Showing posts with label Religion. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Religion. Show all posts
Friday, October 25, 2019
Sunday, August 27, 2017
The two powers in this world
Elder Paisios warned his disciple, interested in all things spiritual and even the occult:
"Look here, my child, there are two powers in this world: God and the devil. Everything depends on who you're connected with. I'm with God. I'm with Christ. Who are they [the yogis, magicians, etc.] with? Satan has his 'power,' too. He can work miracles of deception. He was an archangel, and he still has an archangel's power, because the gifts... of God are irrevocable (Romans 11:29)."
D. Farasiotis, 2014, pp.87-88
Sunday, July 30, 2017
Fasting
As the Dormition fast approaches, I thought I could share this concise and quite clear explanation of fasting in the Orthodox Church.
Fasting, or abstaining from food, was a discipline practiced by our Lord himself. It was after forty days of prayer and fasting in the wilderness, that Jesus victoriously faced the temptations of the devil (Matthew 4:1-11). He asked his disciples to use fasting, coupled with prayer, as a means to achieve spiritual victories (Matthew 17:21; Mark 9:29; Luke 2:37), and the example of the Lord was followed by the disciples in their apostolic ministry and instruction to the early Christians (Acts 14:23; 27:9; 1 Corinthians 7:5; 2 Corinthians 6:5, 11:27).
In its most basic sense, fasting is abstinence from food. But it is far more than that. It helps us to open our minds and souls to the guidance of the Spirit and to break away from our captivity to bodily appetites and selfish desires. Through fasting we overcome the burdens and pressures of physical gratification that are placed upon us in our world, and through our faith in Christ we are renewed and transformed into the holy people God created us to be.
Fasting is a regular practice for Orthodox Christians. Fast days and periods have been established by the Church throughout the year to help us direct our hearts and minds toward the life of prayer and worship, our spiritual needs, and the condition of our souls and relationship with God. During most weeks, Wednesday and Friday are fast days. On these days, we are guided to abstain from meat, dairy products and oil and wine. On some days, fish, wine, and oil may be permitted if a specific feast falls on a Wednesday or Friday or a portion of a fast is not as strict as other times.
The calendar and practice of the Church has fasting periods, which include the forty days of Great Lent and Holy Week, before Pascha, the Nativity Fast (November 15-December 24), the Apostles Fast (the Monday after the Sunday of All Saints to June 28) and the Dormition Fast (August 1-14). Because there is a great diversity in fasting disciplines people observe you should consult your parish priest about how to incorporate the discipline of fasting into your religious life.
In the practice of fasting it is important to remember that we are not fasting simply for the sake of fasting. Our observance of the fasting days and periods of the Church is for our spiritual growth and greater communion with God. No matter how austere our fast or how much in accordance our fast may be with purely technical "rules," it is void of faith and grace if we are not also committed to prayer and worship, study and growth in our knowledge of our Faith, and philanthropic and charitable acts.
As Orthodox Christians, let us cherish fasting as a vital part of our spiritual lives and practice. Let us experience the great joys that come through fasting as it contributes to a life of repentance and prayer. And in following the wise and spiritual traditions of the Church, let us offer all "to fight the good fight, to walk the way of fasting...to prove ourselves victorious over sin, and without condemnation to reach our goal of worshiping the Holy Resurrection," our goal of eternal life. (Prayer of the Presanctified Liturgy).
From the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America's Faith & Life Series Fasting in the Orthodox Church.
Fasting, or abstaining from food, was a discipline practiced by our Lord himself. It was after forty days of prayer and fasting in the wilderness, that Jesus victoriously faced the temptations of the devil (Matthew 4:1-11). He asked his disciples to use fasting, coupled with prayer, as a means to achieve spiritual victories (Matthew 17:21; Mark 9:29; Luke 2:37), and the example of the Lord was followed by the disciples in their apostolic ministry and instruction to the early Christians (Acts 14:23; 27:9; 1 Corinthians 7:5; 2 Corinthians 6:5, 11:27).
In its most basic sense, fasting is abstinence from food. But it is far more than that. It helps us to open our minds and souls to the guidance of the Spirit and to break away from our captivity to bodily appetites and selfish desires. Through fasting we overcome the burdens and pressures of physical gratification that are placed upon us in our world, and through our faith in Christ we are renewed and transformed into the holy people God created us to be.
Fasting is a regular practice for Orthodox Christians. Fast days and periods have been established by the Church throughout the year to help us direct our hearts and minds toward the life of prayer and worship, our spiritual needs, and the condition of our souls and relationship with God. During most weeks, Wednesday and Friday are fast days. On these days, we are guided to abstain from meat, dairy products and oil and wine. On some days, fish, wine, and oil may be permitted if a specific feast falls on a Wednesday or Friday or a portion of a fast is not as strict as other times.
The calendar and practice of the Church has fasting periods, which include the forty days of Great Lent and Holy Week, before Pascha, the Nativity Fast (November 15-December 24), the Apostles Fast (the Monday after the Sunday of All Saints to June 28) and the Dormition Fast (August 1-14). Because there is a great diversity in fasting disciplines people observe you should consult your parish priest about how to incorporate the discipline of fasting into your religious life.
In the practice of fasting it is important to remember that we are not fasting simply for the sake of fasting. Our observance of the fasting days and periods of the Church is for our spiritual growth and greater communion with God. No matter how austere our fast or how much in accordance our fast may be with purely technical "rules," it is void of faith and grace if we are not also committed to prayer and worship, study and growth in our knowledge of our Faith, and philanthropic and charitable acts.
As Orthodox Christians, let us cherish fasting as a vital part of our spiritual lives and practice. Let us experience the great joys that come through fasting as it contributes to a life of repentance and prayer. And in following the wise and spiritual traditions of the Church, let us offer all "to fight the good fight, to walk the way of fasting...to prove ourselves victorious over sin, and without condemnation to reach our goal of worshiping the Holy Resurrection," our goal of eternal life. (Prayer of the Presanctified Liturgy).
From the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America's Faith & Life Series Fasting in the Orthodox Church.
Saturday, June 24, 2017
On love without God
It is impossible to replace the absence of God with a love for humankind, because man will immediately say: why should I love humankind?
F.M. Dostoevsky
Saturday, September 3, 2016
What is religion?
Religion has been defined by the Swiss Center for Intercantonal Information on Beliefs as "the group of beliefs, rituals, practices and ethical rules which constitute, for their members, a means of entering into contact with supernatural realities and of obtaining answers to questions concerning the fundamental problems of life, as well as questions concerning the origin of the world or the finality of existence" (author's translation of brochure "D'Eglise en Ashram").
...
Undeniably a 'religion', Orthodoxy as the one true religion differs from the others in that it does not cripple man in its rigid system, but liberates him. It does not offer fleeting well-being, but eternal life and love with the Source of life and Creator of all. It does not offer practices and beliefs which put one in contact with fantastic or even demonic supernatural forces, but rather with the Personal Light of God. The bold assumption of 'one true religion' must be reserved for but one system, provided the obvious divergences and contradictions in the paths of the world's religions. And we boldly confess it to be Orthodoxy, not merely because we were born Orthodox, for we must all be born again (John 3:3), or because the word Orthodoxy translates as such, but because of the endless proofs of experience and miraculous signs given to us. This is sealed with faith and expressed in the Tradition of the Church. In the Tradition, in the lives of the Saints, and in the Church we read about, we see and hear of these proofs, and we experience them for ourselves. This experience, and the undeniable logic of the Logos in his Gospel, allows us to make such bold assertions concerning the singular truth of our religion.
...
Undeniably a 'religion', Orthodoxy as the one true religion differs from the others in that it does not cripple man in its rigid system, but liberates him. It does not offer fleeting well-being, but eternal life and love with the Source of life and Creator of all. It does not offer practices and beliefs which put one in contact with fantastic or even demonic supernatural forces, but rather with the Personal Light of God. The bold assumption of 'one true religion' must be reserved for but one system, provided the obvious divergences and contradictions in the paths of the world's religions. And we boldly confess it to be Orthodoxy, not merely because we were born Orthodox, for we must all be born again (John 3:3), or because the word Orthodoxy translates as such, but because of the endless proofs of experience and miraculous signs given to us. This is sealed with faith and expressed in the Tradition of the Church. In the Tradition, in the lives of the Saints, and in the Church we read about, we see and hear of these proofs, and we experience them for ourselves. This experience, and the undeniable logic of the Logos in his Gospel, allows us to make such bold assertions concerning the singular truth of our religion.
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