The Catalog of Good Deeds

Effective prayer can be a struggle. So often when I approach my prayer time I find my mind distracted so that I simply go though a routine without any feelings. Usually, I memorize many of the prayers I say daily in addition to my intercessory prayers. Memorization etches the prayer in my mind making it available to me at any time.

What happens frequently, though, is that my mind takes control and begins to pray automatically This is not a good sign. Why? Because our prayers need to come from the heart with feeling and an awareness that we are engaged in a dialogue with God. We need to have the awe of His presence as we pray. An automatic prayer is not really a prayer. A prayer must come from the heart with feeling and understanding. I find I must continually remind myself of this. Too often I fall into the trap of just putting in my time to fulfill my prayer rule. It is not about the time we spend in prayer, but the sincerity with which we pray that is of the most importance.

Saint Theophan says,

When you are at prayer, recite your prayer or psalm from memory, and embrace each word, not just with thought, but with feeling. If during this your own prayerful cries arise from some word of the psalm or prayer, do not cut them off, but let them come.

We are taught to have a prayer rule and to stick with each day. We are told to memorize our routine prayers. But the danger is that our prayer time becomes too routine and we do not "embrace each word, not just with thought but with feeling." We can easily fly through our prayer rule, like we are on automatic pilot, and never allow for those precious moments of spontaneous prayer where our heart is fully open realizing God's mercy and help.

We do not need to have a complex set of prayers for effective prayer. We can have an effective prayer time with only one simple prayer such as the Jesus Prayer or the Lord's Prayer. But, we must be attentive to each word as we repeat the prayer over and over for our allotted prayer time. The words must drop into our heart and penetrate it deeply with feeling. With such attention, our hearts are opened and God's grace reaches out to embrace us with His mercy.

Saint Theophan says,

Labor, for nothing will come from you otherwise. If you are not successful in prayer, do not expect success in anything else. It is the root off everything.

Source: http://orthodoxwayoflife.blogspot.com.by/2011/10/my-struggle-in-prayer.html

Do we cooperate in our salvation? Do our efforts make a difference?

These questions lie at the heart of a centuries-old religious debate in Christianity. Classically, the Protestant reformers said, “No,” to these questions, arguing that we are saved solely and utterly by God’s grace, His unmerited favor. The Catholic Church replied that “faith without works” is dead and that faith alone is insufficient.

This debate, with various twists and turns, has continued down through the centuries of Christian culture. At one point, there were complaints of “cheap grace,” where the exaltation of pure grace over works led to a very complacent and lazy Christianity. There were also periods of extreme reaction, with guilt-driven excesses of devotion.

Eastern Orthodoxy is a late-comer to this debate, but it is not a stranger. Contemporary Orthodox are quick to latch on to the doctrine of “synergy” and take sides against the cheap grace of Protestant Evangelicalism. Classically, Orthodox thought holds both that we are saved through the action of God (grace), but that we necessarily cooperated in that work (synergy=cooperation). For many converts, this balance has seemed attractive and a needed corrective to the feel-good theology of contemporary Christian culture. But it has a dark side.

That dark side is found in the echoes of the guilt-ridden specters of works-righteousness. How much cooperation is enough? For it is obvious that we do not pray as we should or give as we should – or do anything as we should. If our cooperation is required, are we failing? For many in our culture the answer is inevitably, “Yes.” They never do enough, anywhere at any time. Their lives are haunted with disapproval and shame, well-worn paths that rarely let them venture into joy.

But it is a mistake to embrace synergy as part of the classical Protestant/Catholic debate. It was an answer to a question asked in a very different context and in centuries that long-predated the modern conversation. Synergy is not a talking-point within the grace-versus-works debate.

Synergy is certainly an affirmation of the human role in salvation. Its most famous example is found in the ‘yes’ of the Mother of God in the Incarnation of Christ. Her acceptance and embrace of the heavenly announcement are seen as necessary components in God-becoming-man. God does not impose Himself upon human freedom. Our free response is required for the life of true Personhood that is the hallmark of salvation.

Synergy is properly seen as response rather than work. The whole life of salvation is marked by grace and is gracious in all its aspects. Consider this statement in St. Paul:

Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt. But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness…(Rom 4:4-5).

There is a kind of work that has no wages and does not belong to the world of debt described by St. Paul. And it is this sort of work that is encompassed in the term synergy. That work can be described as gracious response. It is worth noting two instances in which the work of our spiritual lives is described:

Then they said to Him, “What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?”

Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.” (Joh 6:28-29)

and

Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. (1Th 5:16-18)

In the first case, “work” is equated with believing. It means that the work we do is to love Christ and to keep His commandments. In the second case, the “will of God” is fulfilled in giving thanks for all things. The dynamic of saving grace in our lives is marked by becoming like God. God gives graciously and freely. We receive graciously and freely by giving thanks for all things.

In this manner, our own “work” is itself marked by a kind of grace. We cannot hear the meaning of grace in English, but in the Greek, it also carries the meaning of “gift” (it’s the same word). Gifts are never given with an expectation of return – they are gracious and free. But they are only rightly received with thanksgiving. This is true of the life of grace in the believer.

There is a highly moralized version of synergy, in which God is seen to give us grace, but we must do something in our lives to make it effective. In this model we are always judging the “results” of our “cooperation” with grace, and assuming that the lousy outcomes we see are simply our fault. This experience becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy of failure and remorse. It is a distortion of grace-filled synergy.

I have written (and been criticized for it) about the “unmoral Christian.” My intention has been to unmask and disarm this false notion of synergy. We indeed are not saved through the “works” that Protestants tend to criticize. The “work” we do is largely a state of heart from which all subsequent grace-empowered actions flow. That state of heart is best described as “grateful thanksgiving.” The Eucharistic life is the true existence of the Christian. The giving of thanks is the first of all works and the sine qua non of the spiritual life. Everything that proceeds from the giving of thanks works to our salvation. That which does not proceed from the giving of thanks tends to work to our destruction.

There has grown up a virtual cottage industry of Orthodox commentary (particularly on the internet where all of us can self-publish). This commentary (including that by some priests) is often marked by poor theological training or understanding, by argument and debate, and by an extreme lack of experience in the actual guidance of souls towards healing and salvation. That is to say – much of it is worthless and some of it is actually damaging.

This can especially be true in discussions of synergy. The wrong treatment of such pastoral matters can produce despair and distrust in naive readers whose expectations have been raised through the reading of the lives of the saints and yet whose experience is marked by the same repeated moral failures that they have always known. Well-intentioned but ignorant writers argue that what is needed is yet more moral goading. I have been criticized for possibly lightening the moral load or suggesting that all moral effort is of no use.

One form of moral effort (the most common) is indeed of no use. It belongs to the same category as the works criticized by Protestant theology. We pray, with no understanding, laboring to complete a prayer rule that amounts to little more than “going through the motions.” We fast as though every slip were a matter of sin in need of confession. Some go so far as to carefully search through the labels on every grocery product, seeking for tale-tell signs of “milk products,” having invented for themselves a new yoke of bondage that turns Orthodox fasting into a new version of kosher. In short, there is a form of asceticism that is ill-taught and ill-practiced and produces either despairing Christians or oppressive Pharisees (sometimes in one and the same person).

The grounding of the Christian life is thanksgiving. If you cannot fast with thanksgiving, your fast will be of little use. The same extends to all Christian practices and commandments. The essential work of the Christian life is grateful thanksgiving. It is for this reason that Fr. Alexander Schmemann wrote: “Anyone capable of thanksgiving is capable of salvation.”

There are very deep forms of asceticism, but even these are rightly rooted in the giving of thanks. In the 20th century, perhaps no saint is better known for his ascetical achievements than St. Silouan of Athos. He is known to have endured some 15 years of the experience of hell in his prayers. At its depth, he heard Christ say, “Keep your mind in hell and despair not.” His interpreter and biographer, the Elder Sophrony of Essex, however, is reported to have said, “If you will give God thanks always and for all things, you will fulfill the saying, ‘Keep your mind in hell and despair not.’”

The first duty of a spiritual father is to lead a soul into the practice of giving thanks. In this manner they will acquire the Spirit of Peace and be able to sustain the Christian life. But without thanksgiving, they will only fall into despair or delusion. Thanksgiving is the foundation of the Christian life. When this is understood and in place, other things can be properly understood.

For example, it is common to read in the spiritual writings of Orthodoxy (and to hear in the services) terms such as “self-loathing.” This is quite common, for example, in the Elder Sophrony’s work. It is very easily taken in the wrong way and those without a proper foundation will likely come away with a terrible distortion.

“Self-loathing,” in the sense that it is used, is not brought about by the contemplation of our sins (a moral condemnation and disgust with the self). It is rather brought about by the contemplation of God’s love and His fullness of being. It is only as we see ourselves in the light of God Himself, that we can “achieve” the “self-loathing” that Sophrony describes. But even this is joyful, because it takes place in the gracious presence of the grace-giving God.

Thanksgiving, as gracious gift, draws us into the very life of the Trinity. For it is that Life that is described by St. John Chrysostom in his Liturgy:

The priest prays: “…but account me, Your sinful and unworthy servant, worthy to offer gifts to You. For You are the Offerer and the Offered, the Receiver and the Received, O Christ our God, and to You we ascribe glory, together with Your Father, Who is without beginning, and Your all-holy, good, and life-creating Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages.”

It is this gifting life of the Offerer and the Offered, the Receiver and the Received that we enter as we rightly give thanks always for all things. This is our work, our true synergy, without which we cannot be saved.

By Fr. Stephen Freeman

Source: https://blogs.ancientfaith.com/glory2godforallthings/2015/04/17/the-work-that-saves/

A prosphora in the Church is the symbol of Christ. Each ingredient has its own meaning.

A prosphora consists of two parts, which symbolize two natures of Jesus Christ – the human one and the Divine one. At first, each part is prepared separately and then they are joined together. The round form of the prosphora is the sign of eternity and is a reminder that a human is created for eternity.

Flour, water and salt joined by fire symbolize that God united with us, He gives us assistance and support. What is more, it means that he fully accepted our nature.

The secrets begin…

The best sorts of flour are used for making dough. Then leaven and salt are added in it and are mixed in with clean water.

However, not all flour is suited for this. If you hope to go to your local store and buy some, then you can condemn the whole process. This is why prosphora bakers work only with reliable suppliers, who understand the importance of flour quality.

Secret 1 – where to find suitable flour? If you do not have any suppliers, you can certainly buy it in any store. But how can we determine its quality while it is packed? The main principle is not to buy flour in a plastic package. Flour must be packed in a paper package because it should “breathe” so that no processes of self-warming can occur, which can cause a musty flavor.

Check the expiration date on the package. Old flour loses its friability and can contain little bugs. You should buy only fresh flour. Bring it home, open the package, smell and taste it. It should not be sour or bitter or have any foreign flavors. If you chew the flour it should not cause the feeling of sand on your teeth.

Secret 2 is water. The quality of the finished product depends much on the purity and taste of water. As we know, the taste of water differs in different places, which leads to the fact that the taste of prosphoras differs as well.

Secret 3 is the professionalism and coherence of prosphora bakers. A prosphora should look nice and have a golden crust, which saves moisture and protects the prosphora from drying.

The equipment for mixing and rolling dough can be used in a regular baking room. Besides, you can do everything by hand. It all depends on you necessities and opportunities.

An ancient recipe of prosphoras

We need to take 1.2kg of premium flour. Usually it is finely grounded powder, which has been passed through the smallest possible sieve.

Pour on the bottom of the vessel (earlier it was a wooden barrel, today it can be a steel saucepan) a bit of holy water and pour 400g of flour, adding boiling water and mixing everything until we get a smooth mass similiar to cooked semolina. Steaming makes the dough sweet and resistant to the effect of efflorescence.

When the dough is cooled off, we need to add salt diluted with holy water and put 25g of leaven in the dough. In 30 minutes, when the dough grows, we can add the rest 800g of powder and mix everything thoroughly again.

In about 30 minutes, the dough can be placed on a table and rolled until it become as thick as necessary. Rolling can be made either by hand using a heavy pin or with the help of special equipment. As a result, the dough should be smooth and should not be crumbly. The dough for the lower parts should by 18-20mm thick, while for the upper parts it should be 11-12mm. Of course, the dough for prosphoras used in church services will be much thicker.

After the dough is rolled, it should “rest” for a while. For this, it would be better to cover the dough with a buckram.

Backing using wax

The next step is cutting into round pieces. The lower parts are made bigger then the upper ones. The shape of the lower part is corrected by hand. Then it is covered with a thick cloth and a buckram and left like this for 30 minutes. Here, we should be attentive and see that the dough does not dry out. Otherwise, the prosphoras will lose their shape and taste.

The prepared lower parts of the prosphoras are laid on the backing pan, greased with natural wax. Wax has less fat then butter and it does not leave any marks on prosphoras. What is more, using butter is impossible according to the Church canons.

If there is no wax, it is possible to use backing pans made of food aluminium since they should not be greased win anything. However, in this case the prosphoras will lose their sunny color and honey flavor. The same can be mentioned about various non-stick backing pans.

The upper parts are sealed with a stamp of the necessary size. As a rule, different monasteries have different stamps, which makes them the signs of this or that prosphora bakery.

When both parts are ready, they are joined together. The place where they are joined is moistened with water and the upper part is pushed on the lower part. It should be done carefully so that the seal is not harmed.

After that, both parts of the prosphora should be pierced with a needle to let the air out. This will help to avoid formation of cavities inside and will ensure maximum consistence of the prosphora.

The metal backing pan with prosphoras is put into the oven heated at 200-250 degrees and then they are baked at this temperature until they are ready (up to 15 minutes for small prosphoras and for about 20 minutes for service prosphoras). They should become gold by color. It is necessary to check all the time whether they are burnt or not.

Rest under four blankets

After the prosphoras are taken out of the oven, they are laid on trays and covered with several coats: with a dry cloth, then with a wet cloth, then with a dry one again and finally with a blanket on the top. In such state they should “rest” for about an hour. When you become soft and cold, they are put in special baskets or boxes, in which nothing excerpt from prosphoras can be put.

Service prosphoras are prepared in the same way, but there are still certain peculiarities. The backing process should be under constant control. It is better to stop the process, needle prosphoras and push them once again to let the air out. If they begin to burn, it is needed to change the temperature.

However, even if we care about every little detail, every time the process will be slightly different. There can be no similar interaction of natural components in the nature and the outer forces influence the result as well. Be creative, and may the Lord help you!

An excerpt translated from: http://www.pravmir.ru/sekretyi-prosfornika-ili-hlebushek-s-zapahom-solntsa/

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