The Truth of Christmas

Archpriest Daniel Kovalak

“Think not it is of small things you art hearing when you hear of this birth, but rouse up your mind and straightway tremble, being told that God has come upon earth” [Saint John Chrysostom].

Since October, we’ve been incited, with considerable help from corporate America, to think about Christmas.  Store aisles of decorations appeared overnight, urging us to consider how we can create just the right ambiance to adorn and enhance our celebration.  Countless colorful product catalogs and advertising circulars have been filling our physical and virtual mailboxes and newspapers for weeks, encouraging us to think about those “perfect gifts” for those special people in our lives.  Grocery stores have been prodding us to plan impeccable party platters for our holiday entertaining.  And no matter where we go, the sounds of Christmas fill the air; stirring us to persevere in our determined efforts to make this “the best Christmas ever.”

Then, the day arrives: “It’s Christmas!”  It’s now time to experience all the happiness and merriment for which we’ve been preparing for so long, to see our myriad plans come to fruition, to savor the fulfillment of our considerable investments, and to taste the fruits of our labors while feeling the joy we’ve been envisioning for months.

But, to borrow a line from the popular classic, Twas the Night Before Christmas, “and what to our wondering eyes should appear?”  The inflatable Santa in the front yard has succumbed to the elements and deflated, symbolic of how many will feel in coming days.  The recycling bins and trash cans already overflow with the remnants of a season just beginning.  That perfect gift of a power screwdriver, alas, has no power, and if we hear the song, “Grandma got run over by a reindeer” one more time, we’ll sue the radio station for harassment!  Yep, “it’s the most wonderful time of the year!”

In the midst of all the commercialism, relativism—and dare I say paganism—that surrounds us these days, our Holy Church calls us to celebrate the Nativity of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in worship, as our living witness to the Truth. What IS the Truth from which all things “Christmassy” flow, the Truth that has become so obscured as to be dissolved amidst the “holiday” wrappings and trappings, the Truth that historically hit the world with such force that its impact literally split time in two?

The Truth lies in our simple three-word greeting: “Christ is Born.”  Though we say this a thousand times, we still fall short in comprehending this profound mystery. We know what it means to be born. The greeting also assumes we know Who Christ is.  Is this a fair assumption?

We know Christ historically. Saint Matthew’s Gospel opens with Jesus’ human genealogy—His “family tree.”  He was a real Person Who lived in real time in a real place.  Even non-believers can’t argue this. We also know Christ theologically.  Our Creed articulates our belief that He is “the Son of God… Who for us men, and for our salvation, came down from heaven and was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and became man.”  And we certainly know Christ liturgically and sacramentally.  In every Liturgy we intimately “know” Christ “in the breaking of the Bread.” So our Holy Church cannot but bear witness to the Truth of Christ each and every time we gather for worship.

But history and theology can amount to little more than nicely packaged words without practical application. And worship services and sacraments can be little more than pious, ancient and empty rituals if separated from their Divine Source.  The Truth of Jesus Christ is that “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father” (John 1:14).

When we spiritually and enthusiastically shout our “Amen” to the Truth of Christ as manifested and announced in the Church, and live by that shout, we truly hear the song of angels, behold the brightness of the star, exercise the humility of the Mother of God, express the wonder of the shepherds, and give Christ the gift of ourselves, more precious than the gifts of the Magi.  This is how we “give flesh” to the Gospel’s words that package the Christmas story. And in this, our joy becomes full, our hearts become glad, our souls rejoice, and our feasting becomes a spiritual banquet at the heavenly table of the everlasting Kingdom of God.

May we not, foolishly, settle for anything less!

(Archpriest Daniel is rector of Holy Cross Church, Williamsport, PA;  Lecturer at St. Tikhon Orthodox Seminary; and a frequent contributor to the Williamsport Sun-Gazette and other publications).

Bishop Alexander - St. Barbara Visit: December 3 - 5

Introduction: We are pleased to announce that on Saturday and Sunday, December 3 and 4, His Grace the Right Reverend Alexander, Bishop of Dallas and the South, will make his first pastoral visit to St. Barbara Orthodox Church.   On Monday morning, December 5, a meeting with His Grace at the Church is being planned as well, for the clergy of the South Central (Dallas) Deanery.

Elected by the Holy Synod of Bishops on Tuesday, March 26, 2016 at its Spring Session, Bishop Alexander succeeds His Eminence, the late Archbishop Dmitri, as only the second ruling Bishop of the Diocese since its establishment in 1978.

We all will have an opportunity to receive a blessing from and meet Bishop Alexander on December 3 and 4, in conjunction with the celebration of our Patronal Feast.  It is also possible that we will have a number of visitors joining us for the joyous event. More information will be forthcoming, but as a follow up introduction to Bishop Alexander we offer the following biography posted on the OCA website.

“Bishop Alexander [Golitzin] was born in Burbank, CA in 1948 and was raised at Saint Innocent Church, Tarzana, CA.  He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of California at Berkeley and a Master of Divinity degree from Saint Vladimir’s Seminary.  He spent seven years pursuing doctoral studies at Oxford University in England under His Eminence, Metropolitan Kallistos [Ware].  During this time, he also spent two years in Greece, including one year at Simonos Petras Monastery on Mount Athos.

“After receiving his D.Phil. in 1980, Bishop Alexander returned to the US.  He was ordained to the diaconate in January 1982 and to the priesthood two years later.  In 1986, he was tonsured to monastic orders.  He served OCA missions in northern California and headed the Diocese of the West’s mission committee.

“In 1989, he accepted a position with the Theology Department at Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI, a position that he left at the end of April 2012.  While teaching at Marquette, he had been attached to Saints Cyril and Methodius Church, Milwaukee, WI.  For 22 years, he preached, taught and served at Saints Cyril and Methodius Church, and witnessed to the Gospel and to Orthodox Christian theology at Marquette University.  He helped attract a dozen Orthodox Christian students to doctoral work in theology at Marquette.

“In June 2010, the Bulgarian Diocese initiated a search for a candidate to succeed His Eminence, Archbishop Kirill [Yonchev], who reposed in the Lord in 2007.  In October 2011, the Holy Synod of Bishops elected Archimandrite Alexander as Bishop of Toledo and the Bulgarian Diocese.  He was consecrated to the episcopacy as Bishop of Toledo and the Bulgarian Diocese during a Hierarchical Divine Liturgy at Saint George Cathedral, Rossford, OH on May 5, 2012.”

Words Concerning Protocol:

When greeting His Grace, before formal conversation takes place, it is traditional to extend one's hands for a blessing (place the right hand in the left), accompanying this gesture with the words, "Master bless."  The Bishop will make the Sign of the Cross, lay his hand in ours, and we then kiss his hand.  In terms of physical movement, receiving a blessing from the Bishop is identical to receiving a blessing from a Priest.

Also, it is proper and customary that prior to the services the faithful be in the Church awaiting the arrival of the Archbishop as our father in Christ. Therefore, we ask that everyone please be in the Nave of the Church before the start of each service that weekend. People bringing food for the Sunday Meal, please arrive at the Church no later than 9:15 am, so that we may all be in the Church before 9:30 am, awaiting the arrival of Bishop Alexander.

Activities During and in Preparation for the Visit:

A reception will be held in honor of His Grace’s visit, following the Sunday Hierarchical Divine Liturgy on December 4.  A sign-up sheet will be placed in the Church hall for people to designate dishes that they can bring.  Looking ahead to Bishop Alexander’s visit, special rehearsals for both the choir and servers will be conducted in preparation.  In addition, special activities are in the planning process for Sunday evening, as well as Monday morning, December 5 with local deanery clergy

We invite all of our friends and members to join us for this very important weekend and to greet our new father in Christ.

The 7th Council: The Place of Councils in the Church

Fr. Basil Zebrun

     On Sunday, October 16, Orthodox Christians will commemorate the Fathers of the 7th and last Ecumenical Council as recognized by the Orthodox Church.  Convened in 787 AD, Nicea II addressed the issue of icons, upholding the traditional practice of icon veneration as an expression of faith in the Incarnate Lord.  St. John of Damascus (675-749 AD) was a main defender of icon use during the 1^st period of the iconoclastic controversy.  In his writings he expressed in advance the mind of the Nicean Council, the basic and essential connection between icons and God’s incarnation in the Person of Christ:

     “In former times God, who is without form or body could never be depicted.  But now when God is seen in the flesh conversing with me, I make an image of the God whom I see.  I do not worship matter; I worship the Creator of matter who became matter for my sake, who willed to take His abode in matter; who worked out my salvation through matter.  Never will I cease honoring the matter which wrought my salvation…” (First Apology On Divine Images, 16. Crestwood, NY: SVS Press, 1980. p. 23).

     As with the case of icons, councils are an important part of Church life, an expression of the Faith.  Their significance is rooted in a Christian understanding of God, as well as in an appreciation for the natural bond that exists between people possessing a common humanity, and most especially for the unity that exists between members of the Body of Christ.  The Bible (Acts 15) records a gathering of the Apostles in Jerusalem, the Church's first council.  It was convened to address the question, “were Christians required to keep the Law of Moses and receive circumcision as a sign of faith?”  From that time forward – especially from the 2^nd and 3^rd centuries on – Christian leaders have utilized councils repeatedly as venues through which the Body is governed and the Faith articulated.  Historically the Orthodox Church has been called, “The Church of the Seven Councils” a title which refers to the great Ecumenical gatherings of the 4^th through 8^th centuries.

     Councils have been, and are convened at all levels of Church organization:  from that of the local parish to gatherings of bishops representing Autocephalous Orthodox Churches globally.  In the Orthodox Church in America (O.C.A.) we are accustomed to:  diocesan assemblies, diocesan councils, get-togethers of deanery clergy, parish and parish council meetings, not to mention gatherings of special Church committees and ministry groups.  Every three years the O.C.A. also convenes an All American Council.  Ecumenical Councils however, such as Nicea II, are recognized as the highest legislative bodies of the entire Church, made up of bishops and Church leaders throughout the world.  Ecumenical Councils are concerned generally with teachings, practices, disciplines and ecclesial order affecting the Church universal.

     With these things in mind we may address in more detail the question: “Why is such an importance placed on councils in Orthodoxy?”  The answer is multi-level.  Theologically it stems from an understanding of the Church as an icon (image) of the Trinity, Father, Son and Spirit.  The Trinity Itself is Council (if you will), a Community of Divine Persons whose “deliberations” are indicated at the beginning of Scripture: “Let us make man in our own Image, after our Likeness, and let them have dominion…” (Gen. 1:26).  Councils are not simply something that the Church has, the Church is council. Councils are an expression of the Church’s Trinitarian nature” (Ware, Timothy. The Orthodox Church. New York, NY: Penguin Books, 1978. pp. 244-245).  To remain true to itself the Church is obliged to convene councils so that its many diverse members may become one community, may express their unity as one people for the glory of God, manifesting the conciliar nature of the Church.

     In addition, the Church – as mentioned earlier – acts through councils because of the natural bond between people, the common humanity shared by all.  Our mutual connectedness leads to the actions of each person affecting everyone else in some measure.  A 17^th century poet famously wrote, “no man is an island," words often quoted not only by lovers of literature and poetry, but by theologians as well.  In his work John Donne was essentially expressing a profound Christian belief articulated by St. Paul, that, "we are members of one another" (Eph. 4:25, Rom. 12:3-8, 1 Cor. 12).  As Christians we therefore seek to serve and to love one another as fellow human beings, as fellow members of the Body, brothers and sisters in Christ through Whom we are intimately united to God and to the neighbor.  Thus, it is only proper and in keeping with who we are – both as human beings and as Christians – that the faithful meet in council to discern the work of the Church.

     As it relates more to Church governance the question of councils is not answered simply in terms of representation. Councils do not exist merely so each person has a voice, or a say in “what goes on.”  As someone once said, “Councils are not merely a religious expression of democracy.”  On each level of Church organization, councils are made up ideally of those gathered in all sincerity to discern the Will of God.  Participants do not seek their own will; nor do they meet in order to secure the will of the people. Typically, the Books of the Gospel are placed at the center of these gatherings reflecting the standards by which councils are governed.  Prayers are offered at the start of each council and the Holy Spirit is invoked as the Guide through Whom Christ is made present and wisdom discerned, so that any decisions will effectively express God’s Will for the Church.  American dioceses and parishes even have general requirements printed in their by-laws for those who may officially participate in assemblies and councils.  The requirements exist because the Church desires that “people of good will” make decisions affecting its life, members who strive to place Jesus Christ as the first priority in their personal lives, and who carry that conviction into the Church’s council chambers.

     Taking all of the above into account, the commemoration on October 16 of the 7^th Council held in Nicea gives us much to think about with regard to the place of councils in the Church.  The feast is an important reminder as well of who we are:  i.e. the people of God, bound to one another in Christ, possessing a common humanity, called to live according to the God’s Will, to seek and discern that Will, but to do so not in personal isolation, but within a living context of love and community.  We can recall here, what is chanted at each Liturgy just prior to the Creed.  These words indicate that love is the essential condition for expressing the common Christian Faith:   The priest exclaims: "Let us love one another, that with one mind we may confess,” and the faithful respond:  Father, Son and Holy Spirit, the Trinity, One in essence, and undivided.”

What's in a Name?

Matushka Valerie Zahirsky Chair, Department of Christian Education, OCA

     When the great boxing champion Muhammad Ali died recently, events in his life were reviewed in the media. One of those events was Ali’s public embrace of Islam and his rejection of his birth name, Cassius Marcellus Clay, which he denounced as a “slave name.”

One has to wonder whether Ali really understood what he was rejecting and denouncing. The original Cassius Marcellus Clay was a white Christian, and also such a prominent abolitionist that he endured being shot in the chest, attempted assassination, and mob violence at the hands of those who wanted to preserve slavery. President Lincoln appointed him to the post of Minister to the Court of Saint Petersburg in Russia, and one of his proudest moments in that country was witnessing Tsar Alexander II’s edict emancipating the serfs.

Ali’s grandfather, Herman Heaton Clay, the African-American descendant of slaves, named his son in tribute to Cassius Marcellus Clay. The son passed the name down to his own son, who gave it up in favor of a name honoring the prophet Muhammad.

Our Orthodox Christian faith pays a lot of attention to names. Babies are traditionally given the names of saints, either those on whose feast days they were born or those whose names are part of the family’s history. Someone who enters the faith later in life often takes on the name of a saint. No matter how or why the name is given, it’s a way of encouraging the person who carries it to emulate the saint’s holy qualities.

The names of saints can also encourage us when we remember that even the greatest of them had failings to overcome, as we do. The peace-loving hero of children, Saint Nicholas, was once temporarily stripped of his episcopal office for striking the heretic Arius.

Saints may challenge us to rise to difficult occasions in the same extraordinary ways they did. What creativity and bravery Mother Maria Skobtsova showed during World War II in devising the plan of rescuing children from confinement by getting them out in garbage cans, not to mention remarkable powers of persuasion in convincing the garbage collectors to help her.

It’s a wonderful thing to have the saints always with us as examples, as sources of comfort and guidance. But even those who are not named after saints can look to the people whose names they bear as examples and guides. It’s unfortunate that Muhammad Ali refused to see Cassius Marcellus Clay in that way. Though no model citizen, Clay as an example of courageous insistence on the equality of all people, stands up better than most.

(Matushka Valerie is a graduate of St. Vladimir Orthodox Seminary; current Chair of the Department of Christian Education, OCA; past Chair of the Department of Christian Education for the Armenian Orthodox Archdiocese; is the wife of Fr. Michael Zahirsky in Steubenville, Ohio; and has worked in the field of Orthodox Christian Education for over four decades.)

Christ is Risen!

Metropolitan Anthony Bloom When Christ first rose from the tomb and appeared to His disciples and the myrrh-bearing women, He greeted them with the word "Rejoice!"  And then later when He appeared to the Apostles His first words were "Peace be unto you!" Peace, because their confusion was very great - the Lord had died.  It seemed as though all hope had perished for the victory of God over human wickedness, for the victory of good over evil.  It would seem that life itself had been slain and light had faded.  All that remained for the disciples who had believed in Christ, in life, in love, was to go on existing, for they could no longer live.  Having tasted eternal life, they were now condemned to expect cruel persecution and death at the hands of Christ's enemies. "Peace be unto you," proclaimed Christ. "I have arisen, I am alive, I am with you, and henceforth nothing - neither death nor persecution - will ever separate us or deprive you of eternal life, the victory of God." And then, having convinced them of His physical resurrection, having restored their peace and an unshakable certainty of faith, Christ uttered words which may in the present age sound menacing and frightening to many, "As the Father sent Me, so I send you." Only a few hours after Christ's death on the cross, not long after the fearful night in Gethsemane, the betrayal by Judas when Christ had been taken by His enemies, condemned to death, led out beyond the city walls and died on the cross, these words sounded menacing.  And it was only faith, the conquering certainty that Christ had risen, that God had conquered, that the Church had become an invincible force that transformed these words into words of hope and triumphant God-speed.

And the disciples went out to preach; nothing could stop them. Twelve men confronted the Roman empire. Twelve defenseless men, twelve men without legal rights went out to preach the simplest message, that divine love had entered the world and that they were willing to give their lives for the sake of this love, in order that others might believe and come to life, and that a new life might begin for others through their death. [I Cor. IV :9-13]

Death was indeed granted them; there is not a single apostle except St. John the Divine who did not die a martyr's death. Death was granted them, and persecution and suffering and a cross (II Cor. VI: 3-14).

But faith, faith in Christ, in God Incarnate, faith in Christ crucified and risen, faith in Christ who brought unquenchable love into the world, has triumphed. "Our faith which has conquered the world is the victory."

This preaching changed the attitude of man to man; every person became precious in the eyes of another. The destiny of the world was widened and deepened; it burst the bounds of earth and united earth to heaven.  And now – in the words of a western preacher -- we Christians, in the person of Jesus Christ, have become the people to whom God has committed the care of other people; that they should believe in themselves because God believes in us; that they should hope for all things because God puts His hope in us;  that they should be able to carry our victorious faith through the furnace of horror, trials, hatred and persecution - that faith which has already conquered the world, the faith in Christ, God crucified and risen.

So let us also stand up for this faith. Let us proclaim it fearlessly, let us teach it to our children, let us bring them to the sacraments of the Church which, even before they can understand it, unite them with God and plant eternal life in them.

All of us, sooner or later, will stand before the judgment of God and will have to answer whether we were able to love the whole world - believers and unbelievers, the good and the bad - with the sacrificial, crucified, all-conquering love with which God loves us. May the Lord give us invincible courage, triumphant faith, joyful love in order that the kingdom for which God became man should be established, that we should truly become godly, that our earth should indeed become heaven where love, triumphant love lives and reigns.  Christ is risen!

His Grace the Rt. Rev. Alexander Bishop of Dallas and the South

     Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

     We have a new Bishop:  His Grace Bishop Alexander (Golitzin)!  His Grace was elected by the Holy Synod of Bishops on Tuesday, March 26, 2016 at its Spring Session to fill the vacant Dallas Diocesan See.  Bishop Alexander succeeds His Eminence, the late Archbishop Dmitri, who in retirement fell asleep in the Lord at the age of 87 on August 28, 2011.

We all will have an opportunity to receive a blessing from and meet Bishop Alexander on Sunday night, April 17, at St. Seraphim Cathedral in conjunction with Pan Orthodox Vespers.   The Diocesan Administrator, Chancellor and Deans of the Diocese will meet with His Grace on Monday, April 18.  More information will be forthcoming, but as an introduction to Bishop Alexander we offer the following biography posted on the OCA website.

     “Bishop Alexander [Golitzin] was born in Burbank, CA in 1948 and was raised at Saint Innocent Church, Tarzana, CA.  He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of California at Berkeley and a Master of Divinity degree from Saint Vladimir’s Seminary.  He spent seven years pursuing doctoral studies at Oxford University in England under His Eminence, Metropolitan Kallistos [Ware].  During this time, he also spent two years in Greece, including one year at Simonos Petras Monastery on Mount Athos.

“After receiving his D.Phil. in 1980, Bishop Alexander returned to the US.  He was ordained to the diaconate in January 1982 and to the priesthood two years later.  In 1986, he was tonsured to monastic orders.  He served OCA missions in northern California and headed the Diocese of the West’s mission committee.

“In 1989, he accepted a position with the Theology Department at Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI, a position that he left at the end of April 2012.  While teaching at Marquette, he had been attached to Saints Cyril and Methodius Church, Milwaukee, WI.  For 22 years, he preached, taught and served at Saints Cyril and Methodius Church, and witnessed to the Gospel and to Orthodox Christian theology at Marquette University.  He helped attract a dozen Orthodox Christian students to doctoral work in theology at Marquette.

“In June 2010, the Bulgarian Diocese initiated a search for a candidate to succeed His Eminence, Archbishop Kirill [Yonchev], who reposed in the Lord in 2007.  In October 2011, the Holy Synod of Bishops elected Archimandrite Alexander as Bishop of Toledo and the Bulgarian Diocese.  He was consecrated to the episcopacy as Bishop of Toledo and the Bulgarian Diocese during a Hierarchical Divine Liturgy at Saint George Cathedral, Rossford, OH on May 5, 2012.”

How Can We Keep Great Lent?

Fr. Alexander Schmemann

     It is obviously impossible for us to go to Church every day (during the Fast).  And since we cannot keep the Lent liturgically (in all its fullness), the question arises:  what is our participation in Lent, how can we spiritually profit by it?  The Church calls us to deepen our religious conscience, to increase and strengthen the spiritual contents of our life, to follow her in her pilgrimage towards renewal and rededication to God.

 

FASTING:

     The first universal precept is that of fasting.  The Orthodox teaching concerning fasting is different from the Roman Catholic doctrine and it is essential to understand it.  Roman Catholics identify fasting with a “good deed,” see in it a sacrifice which earns us a “merit.”  “What shall I give up for Lent?” – this question is very typical of such an attitude toward fasting.  Fasting thus is a formal obligation, an act of obedience to the Church, and its value comes precisely from obedience.

     The Orthodox idea of fasting is first of all that of “an ascetical effort.”  It is the effort to subject the physical, the fleshly man to the spiritual one, the “natural” to the “supernatural.”  Limitations in food are “instrumental,” they are not ends in themselves.  Fasting thus is but a means of reaching a spiritual goal and, therefore, an integral part of a wide spiritual effort.  Fasting, in the Orthodox understanding, includes more than abstinence from certain types of food.  It implies prayer, silence, an internal disposition of mind, an attempt to be charitable, kind, and – in one word – spiritual.  “Brethren, while fasting bodily, let us also fast spiritually…”

     And because of this, the Orthodox doctrine of fasting excludes the evaluation of fasting in terms of a “maximum” or “minimum.”  (Keeping in mind the directives of the Church: i.e., no meat, dairy or egg products for 40 days), everyone must find “his” maximum, weigh “his” conscience and find in it “his pattern of fasting.”  But this pattern must necessarily include the spiritual as well as the “bodily” elements.  Whatever is our measure (however), our fasting must be a total effort of our total being.

 

PRAYER:

     We must always pray, but Lent is the time of an increase of prayer and also of its deepening.  The simplest way is, first, to add the Lenten prayer of St. Ephraim the Syrian to our private morning and evening prayers.  Then, it is good and profitable to set certain hours of the day for a short prayer:  this can be done “internally” – at the office, in the car, everywhere.  The important thing here is to remember constantly that we are in Lent, to be spiritually “referred” to its final goal:  renewal, penitence, closer contact with God.

 

SPIRITUAL READING:

     We cannot be in Church daily, but it is still possible for us to follow the Church’s progress in Lent by reading those lessons and books which the Church reads in her worship.  A chapter of the Book of Genesis, some passages from Proverbs and Isaiah do not take much time, and yet they help us in understanding the spirit of Lent and its various dimensions.  It is also good to read a few Psalms – in connection with prayer or separately.  Nowhere else (as in the Psalms) can we find such concentration of true repentance, of thirst for communion with God, of desire to permeate the whole of life with religion.  Finally, a religious book:  lives of the Saints, history of the Church, Orthodox spirituality, etc. is a must while we are in Lent.  It takes us from our daily life to a higher level of interests, it feeds us with ideas and facts which are usually absent from our “practical” and “efficient” world.

 

CHANGE OF LIFE:

     And last, but not least:  there must be an effort and a decision to slow down our life, to put in as much quiet, silence, contemplation and meditation, as possible.  Radio, TV, internet, social gatherings – all these things, however excellent and profitable in themselves, must be cut down to a real minimum.  Not because they are bad, but because we have something more important to do, and it is impossible to do it without a change of life, without some degree of concentration and discipline.  Lent is the time when we re-evaluate our life in the light of the Faith, and this requires a very real effort and discipline.  Christ says that a narrow path leads to the Kingdom of God and we must make our life as narrow as possible (during the Fast).

     At first the natural and selfish man in us revolts against these limitations.  He wants his usual “easy life” with all its pleasures and relaxations.  But once we have tasted of such spiritual effort, once we have made by it one step towards God, the reward is great!  We discover a joy that cannot be compared to any other joy.  We discover the reality of the spiritual world in us.  We begin to understand what St. Paul meant by “the joy and peace in the Holy Spirit.”  God Himself enters our soul:  and it is this wonderful coming that constitutes the ultimate end of Lent: “If a man loves Me, he will keep My words:  and my Father will love him and We will come unto him and make Our abode with him” (John 14:23).

The Great Fast Begins: The First Week and Lenten Worship

Fr. Basil Zebrun

     This Sunday night, March 13, Orthodox Christians begin their observance of Great Lent in preparation for Holy Week and Pascha (Easter).  Orthodox Easter in 2016 is later than usual: May 1.  Holy Week starts April 23 and 24 with the celebration of Lazarus Saturday and Palm Sunday.

     As they embark on their “journey to Pascha” Orthodox Christians – during the first week -- will participate in a series of services setting a tone for the days ahead.  On Sunday (March 13), after the Divine Liturgy and Fellowship Hour, members of St. Barbara’s will celebrate Forgiveness Vespers, followed immediately by a special Rite of Forgiveness.  Through this Rite each parishioner is given the opportunity to ask forgiveness of the brethren, and to offer forgiveness as well.  Thus, at the threshold of Lent we are reminded that real fasting is characterized not merely by following a set of dietary rules, but by one’s ability to love, serve and forgive his fellow man.

     During the 40 day Fast the Church overall will acquire a penitential spirit, particularly during weekdays of Lent.  According to Fr. Alexander Schmemann this spirit is conveyed through the unique Lenten worship.   He explains that, “the Lenten “atmosphere,” is brought about mainly by means of worship, by the various changes introduced during that season into the liturgical life…. Understood as a whole, they reveal and communicate the spirit of Lent, they make us see, feel, and experience that “bright sadness” which is the true message and gift of Lent.” He goes on to say that the penitential character of the Lenten services, the “bright sadness,” is necessary, “for it helps (the Christian) to deepen (his) spiritual vision, to reconsider (his) life in the light of the Orthodox teaching about man.“

      Again, the first days of the Fast set the tone, enabling the Christian to begin the process of introspection, repentance and renewal, preparing himself for the Resurrection of Christ, “the Feast of Feasts.”

     Following Forgiveness Sunday members of St. Barbara’s will observe the Penitential Canon of St. Andrew of Crete, Monday through Thursday, March 14 – 17, at 7 pm.  “Written in the seventh century by one of the greatest hymn writers of the Orthodox Church, this canon is the purest expression of repentance.  The author contemplates the great history of salvation, recorded in the Old and New Testaments and applies its various images to the state of his sinful soul.  It is a... lamentation of a Christian who discovers again and again how much God has loved him, how much He has done for him and how little response came from the man.”  (Fr. Schmemann)

     “The Great Canon is sung and read twice during Lent:  in four parts at Great Compline on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday of the first week;  and again completely on Thursday of the first week.  It is a real introduction to Lent, it sets its tone and spirit, it gives (the Christian) – from the very beginning – the true dimension of repentance.”  (Fr. Schmemann)

      In addition to the above, the Prayer of St. Ephraim the Syrian is introduced to Orthodox Christians on a daily basis, during the first week of the Fast.  Added to personal devotions, as well as to corporate worship, this prayer, “is the simplest and purest expression of repentance in all its dimensions:  desire for purification, desire for improvement, desire for a real change in relations with other people.” (Fr. Schmemann) The prayer is accompanied by prostrations after each section.  Through prostrations and making the sign of the Cross “the body participates in the effort of “breaking down” one’s pride and self-satisfaction.”  (Fr. Schmemann)

     The prayer reads:  “O Lord and Master of my life, take from the spirit of sloth, despair, lust of power and idle talk (Prostration);

     “But give rather the spirit of chastity, humility, patience and love to Thy servant (Prostration);

     “Yea, O Lord and King, grant me to see my own transgressions and not to judge my brother, for blessed art Thou unto ages of ages.  Amen” (Prostration).

     Scripture reading in Church is increased as well during the Fast, starting with the first week.  Lessons are read on a daily basis from Genesis, Proverbs and Isaiah.  “These readings indicate that Lent is a time of preparation, a spiritual return to the Old Testament, which announced and prepared the coming of Christ and the inauguration in Him of a new life.  In addition, the Psalter, normally read once a week in Orthodox worship, is read twice a week during the Fast…. the Church considers the Psalms to be essential spiritual food for the Lenten Season.”  (Fr. Schmemann)

     As Orthodox Christians begin the Fast, we can also mention the beautiful Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts, celebrated in Churches on Wednesdays of Lent and often on Friday as well.

We must also mention that during the next 40 + days the spirit of Lent will be expressed musically through solemn tones and melodies, as well as through dark vestments and altar coverings used throughout the Fast and Holy Week.

     And then finally, each Sunday during the Fast has a unique theme related to the season of repentance, as well as special Epistle and Gospel readings that remind the faithful that Lent is not only a time for their renewal, but was, and is, a time of final preparation for catechumens, those studying to become members of the Body of Christ.

     Great Lent is highly anticipated each year by Orthodox Christians.  We invite members and friends of St. Barbara’s to join us for the special services in the weeks ahead in our observance of the Fast as we prepare ourselves for the Cross, Tomb and Resurrection of Christ.  Please check the website Calendar and Holy Week sections for more information.

Bringing Archbishop Dmitri Home

Fr. Basil Zebrun

     In April 1954, a young subdeacon by the name of Dmitri Robert Royster, his beloved sister Dimitra, along with their priest Fr. Elias Rangel, sought a blessing from His Grace, Bishop Bogdan of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church under Constantinople, to establish an English-language Orthodox mission in Dallas – the future St. Seraphim Cathedral.  Later that year Subdeacon Dmitri was ordained to the diaconate, then priesthood on November 6, and assigned as rector of St. Seraphim’s.

     In 1969 Fr. Dmitri was elected to the episcopate and consecrated on June 22 that same year.  He went on to fulfill his responsibilities admirably serving as Bishop of Berkeley, California and Auxiliary to His Eminence, Archbishop John [Shahovskoy] of San Francisco (1969-1970); Bishop of Washington and Auxiliary to His Beatitude, Metropolitan Ireney (1970-1971); Bishop of Hartford and New England, and Locum tenens of the Albanian Diocese of the OCA (1971-1978); and Bishop (later Archbishop) of Dallas and the South (1978 until his retirement in 2009).

     His fifty-five year ministry took His Eminence from one end of the continent to the other.  Indeed, during his episcopal tenure he was not only responsible for parishes throughout much of the United States, he also served as Exarch of Mexico from 1972 to 2009, and was present at the Canonization of St. Herman of Alaska, offering the main homily during that historic event.

     It can be truthfully said that no matter where His Eminence served he was greatly loved and respected by the people.  He in turn deeply cared for his flock, providing a dignified example of a father in Christ.  At the same time, it can be asserted that regardless of where he found himself, his heart was never far from his beloved Church (later Cathedral) of St. Seraphim of Sarov, as well as people in the South searching for the fullness of the Christian Faith.

     That special place in the Archbishop’s heart for Dallas, for the Diocese which he helped to establish, makes this coming weekend quite extraordinary, as the faithful solemnly bring His Eminence home – from Restland Cemetery -- to his final earthly resting place at St. Seraphim Cathedral, Friday, March 4 and Saturday, March 5.  Services will coincide with the Saturday for the Commemoration of the Reposed that precedes the Sunday of the Last Judgment.

     On Friday afternoon the body of Archbishop Dmitri will be greeted at the Cathedral by clergy and faithful.  No fixed time is being given, but we understand that the greeting will take place between 4:30 and 5:30 pm.  His Beatitude, Metropolitan TIKHON will preside.  According to Archimandrite Gerasim (Eliel) the new coffin in which the Archbishop will be placed will be brought into the Memorial Chapel (adjacent to the Cathedral) above a prepared crypt.  He will lie in state (coffin sealed) during Friday Vespers, March 4.  Vespers will begin at 6:30 pm.  Friday evening both clergy and faithful will have the opportunity to pray in the Memorial Chapel and read the Holy Scriptures.  A meal will follow the service.

     On Saturday morning, March 5, His Beatitude, Metropolitan TIKHON will preside at the Divine Liturgy in the Cathedral starting at 9:30 am (we suggest that the faithful try to arrive by 8:30 or 8:45 am).  Following the Divine Liturgy, a Panikhida will be served, after which the coffin containing the body of Archbishop Dmitri will be lowered into his final earthly resting place. The re-interment will conclude with the placing of prepared marble tiles over the crypt.  A Texas BBQ reception will follow the morning services.

     This historic event will set a seal upon all the prayers and tears that led up to the Archbishop’s repose in August 2011, and upon everything that has happened since with him in mind.  It will provide closure for the many who looked forward to the day when His Eminence would return to his beloved Cathedral.  A prominent leader with the Orthodox Church in America, and a friend to His Eminence, was quoted as offering a pious thought, that the Diocese of the South would never have a new bishop until Archbishop Dmitri returns to St. Seraphim’s.  With the day of his return approaching we ask for his prayers as the Diocese prepares to turn over a new chapter in its history, looking continually for his guidance.  “May Archbishop Dmitri’s memory be eternal!  May the Lord God beatify him, give him rest in Abraham’s bosom and number him among the righteous.”

Only Wonder Grasps Anything

Archpriest Steven Kostoff

     Recently, I read an article that dealt with the issue of the possible convergence between theology and science.  The specific theme of the article was an analysis of the current Pope’s remarks on the compatibility of belief in God and evolution.  Not addressing that specific issue here, I did want to share an interesting metaphor attributed to Albert Einstein on the wonder of the created universe with which the article closed.

     “The human mind is not capable of grasping the Universe,” said Einstein. “We are like a little child entering a huge library.  The walls are covered to the ceilings with books in many different tongues.  The child knows that someone must have written these books.  It does not know who or how.  It does not understand the languages in which they were written.  But the child notes a definite plan in the arrangement of the books—a mysterious order which it does not comprehend, but only dimly suspects.”

     I could never discern exactly where Einstein stood on the “God question.”  Perhaps he was deliberately elusive about this ultimate question.  Yet, a metaphor as the one above certainly has a theistic ring about it, even though I have read elsewhere that he did not accept the notion of a “personal God.”  However, this passage seems to point toward a conscious “Designer.”  I certainly read the metaphor in that light, as the author of the article also read it, for which reason he closed his remarks with it.  Be that as it may, Einstein’s passage reminds me of something Saint Gregory of Nyssa said back in the 4th century—Saint Gregory was clearly one of the greatest minds of that era, and well beyond: “Concepts create idols; only wonder grasps anything.”

     Some of the things said by the Church Fathers are better left to stand without further commentary—as I believe is true of these words of Saint Gregory—but rather meditated, reflected and thought over for their deepest meaning.  As denizens of the information age, the question for us may be the following: Is there anything that truly fills us with wonder?  And what good is a mind packed with information but unable to experience a sense of wonder when reflecting upon the seemingly infinite order of created things, both animate and inanimate?  I am convinced that the Church is the “place” in which we can maintain our sense of wonder to a remarkable degree.  How can it be otherwise when we believe that the very creative Word of God became incarnate as a “little Child,” and that after suffering on the Cross He was raised from the dead?

     Fascinating as it is, the question of the “how” of the existence of the universe—and of our place in it—is insignificant when compared to the “why” of the existence of the universe.  We believe and we affirm that everything that exists does so because God exists, and the God Who exists is the “Maker of heaven and earth of all things both visible and invisible.”

     (Father Steven Kostoff is rector of Christ the Savior-Holy Spirit Church, Cincinnati, Ohio. He is also a member of the adjunct faculty of the theology department at Xavier University in Cincinnati, where he has taught various courses on Orthodox theology.)