Having entered the Christmas season, we ask those who find the work of the Mystagogy Resource Center beneficial to them to help us continue our work with a generous financial gift as you are able. As an incentive, we are offering the following booklet.

In 1909 the German philosopher Arthur Drews wrote a book called "The Myth of Christ", which New Testament scholar Bart D. Ehrman has called "arguably the most influential mythicist book ever produced," arguing that Jesus Christ never existed and was simply a myth influenced by more ancient myths. The reason this book was so influential was because Vladimir Lenin read it and was convinced that Jesus never existed, thus justifying his actions in promoting atheism and suppressing the Orthodox Church in the Soviet Union. Moreover, the ideologues of the Third Reich would go on to implement the views of Drews to create a new "Aryan religion," viewing Jesus as an Aryan figure fighting against Jewish materialism. 

Due to the tremendous influence of this book in his time, George Florovsky viewed the arguments presented therein as very weak and easily refutable, which led him to write a refutation of this text which was published in Russian by the YMCA Press in Paris in 1929. This apologetic brochure titled "Did Christ Live? Historical Evidence of Christ" was one of the first texts of his published to promote his Neopatristic Synthesis, bringing the patristic heritage to modern historical and cultural conditions. With the revival of these views among some in our time, this text is as relevant today as it was when it was written. 

Never before published in English, it is now available for anyone who donates at least $20 to the Mystagogy Resource Center upon request (please specify in your donation that you want the book). Thank you.



February 23, 2017

Saint Polycarp and the Great Fire of Smyrna

St. Polycarp Extinguishing the Great Fire of Smyrna (Church of Saint Polycarp, Izmir)

In the Great Synaxaristes we read of the following miracle of Saint Polycarp:

It happened that a great and terrible conflagration broke out in Smyrna. Not only within the city were people and homes consumed in the path of the flames, but also in the surrounding pasturage, sown fields, vineyards, trees and animals. This evil swept the area for seven days and nights. The mindless and benighted idolaters invoked the help of their gods, but for nought did the hapless ones toil. It seemed the more they besought their images, the wrath of God and the fire intensified. 

Thereupon, the Christians hastened to the Saint. They implored him to utter a prayer to the Lord that the destructive burning should halt. The Saint took pity on their circumstances and offered up entreaty to the Lord. He then censured the idol worshipers, saying that the evil came upon them on account of their impiety, that is, their refusal to believe in the true God. The man of God then turned to the fire and said, "In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ before Whom I, the unworthy one, worship and fall down, I command you, O fire, to cease immediately this very hour and to be completely quenched."

Then - O the wonder! - instantly, that raging fire was entirely extinguished and vanished. The bystanders marveled at these events and began shouting in a great voice, "Great is the God of the Christians!" Consequently, many of the idol-mad came to believe in the Christ. They were baptized to the glory of our true God.


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