Blogs

[SVOTS Communications, Yonkers, NY]  On Monday evening, May 7, 2012, St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary is hosting an evening of liturgical music sung in the traditional styles of Orthodox Christian churches worldwide. In a multi-media program that interweaves luminous icons, sacred texts, and a rich a cappella sound, the St. Vladimir's Seminary Chorale will perform ORIENT: Sacred Song and Image at the famous St. Malachy's,"The Actors' Chapel," in the heart of Manhattan, at 239 West 49th Street, New York City. The concert will begin at 7:30 p.m.

The concert program will include pieces from the broader Orthodox tradition sung in their original languages—Greek, Georgian, Estonian, Slavonic—as well as choral music by Orthodox composers written for the concert hall. Two visual projections—one of images of Orthodox icons and the other of translations of musical texts—will run simultaneously as the chorale sings. In this multi-media concert, icons, music, and text will expound one another and combine the best elements of a professional choral performance with the depth and authenticity of the Orthodox liturgical experience.

The chorale will be directed by Hierodeacon Herman, Lecturer in Liturgical Music and Chapel Choir Director at the seminary, and Matushka Robin Freeman, who created the concert format and conducted in its premiere at Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music in 2010.

Tickets are $25, and may be purchased online. Limited seating will be available at the door (cash only) the evening of the concert.

St. Katherine College hosted the first annual President’s Gala on January 28th. Approximately 300 guests enjoyed hearing the College chorale, readings from prize-winning poet and Visiting Professor Scott Cairns, and the first public performance of a piano composition by music Instructor Nazo Zakkak. The attendees represented clergy and people from all of the Orthodox Christian traditions as well as those of other faiths. Underwriters for the event included corporations, businesses, and individuals who are committed to the vision of an Orthodox Christian college. An Ancient Faith Radio audio summary of the event is available here.  

Saint Katherine College began its second year of operation on January 9, 2012. Classes resumed for 11 traditional and 4 part-time students. The first year was marked by continuing expansion of course offerings and facilities. Most students are taking courses in the College's Core Integration series, mathematics, biological science, and theology, as well as electives in areas ranging from music theory to business ethics. Recently the school was awarded competitive grants to fund original research at the College.

SURPASSING HUMAN JUSTICE: ENTHRONING DIVINE JUSTICE.

IN CHRISTIANITY, MERCY TRUMPS JUSTICE.

by Fr. George Morelli

"Compassion and justice in one soul are as a man adoring God and idols in one house." -St. Isaac of Syriaⁱ

The cry for "justice" is heard around the world. But what "justice" is cried out for? A casual overview of the media clearly indicates that the cry for worldly justice is very often accompanied by cries for retaliation, retribution and vengeance. Such 'justice' is often attributed to third world nations or countries that have been in constant conflict. For example, a British newspaper article headline about a recent Libyan incident read, "The car was armoured like a tank. But that wasn't enough to save Gaddafi's son Khamis when the rebels took their vengeance."ⁱⁱ History books recount incidents of murderous atrocities against individuals, nations and entire peoples, committed in the name of revenge, since the dawn of recorded time.

by Fr. George Washburn

In the last two years St. John the Evangelist Antiochian Orthodox Church in Orinda, CA has engaged in several new forms of outreach to needy people. In each case we have learned that when we respond to God’s love shed abroad in our hearts by Christ (Rom. 5:5), we receive back both anticipated and unanticipated dividends from the Lord Himself… and those we serve!

1. Project Mexico: For two summers in a row teams of adults and kids from our parish have spent a week at St. Innocent Orphanage and built a simple new home for a poor family.

by Judy Yentzen
from The Word, March 1993

I would like to quote from THE SPIRITUAL COUNSELS OF FATHER JOHN OF KRONSTADT, Select Passages from MY LIFE IN CHRIST, edited and introduced by W. Jardine Grisbrooke. “The Christian has great, spiritual, divine enjoyments. Carnal delights must always be subjected to these higher delights; and when they hinder the latter they must be checked or suppressed. It is not to afflict man that food and drink are at certain times and seasons forbidden him by the Church, not to limit his freedom, as worldly people say; it is done in order to afford him true, lasting and eternal delights;. . . “. The Gospel reminds us how we are to fast, “. . . when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance. For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.”

I have only been in the Orthodox Church a short time — two years now and this will be my second Lenten season as an Orthodox. Because of that, I would like to share with you my first real introduction to fasting, the preparation, and how it affected my life.

I grew up in a protestant faith and, therefore, knew nothing about fasting. In my late thirties, I started going to the Episcopal church where I first read and heard a little about fasting — but only for the Lenten season, There was little said about it and even less importance placed upon it.

Orthodox Christian Network (OCN) has announced its appointment of Melinda Johnson to the post of blog chief for "The Sounding," and the addition of new writers and topics to the blog. Ms. Johnson is the author of Letters to Saint Lydia (Conciliar Press, 2010) and founder of the popular “Orthodox Writers, Readers, and Artists” series.

Notes Fr. Chris Metropulos, Executive Director of OCN, "Our new writers come to us from many places and perspectives. They're travelers, artists, parents, authors, teachers, and priests.  Some of them are well known, and others have just been discovered. But all of them are eager to begin with you, a wonderful conversation. Let us start our worldwide conversation of the issues today."

The content of “The Sounding” has been significantly expanded to address a wide range of topics such as popular culture, education, spiritual journeys, children’s literature, adoption and infertility, Biblical commentary, health and nutrition, and Orthodox poetry. Writers range from well known theological authors such as Fr. Lawrence Farley, to seasoned bloggers such as Sylvia Leontaritis.

Would you like to prepare for Great Lent and Pascha by attending a spiritual talk? If so, come spend an afternoon in Orthodox fellowship, hear a great speaker, enlighten your mind, nourish your soul, do a good deed and get a free book!

On behalf of the St. Nicholas Serbian Orthodox Church on Barton Street in Hamilton, you are cordially invited to an Orthodox Retreat. The keynote talk will be on Saturday, March 31st from 1 pm to 5 pm at the Canadian Serbian Community Centre at 1415 Barton St. E. in Hamilton. Registration starts at noon.

The topic is ‘BEATITUDES: A Patristic Look at the 7th, 8th & 9th Beatitudes’. The speaker is Father Demetrios Carellas, Archimandrite, Holy Monastery of the Theotokos, Saxonburg, Pennsylvania. This talk will complete the series on The Beatitudes.

Registration is required in advance via e-mail to reserve a spot. Free Book for those who RSVP. Also, we will be collecting non-perishable food items for the needy via our local food bank. If you are able, your donation is appreciated. Please share this invitation with your friends - all are welcome!

Contact: Zorka Djurdjevic
St. Nicholas Serbian Orthodox Church Education Committee
1415 Barton St. E.
Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
Evenings - 905.547.2926
ray54@on.aibn.com

Incoming and outgoing NAB officers at Chicago convention, 2011The recently released issue of the DIAKONIA, the quarterly newsletter of the Antiochian Christian Women of North America, features profiles of all of the women serving as officers on the North American Board, as well as their Hierarchical Overseer, the Most Reverend Archbishop Joseph, and their Advisor, the Right Reverend Bishop John.

Violet Robbat - President

"I was born in Boston, MA and am a former member of St. John of Damascus Church, Dedham, MA, where I was active as a Sunday School teacher, Teen SOYO Advisor and President of Senior SOYO (known today as St. John the Divine). I graduated from Northeastern University with a Degree in Cytology, and became a member of the American Society of Clinical Pathologists. Cytology is the study of cells, and my job at Massachusetts General Hospital entailed diagnosing Cancer. In 1973, I married my husband Richard (38 years) and we are members of St. Mary Orthodox Church, Cambridge, MA."

Read more about Violet and all the officers in DIAKONIA. (PDF)

Syria is in the news a lot these days, but what kind of work is being done by the Church in light of the current circumstances? Listeners may be surprised. In this edition of Ancient Faith Presents, Samer Laham, the Director of the Department of Ecumenical Relations and Development for the Patriarchate of Antioch in Damascus, discusses the ongoing humanitarian work of the IOCC in the country.

O Lord, Thou didst reproach the Pharisee when he justified himself, boasting of his deeds; and justified the Publican when he approached humbly, seeking forgiveness with sighs; for Thou dost not draw near to arrogant thoughts, nor turn away contrite hearts. Wherefore, we also kneel before Thee meekly, O Thou Who didst suffer for our sakes. Grant us forgiveness and the Great Mercy.

--Doxasticon from Orthros, Tone 8

When the Pharisee went down with empty glory, and the publican bowed himself in repentance, they came to Thee alone, O Master. But the one through boasting lost his reward, and the other by his silence deserved gifts. Wherefore, by those sighs confirm me, O Christ God, since Thou art the Lover of mankind.

--from the Praises at Orthros, Tone 1

Read more about the Sunday of the Publican and the Pharisee, in an excerpt from Great Lent by Alexander Schmemann.

Listen to a podcast about the Sunday by Fr. Josiah Trenham, The Doors of Repentance.

The Orthodox Center for the Advancement of Biblical Studies (OCABS) announces it has released the second and final MP3-DVD volume in Fr. Paul Tarazi's groundbreaking Orthodox Audio Bible Commentary. Ordering information is available on the OCABS website.

As each verse of the Old Testament is read aloud and carefully explained, listeners can hear the story of the Bible unfold in its entirety, while learning relevant historical, linguistic, and literary facts. As attested to by Orthodox liturgical tradition, Scripture is meant to be read aloud to people of all backgrounds. Unfortunately, differences in language, culture, and historical circumstances often obscure the Bible for contemporary listeners. Throughout this series, the speaker repeatedly highlights poetic and literary connections from the original languages, overcoming the problem of translation and helping listeners to encounter the Old Testament as it was heard in its orignal setting.

The approximate running time is 75 hours.

The Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of North and Central America has issued the following statement of protest:

The Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of North and Central America, which is comprised of the 65 canonical Orthodox bishops in the United States, Canada and Mexico, join their voices with the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and all those who adamantly protest the recent decision by the United States Department of Health and Human Services, and call upon all the Orthodox Christian faithful to contact their elected representatives today to voice their concern in the face of this threat to the sanctity of the Church’s conscience.

In this ruling by HHS, religious hospitals, educational institutions, and other organizations will be required to pay for the full cost of contraceptives (including some abortion-inducing drugs) and sterilizations for their employees, regardless of the religious convictions of the employers.

The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution guarantees the free exercise of religion. This freedom is transgressed when a religious institution is required to pay for “contraceptive services” including abortion-inducing drugs and sterilization services that directly violate their religious convictions. Providing such services should not be regarded as mandated medical care.  We, the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops, call upon HHS Secretary Sebelius and the Obama Administration to rescind this unjust ruling and to respect the religious freedom guaranteed all Americans by the First Amendment.

Anne Van Fossen, M.A., of the Classical Learning Resource Center, writes:

"For the last three years, the Classical Learning Resource Center has focused on teaching live, real-time, online classes in Classical Greek and Latin. We’ve emerged as one of the best online sources available for Latin and Greek instruction. Our student body has approximately doubled for the third year in a row and our new students are just as engaged, inquisitive, and generally delightful as those continuing from last year!

The Classical Learning Resource Center is beginning to gear up for fall of 2012. We’re planning to offer several new classes and part of the purpose of this newsletter is to see how much interest there is in these new course offerings. We’ll continue with our full program of Greek and Latin classes with Latin 4 Kids classes for elementary school and the full 4 year sequence of Latin I, II, III, IV and Greek I, II, III, IV for middle school and high school students and adults. If you haven’t taken a Greek or Latin class with the Classical Learning Resource Center yet we encourage you to begin in 2012.

The Diocese of Toledo Fellowship of St. John the Divine invites all young adults (ages 18-40) to our spring Young Adult Retreat hosted at St. Mary Basilica in Livonia, MI, the weekend of March 30-April 1, 2012. His Grace Bishop Anthony will be our guest speaker for the weekend leading us in workshops about our faith, along with church services, good food, activities and fellowship time together to enjoy each others company. We invite all young adults (married or single) from our diocese and beyond to join us for this retreat. It is going to be a fun and spiritually fulfilling retreat in which we hope all young adults from our diocese will participate.

The retreat will take place at St. Mary Basilica in (18100 Merriman Road, Livonia, MI). Out of town guests may book lodging at the Detroit Marriott Livonia (17100 Laurel Park Drive North, Livonia, MI) where a block of rooms is reserved under the group code: FSJFSJD at a special rate of $96 per night.

The weekend will begin at 7pm on Friday March 30 with the Akatahist/Madeyeh service at St. Mary's, and conclude with a light luncheon after Hierarchical Divine Liturgy on Sunday April 1. A general schedule is included on the registration form, and a more detailed schedule will be posted in early March. There is a $35 registration fee, and we ask that you register by March 23, 2012 (See Registration Form attached).

His Eminence Archbishop Joseph of the Diocese of Los Angeles and the West has been interviewed as part of an ongoing series of interviews with the member bishops of the Assembly of Canonical Bishops of North and Central America. Listen to the interview here.

Dear friend of St. Athanasius Academy:

My name is David, a graduate of the Academy and former prisoner. In the 60s, as a committed Evangelical Protestant Christian, I took a Gospel of John bible class as a college freshman in San Francisco. Who would know 50 years later I would be helping an Orthodox Academy build a brand new study course for prisoners on the Gospel of John. Glory be to God. This course is written from an Orthodox perspective, with research by St. Athanasius Academy, the home of the Orthodox Study Bible: Septuagint Old and New Testament. It is an in-depth, verse by verse, study of the Gospel of John, based upon the Apostles, Holy Scripture, and renown Fathers of the early Church – a true work of joy. Please help us make this available to prisoners.

See the attached PDF files for this month's full teaching and to order the study booklets.

By Fr. Alexander Schmemann

If there is a moral quality almost completely disregarded and even denied today, it is indeed humility.

The Fall/Winter 2011-2012 issue of DIAKONIA is now available online. This issue highlights the North American Board. And The Diocese of New York and the Archdiocesan District, And the Diocese of Charleston, Oakland and the Mid-Atlantic, and contains:

• A message from His Eminence Archbishop Joseph, Antiochian Women Hierarchical Overseer
• A message from His Grace Bishop John, North American Board Spiritual Advisor
• A message from His Grace Bishop Nicholas, Bishop of Brooklyn and Assistant to the Metropolitan

Click here to download (PDF)

Adorn thy chamber, O Zion, and receive Christ the King. Welcome Mary the heavenly gate; for she hath appeared as a cherubic throne; she carrieth the King of glory. Verily, the Virgin is a cloud of light carrying in her body the Son Who is before the morning star, Whom Simeon carrying in his arms proclaimed to the nations as the Lord of life and death, and the Savior of our souls.

-Vespers of the Feast, Tone 7

Rejoice, O Virgin Theotokos, full of grace, for from thee arose the Sun of justice, Christ our God, lighting those who are in darkness. Rejoice and be glad, O righteous old man, carrying in thine arms the Deliverer of our souls, Who granteth us Resurrection.

-Apolytikion of the Feast, Tone 1