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 5, 2022

"The Voice of the Lord Upon the Waters": Creation and Recreation


In the Cathedral of the Assumption in Monreale, Sicily there are the so-called Genesis Mosaics from around the 12th century.  The first mosaic bears an inscription from Genesis 1:1, "In principio creavit deus celum et terram," ("In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth") but the image also covers verse 2, "And the earth was without form and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters." The mosaicist takes the "face of the waters" literally and shows the "Spirit of God" in the form of a dove with a halo being sent by Jesus above. The "darkness on the waters" is visualized as a dark band transpierced by the dove's path.

In Psalm 28(29):3 we read: "The voice of the Lord is upon the waters: the God of glory has thundered, the Lord is upon many waters."

During the Service of the Great Blessing of the Waters on Theophany, we chant: "The voice of the Lord upon the waters cries out, saying, Come all of you, receive the Spirit of wisdom, the Spirit of understanding, the Spirit of the fear of God, of Christ who has appeared."

Through Holy Baptism, the darkness and void within us was brought to order through the Spirit of God, Christ having sanctified the waters by entering the waters and receiving Baptism Himself that we may be recreated.
 
 
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