Commemoration of our Father Among the Saints, St. Ephraim the Syrian

Today, January 28, the Holy Orthodox Church commemorates two of our great Syrian saints, St. Ephraim and St. Isaac, both given the title "The Syrian." It is very important to realize that early Christianity may have been forged by the Greek language and with a lot of Greek thought, but that the vast majority of early adherents to the new faith were Semitic. The Syrians, in particular, had written many hymns and theological tractates which would later be translated into Greek and Latin for later faithful generations. The Syrian modal system is the main basis of Byzantine chant, not, as many suppose, the Greek system. Both have been synthesized into our wonderful music system. Christianity is and has never been a European phenomenon.

St. Ephraim is, whether for good or for bad, known mainly for one thing--his prayer which is said every day of the Great Fast (save for Saturdays and Sundays). Though St. Ephraim was quite a prolific writer--his spiritual psalter is one of the great treasures of church hymn writing--the prayer which bears his name is how most Orthodox and non-Orthodox know of this great saint.

This prayer so succintly sums up what should be our spiritual life:

O Lord and Master of my life, a spirit of sloth, curiousity, lust for power and idle talk, give me not. But grant a spirit of chastity, humility, patience and love to Thy servant. Yea, O Lord and King, grant me to see my own sins and not to condemn my brothers for blessed art Thou unto the ages. Amen.

We say this prayer with prostrations and bows. How sad that there are so many Orthodox who do not say it because it is never said on Saturdays or Sundays! Is there a more appropriate prayer for not only Lent but for the whole of our spiritual lives? Is this not what the spiritual life is? To be freed from our passions and desires so that we become more like Christ? Is that not why He came in the flesh?

As we approach the Great Fast, we should all take this prayer to heart and we should pray it reverently.

From the prologue of Ohrid: Ephrem was born in Syria of poor parents during the reign of Emperor Constantine the Great. He spent his young life rather tempestuously; but all at once a change took place in his soul and he began to burn with love for the Lord Jesus. Ephrem was a disciple of St. James Nisibis (January 13). From the enormous Grace of God, wisdom flowed from his tongue as a brook of honey and ceaseless tears flowed from his eyes. Industrious as a bee, Ephrem continually either wrote books or orally taught the monks in the monastery and the people in the town of Edessa or he dedicated himself to prayer and contemplation. Numerous are his books and beautiful are his prayers. The most famous is his prayer recited during the Honorable Fast Season. When they wanted to appoint him a bishop by force, he pretended to be insane and began to race through the city of Edessa dragging his garment behind him. Seeing this, the people left him in peace. Ephrem was a contemporary and friend of St. Basil the Great. Saint Ephrem is considered mainly to be the Apostle of Repentance. Even today his works soften many hearts hardened by sin and return them to Christ. He died in extreme old age in the year 378 A.D.

Through the intercessions of St. Ephraim, may Christ our God save our souls!

Triodion begins--The Sunday of the Publican and Pharisee

We have just put away the decorations for Nativity, blessed the waters and our homes celebrating the joy of our Lord's Theophany and now, before January is over, we have begun Triodion. I can't help but think how much though my fellow Orthodox miss at Vespers and Orthros for this day. Sure, they hear the gospel at the Liturgy which directly pertains to this feast, but the supporting hymnography, really hits home what this day means for us in the spiritual life.

The Gospel lesson for this day is short, incredibly short. In fact so many Gospel pericopes appointed for certain days are extremely short. Circumcision is only one verse; Transfiguration only two or four (depending on which account you read); Theophany is not much longer. Our Lord's words in his parables are meant to bring us straight to the point, not to be beaten up with fancy word analysis and redacted so that we can better understand the metaphors. The point of this Gospel: Humility!

Our Lord asks, "Who went home justified?" The answer is, of course, the Publican. Why? Because he humbled himself before God. And why is that such a great virtue to have? Because God has that virtue. We often don't think of God being humble, preferring such superlatives as greatest, most holy, most awesome, most compassionate, most loving, etc., etc.. But God is above all humble and that is why he is compassionate and loving. To be humble is to be humiliated. And God was humiliated (not always a negative term) because of his Incarnation in the flesh when He took on what we are and humiliated Himself unto death, even death on a cross, as St. Paul tell us. God's loving and merciful compassion is poured out for us because He, even before we sinned, as some Church Fathers say (cf. St. Athanasius), God was to come in the flesh and die, to raise us up so that we may take on the divine while we yet live here on earth. To be humble is thus to be Godlike.

I should say a few words about the Pharisee and his prayers. There is absolutely nothing wrong with what the Pharisee says he does. There is nothing wrong with fasting and giving to the poor. In fact, as the fasting season approaches, we are reminded to do both and join more prayer with those virtues. Many people read this Gospel passage (incorrectly) and suggest that Christ is condemning works and that only our faith matters (sola fide). Such cheapens the Gospel. If our faith is a mental activity only, then we are not wholly transformed. If the flesh will not do as the body, then we have become schizophrenic beings instead of a union of mind, body and soul. Does our Lord not command us to love Him with all our mind, body and heart? If we only love with the mind, yet not the body, we do not love God and we cannot love God. God did not come in the flesh because He thought the flesh was bad or only to nourish the spirit. Such a thought is dangerous. It is modern day Manichaeism and gnosticism. God came in the flesh, assuming everything we are so that all things may be healed so that we can glorify our God in works (cf. Eph 2: 9-10). The Pharisee's problem is not with what he does but how his good works are motivated not for love of God, but for love of himself. Good works (on the surface) can come from bad people, but if they are not directed towards a love for God, then they are suspect by God.

The theme of this past Sunday is humility. Next week, the Sunday of the Prodigal Sun, the theme is return from exile. More then.

We waited...

Bishop NIKOLAI Velimirovich of Ohrid once said as he was present at Pascha in Jeruslaem, "We waited, and at last our expectations were fulfilled. When the Patriarch sang 'Christ is Risen', a heavy burden fell from our souls. We felt as if we also had been raised from the dead. All at once, from all around, the same cry resounded like the noise o fmany waters. 'Christ is Risen' sang the Greeks, the Russians, the Arabs, the Serbs, the Copts, the Armenians, the Ethiopians--one after another, each in his own tongue, in his own melody...Coming out of from the service at dawn, we began to regard everything in the light of the glory of Christ's Resurrection, and all appeared better, more expressive, more glorious. Only in the light of the Resurrection does life receive meaning."

Though NIKOLAI's narrative goes into great length about the joy and the benefits of Pascha, the first two words of his description deserve special attention: We waited. In this context, I am sure he is speaking more than just of waiting for the service to begin. I am quite sure that he is speaking of the waiting undergone during Great Lent and Holy Week for our Lord's Pascha.

Today begins Triodion. I can hardly believe that after the joy of Nativity and Theophany, we are so soon about to plunge ourselves into the holy season of repentance where we wait for our Lord's Pascha! In these four Sundays before the beginning of Great Lent, we recall the humility of the Publican, the repentance of the Prodigal as well as the rejoicing of the Father for such repentance, the Last Judgment of our Sins and the expulsion of Adam and Eve from Paradise. In all that, we wait...for Great Lent. Then Great Lent is upon us where we fast and pray and give alms, still waiting...for Pascha.

We wait, which means we prepare. And we have to prepare. Bishop NIKOLAI saw this clearly. Without the waiting, without the preparation there can be no rejoicing, there can be no sense that as the dead are raised, so we are raised from our sin. Without that preparation, our hearts are as empty as the empty tomb. And the empty tomb becomes an anecdote of history rather than the key to our salvation.

We cannot simply come into the presence of God. For those who only want 30 minute church services with happy clappy music and short prayers and no mention of sin, you are not asking for the presence of God. You are asking for the presence of the flesh to mask the presence of God. Though it is an insult to search out God since God is everywhere, it is insulting to suggest that one can simply come into the presence of God, whether by just entering a church or saying one short prayer or singing a hymn. Coming into the presence of God takes time and effort...a lot of them, too! Because we are so hardened in sin, we cannot see that God still does walk among us and even if we could see such a thing happening, many of us would not want it. You cannot simply come into the presence of God. You must prepare.

Infants must crawl before they can walk. Why do we lowly sinners demand that God reveal his majesty to us immediately before we can even look upon the light of the sun? It's probably sheer laziness. Preparation takes time and no one wants to rid themselves of their precious time which could be directed towards TV, family, business, work, sports, etc.

Even if it is impossible to prepare all the time, it is very possible to prepare some of the time, to make more effort than one would during the rest of the year.

Let us prepare. Let us purge ourselves of our sins. Let us desire God if only because He has desired us.

Blessed preparation to all of you!

It's good to be back

Today, I was privileged to be able to chant Orthros and then sing in the choir for Divine Liturgy at St. Mary Antiochian Orthodox Church. Though I visited twice during my three month exile, now I'm officially back and I couldn't be happier. This is my spiritual home and this is where I should be especially as I begin to enter into the season of Great Lent, the season of repentance, which I have much to do. I can't imagine going through Lent and celebrating our Lord's Pascha anywhere else. It is good to be home.

Hymn of the Day

Third Troparion at Psalm 140 of Great Vespers (Plagal of Tone 2):

O Lord, Who art in all creation, whither shall we sinners flee from Thee? To heaven? For Thou dwellest there; or to Hades? For there Thou art the Trampler over death, or to the depths of the sea? For there is Thy hand, O Master. In Thee, therefore, seek we refuge, and Thee do we worship beseechingly; O Thou who didst rise from the dead, have mercy upon us.--St. John Damascene

Modern Orthodox Wisdom

On one of the stones in the Church of St. Sophia, the following words were engraved: "Wash your sins, not only your face." Whoever entered this glorious church read this inscription and remembered that the Christian Faith requires of him moral purity: purity of the soul, purity of the heart and purity of the mind. Just as in the heart of man is concentrated the complete spiritual man, this is what the Lord also said, "Blessed are the pure of heart" (St. Matthew 5:8). Total external cleanliness does not help at all in gaining the kingdom of heaven. Oh, if only we would invest as much effort in washing ourselves from sins as we invest daily in washing our faces, then God would truly be seen in our hearts as though in a mirror!

St. Nicholai Velimirovich from the Prologue of Ohrid

Hymn of the Day

The Doxasticon at Orthros following the Praises (Tone 6).

Thou hast come from the suffering of barrenness, O Baptizer, an angel and a dweller in the wilderness from the age of swaddling clothes, appearing as the seal of all the Prophets; for He Whom they beheld in sundry manners, foretelling Him by symbols, thou wast worthy to baptize in the Jordan. And thou didst hear from heavenly a fatherly voice testifying to His Sonship; and thou didst see the Spirit in the likeness of a dove attracting the voice of the One baptized. Wherefore, O thou who art greater than all the Prophets, cease not to intercede for our sakes, who celebrate thy memorial in faith.