#Oriental Orthodox

[idylls-of-the-divine-romance]

*bangs head on the table repeatedly* Why. Do. The. Brothers. And. Sisters. Of. Christ. Love. To. Hate. Each. Other. So. Much.

You're Christian. I'm Christian. They're Christian. We all believe Jesus is God. We all believe God is love. Why all the hate?? So what if they believe Mary was assumed into heaven and you don't? So what if you believe Mary was ever a virgin and you don't?

There are lots of things we disagree on. But you know what? We agree on so much more!

We believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible.

We believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God, born of the Father before all ages. God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father; through him all things were made. For us humans and for our salvation he came down from heaven, and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate, he suffered death and was buried, and rose again on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father, who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets.

We believe in one, holy, universal and apostolic Church. We confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins and we look forward to the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen.

We are all Christians for we are all anointed by the Anointed One, the Son of the Living God.

[religious-extremist]

Issues with the KJV; Part II - Veneration of Mary and Saints

Worship and Divine Service

In modern English, the term "worship" (like the term "prayer") has mainly come to mean "an act offered exclusively to God." However, the original and official meaning of this word used to be much broader - as was the case of the Greek word proskyneo (προσκυνέω), which is normally applied to God, but also to human beings.

The idea conveyed by proskyneo is that of "offering obeisance," "making a physical demonstration of veneration and respect," or "prostrating oneself." (To put it extremely casually, like a curtsy.) In contemporary Orthodox terminology, the equivalent of proskyneo is often "venerate."

In the EOB, proskyneo is translated as "to express adoration" while it is often translated in the KJV as "to worship."

On the other hand, the Greek word latreia is exclusively used in reference to God.

In the EOB, latreia (λατρεία) is translated as "offering divine service" while it is translated in the KJV also as "to worship."

The Problem

So there is this issue of the KJV as it is today - with its immeasurable influence upon modern theology, the English language, and the Sola Scriptura doctrine professed by Protestant Christianity (and therefore the world) - combining two different words, proskyneo and latreia, under one translation: "worship."

The point of dissension that now comes up is that when those of the Old Religions, which existed before the King James Version, venerate the Blessed Virgin Mary, Protestants often denounce the Old Religions' disposition towards the Blessed Theotokos because their theology relies either wholly or partly on the KJV and the KJV tells them that proskyneo and latreia are the same thing, when historically - as attested to us by the oldest translations of the Bible - veneration and worship have never been the same thing.

To argue that veneration and worship are the same thing is like saying that criticism and insults are the same thing, or complimenting and confessing undying love is the same thing. They are markedly different.

The Old Religions -- the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Roman Catholics, and Church of the East -- don't offer latreia (worship) to the saints but they offer proskyneo (veneration).

As a last exhibit, I will show to you Matthew 4:10 and Luke 4:8 where Christ quoted the Ten Commandments and said "Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve." (KJV) / "You shall express adoration to the Lord your God, and to Him only shall you offer divine service." (EOB)

For the sake of understanding, I will adapt the KJV to this:

"Thou shalt proskyneisis the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou latreusis."

That said, proskyneia or veneration for humans, saints, was never forbidden, but it is clear to all of us that latreia or worship is offered only to God.

[urmultideadfandomperson]

Q&A (Christian Edition)

Hi there! Let's play a game! The rules are easy: answer the question and give out an explanation! No need to go too detailed. What's important is that you have fun!

Let me go first for further understanding (and get to know me more)!

Q: Favorite Bible Verse?

A: Proverbs 3:5-6 — "Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean on your own understanding. In all your ways, acknowledge Him and He will make your path straight."

E: The Biblical verse itself is self-explanatory. Still, despite its simple and direct meaning, it is very beautiful how believing in God could make you walk in a good life.

Q: Favorite Bible Story?

A: The Parable of the Prodigal Son

E: This parable of Jesus never fails to make me shed tears. If you are not aware of this story, it is found in the Bible in Luke 15:11-32. This story is my top favorite is because it is a metaphor that God will always be waiting for our return, no matter how far we stray. Whenever we run back to Him from sin, God is there with open arms, accepting us once again as His child.

Q: Favorite Bible Character(s)? Give at least three characters.

A: Jesus Christ, Joseph and Queen Esther

E: Jesus Christ is always number one. This is because he was the begotten Son of God in order to save mankind. We are healed in his stripes. Joseph is my second favorite because his story tells us to always believe in God's plans no matter how complicated the way would be. Joseph was once a slave in Egypt, yet he eventually became a governor to save Egypt and Canaan. Lastly, Queen Esther is my third favorite because her story is about courage and having deep trust in God. Although her plan to save the Jews was risky, God was always with her and they were all saved.

Q: Favorite Miracle of Jesus?

A: Jesus Calms the Sea

E: This teaches us to trust in Him when trouble approaches us. When a storm came, the disciples were panicking but Jesus was sleeping in the middle of the storm. When they woke him up, he asks them where was their faith before calming the storm. It shows us how important it is to trust God, because in the end, He is always in control.

Q: What sin do you struggle with the most?

A: Envy

E: Despite jealousy being a minority of emotion, it can also be very dangerous if untamed. A person can become so envious, he can end up hurting his neighbor. It is normal to feel emotions, but what is wrong is to let it control you until you eventually commit a sin.

Q: Have you ever questioned your faith?

A: Yes, I have.

E: I often think about this when I stray far too gone from Him. As much as I knew God will always be waiting for us, it never fails to make me ponder if I am really a faithful follower of Christ.

Q: What do you value the most?

A: Love

E: I highly believe the quote "Love can conquer all." With love, there is peace and joy. With love, there is no grudge or wrath. With love, humanity can be saved! But most of all, the most important love I'm talking about is the love of Jesus Christ to us all, who died on the cross to cleanse our sins.

Q: Have you ever felt neglected by God?

A: Never.

E: God has always been with me since the day I born into this world. Everyday, He stays by my side no matter the road I take. Even in the toughest times, I knew and believed He was with me. However I was once blinded by my depression, making me feel hopeless and lonely. Yet here I am, because the LORD took me out of the dark.

Q: Do you prefer to read the Old Testament or the New Testament?

A: I prefer to read the New Testament.

E: Although I love all the books in the Bible, I am more into the New Testament. This is because the Gospel is found in here (specifically the books Matthew, Mark, Luke and John). The 27 books of the New Testament tell us about Jesus Christ and the good news that He will save us all from the devil. It is also because some of my favorite verses are found in the book John (John 3:16 and John 14:6).

Q: When do you feel closest to God?

A: Whenever I pray to Him.

E: Whenever I pray to Him, I feel like it's just the two of us in the room—nobody else would disturb us, just the two of us having communication. When I need his help, I pray and He helps me. Whenever I am happy, I pray and He is pleased. Whenever I am in trouble, I pray and He listens to me. In the end, the day goes well before God never left me behind. In prayer, I can feel His holy presence beside me and that's enough said.

Tags ‼️ @mochalumii @writerray @kaitlyn-pink @lalarose216 @pray-for-us-cinnas @zohrasprayers If you're willing, come along to play! Tag your Christian friends to play the game! :DD

[221bshrlocked]

A Blessed Feast of Palm Sunday to all who celebrated it this weekend. 🌿🌴🙏

[seekingtheosis]

Mother Mary: The Veil of Solomon's Temple

🌟 Discover the Mystical Role of Mother Mary: The Veil of Solomon's Temple 🌟 Join us on a profound journey into the heart of Christian theology as we explore the rich symbolism of Mother Mary as the "veil of Solomon's Temple."

In the name of God the Father, Christ Jesus His Son and the Holy Spirit, One True God. Amen Dear brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus This post is part of an ongoing series reflecting on Mary and her role in Christian theology. As we walk along the 15 days lent towards the Feast of the Dormition of the blessed Theotokos, we have been trying to understand and learn more about the blessed…

[ray-moo]

As a christian it is actually really interesting to me how ubiquitous christian symbolism and values are in culture, but how the basics of our beliefs and religion are often lost amidst the sea of contextless cultural beliefs and ideas that are a result of our religion.

One of the core foundational beliefs of Christianity, perhaps the foundational belief, is that Jesus incarnated into this world to die in order to save humans from the consequences of their sins.

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him." (John 3:16)

But how this works is it's own field of theology (Soteriology). Basically, you can boil the various theological stances into two camps. Theosis and Substitionary Penal Atonement. There might be other points of view but those are the ones I'm aware of.

Substitutionary Penal Atonement is the primary view in Western Culture, which basically teaches that Jesus died in our place. Because the innocent Jesus was punished for our sins, we who are guilty go free. In other words, Jesus is our substitute. This view can be corroborated with verses like 1 Peter 3:18 and 2 Corinthians 5:21.

The other view, the Theosis view, is more popular in Eastern Christianity, particularly Orthodox denominations. Here the sacrifice of Jesus is not for the sake of taking on a legal punishment/debt, but rather treats sin as a disease to be healed/purified. By dying and coming back to life, Jesus defeated death, and through unity in the Body of Christ, we can share in that defeat and thus that resurrection. This view can be corroborated with verses like Romans 6:5.

Keep in mind I'm no theologian and this is just my own understanding!

But core to all Christian belief is that it is not our good deeds or lack of sin that get us to Heaven, but the righteousness of Christ that we enjoy as our own due to His death and resurrection.

I hope this helps!

As an atheist, I’ve heard the phrase, “Jesus died for your sins” so many times, but I have no idea what it means.

The two interpretations I came up with just based on language are

1. Jesus died because of sin

And 2. Jesus died so that people could sin

And I really doubt it’s the second one.

So I wanna know what christians think, especially if you’re someone who says that phrase specifically.

Thanks for reading ❤️ have a nice day.

[mapsontheweb]

The six nations where Oriental Orthodoxy, one of the oldest branches of Christianity, has its presence.

[dramoor]

"The Church is not the assembly of saints, it is the mass of sinners who repent, who, sinners though they are, have turned towards God and are oriented towards Him." ~St. Ephraim the Syrian

[orthodoxadventure]

Our reasoning brain is weak, and our tongue is weaker still. It is easier to measure the entire sea with a tiny cup than to grasp God's ineffable greatness with the human mind.

-- Saint Basil the Great

[sidebee-hive]

Assyrian women of the Syriac Quarter of Bethlehem, Palestine. Studio photograph taken in 1905.

The modern Assyrian community in Palestine was founded by religious pilgrims, but later became mostly comprised of refugees of the Assyrian genocide (also known as the Seyfo).

[apenitentialprayer]

May 11, 2023

Earlier today, Pope Francis declared that 21 Coptic Orthodox Christians, who were beheaded by Islamic militants in Libya in 2015, would be added to the Roman Martyrology. Francis made the announcement during an audience with Pope Tawadros II, the leader of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria. The “21 Coptic New Martyrs of Libya,” as they are called, were martyred on February 15, 2015. Less than a week later, they were declared saints in the Coptic Orthodox Church by Pope Tawadros. The Copts celebrate their feast on the anniversary of their death, February 15, and it appears that this will also be their feast day on the Roman calendar.

The world was shocked in February 2015, when a 5-minute video was uploaded to the internet by ISIS militants. The video showed the 21 kidnapped men in orange jumpsuits being beheaded on a beach near the Libyan city of Sirte. 20 of these martyrs were Egyptian Copts who had gone to Libya to do construction work. The last member of the group, Matthew Ayariga, was a fellow worker from Ghana. It is said that he told the executioners, “Their God is my God. I will go with them.” There has been some question over whether he was already Christian or whether the witness of his 20 coworkers led to his conversion, but nevertheless, his Christian witness and solidarity are inspiring. It was reported that as they died, they chanted hymns and prayed aloud.

The deaths of these men as Christian martyrs is undeniable. The extraordinary photos of Blessed Miguel Pro, a Catholic priest who was executed by the Mexican government in 1927 during the Cristero War — taken just moments before the he was shot by the firing squad — are perhaps the only other photographic images recording a Christian martyrdom as it happened. And yet the recognition of the 21 martyrs as Catholic saints is unprecedented for several reasons.

The primary reason, of course, is that the Coptic Orthodox Church is not in full communion with Rome. The Copts are Oriental Orthodox (as opposed to Eastern Orthodox), because they split from the other Christian churches in the year 451 at the Council of Chalcedon due to differences over the nature of Christ. They are also referred to as “Non-Chalcedonian Orthodox Churches.” This means that they recognize the first three ecumenical councils, whereas the Eastern Orthodox recognize seven, and the Catholic Church recognizes 21 ecumenical councils.

After more than 15 centuries, our hope of reunion may seem remote. After all these years, the two Churches have independently developed their own traditions, theologies, forms of worship, and prayers. Yet some things have remained the same. Both Churches have maintained apostolic succession and the sacraments: Pope Francis is the successor of St. Peter and Pope Tawadros is the successor of St. Mark. In recent decades, the relationship between the Catholic Church and the Coptic Orthodox Church has become closer. For example, in 2017, Popes Francis and Tawadros made a joint statement indicating mutual acceptance of the validity of baptism in both Churches.

Pope Francis has praised the Martyrs of Libya many times, and today he recalled our shared baptism, as well as the blood of martyrs that enriches the Church. He said, “These martyrs were baptized not only in the water and Spirit, but also in blood, a blood that is the seed of unity for all of Christ’s followers.” In the past, the pope has discussed how we must realize that we, the baptized, have much more in common than what divides us. This shared recognition of sainthood between the two Churches is a significant step towards Christian unity.

This sets a new precedent. In 1964, when the Ugandan Martyrs were canonized by Pope Paul VI, St. Charles Lwanga and the other 21 Catholics among his companions were declared saints. The 23 Anglicans who were martyred alongside them were mentioned briefly in the pope’s homily, when he said, “And we do not wish to forget, the others who, belonging to the Anglican confession, met death for the name of Christ.”

Another reason why today’s announcement is unique was that Pope Francis did this by an official act. The Roman Martyrology is the official list of saints officially recognized by the Latin Church. Many Eastern Catholic Churches have their own processes for canonizing saints according to their traditions. Historically, when groups of Eastern Catholics have come into full communion with Rome, they will bring along their saints and prayers and traditions. Many of these saints aren’t officially canonized by Rome, and they are usually only venerated in their own tradition. By inscribing the names of these martyrs in the Roman Martyrology, Pope Francis has made it clear that these martyrs are to be venerated by Roman Catholics as saints.

Finally, in declaring them saints today, Pope Francis sidestepped the typical canonization process. They are saints, without having passed through the usual stages of Servant of God, Venerable, and Blessed. This “skipping” of steps is commonly referred to as “equipollent canonization.” Essentially, when a pope declares someone a saint by an official act, that person is recognized as a saint in the Church. This is not the first time Francis has moved a case along in this way. For example, when he canonized Popes John XXIII and John Paul II in 2014, he waived the requirement of a second miracle for John XXIII so that the two popes would be canonized on the same day. In 2013, he elevated the Jesuit Peter Faber, whose status had lingered at “Blessed” since 1872.

Perhaps the most interesting case is that of St. Gregory of Narek, an Armenian monk venerated as a saint in the Armenian Catholic Church and the Armenian Apostolic Church. Unexpectedly, Pope Francis named him the 36th Doctor of the Church in 2015. Living from in the mid-10th century through the early 11th, St. Gregory lived at a time when the Armenian Church was not in communion with Rome. After several failed attempts at reunion, the Armenian Catholic Church was officially recognized as an Eastern Catholic Church in 1742. Interestingly, the Armenian Catholic eparchy of Buenos Aires (established in 1989 by Pope John Paul II) is called the Eparchy of Saint Gregory of Narek. Perhaps this is how Pope Francis became familiar with the saint.

We Christians are blessed with a wide variety of saints from all sorts of backgrounds. They help make up the beautiful tapestry of the people of God — praying for us, interceding for us, and inspiring us. This is something worth celebrating.

21 Coptic New Martyrs of Libya, Pray for Us!

Mike Lewis. Bolded emphases added.

[salomedebeaurepaire]

Christ pantokrator of St Catherine of Sinai Monastery

[divinum-pacis]

The Ethiopian Orthodox Church Explained | Let's Talk Religion

Discover the fascinating history, unique traditions, and spiritual significance of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church (Tewahedo Church), one of the oldest Christian denominations in the world. From its roots in the 4th century to its deep cultural and religious influence in Ethiopia, this video explores the church's ancient rituals, sacred texts, and its role in shaping Ethiopian identity. Learn about the significance of the Ark of the Covenant, the role of fasting, and the importance of religious festivals like Timkat and Meskel.

[o-link]

Église orthodoxe

[seekingtheosis]

Mother Mary in the Oriental Orthodox Tradition: Her Spiritual Motherhood and Intercession

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus All of us have been observing the 15-day Lent in commemoration of the Dormition (Assumption) of Mother Mary and we have now come almost to an end to the Lent, and we are all preparing to celebrate the Feast. During these days, we have been contemplating on the various titles that have been used to describe Mother Mary in our liturgical hymns and…