Wednesday, November 30, 2005

The third Rome

In the first part of the sixteenth century, an elder of one of the monasteries in Pskov, a monk called Philotheus, formulated this widely held conviction. He wrote to the Moscow Prince: 'The Church of old Rome fell for its heresy; the gates of the second Rome, Constantinople, were hewn down by the axes of the infidel Turks; but the Church of Moscow, the Church of the new Rome, shines brighter than the sun in the whole universe. Know, then, pious Prince, that all the realms which hold fast to the Orthodox Christian faith are now gathered together in thy dominion. Thou art the one universal Sovereign of all Christian folk; thou shouldest hold the reins in awe of God; fear Him who hath committed them to thee. Two Romes are fallen, but the third stands fast; a fourth there cannot be. Thy Christian kingdom shall not be given to another.'

Tuesday, November 29, 2005

Monday, November 28, 2005

On Evil

…evil is nothing other than an attraction of the will towards nothing, a negation of being, of creation, and above all of God, a furious hatred of grace against which the rebellious will puts up an implacable resistance.
Vladimir Lossky

Sunday, November 27, 2005

Whole Foods

The whole food of Christian Truth, however, is accessible only to faith; and the chief obstacle to such faith is not logic, as the facile modern view has it, but another and opposed faith. We have seen indeed, that logic cannot deny absolute truth without denying itself…
Fr. Seraphim (Rose)

Thursday, November 24, 2005


Since you were wondering just who this incendiarious blogger is...

Wednesday, November 23, 2005

The dirt on Danny boy

After college, Dan Brown moved to Hollywood to make it in the music business. His debut CD – produced with the help of A-list studio musicians and producers who worked with Michael Jackson and Paul McCartney – includes 976-LOVE, a song about paid phone sex.

On so-called gays and the Frankish Priesthood

Gay activists reacted with dismay yesterday to a document, endorsed by the Pope, telling Roman Catholic [sic] seminaries worldwide they had a duty to weed out homosexual candidates for the priesthood.

So after thinking about Ted Bundy the last few days I read this story and thought, "hmmm, this whole debate over sodomite priests and those who would have them are like starting a crusade (!) to allow murderers (unrepentant of course) to be priests..."

SCOBA: First Movement

It is the acceptance of God's revelation as found and lived in the reality of the one historical and visible Church of Christ that delimits the beginning and the end of the ecumenical movement for us.
SCOBA guide for ecumenical dialogue

Tuesday, November 22, 2005

Update: Celebrities Unite!

Find a cure so we can get back to our sodomy!
Celebrities, who often are "fickle" in backing charities, for more than two decades have supported AIDS causes, citing the disease's toll on art and fashion as well as its effect on their fans, the New York Times reports.

Thanks to Gabe I found an apropos quote to accompany this story. (This accompaniment is not confectionary, however).
There was a time in the 1960s when antibiotics appeared to have conquered syphilis. Together with the birth control pill, this seems to have promoted an increase in heterosexual promiscuity. It was only a short time, however, before a new venereal disease, herpes, made its appearance, a virus immune to antibiotics. It would certainly seem that nature has an interest in the morality that is conducive to the family, and punishes behavior inimical to it. I would suggest therefore that the quest for a cure for AIDS, unaccompanied by any attempt to modify the behavior out of which AIDS was generated, is ultimately futile.
It is my impression, observing the propaganda of the homosexuals—and their gullible coadjutors—that their main reason for wanting a cure for AIDS, is to emancipate them for the unrestrained pursuit of sodomy and for the undiminished pleasures of what would now be called “unsafe sex.” I would venture to suggest, however, that if a cure for AIDS was discovered tomorrow, it would not be very long before a new venereal disease would make its appearance, just as herpes did in the ‘60s and AIDS in the ‘80s. What is needed above all is not a medical miracle cure but a moral and behavioral change.
Harry Jaffa

On Ecclesiality

Where there is no spiritual life, something external must exist as an assurance of ecclesiality. A specific function, the pope, or a system of functions, a hierarchy-that is the criterion of ecclesiality for Roman Catholics. On the other hand, a specific confessional formula, the creed, or a system of formulas, the text of the Scripture, is the criterion of ecclesiality for Protestants. In the final analysis, in both cases what is decisive is a concept, an ecclesiastical-juridical concept for Catholics and an ecclesiastical-scientific concept for Protestants.
St. Paul (Florensky)

St. Basil refutes the "Enlightenment" 1300 years before it commenced

…the corrupters of the truth, who, incapable of submitting their reason to Holy Scripture, distort at will the meaning of the Holy Scriptures…
St. Basil the Great

Monday, November 21, 2005

What is this great abortion debate?

As a longtime pro-lifer, I think anti-abortion groups had solid grounds to oppose the morning-after pill when its function was unclear – as I did. But given what we now know, it's a mistake to keep opposing it. In fact, there are grounds for celebration: A drug once believed to produce abortion is found to prevent it. ... The data compiled on the morning-after pill in recent years make a convincing case that if you oppose abortion, you have no quarrel with Plan B.

Now that science has enlightened us we can separate sex from procreation and take responsibility away from sex, after all, I was "convinced" and all the signs pointed to the fact that sex is just for fun...

I always miss the best ecumenical gatherings...

A symposium cosponsored by some of Chicago's leading academic institutions and interfaith organizations was held last week with the hope of exploring and building solutions to “win the battle of peace and harmony.”

I'm most disappointed about missing the session on "Religious and Cultural Pluralism"... My favorite quote from the article: "Islamophobia, or Muslim enmity, has become a threat as big as anti-Semitism in the world". It seems to me like we're undergoing a Muslim affinity while it is anti-non-Muslimism that is the big threat...


incendiary meets Bobby Joe and Big Dawg

Thanks to Clifton and The Dialectizer I have translated a few incendiary remarks into Redneck and Jive:
Redneck: Whut in tarnation is this hyar Orthodoxy? -- Orthodoxy is made up an' composed of dispasshunate faif an' pious dockrine. -- Metropolitan Hierotheos Vlachos

Redneck: Distinckshuns -- Th' distinckshun between right an' wrong is not affecked by th' fack thet some varmints commit sueycide on account o' of it. -- Harry Jaffa

Jive: Distincshuns -- De distincshun between right and wrong be not affected by de fact dat some sucka's commit suicide cuz' of it. Man! -- Harry Jaffa

Daley's directive

Inspired by a trip to Communist China, Chicago's Mayor Richard Daley says he wants the city's public schools to move to a six-day school week.

As little as is learned in Chicago Public Schools I really don't think adding more time to the equation will do any good...

Distinctions

The distinction between right and wrong is not affected by the fact that some people commit suicide because of it.
Harry Jaffa

Saturday, November 19, 2005

My securities...

…the only position that involves no logical contradictions is the affirmation of an absolute truth which underlies and secures all lesser truths; and this absolute truth can be attained by no relative, human means.
Fr. Seraphim (Rose)

Friday, November 18, 2005

On "Byzantium"

Justinian has clearly stated that basic principle of the Byzantine political system in the preface to his Sixth Novel, dated March 16, 535:
There are two major gifts which God has given unto men of His supernal clemency, the priesthood and the imperial authority - hierosyne and basileia; sacerdotium and imperium. Of these, the former is concerned with things divine; the latter presides over the human affairs and takes care of them. Proceeding from the same source, both adorn human life. Nothing is of greater concern for the emperors as the dignity of the priesthood, so that priests may in their turn pray to God for them. Now, if one is in every respect blameless and filled with confidence toward God, and the other does rightly and properly maintain in order the commonwealth entrusted to it, there will be a certain fair harmony established, which will furnish whatsoever may be needful for mankind. We therefore are highly concerned for the true doctrines inspired by God and for the dignity of priests. We are convinced that, if they maintain their dignity, great benefits will be bestowed by God on us, and we shall firmly hold whatever we now possess, and in addition shall acquire those things which we have not yet secured. A happy ending always crowns those things which were undertaken in a proper manner, acceptable to God. This is the case, when sacred canons are carefully observed, which the glorious Apostles, the venerable eye-witnesses and ministers of the Divine World, have handed down to us, and the holy Fathers have kept and explained.

Justinian did not speak of State, or of Church. He spoke of two ministries, or of two agencies, which were established in the Christian Commonwealth. They were appointed by the same Divine authority and for the same ultimate purpose. As a "Divine gift," the Imperial power, imperium, was "independent" from the Priesthood, sacerdotium. Yet it was "dependent" upon, and "subordinate" to, that purpose for which it had been Divinely established. This purpose was the faithful maintenance and promotion of the Christian truth. Thus, if "the Empire" as such was not subordinate to the Hierarchy, it was nevertheless subordinate to the Church, which was a Divinely appointed custodian of the Christian truth. In other words, the Imperial power was "legitimate" only within the Church. In any case, it was essentially subordinate to the Christian Faith, was bound by the precepts of the Apostles and Fathers, and in this respect "limited" by them. The legal status of the Emperor in the Commonwealth depended upon his good standing in the Church, under her doctrinal and canonical discipline. Imperium was at once an authority, and a service. And the terms of this service were set in rules and regulations of the Church. In his coronation oath, the Emperor had to profess the Orthodox faith and to take a vow of obedience to the decrees of the ecclesiastical Councils. This was no mere formality. "Orthodoxy was, as it were, the super-nationality of Byzantium, the basic element of the life of the State and people" (I. I. Sokolov).
Fr. Georges Florovsky

Thursday, November 17, 2005

Big Brother battles...Big Brother

VIENNA, Austria -- British historian David Irving was arrested last week in southern Austria on a warrant accusing him of denying the Holocaust... Irving was detained on a warrant issued in 1989 under Austrian laws that make Holocaust denial a crime... If formally charged, tried and convicted on the charge, Irving could face up to 20 years in prison

So it seems like the thought police are after the Records Department... I wonder if they passed this "thoughtcrime" law as a sort of "penance" for being "involved" in the Holocaust or if they just really are trying to live out the maxim that "those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it"...

The nature of God

There is only one name by which the divine nature can be expressed: the wonder which seizes the soul when it thinks of God.
Vladimir Lossky

Wednesday, November 16, 2005

What is this Orthodoxy?

Orthodoxy is made up and composed of dispassionate faith and pious doctrine.
Metropolitan Hierotheos Vlachos

Siberian City Bans Concert By Gay Singer

'In our country, no one takes into consideration the interests of consumers. The authorities think for some reason not about the rights of the people who bought tickets and paid their money but about the anarchists who think they have the right to decide what is good and what is bad.'

Either this is a really bad translation or this guy is not very bright...I'm guessing it's probably some of both...

Tuesday, November 15, 2005

The riches of tradition

...do our young people comprehend the rich tradition and foundational truths of the historic Christian faith? Have parents and church leaders done an adequate job in passing along the torch to the next generation? Sadly -- and one might even say alarmingly, given the stakes -- the answer is an overwhelming and resounding no, according to recent studies.

This statement coming from a Protestant sorce I posit that the parents neither know the "rich tradition and foundational truths of the historic Christian faith"...
…because all the separate assemblies of heretics call themselves Christians in preference to others, and think that theirs is the Catholic Church, it must be known that the true Catholic Church is that in which there is confession and repentance, which treats in a wholesome manner the sins and wounds to which the weakness of the flesh is liable.
Lactantius

Passing the torch

Apropos to the Advent fast

He (Adam) ate of the forbidden fruit. This is how man's original sin is revealed to us. Christ, the New Adam...begins by fasting. Adam was tempted and he succumbed to temptation; Christ was tempted and He overcame that temptation. The results of Adam's failure are expulsion from paradise and death. The fruits of Christ's victory are the destruction of death and our return to paradise. … It is clear…that in this perspective fasting is revealed to us as something decisive and ultimate in its importance. It is not a mere "obligation," a custom; it is connected with the very mystery of life and death, of salvation and damnation. ... In the Orthodox teaching, sin is not only the transgression of a rule leading to punishment; it is always a mutilation of life given to us by God. It is for this reason that the story of the original sin is presented to us as and act of eating. For food is means of life; it is that which keeps us alive. But here lies the whole question: what does it mean to be alive and what does "life" mean? For us today this term has a primarily biological meaning: life is precisely that which entirely depends on food, and more generally, on the physical world. But for the Holy Scripture and for Christian Tradition, this life "by bread alone" is identified with death because it is mortal life, because death is a principle always at work in it. ... In itself food has no life and cannot give life. Only God has Life and is Life. In food itself God-and not calories-was (in Paradise) the principle of life. Thus to eat, to be alive, to know God and be in communion with Him were one and the same thing. The unfathonable tragedy of Adam is that he ate for its own sake. More than that, he ate "apart" from God in order to be independent of Him. And if he did it, it is because he believed that food had life in itself and that he, by partaking of that food, could be like God, i.e., have life in himself. To put it very simply: he believed in food, whereas the only object of belief, of faith, of dependence is God and God alone. World, food, became his gods, the sources and principles of his life. He became their slave. ... Hunger is that state in which we realize our dependence on something else-when we urgently and essentially need food-showing thus that we have no life in ourselves. It is that limit beyond which I either die from starvation or, having satisfied my body, have again the impression of being alive. It is, in other words, the time when we face the ultimate question: on what does my life depend? And, since the question is not an academic one but is felt with my entire body, it is also the time of temptation. Satan came to Adam in Paradises; he came to Christ in the desert. He came to two hungry men and said: eat, for your hunger is the proof that you depend entirely on food, that your life is in food. And Adam believed and ate; but Christ rejected that temptation and said: man shall not live by bread alone but by God. He refused to accept that cosmic lie which Satan imposed on the world, making that lie a self-evident truth not even debated any more, the foundation of our entire world view, of science, medicine, and perhaps even of religion. By doing this, Christ restored that relationship between food, life, and God which Adam broke, and which we still break every day. What then is fasting for us Christians? It is our entrance and participation in that experience of Christ Himself by which He liberates us from the total dependence on food, matter, and the world. ...fasting is the only means by which man recovers his true spiritual nature. ... Fasting is the real fight against the Devil because it is the challenge to that one all-embracing law which makes him the "Prince of this world." Yet if one is hungry and then discovers that he can truly be independent of that hunger, not be destroyed by it but just on the contrary, can transform it into a source of spiritual power and victory, then nothing remains of that great lie in which we have been living since Adam. ...without the corresponding spiritual effort, without feeding ourselves with Divine Reality, without discovering our total dependence on God and God alone, physical fasting would indeed be suicide. ...we need first of all a spiritual preparation for the effort of fasting. It consists in asking God for help and also in making our fast God-centered. We should fast for God's sake. We must recover a religious respect for the body, for food, for the very rhythm of life. All this must be done before the actual fast begins so that when we begin to fast, we would be supplied with spiritual weapons, with a vision, with a spirit of fight and victory. ...one must still remember that however limited our fasting, if it is true fasting it will lead to temptation, weakness, doubt, and irritation. In other terms, it will be a real fight and probably we shall fail many times. But the very discovery of Christian life as fight an effort is the essential aspect of fasting. A faith which has not overcome doubts and temptation is seldom a real faith. No progress in Christian life is possible, alas, without the bitter experience of failures.

Monday, November 14, 2005

Uniates at it again

Greco-Catholics lay claim to Saint Sofia Cathedral
'Who told that Sofia was build by the Orthodox? They mix up everything, saying that grand duke Vladimir christened Rus’ to be Orthodox. In reality, there was Single Cathedral Apostolic Church, submitted to the Pope throne. It means that originally we were christened as Catholic power, not Orthodox.

...we all know there was one Apostolic Church...and still is...
'We will not allow the delivery of Saint Sofia to Uniats. Greco-Catholics’ claims arouse storm of indignation with the faithful. To take off the holy of holies – Sofia Cathedral – from the Orthodox is a summit of impudence,' declared Valery Kaurov, the head of Orthodox Citizens Union of Ukraine.

The gay conscience?


Obscene pictures

It seems to me that a picture of a traditional marriage(if you call getting "married" in a register office "traditional") and of a normal heterosexual couple are probably more offensive to a homosexual's conscience than to their civil rights...

St. John brings the smack down.

…it was when by eyeing too curiously, thou didst admire and become enamored, that thou receivedst the shaft.
St. John Chrysostom

Friday, November 11, 2005

Birth-control patch maker warns of higher risks

In today's Sun Times:

The makers of a popular birth-control patch warned millions of women Thursday
that the patch exposes them to significantly higher doses of hormones than
previously disclosed and might put them at greater risk for blood clots and
other serious side effects.
In spite of this, though, Dr. Leslie Miller, a University of Washington OB/GYN professor points out what is even more risky than possible blod clots, strokes, and even death:

''Women should not just take off their patch; they risk pregnancy. If they are
worried and want to change off the patch, they can wait to get something else,''
Miller said.
That's right. Don't take off the patch, you might risk pregnancy. Just wait, and hope you don't have one of the "side effects," then switch to something else.

Thursday, November 10, 2005

Down with the Downs

Combination of Tests Can Detect Down Syndrome During First Trimester, Study Says
I just new by seeing the title that this article would have to involve abortion. The so-called "Implications" with these new tests are that "earlier screening would provide women carrying an affected fetus time to decide whether to undergo an abortion or carry the pregnancy to term" and that "terminations are earlier, more private and far safer than in the second trimester". It goes on to say that "many pregnant women do not seek early prenatal care but added that researchers are 'trying to get the message out there that people should show up as early as possible for prenatal care'". So basicially "prenatal care" is aborting your child? ...doesn't seem to "careful" to me...

More reinforcement for why to kill your tv...

TV Sexual Scenes Nearly Double Since 1998

Ambiguous quote of the article: "Given how high the stakes are, the messages TV sends teens about sex are important". I'm wondering what "stakes" are being referred to? ...Maybe the unwanted pregnancy and trauma thereby and hence the necessity for an abortion?

I think I'll make a Nazi book burning reference...

'Narnia' Contest Causing a Stir in Florida
Here's the preface: Let's Read, Florida is encouraging students to read The Chronicles... in conjunction with the movie... Those dang nihilist liberals want to replace it with an 'alternative non-religious book'...Lawyer for Alliance Defence Fund Gary McCaleb says,
'All these other non-Christian religious books are being suggested reading for these kids, and yet when (Americans Unite)[nihilist liberal group] comes out, what do they hit? The one book that isn't even expressly religious -- it's strictly allegorical. What's up with that?' the attorney asks. 'It's an anti-Christian agenda, and I think AU just really showed what kind of group they really are.' ...Such groups, according to the attorney, often 'rail against censorship but seldom miss an opportunity to squelch speech they dislike.' He adds: 'In their America, it is always winter and never Christmas.' [extremely apropos Narnia reference] 'When I see the far-left coming out of the bunch of book-banners, as they are in this case, I just shake my head,' McCaleb says. 'The amazing thing to me is they focus on Narnia -- and really the only way you can understand Narnia to be a 'Christian book' [series] is to know a lot about Christianity to begin with to see that there are some analogies there.'

Astron Solutions - your Big Brother of tolerance

In today’s multicultural workplace environment, holiday sensitivity no longer means simply putting a menorah next to the Christmas tree...there are ways to celebrate the season in the workplace with sensitivity, understanding and respect. 'Employers should strive to ensure that all of their employees’ unique cultural beliefs are equally represented and celebrated during the holiday season'

When I own my huge multi-national corporation I will flat out refuse to honor the traditions (if you call 39 measly years tradition) of Kwanzaa...in the immortal words of Garfield, the cat, that is, Kwanzaa "should be drug out in the street and shot"...
Be sensitive to any fasting, dietary restrictions or scheduling conflicts due to religious observance, prior to planning. Don’t forget to offer vegetarian alternatives.

Last year when I worked at the university library (at a university dedicated to "tolerance" and "safe zones") I recall a party involving food which happened to be on a Wednesday; there were no vegan dishes served for the Orthodox present...I thought it was quite intolerant...
When handled with sensitivity and respect, workplace festivities can result in an uplifting combination of unity, cultural understanding, and joy for your team, which is truly a celebration of the spirit of the season.

This seems like one of those "spirit of the times" that I'd rather have nothing to do with...

NCC at it again...

Following the withdrawal (of the Antiochian Archdiocese), NCC’s top members requested a visit with the Antiochian leadership, but the Orthodox church refused.
According to Kishkovsky (former NCC president Rev. Leonid Kishkovsky of the OCA), the Antiochian withdrawal was "particularly alarming to Orthodox" members of the Council because of fears their move "could have been dramatic in the lives of other Orthodox communions."

I know for my self I wasn't "alarmed" about their withdrawal...maybe "alarmed" with excitement...but then again I'm not on the front line of the ecumenical movement so my (and might I add a lot of other people's) opinion doesn't count for much...
There was "profound anxiety" about the future of their own ecumenical involvements, Kishkovsky said.
However, Edgar (NCC General Secretary) visited leaders of the other Orthodox churches and had largely relieved such anxieties. Through the meetings, the NCC found that it must "become better acquainted and more deeply informed about the lives and processes" of sister communions.

"sister communions"...honey, there's no sisterhood here...you best step off...

A bridge to nowhere...

Of Rules

God only has ten rules and His house is much bigger.
Luanne – King of the Hill

Wednesday, November 09, 2005

Frankish Flop

Bishop Cyryl Klimowicz's Diocese of St. Joseph, based in the city of Irkutsk in central Siberia...He has 48 priests; only one of them is Russian. Most of the foreign priests speak little Russian.

Ah yes, a great example of pastoral care...

The existence of God...

… God does not belong to the class of existing things: not that He has no existence, but that He is above all existing things, nay even above existence itself. For if all forms of knowledge have to do with what exists, assuredly that which is above knowledge must certainly be also above essence (υπερ ουσιαν); and, conversely, that which is above essence will also be above knowledge.
St. John Damascene

Tuesday, November 08, 2005

Evelyn Wood of Bible Teachers

To match your "instant of salvation" experience now read, and remember, the Bible in an instant!  Get all pertinent information in one breath (and amaze your friends!).
...slow is not the best way to go through the Bible from cover to cover; speed-reading is better.

The Divine Image

…it is impossible to define what constitutes the divine image in man. We can only conceive it through the idea of participation in the infinite goodness of God.
Vladimir Lossky

Monday, November 07, 2005

Attack of the single quote sign...

College accused of 'attack' on religious freedom
EAU CLAIRE, Wis. -- The University of Wisconsin Eau Claire is reviewing a directive that banned resident assistants from holding Bible studies in their dorms. Last July, the university's Associate Director for Housing and Residence Life sent a letter saying that if resident assistants lead Bible studies, students might not find them ''approachable'' or might fear they'd be ''judged or pushed in a direction that does not work for them.'' The letter added that resident assistants who persist in holding Bible studies would face ''disciplinary action.'' The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education has protested, calling the directive Wednesday a ''shameful attack on freedom of religion.'' /AP/

What means these single quote signs i.e. "'attack'"?

The battle against "Death"

How irrational then to wish to return to our former youth, and gladly to give everything for the sake of this, that we might become younger, and yet when it is ours to receive a youth that knows no old age, a youth too, which, joined with great riches, hath far more of spirit, to be unwilling to give up a little trifle, but to hold fast things that contribute not a whit to the present life. They can never rescue you from death, they have no power to drive away disease, to stay old age, or any one of those events, which happen by necessity and according to the law of nature. And do you still hold to them? Tell me, what do you gain? Drunkenness, gluttony, pleasures contrary to nature and various in kind, which are far worse torturers than the hardest masters.
St. John Chrysostom


Defeat Death!

People have been resurrecting since before the days of Lazarus when Jesus raised him from the dead. These Immortals move among us, some have estates, businesses and bank accounts. They also have their own retreats hidden away from humanity. Immortals have perfect bodies, which can disappear and reappear and teleport anywhere on the planet. They can communicate telepathically with others, walk on water and through fire, nothing is impossible for them.

Immortals can speak any language and can look old or young depending upon their purpose. They have been written and talked about throughout history. Jesus took this resurrection event one step further and completely transcended life on earth when he made his ascension. He demonstrated what was possible for every Human Being.
...
This school will teach you what you need to be a master of your world, to control your reality, to visit the heavenly worlds, to do miracles, to have oneness with God and to defeat death through a resurrection event.
...
Those that were raised from the dead by using the Sacred Fire ( the fire that was given to the Disciples at Penetcost) were raised with IMMORTAL bodies that would never die again. These resurrected Immortals were able to do the same things as Jesus did...walk on water, heal, disappear, teleport their bodies and many other things.

I don't recall in the Bible anywhere saying that Jesus 'teleported'...I'm not denying, of course, that Jesus could teleport but to proport that Jesus teleported is a whole different proposition...
...there are now thousands of Resurrected Immortals. ...Every Immortal followed the same steps and laws that are in this book to achieve their immortality...Learn why the New Age Liberal Left are losing the hearts and minds of America. Read about the huge misunderstandings and incorrect beliefs Christians have had for 2,000 years.

If the disciples raised people with "immortal" bodies how is it possible to learn (through her book, nonetheless) how to be "immortal"? It seems like someone would actually have to die to be raised "immortal". ...and of course another 'enlightened' one to correct the beliefs of the Church-the Body of Christ.

Latins and Greeks

…freeing of men’s minds from natural limitations due to differences of mentality and culture, the catholicity of the Church was made manifest. Though the Latins might express the mystery of the Trinity by starting from one essence in order to arrive at the three persons; though the Greeks might prefer the concrete as their starting point (that is to say, the three hypostasis), seeing in them the one nature; it was always the same dogma of the Trinity that was confessed by the whole of Christendom…
Vladimir Lossky

The most important word in this paragraph being "was" in reference to how the Latins 'were' confessing...

Friday, November 04, 2005

The rebel cry...

Nihilist rebellion, like Christian faith, is an ultimate and irreducible spiritual attitude, having its source and its strength in itself—and of course, in the supernatural author of rebellion.
Fr. Seraphim (Rose)

Thursday, November 03, 2005

St. John-the first straight-edger?

...we must make the attack with minds in vigor, that they may be able to give exact attention.
St. John Chrysostom

This monument to fire seems to me like it should be from the "firemen" of Fahrenheit 451...but no it's outside the Chicago Fire Academy.

That's All?

So, we got a flyer at one of the cheese markets a few months ago about this "huge" protest against the Bush administration. Everyone was going to take the day off work, and even take their kids out of school, so they could show the president how unpopular he is. I forgot about this little party until I saw this article in today's Sun Times. Wow! 1000 people in the loop! The best part is that there were about 300 police officers there to keep everyone in line. Said one of the enlightened: "It seems like there are more police here than there are people." Sweet. I wish I would have remembered to take yesterday off and join the fun. Maybe next year...

Wednesday, November 02, 2005

The new seance...

Email From Heaven?
...prepare and store emails, cards and memorial invitations months or years in advance of their delivery, to send to selected family and friends posthumously...

Child: "Daddy, where did Grammy go?"
Parent: "She went to a better place. But she still loves you. ...Look, you just got a birthday card from her!"

Not too fast....

40 days of fasting ends
Trans World Radio just completed 40 days of fasting for at risk women around the world. ...With that major initiative over, Project Hannah is celebrating its 8th anniversary.

I'm wondering if they followed the traditional Orthodox Christian conception of fasting (from certain foods, and in less quantity, and of course with prayer) or maybe the Islamic practice of not eating until sundown then pigging out or something altogether different?
I also ask, is fasting ever really "over"?

The battle of the Church

…the Church has had to fight against ‘Origenism’ as she has always fought against doctrines which, in striking at the divine incomprehensibility, replaced the experience of the unfathomable depths of God by philosophical concepts.
Vladimir Lossky

Tuesday, November 01, 2005

The senseless world

… you are at a standstill because you have approached the mystery of existence with the mind, with questions and demands for explanations; whereas it can only be approached through prostration, humility, prayer—and acceptance. Accept all, take all into yourself—all that is given you. If you do not do this, if you shield yourself from one smallest bit of suffering so as to take refuge in the rational attitude of doubt, then the fault lies in yourself, and the world fails to make sense precisely because you, who look at it, make no sense. You are foul, and constantly contradict yourself, yet you expect to see the world pure, and making sense! … The saint, perhaps, who has gone through doubt and yet asked for more, and accepted it – he might be able to make “sense” of the world. But the saint is never a philosopher; he has given up merely trying to understand, and asks only to be given what is given him; he has accepted the world, and there is no longer any question of its making “sense” or not. It makes “sense,” but in no way that can be experienced in words; its “sense” must be lived, not spoken about. … We know existence is suffering, and we know that our God loves us and for this love suffered even more intensely than the greatest saint; we know this, and yet we presume to “doubt,” to offer our petty questioning of the “meaning” of it all. O vile man! Accept it and suffer more, and pray to God – pray for no object, for no cause, merely give your heartfelt prayers and tears to Him. He knows the “why” of it. He knows all.
Fr. Seraphim (Rose)

Purple haze...

Turn your aura purple for only $249.99!

Violence: the hurdle on the path to the one world WCC government...

Kobia [General Secretary of the World Council of Churches] said this effort to end violence is the highlight of the Christian identity and mission. 'The different Christian traditions clearly have different contributions to bring to this mission, and all are needed, all are significant,' he said. 'Let not our differences get in the way of this Christian ecumenical task which is our mission to the world in Christ’s name.'

I thought being Christian was about theosis, and something about going out into all the world...

Cupoling over Hagia Sophia?

St. Sava's
Interior decoration and painting of the church of St.Sava of Serbia will be completed next September. The church is considered the largest Orthodox church in the world. Christ the Saviour Cathedral square in Moscow is 60x60 metres, while the church in Belgrade designed in Serbian-Byzantine style is 91x81. The fresco of Christ in the cupola of St.Sava’s church will be the largest in the Christian world. The capacity of the cathedral will accommodate some ten thousand worshippers at a time.

The central cupola of St.Sava’s church weights 4 thousand tons. 12-meter gilded cross crowns it. There are 17 crosses of lesser size to top other cupolas. Two belfries on the west side of the church house 49 bells of different power of sound and size. Their weight differs from 12 kilo to 5 tons.

The construction of the church began in 1936. At first the war interfered, and then political disorders. Builders resumed their work in April 2000. St.Sava’s church was officially handed over to the Serbian Orthodox Church in 2003.