An Overview of Memorial Saturdays of Great Lent
Saturday
is the day which the Church has set aside for the commemoration of faithful
Orthodox Christians departed this life in the hope of resurrection to eternal
life. Since the Divine Liturgy cannot be served on weekdays during Great Lent,
the second, third, and fourth Saturdays of the Fast are appointed as Soul
Saturdays when the departed are remembered at Liturgy.
In
addition to the Liturgy, kollyva (wheat or rice cooked with honey and mixed
with raisins, figs, nuts, sesame, etc.) is blessed in church on these
Saturdays. The kollyva reminds us of the Lord’s words, “Unless a grain of wheat
falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much
fruit” (John 12:24).The kollyva symbolizes the future resurrection of all the
dead. As Saint Simeon of Thessalonica (September 15) says, man is also a seed
which is planted in the ground after death, and will be raised up again by
God’s power. Saint Paul also speaks of this (I Cor. 15:35-49).
It is
customary to give alms in memory of the dead in addition to the prayers we
offer for their souls. The angel who spoke to Cornelius testifies to the
efficacy of almsgiving, “Your prayers and your alms have ascended as a memorial
before God” (Acts 10:4).
Memorial
services for the dead may be traced back to ancient times. Chapter 8 of the
Apostolic Constitutions recommends memorial services with Psalms for the dead.
It also contains a beautiful prayer for the departed, asking that their
voluntary and involuntary sins be pardoned, that they be given rest with the
Patriarchs, Prophets, and Apostles in a place where sorrow, suffering, and
sighing have fled away (Isaiah 35:10). Saint John Chrysostom mentions the
service for the dead in one of his homilies on Philippians, and says that it
was established by the Apostles. Saint Cyprian of Carthage (Letter 37) also
speaks of our duty to remember the martyrs.
The holy
Fathers also testify to the benefit of offering prayers, memorial services,
Liturgies, and alms for the dead (Saint John Chrysostom, Saint Cyril of
Jerusalem, Saint John of Damascus, etc.). Although both the righteous and those
who have not repented and corrected themselves may receive benefit and
consolation from the Church’s prayer, it has not been revealed to what extent
the unrighteous can receive this solace. It is not possible, however, for the
Church’s prayer to transfer a soul from a state of evil and condemnation to a
state of holiness and blessedness. Saint Basil the Great points out that the
time for repentance and forgiveness of sins is during the present life, while
the future life is a time for righteous judgment and retribution (Moralia 1).
Saint John Chrysostom, Saint Gregory the Theologian, and other patristic
writers concur with Saint Basil’s statement.
By
praying for others, we bring benefit to them, and also to ourselves, because
“God is not so unjust as to forget your work and the love which you showed for
His sake in serving the saints...” (Heb. 6:10).
Source: https://oca.org/saints/lives/2018/03/03/11-2nd-saturday-of-great-lent-memorial-saturday
Reading Holy Texts if You have Little Free Time
Too much to learn? Too little time?
Why read Scripture? Certainly important
reasons are as numerous as readers; however, the simplest answer comes from
Christ, Himself. Almost all of His words come from ancient Jewish scriptures.
To look more like Him, we have to do as He did. Understood in this way,
embracing Scripture makes us more Christlike.
Still,
isn’t it true that the Bible has been hyped, interpreted, reinterpreted, and
misused many times so much so that it seems to cause more confusion than it
solves? Is there something a little dangerous about it?
This is
also true. So Reading God’s word should be intimidating for us, or more
accurately, utterly awesome. In fact, the Church continuously participates in a
profound discipline of study, reflection, wonder, patience, and humility before
the words of God in Scripture. However, the modern critical intellect is
slippery and trained to question this received reverence. We can’t casually
sidestep significant issues: Is the Bible fallible or infallible? Is it history
or myth? poetry or an instruction manual? Did God write it or not? Wouldn’t I
have to be a fanatic or a saint or a Greek professor to read it? Why does the
Bible have such unpredictable effects?
The
Church’s answers fill libraries, largely because the concerns are not new.
Debates have raged around them for two thousand years. Unfortunately, the
vastness of this discussion only worsens our modern dilemma. How can busy Orthodox
Christians really hope to figure it all out? Where do we begin?
In this
context, The Bible and the Holy Fathers for Orthodox, edited and compiled by
Johanna Manley, comes to the rescue. Inside one convenient cover, the text
offers readers a solution that has been used throughout Orthodox history.
Unlike a
Bible, this volume presents Scripture passages in an order appointed by the
Church for prayer and meditation each day for a year. In this sense, it is a
lectionary. Over time, two sorts of lectionaries developed in the Greek
Orthodox church. The Bible and the Holy Fathers for Orthodox Christians
principally follows the Synaxarion and therefore is based on the liturgical
cycle in which the Church continually represents Christ’s life from Pascha through
Holy Week. Three appendices add elements of the Menologion, which contains
readings for various saints’ and Church festivals on the Byzantine civil
calendar, beginning September 1.
In turn,
the commentaries on each text are simply this: windows into the minds of
saints. No higher recommendation can be attempted. Though individually brief as
a collection the passages reveal an ever-flowing tide of Orthodox theological
thought, consistent in terms of rationality, faith, and love, but highly
diverse in terms of pulse and tone.
Consider,
for example, these poignant words from Saint John of Damascus, reflecting on
the paradoxes of existence: “God made man…a sort of miniature world within the
larger one, another adoring angel…earthly and heavenly, passing and immortal,
visible and spiritual, halfway between greatness and lowliness…” (Saturday in
the Third week of Great Lent).
In
contrast, the same paradox moves Saint John Climacus to brittle irony: “He who
has lost sensibility is …a self-contradictory windbag, a blind man who teaches
others to see…He praises prayer but runs from it like the plague. He blesses
obedience, but he is the first to disobey. He praises detachment, but is not
ashamed to be spiteful and to fight for a rag.. .All the time he is his own
accuser, and he does not want to come to his senses I will not say cannot”
(Thursday of the same week).
In
general, however, the straightforward, clear explanations of Saint John
Chrysostom dominate, providing overall continuity and thoroughness to this
introduction to patristic thought. Nevertheless, the book’s Index of Holy
Fathers and Authors notes more than sixty commentators representing Orthodox
thought from Saint Justin the Martyr (+165 AD) through our own time.
What the
commentaries lack in completeness by being excerpted, they more than make up
for in ease of use and access. Beyond that, references and study helps provide
a solid starting point for further inquiry. Serious Orthodox who have time and
leisure will prefer to read these selections and others not represented from
original, unabridged sources, but for the majority The Bible and the Holy
Fathers for Orthodox provides a much-needed resource for daily study of
Scripture within the Orthodox tradition.
As a
caution, The Bible and the Holy Fathers is not a substitute for a Bible. Bible
study within the Church is vitally important for understanding the theology,
history, personalities, and complexities of Scripture as a whole. This text is,
however, an outstanding devotional aid and highly recommended for any Christian,
especially read prayerfully in conjunction with Church worship, sacraments, and
hymnody.
The Bible
and the Holy Fathers for Orthodox: Daily Scripture Readings and Commentary for
Orthodox Christians. Compiled and edited by Johann Manley. Menlo Park, California:
Monastery Books, 1990.
From the American Orthodox Journal "Praxis",
v. 2
Source: http://pemptousia.com/2017/07/reading-holy-texts-a-solution-for-busy-orthodox/
St. Barsanuphius of Optina on the Importance of Prayer
“Prayer in church is important. The best thoughts and
feelings come in church, yes, and the enemy attacks more violently in church,
but with the sign of the Cross and the Jesus Prayer, you drive him away. It is
good to stand in some dark corner in church and to pray to God. “Let us lift up
our hearts!” the priest exclaims, but our mind often creeps along the ground,
thinking about indecent things. Fight against this.”
From “Living Without Hypocrisy: Spiritual Counsels
of the Holy Elders of Optina”
Source: http://www.orthodoxchurchquotes.com/2014/08/02/st-barsanuphius-of-optina-prayer-in-church-is-important-the-best-thoughts-and-feelings-come-in-church-yes-and-the-enemy-attacks-more-violently/
The Difference between a Cradle Orthodox Person and a Convert
By these
terms, cradle Orthodox and convert, we mean, on the one hand, someone who is
born into an Orthodox family and is baptized as an infant, and on the other
hand, someone who converts to the Orthodox Faith from some other religion or
from none. As far as the Orthodox Church is concerned, the answer to the
question is that there is no difference. They are both members of the Holy
Orthodox Faith and have the opportunity to grow toward theosis and salvation
through a sacramental life of faith. Each of these individuals has positive and
negative possibilities for their spiritual lives, arising from their life
situations.
On the
positive side, cradle Orthodox have the wonderful opportunity of growing up in
the Orthodox life and faith from their earliest years. They have the opportunity to partake in the Holy Eucharist, the Body and Blood of Christ Himself,
each week throughout their lives. They can also be blessed with other
sacraments of the faith, such as Holy Confession and Holy Unction, regularly.
They live in a community of Faith where they may find a spouse one day and
participate in the Sacrament toof Holy Matrimony. They also can witness
some of the community being ordained to the Holy Priesthood or tonsured as
Monastics. They can also experience the support of the entire Orthodox family
when a loved one falls asleep in the Lord and is provided an Orthodox funeral.
Throughout their lives they are in an environment where they can learn and grow
spiritually to become mature Orthodox Christians.
On the
negative side, cradle Orthodox may be raised in a very nominal home, where the
Faith is not practiced or even talked about. They can think of themselves as
Orthodox because they show up at Church on Pascha and Christmas, but know very,
very little of what it means to be a practicing Orthodox Christian. Cradle
Orthodox may be raised in a home where they go to Church most Sundays, but it
has become more of a “club” to which they belong, without ever learning about
their Faith. They may enjoy their friends and family, but not enter into an
Orthodox life. Because of this, they can sometimes resent the “converts” or
“seekers” who come to the Church and may actually discourage visitors from the
pursuit of Orthodoxy. Some cradle Orthodox may even fall away from the Faith
when they become teenagers or while in college. Some may return later when they
marry, but some end up becoming converts to a different religion because they
never really knew what Orthodox believe. Others may continue to go to Church,
but never have a hunger to learn more about their Faith.
On the
positive side, some converts may become Orthodox because they have studied the
Faith and have come to believe with all their hearts that the Orthodox Church
is indeed the very Church that Christ started on this earth. They may bring a
hunger and a zeal for the Faith that is infectious to many others in their
Church. They may be excited to serve the Lord and His Church in any way they
can. Converts often recognize the need to support the Church with both their
time and their finances. Some of them also bring a love of the Holy Scriptures
and of the writings of the Early Fathers to the Church. Converts may also share
their Orthodox Faith with others and help them eventually to become members of
the Faith as well. Because this is a conscious decision they have made, often
they are very committed to living and growing in their faith.
On the
negative side, some “converts” may become Orthodox for the sake of marrying an
Orthodox person. They may have no desire to learn about, or practice, the
Faith. They may simply want to get married. They may not be seen much around
the Church until their children need baptism or someone needs a funeral. Some
“converts” may become overzealous, taking on a legalistic, “super-Orthodox”
approach to the Faith. They may fast, pray, and attend Church better than
anyone, and become judgmental of those who are not following the Faith as they
do. They may come to Orthodoxy but not leave behind their previous religious
beliefs. They may become argumentative and divisive within the Church. Some
have even left Orthodoxy and taken others with them to some other religion.
Some other “converts” may come to Orthodoxy because they love the services, but
when their Faith is tested by someone or something, they leave because they
were never really convinced that this is the Church that Jesus started on this
earth.
Despite
these differences in opportunities and temptations, the Church does not view
cradle Orthodox and converts as spiritually different. In that case, why should
members of the Church see a difference? Being Orthodox Christians in good
standing with the Church and practicing the Faith to the best of their
abilities are what is really important. The date of baptism or chrismation is
simply the starting line to the glorious race that God has called us to run
with perseverance:
“Therefore we also, since we are surrounded
by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin
which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set
before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for
the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has
sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who endured
such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and
discouraged in your souls” (Hebrews 12:1-3).
It is the
finish line that all of us should be concerned about. With that in mind,
perhaps we should drop the term convert and simply view each other as brothers
and sisters, helping each other on the path to salvation. In the case of the
individual, at what point should the term convert be dropped: one year, ten
years, thirty years, at his or her funeral? Perhaps it should be dropped when
he or she comes up out of the baptismal waters or Holy Chrism is applied. At
that point, they are Orthodox believers, entirely members of the household of
Faith!
By Fr. Stephen Powley
Source: http://ww1.antiochian.org/content/what-difference-between-cradle-orthodox-person-and-convert
Excerpts from Sermons: The Only Thing You Have to Do Is Not to Judge Anyone…
By Fr. Demetrius Basalygo
We must
turn back to this anticipation — the genuine anticipation of the resurrection
of the dead and the life of the world to come. Without it, we are not
Christians yet. We are still far from being Christians if we don’t look forward
to meeting Christ.
I have always been amazed at the words of the Creed, “I look for the
resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come.” “Looking for”
means actively seeking and anticipating something. That is what we have lost:
this yearning and anticipation of the Second Coming of Christ. We are afraid of
the events that will allegedly precede it.
The Church has always
felt and professed that She is on the road and travelling. Our final
destination is the eternal life and the Kingdom of God. We must turn back to
this anticipation — the genuine anticipation of the resurrection of the dead
and the life of the world to come. Without it, we are not Christians yet. We
are still far from being Christians if we don’t look forward to meeting Christ,
to the resurrection of the dead and the restoration of the human nature. The
human nature must not just be restored but also transformed together with the
entire world. If that is not our goal, are we really Christians?
(Sermon after a Divine
Liturgy on September 1, 2017)
***
The Lord tells us, No man
putteth a piece of new cloth unto an old garment, neither do men put new wine
into old bottles: for that which is put in to fill it up taketh from the
garment, and the rent is made worse. Likewise, the bottles break, and the wine
runneth out, and the bottles perish: but they put new wine into new bottles,
and both are preserved. (cf. Matthew 9: 16, 17). This parable allegorically
refers to the faith. You cannot put pieces of Gospel cloth to your past life.
You cannot add the Good News of the Gospel to your own mental representation of
God. It’s impossible. We must open our hearts to the Gospel and the teaching of
the Church in its totality, even if we don’t understand much. Instead, we are
looking for the solutions to our problems, peace in our souls, or a resolution
of some daily issues, and that’s when we turn to God. There are so many people
who are disappointed after they turn to Christ with hope! The reason why they
are disappointed lies in this story. We find it unachievable to open our hearts
to Christ, accept the Gospel in its entirety, and trust the doctrine of the
Church as the new life. That’s why
(Sermon after a Divine
Liturgy on June 16, 2017)
***
The Lord came into this
world to show us a new way of life — the eternal life — and to allow us the
entry into the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God is not a physical location.
First of all, it’s where God and man stay together, where all people are
open-hearted and joined by love, trust, and fidelity. The Lord came to give us
a life without limits and bring us into this life. There are so many issues in
this fallen world that divide us, e.g., race, nationality, social status,
gender, and occupation. The Lord tells us that our individuality must unite,
rather than divide, us. He does not just call us to unity: He has brought us
into that unity through the Sacrament of Communion. He unites us with himself
and thanks to this unity we can have communion, love, and unity with all the
rest. We must thank God for everything that He does.
(Sermon after a Divine
Liturgy on June 23, 2017)
By Fr. Alexander
Pashkovsky
When we try to touch the hearts of our neighbours and friends to
reveal to them what the Lord has revealed to us, we must be aware of the fact
that something might be too challenging for them, at least for now. That’s why
we’d better stop talking too much, and start praying for them and showing them
the good example of our lives. Our prayers are much more powerful and efficient
than our words. Especially since we don’t have enough humility when we say
those words. We have too much pride and too little love.
(Sermon after a Divine
Liturgy on November 1, 2017)
By Fr. Eugene Pavelchuk
Do you remember the story of the woman diseased with an issue of blood who
first consulted all doctors and traditional healers and when nothing helped
called unto God? We do the same: instead of walking straight to our Helper, we
tread from one place to another and struggle with many difficulties.
Regrettably, our hearts don’t see the right way and don’t humble down until we
go through all those battles. The main stumbling block is our pride that makes
us blind and rigid, drowns us into the vanity of this world and drives us into
the abyss. The Lord says, Daughter, be of good comfort; thy faith hath made
thee whole (Matthew 9: 22). He tells it to all of us, not just that woman: Be
of good comfort; be brave; realise that you cannot do anything without God —
not even make a single step, to say nothing of reaching the Kingdom of God.
***
Many people say, “I
haven’t taken communion for a long time because I feel that I’m not ready yet.
I haven’t prepared myself to go and partake of the Chalice.” What do you mean
by being ready? Imagine if I or someone else read everything and observe all
fasting routines, and did everything that is required, and then say, “I’m
ready,” and then go and take communion. Is a person who feels that he deserves the Chalice really worthy of communion? Of course not. Hence, canons, prayers, and fasts are a means to the goal of beholding your ineptitude and impotency. Even if an individual does not read some of the mandatory prayers but he realizes that without communion he would not be able to pull through with his life, he may ask, “O Lord, please accept the weak and powerless person that I am.” If you have the courage to do so, I don’t think it will harm or kill you. (Sermon after a Divine
Liturgy on November 19, 2017)
By Fr. Valery Zakharov
The Heavenly Kingdom… The only thing that you must do is not to judge anyone.
How do you pull the beam out of your eye and not see the mote in your
neighbour’s eye? Do you have to fall to do so? It is through falling that the
Lord leads one to recognise his weaknesses and sins. The kingdom of God is
within you (Luke 17: 21), and that’s where we ought to look. We should keep our
eyes on our own souls and keep them clean. If someone falls into a sin, it is
the Lord leading him through the road that He only knows, to make him repent
and admit his worthlessness, and not for us to pass judgement on that person.
It is useful for him but pernicious for us. How do we learn at last that we are
not judges? There is the Righteous Judge, and He knows why things happen.
Furthermore, one’s actions do not determine one’s intentions; we don’t know
what causes other people to do this or that and what makes them act in a
certain way. Only the Lord can judge humans. We should pray to God on our own
behalf and on behalf of other people, so that we could be able not to condemn
those people and they could improve. The Lord says, Ask and you shall receive
(Matthew 7: 7).
(Sermon after the Divine
Liturgy in the Boarding Home for Children with Special Needs on June 17, 2017)
By Fr. George Glinsky
If someone calls himself a Christian but remains supine (while he must be
filled with the power of God), he becomes salt that lost its power. If someone
consents to injustice and tolerates it; if someone is eager to justify
injustices and turn a blind eye to them as if nothing happens, eventually it
will become an avalanche that topples his life and shows his true attitude
towards other people and events. We forget that the Lord sends us forth like
sheep in the midst of wolves, as we’ve heard in the Gospel passage today. He
was sent by his Heavenly Father to stay away from injustices, falsehoods,
iniquities, and sins but at the same time to participate in the lives of human
beings and to lift them up to the heaven. He entered this world with the fiery
force of love. He triumphed over the sin and death and opened the door to the
Heavenly Kingdom for us. He is the ultimate model for us.
(Sermon after the
All-Night Vigil on November 7, 2017)
By Fr. Andrew
Malakhovsky
We must be comforted by hope. The sorrows that we encounter in our
lives, make us stronger and more powerful. They are like a blacksmith who
forges us into a sword. A piece of iron will be hammered several dozen times
before it becomes a useful thing.
Similarly, the Lord has
to test a person time and time again by sorrows, hardships, and illnesses,
until he finally becomes a clear image of God.
We should accompany all
our actions with prayer because prayer is a way to have a conversation with
God. It foreshadows the Kingdom of God. A man is known by the company he keeps.
If we talk with God, we will become godly, albeit very slowly. If we give up
prayer, we will spin like a spinning top: although we would have plenty of
time, it would be meaningless. That is why the saints advise us to rejoice in
hope; be patient in tribulation; continue instant in prayer. May the Lord help
us to carry it out in our lives.
(Sermon after the Divine
Liturgy in the Boarding Home for the Mentally Challenged on November 3, 2017)
***
May the Lord help us to
remember that we are called by God to travel on the spiritual field. The Lord
wants us to perform spiritual actions. He manages the rest of our lives. Things
that occur may not come about as or when we would like them to: instead, things
happen when God allows them to happen and to the extent that He considers to be
useful for us. This is why if one learns to rejoice in this life and give
thanks to God, his life will be full of spiritual joy here on earth.
(Sermon after the Divine
Liturgy in the Boarding Home for the Mentally Challenged on November 10, 2017)
By Fr. Sergius Faley
You see, when you do something good, you may catch yourself thinking, “I don’t
need any money. I just want someone to praise me.” You want someone to thank
you, to appreciate what you did, and to let others know about it. Ultimately,
it is no different from conceit and self-interest. So if you want to work for
the glory of God, brace up for insults and alienation for all the good that you
do.
(Sermon after the
All-Night Vigil on November 11, 2017)
February 20, 2018
St. Elisabeth Convent
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