Byzantine Frescoes of Ancient Philosophers

During the Ottoman occupation (15th-19th cent.) many churches and monasteries throughout Greece served as "secret schools" (Gr. "κρυφό σχολειό") where the writings of the ancients were studied in a private environment and taught by either monastics or clergy. Often these schools were in the narthex of churches, which is why these frescoes are often found in this area of the church. Because many ancient philosophers are said to have foretold the coming of Christ as well, they were revered by Christians for their wisdom, though not as saints (hence their depiction without halos).

The Wise Solon (ca. 638 BC – 558 BC) in the Great Lavra of Mount Athos.

The Wise Solon (c. 638 BC – 558 BC) in the Monastery of Prophet Elias in Siatista.

The Wise Hippocrates (ca. 460 BC – ca. 370 BC) in the National Library of France dating to 1342.

The Wise Sybil is found at the Monastery of Evangelistria in Zagorohoria and was painted in 1809.

The Wise Plato is found in the dome at the Monastery of Evangelistria in Zagorohoria and was painted in 1809.

In the main gate of the Monastery of Vatopaidi, the visitor is greeted by the Wise Apollonius on the right pillar and Thales the Greek King of Egypt on the left. They were painted in 1870.

The Wise Apollonius painted in 1858 by Nikephoros in Vatopaidi Monastery ("ἐγώ γὰρ ἐφετμεύω, τρισένα μόνον ὑψιμέδοντα θεόν· οὗν λόγος ἄφθιτος ἐν ἀδαή κόρη ἔγκυμος ἔσεται·")

The Wise Thales painted in 1858 by Nikephoros in Vatopaidi Monastery ("Ὁ πατήρ γόνος καὶ ὁ γόνος πατήρ, ἄσαρκος σαρκικός γέγονε, θεός ὑπάρχων.")

The Wise Sybil painted in 1858 by Nikephoros in Vatopaidi Monastery ("Ἥξει οὐρανόθεν βασιλεύς αἰώνων, μέλλων κρῖναι πᾶσαν σάρκα, καὶ κόσμο ἅπαντα.")

The Wise Sophocles painted in 1858 by Nikephoros in Vatopaidi Monastery ("Ἔστι θεός ἄναρχος ἀπλοῦς τῇ φύσει· ὅς οὐρανόν ἔτευξεν ἅμα καὶ χθόνα.")

The Wise Plato painted in 1858 by Nikephoros in Vatopaidi Monastery (Gr. "Ὁ παλαιός νέος καὶ νέος ὁ ἀρχαίος, ὁ πατήρ ἐν τῷ γόνῳ καὶ ὁ γόνος ἐν τῷ πατρί. Τό ἕν διαιρείται εἰς τρία καὶ τά τρία εἰς ἕν." Eng. The old is new and the new is ancient. The Father is in the Offspring and the Offspring is in the Father, the One is divided into Three, and the Three constitute One.")

The Wise Aristotle painted in 1858 by Nikephoros in Vatopaidi Monastery (Gr. "Άκάματος φύσει Θεοῦ γέννησις ἐξ αὐτοῦ γὰρ ὁ αὐτός οὐσιοῦται λόγος." Eng. The begetting of God is by nature inexhaustible, for the Logos derives His substance from Him.")

The Wise Plutarch as depicted in the narthex of the church at the Monastery of Philanthropinon in Ioannina. The Monastery was founded in 1272 and painted in 1542.

The Wise Aristotle as depicted in the narthex of the church at the Monastery of Philanthropinon in Ioannina. The Monastery was founded in 1272 and painted in 1542.

Various ancient Greek philosophers depicted near the geneological tree of Christ in Saint Paraskevi Church in Siatista of Kozani. The church was built in 1677.

The Wise Plutarch in Saint Paraskevi Church in Siatista of Kozani.

The Wise Aristotle in Saint Paraskevi Church in Siatista of Kozani.

The Wise Plato and the Wise Aristotle in Saint Paraskevi Church in Siatista of Kozani.

The Wise Solon and the Wise Thucydides in Saint Paraskevi Church in Siatista of Kozani.

The four kings prophesied by Daniel the Prophet, among whom is Alexander the Great. Saint Achilleos Church in Kozani built in 1740.

Hippocrates holding the words to his oath.

Read more here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.

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The Third Week of Great Lent

By Sergei V. Bulgakov

In this week the Holy Church, as in the past weeks, inspires us with the necessity to offer "to Christ our God"; "gifts that are pleasing", "a pure fast and abstinence from evil", abstention from "anger, wrath and every sin", "tears and prayer, to works of compassion, and to a contrite way of life, to upright thoughts and a pure way of life".

In particular the Holy Church, calling us to avoid foods, as "the begetter of passions ", and to love fasting as "the mother of virtues ", in detail it opens, "if it is good, if it is great, if it is grace given by God", it is a fast.

"Let us love the fast", sings the Holy Church, "it makes the stubborn passions of the soul to wither, and gives us strength to do the works of God; it makes our mind ascend to heaven, and gains for us the forgiveness of our sins". "By fasting Elisha gave back to the Shunnamite her child alive", "Daniel in the den tamed the wild beasts with the muzzle of abstinence: let us also subdue the passions by fasting", "for this strengthens the body, and illuminates the mind and heart".

Together with this during all the days of this week the Holy Church prays to the Lord that He grant us to see His Cross. "With our flesh cleansed by abstinence," cries the Holy Church, "and our souls enlightened by prayer, O Lord, grant us to look upon Thy holy and honorable Cross" "and to reverence it uncondemned with fear and love", "to kiss it with undefiled lips", "in psalms and songs let us celebrate the light", "in our illumination". In such a way it follows that the third week is essentially a sort of Forefeast to the Cross of the Lord.

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Video: Bishop Danilo Krstic On Orthodoxy and Civilization

Bishop Danilo of blessed memory was born on May 13, 1927 in Novi Sad. He studied law in Belgrade, and graduated from Sorbonne in literature in 1952. From 1954 to 1958 he studied theology at the Saint Sergius' Academy in Paris, whereas he gained doctoral degree at Harvard, USA in 1968. He took monastic vows in 1960, and in 1969 the Holy Assembly of Bishops of the Serbian Orthodox Church appointed him the auxiliary bishop of the Serbian Patriarch, his official title being the Bishop of Moravice. From 1984 he was the administrator of the Diocese of Budim, and from 1988 he was appointed the hierarch of the Diocese of Budim.

Bishop Danilo was one of the most educated hierarchs of the Serbian Orthodox Church. While being in Belgrade as the auxiliary bishop of the Serbian Patriarch, he used to incite - mostly by his enormous erudition and pastoral words - great interest of young intellectuals, especially the students of the Belgrade University, for the Word of God and Christ's Gospel. Bishop Danilo's numerous theological and literary works are dispersed in numerous publications, magazines and books, published both in the Serbian Orthodox Church and in the issues of other sister Churches.

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Why We Fast From Olive Oil and Not From Olives

By Dr. Ioannis Fountoulis

Why in times of fasting do we fast from oil and fish but not from olives and fish roe?

The old and true fast consists of total abstinence of food or xerophagia [only eating dry foods]. Since this cannot be maintained during long periods of fasting in the ecclesiastical year because of difficult living conditions or lack of zeal, several accommodations have been designed for the application of fasting by all believers.

In ancient times Christians after the ninth hour (3:00 pm) on Lenten days partook only of water and bread. Gradually, however, not only was the duration of complete abstinence from food limited to normal time, and on other days Lenten Vespers and the Presanctified Liturgy were moved to the morning because of this, but other types of food were used, such as fruits, legumes, crustaceans, mollusks, etc.

Within this context it can be understood why we eat olives on days you do not eat oil, and fish roe on days we abstain from fish. For the former we can invoke the fact that olives are eaten as fruit, while the ban on oil is on foods prepared with oil. For the latter justification is less reasonable, since the same is not allowed for milk or eggs, but they are prohibited in our fasts as "fruit and produce of animals" in the 56th Canon of the Quinisext Ecumenical Council. I know, however, devout Christians who understand this as "oikonomia", and on the days of great fasts and the night before Holy Communion they abstain from olives and fish roe.

It is true that we often hear this question from well-meaning believers and more than a few who view the fasts as an irony. In both cases we emphasize the flexibility and philanthropy of the customs and rules of the Church, which do not have a purpose to exterminate people but to help them to exercise restraint and dominate the passions. If these foods scandalize them, they can abstain from them without being in "contempt" or "judgement" against the Church for its benevolence, according to the Apostle (Romans 14:3). For the Church to struggle for the liquidation of relevant fasting customs and foods to be eaten or not is not necessary nor is it able to stay within the bounds of seriousness. What is primarily needed is to fast for the spiritual benefit that comes from this, and attempt as far as possible for the faithful to be in compliance with the relevant provisions of the Church, which have severely died down today.

Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos

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The Search For Perfection In Orthodoxy and Society

On March 18, 2011 the New York Times published an article titled "Our Imperfect Search for Perfection" by Carina Chocano. It is published in light of the two recent movies “Limitless” and “The Adjustment Bureau”. In the former "Bradley Cooper plays a failed writer named Eddie Morra who stumbles upon a stash of magical pills that allow him to blossom into the ultimate version of himself," while in the latter David, played by Matt Damon, "is the perfect politician — but he perfects himself only as a human being, the movie suggests, in his struggle for the transcendence of true love." Ultimately both movies present secular notions of perfection within ourselves to fill that dark void as we all long to do. They are about mastering our own destiny in a world where, to the ordinary individual, destiny cannot be mastered. The article goes on to examine the notion of perfection throughout history where "We’ve collectively moved away from thinking about perfection in ethical, moral, aesthetic or social terms, toward the more limited concept of self-perfection — the attainment of a personal competitive edge. Nobody believes that an eight-figure bonus and six-pack abs are achieved in some quest for the greater social good." The quest for perfection in our days has become soulless and a form of lust that only leads a thinking person to greater despair: "That you must outsmart, outwork, outrival and outdream everybody else or consign yourself to a life of frustrated obscurity or worse. Perfection has always held a kind of promise, but this conception of it sounds less like a promise than a threat."

In light of how perfection is currently being portrayed in our culture, the picture Orthodox Christianity gives of perfection is radically different. Whereas in the worldly way of thinking perfection has been reduced to a selfish passion and lust, in Orthodoxy perfection unites us with God's love which inspires the heart to love others in imitation of God's love. This is why Jesus says in Matthew 5:38: "Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect." In context He says this after explaining how we are to love our neighbor with the same love God loves His creation.

Further quotes from Orthodox Christian Saints on the issue of perfection are also enlightening to steer us away from worldly notions of attaining a selfish form of perfection to a selfless love in imitation of Christ - Who is both perfect God and perfect Man.

- "A person is perfect in this life when as a pledge of what is to come he receives the grace to assimilate himself to the various stages of Christ's life. In the life to come perfection is made manifest through the power of deification." (St. Gregory of Sinai, Philokalia, Vol. 4)

- "When the intellect has been perfected, it unites wholly with God and is illumined by divine light, and the most hidden mysteries are revealed to it. Then it truly learns where wisdom and power lie... While it is still fighting against the passions it cannot as yet enjoy these things... But once the battle is over and it is found worthy of spiritual gifts, then it becomes wholly luminous, powerfully energized by grace and rooted in the contemplation of spiritual realities. A person in whom this happens is not attached to the things of this world but has passed from death to life." (St. Thalassios, Philokalia, Vol. 2)

- "While we are still in this life we shall often waver in our self-determining, hesitating whether to fulfill the commandments or give way to our passions. Gradually, as we struggle, the mystery of Christ will be revealed to us if we devote ourselves totally to obeying His precepts. The moment will come when heart and mind are so suffused by the vision of the infinite holiness and humility of the God-Christ that our whole being will rise in a surge of love for God." (Archimandrite Sophrony, His Life is Mine, Chapter 13)

- "But we also know that the fulfillment of the commandments of God gives true knowledge, since it is through this that the soul gains health. How could a rational soul be healthy, if it is sick in its cognitive faculty? So we know that the commandments of God also grant knowledge, and not that alone, but deification also." (St. Gregory Palamas, The Triads)

- "The dispensation of our God and Saviour concerning man is a recall from the fall, and a return from the alienation caused by disobedience to close communion with God. This is the reason for the sojourn of Christ in the flesh, the pattern of life described in the Gospels, the sufferings, the cross, the tomb, the resurrection; so that the man who is being saved through imitation of Christ receives the old adoption. For perfection of life the imitation of Christ is necessary, not only in the example of gentleness, lowliness, and long suffering set us in His life, but also of His actual death. So Paul, the imitator of Christ, says, `being made conformable unto His death; if by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead.' How then are we made in the likeness of His death? In that we were buried with Him by baptism." (St. John Chrysostom, On The Holy Spirit)

- "We unite ourselves to Him [God], in so far as this is possible, by participating in the godlike virtues and by entering into communion with Him through prayer and praise. Because the virtues are similitudes of God, to participate in them puts us in a fit state to receive the Deity, yet it does not actually unite us to Him. But prayer through its sacral and hieratic power actualizes our ascent to and union with the Deity, for it is a bond between noetic creatures and their Creator." (St. Gregory Palamas, On Prayer and Purity of Heart)

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Synaxarion For the Second Sunday of Great Lent

By Nikephoros Kallistos Xanthopoulos

SECOND SUNDAY of LENT

On the same day, the Second Sunday of the Fast, we celebrate the memory of our Father among the Saints, Gregory Palamas, Archbishop of Thessalonica.

Verses

The Fountain of light leadeth unto the unwaning light
The radiant herald of the light and the truly great mind.


Synaxarion

This son of the Divine Light that knows no evening, a true man of God and wondrous servant and minister of Divine things, hailed from Constantinople. His parents were illustrious and notable people, who were zealous to adorn with virtue and education not only the outward and perceptible man, but also, and much more importantly, the inward and invisible man. When Saint Gregory was very young, his father, Constantine, reposed, and his mother, Kalliste, brought up and instructed Saint Gregory, his brothers, and his sisters, educating and admonishing them in the Lord and with sacred literature, and she also saw to it that they be furnished with secular wisdom by studying at school. Saint Gregory, combining eagerness with his innate intelligence, in a short time acquired every kind of philosophical knowledge, but when he was about twenty years old, reckoning all such things to be unspiritual and more illusory than dreams, he sought to ascend to God, the Cause and Bestower of all wisdom, and to dedicate his whole self to Him through a more perfect way of life. Hence, he disclosed to his mother his God-loving purpose and his great longing and ardent love for God; and he found her to be similarly disposed, for she had been thinking along the same lines for a long time, and she rejoiced as much as he did. She immediately gathered her children around her, and, saying with gladness, “Behold, I and the children which God hath given me,” attempted to determine what attitude they had towards good things and revealed to them the intention of their older brother. And he, speaking words of exhortation to them, succeeded in winning them over more quickly than one could reasonably expect, and they all eagerly entertained the same longing as he did, namely, to flee from the world.

Hence, after distributing his property to the poor, in accordance with the Gospel, and forsaking imperial favor and the honors and plaudits of the imperial court, Saint Gregory followed Christ. He settled his mother and sisters in a convent and, taking his brothers with him, went to the mountain that is the namesake of holiness, Mount Athos. But he persuaded his brothers to remain for a time in other monasteries, perhaps because they did not have the opportunity to pursue the spiritual life together. He placed himself under obedience to a wondrous man who lived as a Hesychast with God alone, near the Holy Monastery of Vatopedi, Nikodemos by name, from whom he learned every commandment and every virtue through practice and in humility of soul. There, through a mystical revelation, he received the help and invincible succor of the All-Pure Theotokos in all matters. After Nikodemos departed to God, Saint Gregory spent several years in the Great Lavra, where he lived with the greatest of zeal, having the mind of a venerable Elder, but attracted by love for silence, he withdrew from the Lavra and embraced the solitary life. Ever adding longing to longing and striving to abide with God unceasingly, he gave himself over to extreme austerity, and restraining his senses from all sides with scrupulous attentiveness and raising his mind to God, he devoted every moment to prayer and the study of theology. Living an exceptionally disciplined life and with God as his ally, he mightily conquered the demons that made war on him, and cleansing his soul by standing for whole nights and with fountains of tears, he became a choice vessel of the gifts of the Divine Spirit. He had frequent visions of God, and more wonderful still, even after moving to Thessalonica—on account of the Hagarene onslaughts—and establishing a skete in Berea, and being compelled to have contact with certain of the cities, not even then did he depart from his strict way of life.

After completely purifying both body and soul over a period of many years, he received the great anointing of the Priesthood by Divine decree. He celebrated the Divine Mystagogy like one without a body and, as it were, in a state of ecstasy, such that the mere sight of him aroused compunction in the souls of those who saw him; he was truly great and was known by those who lived godly lives as a Spirit-bearer. He showed himself to be such even to those who only looked at him from the outside, having power over demons, delivering the possessed from their deception and trickery, transforming unfruitful trees into fruitful ones, and foreseeing the future, and he was adorned with all the other gifts and fruits of the Divine Spirit.

Since acting virtuously lies within our power, whereas encountering temptations does not depend on us, and without temptations there is no perfection or demonstration of faith in God (for when, it is said, action and desire come together for the good, the godly man is made perfect), this great Saint was permitted to meet with diverse and constant temptations, in order that through all of these he might be proved truly perfect. What mind can comprehend what subsequently happened? What discourse could recount the machinations of the crafty Adversary, which were greater than before, the libels and slanders hurled against Saint Gregory by the newly-manifest fighters against God, and all the maltreatment that he endured at their hands while contending for the sake of piety, over a period of twenty-three years in all? For the Italian beast, Barlaam of Calabria, puffed up by secular wisdom and fancying in the vanity of his own thoughts that he knew everything, stirred up a terrible war against the Church of Christ, against our godly Faith, and against those who unwaveringly adhered thereto. For in his derangement, he taught that the Grace which is common to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit; that the Light of the age to come, wherein the righteous will shine like the sun, as Christ revealed in advance when He shone on Mount Tabor; and, quite simply, that every power and energy of the Tri-Hypostatic Godhead, and everything that is in any way whatsoever distinct from the Divine Nature, is created. Those who piously profess that that most Divine light and every Divine power and energy are uncreated, since none of the attributes that belongs naturally to God is of recent origin, Barlaam called “ditheists” and “polytheists,” in lengthy orations and writings, as the Jews, Sabellios, and Arios also call us.

On account of this, the Divine Gregory, being an illustrious champion and defender of Orthodoxy, who fought, above all, for the sake of piety and who was slandered for doing so, was summoned by the Church to Constantinople. A Synod was convened by the most godly Emperor Andronikos, the fourth of the Palaiologoi, who was a defender of Orthodoxy. Barlaam came to this Synod, where he presented his heretical doctrines and his accusations against the pious. Filled with the Divine Spirit, the great Saint Gregory, girt with invincible power from on high, stopped that mouth which had been opened against God and finally, by his fiery orations and writings, put Barlaam to shame and reduced his heretical tinder to ashes. Wherefore, unable to endure the shame, this enemy of the true Faith fled to the Latins, whence he came. Immediately after this, before a Synod Saint Gregory confuted Akindynos—or rather, Polykindynos—and tore asunder his writings with refutatory discourses. Not even in the wake of this did those who shared their corrupt way of thinking cease to war against God’s Church. Hereafter, with much pressure from the Holy Synod and from Emperor John Cantacouzenos himself, and, above all, persuaded by Divine decree, Saint Gregory was elevated to the Episcopacy, being appointed Archpastor of the Holy Church in Thessalonica. In this capacity, he valiantly and steadfastly accomplished much greater struggles than before on behalf of the Orthodox Faith. For he destroyed the evil successors of Akindynos and Barlaam, who turned out to be many and vexatious, the frightful offspring of frightful wild beasts, and he refuted both their teachings and their writings in many different ways, not once, or twice, or thrice, but many times and through many discourses and not under one emperor or Patriarch, but under three successive emperors, an equal number of Patriarchs, and not a few Synods with Divinely-inspired orations and treatises, and he finally won a mighty victory over them. There were some who remained impenitent, taking no thought for Divine retribution; for there still exist remnants of all heresies, which speak with effrontery against the Saints who vanquished them, to say nothing of that most insolent Jewish race, which even now rages against Christ.

Such, in brief, and so many were the victories of this great Saint over the impious. God, in His ineffable ways, sent him out also as a teacher to the Orient. He was sent as an envoy from Thessalonica to Constantinople in order to reconcile the Emperors, who were at odds with each other; but when he arrived in Gallipoli, he was arrested by the Hagarenes and detained for an entire year, passing martyrically from place to place and from city to city, dauntlessly teaching the Gospel of Christ. Those who were steadfast he confirmed still more, beseeching them to be loyal to the Orthodox Faith, and he strengthened with Divine wisdom those who were confused about the Faith and who put various difficulties and questions to him regarding current events (that is, the astounding progress and expansion of the most ungodly race of the Hagarenes), applying the most effective remedy to what they had to say. To the rest, the infidels and those Christians who had fallen into pitiful apostasy, converted to Islam, and ridiculed our Faith, he spoke frequently and openly about the Incarnate OEconomy of our Lord and God and about our veneration of the Precious Cross and the Holy Icons; he also talked about Mohammed and about many other questions posed by them. Some admired him, but others were furious at him and stretched out their hands, and they would have put him to a martyric death had they not, by Divine Providence, seen fit to spare him, in the hope of receiving money in exchange for him—which is, in fact, what happened. The great Saint was freed by certain Christ-loving people, and the bloodless Martyr returned in triumph to his flock, being adorned, in addition to his many other great gifts and accomplishments, with the wounds of Christ, having in himself that which was lacking of the afflictions of Christ, according to St. Paul.

Let us indicate some of his characteristic traits. He was exceedingly meek and humble, insofar as the conversation did not have to do with God and things Divine; for in these matters he was very combative. He did not remember wrongs at all and was forbearing; he was eager to requite, as far as possible, with good things those who struck him as being in any way evil. He had a firm aversion to accusations made against other people; he displayed patient endurance and magnanimity in the face of difficulties; he was above pleasure and vainglory; he was always frugal and did not give excessive attention to his bodily needs, despite being in poor health for much of his life; in his patience, he was calm and peaceful, and he was always so gracious that it was quite evident to those who saw him; above all, he was pensive, attentive, and focussed, and as a result of this, his eyes were almost never devoid of tears, but poured forth fountains of tears.

So martyrically did he struggle, from the beginning of his life until its end, against the passions and the demons, driving heretics far away from the Church of Christ and expounding the Orthodox Faith in orations and writings, through which he confirmed practically all of Divinely-inspired Scripture, that his life and words constitute a kind of recapitulation and authentication of the lives and words of the Saints. Having shepherded his flock in an Apostolic and God-pleasing manner for twelve years, adorned it with moral sermons, guided it to the heavenly sheepfold, and proved himself to be, as it were, a fellow-worker with all the Orthodox, both living and yet to come, he was translated to the heavenly life in the year A.D. 1359, having lived for a total of sixty-three years. He committed his spirit into the hands of God, but to his flock he left his sacred body as a Relic, which is preserved in the Metropolis of Thessalonica and which, in due course, became extraordinarily distinguished and glorified as an inheritance and a most precious treasure; for it ever bestows miracles on any who approach it with faith and deliverance from all maladies, not a few of which are recorded in the story of his life.

By his intercessions, O God, have mercy on us and save us. Amen.

Apolytikion in Plagal of the Fourth Tone
O light of Orthodoxy, teacher of the Church, its confirmation, O ideal of monks and invincible champion of theologians, O wonder-working Gregory, glory of Thessalonica and preacher of grace, always intercede before the Lord that our souls may be saved.

Kontakion in the Fourth Tone
Now is the time for action! Judgment is at the doors! So let us rise and fast, offering alms with tears of compunction and crying: "Our sins are more in number than the sands of the sea; but forgive us, O Master of All, so that we may receive the incorruptible crowns."

Kontakion in Plagal of the Fourth Tone
Holy and divine instrument of wisdom, joyful trumpet of theology, together we sing your praises, O God-inspired Gregory. Since you now stand before the Original Mind, guide our minds to Him, O Father, so that we may sing to you: "Rejoice, preacher of grace."

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The Heart in the Hesychastic Treatises of St Gregory Palamas

By Monk Vartholomaeos

When one speaks about the heart, in an Eastern Christian context, one is somewhat obliged to talk about Hesychasm also. Furthermore, when one is talking about Hesychasm, St Gregory Palamas inevitably enters the equation.

The heart possesses a centrality few can claim. If one accepts that man is the centre and crown of creation,1 it would not be an exaggeration to say that the heart is at the centre of the world. If this can be applied to the material world, even more so does it appertain to the spiritual. For the heart is the meeting point between the Creator and creation, between God and man. St Augustine asks the following question. ‘Where can we find God?’, and continues in answer, ‘not on earth, for He is not here. And not in heaven, for we are no there. But in our own hearts we can find Him.’

St Gregory Palamas was a prolific writer. It was not until the second half of the previous century that his works were finally compiled and published by Professor Christou Panagiotis in Thessalonica, the city were St Gregory served as Archbishop. It is a voluminous corpus consisting of theological treatises, letters, ascetic writings, homilies, and prayers. I have chosen to focus on three of his works: the Treatises in Defence of those who Practise Holy Stillness (1338-40), commonly termed the Triads due to their structure, for they consist of three sets of triple tracts. This is, indisputably, St Gregory Palamas’s most important theological work, and another treatise To the Most Reverend Nun Xenia (1345/6), a statement of traditional Orthodox asceticism, written at Xenia’s request, and finally, for obvious reasons, one of Palamas’s briefest works, On Prayer and the Purity of Heart (1336/7).

Read the entire 19-page article here.

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St. Gregory Palamas and the Second Sunday of Great Lent

By Sergei V. Bulgakov

The Holy Church calls the second Sunday of Great Lent the Sunday of the Light-Creating Fasts. In its Divine services, in line with the destruction of the sinful condition of man, it is descriptively and touchingly represented in the church hymns, which explains the Gospel parable about the Prodigal son, and praises the fast as a means to the beneficial inner light, and posits in this glorification a new impulse for the ascetic effort of the fast. The Orthodox teaching about fasting as a means for the beneficial inner light is opened with special power in the commemoration on this Sunday of St. Gregory Palamas, Archbishop of Thessalonica and Wonderworker (see Nov. 14).

St. Gregory is known as the one who exposed the heresy of Barlaam, the Calabrian monk, who rejected the Orthodox teaching about the blessed light, which illuminates the internal person sometimes openly visible (as for example on Tabor and Sinai), and who did not admit the possibility to achieve this inner light through both prayer and fasting and other individual efforts. At the Council in Constantinople called in 1341 concerning this heresy, Barlaam, his disciple Akindynos, and their other accomplices were condemned for this false teaching. And during the subsequent time of his life St. Gregory zealously struggled for Orthodoxy, "not once", but "many times many" through his inspired speeches and writings denying the teachings and compositions of the evil followers of Akindynos and Barlaam.

For this ascetic effort for the benefit of the Holy Church, and also for the confession and witness for the Faith and Christ's flock, for the sanctity of the strict ascetic life and the deep edification for all ascetics through his works, St. Gregory is also glorified in the service on this day by the Holy Church. Thus the Holy Church, celebrating on the previous Sunday the triumph of Orthodoxy over all heresies, on the present Sunday celebrates the victory of Orthodox ascetic teachings over all false doctrines opposing it. The first celebration is in general for all Orthodox Christians; the second is for the use of ascetics, the monks.

Patriarch Philotheus of Constantinople composed the church service in honor of the originator of this latter celebration, for St. Gregory. In it St. Gregory is also glorified, as "the labor of theology, the flaming mouthpiece of grace, the honorable vessel of the Spirit, the unshakable pillar of the church, the great adornment of the universe", "the sword and arrows for the slanderers" that broke, "the pride of Barlaamites, and any heretical power", "like the web of spiders" he brushed away, "the preacher of the divine light, the initiate of the heavenly mysteries of the Trinity", "the healer of human infirmities", "the most holy father, the good shepherd", "you gave your soul for your sheep", "the firm sufferer and faster", "the advocate of the pious, and the opponent of the impious, the fervent defender of the faith, the great guide and teacher", "the adornment of monastic life, glorified in action and contemplation".

Apolytikion in Plagal of the Fourth Tone
O light of Orthodoxy, teacher of the Church, its confirmation. O ideal of monks and invincible champion of theologians. O wonderworking Gregory, glory of Thessalonica and preacher of grace. Always pray to save our souls.

Kontakion in the Fourth Tone
Now is the time for action. Judgment is at the doors. So let us rise and fast, offering alms with tears of compunction and crying: "Our sins are more in number than the sands of the sea; but forgive us, O Creator of all, so that we may receive the incorruptible crowns."

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Elder Nektarios of Holy Trinity Lavra Has Reposed

On Friday 18 March 2011 at the age of 88, Elder Nektarios (Karamanli) of Holy Trinity Lavra on Mount Athos fell asleep in the Lord in Karyes.

Elder Nektarios is probably most famous around the world for a picture of him and his disciple Christoforos that was circulated in National Geographic in December 2009 in a report on Mount Athos. The caption under their photo said: "These two monks have shared the same small cell for more than 50 years. Humor helps maintain harmony, as does respect for seniority. Father Nektarios (at left) says of Father Christoforos, 'He's followed my will as the elder all these years.'"

The fathers of the new Esphigmenou Monastery also tell us this about Elder Nektarios, which they heard from Papa-Anastasi of the Cell of St. John the Forerunner:

"The elder Nektarios is a monk who lives in a Cell near Karyes. He is old, over 80. Father Christoforos is also with him, who is approximately the same age. They have a tractor with a coach to get to Karyes to make their commissions.

Every Sunday morning (4:00 AM) they go to Protaton, the main church of the Holy Mountain, to attend services, because both are simple monks. I met them one Sunday morning arriving by foot.

'What's going on Elder? Did the tractor break down?'

And I received the following reply:

'Tractor? With the tractor to the church? Never! Why the Angel counts even the footsteps which you make in order to attend services.'

How would I answer him now?"

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What’s So Appealing About Orthodoxy?

Rod Dreher
March 17, 2011
The Washington Post

I came to Orthodoxy in 2006, a broken man. I had been a devoutly observant and convinced Roman Catholic for years, but had my faith shattered in large part by what I had learned as a reporter covering the sex abuse scandal. It had been my assumption that my theological convictions would protect the core of my faith through any trial, but the knowledge I struggled with wore down my ability to believe in the ecclesial truth claims of the Roman church (I wrote in detail about that drama here). For my wife and me, Protestantism was not an option, given what we knew about church history, and given our convictions about sacramental theology. That left Orthodoxy as the only safe harbor from the tempest that threatened to capsize our Christianity.

In truth, I had longed for Orthodoxy for some time, for the same reasons I, as a young man, found my way into the Catholic Church. It seemed to me a rock of stability in a turbulent sea of relativism and modernism overtaking Western Christianity. And while the Roman church threw out so much of its artistic and liturgical heritage in the violence of the Second Vatican Council, the Orthodox still held on to theirs. Several years before we entered Orthodoxy, my wife and I visited Orthodox friends at their Maryland parish. As morally and liturgically conservative Catholics, we were moved and even envious over what we saw there. We had to leave early to scoot up the road to the nearest Seventies moderne Catholic parish to meet our Sunday obligation. The contrast between the desultory liturgical proceedings at Our Lady of Pizza Hut and what we had walked out of in the Orthodox parish down the road literally reduced us to tears. But ugliness, even a sense of spiritual desolation, does not obviate truth, and we knew we had to stand with truth – and therefore with Rome – despite it all.

If Catholicism in America had been healthy, maybe we could have held on through the sex abuse trials. But my wife and I had been worrying for some time how we were going to raise faithful Christian children given the loosey-goosey moral teaching in Roman parishes. We considered ourselves orthodox Catholics, meaning we really believed what was in the Catechism, and struggled to live by it. We failed – everybody fails – but the point is, we looked to the church to provide clear moral leadership, and to help us live out the faith with integrity and joy. Here’s the problem: there is very little orthodoxy in the U.S. Catholic Church, and at the parish level, almost no recognition that there is a such thing as “right belief.” It wasn’t that I wanted to throw out all those who don’t live up to Catholic teaching – I would have been the first one shown the door if that had been true – but that I discerned no direction, and no real conviction that parish communities exist for any reason other than to affirm ourselves in our okayness. Though I didn’t have a term to describe it at the time, I was weary to the bone from an ersatz form of Christianity that sociologist Christian Smith calls “Moralistic Therapeutic Deism.” I had been so hollowed out by despair over all this as a Catholic that when the strong winds of the abuse scandal began to blow, the structure of my Catholic belief did not stand.

I say all this not to disparage the Roman Catholic Church – which I still love, and to which I cannot be grateful enough for introducing me to ancient, sacramental Christianity – but to show why Orthodoxy was so attractive to me. When I interviewed him for my book “Crunchy Cons,” my friend Hugh O’Beirne, a convert from Catholicism to Orthodoxy, told me that for a Catholic wearied by the culture wars raging inside American Catholicism, it is blessed relief to find that in Orthodoxy, there is no “war footing.” The kinds of issues that are tearing apart many other American churches aren’t nearly as contentious in Orthodox practice. Though it would be foolish to pretend these conflicts don’t exist in Orthodox parishes, they simply aren’t nearly as much of an issue.

And then there is the liturgy and music. There is nothing comparable to it in other churches. It is overwhelmingly beautiful and deep, and is largely the same Divine Liturgy (though in the vernacular tongue) that St. John Chrysostom, the 5th century patriarch of Constantinople, formalized. The beauty of that liturgy is utterly transporting, and the reverence it inspires is tonic. And while I miss familiar old hymns (in Orthodox services, we chant prayers and Psalms), there’s a lot to be said for never having to endure “On Eagle’s Wings” and other shag-carpeted hymnody endemic to modern American Catholic worship.

The main reason why Orthodoxy is so attractive to converts, at least to this convert, is its seriousness about sin. I don’t mean that it’s a dour religion – it is very far from that! – but rather that Orthodoxy takes the brokenness of humankind with appropriate seriousness. Orthodoxy is not going to tell you that you’re okay. In fact, it will require you to call yourself, as St. Paul described himself, the “chief of sinners.” And Orthodoxy is going to tell you the Good News: Jesus died and returned to life so that you too might live. But in order to live, you are going to have to die to yourself, over and over again. And that will not be painless, and cannot be, or it’s not real.

Because of that, for all its dramatic beauty and rich feasting, Orthodoxy is far more austere and demanding than most American Christianity. The long liturgies, the frequent prayers, the intense fasts – all make serious demands on the believer, especially comfortable middle-class Americans like me. They call us out of ourselves, and to repentance. Orthodoxy is not interested in making you feel comfortable in your sins. It wants nothing less than for you to be a saint.

It’s common among American converts to hear that men were first attracted to Orthodoxy, and their wives followed. It’s not hard to see why. Many men are tired of a soft, bourgeois Christianity that doesn’t call them to much because it doesn’t ask much of them. Men love a challenge, and that’s exactly what Orthodoxy gives them.

Don’t be misled. Orthodoxy is not, at its core, about rules and practices. The more I progress in my Orthodoxy, the clearer it is to me that Orthodoxy is, above all, a way. It is not an institution, a set of doctrines, or a collection of rituals, though it contains all three. It is rather a way of seeing the world, and one’s place in it, and a map to holiness that is paradoxically both ancient and astonishingly fresh, at least to Western sensibilities. It is the way of liberation.

True, it is possible to find dreary parish life in American Orthodoxy, often among the ethnically-oriented older parishes that see themselves as little more than the tribe at prayer. And because Orthodox churches are full of ordinary American people, they are also filled with ordinary American problems. Anyone who comes to an Orthodox church expecting perfection will be disappointed. What you will find, though, is truth and beauty presented in a way that can be breathtaking to modern Americans, and an ancient Way grounded on doctrinal stability, sacramental reality, and practical Christian mysticism – a mysticism that has been marginalized in most other American churches.

I found in Orthodoxy what I thought I would find when I became Catholic. As my patron saint in Orthodoxy, I chose St. Benedict of Nursia, dear to both churches, and a sign of the unity we used to have, and that we might yet have again. The Catholic church needs to be more orthodox, and the Orthodox church needs to be more catholic. I pray, I really pray, that I will live to see that unity return. Until that time, though, I am grateful to God that He gave me a second chance in Orthodoxy, and showed me the Way I had been searching for all my life. When I first came in the door, a spiritually broken mess, I thought it would be impossible for me to learn to endure these long liturgies, this intense prayer, these prostrations, the strict fasting, and – how to put this? – the weirdness of Orthodox Christianity in an American context. Five years on, I can’t imagine how I ever lived without it. You can’t read your way into Orthodoxy. You have to come and see for yourself.

Rod Dreher is a writer in Philadelphia.

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Paris Skyline To Change By Russian Orthodox Church

Cathedral with five onion domes to be erected next to Eiffel Tower will include cultural centre and public garden.

Kim Willsher
March 18, 2011
Guardian

It is one of the most recognisable skylines in the world, featuring one of the most famous monuments.

On the banks of the river Seine, Gustave Eiffel's iron tower, the symbol of France, juts high above the 19th-century Haussmann buildings and the trees of the Champ de Mars park that surround it.

But all this is about to change if the Russians have their way.

Moscow has unveiled plans to build a large Orthodox cathedral complete with five golden onion domes next to the Eiffel Tower. The building on the sought-after site will include a cultural centre and public garden, and was agreed directly by the French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, and his Russian counterpart, Dmitri Medvedev.

Architects' drawings show the domes sitting on an undulating roof of glass panels, with the tower in the background.

At 27 metres from the top of the highest dome to the ground, the cathedral is unlikely to detract from a structure that rises to 324 metres. City authorities say they will need to be sure it "fits into its surroundings and is built to last" before giving their approval for the building.

The winning design was unveiled on Friday after an international competition won by a Franco-Russian company.

When Moscow bought the site, formerly the HQ of the French weather service, last year, it was a diplomatic coup as at least two other countries were vying for the land. However, Le Nouvel Observateur magazine reported French concerns that it could be used as a front for spying as it is near a diplomatic complex.

Russian officials in Paris said work on the project was planned to start in 2012 and was likely to cost about €34.5m (£30.1m). Moscow has already paid around £60 million for the site.

"We wanted to find a combination of Orthodox tradition and contemporary architecture to stand out in the heart of Paris," said a spokesman for the church.

For other proposed designs for the church, see here.

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European Courts Allow Crucifixes In State Schools

Strasbourg judgment overturns 2009 ruling that crucifixes violate secular principles, calling them an 'essentially passive symbol'.

Riazat Butt
March 18, 2011
Guardian

The European Court of Human Rights has ruled that crucifixes are acceptable in the continent's state school classrooms, describing them as an "essentially passive symbol" with no obvious religious influence. In its judgment, handed down in Strasbourg, the court found that while the crucifix was "above all a religious symbol" there was no evidence that its display on classroom walls might have an influence on pupils.

The ruling reverses their earlier, unanimous decision from 2009 in favour of a Finnish-born mother who said that state schools in the Italian town of Abano Terme, where she lives, refused to remove the Roman Catholic symbols from classrooms.

Soile Lautsi said the crucifix violated the secular principles that state schools were meant to uphold. The court agreed, saying children were entitled to freedom of religion and that although "encouraging" for some pupils, the crucifix could be "emotionally disturbing for pupils of other religions or those who profess no religion".

It said the state had an obligation "to refrain from imposing beliefs, even indirectly, in places where persons are dependent on it or in places where they are particularly vulnerable".

But the decision caused uproar in some European countries, especially Italy, which argued that the cross was a symbol of the continent's cultural and historic roots.

Their interventions led to the grand chamber of 17 judges overturning the 2009 ruling. In their judgment they observed that "a crucifix on a wall was an essentially passive symbol whose influence on pupils was not comparable to that of didactic speech or participation in religious activities."

They added there was nothing to suggest that "the [Italian] authorities were intolerant of pupils who believed in other religions, were non-believers or who held non-religious philosophical convictions." Nor was there evidence that the presence of a crucifix had "encouraged the development of teaching practices with a proselytising tendency".

Italy's foreign minister, Franco Frattini, welcomed the verdict, declaring that "popular sentiment in Europe" had won.

All countries that are members of the Council of Europe will be required to obey the ruling.

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Podcast: Before Grace - Saints of the Old Testament

In this Great Lent Series for iEcclesia, the official podcast of the Department of Youth and Internet Ministries of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Toronto (Canada), I was interviewed by host Patricia Rackopoulos on the topic "Before Grace - Saints of the Old Testament".

Apparently there was some noise interference during the podcast and a few parts here and there became cut, which is why there are some cut off moments and background noise.

Listen to the podcast here. (Transcript available through Mystagogy Bookstore.)

Summary of Podcast:

From Adam and Eve, we have some famous characters in the Old Testament. The program begins with host Patricia asking our guest to discuss which figure he believes had the most profound impact. Next, John offers a comparison on the spiritual state/condition of the Old Testament believers and the Christians of the New Testament. We usually hear of the holy men of the Old Testament (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Elijah, Job, Jonah, etc.). The discussion continues with a word on what famous women can Christians see as examples of faith. The title of the podcast is, "Before Grace: The Old Testament Saints". The period of "Grace" began with the coming of Jesus Christ. Before then, the people of God were guided by the Law and prophets. Patricia asks if there's a profound difference in approaches to God or if it is the same message preached differently. The program concludes with thoughts on how these Saints were able to get their message across to those who believed in the Truth in a period of history where communication did not exist in the same way as it does now.

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The Second Salutations To The Theotokos

Gloriously extolling the incarnate appearance of Christ did the shepherds hear the Angels. And running as though to a shepherd, they perceived Him to be as it were a blameless lamb that had been pastured in the womb of Mary whom they lauded saying:

Rejoice, O Mother of the Lamb and Shepherd.
Rejoice, O sheepfold of sheep with reason.

Rejoice, who ward off invisible enemies.
Rejoice, who open the portals of Paradise.

Rejoice, for the things of heaven are now exulting with the earth.
Rejoice, for the things of earth along with heaven dance for joy.

Rejoice, indefatigable voice of the Apostles.
Rejoice, undefeatable valiance of the Martyrs.

Rejoice, the mighty foundation of faith.
Rejoice, the bright indication of grace.

Rejoice, through whom is Hades divested.
Rejoice, through whom we are vested in glory.

Rejoice, O unwedded Bride.


Having visibly sighted the star proceeding Godward, the Magi followed after its brightness; and thereto clinging as to a light did they search thereby for a mighty King; and reaching the Unreachable they rejoiced and shouted to Him: Alleluia.


In the hands of the Virgin saw the Chaldeans’ children Him who fashioned mankind with His own hand; and perceiving that He was the Lord, even though He had taken the form of a slave, they hastened to pay tribute with gifts and salute the blessed Maiden:

Rejoice, O Mother of the unsetting Star.
Rejoice, O dawn of the mystical Day.

Rejoice, who extinguished the furnace of fallacy.
Rejoice, who enlighten initiates of the Trinity.

Rejoice, for you have deposed the inhuman tyrant from his reign.
Rejoice, for you have disclosed Christ the Lord who is humane.

Rejoice, O redeemer from the Magian18 religion.
Rejoice, who deliver from the clay of the burdens.19

Rejoice, for the cult of fire you terminate.
Rejoice, from the flame of passions you liberate.

Rejoice, the guide of believers to temperance.
Rejoice, the gladness of all generations.

Rejoice, O unwedded Bride.


Keeping to the oracles that bore on You, the Magi, having now become God-bearing heralds, proclaimed to all that You are the Christ as they journeyed back to their own country Babylon, abandoning Herod as a babbling king who knew not how to sing, Alleluia.


Lightening in Egypt the true illumination, You dispelled the darkness of delusion; O Savior, for the idols thereof, unable to endure Your might, tumbled down, while they who were delivered from them shouted to the Theotokos:

Rejoice, man’s rehabilitation.
Rejoice, the demons’ ruination.

Rejoice, who crushed the delusion of fallacy.
Rejoice, who uncovered the ruse of idolatry.

Rejoice, sea that caused the spiritual Pharaoh to drown.
Rejoice, rock that gave those thirsting for life to drink.

Rejoice, pillar of fire that guides those in darkness.
Rejoice, shelter of the world that is wider than the cloud was.

Rejoice, supplanting manna as edibles.
Rejoice, supplying holy delectables.

Rejoice, for you are the land of promise.
Rejoice, from you flow the milk and the honey.

Rejoice, O unwedded Bride.


Master, You were presented as a babe unto Symeon on the threshold of being transported out of this present beguiling age, but also perceived by him to be perfect God; for which cause did he marvel at Your ineffable wisdom, crying: Alleluia.





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Saint Edward the Martyr (c. 959-978/9)

St. Edward the Martyr, King of England. His feast day is celebrated on March 18, the uncovering of his relics is commemorated on February 13, and the elevation of his relics on June 20. The translation of his relics is commemorated on September 3.

"Men murdered him but God has magnified him."
(The Anglo Saxon Chronicle)

St Edward was the son of Edgar, by his first wife Ethelfleda (died c. 963/4). King Edgar (c. 944-975) reigned from 959 to 975 and on his death Edward became king. Edward was supported by the Archbishop of Canterbury, St Dunstan, as he was only in his mid-teens. The succession was disputed because King Edgar's second wife, Aelfthryth (c. 945-1000), wished her son Ethelred to be king. (Ethelred is known to history as Ethelred the Unready or "the Redeless".) Two or three years later, on 18 March 978 or 979, Edward was murdered near the site of Corfe Castle, Dorset, almost certainly the victim of his stepmother's intrigues.

Edward's initial burial was hurried. Soon miraculous cures were attributed to Edward by visitors to the site of his grave. In 980 his body was moved to Shaftesbury Abbey, the relics were enshrined in 1001, and he was officially canonized in 1008. St Edward's shrine survived until the Dissolution of the Monasteries, when it was stripped of its wealth. However, St Edward's remains had previously been removed and hidden in the church.

In 1931 a crude casket was unearthed during an archaeological investigation of the site. The remains were studied and pronounced consistent with the injuries received by St Edward. The Director of the Excavations, John Wilson-Claridge (1905-1993), whose family then owned the site, began years of painstaking negotiations with all the major churches in order to find a suitable resting place for the relics. He imposed three conditions: (1) that they were recognised as the relics of a saint, (2) that a shrine would be established for their reception, and (3) that his feast days would be observed. These conditions were met only by the Russian Orthodox Church in Exile, which entered into detailed negotiations with Mr Wilson-Claridge in the late 1970s.

At about the same time the Orthodox Church purchased the site now owned by the St Edward Brotherhood, with the intention of using the larger of the two mortuary chapels for the reception of St Edward's bones. The formal ceremony of enshrinement took place on 15/16 September 1984. Thus for the first time in nearly 450 years the remains of St Edward (arguably England's least important king) have a fitting resting place within a Church whose doctrine is closest to that which he knew in his lifetime.

2001 marked the one thousandth anniversary of the glorification of St Edward. In 1001, it was decided to enshrine his relics at Shaftesbury Abbey in a costly and elaborate shrine. This decision was based on the continued slight levitation of the cover of his grave in the Abbey, and from the dreams of a devout man to whom St Edward is said to have appeared and indicated that he no longer wished to lie in this grave. The man told the Abbess of his dreams, she referred the matter to King Ethelred (St Edward's step-brother), and the King ordered the relics to be enshrined in a suitable place in the Abbey Church. A Royal Charter dated 1001 states that "I, King Ethelred, King of the English, with humble prayer, offer the monastery ... my brother Edward, whom the Lord himself deigns to exalt in our days by many signs of virtue, after his blood was shed."

A special service was held in the St Edward the Martyr Church on 31 March 2001 to celebrate this event. The Hierarchical Liturgy was led by Archbishop Mark (photo above) who has pastoral oversight of the parishes of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad in the British Isles.

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See also:

The Saint Edward Brotherhood

The Life Of Among The Saints Edward The Martyr, King Of England

Bones of Contention - St. Edward the Martyr

Bishops Silence Controversy Over Relics

Excerpt from The Anglo Saxon Chronicle:

978 - This year all the oldest counsellors of England fell at Calne from an upper floor; but the holy Archbishop Dunstan stood alone upon a beam. Some were dreadfully bruised: and some did not escape with life. This year was King Edward slain, at eventide, at Corfe-gate, on the fifteenth day before the calends of April. And he was buried at Wareham without any royal honour. No worse deed than this was ever done by the English nation since they first sought the land of Britain. Men murdered him but God has magnified him. He was in life an earthly king -- he is now after death a heavenly saint. Him would not his earthly relatives avenge -- but his heavenly father has avenged him amply. The earthly homicides would wipe out his memory from the earth -- but the avenger above has spread his memory abroad in heaven and in earth. Those, Who would not before bow to his living body, now bow on their knees to His dead bones. Now we may conclude, that the wisdom of men, and their meditations, and their counsels, are as nought against the appointment of God.

Apolytikion in the Fourth Tone
Celebrating the newly manifest commemoration of the holy King Edward, who shone forth of old in the virtues and suffered undeservedly we all bow down before the Icon of his honoured countenance and in gladness cry out: Truly Thou art wonderful in Thy Saints, O God.

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Saint Cyril of Jerusalem: Catechist and Confessor

With the guarantee of religious tolerance, granted in 313 by Constantine with the Edict of Milan, a new chapter opened in the history of the Church. Along the smoother path more people were attracted to the doors of the Church, spurring its growth and bringing new challenges. Unlike the early Christians, who fully expected their faith to be tried by fire or the sword, these newcomers were not always inspired by burning convictions: a pagan husband might approach the font at the urging of his believing wife, a servant-to curry favor with his believing master; as the practice of infant baptism grew, so did the ranks of younger generations who had not themselves made a conscious profession of faith. To properly initiate these candidates into the mysteries of the Faith was no small task. The difficulty was compounded by troubles brewing within the Church itself. Attacks from without had not yet subsided when, in 318, the Arian heresy erupted. Although it was condemned in 325 by the First Ecumenical Council, it was only towards the end of the century that its proponents were finally forced to cease their divisive maneuverings. It was essential, therefore, that recruits be adequately equipped with sound doctrine and other spiritual armor before they could be expected to conduct themselves as true soldiers of Christ. Among those who shouldered this responsibility, one of the most gifted was St. Cyril of Jerusalem. To this day, his Catechetical Lectures provide a concise course par excellence in the fundamentals of Orthodox doctrine.

For a renowned Church Father, St. Cyril's Life is constructed on surprisingly meager details. According to the Greek Menaion, Cyril was "born of pious parents, professing the Orthodox Faith, and to have been bred up in the same, in the reign of Constantine." The year of his birth is generally given as 315 and the location in or around Jerusalem, for it was customary to choose a bishop from among the local clergy, a man already known and respected by the people over whom he would assume spiritual authority. His youth coincided with the height of Arian domination and the rediscovery of the Holy Sepulchre in 326, when Jerusalem, a relatively poor community, began moving into prominence. In 335 Constantine's magnificent Church of the Resurrection was dedicated and Cyril, a new deacon, undoubtedly took part in the ceremonies. The principal celebrants were Arians, who had just deposed their vigorous opponent, St. Athanasius, in a council at Tyre. The Church at Jerusalem, however, never embraced Arianism. Bishop Macarius, and his successor Maximus who ordained Cyril to the priesthood in 345, were both staunchly Nicaean. And when, on Maximus' death in 350, Cyril succeeded him as bishop, he continued to guide the Church at Jerusalem from this position.

Meanwhile, Bishop Acacius of neighboring Caesarea had been drawn into the Arian camp. This conflict between the two hierarchs was sharpened by the resentment Acacius felt when Cyril disputed Caesarea's jurisdiction over Jerusalem, now an established center of pilgrimage and sprouting monastic communities. In 357 Acacius successfully maneuvered to have Cyril deposed. Banished for two years, Cyril went to Tarsus, where he associated with Basil of Ancyra, a champion of Nicaea. There, too, he won the hearts of the people with his preaching. Cyril was banished a second time in 360, returning after the accession of Julian in 361, when all exiled bishops were recalled. Nothing is known of his third period of banishment, from 367 to 378, under the Arian Emperor Valens. In 381 Cyril went to Constantinople as one of 150 Church Fathers who took part in the Second Ecumenical Council. He died peacefully on March 18, 386, remembered by the Church as a great ascetic and uncompromising champion of the true Faith. St. Cyril's principle claim to fame, however, rests on his catechetical lectures. These form a systematic course of instruction which he developed as a priest assigned to prepare candidates for baptism. Essentially practical, highly biblical, direct and noble in tone, they reflect St. Cyril's sincere pastoral concern. Their primary purpose is not to discuss or examine, nor to defend, but to impart knowledge of the Faith. Very striking here is the thoroughness of this preparation and the seriousness with which entry into the Church was regarded. Even before being made catechumens, candidates were strictly examined as to their character, belief and sincerity of purpose. The probationary period varied, lasting about two years.

At the heart of these lectures is a perfectly balanced emphasis on God's transcendence and the ineffable wonder and dignity of the heavenly citizenship conferred through Baptism on the one hand, and man's essential responsibility for genuine repentance and good works on the other. St. Cyril skillfully prepares his listeners in his Introductory Lecture, by turns sobering and exalting, which emphasizes at the outset the need for a sustained purpose. Taken from this lecture, the following passages are characteristic of the Saint's teaching.

§ He lieth not who said, that to them that love God all things work together for good. God is lavish in beneficence, yet He waits for each man's genuine will: therefore the Apostle added and said, to them that are called according to a purpose (Rom. 8:28). The honesty of purpose makes thee called: for if thy body be here but not thy mind, it profiteth thee nothing..

§ Let none of you be found tempting His grace.

§ ...beware lest thou have the title of "faithful" but the will of the faithless. Thou hast entered into a contest, toil on through the race: another such opportunity thou canst not have.

§ Attend closely to the catechisings, and though we should prolong our discourse, let not thy mind be wearied out. For thou art receiving armor against the adverse power, armor against heresies... Thou hast many enemies; take to thee many darts, for thou hast many to hurl them at... And the armor is ready, and most ready the sword of the Spirit; but thou also must stretch forth thy right hand with good resolution, that thou mayest war the Lord's warfare.

§ Great is the Baptism that lies before you: a ransom to captives; a remission of offences; a death of sin; a new-birth of the soul; a garment of light; a holy indissoluble seal; a chariot to heaven; the delight of Paradise; a welcome into the kingdom; the gift of adoption! But there is a serpent by the wayside watching those who pass by: beware lest he bite thee with unbelief...

§ We for our part as men charge and teach you thus: but make not yet our building hay and stubble and chaff, lest we suffer loss, from our work being burnt up: but make ye our work gold and silver, and precious stones! For it lies in me to speak, but in thee to set thy mind upon it, and in God to make perfect.


The first two lectures stress the need for thorough repentance and hope in the remission of sins: "Cleanse thy vessel that thou mayest receive grace more abundantly ...thorny ground also, if cultivated well, is turned fruitful." In the third lecture, "On Baptism", St. Cyril impresses on his audience that "this is no light matter, no ordinary and indiscriminate union according to the flesh, but the All-searching Spirit's election according to faith...Each one of you is about to be presented to God before tens of thousands of the Angelic Hosts: the Holy Spirit is about to seal your souls: ye are to be enrolled in the army of the Great King. Therefore make you ready...that thou mayest become an heir of God, and joint-heir with Christ."

The next lecture provides "a short summary of necessary doctrines," carrying brief statements concerning the Oneness of God, Christ as the Only-begotten Son, His Birth of the Virgin, the Cross, His Burial, Resurrection and Ascension, the Judgment to Come, the Soul ("the noblest work of God"), the Body, Fasting, Baptism, the Scriptures. Following another general lecture, "On Faith," St. Cyril launches into a series of thirteen lectures explaining in greater detail the successive articles of the Jerusalem Creed, which the candidates were required to recite by memory at the time of their baptism.

A second series of five lectures was delivered on Bright Monday to the newly-baptized. Here the Saint initiates them, as it were, into the knowledge of those rites which they have experienced for themselves for the first time, having been strictly required as catechumens to leave the church after the reading of the Gospel and the exclamation, "Catechumens, depart!" The Saint explains to his "true-born" listeners the actual rites of baptism and chrismation, the Eucharist and the Liturgy of the Faithful, with particular attention to the Lord's Prayer. His joy at thus welcoming the new Christians is unmistakable. These five lectures are particularly valuable to us today in documenting the liturgical practices of the early Church, providing stunning evidence of Orthodoxy's ancient liturgical roots. Indeed, it is thrilling to read a fourth-century text that so closely accords with our experience today.

The lectures give one to understand that the course was not limited to candidates for baptism. Those already baptized also came to be edified. Even today, these lectures should be required study for potential converts, while those of us who are already baptized would likewise do well to avail ourselves of these clear streams of living water, to strengthen our faith with knowledge and refresh our sense of awe at the great mystery of our salvation. We owe a great debt to St. Cyril who, through laboring on these lectures, found lasting favor with God and man.

Read the Catechetical Lectures of St. Cyril here.

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