DOCSLIB.ORG

“How to Expand the Mission” Robert M

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
“How to Expand the Mission” Robert M STATE OF AFFAIRS “How to Expand the Mission” Robert M. Arida Introductory Note Gospel. This includes those churches that base their raison d’être on minis- Though it was originally written as tering to a particular ethnicity. They a reflection for the OCA’s upcom- recognize, in theory if not in practice, ing All-American Council in July of the dominical imperative to proclaim 2015, I believe what follows applies the Gospel to all people. Yet, for the to all Orthodox Christians in North Church to expand its mission to and America. The theme of mission and for the life of the world, it must strive evangelization permeates our eccle- to examine itself in relationship to the sial atmosphere. From the beginnings people it is entrusted to serve and of Christianity, mission and evange- ultimately save. This ecclesial intro- lization have compelled the Church spection or μετάνοια is necessary if to enter the new and unknown. This the Church is to maintain its credibil- is seen in the Pauline letters and in ity among an informed audience that the Acts of the Apostles regarding is often justifiably critical of its inabil- the reception of Gentiles. Guided by ity (and unwillingness) to hear and the Spirit, this monumental move- respond to its questions. This ecclesi- ment on the part of the Church to al μετάνοια is necessary if the body move beyond the confines of Juda- of Christ is to take upon its shoulders ism was fraught with fear, suspicion, the sin and agony of the world. To and opposition. Yet, in the end, as the expand its mission the Church must Church expanded its mind and heart, renew and therefore expand its mind Christianity was saved from becom- and heart. —RMA ing another Jewish sect as it engaged and transformed its surrounding cul- I tures. The 18th All-American Council bas- How to expand the mission has chal- es its overall theme on the words of lenged and continues to challenge the Saint Tikhon, Patriarch of Moscow. Church on the national, diocesan, and During his ministry in North America parochial levels. It would not be an (1898–1907), the then Archbishop Tik- exaggeration to say that virtually ev- hon convened the first All-American ery Orthodox church in North Ameri- Council in Mayfield, Pennsylvania, in ca seeks to expand the ministry of the February of 1907. This council, per- THE WHEEL 1 | Spring 2015 9 haps the last significant and prophet- of jurisdictional pluralism and over- ic act of Archbishop Tikhon’s North lapping episcopal boundaries, the American ministry, recognized not Mayfield Council provides us with only the difficulties but also the many the moral support to stay the course opportunities for the Church to carry of a local church. out the missionary mandate of the Gospel. Based on the minutes record- Gathered around Saint Tikhon, the ed by Saint Alexander Hotovitsky, the Mayfield Council stands as a hum- vision of the 1907 council looked to- ble and courageous paradigm to be ward the future. For Archbishop Tik- emulated by those who will gather in hon, “the defining goal of the council Atlanta in July of 2015. Just as world was the question of ‘How to Expand events at the beginning of the twen- 1 Gregory Afonsky, the Mission’ in order to prepare the tieth century radically changed eccle- A History of the way for self-governing, unsubordi- sial life here and abroad, our church Orthodox Church in America, 1917– nated existence and development” in in America—poor and mainly com- 1 1934 (Kodiak: St. North America. prised of immigrants—continued the Herman’s Theolog- struggle to carry on and to expand its ical Seminary Press, Clearly, the Mayfield Council un- mission in and for America. Similarly, 1994), 11. derstood expanding the mission to as the Church will gather in council include the unity of the various eth- in 2015, one can only hope that it will nic Orthodox communities within seek ways to implement a vision for a united hierarchy and the future “expanding the mission” when life establishment of an autonomous if here and abroad have placed before not autocephalous church in North its doors unprecedented challenges America. Though the Russian Revo- as well as new opportunities to re- lution of 1917 together with the large spond to the ever changing culture(s) waves of immigrants from Eastern of our time. But for this to occur, the Europe and the Mediterranean de- Atlanta Council will need to consid- layed Orthodox unity in America er other ways to understand Saint and the establishment of a self-gov- Tikhon’s vision of “how to expand erning local church, the Mayfield the mission.” Council still remains an important signpost in the history of Orthodoxy II in America. It stands upon the vision and labors of missionaries extending If how to expand the Church’s mission back to late eighteenth-century Alas- is to be perceived as more than the ka and points to the granting of auto- development of commissions and cephaly by the Moscow patriarchate programs to bolster membership and in 1970. This organic development revenue, and if the Church is to have leading to the establishment of the a credible presence in our culture, Orthodox Church in America serves offering it more than a condemning to remind us that our autocephaly is word couched in the language of love, a sacred gift that is given to sustain then it is necessary for the Church to a multifaceted, multi-ethnic demo- expand its mind and heart. The task is graphic bound by hierarchical and formidable for it demands a reassess- sacramental unity. Though our au- ment of how to speak and act in a cul- tocephaly continues to challenge the ture that, while infused with religious irregular and uncanonical status quo pluralism, continues to turn a critical 10 Participants at the first All-American Council in front of St. John’s Church, May- field, Pennsylvania, 1907. Photographer unknown. Courtesy Orthodox Church in America. eye toward Christianity. By no means its decrees, exhortations, and admo- is the Orthodox Church in America nitions, which often ignore sophisti- spared this public scrutiny. In spite of cated and refined theological schol- our small numbers, our Church has arship, science, and technology. If the assumed a noticeable posture in the Church is to “expand its mission,” it public square that varies little from can no longer turn away from, ignore, that of Christian fundamentalists. or condemn questions and issues that Consequently, the biblical, patristic, are a priori presumed to contradict or and liturgical pillars of our tradition challenge its living tradition. Among are being toppled by a hermeneutic the most controversial of these issues that precludes dialogue, nuance, and are those related to human sexuality, change. the configuration of the family, the be- ginning and ending of human life, and Should this closed hermeneutic— care for the environment. If the Church which has made its way to semi- is to “expand its mission” then, in and nary classrooms, parish ambos, and through the Holy Spirit, it must be synodal proclamations—continue to able to expand the understanding of itself spread, the Church will steadily lose and of the world it lives in. its ability to listen and respond to the questions of the day. If the Church is The ministry of Christ, who is “the to stem the polarity of ideas and opin- same yesterday, today and forever” ions growing within itself, and if it is (Heb. 8:13), cannot and has not been to be the presence of Christ in society, proclaimed by only resorting to what then it can no longer allow its mission has been said in the past. So long as to be impeded by fear and ignorance. the mind and heart of the Church ac- Within and outside of the Church, cept the fiction that all questions per- questions are being raised relative taining to God, human life, and soci- to issues that were once considered, ety have been raised and answered from a theological and pastoral per- in the past there can be no possibility spective, outside the realm of reexam- to expand its life and mission. More ination and reevaluation. specifically, when the Church is ori- ented only to the past, it cannot be No longer can the Church expect its the Church of the Kingdom which is faithful and the wider public to accept to come. THE WHEEL 1 | Spring 2015 11 III will be unable to articulate the “mind of Christ” here and now. This bold If the Church is to expand its mind concept of Saint Paul, “we have the and heart then each of its mem- mind of Christ” (1 Cor. 2:16), can easily bers—clergy and laity—is compelled be misconstrued now, as it was among to expand his or her mind and heart. some of the Corinthian Christians of Unless there is a renewal of those com- the first century. To possess the mind prising the Church, the Church’s very of Christ is not to be understood as a catholicity—that is, its quality of life and static mode of consciousness that can faith—are jeopardized, inasmuch as only repeat what was said in the past. those called to have “one mind and The mind of Christ is inexhaustible, heart” cease to allow the Truth to grow and therefore human consciousness 2 Georges Florovsky, within themselves. Often the inability and awareness are eternally dynam- “Le corps du Christ to grow in the Truth leads to a course ic, ever expanding, ever extending vivant” in La Sainte Eglise Universelle: of mutual exclusion and division.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Justin Bullock: Welcome Back to Another Episode of Bush School Uncorked
    Justin Bullock: Welcome back to another episode of Bush School Uncorked. We're recording live, again at Downtown Uncorked, in Historic Downtown Bryan. It's taken me two seasons but I can say it all in one breath. Gregory Gause: I'm very happy that you've remembered that Downtown Bryan is historic, and we're very happy to be in Historic Downtown Bryan. Justin Bullock: I thought you'd be proud. So we're doing our last recording of the year, both of this semester and of the year. We have Ambassador‐ Gregory Gause: Calendar year, not academic year. Justin Bullock: Not academic year. But not everyone works on an academic year like us. They know end of the year is a calendar year. Gregory Gause: Fair enough. Justin Bullock: And we're lucky enough to have former ambassador Larry Napper, who's a professor at the Bush School with us. So we'll jump into meeting him and chatting with him in just a moment. A couple things to keep in mind, again, we'll be done with recording for this year, we have a bunch lined up for you in the spring. So maybe some surprises, some different ways of sharing our podcast with you. So be on the look out for that in the spring, and we'll continue the fun then. Gregory Gause: Can we preview the first guests in the spring? Justin Bullock: Go right ahead. Gregory Gause: Well, we're going to have the dean of the Bush School, Mark Welsh. And the senior associate dean of the Bush School Frank Ashley as our first guests in mid January.
    [Show full text]
  • Between 'Information' and 'Inspiration' Frame, Gregory the Routledge
    Between 'Information' and 'Inspiration' ANGOR UNIVERSITY Frame, Gregory The Routledge Companion to Cinema and Politics PRIFYSGOL BANGOR / B Published: 30/06/2016 Peer reviewed version Cyswllt i'r cyhoeddiad / Link to publication Dyfyniad o'r fersiwn a gyhoeddwyd / Citation for published version (APA): Frame, G. (2016). Between 'Information' and 'Inspiration': the Office of War Information, Frank Capra's Why We Fight series, and US World War II propaganda. In Y. Tzioumakis, & C. Molloy (Eds.), The Routledge Companion to Cinema and Politics (pp. 151-160). Hawliau Cyffredinol / General rights Copyright and moral rights for the publications made accessible in the public portal are retained by the authors and/or other copyright owners and it is a condition of accessing publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights. • Users may download and print one copy of any publication from the public portal for the purpose of private study or research. • You may not further distribute the material or use it for any profit-making activity or commercial gain • You may freely distribute the URL identifying the publication in the public portal ? Take down policy If you believe that this document breaches copyright please contact us providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. 25. Sep. 2021 Between “Information” and “Inspiration”: The Office of War Information, Frank Capra’s Why We Fight series and US World War II Propaganda Gregory Frame While there is little debate that the United States required propaganda films as part of its war effort in order to combat the masterful and dangerous concoctions of the Axis powers and to inspire its people for a war of unprecedented ferocity against an unrelenting and vicious enemy, how these films should be constituted, and by whom, was a matter of significant debate and disagreement.
    [Show full text]
  • FOLLOWING the STAR Conversations with Sitka Elders
    A JOURNAL OF ORTHODOX FAITH AND CULTURE ROAD TO EMMAUS Help support Road to Emmaus Journal. The Road to Emmaus staff hopes that you find our journal inspiring and useful. While we offer our past articles on-line free of charge, we would warmly appreciate your help in covering the costs of producing this non-profit journal, so that we may continue to bring you quality articles on Orthodox Christianity, past and present, around the world. Thank you for your support. Please consider a donation to Road to Emmaus by visiting the Donate page on our website. FOLLOWING THE STAR Conversations with Sitka Elders In August of 2015, Road to Emmaus asked four long-time parishioners of the Cathedral of St. Michael the Archangel to tell us their memories and impressions of Orthodox church life in Sitka, Alaska. Three are native Tlingit: Subdeacon Lavrentii Young, Herman Davis, and Betty Allen, and the fourth is Betty’s husband Bob Allen, an Alaska resident for more than sixty-five years. We think you will agree that their narratives are both surprising and moving. SUBDEACON LAVRENTII: When I was a young boy, my grandfather, John Littlefield from England, came to work in the Chichikoff mine stamping numbers onto the gold bricks. He stayed in Sitka, built himself a house, and married my grandmother, Annie Peters of the Kogwanton tribe of the Eagle moiety. I belong to the Gooch Hit (Wolf) House and to four different moi- eties within that house: the Eagle, the Wolf, the Bear, and the Killer Whale. My wife Marina comes from the Raven and the Dog Salmon moieties—the opposite of myself.
    [Show full text]
  • Saint Michael the Archangel Orthodox Church
    Saint Michael the Archangel Orthodox Church 146 Third Avenue, Rankin, PA 15104 Pastor: Very Reverend Nicholas Ferencz, PhD Cantor: Professor Jerry Jumba Parish President : Carole Bushak Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory Forever! Slava Isusu Christu! Slava vo v’iki! Rectory Phone: 412 271-2725. E-mail: [email protected] Hall Phone: 412-294-7952 WEB: www.stmichaelsrankin.org 24TH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST NOVEMBER 22, 2020 Sun., Nov. 22 24th Sunday after Pentecost. 7th Sunday of Luke. Nun Matrona. Metropolitan Nectarios the Wonder-worker of Aegina 9:00 AM Divine Liturgy. Mon., Nov. 23 Great-martyr Orestes. Diocesan Priests’ Convocation (virtual) Tue., Nov. 24 Confessor Theodore the Studite. Martyr Menas. Martyrs Stephanie, Victor and Vincent Diocesan Priests’ Convocation (virtual) Thu., Nov. 26 Archbishop John Chrysostom of Constantinople THANKSGIVING DAY Sat., Nov. 28 Martyrs Gurias, Samonas and Habib Philip’s Fast (Christmas Fast) Begins Sun., Nov. 29 25th Sunday after Pentecost. 8th Sunday of Luke. Apostle and Evangelist Matthew 9:00 AM Divine Liturgy Panachida: Mary Chakos – 40-day Memorial Holy Mystery of Confession: I will be available for Confessions after the Divine Liturgy, when the church is more private. Or, you can make an appointment and we will arrange an appropriate time. Please just contact me. PEOPLE STUFF Prayer List: Deceased: Mary Chakos. Metropolitan Maximos. Kalliope and Michael Condolian. Living: Father Joe Cervo. Father George Livanos. Father Patrick. Mother Christophora and the nuns of Holy Transfiguration Monastery. Christina Anatakis. Dana Andrade. Gloria Andrade. Gregory Michael Aurilio. Georgia B. Chastity and Jeff Bache. Brandon. Walter Bolbat. Donald Bodnar. Jaime Budesa. Barbara Chappie.
    [Show full text]
  • Gregory Freidin Curriculum Vitae
    GREGORY FREIDIN CURRICULUM VITAE Department of Slavic Languages & Literatures Stanford University Stanford CA 94305-2006 Phone: (650) 725-0006 / (650) 723-4438; Fax: (650) 723-0011 Email: [email protected] Education Ph.D., Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures, University of California at Berkeley, June, 1979. Dissertation: "Time, Identity and Myth in Osip Mandelstam: 1908-1921" M.A., Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures, University of California at Berkeley, June 1974 Special Student, Brandeis University, 1972 The First State Institute of Foreign Languages, Moscow, USSR, 1969-1971 Secondary School, Moscow, USSR, 1964 Professional Experience Director, Interdisciplinary Studies in the Humanities, Stanford University, April 2007- Interim Head, Division of Literatures, Cultures, and Languages (DLCL), 2005-2006 Research Fellow, European Forum at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, 2005- Acting Director, Center for Russian East-European and Eurasian Studies. Stanford University. 2003-04 Chairman, Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures, Stanford University, 1994-97, 1998-2001, 2007- Visiting Professor, Department of Slavic Languages & Literatures, University of California at Berkeley, 2001 Professor, 1993- Associate Professor, Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures, Stanford University, 1985-93 Assistant Professor, Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures, Stanford University 1978-85 Visiting Lecturer, Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures, Stanford University, 1977-78
    [Show full text]
  • St Gregory, Nyssa Magazine
    V O L . O NE ISSU E O NE A PUBLICATION O F S T . G R E go R Y O F N Y ssa OR T H O D O X C H U R C H in C olu M bus , O H io Spring 2008 Features St. Gregory of Nyssa Father of Fathers My Brother,’ s Keeper An Interview with Charles Robbins The Eucharist Loaves A Baker For All Seasons WElcoME to THE FIRst EDition OF ST. GREgoRY, NYssa. magazine that you are reading was motivated The by the assumption that laymen can effect positive changes in the Church by assisting young men and women through a college scholarship program. At the heart of this laymen’s initiative is a trust from which scholarships will be awarded annually to Orthodox Christian men and women in the North and Central Americas. The trust will be grown from the bequests, gifts and pledges of believers from all jurisdictions of Orthodoxy in America. Scholarships from the trust will expand the pool of educated believers from whom future clergy, bishop and lay leaders will emerge. Members of the St. Gregory of Nyssa parish in Columbus, Ohio, Diocese of the Midwest, Orthodox Church in America, wrote, edited, and produced this first issue of the magazine. For future issues, we welcome manuscripts from contributors and letters from readers. For the first edition we focus on St. Gregory of Nyssa, known as the Father of Fathers, younger brother of St. Basil the Great. You also will read about some programs at work in our parish.
    [Show full text]
  • Full of Thy Glory: Recipes for All Seasons
    Full of Thy Glory: Recipes for All Seasons from the parishioners of Holy Cross Antiochian Orthodox Church 105 North Camp Meade Road Linthicum, Maryland 21090 (410) 850-5090 www.holycrossonline.org 1 Introduction Fasting in the Orthodox Church Each recipe in this book contains a designation as to its fasting category, as follows. Recipes that have no designation are suitable for all fasts. I. Meat: includes flesh of animals and birds, as well as items like gelatin and lard that are made from meat. II. Animal Products: includes dairy products and eggs. III. Fish: includes all fish with backbones. IV. Olive Oil and Wine: some consume other types of oil and alcohol during fasts, while others interpret this category to include all types. Orthodox Christians fast on the following days: November 15 through December 24, in preparation for the Feast of the Nativity (Advent) Judgment Sunday through Holy Saturday, in preparation for the Feast of Pascha (Great Lent) Holy Spirit Monday through June 29, in preparation for the Feast of Ss. Peter & Paul (The Apostles’ Fast) August 1 through 14, in preparation for the Feast of the Dormition (The Dormition Fast) Every Wednesday and Friday, in commemoration of Christ’s betrayal and passion (except when these days fall on a feast) General practice among Orthodox Christians is to fast from categories I and II during all fasts and categories II and III at selected times, depending on the season and day. Many Orthodox calendars, both online and in print, contain fasting instructions for each day of the calendar year. As with any discipline, fasting is meant to stretch, not break, one’s spiritual stamina.
    [Show full text]
  • OF WHAT LIFE DO WE SPEAK? Four Pillars for the Fulfillment of the Apostolic Work of the Church
    ✠ OF WHAT LIFE DO WE SPEAK? Four Pillars for the Fulfillment of the Apostolic Work of the Church The Most Blessed T I K H O N Archbishop of Washington Metropolitan of All America and Canada of what life do we speak? OF WHAT LIFE DO WE SPEAK? • Four Pillars for the Fulfillment of the Apostolic Work of the Church A Guiding Framework for the Orthodox Church in America The Most Blessed TIKHON Archbishop of Washington Metropolitan of All America and Canada the orthodox church in america mmXviii Of What Life Do We Speak: Four Pillars for the Fulfillment of the Apostolic Work of the Church Copyright © 2018 Metropolitan Tikhon (Mollard) The Orthodox Church in America I am the living bread which came down from heaven; if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world. —john 6 : 15 Contents • 1 Preface 6 Words of Life and Living Bread 10 Will Ye Also Go Away? 15 The Four Pillars of Our Healing 20 Pillar One: The Spiritual Life 30 Pillar Two: Stewardship 40 Pillar Three: Relations with Others 47 Pillar Four: Outreach and Evangelism 54 Conclusion: The Prophetic Way of the Church of what life do we speak? x preface Preface • Behold, there went out a sower to sow… —Mark 4:3 n the year 2020, the Orthodox Church in America will mark the 50th anniversary of the glorification of Saint Herman of Alaska, the first saint of North America, and the one who, together with his seven missionary companions, planted the Apostolic and monastic seeds in North America.
    [Show full text]
  • 1 Gregory I, Letter to Abbot Mellitus, C. 5971 Pope Gregory the Great
    Gregory I, Letter to Abbot Mellitus, c. 5971 reach the top of a mountain, he must climb by stages and step by step, Pope Gregory the Great (590-604) wrote this letter to the Abbot not by leaps and bounds.... Mellitus, who was about to join St. Augustine of Canterbury on the Mention this to our brother the bishop, that he may dispose of the mission to England in 597. matter as he sees fit according to the conditions of time and place. Tell Augustine that he should be no means destroy the temples of the gods but rather the idols within those temples. Let him, after he has Bede (673-735): Ecclesiastical History2 purified them with holy water, place altars and relics of the saints in This description of the conversion of England was written by Bede, a them. For, if those temples are well built, they should be converted from monk at Lindesfarne, nearly a century after the event. the worship of demons to the service of the true God. Thus, seeing that [Augustine, with his companions, arrived in Britain.]. The powerful their places of worship are not destroyed, the people will banish error Ethelbert was at that time king of Kent; he had extended his dominions from their hearts and come to places familiar and dear to them in as far as the great river Humber, by which the southern Saxons are acknowledgement and worship of the true God. divided from the northern. On the east of Kent is the large Isle of Further, since it has been their custom to slaughter oxen in sacrifice, Thanet,… On this island landed the servant of our Lord, Augustine, and they should receive some solemnity in exchange.
    [Show full text]
  • Prayer for the Dead from Ambrose to Gregory The
    Laszlo Illes Kaulics PRAYER FOR THE DEAD FROM AMBROSE TO GREGORY THE GREAT (THEOLOGY AND LITURGY) MA Thesis in Medieval Studies CEU eTD Collection Central European University Budapest May 2011 PRAYER FOR THE DEAD FROM AMBROSE TO GREGORY THE GREAT (THEOLOGY AND LITURGY) by Laszlo Illes Kaulics (Hungary) Thesis submitted to the Department of Medieval Studies, Central European University, Budapest, in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the Master of Arts degree in Medieval Studies Accepted in conformance with the standards of the CEU ____________________________________________ Chair, Examination Committee ____________________________________________ Thesis Supervisor ____________________________________________ Examiner ____________________________________________ Examiner CEU eTD Collection Budapest May 2011 PRAYER FOR THE DEAD FROM AMBROSE TO GREGORY THE GREAT (THEOLOGY AND LITURGY) by Laszlo Illes Kaulics (Hungary) Thesis submitted to the Department of Medieval Studies, Central European University, Budapest, in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the Master of Arts degree in Medieval Studies Accepted in conformance with the standards of the CEU ____________________________________________ External Examiner CEU eTD Collection Budapest May 2011 PRAYER FOR THE DEAD FROM AMBROSE TO GREGORY THE GREAT (THEOLOGY AND LITURGY) by Laszlo Illes Kaulics (Hungary) Thesis submitted to the Department of Medieval Studies, Central European University, Budapest, in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the Master of Arts degree in Medieval Studies Accepted in conformance with the standards of the CEU ________________________ Supervisor ____________________________________________ External Supervisor CEU eTD Collection Budapest May 2011 I, the undersigned, Laszlo Illes Kaulics, candidate for the MA degree in Medieval Studies declare herewith that the present thesis is exclusively my own work, based on my research and only such external information as properly credited in notes and bibliography.
    [Show full text]
  • Weir-MA-1925.Pdf (12.77Mb)
    Cvvi/ INPLUEHGE OP ST. GREGORY THE GREAT. In partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of lias ter of Arts. Sister Mary Antoninus i^ir, B. V. M. August 3, 1925. £ ' '/ A * / ' >1-? v / Contents. I. Introduction II. Gregory - Prefect of Rome III. Call to the Religious Life IV. Gregory - Deacon of Rome V. Interest in the Anglo-Saxons VI. Apocrisiarius at Constantinople VII. Ahbot of St. Andrew's VIII. The First of the Mediaeval Popes IX. Organizer of Missionary Enterprises A - Spain B - Africa C - Gaul D - England X. Relations with the East A - The*Ecumenical" Controversy B - The Letter to Phocas from Gregory XI. The Patrimony of St. Peter XII. Gregory - "Father of Monks" XIII. Church Discipline XIV. The Liturgy and Church Music XV. The Writings of St. Gregory XVI. Conclusion 138835 INFLUENCE OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT. Introduction. The word "Great11 has justly been attributed to St. Gregory who stands as a dividing mark between the Ancient World and the Middle Ages, and who, undoubtedly, did more than any other one individual to direct the course of European progress and development. Gregory was one of those dominating personalities whose influence was felt not only during the age in which he lived, but also down through the great cycles of time even to the present moment. Not the Catholics alone, but all Christians living in the world today, share in the fruits of his beneficent labors, and therefore owe to Gregory a debt of gratitude which more than thirteen centuries have not effaced, but rather increased. For are not these all descendants of those nations of Europe whose ancestors belonged to the ancient tribes who owe their civilization to Gregory? Gregory has played a prominent part in secular as well as in ecclesiastical history, and the seed of his influence has brought forth a rich harvest.
    [Show full text]
  • Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese
    St. Gregory Palamas on Holy Icons You shall not make an image of anything in the heavens above, or in the earth below, or in the sea' (cf. Ex All Saints Antiochian Orthodox Church 20.4), in such a way that you worship these things and glorify them as gods. For all are the creations of the 4129 West Newport Avenue, Chicago IL 60641 one God, created by Him in the Holy Spirit through His Son and Logos, who as Logos of God in these latter times took flesh from a virgin's womb, appeared on earth and associated with men, and who for the salvation Church Office : 773- 777 - 0749 of men suffered, died and rose again, ascended with His body into the heavens, and 'sat down on the right www.allsaintsorthodox.org hand of the Majesty on High' (Heb 1.3), and who will come again with His body to judge the living and the dead. Out of love for Him you should make, therefore, an icon of Him who became man for our sakes, and Pastor: Father Patrick Henry Reardon through His icon you should bring Him to mind and worship Him, elevating your intellect through it to the [email protected] venerable body of the Saviour, that is set on the right hand of the Father in heaven. Deacon Walid Abdul Karim In like manner you should also make icons of the saints and venerate them, not as gods --for this is forbidden- Walid1177@yahoo .com - but because of the attachment, inner affection and sense of surpassing honour that you feel for the saints when by means of their icons the intellect is raised up to them.
    [Show full text]