The Catalog of Good Deeds

There is little information about Holy Martyr John the Warrior. He was an officer in the army of Emperor Julian the Apostate sent to persecute and kill Christians. Instead, he helped them. He warned them of the danger, released some prisoners of faith from jail or helped them to escape. When the emperor figured it out, he threw St John into prison. Soon, Julian the Apostate was killed in the war with Persians in 363. St John the Warrior was released. He continued doing good until he died at an advanced age.

The audio (later video) studio of our Convent was named in honour of this saint. Today, we’re going to learn about the Studio in honour of St John the Warrior firsthand: Nun Joanna (Orlova) was in charge of the Studio for about 13 years and remembers how it began…

“We received a number of audio cassettes with recorded talks by Archimandrite Sophrony (Sakharov),” Nun Joanna recalls. “Their sound quality left a lot to be desired, so we came up with the idea to restore the recordings. A good sound engineer, who was inspired by the talks of Elder Sophrony, was found in no time.

However, the talks of our spiritual father, the Rev Andrew Lemeshonok, were the real starting point for our audio studio. People would always come to his talks at Ss Peter and Paul Cathedral with voice recorders, and sometimes those recordings caused problems. Seeing this, Father Andrew blessed me to record his talks. I had to learn to work with sound.

Originally, we thought that our mission was limited to recording Father Andrew’s talks: they are the best part of our experience at the Convent and it would be great if people from other places could listen to them. However, Father Andrew blessed us to record akathists, too. In fact, monastic chants can tell a lot about the Convent. Our first recording of the Monastic Choir happened on the radio. We recorded and edited the recording on tape. Our first recordings were the Akathist to the Inexhaustible Chalice icon of the Mother of God, the Akathist to Holy Martyr Elisabeth, and the Akathist to Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker.

All great endeavours start small. Likewise, the work of the audio studio did not stop at audio recordings. Nun Joanna shot the first film about the Convent, titled The Path of Love. Currently, the Studio has produced about 20 documentaries, fiction films, and cartoons, many of which have won awards at international film festivals, such as Russia, Listapad, Pokrov, Vstrecha, Zolotoy Vityaz, ArtDocFest, Radonezh, Luchezarny Angel, Animayevka, Religion Today, and others.

“Again, it began with the words of the spiritual father of our Convent,” Nun Joanna says. “Father Andrew suggested during a meeting, ‘Why don’t you try making films?’ Our first film was The Path of Love, shot in 2006. It is a short film about the history of our Convent, our Sisterhood, and their social ministry, combined with the biography of the Holy Martyr Grand Princess Elisabeth. It was great but it is out of date already. We will have to produce a new film about the Convent in the future. Right now, God does not bless us to do so. Maybe, we are not ready for the new film yet.”

Why did St John the Warrior become the Studio’s holy patron?

It was definitely God’s will that St John the Warrior became our holy patron. We were going through serious troubles in the months leading up to the creation of our Studio, and we were advised to pray to St John the Warrior. Praise the Lord, the troubles passed. It was precisely at that period when we kept asking St John the Warrior for his intercession, that Father Andrew blessed us to pray to him as our patron saint. We have been reading the Akathist to St John literally from the very beginning of our Studio.

Strangely enough, St John always accompanied us. At first, the audio and the video departments of our studio were in the same place. Dmitry Kuntsevich, who is a fresco painter and the head of our mosaic workshop, painted a fresco of St John in just one night. It was a masterpiece: his inspiration poured out onto the wall and transformed its surface into the saint’s image! Later, when the two departments grew in numbers so much that the initial premises were no longer enough, we moved to a building on the Convent’s grounds. All of a sudden, we found out that another fresco appeared on the wall of that building. This time, it was painted by Nun Martha (Matveyeva) very quickly; and it was equally amazing.

Which projects have been especially dear to you and made you happy?

I recall our first serious audio show: the Life of the Holy Martyr Grand Princess Elisabeth. That project was carried out by great people and amazing professionals. Add to this the fantastic background music… In my opinion, this work of art dedicated to our saint was impeccable.

I can’t but mention our audio projects for children. Our musical fairy tales are just spectacular! Just listen to Good Friends. Our audio fairy tales were created in various styles and they turned out to be beautiful and inspirational. Of course, I would also like to recommend our cartoons: they are so colourful and exciting!

I finally managed to accomplish my long-time aspiration to make a documentary about our Father Andrew. In all honesty, the film was born in pain, both creative and emotional. It took a lot of effort for the film director Halina Adamovich to shoot the film and especially to finish it.

It looks like all genuine masterpieces are born in pain, aren’t they?

I don’t know… There are films that are made easily and quickly, like the fresco painted overnight. Sometimes, people have to suffer repeating things all over again…

The film Two Andrews that you’ve mentioned is famous and popular far beyond the borders of Belarus, as are The Nun and Three Parables. These films have won numerous international awards. Did you expect their success? How can you explain their popularity?

We came to a festival with our Community Candle documentary, and won the Grand-Prix again. A woman from the jury steps forward and announces, “Belarusians got the first prize again…” (laughs). That’s how it happens. I don’t know why.

What are the spiritual lessons that you have learned thanks to your obedience as the head of the Studio, having spent so many years in charge of this studio and having been responsible for so many people and so many projects?

After all those years, I find it easy to talk with truck drivers and the brothers who stay in the rehab of the Convent. Perhaps, everything went well thanks to obedience. God builds everything up, and we are only capable of destroying what He has built. All good comes from him, while all bad comes from us…

How did you manage to get along with so many creative people?

Oh, I didn’t. I made them work, and work, and work… I insisted that they had to work hard until they came up with a great product. The advisory board would meet to watch the film, criticise it and send back to the director to keep working. The director would sigh and continue to work.

So, is hard work the main lesson that you’d like to share?

One has to be enthusiastic and industrious to make a film. With that said, everyone could express themselves and realise their potential at the Studio.

The art of cinema is one of the most sought-after visual arts. Do you think that it is able to influence a person’s decision to turn to God and come to the Church?

God can use any tool. I read The Master and Margarita when I was in eighth grade—and it was the book that led me to God, even though it’s really horrible… It’s a complete mystery when and why God opens one’s heart and the person finds God.

Interviewed by Maria Kotova

August 12, 2018

St. Elisabeth Convent

None of us, the people living on earth today, remembers – and cannot remember – from which glory our forefather Adam fell off once. However, the fact that the fall occurred, the fact that something irreversible happen to the humankind, the fact that the man fell from the great height to the dreadful depth – this fact is known to all the peoples and every civilization tried to find the answer about the reasons of that universal catastrophe.

However, no matter what guess about those reasons people had, the Lord came to His creature Himself; He gave the answers to all the bothering questions of being by Himself; He brought Himself and placed His Blood and Body in people’s hands. And the bright time of the Nativity of Christ came. Christ came to this world and brought light as it is said in the Book of Isaiah: “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, upon them a light has shined” (Isaiah 9:2). The Mother of God served the great mystery: She sacrificed Herself to God, Who would sacrifice Himself to people.

According to the Gospel story, Virgin Mary was about to give birth right at the time when Roman emperor Augustus issued an edict annoncing the beginning of the general census of the Roman Empire population. Many people had to come back to their native cities and villages to participate in the census in the place of their origin. Virgin Mary and Joseph arrived to Bethlehem, the land of David, but they just could not find a place to stay because there were too many people in the city. They had to stay in a den, where shepherds used to shelter with their cattle from bad weather.

Here, in the most “humble” place, in the most miserable and poor place, in the most remote place of the Roman Empire, Virgin Mary gave birth to Her Son, the King of the kings and the Lord of the lords, to Whom all the heavenly forces serve with trembling. As it is sung in one of the old Russian Christmas chants, “there was no gold at all where He was lying in His cradle”. Jesus Christ came to this world not to reign over people although He was the King of Israel, but to serve and sacrifice Himself for the salvation of many others.

How did that event affect Virgin Mary? Was she waiting with joy and trembling for the coming of the Divine Infant? With hope and concern at the same time? “But Mary kept all these things and pondered them in her heart” (Luke 2:19). The Gospel does not tell us about the feelings and worries of the Mother of God throughout Her whole life. In general, we know rather little about Her. However, as Fr. Alexander Schmemann wrote, even if we knew absolutely nothing about the Mother of God except that She was called Mary, the Church would anyway surround Her with love, loyalty and respect.

And now Mary’s Son is lying in the manger, warming by the breathing of the ox and donkey, while his blessed Mother is looking at Him with love. In this image, the humanity will see so much warmth, love and hope that it will remain in people’s minds forever. No matter how the enemies strive to burn this image out of the human’s memory and history, it will never happen. “For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. and His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this” (Isaiah 9:6-7).

The word of St. Gregory the Theologian:

“O new commingling; O strange conjunction; the Self-Existent comes into being, the Uncreated is created. That which cannot be contained is contained... He Who gives riches becomes poor, for He assumes the poverty of my flesh, that I may assume the richness of His Godhead. He that is full empties Himself… What are the riches of His Goodness? What is this mystery that is around me?.. He partakes of my flesh that He may both save the image and make the flesh immortal”.

Reflections in the Church tradition:

Kontakion — Tone 3

Today the Virgin gives birth to the Transcendent One, and the earth offers a cave to the Unapproachable One! Angels with shepherds glorify Him! The wise men journey with a star! Since for our sake the Eternal God was born as a Little Child!

End of Part IV

To be continued…

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Question: "I currently go to a relatively traditional parish, however, recently it has been suggested that we add chairs to our parish, and I can't help but be deeply troubled by the proposal. Am I making a mountain out of a molehill?"

Answer: Pews are certainly not traditional. No Christians of any stripe used them prior to the Protestant Reformation. But you often do find Orthodox parishes that use pews today, in the United States and in other parts of the world in which Orthodox parishes were established, where surrounding heterodox Christians have long used them.

Protestants adopted pews, because they suited services that revolved around long sermons, and such services tended to not have much left in the way of the traditional aspects of Christian worship. But for most of Church history, such things were unheard of.

We see in Scripture that the normal attitude of prayer is standing. Christ said in the Gospels:

"And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses" (Mark 11:25).

In the parable of the Publican and Pharisee, we find that when they went to the Temple to pray, both the Publican and the Pharisee stood when they prayed:

"Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner" (Luke 18:10-13).

You also have references to bowing and kneeling in prayer (1 Kings 8:54; Daniel 6:10; Acts 9:40; Numbers 16:22), but you don't find many references to people sitting during corporate worship. It is traditional to have seating along the walls of churches for those who are unable to stand throughout the service, but nothing like the pews we see in many churches today.

There are parishes even in the Russian Church Abroad that have pews. These tend to be older parishes that were established during either the pre-revolutionary period, or during the period of the American Metropolia prior to the post World War II wave of immigration (which is most typical of the older mainstream ROCOR parishes). This is due, I think, to the pressure to assimilate (which was even stronger during those periods than it is today). So obviously, the fact that such parishes exist, and continue to use pews would suggest that our bishops do not consider pews to be intolerable, but our bishops clearly do not encourage them either, which is why you don't see them in most or our parishes.

If you are in a parish that has had pews for generations, you probably are not going to get any where by opposing them, and so you would need to come to terms with them, if there were no better options to consider. But in a situation in which a parish is considering pews (or rows of chairs, that amount to the same thing), one should certainly express respectful opposition to the idea. However, if those in authority decide to put them in, continuing to oppose them would not be a very healthy position to be in... and so again, you would have to either come to accept the facts on the ground, or look elsewhere, if there were other options.

There is a difficult balance one has to strike with such things. We want to be traditional, but on the other hand, we do not want to be a source of scandal or division in a parish. Obviously, there are some abnormalities that one could not possibly come to terms with, even to tolerate them for as long as one had no other parishes in the area to consider, but I would not put pews in that category.

Pews do tend to make the congregation feel like spectators in the services, rather than participants. On the other hand, because we live in a culture in which people are used to sitting through most of a service, there is a tendency in parishes that do not have pews for people to congregate along the walls, and thus not make full use of the worship space. One option I have seen that I think works pretty well, is the use of movable benches with no backs (they seat about 3 to four people, as I recall), that are placed in parts of the Nave of the Church. I observed this in the Old Rite parish in Erie, Pennsylvania, and in my opinion, it worked well, without the usual problems that pews bring, and I don't think I have seen a parish whose services were more pious than that parish.

On their website, they explain when people should sit on these pews:

"Most Old Rite faithful try to arrive on time for the services. The benches located in the Church of the Nativity are placed there because the faithful usually arrive several minutes before services begin, thus, allowing them a place to sit before services commence. Also, it is still the practice of the Old Rite to read the liturgically-appointed homilies during Matins and/or Vigils. During the reading of these homilies the faithful sit and listened attentively. When the services do begin, the faithful stand with arms folded with as little shifting of feet and body as necessary."

Because these benches have no backs, it is not very comfortable to sit in them throughout the services anyway. However, they still have benches along the walls for those who do need to sit throughout the services due to age or infirmity.

By Fr. John Whiteford

Source: fatherjohn.blogspot.com

Quite often, it seems to us that our questions and doubts have no answer; that they destroy the image of the world that the religion paints; and that… they are absolutely unique. We stop looking for the truth when in fact, the reason for our unwillingness to continue looking for truth is our laziness. Every person has a decent knowledge of some facts of lesser importance from the standpoint of a person’s posthumous existence and the eternal life, e.g., professional knowledge, politics, economy, technologies, and sports facts. Unfortunately, our level of proficiency in the practical religious experiences accumulated by the human race and our understanding of the meaning of our lives is extremely low. As a rule, people possess an astonishingly naïve and superficial understanding of all those issues. We lack the basic information about the methods that our ancestors used to tackle the essential questions, what they were seeking, what they based their philosophies on, what their best representatives achieved, and who their spiritual leaders were. We have an immense advantage over the previous generations due to so many books, the ability to ask priests online, to go to church freely, and the availability of pilgrimages to holy places. What is more, our questions tend to be quite common, and there are dozens of answers to those questions in many sources. We would like to give you several pieces of advice concerning the most typical questions.

There are many people who would like to take a neutral position with regard to God: we are not against the Church but prefer to stay away from Her; we believe in God in our heart. Unfortunately, it’s self-deception, a fake faith.

There is no middle ground in the spiritual realm: if we don’t pursue God, we reject him and create our own ideals.

There can be a powerful temptation to criticize people who go to church and to point at their bad actions in order to justify one’s inaction. Don’t make this mistake. The people you are so eager to condemn are on the road which leads to the purification and salvation of their souls, and the Church has given them all the necessary tools and means to accomplish that. No one becomes holy by the very fact of entering the Church. However, if you come to Church, you have found the only way that leads to holiness.

We are often quick to idealize a priest and then be disappointed as we find out the priest’s numerous shortcomings. Priests are transmitters of God’s grace and love to us thanks to the Apostolic succession that they receive during the ordination; in all other respects, they are humans just like everybody else, with their own good and bad personal traits. Don’t waste your time trying to find a “unique” priest who corresponds to your ideas about a “real” priest. It won’t do you any good but will easily help you to explain off why you don’t go to church.

You read about wrongdoings of clergy in the papers and don’t go to church because of that? It’s no different from a patient’s refusal to go to a hospital due to low-quality medical care instead of looking for a good doctor. Even if there is only one doctor in the whole country who is capable of healing their mortal bodies, people stand in lines to see him. We are speaking of the immortal soul and the eternal life. Even the most die-hard detractors of the Church don’t claim that 100 per cent of Her servants are unworthy of their ecclesiastical rank. Let us avoid mixing things up. The Church is a place where a human being meets God in the Sacrament of Eucharist (See: how to prepare for Communion), not a metropolitan’s palaces or the notorious priests in Mercedes Benz cars.

The Orthodox faith puts you off by its dogmatism. You are a modern, forward-looking person, and you value freedom of opinion. Try substituting the word ‘dogmatic’ for ‘eternal’ (if you are still frightened of it, see here). If anyone tells you that the Church prohibits watching TV or reading books about Father Brown, don’t believe them. Only your conscience and your spiritual experience can restrain you.

Be ready for external and internal obstacles on your road to the faith. You are not alone: these obstacles are called ‘temptations’. You will be surrounded by lots of brilliant prospects, unexpected worries, attractions, and perhaps even troubles. Stand firm, for If God be for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:31).

You’re afraid of doing something wrong in church and being scolded by “angry old ladies”. Currently, it almost never happens. The vast majority of priests stop such attacks. If someone comments on your behavior, pay attention: it may be reasonable. If you run into a conflict in church, be calm, polite, and firm. Remember that the old lady has never been appointed to give advice or admonish anyone. (And see the previous tip, too). Read more about church etiquette.

Avoid pseudo-Orthodox horror stories. Thrilling stories about social security numbers as the ‘number of the Beast’; about present-day prophets; about exact dates of the end of the world have nothing in common with the Orthodox faith. It is meaningless to waste your time fighting external enemies when you haven’t put your inner self under control.

You shouldn’t keep feeling ‘not ready for the Church’ and continue to delay your conversion to the faith. Don’t be afraid of mistakes. You cannot learn to swim if you don’t get into the water.

You are a free person, and you will remain free when you come to church. The Orthodox Church is not a sect. No one and nothing but your faith will dictate you how to build your life; no one will coerce you into doing anything or limit your freedom. On the other hand, your concept of freedom will acquire a completely new and wonderful meaning after you turn to the faith. And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free (John 8:32).

By Anatoly Badanov

Translated by The Catalog of Good Deeds

Source: dishupravoslaviem.ru

Both you and I have a long way to go to humility. We don’t know what humility is, for it is an attribute of the saints. Thankfulness is an attribute that we — each one of us — can acquire at any moment.

Metropolitan Anthony of Sourozh

***

- What is humility?

- Humility is the ability to stick to God’s will always, in any situation and at any moment.

- This is not the definition of humility that we’re used to. How do we tally it with the understanding of humility as “feeling inferior to others”, which is typical of so many spiritual books?

- Metropolitan Anthony of Sourozh used to say that we must be very cautious when talking about humility, for it is an attribute of the saints. Their works are written in plain language; when we read them, it appears to us that we understand what the holy authors meant. Yet, the Very Rev Dr John Behr, a famous Orthodox theologian from St Vladimir Orthodox Theological Seminary, who spent twenty years researching the works of the Holy Fathers, points out that they had a radically different way of looking at things. That is why it isn’t enough for us to pick up certain seeds of wisdom from their books. What we should begin with is learning to perceive things their way.

- How is humility born?

Humility is the fruit of love. Metropolitan Anthony of Sourozh stated that humility is born when a human is amazed at God and God’s love. One starts to humble himself when he discovers that the LORD is good (Ps. 34:8). At that point, God’s will is revealed to that person not as something external and coercive but as the innermost law of life, and a more abundant one (Cf. John 10:10). This is when an individual begins to trust God for real and to rely on his will and his commandments as the best possible path and the best answer in any situation. As a rule, we force ourselves into submission to God’s will. However, true humility, rooted in the knowledge of God, loyalty, openness, and amazement at the love and the goodness of the Lord, unveils God’s will to us as the greatest and the most suitable option. The true humility based on the knowledge of God and genuine love is natural. When we suddenly decide to be humble, it’s merely an imitation, a fake. That is, we approach humility from the wrong direction.

- What should we do to master true humility?

According to Metropolitan Anthony of Sourozh, we should first of all learn to be honest with ourselves, God, and other people. Honesty is the beginning of true humility. You can’t build genuine relationships of love and friendship with another person if you lack honesty, trust, and openness. When you use tricks and lies, your relationships break up immediately. Likewise, you can’t have any relationship with God if you aren’t honest with yourself and with God in your prayers, your repentance, and your confession; if we don’t fight the desire to look at ourselves with someone else’s eyes and to make a false impression.

Of course, we should learn from Jesus Christ by reading the Gospel and following his example: Learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart (Matthew 11:29). Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. (Philippians 2:5-8). Remember his Prayer in the Garden: Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done. (Luke 22:42). Jesus Christ has two natures, the human and the divine; He has two wills, and his human will was voluntarily conquered by the Divine will through obedience, openness, true humility, and self-sacrifice. God does not suggest that we do something that He didn’t do, something that He didn’t set an example of when He walked among us. When He became human, Jesus has shown to us full humility, obedience, and openness to the will of God the Father; He wants us to come and partake of his life, his attributes and traits. So be it, O Lord!

With that in mind, aware of the plentiful God’s love, how can we forget about being grateful and faithful to Christ? Honesty and thankfulness are at the outset of our path towards humility, and therefore, to Christ and His Kingdom. That is how Metropolitan Anthony of Sourozh saw it.

Prepared by Nun Matrona (Lukashova)

August 13, 2018

St. Elisabeth Convent

All parents in every generation worry about their kids, and try to keep them safe. They not only do this by not letting them play in traffic or jab sharp sticks into hornets’ nests, but also by warning them against perennial dangers. In my gentler generation, my parents warned me about traffic dangers, urging me to look both ways before I crossed the street, and to extend my hand while crossing, making sure that the cars had stopped. When older I was warned against the dangers of “taking drugs”, a warning echoed in the wider culture (“Just Say No to Drugs”). A younger generation (my kids) were exhorted not to talk to strangers, and not to get into a car with them, even if they did promise you candy and they seemed nice. I even taught my kids a secret password, in case anyone came to get them at school claiming to be sent by me; if they did not give the password, our kids knew those claiming to be sent by me or their mother were lying. Increasing availability of drugs and increased reports of child abductions on the six o’clock news told us we were living in dangerous times. We needed to teach our children well if they were to survive, and grow up strong and healthy.

The times have become even more dangerous for children as we descend further and further into spiritual barbarism and as every last trace of Christian faith and morals is banned and banished from our western culture. It was physically dangerous to live in Europe during the time when the Black Death raged unchecked throughout the land; it is spiritually dangerous to live in North America now during this time of moral decay, and of these two dangers, the latter danger is the worse. Indeed, there is probably no more dangerous place on earth to live than in North America right now.

The dangers are many and varied, but here I refer to the danger that comes from the flood of pornography which sweeps our land like a demonic tsunami—or, to vary the metaphor, like an unchecked and raging pandemic. Lust was always a temptation for both genders, though some would argue that the temptation affected men more violently. Accordingly in every generation prostitutes plied their trade, winning the dubious accolade as “the world’s oldest profession”. (If the Genesis creation stories have anything to teach us, they teach us that farming is actually the world’s oldest profession, but never mind.) Also accordingly, previous generations bought pornographic images. In my day what passed for pornography consisted of pictures of naked women, posed coyly behind beach balls or draped over furniture. Playboy magazine specialized in such, and did its best to make such images mainstream and acceptable. I remember a Hustler magazine editor heatedly denying that what he published in his magazines was pornography. He claimed it was “art”. It was nonsense, of course, and his aim was simply to make money through the commodification of the female body (a form of visual prostitution). Even the people buying the stuff knew that it was not art but pornography, which is why it was often mailed to them in the advertised “plain brown wrapper”, and which is why stores selling it kept it behind the counter. The satisfaction of lust was the aim, and no one ever really read Playboy for the stories, no matter what they claimed.

But times have changed, and not for the better. Now the pornographic industry specializes not so much in coy images of naked women, but in sexual violence and female degradation. Women are referred to by a host of names no Christian should ever use, and subjected to practices that any sane person would regard as torture. Such things are not the occasional exceptions on the fringes for the pornographic industry. They are now the norm. And all this has become freely available through the internet. No one now needs to steel oneself to go into a store and ask for the naughty magazine kept behind the counter. One only needs access to a computer and with the click of a key or two, a multitude of images come flooding into one’s private room for free. And with the availability of “smart phones” able to access the internet anywhere, one doesn’t even need a private room. One can download images in school or at McDonald’s.

The danger and problem with this freely available porn is not just that it is sinful. It is sinful, of course, but the problem is graver than that. The real danger is that our young boys are feeding on such images at a younger and younger age, before they begin to have real relationships with girls, and these pornographic images and practices badly skew their developing understanding of sexuality. When therefore they later come to relate to girls and women, they will not regard the female as a person worthy of respect, self-sacrifice, and gallantry. The pornographic images will have dehumanized the female, and sex will not be about relationship, but about cruelty, debasement and the infliction of pain upon the vulnerable. Please note that I said “the vulnerable”, and not necessarily “the adult vulnerable”. All pornography eventually ends in child pornography, for none are more vulnerable than children. Pornography is addictive, for one becomes quickly and increasingly desensitized, and to get the same psychic “kick” one requires ever more explicit and shocking images, ever greater hardcore cruelty. The defenders of Fifty Shades of Grey should take note, for the book and its movie are symptoms of a new sickness, and an impetus for further descent into the degradation of women. That the book has been written, and the movie directed by women reveals just how badly feminism has lost its way.

The current availability of hardcore porn for young boys represents a frontal assault on their healthy development as men. It is now possible that an entire generation of men will arise who regard sexuality simply as an instrument for debasing women, and who make “Bros before hoes” their unspoken motto. Part of our task as parents is to warn our children of this danger, and to help them regard pornography as a dangerous temptation in the same way that ingesting crystal meth or heroin is a dangerous temptation. It must be avoided for the same reason—because it is addictive and will harm you. In this dangerous world, we must teach our children well. And the first step to teaching them well is to practice what we preach. If we would warn them of the dangers of porn, we must keep our hearts clean, and have nothing to do with it ourselves.

By Fr. Lawrence Farley

Source: http://frlawrencefarley.blogspot.com/2015/02/teach-your-children-well.html

Many people, especially those who are only in the beginning of their spiritual life, often like to think about the "last times", the coming of anti-Christ and the end of the world. However, we often forget about the unique events that have already had place about 2000 years ago. The last times in the history of the humankind have already begun with those events – no matter how much time it would take for the Second Coming of Lord Jesus Christ to happen on earth, the Church is already living in the period after the Descent of the Holy Spirit, the period of a new aeon and is already anticipating and revealing the Kingdom of Heaven in the Divine Liturgy.

None of these would happen if only the humanity could not show God the beautiful and pure flower – our Heavenly Queen, the Mother of God and Ever-virgin Mary, the One Who managed to bear the burden that no one could ever bear.

As St. Apostle and Evangelist Luke writes, “Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. And having come in, the angel said to her, “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!” (Luke 1:26-28).

Indeed, that wonderful greeting was the first Gospel itself, for it was the first time since the fall of the ancestors when people heard such an exclamation: “Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you!” With that greeting of the angel, the Lord righted the ancient condemnation that had been put on Eve: “I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; in pain you shall bring forth children; your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you” (Genesis 3:16).

So, if we say Christ is a new Adam because He is the originator of a new redeemed humanity, then Virgin Mary becomes a new Eve, who has obeyed God’s commandment. “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word” (Luke 1:38), She said and thus gave the Lord an opportunity to save us. Without her consent, without her respond to the angelic message, our salvation would be just impossible: God love us and respects our free will, granted us by Him, and thus we had to be involved in our own salvation.

Virgin Mary said “yes” and the ancient prophecy of Prophet Isaiah came to life: “Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14). And the words of Job do not seem so strange to us anymore: “For I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at last on the earth; and after my skin is destroyed, this I know, that in my flesh I shall see God, Whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another. How my heart yearns within me!” (Job 19:25-27) At the very moment when Mary agreed to become the Mother of Lord Jesus Christ, the door to the resurrection of any flesh opened.

Not without reason the icon of the Annunciation surrounded by four Evangelists is depicted on the Royal doors of the iconostasis in Orthodox churches. Through the Annunciation we got the possibility to save ourselves, to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. The Annunciation is the very first Gospel that is delivered to us through four canonical Gospels of holy apostles Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, which also reminds us about the Church hierarchy due to which our Church can be called the Apostolic one. Through the Annunciation and Mary’s consent, God incarnated in our world and now we can unite with Him in the most mysterious and sincere way – partaking of His Body and His Blood. All of these became possible at the moment of the Annunciation, when Virgin Mary agreed to serve in the work of our salvation, performed by Jesus Christ.

The word of St. John Chrysostom:

“And he [the Archangel] received all the commandments like these [from the Lord]: “Come, O Angel, become a servant of this awesome mystery. Serve this hidden wonder, as an answer to fallen Adam, who will come under my compassion. Sin has made he that is fashioned in my image to grow old, and has soiled my creation, and has darkened where I created beauty. The wolf has scattered my flock. The dwelling place of Paradise has become a desert. The Tree of Life is guarded by the flaming sword, and the place of nourishment is closed. I have mercy on him who was attacked, and I wish to make war with him who fought against him [i.e. the devil]. I wish for all of the heavenly powers to know, but to you alone I impart the mystery. Go to the Virgin Mary, go to the Spiritual Gate, of which the Prophet said: “Glorious things have been said of you, O City of God.” Go to my Rational Paradise. Go to the Eastern City. Go to her who is the worthy dwelling-place of the Word. Go to the second Heaven on earth. Go to the Light Cloud. Tell her of my coming, the Thunderstorm. Go to her who is my prepared holy place. Go to the Bridal Chamber of my incarnation. Go to the pure Bridal Chamber of my nativity in the flesh. Speak to the ears of this rational Ark, to prepare the entrance of my hearing. But do not be fearsome, do not trouble the soul of the Virgin...First cry out to her with a voice of joy, and tell Mariam: “Hail, O Full-of-grace,” that I might have mercy on Eve, who is full-of-shame.”

Reflections in the Church tradition:

Troparion — Tone 4

Today is the beginning of our salvation, the revelation of the eternal mystery! The Son of God becomes the Son of the Virgin as Gabriel announces the coming of Grace. Together with him let us cry to the Theotokos: Rejoice, O Full of Grace, the Lord is with You!

End of Part III

To be continued…

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