The Catalog of Good Deeds

The Mother of God reached the end of her earthly life. For quite a long time (and even today), the life of the Mother of God remained in the shadow: the gaze of ancient Christians was focused only on Christ, although since the apostolic times, the Church honored the memory of holy martyrs, who testified about their faith in the Resurrected Messiah with their own blood. Only when some people began to talk ill about Virgin Mary, diminishing Her dignity and hence diminishing the dignity of Christ, the Christians set their sights on the Blessed Virgin.

The credible ancient story about the last days of the earthly life of the Most Holy Theotokos was carefully preserved by the Church of Jerusalem. Later that very story became the general tradition for all the other Churches.

According to the tradition, the Mother of God spent the last days of Her life in Jerusalem. She often visited the holy for every Christian’s heart places, which reminded Her of Her Divine Son. Archangel Gabriel announced Her about the day of Her great decease, and the whole Christian community of Jerusalem was waiting for that day to come. By the Divine Will, all the holy apostles were miraculously gathered in Jerusalem on the day of Mary’s death so that they could accompany Her to the place of Her burial. As the tradition states, when the apostles stood near the bed of the Mother of God, Lord Jesus Christ Himself appeared to them surrounded by His holy angels, and the Mother of God gave Her soul to the hands of Her Son.

What lesson can we take from the great Dormition of the Mother of God? Indeed, Christ took the soul His Mother in His hands and, as many Orthodox Christians believe and many holy fathers state, thus He revived Her and took to His Kingdom. But what about us? What is coming for us? Ordeals, the meeting with bright and dark angels? No, if only we live a pious life, preserving God’s commandments in our hearts. No, if only we become the salt of the earth, the good leaven of Christ and the sons of light who walk in the true light of Christ. No, if only we preserve untarnished robe of truth, in which we got covered after the Sacrament of Baptism – the robe that proves we all are forgiven by Christ, and that our former royal and priestly image is restored now: “For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ” (Galatians 3:27).

No, we will not die and neither we will be given in the enemy's hands, if only it is possible to say about us that we “washed our robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb” (Revelation 7:14). If we often partake of Christ’s Supper, with humility partake of the Holy Eucharist, if we bring God the sacrifice of our praise and partake of His Blood and Body, then we will not be trampled by the evil one because Christ will accept us and comfort us all.

Let us be brave in our Christian life. Let us hope in Living God, asking the Mother of God for Her prayers and help, for She never leaves us without Her protection and never stops praying for Christians. Let us be filled with faith, hope and love, and thus praise the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit – the Coessential and Inseparable Trinity.

The word of St. Andrew of Crete:

“This is the final goal of the covenants God has made with us; this is the revelation of the hidden depths of God's incomprehensibility. This is the realization intended before all the ages; this is the crown of God's oracles, the inexplicable, supremely unknowable will of him who had cared for humanity since before creation began. This is the first-fruit of God's communion with his creation, of His identification as Maker of all things, with what He has made. This is the concrete, personal pledge of God's reconciliation with humanity, the surpassing beauty of God's sculpture, the perfectly-drawn portrait of the divine model. This is the first step to all ascent, to all contemplation; the holy tabernacle of him who made the world; the vessel that received the inexhaustible wisdom of God; the inviolate treasury of life. This is the spring of divine radiance, which can never be drunk dry; the impregnable stronghold, raised so high over all of us in its purity that it can never be conquered by passion. Through this woman [the Theotokos], the pledge of our salvation has been made and kept, in that this marvelous creature has both reach the limits of our lot and has paid the common debt proper to our nature. And if not all the features of her life were the same as ours, that is due simply to her nearness to God.”

Reflections in the Holy Church Tradition:

Kontakion — Tone 2

Neither the tomb, nor death could hold the Theotokos, Who is constant in prayer and our firm hope in her intercessions. For being the Mother of Life, She was translated to life by the One who dwelt in her virginal womb.

End of the last part.

Full infographics here.

Here is a short test that consists of 12 questions about the Dormition of the Mother of God. Check what you know about this feast day.

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit!

Today we mark one of the Twelve Great Feasts, the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos. We are celebrating this feast in the principle temple of our Church: the Patriarchal Cathedral of the Dormition in the Moscow Kremlin. Along with the entire Church, we rejoice in an event that has been passed down to us by the Holy Tradition of the Universal Church: the blessed repose of the Most Holy Theotokos, her Dormition, which has become a feast day.

If we transfer our gaze from this event to modern life, we will notice a profound contradiction between two understandings of death. Blessed repose, dormition, falling asleep – the word “death” is not used in reference to the Theotokos. Incidentally, another word used in ecclesiastical parlance is derived from here: “reposed” – not died or perished, but reposed. We see that there is a different understanding of death. On the one hand, there is the understanding connected with the triumph of the Mother of God; on the other, there is our ordinary understanding of death as a tragic end, as the termination of all things. One feels animal fear, the fear of death, before this tragic end. How greatly this fear of death contradicts the basic value judgments of modern society, a society of consumerism and prosperity! But this very society, imbued with false values, recognizes the impossibility of joining its ideals – those of unlimited consumption and pleasure – with the fact of death.

But how does today’s society, today’s pseudo-culture, reply to this contradiction? It replies to this challenge of worldviews by, as it were, ignoring death. A different picture of life is drawn for us through advertisements and the cultivation of these same false values that turn our gaze away from death. If we are to speak of burial practices, we can note that in many countries – especially in prosperous ones – everything is done somehow to mitigate people’s contact with the dead body. The coffin is not opened during the funeral service – in fact, it is generally not opened at all – and people always bid farewell before a closed coffin. More often than not, the coffin is lowered into the grave when people are already leaving the cemetery. For this reason, it is covered with flowers or spruce branches in such a way that the very act of burial goes unseen. The widespread custom of cremation also serves this end: the coffin goes out, and there is no real contact with the moment of burial.

But there is yet another way to mitigate this inwardly insurmountable conflict between society’s false ideals and death: to turn death into a show, into a spectacle. We see a huge number of deaths every day: on television and in many films, where death is always present in one way or another. But do we empathize with this death? Death is just part of the intrigue; more often than not, this death – even a violent one – is bound up with the victory of the main hero. However, none of these attempts to remove the question of death from the scope of modern man’s worldview can ever succeed, because every day, every hour, and every minute brings each one of us closer to death. The whole point lies in how we perceive death: as a nonsensical end of life, devoid of any meaning; as a departure into complete non-existence of everything we possess – mind, emotions, and will; as an extinction of all life, with all its joys, sorrows, ups and downs, discoveries, victories, and defeats; or as the final chord, the finale of our earthly life and the transition into another life…

The Dormition of the Most Holy Mother of God was a triumph of the Church: the Apostles gathered together, placed the tomb of the Mother of God in Gethsemane, and never again found it, because the Mother of God’s body disappeared. A firm tradition of the Church has passed down to us the tidings that the Mother of God’s body was caught up into the Heavenly Kingdom. S0me Holy Fathers of both the Ancient Church and the Russian Church – among whom St. Ignatius (Brianchaninov) should especially be remembered – compared the mystery of the Dormition of the Most Holy Mother of God with the Savior’s Resurrection. There is no death: there is dormition and departure.

Reflecting on the theme of departure, the Holy Righteous John of Kronstadt says that departure is just a change of place: a person “departs” and his soul occupies a place in another world, another age, another time. Did the Mother of God fear death? No. Did the Holy Apostles fear death in the face of violent, martyric deaths? No. The Apostle Peter, originally fearing the persecution that broke out under the Emperor Nero, decided to leave the capital of the Empire at the urging of the Christian community in Rome. But while leaving Rome, the Risen Lord met him and asked: “Whither goest thou?” This question alone caused Peter to return to Rome and joyfully to accept a martyric death. And how many testimonies do we have in the lives of saints! We see clearly that they did not experience any fear of death, but prepared themselves for death as for a truly great event in their lives, by which one passes from an earthly existence to a heavenly one.

So where does the fear of death come from? Reflecting on this theme, the Holy Righteous John of Kronstadt rightly states that God did not create death, but that death came into people’s lives through sin. He goes on to write: “Death shall frighten us so long as we abide in sin.” This inner connection between the fear of death and sin is completely obvious. If someone lives according to the law of the flesh, if he sins and never thinks of God, then when this spiritually unprepared person – who lives in this world’s vanity and whose life is bound only by the values of this world – comes face to face with death, there will be fear and terror. There will be mortal fear, because of the presence of sin. St. John Chrysostom teaches us how to overcome this fear of death: through repentance, prayer, victory over the passions, labor, patience, and spiritual peace – that is, by living according to God’s commandments.

Through the feast of the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos and the experience of the Church, the truth is revealed to us that the religious way of life, the Christian way of life, is not only dispensation, blessedness, and happiness in this earthly life; it is not only the acquisition of authentic goals; but it is also the overcoming of the fear and apprehension of death with a calm and peaceful spiritual state, as the natural completion of the earthly portion of human life. Such a view of life and death has great power for the human person, before whom there are no barriers and who fears nothing.

It is upon this attitude towards life and death that true struggle, valor, and the ability to give one’s life for another are based. Would someone give his life for another who is bound to this tawdriness, to this modern consumer life, for which the main value is here and only here? Why would he take the risk? Why would he give his life for another? Why would he sacrifice what is most precious? Within the framework of a godless worldview, it is impossible to justify heroism, struggle, or self-sacrifice. If people who do not consider themselves religious do undertake such struggles, this does not mean that their motivations lie in the material plane. This is a manifestation of a latent, rudimentary religiosity, which becomes part of human life through one’s upbringing, through the values that are instilled in one. But if we destroy this rudimentary religiosity, then we will become a completely different society, a completely different people, incapable of either sacrifice or struggle. Such a society does not and cannot have a future, because people’s upbringing in faith is a question of life or death – not only of society, but even of the human race. This is why the preaching of the great spiritual values that have been revealed to man through the Divine word is the principle foundation upon which the future of the human race depends.

Remembering our Most Holy Lady Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary and her glorious Dormition, let us always remember that the Dormition, the Mother of God’s death, is a great feast day of the Church. And in this glorification of the death of the Most Holy Theotokos lay the great faith of all preceding generations that death does not mean the end of life. As a great sign of the fact that after death comes resurrection, the Most Pure Queen of Heaven was caught up into the heavenly abode of her Son with her soul and body, as a sign of man’s immortality, as a sign of eternal life, and as a sign of Divine omnipotence. Amen.

By Patriarch Kirill of Moscow

Delivered on August 28, 2011

http://www.pravmir.com/two-understandings-of-death-on-the-dormition-of-the-theotokos/

Ruslan Yarotsky is a religious scholar and an Orthodox missionary from Hrodna who is also the head of a charitable fund, which helps Orthodox Christians in Africa. He started doing his mission in St Elisha Monastery in Laŭryšava, HR.

When you get to know about the Orthodox Church on the African continent for the first time, it will definitely feel “different” from what we, who live in Belarus, Russia, and Ukraine, are used to. It doesn’t have the tranquility and pensive atmosphere, the elaborate precision and rhythm of worship… It doesn’t have the wonderful architectural edifices and populous religious processions… A Divine Liturgy in Africa, with its drum beats and polyrhythmic African tunes, and with the parishioners and priests praising God by dance, may appear strange, unfathomable, and even unacceptable. An Orthodox believer in our traditionally Orthodox lands always has the opportunity to look back into the past and find support and comfort there. What do African Christians have in their past? Where is their Seraphim of Sarov or Theophan the Recluse? Where is their glorious and not-so-glorious history of struggle against “this fallen world”?

The Church in Africa is like a young tree. It grows and has lush green leaves but it does not have a strong root, a tall trunk, and a wide top, all of which make old trees different from younger ones. Does it? Does the real power of the Church on that continent lie in something else?

The brothers first got to know African Orthodoxy in Kenya, where St Elisha Monastery organises missionary outreach with the support of many parishes from Belarus and neighbouring countries.

What is, then, the aim of this narrative, which, of course, represents solely our own subjective opinion? Hopefully, you will feel a closer connection to the Church in Africa after you read this post. Sometimes, even simple concepts can take years to soak into people’s minds. One of these concepts is the simple idea that there is only one Church of Christ in the world; the names “Russian Church”, “Belarusian Church”, “Greek Church”, or “American Church” mean something only here on earth. Probably, we will be moved by compassion and love and join efforts in helping our brothers and sisters in Africa. I’m optimistic that the experience of a missionary outreach can “animate” our spiritual lives, and add meaning, joy, and new substance to them.

Mass media paint a bleak picture of Africa. Indeed, most African countries are poverty-stricken, with absent or inadequate welfare, and teeming with infections, ethnic and religious conflicts.

Sadly, the mzungu (whites) left the continent with roads and buildings but not good memories. After the independence, Kenyans had an extremely negative attitude towards the British. Frankly, they were equally wary of all “whites”.

Nowadays, the situation has improved. Tourists can easily visit many African countries, with some precautions, of course. However, this positive change isn’t always the result of a change in attitude. Rather, the locals have figured out that tourists bring money.

That is why if you board a plane from Paris or Amsterdam to Nairobi, you may see crowds of European tourists with cameras, bristling with excitement at the thought of being able to see exotic African animals and take a selfie with them. The majority of those tourists will see a Kenya and a Tanzania adapted to their liking. For instance, Mombasa, a city on the shore of the Indian Ocean, famous for its white-sand beaches, has become the favourite place for many European tourists. However, it’s just the façade of Kenya.

The population of Kenya is 50 million people. When you travel around the country, you will assume that the population numbers are largely out of date. Streets of Hrodna, Minsk, and Vilnius look almost empty in comparison with an average Kenyan village. How can you count the population of city slums like Kibera? Most people there are constantly moving. Where are they going? Although they don’t have jobs, they are very busy. Some of them are lucky enough to have their own “business”, like a car wash. Just look at how they proudly sit on a heap of old tyres with the name of their company on a cardboard sheet, some soap, sponges, and water from the nearest river in rusty barrels…

It must be noted that the advances of technology are evident in the cities and towns in Kenya. Most people have mobile phones and work hard to buy a TV panel, which costs almost as much as here in Belarus. With that said, living conditions of most Kenyans may appear absolutely unsatisfactory. Why not buy wallpapers, paint, or a vacuum cleaner instead? This way of spending money looks like an escape from the brutal reality…

Kenyans are very open and kind. If you’re in trouble, they will happily help you. The general impression from the people is really positive. Of course, hard life conditions and poverty leaves an imprint of people’s behaviour and world view. Crime rate in the country is high: robberies, thefts, and murders are quite common, for a lot of reasons.

As a rule, a tourist does not encounter this side of the life in the country. Sometimes this grim reality haunts you. When we brought humanitarian aid to Father Michael, an Orthodox priest in a village named Gilgil, we were delighted with his enthusiasm and kindness to such an extent that even that gloomy place looked quite attractive, in spite of all its dirt and poverty. A week after we left, we learned of a murder during a possible robbery attempt. The victim of that murder was Elijah—a student of an Orthodox college who was studying to become a teacher. Seeing Kenya and Africa in general also means seeing a graveyard, where lots of new graves can tell you a lot about the true state of affairs.

You shouldn’t, however, look at Kenya through a black or a pink glass. Africa appears different to everyone. The way you see it depends on what you are willing to see and what means you have at your disposal.

Civilization has transformed a modern tourist so much that he will be happy and excited to notice a giraffe’s head in the savannah, a zeal of zebras, or some baboons on the Naivasha–Nairobi road but will turn a blind eye on the yellowish whites of children’s eyes, crowds of beggars that besiege his car when he drives to his luxurious hotel after a delicious lunch in a restaurant, and the abject poverty that he may encounter in rural areas and city slums. Personally, I felt ashamed for the first time on Lake Naivasha, when we were feeding biscuits to a giraffe named Eric, and the eyes of our guides followed each biscuit closely as it disappeared in the giraffe’s mouth. In fact, you begin to think about it seriously only later.

Kenya is a country of stark contrasts. There is poverty and luxury side by side. The incredible beauty of African nature and its rich animal world is combined with inhumane living conditions for most people. It must be noted that the painful reaction to the Kenyan way of life is our subjective experience. Kenyans perceive the horrors, which make our hearts ache, with enviable calmness. They dream of having their own plot of land and cultivate it to earn money and be able to pay for their children’s education. They love, quarrel, dream, and wonder. Their men do their best earning money, and their women do their best to look gorgeous. Just like we do. It’s just the conditions that are different. It’s easy to fall in love with Kenya.

Africa is a continent where religion is still important. Although it may appear that there isn’t anything noteworthy about Kenyan religious life, I’m assured that Mircea Eliade could have found a vast field of study here. The majority of people here view themselves as Christians. Indeed, there are signs that read “Pentecostal Church”, “Church of God”, “Messianic Church”, “Adventist Church”, etc., in every town and village. There is a sizable proportion of Catholics here, as well as dozens of Neo-Protestant groups. Small but neat (at least in contrast to the chaos that surrounds them) mosques can be found in bigger cities, along with Hindu and Buddhist temples, and traditional cults, Hare Krishna followers, Orthodox Jews, and many other religious communities.

It seems that there is no need for an Orthodox mission in a country with such a large Christian populace, is there? In my humble opinion, Kenyan society has become more “Christianised” during the 20th century, albeit superficially. Missions that can invest large amounts of money are the most successful in the impoverished country. Locals tend to join religious organisations solely to improve their financial standing and not after an “encounter with God”. You can’t judge them. Of course, neither should you infer that everyone becomes a Christian for ulterior motives. Many people are entirely sincere in their faith.

You meet religion at every corner during your travel in Kenya…

End of Part I

St. Elisabeth Convent

June 16, 2018

So, the day of Easter was coming – and so did the Passion of Christ. What did those days mean to the Mother of God? No tongue of the man dares to say about this, for no mother’s heart should know such sufferings, which the Mother of God faced looking at the sufferings of Her Son. The time Elder Simeon had told about finally came: “A sword will pierce through your own soul also, that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed” (Luke 2:35).

The Holy Church, moved by love towards the Mother of God, with the help of the best spiritual authors, hymnographers and men full of the Holy Spirit, tried to express in the limited human language the pain, worries and sorrows that the Mother of God lived through near the Cross of Her Son and Lord.

“The blessed Virgin with other women was looking at Her Son and Lord hanged on the cross. Moaning and crying She said:

I see You my beloved Child, hanging on the Cross, and my heart is aching, - says the Blessed One, - but let Your servant speak...

...Peter escaped because of the fear of the Hebrews’ wrath, and all the loyal ran and left Christ, said the Virgin and cried...

...For the sake of Your mysterious and inexplicable Nativity, My Son, I was honored more than all the other mothers. Woe is me now, for I see You on the Cross and get burning with pain inside...

...The never setting Sun, eternal God and Creator of all the creatures, why are You bearing this passion on the Cross, - says the Virgin and cries...

...I see You beaten and dishonored, naked on the Cross, My Child, and I get wounded and mourn, for I am Your mother...

...Crying and wondering, Joseph and Nicodemus took the blessed body from the Cross and kissed it, honoring Him as our God...

...The Virgin and Mother took Him and laid Him on Her knees, She begged Him and kissed His body crying and then exclaimed...

...I am amazed while looking at You, Good God and generous Lord, lying beaten up without glory and without breathing. I hold your body and cry, for I do not even hope to see You again, My Son and Lord...

...Seeing Her Lamb led to slaughter, Mary followed Him together with other women, crying the following words: where are you going Child? Why are you going in such a hurry? Maybe for another wedding at Cana to turn water into wine again? Should I go with You, Child, or should I stay and wait for You here? Give me Your word, do not pass me by in silence, the One Who preserved My purity, for You are my Son and Lord...

...From now on, the joy will never come to Me, - the Blessed Virgin said. My Light and my Joy is now in the tomb, but I will not leave him there, I will stay here to die and be buried with Him”...

This is how our Holy Church dared to praise lovingly the Mother of God, Her sufferings and her grief in the Lenten Triodion.

Perhaps, if the Church did not know that the Lord and God would resurrect, that He would turn grief into joy, that He would wipe the tears away from our eyes and wash any sorrows away, then we would never dare to praise and write all these mournful chants; we would never dare to try to express Mary’s pain and grief for the Crucified Savior.

The word of St. Gregory of Neocaesaria:

“In the Name of the Father and of the Son of the Holy Spirit. Amen. All-Holy Virgin Mother of God, we humans cannot offer to you the hymn and the praise that is appropriate to you, for your proper praise is superior to any human melody. From you God Himself received flesh and was born as a human being. The totality of nature in heaven and on earth offers to you its boundless respect. For you have become an Angelic Throne of Cherubim. As a reflection of Light, You shine brightly in the imperceptible world and in all the ends of heaven and earth and in the whole universe, where the Unoriginate Father is praised, Whose power always overshadowed you; where the Son is worshiped, the Son to Whom you gave birth; where the Holy Spirit is glorified, the Spirit which enacted in your womb the birth of the Great King. Through you, who are full of grace, the Holy and Consubstantial Trinity is revealed in the world to become known by human beings. We pray to you and beseech you, Most Blessed Theotokos, to make us also worthy of you perfect grace that we too may partake of it with you in Christ Jesus, our Lord, in Whom the glory and the power abides unto the ages of ages. Amen.”

End of part VI

To be continued…

Click here to see full infographics.

Fasting, praying, Church more than once a week, “take up your cross,” sacrifice… Do I have to be a monk? I have been asked that question on a number of different occasions. With all of the prescriptions given to us to do, it seems sometimes that the Church is asking us all to be monks. After all, monks and nuns are the ones who devote their lives to prayer, who fast all of the time, who don’t have to worry about money or families. Those of us out here in the world have “real” responsibilities and don’t have the time or the energy to focus on all of that. At least that is what we think. Of course, Christ does not ask all of us to be monks or nuns. The life in the monastery is a very unique calling that is blessed and necessary, but not for everyone. Just as all of us are not called to be mathematicians or rocket scientists, not everyone is called to be a monk.

However, that does not mean that everyone isn’t called to some sort of ascesis. That word, most often used exclusively for the monastic life, simply means self-denial, something that Christ tells all of us to do. “If any man would come after me, let him deny himself take up his cross and follow me.” ANY MAN. While not called to be a monk or a nun, those of us who are attempting to follow Christ are called to serve the Lord through ascesis. What does that look like?

One of the greatest monks in history, St. John Climacus, wrote a 30-step treatise called The Ladder of Divine Ascent. This book was written specifically for those who were monks and laid out step by step the way to the Kingdom of God. Though he wrote it in the 7th century, it is still read today during Great Lent in many of the monasteries in the Orthodox world. In this work, St. John doesn’t just address the monks, however. He was presented with this same question over 1500 years ago: “Do I have to be a monk?” He responded by saying:

“Some people living carelessly in the world have asked me: ‘We have wives and are beset with social cares, and how can we lead the solitary life?’ I replied to them: ‘Do all the good you can; do not speak evil of anyone; do not steal from anyone; do not lie to anyone; do not be arrogant towards anyone; do not hate anyone; do not be absent from the divine services; be compassionate to the needy; do not offend anyone; do not wreck another man’s domestic happiness, and be content with what your own wives can give you. If you behave in this way, you will not be far from the Kingdom of Heaven.”

Notice that St. John doesn’t start off by mentioning what we should avoid and not do, but what we should actually do. “Do all the good you can” is very different from “avoid doing bad.” If the answer was to avoid doing bad, we would be better suited to stay in our homes and be alone as much as we can; or, if we are outside our homes, to focus on the task that we are doing and not pay attention to anyone else that is around us. St. John is encouraging all of us to pay attention to the moment that we are in and look for the good that we can do. How often do we drive down the road talking on the phone or listening to the radio and mindlessly make our way to our destination? In my case, too often. In attempting to “do all the good you can,” try instead to pay attention to where you are going, your surroundings. You might notice an opportunity to do good. That goes for anywhere we find ourselves, in whatever company. St. John does not want us not to lie, or speak evil of anyone, or hate anyone by not being around other people. His encouragement is to live in the world, doing your work, going about your business around all of the people that you see and to do good, be compassionate, and be content in your life. Not avoidance, but acceptance and transforming a situation.

How can we possibly have the strength to fulfill all of that? St. John answers that as well. “Do not be absent from the divine services.” All of that ascetical discipline is not meant to be something that we just do in separation from the life of the Church. Quite the opposite. None of that type of discipline is really possible or helpful without a constant connection to Christ and His Church. In our attempt to do good we will often be pushed away. In our effort to avoid offending anyone and seeking out the good we may be hurt and feel lost. The answer is in Christ. Through the divine services, all of the different ones throughout the year, we are encouraged by the witness of the lives of the saints. We are enriched by the Word of God through the Scriptures. Most importantly, we are filled with the Divine Grace of God through the participation in the Mysteries. All of this helps to fulfill the discipline and ascesisthat St. John was talking about. It might seem impossible, but with Christ all things are possible.

One thousand five hundred years later and I think St. John’s words still hit the nail on the head. Not all of us are called to the discipline of the monastery. All of us, however, are called to the discipline that St. John lays out. So where and when do we start? Right here! Right now!

Source: https://svotssynaxis.com/2011/12/08/do-i-have-to-be-a-monk/

A friend sent me a photo of an icon he recently bought. It was an icon of St. Stephen, an early deacon in the Church. I recognized some of the attributes that marked him out as a deacon, but not all of them. What was that strange church he was holding? Only diaconal saints hold it, so what does it have to do with being a deacon?

Recognizing Deacons

Most of you have probably seen deacons serving in Orthodox Churches, and you’ve probably seen deacons in icons (a few of the most popular ones include: St. Stephen the Proto-Martyr, St. Olympia the Deaconess, St. Prochoros the Deacon, and St. Romanos the Melodist).

We automatically recognize various saints as deacons by the way they are dressed. They wear the sticharion: a tunic that covers the whole body, going down to the ankles. They wear the orarion: a thin strip of cloth that hangs over the deacon’s left shoulder and is usually draped over his forearm. They also wear the cuffs that go around their wrists.

Deacons are also very recognizable in icons because they usually carry the censer. Generally speaking, priests are called to pray at the services while deacons are called to perform the physical actions of the services, including the censing.

But, in many icons that depict deacons, there are usually a few items that most parish deacons have never used: such as a veil over their left arm and a small little church or box.

The Zion or Jerusalem

What are these items? Why do deacons carry them in icons and what do they mean? Well, I did some research and here’s what I found.

The small church (or sometimes, it’s a simple box) is called a Zion or Jerusalem. While some people have postulated that it is an incense box, a reliquary, or a tabernacle (to hold either prosphora or the Holy Gifts) it seems that none of these are correct.

Historically, deacons were tasked with caring for the physical needs of the community, especially the sick, the widowed, the poor, the orphaned, or the imprisoned.

We see from scripture that this task is assigned to deacons:

And the twelve summoned the body of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables [the word for “serve” is related to the word “deacon” in Greek]. Therefore, brethren, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint to this duty. But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” (Acts 6:2-4 RSV)

It seems the Zion was a part of this ministry; it was originally a collection box. The deacon would collect alms so that they could fulfill their ministry of helping others.

The veil, which looks a bit like the aer that covers the gifts on the altar, or a small phelonian, is probably there to prevent the deacon from directly touching the Zion.

In ancient times, holy items weren’t handled directly. Instead, clergy would use their vestments to hold such things. This is why, in some icons, bishops don’t hold the gospel books directly. Think of it as an ancient form of gloves.

Zions were probably used mostly in cathedral churches, which were located in larger cities that had many more people in need. Over time, however, it seems that Zions fell out of use.

But, in some very traditional settings, such as on Mt. Athos and in Moscow, you can still see them used.

Reviving the Zion

No, I’m not calling for a revival of the Zion as a parish liturgical item, but I am calling for us to revive, or live out, the ministry that the Zion represents.

We saw how the various attributes in an icon are like a written language, telling us about the person and/or their role in the Church. The censer tells us about the deacon’s liturgical role.

The Zion, on the other hand, tells us about the deacon’s ministry of compassion, a participation in the justice and mercy of God in the here and now. Though it was the deacon, as an image of Christ, who formally looked after the less fortunate in society, we are all called to imitate our Lord and participate in this ministry.

Source: http://www.dustinlyon.org/?p=1160

By Fr. Andrew Lemeshonok

Ofttimes, I have to talk with people who are offended. They keep complaining and whining all the time… They just don’t look at themselves from outside and seek a justification of their sins. This is how our world works. People fight for their rights and obligations and don’t understand their neighbours. That is why each person should deal with himself first. Usually, our opinion is the yardstick that we use to assess our life. Instead, we should ask the people around us, our relatives and neighbours. They will provide the correct judgement of our lives. However, we find it hard to accept their judgements if they are less than favourable.

A fast season is an opportunity to have a critical look on ourselves. One has to curtail one’s own self in order to see and understand one’s neighbour. Otherwise, that person may spend his entire life being hurt and offended, and he will never figure out that it is him who offends and hurts everyone else. People just can’t see that spiritual life is a life of a warrior. We are at war but this war is invisible, and that’s the danger of it. There is a war going on for every soul, for every day, and for every word. If we’re defeated in this war, it will impact those who are close to us. Therefore, we have to bear in mind that there is God, and there is the God’s plan of our salvation; all we need is to accept his plan and not oppose God.

“Why didn’t they reward me? Why didn’t they notice me? Why did they hurt me? Why did they punish me so unjustly?”—these are the questions that thwart our spiritual life. “Why am I so hideous?”—this question is better. Everyone likes to judge and evaluate. Few people can actually listen and do what they are told. Everyone is a philosopher or a theoretician. You must proceed to practice from your philosophising and theorising. You should humble yourself down: make yourself be quiet and hear what you’re being told. There is hardly anyone who can hear what he’s being told immediately: that’s how deaf and lame we’ve become due to our sinful loneliness.

“How do I become a true Christian? How do I learn to see people and accept them?” These questions must be at the centre of your attention. The Church is designed is such a way as to lead an individual out of his spiritual isolation, get him to open his eyes, allow him to see God in his life and say, “I’ve got so much! There are so many good people around me! How shameless I am, how often I am a stumbling block for them!” I wish we all had this kind of spiritual fruit in our lives.

You can be talking about incessant prayer and revelations all the time. In fact, your neighbour is the revelation that you need. Give in, humble yourself down, support or sympathise with your neighbour. This is what spiritual revival begins with. We’ve got a lot of theoretical knowledge but we take too few tangible, practical steps towards God; we don’t want to struggle with ourselves and force ourselves to do something good.

All misunderstandings and conflicts stem from our unwillingness to surrender to the truth of our neighbour. I believe that this is the chief issue with us, no matter where we are. We have left too little space for God and too much space for the sin. Let’s be patient and believe that we will change, albeit not quickly.

August 26, 2018

St. Elisabeth Convent

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