Bless mine enemies!

Bless mine enemies, O Lord. Even I bless them and do not curse them.
Bless them and multiply them; multiply them and make them even more bitter against me—
so that my fleeing to Thee may have no return;
so that all hope in men may be scattered like cobwebs;
so that absolute serenity may begin to reign in my soul;
so that my heart may become the grave of my two evil twins: arrogance and anger;
so that I might amass all my treasure in Heaven;
ah, so that I may for once be freed from self-deception, which has entangled me in the dreadful web of illusory life.
Enemies have taught me to know—what hardly anyone knows—that a person has no enemies in the world except himself.
One hates his enemies only when he fails to realize that they are not enemies, but cruel friends.
It is truly difficult for me to say who has done me more good and who has done me more evil in the world: friends or enemies.
Therefore bless, O Lord, both my friends and mine enemies.

From Prayers by the Lake, by St. Nikolai Velimirovic.

 

One Day

“Behold, the Judge stands before the door” (St. James 5:9).

Brethren, in one day, you can gain all eternity. And in one day, brethren, you can lose all eternity. You are given thousands of days on earth to determine your own personal eternal salvation or for your own personal eternal damnation. But blessed be a hundred-fold that day in which you repent of all your unclean deeds, unclean thoughts and return to God crying out for mercy! That day will be worth more to you than a thousand other days.

What kind of day is that blessed day? That is a day of self-condemnation. When that day dawns a man who, thus far, judged the entire world, looks all at once and sees himself as the greatest stain on God’s world. He becomes ashamed before God, becomes ashamed before every man and becomes ashamed before every created thing of God in the world. Shame begins to burn him as fire. Then he recognizes and confesses: truly, I am the greatest blot in God’s world! Truly, all men are better than I! Truly, all things are more pure than I! I am blacker than burned wood and I, until now, thought that I was white! I am uglier than the frogs and, until now, I thought that I was as beautiful as an angel! Lord, Lord, Lord, have mercy on me a sinner and wash me from the mud of sin, so that I can, as much as possible, begin to resemble Your creation!

Brother, do not wait, do not wait for that blessed day of repentance comes by itself. You alone brother, seize firmly the first day that comes to meet you and say: “You are that, my blessed day, by which I will purchase life eternal!” Do not wait, brethren do not wait for “Behold, the Judge stands before the door!” That Judge is the Living Lord Who also created you and, until now, has seen and numbered all of your transgressions. In a day or two, He can draw you to the judgment where you will not have, not even a word of justification. Seize the day! Seize the day of repentance! Seize the day before death has seized you! “Behold, the Judge stands before the door!”

O Lord, awesome and just, prolong the days of the sinner until he repents.

To You be glory and thanks always. Amen.

–From the Prologue from Ohrid, by St. Nikolai Velimirovich

 

The Wisdom of Everyday Life

“My brother, if your soul were pure and upright before the Lord, you would be able to profit from all things of this life. If you were to see a wandering peddler, you would say to yourself: ‘my soul, from the desire to earn fleeting, earthly goods, the peddler toils a great deal and endures much, concentrating on things which will not ultimately remain under his domain. Why, then, do you not look after those things which are eternal and incorruptible?’ Once again, if you were to see those who dispute in court over financial matters, you would say: ‘My soul, these people, often having not a single need, show such ardor and quarrel with such shouting between themselves. You, who owe to God a myriad of talents, why do you not implore God, bowing down as one should, to obtain cancellation of that debt?’

“If you were to see a builder making houses, you would again say: ‘my soul, these same, even if they build houses from mud, show such great zeal to finish the work they have laid out. You, why are you indifferent to eternal structures and why do you not struggle to erect the abode of God within the soul, forming and joining the virtues by the will?’

“Now, in order not to be prolix in citing various cir­cumstances one by one, let us say that we must take care to transform our worldly thoughts and observations, which are born of our material perspective on things of the present life, to spiritual ones. Thereby, we shall profit from all things with the help and assistance of Divine Grace” (Saint Ephraim).

–Taken from Archimandrite [Archbishop] Chrysostomos’s The Ancient Fathers of the Desert, Copyright 1980, Hellenic College Press, Brookline, MA.

 

Definite to Indefinite

It’s rather presumptuous to call myself The Impractical Christian, isn’t it? Especially since there are so many other “impractical” Christians out there, most of them even more impractical than me!

 

Fr. Justin Popovich on the Corpse of Europe

What is left of a man when the soul is removed from his body? A corpse. What is left of Europe when God is torn from its body? A corpse. With God banished from the Cosmos, has it not become a corpse? What is a man who denies the soul within him and in the world around him? Nothing but molded clay, a walking coffin of molded clay. The result is devastating. Enamored of things, European man himself finally becomes a “thing.” Personality is devalued and destroyed. What is left is a man-thing. There is no whole, integrated, bodily husk from which the immortal spirit has been driven out. Although this husk is burnished and adorned, it is still a husk. European culture has deprived man of his soul; it has made him artificial and mechanical. It is like a monstrous machine that devours men and makes them into things. The end result is touchingly sad and movingly tragic: a soulless thing among soulless things.

–Fr. Justin Popovich, “Humanistic and Theanthropic Culture” in The Orthodox Church and Ecumenism, pp. 103-104, as quoted in “The Life and Works of Our Holy Father Archimandrite Justin of Chelije” in the current (Vol. 53, No. 5) issue of The Orthodox Word, September-October 2007.

 

Metropolitan Hilarion, Many Years!

I can tell you where I was the moment Archbishop Hilarion of Sydney, Australia and New Zealand, the Deputy First Hierarch of the Russian Church Abroad, was elected Metropolitan. It was at St. John’s Academy, in the basement of Holy Virgin Cathedral, San Francisco. Matushka Maria Kotar, the Administrator of the school, was trying to find every means possible to get news from Jordanville about the election. “We need smoke signals! CNN coverage!” (I’m paraphrasing, forgive me) Unfortunately (or fortunately, perhaps) Jordanville is not the Vatican, and so we had to resort to phone calls and other primitive means to get news. At any rate, Matushka Masya wanted the bells to be rung as soon as word came that a new Metropolitan was elected.

And word came very soon. After all, our humble conclave consisted of eleven bishops. In a space of less than half an hour, a new Metropolitan was chosen. The bells! The bells! I rushed outside to hear those bells, the bells which rang by themselves the night that Vladyka Laurus reposed, now ringing loudly to celebrate the choice of a new leader for our flock.

The seventh graders, clapping their little hands over their ears, nevertheless shouted “More! More!” to the young bell-ringer. I’m sure I’m making a ton of mistakes in my remembrance of things, but the bells were something like this (this being from then-Archbishop Hilarion’s visit to a monastery in New South Wales):

It was truly one of the chief highlights of my stay in San Francisco, to say the least.

 

Agni Parthene (O Pure Virgin)

Editor’s Note:

This is my favorite hymn. I borrowed the Greek text from Wikipedia and used the English translation by Bishop Basil of Wichita, to which I made very minor changes. I hope His Grace doesn’t mind! The hymn, if my ears do not deceive me, is sung by monks from Simonopetra Monastery in Mount Athos. There is also a Slavonic version sung by monks from Valaam Monastery that many prefer even to the original Greek. I personally think that the original is best.

From what I’ve read, St. Nectarios of Aegina often composed hymns to the Theotokos “to nourish his personal prayer and that of his disciples.” The Theotokos herself appeared to him, and revealed to St. Nectarios a hymn that was being sung by the angelic choirs. Thus this hymn, which I think indeed does show signs of divine authorship:

Αγνή Παρθένε
O Pure Virgin

Αγνή Παρθένε Δέσποινα, Άχραντε Θεοτόκε,
Χαίρε Νύμφη Ανύμφευτε.
Παρθένε Μήτηρ Άνασσα, Πανένδροσε τε πόκε,
Χαίρε Νύμφη Ανύμφευτε.

O pure and virgin Lady, O spotless Theotokos:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride.
O Virgin Queen and Mother, O bedewed Fleece most sacred:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride.

Υψηλοτέρα Ουρανών, ακτίνων λαμπροτέρα
Χαίρε Νύμφη Ανύμφευτε.
Χαρά παρθενικών χορών, αγγέλων υπερτέρα,
Χαίρε Νύμφη Ανύμφευτε.

O height transcending heaven above, O beam of light most radiant:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride.
O joy of chaste and virgin maids, surpassing all the angels:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride.

Εκλαμπροτέρα ουρανών φωτός καθαροτέρα,
Χαίρε Νύμφη Ανύμφευτε.
Των Ουρανίων στρατιών πασών αγιωτέρα
Χαίρε Νύμφη Ανύμφευτε.

O brilliant light of heaven above, most clear and most radiant:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride.
Commanding Chief of heavenly hosts, O holiest of holies:
Rejoice, O unwedded Bride.

 

Seattle

Today I left the God-protected city of San Francisco for the (relatively-speaking) northern wasteland known as Seattle. Perhaps I should not call it a “wasteland,” for in this city the Holy Hierarch John of San Francisco reposed. Indeed, every city and creature is “God-protected”; if God were to withdraw His sustaining energies from Creation for a moment, we would be reduced to nothing.

Yesterday, after several days sitting in at classes, I finally taught two history classes at St. John of San Francisco Orthodox Academy. Thanks to St. John, I did well enough that I am going to return to teach in the Fall, God willing. San Francisco has some very high rents, so I humbly ask you, my readers, to pray that I secure affordable housing. Also, please pray for me, unworthy John, that my mind be enlightened by the Holy Spirit so I can teach well.

Hristos Voskrese!

 

San Francisco

I apologize for hardly writing anything since Pascha except for some ludicrous postings on pop culture (which, indicating what’s popular nowadays, caused the highest number of hits on this blog so far). I certainly have quite a bit on my mind, though I wonder if it’s prudent to write about them her, as the original purpose of this blog was not to express my own opinion, but to form it through the reading of the Holy Fathers of Orthodoxy.

For the next several weeks, I will be away on a trip to the West Coast, including the God-protected city of San Francisco. There I will be interviewing for a teaching position at St. John’s Orthodox Academy. I will be back on the 18th. If I end up bringing my laptop I will try to write about my trip. At any rate, please keep me in your prayers.

Christ is Risen! Truly, He is Risen!

 

Foot-in-Mouth Disease

Is what I think I’ve come down with, having been thoroughly schooled by Steve in his comment on my last post:

A minor rewrite? peppier tune? Diamond wrote a NEW SONG which happens to use some key imagery and word choices from Newton’s original song. Your blog reveals a poor understanding of Amazing Grace, Pretty Amazing Grace, and perhaps grace itself.

Although writing from-the-cuff, as I am wont to do, has the advantage of being spontaneous and reflecting one’s genuine emotions at the time, it has the definite disadvantage of being not very well thought-out. Taking the time to study the lyrics, I have to admit that this indeed is a NEW SONG and in fact can even be construed to be less heretical than the original “Amazing Grace”: Diamond’s identification of “pretty amazing grace” with “who You are” can be given an Orthodox interpretation as being the identification of Grace as uncreated divine energy. (I’ll have to admit, it’s a stretch. This shows my thorough lack of understanding of Grace, except that it’s uncreated, deifying, and more necessary to me than water to a fish.)

Just reading the lyrics gives the impression that “Pretty Amazing Grace” is a pretty religious song. Yet at the same time, Diamond’s performance last night gave this song a very secular feel. And perhaps that could lead to a totally secular interpretation, as I asserted in my last post. Such is the peril of most pop music. (Of course some of you may say, “What about Christian pop?” to which I say “Of course, I’m against that too.”)

So, my apologies to Steve and to the Jewish Elvis: your song, although I’m hesitant to wholeheartedly like it, is definitely not the equivalent of Madonna crucifying herself.