Theophany
by Sarah McKee (Jan. '01)
January 6th is the feast day of Theophany. It was one of the first feast days of the early church.
Originally the feast of Theophany included the birth of Christ, the adoration of the Magi and his presentation into the temple. Separate feast days were not adopted until the fourth century.
Now the feast day celebrates the baptism of Jesus Christ by John the Baptist in the Jordan River. It is especially significant because it is commemorating the first appearance of the Holy Trinity in the New Testament. The Holy Trinity appeared to Abraham and Sarah in the Old Testament, and announced the birth of Isaac, the long awaited son who was the start of the nation of Israel.
The Greek meaning of the word Theophany is "the appearance of God." Epiphany in Greek means "to show forth" or "to manifest." That is why these two words are used interchangeably for this feast of the Orthodox Church. The feast day is tied to the baptism which is our initiation to the Christian family. (Do you know anyone named Tiffany? It is the anglicized version of Theophany!)
Now the main feature of this feast is the Great Blessing of Water. In the ancient Church, there were two blessings: one for the blessing of water intended for baptism and the other of outside bodies of water. This was the Christian imitating the custom of the Christians in Jerusalem who went to the Jordan River to celebrate the feast.
"And Jesus, when He was baptized, went up straightway out of the water, and lo, the heavens were opened up to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him. And lo, a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." (Matthew 3:16-17)
In St. John Chrysostom's Homilies, he stated, "The heavens were opened to show us that our baptism will open the heavens for us. God is made accessible to us. We can know the Unknowable. We can be changed. A good work is done in us, and we have the means to have the promise fulfilled in us."
Annunciation
by Danielle Solomon (Mar. '01)
In the Orthodox Church we commemorate the day in which the Archangel Gabriel was sent from God to tell Mary she was the Chosen One to bear the Son of God. We celebrate this on March 25. Annunciation is probably one of the most well-known messages sent from God because it’s one we all know something about.
“And in the 6th month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God unto a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. And having come in, the angel said to her, ‘Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!’” But when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying, and considered what manner of greeting this was. Then the angel said to her, ‘Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus.’” (Luke 1:26-31)
Mary was scared at first when the angel told her that, but she had great faith. Why is she so important to our tradition? Without her consent, the Son of God might never have been born. If He was never born, He couldn’t have saved us from our sins. We would not be able to live an eternal life with God.
Mary had been raised in the Church and grew up very faithful. She is a role model for all Christians. The early Church thought so highly of her that five of our major feast days center on her: the Conception of the Theotokos, the Birth of the Theotokos, Her Presentation to the Temple, the Annunciation, and the Falling Asleep (or Dormition) of the Theotokos.
Mary conceived a child, but she was still a virgin. In the Nativity icon, Joseph is shown pondering this. I ponder this as well and it makes me appreciate the holiness of this feast day.
Pascha
by Nicol Zabak (Apr. '01)
The Paschal Service is the most joyous and elaborate worship service of the Orthodox Church with its procession, candles, and joyful hymns. This service is very different from others because it is a triumph from our own forty-day journey of Great Lent.
Great Lent is the time in which we re-focus our daily routines and discipline our habits to become closer to God. It is a different experience that everyone encounters which involves constant prayer and fasting. The various Sundays throughout the Lenten season remind us to keep our focus on Christ in all that we do. For example, the fifth Sunday of Great Lent is dedicated to St. Mary of Egypt. She lived in Alexandria where she was an actress and prostitute. One year out of curiosity, she made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem for the feast of the Exaltation of the Cross. She has become famous everywhere for her renunciation of worldly pleasure and is known as “the Penitent Saint.” It is at these times we are reminded that it is never too late to begin a fast or sacrifice an object in order to reach our ultimate goal of salvation.
Holy Week is a very solemn and quiet time in which we read the 12 Passion Gospels, experience Christ’s crucifixion on the Cross, His descent into Hades to loose the bonds of Hell (also translated as “destroyed the bonds of hell”), and finally His triumph into Heaven! We enter into a special quiet time of our life during Holy Week when we reflect Christ, shunning earthly pleasures and ourselves from the outside world.
All of this changes on the night of Pascha, as the service and liturgy are amazing and beautiful. The lights are bright and Christ has risen from the dead to save us from our sins. He took the form of being truly God and truly man in order to present Himself in the divine and human natures. Without Jesus, we would have not been able to repent and enter the Kingdom of Heaven. His true love for us is very evident when He sacrificed His life for us on the cross. He rose from the dead after three days, and some believed that they saw Him up in the high Heavens and others doubted… even to this day. But He told them, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:18-20).
Christ died for us and we rejoice at His victory over death on the night of Pascha. But no matter the circumstances He is always there for us and provides us with what we need. We should recognize His unconditional love for us and sacrifice a little something for Christ right now if you haven’t started.
Ascension
by Stephanie Salfiti (May ’01)
Ascension is defined, according to the Orthodox Study Bible, as the ascent of Christ to Heaven 40 days following his Resurrection as Son of God and flesh. This completes the union of God and humanity. The Ascension of Christ is mentioned in the Creed. It states "And He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate and suffered and was buried. And He ascended into Heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of the Father." The date of this feast day varies each year and depends on the day which Pascha is celebrated.
In Byzantine iconography, the Theotokos is in the middle of the foreground with her hands raised in prayer. Behind her on both sides are angels dressed in white garments, holding staves in their right hands, and with their left hands pointing to Christ. In certain icons, the angels are holding scrolls. One angel has "Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven?" The other scroll states "This same Jesus, Who is taken up from you into heaven, shall come again in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven" (Acts 1:11). Christ ascended by the Mount of Olivet, and holy tradition teaches us that He will return in the same way. This serves as a reminder that “Christ will come again to judge the living and the dead” (Orthodox Creed). Next to the angels are the Apostles with Paul and Peter closest to the Theotokos; Paul is on her right side and Peter is on her left. Saint Paul has his right hand in front of his eyes. Recall that Paul was not one of the disciples when Jesus ascended into heaven, but became one afterwards after being blinded on his way to Damascus. St. Paul was a “chosen vessel to bear His name before the Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel” (Acts 9:15). Behind the Theotokos, angels, and Apostles is a mountain with olive trees, and above the mountain is Christ in a circular glory. Christ is seated on a rainbow and around Christ are angels touching the glory. The iconography of the Ascension of Christ has a long history, dating to the sixth century. A miniature Ascension icon has been dated back to 586 A.D. .
Even though it must have been sad for the Apostles and those who were there to see Christ leave them, it was good for them. For Christ told them, “If I do not go away, the Comforter will not come to you, but if I depart, I will send Him unto you” (John 16). Moreover, when Christ ascended to heaven with His risen human body, He made way for all of us by bringing humanity to heaven. This teaches us a lesson in life, too. Sometimes when things seem sad and it looks like hope is floating away (as Christ seemed to be floating away), we need to put our faith and trust in God because He has good things in store for us — be it in this life or in the next.
Pentecost
by Andy Bahbah (Jun. ’01)
TROPARION OF THE FEAST OF PENTECOST
Blessed art Thou, O Christ our God, Who hast revealed the fishermen as most wise, having sent upon them the Holy Spirit, and through them Thou hast fished the universe, O Lover of Mankind, glory to Thee.
Greetings in the Name of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! A very joyous hymn for us, the Troparion contains extreme meaning for one of the greatest festivals the Orthodox Church celebrates called Pentecost. The feast is on the seventh Sunday after the Resurrection of Christ, or “Pascha.” The Orthodox Church celebrates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles. The giving of the Holy Spirit occurred fifty days after the Resurrection. In Greek, “Pentekoste” means “Fiftieth Day.”
In the icon the Disciples are shown gathered in the same Upper Room where they shared the Last Supper with Christ. In the center of the group is the Book of the Gospels. This place of honor formally occupied by the actual physical Christ is now occupied by the Book of the Gospels, which the Holy Spirit has made the spiritual presence of Christ in the world. A crowned figure seated in the presence of the Disciples holds in a cloth twelve scrolls. This represents the reception by the entire world of the preaching of the twelve Disciples.
The event is described in the Acts of the Apostles, chapter two. We hear read during Liturgy:
When the day of Pentecost was fully come, the twelve Apostles were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance…Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language. And they were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galileans? And how hear every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born? Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotomia, and in Judea, and Cappadocia, in Pontos, and Asia, Phygia and Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in parts of Libya about Cerene, and strangers of Rome, Jews and proselytes, Creatans and Arabians, we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God. And they were all amazed (Acts 2:1-12).
Pentecost marks the first Evangelical movement of the Church as a whole. Christ has descended, died, resurrected, and ascended. The Apostles of Christ at that point were sent to “preach the good news.” As we celebrate this feast of our Church, let us go as the Apostles with flaming tongues of fire, and let the Holy Spirit come into us. Let our light shine in doing God’s wonderful works as “fishermen.” Let us fulfill the wonderful glory and preach the Gospel with our words, and more importantly, with our actions. May God bless us always in His name and look towards His Second Coming.
Dormition
by Mary Pier (Sep. ’01)
On August 15, Orthodox Christians commemorate the Dormition of the Theotokos, when the Virgin Mary, the Mother of God, fell asleep in the Lord. This feast day is important to the Church for many reasons. The example that Mary set by how she lived and the role of the Mother of God that Mary accepted are also celebrated and remembered on this day. In addition, Orthodox beliefs concerning the Dormition of the Theotokos also separate Orthodoxy from Catholicism and Protestant religions.
When Jesus was in agony on the cross, He appointed the Apostle John to take care of His mother saying: “Mother, behold your Son” and “Son, behold your Mother.” John obeyed Jesus’ command to take care of His mother. Mary lived with John in Jerusalem for the remainder of her life, where she made pilgrimages to Golgotha, the Mount of Olives, and other places essential to Jesus’ ministry. Mary fell peacefully asleep in the Lord at about the age of 60. At that time, all the Apostles were present except for the Apostle Thomas who was delayed. When Thomas arrived three days late after Mary’s funeral, he asked to see Mary so that he could embrace her for the last time. Instead of finding the body of Mary inside, only the winding sheet was found. It is the Orthodox belief that Jesus resurrected His mother after her death as a sign of respect and honor for His mother.
The Virgin Mary is a model of piety, prayer, and general acceptance of God’s will. She is a prime example of how we as Christians should live our lives. Her dedication to God and her holiness enabled her to be worthy of resurrection. The Orthodox belief in Mary’s death and resurrection differs from most religions. In the Catholic Church, it is believed that Mary did not die but was “assumed” into heaven before death and was crowned Queen of Heaven and Earth. Orthodox believe that because Jesus valued and loved His Mother, He gave her a death and resurrection similar to His own.
May we all sing in her praise: “In giving birth, you preserved your virginity. In failing asleep you did not forsake the world, O Theotokos. You were translated to life, O Mother of Life, and by your prayers, you deliver our souls from death.” (Troparion)
Entrance into the Temple of the Theotokos by Huwaida Bouri (Nov. ’01)
One of the most important feast days of the Eastern Orthodox Church is the Entrance into the Temple of the Mother of God. The month of November brings the thought of Thanksgiving dinner to many of our minds. Although, to us Eastern Orthodox Christians, November should signify the presentation of the Virgin Mary. This feast day reminds us that God’s selection of the Virgin Mary was not arbitrary, but one based upon a long line of truly devoted servants of God. Joachim and his wife, Anna, had prayed that they might have a child. They made a solemn promise that if a child were born to them, it would be dedicated to the service of God. Anna was granted a girl, who she named Mary. Joachim and Anna, faithful to their word, presented their daughter to the Holy Temple at the age of three, on November 21. By her entrance into the Temple, Mary passed through all the stages of the spiritual life: purification, illumination, and union with God. These three stages also signify the three parts of the Temple.
Mary remained in the house of God for twelve years. At the age of fifteen Mary transpired a purity and wholesomeness found in no other being of God. During her years in the Temple of God, saintly Mary was not only a flawless maiden, but she gained the wisdom and faith of the deepest scholars. This was something uncommon in females in those days. Under the religious traditions found in the Old Testament, a virgin of the Temple was betrothed to some good man when she reached a certain age. Mary was betrothed to one of her kinsman, a faithful man named Joseph, who lived in the town of Nazareth. There he worked as a carpenter.
Mary left Jerusalem for Nazareth to live with Joseph. It was at the temple that the Virgin Mary was visited by the Archangel Gabriel, who was sent by the Almighty Himself. This wisp of a girl, mortal but blessed, was told that she was to become the mother of the Son of God. Mary welcomed the news in both complete tranquility, and delight. She engaged herself with the household duties, but also found time to read many religious books and to commune regularly with God through prayer. Orthodox Christians see the Virgin Mary as “Panagia,” which translates into the all-holy saint.