Confessio

Interesting Parallell

2006-02-15T13:02:00.000-08:00

Michael the Syrian's description of the jihad destruction of Edessa by the Seljuk Turks, in 1144-1146 C.E.:

"The Turks entered with their swords and blades drawn, drinking the blood of the old and the young, the men and the women, the priests and the deacons, the hermits and the monks, the nuns, the virgins, the infants at the breast, the betrothed men and women to whom they were betrothed"

Hammas Terrorist as cited on HNN
"My message to the loathed Jews is that there is no god but Allah, we will chase you everywhere! We are a nation that drinks blood, and we know that there is no blood better than the blood of Jews. We will not leave you alone until we have quenched our thirst with your blood, and our children's thirst with your blood. We will not leave until you leave the Muslim countries."

Once again the US bows down to god of political correctness

2006-02-03T11:58:00.000-08:00

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20060203/ts_nm/religion_cartoons1_dc

Why is it that no one thing twice about offending the sensibilities of Christians, mocking and deriding them for their beliefs, but to even breathe a word of anti-Islamic thought is to "incite religious or ethnic hatred". Where was the sensitivity when Christian religious emblems were dipped in urine and placed on public display as FEDERALLY funded "art". Please. If the muslims want to live in a pluralistic society they either need to get used to people disagreeing with them, mocking them, and adopt the principles of peaceful protest or they need to go back to the totalitarian states that they (probably) came from. THAT'S what a free society is about, a level playing field where no one persons beliefs are sacred.

Could it be that France cares more about freedom than we do?

BUY DANISH!!!

sf

2006-01-25T13:16:00.000-08:00

"Those who practice charity in the church's name will never seek to impose the church's faith upon others. They realize that a pure and generous love is the best witness to the God in whom we believe and by whom we are driven to love."

Benedict XVI,
Pope of Rome

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060125/ap_on_re_eu/vatican_pope_encyclical

Train Wreck -

2006-01-23T18:42:00.000-08:00

This guy bills himself as an 'ex orthodox for Christ' - reading his page, it's difficult to determine if he was ever orthodox or was merely the victim of a series of bad sunday school teachers. Interesting to read what I believe. Shame it's almost all untrue, distorted, or flawed in it's logic/ understanding of history.

sf

A great place to be a snack vendor

2006-01-23T09:26:00.001-08:00

Link in title above...

Indeed, a great place to be a snack vendor. The smouldering spliff in the ash tray strikes me as a tad decadant though.

It's not like he ad to create something new...

2006-01-23T09:22:00.000-08:00

Link in title above...

All the guy had to do was go to Lenten and holy week services at any local orthodox monastary or even most local parishes to get a full bore undiluted dose of black and death. Goth shmoth, Jonny come latelys in dwell on death department.

sf

Mysticism

2006-01-20T13:06:00.000-08:00

I've been reading the book "The Mountain of Silence" It's one of the most impactful books on the faith I've ever read. It hit me the way Lewis' 'Mere Christianity' did and went a long way towards resolving some of the issues I've long had w/ Orthodox Myscicism, Mystics, and Fundamentalists. It also got me thinking about monasticism.

While surfing the web site of the Monastary of St. John at Point Reyes Station in California I stumbled across this quote.

St. Gregory the Theologian, a fourth-century mystic, once wrote, "Everything consecrated to God must be natural, not artificial." When evening falls and the turmoil of the day now spent has faded away, the soul seeks tranquility in meditation, quiet conversation, and prayer. The gentle glow of natural beeswax candles sets just the right atmosphere for all these activities and inclines the soul heavenward.

Note to self, make more room for beeswax candles in your life.

+peace

It's hard to drive with tears in your eyes

2005-02-04T19:05:00.000-08:00

Tonight a stalwart of our parish lays dying. For years she has battled cancer and her poor body has run out of ammunition. My primary contact with her was through our parish's Christian education program where she was my boss, the superintendent of our Sunday School. She is surrounded by loved ones who pray for her and read the psalms. Members of our choir will be singing a paraklisis service at her bedside this evening. When Liz went to visit the other day she said the house was filled with joy. I haven't gone to visit, I have my reasons, but in reality, none of them are good ones. As a result I haven't seen what a Godly death is about, much to my detriment. But this isn't why I was weeping on the way home tonight.

As is my custom, I was listening to NPR. Normally, when the subject of Christian and Christianity comes up NPR is either carefully neutral or slightly condescending. Twice in the last few weeks NPR has had articulate, faith filled Christians on the air speaking about their lives and work. Tonight, it was the Soweto Gospel Choir.

The Soweto Gospel Choir is a group of young people from Soweto township near Johannesburg South Africa. In all, they perform gospel tunes in eight languages including Xhosa, Zulu, and English. Naturally, they were in the studio to sing and promote their US concert tour. They spoke of their faith as though it were the most natural thing in the world, apparently not concerned that there were many in America who would be uncomfortable with them doing so on PUBLIC radio. Oh, and they SANG! The sang as though the Joy of heaven was come down and filled their voices. A fierce joy, a confident joy, a joy into which you wanted to leap; abandoning pretence, reserve, and all self deception just to sing that song and dance that dance.

This is why I wept, because I know that one of our parish will soon take up her abode in that joy. I wept because I knew I wasn't strong enough to stand the intensity of that joy in anything but small doses. I wept because in that moment, I realized that I could sing but the only way the song would be real was if I sang a song of heaven, not my own.

Pray for the handmaid of God, Phyllis as she departs this earthly life. That she may be strengthened for the journey ahead and that she may find Joy

+peace

sf

The NPR Segment with links to audio clips and an audio recording of the interview

Dance Dance Resurrection - A new Concept in Christian Electronic Entertainment

2005-02-04T15:16:00.000-08:00

Dance Dance Resurrection - A new Concept in Christian Electronic Entertainment

I don't know what to say about this...

Found on Fr. John's blog

2005-02-02T07:26:00.000-08:00

This is what I got after taking the quiz the first time - I always thought that on the whole, the French had the best lines. Which character are you?

sf

French Guard
I'm French! Why do think I have this outrageous
accent, you silly king-a?!

What Monty Python Character are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

Abstinence? No thanks, we'll have sex

2005-02-01T13:40:00.000-08:00

The quote "Aquire the Spirit of peace and those arround you will be saved" came to mind when I read this.

Abstinence education is typical of the prurient fascination with the disposition of private parts that seems to obsess certain parts of American culture. You can't teach morality, you have to live it. If we want to have moral teens then you have to show them that subduing the passions is better than giving into them.

And to be perfectly clear, when I figure out how to do that in my own life, I'll let you know

With everyone from George Bush to Hillary Clinton touting the wonder-working power of abstinence education, it might be nice to know whether such programs actually work. There's news out of Texas on that front: They don't.

In a study commissioned by the Texas Department of State Health Services, researchers at Texas A&M University found that abstinence-only programs in 29 Texas high schools seemed to have absolutely no impact on whether teens engaged in sex.

As Reuters explains, the study showed that about 23 percent of ninth-grade girls reported having sex before receiving abstinence education. After receiving the education, about 29 percent of the girls in the same group said they had had sex. For boys, the increase was more dramatic. Twenty-four percent said they had sex before taking the classes, while 39 percent said they had sex after the classes were over. The increases in sexual activity mirrored trends in the state generally as teens get older, suggesting that the abstinence programs had done nothing to prevent teen sex or the unwanted pregnancies it can produce.

"We didn't see any strong indications that these programs were having an impact in the direction desired," researcher Buzz Pruitt told Reuters. "These programs seem to be much more concerned about politics than kids, and we need to get over that."

Salon.com Books | The Da Vinci crock

2005-02-01T13:32:00.000-08:00

Salon.com Books | The Da Vinci crock

And another -

Salon.com Books | Who burned the witches?

2005-02-01T13:21:00.000-08:00

Salon.com Books | Who burned the witches?

I love it when reputable sources come out and mock Dan Brown...

New blog you must read...

2004-10-05T13:48:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine (the very same person who couldn't believe that I wrote the scintilating piece on cub scout popcorn)has just started a blog. In a word, it's hilarious. You've got to check it out, the title says it all.

http://itaintovertilthefatmantapdances.blogspot.com/

Tell him I sent you -

+peace

sf

I have no shame...

2004-10-04T14:30:00.000-07:00

I'm still shaking my head but I actually sent this to some of my friends at the office this am. My editor was very surprised that I wrote it. If YOU'D like to place an order, leave a comment with some way to contact you.

+Peace
sf

My oldest joined the Boy Scouts this fall and among the many interesting things he's going to be doing over the next 12 months is the pack's annual fundraiser (apparently we're lucky that the pack holds it to one)

Just as girl scouts sell cookies, cub scouts (apparently) sell popcorn...

and what a variety of popcorn it is. In addition to the usual variants of plain, microwave, buttered, extra buttered, and trans-fat free low fat; you can delight your taste buds with cheese, kettle-corn, Carmel-almond-pecan, toffee, chocolate-Carmel, and something called "roasted summer".

If you enjoy the delectable taste of popcorn in all it's variety and glory (and really, who doesn't). Send me an email and take advantage of this once-a-year opportunity to get your hands on the best tasting, best looking, best assortment of cub scout corn you'll ever see this side of a cub scout camp stage. Not only will you be gratifying your innermost desires for wholesome goodness, you'll also be helping out the cutest assortment of blue shirted boys this side of the continental divide.

Remember -
Buy early buy often, time is running out.

If you've read this far, thanks
sf

Right and left are reconciled in the USMC

2004-09-30T08:52:00.000-07:00

One of the topics that has come up from time to time at the league has been Cuba. Specifically what should the US policy be towards Cuba in the light of the fact that all of our diplomatic efforts to isolate the island have failed. The leftist and rightist members of our society have disagreed in a most pleasant and vehement manner on this issue over several drams of the pure. In researching our next gathering I stumbled across this story. The teller of the story is a French military officer who has been invited to a formal dining in with a general of the United States Marine Corps (Semper Fi!)

"A few years ago I was at a dinner given by the U.S. Marines, and I offered the commanding general a Cuban cigar," Roux recalls. "He lit it and began to smoke. I asked if smoking a Cuban didn't make him feel just a bit unpatriotic. He replied, 'When I was a young officer my commandant told me that the first thing you do to your enemy is you burn his crops.'"

I couldn't have said it better myself.

+ Peace

Thank you and a new endeavor

2004-09-28T16:32:00.000-07:00

Thank you all for your generous support and well considered thoughts. I have informed the "powers that be" that I am willing to do the teen class. A curious thing though, after all of this, someone else in the parish came forward with a proposal to do the teen class with a different format. What's not clear is whether this person's proposal will be prefered over mine. I'll spare you all of the small parish politics, irrelevant in any course, the ball is in the court of the PTBs.

My new endeavor is a Yahoo group! Some number of us gather once a month to sample excellent conversation and excellent scotch. We've dubbed this group the League of Ordinary Gentlemen. For months we've been talking about getting a mail list going to organize our meetings, shoot the breeze, etc. We'll I gave up on the notion of doing it myself and wen't to Yahoo groups.
If you want to check it out or join the list go to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LO_Gentlemen/

+ Peace

sf

Elevation by acclaim and whether to sharpen the axe or cut the wood

2004-09-23T19:43:00.000-07:00

On and off for most of my adult life I have wrestled with a feeling that is either what a protestant would term a 'call to the ministry' or what Scrooge would dismiss as a bad bit of beef. Previously, when considering whether this is real or not I've come to a point of giving the issue back to God and going on with my life. This time around it seemed a little more serious. After taking counsel with a trusted and experienced friend, I approached my priest and laid out what I've been struggling with.

Three basic issues:

A potential vocation
The uncomfortable prospect of doing the High School group alone this year
The strong desire to do something serious (St. Stephen's course or Greek) to improve my understanding of the faith and the fathers

His reply was curiously non-committal - he believes in elevation by general acclimation. If I have a true vocation, someone else will tell him about it (that's not a hint, merely an explanation). On the issue of whether to 'do something' or teach HS Sunday school, he advised that I do what would advance my soul and then we started talking about the importance of programs; that ideally they are an expression of transformation and love growing naturally from a Eucharistic community. He then suggested I seek counsel of those whom I trust. All in all, not quite what I hoped for (I'm not sure of what I'd hoped for, just that our conversation together, as pleasant as it was, wasn't it).

I'm comfortable with at least the notion that elevation by acclimation is a good filter to weed out the unworthy even if I suspect that it's not universally or consistently applied. For the few that read, I'd be curious as to what your thoughts are on sharpening the axe or chopping the wood.

Trust

2004-09-16T13:24:00.000-07:00

My oldest turned 8 yesterday - When I got up this morning at 6:40, he was already up, playing with his new toys. A brief conversation verified that he'd been up for some hours. Boys getting up before 7:00 is strictly verboten in our house since it leads to crankiness in the late afternoon and poor performance during school time.

I was in quite a quandary about what to do, B had broken my trust AND had confessed to his mother the night before that he's been sneaking the candy we've reserved to teach our youngest to go in the potty. B was very apologetic and certainly gave every indication that he was willing to avoid the consequences of his actions if possible. I let him know that did not want to hear about his bad behavior in the afternoon, that there had better be none as a result of his nocturnal wanderings. Also in play was the fate of the two toys he got for his birthday.

Trust was the issue of the morning and I'd been betrayed. The problem with trust is that it's such a binary thing, you have it or you don't and it really can't be quantified; we don't say I trust you 60%, we say I trust you. All or nothing. Once trust is lost then, it is very difficult to find again.

I was in my place of meditation thinking about this and what would be an appropriate fate for the two games and it dawned on me that I'd betrayed God's trust in me on innumerable occasions. He didn't stand there and berate me, he accepted such contrition and sincerity as I was able to offer and opened his arms to me. There are still consequences to my actions, sure; but the fundamental issue is resolved as I seek reconciliation. God then walks with me through those consequences not as a taskmaster, but a helper and a guide as I am willing to follow where He leads.

B will have to do without his toys for a day or so, but it's not an issue of trust - those are the consequences of his actions. In following my Father's example, I think I'll book some time to do a puzzle w/ B. Maybe I'll be able to help him understand a little more about trust.

Peace
sf

During the daylight hours

2004-09-14T21:37:00.000-07:00

I'm a wage slave for a network security company here in Seattle. If you're interested in such things, the link below is one of my projects.

Peace

http://www.watchguard.com/rss/list.aspx

Rumblings

2004-09-14T21:32:00.000-07:00

Some heavy thoughts rumbling arround in my brain about what to do w/ my future (to the extent that I have any say in the matter). I'm not sure if it's vain fantasy, a mid life crisis, or a genuine prompting from the Holy Spirit. I'll post more after I've talked to my priest. I would be grateful for your prayers, faithful readers.

Volcanos

2004-05-21T16:17:00.000-07:00

Like a volcano, my blog is in a period of dormancy. I'll post again when I have something to say

My Desert (Dessert?) Father Opines

2004-05-07T14:38:00.000-07:00

I remember well the first time I met Fr. John of not so blessed blog name. We wound up arguing theology for two hours, oblivious to what was going on around us. At the end of it, he told me he couldnt figure out if I was a liberal, or a moderate with strange ideas.

Here we go again.

The fundamental issue w/ John Kerry is that he's two people. One is a public person who is interviewing for the job of leading the worlds most heterogeneous nation. The other is a guy who (like most of us) struggles with his faith and the teachings of the faith with regard to personal conduct & choices made.

Whether those who oppose abortion like it or not, the law of this pluralistic nation allows a mother the sole right to decide if her child should be carried to term.

I personally find this law a stain on our national "soul" and believe that the ethnos of America will have much to answer for on judgement day. That having been said, the right to choose is the law.

In running for the office of the president, Kerry must share his vision for America with him as president. The question of whether or not he would act to overturn this law is a reasonable one. Kerry, for reasons best known to himself has decided that no, he would not act to overturn the law. In doing this, he is either expressing a belief that it is not in the best interest of the nation as a whole, OR he personally believes that it's not right for a society as a whole to make a personal choice of that nature for it's constituents (even if we make others like it) OR he personally believes that life isn't sacred, the fetus isn't a person, etc.

His church teaches that murder is a sin and that abortion is tantamount to murder. Obviously some considerable disagreement is present here. But, for a Bishop of the church who isn't personally involved in the life of one John Kerry, (a sinner) to say he can't receive communion because of this "public position" is an irresponsible reaction to the situation. Why?

1) Communion is a personal thing. Unless you come to the chalice without sin, you're always doing a balancing act. Have a prepared enough? Should I partake? Did I miss something in confession? Have I done something that would keep me away? Am I unrepentant? Am I repentant enough? I'll bet we all go through this.

What if Kerry wrestles with the abortion issue with his spiritual father or confessor? What if _his_ bishop has discussed it with him and given him a blessing to receieve based on their conversation? Is it right for another bishop to say publicly "sorry, can't have any here" Did the guy even bother asking?

2)Whether we like it or not, the Romans wield a great deal of influence and political clout. They can either use their power for good or for evil. Historically, the Roman church has acted as a political (as opposed to ecclesiastical) entity. When it has done so, it has toppled governments, changed economies, influenced foreign policy and in doing so, compromised their own moral wittness. In other words, they exchanged things heavenly for things earthly. In this particular case, they appear as though they are trying to influence the election. By this they are feeding the growing anti-christian sentiment among the non-christians in this nation in that they appear to be forcing their beliefs upon unbelievers. If the context of the discussion were purely political, a matter of public policy that would be fine. That's what political dialogue is for, pursuasion. However, the bishops cited in the news reports have taken a SPIRITUAL matter and placed it in a political context. This is where I have a problem.

We are a voluntary association concerned with transformation of the soul. We count our membership across time and cultures. The lives and politics of the nations which host us are secondary to our persuit of theosis. We wish to draw all men to Christ. The saints, in encouraging this effort have constantly exhorted us to aquire the Holy Spirit. I don't recall any of them suggesting that because a member of our association is a public figure, it's ok to discuss matters of the confessional in public. And no, I havn't forgotton the numerous times that the Patriarch of Constantinople took on the emperor in public. Different set of cirumstances.

A Little uncomfortable -

2004-05-07T09:03:00.000-07:00

As I said, I started reading the illness and cure of the soul by Met. Hirotheos. It's making me a little uncomfortable. Most of what I'm reading has the ring of truth, I'm tracking his arguements, the translation artifacts aren't _that_ bad, but it seems a bit weird. I was reflecting on this this morning and contrasting it to Bp. Kallistos. I've heard the Bp. Speak, read several of his books and there's been an excited "yeah, I get it now" thing going on.

I guess one of the things that bothers me about Met. Hirotheos is that when he makes propsitional statements or cites the fathers, he backs them up by saying things like "and we know this is true because it was revealed to St. N" or because St. N experienced God. I'll freely admit I'm a skeptic by nature, I struggle w/ the "believe" part of faith and I don't question for a moment that it's possible to have a mystic experience of God and it's safe to assume that such an experience would be transformational. But writing off all diciplined thought, making bold assertions and then saying well we know it's so because the person who said it was "purified" or "experienced the divine light" strikes me as tantamount to saying, this is true, but I can't explain why, or how other than to say God told me so. Seems a little cultic, but I can't say it can't happen.

+peace

The Illness and the Cure of the soul

2004-05-05T20:27:00.000-07:00

I started riding the bus this week. It gives me a set time during the day to read. I've started reading "The Illness and cure of the soul". A very interesting book; Met. Hirotheos says some provocative things. I've not had any "revelations" but it has given me food for thought. As I come across specifics, I'll comment here. I'd be interested to know who else has read it and what you thought? Also, Looking for unbiased, credible information on Elder Ephrem and or Orthodox fundamentalism. I know the unbiased part is a long shot, but I'd like to avoid polemics.

+peace

sf

Fr. Thomas' Legacy

2004-05-03T21:54:00.000-07:00

As most of you know, our associate priest, Fr. Thomas reposed last week. His passing was quite unexpected. In reflecting on his death, my eyes have inevitibly drifted to the mirror that his life was to those who knew him. In that mirror, I have seen the shallowness of my own way of living. Memories of his attentiveness has caused me to reflect on my own heedlessness. Memories of his sobriety have prompted me to reflect on my own insobriety. Memories of his sanctity, such as it was, have caused me to reflect on my own corruption. If this is his legacy in my household, then it is a rich and noble one.

I've come to the conclusion that I live as though this world will never pass away, that I'll never have to face the judgement and even though I KNOW that this is insane, something in me always says "tomorrow is time enough to repent" "tomorrow is time enough to pray" "Tomorrow, tomorrow, tomorrow" I hesitate to look for deamons under the doillies, but I wonder...

In his life Fr. Thomas was a VERY conservative priest. He lived a very ascetic life, took the diciplines of the church quite seriously. On occasion, the implications of his conservatism made me distinctly uncomfortable. I'm aware that there is a nacent fundamentalism growing w/in american orthodoxy. I've always thought of it as those who would direct my life according to their precepts (or write me off as hetrodox) vs those who would invite me to come and see. Over the last few days, I've been contemplating my own life in the light of Fr. Thomas' passing. I've wondered what my life is about. His was about the eucharist, mine seems as though it's about doing whatever seems fun at the time. His was focused on the kingdom, mine seems to be focused on either my wallet or my flesh. I've asked myself, "to what extent has my 'centrism' transformed my life?" It's brought an awareness of the disease, certainly; but what of a cure? Perhaps I need to sit down and seriously consider what some of my conservative bretheren say.

I wonder if it really just boils down to "I think I'm done being sick now"

Pray for me, a sinner.

+peace

Justice=Mercy

2004-04-21T20:30:00.000-07:00

Bright Monday evening found me at James'
house with Barnabas and one of
our fellow parishioners who, strangely enough, doesn't blog. As is his wont,
James had lit a fire. We were discussing Godly sexuality and other things of
interest to the Orthodox male in the cool of the evening accompanied by
appropriate refreshment. In this most convivial atmosphere, I made the following
observation.

We perceive God's justice and his mercy as two different things. When we
pray "Lord have mercy" I at least am contrasting it in my mind
with 'justice'. Clearly the two words mean different things but what if the
difference between them was merely a matter of perspective? What if mercy and
justice were, in fact, the same thing, and the difference merely a matter of
perspective?

I was thinking of the sheep and the goats - one group had one experience, the
other, had quite a different one; but yet, it was the same God. It seems to me
that the purpose of our life may well be to make us strong enough to perceive
the uncreated light as love/ mercy/ pleasure rather than pain. Everything we
experience is for one single purpose, transform our inner being so that in the
end we are strong enough to perceive the uncreated God. God is eternally
reaching out trying to help us. Trying to save us, trying to strengthen us
because he knows that our time is finite, there will come a day when we will no
longer see through a glass, but face to face.

If we're not strong enough...well, God can't change who he is. He said it
first -- I am. Hell, judgment, the lake of fire and all of those subjects which
occupied the mind of both of my saintly Grandmothers are a manifestation of our inability
to deal w/ God as He is.

The thing I like about this is that God's no longer a torturer. He's no
longer inflicting the eternal pain I was made aware of as a young child on those
who refuse to love him. Hopko said that hell is God loving someone who doesn't
want to be loved.

Am I crazy?

Poorly formed, imperfectly offered

+peace

For Rick

2004-04-13T20:47:00.000-07:00

Athanasius of holy memory besought abba Pambo to come down from the desert to
Alexandria; and when he had come down, he saw there a woman that was an actress,
and he wept. And when those who stood by asked him wherefore he had wept he
spoke. "Two things," said he, "moved me. One her perdition; the
other, that I have not so much concern to please God as she hath to please
men."

The Sayings of the Desert Fathers 3:14

It's my fault

2004-04-09T18:11:00.000-07:00

Today I crucified and buried the King of Glory.

The sun is shining, it's
about 65 degrees out side and rush hour is underway in our neighborhood. On the
drive home from church I passed cars with scantily clad teens intent on soaking up the sun,
I passed mothers and fathers coming home from their various activities of the
day. All I could think of was "why weren't they in church?" It was
surreal to discover that while we are making present again the death, burial,
and resurrection of Christ that there are thousands in my neighborhood for whom
this is just another weekend.

We read from the book of Hebrews today

"...For if we sin deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the
truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful prospect of
judgment, and a fury of fire which will consume the adversaries."

In the reading, I got a little closer to the why of our continual "Lord
have Mercies" It's all we have left. We have received the knowledge
of the truth and yet for many of us, our life is a spiritual treadmill of the
same few sins done over and over again. I could record my confession and just
play back the tape each time I go in. It's always the same.

One of the things that gets lost in the shuffle oftentimes is our own sense
of responsibility for the events of 1971 years ago. I was there when the
soldiers mocked our Lord. Truly, we didn't know what we did. If we had, would we
have put Him to death? Would I have been so overcome in the insanity of the
moment, would I have so devalued human life that I could knowingly execute a man
that is apparently either insane, or innocent, or both? Can I for a moment consider the posibility that He IS the Son of God?, a God? the God of the Hebrews? Consider, the soldiers (they are
me), were garrison troops, they had done this a dozens of times before. I can
imagine the young guys arriving at the garrison fresh from training. Would they
have been shocked at their new found role in abusing the condemned? Would the
old guys have laughed when someone got sick? Did the kids believe that the
sadistic pleasure in torturing the defenseless was their just reward. I don't
know. I'd like to think I would have done something different than they, but I'm
not sure.

Are you?

+peace

A sinner

Reality and the Skeptic

2004-04-08T20:47:00.000-07:00

Have you ever looked at that Icon of Christ on the iconostasis and asked
yourself "What am I doing here? Do I really believe this stuff?" I
did, tonight during the Vesperal divine liturgy. This isn't the first time I've
asked myself that question. I brought the issue up during my life confession
prior to chrismation, It's happened over the years and I've stuffed the doubt
back into the box, taped it up again and tried to bury it. Again. When we were
both Episcopalians I asked Fr. John if it had ever happened to him, and if so,
what did he do about it? He allowed as it had and said you fake it till you make
it. I think faith is a like that.

The Jesuits believe that doubt is necessary for faith, that perfect certainty
is a state which precludes faith. Logically they are right, but I think
spiritually too. It seems that part of the Orthodox way is to struggle and make
the decision to follow Christ again daily. I struggle with this, my faith wavers
and I find myself deciding to step out onto nothingness. Again. Knowing that the
doubts will come and I will wonder once more if I am, in the words of St. Paul
to be most pitied among men.

1971 years or so ago, Peter denied Christ three times. Our Lord was crucified
and for three days was dead. To say that the apostles had no doubts, that there
were no thoughts of 'now what' during those three days is to deny both the Holy Scriptures
and that they were human. I take comfort in this. They doubted and didn't turn
out so bad. Maybe it'll be the same for me. Perhaps I'll be granted a vision of
our risen Lord. Until then belief is an act of will, a decision that I make
again and again, like my brother in the Gospels,

Lord I believe, help my unbelief.

+peace

A sinner

Steve's Obituary

2004-04-07T13:25:00.000-07:00

STEVEN JOHN KOTULA ESSEX JUNCTION — Steven John Kotula, 48, died Sunday, April 4, 2004, in the Vermont Respite House in Williston. He was born Feb. 10, 1956, in Riverside, Calif., the son of Dr. Thomas and Bette (Spaeth) Kotula. Steven did his undergraduate work at the University of Minnesota, graduating in 1978. He completed his graduate studies at William Mitchell Law College in St. Paul, Minn., graduating in 1995. He married Rebecca Harris in Teton Park, Moose, Wyo., on May 27, 1989. Steven worked in the manufacturing process engineering field from 1978 to 1994. In 1984 and 1985, he designed, built and patented a sport aircraft made almost entirely of graphite, which he named the “Graflite.“ For the past two years, he was a patent attorney for the Husky Corporation in Milton. He was a very active member of St. Jacob's Orthodox Church in Northfield Falls, where he was also the parish council president. He enjoyed fishing, hiking, camping, skiing, and spending time with his family. Survivors include his wife, Rebecca of Essex Junction; his parents, Dr. Thomas and Bette Kotula of Brainerd, Minn.; a daughter, Mary Kotula of Essex Junction; twin sons, John and Peter Kotula of Essex Junction; two sisters, Cathy Dens and her husband, Dr. Kevin Dens, of Brainerd, Cindy Roggenkamp and her husband, Tim, of Nisswa, Minn.; a brother, David Kotula and his wife, Nancy, of Minnetonka, Minn.; godparents Marc and Deborah Chagnon of Crystal, Minn.; and numerous nieces and nephews. Calling hours will be held Tuesday, April 6, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Kingston Funeral Home, 35 Slate Ave., Northfield, followed by a memorial service at 8 p.m. in St. Jacob's Orthodox Church, Route 12, Northfield Falls. The funeral service will be conducted Wednesday, April 7, at 10 a.m, also in St. Jacob's Orthodox Church. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in his memory to St. Jacob's Orthodox Church Capital Campaign Fund, P.O. Box 353, Northfield Falls, Vt. 05664.

Yahoo! News - Surgeons Who Play Video Games Err Less

2004-04-07T08:42:00.000-07:00

Yahoo! News - Surgeons Who Play Video Games Err LessI knew there was a reason I wanted an X-box {g}

The Last 24 hours of my life has sucked...

2004-04-06T20:29:00.000-07:00

the last 24 hours of my life has sucked. Not in a Rwandan refugee sort of
way, nor in a 80% of my body is covered with third degree burns sort of way, but
rather in a petty, childish, petulant, irritable sort of way. It all started
last night when Liz and I had this huge fight about the stupidest thing -the
relative appropriateness of console based computer games for our family. I've
wanted an x-box for months. She doesn't want to even hear the word. We went to
bed angry at on another (I three hours later than she).

When I got into work this morning, I was tired, completely unmotivated and
had the worst meeting in the world looking me in the face. People came
unprepared, the meeting, always acrimonious, was more so today and in the end we
wasted an entire hour that I'll never get back and I have even more work to do.
Later this afternoon the supervisor of one of the jerks (other jerks?) in the
meeting misrepresented something I said to my boss and I'm half convinced that
she believes the misrepresentation. When I got to church this evening, I was so
incredibly angry, It was nothing more than an act of will that kept me there. As
it is, I didn't sing half the service. When we got to the verses on Lord I Call,
this was waiting for me.

How shall I, the unworthy one,

Appear in the splendor of Your saints?

For if I dare to enter the bridal chamber with them,

My garments will betray me;

They are unfit for a wedding.

The angel will cast me out in chains,

Cleanse the filth of my soul, O Lord,

And save me in your love for mankind.

O Christ the Bridegroom,

My soul has slumbered in laziness.

I have no lamp aflame with virtues,

Like the foolish virgins I wander aimlessly when it is time for work.

But do not close Your compassionate heart to me, O Master.

Rouse me, shake off my heavy sleep.

Lead me with the wise virgins into the bridal chamber,

That I may hear the pure voice of those that feast and cry unceasingly;

"O Lord, glory to You"

{snip}

You are more beautiful than all men, O Bridegroom.

Your have invited us to the spiritual banquet of Your bridal chamber.

Strip me of the ugly garment of my sins.

As I participate in Your passion,

Adorn me in the glorious robe of Your beauty

That proclaims me a guest in Your kingdom, O merciful Lord

The Gospel reading tonight was from Mathew chapter 25. You know, the talents,
the foolish virgins, the sheep and the goats? Go figure.

The poetry and the scripture readings worked, a bit. Even though I'm still in
one of those recklessly angry and I don't really give a damn moods; The Truth
has put it all in perspective. Thank God that at least I can own the
verses and pray the prayer..

O Lord and master of my life, take from me the spirit of sloth, despair, lust
of power and idle talk. But give rather the spirit of chastity, humility,
patience and love to thy servant. Yea O Lord and King, grant me to see my own
faults and not to judge my brothers. For blessed are Thou unto ages of ages.
Amen.

+peace

A Sinner

Closed for Holy Week?

2004-04-04T22:39:00.000-07:00

I want to say "This site will reopen during bright week. See you on the other side of Pascha." but after reading James' post, I'm not so sure.

+peace
sf

Lord, Now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace...

2004-04-04T22:26:00.000-07:00

This morning at approximatly 3:00am edt, the servant of God Stephen departed this life; may his memory be eternal. Please remember him, his wife Rebecca, and his three children Mary, Peter and John in your prayers.

O God of spirits and of all flesh, Who hast trampled down death, defeated the devil, and given life to Thy world. Give rest, O Lord, to the soul of thy servant Stephen, in a place of light, in place of green pasture, in a place of revival, whence all pain, sorrow and sighing have fled away. Forgive every sin committed by him, in thought, word and deed, in Thy goodness and love for men, O God. For there is no one who lives without sinning: Thou alone art without sin, and Thy justice is eternal justice, and Thy Word in Truth.

For Thou art the Resurrection, the Life, and the Repose of Thy departed servant, O Christ our God, and to Thee we send up glory, with Thy Eternal Father, and Thy all-holy and good and life-giving Spirit, now and ever, and to the ages of ages.

A fair and balanced look at the O'Franken Factor

2004-04-01T14:20:00.000-08:00

Yahoo! News - Liberal Radio Network Hits Air With Left Jab

Reuters coverage of Serbia

2004-04-01T13:19:00.000-08:00

Top News Article | Reuters.comThis dosn't look so biased, does anyone have any perspective?
They refer to "...The attacks, blamed by NATO on Albanian extremists..." and The UN govener (from Finnland) said "In the light of the violence of March 17-20, the immediate priority is the establishment of the rule of law, prosecution of perpetrators and public respect for law and order,".

TheCelebrityCafe Birthdays: March/30

2004-03-31T15:43:00.000-08:00

I'm Getting Old - Eric Clapton turned 59 yesterday

Entertainment News Article | Reuters.com

2004-03-31T15:35:00.000-08:00

This is going to be hilarious

A biotech data transfer alternative to copper and fiber -optic

2004-03-31T15:14:00.000-08:00

The new Internet?

News from The People's Democratic Republic of Western Washington

2004-03-30T23:08:00.000-08:00

Dateline March 30, 2004. The People's Democratic Republic of Western Washington (PDRWW)

I was in a meeting today when a co worker shared news of an article she read in the propaganda organ for the PDRWW. She, my co-worker, said something about how the christians didn't succeed in completely defining marrige as the union of a man and a woman until the 12th cen. and how in ancient rome and athens allowed Homosexual marriage. Whoa, back the truck up. What's this?

When I got home I read the article. As I read, I got the impression that Janet Tu, the article's author had come to the conclusion of her article before she began researching it and carefully shaped her research and quotes to match her conclusion. While I expect a certain amount of Yellow Journalism from the propaganda ministry having been subject to it myself on occasion. This really cheesed me. I guess it was because - you guessed it - they were misrepresenting the Christian Church and our history.

You can read the article - it basically tries to establish the notion that there is no and never really has been a single definition of the word symbol "marriage" in the history of our civilization and while we're on the subject, it's the christians that have screwed everything up as they've attempted to ram a deffinition of Marriage down society's collective throats.

Ms Tu has failed to grasp the simple fact that to the extent that the values and aims of the Christian Church have been aligned with those of the state, the position of the state on all social issues with moral implications has been that of the Christian Church. To the extent that the state and church have not been aligned in this manner, the Christians have followed their own path. Folks, this isn't rocket science. Today it's possible in SPAIN to be married in a civil ceremony that the church dosn't recognize. To the state, you are married, to the church you are living in sin. If you want to be married in the church (to have your union blessed by the church), have a church wedding.

Where the church has had an impact on civil society in history- it has been largley voluntary if not democratic. Those empowered by the society to set the rules opted for a christian articulation of the ideal state. Democracy places that power in the hands of the people and uses a purely mathmatical equation to determine what "right" is. In otherwords, we sleep in whatever bed we've made. If the people have a problem with the way the society is organized, then the people can change it. That's what's happening now.

The current uproar in the media is all rooted in the unfortunate fact that the founding fathers of our nation had a "do what I say, not what I do" attitude to the seperation of church and state. As they drafted the constitutiuon and as law was made which reflected it. Cultural norms, born out of a certain religious sensibility, gained the strength of law under a civil political contract that was intentionally blind to religion. Now that the culture has changed and those of us with religious sensibilities are being marginalized in the popular media, those laws look hard to defend w/out resorting to an arguement from faith or the cultural values which flow from a "traditional" belief structure. And you know what? THEY ARE.

To the extent that such a defense has it's root in christian sensibility that defense should be abandoned as a matter of concience by all Christians of true belief. WE HAVE NO BUSINESS FORCING OUR WILL ON UNBELIEVERS. It does violence to the spirit of the Gospel and guarantees that the political process will be used against us, even as we attempt to use it against others.

Marriage in the civil society is about many things according to the ministry of propaganda. State sanction of the relations between a man and a woman (and the inevitable consequence of such relations) are only one of those things. I support this view when it comes to the civil aspect of marriage. However, when it comes to the sacramental aspect of marriage -no state is going to tell me what to believe, and what belief I can act on in my private life.

Ms. Tu needs to stop confusing the civil and the sacramental aspects of marriage.

+peace

You be good...

2004-03-29T23:00:00.000-08:00

You be good...

These were the last words that my grandfather ever said to me. Growing up the
rowdy son of a peace and quiet loving single mother, my grandparents cared for
me each summer. I went to school in southern California but as soon as school
was out, up to Meme and Pop's place WAY out in the country. Summers were the
only time I had a full time, live in male role model and Pop became a hybrid
father/grandfather figure for me. A man with a powerful presence, Godly, kind;
he left quite an impression on me. To this day, his example of what it meant to
be a man guides me. To the extent I follow his example, I'm a better person.
Such is the influence of the father figure in the lives of us all.

We received word today that a friend is starting what may well be the final
round in his battle against terminal cancer. He's in the hospital and not
expected to come home. His life for the last few months has been one of
unexpected grace, the docs originally expected him to succumb before Christmas
and here it is almost Pascha. He is blessed with a Godly and faithful wife and
three really cute kids about Brendan's age. At some point, he'll say something
to each of them and they'll take those words into their heart and meditate on
them and their memories for the rest of their lives. Dad will be gone.

"...I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world
to come" or so say we each Sunday. When my father died, I took comfort in
this ancient statement of faith - I understood that our separation was, by the
grace of God, temporary. My friend's children are much too young to grok this.
For them, daddy will simply be gone.

As you approach Holy Week and you make present again Christ's suffering,
death, and resurrection please remember my friends Steve and Rebecca and
especially their children Mary, Peter and John in your prayers.

+peace

New Hymns for a New Era

2004-03-27T23:11:00.000-08:00

------------------------------------

1. Blest Be The Tie That Doesn't Cramp My Style

2. Pillow of Ages, Fluffed for Me

3. I Surrender Some

4. I'm Fairly Certain That My Redeemer Lives

5. Sit Up, Sit Up For Jesus

6. Take My Life and Let Me Be

7. What An Acquaintance We Have In Jesus

8. Where He Leads Me, I Will Consider Following

9. He's Quite a Bit To Me

10. Oh, How I Like Jesus

11. Fill My Spoon, Lord

12. It Is My Secret What God Can Do

[GRIN]

The problem with reading...

2004-03-23T21:06:00.000-08:00

Some days ago I blogged about how I waste my time in fruitless
pursuits. Ok sez I, what can you do differently? Well, you do have a large
library of spiritually edifying material... True sez I, mayhaps I'll read me
books instead of playin' me games.

And so begins the quest for the sort-of holy grail - A spiritual book that
one can actually read after a long day at work. People, there ain't any such
beast. At least in my library. I work with my feeble brain all day every day.
When I come home, it's tired. As much as I hate to admit it, Zizoulas and the
like are right out. I think this is part of my attraction to Sci-Fi and
Fantasy.

I believe that every author of fiction is, whether they acknowledge it or
not, imitating God (Andrew Greely wrote a pretty cool novel
on a similar topic some years ago). In this way I justify the hours I've
spent wasting my time on those things that distract me from the Kingdom of
Heaven. But I ask you, if not fiction, then what? I can't track more than a page
or two of the weighty stuff after a day at work.

In thinking about what I could read tonight, I stumbled on Gallatin's
"Thirsting for God in a Land of Shallow Wells" It's a book about his
journey from the protestant realms to Holy Orthodoxy. In the introduction he
states what many of us have discovered, that Protestantism is fundamentally
flawed and CAN'T be made right while still remaining protestant. Hey, I
don't need to read this book, heck I could write it - Ok, I ask myself what
exactly would you write?

I think I'd start by examining the issues that protestant's have problems
with when it comes to Orthodoxy:

Icons

The authority of the Bishops

The Saints...

The Saints! yes, that's interesting - I've never really thought of it, but
when I was a protestant, I never stopped to consider what other people thought
of so many of the issues I wrestled with. I guess I figured I had to work
everything out for myself. Scholars could comment all they wanted but in the
end, I had to arrive at an answer that seemed right to me. I look at this
now and cringe - perhaps that's one of the fatal flaws of protestant thought in
general (although I can think of several exceptions): a propensity to try
to work out the problem in the absence of an authoritative answer will tend
towards chaos. In Orthodoxy, the perseverance of the Saints is more like giving
the dead the vote (you know, I never ever thought I'd allude to Calvinist
doctrine and Tammany Hall in one sentence). It's taking what they have to say,
what they said, seriously. They become the standard against which I can compare
my solutions to the problems. If my answers differ from theirs, then I have the
opportunity to revisit the problem. Cool. Seems so simple but as I walked and
talked today with a recovering Christian friend of mine at work, I spent half?
of the conversation suggesting that the fundamental presuppositions of his
protestant past were keeping him from coming to a sensible, compassionate, Godly
(I hope) resolution of the topic at hand.

This happens frequently in
conversations I have with friends and family about issues where the historic
teaching of the Church differ from what was preached in the pulpit of the Baptist
churches I grew up in. Sometimes I want to say "to start, question
everything you've ever been taught about what Christianity teaches, then read
Bp. Kallistos' 'The
Orthodox Way' That'll get you started on looking critically at the
differences between what was taught as true Christian doctrine at 1st Missionary
Baptist Church (or wherever) and historic Christian teaching." I
expect that in some cases, the differences won't be all that much. I know for
me, they were astounding and resolved innumerable previously irresolvable issues
that I'd decided to live with. You know, as long as we're dreaming, what
do you say we require a license for public media outlets to discuss what
Christian doctrine actually does teach. I'm getting tired of the hackneyed
cross-eyed journalism that seems to be representative of the un-educated view of
our faith. Don't mind the persecution so much as being persecuted for something
I don't believe.

EEEK! what a ramble - Oh well, James told
me not to edit
too heavily. If you don't like what I ate for lunch, blame it on him.

BTW, Karl's rambling
on a parallel track over at St. Stephen's musings - Check it out.

+peace

OOPS

2004-03-23T21:03:00.000-08:00

I just discovered that my permalinks have been broken for months. Pebkac. I've fixed the current posts. In the unlikley event that anyone want's to link to an older post, let me know and I'll go back and fix it as well.

I know it's been linked elswhere, but this makes me sick

2004-03-22T22:08:00.000-08:00

Kristallnacht in Kosovo on National Review Online

Observations from the Evil Juan

2004-03-17T20:42:00.000-08:00

And so It begins - My dear friend Fr. John McCuen, rector of Holy
Archangels Orthodox Church in Phoenix now has a blog. WAY TO GO FR. JOHN!
Folks, you've got to check it out.

http://eviljuan.blogspot.com

Father John, Welcome to the blog-o-sphere and let me know if you need any
help getting commenting up and running.

+peace

This was TOO GOOD to pass up

2004-03-17T09:00:00.001-08:00

Yahoo! News - Amid sex scandals, one Aussie football team turns to God

A uniquely Italian view of the seperation of Church and State

2004-03-17T09:00:00.000-08:00

Yahoo! News - Italian Police Break Into Church to Install Priest

On Being and Nothingness

2004-03-17T08:59:00.000-08:00

Ok, I admit, it's a pretentious title, but stay with me.

Over the last week, I've been reflecting on what it means to "BE"
something. At various times in my life I've "been" a victim, a
perpetrator, a Christian, a hedonist, an idiot, a vegetarian, pro-Israel, pro-Palestinian
etc.. I know some people who "ARE" gay, or bi. Many who
"ARE" hetero. In fact, it seems that most of the people I know
use the verb as a shorthand for "this is an aspect of who I am" it's
curious that the same verb that God used to describe his totality (I AM) is used
today to describe parts of ourselves. Do we even have a concept of what it means
to "Be"?.

Over the last week, at a church down the hill from where I live, a friend of
my parents has been trying to convince 13 Methodist ministers that Rev.
Karen Dammann, a non-celibate lesbian pastor in the local Methodist
administrative district violated Methodist church discipline to the extent she
was in a non-platonic relationship with another woman. In this case, the
relationship was stable and out in the open. Dammann even submitted a sworn
statement removing all doubt and ambiguity about her relationship with her
partner. Well, the verdict came back yesterday, my folk's friend lost his case.
11 of Dammann's peers found that her relationship with her partner did not
violate Methodist canon law, Christian doctrine/ discipline/ practice, and did
not pose an impediment to her continuing in her role as a Methodist
pastor. The other two jurors abstained from the vote.

Dammann was charged with engaging in "practices declared by the United
Methodist Church to be incompatible with Christian teaching." Church law
says that "since the practice of homosexuality is incompatible with
Christian teaching, self-avowed practicing homosexuals" cannot be
ordained as ministers.

One juror, the Rev. Karla Fredericksen of Tukwila United Methodist Church,
read a statement from the jury, saying: "The church did not present
sufficient, clear and convincing evidence to sustain the charge" against
Dammann. (http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2001884745_methodist21m.html)

Back to this notion of "being". I have no doubt that Dammann and
her partner think of themselves as "being" lesbian and
"being" Christian but what does that mean? It seems to me that their
notion of one or the other has to stretch to accommodate the fundamental
incompatibilities between the two statements. Which raises the question, does
that stretching constitute fundamental change in either of the statements?
Clearly in Dammann's case, the notion of "being Christian" has done
most of the stretching.

"I feel very good," Dammann said. As she sat in a church service
immediately following the verdict, she said, she was reminded of the words:
" 'Jesus remember me when you come into your kingdom.' It washed over me
that it was over and I was still in the kingdom. It was an overwhelming
feeling."

In a few weeks, we will remember this quote in it's proper context, the good thief
hanging on the cross next to our Lord. We speak them during the divine liturgy.
In both of these contexts, and in the mouth of the good thief, we are repenting
of the many evil deeds we have done and asking for mercy of God in accordance
with His loving kindness, we're asking Him to blot out our transgressions.

If I sit in judgment on Dammann's life, I condemn myself to hell but I wonder
if she remembers the context of her quote.

It's my sincere prayer that her sense of being doesn't lead her to
nothingness.

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner.

+peace

A remembrance of St. Patrick

2004-03-17T08:31:00.000-08:00

I know this is old but work's been insane - It's times like these that I wish
I was independently wealthy. On the other hand, as James well knows, the love of
money is the root of all evil.

A peculiarity of American culture is that even though we all acknowledge that
we're American we also will either hyphenate it (Italian-American, African-American,
Greek-American...) or simply state the irreconcilable - "I'm Greek" or
I'm Russian, etc. In the spirit of this cultural schizophrenia I would like to
proudly say "I'm IRISH!" I'm not of course, I'm as American as they
come but at some point in time in the distant past one or more of my ancestors
woke up on a cloudy morning and said, "Hey, let's immigrate to
America!" Here in the land of...land of...land of everything they have in
the rest of the world, one ancestor is enough of a tie to claim origin in a
specific place.

So, I've chosen to be Irish (American) - in honor of that noble isle,
I've named my sons Brendan and Patrick. As some of you may know, Patrick's names
day was last week. In Ireland, St. Patrick's day is seen as a primarily
American holiday chiefly commemorated because it gets all of the politicians out
of the country. Yep, look at the papers from the 17th and count the number of
Irish politicians that were cringing at the green beer that is unaccountably
part of the commemoration of this Saint. Patrick's two, so we decided to skip
the beer and and the politics and concentrate instead on the man.

St. Patrick was the son of British clergy, he
was captured by Irish pirates, enslaved, and taken to Ireland where he was
made to tend sheep and work at hard labor. It was during this time that he
developed an attitude of prayer. One night while he was sleeping, a dream came
to him showing him a way of escape. He left his flock and went to meet a boat
.

The journey was long and difficult, at one
point, he and his traveling companions had no food. They mocked his
Christianity and asked why does your God not help you, if He is so great and
powerful? Patrick replied with confidence that the Lord would help them all.
Soon after, they came across a herd of wild pigs and had a feast which lasted
for two days. Some time after he finally returned to the arms of his family,
he had another dream in which the people of Ireland were calling out to him
"We beg you, holy youth, to come and walk among us once more."

Convinced that he was not ready to take on such
a task, he began to prepare himself for it. He began studies for the
priesthood, and was ordained by Saint Germanus, the Bishop of Auxerre, whom he
had studied under for years.

Later, Patrick was ordained a bishop, and was
sent to take the Gospel to Ireland. Pope Celestine I had originally assigned
Palladius to the task, but he, through fear or death (accounts vary on this
point), was unable to carry out his instructions. St Germanus then recommended
his student Patrick, to the Pope. He arrived in Ireland March 25, 433, at
Slane. One legend says that he met a chieftain of one of the tribes, who tried
to kill Patrick. Patrick converted Dichu (the chieftain) after he was unable
to move his arm until he became friendly to Patrick.

Patrick began preaching the Gospel throughout
Ireland, converting many. He defeated all who were sent against him, overthrew
or banished the priests of pagan religions, survived many persecutions and
fearlessly and joyfully went wherever he was needed to spread God's Word. He
and his disciples preached and converted thousands and built churches all over
the country. Kings, their families, and entire kingdoms converted to
Christianity when hearing Patrick's message.

Patrick preached and converted all of Ireland
for 40 years. He would stay in an area just long enough to plant the seeds of
a church, then move on. By the end of his life, Ireland was almost completely
Christian. He worked many miracles and wrote of his love for God in
Confessions. After years of living in poverty, traveling and enduring much
suffering he died March 17, 461. (Lifted in part from http://christianity-links.com/People_Saints_P_Saint_Patrick.html)

Not the sort of life I would associate w/ debauchery typical of his feast day
here in America.

+peace

Rejoice, ye hills and groves
of the Irish land!

Leap up, ye lakes and rivers.

For lo, through the grace of
God blessing and strengthening have come upon you from on high,

for your enlightener and
spiritual father comes unto you:

Patrick, glorious among
hierarchs, zealot of the Orthodox Faith, chosen by God for the apostolate.

Using the nature of your own
island,

he teaches you the mystery of
the Trinity by means of the simplest Shamrock."

Also Sprach ROCOR

2004-03-16T21:16:00.000-08:00

In the modern culture, much emphasis has been placed on the "culture of the flesh" and the eternal and spiritual nature of man has been minimized. Self- indulgence has become the primary value and is protected by our modern society under the pretext of individual "civil rights." Personal gratification and fulfillment in this world has supplanted the spiritual striving for purity and holiness, which is the true source of joy. The love of God has been replaced by love of self. The desire of eternal bliss has been replaced by the desire for worldly bliss. The fear of eternal punishment has been replaced by the fear of worldly discomfort and condemnation. Man has supplanted God as the measure of all things.

Huw comments on the Epistle of the Pastoral Conference of the Western
American Diocese of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia Regarding
"Same-Gender Unions" So I called Fr. John to congratulate him on
an EXTREMELY well written position statement on the issue. Little did I
know that he chaired the committee that released the statement - talk about a
small world. I also found out that he's drafted the Western Archdiocese
statement on Gibson's "The Passion". Let's cross our fingers but I
think I've convinced him to join us ortho-bloggers.

Of particular note is this phrase:

"The decision by a state to extend the provisions of law covering
civil marriage to include same-sex unions is irrelevant in God's eyes. Within
the Church, the mystery of Holy Matrimony is not a right; it is a calling,
intended by God for a specific purpose, and not merely the fulfilling of earthly
lusts, or the comfort of a life shared together."

Succinct, and on target. If you've not read the entire epistle, I commend it
to you.

+peace

An Epiphany

2004-03-15T21:47:00.000-08:00

I read James' article
on tradition with great interest today. It sparked a train of thought on
the way home which in turn is responsible for this post. I've been wrestling
with the fact that I have too many leisure commitments and too little time to
pursue them. Bummer eh? I'm not so sure anymore.

One of the things I like to do is play VERY immersive strategy games. In
fact since I've been playing my CIV3 game, I've often found my self
thinking of the game in some detail at the most inappropriate times (read:
it's a little disturbing to contemplate starting a global thermonuclear war
during the liturgy)

Another one of the things I like to do is read - I'm a SciFi / Fantasy
buff, but I groove on most any fiction. I've just finished reading "Altered
Carbon" the author is a pretty good writer and there are several
"memorable" scenes in the book. (if you've read it, you know which
ones I'm talking about) Just like the game above, I've found images from
this book and others drifting across my consciousness at the most
inappropriate times.

I like to write and talk (this blog is a great outlet)

I pretend to enjoy playing guitar - the fact of the matter is, I haven't
had it out of the case in a shamefully long time.

I pretend to love the church, its teachings, and its history - the
fact is, anyone looking at my life and how I use my time would come to the
proper conclusion that I'm a hedonist faking orthodoxy hoping I
eventually "make it".

I'm acquainted with a priest who could legitimately be considered either an
orthodox fundamentalist or an arch-conservative depending on how paranoid you
were about orthodox fundamentalism. One of the things he's said is that anything
that promoted disassociation from reality is dangerous. Keep in mind that his
take on reality is that the kingdom of heaven is "normal"
(i.e. clairvoyant mystic elders as the norm and we who struggle are the
abnormal or mentally ill). That having been said, he sees great danger in
pursuits one and two. I've always written him off as something of a well meaning
but odd duck. A little overzealous perhaps but no harm done if you temper his
thought with something more moderate (I just noticed that moderate and modern
have the same root - curious).

Back to my "epiphany" -- what if he was right? what if things that
disassociated one from the Kingdom of Heaven were like cupcakes to a diabetic? I
mean, the diabetic is taking the insulin but eating candy & pastries? the
negative effect of the one undermines any good that the other does. I
think this realization is at the root of the patristic statements about fasting
from food and not fasting from sin. I think that this is the fundamental concept
behind the entire orthodox
therapeutic method - In order to get well, you need to stop doing the things
that make you sick and take treatment to repair the damage the poison did to
your system. You've got to stop making the mess and clean up what you've made so
far. Another example - someone who has a dual diagnosis of mental illness and alcoholism
CAN'T be treated unless the alcoholism is under control as well - why? the drugs
to treat the mental illness are almost uniformly ineffective when paired with alcohol
- one cancels the other out.

Here I've been moaning about the wretched state of my life apropos the
Kingdom of Heaven while spending my time doing things that push me farther from
transformation wondering why things weren't changing. Go figure.

Maybe I don't need to launch that war after all. - What do you think?

+peace

2004-03-15T08:46:00.000-08:00

Conservative Bishops Defy Episcopal Church

This is extremely encouraging. Why? It's proved that there's life in the old
gal yet. Seriously, what caught my eye was the fact that the service took place
in an orthodox church. How many of those people are going to recognize that the
end of their road is it's intersection with the ancient church. What effect did
the Iconostasis and the lingering smell of incense have on those who
participated? When this goes south, and it eventually will for many who find
themselves alienated at last from ECUSA how many will remember us? My hope is
that we can reach out and show them that not only are we their past - we're
their future as well.

Of particular note was this quote from ECUSA

"This business against the diocesan bishop is simply defiant and
that's why it's troubling," said Daniel England, a church spokesman.
"It violates our constitution and canons."

Rich, don't you think?

+peace

Nothing to say tonight

2004-03-13T20:40:00.000-08:00

I'm playing Civ 3 at Regent level and have to finish my conquest of the continent

+peace

2004-03-12T21:46:00.000-08:00

The new tools...

Aren't all they're cracked up to be.

In the immortal words of Yogi Berra, "it's like Deja Vous all over
again" How many of you remember the Internet in it's infancy? I do. I was
on the Internet before it was available to the general public and still remember
the epiphany I had the first time I used Gopher. Remember Gopher? It was the
mature technology that worked when the folks that wrote Netscape were still
students hoping their senior project would pass muster. You remember, it was
called mosaic and you downloaded it from the ncsa
gopher server.

I've spent the last two days digging into rss - its a pseudo-standard for
organizing content within an xml schema so that it can be read by a "new
reader". The idea is that one news reader can go out and download the news
from many sites while you're doing something else. When it's done, you have all
of the web sites that you would normally read all in one handy application.
Well, I got news for you - the tools that are available today are no more
sophisticated than those early browsers, the content no more sophisticated than
those early web sites and the politics surrounding the competing
"standards" no more sophisticated than the average kindergarten
sandbox tussle. So, if we choose to go forward with our little project at work,
it'll be with these flawed instruments and more faith in the future than sense.
In a way it sounds like fun.

BTW, do you know that most of the blog hosting services also include
automatic rss feeds with the blog account? I've turned mine on. It's at http://confessio.blogspot.com/atom.xml
- go find a reader and paste that into the channel listing and see if you agree.

PS, I reported on Newzcrawler last night - don't bother. I'll let you know if
I find something that seems to have legs. Until then, I'm browsing, baby!

+peace

2004-03-11T22:07:00.000-08:00

Have you ever thought about death?

I mean really thought about it. We all know that we're going to die when the subject comes up, but I at least, seldom remember that sobering fact when I'm acting like an idiot. It seems that I spend most of my time acting as though I was immortal and that there would be no judgement. What would our lives be like if we practiced the rememberance of death? what do you think?

+peace

2004-03-11T21:33:00.000-08:00

Cool, I have a new tool for blogging - I'm going to give newzcrawler a try. It seems to be a reader and poster in one. I'll let you know how it goes.

2004-03-10T22:54:00.000-08:00

The Bible isn't the word of God

As many of you know, James and I are responsible for Brother Love's Total Experience Christian Education Hour and Traveling Salvation Show (otherwise known as the High School Sunday school class). This inevitably necessitates late night meetings since we both have kids and rambling discussions since we're both somewhat undiciplined thinkers late at night. I was over there the other night and the topic of the Word of God came up. I had a sleep deprived epiphany - tell me what you think of it.

The Bible isn't the word of God; Jesus, the Divine Logos is. If we refer to the Bible as the word of God, we're effectivly placing ourselves in the place of God. Here's why.

Regardless of what you think of the Bible, it must be interpreted in some form for it to have any impact or significance. So it seems to me that the word symbols which convey the meaning of the content aren't as important as the meaning of the content itself.

When we say that the Bible is the "word of God" don't we also implicitly say "and I'm it's interpreter" - I sit in judgement on the meaning of the word of God (at least for me). Why? the Bible can't interpret itself. It can't speak, It can't clarify, it's simply a series of word symbols arranged in a given pattern to which we ascribe meaning. We are defining what the word of God says and in doing so, placing ourselves in His seat.

On the other hand - What if the Bible is an interpretation of the Divine Logos? The Divine Logos can and does speak for Himself, some of his words are recorded in the Bible, others are in the Fathers & Mothers of the Church - all bring to awarness the Living God, not a book.

Here's another thing to think about - the Bible has a beginning and an ending, does it make sense for the "word of God" to be a created, finite, entity?

Am I totally out to lunch? This sounded better the other night.

+peace

DAN BROWN IS (still) NOT THE ANTI-CHRIST...

2004-03-09T23:38:00.000-08:00

I wrote those words the other night and I still believe them. I've taken the last few days to reflect, play computer games and generally catch my breath from my whirlwind tour of two coasts (left and right). So here it is:

The topic of Dan's christology or lack therof Initially came up in a newspaper article in my local paper. Apparently, "

Christians try to debunk 'Da Vinci Code' " is an sufficiently accurate summation to begin the story. They interviewed a seemingly nice presbyterian woman who "

wondered if Jesus Christ did in fact wed Mary Magdalene and father her child, as the novel claims"

"It definitely made me question all that I have been brought up to believe," said Jespersen, a Presbyterian who lives in Chicago.

Another reaction from one of our Catholic bretheren

Glen Gracia of Boston, a former practicing Catholic, had a similar reaction, questioning the validity of the Bible if, in fact, it was commissioned and manipulated by the Roman emperor Constantine for political purposes, as the book asserts. "I was basically floored," Gracia said

Whoa, back the truck up, are these women serious? Ok, it's a page turner, I read it in two sittings (one was the plane flight back from NYC) it's reasonably well plotted (although it gets a little clumsy at the end) and it's had remarkable success in the financial arena. But for a christian to be challenged by it as a document of faith? an explanation of mystery? No Way. Here's why:

Dan Says:	The record says :
The Bible is a political construct carefully assembled from select sources for a political purpose by Constantine at the council of Nicea. (325 ad)	"The development of a canon of New Testament books was, also, the work of the later second century. By the church, from the beginning the Old Testament was reckoned as scripture...The earliest designation of a passage from the Gospels as "Scripture" was about 131...By the time of Justin (153), the Gospels were read in the services in Rome, together with the Old Testament Prophets...By the year 200 the church of the western portion of the empire had, therefore, an authoratative collection of New Testament books...The East was not far behind." Williston Walker, History of the Christian Church, Third ed. (revised 1958, at that point the book was 50 years old and a standard reference text for Church History. Walker isn't Orthodox, that'd be too easy.
The purpose of the construct was to supress women and cement Constantine's hold on power "The priory believes that Constantine and his male successors successfully converted the world from matriarchal paganism to patriarchal Christianity by waging a campaign of propaganda that demonized the sacred feminine, obliterating the goddess from modern religion forever ...During the 300 years of which hunts, the Church burned at the stake and astounding five million women. The propaganda and bloodshed worked. Today's world is living proof. Women, once celebrated as an essential half of spiritual enlightenment had been banished from the temples of the world. There were no female Orthodox rabbis, Catholic priests, nor Islamic clerics...Holy men who had once required sexual union with their female counterparts to commune with God now feared their natural sexual urges as the work of the Devil..."	Ok, a few problems with this: 1) The "world" did not believe in matriarchal paganism - Rome was pantheistic, as were the Egyptians and Greeks. In all cases, the deity at the top of the heap was male. And the societies themselves oppressed women as a matter of course. Ask yourself "who had the vote in Plato's Athens?" 2) Judaeism and the Old Testment predate Christianity by some 1000 years or more (depending on how you count) there were NEVER women priests even though there were women judges. Moreover, the biblical jews were frequently admonished for their participation in wednesday night services at the local temple of ishtar, the notion of there ever being a female orthodox rabbi to supress or burn as a witch is ludicrious. 3) Islam dates to 700s, 100 years after the opression of the sacred femine stopped (according to Brown), women as clerics in Islam can't have happened the way he suggests 4) despite several decades of trying, the feminists in the less than orthodox christian churches have been unable to find a SINGLE instance of a femal priest or bishop EVER in the history of the church, either before or after the so-called oppression. Why? there were none. 5) I like sexual union as much as the next guy, but I don't see God in it- you probably don't either. The fact is that aceticism as a path to enlightenment is a universal constant in the major world religions - there must be something beyond orgasm. (yes, I'm aware of tantra and a few others but they are exception from the norm on a world scale, not the norm)
Jesus was not the Son of God, He wasn't born of a virgin, he married Mary Magdlen, sired a child who was born in France after his crucifixion where Joseph of Arimethia took her for safety from St. Peter. "until that moment of history [the council of Nicea], Jesus was viewed by his followers as a mortal prophet... a great an powerful man, but a man nonetheless. A mortal... Jesus establishment as the 'Son of God' was officially proposed and voted on by the Council of Nicea...a relativly close vote at that..."	1)From the Seattle times article: But the actual vote was 300-2, said Paul Maier, professor of ancient history at Western Michigan University, and it did not determine Christ's divinity. That was attested to much earlier "by many New Testament passages, as well as by the earliest Christians and all the church fathers, even if there was some disagreement as to the precise nature of that deity," Maier said. The Council of Nicea "did not debate over whether Jesus was only mortal or divine, but whether he was created or eternal." • The Bible's inerrancy. Peter Jones, co-author of "Cracking the Da Vinci Code," says that in trying to establish that the Bible was cooked by Constantine and his cronies, Brown overlooks the fact that four-fifths of what is now called the New Testament was deemed divinely inspired in the first century — two centuries before Constantine and the Council of Nicea. • Christ's celibacy. Even feminist scholars such as Karen King, a Harvard professor and leading authority on early non-biblical texts about Magdalene, have said there is no evidence Christ was married to Magdalene or to anyone else. George and other traditionalists treat the claim as absurd. "All those martyrs the first 300 years, they were covering up the fact that Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene? Why in heaven's name would someone go to their death to protect that secret? It's absurd." The controversy leaves Jespersen confused. She is "still absolutely 2)Hmm, well... I suppose if you want to disbelieve 2000 years of common witness to the divinity of Christ, that's ok, just don't call yourself a Christian while you do it, it's intellectually dishonest.

Dan Says:

The record says :

The Bible is a political construct carefully assembled from select sources for a political purpose by Constantine at the council of Nicea. (325 ad)

"The development of a canon of New Testament books was, also, the work of the later second century. By the church, from the beginning the Old Testament was reckoned as scripture...The earliest designation of a passage from the Gospels as "Scripture" was about 131...By the time of Justin (153), the Gospels were read in the services in Rome, together with the Old Testament Prophets...By the year 200 the church of the western portion of the empire had, therefore, an authoratative collection of New Testament books...The East was not far behind." Williston Walker, History of the Christian Church, Third ed. (revised 1958, at that point the book was 50 years old and a standard reference text for Church History. Walker isn't Orthodox, that'd be too easy.

The purpose of the construct was to supress women and cement Constantine's hold on power

"The priory believes that Constantine and his male successors successfully converted the world from matriarchal paganism to patriarchal Christianity by waging a campaign of propaganda that demonized the sacred feminine, obliterating the goddess from modern religion forever ...During the 300 years of which hunts, the Church burned at the stake and astounding five million women. The propaganda and bloodshed worked. Today's world is living proof. Women, once celebrated as an essential half of spiritual enlightenment had been banished from the temples of the world. There were no female Orthodox rabbis, Catholic priests, nor Islamic clerics...Holy men who had once required sexual union with their female counterparts to commune with God now feared their natural sexual urges as the work of the Devil..."

Ok, a few problems with this:

1) The "world" did not believe in matriarchal paganism - Rome was pantheistic, as were the Egyptians and Greeks. In all cases, the deity at the top of the heap was male. And the societies themselves oppressed women as a matter of course. Ask yourself "who had the vote in Plato's Athens?"

2) Judaeism and the Old Testment predate Christianity by some 1000 years or more (depending on how you count) there were NEVER women priests even though there were women judges. Moreover, the biblical jews were frequently admonished for their participation in wednesday night services at the local temple of ishtar, the notion of there ever being a female orthodox rabbi to supress or burn as a witch is ludicrious.

3) Islam dates to 700s, 100 years after the opression of the sacred femine stopped (according to Brown), women as clerics in Islam can't have happened the way he suggests

4) despite several decades of trying, the feminists in the less than orthodox christian churches have been unable to find a SINGLE instance of a femal priest or bishop EVER in the history of the church, either before or after the so-called oppression. Why? there were none.

5) I like sexual union as much as the next guy, but I don't see God in it- you probably don't either. The fact is that aceticism as a path to enlightenment is a universal constant in the major world religions - there must be something beyond orgasm. (yes, I'm aware of tantra and a few others but they are exception from the norm on a world scale, not the norm)

Jesus was not the Son of God, He wasn't born of a virgin, he married Mary Magdlen, sired a child who was born in France after his crucifixion where Joseph of Arimethia took her for safety from St. Peter.

"until that moment of history [the council of Nicea], Jesus was viewed by his followers as a mortal prophet... a great an powerful man, but a man nonetheless. A mortal... Jesus establishment as the 'Son of God' was officially proposed and voted on by the Council of Nicea...a relativly close vote at that..."

1)From the Seattle times article:

But the actual vote was 300-2, said Paul Maier, professor of ancient history at Western Michigan University, and it did not determine Christ's divinity. That was attested to much earlier "by many New Testament passages, as well as by the earliest Christians and all the church fathers, even if there was some disagreement as to the precise nature of that deity," Maier said.

The Council of Nicea "did not debate over whether Jesus was only mortal or divine, but whether he was created or eternal."

• The Bible's inerrancy. Peter Jones, co-author of "Cracking the Da Vinci Code," says that in trying to establish that the Bible was cooked by Constantine and his cronies, Brown overlooks the fact that four-fifths of what is now called the New Testament was deemed divinely inspired in the first century — two centuries before Constantine and the Council of Nicea.

• Christ's celibacy. Even feminist scholars such as Karen King, a Harvard professor and leading authority on early non-biblical texts about Magdalene, have said there is no evidence Christ was married to Magdalene or to anyone else.

George and other traditionalists treat the claim as absurd. "All those martyrs the first 300 years, they were covering up the fact that Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene? Why in heaven's name would someone go to their death to protect that secret? It's absurd."

The controversy leaves Jespersen confused. She is "still absolutely

2)Hmm, well... I suppose if you want to disbelieve 2000 years of common witness to the divinity of Christ, that's ok, just don't call yourself a Christian while you do it, it's intellectually dishonest.

Brown's major themes center around a few fundamental beliefs:

The catholic church is morally and ethically bankrupt even though they do some good in the world

Acknowledging the "sacred feminine" is all about having sex and sexual congress is the highest form of feminine expression

There is a secret knowledge that only the select know;if you're good enough, you can know it too.

Point 2 is a curious one - while exalting the "sacred feminine" in this way, he's basically said a woman's place is (choose your position). Against this, I would set the liberating example of our champion leader, the prime example of how Christianity values the feminine. The veneration of the Theotokos (Calvin and Luther both thought VERY highly of her) is a bold statement that a woman is a whole person and not just a sex partner. St. Mary of Egypt sunday is coming up - What a startling contrast to Brown's view of the Sacred Feminine.

Dan Brown isn't the Anti-Christ, he's an entertainer who's making a lot of money off of the ignorance of many. There's talk of a movie, the novel has spawned numerous books explaining it and fueled numerous conspiracy theories. Christians the world over are wrestling with his success and the influence he's wielding.

We need to remember two things:

We have a voice too and the truth is on our side --

Do not be ashamed then of testifying to our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel in the power of God (

2 Timothy 1:8 )

AND

Truly God is good to the upright, to those who are pure in heart. But as for me, my feet had almost stumbled, my steps had well nigh slipped. For I was envious of the arrogant, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. For they have no pangs; their bodies are sound and sleek. They are not in trouble as other men are; they are not stricken like other men. Therefore pride is their necklace; violence covers them as a garment. Their eyes swell out with fatness, their hearts overflow with follies. They scoff and speak with malice; loftily they threaten oppression. They set their mouths against the heavens, and their tongue struts through the earth. Therefore the people turn and praise them; and find no fault in them. And they say, "How can God know? Is there knowledge in the Most High?" Behold, these are the wicked; always at ease, they increase in riches. All in vain have I kept my heart clean and washed my hands in innocence. For all the day long I have been stricken, and chastened every morning. If I had said, "I will speak thus," I would have been untrue to the generation of thy children. But when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task, until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I perceived their end. Truly thou dost set them in slippery places; thou dost make them fall to ruin. How they are destroyed in a moment, swept away utterly by terrors! They are like a dream when one awakes, on awaking you despise their phantoms. When my soul was embittered, when I was pricked in heart, I was stupid and ignorant, I was like a beast toward thee. Nevertheless I am continually with thee; thou dost hold my right hand. Thou dost guide me with thy counsel, and afterward thou wilt receive me to glory. Whom have I in heaven but thee? And there is nothing upon earth that I desire besides thee. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion for ever. For lo, those who are far from thee shall perish; thou dost put an end to those who are false to thee. But for me it is good to be near God; I have made the Lord GOD my refuge, that I may tell of all thy works. (Psalm 73)

+peace

2004-03-05T09:02:00.000-08:00

DAN BROWN IS NOT THE ANTI-CHRIST

I've just finished reading both the DaVinci Code and Angles and Deamons. Brown's a far better story teller than he is a historian or theologion. While I do believe that he has an anti-christian bias, he exhibits a profound lack of understanding of what Christianity is and what It teaches. More specifics later, but for now, as a theologian/ historian, he is as the braying ass, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.

2004-02-27T00:01:00.000-08:00

Contra Avolio - It all boils down to Authority

My good friend Fred has written eloquently
on the general topic of how we are saved in the reformed view. Being a kind and
godly man, he did not hammer me for my obviously outrageous statements, but
rather sought to set me straight as best he could. Fred cites Holy Scripture,
with references to passages from Romans, Ephesians, Titus, Philemon, Hebrews, Philippians,
& Thessalonians (James was conspicuous by it's absence ;-)) I don't deny for
a moment that the text is reasonably represented in most of the major
translations, nor that one could conclude, on a certain reading that Fred's
perspective has considerable merit. My quibble is not with Fred, but rather in
his assumption that his reading, or that of the protestant reformers is the
"correct" reading of the text at hand.

See, I've observed a curious thing in my serially monogamous relationship
with the various protestant camps in the US and UK. 5 Godly people will have 6
readings of the same text, at least three of which are irreconcilable with one
another. Moreover, the history of the reformation has amply demonstrated that
doctrinal chaos has a real cost in human lives, as well as souls.

One of the more refreshing realizations that I came to in my inquirer period
is that in the Ortho world, there is an authoritative interpretation of
the scriptures. That's it's bounded by the consensus of 1000 years or more of
godly men and women who, demonstrated in their lives, that they had been
transformed by the renewing of their minds. My opinion of the meaning of the
text, (or frankly that of the reformers) seemed to pale beside the witness of
the saints and their understanding of the meaning of scripture. Discovering this
led me to one of my personal biblical theology maxims, "It's the meaning of
the text, now how it got here that's important". I believe that it's the
Holy Spirit which was sent to the Church. If I take this seriously, I must
consult the Church on matters pertaining to that of the Church. Scripture is one
of those matters at the core of our confession of faith. Consequently, it's the
Church that is the repository of authoritative teaching on scripture and dogmas
arising from scripture. I am less qualified to be a sole interpreter of the
scriptures, or to sit in judgment on the historic Church than James
is, (and we all know how well qualified he is ;-)). Until my life is as
sanctified as those of the Saints, then I'm better off listening to what they
say than trying to read into the scriptures an interpretation that they
reject.

Consequently, I must reject Calvin's soteriology to the extent it departs
from the consensus of the Saints on that matter. In following the
teachings of the fathers (and mothers), I am called to love my neighbor, pray,
fast, give alms to the needy, cultivate humility, seek God, and trust to his
mercy. They seem to pass over the arguments that Calvin makes for a more rigid
reading of the relevant texts, preferring instead a balanced view, holding St.
Paul in tension with St. James. Seeing spiritual death as a sickness that can be
healed by the one true physician of our souls. Seeing St. Paul's "race set
before us" towards Christ as the process as well as the fruit and
anticipation of our salvation. Acknowledging that it is Christ who is the author
and the one who makes perfect our Faith, even as we are those who are called on
to run that race.

Fred, I hear your arguments, I've even made some of them myself. But the
historic Christian faith as I've come to understand it teaches otherwise, and that,
rather than by my own reason, is how I have to live if I am to Live.

May God have mercy on my soul

+peace

2004-02-26T22:57:00.000-08:00

Two views of Science and Religion

"And in that time it shall come to pass that the Son of Righteousness
will be seated on the high mountain and the children of faith will be at His
feet. And in that day, the children of science will come to the top of the high
mountain and they will marvel that the children of faith were already there and
the children of faith will marvel that the children of science will know the
ground over which they walked to reach the mountain."

2nd Steve 4:3

I've always hoped that the dog-cat relationship between religion and science
would end this way. In reality though, you'd be better off listening to St.
Gregory Palamas discussing theoria, the uncreated light, and the vision of
God.

I think the tension is in how they view the world - The scientist believes
what he sees, the man of faith believes the self revelation of God, whether he
perceives it or not. James, are the two mutually exclusive? or have you come to
understand science as the exploration of the created world?

2004-02-21T20:57:00.000-08:00

Forgiveness
Vespers

We stand at the very threshold
of Lent, One foot poised in mid air over the lintel. If you are not familiar
with the orthodox service of forgiveness vespers, I would sincerely encourage
you to follow the link.

Brothers and Sisters, I ask your forgiveness for any offence I (most
certainly) have caused and/or any sin I have committed against you.

Off to San Francisco for a trade conference on Monday am. I'll see you in a
few days.

+peace

"With Incense and with spiritual songs, we offer unto
Thee, O Christ, our evening hymn. Have
mercy upon our souls, O Savior.

Save me, O Lord my God, for Thou art the salvation of all.
The billows of my passions sorely trouble me, and the burden of my
transgressions drags me down. Stretch
out thine hand in help and lead me up to the light of compunction, for Thou only
art compassionate and lovest mankind.

Gather together my scattered mind, O Lord, and purify my dry and barren heart,
giving me like Peter repentance, like the Publican sighs of sorrow, and like the
Harlot tears, that I may cry with a loud voice unto Thee: Save me, O God, for
Thou only art compassionate and lovest mankind.

Often when I offer praise to God, I am found to be committing sin; for while I
sing the hymns with my tongue, in my soul I ponder evil thoughts.
But through repentance, Christ my God, set right my tongue and soul, and
have mercy on me.

Let us all make haste to humble the flesh by
abstinence, as we set out upon the God-given course of the holy Fast; and with
prayers and tears let us seek our Lord and Savior.
Laying aside all memories of evil, let us cry aloud: We have sinned
against Thee, Christ our King; save us as the men of Nineveh in days of old, and
in Thy compassion make us sharers in Thy heavenly Kingdom.

When I think of my works, deserving every
punishment, I despair of myself, O Lord. For
see, I have despised Thy precious commandments, and wasted my life as the
Prodigal. Therefore I entreat Thee:
cleanse me in the waters of repentance, and through prayer and fasting make me
shine with light, for Thou alone art merciful; abhor me not, O Benefactor of
all, supreme in love.

Let us set out with joy upon the season of
the Fast, and prepare ourselves for spiritual combat.
Let us purify our soul and cleanse our flesh; and as we fast from food,
let us abstain also from every passion. Rejoicing
in the virtues of the Spirit may we persevere with love, and so be counted
worthy to see the solemn passion of Christ our God, and with great spiritual
gladness to behold His holy Pascha."

This is a portion of the Vesperal service -
Click here
for more

2004-02-21T13:39:00.000-08:00

The doctrine of salvation from the Reform pov

My friend and amature reform theoligian Fred has as well reasoned rebuttal to my diatribe on salvation. I'm going to have to think about his words before I post my response. You should too.

Fred on salvation

2004-02-20T23:14:00.000-08:00

Good Game

How did you score?

The Philosophers' Magazine on the net

2004-02-20T22:45:00.000-08:00

The "S" word

I had coffee with a friend the other day - he asked me what the orthodox position
was on homosexuality - he was actually interested. So I made something up
as best as I could, praying it was orthodox. I hopefully I was close.

One of the things that annoys me about the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic
(orthodox) Church is its silence (within American circles) on Godly sexuality.
The article below is a moderately well reasoned essay on why contraception is a
great evil. Based on contextual clues, I'd say that the author was Roman
Catholic - ok, fine. Show me a similarly well thought out essay articulating an Orthodox
position on matters sexual. I'll bet you can't. I think the reason is this:

By definition, the orthodox faith is that which was revealed to Christ by the
Father and in-turn revealed to the Apostles by Christ. Each successive
generation clinging to this two-fold revelation and passing it on intact to the
next. St.
Vincent of Lerins put it this way "quod ubique, quod semper, quod ab
omnibus credituni est ("what has been believed everywhere, always, and by
all") if this is the case, then lack of a formal statement on Godly
Sexuality is understandable. Most of those who first articulated the faith were
celibate. The church Fathers, by and large, concerned themselves with the
purification of the nous,
the eye of the soul than the gratification of "desire" in
whatever form (unless it was a desire for theosis, they were down wi' dat). The
conclusion that I draw from this emphasis is maybe I should be likewise
concerned with the purification of my nous. Great, but inherent in that emphasis
is an understanding of sexuality as merely gratification of desire. That doesn't
seem to accord with the orthodox teaching on marriage, the eschaton, and, of
course, the Song of Songs.

Wait, Wait you say - the Fathers universally considered the Song of Songs
allegorically. Aarrr sez I, but consider the terms of the allegory. If the
mystical relationship between Christ and His Church is best explained to fallen
humanity in terms of the Lover and the Beloved, what exactly does that say about
relationships between lovers and their beloved? If we take the Fathers seriously
in this, we also have to take seriously the implications that this analogy has
on our own lives.

Consider also the teaching that marriage is a wonderful opportunity to
practice kenosis (self emptying) towards your spouse, your children, of your
fondest dreams and aspirations... (selfish obsessions, pride, greed...). I've
even heard it said that marriage is a form of monasticism (I'm wondering where I
put my copy of the ladder,
there's a quote in the opening paragraphs from St. John that applies here)

So there is certainly an orthodox position on marriage, what's missing in my
opinion, is a bridge or pathway from where we (I) sit now, byproducts of an
orgasm obsessed, instant gratification driven society; to a Godly balance in our
way of living and thinking about our sexuality ; laid out in such a manner
that all can walk it.

What I'd like is a way to take the message of our faith on marriage; isolate,
for the purposes of discussion, those elements that bear on sexuality and
contrast the product of this teaching with that of the larger society. In this
way, meeting many where they are at and leading them to a Godly understanding of
something which can, if mistreated, imperil their souls (and which fascinates
them).

I asked Fr. John about this once
and he thought that 1) the bishops would inevitably be taken out of context and
2) Our emphasis as a church is on transformation of person to be like God. That
transformation takes place within the context of a relationship between a
spiritual father (father confessor) and the person. Given this, the natural
place for the articulation of the orthodox view on sexuality is within the
context of the parish, the family, and/or confessional. I was incredibly
frustrated with this answer, even if it did ring true and consistent. 3) for
things to be otherwise, a lay person will have to articulate the position in
such a way that the bishops approve but are not held responsible for miss-interpretations.

Maybe Fr. John is right - maybe the best place for this discussion is within
the context - but what about those outside? Is there nothing we can say to them
that gives them hope or challenges them to re-examine their perspective on this
issue?

Is there?

+peace

2004-02-20T12:28:00.000-08:00

I feel a blog post coming on

The Delightful Secrets of Sex by Juli Loesch Wiley

2004-02-19T22:52:00.000-08:00

Politics and the Internet

I'm on a survey tear tonight

**************
According to the
SelectSmart.com
2004 AMERICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE SELECTOR,
Kucinich
best matches my political views.

Who gets your vote?

**************
SelectSmart.com/president

@68% but I'll probably wind up voting for the democrat since GW came in at 42% and to think that I call myself a centrist republican [grin]

2004-02-19T22:16:00.000-08:00

Yoda?

My first run had me as Spock, that didn't seem right, but Yoda? I wanted Gandalf!

2004-02-19T22:07:00.000-08:00

A non-orthodox visits for paschal matins

Found this link of of Havdalah's(sp?) site - I LOVE the article

The Mystery Worshipper

2004-02-19T21:25:00.000-08:00

Are we even looking at the right thing?

A question James asked set off an interesting train of thought --

Is our salvation wholly and completely accomplished on the cross?

Does the Resurrection of Christ accomplish anything for our salvation?

Was God's pronouncement in the Garden (You shall surely die) a judgement? A punishment?

These questions were prompted in part by Josh's debate w/ Karl on Icons.

I don't think the state of salvation or not is the point - The point is, how like God are we? How much of the damage of the fall has been reversed? If we are burn victims, how much reconstructive surgery's been done?

I want to advance an idea here, you tell me if you think it passes the sniff test.

To the extent that God is outside of time, our salvation was accomplished in creation, as well as the in the messianic prophesies and covenants of Genisis, the Psalms, the Prophets minor and major. In the incarnation, life, and death of Christ. In the ransacking of hell on that Saturday, In the resurection, ascention, on the day of Pentecost, every time the eucharistic meal is concecrated and distribited to the faithful, and when we pray.

We, as persons within time, experience these events sequentially, and since they are sequential we believe that one causes the next, and hence are discrete events with a specific causal relationship. It's as if we were like the man sitting in front of a crack in a fence. Each day at the same time, a horse walks by. After weeks of acute observation, the man decides that the head causes the tail.

In this view, salvation is an event. A singular moment in time where a true and significant change is made in the life, or destiny of our soul, it's as if we were a train that was shunted onto another track. We were on the track to hell, now we're on the track to heaven. Once you accept salvation as an event, then the issue of when we are saved becomes vitally important.

But salvation as an event fails to address the incantation problem - If I say the words and mean them at the time, am I saved even if I lead a reprobate life? Is the grace of God so trivialized that all one needs to do is to mumble a formula and BOOM, you're in?

I think this was the problem that Calvin was trying to solve when he spoke of election. See, If all it takes is an event under my control then, in his mind, we're back to salvation by works. The only thing that's changed is the "work". We've gone from "live a holy life and you'll be saved regardless of what you believe in your heart" to "believe a holy thing, and you'll be saved regardless of what you do in your life" In my mind, they're the same thing - Salvation is something I grasp on my own.

(For the record, much of what is commonly termed "works rightousness" in reform and Lutheran circles strikes me as nothing more than a straw man. I've yet to see a nuanced discussion of it. )

Calvin, Beza and the other reformers saw this conundrum as well. By placing man to close to the mechanism of salvation, you drifted into "I save myself". Well what if there are some people that are predestined to go to heaven? "the elect", well logically that means that if there are only two locations in the afterlife and some people are destined to go to one, then the rest must be destined to go to the other, right? So, God, being omnipotent, has said YOU, will go HERE and YOU, will go DOWN THERE. The non-reformed reformers raised an objection here, "so what you're saying is that some of us were created to be destroyed and there's nothing we can do about it? Before we were created God said, 'You, I will commit to the fire reserved for the devil and his angels and you have no choice in the matter' Come on, If that's the case, why bother with the Incarnation, life and crucifixion at all?"

Some time ago, I discovered that this basic back and forth has been going on since Geneva and Wittenburg. In all my years of study, I was unable to come up with a decent resoulution that answered the reasonable objections of both camps. If Luther was right, then heaven was a prize you got for believing that you ran the race, if Calvin was right, God was a rapeist to the elect (irresistable grace) and a sadist to the unelect. I came to the conclusion that theology was a harmless diversion to keep the theologians off the street and out of the hair of the rest of christendom.

For an interesting diversion, go read Chomsky on how language shapes thought, and ponder what the natural theological drift will be if you mix Latin, a language that is structured to provide sharp distinctions between very similar things with the fundamentally unknowable God.

Fr. John, before he was FATHER John turned me on to another way of thinking. What of salvation wasn't an event? what if it was a process? Some instant advantages here - no incantation problems, natural intersections with the notion of time outside of time, profound grace at work thorought life, interactive, relational, allows for definitive judgement w/ out God being a tyrant or rapist, nice connection with the pauline references to running the race with out sliding into "works" Hmm posibilities here. Oh, but it also means that if it's a process that is enabled by grace that means I have to work on it. If it makes too much sense, I'll have to take it seriously, perhaps it's better not to know. If this is the ancient teaching of the church (east, west, it dosn't matter before 1000 a.d.) then this would also be the much is given part of "to whom much is given, much is expected".

With this new (old?) perspective I find that my uneasiness at the Calvin/Luther tension isn't an issue. While I have tremendous respect for their eriudition, piety, and nobel intent. As teachers, I'll look somewhere else thank you. Their theories don't seem to stand up to me.

Back to salvation as a process. There are obvious problems with an event driven model. What do you see as the problems with a process driven model? care to comment? Am I way off base?

+peace

2004-02-19T10:07:00.000-08:00

Salvation isn't the point. Just and idea right now keying off of Josh at fearsomepirate, more later

2004-02-18T23:50:00.000-08:00

I have nothing to say today - I guess some days are like that...

2004-02-17T22:08:00.000-08:00

Judgment and Goulash

Last Sunday, many of us commemorated the 'Sunday of the Last Judgment'. This
is it's spiritual name. Most of us know it as MEAT FARE Sunday. I've always
found the juxtaposition of the two names interesting.

The gospel passage for the Sunday reading is that terrifying and sobering
passage from St. Mathew on the judgment
of the nations. I hate that passage, the moment the deacon starts reading
it, I get an overwhelming image of a barbequed goat with my face. You see, I've
always felt guilty. You know what I'm talking about...

Have I fed and given drink to hungry and thirsty -- Check

Have I shown hospitality to the stranger -- OOPS, better fix that. But
wait, what about my family's safety? I'll see if I can get a pass on this
one from the priest...

Have I clothed the naked -- Well, I did give some old clothes to good
will, maybe that'll count

Have I visited the sick -- Yep, good thing it doesn't say anything about
liking it, or excluding family

Have I visited those in prison - OOPS, one more for the to do list.

Hey, what do you know, I'm almost 40 and have only two things left to do to
get into heaven, cool.

NOT! -- The reality is that my life is characterized by selfishness. Like
many of us, I give to charities that do these things and hope against hope that
the donations count. I know in the long run they don't "... to obey is
better than sacrifice, I don't need your money, I want your life"*.
In giving money, I'm sheltering my being from the untidy reality of life outside
the American Empire "nasty, brutish and short" to coin a phrase.
Living behind walls of gold that keep out the world's hungry, naked, sick and
imprisoned.

So what's the point here. We should all be miserable because we're here and
not in some muddy village in Russia hoping a priest makes it to town this month
for liturgy? No, that's not it. What I'm suggesting, like
James, is that in this season we look at how we're living our lives, recognize
that while our purses may, by and large, be full on a global scale; that doesn't
mean that our lives are successful. Perhaps there is something more
to life than the pursuit of
property. It seems to me that if the Gospel is about anything, it's about
the truly successful life.

The last few weeks I've been listening to the Great
Canon of St. Andrew of Crete - perhaps the most profound liturgical poem
ever written.

"...I have reviewed Moses' account of the
creation of the world, my soul,

and then all Holy Scripture

which tells you the story of the righteous and the unrighteous.

But you, my soul,

have copied the latter and not the former, and have sinned against God.

The Law has grown weak, the Gospel is unpractised,

the whole of the Scripture is ignored by you;

the Prophets and every word of the Just have lost their power.

Your wounds, my soul, have multiplied,

and there is no one to heal you.

I am bringing before you examples from the Holy
Scripture, my soul,

to lead you to compunction.

So emulate the righteous and avoid following the sinners,

and regain Christ's grace by prayers, fasts, purity and reverence...."

This is just a small excerpt, it's a terrific read
if you have a while, there are multiple translations out there.

I guess what I'm trying to get at is that it's the
tenor of the life that shows a likeness to that of Christ which is the goal.
What's often forgotten is the sense of urgency. My dad died suddenly one night -
talk about a freight train. Judgment Sunday reminds us that the day is coming,
we can't make plans to start tomorrow; because tonight, our soul may be
required of us.

So, Judgment Sunday has come and gone - What about the Goulash you ask?
We had the house blessed on Sunday evening and served goulash to the assembled horde.
It was deep red, full of beef and loaded with paprika. Fitting in a way, don't
you think?

+peace

* A virtual hand shake and my fondest regards if you can provide a citation
of the quote w/ out looking it up on-line

2004-02-12T23:15:00.000-08:00

I Met a Man Who Sang the Blues...

I love this song and hey I'll admit it, I love the blues. The music is emotional, unfettered and real in a way that most pop music isn't. It's in many ways the music of a broken world. Blues singers cry out for healing, mercy, or lash out in pain, anger, dispair and defiance at their situation in life. There's no candy coating. Blues singers give voice to the human condition in a fallen world.

I met a man who lost his faith, in talking to him, I realized two things:

He isn't the only person I know who lost their faith

Faith, as it turns out is a fragile thing

One of the great tragedies of the west is that the Christian life has devolved to the Chrisitian state of being. All notion of transformation has been compressed into a single instant, a single magical incantation that's supposed to set the "saved bit" from off to on. This is bogus in the extreme and I can personally attest to the devestation that this thinking wreaks in the souls and lives of trusting and those who don't understand the historic doctrine of the Church. Some preacher rolls into town, preaching the Gospel of Christ in power. Skads of kids get it, see the light, commit their lives to Christ and... gradually become disillusioned because the instant transformation that they were taught to expect dosn't happen. Their lives and worlds are little changed from the week before. Why? Well I'm glad you asked that. You see, whether the followers of Calvin wish to acknowledge it or not, salvation is not instant, not predestined, not permanent this side of the judgement, and not easy. Salvation is a process.

One of the things I love about the church is that it starts with "Have mercy on me O God, have mercy on me". I hear in the Church's constant refrain "Lord have mercy" the other side of the blues, the voice of faith in a fallen world. Not faith in some dynamic leader of a weekend seminar, not faith in some self help book, but faith in the Living God - understanding that all of creation has a reason to sing the blues. I hear the faith of Job, not looking for an instant solution, but settling down for the long, slow, painful struggle to life. This, friends is salvation, this is being saved, this is looking forward to finishing the race. In this context, the eucharist becomes a present participation in a future reality, an entry into time outside of time. The process of salvation then prepares us for this future reality, it dosn't bring it about.

Once we understand this, the failings of our fellow human beings are no longer as important, we realize that as they are flawed, so are we. We begin to live life with a new freedom, we're no longer bound to Calvin's notion that the elect are apparent by their behavior and so if you want to be one of the elect, act like it. We give ourselves permission to fall and in doing this give ourselves the ability to get up or ask for a hand from a fellow traveler.

"Save, O Lord and have mercy on those that depart from the Orthodox faith, dazzeled by destroying heresies, do thou enlighten them by the light of your holy wisdom and unite them to your Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church"

2004-02-12T00:11:00.000-08:00

It's Thursday, but Sunday's commin'

With apologies to Tony Campollo...

I know for most of us Lent is looming large, an opportunity to "reset" and once again dedicate ourselves to that which we have chosen to pursue. But for me, Lent may be on the doorstep, but Pascha is on the horizon. You see, I'm the food coordinator for "events" at St. Paul and we've already had our first meeting of the coordinators. While in the best of worlds, this duty brings with it a heightened awareness of the dual nature of Lent, this isn't the best of worlds and I often struggle to relax into Lent and be at peace with it's progress. You see, as my pants will attest, I am a slave to my stomach and thinking about the food for the Paschal feast is a distraction.

Over the years I've been doing this, I've developed a few recipes appropriate for the next several weeks. If they distract you from the lenten fasting as well, good. I'd love to know that I wasn't the only one struggling to keep my mind on the prayers during Lent and wrestling with my bodily passions.

Here are two that seem to bookend the season:

Stevie O'Fallin's Famous "Easy as Dirt" lenten soup (Trapeza Sized)

Stevie O'Fallin's Traditional Deeply Southern-Greek Paschal Lamb

+peace

2004-02-09T20:18:00.001-08:00

Why we pray for the Civil Authorities and all in the service of our country

We had an interesting thing happen to us tonight, the cops came (without the
TV cameras). Liz was trying to program the phone and accidentally hit the speed
dial for 911. She hung up, of course. It wasn't an emergency.

10 seconds later, the phone rang - you guessed it, it was the 911 operator.
The operator asked the predictiable questions:

can you speak freely

Is everything ok

etc.

When she (he?) was satisfied, they hung up. Liz and I went on with our
evening routines. She to close out open issues from the day, me to rough house
with the boys in the often futile attempt to wear them out before bed (more
often I'm the one worn out).

This is where it gets interesting.

About 30 min later, the cops show up. You had a 911 hang up, is everything
ok? I invited him in to see for himself, he commented on the noise the boys and
I were making. I explained what had happened and asked if he wanted to talk to
Liz. Yes, he said. While Brendan was trying to impress him with facts and stuff
we had as well as being hospitable by inviting the officer to participate in our
pillow fight (I said I didn't think the union allowed guys w/ guns to have
pillow fights) I went to look for Liz. I THOUGHT she was in the bathroom. OOPS.
So, I figure out that she's not there and remember that no, she's down in the
garage. The officer "suggested" I lead the way. Ok, down the stairs,
w/ a guy packing 2 15 round pistols at my back (I'm pretty sure his hand was
either near or on one of them) Open the door to the garage, and there's Liz,
sorting the juice boxes. They chatted for a few moments and he split.

After he was gone, I began to think. He came out in case it WAS an emergency,
he had no idea what he might find and he came alone. What if I had been a
psychotic maniac?, what if it had been a domestic violence call? He would have
dealt with that as well, for my good and that of the community. Think, here's a
guy who risks his life, marriage and sanity (you don't believe me on those last
two, do some research) just to make sure that we really couldn't program our
phone.

"... For our president, civil authorities and armed forces, let us pray
to the Lord... Lord have Mercy"

2004-02-09T20:18:00.000-08:00

I LOVE THE CHURCH!

Guys, I got busted. Liz found out that I'd done something that violated the
understanding by which we organize our life. So here's the thing, five years
ago, before we started walking down the ancient path to transformation, there
would have been some serious "consequences" coming my way and I would
have deserved it. So, Liz confronts me, I try to cover, she presents her
evidence, I cop to the deed, ask her forgiveness. What does she say... "I
forgive you, Lord knows I'm not perfect either"

Go figure, this theosis stuff must really work. If nothing else, we've
discovered a vocabulary and "space" where we can be real with each
other, giving and accepting forgiveness, falling down and getting up.

+peace

2004-02-07T20:45:00.000-08:00

The winds of change: New Servant, Old Message, One Church

On Saturday mornings we get up a the crack of dawn and drive about 15 min.
north on bothell-everett highway to a place that used to be called "All
Nations Christian Center" It was a pentecostal, non-denominational church
in south Everett. Why do we do this, you ask. Sports! Brendan is a 3 season
participant in the Northwest Christian Sports
League. Some years ago, ANCC helped start the league provided it w/ meeting
space playing fields, basket ball courts and a lot of kids. Along the way NCSL
grew up, became "inter-denominational" (it was all ready
non-denominational, what ever that means) and began attracting lots more kids.
Last spring, before T-Ball started, NCSL officially disentangled itself from
ANCC. We were a little curious as to why. It wasn't long before we found
out.

Apparently Casey Treat took over. I
spoke with a few of the "denominational" parents when we learned the
news and we generally agreed that it was WISE of NCSL to not make the switch
when the parent church did. You see, Casey Treat's something of a controversial
figure here in Seattle. Most interesting (to me) is the fact that Treat is
related by marriage to one of the local Orthodox priests. Like with most
families, there are things that are simply not discussed at family gatherings,
apparently the list is a little longer in this case.

As we were leaving the basket ball game this morning, I looked up at the top
of the building, a banner hung there from the take-over. It said in part,
"New Leadership, New Message, New Church" This struck me as ironic,
considering.

New Leadership: Ok, there was a merger or acquisition of some sort. I never
bothered to find out exactly what happened. Pastors Casey and Wendy are
now in charge.

New Message: Interesting, St. Paul writes that he is determined to preach
Christ and Him Crucified. Moreover, he exhorts his spiritual children to reject
any teaching EXCEPT that which was delivered to them by St. Paul in the
beginning, EVEN IF he was the one bringing the "new message". This
lead me to reflect, either the old message was flawed, the new one is, or they
are both missing the mark. Odd for a "bible based" church.

New Church: NEW CHURCH? Come on, a change in the one worshiped would
constitute a new church. A change in leadership doesn't satisfy the criteria for
"new church". Patently, it's the same old church.

Liz and chuckled and shook our heads a little and then began to think about
what the sign would say if Treat ever became Orthodox, or if the congregation
ever did... I know, Four guys on horses coming over the horizon before that's
likley to happen, but I believe, with all my heart that the natural mission
field for the Orthodox in America are is other American Christians. People,
sometimes it seems we guard the truth of the revelation of God in Christ with
dead languages and bad marketing. Shame on us.

+peace

2004-02-06T21:39:00.000-08:00

I'm to tired to post anything tonight, the littlest but-head has started refusing to go to sleep. I love him, but I give almost anything to be able to just turn him off for 8 hours a night.
Grr.

+peace

2004-02-05T22:38:00.000-08:00

A story of the Mother of God

During the waning months of my catechumenate, I came to the conclusion that
there were just some weird things I was going to have to accede to if I wanted
to be orthodox. In particular, I remember all of the pain I had with our most
glorious Lady. As a protestant, I was so focused on other things that the
veneration of the Theotokos was beyond comprehension. I mean, she was just His
mom, right? Well yeah, but she is His mom. Now I understand it (a little)
better.

The first glimmering that I got that all of this fuss might be over something
more significant that a virtual hedge around the doctrine of the incarnation was
at a church camp. I had been chrismated but was still wrestling on and off w/
this issue. I had also learned that there were some things that one didn't
discuss in ortho circles, and this was one of them. To be sure, I was
uncomfortable with the notion of "perpetual virginity" like many
protestants, I presumed that St. Joseph was a virile man in his 30's and that
the "brothers" of our Lord, were just that -- brothers. I figured that
after the awkwardness that would naturally arise between them after she gave
birth to the Son of God would fade and they would settle down to a comfortable
married life in the country (ok, I know this seems ridiculous...now). In my own
defense, I formulated this happy picture before I was a father and before I
learned how much giving birth changes a woman, or how most women are wired (to
the extent that I've made any progress in unraveling that mystery)

While at church camp, a long time friend and new inquirer who is renowned for
plunging head-long into things about which he knows little and defending to the
death the impossible position he inevitably finds himself in and I were sitting
and having coffee with a man that would be come a good friend in the years
following. The inquirer raises the subject of the perpetual virginity of the
Theotokos, declaims that the teaching seems:

a hoary encrustation of time

completely un-necessary for the purposes of advancing the faith

a doctrine of men, not God

and moreover GROSSLY UNFAIR to Joseph, and in fact, unnatural, perhaps
even ungodly.

I was feeling two primal emotions at the end of this "question" 1)
incredible embarrassment, after all, the reason that he was even at the retreat
was I invited him, what would this other person think of me (I'm incredibly
ego-centric, I'd like to say I get it from my kids, but in truth, it's always
been there) and 2) Curiosity about what the answer might be.

I looked over at our table partner and to my utter surprise, he was weeping.
An intelligent, grown man weeping over the question and what it implied about
our Lady. This it turned out, was a light-bulb moment for me. This was the first
time I had a glimmer that perhaps there was something more to the veneration of
the mother of God than a good example of sexual abstinence, faithfulness, and
definite proof that Christ took on human flesh.

The tears of men are uncomfortable for other men to bear with the possible
exception of the end of a life (wife, child, parent, dog, car) that is precious
to us. So naturally, we pretended that they were not there and changed the
subject (Hey! How `bout those Mariners?).

Looking back, I realize that Mary, like the trinity is about relationship.
It's not her status as virgin or not, or whether she and Joseph ever... as many
would like to think. It's about her relationships with God in the first place,
her Son, and ultimately with us. It dawned on me that God could have chosen
anyone but she was the one. It's disingenuous to not view that as significant.

In retrospect, I wish I had seen, heard, (to the extent I could have seen or
heard) this hymn. To me, it's an incredibly accessible, succinct summation of
who she is in relation to her Son that may have eased my understanding. I
commend it to you.

Mary the Dawn, Christ the Perfect Day;

Mary the Gate, Christ the Heav'nly Way!

Mary the Root, Christ the Mystic Vine;

Mary the Grape, Christ the Sacred Wine!

Mary the Wheat-sheaf, Christ the Living Bread;

Mary the Rose-Tree, Christ the Rose Blood-red!

Mary the Font, Christ the Cleansing Flood;

Mary the Chalice, Christ the Saving Blood!

Mary the Temple, Christ the Temple's Lord;

Mary the Shrine, Christ the God adored!

Mary the Beacon, Christ the Haven's Rest;

Mary the Mirror, Christ the Vision Blest!

Mary the Mother, Christ the Mother's Son.

Both ever blest while endless ages run.

+Peace

2004-02-04T20:54:00.000-08:00

I couldn't resist--

I confess, I'm a Jane Austen fan. When I found this quiz on

Havdala's site I had to take it. Liz and I both came up as Elinore which either says something about us, something about the quiz or nothing at all. Take your pick. So, the question is, gentlemen, are you man enough to post your own results?

Take the Quiz here!

2004-02-04T14:48:00.000-08:00

Trip-Pix

As I mentioned in a previous post, the fam and I recently returned from a vacation / road trip to Arizona. We had a terrific time visiting friends & family and escaping Seattle in January. Here are a few photos of the trip. The pics are big, I don't have photo-shop to shrink them.

At the Grand Canyon

The Raven (for the life of me I couldn't get him to speak, much less say "nevermore")

With Fr. John at Holy Archangels

Brendan's first golf game

On the practice green

On the first tee

2004-02-04T12:29:00.000-08:00

I have a friend who lives and works in Sedona Arizona. This is the view out of his window a few min. ago ThunderSnow

Very nice.

2004-02-03T23:48:00.000-08:00

Good Blog

Doves and Pomegranates

2004-02-03T23:42:00.000-08:00

I've got to spend more time at this stite

Orthodox Ireland - Welcome

2004-02-03T14:44:00.000-08:00

This is an interesting article -- Essentially, the mega church is there to make people comfortable with where and who they are.

"Not everybody can afford to join a country club."

"...Houston, Texas, Pastor Joel Osteen preaches to some 25,000 people each week -- and sin is not on the menu. Osteen said his goal is to "give people a boost for the week."

"I think for years there's been a lot of hellfire and damnation. You go to church to figure out what you're doing wrong and you leave feeling bad like you're not going to make it," Osteen said. "We believe in focusing on the goodness of God."

These quotes are obviously out there, in fact Osteen goes on to state that people are comming to his church that haven't been to church in years.

My question would be, are lives being transformed or are you pandering to the "passions" in the patristic sense? If the latter, perhaps youre doing more harm than good. Sort of like a cardiologist that recognizes a patient needs a bypass, but recomends a modest change in diet as a "first step". I'd rather my cardio-doc say "I know it's scary, but I've been here before, and I'll be here for you."

The opposing side of the argument is predictably taken by the pastor of a small church. Hie message is:

"Sin is in life and sin is everywhere, we are all sinners," he said. "If you just leave church feeling good you are missing the whole point. The point is you need a purpose in life."

Ok, this is getting closer but I still sense that there is, like in the mega church, an assumption that sin is juridical in nature. Not surprising, the speaker is a protestant, this is what he's been taught.

The frustrating thing is that I used to believe this, but was always uncomfortable with it because of how it changed the nature of the Father. His transformation in to the Judge was not a comfortable one, and always seemed to ring sour a sour note in my mind.

I'd like to be able to sit them both down and say look, the central issue isn't sin, or our discomfort with acknowledging that we're not perfect, it's repentance. In order to repent, you have to acknowledge that you need to make a change. This isn't to say that you are bad, rather that you want to be good, to be healed, to be restored. We wage war on sin as we wage war on death itself, looking towards the goal of the total release from the power of death. Repentence is the simple statement that, "hey, I think I'm sick, looks like I need to go to the doctor" It's not about what you've done, it's about what you want to do tomorrow. Within this construct, a focus on sin is the same as a focus on the disease without discussing the cure. Kinda backwards.

Anyway, here it is, draw your own conclusions

FOXNews.com - Foxlife - Fox Features - Religion Gets Supersized at Megachurches

2004-02-02T22:46:00.000-08:00

I've written a few times about my friend Fr. John the priest in Phoenix. We recently spent our vacation down there and were privileged to spend some quality time with he and his family. While we were there we went to Divine Liturgy at his parish and heard a really great sermon (that isn't posted yet).

The idea that stuck in my mind was "sin isn't the problem, it's death that's the problem, sin merely fulfills the promise of death".

I know this sounds morbid, but one of the things I appreciate the most about the Church is how it deals with death. "Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death; and upon those in the tombs bestowing life" sums it up, but it's more than that. Some saturdays from now many of us will be at the local cemetery saying a

panikhida or memorial service for the dead. Last week, as I passed through central california, I paused at the cemetery where my father and his parents are buried. Since I paid for the headstone, I got to choose what went on it. I figured dad wouldn't mind if his mortal remains awaited the resurrection under a stone w/ a byzantine budded cross and the words Memory Eternal. (my wife and I are the only ones that get it, probably just as well...)

The rhythm of the panikhida circles back to the phrase "

...give rest, O Lord, to the souls of Thy servants...":

for on Thee they have set their hope, our Maker and Builder, and our God

and set them in Paradise, where the choirs of the Saints and the Just shine like the stars

and overlook all their offenses

and set them in Thy courts with the just, as it is written.

And overlook in Thy goodness their sins, voluntary and involuntary, and all they committed knowingly and unknowingly, O Lover of men.

where there is no pain, no sorrow, no sighing, but life everlasting.

and keep them in the blessed life with Thee, O Lover of man.

O Lord, where all Thy Saints repose give rest also to the souls of Thy servants for Thou alone art the Lover of men

in a place of light, in place of green pasture, in a place of revival, whence all pain, sorrow and sighing have fled away. Forgive every sin committed by him (them), in thought, word and deed, in Thy goodness and love for men, O God. For there is no one who lives without sinning: Thou alone art without sin, and Thy justice is eternal justice, and Thy Word in Truth.

If only I could have availed myself of the comfort of these prayers at my father's funeral. Instead, it was full on pentecostal, with the predictable phrases denigrating the body and assurance of a reunion in the resurection. Oh well, it's the end of the game, not the half time show that matters (right Janet?)

Where is this going? In my mind, the mysteries of death & its pain, the resurection of the dead, the ransacking of hell on that first Holy Saturday, and lent all tie together somehow that I can almost sense but am far from articulating. I wept deeply at my father's grave, lit some incense, and said as much of the prayers as I could remember. He wasn't Orthodox, but the prayers don't seem to be too exclusive. His death (premature) is not a difference in kind from my life, but only one of degree. We too are dead and looking towards the resurection for the final healing of our souls and our triumphal entry in to LIFE.

We believe that prayer for the dead is effectual, perhaps it could even be said that all petitionary prayer is prayer for the dead. Lent, it seems, looks through the present pain of the death we live in on a daily basis and says "get ready, it's friday, but sunday's coming."

As we were leaving the cemetary, Brendan, my seven year old didn't know what to think, both mommy and daddy had come a little unglued. I thought he might appreciate a story I heard once from Bp. Kallistos(?). It seems that there was a pagan emperor of Rome that persecuted the Church in horrible ways while he was in charge of the empire. After his death, St. (?) was moved to pray for him. This continued over some time and then one evening, the emperor appeared to the St. in a dream. He said that he was stopping by and wanted to thank the St. for his prayers; it was because of those prayers that he was no longer in hell. "Brendan" I said, "that's why we pray for the dead, our prayers make a difference".

2004-02-02T09:07:00.000-08:00

Slouching toward Big Brother | CNET News.com

I found this article on one of my sweeps through the tech/ security web & news sites. It presents a scary and very astute analysis of some of the things that disturb me most about our present state of national afairs. The author, Bruce Schneier, is well respected in the crypto community and is CTO of Counterpane Security

2004-02-01T22:09:00.000-08:00

Having given up the title of "Arch Sloth-Blogger", I wish to inform
you all that, in spite of what you may believe, I still hold the title
"Chief Among Sinners". I do realize that there are pretenders to my
title both on the internet and in other spheres of influence, but they are
merely that -- pretenders. My habits, way of speech, tastes, and inclinations
provide ample proof of the legitimacy of my claim. I was reflecting on this
during liturgy this morning and again during the half-time show on the super
bowl. You see, I believe that the super bowl is sort of an American "High
Mass" From the commercials that weave themselves through the service like
so many chanters, to the reverence shown the various persons on the field, to
Janet's imitation of the proverbial amazon (not to mention the other ecstatic
utterances and and ritual motions of the half time show) to the fact that
tomorrow, the battered women's shelters will be their busiest of the year (a
surprising number of men bet the rent on the game, get drunk and take their
gambling losses out on the nearest target); it all seems to epitomize what is
the most uniquely American of America. Frankly, in this, Osama has a point, we
are a society that cares more about our collective penis that our immortal soul.

So today, I and two friends went to church twice, once at St.
Paul where we wrestled with our children, our souls, and our own
unworthiness; and a second time in my basement (church by TV, TBN,
it all fits). Here we offered up sarcastic, cynical and ultimately sophomoric
comments about what we were viewing, secure in the knowledge that (on the Sunday
of the Publican and the Pharisee no less), we were obviously superior to those
"others" at the temple for whom the ads and the show were obviously
targeted, sipping pretty darn good adult beverage,
eating pistashios, etc... In short, doing all those things that satisfy the
requirements for membership in the universal church of the American.

Don't get me wrong, I consider myself a patriot, but I also believe that
America today would shock the founding fathers and perhaps cause some of them to
reconsider this independence thing.

What's the point?

Lent is coming, I can almost feel it. I long for the penitential services, to
speak the words that so accurately and eloquently describe the desolation of my
soul. I look forward to forgiveness vespers, to look my brothers and sisters in
the eye and ask them to forgive me. I know, even if they don't, there's a lot to
forgive. I honestly don't know if I have the intestinal fortitude to go to those
that have angered me the most in the last year and ask their forgiveness ahead
of time as Father suggests. It's kinda frightening, but I felt more comfortable
on my couch watching the game than I did in Liturgy this morning. Lent has the
power to heal that. I have a friend who's a priest, his daughters once asked him
why they had to go to all of the services. His answer? "so that we can get
used to what it's like in heaven". If that's the purpose of the liturgical
cycle, then I'm in desperate need of a reorientation of what I'm
"used" to. It's Lent that I need, not the new Ford GT, a subscription
to Levitra, and Janet's breast.

By the way, it was a really good game

2004-01-31T15:54:00.000-08:00

I had pie and conversation w/ James
& Basil last night. He
ribbed me again about being the "Arch Sloth-Blogger". He claims
that he checks the site every day. We'll see. My major problem is that to a
certain extent part of my living is done by writing. Given this, it generally
takes me an hour or more to compose & edit a post. James suggested that I
stop editing. We'll see.

He and I have taken a step into the unknown... At St. Paul, youth activities
are split into education (what James and I are responsible for) and
"activities" One thing about orthodoxy is that you're always aware of
lent. In this case, it's just around the corner. Lent, as it turns out is
distinguished by three things: Fasting Prayer and Almsgiving. It's this last
that concerns me. We are attempting to get a group of cynical teenagers to open
their hearts, hear and respond to a lesson on the virtue of service and then
take on a service project as part of their Lenten discipline. Wish us luck.
We'll need to coordinate the efforts four distinct groups w/in our parish to
bring it off.

My Goddaughter just called, she needs to spend the weekend here. She and her
dad but heads frequently. I'm off to pick her up

There you go James - See I can barf on the keyboard.

2003-09-30T23:04:00.000-07:00

James and I have volunteered (been volunteered?) to take the older teen/ young adult class at our parish. That they would select a pair of reprobates like us is amazing in and of itself, but they've asked us to choose the curriculum as well. I've been thinking on what I would choose if I could choose anything.

Part of my personal meditations these last few weeks have been on a very scary, very uncomfortable passage of scripture. What was funny was that it came up in the Gospel reading after I had been thinking on it for some time.

What does it profit a man to gain the whole world but lose his soul?

I've come to believe that there is nothing in this world that is worth while pursuing, that there is nothing of lasting value save the Church. The axis of our life in the Church is the sacraments. I remember a point in my own life when I had to stop believing what my parents believed and make some faith my own. Not because I heard some preacher pounding the lectern and screaming it at me. Not out of some Jonathan Edwards inspired fear of what the flames of hell would actually feel like, but rather because I, as an adult had wrestled this one to the ground. I owned this issue. My faith may have been based on what my parents believed but now it was mine - I was responsible for it's contents and maturation. Frankly, for the first few years, I screwed it up royally. I've been suffering the consequences ever since. But they're mine to suffer and learn from.

People, the greatest tragedy in the world is not that people reject Christ and his Church, but that they do so in ignorance. God isn't going to beat us into the kingdom of heaven, He's not going to rape our souls or violate our free will. If we want to love Him and have a relationship with Him, he's there. If we want to walk, He'll let us go.

I don't want any of the young people in our parish to reject Christ or His Church out of ignorance or without wrestling with the issues that effect their souls. If they walk away in knowledge - It'll hurt. If they walk away in ignorance and I could have done something, then may God have mercy on my soul, for I've just greased their path to hell.

If I could choose anything, It would be de-greaser.

2003-09-17T07:10:00.000-07:00

My wife read a story from our local paper to me last night. It seems that a
Japanese scientist has created sperm
cells from stem cells. I imagine this will be of great concern to some of my
co-religionists. I'm not to worried though, as she was reading I had a strong
visual image:

The Scientist was talking with God and said

"Father, look what we can do - we can create sperm and egg cells from
stem cells, and from the sperm and egg, create life!"

God said, "My child, that is wonderful! where did you get those stem
cells?"

You know the rest of the joke - If you don't, go here
and search the page for "scientist"

I guess my point is that regardless of what science creates, it is in the
imitation of God. Just as my children imitate me (in good things and bad) so
too, we imitate God. The crucial difference is that God creates out of nothing,
whereas we create out of what He first created. At ERI, Fr.
Eugen Pentuic told us that and alternate reading of the Genesis text
is "As the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth...". We'll
never top that, for one thing, we can't go back to before the beginning.

2003-09-15T08:58:00.000-07:00

I had the great honor of taking my God daughter to the local Greek festival yesterday. She's been having a bit of a rough time with church lately. It was really cool to spend time with her. A lot of people take shots at the Greeks for their (apparent)
nominalism, but one of the things that struck me was the degree to which Greek culture and the Church have interpenetrated one another; and the extent to which Greek thought is a huge component of the bedrock of our civilization. Consider the word Democracy - the rule of the people. Greek.

We saw EXTREMELY cute kids there doing kid versions of Greek folk dancing (a
number of the kids looked like they could have been born in Stockholm). We saw
teenagers there doing teenager versions of Greek folk dancing. Some of it was
spontaneous, some was part of the stage show. The food of the day was (of
course) lamb roasted over a fire. There was Greek wine (surprisingly good) Greek
donut things (covered in honey and cinnamon) Greek Coffee (surprisingly like Turkish
coffee - but you'd never get either of them to admit it) and the Icons.

The Icons at St. Demetrios are
incredible. My God daughter was blown away. The Church is built in the shape of
an octagon. On the east wall, behind the alter is an apse with a 30 foot high
mosaic Icon of the mother of God, "larger than the heavens". She's
presented with her arms outstretched and Christ on her lap. Here is the woman
who bore God in flesh, in who's womb, the Master of the Universe took on human
form; the graphic representation of the condescension of Christ, uniting His
divinity with our humanity, and in doing so, opening the way for us to be re-made
into the image and likeness of Him who is God.

On the north wall is a large mosaic of the crucifixion opposite it is the
Icon of Holy Saturday, Christ standing on the remains of the gates of hell
breaking open the tombs of Adam & Eve, lifting them up from the grave. I can
imagine Him saying, "I told you I would come, and here I am. Arise,
the promise is fulfilled" I love this juxtaposition. The ransacking of hell
and the rescue of mankind is the reason for the crucifixion.

I think that our language shapes what we CAN think. I believe that music and
art, give voice to what is true but inexpressible with mere words. The vast
majority of patristic theology is in Greek. Most of our iconography follows
Greek forms (even much of the Russian tradition) - What was it about that
civilization? I'm Irish-American, why does this music, these images, this way of
being speak to profoundly to me?

2003-08-22T08:25:00.000-07:00

I love this country, I've lived all around the world and there's no other
country I'd want to be a part of. I think it's because of what we aspire to
(perhaps more accurately what my grandparents aspired to) rather than what we've
achieved. That having been said I sometimes feel like a stranger in a strange
land. Not the cannibalistic, free sex arch-angel Mike of the Heinlein
book, but just a little out of synch. On the way into work this morning, I was
listening to NPR (part of my well balanced breakfast). They did an interview
with another "stranger". I commend it to you. It's an interesting take
on American pop culture. Besides it gets me out of writing anything substantive,
much less relating the discussion that James, Basil and I had last night on
predestination, free will, the nature of God, sin, and the problem of evil where
I called Basil a crypto-deist
and James called me a crypto-Calvinist
while refusing to get into the discussion.

2003-08-20T21:04:00.000-07:00

I actually started writing this last Friday night - eeek what a week.

Doxos: GenX@39 | Comments:
"The west has birthed another Roman Empire here in America. The religious culture of America is rather like Paul found in Roman Athens and most folks worship at an altar of 'The Unknown God,' 'having a form of godliness.' "

Amen, Brother. I actually think this is a better state of affairs than a
culturally or politically mandated (or even preferred) church. One of the things
that has long bothered me is an assumption that America is a "Godly
Nation". Hmm, let's break this down for a moment. Let's take a look at the beatitudes
and compare them to American Culture.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for there's is the Kingdom of Heaven	Poor? Better to be wealthy. We worship prosperity and make saints of those who attain it. Gates, Balmer, Ellison...
Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted	We mourn rock & movie stars. For a few days
Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth	Meek? heck we violate the national sovereignty of other nations because we just don't like that they hate us.
Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled	The moral witness of out DC political corps stands as mute testimony to how America hungers and thirst after righteousness. Looks like we're going hungry again kids
Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy	how many thousands have we starved & bombed to advance our national policy?
Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God	We see UFOs
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God	Mixed reviews here consider Iraq and the "Roadmap to peace"
Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.	how then are the powerful persecuted?
Blessed are you, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad, for great is your reward in heaven.	This happens to American citizens and institutions all over the world. But it's not for the sake of Christ that we are persecuted. Ours is the weeping an gnashing of teeth.

It seems that the claims that America has to being a "Christian nation" are
somewhat overstated.

In light of this, I have a modest proposal.

Why don't we shift to a relationship with the government that is more like
that which the church had in the first few hundred years of its existence. Let
us be a moral witness in our lives, but not involve ourselves overly much in the
politics of the nation. As a practical first step we can stand mute on the issue
of the civil union of gay couples in America.

I say this because of two factors:

The civil courts have ruled that there is nothing transcendent in the
union of two persons. Especially when it comes to dividing the joint
property when they decide to split. Moreover, they have decided that the
close association of persons over an extended period of time is sufficient
to constitute a civil union such that they'll take an interest in how it is
divided. The courts don't care about the sanctity of marriage, they do,
however, have something to say about the sanctity of property.

In roman times the Church took the ceremony of civil union (a business
contract) and sanctified it for it's own purposes. If you were a Christian,
you weren't married until the church said you were. If you weren't a Christian,
the Church (generally) didn't care.

What say you MacDuff? shall we break with the heathen?

+ Peace

2003-08-17T22:09:00.000-07:00

oops!

2003-08-15T19:09:00.000-07:00

Believe It, or Not

I have a problem with this article. I'm not represented here, and neither, I
would imagine are most of the Orthodox.

WARNING-- RANT AHEAD-- READ ON AT YOUR OWN RISK!!!

I'm getting sick and tired of the ignorant assuming that a) they understand
the Christian faith b) that their understanding is accurate c) that their
understanding of the faith represents normative, historical Christianity.
I've come to believe that the greatest tragedy of the reformation is was that it
created a sub-set of world Christianity that didn't remember WHY they believed
what they believed. To fill that void, many well meaning and devout people
started making stuff up or throwing the historic teachings of the Church out the
window (down the stairs, out with the bathwater, whatever). It is from this time
in the development of western thought that reason is separated from faith. That
people actually believed that they could KNOW things and that their senses
(non-senses?) would show them the way. Believers stopped following God and
started following their sensory organ of choice.

The Church has traditionally had three "levels" of teaching. Dogma,
Tradition, and tradition. Dogma is reserved for those things that are taught in
the creeds and by the fathers of the ecumenical councils. The status of
Tradition, is for those things that have been part of our life for nearly two millennia
but aren't specifically spelled out in dogmatic proclamations. Small
"t" traditions are those pious practices that make the transcendent
real in our every day lives which aren't otherwise covered above. Apparently
when the lights went out in New York, so did the ability to do research. The
author of the above referenced article has chosen this day to discuss the
ignorance persons who believe in the dogma of the virgin birth and their
propensity to polarize the society in which they live. In order to make his
point, he contrasts belief in a Christian religious doctrine to belief in
the theory of evolution, and compares the level of raw belief among
several industrialized nations. Harrumph!

The early church did not teach the dogma of the virgin birth out of some puerile
fascination with, or fear of, abnormal Jewish marriage practices of 2000 years
ago. They didn't teach it as "science", they weren't against sex and
in fact based on some of the conversations I've had with the various catechists
in my life, it's not even clear that the teaching of the perpetual
virginity of the Mother of God falls into the category of Tradition, much less
dogma. If the author of the article had read all of Pelikan's
book, and perhaps done a little extra research on the teaching before
writing his article, (to be clear, I don't research either), he would have discovered
that the teachings of the Church on the Blessed Virgin have nothing to do with
her, sex, or St. Joseph's alleged propensity to chastity in the latter part of
his life, and everything to do with the incarnation of Christ. St. Athanasius in
his creedal
statement eloquently reveals the razor's edge on which we balance when he
writes

...For the right Faith is, that we believe and confess, that our Lord Jesus
Christ, the Son of God, is God and Man. God, of the substance of the Father,
begotten before the worlds; and Man, of the Substance of His Mother, born in
the world; Perfect God and perfect Man, of a reasonable soul in human flesh
subsisting; Equal to the Father, as touching His Godhead; and inferior to the
Father, as touching His Manhood. Who, although He be God and Man, yet He is
not two, but one Christ; One, not by conversion of the Godhead into flesh, but
by taking of the Manhood into God; One altogether; not by confusion of
Substance, but by unity of Person. For as the reasonable soul and flesh is one
man, so God and Man is one Christ.

The dogma of the virgin birth isn't about biology, it's about Life, and the
One who brings it to us. To relegate it to the status of pious legend is to say
that it wasn't God there on Mount Tabor & Calgary, it was merely a godly
man. Folks, even a godly man can't get it done.

One of the more interesting of Bp.
Kallistos' talks at ERI was
the talk on the different models of salvation. His point was that the four
primary models of salvation supported by the writings of the early church:

Christ as a Ransom (Mk 10:45, Gal. 5:1)

Christ as Sacrifice (Jn 1:29, 1Cor 5:7, Rom 3:25)

Christ Victorious (Col 2:15, Eph 4:8)

Christ as Example (Jn 12:3)

Can't a) be taken in isolation from one another, and b) can't be pushed too
far. However, taken together (summed up, as it were) offer a dim picture of the
work of the Father to restore his creation to it's original state. It's a
mystery, something that was hidden and revealed to us.

For the record: American Protestantism isn't normative when compared to the
rest of the modern world, much less the rest of historical Christianity. As
bright as Hans Kung's work is, many of his conclusions are controversial, not authoritative,
even for Rome. The quality of French society speaks for itself. The exercise of
the brain is supported by the church fathers and exemplified by many of them
(read St. Gregory Nazianzus if you want a mind bender). Bush was put into the
oval office by the supreme court, God's opinion remains uncertain. Just because
analysis of the source documents suggests that a Gospel is a compiled work
generated over time doesn't mean that it's not reflective of the mind of the
Church (it's not like an advance copy of the Nicene, Ante-Nicene, and Post-Nicene
fathers were dropped on St. Peter's doorstep the day after Pentecost, neither
was there a need at that time). Bibliolatry is like unto idolatry. The Pentecostals
are, by and large, ignorant of where they came from and offer an easy (sometimes
heterodox) faith. The spiritual life is FAR from comfortable, ask any of the
desert fathers or even some of the "New Martyrs of the Communist
Yoke". The state of the Episcopal church is self explanatory. There's
nothing in the teachings of the church that prohibits evolution from being fact
even if the fossil record isn't quite complete. The doctrine of assumption
is at least heterodox and probably heretical by Orthodox standards. And most
importantly, true faith unites us in love, It doesn't divide us in judgment; if
you don't believe me, re-read the New Testament.

We are concerned with Truth, the acquisition of the Holy Spirit and the
transformation of our inner being. Not the biology of the incarnation of the Son
of God. The authoritative source has spoken through His church, His Word, and
His Sprit. Far be it from me to back check that by asking personal questions of
His mom.

2003-08-14T20:36:00.000-07:00

Once a month, some of my friends from church get together to expand our
understanding...of single malt scotch. At
the outset, something drove us to determine that it was a men's gathering. While
the practical among us (my wife) would say the reason for that is that only men
would like to sit around and drink single malt scotch for an evening, I
believe it is something else. You see, a curious thing happened last month when
I hosted the gathering at my home here in paradise. My wife looked on with a
little bit of envy at the gathering as she was shooing my oldest son off to bed,
came back a few minutes later, excused herself, bent down and asked me a
question.

Brendan, my oldest,
had sent out a petition via his mother. He asked if he might come out and spend
a few moments listening to the men talk. Upon due consideration and establishing
that he understood that in the process of listening it was his ears and not his
mouth that would be doing the work, I gave my assent. Moments later a little boy
comes running down the hall with a face lit up like a lesser star (we'll reserve
the sun for Mt. Tabor,
I'm not sure my hallway could take it). He expressed his gratitude most effusively
with almost puppy like joy, promptly sat down at my feet and closed his mouth.
He sat there for 15 minutes or so, not saying a word, but listening with great
concentration to what the men were saying. I honestly don't remember what
exactly we were saying and truthfully, one of the reasons he was so quiet was
that he was munching on a piece of lox (he's a very unusual kid). But still, he
listened. When I, in my infinite wisdom (read random choice) had decided that
his time was up, he thanked me and went happily off to bed.

I shared this story with Fr.
John McCuen, my priest friend who now lives in purgatory
and while I was talking, it occurred to me that we almost NEVER do
"organized" stuff in an intentionally gender segregated way. I'm not
about to run out into the woods, and bang a drum all weekend long to realize my
inner Iron
John, but I think that Bly may have something. Maybe we have the same
sort of need to hang out with men that the women seem to have when it comes to hanging
out with other women. I think that there are a common set experiences that
establish a bond among members of the same sex. For women, certainly they
mystery of motherhood is central to this. For men, I'm not sure what it might
be.

Next week the women of the church are having a "Victorian High Tea"
to help raise money to send some short term missionaries to Romania this fall.
At first, when Liz was telling me about it, I thought that she wanted me to go
and I was contemplating calling the dentist to see if he had an opening for a
tooth cleaning at that time. Eventually it came out that the Lord was merciful
and that my attendance was not desired, much less required. When I asked Fr.
James, our priest if, given that the women were having a tea to raise money
for the trip, he thought it might be a good idea if the men organized a smoker
or scotch and cigar night for the same purpose, he said he'd get back to me,
maybe next year sometime.

The Mars / Venus crowd says that men don't talk, that they relate by doing
stuff. I'm not sure that they're entirely accurate. We didn't do any thing that
night with Brendan that the women don't do at their teas. We sat, we talked, and
were men. Brendan recognized it and wanted to be a part of what was going on.
When I was giving Liz and account of my conversation with Fr. John and this
topic came up Brendan chimed in and said that it's good for boys to hang out
with men, especially teenagers so that they can learn how to be good men, right?
Liz stared at him for a moment, turned to me and said "out of the mouths of
babes..."

Maybe what drives us to gather and be is an awareness that if we don't there
won't be a next generation of men to carry on our legacy.

Gracious Lord, grant that my sons grow to be Godly men

+ Peace

Confessio

Interesting Parallell

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Mysticism

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I feel a blog post coming on

Politics and the Internet

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Judgment and Goulash

I Met a Man Who Sang the Blues...

It's Thursday, but Sunday's commin'

Why we pray for the Civil Authorities and all in the service of our country

"... For our president, civil authorities and armed forces, let us pray to the Lord... Lord have Mercy"

I LOVE THE CHURCH!

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I couldn't resist--

Forgiveness
Vespers

"... For our president, civil authorities and armed forces, let us pray
to the Lord... Lord have Mercy"