Posts
Dear Parish Faithful,
"Christ's mystery is the center of Orthodox faith, as it is also its starting point and its aim and climax." - Fr. George Florovsky
With the end of August, we have arrived at the end of the Church year and prepare for the next. We have had every opportunity to deepen our relationship with Christ through the ongoing rhythm of fasting and feasting according to the Church's liturgical calendar; and, of course, in the Eucharist, "the sacrament of sacraments." The feasts of the Church and the Liturgy have actualized the presence of Christ and the Theotokos in the midst of the grace-filled life of the Church - the "sanctification of time" as it has been called - and within the depths of our minds and hearts.
We have been further nurtured by the word of God as proclaimed in the Holy Scriptures in our liturgical assemblies and in the quiet of our rooms with the doors shut (cf. Mt. 6:6). As we live our lives in the surrounding world, perhaps we have been deeply and positively impacted through our human relationships, the beauty of the natural world, or an enduring work of art. We believe that the one Word of God is incarnate in creation, in the Scriptures, and in the Person of Jesus Christ.
These God-given encounters reveal to us all that is true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, gracious, excellent, and worthy of praise (cf. Phil. 4:8-9). In other words, we have had the opportunity to simply become more human - and in becoming more human, we simultaneously draw closer to God. Further, the richness of life presupposes our ever-vigilant struggles against sin and our ongoing repentance. The Prayer of the Hours reveals to us the fruits of repentance: to "sanctify our souls, purify our bodies, correct our minds, cleanse our thoughts; and deliver us from all tribulation, evil and distress." That is indeed a great endeavor, "but with God all things are possible." (Mt. 19:27).
A wonderful way to begin the entire process of entering into the rhythm of Church life, to understand the content of the Scriptures, and to simply draw closer to God in Christ, is to be present as we sing and chant the remarkable Akathist Hymn, "Glory to God for All Things" this evening at 7:00 p.m. Truly this is an inspired text that bears the evident traces of the Holy Spirit who, like the wind, "blows where it wills" (Jn. 3:8).
In all that we believe and do within the Church, the purpose is to establish Christ as the center, starting point and climax of our Christian existence.
