Christological Formula

I came across this in Vladimir Lossky’s The Mystical Theology of the Eastern Church and thought I’d post it here for everyone to think over. It’s complex, but it’s the best definition I’ve heard so far!:

“But while in the Trinity there is one nature in three hypostases, in Christ there are two different natures in the one hypostasis. The hypostatsis includes both natures; it remains one though it becomes the other; ‘the Word became flesh’; but deity did not become humanity, nor was humanity transformed into deity. Such is the meaning of the Christological dogma formulated by the Council of Chalcedon:

In conformity with the tradition of the Fathers, we unanimously proclaim that we should confess one and the same Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, perfect in deity and perfect in humanity, true God and true man, composed of a reasonable soul and body, being consubstantial with the Father before all worlds in His deity, born in these last times of Mary the Virgin, Mother of God, in His humanity, for us and for our salvation; one and the same Christ, Son, Lord, only-Begotten, who was made known in two natures without being mingled, without change, indivisibly, inseparably, in such a way that the union does not destroy the difference of the two natures, but on the contrary the properties of each nature only remain the more firm since they are found united in the one person or hypostasis which is neither separated nor divided into two persons, being the one and the same person of the Son, only- Begotten, God and Word, Lord Jesus Christ.

What strikes one about this formula is its apophatic character; in fact the union of the two natures in one person, but the ‘how’ of this union remains for us a mystery…”

 

A Smile All Day

Okay, I just had to share this because I’ve had it in my browser window all day while at work here and everytime I look at it it brings a smile to my face:

The news story from which this picture comes from can be found here.

 

My Own Personal Pentecost

I absolutely can NOT wait until this Sunday, June 15th. On this date I will (finally) be Chrismated and officially accepted into the Most Holy Orthodox Church.

Now, granted, I did something similar to this about 5 years ago when I converted from paganism to Catholicism, but it feels different this time.

For those not familiar with how it works, the Roman Catholic Church has classes that those interested in Catholicism take before they received into the Church. These classes (usually) run from the late fall until Easter, when all the catechumans are baptised, chrismated, and welcomed into the Church. Now, I -think- that Orthodoxy has something similar, but if they do, I have not gone through it. Instead, I asked to meet with the Priest a few days before Great Lent began this year (though I didn’t know it was about to start, as the Eastern and Western Church work off different calanders). We talked for a while and He gave me some books to read and told me to pray and meet with him after that. So, I did. After I had done that, I met with him again, talked for a couple of hours again, and then he gave me some more books, and told me to pray some more. He told me that when he thought I was ready, he would accept me into the Church.

This might sound really weird to some people, having to some how ‘prove’ myself to a Priest before he would accept me, but this is grounded in the long-held Eastern tradition of Eldership. This is how the Eastern Church has been able to preserve her teachings and customs for two millennium, by making sure that each person really knows those teachings and customs instead of automatically bestowing full membership upon anyone and leaving it up to them to interpret things how they will.

Any ways, a few weeks ago I met with my Priest again and he asked me if I thought I was ready (he’d asked me that the last meeting, but I told him I didn’t think so yet) and this time I hesitantly told him that I thought I was. I had been thinking about it for a while and thought that it would be very powerful for me to have my chrismation, when I would sacramentally receive and be sealed by the Holy Spirit, on Pentecost–the day when, after Christ had risen from the dead and been assumed into Heaven, the Holy Spirit decended upon the Apostles as tongues of flame and began the spread of the Gospels.

So, here I am, less than a week away. My Priest has suggested that I spend this week fasting and praying, to prepare myself. I must admit, my first encounter with Orthodox fasting has been a little difficult, but it’s been fun to try new recipies. (By the way, if anyone out there has some good lenten recipies [no meat, dairy, egg, fish, or oil] please send them to me!!!!)

What I’m having a little trouble with is the praying part. I’m still trying to cultivate an attitude of constant prayer within myself, but first I must be able to keep God at the forefront of my mind! What an incredible task this is in our age of television, internet, video games, and a myriad other distractions.

So, if you all could please pray for me during this time, I’d appreciate it!

 

Christians are crazy.

Just a quick post before the weekend, taken from a talk given by Fr. Seraphim Rose:

…what serious Orhtodox Christian today is not a little “crazy?” We don’t fit in with the ways of this world; if we do, in today’s world, we aren’t serious Christians. The true Christian today cannot be at home int he world; he cannot help but feel himself and be regarded by others as a little “crazy.” Just to keep alive the ideal of other-wordly Christianity today, or to get baptized as an adult, or to pray seriously, is enough ot put you into a crazy house in the Soviet Union and in many other countries, and these countries are leading the way for the rest of the world to follow.”

What a loaded paragraph! and something which I struggle with daily. I can reconstruct complex theological arguments, I can understand the fine little details of dogma, yet I have the hardest time actually applying it all to my life.

So, here’s to hoping that I can get a little bit ‘crazier’ as time goes on, that I can join the ranks of those that just don’t fit into today’s society. God bless everyone, and have a good weekend!

IC XC
+
NIKA

 

A Great Cloud of Witnesses

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.

The above quote, taken from Hewbrews 12:1, I believe is very important for us today. The Great Cloud of Witnesses is usually interpreted (by Catholicism and Orthodoxy) to refer to the Saints, but I think we should also view it as the Church herself.

I recently had a conversation with someone very close to me who was very distraught that her prayers were never answered, so I asked her how she was praying. She responded by saying, “I’m not going to tell you because that is none of your business.”

This hurt me. Not because of some strong curiosity on my part, but because it came across as what she does with with religion is strictly personal, between her and God. I don’t think this is true.

The first Christians didn’t seal themselves off from each other, on the contrary they often sold off their personal possessions and lived communally. The supported each other and made sure each had what the needed. They relied on each other for help, and were quick to help another out when they needed it.

While most of us today don’t go off selling all our stuff, we do still have a sort of communal ground in the Church. We shouldn’t be afraid to talk to each other about our problems and to ask each other for help when we need it.

St. Macarius of Egypt said:

Very man wish to beouched the Kingdom without labors, without struggles, without sweat; but this impossible.

I think he could have gone a little farther and added something along the lines of:

And the struggle will be great. Living as a Christian does not make your life easier, but rather it makes it harder. Look to your brothers and sisters in Christ and support each other in this struggle. Very many wish to fight the good fight on their own, pushing away others, walking the narrow around alone; but this is impossible.

Pray for me and the woman close to me, as we say in the familiar prayer, “for the sake of Your All-Holy Mother and all your saints, have mercy on us.”

IC XC
+
NI KA

 

Ark of the Covenant

Just wanted to share this picture with you guys! It’s of my priest, Fr. Panayiotis infront of the church in Axum, Ethiopia, which the Ethopian Orthodox Chruch (Non-Chalcedonian) claims to hold the Ark of the Covenant. I read somewhere, possibly the Wikipedia article, which said that the Ethopian Orthodox Church is the last church in the world which still claims to have the Ark. Does it? I have no idea! Only one person, appointed guardian for life and not allowed to leave the church grounds, is allowed inside to see it.

 

Flee to the Desert

Live as though you are not of this world and you will have peace. — St. Anthony of Egypt, 4th Century.

I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately. The Church teaches that the way to theosis is through the death of our passions. This would certainly be easier if we could all be monks and nuns! However, most of us live in this world and are constantly surrounded by sex, violence, greed, and all manner of spiritual illnesses.

I struggle greatly with trying to fend of evil thoughts and temptations. Some of my sins are so deepset that I don’t want to give them up because I’ve grown to enjoy them so much!

St. Maximos the Confessor, from the 7th Century, says:

Pleasure of the senses is is succeeded by pain of the soul, while acceptance of pain of the senses is succeeded by pleasure of the soul.

Maybe this is the curse of being a Christian: you can longer find lasting pleasure in the things of this world. Ignorance is truely bliss, once you understand what you’re doing is ill for your soul, you can’t find the same pleasure in them. Yes, they might bring momentary pleasure, but if your heart is right with God, then it doesn’t take long to regret your actions.

The saints and monks teach us that the best way to live is with full knowledge that you will die. So, this is what I’m going to try to do, to keep my own death in mind, so that maybe, just maybe, I’ll quit putting off my prayers, quit thinking “Oh, I’ll repent later” and start killing myself a little each day.

+Pray for me!

 

Ancient Wisdom from ‘the New.”

I was reading a little today about Elder Paisios the New, an Athonite monk who fell asleep in 1994. The following are some of him sayings which really struck me:

The more a person progresses in the spiritual life attending to himself, the wider the eyes of the soul open and the more clearly he discerns his mistakes and the many benefactions of God. Thus man is humbled and inwardly crushed, and then the Grace of God — divine enlightenment — comes naturally and he becomes more discerning.

I like this saying because it combats an illness which spreading throughout Christians of all communions: the illness of Comfort. Christianity isn’t about ‘feeling good,’ it isn’t about turning Jesus into a buddy or pretending everything is all right. True Christianity is about suffering. It is about recognizing yourself as a wretch, as something unworthy of standing before the King of Creation. It is about realizing that the passions we experiance without moderation or spiritual discernment are unnatural to us and that we must struggle constantly to surpress them. Christianity is a battlefield!

Hesychia very quickly brings inner stillness to the soul together with asceticism and unceasing prayer. Then man is no longer bothered by external disquietude, for in essence only his body is found on earth, while his mind is in Heaven.

This can be seen as the “strategy” we should use  on the battlefield. Hysechia, or stillness, is one of the methods we can use to subdue the enemy and overcome our passions. It’s like a really annoying person who won’t keep quiet. He’s complaining about this and that and everything else, and if you keep yourself in the conversation, there’s no telling when it will end. If you keep quiet however, and ignore the complaints, then the complainer will eventually get bored and leave. Fr. Maximos, in Kyriacos C. Markides’ book The Mountain of Silence, says that the best thing to do when evil logismoi (thoughts) begin their harmful chatter is to ignore them. Don’t even acknowledge their presence. If one’s mind is constantly on God (in heaven) then how can things of this world trouble us?

The devil does not hunt after those who are lost; he hunts after those who are aware, those who are close to God. He takes from them trust in God and begins to afflict them with self-assurance, logic, thinking, criticism. Therefore we should not trust our logical minds. Never believe your thoughts.

At the hour of prayer, when our minds divert to filthy things, or if these things descend on us unwillingly, we must not start an argumentative war with the enemy. For, even if all of the world’s lawyers were to gather together, they would not be able to prevail upon one single little demon through argumentation, since only with contempt can someone drive away the demons and their blasphemous words. (Of course, the enemy will bark for a time and only then run off.) Man should not be upset about the blasphemies of the devil but only about his personal sins, and to hope in God’s boundless mercy; for where hope in God is absent, the devil’s tail is present.

Here is a warning for us soldiers undertaking the spiritual battle. It is not the ‘lost’ whom the devil pursues, and why would he? Those who are not striving for God don’t need to be persueded away from him. It is rather those who are fighting the good fight (1 Timothy 6:12) which the enemy is after. Though we might be making progress on the Ladder, climbing rung by rung, we must be careful to always remain humble and guard ourselves, because there are always demons waiting, waiting to shoot us down.

Hopefully you will find the Elder’s words helpful as I did!

+Christos Anesti!

 

Flat Tire

In Christianity truth is not a philosophical concept nor is it a
theory, a teaching, or a system, but rather, it is the living
theanthropic hypostasis…

-St. Justin Popovich

Today is celebrated St. Arsenios the Great, who was the teacher of Emperor Theodosios children in the 4th century. St. Arsenios was a very well-learned man, fluent in Latin and Greek, and very intimate with Greek philosophy.

Part of this Saint’s life echos my own. You see, there reached a point in St. Arsenios’ life, before being asked to tutor the Emperor’s kids, where he realized that philosophy wasn’t going to take him where he wanted to go. He had earthly wisdom and I imagine absolutely loved to speculate on the workings of the world and the universe at large. However, the Saint gave up his lofty pursuits, gave up his worldly education and statue. Why? To become a deacon in the Church.

Currently I’m working on a B.A. in Philosophy. I too love piece together arguments while shattering those of others, I love to speculate on what reality is, what it means to call someone a “person” and all of those sort of things but, again like the Saint, I’ve realized that philosophy isn’t going to take me where I want to go. This is exciting and very sad to me at the same time.

You see, the whole reason I decided to focus on philosophy was so that I could comprehend and work my mind around arguments for God. Mere “faith” didn’t work for me, and while I had no doubt that there was a God, I had to find a logical way of explaining that faith to my rational mind.

Before just recently discovering the treasure of Orthodoxy, I was a Roman Catholic. Roman Catholic theology, like much of Western thought, focuses heavily on rationality and intellectualism, so my philosophic approach to God really worked for a while. I reveled in the beautiful simplicity of Aristotle’s Unmoved Mover. I had satisfied my hungry questioning mind and all was okay. For a while.

To make a longer story short, thanks to the theology of Orthodoxy, which until recently has been unknown to me, I’ve come to realize that God cannot be compartmentalized into a neat little box within our brain. The majesty of the infinite and all-powerful Ancient of Days is just simply beyond the scope of mere mortal comprehension. Part of the reason why Orthodoxy is relatively unknown in this part of the world is because the Western mind has grown up and developed over the centuries steeped in an intellectual and scholastic culture. Orthodoxy, while definitely not ruling out the place of the mind, believes that simply “understanding” something with the mind is not enough. The mind must descend into the heart and God must be experienced in this way, with the heart and mind as one.

I still love philosophy, and I’m still working on my degree in that area, but not for the same reasons anymore. Philosophy’s not going to take me where I want to go and slowly I’ve come to accept this. Now, instead of looking towards the subject as vehicle, I see it through a different lens. I pursue it only for the Love of Wisdom.

St. Arsenios, pray for us.

 

“Making its rays to shine above in the heavens, the spotless Cross dawned on the earth, bright with splendour; for it had opened Heaven, which was shut of old. Granted the effulgence of its divine operation, we are surely guided to the unwaning resplendence. In battles we possess it as a true weapon of peace and a trophy invincible.” -Kontakion of the day

Today the Orthodox Church celebrates the Commemoration of the Precious Cross that appeared in the skies of Jerusalem in 351 A.D.  A letter has been preserved, written by St. Cyril (who was Bishop of Jerusalem at the time) to Emperor Constantius (son of St. Constantine the Great), in which the Bishop describes to the emperor how for a number of hours of great cross of light appeared in the sky stretching from Golgotha to the Mount of Olives. This cross wasn’t seen by one or two people, but the entire city.

This makes me wonder, how would we react today if such an event occured? Would it be explained away as some natural fluke or mass delusion? The Western world today is becoming more and more secular, with people placing their faith in science and technology while losing faith in the Divine. Would science be able to explain such an event?

Just some questions that came to mind when reading about today’s commemoration.