Learning Our Faith From the Greek Fathers of the Church — 20160417

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john-chrysostomI have been sharing some of St. John’s thoughts about the event on Mt. Tabor during which Jesus transfigured Himself before Peter, James and John. St. John then even reflects on the meaning of the “Bright Cloud” that is said to have appeared on Tabor. Like Origen before him, Chrysostom regards the appearance of the Cloud as a direct reply to Peter’s proposal to build three tabernacles. The Cloud appears, according to John, as a divine tabernacle, that is a tabernacle which is not made by the hands of men.

The purpose of this Cloud, the brightness of which he contrasts with the thick darkness of the Cloud of Sinai (recall the story of the giving of the Tables of the Law to Moses on Sinai), was to instruct rather than to threaten or frighten. The bright Cloud marks the beginning of a further stage in the revelation on Tabor. In fact, St. John sees it as the prelude to the Voice of the Father. However, it is interesting that the Cloud itself is not identified exclusively with the Father, nor for that matter with any Person of the Holy Trinity in particular. It is simply regarded as a manifestation of God. Therefore, the Voice of the Father emanates from the Cloud in order to assure the disciples of its divine provenance. And so a subtle distinction can be discerned here between the Cloud, which denotes the presence of God, and the Voice from the Cloud, the purpose of which is to bear witness to and confirm the divine Sonship of the Savior.

However, there is in Chrysostom no explicit statement regarding the nature of the Cloud beyond what has already been said, namely, that the Cloud is simply a manifestation of God. But there is a small passage    in John’s homily on the   Transfiguration, which offers, perhaps, a more positive indication as to what he believes the bright Cloud to be.  He says:

There is probably nothing more blessed that the apostles, and especially the three, who even in the Cloud were made worthy to be under the same roof with the Master.

The general point being made here can be no greater blessing for us than to be with Christ. Being with Christ, therefore, is the blessing that the apostles received, and it is also the one thing that all Christians should strive and hope for. But there is also a strong emphasis here on the three disciples, who received the extra special distinction of being with Christ even in the Cloud.

Understand this: the message is always more than the manifest content.

Understanding Our Ukrainian Greek-Catholic Church — 20160417

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Picture1In the last issue of the article, I tried to introduce a concept that, I hope, my readers discerned. That idea was that all the things that we do in church, and even how we use the church building, has a symbolic meaning that conveys the truths of our faith. The actions of the Liturgy and other services convey as much meaning, many times, as the words that we use as we pray. I would truly encourage my readers to take time “looking” at what we do as well as “paying attention to the words that we use.” I am frequently taken aback when I take time during our services to look at the regular members of our community and what they are doing. I suspect that if you are a regular attendee, for example, at our Divine Liturgy, you pretty much know the responses. Most of them are not complicated. And yet I find that so many people have their heads buried in our Liturgy books and miss some of the actions that might also convey a message from God.

The only exception to this is, and I am very proud of my congregations for this, most people tend to follow the Gospel Book when it is brought through our worship space at the Little Entrance. Think about this Little Entrance. It begins in the altar area, which is symbolic of heaven, and goes through the community space (an area for believers here on earth), to lead us back to the altar area – the Kingdom to come. The symbolism is that if we follow the teachings of Jesus as contained in the Gospels, we will find ourselves eventually in the heavenly kingdom of God. The message: follow the teachings of Jesus in the Gospels. (An aside: hopefully everyone knows that the Gospel Book only contains the texts of the four Gospels. It is not the complete New Testament).

SO….the clue is that as we follow the Gospel Book in the Little Entrance we also say to ourselves: O God, help me in this life to follow Your teachings as presented in Your Gospels about how to live my life. The Little Entrance is a wonderful opportunity to make a true profession of faith and also find a way to make your personal commitment to imitating Jesus Christ.

The Little Entrance provides us with a very concrete experience of what we believe: God came from heaven in the Person of Jesus (Incarnation) in order to model for us how we must learn how to live in order to eventually enter into the Kingdom of Heaven.

The Little Entrance ends with the priest going through the iconastasis to place the Gospel on the Throne of God. The Gospels help us penetrate the barrier of death and transformation.

GAINING A DEEPER UNDERSTANDING OF OUR FAITH — 20160417

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transfigurationI suggested in the last issue of this   article, that perhaps a better word to convey the meaning of Christ’s life, death and resurrection, might be the word AT-ONE-MENT since it conveys the Pauline idea of reconciliation. Paul says, that on man’s part (not God’s) there stood an enmity God Himself abolished by what He accomplished in Christ. This one of the meanings of atonement: “the redemption which is in Christ Jesus.

There is also a second understanding of this word: ATONEMENT. It conveys our experience of being in Christ and with Christ. These statements of place have long served to truly designate the deep, living union we have with Christ by His gracious love. The word atonement expresses this union perfectly: We are at one with Christ. The Father, gazing upon us, sees and loves the Son He perceives within us.

There is also a third understanding of this word. Atonement expresses the goal of redemption, which is the transfiguring union of man with God. The Eastern Church’s understanding of redemption does not start with fallen man. It commences, rather, with man completely restored and transformed in Christ. The word ATONEMENT signifies the goal of all God’s activity in this world: man’s participation in the divine life. Hopefully my readers can see the difference between the Eastern Church’s understanding of redemption form that of the Western Church. Total transformation in Christ is a very early and traditional idea in the Church. Already in the second century, Irenaeus of Lyons, a direct and immediate heir to the Pauline and Johannine traditions in Asia, wrote of “our Lord Jesus Christ, who by his supreme love became what we are, in order to bring us to what he Himself is”.

More boldly, Athanasius of Alexandria, two centuries later, wrote of God’s Son, “he became man that we might become God”. The tradition represented by Athanasius regarded the divinizing of man as the purpose of the Incarnation. Variations of this idea, whether as a noun or a verb, appear repeatedly, especially among the Alexandrians.

You will remember that Alexandria was one of the five major Christian Centers in the early Church. It is one of the five Patriarchates, working in union, that provided the foundation for all the basic dogma of the Church.

So the Eastern Church has a truly different starting point with regard to the redemption of humankind. God became incarnate in the Person of Jesus so that He might give man the ability to become what God intended.

CALLED TO HOLINESS — 20160417

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theotokosAs I shared previously, the genius, therefore of healing of memories is that it is a way of praying that allows God to accomplish this task step by step, memory by memory. It is a way of praying that allows us to know His Love concretely, not abstractly. In praying about each memory, we are allow Jesus to “plant” Himself in various events all through our lives. By doing the, although it may be painful to recall past memories, we can be healed.

When we search the New Testament we find that Jesus often used the imagery of planting, caring for, and harvesting a field of grain or a vineyard to explain the movement of the Kingdom of God within each human being; and what is the Kingdom of God within us if it is not the presence of Jesus? As we present each memory to Jesus for Him to heal, He reveals His presence in that memory, thus planting Himself there. As His presence grows and matures in these memories, we grow and mature in Christ.

All of this is based on a particular understanding of human life. God has so designed human life that it presents to us the experiences and opportunities that are uniquely designed to help us grow in our understanding of God’s presence within us. Therefore we must find God in all past memories and see that He is there helping us to grow in the likeness of Jesus.

Another aspect of planting that is applicable to the way Jesus grows within us is the way some plants, for example bulb plants, divide and spread on their own. One year we may plant tulip bulbs one foot apart from each other, but after three or four years we will have a full bed of tulips because tulip bulbs multiply and spread underground every year. Similarly, as we “plant” Jesus in various times of our lives, He spreads His presence and His influence finally to encompass our entire lives. This is one of the meanings of the Parables of Great Assurance (Matthew 13:31-33), so called because they assure us of God’s continuing presence in our lives.

Take time to reflect on this. You will find it rewarding.

The Spirituality of the Christian East — 20160417

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Ladder of Divine AccentThe 17th Step on St. John’s Ladder is POVERTY. St. John prefaces remarks about this step by writing: “The man who has tasted the things of heaven daily thinks nothing of what is below, but he who has had no taste of heaven finds pleasure in possessions.

In speaking about the 16th Step, John suggested that love remedies AVARICE. But love is a word Christians throw around a great deal. We hear people say, “Love is all that matters,” or something to that effect. But rarely do we consider that love is not that easy. Love is the final step of the Ladder, not the first. In fact, all the steps on John’s Ladder are geared to help a person reach the final Step which is Faith, Hope and Love.

One could say the whole batter of Christian life is to acquire divine love. This is why St. John follows his step on the passion of avarice (the fruit of selfishness) with a step on the virtue of poverty – the fruit of self-denying love. It may seem strange to people that poverty is reckoned a virtue. We are inclined to think of poverty as nothing more than not having enough to get by. But here John is speaking of voluntary poverty.

What John suggests is that we discipline ourselves through practices of self-denial to overcome such passions as gluttony and avarice. Then we will discover that we have much more to give to others than we thought. Many may think the principle of charity is that the more we have, the more we can give. John points out, having much does not necessarily mean we will give much. The principle of Christian charity is not the more we have, the more we give. Rather, the less we need, the more we give. This is the meaning of poverty as a virtue. It is resignation from care…life without anxiety. This is a very important point and one that we should attempt to reflect upon.

The Divine Liturgy and Our Worship of God — 20160417

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Mystical Supper

Mystical Supper

One of the very important aspects of our Byzantine Liturgy is that we very clearly specify the anamnesis and the epiclesis. It is very evident by the way that I have chosen to serve the Liturgy since I take both out loud. Liturgically and theologically there is a very important connection to be made between the two: the remembrance of the source event is made possible by the action of the Holy Spirit.

The anamnesis makes quite clear what exactly we remember, albeit it also stretches our thinking because it includes that in which we place our hope. The anamnesis text is as follows

Remembering therefore this salutary command and all that was done in our behalf: the cross, the tomb, the resurrection on the third day, the ascension into heaven, the sitting at the right hand, the second and glorious coming again, we offer to You, Yours of Your own, in behalf of all and for all.

So how do we understand what is contained in this statement? What is the command? Do this in memory of me! Jesus asked His disciples, and therefore any of His followers, to repeat what He did when He was on earth. The answer to this question is multidimensional. It is contained not only in this portion of the anamnesis but also in the ending, which states that we PRAISE, BLESS, THANK and PRAY to God. Jesus repeatedly did this. His prayer to the Father was constantly on His lips. One of the very important aspects of what Jesus taught us was that we must be, indeed, THANKFUL to God for the gift of life.

Further, the anamnesis states that we must remember what Jesus did in order to offer praise, blessings, and thanksgiving to God, namely His death, burial, resurrection and also His ascension into heaven. Further, we believe that He is now sitting at the right hand of God, there preparing a place for us.

The last think that is mentioned that Jesus is doing is the “second and glorious coming again”. Many don’t quite understand this. How can we thank Him for something that, in our history, has not occurred yet? This phrase reminds us that what we do is beyond our earthly time. It also reminds us that anytime people truly embrace the WAY of Jesus, He comes into the world again.

More to come!

ACQUIRING THE MIND OF CHRIST — 20160417

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christ_iconI have been attempting to present an Eastern Christian approach to the mind of Christ. In order to understand this, we must begin with the idea that there is an intimate connection between the truth of salvation and the truth of the Incarnation. This means that man’s salvation required the Savior, God’s divine and eternal Son, to become an integral human being. The reality of man’s salvation demanded the reality of the Incarnation. Each of the first seven ecumenical councils declared and defended some aspect of this principle.

This thesis regarding the integrity of the Incarnation, however, is not adequately expressed by saying that God’s Son assumed human nature. It must say, rather, that the Son assumed the full human condition;  He entered into and experienced history, not in a general and abstract way, but by the organic insertion of His personal being into a determined time and specific circumstances. Otherwise it would not be the case that “in all things He had to be made like His brethren” (Hebrews 2:17).

As this quote suggests, some of our earliest formulations of this truth come from the Epistle to the Hebrews, a work of incalculable importance in the thinking of the ecumenical councils.

The author of Hebrews, by way of interpreting Psalm 8 (why not look it up), comments that God’s Son “does not assume the nature of angels, but he assumes the seed of Abraham” (2:16). This statement is a striking illustration of this thesis. The author of Hebrews does not say that God’s Son “assumes human nature.” He is said, rather, to assume the conditions of a specific line of history: Abraham’s seed. He did not simply become man; he, rather, became a covenanted descendant of Abraham.

By the Incarnation, God’s Word embraced humanity within a biological and historical framework at a specific point in a stream of revelation unique to the children of Abraham. The Son’s appearance in this world is set in the context of God’s continuing revelation to this particular people: “God, who at various times and in various ways formerly spoke to the fathers by the prophets, has in these final days spoken to us by a Son” (1:1)

Why is this so important? Because it is the context within which Jesus became a sacrifice – a sacrifice as was known in Judaism. The Eastern Church sees this as important and, therefore, has formulated her ideas about salvation in this context!

Gaining a Deeper Understanding of the New Testament — 20160417

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the_four_evangelistsAs I suggested in the last issue of this article, it seems that the way the Scriptures were written, allows them to have multiple layers of meaning and the Church has, for centuries, wrestled with their meaning. Although the Middle Ages, especially the great scholastic period, contributed to the better understand of Scripture, the contribution to real New Testament (NT) criticism were not major.

In the 16th century, at the time of the Reformation, there was an increased interest in the Bible, especially in the Reformed Churches. The interest, however, was more dogmatic than it was critical. Remember that Luther came up with the idea that the sole rule of our faith was the Bible. We, of course, hold that a person seeking to have a true understanding of Scripture must also have knowledge of Tradition and Liturgical Practice. These two sources provide great insight into the Church’s understanding of Scripture.

One important figure in this period was A. Osiander, an early Lutheran reformer, who published in 1537, a harmony of the Gospels that set the style of Protestant harmonies of the following centuries. His approach was much more rigid than Augustine’s, and for him, minor differences in sequence or detail meant different events.

Against the background of two movements in the 18th Century, that is rationalism and the Enlightenment, the scientific method was formulated. When this method was applied to the study of history, and particularly to biblical history, the science of Biblical historical criticism was born.

A French Oratorian priest, Simon, was the first to apply the critical method to the NT, which subsequent authors build upon, to produce the first truly historical and critical introduction to the NT. Understanding the NT in this manner, in my estimation, truly doesn’t necessarily bring a person closer to Christ or God.

One of the subsequent scholars, H.S. Reimarus, distinguished between the historical Jesus (a Jewish revolutionary who failed in an attempt to establish an earthly Messianic kingdom) and the Christ found in the Gospels and preached by the Church (a deception created by the disciples who stole the body of Jesus from the tomb and invented the doctrines of the resurrection and parousia). He was prejudiced by rationalism’s rejection of the supernatural and was the first scholar to try to pierce through the Christological dogma of the Gospels to the real historical Jesus, a concern still extant in today’s world.

In Memoriam

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cross_vineOUR CONDOLENCES

are extended to the Family of Walter Kizel at the passing of

   WALTER KIZEL

May his memory be eternal!
Вечная память!
April 10, 2016

Reflections on the Scriptural Readings for this Weekend — 20160410

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onintmentbearersThe two readings presented for our reflection this weekend are taken from the Acts of the Apostles and Mark’s Gospel. The theme and the message conveyed by these two readings seem obvious to me: to be a follower of Jesus we must be people who always think about “service to others.”

The passage from Acts highlights the fact that very early in the Church it was recognized that there was a need for assistants. Not assistants at the various worship services but, rather, assistants who could help carry out the basic mission of the Church: help and support for others.

The account in Acts highlights the fact that seven men were chosen to be deacons, that is men who would devote their lives to the service of others. Even to this day, the role of a deacon is to be of service, in a special way, to others besides assisting in the celebration of liturgical services.

But being of service to others is not something that Christ ever envisioned to be limited to just a few. We see how Jesus lived. Besides teaching, He was focused on helping others in need. This was, and still is, the hallmark of a true Christian Church and something we must constantly think about trying to incorporate into our community.

Mark’s Gospel, highlights one of the primary ways to be of Christian service to others, namely to bury the dead. In fact the act of burying the dead is considered one of the seven corporal works of mercy. For your edification, here are the seven acts that are considered to be corporal works of mercy. They are to: feed the hungry; give drink to the thirsty; clothe the naked; give shelter to the homeless; visit the sick; ransom the captive; and bury the dead. If you every wonder what you could do to become more like Christ, you could do one or more of the above.

To this I would like to add that we can build God’s Kingdom here and now if we also take the time to recognize those who serve us.  Too frequently in our society we seem to discount those who provide us a service, especially those jobs that don’t require a professional degree. Just taking time to recognize a server, can do a lot to build God’s Kingdom and increase the self-worth of someone who does provide service.

What is important, however, is why we do these things. We engage in such acts of mercy in order to build God’s Kingdom and make His love and kindness a part of our world