Abortion

Abortion

Written by Archpriest Joseph F Purpura

taken from his book: Moral and Ethical Issues: Confronting Orthodox Youth Across North America

 

 

Given the divisiveness of this issue in contemporary
America, it is not surprising that teens would be unsure what they should believe in regards to abortion. Further compounding this problem is the seeming silence of the Church on this issue. While the Church has a clear and strong position on the issue of abortion, in recent years the Church has not taken an active part in the public debate and discussion of this issue. Abortion also is not part of the formal church school curriculum, or other formal teen and adult discussion forums on the parish level. The Church has not been silent because she does not care, but because many in the church feel the Church’s position is well known. It is apparent from the survey that whether it is or is not well know, many teens are unsure what they should believe concerning abortion.

 

 

Teens were asked three different forms of this question in the survey. They were first asked, “Is it right or wrong to have an abortion for reasons other than to save the life of the mother?” to which 67 percent said it was wrong, only 5 percent said it was right and 27 percent were unsure. They were then asked, “Is it right or wrong to have an abortion to save the physical life of the mother?” to this question 38 percent saw it as right, which is the one occasion upon which the Church understands the possible need for a couple to choose to have an abortion, 20 percent saw it as wrong and 41 percent were unsure if it was right or wrong. Teens were then asked, “Is it right or wrong to have an abortion for any reason?” less than 3 percent thought it was right, 63 percent thought it was wrong and 33 percent were unsure if it was right or wrong. It was clear from the survey that while a slim majority saw abortion as wrong, in all three scenarios, at least 3 out of 10 teens were not sure whether having an abortion was right or wrong. Abortion is an issue on which teens receive many mixed and conflicting messages.

 

 

Youth workers ought to help teens discern what they believe on this issue and to help teens come to an understanding of what and why the Church holds the position she does on abortion. While lecturing or sermonizing may appear to be the best way to convey this information it is often ineffective in assisting the teen to incorporate this belief into his or her own belief system. It is often more beneficial to allow teens to enter into a free dialogue on this issue. One of the goals of that dialogue is to help teens see that the Church views all life as precious and that when we devalue anyone’s life no matter how early in development or how late in late in life, we devalue and dehumanize all life.

 

 

We know from the survey that one of the most effective ways of teens understanding and accepting the Church’s teaching on abortion is for both parents and clergy to dialogue with them on this issue.[1]OP Part of the strategy of having parents and clergy work together on this issue ought to involve spending time with the parents, so they better understand the Church’s teaching on abortion and can better articulate it to their children. Providing the opportunity in youth group and at retreats for teens to dialogue on this issue also provides opportunities for teens to articulate and better understand their own position on abortion. I have found it helpful at retreats to provide a group of teens with materials on the Church position on abortion (a sample of which is provided below) or any other issue for that matter and ask them to study the material (20 minutes or more) and then have them present the Church’s teaching on this subject to their peers. I find at least two things happen through this process: first teens take the task seriously when they know they will be getting up in front of their peers and secondly both they and their peers listen more intently to the material. I have found that simply exposing them to the teaching of the Church in a non-threatening open dialogue allows them to better understand the Church’s position. In hearing the Church’s position, which is very logical and loving, most teens are ready to accept it. I believe that most teens want to do that which is right; they simply need to hear and be taught what is right and what is wrong. Teens are ready to accept and incorporate the truth into their lives, but they need to hear the message and be allowed to freely discuss, debate and then own this truth.

 

 

The following material on abortion is an example of material that I would give to both teens and adults in preparing them to discuss the issue of abortion. I do not feel a need to give them views opposing that of the Church as I feel they already have been inundated with that material. Further, my intent here is to convey to them the Church’s teaching on abortion. In fact, when I ask teens to give a presentation on the material, I specifically ask them to present the Church’s teaching, not their own or anything else that they have already learned elsewhere. This is important because they need to clearly hear the Church’s teaching so they can place their personal beliefs on this issue along with other views alongside that of the Church. In seeing these positions side by side the logical discerning teen will easily see the Church’s teaching as the only logical option, though I want them to come to that conclusion through their own thought process. Again, the purpose here is not simply that the teens accept the Church’s view as their own, but that they accept and incorporate all of the issues surrounding the teaching; that killing is wrong, that all life is precious, that God loves all of us, that God is the source of life, that procreation is participation in the life creating action of God, and so forth.

The Church’s view on Abortion

 

 

The Church teaches that God is the source and sustainer of life and that He created us as male and female with a purpose in mind. The Church views sexual relations between a husband and wife as something very sacred and good and, in fact, when it bears life, the Church views this action as participating in the very action of God’s Creation. The Scriptures say that God became man so that we might become one with Him. Here in this very action of sexual intercourse, when it bears fruit and a child is conceived we already have a foretaste of becoming one with God, by sharing in the creative life giving action of generating life. “For in sexual intercourse, it is not only the seeds of physical being that are united, but also a soul. A father and mother not only transmit their physical characteristics to the child, but they also transmit its soul. This sacred power man possesses of continuing God’s creation with Him is indeed a great wonder.”[2] Hence, to generate life is participation in the Divine Life. The Church opposes abortion, because abortion consciously stops the process of life already begun. Since God is the source of life, and once the woman’s egg is fertilized and if allowed to grow and develop in the woman’s womb, it will result in the birth of a child. Therefore, any intervention at any point once that process has begun (conception) results in the ending of life and a rejection of the wonderful gift of life and the ability to generate life given to us by God. Hence, it is not only a rejection of the gift of a new life, but rebellion against God’s creative energy and love.

 

 

Abortion is not a new controversy brought about by new technologies and understandings of our body. Abortion is an ageless controversy struggled with and recorded at least from the time of Hippocrates, the ancient Greek “father of medicine.” Until recently, doctors who took the Oath of Hippocrates[3] swore not to give poisonous drinks that would abort a fetus. In Roman law abortion was considered a major crime and in the New Testament a fetus was considered a life already begun. The New Testament Gospel written by the physician Luke, has as its beginning, the conception of two children. The first, John the Baptist, the one called to prepare the way of the Lord and the second, the Christ Child, the Messiah, God Incarnate. We read in Luke the account of these two conceptions:

In the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a city of Galilee named
Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. And he came to her and said, “Hail, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying, and considered in her mind what sort of greeting this might be. And 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 bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.

He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High;

and the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David,

and he will reign over the house of Jacob for ever;

and of his kingdom there will be no end.”

And Mary said to the angel, “How shall this be, since I have no husband?” And the angel said to her,

“The Holy Spirit will come upon you,

and the power of the Most High will overshadow you;

therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God.

 

 

And behold, your kinswoman Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son; and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For with God nothing will be impossible.” And Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.

 

 

In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a city of Judah, and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted
Elizabeth. And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and
Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted me, which the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the voice of your greeting came to my ears, the babe in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.” (Luke 1:26-46)

 

 

Likewise, the Church in Her liturgical life recognizes these two conceptions by setting aside feast days nine months before the Church celebrates each of these births. For example, in the case of Jesus Christ, while the Church celebrates His birth on December 25^th, she also celebrates His conception on March 25^th; In the case of Mary the Church celebrates Her birth on September 8^th and Her conception on December 9^th; in the case of John the Baptist his birth on June 24^th and his conception on September 23^rd. Both the scriptural accounts and the liturgical calendar make a statement concerning the Church’s belief that life begins at conception. In the case of our Lord, March 25^th is one of the major Feast Days of the year. The Church believes it is at the moment of conception life has been given and begins; She marks these days with great celebration and sacredness. In the great feast of the Nativity of Mary (September 8^th) celebrated as the first feast of the Church New Year (which begins on September 1^st) one reads concerning Mary, that she was chosen by God before she was even conceived: “Come, all ye believers, let us hasten to the Virgin; for behold she was forechosen a Mother to our God before she was conceived in the womb…”[4] It appears that even before conception God has plans for our life.

 

 

In keeping with the scriptural teachings the Apostles spoke out against abortion, “Do not murder; do not commit adultery; do not corrupt boys; do not go in for sorcery; do not murder a child by abortion or kill a new-born infant.”[5]Q Barnabas, one of the early Church writers, said, “You shall love your neighbor more than your own life. You shall not slay the child by abortion. You shall not kill that which has already been generated.” (Epistle of Barnabas XIX, 5) St. Basil writes, “Those who give potions for the destruction of the child conceived in the womb are murderers, as are those who take potions which kill the child.” (Letters, CLXXXVIII, Canon 8) St. John Chrysostom considered the abortionist as “even worse than a murderer.” (Homilies in Romans, XXIV) St. Gregory of Nyssa writes: “There is no question about that which is bred in the uterus, both growing and moving from place to place. It remains, therefore that we must think that the point of commencement of existence is one and the same for body and soul.” (On the Soul and the Resurrection - Gregory of Nyssa) Modern Orthodox theologians continue with the thought pattern found in the writings of the Fathers. John Meyendorff, writes, “The fact that this interruption takes place makes, of course, a psychological difference, but does not change the nature of the act of abortion being killing, and as such a very grave sin. Because killing is evil . . . ” (“The Orthodox Church” [Newspaper] October 1972). Again, “. . . human life begins at the moment of conception and all who hold life as sacred and worthy of preservation whenever possible are obliged at all costs to defend the lives of unborn children regardless of the stage of their embryonic development.” (“Seminar in Medical Ethics,” St. Vladimir’s Theological Quarterly, Vol. 17, no 3, 1973, p. 246.)

 

 

 

Stanley Harakas, one-time professor of Ethics and Morality at
Hellenic College and Holy Cross Orthodox School of Theology, writes in his book Contemporary Moral Issues:

 

One of the most common arguments used by supporters of abortion on demand is that a woman's right to privacy extends to control over what happens within her own body, including the contents of her uterus. This argument was accepted by the Supreme Court (as far as the first three months of pregnancy are concerned) in its 1973 decision on abortion. Some advocates of this position go so far as to refer to the nascent life as a cancerous growth, or "piece of extraneous tissue", that has invaded the mother's womb. Orthodoxy rejects such notions due to the great value attached to life by God, and the fact that life is a gift which no person has the right to take. If we do not have the right to take our own lives, how much more so must it be that we have no right to take the innocent life of the embryo or fetus in the womb? If our bodies are "temples of the Holy Spirit" as we profess, then to kill an innocent human being is a crime, not only against that person, but also against the Holy Spirit. That the developing persons inside the mother's womb has a life separate from its mother is evident from the fact that its chromosomal makeup is different from the mother's since it is a combination drawn from both mother and father. Further, it is genetically unique; its particular combination of traits and characteristics shall never be repeated.

Further he writes;

A second argument commonly made by those who favor abortion "rights" is that, particularly if the removal of the nascent life occurs during the first few weeks of pregnancy, no human person, or person who is "fully human" has been destroyed. They also claim that unwanted children will not have the opportunity of developing into "responsible personhood," or will jeopardize the "personhood" of parents and siblings, due to the added burden they impose. In opposition, we profess that no human being is ever fully a "person", but that all persons have the potential to become "fully human", to achieve union with God. Therefore, we cannot declare on the basis of "personhood" that the fetus in the womb has no value, or lesser value in the eyes of both God and man than a person born.

 

 

Further supporting Fr. Harakas’ statements are the effects that new medical technology is having upon the abortion rights movement. This new technology supports the fact that the fetus is not a "piece of extraneous tissue", but a visible child in formation:

Faye Wattleton, former head of Planned Parenthood, was crushed to learn that women’s attitudes on abortion are not what she supposed they were. A poll conducted by Wattleton’s new group, the Center for Gender Equality found that 53 percent of American women think abortion should be allowed only after rape or incest, to save a woman’s life, or not at all. Only 28 percent said abortion should be gen­erally available, and 70 percent want more restrictions.

Another sign of slippage in support for abortion shows up in UCLA’s annual national survey of the attitudes of college freshmen. Support for legal abortion dropped for the sixth straight year. In 1990 it was 64.9 percent. Now it is a bare majority, 50.9 percent. The
National Opinion Research Cen­ter in
Chicago found declining opposition to legal abortion from 1988 to 1996. But opposition climbed again in 1998 and is now in the 55 percent range.

Declining support for abortion owes something to the gruesome details that emerged in the debate over “partial-birth” abor­tion. Improvements in ul­trasound imaging also tend to undermine abor­tion, cutting through the abstractions of “choice” and “reproductive rights” and showing pregnant women how much a fetus resembles a newborn. When ultrasound video shows the fetus in 3-D, support for abortion could drop further.[6]

Aside from the theological and technological arguments, are the inherent human emotions surrounding the tragedy of abortion. One common comment heard by this author from young women who have chosen to have an abortion is that they were encouraged or strongly convinced to have an abortion. Often these women had been encouraged to seek abortion as a solution by their own parents or other relatives, friends, teachers and advisors. The tragedy is that often this council is misguided and the young woman never really comes to terms with her own feelings on this issue until it is too late and she recognizes that she has ended a life – a life conceived and carried in her own womb, a life given and taken by her own choice. A similar comment appears in the February 5, 1999 Greek Orthodox Observer Newspaper,[7] 

While researching her book, Real Choices: Listening to Women, Looking for Alternatives to Abortion, writer Frederica Mathews-Green came across a recurring theme. “As I traveled the country holding ‘listening groups’ with women who had abortions, I always asked, ‘What situation caused you to make this decision?’ I expected to hear tales of financial woe, yet nearly 90 percent of the women told me they had had their abortion because of a relationship – because someone they loved, a boyfriend or a parent, told them to. When asked what anyone could have done to help them complete the pregnancy, over and over the answer was: Just stand by me. “If only I had one person to stand by me.” Writes Mrs. Mathews Green.[8]

Many teens, including teens in the Orthodox Teen Study, are either unaware or confused about the teachings of the Church on abortion or have chosen to believe otherwise. Much like Frederica Mathews Green it is the belief of this author, as partially demonstrated in an earlier chapter, that relationships really do matter. Many of our teens that believe abortion is wrong, aside from their intrinsic human emotions, because they have been guided and nurtured by others who believe the same. It is not unexpected that one out of every four teens are unsure if abortion is right or wrong, even when allowing it in the case of a mother’s life being at stake.[9] Young people from the youngest of age are presented with abortion as an acceptable and legal solution to a pregnancy crisis and a right to be had upon demand, even without parental consent in the case of minors. They hear of the ease of obtaining an abortion but seldom of the physical, emotional, and spiritual pain and suffering, let alone of the suffering and the end of life for the child. It is the hope of this author that more qualified, loving adults will stand by young people and share with them just how precious life is and that even when serious mistakes or sins, like pre-marital sex take place, resulting in pregnancy, the life created is still precious, belongs to God. Although intercourse takes place outside of marriage without the blessings of God (hence sinful), the creation of life is still participation in the divine creative action of God. Choosing an abortion is not taking responsibility for a choice to participate in God’s creative action and further compounds the first sin and effectively leads to death of part of oneself and certainly of the life created.

An issue confronting even married couples that want to keep their child is the increasing pressure from doctors to conduct prenatal tests and recommendations of aborting children whose tests show that the child may be born with physical or psychological defects. Here again, Harakas’ words, that none of us are fully human nor will reach our full human potential until we see God in His Kingdom, gives a good indication as to where the Church stands on this issue. One might ask, who are we to determine what constitutes a full human being and that even a child born with handicaps, no matter how severe, is still capable of seeing, feeling and participating in God’s majestic beauty of creation and His presence, albeit maybe differently than we may think and perceive, none-the-less as capable and maybe even more free to enjoy His presence. Another difficult area for many to accept is the case in which a rape results in a pregnancy. The Orthodox Church’s position is that even in the unfortunate and uncontrollable instance of rape, abortion is not a solution. Here perhaps is one of the most difficult choices a young woman may be called to make, when she has been violated, to carry the violator’s baby to term. Perhaps this is where she can take control and choose good over evil, choose to give life rather than destroy and unlike her perpetrator, grant life and joy if not to herself in keeping the child, then in offering the child to a loving couple through adoption. Parents, who themselves have been violated by their child being violated in instances of rape or incest, often want the solution that seems to offer the quickest solution for the child and all involved. Choosing abortion, while it may seem to be the quickest of choices, in fact itself leaves many more scars for the person already victimized. The author is very mindful of the violation that has taken place, and offers the wisdom of the Church as a possible means to real healing. It is the belief of this author that the person violated by rape or incest, is again violated through abortion and that by carrying and bearing the child and offering the child up for adoption to a loving couple can very well be a source of healing and strength at this most difficult time. In any of the instances above, the choice to abort or not to abort has much to do with those surrounding the young person and what they counsel and support. Fr. John Kowalczk reminds all of us surrounding those dealing with a crisis pregnancy:

Any involvement in an abortion; having one, performing one, condoning one, is an action against God. Abortion can be termed a hostile act of rebellion against God’s very work of creation. And do not the words “hostile rebellion against God” sum up the very essence of the work of Satan?[10]

Alcohol and Drug Abuse

 

Alcohol and Drug Abuse

 

By Archpriest Joseph Purpura

 

 

 

When teens were asked in the Orthodox Teen Survey, conducted this past year, “In the past twelve months how many times did you go out drinking with your friends” this is what they said:

Never: 56.71%

1-2 Times: 13.04%

3-6 times: 1.77%

More than 6 Times: 2.03%

“Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you were bought with a price; therefore glorify God in your body.” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)

 

 

The Church’s rational for being opposed to alcohol and drug abuse is found in
St. Paul’s letter to the Corinthians 6:19-20. In both cases one who over indulges puts the body and mind at risk and in some cases harms and even destroys the body. It is a well-known fact that excessive alcohol consumption kills brain cells and affects the liver. Other drugs such as cigarettes, marijuana, cocaine, heroin and the like all affect the body and eventually harm and destroy various organs and can even lead to death. Aside from the physical harm caused by alcohol and other drugs, one’s emotional and spiritual lives are directly affected. While certain forms of alcohol, such as wine, drunk in moderation, particularly with a meal, can in fact be healthy, overindulgence to the point that judgment becomes impaired can lead to loss of self-control and one’s entering into sins one might not otherwise enter into. For example, in the Orthodox Teen Survey there was a direct link between alcohol consumption and those who were sexually active. Most likely this connection has to do with the effects of alcohol lowering ones ability to effectively control what is happening to oneself and ones sense of judgment. Unfortunately, our society’s seemly casual view that alcohol consumption is normal amongst teens, has led many teens into situations that have caused them much harm. While a total prohibition of alcohol is not recommended since even the scriptures say that a little wine is good, the causal attitude in society about becoming intoxicated needs to be changed and responsible alcohol consumption be taught to teens and practiced by the adults whom they are emulating.

 

 

Other drugs, from cigarettes to marijuana, to heroin all fall into the category of having virtually no benefit and only harm to the body, mind and spirit, aside perhaps from some controlled medical uses. Here the user again puts him or her at great risk of harm. Not only is there often loss of control and judgment, but also from the start the body is harmed. Such abuses of the body can be classified as a form of indirect suicide, in which the continued use of such substances over time will lead to the deterioration of the body and eventual death. If we take seriously the fact that our bodies are the temples of the Holy Spirit, where God dwells, then it becomes incumbent upon us to keep the body pure, healthy and sound. The Church puts the emphasis on the sacredness of the body and is why we are called to care for it, nurture it and protect it from all forms of defilement and harm. In caring for the body, keeping the body sound and pure we also provide for our spiritual wellness and wholeness. The Church has always spoken of the person as a whole human being; the Church has always emphasized the sacredness of both body and soul. In fact, the Resurrection accounts of Christ in the Scripture, emphasize Jesus was raised both in Body and Spirit. By caring for one’s body and keeping it pure, healthy and strong, a person also helps keep their spiritual life in order, as by disciplining the body one allows their spiritual life to guide them, rather than the cravings of the body.

 

 

 

 

Drinking and Smoking

“Pressure to drink and smoke weighs on girls as well as boys at a young age”

By Fr Joseph Purpura

 

One of the most requested workshops that I present to both teens and parents concerns drinking, smoking and other drugs. The Orthodox Teen Survey conducted in 1999 revealed that drinking and smoking of cigarettes amongst Orthodox Church going Teens is prevalent. For example Thirty percent of Middle School Girls say they have at least tried smoking cigarettes, as have nearly 28% drank alcohol while out with their friends in the previous year. Similar numbers appear for Middle School Males and the numbers increase as teens hit their High School Years.

School Years	Smoked Cigarettes	Drank Alcohol out with my friends in the previous 12 months
OrthodoxMiddle SchoolFemales	30%	28%
OrthodoxMiddle SchoolMales	46%	30%
OrthodoxHigh SchoolFemales	59%	61%
OrthodoxHigh SchoolMales	67%	63%

Aside from the immediate health risks involved in these actions, as well as the fact that these actions are illegal, we know from this and other studies that cigarettes and alcohol are gateway drugs that can and often do lead to other drugs and other serious risk taking behaviors amongst teens. Those who smoke and or drink alcohol are more likely to also engage in pre-marital sexual relations (heterosexual and homosexual), more likely to struggle in school and have difficulty in their relations with their parents.

 

As Orthodox Christians, we need to take these behaviors seriously and to better educate our young people as to the sacredness of their bodies. Through our teaching and our own behaviors, we want our young people to know that as Christians they expected to care for and nurture the gift of their body that God has given them. We want them to do this so they can live a fuller human life and be better able to glorify God and live the life that God has enabled us to live.

 

A recent Study conduct by the National Institutes for Health, conducted amongst 4,200 Middle School Teens concerning drinking and alcohol abuse clearly show that peer pressure greatly influences whether teens participate or not in these behaviors. The study concluded that, “the single most important factor is the behavior of their five closest friends (even more so for girls than boys according to the study), he says. In step with other recent studies, Simons-Morton also found that parents involved in their children’s lives — engaging in regular conversations, attending after-school events, listening to their problems — were less likely to have children who drink or smoke.” (Pressure to drink and smoke weighs on girls at a young age - USA Today reported on January 24, 2001 p. 8D)

 

Parents, Pastors and Youth Workers are encourage to talk and listen more often to young people concerning the issues confronting them. Teens who want to make good choices in their life style, should review the friends with whom they spend their time. Additionally teens will want to consider one of the most revealing outcomes of the Orthodox Teen Survey, shown in part in the table below. — Teens who read the Bible on a daily and/or weekly basis were significantly more successful in making good decisions in comparison to peers who did not read the Bible on a frequent basis.

Read the Bible at least	Drank alcohol with Friends in the past 12 months	Smoked Cigarettes in the last month	Smoked Marijuana	Had Premarital Sex	Dissatisfied with life	Attend Church at least once a week
Daily	2.0%	1.5%	0.8%	0.6%	0.2%	93%
Weekly	6.0%	2.5%	1.9%	1.1%	0.8%	95%
Less than weekly	35.0%	20.7%	15.0%	7.6%	7.0%	60%

 

 

 

In a step to better inform the faithful of Church Teachings concerning Social Issues, the Orthodox Church of Russia, issued an easily understood statement. This statement in its totality is on the web at http://www.antiochian.org... under “Social Issues”.

As an example of this statement the section concerning alcohol abuse is printed below:

 

 

An excerpt from:

BASES OF THE SOCIAL CONCEPT OF THE RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH

 

XI. 6. The Bible says that «wine maketh glad the heart of man» (Ps. 104:15) and «it is good... if it be drunk moderately» (Sir. 31:27). But we repeatedly find both in Holy Scriptures and the writings of the holy fathers the strong denunciation of the vice of drinking, which, beginning unnoticeably, leads to many other ruinous sins. Very often drinking causes the disintegration of family, bringing enormous suffering to both the victim of this sinful infirmity and his relatives, especially children.

«Drinking is animosity against God¼Drinking is a voluntarily courted devil¼Drinking drives the Holy Spirit away», St. Basil the Great writes. «Drinking is the root of all evils¼The drunkard is a living corpse¼Drinking in itself can serve as punishment, filling as it is the soul with confusion, filling the mind with darkness, making a drunk prisoner, subjecting one to innumerable diseases, internal and external¼Drinking is a many-sided and many-headed beast¼Here it gives rise to fornication, there to anger, here to the dullness of the mind and the heart, there to impure love¼Nobody obeys the ill will of the devil as faithfully as a drunkard does», St. John Chrysostom exhorted. «A drunk man is capable of every evil and prone to every temptation¼Drinking renders its adherent incapable of any task», St. Tikhon Zadonsky testifies.

Even more destructive is ever increasing drug-addiction – the passion that makes a person enslaved by it extremely vulnerable to the impact of dark forces. With every year this terrible infirmity engulfs more and more people, taking away great many a life. The fact that the most liable to it are young people makes it a special threat to society. The selfish interests of the drug business help to promote, especially among youth, the development of a special «drug» pseudo-culture. It imposes on immature people the stereotypes of behavior in which the use of drugs is seen as a «normal» and even indispensable attribute of relations.

The principal reason for the desire of many of our contemporaries to escape into a realm of alcoholic or narcotic illusions is spiritual emptiness, loss of the meaning of life and blurred moral guiding lines. Drug-addiction and alcoholism point to the spiritual disease that has affected not only the individual, but also society as a whole. This is a retribution for the ideology of consumerism, for the cult of material prosperity, for the lack of spirituality and the loss of authentic ideals. In her pastoral compassion for the victims of alcoholism and drug-addiction, the Church offers them spiritual support in overcoming the vice. Without denying the need of medical aid to be given at the critical stages of drug-addiction, the Church pays special attention to the prevention and rehabilitation, which are the most effective when those suffering participate consciously in the Eucharistic and communal life.

Taken from the Jubilee Bishops’ Council of the Russian Orthodox Church

Bases of the Social Concept of the Russian Orthodox Church,

August 13-16, 2000

Copyright (c) 2000 Communication service

of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate

Adress: 22, Danilovsky val, Danilov monastery DECR, 113191 Moscow, Russia

 

 

Fr Joseph Purpura’s Note:

 

In August 2000, the Orthodox Christian Church of Russia released an important document (approximately 60 pages in length) dealing with current social issues. Parents, educators and teens ought to read this document in its entirety. Many of our young people and parents may be unfamiliar with the Church’s teaching on these issues and they are encouraged to read this document to familiarize them with the Church’s teaching.

The full text of this document is on the Youth section of the Archdiocese Web Site and listed under social issues: http://www.antiochian.org/youth/

Youth Workers and other Christian Educators are encouraged to discuss these issues with our young people, encouraging them to understand the Church’s teaching on these vital issues.

 

Homosexuality

Homosexuality [1]

 

by Archpriest Joseph F Purpura

 

 

Taken from his book: Moral and Ethical Issues: Confronting Orthodox Youth Across North America

 

 

 

Another issue upon which teens exhibited a degree of confusion was that of homosexuality. Nearly one out of four teens were unsure whether homosexuality was right or wrong. When it came to equating homosexuality with the act of sex between people of the same sex the percentage of teens who saw homosexuality as right behavior dropped significantly. While 185 were not sure whether homosexuality was right or wrong, when they were asked if it was right or wrong for two people of the same sex to have a sexual relation only four of them said it was right and ninety-seven were unsure, while eighty-four stated it was wrong. A similar response was found from those who stated that homosexuality was right in question eighty-four of the survey. While fifty-one teens in question eighty-four said homosexual relations were right, only twenty-one of them said it was right for two people of the same sex to have a sexual relationship with one another (question 91). Further, of the fifty-one whom though homosexual relationships were right, only three of them have had a sexual relationship with someone of the same sex. Only three of the twenty-six teens that had sex with someone of the same sex as they thought homosexual relationships were right.

 

 

One might want to ask here how much of an influence has the current teachings on “tolerance and acceptance” of other lifestyles led to one out of every four teens being unsure whether homosexuality is right or wrong. Interestingly in this survey when teens were asked, “Is it right or wrong for someone else to have sex with a person of the same sex as them” the “not sure” dropped to 17 percent and when asked if it was right for them to do so, it dropped even further to 11 percent. In each case more teens respectively said it was wrong behavior. Young people in their everyday life are being confronted with the homosexual life style as normal and good, whether it is on television, the movies, at school, and in society in general. What just a decade ago was a hidden lifestyle, today is much in the open and promoted as acceptable and even protected by law in many states. College students, particularly females, state that on many college campuses it has become the fad to experiment with this lifestyle and this behavior is seen even in high school and middle school.

 

 

It is significant that just over one quarter of the teens in the survey had neither a parent or clergyman speak to them concerning homosexuality and that over one half had only one of these two people speak to them on this issue. This is significant when one looks at the data in the survey and realizes that a number of teens are not equating homosexuality with what the term means in terms of behavior. It evident from the survey, that honest and frank discussion on homosexuality needs to take place with teens. As a Church, we want our teens to be able to discern what is right and wrong for them and even for others, so that they can help their peers and eventually children make good decisions regarding their lifestyle. An important part of the discussion on homosexuality ought to be on what homosexuality is and what it means in terms of our relationships with one another and with God. The following overview on homosexuality might be utilized in discussion with teens. This material may be used in preparation for a discussion or as a hand out to teens to discuss.

 

 

The Church’s view on Homosexuality

 

 

Homosexuality is not new; writings as far back as the Old Testament deal with this issue. What is new in American Society is the public display and promotion of this lifestyle and its protection by laws. Much of what was earlier said before about sexual relations outside of marriage applies to homosexual relationships. The Scriptures and the Fathers of the Church speak out on this issue and classify this behavior as unnatural and immoral.[2] Adding to the complexity of this issue is the current claim that homosexuals may be genetically[3]UVpredisposed to such behavior and therefore cannot help themselves but behave this way. Whether one accepts this argument or the argument that children become homosexual in reaction to unhealthy adult relationships, is to demean such individuals by saying that they have no control over their passions or own personal direction in life. Whether heterosexual or homosexual we are all called to control our passions. Sex outside of marriage for a homosexual person is as wrong as it is for a heterosexual person. To claim one has more control over not sinning than the other is to deny personal freedom and the ability to fully choose one’s actions. It is to say that the homosexual has less control over their urges than the heterosexual does and that one is freer than the other. The claim that they are naturally attracted to people of the same sex, so it is acceptable, is no more appropriate than the claim that a heterosexual person is attracted to people of the opposite sex and therefore should be free to express their sexual urges at anytime and with anyone they desire of the opposite sex. Likewise, the argument of genetic predisposition again demeans the person as saying they are incapable of choosing to do right. It is much like the argument of conducting genetic tests to see if someone is predisposed to be a thief or murder and therefore categorizing them and even limiting their activities just because they may posses such a gene, with no consideration for their own struggle to do right and refrain from acting on such predispositions. The Church calls us to be caring and loving to all people, but this does not mean that in loving all people we must accept all behavior as good. The Church has long taught that we are called to love all people but not all behaviors. When one condemns homosexual conduct, he or she condemns the conduct not the person. Despite the homosexual persons failings, we are still called to love them as a person, to treat them with respect, as we would expect to be treated in our own personal failing.

 

 

Harakas in his book Contemporary Moral Issues, clearly outlines the Church’s teaching on homosexual acts:

Regarding homosexual acts, the traditional and exclu­sive teaching of the Church is condemnatory, seeing such acts as morally wrong. In the face of homosexual acts as well as all other expressions of wrongful sexual expression (fornication, adultery, prostitution, incest, bestiality, mas­turbation) the Church teaches that the only proper place for the exercise of the sexual function is in marriage. The evidence from the sources of the faith, without exception, considers homosexual acts as morally wrong. In the Old Testament, we read “If there is a man who lies with a male as those be with a woman, both of them have committed a detestable act. (Leviticus 20:13. Also, 18:22). Grave pun­ishment was visited on the city of
Sodom by God for this sin (Genesis 19:1-29) and as a result Sodomy is another name by which homosexual behavior is described. In speaking of this sinful act, the New Testament uses it to il­lustrate the “depraved passions” of fallen humanity: “their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, and in the same way the men abandoned the natural function of women and burned in their desire to­wards one another, men with men, committing indecent acts . . . “ (Romans 1:24-28). Elsewhere, this evil is related with several others and severe punishment is promised:

 

 

“Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the
kingdom of
God? Do not be deceived; neither the immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals (arsenokoi‑tai — literally, “men go to bed with men for sexual acts”), nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor robbers will inherit the
kingdom of
God” (1 Corinthians 6:9-10. Also, 1 Timothy 1:8-10).

The patristic tradition is no less unanimous and clear-cut in its judgment. From the 2nd century Didache of the Twelve Apostles, through the writings of the Fathers of the Golden Age of the Church such as St. Basil, St. John Chry­sostom, St. Augustine, St. Gregory of Nyssa (4th and 5th centuries), through the sixth century Code of Justinian, the Canons of St. John the Faster (early 7th century) to the decisions of the 21st (1972), and 23rd (1976) Clergy-Laity statement on Homosexuality by the Standing Conference of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas, released in March of 1978, the teaching is consistent and unvarying: homosexual acts are immoral and wrong.[4] W x

Paul D. O’Callaghan writes in the Journal of Christian Bioethics,

Consideration of the divine design and purpose of sex immediately reveals why homosex, adultery, fornication, prostitution, masturbation, and all other forms of sex outside of marriage are morally deviant. In none of these acts can the true realization of oneness in communion occur, because they are outside the God-established marital union, violations of it, or fundamentally disordered. All of these are true of homosexuality. Since the unitive drive for the experience of union is realized in the conjuntio oppositorum, the desire of man and woman to recreate their original oneness in Adam, it is clear that the desire for union with the same sex is a disordered passion. Something is very wrong when a male seeks to complete himself by union with another male. This is why the Apostle Paul argues that homosexuality is “against nature” (see Rom. 1:26-27). It is not just that the particular genital acts are ill fitted, unusual, and abhorrent. It is the fact that the very nature of the homosexual drive is at odds with how God created us as human beings, in His image, as male and female.[5]

OCA Synodal Affirmations

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Orthodox Church in America Tenth All-American Council, July, 1992 Synodal Affirmations On Marriage, Family, Sexuality, and the Sanctity of Life[111]

Contents Introduction
The Mystery of Marriage Marriage and Sexuality Divorce, Widowhood, and Remarriage The Procreation of Children Abortion Celibacy and Virginity		Parents and Children Single Parent Families Adoption Abuse in Family and Society Homosexuality Sickness, Suffering, and Death
These affirmations on marriage, family, sexuality, and the sanctity of life are issued by the Holy Synod of Bishops on the occasion of the Tenth All-American Council of the Orthodox Church in America. Miami, Florida, July 1992

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Introduction		The Orthodox Church in America, being, with all Orthodox Churches in the world, the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church of Christ, acting upon her mandate to teach God’s truth to all people, solemnly affirms that every human person is made in God’s image and likeness for everlasting life in God’s coming kingdom. As the crown of God’s good creation, redeemed by Christ and sanctified by the Holy Spirit, all men, women and children-young and old, sick and healthy, rich and poor, powerful and weak, educated and uneducated, born and unborn-are eternally precious in God’s sight. All human beings will be raised from the dead on the last day. Those who seek the truth, do good and follow God’s law written on their hearts and fully revealed to the world in Jesus Christ, God’s incarnate Word, will inherit everlasting life. Those who persist in their evil ways, following their own will, will be forever lost (cf. Romans 2:14-16; John 1:1-18, 5:25-30). The Holy Synod of Bishops of the Orthodox Church in America, assembled in council with priests and elected parish lay delegates, is gravely concerned about the degradation of human life in our day. We are especially concerned about the desecration of marriage and family life, the vilification of celibacy and virginity, the perversion of human sexuality, the devaluation of human suffering, and the destruction of the natural environment. We therefore take this opportunity, being gathered at our Tenth All-American Church Council, to reaffirm the God-given vision of these elemental aspects of human being and life.
The Mystery of Marriage		God creates human beings in His own image and likeness, male and female. He declares human life, with all that He makes, to be "very good" (Genesis 1:27-31). God wills that men and women marry, becoming husbands and wives. He commands them to increase and multiply in the procreation of children, being joined into "one flesh" by His divine grace and love. He wills that human beings live within families (Genesis 1:27; 2:21-24; Orthodox Marriage Service). The Lord Jesus blessed marriage in which the "two become one flesh" when, by his presence with his mother Mary and his disciples at the marriage in Cana of Galilee, he revealed his messianic glory in his first public miracle, evoking for the first time the faith of his disciples (Genesis 2:24; John 2:1-11). The Lord Jesus Christ abrogated the practice of divorce which was permitted in the old covenant due to the people’s "hardness of heart," insisting that one unique marriage between man and woman was God’s will from the beginning (Mark 10:2-9, Matthew 19:3-12). He stated clearly that "every one who divorces his wife, except on the ground of unchastity [porneia, i.e. sexual immorality], makes her an adulteress; and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery" (Matthew 5:32). The Lord went even further to declare that people who look at others in order to lust after them in their hearts have "committed adultery" (cf. Matthew 5:27-30). Christ’s apostles repeat the teachings of their Master, likening the unique marriage between one man and one woman to the union between Christ and His Church which they experience as the Lord’s very body and His bride (Ephesians 5:21-33; 2 Corinthians 11:2). While condemning those who forbid marriage as an unholy institution, along with those who defile marriage through unchastity (1 Timothy 4:3, Hebrews 13:4), the apostles commend as "the will of God" that Christians, as examples for all human beings, "abstain from unchastity [porneia]" and know how to marry "in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like heathen who do not know God." They insist that "whoever disregards this [teaching] disregards not man but God, who gives His Holy Spirit" to those who believe (1 Thessalonians 4:3-8). Husbands are commanded to be the heads of their wives as Christ is the head of the Church. They are called to love their wives as their very selves, as Christ loves the Church, giving themselves in sacrifice to their brides as to their own bodies. And wives are called to respect and reverence their husbands as the Church devotes itself to Christ with whom she too, like the wife with her husband, is "one flesh" (Ephesians 5:21-33; Orthodox Marriage Service). The "great mystery" of marriage (Ephesians 5:32) is the most used image and symbol in the Bible for God’s relationship with His People in the old and new testaments where the Lord is the husband and His people are His wife -- so often unfaithful and adulterous (cf. Hosea, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Song of Songs, Corinthians, Ephesians, et. al.). And the ultimate union between the Lord and those saved by Christ for eternal life in God’s kingdom by the indwelling Holy Spirit is likened to the communion of marriage (Revelation 21-22). Convinced of these God-revealed truths, we offer the following affirmations and admonitions for the guidance of the faithful: Every human being of whatever religion, race, nationality or moral convictions is to be respected and valued as a creature of God with the potential for everlasting life in God’s coming kingdom. No human being, whatever his or her religion, race, nationality or moral convictions, is to be treated in a wicked, evil or unjust manner. Orthodox Christians are to make supplications, prayers, intercessions and thanksgivings (lit. Eucharist) for all people. This, according to Christ and the saints, includes one’s enemies, cursers and abusers, as well as persecutors of the Church, heathens and heretics (Luke 6:27-49; 1 Timothy 2:1-4; St John Chrysostom, On First Timothy, Homilies 6 and 7; St. John of Kronstadt, My Life in Christ).
Marriage and Sexuality		Marriage and family life are to be defended and protected against every open and subtle attack and ridicule. Sexual intercourse is to be protected as a sacred expression of love within the community of heterosexual monogamous marriage in which alone it can be that for which God has given it to human beings for their sanctification. Sexual love in marriage is to be chaste and pure, devoid of lewdness, lechery, violence and self-gratification. Couples planning to marry are to be properly counseled and prepared to confront the challenges of the married life, being guided in the ways to find within family life the way to spiritual fulfillment and sanctity.
Divorce, Widowhood, and Remarriage		Victims of broken marriages are to be counseled to repent of the evils, which caused the failure their original marriages, and to seek God’s mercy and guidance in transforming the defeat into spiritual victory. Widows and widowers are to be counseled whenever possible, particularly in the absence of small children in need of care, to remain faithful to their departed spouses who are alive in the Lord, maintaining the nuptial unity of love to be fulfilled in the kingdom of God for which they were crowned as husband and wife. Widowed and divorced persons who remarry do so not as their right but as recipients of a special gift of God’s mercy to be accepted with repentance, gratitude and the firm intention faithfully to fulfill all that belongs to married life.
The Procreation of Children		The procreation of children in marriage is the "heritage" and "reward" of the Lord; a blessing of God (cf. Psalm 127:3). It is the natural result of the act of sexual intercourse in marriage, which is a sacred union through which God Himself joins the two together into "one flesh" (Genesis 1-2, Matthew 19, Mark 10, Ephesians 5, et. al.). The procreation of children is not in itself the sole purpose of marriage, but a marriage without the desire for children, and the prayer to God to bear and nurture them, is contrary to the "sacrament of love" (Orthodox Marriage Service; St. John Chrysostom, On Ephesians, Homily 20). Married couples are encouraged to abstain from sexual union at times for the sake of devotion to prayer (as, for example, on the eves of the Eucharist, and during Lenten seasons). They are to do so, however, only "for a season by agreement" since their bodies are not their own but belong to each other; and they are to "come together again lest Satan tempt" them (cf. 1 Corinthians 7:2-7). God himself "knits together" the child conceived in the mother’s womb, beholding its "unformed substance" as it is being intricately wrought before his all-knowing eyes (Psalm 139:13-18). The Lord Jesus himself was first acknowledged on earth by John the Baptist when both the Lord and His Forerunner were still embryos within their mothers’ wombs (Luke 1:39-45). Orthodox Christians have always viewed the willful abortion of unborn children as a heinous act of evil. The Church’s canonical tradition identifies any action intended to destroy a fetus as the crime of murder (Ancyra, Canon 21; Trullo, Canon 91; St. Basil, Canon 2). Convinced of these God-revealed truths, we offer the following affirmations and admonitions for the guidance of the faithful: The procreation of children is to take place in the context of marital union where the father and mother accept the care of the children whom they conceive. Married couples may express their love in sexual union without always intending the conception of a child, but only those means of controlling conception within marriage are acceptable which do not harm a fetus already conceived. Married couples may use medical means to enhance conception of their common children, but the use of semen or ova other than that of the married couple who both take responsibility for their offspring is forbidden.
Abortion		Abortion is an act of murder for which those involved, voluntarily and involuntarily, will answer to God. Those finding themselves confronted with tragic circumstances where the lives of mothers and their unborn children are threatened, and where painful decisions of life and death have to be made -- such as those involving rape, incest, and sickness -- are to be counseled to take responsible action before God, who is both merciful and just, to whom they will give account for their actions. Women and men, including family members and friends of pregnant women considering abortions, are to be encouraged to resist this evil act, and be assisted in bearing and raising their children in healthy physical and spiritual conditions. Women who have had recourse to abortion, men who have fathered aborted children, and others involved in cases of abortion, are to be provided with pastoral care, which includes recognition of the gravity of the act and assurance of the mercy of God upon those who repent of their sins. Orthodox Christians are to contribute to legislative processes according to their knowledge, competence, ability and influence so that laws may be enacted and enforced which protect and defend the lives of unborn children while being sensitive to the complexities and tragedies of life in contemporary society.
Celibacy and Virginity		Together with the most positive affirmation of marriage and family life, the Orthodox Church also affirms that the Lord calls some men and women to a life of celibacy and virginity. The "angelic way" of monastic life is especially blessed for men and women "able to receive this" as those so "assigned" and "called" (cf. Matthew 19:10-12; 1 Corinthians 7). The monastic vocation is identified in Orthodox tradition with the "good portion" of Mary who sat at Jesus’ feet, listening to his teaching and contemplating his truth in purity of heart. It is the calling to men and women to live in singleness, solitude, stillness and spiritual struggle in service to God; the way, which the apostle Paul practically recommends as the "better" way, if God so wills, in this fallen world filled with temptations and trials. Beginning with Mary the Virgin Mother of God and St. John the Forerunner and Baptist of the Lord- not to speak of the Lord Jesus Christ himself- the Orthodox Church’s liturgical calendar of saints is filled with righteous celibates, virgin martyrs, and men and women who followed the monastic way in purity and holiness of life. Convinced of these God-revealed truths, we offer the following affirmations and admonitions for the guidance of the faithful: Celibacy and virginity are also to be defended and protected from vilification and ridicule. Monastic life is to be defended, protected and promoted in witness to life in God’s coming kingdom where all holy men and women will be "like angels in heaven" (Matthew 22:30).
Parents and Children		Human beings are created and saved to be the children of God, sons of the Father in Christ the only Son, by the indwelling Holy Spirit (Luke 3:38, John 1:12, Romans 8:14-17, Galatians 4:1-7). With God as our Father in Christ and the Spirit, the heavenly Jerusalem, already here present with us in the Church of Christ, "is our mother" (Galatians 4:26, Revelation 21:2-10). As St. Cyprian of Carthage has said, "A person cannot have God for his Father, who has not the Church for his mother" (On the Unity of the Church, 5). Since every fatherhood in heaven and on earth takes its name from the fatherhood of God (Ephesians 3:14), fathers in domestic, ecclesial and monastic families, together with holy mothers, are called to mediate God’s presence and action to their children. The sacraments of marriage and ordination as well as the rites of monastic tonsure and the installation of abbots and abbesses testify to this spiritual calling. Fathers are commanded not to provoke their children to anger, but to love them and "to bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord" (Ephesians 6:4). And children are commanded to honor their father and mother, and to obey their parents in all things which are godly, realizing as they mature spiritually that they belong ultimately to God’s household, receiving their identity not from their flesh and blood parents, but from God (Ephesians 6:1-4. Colossians 18-21, Matthew 10:34-39; 12:46-50; 23:9; Luke 15:26, John 1:12-13; et. al.). Convinced of these God-revealed truths, we offer the following affirmations and admonitions for the guidance of the faithful: The family of father, mother and children, with the extended family of grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins, is to be supported and protected as the basic condition of life for human beings in the this world. Children are to be provided with the fullest and deepest possible experience of secure family life and activity. The family is not to be idolized as an end in itself, thereby becoming an obstacle rather than a means to healthy and holy spiritual life in communion with God in the Church.
Single Parent Families		Although normal family life consists of a father and a mother together with their children, the growing number of single parent families which exist due to death, divorce and desertion are to be supported and honored. Attention is to be given to the special spiritual, social and economic needs of single parent families. Provision is especially necessary for the presence of loving adults of the gender of the missing parent in the family’s life and activities. And special care and support is needed for the single parent to persevere in a life of sexual chastity and holiness.
Adoption		The adoption of children without families to care for them by married couples and single people capable of providing them with spiritual and material care is to be supported and honored. The blessed action of providing foster care to needy children is also to be supported and praised. Adoption, not abortion, is the answer to unwilled pregnancy. Unmarried mothers are to be encouraged and supported in bringing their conceived babies to term and offering them for adoption. Not for any reason, however, and certainly not for making money, are children to be conceived in order to be given up for adoption. Adoption procedures involving large sums of money, profit motivation and coercion of families and mothers to give up their children is to be soundly rejected and condemned.
Abuse in Family and Society		All forms of physical, spiritual, psychological and emotional abuse of men, women and children are to be condemned. Parents, and adults generally, are to be assisted in learning to treat children properly, avoiding abusive behavior because of the children’s smallness, weakness and dependency. Although women and children may be abusive in their own right, they are for many reasons more often the victims of abuse by men rather than men’s abusers. Special attention is therefore to be given to the issue of "battered women and children" in our society. The Christian teaching of the "headship" of the husband and father in the family is not to be interpreted as supportive in any way of abusive behavior; nor is the traditional teaching about the need to discipline children. Positions of authority in family and society, as well as in churches, can be used in abusive ways. Some examples are the refusal of leaders to be available, to listen and to communicate respectfully and openly with subordinates, and even with peers in similar leadership positions; the use by those in authority of material and economic threats and punishments against those having legitimate disagreements and differences; the unsound and unwarranted appeals on the part of those in authority to the right for love, respect and obedience from their subordinates, and even peers, in order to shame or silence those who question their policies and actions. Every means is to be taken to be aware of the abuse of authority by those in leadership positions, and to expose and correct it. Those in authority and positions of leadership may themselves be abused by peers and subordinates through unjust criticism, uninformed judgments, ungrounded accusations, careless talk, malicious gossip, disrespect, disdain and outright disobedience. These forms of abusive behavior must also be exposed and eliminated in human communities, including families and churches. Efforts are also to be made to eliminate the sources of rage, discontent and depression, which lead to abuse in families and social and religious groups. Some of these are racial, religious and ethnic hatreds and injustices; sexual and carnal titillation; the cultivation of unrealistic expectations and desires; the acceptance of false promises about possible possessions and achievements; and the misuse of drugs and alcohol. Many of the causes of human abuse are found in television programs, films, music, advertising, and social, political, ethnic and religious demagoguery which, primarily to make money, cater to the baser and weaker aspects of human life in the fallen world. These also are to be identified, exposed and eliminated.
Homosexuality		Created to know God’s divinity and power through creation, human beings have refused to acknowledge God, to honor and thank Him, and to obey his divine teachings. Through their rebellion "they became futile in their thinking and their senseless hearts were darkened" (Romans 1:21). Therefore, as the apostle Paul continues to teach, "God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves...their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural, and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in their own persons the due penalty for their error" (Romans 1:26-27). Homosexual acts, like adulterous and incestuous behavior, are condemned in the law of Moses. Those who do these things, both men and women, are, according to God’s law of the old covenant, to be put to death (Leviticus 18:6-23; 20:10-21). According to the apostle Paul, those engaging in homosexual acts, with fornicators, adulterers, idolaters, thieves, the greedy, drunkards, revilers and robbers, will not inherit the kingdom of heaven. Christians come from all these categories of evildoers who have, voluntarily and involuntarily, been caught up in the sin of the world. They are those who through their personal repentance and faith in Christ, their baptism and chrismation, and their participation in Holy Communion, have been "washed...sanctified...and made righteous in the name of the Lord Jesus and in the Spirit of our God" (1 Corinthians 6:9-11; Orthodox Baptism and Chrismation Service). Jesus teaches mercy and forgiveness for all sinners, but the Lord does not justify sin. When the Son of God pronounces divine pardon to those caught in evil he always charges the forgiven sinner to "go and sin no more" (John 8:11). Convinced of these God-revealed truths, we offer the following affirmations and admonitions for the guidance of the faithful: Homosexuality is to be approached as the result of humanity’s rebellion against God, and so against its own nature and well-being. It is not to be taken as a way of living and acting for men and women made in God’s image and likeness. Men and women with homosexual feelings and emotions are to be treated with the understanding, acceptance, love, justice and mercy due to all human beings. People with homosexual tendencies are to be helped to admit these feelings to themselves and to others who will not reject or harm them. They are to seek assistance in discovering the specific causes of their homosexual orientation, and to work toward overcoming its harmful effects in their lives. Persons struggling with homosexuality who accept the Orthodox faith and strive to fulfill the Orthodox way of life may be communicants of the Church with everyone else who believes and struggles. Those instructed and counseled in Orthodox Christian doctrine and ascetical life who still want to justify their behavior may not participate in the Church’s sacramental mysteries, since to do so would not help, but harm them. Assistance is to be given to those who deal with persons of homosexual orientation in order to help them with their thoughts, feelings and actions in regard to homosexuality. Such assistance is especially necessary for parents, relatives and friends of persons with homosexual tendencies and feelings. It is certainly necessary for pastors and church workers.
Sickness, Suffering, and Death		From the very beginning of human life on earth the rebellion of men and women against God has resulted in sickness, suffering and death. This is the meaning of the story of Adam and Eve, and their children and descendents, found in the first chapters of the Bible (Genesis 1-11). Jesus Christ has come to save the world. He has come to free human beings from the tyranny of sickness, suffering and death through the forgiveness and expiation of their sins by his own sinless suffering and death. Jesus Christ is the Lamb of God who takes upon himself the sins of the world. He is the new and final Adam who comes from heaven to give human beings the opportunity to begin life over again by dying and rising in him, and being sanctified and sealed by his life-creating Spirit (John 1:29; 1 Corinthians 15). Jesus Christ shows us that human suffering has redeeming and sanctifying significance. It can be the means of finding God in the fallen world, the means of purification from carnal passions, the means of enlightenment and communion with God for everlasting life. Through Christ’s death, death itself is destroyed and transformed. Man’s "final enemy," the "wages of sin," has become through Christ’s crucifixion the way into paradise for those who fight it to the end, who refuse to surrender to its power, who destroy its very foundations by faith in God and love for Him and His good creation which has been corrupted and polluted by the evils of men (1 Corinthians 15, Romans 6). The whole of creation- all the plants and animals, fish and birds, rocks and planets- is "groaning in travail" as it "waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God;" for in the final coming of Christ all of creation "will be set free from the bondage to decay and obtain the glorious liberty of the children of God" (Romans 8:18-21). The apostle Paul tells us that "the sufferings of the present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us" (Romans 8:18). He says that our earthly sufferings are but the "slight momentary affliction" which "is preparing us for an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison" (2 Corinthians 4:17). Christians are waiting for the salvation of the world in God’s coming kingdom where the Lord "will render to everyone according to his works" (Romans 2:6). The apostle continues, "to those who by patience in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; but for those who are factious and do not obey the truth, but obey wickedness, there will be wrath and fury. There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil...but glory and honor and peace for every one who does good...for God shows no partiality" (Romans 2:7-11). Convinced of these God-revealed truths we offer the following affirmations and admonitions for the guidance of the faithful: All efforts to heal physical and spiritual sickness, to alleviate physical and spiritual suffering, and to prevent physical and spiritual death are to be supported and defended. Those who suffer, and those related to the suffering, are to be helped to find God in their affliction, and so to acquire the divine grace and power to transform their pain into a means of purification from evil, illumination from darkness and eternal salvation in the age to come. Adequate health care is to be made available for all men, women and children regardless of their, race, religion, social status, or financial condition. Great care must be taken so that healing services are not restricted to the affluent or the apparently "deserving." Extreme caution is to be exercised in decisions involving medical treatment, especially in the face of death. Extreme care is always in order to find the "royal path" between providing all necessary healing measures and merely prolonging the biological functioning of organs when human life is no longer possible, or even present. Scientific research and experimentation are to be undertaken with extreme caution in order not to bring greater evils and sufferings to humankind in place of intended blessings. The natural world is to be treated as the friend and servant of humanity. It is not to be raped, corrupted and polluted for purposes of power, pleasure or profit. It resources are to be used with respect and gratitude for the well-being of all people on the planet (see Message of the Primates of the Most Holy Orthodox Churches, 6. Phanar, March 15, 1992). Human beings are to be reminded by every means that they are not isolated individuals but are members one of another who will give account to God and to their fellow creatures for their every thought, word and deed; and that their eternal destiny depends on what they have done with their lives on earth.

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[111]“Orthodox Church in America: Synodal Affirmations on Marriage, Family, Sexuality, and the Sanctity of Life,” July 1992. Reproduced with permission from http://www.oca.org/OCA/Al... Internet; accessed 5 March 1999.

Pre-marital Sexual Relations

Pre-Marital Sexual Relations

 

by Archpriest Joseph F Purpura,

 

taken from his book: Moral and Ethical Issues: Confronting Orthodox Youth Across North America

 

 

It is not surprising that one out of every four teens are unsure if it is right or wrong to have sexual relations prior to marriage, given how much teens are inundated with sexual messages and images in their daily life, starting from the pre-teen years. The fact that only 5.57 percent of teens in the survey thought pre-marital sex was right is remarkable given the pervasive exploitation of young males and females in the media as sex objects and the constant portrayal of sex outside of marriage as normal and an everyday event without consequences. We need to better equip teens to make good choices concerning sex and to be able to see through the multitude of sexual messages they receive on a daily basis. We want teens to see themselves as important, valuable and sacred, despite the messages they receive to the contrary, which tend to debase both males and females. Simply teaching teens that sex is bad is insufficient and tends to leave teens further confused as to why they are having the physical and psychological feelings and urges that come along with puberty and thereafter. In fact this approach typically leads teens to feel that they themselves are bad for having these feelings and for being attracted to people of the opposite sex.

 

One of our goals ought to be to develop within the hearts and minds of teens that virginity is something very good, something to strive for until marriage, and something not to be embarrassed about possessing, but in fact an accomplishment to be proud of keeping. We want them to remain virgin until marriage, not simply because they did what they were asked in not having sex, but that they valued themselves, the person they will marry, their relationship with God, and sex itself. Teens ought to see sex as something very sacred and good and therefore an act not lightly undertaken. For that matter, we want them to understand that the consequences of a sexual relation are something that they carry with themselves throughout their life. They do not forget it or the person they had sex with, because they give up to the other person a very special part of themselves in the bonding that takes place in a sexual relationship. The bond created in having sex with another person is very real and does not simply disappear once the relationship ends.

 

We should strive to help teens remain virgin (or stop having pre-marital sex) because we care about them now and care about their future marriage relationship. Sexual relations that occur outside of marriage are brought into the marriage in one form or another and can stand as an impediment to the marriage being successful. One who has had sex outside of the marriage and has experienced the breaking up of that relationship often finds it more difficult to be able to fully and freely give of himself or herself to the other person. When a relationship breaks off there is always hurt and pain in that separation, and this is especially true when sexual relations have been involved. All of us, teens and adults alike, build up walls to protect ourselves against past hurts. People who have broken off relationships tend to be more protective of their feelings and emotions with the next relationship. Having sex within a relationship is a life-changing event that greatly intensifies the depth of the relationship and therefore the intensity of the hurt at separation and therefore typically entails the building of higher and stronger walls to protect one when the next relationship comes along. We want our young people to be successful in marriage and to enjoy the full intensity of the marriage relationship and that includes being able to give themselves fully, freely and totally in their sexual relationship in the marriage. In fact, being able to fully and freely give oneself to one’s spouse through sexual relations is essential to the health and well‑being of the marriage relationship.

 

The survey strongly indicates an association between whether teens believe sex outside of marriage is right and whether they themselves engage in pre-marital sexual relations. [1] The obvious place to begin with preventing pre-marital sexual relations amongst teens is to begin with their attitude concerning sex and other related issues. We know from the survey that parents and clergy can have a profound impact on teen’s attitudes concerning pre-marital sex. [2] It therefore makes sense that parents and clergy work together to discuss these issues with teens and dialogue with them about making good choices regarding their sexual purity.

 

Consideration should be given to providing opportunities where teens can safely spend time with their peers and learn to engage in healthy relationships with peers of the opposite sex without feeling pressured to have sex. These may be opportunities where both male and female teens can meet in well supervised events, free of alcohol and other drugs that tend to make pre-marital sex that much more likely to occur. [3] S Likewise, efforts should be made to reduce, as much as possible, opportunities for males and females to be alone with one another, on such occasions as dating alone or no adults being home when teens are home from school and have a friend over. According to the survey, teens who did not have an adult present in the home when they arrived home from school were more than twice as likely to have had a sexual relationship than their peers who had an adult present when they arrived home from school.

 

Parents may want to give consideration towards discouraging their teens from dating during their early teen years, as statistically younger teens who dated were much more likely to have engaged in sexual behavior. The number of times a young teen had dated also raised the likelihood that they would be sexually active. For example, 20 percent of thirteen year olds who dated had intercourse, 8 percent of fourteen year olds, 7 percent of fifteen year olds, 12 percent of sixteen year olds, 21 percent of seventeen year olds and 29 percent of eighteen year olds. One can assume that not all eighteen year olds had sex only when they were eighteen, but may have had sex at an earlier age. Those teens that had not dated over the previous 12 months had no instances of pre-marital sex with the exception of seven teens, three of who reported being forced to have sex. In short adults can help teens remain virgin, by dialoging with them on what is appropriate, supporting them to remain virgins, consider placing more controls on dating, and to provide safe opportunities where teens can interact with their peers of the opposite sex, free from the pressures of feeling they are expected to have sex. The following material is offered to assist those dialoging with teens on the issue of sexuality.

 

 

The Church’s view on Pre-marital sex

 

The Scriptures, writings of the Church Fathers and current theologians are all consistent in their view that sexual relations belong only within marriage. Sexual relations outside of marriage attempt to express a relationship and union which do not exist, a fact that eventually becomes evident in all such relationships. Sexual relations are seen as something good and necessary within marriage as an expression of a union (oneness) and commitment between husband and wife, neither of which exist outside of marriage. What is written in this section concerning pre-marital sex certainly also applies to sex outside of one’s own marriage and in fact extra-marital affairs add the consequence of breaking the marriage commitment and oneness of that marriage, a break which is often irreparable.

 

The Scriptures abound with prohibitions against pre-marital sexual relations, not because as some would say, “God does not want us to have fun,” but because God loves us, understands us, and knows that such relationships can only bring harm, sadness and brokenness. In the book of Matthew, Jesus speaks concerning fornication (sexual relations outside of marriage):

And he called the people to him and said to them, “Hear and understand: not what goes into the mouth defiles a man, but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man.” Then the disciples came and said to him, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?” He answered, “Every plant which my heavenly Father has not planted will be rooted up. Let them alone; they are blind guides. And if a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit.” But Peter said to him, “Explain the parable to us.” And he said, “Are you also still without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach, and so passes on? But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a man. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a man; but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a man.” (Matthew 15:10-20)

 

St. Paul writes in Galatians:

For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love be servants of one another. For the whole law is fulfilled in one word, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you bite and devour one another take heed that you are not consumed by one another.

 

But I say, walk by the Spirit, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh; for these are opposed to each other, to prevent you from doing what you would. But if you are led by the Spirit you are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are plain: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, anger, selfishness, dissension, party spirit, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and the like. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things shall not inherit the
kingdom of
God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

 

If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. Let us have no self-conceit, no provoking of one another, no envy of one another. (Galatians 5:13-25)

 

And in Ephesians Paul writes:

Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

But fornication and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is fitting among saints. Let there be no filthiness, nor silly talk, nor levity, which are not fitting; but instead let there be thanksgiving. Be sure of this, that no fornicator or impure man, or one who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has any inheritance in the
kingdom of
Christ and of God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for it is because of these things that the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not associate with them, for once you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as