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.



May 8, 2021

Reflection for Bright Saturday (St. Theophan the Recluse)

 
By St. Theophan the Recluse 
 
We have two lives, fleshly and spiritual. Our spirit is as though buried in our flesh. Once it begins to extract itself—coming to life by God’s grace—from its intertwining with the flesh and to appear in its spiritual purity, then it will be resurrected, or it will resurrect itself piece by piece. When it wholly tears itself out of this binding, then it comes forth as if from a tomb, in a renewed life. In this manner the spirit becomes separate, alive and active; whereas the tomb of the flesh is separate, dead and inactive, though both are in the same person. This is the mystery of what the apostle says: "Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty" (II Cor. 3:17). This is liberty from decay, which surrounds our incorruptible spirit; or from passions, corrupting our nature. This spirit, entering into the freedom of the children of God is like a beautifully colored butterfly, fluttering away from its cocoon. Behold its rainbow coloring: love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance (Gal. 5:22). Is it possible for such a beauty of perfection not to arouse in us a desire to emulate it?
 
 

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