Reflection on the Third Sunday of Luke (St. Theophan the Recluse)

Third Sunday of Luke

 
Luke 7:11-16

By St. Theophan the Recluse 

 

The Lord sees a mother weeping over the death of her son and has compassion on her; another time he was called to a marriage, and rejoiced together with the family. By this He showed that to share ordinary everyday joys and sorrows is not contrary to His spirit. 

 

This is what true, reverent Christians do, who live their life in fear [of God]. However, they distinguish some everyday life routines from others; for much has entered into these routines which cannot be God’s good will. There are customs that come from passions, which arise for their indulgence; others are kept alive by vanity and busyness. He who has the spirit of Christ, will be able to distinguish the good from the bad: he adheres to the one and rejects the other. 

 

On Inexperienced Teachers in the Church

 By Father George Schoinas

We live in the age when we all speak without submitting ourselves to personal experience, without submitting ourselves to the price for the words we say. We believe that we should and can do so.

We all become teachers without having entered into the process of becoming students. Whoever does not take responsibility, whoever does not learn, whoever does not search like a hound to sniff out the teachings of the Saints of the Church, it is best that they shut their mouths.

And I say this first for us clergy who act as teachers, but I say it for you too because right outside the door of the church is someone making themselves a teacher to the other - or even worse one is making themselves an elder to the other, they want to guide, tell others what to do and how to do it.

The "Blasphemous" and "Impious" Sermon of the "High Priest of Bacchus" Regarding Carnival

By Panagiotis Andriopoolos

Much has been written from time to time about the famous homily of the late Elder Meliton of Chalcedon about "Carnival" (Metropolitan Church of Athens 3/8/1970).

We focus on two important texts that illuminate its implications for ecclesiastical life today.

Reading them, and having in mind, of course, the eponymous speech, one comes to the conclusion that even if only this homily had been delivered by this eminent - in his time - hierarch of the Ecumenical Throne, it would have gone down in history.

Saint Eustathios of Antioch as a Model for our Lives

St. Eustathios of Antioch (Feast Day - February 21)

By Protopresbyter Fr. George Papavarnavas

Saint Eustathios, Archbishop of Antioch, was born in Sidon of Pamphylia in 260 AD. In 320 he was elected Bishop of Beroea (Aleppo) in Syria, and after three years the Archbishop of Antioch. He took part in the proceedings of the First Ecumenical Synod, which convened in 325 at Nicaea in Bithynia and condemned the heresy of Arius.

He was in the front lines for the battle for Orthodoxy and a fellow-struggler of Athanasios the Great, who called him "a man who is a confessor". That is why he was envied by the leading followers of Arius, namely the Bishops Eusebius of Nicomedia, Theognis of Nicaea and Eusebius of Caesarea, and was slandered as an underminer of secular authority, and as unethical, therefore he was exiled. In other words, they claimed that he was attacking the mother of the Emperor Constantine, namely Saint Helen, but also that he had an illegitimate child with a woman of loose morals, whom they bribed to accuse him. Thus they managed to exile him, but God protected him and finally glorified him. A result of his flawless life and his painful struggles for the Orthodox faith, was that his flock was not seduced by heresy.

On Vain Disputations and Questionings in the Church of Christ (St. Daniel the Stylite)

In chapter 90 of the Life of Saint Daniel the Stylite, we read:

 

Through the Devil's working a tumult once arose in the most holy churches, for tares had sprung up from vain disputations and questionings, so that some of the monks, who were renowned for good living, through their simple-mindedness and through their failure to consider the matter with precision, left the most Holy Church and separated themselves from the holy fellowship and liturgy. 

 

These mischief-makers came to the holy man and tried to confound him with similar arguments, but he who kept the foundation of the holy faith unmovable and unshakable answered them saying:

 

When Saint Nicholas Appeared to Elder Andrew of Saint Paul's on Mount Athos in 1975

Archimandrite Andrew, former abbot of the Monastery of Saint Paul on Mount Athos, was born in 1904 in Angona, Kefallonia and reposed in 1987, on the feast of the Monastery of Saint Paul, which is the Reception of the Lord on February 2nd. His funeral was attended miraculously by Saint Sophrony of Essex, who through the mediation of Elder Andrew had become the spiritual father of the monks of Saint Paul and the surrounding area.

Elder Andrew left a reputation as a holy man throughout Mount Athos, but also in the entire Orthodox world. The Panagia had appeared to him in Monoxylitis - a Metochion of the Monastery of Saint Paul within Mount Athos - and it is perhaps the most famous of the recent appearances of the Most Holy Theotokos. Saint George had also appeared to him.

Explanations and Clarifications of Ecclesiastical History and the Deontology of the Ukrainian Issue (Part 12)

 ...continued from part eleven.

* By the late Germanos Verykopoulos, a Bishop of the Old Calendarists, was ordained the late Elder Ephraim of Katounakia, a submissive of two zealots of Mount Athos, but of the stature of the venerable Joseph the Hesychast. In the 42 years of his priestly life, he always saw with his sense of sight divine Grace cover over the Holy Gifts (only once he did not see it). When, with the help of God, they returned to communion with the Ecumenical Patriarchate and commemorated the Patriarch, he began to see more clearly this mystery of the perceptible presence of divine Grace. Previously, as long as he was attached to the zealots, he saw it dimly, as he himself said and catechized.

"Orthodox Popes" (Metr. Hierotheos of Nafpaktos)

 By Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos and Agiou Vlasiou

According to the decisions of the First Vatican Council, the Pope is defined as "infallible" when he speaks "ex cathedra", he is then superior to Councils and in fact the Ecumenical Councils, since he decides whether or not the Council decides correctly.

Against this mentality which created many afflictions in Western Christianity, the Reformed Protestants appeared, who not only questioned the infallibility of the Pope, but ended up at the point where everyone is a pope, who can judge everyone else.

Unfortunately, this mentality was also introduced into the Orthodox Church by clergy and theologians, and is expressed as an "Orthodox Papism", when every theologian expresses a papal mentality, when they come to the point of denying the synodal institution of the Church.

"Many Have Taken Advantage of the Name of Saint Paisios" (Metr. Joel of Edessa)

During Great Vespers on 11 July 2021 in honor of the feast of Saint Paisios the Athonite at the courtyard of the Chapel of Saint George in Giannitsa, Metropolitan Joel of Edessa, who personally knew Saint Paisios and even composed the Divine Services for his feast, delivered the sermon.

During the sermon, His Eminence praised the virtues and gifts of Saint Paisios and emphasized his love for the people of God. 

He added, however, that unfortunately many misinterpret his words and use his name in order to spread false and theologically erroneous views, resulting in scandal and division within the Church.

The Syndrome of Archpriest Avvakum in the Church Today

By Metropolitan Nektarios of Argolidos

Recently I received the book "The Life of the Archpriest Avvakum", published by Kedros. I had read it years ago, when it was first published, and I wanted to read it again. I had the feeling that there are some elements in common with the situation we are experiencing within the Church and especially with the upheaval brought by COVID 19.

Archpriest Avvakum was born in 1620 and died in 1682. He was sentenced to death by fire. He was a descendant of a levite/priestly family. His father was a priest, but addicted to the passion of alcoholism.

The first thing we can easily note is the trauma he suffered from his drunken priest-father, which later led him to an extreme ascetic practice. He was ordained a 19-year-old deacon and a 21-year-old presbyter, despite the canons which are very strict in terms of age. It is no coincidence that he will soon become the strict observer of the canons. And we have seen the same thing many times. The violators of the sacred canons become "canonists" and use the sacred canons as "cannons", as Saint Paisios used to say.

Hagia Sophia - A Symbol of Unity

Our history has taught us that unhealthy nationalism only opens wounds, destroys consciences, fanaticizes people, breeds enemies, divides populations.

Our Holy Monastery has been facing the effects of fanaticism for so many years, with the occupation of its main building by people who preach fanaticism.

Whose heart did not ache to hear the news!

The Life of Saint Mary of Egypt as a Response to the Trials of the Faithful Due to the Pandemic

Human life is characterized by various fluctuations, from joys and sorrows, to optimism and despair.

Events revolve around us with dizzying speed, while we are called to stand up and manage them.

This management is very difficult, due to the large number and especially the suddenness of certain events. However, we are called upon to manage them in the best possible way, for the benefit of ourselves, our family and society as a whole.

In the effort we make, we seek some models, which will strengthen us, give us answers, convince us to keep trying.

One such model in human life is Saint Mary of Egypt.

Saint Paisios, Saint Porphyrios and the "Zealots" of Kavsokalyva

By Hieromonk George of Kavsokalyva

Few people know of the short passage of Saint Paisios at the Skete of Kavsokalyva, when he was still seeking an elder to submit himself to.

He was inclined towards the hesychast life and so decided to visit Cells and Sketes, still wearing his military uniform and going by the name Arsenios.

In his biography we read about his search. 'He was burdened by certain zealots who had no discernment. He thought they were called zealots because they had a lot of zeal and struggled a lot. But instead they made him feel dizzy and wanted to rebaptize him, even though he was already baptized by Saint Arsenios and even with the Old Calendar.

It Is Better to Shine the Shoes of Hitler in Paradise Than to Go to Hell

Elder Epiphanios Theodoropoulos (+ 1989) often held discussions with Old Calendarist zealots. His efforts in this was not only at the level of writing on the subject, but also through conversations. This is how one such conversation took place:

"You New Calendarists will not go to Paradise," said a fanatical zealot.

"We will go and with confidence," the Elder responded calmly.

"You will not go and I say it with certainty."

Was St. Sophia of Kleisoura an Old Calendarist Nun who went by the name Myrtidiotissa?

By John Sanidopoulos

In 2011 the Ecumenical Patriarchate recognized Sophia of Kleisoura Monastery in Kastoria as a Saint of the Church. But is this the name she went by?

This Saint is a rare example of one who is recognized for her sanctity by both New Calendarists and Old Calendarists, and specifically to the region, by both the official Church of Greece (New Calendarists) and the Genuine Orthodox Christians (Old Calendarists), and both of these are in a schism from one another. The official Church of Greece says her name was Sophia and that she lived as an ascetic and was not a tonsured nun, while the Genuine Orthodox Christians believe she was herself an Old Calendarist who rejected the New Calendar, and that she was tonsured a nun by Metropolitan Cyprian of Oropos and Fili, the first hierarch of the Old Calendarist Synod of Resistance, who was then an Archimandrite, and given the name Myrtidiotissa.

Based on a study of the official texts and of books that have been written about her, the matter is a complicated one. Some say she should go by the name Venerable Sophia of Kleisoura, others say Venerable Eldress Myrtidiotissa, another says Venerable Sophia the Nun, and another is Venerable Sophia Hortokoridou. It should be noted, she is commonly depicted in photographs and icons as a simple ascetic without monastic dress.

Extreme Positions in Theology and Life

Emeritus Professor of Theology George Mantzaridis offers profound insights on extremist positions in Life as well as in Theology.

Why the Date for the Feast of the Forty Martyrs of Sebaste Needs A Change

By John Sanidopoulos

On the 9th of March every year, since the fourth century, the Church has celebrated the Holy Forty Martyrs of Sebaste without interruption. This date was established so early after their martyrdom, that it was probably the actual day on which their martyrdom took place. Eventually when the forty-day fast was established in the Church for Great Lent, March 9th always fell within the period of Great Lent, due to the Paschalion reckoning under the Julian Calendar. However, when many Churches updated their calendar to the New Julian Calendar, March 9th would sometimes fall during Great Lent, but other times it did not.

Most would not see this change under the New Julian Calendar as a big deal, since when the Forty Martyrs were martyred, we did not have the forty-day period of Great Lent anyway. This is true. However, in time the Forty Martyrs commemoration during Great Lent became a staple in the life of the Church for many centuries, and because of this the number of martyrs became associated with the number of days in Great Lent. Their feast, since it fell during Great Lent, served as an example to the faithful to persevere to the end of the fast in order to attain the heavenly reward (participation in Pascha, the Resurrection of Jesus), just as the Forty Martyrs endured in the frozen river and were crowned by Christ.

Did St. Justin Popovich Break Communion With the Serbian Patriarchate?

By Atanasije Jevtić

We were closely acquainted with the Blessed Father Justin and we know that he had never broke communion with any of the Orthodox Churches or a Bishop or a Patriarch, not even with the Serbian Patriarch Germanos (1958-1990)– as some zealots ‘shamelessly lie’ — not even when the Patriarch Germanos was one of the ‘presidents of the WCC’ (a formal and honorary title without any binding conditions or duties as indeed was the participation of the Serbian Orthodox Church in the WCC). As a free and responsible member of the Church of Christ, Justin prophetically reproved and, when necessary, criticized in written form (having written a couple of criticism letters to Patriarch Germanos and the Synod, inter alia, the letters pertaining to superficial western ecumenism). Yet on no account did he ever create a schism, but on the contrary used to say: “Schisms are easily made but they are enormously difficult to heal” (therefore he opposed the unwisely made and increasingly deepening ‘American Schism’ just as he was against ‘the Macedonian Schism’).

From Notes on Ecumenism. Commentary on Father Justin’s Notes, pp. 36-37.

On Schism in the Church (St. John Chrysostom)

By St. John Chrysostom

(Excerpt from Homily 11 on Ephesians)

If therefore we desire to have the benefit of that Spirit which is from the Head, let us cleave one to another. For there are two kinds of separation from the body of the Church; the one, when we wax cold in love, the other, when we dare commit things unworthy of our belonging to that body; for in either way we cut ourselves off from the "fullness of Christ." But if we are appointed to build up others also, what shall not be done to them who are first to make division? Nothing will so avail to divide the Church as love of power. Nothing so provokes God's anger as the division of the Church. Yea, though we have achieved ten thousand glorious acts, yet shall we, if we cut to pieces the fullness of the Church, suffer punishment no less sore than they who mangled His body. For that indeed was brought to pass for the benefit of the world, even though it was done with no such intention; whereas this produces no advantage in any case, but the injury is excessive. These remarks I am addressing not to the governors only, but also to the governed.

A Message from Mount Athos Regarding the Holy and Great Synod of Crete

A Message from Mount Athos Regarding the Holy and Great Synod of Crete

On this day the 17th/30th of June 2017 convened in Karyes.

No. Φ.2/32/1400 2/7

The 206th Extraordinary Double Sacred Synaxis of the Holy Mountain, consisting of twenty Extraordinary and twenty Ordinary Representatives of the Holy Community, in the wake of the many notifications made during the last period of the official texts of the Holy Mountain - both of its position regarding the Holy and Great Synod, as well as the evaluation of the final texts of the Synod - out of a feeling of loyalty and respect towards our Holy Church and the fullness of those within her, is aware of the following.