Coffee with Sister Vassa: THE 'INVISIBLE' WORLD IN OUR LIVES

THE “INVISIBLE” WORLD IN OUR LIVES

Conception of St. John the Baptist

“…And Zechariah (the father of John the Baptist) said to the angel, ‘How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is advanced in years.’ And the angel answered him, ‘I am Gabriel, who stand in the presence of God; and I was sent to speak to you, and to bring you this good news. And behold, you will be silent and unable to speak until the day that these things come to pass, because you did not believe my words, which will be fulfilled in their time.’ And the people were waiting for Zechariah, and they wondered at his delay in the temple. And when he came out, he could not speak to them, and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple; and he made signs to them and remained dumb. And when his time of service was ended, he went to his home. After these days his wife Elizabeth conceived…” (Lk 1: 18-24) 

Many things need to be said about the events surrounding the Conception of John the Baptist, celebrated today (NC). But I will focus on just one moment in this rather-long narrative, handed down to us as the very first story in the Gospel according to Luke. And that is, the reaction of the people, who had waited for Zechariah outside “the temple of the Lord” when he was inside to burn incense, to his inability to speak, when he came out. They immediately “perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple.” They immediately presumed a transcendental encounter, a vision, because the transcendental and invisible was very much part of their world. For them, the “invisible” world accounted for a behavior that had no “visible” explanation, not in words anyway, but just in “signs” that Zachariah made to them. 

All this reminds me of the simple fact that we inhabit a world of One God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, of all things visible “and invisible.” Occasionally the invisible become visible, most remarkably when the previously-invisible Son of God visibly entered our world and “became flesh.” Today let my heart be open to the countless, invisible good guys in our midst, bearing the good news of His presence in our lives, and occasionally silencing our “How can this be?” when we need just to wait and see.

 

The Baptist, The Forerunner, The Friend of the Bridegroom

 

Dear Parish Faithful & Friends in Christ,

Today, August 29, we commemorate the Beheading of St. John the Baptist. The scriptural text read at the Liturgy is MK. 6:14-29; and we also find the gruesome narrative in MT. 14:1-12. The evangelists relate the story in a way that sharply contrasts the righteousness of St. John and the utter decadence of Herod Antipas' court, beginning, of course, with his wife Herodias and her daughter Salome. St. John, the ascetic, prophet and voice "crying in the wilderness" was raised up by God to announce the coming of the Messiah, but also to denounce any unrighteousness that arrogantly ignored the Law of God. Herod Antipas was an example of that unrighteousness, unlawfully married to his brother's wife, and surrounded by a sycophantic court. Beyond that, the image of the young "dancing girl" receiving St. John's severed head on a platter and then presenting it as a "gift" to her mother, must remain one of the Bible's most brutal images of total moral depravity. Created in the "image and likeness of God," human beings, both male and female, are capable of sinking deep into the abyss of unrestrained evil. Here is a striking reminder that the gift and responsibility of human freedom can degenerate into subhuman license, wherein "everything is permitted."

Yet, perhaps it will prove to be more fruitful to turn our attention elsewhere. We call St. John "the Baptist" and "the Forerunner." These titles are meant to identify his unique and important ministry in relation to Jesus, "the Coming One." At a time when prophets and prophecy had seemed a thing of the past in Israel, God sent forth St. John to preach a baptism of repentance that would prepare the people of Israel for the advent of the Messiah, who would be Jesus of Nazareth. St. John cast his prophetic teaching in the fiery and apocalyptic language that has created an enduring image of him as the stern prophet of the impending judgement of God:

"You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruits that befit repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father'; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire." (LK. 3:7-9)

In addition to this, though, St. John anticipated the ethical ideals of Jesus about how we need to treat our neighbors with equity and compassion ("Do unto others as you would have them do unto you"):

" He who has two coats, let him share with him who has none; and he who has food, let him do likewise." Tax collectors also came to be baptized, and said to him, "Teacher, what shall we do? And he said to them, "Collect no more than is appointed you." Soldiers also asked him, "And we, what shall we do?" And he said to them, "Rob no one by violence or by false accusation, and be content with your wages." (LK. 3:11-14)

Eventually, then, in fulfillment of his role as Forerunner and Baptist, St. John recognized the Lord when Jesus approached the Jordan River and "allowed" Himself to be baptized by St. John. Once he identified Jesus as "the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!" (JN. 1:29), St. John began to "decrease" so that the Lord may "increase." This attests to the great humility of St. John. This is his "kenotic moment." And this kenosis ("self-emptying") will culminate in his beheading; as Christ's kenosis will culminate on the Cross. We have St. John's own witness to this in the words recorded by St. John the Evangelist:

"He who has the bride is the bridegroom; the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom's voice; therefore this joy of mine is now full. He must increase but I must decrease." (JN. 4:29-30)

Although we have given St. John the appropriate titles of "Baptist" and "Forerunner," he refers to himself as the "friend of the Bridegroom." At a wedding, all attention must fall upon the Bridegroom and the Bride. A true friend will never usurp that attention, but will carefully act in such a way as to ensure it. Only a false friend will act otherwise. Christ is the Bridegroom and Israel, the Church or the human soul is the Bride. As a "friend of the Bridegroom," St. John is loyal, trustworthy, and ever-ready to serve. As a true friend, he will accept a position of vulnerability for the sake of that friendship if need be. He rejoices simply to stand near Christ and hear His voice. In fact, as a friend his joy is "full." What a blessing it is to arrive at the fullness of life and joy in one's vocation, even in the awareness of the great "price" one must pay for that fulfillment! Indeed, St. John the Baptist and Forerunner of the Lord paid the full price for being a friend of the Bridegroom.

As "friends" of Christ - "You are my friends if you do what I command you" (JN. 15:14) - how wonderful to be able to "rejoice greatly at the bridegroom's voice" as did St. John. When we serve in a parish, as a priest, a member of the parish council, a church school teacher, or in any of the various ministries of the parish; it is essential that our role is to serve the Bridegroom as a true "friend," always perfectly willing to "decrease" so that all attention is given to the Bridegroom - Christ - so that He may "increase" in the minds and hearts of the parish faithful. There is no room for egosim and unhealthy vanity. In the presence of the Bridegroom it would be unseemly to draw attention to ourselves at the expense of His saving, healing and transforming presence. All of that is indicative of a shallowness and "self-love" that has no place in the presence of Christ. If "among those born of women, none is greater than he" (LK.. 7:28), then St. John remains the truest image of faithfulness to God, genuine humility and of that friendship that Christ offers to all of us.

St. John, Forerunner and Baptist of the Lord, pray to God for us!

Fr. Steven

The Baptist, The Forerunner, The Friend of the Bridegroom

 

 Dear Parish Faithful & Friends in Christ,

Yesterday, August 29, we commemorated the Beheading of St. John the Baptist. The scriptural text read at the Liturgy was MK. 6:14-29; and we also find the gruesome narrative in MT. 14:1-12. The evangelists relate the story in a way that sharply contrasts the righteousness of St. John and the utter decadence of Herod Antipas' court, beginning, of course, with his wife Herodias and her daughter Salome. St. John, the ascetic, prophet and voice "crying in the wilderness" was raised up by God to announce the coming of the Messiah, but also to denounce any unrighteousness that arrogantly ignored the Law of God. Herod Antipas was an example of that unrighteousness, unlawfully married to his brother's wife, and surrounded by a sycophantic court. Beyond that, the image of the young "dancing girl" receiving St. John's severed head on a platter and then presenting it as a "gift" to her mother, must remain one of the Bible's most brutal images of total moral depravity. Created in the "image and likeness of God," human beings, both male and female, are capable of sinking deep into the abyss of unrestrained evil. Here is a striking reminder that the gift and responsibility of human freedom can degenerate into subhuman license, wherein "everything is permitted."

Yet, perhaps it will prove to be more fruitful to turn our attention elsewhere. We call St. John "the Baptist" and "the Forerunner." These titles are meant to identify his unique and important ministry in relation to Jesus, "the Coming One." At a time when prophets and prophecy had seemed a thing of the past in Israel, God sent forth St. John to preach a baptism of repentance that would prepare the people of Israel for the advent of the Messiah, who would be Jesus of Nazareth. St. John cast his prophetic teaching in the fiery and apocalyptic language that has created an enduring image of him as the stern prophet of the impending judgement of God:

"You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Bear fruits that befit repentance, and do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father'; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire." (LK. 3:7-9)

In addition to this, though, St. John anticipated the ethical ideals of Jesus about how we need to treat our neighbors with equity and compassion ("Do unto others as you would have them do unto you"):

" He who has two coats, let him share with him who has none; and he who has food, let him do likewise." Tax collectors also came to be baptized, and said to him, "Teacher, what shall we do? And he said to them, "Collect no more than is appointed you." Soldiers also asked him, "And we, what shall we do?" And he said to them, "Rob no one by violence or by false accusation, and be content with your wages." (LK. 3:11-14)

Eventually, then, in fulfillment of his role as Forerunner and Baptist, St. John recognized the Lord when Jesus approached the Jordan River and "allowed" Himself to be baptized by St. John. Once he identified Jesus as "the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!" (JN. 1:29), St. John began to "decrease" so that the Lord may "increase." This attests to the great humility of St. John. This is his "kenotic moment." And this kenosis ("self-emptying") will culminate in his beheading; as Christ's kenosis will culminate on the Cross. We have St. John's own witness to this in the words recorded by St. John the Evangelist:

"He who has the bride is the bridegroom; the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom's voice; therefore this joy of mine is now full. He must increase but I must decrease." (JN. 4:29-30)

Although we have given St. John the appropriate titles of "Baptist" and "Forerunner," he refers to himself as the "friend of the Bridegroom." At a wedding, all attention must fall upon the Bridegroom and the Bride. A true friend will never usurp that attention, but will carefully act in such a way as to ensure it. Only a false friend will act otherwise. Christ is the Bridegroom and Israel, the Church or the human soul is the Bride. As a "friend of the Bridegroom," St. John is loyal, trustworthy, and ever-ready to serve. As a true friend, he will accept a position of vulnerability for the sake of that friendship if need be. He rejoices simply to stand near Christ and hear His voice. In fact, as a friend his joy is "full." What a blessing it is to arrive at the fullness of life and joy in one's vocation, even in the awareness of the great "price" one must pay for that fulfillment! Indeed, St. John the Baptist and Forerunner of the Lord paid the full price for being a friend of the Bridegroom.

As "friends" of Christ - "You are my friends if you do what I command you" (JN. 15:14) - how wonderful to be able to "rejoice greatly at the bridegroom's voice" as did St. John. When we serve in a parish, as a priest, a member of the parish council, a church school teacher, or in any of the various ministries of the parish; it is essential that our role is to serve the Bridegroom as a true "friend," always perfectly willing to "decrease" so that all attention is given to the Bridegroom - Christ - so that He may "increase" in the minds and hearts of the parish faithful. There is no room for egosim and unhealthy vanity. In the presence of the Bridegroom it would be unseemly to draw attention to ourselves at the expense of His saving, healing and transforming presence. All of that is indicative of a shallowness and "self-love" that has no place in the presence of Christ. If "among those born of women, none is greater than he" (LK.. 7:28), then St. John remains the truest image of faithfulness to God, genuine humility and of that friendship that Christ offers to all of us.

St. John, Forerunner and Baptist of the Lord, pray to God for us!

Fr. Steven

 

Orthodox Liturgical Tradition Values Life in the Womb

Dear Parish Faithful & Friends in Christ,

Today, September 23, we commemorate the Conception of St. John the Forerunner and Baptist of the Lord. St. John is the only figure in the New Testament besides Christ whose conception and nativity are related in detail (Lk. 1). This indicates the importance of St. John in the the work of salvation in the world. He is the true "friend of the bridegoom."

A point concerning this commemoration is that a new, unique and unrepeatable human person began to exist precisely at the moment of his conception. Human life - the psychosomatic unity of soul and body - is a continuum that starts at conception and continues through the grave and beyond into the Kingdom of God.

The scriptures reveal that life begins at conception when it tells us that the unborn John "leaped for joy" in the womb of his mother Elizabeth when the Theotokos visited her six months into her childbearing (Luke 1:39-45). St. John's destiny and vocation were chosen by God prior to his conception and started when he was conceived. He needed the time and nurturing to grow into that destiny and vocation.

The beginning of human life at conception is a truth that demands recognition in a world and society that has legalized abortion. (It is also a truth that has received absolute affirmation within the scientific community). We employ the fallible logic that declares that if something is legal then it is automatically "right."

The higher moral law declares that life is sacred. The Church witnesses to this truth to a world that has lost its moral and ethical bearings about this most basic fact of life. Every child ever conceived is a child of God with a purpose and destiny decreed for him or her by God.

The celebration of the Conception of St. John the Forerunner and Baptist of the Lord (September 23); the Conception of the Theotokos (December 9); and the Incarnation of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (March 25), remind us about the sanctity of life. Thus, it is our liturgical tradition that firmly values life in the womb. These festal commemorations declare that life is from God and they compel us to stand firmly in defense of the goodness and sanctity of life.

The conception of St. John is related in the Gospel According to St. Luke (1:5-25). This passage can be found on our parish webpage, together with other readings appointed for today:

https://www.christthesavioroca.org/todaysreadingssaints

There is also a summary from the OCA's webpage:

https://www.oca.org/saints/lives/2020/09/23/102703-conception-of-the-honorable-glorious-prophet-forerunner-and-bapt

 

The Nativity of St. John the Forerunner

Dear Parish Faithful,

"Now the time came for Elizabeth to be delivered, and she gave birth to a son ... What then will this child be? For the hand of the Lord was with him." (Lk. 1:57, 66)

 

 

 

Today, June 24, is the commemoration of the Nativity of St. John the Forerunner/Baptist. Besides Christ, the only other biblical figure whose nativity is celebrated is the Mother of God. But of the two, only St. John's conception and nativity are recorded in the Scriptures, and in some detail: Lk. 1:5-25; 57-66.  I have included a link to the scriptural texts, and to the OCA page on St. John's nativity.

An interesting feature of the liturgical commemoration of St. John's Nativity is the choice of verses used for the prokeimenon of the Feast and for the appointed Alleluia verses. The prokeimena are always chosen verses from the Psalms. These verses are never chosen arbitrarily, but they are meant to highlight one aspect or another of a given commemoration. For St. John, the two verses are:

The righteous one shall rejoice in the Lord and shall set his hope on Him. (Ps. 63:11)

vs, Hear my voice, O God, when I pray unto Thee! (63:1)

The main verse, which is repeated three times in preparation for the reading of the Epistle, is clearly chosen because St. John was such a "righteous" person who proclaimed the coming of Christ. As the angel prophecies to Zachariah, the father of the forerunner:

 

And you will have joy 

  and gladness,

and many will rejoice in his birth;

for he will be great before the Lord ...

and he will be filled with

  the Holy Spirit,

even from his mother's 

  womb. (Lk. 1:14-15)

 

However, even though the Alleluia verses before the Gospel are also overwhelmingly chosen from the Psalms, in this case, the two verses are taken from the Gospel of St. Luke:

Blessed is the Lord God of Israel, for He hath visited and redeemed His people. (Lk. 1:68)

vs. And thou, child, shall be called the Prophet of the Most-High. (Lk. 1:68)

 

This is also the case when we celebrate both the Nativity of the Mother of God and her Entrance Into the Temple - the appointed prokeimenon verses for both feasts are taken directly from the text of St. Luke's Gospel. I will assume that in these two cases, this is because we have direct scriptural authority for the given feast, and not simply verses that are applied prophetically or typologically. Be that as it may, I highly encourage everyone to read the appointed texts chosen for the Nativity of St. John the Forerunner and Baptist of the Lord.

For those who observe the Apostles Fast, fish is allowed on this day in honor of St. John.

 

 

 

Let Us Receive 'The Blessing of the Jordan'

Dear Parish Faithful & Friends in Christ,

"For the grace of God has appeared for the salvation of all men ... awaiting our blessed hope, the appearance of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ ..."  (Titus 2:11-13)

On January 6, we celebrate the Feast of Theophany. To use its full title, we celebrateTHE THEOPHANY OF OUR LORD AND SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST, a title that we usually summarize as "Theophany" (sometimes "Epiphany"). 

 

This year the feast was on a Sunday. The church was filled for the Feast, so we can then truly say that our communal celebration was festal. Serving the Great Blessing of Water outdoors added to the beauty of the day, as the sun was shining and the birds were chirping as we blessed the waters as a sign of the cosmic redemption of matter in and through Christ. As the Russian philosopher, Nicholas Berdyaev wrote: "The grass grows and the flowers bloom within the Church." 

 

Truly, our festal celebration was an excellent beginning to the New Year.  The Theophany commemorated on January 6, is actually the original date on which the Lord's Nativity was observed, together with the Visitation of the Magi, and the Baptism of Christ.  This nexus of events are distinct "theophanies," or "manifestations of God" to the world, each of which reveals the presence of Christ as a light illuminating the world, as well as being the long-awaited Messiah and Savior.

 

In fact, Theophany is sometimes called "The Feast of Lights." It was in the 4th c. that our current Christmas day of December 25 was established slowly throughout the Christian world.  The Nativity of Christ was a more hidden theophany; while the Baptism was more open in nature.

From the appointed Epistle reading of the Feast, TIT. 2:11-14, 3:4-7, we learn of the two "appearances" (the Gk. word is epiphania) of Christ: basically His Incarnation as Jesus of Nazareth, and His Parousia, or Second Coming, as the Lord of Glory.  Thus, the first appearance was in the past; while the second will be in the future. The first appearance was in humility; the second will be in glory. We live in the present, between these two appearances. We commemorate the one, and await the other. And our mode of life should reflect the fact that we have been baptized "into Christ."  

In his Epistle to Titus, the Apostle Paul refers to this baptism as "the washing of regeneration and renewal in the Holy Spirit"(3:5).  The purpose of this baptism was "so that we might be justified by his grace and become heirs in hope of eternal life" (3:7).  

 

The appearance/epiphany of the grace of God and the grace that we receive in Baptism is "training us to renounce irreligion and worldly passions, and to live sober, upright, and godly lives in this world" (2:12).  Baptism essentially allows us - by the grace of God - to transcend our biological mode of existence; so that we are now open-ended beings capable of transformation by the power and presence of the Holy Spirit.  Although subject to our biological condition, we are not enslaved to it, with "no exit" in sight. That is a potential gift unique to human beings.

At the Third Royal Hour for Theophany, we heard a beautiful passage from the Prophet Isaiah, who anticipated the transforming power of Baptism and the mode of life that would accompany it:

 

Thus says the Lord: "Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your doings from before My eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; defend the fatherless; plead for the widow. Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord:  though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool."

 

The Baptism of the Lord is directly related to our own personal baptism. This was prophetically delivered to Israel; anticipated by John's baptism in the River Jordan for the "remission of sins;" and now actualized in the Church each and every time that a person - infant, child, adolescent, adult - "puts on Christ" in the sanctified waters of the baptismal font. If, as the Apostle Paul declares, we have "put on Christ," then we need to manifest a Christ-like life to the world to the extent that we are able. The Feast of Theophany brings that to life for us as we now, as then, receive the "blessing of the Jordan."

When we "bless" the waters, we are basically acknowledging the initial "very good" with which God blessed the created world "in the beginning" (GEN. 1:31). We do not disparage the created world, but rather rejoice in it. We are definitely not dualists! 

 

However, that initial state of pristine purity was lost through the subsequent presence of sin within the world, to such an extent "that the whole creation has been groaning in travail together until now" (ROM. 8:22). 

 

Therefore, the entire cosmos has been awaiting the redemption that only the Son of God could bestow through His Incarnation, Death and Resurrection. In this way, "the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and obtain the glorious liberty of the children of God" (ROM. 8:21). 

 

By blessing the material world — probably best exemplified through the blessing of that most primal and foundational of all earthly elements, water — we anticipate that eschatological liberation here and now within the grace-filled life of the Church. To summarize this ecclesial recognition of the goodness and sanctification of the world around us, we can turn to the explanation offered by Archbishop Kallistos Ware, from the Festal Mention:

The fall of the angelic orders, and after it the fall of man, involved the whole universe. All God's creation was thereby warped and disfigured: to use the symbolism of the liturgical texts, the waters were made a "lair of dragons.' 

Christ came on earth to redeem not only man, but - through man - the entire material creation. When He entered the water, besides effecting by anticipation or rebirth in the font, he likewise effected the cleansing of the waters, their transfiguration into an organ of healing and grace. 

Further, in discussing our traditions of taking some of the blessed water home with us, Archbishop Kallistos writes the following:

...Orthodox are encouraged to drink from the water that has been blessed at Epiphany and to sprinkle themselves with it; they take it also to their homes, and keep it there to use from time to time. In all this they are not guilty of superstition. If they act so, it is because they are convinced that in virtue of Christ's Incarnation, of His Baptism and Transfiguration, all material things can be made holy and 'spirit bearing." (The Festal Menaion, p. 58-59.

The Leavetaking of Theophany is not until January 14. That means that we will continue to celebrate the Feast next Sunday at the Liturgy.  

 

During this time of the Afterfeast, a good practice is to incorporate the troparion of the Feast into our daily prayer life: both in our personal prayer and as a family. Before blessing our family meals together, we could sing or chant the troparion of the feast, so that we are doing at home, what would be done in church - extend the celebration of the Feast and thus be more attentive to the liturgical rhythms of the Church calendar. 

The Beheading of St John the Forerunner

Dear Parish Faithful,

"Truly, I say to you, among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist; yet he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he." (MATT. 11:11)

Today, August 29, we commemorate the Beheading of St. John the Forerunner and Baptist. There is an entire cycle of liturgical commemorations dedicated to St. John as there is of the Theotokos. We celebrate his Conception (September 23); his Nativity (June 24); his role in the Baptism of the Lord (January 7); and again, today, his martyr's death at the hands of King Herod. His violent death, of course, foretold the death of Christ on the Cross, for anyone who spoke the Truth was liable to condemnation.  

This article provides a good overview of the details of his beheading as told in the Gospels of Sts. Matthew and Mark.

August 29 is always a strict fast day in honor of St. John.