The Catalog of Good Deeds

Sickness is a phenomenon of our existence on earth that is familiar to everyone. What is sickness? Why do we get sick? How do we get rid of it?

Speaking of theological approach to this phenomenon, we must be aware of the fact that sickness is nothing other than a decrease in natural human vigor, a discord in his essence, and a change of some sort in his composition, which was created by God. The human was called from non-existence into being by the Divine Love, and he was created perfect. Therefore, there was no place for sickness in his body.

However, when humans transgressed God’s will and trespassed the commandment given to them by their Creator, their sinful actions introduced a distortion into the world, and their nature underwent a transformation that can be most aptly characterized with the word “corruption”, i.e., a rift, a discord. This corruption resulted in sicknesses and suffering. Therefore, sicknesses and bodily weaknesses result from the Fall. It is by no means a coincidence that both bodily suffering and sinful habits of one’s soul are called “passions”.

This is how we can explain the spiritual mechanism of sickness more easily, and give an answer to the question, “Why do we get sick?” When a person voluntarily chooses to trespass God’s commandments and turns his back on the Lord who is the Source of all life, he gets on a different track. As he moves along this track, which leads to dying, he will inevitably encounter sicknesses, sorrows, and ailments that are the harbingers of death.

Sickness is always caused by sin. Sometimes you can figure out the spiritual cause of your sickness simply by looking into your own heart. On the contrary, sometimes you will have to inspect your entire life and investigate your conscience meticulously in order to find out why you suffer from a certain sickness. It is in your own actions that you will be able to see the real spiritual cause of your health condition: an un-confessed and un-repented sin that, like a morbid scab, causes the sickness of the soul which in turn, in compliance with the unbreakable law of interconnectedness of soul and body, leads to bodily infirmity.

A sickness, allowed by God’s Providence, is nothing other than a means to teach a person who defected from God’s Truth. This is how C. S. Lewis, a British author and religious thinker, treats suffering. His thoughts about it are remarkably concise: “God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our consciences, but shouts in our pains. It is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world.”

Anyway, if the root of one’s sickness lies in the sin, one must direct his efforts to take that root out first. We Orthodox Christians can and should use medicines and seek doctors’ advice; nevertheless, we must never neglect spiritual treatments, i.e., the Sacraments of Confession and Communion, the Sacrament of Unction, and first of all, prayer to the Lord and his saints.

By Archpriest Andrew Nikolaidi

Source: www.dishupravoslaviem.ru

This Sunday I will have the pleasure of performing a wedding. Weddings are always happy events, and I always look forward to performing them. Orthodox weddings are especially beautiful, and it’s actually composed of two ceremonies: the betrothal and the crowning. The betrothal service, according to Fr. John Meyendorff, is the “…new form of marriage contract… It was originally a civil ceremony.”

The betrothal service in the exchange of Rings

Interestingly, it is in the betrothal service (i.e, the official engagement) that the rings are exchanged! Though this is usually the culmination of the wedding service in western Christianity, the Orthodox Church builds up to a much more important moment: the crowning!

But the mystery of the Orthodox betrothal service doesn’t stop there! Not only are the rings exchanged at the betrothal, the rings are put on the right hand! And priest, not your spouse, puts them there!

Wait a minute! Aren’t the rings supposed to go on the left hand? Why do the rings go on the right hand? What does all this mean? What do the rings signify? First let’s look at the meaning of the rings.

Rings as faithfulness

We are typically taught, by secular society, that the rings represent our faithfulness to our spouse, or our trust in our spouse, or a pledge of our love for our new spouse. However, none of the prayers used in the wedding serve suggest this meaning!

The rings represent the faithfulness of God!

The references from the wedding service come from the Bible, and they suggest that the ring is a sign of God’s faithfulness!

Here’s the biblical references, along with what the prayers say,

“Therefore, O Lord God, Who have sent forth Your truth to Your inheritance and Your promise to Your servants, our fathers, who were Your elect, do You give regard unto this Your servant (Name) and Your servant (Name), and seal their betrothal in faith, in oneness of mind, in truth and in love. For You, O Lord, have declared that a pledge is to be given and held inviolate in all things.”

Joseph gets a Ring

Then, it moves on to mention Joseph, who was sold into slavery in Egypt, but then rose to great power in Egypt: “By a ring Joseph was given might in Egypt…”

“And Pharaoh said to Joseph, “Behold, I have set you over all the land of Egypt.” Then Pharaoh took his signet ring from his hand and put it on Joseph’s hand… Thus he set him over all the land of Egypt.” (Genesis 41:41-43 RSV)

Daniel gets a Ring

Then the prayer moves on to mention Daniel, who was a prophet in exile in Babylon. When the Babylonian king forbad Daniel to pray, Daniel remained faithful to God and prayed anyway; for this reason the Babylonian king sealed Daniel in the lion’s den with a ring: “…by a ring Daniel was exalted in Babylon…”

“And a stone was brought and laid upon the mouth of the den, and the king sealed it with his own signet ring and with the signet ring of his lords, that nothing might be changed concerning Daniel.” (Daniel 6:17 RSV)

Tamar gets a Ring

Then the prayer mentions Tamar, who was denied her legal rights to a Levirate marriage. She tricked Judah into sleeping with her by pretending to be a prostitute. However, she asked for his ring, so when Judah found out she was pregnant, she could prove it was his and that she was within her legal rights: “…by a ring the truth of Tamar was made manifest…”

“He said, ‘What pledge shall I give you?’ She replied, ‘Your signet ring and your cord, and your staff that is in your hand.’ So he gave them to her, and went in to her, and she conceived by him.” (Genesis 38:18 RSV)

The prodigal son gets a Ring

Finally, the prayer mentions the Prodigal Son in the New Testament, who had disrespected his father, ran away from home, but then returned in repentance: “…by a ring our heavenly Father showed compassion upon His prodigal son, for He said, ‘Put a ring upon his right hand, kill the fatted calf, and let us eat and rejoice’.”

“But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him; and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet’.” (Luke 15:22 RSV)

In other words, the rings symbolize God’s word that GOD will seal our marriage in “…faith, in oneness of mind, in truth and in love.”

The Ring is a God's pledge to us!

It short, the rings symbolize God’s pledge to us, his children.

God promises to remain with us, whether we are sold into slavery (like Joseph), thrown into the lion’s den (like Daniel), denied our legal rights (like Tamar), or when we return to him in repentance even if we formerly rejected him (like the prodigal son). This is what the rings signify.

The right hand of power

But why the right hand? The prayer for the ring also mentions Moses.

“Your own right hand, O Lord, You armed Moses in the Red Sea. Yea, by the word of Your truth were the Heavens established and the earth set upon her sure foundations; and the right hands of Your servants shall be blessed by Your mighty word, and by Your uplifted arm.”

Moses’ right hand was, in fact, God’s hand, which saved the Hebrews through the waters of the Red Sea. God’s right hand “makes firm” the foundations of the earth. Thus, by putting the rings on our right hand, rather than our left, we are reminded that everything we do is with the help of God, who watches over us and protects us!

P.S. The Rings are about God's faithfulness to us!

The prayer for the rings ends in this way,

“Wherefore, O Sovereign Lord, do You Yourself bless this putting on of rings with Your heavenly benediction; and may Your Angel go before them all the days of their life, for You are He that blesses and sanctifies all things…”

The rings, in the Orthodox tradition, mean much, much more than simply, “I love you.” They symbolize God’s word to remain faithful to us, and seal our marriages in faith, in oneness of mind, in truth and in love.

They also symbolize that God walks with us, protects us, and supports us. Our marriages unite us to our spouse, but they also proclaim the gospel message, and remind us of the love God has for us, his children!

Source: http://www.dustinlyon.org/?p=281

“The New Year in Greece falls on the day of St Basil the Great [1]. This is why the cake that is traditionally served during the festive New Year meal is called Vasilopita. Families come together on that day to cut the Vasilopita cake. A baker puts a coin into the dough before baking the cake. The person who finds that coin in his or her piece of Vasilopita cake receives a gift from the host of the house. The Vasilopita tradition has its roots in the life of St Basil the Great.” (Fragment of the book “Monastic Pastry and Other Recipes” written by Archimandrite Demetrios Kavvadias).

St Basil is known to have been elected by local bishops as the Archbishop of Caesarea and Cappadocia by God’s will, which was revealed to his predecessor Eusebius, and according to the general consent of the laity. He was a worthy pastor of his flock, notable for his preaching, writing, charity, and missionary work. This is why he bears the honorary title “the Great”.

His old friend from Athens University, Emperor Julian the Apostate, visited him during his archpastoral ministry. The emperor was at war with Persians at the time. The holy hierarch deemed it appropriate to greet the great ruler at the city gates. He did not have anything but three loaves of barley bread — his regular food — so he gave them to the money-loving king. When the emperor saw the bread, he laughed and ordered his soldiers to collect some hay in the fields and bring it to the archbishop.

Saint Basil humbly remarked that each person gives to the other what he eats. The infuriated king promised that he would return to the city on his way back from Persia to punish the archbishop, hold all residents of the city captive, and burn the city down.

Saint Basil immediately left the city to pray fervently, having asked his flock to collect all gold and jewellery in anticipation of the king’s return: as soon as they would learn that the king was near, they would throw that gold under his feet to soothe his anger and rescue their lives.

All residents of the city, led by St Basil, climbed a mountain called Twins Mountain (it had received this name because it had two tops) near Caesarea. There was a church in honour of the Most Holy Theotokos. The faithful started praying with tears.

It was then that the Queen of Heaven appeared to St Basil. She sat on a golden throne with hosts of Angels around her. He heard Her command the Angels, “Tell Mercurius to go and kill Julian, my enemy.” Great Martyr Mercurius, wearing armour and carrying a sword and a spear, appeared, received the order from the Theotokos, and quickly disappeared.

When St Basil came round after this unusual apparition, he went down to the city, accompanied by his clergy, to visit the church in honour of St Mercurius and to venerate his relics. St Mercurius had been martyred on that place one hundred years before, during Emperor Valerian's reign. His relics and his armour, venerated by Christians, were on display in that church. When St Basil entered the church to venerate the relics, he saw that the reliquary was empty. Only then did he realise that the vision had been authentic and praised the Lord. The news from the battlefield were encouraging, too: the impious king was killed on that very night.

Saint Basil climbed the mountain in a hurry to inform his flock about the news. He ordered the city dwellers to return to their houses fearlessly and to take back the gold and the jewellery that they had donated. However, the locals refused to take back their donations and insisted that St Basil dispose of the wealth as he pleased. Upon contemplation, the saint ordered each person to take back ? of their donations, and used the remaining money to build almshouses, hospitals, orphanages, and homes for the elderly.

How could he figure out how much money he had to give back to whom? St Basil ordered his deacons to make some dough and put some things of his choosing inside.

After the Sunday Divine Liturgy, St Basil distributed the loaves of bread, and everyone was happy thanks to his blessing [2] because they found precious gifts inside the loaves as the antidoron of their donations that they made for the sake of God's love.

***

[1] The Greek Orthodox Church follows New Julian Calendar. (Translator's Note).

[2] According to the Greek tradition, the faithful receive antidoron (the remaining part of the Lamb) after a Divine Liturgy. (Translator's Note).

Translated from: http://www.pemptousia.gr/2016/12/giati-ftiachnoume-ti-vasilopitta/

Canonization was always considered by the Church to be the fact of the work of God’s holiness in the Church, revealed through a graceful ascetic of righteousness. This is why at all times the main condition for canonization was true sanctification and holiness of a righteous person. Metropolitan Juvenalian of Krutetsk and Kolomenskoe stated the following criteria of the Orthodox ascetics' holiness in his report during the Local Council of the Russian Orthodox Church:

1. Church’s faith in the holiness of the canonizing ascetics as people, who have pleased God and related to the coming of the Son of God on earth and the preaching of the Holy Gospel (canonization of forefathers, fathers, prophets and apostles).

2. Martyrdom for Christ and torments for Christ’s faith (canonization of martyrs and confessors).

3. Miracles performed through the prayers to the saint or by their Holy Relics (canonization of venerable saints, silentiary saints, pillar ascetics, passion-bearers, fool-for-Christ saints etc.)

4. High primatial and hierarchal service in the Church.

5. Special service to the Church and God’s people.

6. Virtuous, righteous and holy life.

7. In the 17^th century, according to Patriarch Nektarios, the fololowing three things were acknowledged as the reasons of people’s true holiness:

- irreproachable Orthodox faith;

- performing all the virtues and fighting for faith even with his life;

- revealing supernatural signs and miracles by God.

8. Often it happened so that glorifying of a saint by people was considered the evidence of his holiness even during his lifetime.

Although there were many reasons for canonization of saints in various periods of the Church history, one thing remained unchanged: canonization of saints is the work of God’s holiness; it has always occurred with the blessing and according to the will of the Church.

Excerpt from: https://azbyka.ru/kriterii-kanonizacii-mestnochtimyh-svyatyh-v-russkoj-pravoslavnoj-cerkvi

Perhaps, there is no person on earth who has never dreamt of being happy. However, everyone has their own concept of happiness. For some people happiness means material welfare and richness, while other people see happiness through success and popularity among other people. Some people lack a soulmate to reach happiness, other people need to be healthy… According to the Holy Fathers, the true happiness of a human being is kept not in the secular joys, which can disappear in a flash, but in the love towards the Lord, which transfigures the world around us.

1. Faith in God

Of course, the first key to happiness of the Athonite monks is faith and love towards the Lord. If a person manages to come to this in his life, then nothing more can make him unhappy. Once, a woman asked St. Porphyrios of Kafsokalivia why keeps saying he is happy although his health condition has got much worse. The saint replied: “Read the Holy Scripture, go to church, find a spiritual father, partake of the Holy Communion – in other words, be a good Christian and then you will find the happiness you are looking for. You see, I am sick now, but I am still happy. The same concerns you: when you will come closer to Christ, you will become happy with your life”.

2. Becoming free from worries and vanity

St. Paisios the Hagiorite said that to feel happy one has to live a natural and simple life, in which there is no place for excessive luxury, vanity and senseless worries. The saint told: “Once a doctor from America came to me. He told me about the life they live there. People there have already turned into machines. They devote their life to work. Each family member is supposed to have their own car. What is more, to make every family member feel comfortable at home, there must be at least four TV-sets. So go on, work and get exhausted, earn a lot of money so that you can say your life is happy and comfortable. But does this life have something in common with happiness? Such a life, full of worries and non-stop rush, is not happiness, but a torment.”

3. Sober mind

Monk Simeon the Athonite has a short parable, which shows that outer circumstances cannot influence on whether we feel happy or not. Salvation is within us, and this is why one must have a sober mind to endure any difficulties. Here is the parable: “A person who could not swim was floundering in water. He caused waves, which he mistook for a dangerous stream. He began to fight with the waves. Finally, he understood that he can float on the water and then managed to reach the riverbank. When he came out of water, he saw that the river was calm and understood that the waves he was fighting with were caused by him. Any misfortune begins within us. If you get your head straight, it will end within us.”

4. Pure heart

According to St. Nektarios of Aegina, the right way to happiness is to have a pure and kind heart. “Happiness is a pure heart because such a heart becomes the throne of God. The Lord said about people with pure heart, I will dwell in them and walk among them. I will be their God, and they shall be My people (2 Corinthians 6:16). What can they lack then? Nothing indeed. They already have the greatest good in their hearts – the Lord Himself!”

5. Ability to forgive

Forgiveness is one of the most important Christian virtues. This is why everyone who is trying to reach happiness must learn to forgive his neighbor. Due to forgiveness, a person makes his heart free from old offences, and a joyful heart is always happy. “This is our law: if you forgive, then it means that the Lord has forgiven you too. But if you do not forgive your brother, then your sin will stay with you”, - said Silouan the Athonite.

6. Give more, take less

To become happy one must share his joy and happiness with their people. It seems that there is no secret in it, but Monk Simeon the Athonite considered this ability to be the rarest among people. The one who comprehends it, becomes happy.

7. Being grateful for small favors

“Desires are the mess of the world”, - said Simeon the Athonite. Indeed, the more a person dwells on his desires, the bigger his appetite gets. Having no opportunity to get enough of what he wants, a person dooms himself to unhappiness. St. Paisios the Hagiorite suggested fighting against desires with abstinence: “We find happiness when we are grateful for small favors. What do people do today? They buy, and buy, and buy again various goods, cars, electronic devices and many other things. Of course, they lack money and worry all the time about this. We must be grateful for small favors and try not to grasp as much as possible. Having only the necessary things, one should not work too much. Then people will have more time to be at home with their children and family, for activities together, for prayer and for living in a warm family circle instead of being constantly under pressure.”

Source:http://dishupravoslaviem.ru/7-sekretov-schastya-ot-afonskix-starcev/

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Excerpts from Sermons: Salvation is a Question of Relationships...

An Orthodox Christian Approach to Sickness: Why Do We Get Sick?

Why on the Right Hand: The Meaning of Rings in the Orthodox Tradition

Vasilopita

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Catalog of Good Thoughts for January 24th, 2018

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The 7 Secrets of Happiness According to Athonite Elders

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