Man by Elder Paisios of Mount Athos (Holy Monastery "Evangelist John the Theologion", 2006), p. 230

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Discovery of the Panagia Ypapanti Icon in Kalamata

Discovery of the Icon of Panagia Ypapanti (Feast Day - Apodosis of Pascha)

The Metropolitan Cathedral of Kalamata is known by the name Ypapanti tou Sotiros, or Presentation of the Savior. It is one of the largest Cathedrals of Messinia and was built in 1839 and consecrated in 1873. The layout is a traditional Byzantine style and it houses within the ancient and miraculous icon of the Panagia. It celebrates annually on February 2, which is the feast of the Presentation of the Lord into the Temple. It also celebrates on the Apodosis of Pascha, which is a moveable feast day celebrated the day prior to the Holy Ascension. It was on the Apodosis of Pascha that the wonderworking icon was discovered. The Panagia Ypapanti is the Protectress of the City of Kalamata.

The icon of the Theotokos, dated to 672 AD, was found in a stable of an Ottoman during the Turkish occupation, after a stable-man had a vision. Even though the back of the icon board was entirely burned, the front was perfectly intact. It bore the name "Ypapanti", and probably belonged to a Church of the Presentation of the Savior which had been in Kalamata centuries before the Turkish occupation. The church must have burned down, which is why the icon was burned in the back. The front must have been preserved by the protection of the Holy Virgin. On the land in which the icon was discovered, a small church was initially built to honor the Presentation of the Lord and to house this icon. It was figured also that the stable had been the church that had once burned, which is why they chose the same spot to rebuild the church. The Metropolitan Cathedral was not built until Greece became free of Ottoman domination, and on 19 August 1873 it was consecrated.

The icon of Panagia Ypapanti is not only venerated by the residents of Kalamata, but extends throughout all of Greece, and thousands flock to this Cathedral for its feast day and receive miraculous intervention through the Theotokos and her wonderworking icon. One example of its miraculous powers dates to 1841 when the entire population of Kalamata was saved from certain annihilation. In the initial months of Autumn that year, a mysterious illness befell what seemed the entire population of Kalamata. Even the doctors sent to treat the ill caught the disease. Death became such a regular vision in the city that the bells of the churches were ringing hourly informing everyone of the death of another victim. Daily there were burials as well, and sadness permeated throughout Kalamata. When all hope was lost, the people placed their hope in the Panagia and decided to hold a litany throughout the city lead by the Panagia Ypapanti icon. It was hoped that the Panagia would lift this plague from the people and save them from certain death. Those who oversaw the governance of the city then ordered all the residents to undertake a three-day fast, after which they were to attend a Paraklisi (Supplication) Service to the Panagia as well as the litany which was to follow. To the glory of God and the Holy Virgin, during the litany itself the plague began to lift from Kalamata and the city was saved from certain annihilation.

During the earthquakes of 1886 and 1986 the center dome of the church was destroyed, but reconstructed according to the original plans.

Pilgrims can visit the church during the day any day. Also, every evening the bells of the Cathedral ring calling everyone to the local cemetery to light the oil-lamps over the graves of their loved ones, leaving the cemetery bright throughout the night.












See also:

The Greek Synaxarion

Information On Various Litanies of the Icon in the 20th Century

The Visit of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew to the Cathedral in Kalamata in 2010

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Old Icons Discovered in Kremilin Towers

Ancient Icons Bricked-Up By Soviets Discovered on Moscow Kremlin Towers

May 11, 2010
RIA Novosti

Ancient gate icons that were bricked-up in the Soviet era and considered lost, have been discovered on two of the towers of the Moscow Kremlin, the initiator of a campaign to unveil the icons said on Tuesday.

Historical documents and structural markings, which can be seen from the outside of the Spasskaya, Nikolskaya, Kutafia and Konstantino-Yeleninskaya towers, and from the inside of the Spaskaya, Troitskaya and Borovitskaya towers, prove the icons were once placed above the gates of the towers.

The campaign to unveil the icons, which was initiated by the St. Andrew the Apostle Fund and supported by then Russian president Vladimir Putin and the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, began in 2007.

Head of Russian Railways Vladimir Yakunin, who heads the fund's board of trustees, said on Tuesday the icons had been discovered on the walls of the Spasskaya and the Nikolskaya towers.

"The main objective of our work is to ensure that the historic image of the Kremlin is restored and the pieces of the spiritual heritage of our people return to the Kremlin towers and to our lives," Yakunin said.

He said the work to unveil the icons had been carried out on the Spasskaya and the Nikolskaya towers first because experts believed it most likely the icons there would be preserved under a layer of plaster. He said there were no documents to suggest that the icons have been destroyed.

Yakunin said work to unveil the icons would begin later in May and expressed hope that it would be concluded by late August.

Historical documents say that a fresco that is expected to be uncovered on the wall of the Nikolskaya tower dates back to the late 15th to early 16th century.

Director of the Kremlin museums Yelena Gagarina said the icons could have been bricked-up in 1937, during celebrations dedicated to the 20th anniversary of the creation of the Soviet state.

The Soviet authorities waged a fierce war against the practice of religion, destroying churches across the country and harshly repressing believers.


Walled-In Icons Discovered On the Kremlin Towers

Moscow, 12 May 2010, Interfax - Ancient icons were discovered on the Spasskaya and Nikolskaya Towers of the Kremlin. They were walled in during Soviet times and have been deemed lost for a long time now.

"The fact is that the icons were discovered at least on two towers (of the Kremlin - IF). This is an epoch-making event as far as cultural discoveries are concerned," head of the Council of Trustees of the St. Andrew the First-Called Foundation Vladimir Yakunin said at a press conference held by Interfax.

He stated that the Foundation had initiated the reinstallation of icons over the gates of the Moscow Kremlin towers as far back as in 2007. The project received the government support and the blessing of Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia. In April 2010, experts of the Interregional Scientific and Restoration Office made probes of the icon-cases of the Spasskaya and Nikolskaya Towers. The research has confirmed the hypothesis that the icons were preserved under the layer of plaster.

According to him, the Fund's project "is not limited to these two towers only; the thing is that historians had more reasons to suggest that the icons of the Spasskaya and Nikolskaya Towers were preserved."

Head of the Kremlin supervisory service, deputy director of the Federal Guard Service Sergey Khlebnikov believes that the discovery of the icons on the Kremlin towers is "the event of overwhelming ethical impact."

According to him, the Kremlin commandant's office has received many proposals to restore the icons over the gates, but the Foundation's initiative "had a clear distinction of being specific."

According to the existing historical materials, the Spasskaya Tower houses the icon of the Savior depicted with St. Sergius and St. Varlaam falling down at His feet. The icon was painted to commemorate the rescue from the siege of Moscow by the army of Magmet Girey in 1521. The mural on the Nikolskaya Tower dates back to the late 15th - early 16th centuries. During the civil fights in October 1917, the icon of St. Nikolas of Mozhaysk was riddled with shots, but his face escaped unharmed which the Moscow believers considered a miracle.

Icons On the Kremlin Towers Concealed in USSR For Years Probably Saved Soviet Leaders From Numerous Misfortunes, a Priest Believes

Moscow, 12 May 2010, Interfax –The Russian Orthodox Church official believes it a true miracle that ancient icons were discovered on the Spasskaya and Nikolskaya Towers of the Kremlin by efforts of St. Andrew the First-Called Foundation.

"I admire heroism of people who managed to save these icons. The thing they did is a true man-made miracle," head of the Synodal Department for Church and Society Relations Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin told Interfax-Religion.

According to him, "holy icons walled-in from human eyes were present in Red Square" for decades of the Soviet rule, "Soviet leaders passed beneath them, parades and demonstrations took place in their presence."

"Who knows, perhaps only thanks to this, the Kremlin and Red Square workers were saved from numerous misfortunes and, above all, from madness ideology of that time could have easily led to," the priest said.

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St. Epiphanios of Salamis on Song of Songs 6:8-9

The most important work of St. Epiphanios is his Panarion. It treats 80 religious sects, either organized groups or philosophies, from the time of Adam to the latter part of the fourth century, detailing their histories, and rebutting their beliefs.

The number of sects covered in the work is based on Song of Songs 6:8-9, "There are threescore queens, and fourscore concubines, and maidens without number. My dove, my undefiled, is but one." Epiphanios interpreted the fourscore (80) concubines as sects, who take the name of Christ without being truly matrimonial; the threescore queens as the generations from Adam to Jesus; the one dove as the true wife, the church; and the numberless virgins as all the philosophies unrelated to Christianity.

The first section of the first of the three books contains an account of 20 heretical sects before the time of Jesus; the remaining portion is occupied with the description of 60 sects of Christianity. However, the total number of sects is actually 77, because three of the first 20 are general names: Hellenism, Samaritanism, and Judaism. In the editions of the Panarion, each heresy is numbered in order; hence it is customary to quote the Panarion as follows: Epiphanius, Haer. N [the number of the heresy].

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The Feast of Pascha Is An Invitation To Illumination

“The Feast of Pascha Is An Invitation To Illumination”

by Archbishop Irenaios of Crete (Delivered on Pascha 2010)

My beloved brethren, children of the Church, Pascha is today. Pascha is also this year. Our Bright day. The Resurrection. Our Feast Day. “The Pascha of the Greeks.” The true Pascha, the eternal one. The source of light, and splendor during difficult times for all the peoples of the earth and each of us individually as a person.

Today we celebrate the overcoming of evil, of unrighteousness, of hatred, of slavery to death. Today the darkness surrenders its place to the light and splendor of the human person. Today all the people have the capability to be illumined with the splendor of Pascha.

Today’s Paschal feast is an invitation and prompting for us to be illumined: the person, our life, the whole world, everyone, all peoples.

“It is the day of Resurrection, let us be illumined O people, Pascha, the Lord’s Pascha...”

My beloved brethren,

Today our Church, with this hymn we referred to, invites all the nations and all of us to be illumined. We should flee from the darkness and the gloom of our times, and we should go, we should enter into the Light of the Resurrection, the glory and splendor of mankind and the world. The Resurrected Christ our Lord shines and illumines everyone.

We have no other options, no other margins. Today, we do not have another option, another alternative.

How and where can we find today the joy and the splendor of the person, of our life? How can our face be illumined and brightened? Where can we be sustained? Towards where are we to go? There are so many dead ends, dilemmas, and problems of mankind today.

Many say, they propose and prefer to turn to money, wealth, gain, business ventures, the stock market and prosperity. They have undertaken them. This is the status quo today. The capital, money, is running, it is galloping. It goes everywhere with multinational Companies of contemporary “marketing”.

Notwithstanding, today’s world economic crisis affects everyone. It troubles, threatens and frightens everyone, even the wealthy, who live themselves with uncertainty and insecurity. And like the poor and unemployed of the world, who are threatened and suffer even more; they are brought to despair and find themselves in a difficult situation.

Others propose the easy-going life, comforts and fun times. The easy way. The easy life. All of us know that many people today travel along this path. Temporarily and for a period they are themselves content and see themselves as lucky.

However the boredom, the inactivity, the loneliness, the emptiness of life, the monotony, the illnesses, the daily monotony, the routine without creativity and effectiveness for life, it is an unbearable burden and weight; downright unfortunate.

There is also, besides the other things, contemporary technology. An important gift and valuable. Small and great are under the spell of the machine, the electronic medium, everything of a technological and mechanical nature. We have today a deification of machines. Dependence and enslavement are dangerous phenomena, a waste of humanity, and a change and an annulment of personal gifts and talents belonging to mankind.

These contemporary ways of life and trends of people today, they do not seem to be human ways. The are contemporary mediums of our own age, the features and characteristics of it. We revere them, but today’s man cannot expect illumination and personal joy from all these things.

My beloved brethren,

Our Church, which is not against our age and today’s achievements of mankind, invites us to other ways, another life. To the life of the illumination of the Resurrection, of blessed Resurrected life.

The living out of the Resurrection in our daily lives. A life of brilliant quality and humanity. A life without economic crisis', insecurities and uncertainties. A true life, everlasting!

Together with our Church, I personally invite you today to this brilliant, resurrection life of our Resurrected Christ.

The invitation of the Church and my own, is primarily aimed at our children, the smallest and the greatest. To all their families. To our schools, our teachers, to the spiritual people of our Land. To the people of the countryside and the city. To the healthy and strong, as well as to the sick and weak, everyone. Let us be illumined, let us move forward, let us become enlightened with the light and splendor of the Resurrection.


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The Law of Thelema...Christianized Once More

Aleister Crowley, the famous occult magician, compiled a book in 1904 titled The Book of the Law, which was dictated to him by a spirit named Aiwass. This book was meant to usher in the Age of Horus, in which a new ethical code would be followed. The central message of this new ethical code, known as the Law of Thelema (from the Greek word for "will"), was: "Do what thou wilt shall be the whole of the Law".

Crowley's Law of Thelema is a corruption of Jesus' Law of Thelema:

- "Thy will (Θελημα = thelema) be done.” (Matt. 6:10)

- "For the whole law is fulfilled in one word, 'Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.'" (Gal. 5:14)

Augustine of Hippo perfectly summarizes the Christian Law of Thelema in the statement: "Love, and do what thou wilt." In Latin, it is: "Dilige et quod vis fac." (Sermon on 1 John 7-8)

With love for both God and mankind in our hearts, we are above every law and obtain true freedom of the will.

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The Founding of Constantinople

Founding of Constantinople Commemorated on May 11

In 324 the holy Emperor Constantine (May 21) decided that the imperial capital had to be closer to the Eastern provinces, and yet have direct communication with the West. The city of Byzantium fulfilled these requirements, and on November 8, 324 the site of the new capital was consecrated.

Tradition tells us that the Emperor was tracing the boundaries of the city with a spear, when his courtiers became astonished by the magnitude of the new dimensions of the capital. "Lord," they asked, "how long will you keep going?"

Constantine replied, "I shall keep going until the one who walks ahead of me stops."

Then they understood that the emperor was being guided by some divine power. There is an iconographic sketch by Rallis Kopsides showing an angel of the Lord going before St Constantine as he traces the new boundaries of the city.

Construction of the main buildings was begun in 325, and pagan monuments from Rome, Athens, and other cities were used to beautify the new capital. The need for the new city is partially explained by the changing requirements of government, the Germanic invasion of the West, and commercial benefits, but the new city was also to be a Christian capital. For this, a new foundation was required.

In 330, the work had progressed to the point where it was possible for Constantine to dedicate the new capital. The dedication took place on May 11, followed by forty days of joyous celebration. Christian Constantinople was placed under the protection of the Most Holy Theotokos, and overshadowed pagan Byzantium. St Constantine was the first Emperor to submit voluntarily to Christ, and Constantinople became the symbol of a Christian Empire which lasted for a thousand years.

Apolytikion in Tone Four
The city of the Theotokos dedicates its foundation as an offering to the Theotokos. For it has been establish to remain in Her, and it lives and is strengthened through Her, crying out to Her, "Rejoice, the hope of all the ends of the earth."

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Genocide Denial Among Americans Turks

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Who Sent Cyril And Methodius Into Central Europe?

Who Sent Cyril And Methodius Into Central Europe, The Emperor Or The Patriarch?

by Panagiotis Chrestou

The answer to this question is of great importance for a correct assessment of: a) the two brothers' relations with Photius; b) their relations with Rome; and c) the aims of the mission.

According to the primary sources -that is, the Old Slavonic Lives of Cyril and Methodius- the mission originated as follows. The Prince of Moravia, Rastislav, sent a special delegation to Emperor Michael ΙΙΙ to ask him: 'Send us, Lord, ... a bishop and teacher; for in truth the good law is always disseminated by you to all countries.'(1)

The Emperor then called a meeting of the Senate, invited the two brothers to attend, and commissioned them to carry out the task. It was the Emperor, therefore, who took the initiative for the mission. But it would be quite incorrect to cοnclude from this that its purpose, in Byzantine terms, was purely political. In the first place, it was fοr the Emperor to act because it was to him that Rastislav had addressed his request. But in any case, such a matter lay within his province, because it was his duty, as 'the apostle among kings',(2) to send missionaries abroad to spread the Christian faith. Furthermore, a mission of this nature would require both bilateral agreements at a State level and considerable financial outlay.

Αll the same, it is certainly strange that no mention is made of the Church's participation in the undertaking; and this is even more extraordinary if one considers the fact that the mission was dispatched during Photius's term as Patriarch. If the Church was not involved, then Photius the Great had no hand in this unique initiative aimed at bringing the Slavs into the community of civilized Christian peoples.

Various attempts have been made to explain the absence of any reference to the Church's involvement. The first explanation, offered by Western historians, is that the Eastern Church in general, and the Patriarchate of Constantinople in particular, was not greatly interested in missionary work - at least after A.D.400. This is quite clearly not so, since between the years 400 and 640 the Eastern Church's missionary activity brought the Christian faith to a great many countries and peoples, from Nubia in Africa to Southern Arabia and as far afield as India, China, and Georgia. Ιn Europe tοo the majority of the Germanic tribes received Christianity from Constantinople. At οne point, in Venice, Cyril's opponents refused to countenance the use in the Liturgy of any but the three holy languages of the Cross. He refuted their arguments by declaring that in the East all peoples had the Gospel and praised God in their own language: Armenians, Persians, Avasgians, Georgians, Sogdians, Goths, Avars, Turks, Khazars, Arabs, Egyptians, Syrians, and other besides.(3) Most of them had become Christian after Α.D.400. Ιn comparison with this activity, the Western Church had nothing to show but the conversion of Germany and Britain.

The second explanation of Photius's apparent noninvolvement in the mission is that Cyril and Methodius were supposedly οppοnents of Photius and supporters of Ignatius and, by extension, Ρope Nicholas. Some scholars believe that this opposition is indicated by the probability that Polychroniou Monastery, of which Methodius was abbot, supported Ignatius rather than Photius after the schism of 858. Another argument which is used to support the notion of this opposition is that the brothers were welcomed in Rome when they returned from Moravia. The abbot of a Constantinople monastery which was friendly towards Ignatius could not possibly, it is said, have been a supporter of Photius; and two men who were warmly received in Rome must have been against him.

Ιn answer to this explanation, it must be pointed out that the change of patriarch under Michael ΙII and his Prime Minister, Bardas, had deep roots. They replaced the zealous but rigid Ignatius with Photius, a very able man of learning who was to assist, and in part draw up, the State reconstruction programme. How could they have sent into Central Europe two men who were hostile to the ecclesiastical policy of Photius, and therefore of the Church itself? It is clear that Photius, the man whom Michael had chosen as his adviser οn all spiritual and ecclesiastical qιιestions, whom he had charged with important assignments, and whom he had persuaded to accept the position of Patriarch, was not merely the first to be invited to attend the Senate meeting, did not merely approve the men whο were to be sent to Εuroρe, but actιιally selected them himself, as he had done for earlier missions. It is obvious tlιat, far from being his enemies, they must have been his friends. Furthermore, Cyril is known to have been a pupil of Photius,(4) and later his colleague at the University of Constantinople, having been appointed Professor of Philosophy in the reign of Empress Theodora. He was, moreover, a close friend of Photius's, an 'amicus fortissimus' according to the Roman Anastasius the Librarian.(5)

After the death of his patron, Prime Minister Theoctistus, Constantine-Cyril fell into disfavor with the political authorities and lost his professorial chair. He was later reconciled with the Emperor and Bardas, nο doubt through the good offices of Photius. He travelled to the Caliphate with Photius in 856, and was subsequently sent, οn the latter's recommendation, to the Crimea and Khazaria. Οn his return from this mission in 861, 'he had his seat in the Church of the Holy Apostles';(6) that is, he took up a professorial chair in the Patriarchal School, which operated οn that church's premises. It would have been odd for Photius to appoint a personal enemy to this most important institution.

Finally, one should not overlook Constantine-Cyril's title. Αll his life he was known as 'the Philosopher', and his posthumous biography was titled The Life of Constantine the Philosopher. A 'philosopher' could not but belong to the progressive party of Photius, rather than to the zealot faction of Ignatius.

We have no clear evidence about the relations between Methodius and Photius, but we do have certain indications. The fact that he was appointed Abbot of Polychroniou Monastery does not mean that he was friendly towards the deposed Patriarch Ignatius. Indeed, given the fact that his appointment was made during Photius's term as Patriarch, and was obviously sanctioned by him, it seems likely that it was made precisely to mollify the monks who supported Ignatius and to change their sentiments. The appointment followed directly upon the two brothers' return from Khazaria and the Crimea, after Photius had offered Methodius an episcopal see, which he declined. It is clear from what has been said above that Photius cannot have been absent from the deliberations concerning the mission to Central Europe. The question, then, should be phrased differently: why do the sources not specifically mention his participation?

Their silence οn this point is undoubtedly connected with the circumstances under which the brothers' biographies were written.

The Life of Constantine the Philosopher was written in Rome shortly after Cyril's death in 869 by a companion of his and Methodius's, and its purpose was to present clear evidence that the Pope, Hadrian ΙΙ, approved the use of the Slavonic langιιage in the Liturgy and thus forestall the charges being brought against Methodius οn this account. The Life of Methodius was written in Moravia in 885 with the aim of persuading the ruler, Prince Sviatopolk, who was both a Latinophile and a Germanophile, that the mission was the work of the Emperor of Byzantium, and that those who reacted against it were therefore opposing the plans of the Emperor. It would have been impossible, in the Life of Constantine, to make much of Photius's role. Reference to his part in events would have undermined the whole purpose of the work, for Photius was hated in Rome and in the West generally, and had now been deposed in the East. Nor was such a reference possible in the Life of Methodius, because it would have diminished the Emperor's role, which was at the core of the work. It would also have been dangerous because, although Photius was back οn the patriarchal throne by now and had mended his differences with Rome, he still had not done so with the Germans, who were continuing to promote the filioque. It would therefore have been most unwise to present Photius as the person behind the brothers' mission. It is for the same reason that no mention is made of Photius's role in Constantine-Cyril's mission to the Caliphate,(8) although they probably went together, the one being responsible for religious and the other for civil affairs. Ιn this context too, such a reference would have been seen in the West as provocative.

There is therefore no reason to deny that Photius, as the supreme ecclesiastical authority in Byzantium, played a part in Cyril and Methodius's mission. Indeed, we have no choice but to accept that he did.

The question arises, however: why, in 867, did the brothers not travel to Constantinople to give an account of their work, but went to Rome instead? The answer is strange, but unequivocal: they did not go to Rome of their οwn accord; they were forced tο do so. The Life of Constantine (15) tells us: 'And so he remained in Moravia for forty months, and left in order to tonsure his disciples'; while in the Life of Methodius we read: 'Αnd when three years had passed, they returned from Moravia.'

'They returned'. One returns to tlιe point from which one has set out -in this case Constantinople- and the brothers were travelling there in order to tonsιιre their disciples in their place of origin -Constantinople. However, after passing through Pannonia, and staying fοr a while with its ruler, Κocel, in order to instruct disciples there too, they eventually came to Venice. It seems likely that the deteriorating relations between Byzantium and Bulgaria made it preferable to travel to Cοnstantinople by sea. When they arrived in Venice, however, as the Life of Constantine reports,(9) Latin bishops, clerics, and monks gave them a rough reception ('like crows against a hawk') because of their use of the Slavonic language, and brought up the heresy of Trilinguism.

What is significant is that the Life of Constantine goes οn to say that 'when the Pope was informed about him [Cyril], he sent and asked for him';(10) which means that Cyril did not originally intend to go to Rome, but did so at the Pope's invitation. When he reached Rome, however, he was received not by Nicholas, but by his successor, Hadrian II, who was well disposed towards him. Had it not been for the invitation, he would have gone to Constantinople. Indeed, what the two brothers failed to do then, Methodius did alone fifteen years later, when Photius was again Patriarch.

The truth is that Photius's role is not completely ignored, but is referred to obliquely. The Life of Constantine states, for instance, that Photius was Cyril's teacher, a reference which was considered harmless: 'Constantine learned dialectics and all the branches of philosophy under Leo and Photius.(11) The Life of Methodius mentions towards the end that 'the Patriarch also acted in a similar way':(12) that is, he received Methodius in Constantinople, approved his teaching, gave him sumptuous gifts, and sent him οn his way back to his archbishopric. The Patriarch was Photius. During this meeting, not only did Photius and the Archbishop of Moravia see eye to eye οn all matters, but, learning of the teaching of the filioque, the former was also persuaded to enter the lists against it.

It is in this indirect, allusive fashion that the two biographers in fact give Photius all his due, from the start to the finish of the mission. And all this leaves no doubt that Photius did indeed not merely participate in organizing the mission to Moravia and the other Slavonic countries, but played, in effect, the most important part.

Byzantium was faced with a request from Rastislav, who had probably been encouraged to make it by people from Constantinople who had been working in Moravia for some time. The Prince asked for a bishop and teacher, whο would be able to teach them the true Christian faith in their οwn language and bring them the 'good law'. The Emperor granted the request at once by sending two teachers, one of whom was to become Archbishop of Moravia. Now, how could he have done this if the preconditions had not existed?

What was actually needed, apart from a teacher with a knowledge of the language, was an alphabet adapted to the specific phonetic features of Slavonic, the creation of theological and ecclesiastica1 terminology in Slavonic, and translations of the basic books of worship and instruction. This was a difficult task in respect of an unwritten and unformed language, which lacked words and expressions to convey notions that simply did not exist for a culturally underdeveloped people.

The missionaries took all this to Moravia; and it was, beyond doubt, the product of many years of preparation. This preparation could have been carried out only under the aegis of the Church and at some special center for Slavonic studies, which was probably located in the School of the Holy Apostles. And the motivating force behind it all was the Patriarch, Photius.

Ιn conclusion, therefore, we may say that: a) the two brothers were sent into Europe by the Patriarch and the Emperor together, Photius providing what was required from the theological and religious point of view, and Michael ΙΙΙ granting political and material protection; and b) that their mission had both religious and cultural aims.

NOTES

1. Life of Constantine 14.

2. Apolytikion of the Feast of St Constantine (21 May).

3. Life of Constantine 16.

4. Life of Constantine 4.

5. Letter to Pope Hadrian, Μοnumentα Germaniae Historica, Epist. VII, p. 407.

6. Life of Constantine 4.

7. Life of Methodius 5.

8. Life of Constantine 6.

9. Life of Constantine 16.

10. Life of Constantine 17.

11. Life of Constantine 4.

12. Life of Methodius 13.

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Saint Simon the Zealot and Apostle of Georgia

St. Simon the Apostle and Zealot (Feast Day - May 10)

This Apostle was one of the Twelve, and was called Simon the Canaanite by Matthew, but Simon the Zealot by Luke (Matt. 10:4; Luke 6:15). The word "Canaanite" used by Matthew is believed to be derived from kana, which in the Palestinian dialect of Aramaic means "zealot" or "zealous"; Luke therefore translates the meaning of "Canaanite." Later accounts say that he was the bridegroom at the wedding in Cana of Galilee, where the Lord Jesus changed the water into wine, making this the first of His miracles (John 2:1-11); according to some, he is called Canaanite because he was from Cana (according to others, from the Land of Canaan). Simon means "one who hears."


St. Simon is said to have traveled to many places from Britain to the Black Sea, proclaiming the Gospel of Christ. There are various accounts of how and where St. Simon was martyred, though all are unanimous that he was martyred. One of the oldest traditions was that St. Simon was martyred in Georgia. Moses of Chorene writes that he was martyred at Weriosphora in Iberia (Abkhazia, Georgia); many locations claim to have relics including Toulouse, France, and Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome, Italy. Georgian tradition holds that he preached in Western Georgia and was buried near Sokhumi, in the village of Anakopia where New Athos Monastery is located and St. Simon is especially venerated and celebrated on his feast day where thousands come for pilgrimage.


Saint Simon the Canaanite Church

Simon the Canaanite – one of Jesus Christ's Apostles – came with the first Christian missions to Georgia in the first century AD. According to the tradition the angry local residents killed the righteous man with stones where New Athos Monastery is located today. Long before the monks came there from Mount Athos a temple was built on the site of Simon's burial. This temple is one of the oldest active ones in New Athos. It stands on the left bank of the Psyrtskhi River. The temple over the tomb of the Apostle was constructed during the period from the 11th to 13th centuries. The last reconstruction was completed in 1882. Later it became the Tskhum Cathedral.

The church building also served the place of burial for clergymen of the Tskhum diocese. One of the stones in the altar wall has the inscription in Greek about the burial procedure related to the Greek period of Anakopia. The church was richly decorated by wall paintings. Today you can see the fragments of the restored ancient frescoes. Every year thousands of pilgrims gather in the church to honor the memory of St. Simon the Canaanite on May 23rd (May 10th New Calendar).


Saint Simon the Canaanite Cave

Next to St. Simon the Canaanite Church there is a cave where he lived and prayed during his last years. The cave is a natural recession in the rock (Psyrtskhi Gorge). The cave walls are decorated with ancient mosaics, crosses, inscriptions, icons, lamps. In 1884 the cave was sanctified. Since then the icons of St. Andrew the First-Called and St. Simon the Canaanite have been kept there. The believers leave notes there with requests for health and peace of souls.

The cave is located not far from the St. Simon's place of martyrdom. One of the stones there bears his footprint.





The Site of St. Simon's Martyrdom and the Red Stones

On the site of St. Simon's martyrdom, which is on the Psirju River, many of the stones and rocks have red spots on them. Local tradition says that this exists because it is the site where St. Simon was stoned to death. For this reason many faithful consider this river a second Jordan and dip themselves under for both bodily and spiritual healing. The faithful take these stones for a blessing. This miracle reminds many of the sheatfish which are in the Jordan.





Apolytikion in the Third Tone
O Holy Apostle Simon, intercede with the merciful God that He grant unto our souls forgiveness of offences.

Kontakion in the Second Tone
With praise let us all bless Simon, the herald of God, who established securely in the souls of the pious the doctrines of wisdom; for now he standeth before the throne of glory, and exulting with the bodiless hosts, he intercedeth unceasingly for us all.

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Final Cremation Law Adopted In Greece

Greece Moves To Adopt Cremation Law

EarthTimes
May 11, 2010

Athens, Greece - Breaking with a centuries-old Orthodox religious tradition, Greece took the final steps on Tuesday toward permitting and creating facilities so that people who choose so can be cremated.

Demand for the option of cremation has risen in recent years due to Greece's overcrowded cemeteries, which force relatives to exhume their loves ones after three years to make way for the next burial.

In a joint decision by the Health, Environment and Interior Ministeries, the final framework that allows for the creation of crematoriums has been approved.

The legislation calls for such facilities to be built next to cemeteries, while municipalities will be responsible for operating them.

Although cremation has been allowed for more than a century in many European countries - since 1884 in the United Kingdom and since 1887 in France - Greece only approved legislation in 2006 allowing for the cremation of the dead.

The previous law banned cremation for other faiths, making matters particularly difficult for the large influx of non-Orthodox immigrants from Asia and other Balkan countries living in Greece who had to send their dead abroad to be cremated.

For decades the Greek Orthodox Church had strongly opposed cremation, saying the body is God's creation and cannot be burned.

The law still forbids cremation for Orthodox Christians. The Church of Greece opposes the practice for believers, arguing that Orthodox traditions only allow for burial.

Read also:

Last Cremation Obstacle Goes

Burial or Burning? An Orthodox Evaluation of Cremation

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Moldavans Rally For Religion in Schools

Moldovans Seek Religion

11 May 2010
Reuters

CHISINAU, Moldova — About 15,000 people rallied in Moldova’s capital, Chisinau, on Saturday to demand that schools add religion to the curriculum.

“We want to bring religion back to school after it was excluded by the totalitarian Soviet regime,” Metropolitan Vladimir, head of the Moldovan Orthodox Church, told supporters.

In Moldova, more than 95 percent of believers are Eastern Orthodox. The Moldovan Orthodox Church, an autonomous church under the Moscow Patriarchate, is the country’s main church with around 1,300 parishes.

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The Different Names of Constantinople (Istanbul)

Among the names of Istanbul, the most notable are Byzantium, Constantinople and Stamboul, although the city has been known through the ages under various other names. Each of them is associated with different phases of its history and with different languages.

Names In Historical Sequence

Byzantium

Byzantion (Βυζάντιον), Latinized as Byzantium, was the first known name of the city. It was founded by Greek colonists from Megara in 667 BC and, according to legend, named after their king Byzas, originally *Βύζαντς, probably Thracian name.[1]:352ff

Much later, the name Byzantium became common in the West to refer to the Eastern Roman Empire, the "Byzantine" Empire, whose capital the city had been. This usage was introduced only in 1555 by the German historian Hieronymus Wolf, a century after the empire had ceased to exist. During the time of the empire itself, the term Byzantium was restricted to the city itself, rather than the empire that it ruled.

Augusta Antonina

Augusta Antonina was a name given to the city during a brief period in the 3rd century AD. It was conferred to it by the Roman emperor Septimius Severus (193-211) in honour of his son Antoninus, the later emperor Caracalla.[2]

New Rome

Before the Roman emperor Constantine the Great made the city the new eastern capital of the Roman Empire on May 11, 330, he undertook a major construction project, essentially rebuilding the city on a monumental scale, partly modelled after Rome. Names of this period included ἡ Νέα, δευτέρα Ῥώμη 'the New, second Rome',[3] Alma Roma Ἄλμα Ῥώμα, Βυζαντιάς Ῥώμη, ἑῴα Ῥώμη 'Eastern Rome', Roma Constantinopolitana.[1]:354

The term "New Rome" lent itself to East-Western polemics, especially in the context of the Great Schism, when it was used by Greek writers to stress the rivalry with (the original) Rome. New Rome is also still part of the official title of the Patriarch of Constantinople.[4]

Constantinople

Constantinople ("City of Constantine") was the name by which the city became soon more widely known, in honour of Constantine the Great. The Greek form is Kōnstantinoupolis (Κωνσταντινούπολις); the Latin form is Constantinopolis. It is first attested in official use under emperor Theodosius II (408-450).[2] It remained the principal official name of the city throughout the Byzantine period, and the most common name used for it in the West until the early 20th century. It was also used (including its Kostantiniyye variant) by the Ottoman Empire until the advent of the Republic of Turkey.[5]

Some Byzantine writers would vary the use of the names Byzantium and Constantinople depending on religious historical context; Byzantium was associated with the city's pagan roots, while Constantinople was associated with Christianity.

Other Byzantine Names

Besides Constantinople, the Byzantines referred to the city with a large range of honorary appellations, such as the "Queen of Cities" (Βασιλὶς τῶν πόλεων). In popular speech, however, the most common way of referring to it came to be simply The City (Greek: hē Polis, ἡ Πόλις, Modern Greek: i Poli, η Πόλη). This usage, still current today in colloquial Greek and Armenian (Պոլիս, pronounced "Bolis" in the Western Armenian dialect prevalent in the city), also became the source of the later Turkish name, Istanbul (see below).

Kostantiniyye

Kostantiniyye (Arabic القسطنطينية, al-Qusṭanṭiniyah, Ottoman Turkish قسطنطينيه Kostantiniyye) is the name by which the city came to be known in the Islamic world. It is an Arabic calqued form of Constantinople, with an Arabic ending meaning 'place of' instead of the Greek element -polis. After the Ottoman conquest of 1453, it was used as the most formal official name in Ottoman Turkish, and remained in use throughout most of the time up to the fall of the empire in 1923. However, during some periods Ottoman authorities favoured other names (see below).

Istanbul

The modern Turkish name İstanbul (pronounced [isˈtanbul]) is attested (in a range of variants) since the 10th century, at first in Azerbaijani and Arabic and then in Turkish sources. It derives from the Greek phrase "εις την Πόλιν" or "στην Πόλη" [(i)stimboli(n)], both meaning "in the city" or "to the city";[6] a similar case is Stimboli, Crete. It is thus based on the common Greek usage of referring to Constantinople simply as The City (see above). The incorporation of parts of articles and other particles into Greek placenames was common even before the Ottoman period, Navarino for earlier Avarino,[7] Satines for Athines, etc.[8] Similar examples of modern Turkish placenames derived from Greek in this fashion are İzmit, earlier İznikmit, from Greek Nicomedia, İznik from Greek Nicaea ([iz nikea]), Samsun (s'Amison = "se + Amisos"), and İstanköy for the Greek island Kos (from is tin Ko). The occurrence of the initial i- in these names may partly reflect the old Greek form with is-, or it may partly be an effect of secondary epenthesis, resulting from the phonotactic structure of Turkish.

İstanbul was the common name for the city in normal speech in Turkish even since before the conquest of 1453, but in official use by the Ottoman authorities, other names such as Kostantiniyye were preferred in certain contexts. Thus, Kostantiniyye was used on coinage up to the late 17th and then again in the 19th century. The Ottoman chancelery and courts used Kostantiniyye as part of intricate formulae in expressing the place of origin of formal documents, such as be-Makam-ı Darü's-Saltanat-ı Kostantiniyyetü'l-Mahrusâtü'l-Mahmiyye[9] In 19th century Turkish bookprinting it was also used in the impressum of books, in contrast to the foreign use of Constantinople. At the same time, however, İstanbul too was part of the official language, for instance in the titles of the highest Ottoman military commander (İstanbul ağası) and the highest civil magistrate (İstanbul efendisi) of the city.[10] İstanbul and several other variant forms of the same name were also widely used in Ottoman literature and poetry.[2]

After the creation of the Republic of Turkey in 1923, the various alternative names besides İstanbul became obsolete in the Turkish language. With the Turkish Postal Service Law of March 28, 1930, the Turkish authorities officially requested foreigners to cease referring to the city with their traditional non-Turkish names (such as Constantinople, Tsarigrad, etc.) and to adopt Istanbul as the sole name also in their own languages.[11] Letters or packages sent to "Constantinople" instead of "Istanbul" were no longer delivered by Turkey's PTT, which contributed to the eventual worldwide adoption of the new name.

In English the name is usually written "Istanbul". In modern Turkish the name is written "İstanbul" because in the Turkish alphabet dotted i (capital İ) is a different letter from dotless ı (capital I).

Stamboul

Stamboul or Stambul is a variant form of İstanbul. Like Istanbul itself, forms without the initial i- are attested from early on in the Middle Ages, first in Arabic sources of the 10th century and Armenian ones of the 12th. Some early sources also attest to an even shorter form Bulin, based on the Greek word Poli(n) alone without the preceding article.[12] (This latter form lives on in modern Armenian.)

Stamboul was used in Western languages as an equivalent of İstanbul, until the time it was replaced by the official new usage of the Turkish form in the 20th century. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, English-speaking sources often used Constantinople to refer to the metropolis as a whole, but Stamboul to refer to the central parts located on the historic peninsula between the Golden Horn and the Sea of Marmara.[13]

Islambol

Islambol (lots of Islam) or Islambul (find Islam) were folk-etymological adaptations of Istanbul created after the Ottoman conquest of 1453 to express the city's new role as the capital of the Islamic Ottoman empire. It is first attested shortly after the conquest, and its invention was ascribed by some contemporary writers to Sultan Mehmed II himself.[2] Some Ottoman sources of the 17th century, most notably Evliya Çelebi, describe it as the common Turkish name of the time. Between the late 17th and late 18th centuries, it was also in official use. The first use of the word "Islambol" on coinage took place in 1703 (1115AH) during the reign of Sultan Ahmed III. The term Kostantiniyye still appeared, however, into the twentieth century.

Other Ottoman Names

Like the Byzantines, the Ottomans used to refer to the city by a range of other honorary appellations. Among them are Dersaadet (در سعادت 'Gate of Felicity'), Derâliye (در عاليه) or Bâb-ı Âlî باب عالی 'The Sublime Porte', or Pâyitaht (پایتخت, 'The Seat of the Throne'), Asitane ('The Doorstep' of the Sultan/Government). The 'Gate of Felicity' and the 'Sublime Porte' were literally places within the Ottoman Sultans' Topkapı Palace, and were used metonymically to refer to the authorities located there, and hence for the Ottoman government as a whole. This usage is mirrored in the use of Sublime Porte or simple The Porte in Western diplomacy before the 20th century.

Historical Names In Other Languages

Many peoples neighboring on the Byzantine Empire used names expressing concepts like "The Great City", "City of the Emperors", "Capital of the Romans" or similar. During the 10th to 12th century Constantinople was one of the largest two cities in the world, the other being Baghdad.

Old Norse

The medieval Vikings, who had contacts with the Byzantine empire through their expansion through eastern Europe (Varangians) used the Old Norse name Miklagarðr (from mikill 'big' and garðr 'city'), later Miklagard/Miklagård. This name lives on in the modern Icelandic name Mikligarður and Faroese Miklagarður.

Slavic

East and South Slavic languages referred to the city as Tsarigrad or Carigrad, 'City of the Caesar (Emperor)', from the Slavonic words tsar ('Caesar') and grad ('city'). Cyrillic:Цариград. This was presumably a calque on a Greek phrase such as Βασιλέως Πόλις (Vasileos Polis), 'the city of the emperor [king]'. The term is still occasionally used in Bulgarian, whereas it has become archaic in Serbian, Russian, Croatian, and Macedonian. In Slovene, Carigrad is a living alternative name for the modern city. In Czech language (West Slavic) this Slavic name is used in the form Cařihrad (used in 19th century, now only occasionally). It was also borrowed from the Slavic languages into Romanian in the form Ţarigrad.

Persian, Urdu, and Arabic

Besides Kustantiniyyah, Persian, Urdu, Arabic and other languages of the Islamic world used names based on the title Cesar ('Emperor'), as in Persian and Urdu Kayser-i Zemin,[2] or on the ethnic name Rum ('Romans'), as in Arabic Rūmiyyat al-kubra ('Great City of the Romans') or Persian/Urdu Takht-e Rum ('Throne of the Romans').[12]

Hebrew

In Hebrew, the city was sometimes referred to as "Kushtandina" קושטנדינה, and sometimes "Kushtandina Rabati" קושטנדינה רבתי, literally, Great Kushtandina, or shortened to "Kushta" קושטא, an alteration of Kostantiniyye. This usage was common among Jews until the early 20th Century; however, in present-day Israel it has virtually disappeared, replaced by the Hebrew trasliteration of the Turkish "Istanbul" (איסטנבול).

Modern Languages

Most modern Western languages have adopted the name Istanbul for the modern city during the 20th century, following the current usage in the Turkish Republic. However, many languages also preserve other, traditional names. Greeks continue to call the city Constantinople (Κωνσταντινούπολη Konstantinupoli in Modern Greek) or simply "The City" (η Πόλη i Poli). Languages that use forms based on Stamboul include Russian, Polish, Latvian, Lithuanian, and Albanian. The Spanish form is Estambul. Armenian uses Bolis, based on the Greek Poli(s) 'City'. Icelandic preserves the old Norse name Miklagarður.

References

1. Georgacas, Demetrius John (1947). "The Names of Constantinople". Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Association 78: 347–367. doi:10.2307/283503.

2. Necdet Sakaoğlu (1993/94a): "İstanbul'un adları" ["The names of Istanbul"]. In: 'Dünden bugüne İstanbul ansiklopedisi', ed. Türkiye Kültür Bakanlığı, Istanbul.

3. According to the Reallexikon für Antike und Christentum, vol. 164 (Stuttgart 2005), column 442, there is no evidence for the tradition that Constantine officially dubbed the city "New Rome" (Nova Roma or Nea Rhome). Commemorative coins that were issued during the 330s already refer to the city as Constantinopolis (see e.g. Michael Grant, The climax of Rome (London 1968), p. 133). It is possible that the emperor called the city "Second Rome" (Deutera Rhome) by official decree, as reported by the 5th-century church historian Socrates of Constantinople.

4. BARTHOLOMEW, ARCHBISHOP OF CONSTANTINOPLE, NEW ROME AND ECUMENICAL PATRIARCH

5. Finkel, Caroline, Osman's Dream, (Basic Books, 2005), 57; "Istanbul was only adopted as the city's official name in 1930..".

6. An alternative derivation, directly from Constantinople, was entertained as an hypothesis by some researchers in the 19th century but is today regarded as obsolete; see Sakaoğlu (1993/94a: 254) for references.

7. Detailed history at Pylos#The Name of Navarino

8. Bourne, Edward G. (1887). "The Derivation of Stamboul". American Journal of Philology 8 (1): 78–82. doi:10.2307/287478.

9. Necdet Sakaoğlu (1993/94b): "Kostantiniyye". In: 'Dünden bugüne İstanbul ansiklopedisi', ed. Türkiye Kültür Bakanlığı, Istanbul.

10. A.C. Barbier de Meynard (1881): Dictionnaire Turc-Français. Paris: Ernest Leroux.

11. Stanford and Ezel Shaw (1977): History of the Ottoman Empire and Modern Turkey. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Vol II, p. 386; Robinson (1965), The First Turkish Republic, p. 298

12. "Istanbul", in Encyclopedia of Islam.

13. H. G. Dwight (1915): Constantinople Old and New. New York: Scribner's.

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