At that time, Jesus entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold, saying to them, "It is written, 'My house shall be a house of prayer'; but you have made it a den of robbers." And he was teaching daily in the temple. The chief priests and the scribes and the principal men of the people sought to destroy him; but they did not find anything they could do, for all the people hung upon his words.
Josephus briefly recounts an episode where, in the 12th year of the reign of Nero, during the outbreak of the First Jewish-Roman War, Bernice (the sister of King Agrippa II) had put herself under a Nazirite vow and had come to Jerusalem thirty days before she was to offer her sacrifices, Wikipedia
Did Mary take such an oath?
Orthodox Christianity Then and Now
Orthodox Christianity Then and Now
Orthodox Christianity Then and Now
Orthodox Christianity Then and Now
Orthodox Christianity Then and Now
ST. PAUL'S FIRST LETTER TO THE THESSALONIANS 1:6-10
Brethren, you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with joy inspired by the Holy Spirit; so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. For not only has the word of the Lord sounded forth from you in Macedonia and Achaia, but your faith in God has gone forth everywhere, so that we need not say anything. For they themselves report concerning us what a welcome we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols, to serve a living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.
At that time, a great crowd followed Jesus and thronged about him. And there was a woman who had had a flow of blood for twelve years, and who had suffered much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was no better but rather grew worse. She had heard the reports about Jesus, and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his garment. For she said, "If I touch even his garments, I shall be made well." And immediately the hemorrhage ceased; and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. And Jesus, perceiving in himself that power had gone forth from him, immediately turned about in the crowd, and said, "Who touched my garments?" And his disciples said to him, "You see the crowd pressing around you, and yet you say, 'Who touched me?'" And he looked around to see who had done it. But the woman, knowing what had been done to her, came in fear and trembling and fell down before him, and told him the whole truth. And he said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease."
Glory to you, hidden Son of God, because your healing power is proclaimed through the hidden suffering of the afflicted woman. Through this woman whom they could see, the witnesses were enabled to behold the divinity that cannot be seen. Through the Son’s own healing power his divinity became known. Through the afflicted woman’s being healed her faith was made manifest. She caused him to be proclaimed, and indeed was honored with him. For truth was being proclaimed together with its heralds. If she was a witness to his divinity, he in turn was a witness to her faith…. He saw through to her hidden faith, and gave her a visible healing. Commentary on Tatian’s Diatessaron.
No seas were ever so troubled by the ebb and flow of the tide, as the mind of this woman, pulled to and fro by the sway of her thoughts. After all the hopeless strivings of physicians, after all her outlay on useless remedies, after all the usual but useless treatment, when skill and experience had so long failed, all her substance was gone. This was not by chance, but divinely ordered, that she might be healed solely through faith and humility, whom human knowledge had failed through so many years. At a little distance apart from him stood this woman, whom nature had filled with modesty, whom the law had declared unclean, saying of her: She shall be unclean and shall touch no holy thing. She fears to touch, lest she incur the anger of the religious leaders, or the condemnation of the law. For fear of being talked about, she dares not speak, lest she embarrass those about her, lest she offend their ears. Through many years her body has been an arena of suffering. Everyday, unceasing pain she can endure no more. The Lord is passing by so quickly. The time is short to think what she must do, aware that healing is not given to the silent, nor to the one who hides her pain. In the midst of her conflicting thoughts, she sees a way, her sole way of salvation. She would secure her healing by stealth, take in silence what she dares not ask for, guarding her respect and modesty. She who feels unworthy in body, draws near in heart to the physician. In faith she touches God. With her hand she touches his garment, knowing that both healing and forgiveness may be bestowed on this stratagem, undertaken due to the demands of modesty, and not as she otherwise would have preferred. She knew the gain she sought by stealth would cause no loss to him from whom she took it…. In an instant, faith cures where human skill had failed through twelve years
ST. PAUL'S LETTER TO THE GALATIANS 3:23-29; 4:1-5
Brethren, before faith came, we were confined under the law, kept under restraint until faith should be revealed. So that the law was our custodian until Christ came, that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a custodian; for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise. I mean that the heir, as long as he is a child, is no better than a slave, though he is the owner of all the estate; but he is under guardians and trustees until the date set by the father. So with us; when we were children, we were slaves to the elemental spirits of the universe. But when the time had fully come, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption.
It is by adoption that we become sons of God. This is all about theosis. This passage is very well covered in this podcast.
Our father among the saints Clement of Rome (also called Clemens Romanus to distinguish him from Clement of Alexandria) was the third in succession after the Apostle Peter as bishop of Rome. Clement is known mainly for the letter he wrote to the Corinthians in about AD 96. He is counted among the apostolic fathers.
The letter sent in about the year 96 to the Church of Corinth in the name of the Church of Rome has been attributed to Clement. The letter was sent in an attempt to restore peace and unity in the Corinthian church, where apparently a few violent people had revolted against the leadership of the church community. OrthodoxWiki Page
Pope Peter I of Alexandria (Greek: Πέτρος Α΄ Αλεξανδρείας, Coptic: Ⲡⲁⲡⲁ Ⲁⲃⲃⲁ ⲡⲉⲧⲣⲟⲥ ⲁ̅, ⲡⲓⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ ⲡⲉⲧⲣⲟⲥ ⲓⲉⲣⲟⲙⲁⲣⲧⲩⲣⲟⲥ ⲡⲓⲁⲣⲭⲏⲉⲣⲉⲩⲥ[1]) was the 17th Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria from 302 to 311. He is revered as a saint by the Coptic Orthodox Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, and the Catholic Church. Wikipedia page
Georgiy Yefremovich Dolganyov was a prominent Russian Orthodox religious figure, a monarchist and anti-communist, who supported the Union of the Russian People and Black Hundreds. In 1917, he was appointed as Hermogenes, Bishop of Tobolsk and Siberia. In April 1918, he was arrested by Bolsheviks and drowned in the Tura River. Wikipedia page
Othodox Christianity Then and Now
There are some apologists for the faith who have great content but fail the test of a real apologist.
2 Timothy 2:25-26 In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth; And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.
In our enthusiasm to share the truth of Christ and His Body, the Church, may we keep Hs Spirit at the top of our mind and act as He acts. It's as important how we say something as what we say.
LUKE 18:18-27 At that time, a ruler came to Jesus and asked him, "Good Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" And Jesus said to him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. You know the commandments: 'Do not commit adultery, Do not kill, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Honor your father and mother.' " And he said, "All these I have observed from my youth." And when Jesus heard it, he said to him, "One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and distribute it to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me." But when he heard this he became sad, for he was very rich. Jesus looking at him said, "How hard it is for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God! For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." Those who heard it said, "Then who can be saved?" But he said, "What is impossible with men is possible with God.
For He speaks of avoiding of evil, not practicing of good. And any cessation from action is easier than any actual work. Our Lord next declares, that though a man has kept the old covenant, he is not perfect, since he lacks to follow Christ. You yet lack one thing, Sell all that you have As if He says, you ask how to possess eternal life; scatter your goods among the poor, and you shall obtain it. A little thing is that you spend, you receive great things.
The young man speaks false, for if he had fulfilled that which was afterwards placed among the commandments, You shall love your neighbor as yourself, how was it that when he heard, Go and sell all that you have, and give to the poor, he went away sorrowful?
ST. PAUL'S LETTER TO THE GALATIANS 6:11-18 Brethren, see with what large letters I am writing to you with my own hand. It is those who want to make a good showing in the flesh that would compel you to be circumcised, and only in order that they may not be persecuted for the cross of Christ. For even those who receive circumcision do not themselves keep the law, but they desire to have you circumcised that they may glory in your flesh. But far be it from me to glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation. Peace and mercy be upon all who walk by this rule, upon the Israel of God. Henceforth let no man trouble me; for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brethren. Amen.
Gen 17:9-14 And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their generations. This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised. And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of the covenant betwixt me and you. And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every man child in your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any stranger, which is not of thy seed. He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised: and my covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant. And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my covenant.
Joshua 5:2-3 At that time the LORD said unto Joshua, Make thee sharp knives, and circumcise again the children of Israel the second time. And Joshua made him sharp knives, and circumcised the children of Israel at the hill of the foreskins.
Jeremiah 31:31 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:
Deuteronomy 30:6 And the LORD thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live.
1 Corinthians 10:16 The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?
Mathew 26:26-28 And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body. And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.
Heb 8:8-13 For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah: Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people: And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more. In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away.
Galatians 3:27 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
Romans 6:4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
1 Peter 3:21 The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ:
2 Corinthians 6:1 We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain.
Mark 16:20 And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with G4903 them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.
Romans 8:28 And we know that all things work together G4903 for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.
1 Corinthians 16:16 That ye submit yourselves unto such, and to every one that helpeth G4903 with us, and laboureth.
James 2:22 Seest thou how faith wrought G4903 with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?
2 Cor 5:1-10 For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven: If so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked. For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life. Now he that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit. Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord: (For we walk by faith, not by sight:) We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.
There are a great many things in this passage that are clearly revealed here more than in other places in Scripture. One of these is the state of the soul after death. We won't be some ethereal disembodied spirit, but we will receive our resurrection bodies. Our bodies will be raised from mortality to immortality.
The judgement of all men will happen. This judgment will be done based on what we did in the bodies we have now. This is a call to live in holiness and the fear of God in the here and now. The judgment will be final.
This life has pain and suffering but glimpses of the glory that is to be revealed. John adds further detail about that life to come.
1 John 3:2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
The Glory that Christ has with the Father will be ours on that day.
John 17:5 And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.
Paul referred to the same thing.
Romans 8:17 And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.
Romans 5:2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
Theosis is this - Christ in me, the hope of glory.
Colossans 1:27 To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:
This is not an incidental doctrine. It is the goal of our lives in Christ. It is what we push on towards.
Luke 10:19-20 Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you. Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven.
This is set when the "70 others also" returned to Jesus. They saw that even the demons were subject to them. Jesus saw the Devil fall from power "I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven." The kingdom of Satan was forever changed and weakened. His power over men was being taken down. Jesus left this authority with His Church.
The Greek word παραδόσεις (paradosis) is translated in various ways in the KJV and NIV Bibles. This obscures the fact that it's the same word in Greek G3862 in Strong's.
In this verse, it's translated as "ordinances" and is a command to keep the traditions that Paul himself delivered to the Church.
1 Cor 11:1-2 Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ. Now I praise you, brethren, that ye remember me in all things, and keep the ordinances, as I delivered them to you.
There are many examples where the word is translated as "tradition(s)" and used in a negative sense to separate the traditions of man from the traditions of God. For instance:
Matthew 15:3 But he answered and said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition?
In addition to 1 Cor 11 (see above) there are at least two other passages where Paul instructs the Church to follow the traditions he delivered to the Church.
2 Thes 2:15 Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions G3862 which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.
2 Thes 3:6 Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition G3862 which he received of us.
1 Cor 9:27 But I keep under my body and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.
2 Cor 13:5 Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?
This ascetic struggle is what the Church calls its members to perform.
John 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.
John 14:23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.
John 15:10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.
Amphilochius, Bishop of Iconium, Gregory, Bishop of Agrigentum, Dionysios, Patriarch of Constantinople, Ischyrion, Bishop of Egypt, Afterfeast of the Entry of the Theotokos into the Temple, Sisinios the Confessor
He lived about 340-394 AD. His biography can be found here. He is important for his presentation of Christ as having "two natures in one person". He was not an innovator in terms of substance, but used philosophical terms in a unique way that added to the ability to the Church to communicate the person of Christ.
He died circa 590 AD. His biography can be found here. He participated in the fifth Ecumenical Council. He spoke against the Monothelite heresy. Miracles of healing are attributed to him. He was charged with being with a prostitute which was proven later to be false charge but only shown to be so after many trials including prison.
His biography can be found here. Dionysius I (Greek: Διονύσιος; died 1492) was Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople two times, from 1466 to 1471 and from 1488 to 1490. He was a pupil of Mark, Archbishop of Ephesus, who ordained him as priest.
It's really the beauty of the Seven Ecumenical Councils. They took the Fathers and the Scriptures and reached the conclusions we have today in the Church. The Trinity, the Deity of Christ, the selection of the canon, rejection of iconoclasts, and many others. It was all based on the pattern from the first council in Acts 15 where the church gathered and considered the matter of how Gentils should be received and how they should behave. The leaders of the church decided the matter and the laity agreed. The Church kept that pattern believing it was God's way of determining truth between varying Fathers.
Jesus promised the Spirit to guide His Church into all truth.
The Protestants pick and choose from among these councils the things they agree with and the things they disagree with.
Matthew and Mark have the same names, in a different order to each other, and with some different details.
The Synoptic Gospels match for the most part, but Luke has a different name for one of the apostles compared to Matthew and Mark.
Mat 10:2-3 Now the names of the twelve apostles are these; The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.
Mar 3:16-19 And Simon he surnamed Peter; And James the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James; and he surnamed them Boanerges, which is, The sons of thunder: And Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Canaanite, And Judas Iscariot, which also betrayed him...
Luk 6:14-16 Simon, (whom he also named Peter,) and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew, Matthew and Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called Zelotes, And Judas the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, which also was the traitor.
Act 1:13 And when they were come in, they went up into an upper room, where abode both Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew, Philip, and Thomas, Bartholomew, and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon Zelotes, and Judas the brother of James.
An interesting fifth century object was found in Turkey.
"The depiction of Prophet Solomon on this necklace surprised us and revealed the importance of the artifact for Anatolian archaeology," said Çelikbaş. Anatolia is a region of Turkey. 5th-century amulet depicting biblical figure King Solomon spearing the devil discovered in Turkey
I am certainly no expert on pieces like this but it seems a lot more like Saint George and the dragon than King Solomon.
The Prophet-King Solomon (ca. 972 - 932 B.C.) was the son of David and Bathsheba. He succeeded his father as King and reigned for forty years. He built the palace and the Temple at Jerusalem, and was renowned for his wisdom. The Old Testament books of Proverbs, the Song of Songs, and the Wisdom of Solomon are attributed to him. He may have written parts of these books, but much of the material was probably transmitted orally before it was written down.
In the Gospels, Christ mentions Solomon by name, citing his glory and wisdom (Matthew 6:29; 12:42).
Solomon is not considered a Saint perhaps due to his lifestyle but he's still considered a Prophet because he produced the above Biblical materials.
The Saints for today:
- Archippus the Apostle, Philemon the Apostle & his wife, Apphia, Onesimos the Disciple of Paul (Today's Epistle reading)
- Holy Martyr Cecilia and those with her,
- Afterfeast of the Entry of the Theotokos into the Temple
- Kallistos Xanthopoulos, Patriarch of Constantinople
- Anthimos, President of Crete
- Righteous Jacob of Evia
According to the 4th century Apostolic Constitutions (7.46), Archippus was the first bishop of Laodicea in Phrygia (now part of Turkey). Another tradition states that he was one of the 72 disciples appointed by Jesus Christ in Luke 10:1. The Roman Catholic Church observes a feast day for Saint Archippus on March 20. The Eastern Orthodox Church observes a feast day on February 19 as well as November 22 along with Saints Philemon, Apphia, and Onesimus. According to tradition, he was stoned to death. (Wikipedia)
Saint Cecilia (Latin: Sancta Caecilia), also spelled Cecelia, was a Roman Christian virgin martyr, who is venerated in Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican, and some Lutheran churches, such as the Church of Sweden.[2] She became the patroness of music and musicians, it being written that, as the musicians played at her wedding, Cecilia "sang in her heart to the Lord". Musical compositions are dedicated to her, and her feast, on 22 November, is the occasion of concerts and musical festivals. She is also known as Cecilia of Rome. (Wikipedia)
Nikephoros Kallistos Xanthopoulos (Greek: Νικηφόρος Κάλλιστος Ξανθόπουλος; Latinized as Nicephorus Callistus Xanthopulus;[1] c. 1256 – 1335) was a Greek ecclesiastical historian and litterateur of the late Byzantine Empire.[2] His most popular work, the voluminous Ecclesiastica historia, constitutes a significant documentary source on primitive Christianity and its doctrinal controversies, as well as for hagiographical, liturgical, and legendary texts from Byzantine culture. (Wikipedia)
He was born in Crete, at the beginning of the 14th century. For reasons which we do not know, he found himself in Athens, where he was appointed Metropolitan of the then insignificant Metropolis of Athens and Euripus (Evia), shepherding between the years 1339-1366.
In order to complete their work, the Cretan rebels asked the Ecumenical Patriarchate to send them an Orthodox Metropolitan. They even asked for their compatriot Anthimos. The Ecumenical Patriarchate responded positively to their request and in 1366, sent Anthimos to Crete, appointing him President of the Metropolis of Crete, appreciating him for his holiness, his love for the Church and his confessional attitude.
It is well worth reading the account of the tortures he received at the hands of the Latins (Orthodox Christianity Then and Now).
The venerable Elder Iakovos Tsalikes, the admirable Abbot of the Monastery of the Venerable David in Evia, was a long-range star who shined in our days with the rays of his simplicity, his goodness, his equal-to-the-angels state and his numerous wonders.
Elder Iakavos was the personification of love, a living embodiment of "the new life in Christ", a projector of virtue and a mirror of humility and temperance. (Orthodox Christianity Then and Now).
There's an Old Testament prophecy in the book of Isaiah that is a prophecy of the Messiah.
Isaiah 42:1 Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine elect, in whom my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall bring forth judgment to the Gentiles.
The Messiah is the Elect One. This theme is carried farther in Isaiah.
Isaiah 65:9 And I will bring forth a seed out of Jacob, and out of Judah an inheritor of my mountains: and mine elect shall inherit it, and my servants shall dwell there.
Those who are in Christ are in the Elect One and can be numbered in the Elect.
LUKE 19:12-28 The Lord said this parable, "A nobleman went into a far country to receive a kingdom and then return. Calling ten of his servants, he gave them ten pounds, and said to them, 'Trade with these till I come.' But his citizens hated him and sent an embassy after him, saying, 'We do not want this man to reign over us.' When he returned, having received the kingdom, he commanded these servants, to whom he had given the money, to be called to him, that he might know what they had gained by trading. The first came before him, saying, 'Lord, your pound has made ten pounds more.' And he said to him, 'Well done, good servant! Because you have been faithful in a very little, you shall have authority over ten cities.' And the second came, saying, 'Lord, your pound has made five pounds.' And he said to him, 'And you are to be over five cities.' Then another came, saying, 'Lord, here is your pound, which I kept laid away in a napkin; for I was afraid of you, because you are a severe man; you take up what you did not lay down, and reap what you did not sow.' He said to him, 'I will condemn you out of your own mouth, you wicked servant! You knew that I was a severe man, taking up what I did not lay down and reaping what I did not sow? Why then did you not put my money into the bank, and at my coming I should have collected it with interest?' And he said to those who stood by, 'Take the pound from him, and give it to him who has the ten pounds.' (And they said to him, 'Lord, he has ten pounds!') 'I tell you, that to every one who has will more be given; but from him who has not, even what he has will be taken away. But as for these enemies of mine, who did not want me to reign over them, bring them here and slay them before me.'" And when he had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem.
God sent prophets to the Hebrews and the Hebrews killed the prophets.
Matthew 23:29-32 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchers of the righteous, And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers.
God sent His Only Son to the Hebrews. They killed Him, too. After His Ascension Christ entered Glory and Seating at the Right Hand of God where Christ received his kingdom. We are now waiting on the King to return and judge the world.
In the meanwhile, we in Christ's Church are to be faithful to the ministry Christ left us. After his ministry Christ committed the work of the ministry to His Church. They/we were responsible to faithful with what they were given.
1 Corinthians 10:6-12 Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things, as they also lusted. Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them; as it is written, The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play. Neither let us commit fornication, as some of them committed, and fell in one day three and twenty thousand. Neither let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents. Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer. Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.
Jesus is warning His Church to not fail, as the Hebrews did.
ST. PAUL'S LETTER TO PHILEMON 1:1-25
PAUL, a prisoner for Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother, To Philemon our beloved fellow worker, and Apphia our sister and Archippos our fellow soldier, and the church in your house: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank my God always when I remember you in my prayers, because I hear of your love and of the faith which you have toward the Lord Jesus and all the saints, and I pray that the sharing of your faith may promote the knowledge of all the good that is ours in Christ. For I have derived much joy and comfort from your love, my brother, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed through you. Accordingly, though I am bold enough in Christ to command you to do what is required, yet for love's sake I prefer to appeal to you - I, Paul, an ambassador and now a prisoner also for Christ Jesus - I appeal to you for my child, Onesimos, whose father I have become in my imprisonment. (Formerly he was useless to you, but now he is indeed useful to you and to me.) I am sending him back to you, sending my very heart. I would have been glad to keep him with me, in order that he might serve me on your behalf during my imprisonment for the gospel; but I preferred to do nothing without your consent in order that your goodness might not be by compulsion but of your own free will. Perhaps this is why he was parted from you for a while, that you might have him back for ever, no longer as a slave but more than a slave, as a beloved brother, especially to me but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord. So if you consider me your partner, receive him as you would receive me. If he has wronged you at all, or owes you anything, charge that to my account. I, Paul, write this with my own hand, I will repay it - to say nothing of your owing me even your own self. Yes, brother, I want some benefit from you in the Lord. Refresh my heart in Christ. Confident of your obedience, I write to you, knowing that you will do even more than I say. At the same time, prepare a guest room for me, for I am hoping through your prayers to be granted to you. Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, sends greetings to you, and so do Mark, Aristarchos, Demas, and Luke, my fellow workers. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.
It's not often we get an entire book as the reading of the day. The Epistle reading for today is about two of the saints for today.
Archippus the Apostle, Philemon the Apostle & his wife, Apphia, Onesimos the Disciple of Paul, Holy Martyr Cecilia and those with her, Afterfeast of the Entry of the Theotokos into the Temple, Kallistos Xanthopoulos, Patriarch of Constantinople, Anthimos, President of Crete, Righteous Jacob of Evia
It tells the story of a slave who escaped his master and ended up with Paul. He was helpful to Paul since Paul was imprisoned at the time and needed food, etc.
Paul sends him back to his master with this letter and entreats his master to receive him back as a fellow servant of Christ and no longer as a slave.
This book was influential in the movement to abolish slavery (Christian abolitionism).
In the fourth century, the bishop Gregory of Nyssa articulated a fundamentally Christian conception of the world that embedded a thorough rejection of the notion that one human could be owned by another and a condemnation of the institution of slavery.
There are two Philips in the Book of Acts. One of them is Philip who is one of the 12 apostles. The other Philip was selected as one of the seven Deacons in Acts 6.
Act 6:5 And the saying pleased the whole multitude: and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas a proselyte of Antioch:
Of minor note, the first two names are the only ones which have any information about them beyond this Acts 6:5 passage. Stephen is of note as the first martyr of the church and Philip's evangelistic activities are covered in Acts.
Acts 8 shows the evangelistic acts of Philip including Philip speaking with the Ethiopian Eunuch.
Acts 21 lets one separate out Philip the Deacon/Evangelist from Philip the Apostle
Act 21:8 And the next day we that were of Paul's company departed, and came unto Caesarea: and we entered into the house of Philip the evangelist, which was one of the seven; and abode with him.
"Orthodoxy abhors theological innovation and Luther did two things at the same time; he committed heresy by introducing a theological innovation and he committed schism by rejecting those who did not hold to sola fide, e.g., the early church fathers and the Orthodox Church."
"The issue here is not Pelagianism or Semi-Pelagianism. The real issue between classical Protestantism and Orthodoxy is monergism versus synergism. The Orthodox Church unabashedly affirms the synergistic understanding of salvation in Christ: God in his grace reaches out to us and we respond to God’s initiative."
Response to Theodore – Semi-Pelagianism, Sola Fide, and Theosis
Luke 8:12 Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.
Matthew 24:13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
Mark 16:16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.
Acts 2:21 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.
Acts 4:12 Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
Acts 15:11 But we believe that through the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ we shall be saved, even as they.
Acts 16:31 And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.
Romans 5:9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.
Romans 10:9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
1 Corinthians 15:2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.
Ephesians 2:5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
Ephesians 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
1 Timothy 2:4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.
2 Peter 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.
Great post on Evangelicals cherry picking of the Church Fathers: Does Theological Retrieval Work?
Gavin Ortlund’s switch to the Baptist tradition based on his personal study is a good example of theology as a self-constructed project (See Ortlund 2013). Herein lies the methodological divide between Protestantism and Eastern Orthodoxy. In Orthodoxy, one receives the Faith from the Church and one does theology within the context of the Church. In Protestantism, one constructs theology based upon one’s careful study of the Bible.
Hebrews 9:1-7 Now the first covenant had regulations for worship and also an earthly sanctuary. A tabernacle was set up. In its first room were the lampstand and the table with its consecrated bread; this was called the Holy Place. Behind the second curtain was a room called the Most Holy Place, which had the golden altar of incense and the gold-covered ark of the covenant. This ark contained the gold jar of manna, Aaron’s staff that had budded, and the stone tablets of the covenant. Above the ark were the cherubim of the Glory, overshadowing the atonement cover. But we cannot discuss these things in detail now. When everything had been arranged like this, the priests entered regularly into the outer room to carry on their ministry. But only the high priest entered the inner room, and that only once a year, and never without blood, which he offered for himself and for the sins the people had committed in ignorance.
Here's the writer of Hebrews describes the temple and its practices. He places these things within the "First Covenant".
There was a promise in the Old Testament that this covenant would be replaced with a New Covenant.
Jeremiah 31:31 “The days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah.
New Testament refers to the old covenant and shows that there is a New Covenant.
Hebrews 8:8 But God found fault with the people and said: “The days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah.
Hebrews 8:6 But in fact the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, since the new covenant is established on better promises.
He has shown from the Priest, from the Priesthood, from the Covenant, that that [dispensation] was to have an end. From this point he shows it from the fashion of the tabernacle itself. How? This, he says, [was] the Holy and the Holy of Holies. The holy place then is a symbol of the former period (for there all things are done by means of sacrifices); but the Holy of Holies of this that is now present. And by the Holy of Holies he means Heaven; and by the veil, Heaven, and the Flesh enters into that within the veil: that is to say, through the veil of His flesh. Supra, 6:19; Hebrews 10:20 And it were well to speak of this passage,
John Chrysostom AD 407
The Fathers:Luke 10:38-42, 11:27-28 As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” ... As Jesus was saying these things, a woman in the crowd called out, “Blessed is the mother who gave you birth and nursed you.” He replied, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.”
Mary came and sat at his feet. This was as though she were sitting on firm ground at the feet of him who had forgiven the sinful woman her sins. She had put on a crown in order to enter into the kingdom of the Firstborn. She had chosen the better portion, the Benefactor, the Messiah himself. This will never be taken away from her. Martha’s love was more fervent than Mary’s, for before he had arrived there, she was ready to serve him. “Do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone?” When he came to raise Lazarus to life, she ran and came out first.
Commentary on Tatian’s Diatessaron. Ephrem The Syrian AD 373
Virtue does not have a single form. In the example of Martha and Mary, there is added the busy devotion of the one and the pious attention of the other to the Word of God, which, if it agrees with faith, is preferred even to the very works, as it is written: “Mary has chosen the good portion, which shall not be taken away from her.” So let us also strive to have what no one can take away from us, so that not careless but diligent hearing may be granted to us. For even the seeds of the heavenly Word itself are likely to be taken away if they are sowed by the wayside. Let the desire for wisdom lead you as it did Mary. It is a greater and more perfect work. Do not let service divert the knowledge of the heavenly Word…. Nor is Martha rebuked in her good serving, but Mary is preferred because she has chosen the better part for herself, for Jesus abounds with many blessings and bestows many gifts. And therefore the wiser chooses what she perceives as foremost.
Ambrose of Milan AD 397
He that is within the altar is pure, but he that is without is not pure; that is, he who does anything apart from the bishop, and presbytery, and deacons, such a man is not pure in his conscience.
The Letters of Ignatius are very early. Hisg seven epistles preserved under the name of Ignatius are generally considered authentic, since they were mentioned by the historian Eusebius in the first half of the fourth century.
We see the same structure in the early church that we see today.
Some Protestants have tended to deny the authenticity of all the epistles because they attest to a monarchical episcopate in the second century.
In Saint Paul's letter to the Corinthians (called 1 Corinthians in our Bibles), Paul refers to a previous letter. This letter is no longer existent (as far as anyone knows).
1 Corinthians 5:9 I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people...
Paul refers to a letter to The Laodiceans as well. This letter may be the one referred to as Ephesians (OSB notes on Col 4:14 suggest this possibility due to geographics proximity between the two cities).
Colossians 4:16 After this letter has been read to you, see that it is also read in the church of the Laodiceans and that you in turn read the letter from Laodicea.
These missing letters have never been an issue to the Historical Churches. It did not escape their notice that there were missing letters, but it was not of any particular concern. For the Historical Churches the Scriptures were not the sole deposit of the faith so nothing was missing when the books were lost.
By this historical construction (The Lost Letters of Saint Paul, and How They Were Lost in Patheos) the Epistles of Paul were not even gathered together and quoted by the Fathers until the Second Century. Note: I think this is an entirely reasonable reconstruction but have not looked at the account of the Fathers for their account of the collection of the Epistles of Paul.
This paper puts the collection of the Epistles as either 150 or 180 AD. In any event, the letters of Paul as a corpus would have been unavailable as a collection to the first six or so generations of Christians. There is simply no way that the early Church was founded around the collection of the writings of Paul.
The collection of letters became our Pauline epistles [sic: and are now] in the New Testament. From the second century, people start valuing and quoting these rediscovered letters.
It is the faith of the Orthodox Church that the Church alone possesses the fullness of the faith and that the faith is found in Holy Tradition - which includes Holy Scripture. A missing book or two (perhaps as many as hundreds or more missing books per the Patheos link above) isn't an issue for the Orthodox Church. It's just a historical footnote.
Protestants hold a vastly different idea of Scripture, the idea of the "sufficiency of scripture". This is an extra-Biblical tradition.
Scripture is sufficient in that it is the only inspired, inerrant, and therefore final authority for Christians for faith and godliness, with all other authorities being subservient to Scripture. The Sufficiency of Scripture,
Missing books are much more serious concern for the Protestant approach to church authority since they imply a missing part of the revelation. Some attempts to explain these issues with a notion that Paul may have made some error in those other letters so they were not preserved. This and other explanations are entirely ad hoc.
The Apostle Paul wrote this second letter to the Church at Corinth. Paul’s first visit to Corinth had previously occurred during his second missionary journey and lasted for almost two years (50-52 A.D.) ref: Paul's Visits and Letters to Corinth. In the letter Paul describes the Church there are the product of his preaching.
2 Corinthians 3:1-3 Are we beginning to commend ourselves again? Or do we need, like some people, letters of recommendation to you or from you? You yourselves are our letter, written on our hearts, known and read by everyone. You show that you are a letter from Christ, the result of our ministry, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts.
Paul is quite explicit here in declaring that the Church in Corinth was not a product of written Scriptures but a product of his preaching and that of others to the Corinthians. The notion of the church being formed from the writings of Paul is completely foreign to the New Testament and is a Reformation novelty. It is historically absurd. The Reformers used their novel teachings as a pretext to undermine the authority of the Historical Churches.
Luke 18:15-17;, 26-30 And they brought unto him also infants, that he would touch them: but when his disciples saw it, they rebuked them. But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein. ... And they that heard it said, Who then can be saved? And he said, The things which are impossible with men are possible with God. Then Peter said, Lo, we have left all and followed thee. And he said unto them, Verily I say unto you, There is no man that hath left house, or parents, or brethren, or wife, or children, for the kingdom of God's sake, Who shall not receive manifold more in this present time, and in the world to come life everlasting.
Aligning our lives with God and His Kingdom will set us at odds with family members. The Kingdom is very demanding. It calls us to put God above all others in our lives. The important thing it to ensure that we are lining up with God and not a false religion which pretends to be of God.
We are to receive the Kingdom as little children, infants in fact in the text. Infants are wholly dependent on their parents for everything in their lives. So too are we to be dependent on God for everything related to our lives.
Colossians 3:17-25, 4:1 And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him. Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is fit in the Lord. Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them. Children, obey your parents in all things: for this is well pleasing unto the Lord. Fathers, provoke not your children to anger, lest they be discouraged. Servants, obey in all things your masters according to the flesh; not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but in singleness of heart, fearing God: And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ. But he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done: and there is no respect of persons. Masters, give unto your servants that which is just and equal; knowing that ye also have a Master in heaven.
In this passage, the Apostle Paul lays out a structure for the family based on both hierarchy and reciprocity of relations.
The charge to wives is different than the charge given to husbands. Wives are to submit to their husbands and husbands are to love their wives. This language reflects hierarchy and mutuality.
Some might ask, "What if my husband doesn't obey Christ?" Peter addresses this in another place.
1 Peter 3:1 Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives;
This is a hard word for many women. The command to a husband to love his wife is equally hard.
All things are to be done under the headship of Christ because we all serve Christ.
We are called to do what we do as to the Lord.
The Orthodox Church produced the following document: The Confession of Patriarch Dositheos of Jerusalem (1672).
This Confession of Faith has been ratified by all of the autocephalous Churches (Jerusalem, Russia, and Georgia in 1672; Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, and the Bulgarians under the EP at the Council of Constantinople in 1723. St. Justin Popovich and St. Nikodim Milas speak of it as having already been accepted by the Serbian Church in their publications published by the Serbian Church). and is therefore dogmatically binding upon the faithful.
It lays out more than a dozen decrees against Calvinism.
One of the more curious novelties of the Protestants is the notion of the "The Perspicuity of Scripture". One definition of this idea is found here:
The doctrine of the clarity of Scripture (often called the "perspicuity of Scripture") teaches that "the meanings of the text can be clear to the ordinary reader, that God uses the text of the Bible to communicate His person and will."
"The witness of the Church throughout the ages is that ordinary people, who approach it in faith and humility, will be able to understand what the Bible is getting at, even if they meet with particular points of difficulty here and there." Clarity of Scripture
The challenge in maintaining this notion is found in the various descriptions of the Perspicuity of Scripture.
One of many passages which denies this idea is:
1 Corinthians 2:14 But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.
Without the guidance of the Spirit of God, a man cannot understand the Scriptures.
Another passage is:
2 Timothy 2:15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
If Scripture is so plain that an average person can understand it, why would a person need to study, work, and divide the Word of Truth?
The Apostle Peter describes the words of the Apostle Paul as "hard to understand".
2 Peter 3:15-16 And account that the longsuffering of our Lord is salvation; even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you; As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.
This passage illustrates what happens when unlearned and unstable people try to understand the words of the Apostle Paul.
All of us sit within some interpretive paradigm when approaching Scripture - most of all the people who don't have any clue that they are operating in a paradigm. They hear something from a preacher on TV, they read something in a book or webpage. The put the pieces together to form their own interpretive lens for Scripture. The result is an incoherent hodgepodge of theology.
The idea that we are a blank slate where we can understand the words of God by reading the Scripture is just fanciful.
I gave an example of a short passage consisting of two verses in my previous BLOG post. Two Protestant writers had two different contradictory views of what the passage means. If something is so obvious that all someone needs to do is read the passage, this case fails that test. There are such examples for nearly every passage in the Bible.
The difficulty of perspicuity is found in this paper:
Westminster Protestants, for instance, admitted the reality of both Scripture's obscurity and clarity, primarily in the distinction between matters necessary for salvation and other matters. In both the Irish Articles of Religion (1615) and the Westminster Confession of Faith (1647) the defense of Scripture's clarity was solely concerned with the accessibility of the evangelical message. Others had argued similarly concerning the difficult things in Scripture: "If we never understand we shall be never the worse for the attaining of everlasting salvation."
laritas Scripturae: The Role of Perspicuity in Protestant Hermeneutics James Patrick Callahan
All of this leads to the obvious question of which teacher is correct, and which is wrong?
The first part of the Orthodox approach to interpreting Scripture is to recognize that God put Apostles and Teachers in the Church. It is reasonable to conclude that looking at people who are smarter than I am and closer to the time of the writing of Scripture are much more likely to read the Scriptures more consistently with the Apostles than Benny Hinn on TBN is, or John Calvin was in the mid 1500's for that matter.
The Orthodox Church has an unbroken continuity through Apostolic Succession of Bishops back to the time of the Apostles. The bishop is charged with guarding the faith. He has a responsibility before God to feed the Flock.
An important element of transmitting truth is continuity with past truth. This same standard was even present in the Old Testament where someone coming along with a new word from God was tested against that was already revealed.
Isaiah 8:19-20 And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep, and that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? for the living to the dead? To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.
When there have been disagreements about important matters of how to understand the faith, the church met together in Church Councils. The first of these councils is found in the Book of the Acts of the Apostles, Chapter 15. There the Church gathered and discussed the matter of how Gentiles should be received into the Church. Should Gentiles be required to follow the Hebrew Laws from the Books of Moses? Or was God doing something different in the Church? Thre preface to the conclusion of the council was:
Acts 15:22 Then pleased it the apostles and elders, with the whole church, to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas; namely, Judas surnamed Barsabas, and Silas, chief men among the brethren:
This set the pattern for the church over the next centuries where they gathered all the Bishops and scholars together to settle matters and the church body gave agreement.
