Homilies and Preaching

“The homily should not be a sermon about the Gospel, but preaching of the Gospel. In other words, it should not be an explanation of what was read, nor a class in theology, nor a meditation on the Gospel theme, because all these depend on the preacher’s own gifts and talents. What feeds the congregation is not the preacher’s rhetorical or theological or devotional skills, but the Gospel itself”

From "Theologia Prima: What is Liturgical Theology" by Professor David Fagerberg paraphrasing Fr Alexander Schmemman

The Poor Teach Us

"Is it possible to discover that I am more governed by my fears than by anything else? I don't want to hear the cry of the poor because if I do, I will have to change. And, I will not know what to do. I will feel lost and not know what to do--a feeling of complete inadequacy and powerlessness. And this will reveal to me that I have everything except the essential. I have friends, I have money, power, knowledge; but I do not have the capacity to share, to listen and to love. Not only do I feel helpless but I discover that maybe I'm all wrong, that all my values are upside down. I suddenly discover that I am not so good and, finally, that I am more governed by fear than by anything else. I begin to put my finger on the fear, and out of that culture which told me that I must be the best, I discover that the poor are teaching me that I am poor."

+ Jean Vanier

Beautiful Mini-Documentary on St John the Compassionate Orthodox Mission in Toronto

"The belief here at St John the Compassionate is the belief that each one is important, whatever their situation. A community can't take in everyone but it can become a sign, a sign that in this broken city there's a place where people believe that love is possible." + Jean Vanier

We say: "If you are willing to share your life with us, we will share ours with you. We will encourage you when you mess up, help you find direction when you are not sure which way to go, hold you when you are hurting, and help you discover, strengthen and focus your gifts and abilities. We are here for the long haul." It is not uncommon for people at St. John the Compassionate Mission to tell us, "You are the closest thing that I have to family." http://www.stjohnsmission.org/

"Prayer, people think, is about words, but prayer is entering the silence of one word unceasingly spoken in our hearts - love." + Fr Roberto Ubertino

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7LZEmvdtaw

Mother Theoliptie Amma Demiana

One of our beloved Fathers sent out this article about Omina (Mother) Theoliptie of St Demiana Monastery in Egypt: (Note: Though the narrative contains some of the aesthetic of sentimentality characteristic of Modern Evangelical discourse, this post is not intended to perpetuate, encourage or reinforce the tropes of therapeutic evangelicalism.) (Please remember all our monastic mothers and fathers in your prayers.)

Chinese-Canadian wanted the best and found this in the Monastery of Saint Dimyana

by Cornelis Hulsman (Arab-West Report, April 23, 2014)

Singing to the Lord all my life

"The second goal of the choir is to teach the liturgy. This goal is subtle, and never really formalized, but it is there. Part of singing any piece well, whether it is just one song, or an entire musical is to understand the meaning and context behind the words. A musician visualizes why they are expressing the message of their piece and conveys that message through the dynamics of their voice. In the Liturgy we sing as the faithful and as the angels. We sing words asking for mercy, describing the Lord’s Power and enter into dialogue with the priest and the Lord. The entire text of our service is taken from both the Old and New Testament.  The more these children understand the context of the words they are singing, the more they understand the depth of the service they attend every week. The more they understand, the more they remember and hopefully value the service."

+ http://orthodoxwoman.wordpress.com/2013/05/20/singing-to-the-lord-all-my-life-beginning-with-a-junior-choir/

Worship as a 'Category'

A very moving guest post by an Orthodox Young Adult who wrote the following communiqué a few years ago: 

"Here I am, another long night with no sleep. I usually don't offer my reflections or thoughts on forums or on the internet for many reasons...

1) It is hard for me to communicate on the internet, and if you know me well... I usually don't reply to text messages or private messages. I don't know why, but usually I prefer that I speak to the person face to face to avoid any misunderstandings. Smiley faces just don't do the job all the time :P

2) I am beginning on my journey in the Orthodox Church. For those who know me, I was born Orthodox but spent many years of my life away from the Church and now I am, by the grace of God returning to Christ and His Church. So for me to offer my reflections on certain Church teachings would be a dangerous task that can mislead others.

I ask you my dear readers to keep these things in mind, are you ready? Great, let us begin... From what I'm seeing and hearing, I believe that there are a lot of youth who have lost touch with the Church, and I am one of them. I am not lying just to be "humble", I am simply being honest with you so you know that what I am going to talk to you about is from what I am personally going through.

Becoming Christian

A beautiful quote from Abouna Maxym's article on Serving Through Outreach which calls attention to authentic expression of Orthodoxy and of living in and participating in the Divine Life of Christ. Again the theme is being not just doing, being Christian and not artificially implementing a 'Christian' worldview, genre, philosophy, programme, ethic or activity.

"The first thing that must be said about acquiring this spirit of service is that it will not happen by simply reading about Christ’s acts of service in the Gospel and trying, with no preparation, to imitate Him.  The fact of the matter is that the Lord did not simply perform acts of service; rather, His deeds of love flowed naturally from His gracious character.  His deeds reveal His identity.  If we try to analyze the activity of Christ in the Gospel with a view to implementing a programme of Christ-like service to others, we will fail.  Acts of service that do not have their origin in a gracious character are not credible and are often undertaken for the wrong reasons.  Unfortunately, the wounded human heart is capable of sin even in performing good deeds if it is not being purified, enlightened and strengthened by the Holy Spirit.  We come face to face with a fundamental problem: we cannot act as Christ acts through observation and implementation alone.  We cannot acquire the spirit of service as we would a skill or a discipline.  We must instead receive Christ’s life and then struggle to allow His character to emerge in us.  This is why the Orthodox Church carefully distinguishes between the imitation of Christ and the life in Christ.  The former allows us to learn about Christianity; the latter allows us to become Christians."

+ Very Rev. Maxym Lysack, Serving Through Outreach

Also check out Fr Maxym's talk entitled "Orthodoxy and the World."

Where are the Children?

"BIG does NOT equal successful. Especially in the church. One of the church things I participated in had huge numbers, but very little depth; theologically and relationship-wise."

WHERE ARE THE CHILDREN?

Reblogged from http://orthodoxwoman.wordpress.com/2014/04/21/where-are-the-children/

Christ is Risen!

Christ is Risen!! Wishing you and your families a blessed and joyful Pascha (Resurrection Feast)!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3exhc29WpQ

The Papal Encyclical for the Glorious Feast of the Resurrection 2014

The Papal Encyclical for the Glorious Feast of the Resurrection 2014

"In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, One God. Amen.

Ekhristos Anisti, Alithos Anisti. Christ is Risen, Indeed He is Risen.

I congratulate you my beloved with the Glorious Resurrection Feast that is the crown of our feasts and joy. Christ's Resurrection is the main foundation in our Christianity, our Church, our evangelism and our daily life. Christ's Resurrection is considered everything to us. The Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ is considered our new life that we can live in.

In Christ's Resurrection, we have three main aspects.
(1) Before Crucifixion and Resurrection, Our Lord Jesus Christ was a teacher and a shepherd
(2) During Crucifixion until Resurrection, He was a reconciliator and a liberator
(3) After Resurrection, our Lord Jesus Christ was present and became a companion to every man. How?

Before Crucifixion and Resurrection, our Lord Jesus Christ was a teacher. He taught the multitude and individuals. He used all available means at that time. He gave sermons, interviews, and meetings. He performed miracles and gave many various and different parables. In His service, He met all people from all levels; He met people from upper classes in society and others from lower classes in the community. He met great multitudes and individuals, in different dialogues. He met Zacchaeus at the tree and the Samaritan woman at the well. At night, He met with Nicodemos. Teaching was the starting point as well as to influence change. before Crucifixion, our Lord Jesus Christ was a teacher and a shepherd.

From the time of Crucifixion until the Resurrection, Christ was a reconciliator and a liberator for mankind. Man looks for freedom at all times. Freedom became desirable for mankind. Man looks for it in any form, as it takes many forms, colors and kinds. There is social freedom, civil freedom, family freedom, religious freedom, etc. But the true freedom is the freedom that comes from inside a man, the freedom from the sin. Sin is the only disaster of this world as said St. John Chrysostom. Freedom from the sin is gained only through the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Christ ascended to the cross specifically to give us this freedom. Through the cross, He gave us the freedom from sins that He carried. We were granted forgiveness of sins and became free when we were forgiven. The cross became the key for wiping out the sin of man. "Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed." (John 8:36)

The true freedom is the freedom of man from the sin. That is why the cross became the reconciliator and the liberator of man. Man was reconciled with God and with the Resurrection, man started the new covenant with God.

After Crucifixion and Resurrection, Christ became a companion to everyone. After His Resurrection, Christ appeared to individuals like Mary Magdalene, then to the two disciples of Emmaus. Then to the disciples without Thomas, then to them with Thomas with them, then to others, etc. The appearance of our Lord Jesus Christ during the forty days after His Resurrection meant that Christ was present there. He also appeared during catching the 153 fishes for both St. Peter and St. John. The appearance of our Lord Jesus Christ meant His presence.

And after His Ascension to the heavens, after the 40 days of His Resurrection, He remained a companion to mankind. If you read the last verse of the Gospel according to St. Matthew, the Lord says: "I am with you always, even to the end of the age." (Matthew 28:20). Christ is present and a companion to man. He is now present and walks with everyone all times. He knows the life of everyone and guides it. That is why we pray in the third hour of the Agpeya and say: "Blessed is the Lord day by day. He prepares our way, for He is God of our salvation." Christ walks with man day after day; He "prepares" means that He makes it in best condition. As He is our God of our salvation, He desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. (1 Timothy 2:4)

This is the new glorious Resurrection, and these are the fruits we get from the Cross and Resurrection. He says: "In the world you will have tribulation..." This tribulation could be our cross that we should carry. "...but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." (John 16:33). This "Overcoming" is the new Resurrection He grants to every man.

I congratulate you for the Glorious Resurrection Feast. I hope for all our churches, families, youths, children everywhere to rejoice with the Glorious Resurrection.

It is so blessed to have the Glorious Resurrection feast to be at the same day for all Christians at the whole world. This is a good starting point for all Christians, in hope of unifying our feasts, starting with the Feast of the Glorious Resurrection to be in one date in the whole world. We pray for this, and we work for this. May the Lord fulfil His work. May the resurrected Christ bless you. And bless your lives, works, services, and all that is in your hands. May the Lord keep you in His holy Name. To Whom is all glory and blessing, from now and forever. Amen."

Tawadros II
Pope of Alexandria & Patriarch of the See of St. Mark.