#the words are an orthodox prayer for the departed

[anchor-ice]

my piece for the @palimpsestzine

pwyw at https://palimpsestzine.itch.io/zine until 30.04, proceeds go to charity

[orthodoxadventure]

In God and in His Church there is no division between the living and the departed, but all are one in the love of the Father. Whether we are alive or whether we are dead, as members of the Church we still belong to the same family, and still have a duty to bear one another's burdens. Therefore just as Orthodox Christians here on earth pray for one another and ask for one another's prayers, so they pray also for the faithful departed and ask the faithful departed to pray for them. Death cannot sever the bond of mutual love which links the members of the Church together.

'With the saints give rest, O Christ, to the souls of thy servants, where there is neither sickness, nor sorrow, nor sighing, but life everlasting.'

So the Orthodox Church prays for the faithful departed; and again:

O God of Spirits and of all flesh, who hast trampled down death and overthrown the Devil, and given life unto Thy world: Do thou, the same Lord, give rest to the souls of Thy departed servants, in a place of light, refreshment, and repose, whence all pain, sorrow, and sighing have fled away. Pardon every transgression which they have committed, whether by word or deed or thought.

-- Kallistos Ware, The Orthodox Church

[orthodoxydaily]

Saints&Reading: Wednesday, June 19, 2024

june 6_june 19

VENERABLE DODO OF THE ST. DAVID-GAREJI MONASTERY, GEORGIA (596)

A companion of St. Davit of Gareji, St. Dodo belonged to the royal family Andronikashvili. He was tonsured a monk while still an youth, and was endowed with every virtue.       An admirer of poverty and solitude, he labored as a hermit at Ninotsminda in Kakheti.       Having heard about the miracles of Davit of Gareji, St. Dodo set off for the Gareji Wilderness to witness them himself. The venerable fathers greeted one another warmly and began laboring there together.       After some time, St. Davit became deeply impressed with Dodo’s devotion to the Faith, and he proposed that he take with him some of the other monks and begin to construct cells on the opposite mountain.

 The brothers built cells and began to labor there with great ardor. Before long the number of cells had reached two hundred. St. Dodo isolated himself in a narrow crevice, where there was barely room for one man. Day and night, winter and summer, in the heat and the cold, he prayed with penitent tears for the forgiveness of his sins, the strengthening of the souls of his brothers, and the bolstering of the true Faith throughout the country.       Once St. Davit miraculously healed the son of Prince Bubakar of Rustavi. In return, the grateful prince donated food and other necessities to the monks of Gareji Monastery. St. Davit took part of his contributions and sent what remained to St. Dodo. He advised Bubakar to have St. Dodo baptize him, and St. Dodo joyously baptized Bubakar, his sons, and all his suite.       St. Dodo labored to an advanced age in the monastery he had founded and reposed peacefully.       His spiritual sons and companions buried him in the cave where he had labored, and a church was later built over his grave.

© 2006 St. Herman of Alaska Brotherhood.

SAINT BESSARION THE WONDERWORKER OF EGYPT (466)

Saint Bessarion, Wonderworker of Egypt was an Egyptian. He was baptized while still in his youth, and he led a strict life, striving to preserve the grace given him during Baptism. Seeking to become more closely acquainted with the monastic life, he journeyed to the holy places. He was in Jerusalem, he visited Saint Gerasimus (March 4) in the Jordanian wilderness, he viewed other desert monasteries, and assimilated all the rules of monastic life.

Upon his return, he received monastic tonsure and became a disciple of Saint Isidore of Pelusium (February 4). Saint Bessarion took a vow of silence, and partook of food only once a week. Sometimes he remained without food or drink for forty days. Once, the saint stood motionless for forty days and forty nights without food or sleep, immersed in prayer.

Saint Bessarion received from God the gift of wonderworking. When his disciple was very thirsty, he sweetened bitter water. By his prayer the Lord sent rain upon the earth, and he could cross a river as if on dry land. With a single word he cast out devils, but he did this privately to avoid glory.

His humility was so great that once, when a priest ordered someone from the skete to leave church for having fallen into sin, Bessarion also went with him saying, “I am a sinner, too.” Saint Bessarion slept only while standing or sitting. A large portion of his life was spent under the open sky in prayerful solitude. He peacefully departed to the Lord in his old age.

Source: Orthodox Church in America

ACTS 23:1-11

1 Then Paul, looking earnestly at the council, said, "Men and brethren, I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day." 2 And the high priest Ananias commanded those who stood by him to strike him on the mouth. 3 Then Paul said to him, "God will strike you, you whitewashed wall! For you sit to judge me according to the law, and do you command me to be struck contrary to the law?" 4 And those who stood by said, "Do you revile God's high priest?" 5 Then Paul said, "I did not know, brethren, that he was the high priest; for it is written, 'You shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people.' " 6 But when Paul perceived that one part were Sadducees and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, "Men and brethren, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee; concerning the hope and resurrection of the dead I am being judged!" 7 And when he had said this, a dissension arose between the Pharisees and the Sadducees; and the assembly was divided. 8 For Sadducees say that there is no resurrection-and no angel or spirit; but the Pharisees confess both. 9 Then there arose a loud outcry. And the scribes of the Pharisees' party arose and protested, saying, "We find no evil in this man; but if a spirit or an angel has spoken to him, let us not fight against God." 10 Now when there arose a great dissension, the commander, fearing lest Paul might be pulled to pieces by them, commanded the soldiers to go down and take him by force from among them, and bring him into the barracks. 11 But the following night the Lord stood by him and said, "Be of good cheer, Paul; for as you have testified for Me in Jerusalem, so you must also bear witness at Rome."

JOHN 16:15-23

15 All things that the Father has are Mine. Therefore I said that He will take of Mine and declare it to you. 16 A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me, because I go to the Father. 17 Then some of His disciples said among themselves, "What is this that He says to us, 'A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me'; and, 'because I go to the Father'?" 18 They said therefore, "What is this that He says, 'A little while'? We do not know what He is saying." 19 Now Jesus knew that they desired to ask Him, and He said to them, "Are you inquiring among yourselves about what I said, 'A little while, and you will not see Me; and again a little while, and you will see Me'? 20 Most assuredly, I say to you that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; and you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy. 21 A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. 22 Therefore you now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you. 23 And in that day you will ask Me nothing. Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you.

[mariacallous]

(JTA) — I first met Alice Shalvi, the mother of religious feminism in Israel, in the mid-1990s during a meeting of ICAR, the International Coalition of Agunah Rights, a coalition that she founded to advocate for women denied a religious divorce by their husbands. She was in her early 70s at the time, and had been fighting for agunah rights for 20 years.

I was in my mid-20s, and new to the cause. I was there as co-chair of Mavoi Satum, which a group of us founded in 1995. This coalition was meant to be advancing systemic solutions to this awful problem. But, of course, we were stuck. As stuck then as we are now.

At one point in the meeting, Professor Shalvi started to cry. “I am 72 years old. I have been talking about this for so long,” she said, “and nothing is changing.” She was crying because the suffering of women didn’t seem to matter to our people. Then she turned to me and said, “It’s up to you and your generation to fix this.”

At the time, I felt her passing the mantle, and I didn’t want to let her down. But I’m sure I did. At least on this front. On others, too, despite our best efforts.

Shalvi, who died Monday morning in Israel at age 96, fought crucial fights decades before the rest of the world caught up with her, before the religious community had any kind of language for what she was doing, before there was any kind of feminist movement to speak of in Israel. 

She pioneered feminist ideas in Israel in the early 1970s when there were only a handful of women doing such work — Marcia Freedman, Naomi Chazan and a few others. And she was the only one coming from the religious world, and able to see the need and potential for change before everyone else. 

Starting in 1975, Shalvi began running the Pelech School for Haredi Girls, a religious feminist school, before Orthodox feminism existed as a movement — before Women of the Wall, before women’s tefillah (prayer) groups, years before Jewish Orthodox Feminist Alliance and Kolech, Israel’s Religious Women’s Forum, existed, before anyone even dared to put the words “feminist” and “religious” together in a sentence. Before even the Conservative movement had women rabbis. Everyone else is still catching up.  

She also worked in the non-religious arena, creating, in 1984, the first feminist lobby in Israel, the Israel Women’s Network, which still pioneers on many fronts.

She also dared to work on issues of peace, taking positions that were considered pas nisht, or “unsuitable,” in the religious world — and for the most part still are. She dared to see Palestinians, especially Palestinian women, as equal human beings. This was not a position that religious Israelis, or Israelis in general, were comfortable with. It’s still an uphill battle.  She spoke and acted from a place of humanity first. 

And she could remarkably work on a multitude of  fronts, all at once, including education, academia, advocacy, politics and peace.

Alice Hildegard Shalvi was born in Essen, Germany, on Oct. 16, 1926. She, her mother and brother joined their father in London in 1934, and she later earned degrees in literature and social work. She immigrated to Israel in 1949, taught at Hebrew University and led efforts to create an English department at Ben-Gurion University. Denied the deanship because she was a woman, she mobilized female faculty members in protest.

Professor Shalvi was my formal mentor when I was on the Jerusalem Fellows, a program in Jewish education. We would meet regularly and talk about feminism, politics, religion and Israel. It was a privilege to spend those hours in one-on-one conversations. Prof. Shalvi always talked to me with complete honesty, passion and belief in what she was working for. She entrusted me with her vision, and made me feel like she believed that I would hold it for her and continue to birth it in the world.

By the time changes started to take place in Orthodoxy for women — evidenced by Shira Hadasha, a Jerusalem congregation dedicated to halachah (Jewish law) and feminism, and Orthodox women in clergy roles — she had already moved on to the Conservative movement, serving as rector of what is now the Schechter Institute of Jewish Studies, a graduate school and seminary associated with the movement’s Jewish Theological Seminary. She needed to go where her vision was valued and welcomed and celebrated, instead of where everything was a fight. She was highly criticized for that decision and was treated by some as a sort of traitor to the Orthodox feminist cause. But she deserved to be in a place that supported her and brought her comfort and respect, and she had earned that right.

She offered words of support for me when I took a similar leap and enrolled in Reform rabbinical school. Even though I am no longer in rabbinical school and do not associate with the Reform movement in any meaningful way, I do not regret the decision to step away from an Orthodox version of feminism and try on other hats. She inspired me and so many others to take leaps, be courageous, live from the heart and ignore the haters.

I am so glad that she found her well-deserved place in the world, and that she received many well-deserved honors and accolades along the way, including, in 1991, the Ministry of Education’s Education Prize in 1991 for teaching Talmud to girls and insisting that Pelech alumnae serve in either the IDF or the National Service. In 2007, she won the Israel Prize for her life’s work, and in 2019 a National Jewish Book Award for her memoir, “Never a Native.”

She left an incredible legacy of activism that has birthed generations of change agents in Israel.

I have often thought over the years that I wanted to be Alice Shalvi when I grew up. I loved her unstoppable courage, her ability to wear many hats, her resilience in standing up to the haters and naysayers, and her constant belief that she could make a difference. I’ve tried to follow that kind of path, though I have not had nearly the kind of strength and fortitude — and successes — that she had. But her personality and vision continue to have a permanent resting place in my heart. And I will continue to endeavor to carry her torch in this world.

[deaconjohn1987]

Tribulation Times

May 30, 2024 (Rev 6:4) And there went out another horse that was red. And to him that sat thereon, it was given that he should take peace from the earth: and that they should kill one another. And a great sword was given to him. COMMENTARY: Arrest These Insane NATO Warmongers!

Stoltenberg with Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Giorgia Meloni, Joe Biden, Rishi Sunak and Recep Tayyip Erdoğan

at the 2023 Vilnius summit [Wikipedia.org image by Picture by Simon Dawson / No 10 Downing Street]

Incredibly, the world is being pushed to the abyss of nuclear war by nonentity Western numbskulls who are not even elected. Jens Stoltenberg, the civilian head of the NATO military bloc, is the latest blockhead to advocate for the United States to permit the targeting of Russia with long-range weapons. The Norwegian figurehead, we are led to believe, made the conceptual breakthrough (how much was he paid and by whom or what was the blackmail used?) by telling the Economist magazine that the Ukrainian regime should henceforth be officially allowed to use NATO missiles to hit Russia. However, with the logical skills of a hacked-up chopping block, Stoltenberg claimed that such a move would not lead to an escalation in war between Russia and NATO because the weapons were not being fired from NATO countries. So Stoltenberg thinks it’s somehow feasible to turn Ukraine into a silo for launching ballistic missiles at Moscow and yet for Russia not to perceive NATO nations as a legitimate target? As if to further reassure, he added: “We don’t have any intention to send NATO ground troops into Ukraine because our purpose… has been two-fold, to support Ukraine as we do, but also to ensure that we don’t escalate this into a full-scale conflict.” The barefaced cheek of Stoltenberg and other Western figures is that, in their arrogant mindsets, what’s going on is not escalation because they say it is not escalation. It’s like hitting someone with a punch in the face and then having the brass neck to tell the person you didn’t hit them because you said so. The former Norwegian prime minister, who is soon to leave his NATO job to take up a plum post as a central banker, is the latest Western voice to up the ante in the U.S.-led proxy war against Russia in Ukraine. PAUL CRAIG ROBERTS: The War Is Widening Into Armageddon

[wikipedia.org image] UPDATE: Ukraine warns of new Russian reinforcements as NATO members soften red lines on weapons use RELATED HEADLINES Germany and France agree Ukraine may strike Russian military targets Italy says no to Ukraine using Western weapons to strike military targets inside Russia Putin’s forces massing in northern Kharkiv as Sweden sends Kyiv surveillance planes ORTHODOX PRAYER: O God of spirits and of all flesh, Who hast trampled-down death by death, and given life unto Thy world, do Thou the same Lord, give rest to the souls of Thy departed servants in a place of brightness, a place of green pasture, a place of repose whence all sickness, sorrow, and sighing have fled-away. As Thou art the good God Who lovest mankind, do Thou pardon their every transgression, whether of word, or deed, or thought, for Thou only art without sin, and Thy righteousness is unto all eternity, and Thy Word is truth. For Thou art the Resurrection, the Life, and the Repose of our Orthodox warriors, those who have laid down their lives in battle for the Faith, our freedom, and our land, and likewise the veterans of wars who have gone to their rest, O Christ our God, and unto Thee we ascribe glory, to Thy Father Who is from everlasting and to Thine All-holy, Good, and Life-creating Spirit. Now and ever, and unto ages of ages.

The Desert Fathers: sayings of the Early Christian Monks: Sober Living

9. Evagrius said, 'It is a great thing to pray without distraction. It is even greater to sing psalms without distraction.'

Prayer request? Send an email to: PrayerRequest3@aol.com

"Have ANY Catholic Question? Just ask Ron Smith at: hfministry@roadrunner.com

This month's archive can be found at: http://www.catholicprophecy.info/news2.html.

[leonbloder]

Every Day Christmas

In the Gospel of Luke chapter 2, we find the account of Mary and Joseph taking Jesus to the Temple to be presented and blessed.  

This was part of Jewish tradition in the first century and would have occurred when Jesus was 40 days old. 

The story relates how, as the Holy Family approached the Temple, they met two fascinating characters: A holy man named Simeon and a prophetess named Anna.  

Both of these people were incredibly faithful in practicing their Jewish faith, and both prayed constantly at the Temple for the "consolation of Israel."  This meant that they were expectantly and fervently awaiting the coming of the Messiah and the liberation of Israel from foreign oppression. 

When Simeon meets the Holy Family and sees Jesus, he exclaims that he has seen the Messiah and offers this prayer: 

29 “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised,     you may now dismiss[d] your servant in peace. 30 For my eyes have seen your salvation, 31     which you have prepared in the sight of all nations: 32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles,     and the glory of your people Israel.”

This prayer was given a name in Latin: Nunc Dimittis.  

The phrase translates, "Now lettest thou depart."  It's been part of Christian liturgy in the Catholic Mass and the Orthodox tradition for centuries.  Protestants (like me) often use this prayer as part of the Commendation in a funeral service.  

I love that this prayer is prayed and sung in many aspects of Christian worship.  It reflects what it means to embrace the meaning of Christmas and the epiphany that comes after encountering Christ.  

The 16th-century poet and pastor John Donne wrote a sermon for the Feast of St. Simeon, and this passage from that sermon resonates with me: 

Donne's vision of the glory of Christmas living within us "all the year, and all the years" gives me great joy and no small amount of hope.  

One of the liturgical choices I make at every funeral that I officiate is to end the service with a benediction that includes these words: 

"Know that the God who breathed life into you when you were born will most certainly be with you when you breathe your last." 

The knowledge that the Christ of Christmas is within you and all around you all the years of your life is one of the great lessons of the Season of Epiphany, which follows Christmas and leads us to Lent. 

Like Simeon, we can confidently say that no matter what happens next, we have seen salvation, and our salvation is present within us now, even as it was first made known so long ago. 

Every day of our lives is Christmas Day in this way of thinking.  Christ is born again within us every single morning, along with the renewed mercies of God, who loves us, cherishes us, and chooses us.  

May this give you great joy today and every day from now on.  And may the grace and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you now and always. Amen.  

[apilgrimpassingby]

O God of spirits and of all flesh, Who hath trampled down death and overthrown the Devil, and given life to Thy world, do Thou, the same Lord, give rest to the souls of Thy departed servants in a place of brightness, a place of refreshment, a place of repose, where all sickness, sighing, and sorrow have fled away. Pardon every transgression which they have committed, whether by word or deed or thought. For Thou art a good God and lovest mankind; because there is no man who lives yet does not sin, for Thou only art without sin, Thy righteousness is to all eternity, and Thy word is truth.

For Thou are the Resurrection, the Life, and the Repose of Thy servants who hath fallen asleep, O Christ our God, and unto Thee we ascribe glory, together with Thy Father, who is from everlasting, and Thine all-holy, good, and life-giving Spirit, now and ever unto ages of ages. Amen.

The standard Orthodox prayer for the dead

Pray for my brother, he killed himself tonight. He was happy, he talked about the future, but now, but now, he's gone. Please, please, please please please please please please please please pray just pray

Oh my goodness!! Of course!! I'm so sorry 🫂

[adventism-atheism-orthodoxy-me]

The Last Heroic Journey

As the wall between my personal life and my online persona continues to erode, I feel compelled to meditate on the Heroic Journey all of us must make as we live this life.

And what Heroic Journey is that?

That we must ultimately face our greatest foe - Death. No human escapes the eventual end of their time on this earth. At times we can avoid and avert death. Many of us have probably been close to death without even knowing it, or knowing how close we were, have been able to skirt it - however temporarily. But even Lazarus faced an eventual death from which he never arose.

It is the last journey we all make.

I mentioned to someone earlier today that in battling death, in clinging to life, all men become heros as they face their battle for it - whether it be for a few minutes, hours, days, or even years.

I've chosen to euthanize pets. I was told that it was for their own good, and yet, I can't help but think I stole something from those whom I claimed to love; something that they can never get back, and something of which they were never given a choice about. I can't but help thinking that I've got blood on my hands.

I know we can trust in the goodness of God, to be sure, but behind the veil, as great as the experience might be, from the perspective of this side where only bodily decay and lost memories remain, where the agony of the transition wracks the bodies of those making that transition in more then just a few cases, the experience seems horrible.

And yet, we are all called to make that journey.

Life is a "Hero's Journey". Make the best of it. You don't get a second chance.

Die Well.

For a Christian ending to our life: painless, blameless, peaceful, and a good defense before the dread Judgment Seat of the Lord, let us pray... - From the Orthodox Christian Litany of supplication

O God of spirits and of all flesh, Who hast trampled down death and overthrown the Devil, and given life to Thy world, do Thou, the same Lord, give rest to the souls of Thy departed servants in a place of brightness, a place of refreshment, a place of repose, where all sickness, sighing, and sorrow have fled away. Pardon every transgression which they have committed, whether by word or deed or thought. For Thou art a good God and lovest mankind; because there is no man who lives yet does not sin, for Thou only art without sin, Thy righteousness is to all eternity, and Thy word is truth. For Thou are the Resurrection, the Life, and the Repose of Thy servants who have fallen asleep, O Christ our God, and unto Thee we ascribe glory, together with Thy Father, who is from everlasting, and Thine all-holy, good, and life-creating Spirit, now and ever unto ages of ages. Amen. - Orthodox Christian Prayer For the Departed

Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of God, Have Mercy upon me, A sinner.

[ruminativerabbi]

Neilah on Dizengoff Square

It’s hard to know what to make of the events that unfolded in Tel Aviv towards the end of Yom Kippur. But what’s not difficult at all is to understand that the incident—not quite a riot, but a serious incident of incivility and poor behavior—is a good example of what happens when people mistake intolerance for zeal and antagonism for principled disagreement.

The incident had to do with a public-space gathering to recite the Neilah Prayer that ends Yom Kippur. Every shul-Jew knows this to be a highlight, not only of Yom Kippur or even the High Holiday season, but really of the entire prayer-year. The mood in our sanctuary at Shelter Rock, for example, is intense, focused, and very stirring. The spirits whose palpable presence made the air in the room so heavy during Yizkor have mostly departed back to Sheol (or wherever), but the residue of their ghostly presence lingers still in the room. The fast has begun to take its toll; people are hungry and thirsty. Those of us for whom a day without caffeine is torture are mostly nursing giant headaches. The specific nusach that the cantor uses to chant the prayers is hauntingly beautiful, but also vaguely ominous; the notion that the gates are poised to swing shut—and our chances to have our initial inscription in God’s great Book of Life upgraded through some combination of repentance, prayer, and pledges of charity thus dwindling by the minute—creates a unique blend of resignation and (despite all we know of ourselves) hope that all who have experienced Neilah in a traditional setting will recognize easily. It’s a remarkable moment.

And, for the last few years, an effort has been made to hold public prayers services in Tel Aviv, the heart of secular Israel, in an attempt to reach out to Jews who would otherwise not experience any aspect of Yom Kippur as a day devoted to prayer and introspection. The service the previous evening—the Kol Nidre service—went well enough, but there were those present who strongly objected to the insistence of the prayer service’s organizers, a group called Rosh Yehudi (“A Jewish Head”) headed by one Israel Zeira, to separate men and women during the service. Gender segregation is a big deal in today’s Israel, a kind of a flashpoint between secular and Orthodox-religious Israelis. It's not only a matter of synagogue seating either—the issue has to do with mixed-gender seating on buses and trains, on mixed-gender classes in public schools, and in public swimming pools maintaining “men only” and “women only” hours alongside the “regular” schedule that invites men and women to use the pool simultaneously. So this is a big deal in Israel and, as such, a much touchier issue than it is in our country.

Erev Yom Kippur went more or less as planned. But the following evening, both sides of the dispute dug their heels in. Suddenly, there was an actual barrier separating men and women, albeit a flimsy one that was really just a wall of plastic Israeli flags. But that was just as provocative as the Rosh Yehudi people should surely have known it was going to be. And so, when secular Tel Aviv arrived in Dizengoff Square with their own agenda and their own strong, angry, hostile words to add to the mix, things did not end at all well.

To refer to what ensued as a riot (as I noted in several on-line sources) is probably an exaggeration. But what happened was a travesty nonetheless and, at that, one that could and should have been avoided.

The good news is that large numbers of secular Israelis, most of who would not think of spending Yom Kippur in a synagogue, have been drawn to these public prayer services since their inception in 2020. That yearning for spiritual fulfillment I have noticed in Israel over the years in many different contexts—and to such a great extent that even the traditional division of Israelis into secular ones and religious ones has seemed less meaningful to me in recent years. So the idea itself of organizing public prayer for shul­-averse citizens is not only rational but, in my opinion, laudable. But by insisting on gender segregation during prayer—given the status of that specific matter as a hot-button issue across Israeli society in recent years—was almost to doom the effort to failure even before it got off the ground.

On the other hand, the secular types who came to the service with their dukes up, spoiling for a fight and prepared to use the most vile, insulting, and vituperative language—those people have a lot to learn about what Yom Kippur means and should mean. A day devoted to prayer, to repentance, and to making peace where peace needs to be made was sullied by extremists more eager to make their own point than to reconcile with people who feel differently than they do. And that was a true travesty and a disgrace.

It's easy to make peace with people with whom you disagree slightly, significantly less so when the parties involved are at loggerheads on foundational issues relating to culture, societal norms, and a nation’s basic ethos. But that is how peace is made in a society divided against itself—by listening carefully to the good on the other side and by finding a way to be flexible emotionally and politically without being untrue to yourself.

The secular types who were outraged by the idea of gender segregation in a public spot needed to get a grip on themselves: this wasn’t an instance of women being denied the vote or made to wear chadors in public, and neither was it an instance of women being told to go home or not to participate or not to say their prayers at all. Yes, it was a bit ham-fisted (if you can say such a thing about religious Jews on Yom Kippur), but it was also a way to draw in Jews used to the idea of separate seating during worship and so to make such people feel comfortable and welcome. And that seems to me to be the more crucial issue here.

The Rosh Yehudi organizers and their follows who couldn’t imagine a Neilah service that didn’t involve gender segregation needed to get a grip on themselves too. Dizengoff Square is not a synagogue. The whole idea of public prayer is that the prayer service be welcoming to the public, a goal at total cross-purposes with an insistence on flouting the laws regarding gender separation. The idea of creating an opportunity for secular Israelis to feel drawn to tradition through the medium of public prayer is a noble one, a good one. But if someone is drowning in the sea, you can only do good by throwing a life preserver into the water where the person in trouble is, not where you yourself are! To involve secular Israelis in prayer means to create a setting in which such people are comfortable and at their ease, in which they are predisposed to let the words of the liturgy enter their hearts and move them, possibly even to awaken some kind of dormant faith in them. And if that requires abandoning some norms that would prevail automatically in a room in which everyone present self-defines as an Orthodox Jew, then that’s what’s required. The Rosh Yehudi people, as far as I can see, wished to do good. But they wished only to do it on their own terms. And that is, generally speaking, not how good is really ever done.

So that was last week. This week, Israel is covered with sukkot both in public places and on people’s roofs and balconies, and in the courtyards and gardens of apartment houses. Those sukkot  represent the great sukkah of peace for which we pray daily in our evening prayers. And this year those sukkot should be suggestive to all of the great lesson of Sukkot: that the medium in which spiritual progress—both on the individual and the societal levels—is made is peace: peace between nations, peace between warring factions within society, and peace between individuals. Yom Kippur in Dizengoff Square was a disaster. But it could also serve as a wake-up call for a riven nation in need of healing on all fronts: politically, religiously, and societally. What is needed is compromise, the cultivation of intellects supple enough to respect others’ opinions, and the abandonment of the kind of cultural arrogance that cannot imagine an alternate opinion to one’s own being valid. Intransigency is not a virtue. Reaching out to others with respect and a willingness to compromise—those are the virtues that can save any society, no matter how divided against itself it might have grown.

[troybeecham]

Today, the Church commemorates the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple.

The Presentation of Jesus at (or in) the Temple is an early episode in the life of Jesus, describing his presentation at the Temple in Jerusalem in order to officially induct him into Judaism, that is celebrated by many Christian Churches on the holiday of Candlemas. It is described in the Gospel of Luke of the New Testament in the Christian Bible. Within the account, "Luke's narration of the Presentation in the Temple combines the purification rite with the Jewish ceremony of the redemption of the firstborn (Luke 2:23–24)."

In the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Presentation of Jesus at the temple is celebrated as one of the twelve Great Feasts, and is sometimes called Hypapante (Ὑπαπαντή, = "Meeting" in Greek). In Western Christianity, the additional name for the Service the day, Candlemas, is added. This Feast-day is also known as the Feast of the Purification of the Virgin or the Meeting of the Lord. In some liturgical churches, Vespers (or Compline) on the Feast of the Presentation marks the end of the Epiphany season. In the Church of England, the Mother Church of the Anglican Communion, the Presentation of Christ in the Temple is a Principal Feast celebrated either on 2 February or on the Sunday between 28 January and 3 February. In the Catholic Church, especially since the time of Pope Gelasius I (492-496) who in the fifth century contributed to its expansion, the Presentation is celebrated on 2 February and is the fourth Joyful Mystery of the Rosary.

The event is described in the Gospel of Luke (Luke 2:22–40). According to the gospel, Mary and Joseph took the Infant Jesus to the Temple in Jerusalem forty days (inclusive) after his birth to complete Mary's ritual purification after childbirth, and to perform the redemption of the firstborn son, in obedience to the Torah (Leviticus 12, Exodus 13:12–15, etc.). Luke explicitly says that Joseph and Mary take the option provided for poor people (those who could not afford a lamb; Leviticus 12:8), sacrificing "a pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons." Leviticus 12:1–4 indicates that this event should take place forty days after birth for a male child, hence the Presentation is celebrated forty days after Christmas.

Upon bringing Jesus into the temple, they encountered Simeon. The Gospel records that Simeon had been promised that "he should not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ" (Luke 2:26). Simeon then uttered the prayer that would become known as the Nunc Dimittis, or Canticle of Simeon, which prophesied the redemption of the world by Jesus:

“Lord, now let your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.” (Luke 2:29–32).

Simeon then prophesied to Mary: "Behold, this child is set for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is spoken against (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), that thoughts out of many hearts may be revealed. (Luke 2:34–35).

The elderly prophetess Anna was also in the Temple, and offered prayers and praise to God for Jesus, and spoke to everyone there of His importance to redemption in Jerusalem (Luke 2:36–38).

Almighty and everliving God, we humbly pray that, as your only-begotten Son was this day presented in the temple, so we may be presented to you with pure and clean hearts by Jesus Christ our Lord; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

Amen.

[hieromonkcharbel]

Joyful Sorrow - Compunction and the Gift of Tears in the Philokalia:

“Blessed are they that mourn,” our Lord said in the second Beatitude. But mourn, weep, for what? Life certainly is filled with its sorrows and losses and often we may be moved to tears. Yet, how are we to understand our Lord’s teaching and the blessing that comes to those who weep?

This is a question that the Fathers of the Philokalia often asked and through them we discover that such mourning is a spiritual gift and the fruit of true repentance. In the Christian East, the Greek word for such sorrow is Penthos. While there is no English equivalent for the word, we can define it as “joyful sorrow”: a sorrow that arises from a broken and contrite heart, an inner sorrow for the sins that one has committed. However, such tears of compunction, the Fathers tell us, lead to a true and abiding joy. “‘Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning,’ says the psalmist. ‘These tears,’ writes St. John Chrysostom, ‘do not bring sorrow; they bring more joy than all the laughter of the world can gain for you.’ ‘Those who sow in tears shall reap with joyful shouting,’ says the psalmist (126:5). Archim. Sophrony writes, ‘Stemming originally from bitter repentance, weeping develops into tears of rapture with Divine love. And this is a sign that our prayer is heard and through its action we are led into new imperishable life’” (Coniaris, “Philokalia: Bible of Orthodox Spirituality”, 175).

Such tears of compunction are a gift of God, the fruit of baptismal grace and the renewal of our baptism. St. John Climacus wrote: “God in His love for mankind gave us tears. . . If God in His mercy had not granted to men this second baptism, then few indeed would be saved. . . When our soul departs from this life, we shall not be accused because we have not worked miracles . . .but we shall all certainly have to account to God because we have not wept unceasingly for our sins.”

This view of the importance of tears may seem paradoxical, scandalous or simply unnecessary to many in our day. Yet, such tears are merely the fruit of the grace already acquired in baptism and have been described as “the infallible sign that the heart has been overwhelmed by the love of God . . . These charismatic tears, which are the consummation of repentance are at the same time the first fruits of infinite joy: ‘Blessed are ye that weep now: for ye shall laugh.’ Tears purify our nature, for repentance is not merely our effort, our anguish, but it is also the resplendent gift of the Holy Spirit, penetrating and transforming our hearts” (Ibid., 173).

Obsessive guilt or scrupulosity only leads to hopelessness and despair, but true compunction and the cleansing tears that accompany it are a true gift of God meant to lead us back to Him and the embrace of His love. Indeed it has been described as the most precious thing on earth:

“There is an old legend according to which God said to one of His angels: ‘Go down to earth and bring back the most precious thing in the world.’ One angel brought a drop of blood back from a person who had sacrificed his life to save another: God said, ‘Indeed, O Angel, this is precious in my sight, but it is not the most precious thing in the world.’ Another angel caught the last breath of a nurse who died from a dread disease she contracted in nursing others to health. God smiled at the angel and said, “Indeed, O Angel, sacrifice in behalf of others is very precious in my sight, but it is not the most precious thing in the world.’ Finally one angel captured and brought a small vial containing the tear of a sinner who had repented and returned to God. God beamed upon the angel as He said: “Indeed, O Angel, you have brought me the most precious thing in the world - the tear of repentance which opens the gates in heaven.”

Such is what we hear from the Our Lord Himself when he taught, “there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need of repentance.” God secretly brings joy and consolation to those who in their heart of hearts are repentant and weep for their sins and all of heaven itself rejoices over the return of even one who was lost.

[orthodoxadventure]

2nd Saturday of Great Lent: Memorial Saturday

Commemorated on March 30

Only Creator, with wisdom profound, You mercifully order all things, and give that which is needed to all men: Give rest, O Lord, to the souls of Your servants who have fallen asleep, for they have placed their trust in You, our Maker and Fashioner, and our God.

Saturday is the day which the Church has set aside for the commemoration of faithful Orthodox Christians departed this life in the hope of resurrection to eternal life. Since the Divine Liturgy cannot be served on weekdays during Great Lent, the second, third, and fourth Saturdays of the Fast are appointed as Soul Saturdays when the departed are remembered at Liturgy.

In addition to the Liturgy, kollyva (wheat or rice cooked with honey and mixed with raisins, figs, nuts, sesame, etc.) is blessed in church on these Saturdays. The kollyva reminds us of the Lord’s words, “Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit” (John 12:24).The kollyva symbolizes the future resurrection of all the dead. As Saint Simeon of Thessalonica (September 15) says, man is also a seed which is planted in the ground after death, and will be raised up again by God’s power. Saint Paul also speaks of this (I Cor. 15:35-49).

It is customary to give alms in memory of the dead in addition to the prayers we offer for their souls. The angel who spoke to Cornelius testifies to the efficacy of almsgiving, “Your prayers and your alms have ascended as a memorial before God” (Acts 10:4).

Memorial services for the dead may be traced back to ancient times. Chapter 8 of the Apostolic Constitutions recommends memorial services with Psalms for the dead. It also contains a beautiful prayer for the departed, asking that their voluntary and involuntary sins be pardoned, that they be given rest with the Patriarchs, Prophets, and Apostles in a place where sorrow, suffering, and sighing have fled away (Isaiah 35:10). Saint John Chrysostom mentions the service for the dead in one of his homilies on Philippians, and says that it was established by the Apostles. Saint Cyprian of Carthage (Letter 37) also speaks of our duty to remember the martyrs.

The holy Fathers also testify to the benefit of offering prayers, memorial services, Liturgies, and alms for the dead (Saint John Chrysostom, Saint Cyril of Jerusalem, Saint John of Damascus, etc.). Although both the righteous and those who have not repented and corrected themselves may receive benefit and consolation from the Church’s prayer, it has not been revealed to what extent the unrighteous can receive this solace. It is not possible, however, for the Church’s prayer to transfer a soul from a state of evil and condemnation to a state of holiness and blessedness. Saint Basil the Great points out that the time for repentance and forgiveness of sins is during the present life, while the future life is a time for righteous judgment and retribution (Moralia 1). Saint John Chrysostom, Saint Gregory the Theologian, and other patristic writers concur with Saint Basil’s statement.

By praying for others, we bring benefit to them, and also to ourselves, because “God is not so unjust as to forget your work and the love which you showed for His sake in serving the saints...” (Heb. 6:10).

[Text from OCA]

With the saints give rest, O Christ, to the souls of Your servants, where there is neither sickness nor sorrow, and no more sighing, but life everlasting.

[orthodoxydaily]

Saints&Reading: Tuesday, May 30, 2023

may 30_may 17

VENERABLE  EVPHROSYNIA ( EUDOCIA) PRINCESS OF MOSCOW  (1407)

Today the Orthodox Church commemorates the tonsure of Saint Euphrosynē of Moscow on May 17,1407.

After the death of her husband, Saint Demetrios of the Don (May 19) from the wounds he received at the Battle of Kulikovo, the Holy Princess Eudokia refrained from participating directly in the affairs of state; but on her advice, the wonderworking Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos was transferred from Vladimir to Moscow (August 26, 1395) because of the invasion of Khan Tamerlane. Soon afterward, she established a Convent in the palace, dedicating it to the Lord's Ascension.

Though inclined toward the monastic Life, she did not become a nun at that time since her sons were very young, and instead, she acted as regent. She dressed in royal splendor, attended banquets, and participated in councils. Beneath her expensive clothing, she wore iron chains, concealing her ascetic labors and acts of charity from those around her.

Shortly before her death, an Angel appeared to her and informed her that her earthly life would end soon. Then she became mute. By signs and gestures, she made it known that she wished to have an icon of the Angel painted. When it was finished, Eudokia venerated it, and asked for another one to be painted. Only after the icons of the Archangel Michael were completed did she recognize the Angel who had appeared to her, and then she regained her voice.

The Saint wished to be tonsured to spend her final days in seclusion and prayer. At that time, she appeared to a blind man in a dream and promised to heal him.

On May 17, 1407, Princess Eudokia was on her way to the Convent, and the blind man was sitting by the roadside. Hearing her approach, he shouted: "Holy Great Princess, feeder of the poor! You always gave us food and clothing and never refused our requests! Do not disregard my petition now; heal me of my blindness, as you promised in my dream! You told me, ‘Tomorrow I will give you sight.' Now the time has come for you to fulfill your promise."

She continued on her way, seeming not to understand his words, but as she passed by, she brushed him, as if by accident, with the sleeves of her cloak. The man pressed them to his eyes and regained his sight. According to Tradition, thirty people were healed of various illnesses on that day.

Princess Eudokia was tonsured with the name Euphrosynē, which means “joy” or "gladness" in Greek. Her tonsure took place in the wooden church of the Ascension at the Convent.

The Saint reposed seven weeks after entering the Convent, departing to the Lord at fifty-four on July 7, 1407. At her request, she was buried in the church she had started to build in the Kremlin, which was dedicated to the Ascension of Christ. Her wonderworking relics remained there until 1929.

She had been buried under the church floor with a cover over the grave. In 1922, after the Revolution, this cover was stolen by the Soviets, while Saint Euphrosynē's relics remained in the grave under the floor. In 1929, the government decided to destroy the Ascension Convent. Thanks to the efforts of museum workers, her relics were saved along with the remains of other royal personages interred there. Her relics, however, have yet to be identified and separated from the others. The remains were interred in the Cathedral of the Archangel.

In 2006, the construction of a church dedicated to Saint Euphrosynē began in Moscow. It is located on the site of Great Prince Demetrios's palace. When it is completed, there are plans to tranfer her relics to this church.

Saint Euphrosynē is commemorated on July 7, the day of her blessed repose.

Source: Orthodox Church in America

ACTS 21:26-32

26 Then Paul took the men, and the next day, having been purified with them, entered the temple to announce the expiration of the days of purification, at which time an offering should be made for each one. 27 Now, when the seven days were almost ended, the Jews from Asia, seeing him in the temple, stirred up the crowd and laid hands on him, 28 crying out, "Men of Israel, help! This man teaches all men everywhere against the people, the law, and this place; he also brought Greeks into the temple and defiled this holy place." 29 (They had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian with him in the city, whom they supposed Paul had brought into the temple.) 30 And all the city was disturbed; and the people ran together, seized Paul, and dragged him out of the temple; and immediately the doors were shut. 31 as they sought to kill him, news came to the garrison's commander that Jerusalem was in an uproar. 32 He immediately took soldiers and centurions and ran down to them. And when they saw the commander and the soldiers, they stopped beating Paul.

JOHN 16:2-13

2 They will put you out of the synagogues; yes, the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers God service. 3 And they will do these things to you because they have not known the Father nor Me. 4 But I have told you that when the time comes, you may remember that I told you of them. And these things I did not say to you at the beginning because I was with you. 5, But now I go away to Him who sent Me, and none of you asks Me, 'Where are You going?' 6, But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart. 7 Nevertheless, I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you. 8 And when He has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: 9 of sin because they do not believe in Me; 10 of justice, because I go to My Father and you see Me no more; 11 of judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged. 12 I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13 However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak, and He will tell you things to come.

[onwesterlywinds]

PROMPT #15: Row

Not for the first time, Ingvald stood among his fellow Ala Mhigans without any recognition of their customs. Other Resistance soldiers had placed candles, trinkets or other tokens alongside the row of graves. Some spoke comforting words, recited old prayers or poems, but he recognized none of them. He merely stood near the back of the cavernous sepulchre, watching his would-be compatriots profess their grief in ways that were as foreign to him as if the service were being conducted as an Ishgardian Orthodox mass.

He had never attended a funeral before. The Kingsguard had more or less done away with them by the time he had joined their ranks, and he had rarely cared to attend Garlean ceremonies of grieving. Wilhelm's misdeeds had ensured that they were both far away at the time of their parents' burial.

And yet he nonetheless remembered the last time, so many years ago now, when Rhalgr's Reach had been put to the torch.

He reached to take Orella's hand in his. At first she made to swat him away, until she presumably recognized his intentions; without so much as a glance toward him, she accepted the contact and gave his fingers a single firm, comforting squeeze. Then she departed just as abruptly, cutting a direct path through the crowd of mourners to reach the open air.

Nothing remained for Ingvald there - certainly not the deceased. And so he followed Orella outside and emerged beneath a blanket of thunderheads, where he felt some gratitude that the sky could give voice to some small fraction of his helplessness.

[zarya-zaryanitsa]

Hello,

I am Polish/Ukrainian (but my family lives in Australia). My Bubcia died this morning, and I unfortunately hadn't spoken to her for 5 years.

I've never done any kind Ancestral veneration before, and I know you have a lot of materials on that, but i was wondering if there's anything important/special that I can do, given the proximity to death? (Time wise).

Like, is there anything that is 'better' to do close to the death of a person, or does time not really matter.

Thank you for you time and assistance with this

Hello!

My deepest condolences to you and your family.

Being Polish, and raised by devoted Catholics I will only focus on describing my Polish, Catholic point of view though all my Ukrainian mutuals are welcome to join in and provide Ukrainian and Orthodox perspective. 

There are certainly some funerary traditions that are performed closer to the time of passing. Although funerary customs are losing significance in recent times many elderly Poles still may undertake preprations to ease their passing such as the sacrament of Anointing of the Sick or having a candle lit by their side to guide them on their way (gromnica would be a good choice but I’m pretty sure any blessed candle is fine). On the other hand the family of recently departed is also expected to help through prayers designed for this occasion. Neither side of my family ever talked about the Purgatory but both seem to believe that prayers for the dead do help them in some way and improve the quality of their afterlife so I keep saying them. Our standard Prayer Package for the Departed consists of Ojcze nasz (Our Father), Zdrowaś Mario (Ave Maria), Aniele Boży (Angel of God, but I like Polish version better than English or Latin because there’s bigger focus on leading the soul to the afterlife in the last words) and three Wieczne Odpoczywanie (Requiem Aeternam). Of course there are also very specific prayers meant for the day of death or the day of funeral which you may seek out if it’s something that you think your grandmother would enjoy. (This is probably a good moment to disclaim that only about 5% of funerals in Poland is secular.)

Before the funeral some time is usually left for people to say their last goodbyes. It can be as short as an hour or as long as a day. In the past the goodbyes would happen at home but now they mostly occur in special rooms in the churches or in funerary homes. Either way it is believed that the departed is aware of your goodbye and many people choose to kiss the departed on the forehead or the hand to make sure they feel loved. In the past people tended to believe the soul stays around for some time after death (this belief is still fairly strong in some Orthodox communities) and sometimes you can still see people who stop their clocks, cover their mirrors and open their windows when a loved one dies so that their soul can depart in peace (although this is usually only done in the house in which the departed lived). After the funeral the family and guests attend stypa hosted either at home or in a restaurant, during which they look back at their time with the deceased. Some families may donate money to the church to have a mass dedicated to the memory of their departed relative. This could happen shortly after the funeral or to celebrate it’s anniversary. This idea is quite popular with many elderly Poles.

Bottom line — remember to say your goodbyes, they will be heard. Furthermore I think lighting a candle to guide the soul of the deceased and organizing a commemorative meal with your family and/or friends would be fairly universally acceptable way to say goodbye and honor your grandmother’s departure. If she was religious I would also strongly advise saying some prayers appropriate to her religious denomination. 

I wish you best of luck!

[eli-kittim]

Should Our Prayers Be Offered to Jesus or to the Saints?

By Author Eli Kittim

The Communion of Saints

Intercession of the saints plays a crucial role in the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Oriental Orthodox churches. This practice is derived from the Catholic creed of the Communion of saints. The said doctrine holds that dead saints pass instantly into the divine presence and therefore have a sort of fiduciary power in helping others to procure favors and blessings. This is not unlike Shinto, a Japanese religion that incorporates the worship of ancestors. In fact, the Christian patron saints that act as intermediaries between God and humans, interceding for trade, agriculture, health, and so on, are reminiscent of the Greek pantheon of demigods (The Twelve Olympians) in which each deity was responsible for a particular aspect of life. In this sense, the church adopted a form of pagan polytheism. The specific dedications and remembrances of saints in the Catholic, and especially in the Orthodox, churches have been highly developed to such an extent that the entire liturgical year is devoted to and structured around the so-called calendar of saints, in which each day pays homage to a particular saint(s) (i.e. feast day). Not to mention the ancient preoccupation with saints' relics and the lucrative pilgrimages that have been designed for such worship.

Do the Saints in Heaven Pray for the People on Earth?

Much to our dismay, saints in heaven don’t pray on behalf of earthlings. Rather, these martyrs pray for God to avenge their blood (Rev. 6.9-10 NRSV):

When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under

the altar the souls of those who had been

slaughtered for the word of God and for the

testimony they had given; they cried out

with a loud voice, ‘Sovereign

Lord, holy and true, how long will it be

before you judge and avenge our blood on

the inhabitants of the earth?’

Similarly, “the prayers of the saints” in Rev. 5.8-10 are solely directed to Jesus, praising him for his extraordinary feats. They’re not about helping John Doe, back on earth, with his financial woes, or Jane Doe with her marital breakdown. Rev. 5.8-10 reads:

When he had taken the scroll, the four living

creatures and the twenty-four elders fell

before the Lamb, each holding a harp and

golden bowls full of incense, which are the

prayers of the saints. They sing a new song:

‘You are worthy to take the scroll and to

open its seals, for you were slaughtered and

by your blood you ransomed for God saints

from every tribe and language and people

and nation; you have made them to be a

kingdom and priests serving our God, and

they will reign on earth.’

Incidentally, the so-called “saints” in Rev. 5.8 are not an elite, hierarchical class of people worthy of worship. That’s a misnomer. On the contrary, all who are *born-again* in Christ are called “saints” (cf. Rom. 1.7). Remember, not even angels are allowed to be worshipped in God’s kingdom (see Rev. 19.10), let alone departed spirits.

Is Praying to Saints Biblical?

Over against the intercessory prayer of saints is Deut. 18.11 which explicitly forbids those who consult the dead (cf. Isa. 8.19). That’s precisely why, in the parable of the Rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19–31), the rich man’s intercessory-prayer request is denied!

Sometimes Catholic and Orthodox writers will point to Old Testament accounts in which patriarchs or prophets enlisted the help of an angel (e.g. Gen. 48.16; Zech. 1.8-11). But they fail to mention that the said angel is typically associated with the angel of the Lord, which is traditionally viewed by Christian commentators as the Pre-Incarnate Son (cf. Gen. 16.7; Exod. 33.14; Jer. 1.4). Furthermore, conversing with an angel is not the same as praying to an angel. Yet in defense of intercessory prayer of heavenly beings, Catholic writers often point to the Annunciation as a case in point. But again, Mary’s conversation with Gabriel does not involve an intercessory prayer request, nor an act of prostration or worship.

The Catholic commentariat has also presented several examples from the New Testament to make their point. For instance, they cite Rev. 8.3, namely, the prayers of the saints that rise up before God. However, the context of this eschatological verse is God’s wrath that is poured out upon the earth, not an answer to our prayers (Rev. 8.3-5):

Another angel with a golden censer came

and stood at the altar; he was given a great

quantity of incense to offer with the prayers

of all the saints on the golden altar that is

before the throne. And the smoke of the

incense, with the prayers of the saints, rose

before God from the hand of the angel.

Then the angel took the censer and filled it

with fire from the altar and threw it on the

earth; and there were peals of thunder,

rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an

earthquake.

Human Intercession versus Intercession of saints

The fact that there is a body of Christ (“a cloud of witnesses” Heb. 12.1) is not an invitation or a request to worship them. Catholic scholars have confused the issue even further. They cite various instances in the New Testament in which Paul commands Christians to pray for him (e.g. 2 Cor. 1.11). Or they’ll cite the example of Timothy who commands Christians to pray for one another (1 Tim. 2.1). However, praying “FOR” someone and praying “TO” someone are two completely different things. To pray “for” (or on behalf of) a living person is one thing. To pray “to” a dead person is quite another. In the first case, you’re simply praying *for* the living (human intercession) and asking God to help them in their time of need. However, praying *to* a deceased saint for help is a different matter altogether. Now, you are praying not to God but *to* a dead saint (Intercession of Saints) to help a living human being. As a result, the saints have gained so much power that they have become intercessors between heaven and earth. It’s true that Paul and Timothy instructed Christians to pray for the betterment of others. But that’s not the same as praying to dead saints for help, grace, and blessings.

Although Protestant denominations accept human intercessory prayer for the living (cf. Rom. 15.30), they deny the intercession of the dead on behalf of the living. Similarly, Reformed theologians acknowledge that the “communion of saints" comprise all who are in Christ, including the departed. Nevertheless, in their view, invocations of the departed spirits of saints constitute a transgression of the First Commandment (see Deut. 5.7): “You shall have no other gods before me.”

On the Importance of Developing a Personal Relationship with Christ

The Catholic and Orthodox mindset is that God is not in competition with his creation (Robert Barron), and that although Christ is humanity’s mediator via the cross (1 Tim. 2.5), he’s not necessarily accessible as our 24-7 prayer advocate on a minute-by-minute basis. He has partners and associates that work under him, much like a high-end law firm in New York. But the so-called “managing partner” (i.e. Law firm CEO) at the top is usually inaccessible. Hence the need for the intercessory prayers. They argue that turning to the saints for help is not in competition with Jesus Christ since God has many partners and friends and is the ultimate source of all living things.

But this represents a distortion of Biblical revelation. The multiple attestations of the New Testament are all about Jesus. They feature Jesus as the leading figure, who is the hero of the story, and without whom we cannot be saved. It is the story of the creator who enters creation. He is the one “through whom he [God] also created the worlds” (Heb. 1.2). John’s gospel attests of his divinity: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (1.1). Paul declares: “For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily” (Col. 2.9). And without the shedding of his blood there can be no New Testament, much less a church (cf. Heb. 9.17, 22). Phil. 2.10-11 concludes:

so that at the name of Jesus every knee

should bend, in heaven and on earth and

under the earth, and every tongue should

confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the

glory of God the Father.

In Mt. 28.18, the Matthean Jesus exclaims:

All authority in heaven and on

earth has been given to me.

In Rev 1.8, Jesus is equated with God Almighty:

‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’

says the Lord God, who is and

who was and who is to come,

the Almighty.

In Isaiah chapter 42 verse 8, God says:

I am the Lord, that is my name; my glory I

give to no other, nor my praise to idols.

With Jesus’ extraordinary credentials and qualifications, why should we consult the spirits of dead men? The point is that Jesus is everything to regenerated Christians. He’s constantly on their mind. Born-again Christians are madly in love because of what Jesus has done for them, namely, he has made them *fully alive,* while their cup is running over with love, peace of mind, and perpetual bliss! Hence, there’s a fire of love for Jesus that burns inside every born-again-Christian’s heart. So, your focus should not be diluted on secondary figures and causes. Rather, your attention must be concentrated on Christ alone, if you are to “be transformed by the renewing of your minds” (Rom. 12.2). That’s because there is only *one* mediator (not two or three) between God and humanity——“the man Christ Jesus” (1 Tim. 2.5). Therefore, when religion tries to seduce you into chasing after idols, you must run the other way.

Is the Intercession of the Saints Blasphemy?

Dr. Edward Sri——theologian, author, and prominent Catholic speaker who appears regularly on EWTN——wrote a paper entitled, “What Does the Bible Say about Praying to Saints?” The article concludes as follows:

How to Grow in Fellowship with the Saints 

1. Pick a few saints that you want to get to know. 

2. Read their writings and learn about their lives. Fill your mind with their stories and their example. 

3. Talk to those saints, every day. Share your weaknesses with them and ask them to walk with you in your difficult times. Don’t just ask them to pray for you…invite them to be with you in every part of your life.

This borders on blasphemy. The point of Sri’s exhortation is that instead of developing a personal relationship with Jesus, we are encouraged to develop an intimate relationship with a beloved saint of our choosing. In other words, the aforesaid article is strongly urging people to devote themselves to someone other than Christ (in fact, a departed spirit) and to focus all their energies on the said saint. It is a clever, if not demonic, deception to remove our focus away from Christ under cloak of religion (2 Cor. 11.14):

And no wonder! Even Satan disguises

himself as an angel of light.

——-