The Catalog of Good Deeds

An icon celebrating the veneration of icons, the Triumph of Orthodoxy is the festal icon for the first Sunday of Great Lent. As Lent is a period of communal fasting which continues for seven weeks, such triumphalism early on is understandable: it helps to strengthen the faithful for the coming days. It is also understandable given the century of struggle which preceded the events in the Icon; years in which it seemed as though the Faith of the Church was overcome.

Outwardly the Icon is showing the result of a regional synod in Constantinople, held in 843 A.D., where the controversy over the veneration of Holy Icons was finally settled. The debate over whether images of Christ, His angels, and the Saints should be venerated, or even whether they should exist, raged for over a century. The word “debate” masks the nature of the controversy: since 726 A.D, various Byzantine emperors opposed to icons (iconoclasts) had used state-sponsored violence to strip churches of images, imprisoning, mutilating, and murdering those who continued to venerate the icons. Many priests and monks – who in the main venerated icons – fled to parts of the Church outside of the Byzantine Empire*: i.e. to Rome.

Upon the death of the last Iconoclast emperor, Theophilos, his young son Michael III, with his mother the regent Theodora, and Patriarch Methodios, summoned the Synod of Constantinople in 842 to bring peace to the Church. The council affirmed the legitimacy of the Second Council of Nicea, which declared iconoclasm a heresy way back in 787, and declared:

“We define that the holy icons, whether in color, mosaic, or some other material, should be exhibited in the holy churches of God, on the sacred vessels and liturgical vestments, on the walls, furnishings, and in houses and along the roads, namely the icons of our Lord God and Savior Jesus Christ, that of our Lady the Theotokos, those of the venerable angels and those of all saintly people. Whenever these representations are contemplated, they will cause those who look at them to commemorate and love their prototype. We define also that they should be kissed and that they are an object of veneration and honor, but not of real worship, which is reserved for Him Who is the subject of our faith and is proper for the divine nature. The veneration accorded to an icon is in effect transmitted to the prototype; he who venerates the icon, venerated in it the reality for which it stands”.

After the conclusion of the council there was a triumphal procession from the Church of Blachernae to Hagia Sophia, restoring the icons to the church.

The Icon depicting this event is often named, in Greek, the Restoration of the Holy Icons (Η Αναστήλωσις των εικόνων). At the center is the Icon of the Virgin Hodegetria, depicting the Theotokos as the “Directress”, pointing to Christ in her arms. This icon is believed to be the first one painted by the Evangelist Luke and so held a very special place in Constantinople’s history. The icon is held high by two angels, whilst gathered around are various saints and martyrs holding icons themselves. The number and identity of the surrounding saints can vary, but the ones shown in the icon at the top of this post are usually always shown.

They are:

Top row (from left): St Theodosia (feast day May 29), Venerable Ioannikos (Nov. 4), Theodore of the Studion (Nov. 11), Theodore Graptus (Dec. 27), and Stephen the New (Nov. 28).

Bottom row: Regent Theodora, the young emperor Michael, and Methodius, Patriarch of Constantinople, who together convened the council (Jun 14); Michael, Bishop of Synnada (May 23), and Tarasius, Bishop of Constantinople (Feb 25).

Not all of the saints gathered were at the Council, and indeed some were murdered long before the synod was convened; all are presented in the Icon because of their unswerving defense of the Orthodox Faith regarding the veneration of icons. Other related saints sometimes shown include St John Damascene (Dec 4), St Theophylact (Mar. 8), and St Cassiane the Hymnographer (Sep 7).

All this happened on the first Sunday of Great Lent, which is why the Triumph of Orthodoxy continues to be celebrated on this day, often with processions of Icons.

Source: https://iconreader.wordpress.com/2011/03/13/the-triumph-of-orthodoxy-and-holy-icons/

The honorable head of John the Forerunner, which excites reverence from the Angels, was first buried in the house of Herod, who had imprisoned him and decapitated him on account of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip, since John had rebuked Herod for his illicit relationship with his brother's wife. When the disciples of John buried his body in Sebaste, Herodias kept his head to mock it and secretly buried it on the grounds of the palace in an unclean place. By this she wished to keep the head separated from the body, in order to prevent his possible resurrection and further rebuke. One of the women of her household was Joanna, the wife of Herod's steward, who also was a follower of the Lord Jesus and was among the myrrhbearers. Distressed over the mistreatment of the honorable head of the Forerunner, she became privy to the hiding place where the head of the Forerunner was buried, so she secretly retrieved it one night and took it to the Mount of Olives, and buried it on the grounds there of one of Herod's estates.

Shortly before Constantine the Great ascended the throne of the Roman Empire in 324, a certain Christian named Innocent resolved to forsake the world and live an ascetic life on the Mount of Olives, where he purchased some land on property that formerly belonged to Herod. There he built a cell and a chapel to pray in. During construction, a trench was needed for the foundation, and while excavating he discovered an earthenware vessel containing a skull. The identity of this skull he learned by divine revelation, accompanied by works of power and grace, having performed many miracles. Before the repose of the monk Innocent, he reburied the honorable skull on the grounds of his cell and chapel. Over a number of years, this site fell into ruin and the location of this precious relic became unknown.

The First Finding of the Head of the Forerunner at the Mount of Olives

After Constantine came to the throne, and his mother Helen made the Holy Land a center of pilgrimage with the discovery of the True Cross and the Holy Sepulcher, among other places, two Monks decided to make a pilgrimage to Jerusalem to venerate the Holy Places. One night while the monks were sleeping in Jerusalem, one of them was granted a visitation from Saint John the Forerunner. He revealed to the Monk the exact location of his head on the Mount of Olives, and commanded him to find it. When he awoke and told his fellow Monk about this divine revelation, he convinced him that it was nothing but a mere dream and they ignored it. The next night, however, the Forerunner appeared to both Monks separately and rebuked them for their disbelief, commanding them to rise and do what he commanded. Stirred from sleep, they went to the location indicated to them and began to dig. Before long, they discovered the earthenware vessel with the skull. Placing it in a sack made of camel's hair, they returned to Jerusalem.

During this time there was a potter living in Emesa (Homs) of Syria, who had fallen into poverty and was looking for another form of occupation. Leaving his wife and home, he went to look for work, and on the road encountered the two Monks who had now left Jerusalem to return to their homeland with the honorable skull. Seeking companionship in his travels, the potter followed the Monks and carried the sack which contained the skull of the Forerunner after he was asked to, though it was not divulged to him what was in the sack. As they walked and the Monks became a little separated from the potter, the Holy Forerunner appeared to the potter on the road, and said to him, "Know that I am John, the Lord's Forerunner. The sack, the one that you bear in your hand, contains my head. I bid you to flee the company of your fellow travelers." After confirming that the sack contained a skull, the potter obeyed without hesitation and returned to his home and wife in Emesa. As for the reason why the Holy Forerunner bid the potter to take the relic from the Monks, it has been suggested that it was because these Monks were too negligent and unbelieving to properly care for the precious skull. This was shown by the fact that they gave the sack to a stranger to carry, when they should have kept it and guarded it with their lives. The potter, however, submitted to the Monks and carried the sack with care. It has also been suggested that these Monks may have belonged to a heretical sect.

The potter returned to his home and told his wife about everything that took place along the road. They both understood that the most precious of treasures was in their home, so they daily burned incense and lit a lamp before it. For this the Forerunner blessed their home, and their poverty became a faint memory. However, they were not overcome with pride, but made sure to properly distribute their wealth to the poor and needy, understanding that they were blessed by God through the Forerunner. At length his wife of many years reposed in the Lord, and as his own end drew near, the Holy Forerunner appeared to him and said, "The time of the end of your earthly sojourn is at hand. Place my head in an empty water vessel. Seal the jug and entrust it to your sister. I do not wish for my head to be enshrined in gold or silver reliquaries." The devout potter obeyed and gave the sealed jug to his sister, bidding her not to open it unless the Forerunner willed for her to do so. After the potter reposed, his sister faithfully kept the precious treasure in her home. And when she reposed she handed it over to another devout and virtuous Christian.

Over time, the precious relic passed from one devout Christian to another. At one point, the honorable head came into the possession of an Arian hieromonk named Eustathios, who lived in a cave. The holy relic was responsible for numerous wonders and miracles and healings, however the heretic Eustathios ascribed these to himself rather than the Holy Forerunner, in order to promote his godless heresy. By this many people were lured into believing that Arianism was true and accepted the heresy. Over time however, the people of Emesa came to understand the evil intentions of Eustathios, and they sought to drive him out of his cave. When the officers were informed they went to have him removed, but Eustathios convinced them to wait for a few hours until he got his things in order and then he would leave. During this time he took the jug which contained the skull and buried it in a deep hole in his cave. His intention was to return at some point and retrieve the relic, which brought him such prestige and fame, in order to continue his fraud. However, with the departure of Eustathios, certain Orthodox monks took up their habitation in this cave, and Eustathios was unable to retrieve the relic.

The Second Finding of the Head of the Forerunner in the Cave of Emesa

As time passed, the site of the cave of the heretic Eustathios became the site of a growing brotherhood of monks. However, no one was aware of the precious treasure contained within the cave. In the middle of the fifth century, Archimandrite Markellos, who was the superior of this community, during the time that Uranios was Bishop of Emesa, was granted a vision of the Holy Forerunner. According to the account of Markellos, which has been preserved, we learn that on February 18th, during the Great Fast, the Holy Forerunner first appeared to him in a vision and blessed him. Then on February 24th the location of the skull of the Forerunner was revealed to him in another vision of a star which he was told to follow and which led him into the cave. Where the star disappeared he began to dig on that spot, and there he found the water jug which contained the holy relic. He then reverently took the honorable skull as a priceless treasure, and brought it to the Bishop, who rejoiced upon learning of this discovery. Soon a church was built in Emesa to honor Saint John the Forerunner. Inside this church a crypt was built, and the honorable head was placed therein, where it was venerated by the faithful, and became responsible for many being healed of illnesses and diseases.

Apolytikion in the Fourth Tone

The Forerunner's sacred head, having dawned forth from the earth, doth send incorruption's rays unto the faithful, whereby they find healings of their ills. From on high he gathereth the choirs of the Angels and on earth he summoneth the whole race of mankind, that they with one voice might send up glory to Christ our God.

Kontakion in the Second Tone

Since we have obtained thy head as a most sacred rose from out of the earth, O Forerunner of grace divine, we receive sure healing in every hour, O Prophet of God the Lord; for again, now as formerly, thou preachest repentance unto all the world.

Source: www.johnsanidopoulos.com/2016/02/the-first-and-second-finding-of.html

Guiding Principles

The Christian life is a life of the pursuit of holiness, "without which no man shall see the Lord" (Hebrews 12:14). Obviously, this is a struggle, particularly in the evil days in which we live. We have to keep a constant watch over our minds and hearts to keep them from falling back into sin. And since Christ has given us the principle that we cannot simply refrain from sinful actions, but must also refrain from sinful thoughts (Matthew 5:27-28), any entertainment that feeds the passions and presents us with temptations is not acceptable.

Since we say to God when we pray the Psalms “I have no unlawful thing before mine eyes” (Psalm 100[101]:3), we need to make sure that we actually live accordingly. Consequently, turning on a movie that you know contains graphic scenes that can only feed the passions is completely antithetical to this.

St. Paul admonishes us in Philippians 4:8:

"Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things."

And there are so many good and wholesome things for us to occupy our time with, that we could never exhaust them in a thousand lifetimes, and so why should waste any of our time feeding our minds with filth?

As St. John Chrysostom warns us:

"Do you not know that just as when we hand over money to our servants, and we demand accounts from them down to the last obol [a small silver coin, equaling 1/6 of an average man's daily wage], in the same way God will demand an account from us of the days of our life, as to how we have spent each day? What then shall we say? What shall be our defense, when we are requested to give our accounts of that day? For your sake the sun rose, and the moon brightened the night, and the intricate pattern of the stars shone forth. Winds blew for your sake, and rivers flowed. For your sake seeds sprouted and plants grew, and the course of nature preserved its own order. Day appeared and night followed. And all of this happened for your sake. But do you, when all creation serves you, satisfy the desire of the devil? You have rented such a home from God, I mean this world, but you have not paid the rent. And you were not satisfied with the first day, but on the second day, when you should have paused for a while from the evil that was enveloping you, you returned again this time to the theater. You ran from smoke into fire, descending into another pit that was even worse. Old men shamed their grey hair, and young men threw their youth away. Fathers brought their sons, from the beginning guiding inexperienced youth into the pits of depravity, so it would not have been a mistake to call those men child killers rather than fathers, as they surrendered their children’s souls to evil. What kind of evil, you ask. Because of it I am in agony, because although you are ill you do not know you are ill or call the doctor. You have become filled with adultery, and you ask “What kind of evil?” Have you not listened to Christ when he said: “Anyone who looks at a woman with desire has already committed adultery with her”? “What if I do not look at her with desire?” you ask. How will you be able to convince me? For if anyone cannot control what he watches, but is so enthusiastic about doing so, how will he be able to remain virtuous after he has finished watching? Is your body made of stone? Or iron? You are clothed with flesh, human flesh, which is inflamed by desire as easily as grass (Homily against those who have abandoned the church and deserted it for hippodromes and theaters).

On the other hand, one could take this so far as to assume that we should not have any leisure time or wholesome entertainment, but this would be to go to an opposite extreme, which is also unhealthy. It is not possible for anyone to constantly be at 100% productivity. Human beings cannot sustain that. In the Sayings of the Desert Fathers, we find this saying regarding St. Anthony the Great:

"A hunter in the desert saw Abba Anthony enjoying himself with the brethren and he was shocked. Wanting to show him that it was necessary sometimes to meet the needs of the brethren, the old man said to him, 'Put an arrow in your bow and shoot it.' So he did. The old man then said, 'Shoot another,' and he did so. Then the old man said, 'Shoot yet again and the hunter replied 'If I bend my bow so much I will break it.' Then the old man said to him, 'It is the same with the work of God. If we stretch the brethren beyond measure they will soon break. Sometimes it is necessary to come down to meet their needs.' When he heard these words “the hunter was pierced by compunction and, greatly edified by the old man, he went away. As for the brethren, they went home strengthened" (Benedicta Ward, translator, The Sayings of the Desert Fathers, The Alphabetical Collection (Kalamazoo: Cistercian Publications, 1975, 1984 revised edition), p. 3f.).

Also, I recall our own Archbishop Peter's talk about his remembrances of St. John of Shanghai and San Francisco, and he mentioned St. John asking him and the other altar boys at the cathedral in San Francisco what their plans were for the afternoon one day, and they were planning on going to see a movie (a clean movie, mind you). Not only did he not chastise them for it, he gave them some money for it. So clearly there is a balanced approach that is perfectly pious and Orthodox, and that is what we need to try to find in our current context.

So in sum, whatever we do in our leisure time it should ideally be of positive benefit to our minds and souls, but at a bare minimum it should at least not be harmful. When you have taken the time to watch a movie, for example, there should be something uplifting about it. Virtue and goodness should be affirmed in some way -- and even a good comedy will do that. Hopefully, you should have improved your mind in some way as well. Otherwise you are at best wasting your time; and at worse, actively harming yourself and your family.

Getting Down to Brass Tacks

I don't think having cable or satellite service in the home is a good idea. There are some good programs one can find on them, but you are paying for a package, and so supporting a lot of filth. So I would say, cut the cord. That's, of course, my opinion, and I don't state it as binding on anyone else. However, if you are not going to cancel your cable or satellite service, you should block any of the channels that contain objectionable content, so that if you are channel surfing (which is generally not a good idea), you won't even see what these channels are showing. This is especially important if you have children in the home. You can also use the "V-Chip" to block specific objectionable content... however, this typically does not block commercials which can often be as bad or worse than the actual shows themselves.

It is a very bad habit to leave a TV running for background noise throughout the day. Many people have their TV running all the time. It stifles conversations, and it is a mindless thing that is sure to dramatically reduce the average IQ of your family. The TV should only be on when their is something worth watching. You should also try to limit how much time is spent watching things on TV in general.

When it comes to movies, you should try to find out if the content is wholesome before you even think about watching one. There are Christian movie reviewers that will give you a very good idea of whether or not a movie is going to be worth your time.

There are still some occasional movies that are both clean and well done, but another option is to explore the many decades of films that are out there that were made in the past. For example, I think one of the best movies ever made is the 1940 version of Pride and Prejudice, with Greer Garson and Laurence Olivier. Almost every actor in the film is perfect. The cinematography is amazing. The screen play was by Aldous Huxley (not a Christian, but a great writer, and one who certainly came from a much more Christian culture than our own), and it is based on one the best novels ever written in English, and even though the movie is not a Christian film per se, it is rooted in a Christian ethos, and it affirms what is good and noble.

One bad approach is to watch movies you know have objectionable content, and just plan on fast forwarding past the bad parts. You are still watching and supporting bad movies. You are exposing yourself and your family to at least some objectionable content, because you don't know to fast forward a film until you begin to see what you need to fast forward beyond. This all has the effective of desensitizing you and your family to garbage that you should not tolerate.

If you get a bum steer on a movie, and despite your best efforts you find that it either has objectionable content, or it is simple a bad movie with no redeeming qualities, be prepared to turn it off. At the very least, if you are watching it with your family, you can point out what was wrong with it, and so gain some benefit by its negative example.

Read More, Watch Less

One of the advantages to removing broadcast and cable TV from your home is that it will make it a lot more likely that you will read more. That is a good thing even if you don't have children in your home. If you do have children, read good classic books to them, and then when you are done with a book, watch a good movie version of it. This will teach them to love books. They will generally see that the books are better than the movies, but this can help them better appreciate both the movie and the book.

Play Good Music

It doesn't have to all be classical music, but it should all be wholesome. We made a point of playing classical music for our children from the time they were in the crib, and in both cases our children turned out to be very musically inclined. It could be coincidental, but I don't think so. Baroque music in particular is very good background music for reading and study.

Electronic Devices and the Internet

Obviously as your children get older, you are going to have less of an ability to control what they see and do, but you should use that power wisely while you have it. There is no reason why young children need to have smart phones, or have unsupervised access to the Internet. If you home-school your children, this is obviously a lot easier, but if you have your children in a public or private school, buck the trend, and don't give them smart phones, lap tops, or tablets. If they have any cell phone at all, get them a basic phone that only has the ability to make calls and send text messages.

We are told that children need to have all of these things from an early age so they can be tech savvy, but none of these devices are difficult to learn how to use, and if they don't have unlimited access until they are more mature, it will not hurt them. And instead, they might learn how to actually do math, write with a pen, and read books -- all of which are dying arts for most young people these days.

I would also use an internet filter, especially if you have boys. Again, the older they get, the less these things will be effective, and so hopefully they will learn self control as your controls as a parent are gradually reduced.

You are not going to be able to shield your children completely from all the filth that is so prevalent in our culture, but you should make the effort, and show them by your example how they should approach these things when they are the ones that will have to make these decisions for themselves and their own children.

Canon 100 of the Sixth Ecumenical Council states:

“Let thine eyes look aright, and keep thy heart with all diligence” (Prov. 4:25 and 23), wisdom bids us. For the sensation of the body can easily foist their influence upon the soul. We therefore command that henceforth in no way whatever shall any pictures be drawn, painted, or otherwise wrought, whether in frames or otherwise hung up, that appeal to the eye fascinatingly, and corrupt the mind, and excite inflammatory urgings to the enjoyment of shameful pleasures. If anyone should attempt to do this, let him be excommunicated."

The Rudder of St. Nicodemus then has the following comment on this canon:

"Inasmuch as some men were wont to paint or draw on walls and boards lascivious pictures, such as women stark naked or bathing or being kissed by men, and other such shameful scenes, which deceive the eyes of beholders and excite the mind and heart to carnal desires, therefore and on this account the present Canon commands that no such pictures shall by any means whatsoever be painted or drawn or sketched. If anyone should make any such pictures, let him be excommunicated, since all the five senses of the body, and especially the first and royalest one, the eyesight, is easily led to impress the pictures of those things which it sees into the soul. That is why Solomon recommends that our eyes look aright at things that are fine and good and beautiful, and that everyone of us keep his mind and heart away from the shameful objects of the senses" (D. Cummings, trans., The Rudder of the Orthodox Catholic Church: The Compilation of the Holy Canons Saints Nicodemus and Agapius (West Brookfield, MA: The Orthodox Christian Educational Society, 1983), p. 406f).

Source: http://fatherjohn.blogspot.com.by/2017/09/christians-and-entertainment.html

March 13, 1876

Greetings, sister in Christ, dear Mother T.! I congratulate you on accepting the holy and angelic image. Do you know that this image is the symbol of betrothal with Jesus, the Heavenly Bridegroom? For it is sung in the troparion to a martyr, “I love You, my Bridegroom”, and for every nun is a martyr, remember, to Whom you are betrothed!

You ask me for guidance and advice on what you should do in order not to deviate from your path? Start with humility. Then do with humility and finish with humility. Thus you will reach holiness. This path, the path of humility, is the safest one. Holy Fathers say, this path just “prevent you from falling down. Where can a humble one fall, when he considers himself worse than anyone?” So, how can we not be humble, when Christ, the God of gods and the Lord of lords, humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross (Philippians 2:8)? The astonishment of angels, the most beautiful of all sons of the humankind, died a shameful death for us; how dare we, weak and sinful, reject to admit our sins and weaknesses?

What concerns high thoughts: avoid them like the plague. “What is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God” (Luke 16:15). “And the heavens are not pure in His sight” (Job 15:15). And Prophet Isaiah said long ago what any our truth is: “all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6).

You ask how can one follow his way? Listen not to me, a filthy man, but to the Eternal Truth Itself: “No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God” (Luke 9:62).

It means that anyone who is going to reach the Kingdom of Heaven, must not recall their high virtues – and especially their high thoughts – but must look at the feats and glory of saints. Let us stick to them! But you should look at your own weaknesses and sins and remember about the possible future torments of a soul – then you will not sin.

Peace to you, mother T.

– Sinful Hieromonk Anatoliy

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