22 February 2016
Thought of the day
Rome does not have a monopoly on the expression of the Faith, Theological schools of the East are valid as well. Sadly, many in traditional circles have yet to learn this lesson.
21 February 2016
Reflection on the Troparia and Kontakia of the 3rd Sunday of Lent
The Troparia for This coming Sunday are:
You have destroyed Death by your cross, you opened paradise to the thief, The sorrow of the myrrh bearers you turned to joy. You commanded your apostles to proclaim: Christ our God, you have risen, granting great mercy to the world.
Save your people O Lord, and bless your inheritance. Grant victory to your Church over evil and protect your people by your Cross
The Kontokian for this coming Sunday is as follows:
No longer does the flaming sword guard over the ages of Eden, for the tree of the cross has come to quench it wondrously. The sting of death and the victory of Hades have been driven out. For you, O my Saviour, stood and called out to those in Hades, Enter again into paradise.
On this the Third Sunday of Lent, we venerate the Holy Cross,
In the 1st Troparia, which is the Troparia of the resurrection, we see Jesus remembering the good thief on the cross.
We recall the words of the good thief in the prayer before Holy Communion, "Remember me, O Lord when you come into your Kingdom." Why do we pray these words? We beg for the mercy of God (as we have been throughout the Liturgy)....These are not just empty words on a page, they are quite significant. We beg for God's mercy to not eat and drink our own condemnation in the reception of Holy Communion. We pray for the forgiveness of all of our sins, God is good and loves us all, and all things are possible through the Holy Trinity.
To proclaim: Christ is Risen, granting great mercy to the world. As St Paul alludes to, the Faith is in in vain if the resurrection did not happen. Great mercy, the latin word misericordiae, literally means o have a place in the heart....
My Bishop Gerald puts it this way "...mercy has a much deeper, more profound meaning. I did not simply mean to feel sorry for a person. The word "mercy" mean to have the ability to get inside the "body" of a person so that you can see things as he/she sees them. It meant to possess the ability o think with their minds and to feel with their feelings."
Our Lord did exactly this by taking flesh, being born of a woman (cf Eph 4, 4-6, Phil 2, 1-12). Taking on human nature in all things but sin. Our God is very personal and not someone that is far or abstract as some would like to say. For some this can be quite a challenge, how could God be so personable? I is definitely a great mystery and something we could dwell upon forever.
It sometimes seems that evil is going to conquer the Church. Whether it's ridiculous statements by *insert clergy member here* or some type of scandal, we know our God who loves us all, keeps His promises, the gates of hell will not prevail against the Church. (Mt 16, 19), we pray the grace of Our Lord guide the Church through the various storms that attack the Church.
After the ancestral sin of our parents Adam and Eve, the tree of Life, the Cross restores what was lost. Death has been trampled by Death, by His grace are we able to enter eternal life. Those that died before Christ were called on his decent into Hades.
Today in addition to the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, we in the Byzantine church chant "We bow to your Cross, O Lord, and we glorify, your Holy Resurrection. In place of the Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy and Immortal. 3 times of course.
It is through the Cross that we are able to have Life after death, let us focus upon the mystery of the cross, and do our best, so that Our Lord will indeed, remember us when we come into His Kingdom.
You have destroyed Death by your cross, you opened paradise to the thief, The sorrow of the myrrh bearers you turned to joy. You commanded your apostles to proclaim: Christ our God, you have risen, granting great mercy to the world.
Save your people O Lord, and bless your inheritance. Grant victory to your Church over evil and protect your people by your Cross
The Kontokian for this coming Sunday is as follows:
No longer does the flaming sword guard over the ages of Eden, for the tree of the cross has come to quench it wondrously. The sting of death and the victory of Hades have been driven out. For you, O my Saviour, stood and called out to those in Hades, Enter again into paradise.
On this the Third Sunday of Lent, we venerate the Holy Cross,
In the 1st Troparia, which is the Troparia of the resurrection, we see Jesus remembering the good thief on the cross.
We recall the words of the good thief in the prayer before Holy Communion, "Remember me, O Lord when you come into your Kingdom." Why do we pray these words? We beg for the mercy of God (as we have been throughout the Liturgy)....These are not just empty words on a page, they are quite significant. We beg for God's mercy to not eat and drink our own condemnation in the reception of Holy Communion. We pray for the forgiveness of all of our sins, God is good and loves us all, and all things are possible through the Holy Trinity.
To proclaim: Christ is Risen, granting great mercy to the world. As St Paul alludes to, the Faith is in in vain if the resurrection did not happen. Great mercy, the latin word misericordiae, literally means o have a place in the heart....
My Bishop Gerald puts it this way "...mercy has a much deeper, more profound meaning. I did not simply mean to feel sorry for a person. The word "mercy" mean to have the ability to get inside the "body" of a person so that you can see things as he/she sees them. It meant to possess the ability o think with their minds and to feel with their feelings."
Our Lord did exactly this by taking flesh, being born of a woman (cf Eph 4, 4-6, Phil 2, 1-12). Taking on human nature in all things but sin. Our God is very personal and not someone that is far or abstract as some would like to say. For some this can be quite a challenge, how could God be so personable? I is definitely a great mystery and something we could dwell upon forever.
It sometimes seems that evil is going to conquer the Church. Whether it's ridiculous statements by *insert clergy member here* or some type of scandal, we know our God who loves us all, keeps His promises, the gates of hell will not prevail against the Church. (Mt 16, 19), we pray the grace of Our Lord guide the Church through the various storms that attack the Church.
After the ancestral sin of our parents Adam and Eve, the tree of Life, the Cross restores what was lost. Death has been trampled by Death, by His grace are we able to enter eternal life. Those that died before Christ were called on his decent into Hades.
Today in addition to the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, we in the Byzantine church chant "We bow to your Cross, O Lord, and we glorify, your Holy Resurrection. In place of the Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy and Immortal. 3 times of course.
It is through the Cross that we are able to have Life after death, let us focus upon the mystery of the cross, and do our best, so that Our Lord will indeed, remember us when we come into His Kingdom.
17 February 2016
Thoughts on a Weds Evening.....
- Regardless of who gets elected...We're screwed....It's a matter of pushing the accelerator or pushing the brakes with an inevitable crash into a wall. Many people think I'm being sarcastic with my support of Grumpy Cat for president....I'm actually serious, I'm 100% sure the cat will say no to everything, and not sell us out....So, yes, Grumpy Cat 2016, and for VP, that's still up for debate.
- Mercy, or having a place in the heart, does not simply mean do as one wishes. We do not deserve anything, but in His love for us, and His mercy for us, gives us everything. It is by no coincidence that we pray in response to our petitions, Lord, have mercy. It is never us, it is the Lord working through us.
- The Pre-Sanctified Liturgy is quite a physical workout, multiple prostrations, plenty of kneeling, If you have never been to a pre-sanctified Liturgy, I encourage you to go....you'll not need a gym membership afterwards.....
- There is nothing quite like receiving love. This weekend I had a very powerful moment in my relationship, and something I'd never trade for the world, I'm so glad, for everything, I hardly deserve such good things happening. From the mouths of babes, no kidding :)
- I'm notorious for not wanting to re-visit painful situations....Unfortunately, I must revisit something that happened several years ago, I ask for prayers for a smooth process.
- The picture is the Jesus prayer in Russian and Greek (my two favourite languages to write in)
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