Seeing God

When life presents us with blessings or even struggles, whether or not we experience them as opportunities to draw closer to God, depends completely upon the condition of our hearts. Do you see God in the blessings and struggles of your life? It just takes allowing God to heal your vision, and open your heart to His grace.

Jesus Reveals Himself Raised from the Dead

The Holy Apostle Thomas was not present when Jesus first appeared to the Apostles after the Resurrection. So eight days later, He appeared again, this time so that Thomas might believe. When Jesus appeared, He said, “Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.” (John 20.27)

We all need a boost from God every now and then so that we can strengthen our faith in Him.  As we heard during the Resurrection Liturgy, the beauty of the entire story of Jesus Christ, from His birth through to His death and glorious resurrection, is that HE CAME TO US, and “As many as received Him, to them [that means us] He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name.” (John 1.12)

Some did not, and still do not, believe in His Gospel, and each person has the freedom to accept or to deny Him. But for those who DESIRE to believe, Jesus always appears in the fashion needed. St Thomas wasn’t the only one who needed physical proof, which is why Jesus didn’t remain separate from us in Heaven, but came to reveal Himself to us.

But for those of us living in 2014, Jesus said, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” (John 20.29) For us, we can take comfort in the words of Saint Paul, “He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He was seen by the Cephas [St Peter], then by the twelve. After that he was seen by over five hundred brethren at once.” (1 Corinthians 15.5-6)

The Scriptures and the Feast of Feasts, Holy and Great Pascha

A Bible study focused on the Themes and Scriptures readings assigned for the Feast of Feasts, Great and Holy Pascha! This study is based upon the series "A Year of the Lord, Liturgical Bible Studies" by Father Theodore Stylianopoulos. We will be using Volume 4: Easter and Pentecost.

Being Christian in a Pluralistic Society Requires Love

We live in a post-modern, many suggest post-Christian world. Without doubt, we live in a secular and pluralistic society, which includes Christians of ALL denominations, Jews, Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims, Atheists, Baha’i, Humanists, Wiccan, and many more I don’t know the name of. For centuries, Christians have been the recipients of legal protection of their way of life from governments of all sorts. But times are changing.

With the growing reality of our secular and pluralistic society, it has become fashionable to declare “Christian persecution” and “intolerance” of our Christian ideals. I can’t speak for everyone, but we must admit that there does exist persecution and intolerance, but is it warranted? Is it government sponsored? Just because a growing number of Americans believe that marriage should be redefined, doesn’t mean Christians are being persecuted. If anything, we are feeling the sting of no longer being the majority moral followers of our nation. I suppose that could “feel” like persecution, but it isn’t really.

Living in a world with other people requires a deeper Christian love than we might need living in a Christian compound.  As Christians we believe that God has given us free will, and with that free will, come consequences. As Saint Paul reminds us, “All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful.” (1 Corinthians 6.12) Just because people have the free will to live their life, doesn’t mean their choices will be helpful in their relationship with God.

But I don’t want to write about other people today, I want to write about us, Orthodox Christians. WE are called to use our free will to live according to the commandments of God. WE are called by Christ to a life of holiness dedicated to God. “The body is not for sexual immorality, but for the Lord.” (1 Corinthians 6.13) But most importantly, WE are called to love our neighbor as ourselves, and when we love, we have to allow the same free will that God allows.

Loving others doesn’t mean condoning or endorsing their behavior. It means that we allow them the same opportunity to exercise their free will that God has allowed to us. It also doesn’t mean forcing them to live according to our Christian way of life. The benefit of a so-called Christian society supporting our moral codes hasn’t been about us forcing our way of life upon others. It has been a result of mutual respect for a minority to live in a society based upon foreign moral standards, while remaining privately dedicated to their chosen way of life. And we are slowly becoming a minority.

Sexuality, while possibly the most popular moral shift of our times, is not the only difference in our moral codes, but since it is so popular, I use it as an example. There are many other morals standards which the Orthodox Church frowns upon that are upheld by our society, not the least of which is abortion. While we as Orthodox Christians teach against such behavior choices, we cannot lose sight of the fact, that until WE are forced to behave according to such standards, we are not being persecuted, even though such behaviors are endorsed and sanctioned by the society at large.

So how do we coexist in such an environment? As members of our society, we each have a say in the common moral codes of our society. This is the rich blessing of living in a democratic society. We cast our votes and debate in the public square, but once the votes have been cast, we agree to accept as lawful while not helpful, the decisions which we, in our private lives, would never endorse. This is not selling out. Rather, it is an expression of love to allow free will.

On the topic of same-sex marriage, it might sound like, “No, I don’t agree with same-sex marriage. I know it’s legal, but we don’t believe it is proper, but I can’t stop you for expressing your own free will.” I try to remind faithful Orthodox Christians all the time, “Legal does mean moral.”

But there is another difficulty in our coexistence. As with the recent attempt in Arizona to “protect religious freedom”, many confuse tolerance with acceptance. Part of this problem is a natural result of the western concept that certain sins are worse than others. In Orthodoxy, ALL SIN separates us from God. Whether someone falls to sexual sins, greed, gluttony, etc., ALL SIN is seen by God as against His will. So if we would “do business” with greedy fat people, we should be willing to “do business” with skinny gay people.

Again, Saint Paul has great advice,

“I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people. Yet I certainly did not mean with the sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner -- not even to eat with such a person. For what have I to do with judging those also who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside? But those who are outside God judges.” (1 Corinthains 5.9-13)

It isn’t a betrayal of Christian morals to photograph a gay marriage any more than it is to bake a cake for fat people.

Where this get’s a “little murky” might be IF you are in a certain profession in which you are required to PERSONALLY ACT in a way that is against the will of God. This is often the difficulty in medical circles in regard to abortion. So, until an Orthodox Christian Priest is ‘ordered’ to perform a same-sex marriage, the legal status of such marriages is not a matter of persecution.

Will it ever get to this point? I suspect it will. Jesus said,

“If you were of the world, the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” (John 15.19)

The day will eventually come when Christians are forced to act against Christ, and the blood of martyrs will once again flow through the streets. It is already happening in other nations. But until it does…remember what Jesus said,

“In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” (John 16.33)

Politicizing Morality – Good, Bad, or Unavoidable?

By definition, morality is a communal agreement about behavior or attitude, and by definition, is relative to a particular group. For example, one group agrees to share the use of a local pond. By agreement, the pond can only be used for swimming and fishing, but no powered vehicles are allowed. By definition, then, it becomes immoral to boat on the pond. If someone wants to use their boat, he must either defy the moral code by boating, or politic to change the moral code to allow boating. It’s during the politicking process, that I’m concerned with for this blog post.

The process of arguing morals within a particular group, can take a variety of tangents. But the common thread is, one person (or several/many people) wants to engage in a behavior that another person (or other people) believes to be against the agreed morality. And so the debate is engaged, and the group is divided into the boaters and the swimmers, the fishers and the players, the environmentally conscious and the polluters. Every member of the group is forced to align with one side or another of the debate, each for their own reason.

As the debate rages on, the common goal of the group (in this case, the use of the pond) is forgotten in exchange for the goal of winning the debate. Once this happens, the division of the group is complete – winners and losers. NOBODY wants to be a loser, so the debate degrades further into name calling and bullying. At this point, oftentimes, the boaters (the ones who originally desired to alter the moral) take matters into their own hands and, boldly violate the moral code causing further division of the group into law abiding and law breaking. Then comes sanctions followed by sympathizers who just want to keep the peace. The debate has become personal and THIS MEANS WAR!

I purposefully used the common use of a local pond to outline exactly what is happening in our nation about a variety of topics. I was asked recently for advice about how an Orthodox Christian should “function” within their work environment while such debates are occurring within the office. The example given was in regard to “non discrimination policies” and what categories should be included. The initial thought of the Orthodox Christian was simple, and genuine. “We do not discriminate! Why isn’t that enough?”

The reason it isn’t enough has to do with boaters and swimmers. As a society, we discriminate ALL THE TIME. (Think local pond) Society is a group of people who have agreed to discriminate based upon certain categories. Yes, we DO discriminate every day. We discriminate “against” pedophiles, bank robbers, short people, tall people, skinny people, fat people, married people, single people, gangbangers, polluters, dog walkers, dog owners…..you get the point. It isn’t that we don’t discriminate, but HOW we discriminate. The moral code – the agreement of the group – is what we are debating, and currently there is a growing agreement that certain characteristics should be included in the “not allowed” category.

Just like the local pond, we each have aligned ourselves with a particular group for our own personal reasons. And just like the local pond, the debate has degraded into personal attacks and NOW we are either haters or sympathizers. So, how do we “function” as Orthodox Christian within this environment? I suggest we consider Saint Paul’s advice:

 I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people. Yet I certainly did not mean with the sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner -- not even to eat with such a person. For what have I to do with judging those also who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside? But those who are outside God judges. Therefore "put away from yourselves the evil person." (1 Corinthians 5.9-13)

If we heed the advice of Saint Paul, we will remember the proper focus during the constant debate of society morals. We are held to a higher standard as members of the Church. We participate in the process only so far as we are able to avoid the degradation of the process into haters and sympathizers. However, just like our local pond, I believe the degradation is unavoidable.

Whether the topic is discrimination policies, marriage, property rights, immigration status, it really doesn’t matter. The process is the same and continuous. The boaters will eventually be allowed to use the local pond, simply because the swimmers don’t want to be considered haters. And they will find another place to swim, until someone wants to go boating. THEN…the whole process will start all over again.

2013 New Testament Challenge – Day 30 (Catch Up!)

Every year I participate in a special effort called the New Testament Challenge sponsored by a priest of the Orthodox Church in America. He encourages Christians to spend the Christmas Fast, also known as Advent) reading the entire New Testament as a preparation for Christmas. Each year I have done this, it has been blessing to me and I pray this year will be no different. As part of the New Testament Challenge, I endeavor to blog a bit about the reading for that particular day. I may miss a few, but I pray for those who follow this blog (NOW ALSO ON FACEBOOK) it will be a blessing.

Well, I fell into the trap of getting busy. By way of confession, I haven’t been at my desk more than a couple hours this past week. So today, I’m using the “Catch Up” option for the Challenge. I will however endeavor to say a few things about each Challenge section.

Day 22 – 1 Corinthians 1-11

The Corinthians must have been a tough bunch, because Saint Paul continually urges them to leave their old lifestyle behind.  I suppose this can be comforting for us today – that we aren’t the only ones struggling to leave the worldly life behind – but one point I think stood out for today, especially considering all the so-called culture war talk as of late:

I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people. Yet I certainly did not mean with the sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner -- not even to eat with such a person. For what have I to do with judging those also who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside? But those who are outside God judges. Therefore "put away from yourselves the evil person." (1 Corinthians 5.9-13)

With the recent publicity of a court case in Colorado, which forced a baker to make a wedding cake against his will for a same-sex wedding reception, these words by Saint Paul touched me. Saint Paul (and Christ for that matter) wants us to focus on OUR life and the life of OUR Church, rather than ‘Bible thumping’ our fellow citizens.

Day 25 – 1 Corinthians 12- 2 Corinthians

The Holy Scriptures can be confusing. The Old Testament, without the ‘point of view’ of the Risen Christ cannot be fully understood. Likewise, the New Testament, until the return of Christ, cannot be fully understood if we depend upon human logic. Saint Paul said,

Therefore, since we have this ministry, as we have received mercy, we do not lose heart. But we have renounced the hidden things of shame, not walking in craftiness nor handling the word of God deceitfully, but by manifestation of the truth commending ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. But even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them. For we do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your bondservants for Jesus' sake. For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. (2 Corinthians 4.1-6)

It’s time to allow the Light of Christ to shine upon your reading the Holy Scriptures and leave worldly wisdom behind to embrace Godly wisdom.

For our boasting is this: the testimony of our conscience that we conducted ourselves in the world in simplicity and godly sincerity, not with fleshly wisdom but by the grace of God, and more abundantly toward you. For we are not writing any other things to you than what you read or understand. Now I trust you will understand, even to the end (as also you have understood us in part), that we are your boast as you also are ours, in the day of the Lord Jesus. (2 Corinthians 1.12-13)

Until tomorrow…..I’ve more to catch up tomorrow….

Feet

Today’s topic from the Preachers’ Institute for the 40 Days of Blogging Challenge is “Feet.” Feet really take a beating; they support you wherever you go. They help you run away from danger. They jump out of the way of spiders. And they don’t mind getting squishy why you cross the street after a wet snow storm. Feet are always with you, through thick and thin….and “these days” feet have it pretty good. In Biblical times, you know….the days without indoor plumbing…, feet had it much harder with all the extra “stuff” they had to step in every day. Think about this when you read this passage…

Then one of the Pharisees asked Him to eat with him. And He went to the Pharisee's house, and sat down to eat. And behold, a woman in the city who was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at the table in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster flask of fragrant oil, and stood at His feet behind Him weeping; and she began to wash His feet with her tears, and wiped them with the hair of her head; and she kissed His feet and anointed them with the fragrant oil. (Luke 6.36-38)

I like to remind people of this reality when they hear this passage. I don’t think I have that type of love. Thankfully, I have not been tempted with that. God probably knows I would fall to that temptation. We never really think that God protects us so many times from things that would be a detriment for our spiritual journey. We don’t always recognize it, but He works overtime keeping us from temptations that are more than we can handle.

Saint Paul reminded us,

“No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.” (1 Corinthians 10.13)

And how will you escape? With your FEET! See, they really are important. Next time you find yourself in the middle of a temptation you feel you can’t overcome, RUN to the nearest Orthodox Church, get down on your knees, and beg the Lord to save you. And He will….but you might have to get your feet dirty traveling along the road. But don’t worry, they can take it!

This post is written for the 40 Days of Blogging Challenge sponsored by the Preachers Institute. You may find other blogs participating in this challenge. I hope you enjoy this year’s Advent journey.

You are “A” Holy of Holies

Today is the Feast of the Entrance of the Theotokos (Bearer of God) in the Temple. According to the Holy Tradition of the Church, when she was about three years old she was brought to the temple by her aged parents Joachim and Anna to live. You might compare this practice to the Virgin Mary becoming a “Temple Virgin” and living among the other virgins within the Court of Women. Upon entering the Temple, according to the ancient Holy Tradition, she dwelt within the Holy of Holies and was fed by the hand of the Archangel Gabriel. Much of this story is included in the Protoevangelium of James, commonly attributed to Jesus’ half-brother, a son of Joseph. I encourage you to read the whole selection. You will be inspired. Most, including so-called cradle Orthodox, are not totally aware of the depth of the Holy Tradition about the Holy Virgin, most of which, though not Scriptural, helps us better grasp the awesomeness of the “Christmas Story.”

So the Most Holy Virgin Mary, the Mother of God, entered into the place reserved ONLY for the High Priest (and then only once per year) to offer the Atonement Offering. It was within the Holy of Holies that, by the grace and permission of God, humans and God could commune. It was only natural that the Most Holy Virgin, who was chosen by God as the first human to physically commune with God through the mystery of the Divine Incarnation, would be welcomed into the Holy of Holies.

But YOU too are a Holy of Holies of sorts. When you were baptized (if you have been) you became the Temple of the Living God. (2 Corinthians 6.16) Since that moment, God has lived in you through His Holy Spirit. Every time you receive Holy Communion, the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, you commune physically with the Incarnate Word of God.

When God commanded Moses to construct His Holy Temple, He commanded that only the finest materials be used. The Temple was the dwelling place of God where humans and God would interact. It was a place of reverence and holiness. You can read about the construction of the Temple in Exodus 25-31.

If God commanded respect and reverence for the Temple made of stone, how much more should we care for the Temple not made with hands? We seem to forget that our bodies ARE temples of God. Would we desecrate the Temple of God with graffiti? Would we use the Temple of God to store tools for cleaning out sewers? Yet, every time we treat our human body with anything but the utmost respect, we are desecrating the Temple of God – the Holy of Holies.

Something to think about…

This post is written for the 40 Days of Blogging Challenge sponsored by the Preachers Institute. You may find other blogs participating in this challenge. I hope you enjoy this year’s Advent journey.

“Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.” Philippians 1.6

I wonder if you knew that the human gestation period (the time needed for complete development of the human body) is longer than nine months. I wonder if you knew that human babies, if they were in the womb for the entire gestation period, would be more than double their birth size? I KNOW you know that a human baby cannot survive without assistance immediately upon birth. Now you know why…For more information on this topic, please check out this article by Orthodox professor, Dr Daniel Buxhoveden, in which he compares the human gestation to that of the cosmic development.

HOMINID EVOLUTION AND THE BIRTH OF THE SPECIES

But I’m pretty sure this wasn’t what Saint Paul had in mind when he wrote these words to the Church in Philipi. Yet, we ARE still a work in progress, spiritually speaking that is. As I point out at almost every Baptism I am blessed to celebrate, we begin our spiritual journey in Christ at our Baptism, rather than complete our journey. I find too many who consider Baptism the “end of our faith journey” that brings to conclusion a period of study and evaluation (as if we have any right to evaluate the Truth), or at least that completes, for those “born into the Faith” the parents’ responsibilities of bringing the Children to Church. If you don’t believe me, consider the many, too many, after whose baptism takes place, do not allow their new life in Christ to have any affect in their daily life choices.

And yet, we are a work in progress. “Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.” (2 Corinthians 4.16) This process of becoming like God, which we call Theosis, BEGINS at our baptism and is perfected by God at His Return.

If we could just remember that, while we are not quite finished becoming like God, that does not mean that we have any power to actually accomplish the work of perfection. St John Chrysostom makes a beautiful point in describing Saint Paul’s words. “See how he also teaches them to be unassuming. For since he had witnessed a great thing in them, that they may not feel as men are apt to do, he presently teaches them to refer both the past and the future to Christ.” (Homily 1 on Philippians)

Remember the process, and remember WHO IT IS who is accomplishing the great task in your perfection….and them let Him accomplish it. Then you can Live a New Life in Christ.