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.



January 4, 2013

The Annual Sweep of the Basilica of the Nativity in Bethlehem



On Wednesday, December 20th/January 2nd, the annual sweeping, or cleaning, of the Basilica of the Nativity in Bethlehem took place, in anticipation of the Christmas celebrations, which under the Jerusalem Patriarchate falls on January 7th (December 25th according to the Julian Calendar reckoning). This cleaning is done together by the Orthodox, the Armenians and the Franciscans, among others. Among the Orthodox participants were monks from the Holy Sepulcher and the Lavra of Saint Savvas. The cleaning is done according to arrangements made during Ottoman times as well as recent bilateral and trilateral agreements. The sweep concluded with coffee in the Franciscan and Armenian areas, and fasting foods in the headquarters of the abbot of the Orthodox.





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