Orthodixie

As many prepare for the Dormition Fast, in honour of the Falling Asleep of the Mother of God, Seraphim writes on MARY.

The Orthodox Church year begins on September 1st and contains 12 Great Feasts. The first Feast of the year is the Birth of Mary (the Theotokos) on September 8th. The final Feast of the Church Year is the death of Mary — or, the Dormition — on August 15th.

THEOTOKOS: Theotokos is a compound of two Greek words, θεος “God” and τοκος “parturition, childbirth.” Literally, this translates as “God-bearer” or “One who gave birth to God.” However, since many English-speaking Orthodox find this literal translation awkward; in liturgical use, “Theotokos” is often retained in Greek or translated as “Mother of God.” This last is not precisely synonymous, as it describes a family relationship but not necessarily physical childbearing. Furthermore, “Mother of God” (Greek Μητηρ Θεου) has an established usage of its own in certain hymns, but especially on icons of the Theotokos, in which case it is usually abbreviated as ΜΡ ΘΥ.

Source.

Appellations of the Theotokos.

Ark.
The Theotokos is often called an Ark, for the Glory of God settled on her, just as the Glory of God descended on the Mercy Seat of the Old Testament Ark of the Covenant (Ex. 25:10-22).

Aaron’s Rod.
Just as Aaron’s Rod sprouted miraculously in the Old Testament, so too, the Theotokos has budded forth the Flower of Immortality, Christ our God (Num. 17:1-11).

Burning Bush.
On Mt. Sinai, Moses saw the Bush that was burning, but was not consumed. So too, the Theotokos bore the fire of Divinity, but was not consumed (Ex. 3:1-6).

(Golden) Candlestick.
In the Old Testament Tabernacle, there were found in the Sanctuary golden candlesticks. The Theotokos is the Candlestick which held that Light that illumines the world (Ex. 25:31-40).

(Golden) Censer.
Just as the censer holds a burning coal, so too, the Theotokos held the Living Coal. In the Apocalypse, there stands an Angel before the Throne of God, swinging a censer, representing the prayers of the Saints rising up to God. This is also seen as a symbol of the Theotokos, for it is her prayers that find special favor before her Son.

Cloud.
In the Exodus, the Israelites were led out of Egypt by a Cloud of Light, symbolizing the presence of God in their midst. So too, the Theotokos is a Cloud, bearing God within.

Fleece.
In the book of Judges we read the account of the dew which appeared miraculously on Gideon’s fleece (Judges 6:36-40). So too, the Dew Christ, appeared miraculously on the Living Fleece the Theotokos.

Holy of Holies.
Into the Holy of Holies only the High Priest could enter. So too, the Theotokos is the Holy of Holies into which only the Eternal High Priest Christ entered (Heb. 9:1-7).

Ladder.
In a dream Jacob saw a ladder ascending to Heaven, with Angels ascending and descending on it. The Theotokos is a Ladder, stretching from earth to Heaven, for on It God descended to man, having become incarnate.

Mountain (from which a Stone was cut not by hand of man).
The Prophet Daniel saw a mountain, from which was cut a stone, not by the hand of man (Dan. 2:34, 45). This is a reference to the miraculous Virgin Birth which was accomplished without the hand of man.

Palace.
The Theotokos was the Palace within which the King Christ our God dwelt.

Pot.
[See Urn]

Stem of Jesse.
In the Nativity Service, the Lord is referred to as the Rod from the Stem of Jesse (Is. 11:1), indicating His lineage from David, which was fulfilled through the Theotokos, who was a scion (or stem) of the line of David, the son of Jesse.

Tabernacle.
The Tabernacle was the place where the Glory of God dwelt. So too, the Glory of God dwelt in the Theotokos the Living Tabernacle (Ex. 40:34).

(Holy) Table.
This refers to the Holy Table (Altar Table) on which, at the Divine Liturgy, the Divine Food is offered. So too, the Theotokos is the Holy Table which bore the Bread of Life.

Temple.
The Prophet Ezekiel speaks of the Temple whose East gate remains sealed, through which only the Lord, the God of Israel, has entered. This clearly prophesies the Virgin Birth of the Theotokos (Ez. 44:1-2).

Throne.
The Theotokos is the Throne upon which Christ, the King of All, rested.

(Golden) Urn.
In the Old Testament, the Ark of the Covenant contained within itself a golden urn filled with the heavenly manna. The Theotokos is the Urn which contained Christ, the Divine Manna (Heb. 9:1-7).

Vine.
The Theotokos is the Vine which bore the Ripe Cluster (of Grapes), Christ our Lord.

Source.

More info here & here.

For a homily by St Gregory Palamas on the Dormition of the Theotokos …
go H E R E.

The following originally appeared H E R E (complete with comments, 3/05).

What if we were held accountable for posts & comments within a classroom? All posting members — bloggers & commentators — would be required to gather periodically within an academic setting of accountability. We’d have to brush up on particular terms and their definitions in order to: (1) understand the professor’s moderation, (2) correct our own errors, and (3) grow, both personally and communally. Here are some examples:

AD HOMINEM: Appealing to feelings or prejudices rather than intellect. Marked by an attack on an opponent’s character rather than by an answer to the contentions made.

APPEAL TO IGNORANCE (fallacy): Assuming that because a statement can’t be disproved, it must be true.

ARGUMENT: A statement (the conclusion) and one or more additional statements (the premises) offered in support of the conclusion.

BEGGING THE QUESTION: Assuming what one is trying to prove; presenting a version of the conclusion as if it were an additional statement in support of the conclusion.

CAUSAL LAWS: Inevitable patterns in nature, such that when certain events occur (“the cause”) certain other events must occur (“the effect”).

CONSEQUENTIALIST ETHICAL THEORIES: Those ethical theories which claim that what makes actions right or wrong are their consequences.

DEONTOLOGICAL ETHICAL THEORIES: Those ethical theories which deny that what makes actions right or wrong are their consequences.

DIAKRISIS: Discernment of good and evil, of the divine and the demonic, of what is appropriate to do. Consequently, discretion, the golden mean (via media).

DIATRIBE: A bitter and abusive speech or writing. Ironical or satirical criticism.

DUCKING THE QUESTION: Avoiding answering a question.

FALLACY: A type of erroneous reasoning.

FATALISM: The view that some specified events must occur in a person’s life, no matter what that person may choose to do.

FREE WILL: The concept that (at least some) human choices are not governed by causal laws.

FREE WILL DEFENSE (The): Claims that it would be contradictory for God to give people free will and guarantee that they not cause suffering; further,
that free will and suffering is better than no free will and no suffering.

GOSSIP: A person who habitually reveals personal or sensational facts about others. Rumour or report of an intimate nature. Chatty talk.

HATE: Intense hostility and aversion usually deriving from fear, anger, or sense of injury.

HUBRIS: Exaggerated pride or self-confidence.

HYPERBOLE: Extravagant exaggeration.

LOGICAL IMPLICATION: If statement A logically implies statement B, that means that if A is true, then B must also be true.

LOGICAL INCOMPATIBILITY: Two statements are logically incompatible if the truth of one implies the falsity of the other and vice versa.

MORAL OBJECTIVISM: The view that where there is a moral judgment and its negation, one of those judgments must be false; that there is such a thing as the moral truth.

MORAL SUBJECTIVISM: The view that where there is a moral judgment and its negation, neither judgment need be false; that there is no such a thing as the moral truth.

NORMATIVE ETHICAL: Relating to questions about what is morally good or bad, right or wrong, required or not required.

OXYMORON: A witty statement, all the more pointed because it is presented as a paradox whereby two contradictory terms are used together, as in a
discordant concordance, an eloquent silence, and so forth.

PATHOS: “A disease of the soul.” An inner evil disposition, a passion, created in the soul as the result of repeated consent of evil thoughts.

PHILANTHROPY: Spontaneous love for man. Early Christians used the term frequently when speaking of God’s “love for mankind.”

PHILAUTEIA: Self-love, a spontaneous attachment to oneself. A synonym for one’s own will, the single root of all vices, especially in the writings of Maximos the Confessor.

PRINCIPLE OF NONIDENTITY: If the thing referred to by one phrase has characteristics differing from those of the thing referred to by another
phrase, the two phrases do not refer to the same thing.

QUIDNUNC: A person who seeks to know all the latest news or gossip.

SLIPPERY SLOPE FALLACY: Assuming, without specific evidence, that any move in a certain direction will inevitably lead to some terrible extreme.

SOLIPSISM: The view that, with the exception of the belief in one’s own mind, one cannot justify any beliefs about the world.

SOUND ARGUMENT: An argument that is valid and has true premises.

UTILITARIANISM: The moral view that only happiness is good in itself and that one ought to promote the greatest happiness of the greatest number.

VALID ARGUMENT:

DEDUCTIVE: An argument such that if the premises are true, then the conclusion is necessarily true.
INDUCTIVE: An argument such that if the premises are true, then the conclusion is probably true, but not necessarily so.

VERIDICAL: True; genuine; nonillusory.

VIRTUE DEFENSE (The): Claims that it would be contradictory to have virtues and no suffering; further, that virtues and suffering are better than no
virtues and no suffering.

Given my proclivity toward humour, hyperbole, hubris, and worse … I’d most likely be demoted to the remedial class for hopeless reactionaries.

Remember the former Priestess who was leaving the Episcopal Church for Orthodoxy?

Here’s an explanation … her own words.

The Episcopal Church is so removed from the Church Fathers that the word “tradition” on revisionists’ lips causes me to shudder. ECUSA’s new gospel is madness, and this same madness is sweeping through the liberal mainline denominations. It is not the gospel of Jesus Christ once delivered to the Church. Many will be fooled by this counterfeit gospel, but in the end falsehood begins to stink like the rotten fruit it is.

HT: Serge

by Fr Chris Metropulos

A convert to Orthodoxy was approached by a precious Orthodox lady at coffee hour. She commented that his last name on his name tag wasn’t common in the ethnicity of that parish. My friend told her that he wasn’t of that ethnic background. This dear lady got a puzzled look on her face and innocently asked, “Then what are you doing here? Don’t you have your own church to go to?”

Now before you are too harsh with this lady, please understand she was genuinely confused, not malicious. It never dawned on her that someone who did not have an ethnic connection to Orthodoxy would ever want to enter the Orthodox Church. But the truth is that thousands of converts stream into the Church every year, and not just from mixed marriages. American Christians are coming to Orthodoxy for its depth of faith, stability of theology, and beauty of worship. In fact, some of our Orthodox seminaries are filled with converts who have no ethnic connection to the countries that are traditionally Orthodox, and these men are becoming priests in our churches.

Some may see this as a bad thing, but they would be wrong. The truth is that Orthodoxy is doing what it has always done. It is baptizing the country where it finds itself, and in that respect twenty-first century America is no different from fourth-century Greece or tenth-century Russia.

How do we face honestly the inevitable “culture shock” that comes from this infusion of “new faces”? We could fight against it and attempt to keep our churches little more than “foreign embassies” of other countries, but that is a recipe for irrelevance in just a few generations. We could attempt to “fit in” so much in this country that we look just like every other religious group in the nation, but that would mean we would lose the very “distinctives” that make Orthodoxy the original Church founded by the Apostles.

No, there is another way. There is the Orthodox Way, and that is the way of transformation. This way is slower, wiser, and lasting. This way preserves the riches, with which we have been entrusted, the wisdom we have learned through the centuries, the cultural traditions that underpin deep theological truths, and the irreplaceable theology that sets Orthodoxy apart from the spiritual confusion all too often evident in today’s world.

Here are three aspects of this Orthodox Way that will help us both welcome others with traditional Orthodox hospitality and preserve that which is truly foundational to our faith.

First, this Orthodox Way Reveals. Orthodoxy is the fullness of the Christian faith, period. It is the spiritual hospital where the full potency of the Christian Gospel is preserved. An authentic Orthodox faith reveals both the divinely inspired parts of a culture and its weaknesses. Orthodoxy serves a nation best when it honestly critiques the culture of a nation. That is the blessing the faith brings to this nation. But it just doesn’t criticize, it also baptizes. There are parts of our culture that can be transformed by the faith into a vehicle of Orthodox faith. The culture offers us an unprecedented amount of freedom to practice our faith, and unparalleled economic and educational opportunities that allow us to both educate our young people and be philanthropic like no other people in the world.

Second, this Orthodox Way Restores. Orthodoxy changes people and nations. It always has. In fact, one of the marks of authentic Orthodox faith is the changed behavior of people and governments. Orthodoxy calls men and women to a serious and sober Christian faith that restores them to what they were created to be – the sons and daughters of God. Orthodoxy uniquely gives men and women a tried and true path to spiritual maturity. This faith challenges us to mimic the life of Jesus Christ in actions and attitudes. This faith produces saints! No wonder spiritually weary Americans are seeking out and finding the mature and stable theology of Orthodoxy. Our challenge as a Church is to help them find “home,” be ready to receive them, and to integrate them into our growing family.

Finally, this Orthodox Way Relates. Orthodoxy is about relationships – Our family, our nation, and our faith in God. Orthodoxy does not build walls but bridges. We seek out the lost, just like our Lord sought us out so we could enjoy right relationship with Himself and His Father. Orthodoxy always actively seeks out ways to bring this salvific message to friends and neighbors wherever the Church finds Herself. And Orthodoxy is no different in America than it is in any other nation. An authentic Orthodoxy works to make the faith available to “whosoever wills” to enter the faith. That’s why Jesus described the Church as a city set on a hill that cannot be hid. Orthodoxy is meant to be found by anyone who longs for the fullness of the Christian faith, even people who might not have had the happy accident of being born in a traditional Orthodox country.

Our Orthodox faith is drawing the spiritually seeking people of this nation. This is a trend that will only increase. It isn’t going away and it isn’t something we will be able to stop. Thank God! God loves all people and He is drawing men and women to Himself from every ethnic background, even average Americans who really don’t know their ethnic backgrounds. Orthodoxy is becoming part of the fabric of America, and we rejoice in this exciting time to be alive and serving His Church.

[August 12th] I will speak to Fr. Joseph Huneycutt. He is the author of the new book “One Flew Over the Onion Dome,” published by Regina Orthodox Press. Fr. Huneycutt, a convert himself, helps us all deal with the inevitable challenges of coming into Orthodoxy from other faith traditions. Lifelong Orthodox and converts alike will find his insights helpful in building a deeper communion with new faces in our congregations.

Until next week.

Yours for the spread of Orthodoxy,

Fr. Chris Metropulos

Recent news reports of the ancient Psalter found in Ireland, especially those filtered through blogs, placed great weight on the book’s — prophetically, some believed — being “open to” Psalm 83 or to that Psalm’s pristine condition. Some became energized about their understanding of the prophetic nature of this Psalm about Israel coupled with their beliefs about the current war in the Middle East.

Now this …

27-July-2006

Clarification re Psalm 83 in Ancient Book of Psalms

In the press release issued by the National Museum of Ireland on 26th July the following reference was made to Psalm 83:

“While part of Psalm 83 is legible, the extent to which other Psalms or additional texts are preserved will only be determined by painstaking work by a team of invited experts probably operating over a long time in the Museum laboratory”

The above mention of Psalm 83 has led to misconceptions about the revealed wording and may be a source of concern for people who believe Psalm 83 deals with “the wiping out of Israel”.

The Director of the National Museum of Ireland, Dr. Patrick F. Wallace, would like to highlight that the text visible on the manuscript does NOT refer to wiping out Israel but to the ‘vale of tears’.

This is part of verse 7 of Psalm 83 in the old latin translation of the Bible (the Vulgate) which, in turn, was translated from an original Greek text would have been the version used in the medieval period. In the much later King James version the number of the Psalms is different, based on the Hebrew text and the ‘vale of tears’ occurs in Psalm 84. The text about wiping out Israel occurs in the Vulgate as Psalm 82 = Psalm 83 (King James version).

It is hoped that this clarification will serve comfort to anyone worried by earlier reports of the content of the text.

Thanks to FWD from Jean-Michel.
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I’ll leave it to the industrious to look up the two Psalms (82 & 83). There’s a world of difference between the two.