The Catalog of Good Deeds

“Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” (John 6:68-69)

Apostle Peter, whose previous name was Simon, was a fisherman from Bethsaida. The name Peter (Petrus, from Greek πέτρος – rock, stone) comes from the nickname Cephas (Aram. – stone), which he got from Jesus. Peter spent the largest part of his life before his meeting with Christ in a boat on the waves of the Sea of Tiberias struggling for the daily food for his family. Perhaps, the world would never know about the fisherman from Bethsaida, if only Peter’s brother Andrew did not find him and say: “We have found the Messiah” (John 1:41). It was the first meeting of the future supreme apostle with Christ.

The landscapes of the present day Bethsaida

We can say that the episode about fishing, when the apostles had a big catch by the blessing of the Lord, is the second conversion of Simon. Due to this miracle, Apostle Peter felt the holiness of Jesus Christ, His almightiness. At the same time, he understood his own sinfulness and exclaimed: “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!” – to which the Lord replied: “Do not be afraid. From now on you will catch men” (Luke 5:8, 10).

Apostle Peter was a very spirited and ardent person: it was he who asked the Lord to let him go on the water during the storm; it was he who tried to protect Christ during His arrest at Gethsemane and cut the ear of the archpriest’s slave, although the Lord did not need his help because He was going to meet death by His own will; Apostle Peter was the first one from all the disciples who confessed Jesus Christ as the Son of God and was promised that the Church of God would be based on his faith, and the gates of hell would not defeat It.

Apostle Peter cuts the slave's ear.

Despite all his sincere assurances of his loyalty, Apostle Peter renounced the Lord three times. However, the remorse for the committed sin and God’s love and mercy restored Peter in his apostolic rank. As the Church story states, Apostle Peter mourned his betrayal every morning when he heard a cock crowing.

Apostle Peter was one of the closest disciples of Jesus Christ. Together with apostles John and Jacob, he was a witness of all the miracles the Lord performed.

What St. John Chrysostom says in his works:

"Wherefore, if thou wouldest make thy good deeds great, do not think them to be great, and then they will be great. It was in this way that the centurion also said, “I am not fit that thou shouldest enter under my roof;” (Matthew 8:8) because of this, he became worthy, and was “marvelled at” above all Jews. On this wise again Paul saith, “I am not meet to be called an apostle;” (1 Corinthians 15:9) because of this he became even first of all. So likewise John: “I am not meet to loose the latchet of His shoe;” (Luke 3:16) because of this he was the “friend of the Bridegroom,” and the hand which he affirmed to be unworthy to touch His shoes, this did Christ draw unto His own head. So Peter too said, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man;” because of this he became a foundation of the Church. For nothing is so acceptable to God as to number one’s self with the last. This is a first principle of all practical wisdom. For he that is humbled, and bruised in heart, will not be vainglorious, will not be wrathful, will not envy his neighbor, will not harbor any other passion. For neither when a hand is bruised, though we strive ten thousand times, shall we be able to lift it up on high. If therefore we were thus to bruise our heart likewise, though it were stirred by ten thousand swelling passions, it could not be lifted up, no, not ever so little. For if a man, by mourning for things pertaining to this life, drives out all the diseases of his soul, much more will he, who mourns for sins, enjoy the blessing of self-restraint".

Reflections in the Holy Church tradition:

Having abandoned the fishing grounds thou didst receive from the Father Himself the revelation of the Word’s Incarnation, and as one who is privileged thou didst cry to all, saying unto thy Creator: I have known Thee as the Son of God, consubstantial with Him. Wherefore, in all truth, thou hast been worthily shown forth the Rock of the holy Faith, and thou holdest the keys of grace. Intercede, therefore, O Apostle Peter, with Christ God to grant forgiveness of iniquities to those who eagerly celebrate thy holy memorial.

To be continued…

Click here to read about the conversion of Apostle Paul.

In 2016, I began a series of interviews with African American Orthodox Christians in four regions of the United States. An integral component of a wider ethnographic research project (one combining participant observation and digital research) personal narratives offer a necessary depth of insight into an Orthodox community which still remains relatively unfamiliar to many.

While the number of African American Orthodox Christians appears to be growing, research on this particular group remains scant. Focused either on historical figures like Fr. Raphael Morgan, the first African American Orthodox priest— or on narratives gleaned from a “community of elders,” the most prominent exemplary African American Orthodox Christians, existing research can sometimes convey a single-story narrative, one not entirely untrue—but incomplete. There remains, therefore, much to be learned at the intersection of Orthodox Christianity and African American culture.

Over the course of 400 years, the shared experiences of African Americans have helped to create a uniquely American notion of blackness. The community we now refer to as the African American community is in fact comprised of genetically diverse individuals—possessing varying degrees of African ancestry. Ideas like “the one drop rule” (still prevalent in America) helped to facilitate the construction of a racial category encompassing of a diverse and heterogenous group of people.

Inherent cultural complexities are further complicated, by attitudinal differences between generations. While older African Americans may lament the disappearance of a community cohesiveness characteristic of days gone by, other African Americans may readily embrace a notion of post blackness—acknowledging African descent yet resisting all previously constructed social boundaries and cultural markers. Varying notions of blackness exist side by side and often in tension with each other. It is safe to say that regarding African American identity, there is no single story. In 2017, there are many ways to be black.

The wider African American community, an amalgamation of diverse subcultures, has been influenced by various strands of black intellectual thought. The teachings of W.E.B. Dubois, Booker T. Washington and Martin Luther King Jr. find modern expression in diverse subcultural contexts. The Harlem Renaissance and Negritude movements brought together a diverse group of blacks from Francophone African nations and the Americas. Today, we see a similar cross-fertilization of ideas taking place between African American Orthodox Christians and the Patriarchate of Alexandria and All Africa.

It is from this rich, dynamic and multifaceted community that African American Orthodox Christians have come. The former Buddhist attracted to monastic piety, the former Baptist preacher, the second-generation Orthodox military veteran and the artist turned clergyman—have all found a home in the Orthodox Church. Some were drawn to the faith after visiting a parish and having a mystical experience during the service. Others connected spiritually to Orthodox aesthetics—beautiful iconography adorning a church. For some, it was the study of scripture and church history that led them to Orthodoxy and for others it was the search for an alternative Christianity, one not affiliated with the Transatlantic Slave Trade.

Given the multicity of narratives, one might be tempted to conclude that African American Orthodox Christians share no common values. This, however, would be an erroneous assumption. Current ethnographic research seems to suggest that a set of core values is indeed emerging from within this growing community. Acceptance of these values appears to be relatively consistent regardless of age, gender, socio economic status or geographic location.

One foundational assumption to emerge from collected narratives is the belief that over the span of two generations, something has changed (for the worse) in inner-city communities. This belief is held by those residing in the inner-city, those living in suburbs and those living in rural areas. Additionally, there is a belief that negative change has occurred in historically black churches—the most negative being the growing influence of prosperity theology. The invitation to Orthodox Christianity, therefore, is seen as a call to a holy way of life, a way of life that sustained prior generations. It involves a reclamation of an identity that has been hijacked by “worldliness.”

Undergirded by the aforementioned assumptions, the following core ideas/values emerge from the African American Orthodox Christian community:

1. The Belief in a God Given Right to the Orthodox Faith — Orthodox Christianity is not proprietary to any one ethnicity, culture or nation. Becoming Orthodox, therefore, does not require the abandonment of one’s ethnic identity. One can be African American and as Orthodox as anyone with ethnic roots in a traditionally Orthodox country. This is of particular importance, given that most African American Orthodox Christians are one of a few (if not the only) African Americans in their parish.

2. Striving for Holiness is Paramount — This commitment is expressed in the frequent reading of scripture, attendance at divine liturgy, the saying of daily prayers and participation in works of mercy. It is accompanied by the complete rejection of prosperity theology and “evangelical lite” Christianity. Instead, the Desert Fathers and Mothers are examples of “true Christianity.”

3. High Regard for Father Involvement and Preservation of the “Traditional Family” Structure — Appealing to statistics regarding female-headed households and absentee fathers, African American Orthodox Christians place a high value on father involvement and family preservation. Committed mothers and fathers are seen as the key to raising faith-filled future generations.

4. Black Life Matters — Though related, this idea is not to be confused with the movement Black Lives Matter. For African American Orthodox Christians, a commitment to life means protection of the unborn, protection from police brutality and protection from white nationalist factions that have found a home in the Orthodox Church.

5. Orthodox Parishes Should Be Missional — True faith requires a commitment to community outreach, particularly to the poor, marginalized and vulnerable. The idea that one’s personal salvation is inextricably bound to one’s faithful sharing of the gospel features strongly in African American Orthodox narratives.

Historical narratives, cultural traditions and various strands of intellectual thought have shaped and continue to shape African American identities. Though comprised of diverse individuals, the African American Orthodox Christian Community has produced a set of core ideals and values reflective of a unique history and American experience.

By Lydia Kemi Ingram

Source: https://publicorthodoxy.org/tag/lydia-kemi-ingram/

"And they straightway left their nets"

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Today, on the Second Sunday after Pentecost, we celebrate the memory of all the saints of Russia who have enlightened that land and shown their light on top of the hill instead of under a bushel. What is it that makes a saint? We've talked about this last week. We read part of the same reading today as we read last week also.

When Jesus called His disciples, they left immediately, left their nets, and they didn't look back. They left with many weaknesses. We can see them. Their warts are shown in the scriptures: they argued with one another, they jousted with one another to see who would be the greatest, they had lack of faith, they even denied our Lord, and not just Peter, by the way; all of them were afraid, even St. John, who followed from a distance. They all had human frailties. But they did as the good farmer that our Lord speaks about in a parable: you put your hand to the plow. And no man who wants to plow a field looks back, because then the furrows will be not straight, and you will not get as much fruit from the ground.

This is the key, brothers and sisters. Have you left your nets? Our Lord called James and John, the sons of Zebedee, and straightway they left their nets. The "nets" are the "world", in this context. The spiritual, the inner meaning, of the nets is this: all the things which entangle us. Have you left your nets? Or do you still keep nets around?

I'm not talking about whether or not you fall into sin. We are sinners. We should not be surprised when we sin. I'm not talking about if you have weaknesses, passions. I'm talking about your priorities. Have you left your nets? Do you understand? Do you live your life in accordance with the fact that Christianity must be a continual ascent, away from the earth, into heaven? A continual change, a continual changing of one's mind. Warfare till the last breath. This is what Christianity is. You must leave your nets.

If you set your face towards Jerusalem, as the Lord did, meaning, if you don't let the world get in the way of what your life is for, and then God will strengthen you and will help you. You'll have many problems. You might have many sins. In fact, you might sin wretchedly and continually, but God will help you if you have the right priorities, and if you beg Him to help you.

Christianity is not what we believe; it's how we act, it's what we become. It's not possible without belief, but belief is only the beginning, just like when the grain of mustard seed is put into the ground. That is only the beginning. That is only the start. Then the seedling starts to grow. Many things endanger the seedling, but eventually, with care, it becomes a great tree. This is what we must do. We must have the priority to grow, to change. This is Christianity. This is the essence.

Our Lord called His disciples; they straightway left their nets. They'd been waiting for the Messiah. At this point they didn't really understand. He was a charismatic man, and there was something about Him. Those with sensitive souls would see such a thing. They might not understand it, but they saw it and they desired to follow it. They gave up everything in order to follow it. Everything. And they didn't look backwards. Now they still brought along their baggage, and their sins, and their passions, and their pride, and … everything else. But their desire was to change.

And look what God has done, with twelve men! He didn't come to twelve kings, twelve princes, twelve great ones, twelve scholars, but twelve simple men, uneducated for the most part. Simple. Men of the sea, men of the earth. And look what happened. Because they desired to follow Christ, they left their nets. And anything that was imperfect in them would be, eventually, healed because of their desire.

It is so important to understand the purpose of the Christian life. We can talk about it, but to really understand it is to live it. Perfection. Self-amendment. Change according to the One Whom we say we love. Leaving behind those things that shackle us. As St. Paul says, "We are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses." Let's leave behind sin which so easily entangles us. But the first step to leaving behind sin which entangles is to leave your nets.

The sin may still come with. We see that from the apostles. The sin may still come with. The weakness still comes with. But if God sees a man who wants to change, He will help him. Grace will descend upon him and will warm him. This is the key. You must desire to change. You must desire to become like Christ. You must desire to be all fire. And all these imperfections, they'll just be a memory some day. All the things that are wrong with us, they'll burn away, and all that will be left, if we live according to desire for Christ, will be the pearl, all burnished and shining because of our efforts, because of God's grace which has descended upon us.

Don't lament so much out of proportion about your sins that you commit and your difficulties with passions; don't lament about those more than you lament about your attitude and your desire. A lack of desire, a lack of proper priorities, a lack of faith and belief in the resurrection is what really makes those sins which entangle you still hang around. They will be burned away by the grace of God, but you must leave them. You must struggle with all of your might to leave them.

Now after having been a priest for I think over five years now, I am well aware of the great grace of God and the great weakness of men. Unfortunately, I've learned it autobiographically, but also by observing my flock whom I love. But mostly by observing my own weakness and seeing how God takes an imperfect vessel and bestows grace upon it. Most of the grace is wasted, and is not made fruitful, like the water that flows into the ditch and into the sewer and is not retained in the orchard. But some of it is retained. And I've learned, and I wish you to know: God desires your heart, and not so much today that you don't sin but that you desire to not sin, and that you order your priorities according to what God has done, and the grace the God-man gives us. If you leave your nets, everything else will follow.

Certainly, God who has created us for a good work will complete it in the day of Christ Jesus. Of course He will. But He will complete it for those who endure to the end. Not for those who make a beginning, but for those who endure to the end. He will not leave those who struggle with their sins. And I tell you boldly; He will not leave those who fail when they struggle against their sins, who continue to sin. He will not leave them, if they struggle, if they desire.

This is the key. This is the pearl. This is the inner knowledge a Christian must possess. God will not abandon you, but you must not abandon Him. You must struggle to abandon all that is not of Him. Whether you are successful or not, in this life, in this world, in being free of every sin is not as important as if you are successful in ordering your priorities and your desires. Leave your nets.

There are many of them in the world today. Sometimes we think that some of these things, the vices and passions and difficulties, have been invented by our generation. They've been around a long time. But now we have a terrible affliction in our society: lukewarmness of belief. It affects us, makes us make excuses, and makes us to have false priorities, to arrange for our retirement, but not for the keeping of the church. To take care of this, or that, but to not say our prayers.

Don't be entangled by the world. The world offers you nothing. The world pushes you to the abyss, and then you fall off. Leave your nets. And then you'll be like the saints.

We can share in something that they have obtained. We all, I tell you boldly -- every one of us, no matter how sinful, are capable of becoming as the saints. And that is an arrogant statement; that is the truth. We are made of the same stuff, and the same grace is shed upon us.

But the reason why we are moribund in our sins, and why there is little fruit in our lives, is because we have not left behind our nets. We still have the wrong priorities. Then let us obey the apostle Paul, "seeing that we are compassed about by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside sin, which so easily encumbers us." Let's strive for the goal. Let's struggle. Let's desire. Let us leave our nets. God will not abandon us. God will help us.

This is glorious news. The saints, you know, are the resurrection in action. The saints are living examples of the resurrection, and even in our life we should experience living examples of the resurrection, if we are able to turn aside from the sins that once beset us, if we are able to make the right choice, instead of the wrong one that we've been making for so long. This is the resurrection at work in a man. And it is a glorious thing. It is a privilege, and an honor to be a creature of God, for He dwells within us, an amazing thing. Let us leave our nets, and let's truly experience what God desires for us. Amen.

Source: http://www.orthodox.net/sermons/pentecost-sunday-02_1999+all-saints-of-russia.html

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