Coffee With Sister Vassa: How Do We Celebrate The Saints?

 

HOW DO WE CELEBRATE THE SAINTS?

“…Woe to you! for you build the tombs of the prophets whom your fathers killed. So you are witnesses and consent to the deeds of your fathers; for they killed them, and you build their tombs. Therefore also the Wisdom of God said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles, some of whom they will kill and persecute,’ that the blood of all the prophets, shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation, from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who perished between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, it shall be required of (ἐκζητηθήσεται) this generation.” (Lk 11: 47-51)

How chilling, that in this series of “woes” on the Pharisees and lawyers, the Lord equates their “building the tombs of the prophets” with condoning the killing of the prophets. Clearly, our Lord knew that the usual meaning behind“building a tomb” of a prophet, – just like financing a church-building in honor of certain martyrs, – is to honor the martyrs, and not their killers or persecutors. But in the case of the “building-projects” of the Pharisees and lawyers, our Lord sees the hearts of the builders, filled not with the Spirit “Who spoke by the prophets,” but with enmity to Him and His truth-tellers, including Jesus Christ, the Lord of the Prophets that now stood before them, in the flesh, and Whom they intended to kill. 

So, in our Church’s reading for this November 1, when many Christians celebrate the feast of All Saints, I’m reminded of the fact that our external veneration of the saints is also to be aligned with being “on their side” in Spirit. I’m also reminded not to be discouraged in our day, when we see churches being erected by those who persecute the truth-tellers of our time; when we see how the Patriarch of our own church is building more and more new churches in Moscow, while defrocking and persecuting our truth-telling priests; while blessing the destruction of churches and people in Ukraine; while condoning the imprisonment and/or execution of journalists and others who testify against all this. But God doesn’t “forget” those He sends us, as Christ tells us above, however marginalized and forgotten they may be today, and just as we, ultimately, will not forget them, but will celebrate their memory. All Saints, pray to God for us!

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A timely reflection, indeed, from the indomitable Sister Vassa! A much-needed prophetic voice within the Church! Please be sure to read her final paragraph very carefully and all that it implies for the Church's witness - or is that lack of witness - to the world. When it comes to the Spirit-inspired saints, we need to be "on their side" as we read above - even when that is unpopular. Are "truth-tellers" becoming a  rare phenomenon? That would be a real loss, for that is the way of Christ.

Coffee With Sister Vassa: FOLLOWING CHRIST vs. FOLLOWING RULES

 

FOLLOWING CHRIST vs. FOLLOWING RULES

“And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, he has made alive together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses, having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us (ὑπεναντίον ἡμῖν). And he has taken it out of the way (ἦρκεν ἐκ τοῦ μέσου), having nailed it to the cross. Having disarmed principalities and powers, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it. So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance/body is of Christ (τὸ δὲ σῶμα τοῦ Χριστοῦ).” (Col 2: 13-17)

The “substance“ of the Old-Testament Law, that is to say, its whole point, was embodied in the human-divine Person of Jesus Christ. That’s why we are no longer obliged to fulfil the external requirements of the Old Testament, like that of the Sabbath-commandment. The “old” Covenant between God and His people, expressed in us fulfilling requirements of the Law, was superseded by the establishment, by His Son, of the New Covenant“of His blood“ (cf. Mt 26: 28), of the incarnate God-Man, which we participate in, rather than fulfil, “with him.“ 

We participate in this Covenant, in communion with Him, being “made alive together with him.” Because He became one of us, in His incarnation, we are invited to become one of His, and to change focus, from following rules to following Him. Here we have Someone “greater than the temple” (Mt 12: 6), and “Lord of the Sabbath” (Mt 12: 8), Who has already met all conceivable “requirements,” and overcome all our fallings-short of them, in Himself. 

In the Spirit of Christ, we are invited to focus primarily on communion with Him, and the kind of “sabbath” or “rest” He brings us, and also to our external behaviour, with and in Him, – not only on Saturdays, but every day:“Come to me,” Christ says to us, “all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” (Mt 11: 28-29)

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Last Sunday, I tried to outline a general approach that we, as Orthodox Christians,  take to the Old Testament. Sister Vassa touches on further elements briefly in her reflection this morning. We are to seek the "spirit" of the scriptural word, more than strict adherence to the "law," to add another generalization. Communionis a greater goal than (mere) observance.

Image of a True Disciple: The Gadarene Demoniac

 

Dear Parish Faithful & Friends in Christ,

One of the most challenging narratives in the Gospels has to be the healing of the Gadarene demoniac (Mk. 5:1-20; MATT. 8:28-34; LK. 8:26-39). This dramatic event which reveals the power of Christ over the demons will appear to the 21st c. mind as either archaic or even primitive. We may listen with respect and sing "Glory to Thee, O Lord, glory to Thee!" upon the completion of the reading, but "wrapping our minds" around such a narrative may leave us baffled if not shaking our heads. The spectacle of a man possessed by many demons, homeless and naked, living among the tombs, chained so as to contain his self-destructive behavior is, to state the obvious, not exactly a sight that we encounter with any regularity. (Although we should acknowledge that behind the walls of certain institutions, we could witness to this day some horrible scenes of irrational and frightening behavior from profoundly troubled and suffering human beings). Add to this a herd of swine blindly rushing over a steep bank and into a lake to be drowned, and we must further recognize the strangeness of this event. This is all-together not a part of our world!

Yet, there is no reason to doubt the veracity of the narrated event, which does appear in three of the Gospels, though with different emphases and details - in fact there are two demoniacs in St. Matthew's telling of the story! It is always instructive to compare the written account of a particular event or body of teaching when found in more than one Gospel. This will cure us of the illusion of a wooden literalism as we will discover how the four evangelists will present their gathered material from the ministry of Jesus in somewhat different forms. As to the Gadarene demoniac, here was an event within the ministry of Christ that must have left a very strong impression upon the early Church as it was shaping its oral traditions into written traditions that would eventually come together in the canonical Gospels. This event was a powerful confirmation of the Lord's encounter and conflict with, and victory over, the "evil one." The final and ultimate consequence of that victory will be revealed in the Cross and Resurrection.

Whatever our immediate reaction to this passage - proclaimed last Sunday during the Liturgy from the Gospel According to St. Luke (8:26-39) - I believe that we can recognize behind the dramatic details the disintegration of a human personality under the influence of the evil one, and the reintegration of the same man's personhood when healed by Christ. Here was a man that was losing his identity to a process that was undermining the integrity of his humanity and leading to physical harm and psychic fragmentation. I am not in the process of offering a psychological analysis of the Gadarene demoniac because, 1) I am ill-equipped to do so; and 2) I do not believe that we can "reduce" his horrible condition to psychological analysis. We are dealing with the mysterious presence of personified evil and the horrific effects of that demonic presence which we accept as an essential element of the authentic Gospel Tradition. The final detail that indicates this possessed man's loss of personhood is revealed in the dialogue between himself and Jesus:

Jesus then asked him, "What is your name?" And he said, "Legion"; for many demons had entered him. (8:30)

To be named in the Bible is to receive a definite and irreducible identity as a person. It is to be "someone" created in the "image and likeness of God." It is the role of the evil one to be a force of disintegration. The "legion" inhabiting the man reveals the loss of his uniqueness, and the fragmentation of his personality. Such a distorted personality can no longer have a "home," which is indicative of our relational capacity as human beings, as it is indicative of stability and a "groundedness" in everyday reality. The poor man is driven into the desert, biblically the abode of demons. Once again, we may stress the dramatic quality of this presentation of a person driven to such a state, but would we argue against this very presentation as false when we think of the level of distortion that accompanies any form of an "alliance" with evil -whether "voluntary or involuntary?" Does anyone remain whole and well-balanced under the influence of evil? Or do we rather not experience or witness a drift toward the "abyss"?

Then we hear a splendid description of the man when he is healed by Christ! For we hear the following once the demons left him and entered into the herd of swine and self-destructed (the ultimate end of all personal manifestations of evil?):

Then the people went out to see what had happened, and they came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had gone, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. (8:35)

"Sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind." This is clearly one of the most beautiful descriptions of a Christian who remains as a true disciple of the Master. This is the baptized person who is clothed in a "garment of salvation" and who is reoriented toward Christ, the "Sun of Righteousness." The image here is of total reintegration, of the establishment of a relationship with Christ that restores integrity and wholeness to human life. Also an image of peacefulness and contentment. Our goal is life is to "get our mind right" which describes repentance or that "change of mind" that heals all internal divisions of the mind and heart as it restores our relationship with others. Jesus commands the man "to return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you" (8:39). We, too, have been freed from the evil one "and all his angels and all his pride" in baptism. In our own way, perhaps we too can also proclaim just how much Jesus has done for us.

The healing of the Gadarene demoniac is a challenging narrative, indeed. Yet, even for us in the 21st c. it is an episode in which the Gospel is proclaimed: The "Good News: of the victory of Christ over the "evil one!"

Coffee With Sister Vassa: THE VIRTUE OF SAYING “NO“

 

Coffee With Sister Vassa

THE VIRTUE OF SAYING “NO“

“He has put down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted the humble…” (Lk 1:52, The Song of the Theotokos)

This day, October 28, is celebrated in Greece both as the church-feast of the Protection of the Theotokos and as “Ohi Day” (meaning, the Day of “No”), in remembrance of the moment when the then prime minister of Greece, Ioannis Metaxas, and the Greek people said “No” to collaborating with the fascist and Nazi forces of Italy and Germany in World War II. After Metaxas refused an ultimatum to let the Axis forces enter Greece’s border on October 28, 1940, the Greek people came out on the streets, shouting “Ohi!” or “No!,” in support of Metaxas’s refusal of the fascist ultimatum. This marked the beginning of Greece’s heroic resistance to Hitler and Mussolini in WWII.

While the feast of the Protection of the Theotokos is celebrated in not-Greek Orthodox Churches on October 1/14, it was transferred in the Greek church-calendar to October 28th (Ohi Day) in 1952, to commemorate the great help and protection of the Theotokos, especially to the Greek resistance to fascism during WWII, at which time many of her miracles were reported. 

Though my Russian Orthodox Church does not celebrate the feast of the Protection today, I think it’s encouraging for all of us within the Orthodox communion of churches that we have a local Church, the Church of Greece, that celebrates this feast in connection with saying “No!” to fascism. We usually associate the Theotokos with her “Let it be,” or her saying “Yes,” to the Archangel’s news. But her “Yes,” like any choice we make for a certain decision, meant saying “No” to other options. God Himself also makes such choices, saying either Yes or No to this or that person or people, as the Theotokos notes in the above-quoted verse of her Song: “He has put down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted the humble…” 

Today let me remember the importance of saying “No,” when I need to, both in personal matters and political ones. The Mother of God chose to say “Yes” to her vocation, as did the Wise Men, who followed the star to Bethlehem. This involved saying “No” to political and religious authorities of the time, Herod and the chief priests he consulted, and led to lots of personal and political trouble, including the flight of the Theotokos and her Child to Egypt and the slaughter of the infants in Bethlehem. And this was just the beginning of the trouble caused by the One Who “put down the mighty from their thrones,” and also “exalted the humble,” who said No to the mighty on the thrones. 

Let us be encouraged today, and not forget the heroic No’s of faithful Christians throughout history, even as we might be confronted with bullies or tyrants in our personal or political or church-lives. Lord, by the prayers of the Theotokos, help us say “No” to the bullies, so that we may follow You in the freedom of Your Spirit. Happy Ohi Day!

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How encouraging to read Sister Vassa's reflection this morning about saying "NO" to fascism! A proud moment from the past for the Greek people who resisted the authoritarian abuse of such infamous failed tyrants like Mussolini and Hitler. And her added encouragement to stand up to "bullies and tyrants in our personal or political or church-lives" is a powerful message. But saying "NO" is only the first step, which must be followed by the next step of saying "Yes" to the Gospel that reveals the real power of love and compassion, as expressed by our Lord Jesus Christ. 

Coffee With Sister Vassa: WE ALL “BELONG”

 

Coffee With Sister Vassa

WE ALL “BELONG”

“For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so is Christ. For by one Spirit we were all immersed / baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were given to drink of one Spirit. For the body does not consist of one member but of many.” (1 Cor 12: 12-14)

The Body of Christ, the Church, is among other things God’s answer to our human need to “belong.” And yet it seems that it is in the Church, both in our time and in St. Paul’s time, (which is why he writes the assurances he does above), that many of us, at least from time to time, quite easily come to feel that we do “not” belong. Why? As fas as I’ve observed, it’s usually because of our temporal, merely-human distinctions from one another, – of nationality or ethnic background (e.g., non-Greeks or non-Russians might at times feel alienated in a Greek or Russian parish), or of marital status (e.g., single or divorced people might feel like outsiders in a parish made up predominantly of families), or of gender or education (e.g., women, particularly highly-educated women, might feel superfluous in certain parishes), or of age (e.g., a young person might feel out-of-place within an older church-community), or of the pastoral “style” and insensitivities of our parish-priest to all-of-the-above.

But we do “belong,” St. Paul reminds us, – “all” of us, – in any parish, and regardless of all-of-the-above. How? “By one Spirit,” and by “drinking of one Spirit.” He is the basis of our unity, not only on Sundays, but every day, – unless we rely on something or someone else as the foundation of “us.” So if I find myself feeling like I don’t belong today, even perhaps amidst the hustle-and-bustle of church-related work, let me rush back to the Source of Oneness in this world, and the source of the gentle vision that is humility. “Our Father,” I say this morning as our Lord taught us to, “Thy will be done” with all of us today, as You see fit. And thank You for all of us.

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A parish community cannot begin to flourish without a genuine and sincere sense of openness to each and every person that desires to be a living member of such a community. The great strength of the Church is precisely found in breaking down the prejudices that belong to society: "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus." (Gal. 3:28) To further create that sense of openness, Orthodoxy in North America must move beyond ethnic and language barriers that could have the result of creating an uneasiness of not "belonging" for some people as outlined by Sister Vassa above. It is only the 21st century!