www.orthodoxchristendom.nu
Faith, experience and manifestation
| |
After a profound spiritual
experience I converted to the
Orthodox Christianity;
the original church.
Afterward I was engaged as
a singer for many years
in the Russian Orthodox Church.
|
The material is put together by Simon,
picture from the hermitage
in the Swedish forest
|
| "I
am the light which has come into the world" St.
John 12:45
"I am the light of the world"
St. John 8:12
I have put together some of the holy
texts from the Christian tradition and drawn spiritual pictures to
some of the prayers of the church, and written texts about how I understand
the message of Christ from the New Testament as it was practised by
the desert fathers and by hesychasts* in Asia Minor, most
of the countries included in the Balkan region, Egypt, Russia, Athos
in Greece, and today even in the rest of the world.
I find this possibility the highest offer from Christianity to mankind
- to experience one's inner truth and timeless identity. This identity
is the same for all beings. Christ indicates Himself - the
light in your heart - as your identity, and mean: be who you
were baptized to be, be who you in TRUTH and ETERNITY are, and seek
this eternal truth in the depth of yourself. "...God created
man in His own image..." Genesis
1:27 "God said: 'Let
there be light" Genesis 1:3.
Lord Jesus said: "You, then, are to be
perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect." St
Matthew 5:48 This perfection is resting
and accessible in each one of us individual christians, and is possible
to experience, to identify oneself with and to realize; our true being
- CHRIST within man.
*
Hesychasm
- (from the Greek word hesykia - conscious
resting in God) Christian orthodox asceticism using the inner, incessant
Jesus prayer, "the prayer of the heart", together with particular
breathing exercises, to overcome one's lower, self-centred nature
and regain identity with God.
|
 Holy
father
Sergej
of Radonesh,
the national saint
of Holy Russia
|
My
profound spiritual experience |
"I am the light which has come into the world"
St. John 12:45, "I am the light of
the world" St. John 8:12
The
Transfiguration of Christ |
This is an attempt to describe my experience of
the radiating light from God.
I read in the fifth book of Moses 4:9- ”Only
take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget
the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy
heart all the days of thy life:but teach them thy sons, and thy sons’
sons; (10) Specially the day that thou stoodest before the Lord thy
God…”
Therefore I write the following; when taking my daily rest at the afternoon
at my 33rd year of life I experienced someone calling me by name. I
got up and looked around both inside and outside the house I was living
in, but there was noone to see, still I knew that this calling came
from within myself!
After some time I heard the same voice calling my name again, now two
times in whereupon the voice said ”I am Lux”! …..
Hesitative I wrote these words on a piece of paper and found later at
the library that ”Lux” means ”light”. I wept
quietly and knew that this had to do with the Truth and Reality of God.
(Later in life Christ’s teaching when saying: "I
am the light which has come into the world"…"I am the
light of the world" came to mean the
utmost to me.)
Again some time passed and suddenly I experienced a whole night of dreams
and visions about what I had experienced earlier in life, and about
life in all, and just before dawn and awakening I was standing “among
mountains at the very egde of the earth where the absolute darkness
and silence of eternity began”. At a meadow nearby holy men in
white cloths were sittting around a table, but my intense attention
and longing desired what was hiding in this total darkness of eternity.
The day came and went, and at falling to sleep I was in the same situation
and at the same place as the night before. Suddenly I hear the voice
calling my name from the darkness, now three times, and then a bright,
radiant, intense light rise above me intensifying. Within this light
a bright shining man with white cloths is standing. I fell to the ground
with reverence and amazement. I didn’t understand what I was experiencing,
though I had a feeling that this would get unexpected consequences in
my life….. For some time I was unsure of how to relate to this
experience. I saw light around me, often so intense that my normal eye
sight ceased for a while and I saw nothing but light.
Once again I was at the library and I searched among books about different
religions, I was at that time since long done with christianity as I
knew it through the poor religiousness of the Swedish lutheran church,
the orthodox church were still unknown to me, but I had a good relation
to the catholic christianity through a catholic monk, whom I used to
visit in his monastery. I stand in the library, suddenly holding a picturebook
in my hands from the monk republic Athos in Greece looking at a page
where I see an icon of ”the Transfiguration of Christ”,
and immediately recognize this sight from my own experience the other
night, this I had experienced, ”the Transfiguration of Christ”.
At the next page was a wonderful text about how God can let humans experience
Him in and through this light. I knew that this was true, and that this
was what I had experienced, and understood that this divine wisdom is
treasured by the hesycasts of the orthodox church. The orthodox church!
I started to get myself aquainted through reading books. I got a culture
scholarship and went to the former Soviet Union to visit monasteries
and churches, among them St Sergius’ relics at the holy Trinity
monastery. It was on Metropolitan of Moscow’s advise I went there,
he said: ”fall on your knees by the relics of St Sergius and pray
for anything your heart desires and it will be given to you”,
I did so, and it was given to me. Therefore I choosed the name Simon,
from the Hebrew name Symeon, which means ”he whos prayers have
been answered”, when I converted to the orthodox faith.
I saw light, read the instructions of the holy fathers, and went to
St Anna’s orthodox congregation on their different services in
Swedish, and there I was taken up into the holy orthodox church through
confession and myrrh chrism.
I longed intensely to also see this Divine light manifested in a revelation
outside myself,
and I searched for years a place looking like the one I had experienced
in my vision at night. On a grey day in February when walking on the
ice of a lake I saw a bright light on top of the mountain by the shore.
I looked intensely at this place, heading straight towards it. Getting
there I felt that this was my choosen spiritual place for prayer. I
cut some birch twigs, brought them home, cut small pieces, and thread
them on to a tarred string, which I used as a prayer rope out on that
mountain. I went there at dawn every morning during a long period and
prayed the Jesus prayer according to the ”art of arts”,
which is particularly described in the book “The Way of a Russian
Pilgrim” . After that I let the prayer continue by itself inside
of me together with breath and heart in my prayer life before the holy
face of God.
All this culminateed after some more years when I
was brought into this great and intense fire,
and I can’t find no words to describe what I was experiencing
there. Just absolute fire, like in a stove, that noone normally would
survive. When I was let out of it I was convinced that noone would recognize
me after this experience, but to my great surprise was there no change
to see, though I was aware of how I had been enclosed in a fire that
did not burn me.
In these experiences I am now deeply rooted, and I know that everything
else is not reliable, while these experiences have a totally different,
spiritual and for me eternal value.
(There is two different traditions within the
church, one of them warn for different kinds of light experiences. That
my experiences of fire and light, and of a voice calling my name and
telling His own name to me would be caused by darkness with an evil
intent seems to me completely unthinkable since all these experiences
have led me back to christianity and given me a deeper understanding
of it and made me convinced about its eternal truth, reality and happiness.
There is also another opposite tradition where among holy fathers God
is being praised as Light and partaken of God’s uncreated energies
and rejoicing over the Spiritual secrets of life and God being everywhere
present and filling all things with His wonderful light and life. I
deeply trusting join this later tradition.)
Kind reagrds from Simon ”he whos prayers
have been answered” |
The
Birth of Jesus
Common
Greek Christmas icon
Christmas
Day, the 25th of December, fall in most of the orthodox countries, according
to the Julian church calendar,
on the 7th of January, 13 days later.
The Nativity
of our Lord, God and Saviour, Jesus Christ
The Troparion
"Thy
Nativity, O Christ our God,
hath
shown forth upon the world the light of wisdom;
for
at it those that worshipped the stars were taught, by a star,
to adore Thee, the
Sun of Righteousness
and
to know Thee, the Orient from on high
O
Lord, glory to Thee"
“The
Orthodox conception of Church is based on the primary idea, that Jesus
Christ founded only one and visible Church. He gave it the power to
announce His truth to the end of time
(…). According to the Orthodox conviction this one Church is just
'the Orthodox Church'. Because it is the very one, which (…) has
preserved the unbroken line from the apostles. This Church is according
to apostle Paul 'the body of Christ', which has only one authority Lord
Jesus Christ Himself. What makes the Church to one unity is the same,
true confession to Him and the uniform, sacramental and spiritual life
in Him.”
Translation from the Swedish book "Den ortodoxa
kyrkan" (the Orthodox Church) by Christoffer Klasson
“After
some time a part of the Christian organization made an addition to the
confession
(…), and added some other new precepts and usages in
Church without first hearing the whole congregation. Instead the bishop
in Rome was appointed Pope, who alone was in authority to decide in
important doctrines, which concerned the whole Church. In this way a
departure from the apostolic principle of solidarity was made. Gradually
the gap was enlarged, to the unavoidable separation between the orthodox
eastern and the western part of the catholic Christian organization,
which had appointed the Pope. The separation was therefore a fact in
1054.”
Translation from the Swedish book “Grekisk-ortodox
tro- och livssyn”, literally "Greek orthodox faith and wiev
of life" by Tito Colliander
|
“The
eastern (the Orthodox) Church doesn’t except any additions or
renounces from the given form of the contents of the Christian faith;
the truth is one and eternal and indivisible. Accordingly must the Church
strive to carefully preserve the truth of Christianity and to express
it without deviation.”
Translation from the Swedish book “Grekisk-ortodox
tro- och livssyn”, literally "Greek orthodox faith and view
of life" by Tito Colliander
“The
Orthodoxy lay claim to be global – not exotic or oriental, but
simply Christianity. The word 'orthodoxy' has the double meaning 'right
faith' and 'right worshipping'. Therefore the claim of the orthodox’
may seem surprisingly high. They consider their Church the Church, which
preserves and teaches the true faith in God, worshipping Him in the
right way. It’s no less than the Church of Christ on earth.”
Translation from the Swedish version of “The Orthodox
Church” by Timothy (Kallistos) Ware
|
Teofania
January
19 (6)
The
Baptism of our Lord, God and Saviour Jesus Christ
Troparion
When in the Jordan Thou wast baptized, O Lord,
the worship of the Trinity was made manifest:
for the voice of the Parent bare witness unto Thee,
calling Thee His beloved Son,
and the Spirit, in the vision of a dove,
confirmed the certainty of the word.
Thou that hast appeared, O Christ our God, and dost enlighten the world,
Glory to Thee.
The first
saint in Sweden
St.
Anna of Novgorod
The National
saint of Sweden
February
23 (10)
Troparion
"Having
shone forth from the West like a star of heavenly radiance,
thou wast vouchsafed to receive the Orthodox Faith;
and having brought forth right glorious fruit for the Russian land therein,
O holy right-believing Princess Anna, thou didst love Christ with all thy
heart,
keeping His statutes and laws.
Wherefore, celebrating thy most holy memory today,
through thy supplications we receive remission of sins."
Ingegerd Olofsdotter
was born around year 1001; she was daughter to Olof Skötkonung,
the first christened Swedish king, who was baptized year 1008. She was
married to Grand Duke Jaroslav of Novgorod/Kiev, with whom she gave
birth to 10 children. She was canonized by the Russian Orthodox Church
and given then name St. Anna of Novgorod. St. Anna
died year 1050 as Grand Duchess of Kiev. Her day of celebration is the
23rd of February.
There is a small town in Sweden, Eskilstuna, where there is a Swedish
Orthodox church called after St. Anna where she is revered as the Swedish
national saint.
|
Further reading:
"Viking
Princess, Christian saint", by Rune Edberg, translated by Mrs
Theodosia Tomkinson,
published
by Sigtuna Museum in Sweden
|
3rd Sunday
of Great Lent
Adoration
of the Holy Cross
Russian
Easter
The
resurrection of nature – Life is stronger than death
"Every spring
the Russians are witnesses to the resurrection of nature. After half a
year of lifeless stillness the life is returning to the Russian country.
With victory fanfares the rivers and lakes are breaking the ice, which
has kept them captivated for several long months. Grass and flowers can
during only one night spring forth on the ground, which has for 1ong been
covered with a thick, white mantle; the birds begin to sing, the air is
seasoned with scents, and humans and animals are feeling enlivened and
as if born again. Life has once again proved to be stronger than death.
… Through centuries have in Russia not only a few pious humans,
but the nation as a whole prised and thanked God for the Resurrection
of Christ. The Easter night’s service is an experience, which has
no parallel in the religious life of other countries."
Text translated from the Swedish book "Den Ortodoxa
kyrkan", (literally "The Orthodox Church"), by Nicolas
Zernov |
Lent
- the time of fasting
"Lent begins
in the East on a Sunday night, which is called the Sunday of Forgiveness.
After Evensong the priest solemnly asks his parishioners to pardon all
his shortcomings and offences, and they in return ask him to forgive them.
Then the members of the congregation address a similar request to each
other, and the same thing is done afterwards at home. Thus, reconciled
with everybody, Christians of the East enter upon the period of fasting
and mortification. Lent makes a profound impression upon the life of all
Church members; their food is altered, their Church services, music, and
vestments are radically changed. The rules of fasting are severe: meat,
fish, milk and eggs are forbidden for seven weeks: the services are long
and mournful, and include many prostrations. It is a time of purification,
and reparation for evils committed in the past.
Eastern Christians choose usually one of the weeks of Lent for what is
called in Russian Govenie. There is no corresponding word in English;
Govenie means a period of self-examination, prayer and fasting, which
ends with confession and communion. A person who starts Govenie I expected
to spend his time as in retreat, though he usually remains at home. He
attends all the daily services; he fasts rigorously, reads books of spiritual
edification, gives alms, and seeks reconciliation with those with whom
he has quarrelled. Govenie usually lasts for a week and it involves real
bodily privation. The Lenten services take at least five hours a day,
and regular attendance means standing or prostrating oneself for the whole
of that period. If Holy Week is chosen for Govenie, this involves even
longer hours spent in church. The severity of bodily mortification is,
however, mitigated by the supreme beauty of the Lenten services, by their
unique dramatic quality, and by their musical appeal. Some of the highest
achievements of religious poetry and music are found in the hymns of Holy
Week, and many of the more lax Christians who only seldom go to church,
choose this time, since it is difficult to remain unmoved by the power
and beauty of the Lenten worship." |
"He
endured the Crucifixion,
He
hath destroyed death by death"
St
John; verses 17-20
Orthodox
Easter
"Lent ends abruptly on Easter Eve, the greatest feast of the Eastern
Orthodox Church. The midnight service has often been described, for it
has no parallel in the experience of other Churches. Matins begins by
a procession, which leaves the church, goes round the building and returns
singing the triumphant hymn “Christ is risen from the dead, trampling
down death by death, and upon those in the tomb bestowing life.”
Each worshipper procures beforehand a candle, and as soon as the procession
starts the first candle is lit, its bearer then lighting that of his neighbour,
and so on until the whole church is a blaze of light and warmth. There
is no reading, and everything is sung to what seem almost like dance tunes,
and the whole service is full of movements, life and joy. At its close
the priest greets each parishioner with the threefold Eastern kiss, and
the same greeting is exchanged between the members of the congregation.
On their return home the Russian Christians have their Easter meal, with
its special dishes served only for that feast.
Easter Sunday is unlike any other day in the year. There is no service
in the morning, all ordinary customs and habits are brushed aside, and
instead of usual greetings, everyone is welcomed with the words “Christ
is risen”, and the Easter kiss is exchanged with everybody that
one meets.
Because of the glory bestowed upon human nature by our Lord’s victory
over death, Russian Christians do not kneel in church during the period
between Easter and Pentecost. Easter is the culminating point of the whole
Church’s year; all other Sundays are mere stepping-stones leading
up to that unique day, and they are all therefore dedicated to the commemoration
of the Resurrection. In fact, the Russian word for Sunday is “Resurrection”."
Text from "The
Church of the Eastern Christians" by Nicolas Zernov. |
Picture
from the book "Kniga o tserkvi" (The book about church), published
by Palomnik Moscow -98.
“The
day of Resurrection!
Let us be illuminated, o ye people!”
“The
fest of feasts and the triumph and triumphs – the Holy Easter.
The Orthodox churches are filled with worshippers. All are received
by the Risen Christ and the Holy Church gives everyone a chance to partake
of the great feast of faith.
The entire Earth celebrates and rejoices at the Resurrection of Christ.
Everyone who comes to Easter service, seeking the Risen Christ after
the manner of the myrrhophores, puts on his best festal garments. Easter
the beautiful…
”Now are all things filled with light”. The light of the
Holy Easter penetrates the darkness of night and that night itself is
called 'radiant'. The light of candles filling the crowded church, the
light of quiet paschal joy illuminating the faces of the congregation,
the sunshine of the first Easter morning, the glittering vestments of
the clergy in the Easter procession… |
‘O
death, where is thy sting?
O grave, where is thy victory?’
Christ
is risen,
and life reigneth!”
Text
from the Moscow Patriarcate Journal
Troparion
"Christ
is risen from the dead
trampling
Death by death
and
to those in the tombs
He
hath granted Life!"
St John;
20:1-24
Ascension
into Heaven
40 days after Easter
"And I will send out upon you
what was promised by My Father. But you wait here in the city until
you are clothed with power from on high.'
Then He conducted them out as far as Bethany and, raising His hands,
He blessed them. While He blessed them He was parted from them and taken
up into heaven. They worshipped Him and went back to Jerusalem with
great joy. And they were constantly in the temple, praising God." |
St Luke 24:49-53 |
Pentecost
10 days after Ascension
into Heaven
"If
you love Me,
keep My commands,
and I shall ask the Father and He will give you another Helper
to stay with you forever, the Spirit of Truth
whom the world cannot receive, because it neither perceives nor understands
Him.
You know Him, for He remains with you and will be within you.
I shall not leave you as orphans; I shall come to you.
In a little while the world no longer see Me; but you will see Me,
for I live, and you, too, will live.
In that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me and
I in you.
He who has my orders and observes them loves Me,
and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father.
I, too, shall love him and show Myself to him. |
St
John 14:15-21 |
"I
am a beam of the light of truth"
"Solitaire, not involved with the world,
he is constantly communicating with God alone.
Seing he is seen, loving he is beloved,
light, unspeakable gleaming, he has become."
Simeon the new teologian
Newly
writter prayer about the putity of the soul through the Holy Spirit;
Release
O Lord our suffering world, from the deeds of the darkness,
Let the light of truth shine into all mankind, and preserve the purity of
our souls through the Holy Spirit.
The
Jesus prayer;
”Lord
Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me!”
"Blessed
art Thou, O Lord;
teach me Thy statutes.
The Choir of the Saints have found the Fountain of Life
and the door to Paradise.
May I also find the right way,
through repentance and conversion,
I have failed in my life;
Call me, O Saviour, and save me."
”God,
how wonderful You are in Your saints.”
|
These
are two texts of many of the hymns of the Orthodox Church. The spiritual
meaning of these texts indicates that one who is baptized to Christ
by free will and consciously should purify himself from worldly habits
and let himself become sanctified. Since the Baptism often is performed
40 days after the birth of the child, it is the godparents duty to make
sure that this turning to Christ and identifying with Him is done. The
christened child ought to learn listening to the inner, through the
Baptism active Christ-identity, and in this way practise to realize
God’s will in her life. By man being a true expression of God’s
holiness, God can once again recognize His Creation through Christ within
man, just like He once created man for His Paradise. This is the only
way to be able to pronounce with apostle Paul:
“...nevertheless I live; yet not I,
but Christ liveth in me..." Galatians
2:20
“Seek you first the kingdom of God and His
righteousness...” St. Matthew 6:33
by letting the searching and listening permeate your everyday life,
since “...the kingdom of God is within you”
St. Luke 17:21, and one cannot imagine a kingdom
of God without the presence of God. So if the kingdom of God is within
man there must be a God longing to express Himself through the man every
day. This God, through Lord Christ, is the true nature and eternal identity
of man.
When this process is accomplished, and the Christian has annihilated
his original sin of Adam, for the sake of Lord Christ, he is sanctified.
Through the sanctified man this is how it can be done in a wonderful
way “...in earth as it is in heaven...”
St. Matthew 6:10.
This is how Lord Christ can return to earth individually through each
one who does not only believe in Him, but let Him be born (the secret
of Advent and Christmas) and realized in his life. God has then become
everything in the man, and the man has fulfilled the purpose of life
- i.e. God's purpose with man. This way God's image - man himself -
has carried out God's dream about the rehabilitation of Paradise on
earth.
Résumé;
Man was created in God's image, to be Him alike in every matter. He
is born with the original sin of Adam, the first Adam’s disobedience
to God, which Lord Jesus Christ removed when He let Himself be born
into this world, through His teaching, and by giving His life –
for us to convert and become an expression of Him and His holiness.
Everyone who is baptized is baptized to identify himself with and be like
Him in every way, and in this manner let oneself be sanctified. When this
purification is complete the God is, present in His kingdom in the heart
of man, totally uncovered and apparent to the world and man has become
a radiant image of God, who is the Life, cause and purpose of the world
and all beings.
Someone who has made this renouncement and dedication of his life is
called a saint in the Orthodox church - a sanctified human being through
whom Lord Christ again can be recognized and revered. “Each one
of us is called to be a Saint.”*
The church, times of fasting, asceticism and the Jesus Prayer, the prayer
of the heart, are all tools to help us reach this gaol.
*Father
Damascene, Russian monk, from “The orthodox Word” no. 221,
page 277. Se also “The Saints lives in Christ”, page 262.
|
God
said:
”...Let there be light, and
there was light.”
Genesis
1:3
Lord Jesus said:
”I am the Light which has come into the world”
St.
John 12:45
”I
am the Light of the world...”
St.
John 8:12
Remembrance
as a consequence of your christening;
”Christ shines as a radiant light deep inside of me”
This light came fully to expression through Lord Jesus from Nazareth at
”The transfiguration on the mount Tabor”
and
at the
"Resurrection"
The Seven Holy Sacraments (The Mysteries)
Baptism to Christ.
Unction with Chrizm (Confirmation).
Communion.
Penitence.
Holy Orders (Priesthood), only for married men or monks.
Matrimony between woman and man.
Unction with oil (Extreme Unction).
"Meditations
on the Divine Liturgy"
by
Nikolai
Gogol
This
book is printed by Holy Trinity Monastery, Jordanville, New York.
Holy
Trinity Monastery
P.O. Box 36
Jordanville, NY 13361
Tel: (315) 858 0940
monks@telenet.net
(The
Divine Liturgy is written by Johannes Chrysostomos. He was born year
347 in Antioch, Asia Minor, and died the 14th of December year 407.
He was first working in Antioch in Syria, but in year 398 he became
a patriarch in Constantinople.)
|
Picture
from the book "Kniga o tserkvi" (The book about church), published
by Palomnik Moscow -98.
"You
shall love the Lord your God with your whole heart, with your whole soul,
and with your whole mind"
Deuteronomy
6:5, St Mattew 22:37
"You
shall love your neighbour as yourself"
Leviticus 19:18, St Mattew 22:39
|
Holy
fathers
Sergej and German
of Valamo monastery, Karelia
Day
of celebration;
July 11 (June 28)
"Like
shining stars You rose above our Northern dark sky.
With the light of faith and sacred struggle,
You lit our country and taught us how to pray appropriate to God,
and to listen only for Him, and to serve Him with work and with hymns.
REJOICE,
founders of Valamo monastery
REJOICE, fathers of Christ followers
REJOICE, You who preach conversion and improvement in our lives
REJOICE, You who did rise as examples in the struggle against the temptations
REJOICE, You who guide to the secret of God's Kingdom
REJOICE, You counsellors to the presence of Christ
REJOICE, You blessed fathers Sergej and German"
A
part of the akatist
The
Mother of God
"Tenderness"
The icon, which Father Serafim prayed, lived and reposed in front of.
|
"We
remain created beings but can still come to unity with God, like Christ
in His taking shape as a human throughout the incarnation preserved His
divine nature. The created and perishable world is filled with God's creating
force, like an uncreated and eternal light; the everywhere present God."
|
Holy
father Serafim
of Sarov
Days
of celebration; August 1 (19 July)
and
January 15 (2)
|
The
Troparion
Thou
didst love Christ from thy youth, O blessed one
and longing to work for Him alone
thou didst struggle in the wilderness with constant prayer and labour.
With penitent heart and great love for Christ
thou wast favoured by the Mother of God.
Wherefore we cry to thee:
Save us by thy prayers, O Seraphim our righteous Father.
“The
light of Christ”
“To
receive and behold in the heart the light of Christ, one must, as far
as possible, divert one’s attention away from visible objects. Having
purified the soul beforehand by repentance and good deeds, and with faith
in the Crucified, having closed the bodily eyes, immerse the mind within
the heart, in which place cry out with the invocation of the name of our
Lord Jesus Christ; and then, to the measure of one’s zeal and warmth
of spirit toward the Beloved, a man finds in the invoked name a delight
which awakens the desire to seek higher illumination.
When
through such a practice the mind enters into the heart, the light of Christ
shines, illuminating the chamber of the soul by its Divine radiance, as
the Prophet Malachi says: ‘But unto you that fear My name, the Sun
of justice shall arise (Mal. 4:2)’.
The light is likewise life, according to the word of the Gospel: ‘In
Him was life, and the life was the light of men (St. John 1:4)’.
When
a man beholds the eternal light interiorly, his mind is pure and has in
it no sensory representations, but, being totally immersed in contemplation
of uncreated goodness, he forgets everything sensory and wishes not even
to see himself; he desires rather to hide himself in the heart of the
earth, if only he be not deprived of this true good – God.”
Text from "Spiritual Instructions of St. Serafim of
Sarov", printed by Saint Herman of Alaska brotherhood, Platina, California
1978 |
"I
shall not leave you as orphans; I shall come to you. In a little while
the world no longer see Me; but you will see Me, for I live, and you,
too, will live. In that day you will know that I am in My Father, and
you in Me and I in you. He who has my orders and observes them loves Me,
and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father. I, too, shall love him
and show Myself to him." |
St John
14:18-21 |
Russian
icon
The
Light of God
through
the
Transfiguration of Christ
August 19
(6)
This light belongs to the non-created
divine reality, but is for those blessed by God something fully possible
to experience and literally see, be a part of,
and even become an expression of. |
"THE
RADIANT BEAUTY"
"Spiritual
beauty as the criterion of truth of the Orthodox Church in
Pavel Florensky’s
'The Pillar and Ground of the Truth"
"The
spiritual beauty can only accrue to the ascetic*, the one absolutely pure
in heart. Only the ascetic can be transparent so that the radiant beauty
of the Trinity God can shine through him."
|
 |
"Why
is the asceticism necessary? It removes the veil of the sin, makes the heart
pure: 'Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God'. It restores
the human being to her origin as the image of God, radiant with beauty.
It makes community with God, and uniting with the whole creation possible,
prepares the coming of the Holy Spirit, that crowns the ascetic with beauty."
" What characterizes, according to Florensky, the beauty itself? 'Beauty,
as a certain manifestation or disclosure of that which is objective, is
essentially connected with light, for everything is precisely light. (…)
Thus if beauty is precisely manifestation and manifestation is precisely
light, then I repeat, beauty is light, and light is beauty. Absolute light
is absolutely beautiful. It is Love in its perfection (…).'
Florensky, who worked in the Russian religious environment where the hesychasm
was common, names it of course as the light of Tabor. It is the light of
the Trinity God, The light of Truth, lit in the world with the birth of
Jesus. |
The
whole liturgy and a great number of hymns testify about this, he points
out, and adds that the holy liturgy where created by deeply spiritual
people with experience of the light of God. The light is in itself beautiful,
yet it makes everything illuminated beautiful. The light of Tabor transforms
the body of the saint and makes it radiant."
"From
the ascetic the veil caused by sin is removed, so that he is able to see
the original, undestroyed, perfect creation – which Florensky calls
Sofia** - radiant beautiful. Therefore he loves everything created: the
human being and her physical body, the animals, nature and cosmos. He
finds himself full of burning love for all living beings, and with an
intensive compassion to them, he cannot stand any harm or pain being inflicted
on anything created."
"The
pure-hearted man has through asceticism restored the image of God from
within, and has become a reflection of the radiant beauty of God."
"With
their radiant beauty the great ascetics, saints and starets reveal the
“true church”, the mystery of the life of church."
*
Asceticism – methodical practising to overcome one’s
lower self-centred nature to regain identity with God.
**
(Teo) Sofia – (God’s)
wisdom.
Extract
from a research work of Anna Smidhammar, who also has translated the book
“Salt of the earth”, of Pavel Florensky, into Swedish. |
Picture
from the book "Kniga o tserkvi" (The book about church), published
by Palomnik Moscow -98.
"The
Orthodox Church tries to give its members a definite view of life. One
can sometimes hear people say it’s passive and ignorant of the world;
but that is a misunderstanding of the essence and doctrine (teaching)
of the Orthodox Church. The Church doesn’t reject this world –
it is in a living way engaged with it, and invite it’s members to
take part in the subjects for rejoicing. The priests‘ home life,
with their often large families, the large and well-tended estates of
the Russian monasteries and convents, and the starets'* awake interest
in the actual problems of the people looking for their guidance, the official
services including all human life and work, and the blessing the Church
gives to all kinds of food except for meat – all these
things show how well the Church recognize the goodness of all created
and gladly participate in all gifts of life upon earth."
Translation from the Swedish “Den ortodoxa kyrkan”
of Nicolas Zernov, p. 111.
*
Starets – Spiritually experienced and conscious guide in spiritual
matters. |
Dear
sisters and brothers
in
Christ
I have participated
in meals in congregations and in monasteries where priests or managers
have requested blessings in the name of Lord Jesus Christ over food consisting
parts of animals of all sorts. When we today are very well informed about
the condition in slaughter-houses, chicken factories and pig farms etc.
etc. etc. how can one even think that a merciful and loving Creator and
Father of all beings would bless this infernal treatment man gives these
innocent and suffering animals for no other reason than keeping up mans
lower and sinful character. Man's richest, and from God Himself given,
nourishment is to find among vegetables in the wonderful nature, where
crops does not just contain everything man needs for his physical life,
but is also called "food for health".
One could not imagine
slaughter-houses, terrible roaring with agony of death, or the smell of
blood in God's Paradise! This kingdom of God that we are invited to seek
and manifest first of all, to make it come true we pray "...Thy will
be done, on earth as it is in heaven..." St.
Matthew 6:10. How will this ever happen on earth if we don't
let God's will be realized in our lives?
The interest
for vegetarian food increases today rapidly among young people defending
the rights of animals and man to a worthy life, while many Christians
still live as meat-eaters of no other reason than their habit.
There should
be two different tables for the social gathering in churches and monasteries,
one for vegetarian food, that are to be blessed*, and another table for
other food.
The congregations and churches, monasteries and convents should exemplary
emphasize reverence for the holiness of all beings and the whole creation
and set good examples in compassion, mercy, and righteousness in their
following and loving of Lord Jesus Christ.
Kind regards
in Christ
from
your brother 
* "...the
blessing the Church gives to all kinds of food except for meat..."
Translation form the Swedish "Den ortodoxa kyrkan"
(The orthodox Church) by Nicolas Zernov |
The
gospel of St. Luke 5
33.
"And they said unto Him, 'Why do the disciples of
John fast often, and make prayers, and likewise the disciples of the Pharisees;
but Thine eat and drink?' And He said unto them, 'Can ye make the children
of the bride chamber fast, while the bridegroom is with them? But the
days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and
then shall they fast in those days." (i.e.
eversince the first Easter.) |
"Junk food for the soul"
By archbishop Lazar
Junk food is by artificial means flavoured and
coloured, exceedingly sweetened and to a great extent habit-forming. It
is harmful to the physical and mental health and the consumption of it
counteract or even puts the beneficial and healthy nutrition out of order.
Recently it was shown in the movie “Supersize me” (a film
which runs down Mc Donalds) that junk food even causes diabetes.
The television is an almost exact spiritual equivalent to junk food. Almost
all the content of the programs is uneducated and not nutritious, the
opposite to sound mental health, and is full of values that are in opposition
to a sound and healthy community. The lifestyle and the ideal presented
there is artificial, corrupted and unpleasant. Besides the television
is highly habit-forming.
Even cartoons intended especially for children contain cruel, aggressive
and violent actions, that later is reflected in the behaviour of children
in the schools and in playing. It is repeatedly shown in experiments done
by University of British Columbia (Canada) and in studies and examinations
in United States and in Europe, that TV-watching gives rise to negative
ideal and pattern of behaviour in young people and that children tend
to accept TV’s versions of life and behaviour as acceptable models.
TV’s commercial, which is designed to increase and make money out
of the desire of every human, is very popular among children. Repeatedly
we have seen that televisions commercial have a great effect not just
on children’s senses, that are easily influenced, but also on many
grown-ups. This commercial seems to start, build up, increase and then
use all sorts of lusts and cravings.
If one would scrutinize the moral content of the TV-programmes, including
cartoons for children and the commercial, one would realize that they
are in complete opposition to Orthodox Christian ideal. When knowing this,
please take a moment and compare the number of hours both children and
adults spend under the influence of TV with the time they spend in church,
praying and reading the Scriptures and other spiritual edifying books.
Apparently the dark influence by satan and his ideal is established in
our children’s lives in an early age and in our home.
This problem is often associated with the sad fact that many parents,
who is proud of their TV set, at the same time is ashamed of the icon
of our Saviour. The TV set is placed on an obvious place, almost a place
of honour, in our homes and the icon corner does not exist at all; and
if there is icons, they are taken away from the headroom, not to “cause
embarrassment”.
Many parents, who allow their children to watch TV for hours, do not spend
so much as ten minutes together with their children in prayer in front
of the icons. The Saviour and His saints is embarrassing, they are not
very welcome, while the Evil One’s liturgy, which is daily performed
on TV, gets a place of great honour by the family members. The family
who would never think of reading together about the lives of saints or
the Scriptures, can eat in front of the TV, just like the pagans did share
their celebrations with the idols; and often do these families also neglect
to bless the food before eating it.
Later will the parents in those families be sorry for the lack of moral
and spiritual standard of their children. How often do you read about
the lives of the saints to your children? How much time do your family
spend together in prayer in front of the icons? How often can your children
see an icon of the Saviour or saints in your home? On the other hand,
how much time do they spend with violent, aggressive and cruel cartoons?
How much time do they spend with loud-voiced, aggressive, sensual and
unmoral anti heroes on the TV?
No one is foolish enough to be of the opinion that a physical and mental
healthy child can grow up if he eats more junk food, or even the same
amount as healthy, natural and nutritious food. Why would anyone be that
foolish and suggest that one can raise an emotional, mental and spiritual
healthy child with spiritual junk food?
The television, as much as any other thing invent by humans, have been
dedicated the demon of greedy and enviousness and it is manipulated especially
for the purpose to increase and take advantage of every humans lust and
cravings. Even the sporadic “proper” programmes are more then
well compensated by commercials made to satisfy and gormandize on human
cravings.
Some people say, for excellent reasons, that it is better to have a TV
set at home where the watching can be controlled then to let one’s
child watch TV somewhere else under uncontrolled conditions. There is
great truth in this. But take a moment and ask yourself if your TV takes
precedence over your icon corner, if TV takes the greater part in your
children’s lives in relation to Christ. Do you feed your children
with spiritual food, or spiritual junk food? Knowing that every parent
is to be held responsible before everyone’s Judge about how they
have raised their children, should be enough to make them take a moment
and seriously reflect on this question, even though the parent’s
decision alone is not enough to solve the problem.
Translation from a swedish text. Originally from
Canadian Orthodox Message, which is published by OCA’s episcopate
in Canada.
Father Lazar Puhalo is a retired archbishop in Ottawa in Canada. |
Protection
of the Mother of God
everywhere
invisibly present
"Let
us with hymns (and by a righteous and worthy life) praise the Mother of God
and the Mother of Light."
Day
of celebration; October 14 (1)
"Behold
the life of innocent Adam in Eden"
Holy Pavel of Obnora in
peaceful company with the wild animals in the forest.
"The
instruction
of starets Paisij Velitchkovsky, that monks should not eat meat"
(This should include all who are baptized to Christ,
who are invited to live the holy life of Paradise through Christ.
Our remark)
|
St.
Paisij Velitchkovsky,
Put together and translated Philokalia into the Slavonic
language
Day
of celebration; Novmber 28 (15)
Troparion;
| O
Paisij, the joy of Russia, the boast of Athos and the wonder of Moldavia,
by thy divinely inspired teaching, thou dost direct us to the found of wisdom
and salvation. And now enjoying in heaven the vision of Christ God, entreat
Him to grant us His great mercy, and save our souls. |
"Starets
Paisij sent his disciples from Secu to Bucharest in order to study the
Greek language. To two such disciples...the elder wrote a letter of
warning because they were being persuaded, with the blessing of a bishop,
to eat meat. The elder wrote to them thus:
'It
seems to me that, in accordance with the correct understanding and ordinance
of the Holy Orthodox Church, one should not obey even an Angel in this
matter. After the Flood the Lord, because of human weakness, permitted
the eating of meat, but the order of monastic life corresponds to the
life in Paradise, where there was no eating of meat. And although at
the beginning of monastic life there was in places a falling away from
this order, especially in large cities, nevertheless St. Sabbas the
Sanctified confirmed the non-eating of meat; and such become the general
order in all lands. Therefore, one cannot say that the non-eating of
meat is only a local custom; and this cannot be left to the free choice
of everyone, and it is not true that abstaining from meat harms the
health. One should not be put under constraint by those who eat meat,
but one must please God rather than men; and those who tempt you, when
they see your firmness, will themselves praise you.' The Elder referred
his disciples to the work of the Elder Basil of Merlopolyany on the
monastic tradition of not eating meat,* and reminded
them that the brethren of the monastery and the desert-dwellers would
be scandalized and grieved if they knew that these brothers had begun
to eat meat.**"
"*
Slavonic text of this work in the Optina Life of Blessed Paisij, pp.
134-157.
**
This paragraph is from Chetverikov, vol. II, pp. 45-46."
Text
from "Little Russian Philokalia, vol. IV: St Paisij Velitchkovsky",
page 145. |
“You,
then, are to be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect”
St.
Matthew 5:48
Genesis
1:26
"And God said, 'Let us make man in our image, after our likeness..."
1:27
"So God created man in His own image, in the image of God created
He him; male and female created He them."
1:29
"And God said; 'Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed,
which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which
is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat."
|
From “the
Orthodox Word” no. 162, page 48.
"Teaching from
the Bishop Ioan, hermit and hesychast* in the mountains at the Agaia monestary
in Moldavia.
About
the importance of the food for the true christian
In the Karpat Mountains
in Moldavia bishop Ioan lived around the 1940’s, as a hermit. Father
Theodulus, who was
confessor at the Agapia monestary at that time, met this hermit some times
up among the mountains, when
wandering on the path between the Agapia and the Sihastria monasteries.
His stories about his meetings with
the bishop and hermit, is to read in the book “Spiritual conversations
with Romanian Elders”.
In one of these conversations
father Ioan was teaching among other things about the vital importance
of food
for the true practising christian.
This is how the great hesychast* give the food different kinds of qualities;
A. Carnivores, who
always eat meat. These are in the lowest degree of fasting, even if they
sometimes restrain themselves from food. They are never able to advance
in prayer.
B. Lacto-vegetarians,
who never eat meat, but only milk, cheese, eggs, and all kinds of boiled
vegetables.
These are in the second degree of fasting, which is kept by monks in coenobitic
monasteries and, very rarely by laymen.
C. Vegetarians, who
eat only vegetables and boiled or raw legumes. This arrangement forms
the third degree of fasting, and the most zealous monks of the common
life keep it.
From here on
begin the strictest degrees of fasting, which are usually kept by hesychast
monks
and the most ascetic desert-dwellers.
D. Fruit-eaters,
who eat bread and uncooked fruits once a day, without otherwise ever tasting
food. He who attains this degree of fasting is able to master his body
and thoughts without difficulty and can advance rapidly on the path of
prayer.
E. Cereal-eaters
comprise the fifth degree of fasting. To this degree belong monks –
especially hesychasts* and
desert-dwellers – who eat once a day only black bread, cereals,
and soaked (sprouted) grains of wheat, corn, millet, lentils, beans, peas,
etc.
F. Dry food is the
sixth degree of monastic fasting, which is usually attained only by the
most zealous desert-dwellers. Those who live in this harsh asceticism
eat only dried bread soaked in water, with salt or a little vinegar, once
a day and by measure. This is how the hesychasts of the Nile valley lived.
G. Divine food or
manna is the last and highest degree of monastic fasting, which is attained
by very few ascetics after prolonged asceticism, being strengthened by
the grace of the Holy Spirit. These are satisfied with the Most Pure Mysteries
alone, that is, with the Body and Blood of Christ, which they receive
once or twice a week, without tasting anything else but water only.
'After difficult temptation and asceticism, and by the grace of God, I
have come to be satisfied with the Most Pure Mysteries alone, and no longer
feel hunger, or have need of bread and vegetables. The Lord takes care
of me, I feel neither the cold of winter, nor the intense heat of the
sun, nor hunger, nor thirst, nor any other earthly need.'
Father Theodulus
continues; 'I noticed then that this great hesychast* did not want to
talk long, so as not to interruped the Jesus Prayer which he had in his
mind and heart, I thanked him from my heart for the counsels and profitable
words he had given me. I made a prostration to him, kissed his hand and
asked his blessing to leave. And the holy Bishop Ioan blessed me with
the sign of the holy cross and said to me': 'May our Lord Jesus Christ
bless you and forgive me'."
* The inner continous
Jesus Prayer is characteristic of the hesychast (from Greek hesykia, state
of piece, resting in God) spiritual activity of the eastern piety and
mystery. |
Revelation
2
17
“Whoever has an ear, let him hear
what the Spirit says to the churches. To the victor I shall give some
of the hidden manna...”
|
| "The
Fathers, being kindled spiritually, naturally did not need much of material
food with calories. Their usual food was nuts, dried fruit and honey.
They never ate meat, eggs, milk, butter or cheese, nor food cooked with
oil...and they were very healthy.
Even
for Easter instead of eggs they boiled potatoes and dyed them red."
From
"Elder Hadji-Georgis The Athonite 1809-1886"
|
Elder Hadji-Georgi
Athos, Greece
|
Book
recommendation:
"Animals
and Man - A state of blessedness"
and
"Animals Sanctified: A Spiritual Journey."
both by Joanne Stefanatos D.V.M.
Order from: St. Paisius Abbey, P.O. Box 130, Forestville,
CA 95436
Stephanie's
blog
http://www.everydaysynergy.blogspot.com
My
prayer
becomes credible
when the words
coming from my mouth
is the same as the life
I live in the presence of God
in relation to human beings,
animals and nature;
the holy creation of God
To
live without hurting.
To live with compassion
sympathy and respect
for everything created,
through
Christ;
the emanation of God,
our Lord.
Simon
Genesis
1:27
"So God created man in His own image, in the image of God created
He him; male and female ceated He them." |
|
Leviticus
19:2
"...Ye shall be holy: for I the Lord your God am holy."
|
Leviticus
20:7
"Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be ye holy: for I am the Lord
which sanctify you." |
|
Leviticus
20:26
"And ye shall be holy unto me: for I the Lord am holy, and have severed
you from other people, that ye should be mine." |
Ephesians
4:24
"And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created
in righteousness and true holiness." |
|
St.
Mattew
5:48
"Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven
is perfect." |
Letter
in time of fasting
About
God as Love and as devouring fire
and
about egocentric sexuality, perversion, and abnormity
Human sexual perversion
is given much attention today, with success even in some western churches,
which take sides for this behaviour. One even calls it “love”.
Not even the sexuality between woman and man is in itself love.
(1 John 4:8) “God is love”,
and God is not normal sexuality, neither abnormal or perverted, but God
is (Exodus 24:17) “devouring
fire”! Devouring fire devouring and purifying everything
from that, which is not God Himself in everything. That which is God in
everything is His wonderful and pure light; Christ. Many in our time has
even stated and described Lord Jesus Christ Himself as abnormal and perverted
(for example in the exhibition “Ecce homo” , which the Swedish
Lutheran church invited and showed), which would mean that the Father,
God, the cause and sours of the universe would be the same because Jesus
says (John 10:30) “I and
the Father are One” and (John 14:9)
“he that hath seen Me hath seen the Father”.
This tells us how darkened and unscrupulous man’s senses have become,
how deep in the original sin man has let himself sink, and stain so even
Christ – the only pure and eternal bright light from God in our
world. The darkness is almost complete when one point out this pure light
from God as perverted and abnormal because oneself is that and so using
it to defend one’s own sin. Because of this some churches of today
are drowning in perversion and abnormity.
The law of God is keeping all universe alive through Christ, who is the
light and life of everyone and everything, and this universal law is an
expression of God’s Truth and Love. He, who asserts that the perverted
man is worthy the blessing of church, does not even have a clue of what
church is for. The church blesses everyone who follows, or at least tries
to follow, the Love of God, and that love is not at all sexual in itself,
but the uniting between man and woman can be an expression of it, as God
created man according to His will,
(Genesis 1:27) “So God
created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him; male
and female created He them.”
The Love of God is pure, wonderful and full of light, divine grace and
life. God’s love can be found in the life between man and woman,
except for this the individual love between the individual and God Himself
through celibacy is the only possibility.
When Jesus said that one can recognize His disciples through their love
for each other, of course He didn’t mean that they have perverted
and darkened erotic relations with each other, with children and animals,
anyway this is what some people make out of it.
There are both priest and congregations who refer to “God’s
Love” as an excuse for these low inclinations. When Lord Jesus Christ
speaks about love of course he always speaks about that love coming from
God, which He Himself always was a pure and true expression of.
One can hear in some churches that “God loves you the way you are”,
and one is happy with that, and continue to demand the satisfaction of
one’s lusts and instincts, perverted and abnormal sexual relations
both within and outside marriage. But God is “devouring
fire” , and don’t want anything else but purify
man from everything unrighteousness and perverted so that he again can
be the pure image of God.
|
If we believe that
“God is love“, this love should
not be used for the satisfaction of our egocentric lusts and instincts,
but he who is baptised to Christ ought to give his answer to God’s
love back to God through purifying himself from every impurity, and with
that from all sexual perversion.
“God
is love”,
and in this love is purity and creative force for the sake of light and
happiness, for our children, and for the society we live in, and for the
Christian religion, which to a large extent does not know anymore to be
in the service of God, but rather use their sacred rooms for cultural
gathering than holy liturgy and making oneself available to God.
“God is love”. Therefore is
it impossible to think that church could accept and bless man’s
sexual perversion and abnormity. And when it does happen, it can only
be due to the priests of the church, who have let themselves caught the
infection of this vulgar darkness, and are attracting visitors that found
congregations, which darkens and soils God’s righteousness and holiness.
Our children and teenagers are taught undiscerning and misdirected tolerance
towards divergence, and to defend these low lusts and instincts, believing
that they are doing God’s will, when it on the contrary is a dark
expression of a time in man’s history when he totally have lost
the orientation towards truth and the light of righteousness.
When Lord Jesus Christ wandered on earth He invited everyone to learn
from His teaching, among other things He said that He had not come for
the wealthy but for the sick. However not to legitimate man’s sickness
and low inclinations, but requesting (Luke 15:10)
conversion, and (John 8:11)
not to commit a sin again. Seek the will
of God, God is Love, and seek the eternal true light (Mathew
6:10) “on earth as in heaven”.
(Mathew 6:33) “But you,
seek first His kingdom and His righteousness and all these things will
be added to you”, and that in proper order, and in the
right way according to God’s given universal Love directions, and
so promoting the re-establishing of Paradise by, as baptized to Christ,
putting oneself to God’s disposal. |
(1
Corinthians 3:16)
“Do you not know that you are God’s temple
and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?”
…
“for the temple of God is holy, and you are such a temple.”
"The
Russian patriarchate breaks the relation
with the Swedish Lutheran church"
"MOSCOW
(27th Dec. 2005 Interfax) The Moscow patriarchate has broken the relation
with the Swedish Lutheran church, since it decided to adopt a ceremony
for blessing homosexual couples.
'We
have with great disappointment and sadness received the news that the
Swedish Lutheran church does not oppose so-called homosexual marriage,
but has even decided to adopt an official blessing ceremony', said the
holy synod of the Russian Orthodox church in a pronouncement at its conference
in Moscow today.
The
members of the synod consider the decision of the Swedish Lutheran church
to be contrary to the apprehension about family and marriage of the Bible
'and the testimony of the holy Scriptures leave us without doubts that
homosexuality is comprehended as sinful and delusion', as it is said in
the pronouncement.
'The
Christian church has always considered the marriage between man and woman
as a sacrament, while it is a union that gives rise to new life', as one
can read in the declaration.
The attempt to interrupt this tradition 'and present the distortion as
a norm' is 'an open resistance to God’s will, offence to the order
of the holy Scriptures and the old church’s traditions', as one
can read in the declaration.
The
acceptance of homosexual marriages is a serious destruction of the system
for European spiritual and moral values 'formed with influence by Christianity',
says the declaration. 'This kind of modern ideas undermine the moral ground
of the Europe civilisation and inflict irreparable harm on its spiritual
influence with the world', is there to read in the declaration."
Translation
from a Swedish Orthodox magazine “Ortodox tidning”, no 2,
2006, p. 28. |
| Picture
from a Swedish Orthodox magazine "Ortodox tidning". |
|
"The
difference between
life
and death,
the
present and eternity
heaven
and earth
come
to an end in Christ.
God
becomes physical,
man
becomes divine.
The
opportunity is given man
not
just spiritually
but
fully physical
to
become irradiated,
as
a person
to
be absorbed in the Light."
Tito
Colliander
|
Blessing of the priest, from the orthodox book of prayers
"Christ, the true Light, who enlights
and sanctifies every person coming into the world, let the light of Your
face shine on us, so that we can see the unattainable light, and lead
our steps so that we can fulfil your statues, through Your most pure and
blessed Mother and through all the saint's prayers."
Amen
"In
Your light, we see light"
|
List
of contents;
Introduction |
Christmas
icon and troparion |
About
the disticntive character of the orthodox Christianity |
Teofania,
icon and troparion |
St.
Anna of Novgorod, icon and information |
Adoration
of the Holy Cross |
Annunciation,
the Magnification |
The
Crucifixion and the Resurrection of Christ |
Ascension
into Heaven |
Pentecost |
O,
Heavenly King", icon and prayer |
About
sanctification in the original church, text by Simon |
"Meditations
on the divine Liturgy", by Nikolai Gogol |
The
commandments of love |
Holy
fathers Sergej and German from Valamo, icon and a part of akatist |
Father
Serafim of Sarov, icon and a short text by him |
The
Transfiguration of Christ, icon and text about God's light within |
"The
radiant beauty", text about Pavel Florenskij by Anna Smidhammar |
The
view of life by the orthodox church, text by Nicolas Zernov |
A
letter to all Christians about the importance of the choice of food |
"Junkfood
for the soul", article written by archbishop Lazar Puhalo |
Protection
of the Mother of God, icon |
Short
text by Isac the Syrier |
Instruction
of Paisij Velitchkovsky |
"Rejoice,
O Virgin, Birth-giver of God", icon and prayer |
Reminder
by Simon |
Letter
in time of fasting about God as love, and overcoming one's lower lusts
and instincts |
The
Russian patriarchate breaks off the relation with the Swedish Lutheran
church |
Short
text by Tito Colliander |
Blessing
of the priest |
Pictures
from the hermitage,
where
we did return frequently from the "the world"
during the period when we lived in the big city
to
live in stillness, meditation, reflection and fasting
- govenie
Since
then we have moved to our permanent heremitage in the middle of Sweden,
see picture at the bottom of the site.
"...the
light shines in the darkness,
and
the darkness has not overcome it..."
Our friends in Christ
Natalia,
Nikolaj and Andreas
We
give thanks to God for everything!
St.
Mattew 16:28
"Verily
I say unto you, There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death,
till they see the Son of man coming in His kingdom."
St.
Luke 17:20-21
"And
when He was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God
should come, He answered them and said 'The kingdom of God
cometh not with observation,
Neither shall they say, Lo here!, or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom
of God is within you."
St.
Mark 10:15
"I
assure you, whoever fails to recieve the kingdom of God like a little child,
will not enter it at all."
My
soul, my soul arise, why are you sleeping? The end is drawing near...
(Kontakion of the Great Canon of St. Andrew of Crete)
"It
is later than you think" Serafim Roose
A
church model.
Day
in commemoration of the enlighters of the Karelia land
Greetings in Christ
from the new heremitage -07
where we moved for permanently living
Pictures
from year 2009
| 1. |
Church model for the
heremitage. |
| 2. |
The place for the
church, picture montage. |
| 3. |
Simon and Nikolaj
is cutting down wood for the church building. |
| 4, 5, 7. |
Cottage is being built
for govenie; stillness, meditation and reflection. |
| 6. |
Hilding-Emanuel is
helping with hammer and nail. |
| 8. |
Anna is working in
the garden. |
| 9. |
Nikolaj, Natalia and
Andreas on recreation trip in the canoe. |
| 10. |
Nikolaj is getting
down some flowers for tea (quite high above the ground). |
| 11. |
Natalia in the eremitage. Where the cross is placed, the church will hopefully be built. |
| 12. |
A
new member of the family, Signe-Elina, born on July 12th 2009. |
Donations
for the building of the church is gratefully accepted, contact through e-mail:
nikolajochnatalia@yahoo.se
e-mail:
kontakt@ortodoxkristendom.se
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to Orthodox Christian faith
