The Fight Against Greed

Today’s Reading from Old Testament: Isaiah 5:7-16 - Thus says the Lord: For the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah are his pleasant planting; and he looked for justice, but behold, bloodshed; for righteousness, but behold, a cry!  Woe to those who join house to house, who add field to field, until there is no more room, and you are made to dwell alone in the midst of the land.  The LORD of hosts has sworn in my hearing: "Surely many houses shall be desolate, large and beautiful houses, without inhabitant.  For ten acres of vineyard shall yield but one bath, and a homer of seed shall yield but an ephah."  Woe to those who rise early in the morning, that they may run after strong drink, who tarry late into the evening till wine inflames them!  They have lyre and harp, timbrel and flute and wine at their feasts; but they do not regard the deeds of the LORD, or see the work of his hands.  Therefore my people go into exile for want of knowledge; their honored men are dying of hunger, and their multitude is parched with thirst.  Therefore Sheol has enlarged its appetite and opened its mouth beyond measure, and the nobility of Jerusalem and her multitude go down, her throng and he who exults in her.  Man is bowed down, and men are brought low, and the eyes of the haughty are humbled.  But the LORD of hosts is exalted in justice, and the Holy God shows himself holy in righteousness.

It was just Friday evening during the first Akathist Hymn to the Theotokos, that we heard Jesus say, “I am the vine and you are the branches.” (John 15.5) If we combine the reading from Akathist and today’s reading from Isaiah, we can understand that we (Orthodox Christians) are not a new established Church, but a continuation of the ancient people of God, the House of Israel that is referenced in today’s reading from Isaiah.

Look again at the state of the vineyard as described today by the Prophet Isaiah. The Lord saw bloodshed, selfishness, people who cared more about parties than the Word of God. We also read of the murder of Abel by Cain in today’s reading from Genesis, the first bloodshed in the Lord’s vineyard. Greed is the root of every human sin. We either want something we don’t have, or we have something we don’t want others to have.

Our Great Lenten journey is about defeating our passions by increased prayer, increased fasting, and increased almsgiving. As you continue through your second week of Great Lent this week, consider how you might show signs of greed in your interactions with others. We ALL have these tendencies as an inheritance from Adam and Eve. But God is righteous and has put in motion a plan to save us from ourselves....if only we allow Him.

Have a blessed Lent,

Father Athanasios

If it hurts it might be your pride

Today’s Gospel Reading: Luke 10:19-21 - The Lord said to his disciples, "Behold, I have given you authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and nothing shall hurt you. Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you; but rejoice that your names are written in heaven." In that same hour he rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, "I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to babes; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will."

Jesus promised the disciples that nothing would hurt them, but as we know only one of the original twelve died of “natural” causes. The rest were martyrs. We became His disciples and people hurt every day, physically and emotionally. What did Jesus mean when He promised that nothing would hurt us?

I received a note from someone recently asking advice on how to respond to a situation when they were hurt. The person asked, “In orthodoxy we are taught to turn the other cheek when someone strikes us.  I have followed this throughout my young life however now I wonder if there was something more to that?” YES, there’s always more to the story. The idea of turning the other cheek is more about US than the person who hurt us. Let me explain.

We pray in the 50^th Psalm, “Against You only have I sinned.” If our sin is only against God, then the sins of others are also only against God, even though we may feel the action. The call to turn the other cheek is to guide us into NOT taking personally the sinful actions of others. In fact, it is our sinful pride that we think that any sin could be against us, because in our mind it is ALWAYS about us. We must remember the context of the “turn the other cheek” command of God. (see Matthew 5.39) Jesus is helping us to resist evil. Among the turn the other cheek commands are the following commands:

" You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.' "But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. "If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. "And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. "Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away. " You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' "But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, "that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. "For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? "And if you greet your brethren only, what do you do more than others? Do not even the tax collectors do so? "Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect. (Matthew 5.38-48)

So what is it that hurts when someone sins? Our pride is hurt, and that then becomes our sin. What about the physical pain we feel from others? Jesus said, “Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” (Matthew 10.28) The only damage done when someone hurts us physically, if we hold off our pride, is a simple flesh wound. Flesh wounds might hurt for the moment, but they heal. We often think the WORST possible thing someone can do to us, from our earthly vantage point, is to kill us. That ultimately is what Jesus wants us to understand from today’s reading. EVEN if they kill us, that doesn’t hurt us because Jesus has conquered death. We will live forever with Him. What will hurt much more ‘later’ is the hell we created by pride and our own sinful passions. 

Why Bother?

If you have been a reader of this blog for any length of time, you know that my goal is for us to LIVE the Orthodox Christian life rather than just use the label on hospital records. With last week’s SCOTUS decision to extend legal status of same-sex marriage, it occurred to me ask a simple question of my readers....

Why bother being Orthodox?

I mean, really, if the moral teachings of the Church are not considered formative for our life in Christ, then why bother calling ourselves Orthodox Christian? I’m not talking about rights here, but conscience. Why do you (if you do) insist on considering yourself Orthodox Christian if you casually refuse to accept her moral teachings? Granted, the Divine Liturgy is AMAZING, if it is well performed, but from most of the Churches I’ve witnessed over the years, it CAN’T be the awesome performances. I’ve found much better choirs in the Baptist and AME Churches. It can’t be the kneeling for an hour on Pentecost. There IS the food....the food is delicious, no matter what ethnic Church you enter, but you can always visit the local Church festival to take some home for later. So why bother?

If there is no commitment to following the Orthodox Way of Life, which is an admitted struggle against the passions...ALL THE PASSIONS... then why not just become a member of one of other 42,999 Christian denominations? 21^st Christianity has become a “have it your way” religion, and many in the Orthodox Church have embraced this mentality under the guise of freedom. But freedom comes with consequences.

The truth of the matter is this; Orthodox Christianity is the Way of Life established by Christ and His Disciples IN ORDER to assist us in defeating the passions which separate us from God. As Saint Paul said,

For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good. For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man.  But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God -- through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin. (Romans 7.15-25)

If we are not committed to defeating the passions, and therefore defeating sin, then why subject ourselves to all the rigor of the Orthodox Christian Way of Life? It becomes a meaningless exercise. If, on the other hand, we desire to grow ever closer to God, then we will embrace the moral teachings and way of life of the Church, as weapons of war.

Ultimately it boils down to the ever-present ego, a battle that humanity has been fighting since the first day in the Garden. We tend to want things OUR way, rather than God’s, and anything (including the Church) that stands in our way of self-indulgence, we will readily reject. Here is a reminder...

Then the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die. For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. (Genesis 3.4-6)

Sounds like a good reason to bother....if you ask me.

Not Every Struggle Should be Embraced

When Jesus Christ said, “Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, pick up his cross, and follow Me,” (Mark 8.34) He was comparing our Cross to our Christian struggle. But does God expect us to welcome every struggle? We all struggle, but not everyone embraces their struggles nor should they. What types of struggles are we expected to embrace if we are to follow Christ?

When we find ourselves in a struggle that is beyond our control such as poor health or natural disaster, we would do well to remind ourselves, that this sort of struggle is the result of our fallen world, and is not necessarily punishment for poor behavior or a test from God. Sometimes things just happen. These struggles should be embraced as any other part of daily life and they strengthen us for tomorrow.

When we find ourselves in a struggle that is the result of our Faith in Jesus Christ, either in the form of temptation or persecution, we would do well to remind ourselves that the world will forever fight against us to keep us from calling upon the Lord. We will never avoid temptation or persecution so long as we are following Jesus Christ. These struggles should be embraced as building spiritual muscles to fight against the devil and our passions.

And then there are the struggles that we bring on ourselves. We procrastinate. We eat poorly. We sleep when we should be working. We work when we should be praying. We make all sorts of decisions EVERY day that bring us struggle. HOWEVER these struggles should be avoided because they are the result of our poor decisions. This type of struggle is NOT your cross, but your consequence.

And THESE struggles can only be avoided when we embrace the Cross and those struggles that strengthen our faith SO THAT we can fight against temptation. Avoid the poor behavior and the struggle fades away.

Rollercoasters and Incense

The other day, while discussing the painful reality that so many Orthodox Christians “just don’t enjoy being in Church” I was asked an interesting question. “Father, if you ask children which they would prefer, going to the amusement park or doing homework, which one do you think they would choose?” OF COURSE they would choose the amusement part, so would I. The problem with this question, all too common to the struggle of Church attendance, is a false option. Let me explain...

There is a campus (they don’t use the term perish) of New Spring Church in Florence that after only six years (the same tenure of my time in Florence) has grown to over 2,000 every Sunday. They are currently building a brand new multi-million dollar church complex that literally dwarfs the bank next door. The Worship experience of this particular Church has become quite popular in Evangelical Protestant circles, with rock music, light shows, no dress code expectations, and a sermon. BUT.....there is no preacher in Florence. That’s right; the “featured” sermon is ON SCREEN from the mother campus elsewhere in South Carolina. Others have characterized the Sunday worship as attending a concert. So, it should come as no surprise that youth (and adults who wish to pretend they’re still youth) flood in from all directions to attend a weekly “free” concert.

And there lies the false choice. Orthodox worship is NOT a rock concert. It is NOT a light show. It is NOT even a sermon, though we do preach. But the false choice is much more than just the style of worship. Orthodox worship is HEAVEN ON EARTH, where we are graced to physically become one with God through the Holy Eucharist. Orthodox worship is directionally opposite from this form of Protestant Worship. What do I mean by directionally opposite?

Where we as Orthodox direct our attention, characterized in the fact that the celebrant clergy FACE THE ALTAR, is toward God. Protestant worship is directed inward toward the self. We speak to God. We sing to God. We bow to God. We worship God with the proper understanding that we are in the presence of His glory. Protestant worship speaks to the heart and, by design, seeks the rush of adrenaline, which explains the “I just FEEL good when I leave that Church” emotion of Protestants. What examples do we have to follow?

Moses hid his face. Exodus 3.6

Isaiah cried out in fear. Isaiah 6.5

John the theologian fell to the floor as though he were dead. Revelation 1.17

Orthodox Christian worship is based upon this example of humility in the face of God. And YET, we are allowed to approach the chalice standing face-to-face with God to receive His most precious Body and Blood into our very bodies. Orthodox Christian worship is a foretaste of how God is being worshiped in Heaven as witnessed by Prophet Isaiah and Saint John.

They didn’t see rock bands. They didn’t see light shows. Of course this should be obvious, but they DID see an Altar, golden candles sticks, smoldering incense, majestic robes, pious processions, praiseful singing, and bowing....lots of bowing. These are the characteristics of Orthodox Christian worship, as they were Jewish worship before us, SO THAT we can prepare to spend eternity doing the same thing in heaven.

Life isn’t about feeling the rush of adrenaline storming down the hill of a rollercoaster. Life IS about preparing to worship God in Heaven. Worship isn’t about feeling the rush of adrenaline during a rock concert. Worship is about offering God incense and bowing at His glory before the His Altar.

Rather than asking our children if they would prefer the adrenaline of an amusement park to homework, maybe a better question would be, “Do you want to be with God?” If so.....forget the rock concert and go to Divine Liturgy. The real problem is that most Orthodox Christians are still comparing the “fun factor” of our worship to the excitement of Protestant worship. And that’s just a false choice.

It’s time to exchange rollercoasters for incense.

You Can’t See Heaven if You Stare at the Earth

Jesus said, “If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things?” (John 3.12) When Christ speaks about earthly things, He is speaking about the things that give us pleasure, in other words our passions. For example: if we focus upon our material wealth, we are focusing upon earthly things rather than heavenly things. Jesus said, we can’t successful accomplish both. So......we have to make a choice.

Jesus also said, “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up.” (John 3.15) When the Jews were bitten by the serpent, they had to believe in the power of God enough to stare UP at the golden serpent and all it represented, and they would be healed. If we want to have everlasting life, despite the biting pain of life’s struggles, we have to believe in the power of God enough to stare UP at the Cross of Christ and all it represents. So.....we have to make a choice.

Jesus again said, “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.” (John 3.17) When we spend our time staring down rather than UP toward God, we can’t see His Cross. When we spend our time staring at the wounds of life rather than UP at the Cross of Christ, we can’t see Christ calling us to heaven. So....we have a choice to make.

Which way will YOU look?

The Forgiveness Challenge

With all the commotion making its way through the internet lately about the “ALS Ice Bucket Challenge” it planted an idea in my mind. What if we all took the “Forgiveness Challenge” instead? It requires no money. It requires no cold water. It requires no internet or social networking account. It requires only your desire to forgive everyone who sins against you EVEN IF they cannot repay you for what they have done.

In the Gospel of Matthew, we hear the ultimate “Forgiveness Challenge” explained. “’Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?’ Jesus said to him, ‘I do not say to you up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.” (Matthew 18.21-22) This is followed by the parable of forgiveness (Matthew `18.23-35) which includes a king (God), a servant (you) and another servant (someone else). The king has called all his servants to settle their accounts with him, but in the face of not being able to repay the king, the servant (that’s you) begs to be given more time. The king, moved by compassion, forgives the entire debt. However the servant (that’s you again) refuses to do the same for the other servant (that’s someone else) so he is thrown into debtors prison (that’s hell) until he repays the debt, which we already know he cannot do.

Jesus “called you out” for the ultimate “Forgiveness Challenge” when He says, “So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses.” (Matthew 18.35) You have 24 hours to complete this challenge or risk a lot worse than a bucket of ice water.

Suicide is the Ultimate Sacrifice at the Altar of Self

I’ve been holding off, trying not to really, blog about the recent news of the suicide of popular actor and American hero Robin Williams. It was quite clear in the minutes and hours that followed the news of his death that anyone who dared to speak harshly about him or suicide should be prepared for a plethora of criticism with statements such as:

“You don’t know anything about depression.”

“How can you say such cruel things at a time like this?”

Some of the comments I’ve seen online have been downright cruel against anyone who chose NOT to honor the man for taking his life. HONOR? That’s what I said. Let me explain...

In a prepared statement his widow said,

“Robin's sobriety was intact and he was brave as he struggled with his own battles of depression, anxiety as well as early stages of Parkinson's Disease, which he was not yet ready to share publicly.”

From this statement we are to understand that his suicide could only be characterized as part of his brave fight with depression and other struggles. That is when I realized I had something to say. Giving up hope is NEVER brave.

But I don’t want to write specifically about Robin Williams. I only mention his situation since it was his suicide that brought it yet again into the public conscience. What bothers me deeply, and has for quite some time, which if you read my blog might be obvious, is that our society continues to run full speed ahead into a world dedicated to self.

People celebrate abortion as an expression of self rights.

Sexuality has devolved into pleasing the self through pornography, gender reassignment, same-sex marriage.

And now suicide is a brave example of self expression in the throngs of depression and other illness.

In a society which honors the self above all other relationships, I suspect we shall see an increasing trend toward this horrific end to life. And why not? After all, for almost thirty years life itself has been a matter of personal choice. Why not death? And if the media coverage of Robin Williams is any indication, it shall be seen as just another example of how we have the right to do whatever we feel is in our best interest. If we don’t want to suffer; no problem. It wouldn’t even surprise me if suicide became part of health care “management” to assist those who no longer want to suffer.

Christ said, “Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me” (Mark 8.34) That includes suffering and especially NOT thinking of the self above all other relationships.

So why did I finally decide to blog about this? If you have any love for your family and friends, you will fight the temptation to characterize this suicide as anything other than what it really is; a tragic and cowardly expression of the loss of hope. It is NEVER brave to give up hope. Our hope is in Christ who conquered death for us, so that we might live with Him in a place where there is no pain, suffering or sighing, but life everlasting. Anything else is just simple selfishness.

Of course I would be remiss if I ended this post without reminding you the Church teaches that the state of our heart when we die is permanent. If we enter into death in a state of desperate hopelessness, THAT will our eternal condition. This is just one reason why the Church frowns upon suicide. We don’t what anyone to be eternally hopeless. That would be, and is already, hell.

When Things Get Out of Control

If you are reading this, you might have something in your life that you think might be out of control. We all have something, so don’t panic. Don’t think you’re alone. But, if you have come to the point in your life, when you realized that something had to change, now is your chance. God is waiting for you to turn yourself around and return to Him and His way of life in His Church. He is waiting to restore you to your original glory. What are you waiting for?

NOW on iTunes Audio Podcast https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/be-transfigured!/id483295178?mt=2

Triodion Day 5 – Love

Since tomorrow is Valentine’s Day, I thought I would talk about love. When we love someone, we place them above all other people in our circle. We desire to be in their presence more than anyone we know. We place their desires above our desires, because our true desire is for them to be happy. We consider our desires as less important. And most often we feel like we would “just die” if we didn’t get a chance to be in their presence. These are some of the realities of being in love with another person. As our relationship progresses, unfortunately, some of these realities become histories, as our love can fade was we grow tired of “never getting what WE want,” even though we were the ones insisting.

Human love, is fallen love. Go back and read this post from the beginning…

Did you notice the hidden selfishness in our interactions with the people we love? We want the ones we love to have their desire “only” because we desire to please them to be happy. As human beings, our love is constantly burdened with our fallen nature, and never quite pure in its intentions. What seems like love, is really self-love.

Think about it for a moment. When was the last time you expressed your love for someone with absolutely no personal gain. It isn’t impossible, just challenging. That moment when you realize your love has been imperfect, is the moment you have an opportunity for repentance. That moment, is called humility.

Humility is the theme for the first week of the Triodion for a reason. We cannot repent until we first realize we need to repent. Unfortunately, in our contemporary society, humility gets a bad rap. Most people think humility is the equivalent to self-hate, and the opposite of self-love, which is not true. Humility, in the Christian understanding, is having an honest understanding of whom we are. We ARE fallen human beings, who need God’s grace and assistance to become true human beings, living in communion with God. Until we reach that level of self-awareness, just as the publican did in the Parable of the Publican and Pharisee, we will not repent, because we won’t think we need to repent.

Humility and love work as partners. We can only love purely when we realize we have loved impurely in the first place. One flows from the other. Pure love is only possible when humility gives us the eyes to see our fallen nature and selfish intentions. Humility falls on deaf ears unless we love someone enough to leave selfish intentions behind.

Jesus is Coming to YOUR House!

Surprise! Yep, Jesus called, and He’s coming to stay at YOUR house tonight. Are you ready? The Church has what you need to get your heart ready to meet the Lord. All you need to do, is come to the Church, and follow the way of life established by Jesus and His Holy Apostles.

NOW on iTunes Audio Podcast https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/be-transfigured!/id483295178?mt=2

Why I don’t preach on specific sins

Recently I received a request for a sermon that dealt with anger. I realized, after looking through my sermons online, that I don’t remember ever preaching about anger specifically. Then I realized I don’t recall, although I may have, ever preaching on any sin in particular. I have blogged about one sin or another on occasion, but never preached a sermon. You might wonder why.

Anger is really just like any other sin. We get angry because we feel an injustice, normally against us, by another, normally considered inferior to us. Anger, just like the other passions, is an expression of our ego. Some people struggle with anger, while others struggle with lust, avarice, gluttony, listlessness, or pride. With each of these passions, our ego if left unchecked will lead us to sin.

The Orthodox Christian struggle is the struggle to overcome our passions. In other words, we are charged with not allowing our passions to govern our actions. As Orthodox Christians, we struggle to allow the will of God, rather than our will, to govern our actions. A proper Orthodox Christian ascetical life or prayer, fasting, almsgiving and full participation in the Sacraments of the Church assist us in choosing God’s will over our passions.

Consider anger, for example. Why do we get angry? “Normally” it is because we don’t get something we either desire or determine we deserve. In both cases, it is our ego which drives this passion. If we could recognize that we don’t deserve special treatment, we are less likely to become angry about not receiving special treatment. If we could recognize we can’t always have what we want, we are less likely to become angry about not receiving it, or better yet less likely to want it in the first place.

So, now you understand why I don’t preach about particular sins that often. Sin is sin. Passions are passions. Our goal is to overcome the passions and sin, at whatever cost. Just focus on prayer, fasting, almsgiving, and the Sacraments; and the rest will take care of itself.