Monday, April 4, 2016

'Cross-bearers' - Not Simply 'Cross-wearers'



Dear Parish Faithful & Friends in Christ,

Shine, Cross of the Lord, shine with the light of thy grace upon the hearts of those that honor thee!
Hail! life-giving Cross, the fair Paradise of the Church, Tree of incorruption that brings us the enjoyment of eternal glory.
Hail!  life-giving Cross, unconquerable trophy of the true faith, door to Paradise, succor the faithful, rampart set about the Church.

(Stichera of Great Vespers for the Sunday of the Veneration of the Cross)

At the very midpoint of Great Lent we venerate the Life-Giving Cross of the Lord.  If we have in any way taken up the cross of asceticism in obedience to the Church and in reaction to our over-indulgent surroundings, then by the Third Sunday of Great Lent the purpose of our ascetical efforts - and the very goal of our journey - are brought to our attention:  to stand by the Cross of the Lord as we journey toward Jerusalem and Holy Week. 

The timing is perfect, for by this third Sunday of Great Lent we begin to tire, if not "wear out" with our lenten effort to this point.  However, in our weakness we can find the strength and resolve to continue our journey with enthusiasm, and not simply obligation. This is made possible by the presence of the Cross, not only at the heart and center of Great Lent, but at the heart and center of the biblical revelation; of the entire historical process; of the cosmos; and at the heart and center of the Trinity, as the Lamb of God is slain before the foundation of the world. 

With that in mind, we can chant and sing the appointed hymns cited above, not only as fine examples of Byzantine rhetoric, but as profound insights into the meaning and purpose of the Cross. 

What may appear at first sight as hyperbole or exaggeration in the Church's hymnography, is discovered, upon deeper meditation, to be the search for words and images adequate to the great mystery of the Cross, in itself the inexhaustible wisdom of God as the "breadth and length, and height and depth" of that wisdom which will fill us "with  the fulness of God." (EPH. 3:18-19)  The only response to this Mystery once we begin to assimilate it, is to "bow down" in worship before the Master's Cross in awe and adoration. 

In our liturgical tradition we decorate the Cross with flowers in order to enhance and reveal its inner beauty, as we bring the Cross in solemn procession into the midst of the church for veneration.  The decorated Cross is one way of trying to capture the paradoxical nature of the Cross.

For in no way is the Church trying to cover up the horror and brutality of crucifixion as one of the most  perverse and twisted means of humanity's sinful capacity to inflict pain and humiliation on others.  Here is the dark side of human nature at its most lethal.  This is all clearly beneath the surface in the Gospels and their restrained and sober narrative of the Lord dying on the Cross.  And it is on Golgotha "when they had crucified him" (MATT. 27:35) that we can begin to understand why the Lord "cried with a loud voice, 'Eli, Eli, la'ma sabach'-tha'ni' that is 'My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" (MATT. 27:46)  It is in and through this cry of solidarity with suffering humanity while lifted up on the Cross that we never soften or "sing away" the horror of the Cross.  We respect what it meant for the Lord to ascend the Cross. A clear-sighted realism demands that of us.

Yet, Christ is our Passover, the Lamb of God "who takes away the sin of the world." (JN. 1:29)  On the Cross, as the sinless Son of God, Christ absorbs and takes upon Himself all of that sin in order to overcome it from within.  He died on the Cross, but death had no hold over Him. He died for the life of the world and its salvation. By His obedience to the will of the Father, Christ destroys death by death.

For this reason, when we venerate the Cross we simultaneously glorify the Lord's "holy Resurrection." It is on the Cross that Christ is victorious, not in spite of the Cross. The Son glorifies the Father precisely while lifted up on the Cross. "I call Him King, because I see Him crucified," said St. John Chrysostom. 

As we sing at every Liturgy after having received the Body and Blood of Christ: "for through the Cross joy has come into the world."  That is an incredible claim, but through faith we understand that claim as the very heart of the Gospel, the "good news" that life has overcome death "once and for all."  Whenever we taste of that joy, we taste of the glory of the Kingdom of God. Perhaps here we discover the paradoxical nature of a decorated Cross:  the ultimate sign of defeat and death has become the "unconquerable trophy of the true faith."  Or, as the Apostle Paul has declared:  "For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God." (I COR. 1:18)

The Lord taught us:  "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me." (MK. 8:34)  These words challenge us to never be content with being passive observers of the Cross, but rather active participants in the life of self-denial and co-suffering love that are implied in taking up the Cross.

This further means that by our very vocation as Christians, we are "cross-bearers" and not simply "cross-wearers."  It is one thing to wear a cross, and another thing to bear a cross. 

Of course it is a good thing that Christians do wear a cross.  This is something of a identity badge that reveals that we are indeed Christians, but this worn cross is certainly not another piece of jewelry - Byzantine, three-barred, Celtic or Ethiopian!  By wearing a cross we are saying in effect:  I am a Christian, and therefore I belong to the Crucified One, who is none other than the "Lord and Master of my life."  My ultimate allegiance is to Him, and to no other person or party. With the Apostle Paul, I also confess:  "For I am not ashamed of the Gospel:  it is the power of God for salvation to every one who has faith ..." (ROM. 1:16) 

Such a confession already takes us way beyond passively being a "cross-wearer" to actively being a "cross-bearer."  Dying to sin in Baptism makes the impossible possible.   And with a faith in Christ that is ever-deepening in maturity, we can further exclaim with the great Apostle:  "And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires" (GAL. 5:24).

The Third Sunday of Great Lent - The Adoration of the Life-Giving Cross - reveals, I believe, that here is something that makes Lent potentially great.  Here are reasons that make taking Lent seriously a worthy and noble endeavor.  We are slowly learning to be Cross-bearers, and in the process transforming the simple profession "I am a Christian," into a powerful confession of Faith. 


Friday, April 1, 2016

Learning to Hate Sin


Dear Parish Faithful & Friends in Christ,


Great Lent is a time that we more consciously try and come to terms with our own personal sins - of deed, or word, or thought.  Sin is, of course, "missing the mark" about both God and neighbor.  It is to confuse our desires with what is good, to even confuse the very realities of good and evil.  Aware of that struggle, we do out best to avoid sin, no matter how tempting.  But the great saints will take us a good step deeper in this struggle.  They teach us to hate sin. They write about the horror sin, how it debases us, makes us less than human, and eventually - though much sooner than we are often aware - its slave.  When that happens, we often rationalize or justify our sinful inclinations, for facing up to them is quite painful.

Here is some of the "wisdom of the divine philosophers" - the great saints - who write about sin with clarity and sharpness, not allowing for any subtle embrace of sin.  The great saints, ultimately, teach us to "love the sinner," but to "hate the sin."


"Never confuse the person, formed in the image of God, with the evil that is in him; because evil is but a chance misfortune, an illness, a devilish reverie. But the very essence of the person is the image of God, and this remains in him despite every disfigurement."
 ~ St. John of Kronstadt
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"Every sin is more injury to him who does, than to him who suffers it."
~ St. Augustine of Hippo
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"The devil presents small sins to us as insignificant in our eyes, for otherwise he cannot lead us to great sins."
~ St. Mark the Ascetic
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"When a man places the Law of God and the holy commandments of God in his heart, so to speak, and loves them, then he comes to hate sin. He becomes inflamed with a desire for life in the Lord, and he restrains himself from every sin."
~ St. Nikon of Optina
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"God does not insist or desire that we should mourn in agony of heart; rather, it is his wish that out of love for him we should rejoice with laughter in our soul. 
"Take away sin, and tears become superfluous; where there is no bruise, no ointment is required.  Before the fall Adam shed no tears, and in the same way there will be no more tears after the resurrection from the dead, when sin has been destroyed.  For pain, sorrow and lamentation will then have fled away."
~ St. John Klimakos

Monday, March 28, 2016

Lives Transfigured


Fr. Thomas Hopko at Christ the Savior-Holy Spirit, Lenten Retreat 2010.

Dear Parish Faithful,


I wrote last week reminding the parish that the one-year anniversary of the repose of Protopresbyter Thomas Hopko was commemorated on March 18.  In fact, at yesterday's memorial service following the Liturgy we remembered Fr. Tom together with Archimandrites Roman (Braga) and Afanasy.  Fr. Hopko spent his retirement years in a home right by the Monastery of the Transfiguration in Ellwood City, PA, and became an integral part of the community for many years through serving and teaching.  Whenever visiting the monastery through the years, it was always great to see Fr. Tom and sometimes serve with him in the monastery's chapel.

Mother Alexandra
The monastery publishes a fine journal on a quarterly basis, entitled Life Transfigured.   The latest issue was dedicated to the foundress of the monastery, Mother Alexandra, the former Princess Ileana of Romania.  This dedication is in recognition that the twenty-fifth anniversary of her repose in the Lord occurred this last January.  The entire issue is made up of short essays or articles that she had written over the years in both Europe and the United States.

As Mother Alexandra established the monastery in 1962 (I believe) she becomes one of the great pioneers of Orthodox monasticism in North America, certainly of women's monasticism.  A very fond memory for both Presbyter and myself was that of hosting Mother Alexandra in our home when she came to lead a retreat in the small mission I was serving in London, Ontario, Canada, before coming to Cincinnati.  She left having made a great impact on our community there.  Born into royalty, Mother Alexandra was a woman of great cultural and spiritual refinement.  Yet, through her profound Christian faith, she was also deeply humble and aware of the equality of all human beings before God and our need to repent of our sins.

Yesterday, we read aloud in the church her short but moving meditation on the First Commandment.  Based on the words of Christ as recording in the Gospel according to St. Mark:  "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind and with all they strength.  This is the first commandment;" she began her meditation with the following memorable words:

"How many Christians really fulfill this commandment? How many other persons or things come first?  How many people realize, O Lord, that You do not come between them and other loves, but quite the contrary, other loves and cares come between them and You!  The greater our love for God the more our love for home, parents, children and friends grows.  How many even of those that have embraced some form of religious life are conscious of this factor in their spiritual thoughts?"

She closed this meditation with the following prayer that must have been of her own composition:

O! my Lord God, fill my empty heart with Thy love,
revive my flagging spirits. Make me strong through
Thy strength, making me compassionate by Thy
compassion; now that at last I am an empty shell
I pray Thee fill me utterly with Thy love so that my
love may faithful reflect Thy for me and all mankind.
Amen.


A further meditation in this issue is entitled "Regret and Repentance."  I would like to share this short meditation with everyone, noting its deep lenten significance, perhaps as we prepare for the Sacrament of Confession:

There is a great deal of difference between regretting sins we have committed and feeling true contrition about them, repenting of them.

To regret, actually means to be sorry for a loss, or distressed about an event.  This, of course, is no bad start in relation to sin, because in sinning we have indeed lost a great deal more than we realize.  With each sin, big or small, we fall away from grace.  Also, sins have an uncomfortable  way of having visibly uncomfortable consequences, events for which we most certainly are sorry.

But this is a long way from real contrition that brings repentance.  True repentance is not only grief in the unfortunate consequences of our thoughts or actions, a hatred for what we have done, but also deep sorrow for the impulse that gave birth to sin.  It awakes the desire to do penance, to make good, to purge ourselves.  We become conscious of the stain upon the soul.  That is why the 50th (51st) Psalm is given such predominance in all our services, for it is the real prayer of repentance:  "cleanse me from my sin, for I acknowledge my transgression:  and my sin is ever before me."  Repentance also includes the hope of forgiveness, the knowledge that God can wipe out the stain:  "Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me and I shall be whiter than snow."

Yet David, when he wrote this, had not the assurance that we have, that if we repent, we are forgiven.  "This is My blood of the New Testament which is shed for you for the remission of sins."

Christ instituted the Sacrament of Confession to give you an opportunity, even many opportunities, to heal the diseases that afflict the soul.  When did you last repent and go to confession instead of just being sorry?


Going back twenty five years to the repose of Mother Alexandra, we realize that we have lost many great figures of Orthodoxy in that time span.  Yet, they are still with us "in spirit" as we trust by the mercy of God they now reside in the Kingdom of heaven and pray for us. And we have their written legacy in the form of their writings to nourish us as we are hopefully on that same path.

Friday, March 25, 2016

The Annunciation: 'Today is revealed the mystery…'





Dear Parish Faithful,


Every year during Great Lent, we celebrate the Great Feast of the Annunciation to the Most-Holy Theotokos on March 25.  This beautiful “festal interlude” allows us to again marvel before the great mystery of the Incarnation of the Son of God. 

At His conception “without seed” the “Word became flesh.” He will be born in nine months time, but the actual incarnation is marked when He entered the womb of the Virgin Mary—when she was “overshadowed” by the Holy Spirit. Since her Son is the pre-eternal Son, Word and Wisdom of God, she becomes the Theotokos—literally, the “God-bearer”.

In an extraordinarily fine passage, the 14th century Saint Nicholas Cabasilas explains the role, not only of the Holy Trinity in this great mystery, but also that of the Theotokos, thus revealing to us the meaning of synergy, or of cooperating with God.

“The incarnation of the Word was not only the work of Father, Son and Spirit—the first consenting, the second descending, the third overshadowing—but it was also the work of the will and the faith of the Virgin,” Saint Nicholas writes.  “Without the three divine persons this design could not have been set in motion; but likewise the plan could not have been carried into effect without the consent and faith of the all-pure Virgin. Only after teaching and persuading her does God make her His Mother and receive from her the flesh which she consciously wills to offer Him. Just as He was conceived by His own free choice, so in the same way she became His Mother voluntarily and with her free consent.”

Feast Days are not just theological ideas. They are days of worship, because it is in worship that we actualize and participate in the reality being commemorated: “Today is revealed the mystery that is from all eternity” we sing on the Great Feast of the Annunciation.  We celebrate the Feasts Days of the Church liturgically so that we can gather as the Body of Christ and rejoice together over the saving events that manifest God’s mercy and grace to the world.

On this feast let us praise God for the awesome mystery of the Incarnation. This Feast "disappears" quickly - March 26 is the Leavetaking - precisely because it is Lent.

As to yesterday evening's Vesperal Liturgy, we had very good participation  and good fellowship in the church hall to follow.

Wednesday, March 23, 2016

Fr. Thomas Hopko and The Orthodox Faith


Dear Parish Faithful,


https://oca.org/news/headline-news/updated-orthodox-faith-series-honors-protopresbyter-thomas-hopkos-memory
I am a few days behind, but last Friday, March 18, was the one-year anniversary of the falling asleep in the Lord of Protopresbyter Thomas Hopko. After one year, many of us, at least, now realize how much we miss Fr. Hopko's presence among us as a teacher and guide.  That is certainly my experience, since I have known Fr. Hopko since the mid-70's.  We talked on the phone frequently, and I always appreciated his insights into the most contemporary of issues that we are dealing with today. 

In an obvious attempt to co-ordinate two events, St. Vladimir's Press (SVS Press) has re-issued in a new format and with a significant expansion of some of the material, Fr. Hopko's famous "Rainbow Series" of books.  This was a four-volume introduction to the Orthodox Faith, with each separate volume printed with a particular cover color:  Vol. I Doctrine (blue); Vol. II Worship (purple); Vol. III (Bible & Church History (orange); and Vol. IV Spirituality (green). Hence, the "Rainbow Series." 

I have used these book extensively over the years; and some in the parish who were catechized by me will remember them, especially Vol. I.  The new books are now much more attractively-formatted, and the text is accompanied with a series of beautiful pen-and-ink icons by Fr. Andrew Tregubov.

The Preface has been written by Metropolitan Tikhon.  His Beatitude writes very appreciatively:

"It is difficult to overestimate the importance of the series The Orthodox Faith, one of the earlier publications written by Fr. Tom, the first volume of which came out in 1971.  This deceptively labeled "elementary handbook" on the Orthodox Church has been used by thousands, from casual enquirers to catechumens to lifelong Church members, as both a catechesis and basic reference tool on Orthodox Christianity."  (p. 11-12)

His Beatitude then adds:

"And so, it is more than fitting that these books be given an update in design and content after so many years of faithful service.  Fr. Tom had plans to revise and update all four volumes of this series.  But alas, with his final illness and death in March, 2015, this was not to be." (p. 12)

And concluding his Preface, His Beatitude writes:

"My hope is that these volumes will continue to inspire those who have made use of them over the years and will serve as an introduction to the Orthodox Faith for a new generation of seekers and learners who are willing to enter into the experience of God following the example provided by Protopresbyter Thomas Hopko and his words." (p. 13)

As just one of innumerable examples of Fr. Hopko's clear, direct and insightful style, here is his short description of what the Divine Liturgy actually is:

The Divine Liturgy is not an act of personal piety.  It is not a prayer service. It is not merely one of the sacraments.  The Divine Liturgy is the one common sacrament of the very being of the Church itself. It is the one sacramental manifestation of the essence of the Church as the Community of God in heaven and on earth. It is the one unique sacramental revelation of the Church as the mystical Body and Bride of Christ.

Since this is an excellent introduction to the Orthodox Faith; and since these volumes can be read repeatedly and serve as reference volumes; I would highly recommend them for any personal Orthodox library.  (We will have a set in our own parish library).  The volumes will eventually be made available for download in digital formats. And a question and discussion forum with points of reflection is being created on the OCA website.  Please visit:

https://oca.org/orthodoxy/the-orthodox-faith


Memory Eternal to the Protopresbyter Thomas Hopko!

+ + +


SPECIAL ENCORE TRIBUTE
TO FR. THOMAS HOPKO

http://www.ancientfaith.com/podcasts/aftoday/remembering_fr._thomas_hopko


In addition to this welcome news of the new edition of The Orthodox Faith Series, Ancient Faith Radio has made available its 2015 special edition of Ancient Faith Today with Kevin Allen:

In this touching two-hour remembrance, Kevin Allen welcomes three friends who knew Fr. Thomas Hopko as a friend, a colleague, and a priest. You'll also hear tributes from his listeners from all around the world. Our thanks to Dr. Al Rossi, Dr. Peter Bouteneff, and Mother Christophora for sharing on the program.

Remembering Fr. Thomas Hopko (available to download or play in browser)