Don’t Be a Pretender

I meet many people who claim to be Orthodox Christian, yet do not attend Divine Liturgy at all or rarely. They fast, they say their prayers, they even light candles in churches and chapels, but they can’t remember the last time they received Holy Communion. I often wonder why someone who go through all the motions of being Orthodox, even having elaborate home altars with oils and other holy items for veneration. Consider today’s Gospel reading from Luke…

At that time, the Pharisees came to Jesus and said to him, "Why do the disciples of John fast often and offer prayers, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours eat and drink?" And Jesus said to them, "Can you make wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? The days will come, when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in those days." He told them a parable also: "No one tears a piece from a new garment and puts it upon an old garment; if he does, he will tear the new, and the piece from the new will not match the old. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; if he does, the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed. But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins. And no one after drinking old wine desires new; for he says, 'The old is better.'" (Luke 5.33-39)

Christ is reminding us that living in communion with Him is the reason we fast and pray and do all the other things we do as Orthodox Christian. I’m sure you’ve heard people say, “Fasting without prayer is a diet.” This is true, but let’s go a step further….. “Orthodox practices without Holy Communion is just pretend.” Don’t be a pretender. Call your spiritual father today to schedule for Holy Confession and get back on track to Live A New Life IN Christ.

Where were you when Jesus was crucified?

Today the Church celebrates the memory of Saint John the Theologian. When Christ was still hanging on the Cross, He turned to John and pointed to the Theotokos. “Behold your mother!" And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home.” (John 19.26) John the Theologian was one of the inner circle among the Disciples. He was present at the Transfiguration and was considered one of Christ’s closest friends. He was also the only one of the men disciples who had the courage to stay at the Cross until the very end. The remainder had fled for fear. It is his eyewitness the Church depends upon for the events that day.

He wrote the Gospel of John and several letters to the global church. He finished his gospel account with these words, “This is the disciple who testifies of these things, and wrote these things; and we know that his testimony is true. And there are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. Amen.” (John 21.24-25)

Today we honor the man who was our eyes and ears at the events that are our salvation, and we are thankful. 

Healing is for repentance

One time I attended a special roundtable discussion with several nondenominational clergy to discuss the issue of hospital ministry. We were asked, “Who wouldn’t visit a hospital and NOT pray for healing?” We do it all the time. We pray for others to be healed from sickness. Being totally honest I thought the question was sort of short-sighted, so I answered, “I don’t.”

What I meant was that we as Orthodox Christians don’t merely pray for healing, but we pray that our friends and family will be healed so they can have time for repentance. If our prayer is merely for physical healing, it will be a waste of time. In today’s Gospel, Jesus healed Saint Peter’s mother-in-law, (Luke 4.38-39) who once she was healed immediately began to serve Him. In fact, at each healing we read about in the Scriptures, it is followed the worship of God and a life of repentance. Any other healing is a waste of time.

Bring in the Catch

When considering the Gospel story of the calling of the Disciples as told in Luke 5.1-11, we must remember the Lord is calling us to go out and fill the Church with faithful. Unfortunately, many times we are too busy with our own agenda and cannot recognize Christ when we hear Him calling us. If could only engage the life of the Church so we could recognize God when we meet Him. Then we will be willing to leave everything behind and follow Christ.

 

Drop Everything

In today’s world our lives are filled with countless opportunities to take up our time with household chores and projects at work. From the moment we awake our mind races from task to task taking us from place to place. We rest only for the momentary chance of eating a few bites of food to fuel another few hours of productivity. And if we dare to take a few hours away from work, we are accused of being lazy and not accomplishing up to our potential.

The reality of busy lives filled with work is nothing new. Even in time of Christ, days were filled with work from sunup to sundown, and sometimes even overnight. The day was for work. That is what makes the story of the calling of the first Disciples so extraordinary. Despite having worked all night long, and though they were mending their nets to prepare for the next day, when Jesus Christ called and said, “Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch,” (Luke 5.4) Simon and his partners were willing to shove off and give Christ a chance.

It wasn’t without reason, though, since they had prepared with souls to hear His word. We know this from Simon’s answer, “Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing; nevertheless at Your word I will let down the net.” (Luke 5.5) He called Him Master because they had prepared their heart to hear His word. After a catch that almost sank their boat, they were willing to drop everything and follow Him, ultimately to their death.

We can learn something from this story. The Disciples would never have trusted Christ’s invitation unless they had first prepared their soul to hear His word. The story isn’t meant to lead us to believe that God merely wants our business careers to excel beyond our wildest dreams. The story is about building the Church with faithful disciples who, after preparing their souls to hear the Word of God, are willing to trust Him enough to make following Him a priority greater than anything that occupies their life.

Jesus said to these new disciples, “Do not be afraid. From now on you will catch men” (Luke 5.10) If we are willing to prepare our souls to hear His invitation, and trust where He sends us, our Cathedral will be filled to overflowing, just as their boats were with fish. Are you willing to drop everything and give it a try?

Trust Has Consequences

When Archangel Gabriel gave word to Zacharias that his wife Elizabeth who was in old age would bear a son, he stood in disbelief. He found it impossible that God would be able to reverse the sterility of her Elizabeth’s womb. As a result of his disbelief, he was made mute until the birth of his son. You can read the entire account of the conception of Saint John the Baptist below.

The point I wish to make today is that when we find it difficult to trust the promise of God, there are consequences that we may find difficult to bear. For Zacharias the consequence was not being able to speak, but in his day, this was understood as a sign from God. For most of us the consequence of not trusting God is often subtler than losing our ability to speak. More often than not our consequence is found in the way of increased struggle.

When we pursue a life that God does not desire for us, we will find increased struggle. We may find that “things just don’t work like we expect them to,” when we don’t trust God’s promise. We know from the entire story of Zacharias and Elizabeth, that he only received his voice back once he obeyed the will of God. Once Zacharias named his son, John, his voice returned and he glorified God. If you find that things just are not working as they should, maybe you are in that place of disobedience. Maybe it is time to call your spiritual father for confession, and trust in God’s promise. Once you follow God’s will, your voice will return.

There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well advanced in years. So it was, that while he was serving as priest before God in the order of his division, according to the custom of the priesthood, his lot fell to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. And the whole multitude of the people was praying outside at the hour of incense. Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense. And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him. But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. "And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth. "For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb. "And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. "He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, 'to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,' and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord." And Zacharias said to the angel, "How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is well advanced in years." And the angel answered and said to him, "I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and was sent to speak to you and bring you these glad tidings. "But behold, you will be mute and not able to speak until the day these things take place, because you did not believe my words which will be fulfilled in their own time." And the people waited for Zacharias, and marveled that he lingered so long in the temple. But when he came out, he could not speak to them; and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple, for he beckoned to them and remained speechless. And so it was, as soon as the days of his service were completed, that he departed to his own house. Now after those days his wife Elizabeth conceived; and she hid herself five months, saying, "Thus the Lord has dealt with me, in the days when He looked on me, to take away my reproach among people." (Luke 1.5-25)

Fair Weather Christian

Today’s Gospel lesson reminds of a constant frustration I have with most every Christian I meet. We all pray at some time for something, especially when we feel the need is great. When God has granted our request we say, “God answered my prayers.” This ALWAYS means God said ‘yes’ to our request. I have NEVER (if I have I truly cannot remember when) met a Christian who said God had answered a prayer when the answer was no. We have come to believe the only answered prayers are those for which God says ‘yes’ to our request.

Then there is today’s Gospel. Here is the entire passage from Luke 4.22-30…

So all bore witness to Him, and marveled at the gracious words which proceeded out of His mouth. And they said, "Is this not Joseph's son?" He said to them, "You will surely say this proverb to Me, 'Physician, heal yourself! Whatever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in Your country.' "Then He said, "Assuredly, I say to you, no prophet is accepted in his own country. "But I tell you truly, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a great famine throughout all the land; "but to none of them was Elijah sent except to Zarephath, in the region of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. "And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian." So all those in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath, and rose up and thrust Him out of the city; and they led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city was built, that they might throw Him down over the cliff. Then passing through the midst of them, He went His way.

Jesus had just finished reading from the Old Testament (see Luke 4.16-22) after which the crowd was really excited. He had just promised that people would be healed and slaves would be set free. Now today we hear “Many lepers were in Israel…and none of them was cleansed except Naaman,” so they cast Him out of the city. They were willing to love God only so long as they believed they were going to get from Him what they wanted.

It is a shame when we act the same way, but we just pretend God didn’t answer our prayers. It sooths our soul to believe He would have said yes if He had answered. The truth is God always answers prayers. It is just that sometimes the answer is ‘no’ and other times the answer is ‘not yet’ or ‘we’ll see what happens.’ Don’t be a fair weather Christian thanking God only for ‘yes’ answers. Instead trust that when He says, ‘no,’ it is because He knows better than you, that what you are asking for is either not good for you, or may even be dangerous.

The Christian Life Attracts Attention!

Sometimes I wonder why people don’t respond to the Church’s invitation. The Gospel is a message of freedom and peace, not slavery and anxiety. So why are so many Christians miserable? Citing the Old Testament Jesus said, “The Spirit of the LORD is upon Me, Because He has anointed Me To preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives And recovery of sight to the blind, To set at liberty those who are oppressed; To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD." (Luke 4.17-18) Who wouldn’t want the things Jesus offers in today’s Gospel?

Who do you know that is sick and doesn’t want to be healed?

Who do you know that is a slave and doesn’t want to be free?

Who do you know that is blind and doesn’t want to see?

If you are like me, I don’t know anyone who would not welcome the good news of today’s Gospel. There is only one problem…..most of us Christians don’t actually live as if this is good news.

Many would rather their soul be sick than choose to confess their sins to their spiritual father.

Many would rather remain a slave to material comforts than choose to live simple lives.

Many would rather not see their own sin than choose repentance and the holy life.

It is no wonder so many who need the Church walk by every day without ever walking in her doors. In the ancient Church lives were changed by the Gospel of Christ. Early believers left sinful lifestyles for the holy life. Early believers opened their eyes to the slavery of sin and freed themselves in Christ. The new life, The Way as it became known, was attractive to others who asked how they could find the same peace these strange Christians seemed to find. The early Church lived the good news and it attracted attention!

God Never Promised a Rose Garden

Too often I hear and read comments from Christian leaders of various disciplines, including within the Church, that if only we would pray more and listen to our hearts more, God would take away the struggle that we are encountering. We are constantly being promised that our Christian lives will be filled with blessings rather than pain, if only we believed, if only we “claimed the Lord as our Savior”, but is that really what God prepares us for?

In today’s Gospel reading the Lord reminds us that life will be a struggle. “You will be delivered by even by parents and brothers and kinsmen and friends; and some of you they will put to death.” (Luke 21.16) If that isn’t bad enough, the Lord says, “You will be hated by all for my name’s sake.” (Luke 21.17) This is in direct conflict with the many Christian leaders who promise a life of prosperity and happiness.

I’m not surprised that many preach the prosperity gospel considering that our fallen human condition is self-absorbed and ego-driven. Nobody desires to suffer. Nobody enjoys being hated. Nobody considers it a privilege to shunned by family members. It should come as no surprise that churches that preach prosperity and comfort are growing and expanding, while churches that preach a life of struggle and spiritual discipline are hovering below the radar barely known by the neighbors one block away.

But life isn’t about prosperity, and churches aren’t about comfort. They are about preparing our entire being (body and soul – see Genesis 2.7) to live eternally united to God. “But not a hair on your head will perish. By your endurance you will gain your lives.” (Luke 21.18-19) So bring on the world and all its challenges. The Orthodox Christian way of life has a cure for every pain and wound of life. It won’t always be easy, but it will always lead to God.

The Fruit of the Church is Making Disciples

Christ tells a story of a vineyard which is lent out to workers. Unfortunately for the workers, when they tried to keep the fruit of the vineyard to themselves, the master of the vineyard took it away from them and gave it to other workers. Of course, it isn’t a vineyard the Lord is speaking about. The vineyard is the Church, and we will all be called to account for the fruit of the Church.

 

The Fruit of the Church

In the Gospel we hear about a vineyard which was lent out by its master to others to manage. When the time came for the master to collect the fruit which they had harvested, they decided they wanted to keep it for themselves. They killed several servants and eventually the Master’s Son. When the Master eventually came, He took the vineyard away from them and gave it to someone else until He returned, again to collect the fruit that was harvested. To avoid any possible confusion, Jesus said, “Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it.” (Matthew 21.43)

We are that nation. The Church established by Jesus Christ and His Apostles have been given the Church, as God’s vineyard, to be stewards of it. We are expected to bear fruit and we will give an account of that fruit when the Lord returns for the harvest. What is the fruit of the Church? As Christ was preparing to return to heaven after His Resurrection He said, “"Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." (Matthew 28.19-20) The fruit of the Church is disciples.

When a grape vine is first planted it takes time before it is established enough to bear fruit. As the years go by, with proper care from the vinedresser, eventually a great harvest is possible and many can enjoy the abundant crop of sweet, juicy grapes. If the vine is neglected, very few grapes (if any at all) will be present, and they may even whither on the vine before they ripen. In those cases, as with the Gospel story, the vinedressers will be kicked out and a new team given the task of caring for the vineyard.

When it comes to the Church, if we are not producing disciples, then we are not producing fruit. For the Church to produce disciples, we must manage the affairs of the Church so that more people not only discover the Church, but those who are already in the Church become stronger every year. Just as a grape vine has new and established branches, so the Church has new and established disciples. Just as the vinedressers nurtures the established branches, the Church works to strengthen established members. The stronger the established disciples, the more new disciples will be produced, just as with any healthy vine.

Ultimately, the Master will return and He will take an account of the disciples we have produced for His Church. We will have no excuse if when He returns all we have to show is that we kept the fruit for ourselves. 

What Keeps You Away from God?

We like to think we want to be with God in heaven, but when we hear what is expected of us, how many times do we turn away from God and walk away? We hear of a rich man in Matthew 19.16-26 who said he wanted eternal life, but when God told him he had to sell everything and give it all to the poor, he left sad. For this man, it was money. What keeps you away from God?

 

All Sin is Against God

Jesus calls us each of us to forgive others from our heart or risk eternal torment. Many however find it difficult to forgive others because we feel the pain of the sin. In Psalm 50 we pray, “Against You only have I sinned and done that which is evil in your sight.” If our sin is only against God, then all sin is only against God. Maybe when we come to terms with the truth, then we can more easily forgive.

 

Beware of Spiritual Carcinogens

I am often asked why I get so worked up when I “see” Orthodox Christians involved in other spiritual environments, whether it be attending a nondenominational Bible study or getting exercise with yoga. For me it all boils down to the environment we place our vulnerable soul, and risk of what I refer to as spiritual carcinogens.

Spiritual Carcinogens – defined (by me) as the bits and pieces of heresy and foreign spiritual concepts floating in the air during any non-Orthodox Christian event.

Spiritual Carcinogens can be bad theology about the Personhood of Jesus Christ and His Economy of Salvation, or totally non-Christian influences such as pagan religious concepts. They are found not only in religious organizations, but in schools and throughout the media. Like other more common carcinogens that affect our physical bodies, they make up a constant barrage of foreign elements that can, if left unnoticed, cause serious damage to our soul.

Some common warning signs that you might be exposed to a spiritual carcinogen include the statement, “Your Church is behind the times,” or, “Your Church shouldn’t try to control you,” or, “You don’t really believe I would hurt you do you?” Lest we forget the first spiritual carcinogen in history, “You will not surely die.” (Genesis 3.4) Anything….ANYTHING….that teaches the Church is wrong should come as a warning sign that you are in the presence of a spiritual carcinogen.

What should we do if we have find that we have been in contact with spiritual carcinogens? The first step is to step away from the danger and return to the Church.

STOP attending non-Orthodox Christian Bible studies

STOP attending non-Orthodox Christian worship services

STOP getting exercise through yoga

STOP the behavior…

START attending Holy Confession

START attending more Orthodox Christian church services and classes

START reading the Holy Fathers’ interpretations of the Scriptures

START reinforcing Orthodox Christian behavior in your daily life

As with anything foreign influence in our bodies, our souls can be healed by God and our willingness to turn away from the dangerous behavior in favor of blessed behavior in the Church. It is never too late to be healed by God, but the longer you wait the more difficult it will be to purge the carcinogen from your system.

Start TODAY!

Why do I always talk about fasting?

Every Wednesday and Friday, the forty days before Christmas, almost sixty days before Pascha, an average of two weeks in June, and another two weeks in August; a total of over two hundred fasting days in 2017. If you’re paying attention to the Church calendar and at least trying to live the Orthodox Christian life, you may ask yourself why all the talk about fasting? Now you’ll know.

The evil eye has no power

In a discussion of what to do with wedding crowns, the question was asked if something would happen to us if our ex-spouse threw away our wedding crowns after the divorce. In truth, we cannot be hurt by the actions of others. As Orthodox Christians, we do not believe in curses, bad luck and most especially the “evil eye”. It is enough to believe in the power of God for our protection, although sometimes our faith is weak. Thankfully the Church offers us prayers and blessings even in our weakness.

How do we dispose of blessed objects?

The question was asked, “What should we do with the Sunday Bulletin when we are finished reading, since it has an icon on the cover. Can it be thrown away?” This is a wonderful and thoughtful question which reflects a deep faith and love for the Lord and His Church. There is a simple answer, but as with many questions about our Faith, there is always more to the question than meets the eye?

Disposing of Blessed Objects

The question was asked, “What should we do with the Sunday Bulletin when we are finished reading, since it has an icon on the cover. Can it be thrown away?” This is a wonderful and thoughtful question which reflects a deep faith and love for the Lord and His Church. There is a simple answer, but as with many questions about our Faith, there is always more to the question than meets the eye?

When the time come to dispose of blessed objects in the Church such as icons, bibles, communion clothes, Altar covers etc, the proper thing to do is they should be burned in a reverent manner and the ashes should be placed in the garden rather than the garbage. I always invite members of the Church to bring “old” items such as bibles and icons to the Church to be burned properly. But where does that leave the Sunday bulletin? There is an icon on the cover. Does that mean the Bulletin should be burned every Sunday?

That is where the answer becomes a bit more complicated. Yes, there is an icon on the cover, but it has not been blessed. Does that mean we should treat the bulletin cover as a sacred object, or just another piece of paper? In the case of the Sunday bulletin it is neither sacred nor just another piece of paper. I have known people who cut out the icon from their Sunday bulletin and use the icons for special Sunday School craft projects, or to send to missionaries who don’t have the blessings to have permanent Church and icons as we have in the United States. I also known many who throw their Sunday bulletin in the trash when they are finished reading. Neither option is more correct than the other since the bulletin has not been blessed. Intent is everything!

While the Sunday bulletin cover may not be sacred and can be thrown away, that does not mean we should treat it with disrespect. It does have a holy image on the cover. For example, it would be wrong to use the bulletin cover to show anger toward God. It would be wrong to stab holes in the cover, or to use the cover for target practice. Intent is everything!

Here is a list of items that should NOT be thrown in the trash:

Bibles; Icons that have been blessed in the Church; any items that have been used in worship and prayer; any items that have been on the Holy Altar of God; Communion clothes; wicks from oil candles on our home altar; left over antidoron, artoclasia, or kolyva including crumbs; prayer lists; etc. If there is a doubt, consider the use of the item and the intent. If the items was used as part of your prayer to God, then it should not be thrown away.

Questions and Answers: Baptizing Children

The question of when the Orthodox Church began to baptize children and babies is a simple answer. We have been baptizing children along with their family since the very beginning of the Church. But this week’s “Ask Father Sermon” expands the topic to include WHY we baptize children and makes the case of taking seriously our life in Christ in the Church.

Freedom

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” These famous words from the Declaration of Independence set in motion a national consciousness committed to defend and promulgate the ideal of freedom here and abroad that has endured for over two hundred years. This freedom though comes with responsibility. And as with any gift we receive, we are obliged to respond with gratitude to the one who gives.

Whether some choose to acknowledge it or not, it is God that ultimately is the grantor of the freedom that we hold so dear in our nation and His gift of freedom comes with the expectation that it is used for the glory of God and not our own glory. As Saint Paul writes, “All things are lawful for me, but all things are not helpful.” (1 Corinthians 6.12) It appears that Saint Paul was keenly aware that there would be times when we might freely choose something that would cause us harm. It goes without saying that I have the freedom to climb to the highest building and throw myself off the roof, but who would dare suggest this action would be helpful?

What should our response be to God for this freedom? All He asks is that we love each other. “Love is the fulfillment of the Law.” (Romans 13.10) How can we continue to allow our fellow human beings to suffer with hunger and homelessness if we love them? How can we continue to allow our fellow human beings to suffer the wrath of alcohol and drug addiction if we love them? How can we continue to ignore the needs of others when we have been so richly blessed by God? How can we continue to watch innocent babies slaughtered at the hands of doctors sworn by an oath to “do no harm?” We cannot!

This week I invite you to honor freedom! There are steps we can take that will show our love for our fellow human beings. First we must pray for each other that our hearts be opened to God’s call for a relationship with Him. Second we must live every moment as if we love Him. “If someone says, "I love God," and hates his brother, he is a liar.” (1 John 4.20) Finally, we must take the time in our personal lives to help others, either by volunteering at local charities or by supporting those efforts to the best of our ability.

May God continue to bless America!

+ Fr Athanasios Haros