Restoring America: The Life of Elder Ephraim of Arizona

 

Elder Ephraim of Arizona, the great Elder of American Orthodoxy, was in fact not American himself. This elder perhaps more than any other outside of Metropolitan Jonah Paffhausen of America has had more of an impact on my life coming to Orthodoxy.  Elder Ephraim was and is a spiritual stalwart of American Orthodoxy and has many things to teach us in his life and works. We will explore some of those here today and hopefully understand better the man and his life.

            The spiritual son of St. Joseph the Hesychast, Elder Ephraim began to become a shining star of orthodoxy in the 1960s on the Holy Mountain, the garden of the Theotokos, Mount Athos. Elder Ephraim was by all accounts a radiant joy of a human. His face shone with light and a countenance that is not seen by many. Perhaps one of my favorite things about Elder Ephraim was his constant call to draw us to conversation with God, noetic prayer. Of course, what better prayer than to do this with than the Jesus Prayer and the use of a prayer rope. I am sure my love of the prayer rope of which I have gone through many in just my five years of being Orthodox is because of Elder Ephraim’s call to use the Jesus Prayer to be constantly enraptured with the Spirit of God.  He carried with him a slow way of speaking, not hurried, not derived of any earthly time but was focused on his future life, the life beyond this one. He was contrite from my research, especially after Compline, which if anyone has heard me speak, is my favorite service. Elder Ephraim of Arizona was given the sacred hesychia as a spiritual inheritance from his Elder, Joseph, and passed it to his spiritual children of which there are many. But it is the spiritual inheritance of all True Christians, the gift that allows us to unite ourselves with the Divine Spirit of God and to dwell in that otherworldly realm while experiencing life here in the mortal realm. But here in lies the heart of the matter that I want to delve into a little deeper.

            While America maybe considered a realm of Christianity, it is filled with Roman Catholic and Protestant teachings that are at best scholarly and academic approaches to God. Outlining the teachings, one must do to be a Christian and reducing salvation to a basic formula. Orthodoxy, though with its great writers and teachers is not devoid of academic and theological resources and texts is more about experiencing God in His pure form, in having a relationship with God as he intended…face to face. It is not about defining who God is, but just understanding that God is. In Hesychia and noetic prayer we draw ourselves to God into the Heaven Liturgy of which I have spoken about before. We ascend as Paul did into the heavens and fall at the throne of God. We take the bucket of our souls and fill it with the Living Water as St. Photini did at the Well. It is not about knowledge, power, or grandeur. It is about living within Christ. Take away the icons, the gold chalices, the vestments and the building of the church and you would still have Orthodoxy. You would still have the scriptures written on the hearts of all True Christians and life would still go on. Elder Ephraim knew this. Therefore, when he was called away from the Holy Mountain all those years ago, he traveled here, to America to bring the Light of Christ to a darkened world. He brought with him the patristic teachings, the Faith of the apostles, the hope of salvation. 

            I have spoken at length in previous blogs about the spiritual decay that America has experienced whether that be through the charismatic movement of which is not Christian, or the Hindu and Buddhist traditions that call to reject Christ completely. America though largely nominally Christian has lost its center, its perfect balance. While many of the forefathers of America would claim Christianity, America is not a Christian nation. It perhaps was thought of at one time as great Christian nation, one that the West could look to for its scholarly and academic approach to Christianity, but it was not one that ever truly fulfilled this purpose.  It was founded for religious freedom, for the ability to reject God or to accept Him. It never had in its morality the ability to be called Christian. The leaders we have today reflect this, rejecting the sacred writings of the Church, and the teachings of Christ in favor of luxury and ease. We see this with calls for constant war, for the spread of “democracy” and the acceptance of homosexuality and abortion, as basic human rights. Elder Ephraim came to America to call it back home. He left his home, much as Christ did when he came from Heaven to restore man to what it was meant to be. Yes, his way of life is foreign to us here in America where Greek is not the predominant language. Yes, his way of living was foreign to us in America where more stuff, more items, more glory, more prestige is expected from those who are career driven. But it is this call that makes it appealing to me.

            As I have said, hesychia is the goal to unite with God not by letting go as with the Buddhist or Hindu tradition. We are not trying to become devoid of all feelings and earthly thoughts, rather we are trying to instead become what God intended for us. God is love. God wants us to love all people and all things as he loves them. Each person is created in the image of God and should be greeted with such fervor as you would even the Logos. But with the hatred we see today among brothers this is certainly not the case. We are bickering and fighting with each other because we wish to be proven right. Christ himself did not even fight back when accused of crimes he didn’t commit. We are too engrained in scholarly and philosophical debates and try to discover hidden meanings of things. We try to brush our problems on other people, God, and anything but ourselves. We don’t want to confront the reality that God has given us the standard in which we should live and to embrace that standard as the only truth. We have become arrogant in our luxury and arrogant in our ease.

            Before I end this treatise today on Restoring America, I again come to the man who started this. Elder Ephraim. Elder Ephraim though a simple man, who wore the simple schema of a monk was extraordinary. He founded 20 monasteries, bastions of Christian prayer and thought in America. He lived in Arizona, the hot dry desert, where many would consider it to be a wasteland. He taught and lived his life, not for the glory of man, but for the Glory of God. Though the music, speaking, and services were nothing like Americans are used to in their houses of worship today, people flocked to St. Anthony’s to glimpse at the Elder, to seek his counsel. I wish I had been one of them, but I did not get a chance to meet him before his repose. If there is any regret in this life it is that I must wait until the next to greet the Elder and to thank him for his work in trying to bring America hope. May God through Elder Ephraim’s prayers have mercy on us.

 

Amen.

St. Sophronios and the Rejection of Heresy.

 

            St Sophronios, the Patriarch of Jerusalem is celebrated on March 11^th, the day I’m writing this blog. He was a stalwart of the early church, being a devout follower of the ascetic lifestyle set forth in the example of both Christ and other members of the early church. He as a young man met John Moschus who became his closest friend. One of the greatest defenders of the faith, we have him to thank for the defense of the Fourth Council of Chalcedon, and for his refutation of the Monothelite heresy. Today we look at why that was so important to the faith we have been handed and preserved in the 21^st century.

            The Fourth Ecumenical Council of Chalcedon was the council out of which the two natures of Christ were fully established. The Church for the first 400 years of its existence had debated and argued over regards to how Christ was to be perceived. I have previously mentioned Nestorius but would like to do so again here for the benefit of my readers and for those still unfamiliar with this heresy that is still promulgated by some within the realm of Christian thought today. Nestorius rejected the long held and orthodox view that Mary is the Theotokos, the Mother of God.  He held that God could have no mother, and that Jesus Christ was created to be united with God at his birth instead of being God from all eternity. He is one of the adoptionism proponents, wherein Jesus Christ was a man, who was later on given the title of Son of God by God the Father and thus, God made him divine by his blessing rather than by being God Himself. This is foreign to most Christians, because today we understand that in the realm of the trinity, Jesus is the Son of God, the Logos, one of the three hypostasis of God. While Nestorius was condemned at the Third Ecumenical Council, the teachings raged on, until the Fourth Council was called to refute Eutyches. Eutyches taught the opposite of Nestorius, in that Jesus only appeared as man, but was never truly human. Both, very distinct heresies, undermine the importance of Jesus’ Incarnation at the hands of the Theotokos and the Holy Spirit.  The Church has always taught that God became incarnate to unite His nature with ours in union. While Eutyches refuted Arius who denied the divinity of Christ, Eutyches was still himself a heretic and needed to be corrected. When finished with Council, the Chalcedon Definition which formulated the long-standing Orthodox teaching of faith that has been carefully safeguarded by the Church for 2000 years. The Chalcedon definition gave the Orthodox view that Christ has two natures-divine and human. It also said he was one person, the Logos of God.

            The second and more pressing of the two heresies that St. Sophronios was called to refute, was the Monothelite heresy.  This is a little bit more complicated than that of the teachings I have afore mentioned. Monothelitism teaches that Jesus Christ had one will, one energy. This meant that everything Jesus did was single willed. That he only appeared to be tempted, and that he was never able to do anything that went against his nature. While the nature of that statement might seem plausible it was nevertheless a heresy. But all heresies are rooted in some appearance of truth. Dyothelitism which is the teaching that Christ had two natures, two wills, but were nevertheless without division, alteration, separation, or confusion won the day. Jesus was both God and Man. That is clear and that is where we find St. Sophronios of Jerusalem. Refuting the emperor and standing clearly in opposition to Monothelitism.

            St. Sophronios of Jerusalem was a staunch defender of the Chalcedon faith, the faith that God had preserved for his people Israel. Just as today we see the world bowing and bending to every whim and fantasy that takes flight, so too were the people of St. Sophronios’ time. They were lukewarm Christians, not wishing to upset the status quo, to defend what their forefathers would have died for. He saw the Islamic Invasions of the Holy Land as a chastisement for their lack of faith, their wavering opinions. He knew that God was in a way trying to call them back to the root of their faith. So too today is God calling us back. He wants all to be a part of Holy Orthodoxy, he does not wish for his beloved people to be divided and caught up in earthly affairs. He wants people to be willing to surrender their lives for the sake of life in His Son Jesus Christ. St. Sophronios of Jerusalem was. Though he did not repose as a martyr, he was a defender of the Faith. He protected it with every fiber of his being and yet today many would rather sacrifice their Faith for the sake of comfort and ease. They want everyone to be included, everyone to be accepted, everyone to share in the Kingdom of God. But they reject that God has very strict standards for those who wish to enter. They refuse to accept that God rejects sin.  Whether that is homosexuality, abortion, ecumenism, people of today will make excuses for their actions and pass it off on God as the one who has problems not them. This is foreign to Orthodoxy and foreign to all those who accept Jesus Christ as Lord of the World.

 

Amen.

The End of the World as We Know It

 

            Nothing is more speculated about in Christianity than the end of the world. The Last Judgment, called the Awesome Judgement Seat of Jesus Christ by the Orthodox Church. I am not a priest, and do not plan on becoming a priest anytime soon, but today, as a layman I will try to outline the Church’s teachings and what we believe in a simple blog post. This may end up being a series, and if so, I will try from time to time explain different parts of the teachings without trying to be too lofty or direct. I don’t plan on condemning or badgering people. This is simply what the Church teaches, and if you choose to reject it, then that is on you. In fact, the reason I started this blog was to simply voice my beliefs, that I have come to understand through the priests and elders of my life without trying to belittle or discredit others. It is not a blog for discussion, rather for growth and learning. With that said let’s get into the heart of the matter…and start at the most controversial topic…the Rapture.

            The Orthodox Church does not nor has ever taught that there will be a Rapture. When I mention the word Rapture, people immediately think of the heretical book Left Behind. As a kid growing up Southern Baptist, I was tasked with reading the Left Behind series and it scarred me. It left a deep impression. The books written by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins details the exploits of those who after witnessing a global event of people mysteriously disappearing, realize that Jesus returned and took all Christians to heaven before a seven-year tribulation where the Antichrist would rule the world and culminates at the Battle of Armageddon. The Rapture was first brought into Christian thought through Margaret MacDonald who often engaged in charismatic beliefs like speaking in tongues. Her belief in the pre-tribulation rapture was proselytized by John Nelson Darby who was a member of the Plymouth Brethren.  The Plymouth Brethren were a group of radicals who broke away from established Christianity in 1820 in Dublin. John Nelson Darby also translated the Bible into different languages. While he did proselytize the pre-tribulation rapture it is well of note that he believed Margret MacDonald to be demonic and possessed. This raises an important question. If the Church did not believe in a pre-tribulation rapture up until this point in its history, why then would it be revealed nearly two thousand years later to a young girl who was clearly possessed? The answer is that the people did not test the spirit and did not seek the answer from the spiritual fathers as the Orthodox do, nor did they take the time to search the scriptures.  I would also direct you to read my Religion of the Future Part 4 blog that discusses the nature of speaking in tongues and why dabbling with such spirits is extremely dangerous to the soul. To clear things up about this section before we move on to the next topic let’s review Paul’s words in 1 Thessalonians 4:17 which reads, “Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Paul clearly taught that the Second Coming was the end. Even St. Paul did not believe in a rapture, and he was taught and guided by those who had been with Christ. If Christ had taught a pre-tribulation rapture, surely it would have been taught by the early church.

            The second portion of the theology that most people get wrong about the Second Coming of Jesus is that he will reign for a thousand years after his victory at the Battle of Armageddon. For an Orthodox Christian, and any true Christian, we understand that Jesus’ victory was his resurrection and that the age we are living in now is the “millennial” reign. This is the age of the church, the age in which the gospel of Jesus Christ is preached and taught and accepted by many across the world as they are brought into the fold. It is the establishment of the Kingdom at the first coming of Christ and has no end.  Elder Cleopa says that the Church fathers believed it be an infinite number, because the Kingdom of Christ has no end. He says that the Kingdom of Christ is a spiritual one, that will reign in the internal hearts of man throughout all ages. John 18:36, discusses that the Kingdom of God is not of this world, and that we should not expect an earthly kingdom like those who preach the earthly 1000 year reign of Christ. This is simply a ploy to try and make the things of God in the image of man, not man in the image of God.  Though it can be said, the devil, Satan, has been bound for a time and as the end of the world draws ever nearer, will be loosened from his chains to cause as much destruction as he can on the world before his time is up at the Second Coming. The Second Coming will be the end of established history, the Last Judgement will be to where no one can hide from their actions and there will be no chance for those people to accept Christ. Those who believe in the Rapture will often say that the seven-year tribulation is a chance for those who didn’t accept Christ the first time to accept Christ then. But Christ has given all of us the chance to accept him now. There will be no second chances with the Second Coming. You are either for Christ or against Christ. 

            Finally, we get to the star of the show, the part that everyone has speculated on since the Ascension. The Antichrist.  This part is especially difficult for me, because growing up, I joined in the typical evangelical speculation of which politician was the Antichrist, and which person would be leading the one world government. While this is certainly the case, that a final Antichrist is coming, there have been many antichrists throughout the history of the world. Anyone opposed to Christ and His Church is an antichrist, whether large or small. Adolph Hitler for example could be considered an antichrist. St. John says, “Little children, it is the last time. And as ye have heard that Antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists, whereby we know that this is the last time.” (1 John 2:18)   The Antichrist however will be the epitome of what everyone in the world is looking for in Christ. They will flock to him in droves. Just like a celebrity, a royal, someone who can fill the emptiness in their hearts. They who have searched for something outside of the established will that God has for mankind, and they will fill it with the Antichrist. He will perform miracles and do signs, all in the name of being the Christ, but it will be false. Jesus is the Christ, anyone who says otherwise is a liar and a fake. The Antichrist will reign for a short time, the consensus is seven years and then Jesus will return at the Second Coming and the Awesome Judgement Seat. However, unlike the pre-tribulation rapture folks, the church teaches that all people, Christians, and non-Christians will be a part of the tribulation, there will be no separation and that yes, we will have to suffer for our faith. If you understand Church history at all, then this will not come as a shock, as martyrs and others have suffered for Christ even in recent times especially in Soviet Russia. After this end, the world will be renewed and those who have been condemned will enter into eternal torment, and those who have accepted Christ will enter into eternal glory.

            As you can see, to many in the west, this teaching is foreign to most people. It is not a simple task to uncover, and it has taken me a long time to accept this as truth. As someone who is coming from a protestant evangelical background who converted to Holy Orthodoxy, I was relieved and skeptical of this teaching myself. But with help from God, I have come to understand the truth through His Church and the teachings held for 2000 years.

Amen.

The Call of Obedience

 

I had meant to write this yesterday, but circumstances didn’t allow me, so let’s talk about it today. There is a lot in the media today about rebellion and “living your best life.” Oftentimes the typical mainstream media television show or movie will feature a character fed up with their job and they leave it to find true freedom and happiness doing whatever they want and however they want. In an era that has rejected the basic principles of Christianity, the world sees freedom as being able to do what you want, when you want. There is no sense of obedience. The media, the elites, the intellectuals, all have reduced us to basic primal animals. We are told that releasing our inner animal and fulfilling our pleasures are what will give us a satisfying life. Whether its sexual, or monetary, or anything in between. Everything goes. That is where our problem for today’s blog lies and what we can do about it.

To start our discussion about obedience, we need to start at the source. That means we look at the One who gave us the example to follow, who every life of every saint is patterned after. I am of course referring to Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ as the epitome of humankind gives us the clearest picture of how we should act. In John 6:36-39 Jesus says, “For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I shall lose none of all those he has given me, but raise them up at the last day.” Jesus though God himself, did not come to do his own thing. He wasn’t going to go off script and try to do something that was against his nature. With the Holy Spirit dwelling within all Orthodox Christians, we can become more like Jesus. If we are to be more like Jesus, then, we should not act differently than what God has called us to be. True obedience to God means surrendering our wills, our desires and our thoughts for the sake and glory of his Kingdom. It is not the source of a poor life, a worse life than one if we forsake God. On the contrary, by surrendering ourselves to God we open the entire world for us. We become the Sons of God. We enter the glory of the Lord and participate in the heavenly liturgy. Again Psalm 119 discusses this in verses 1-8 when it says, “Blessed are those whose ways are blameless, who walk according to the law of the Lord.  Blessed are those who keep his statutes and seek him with all their heart—they do no wrong but follow his ways. You have laid down precepts that are to be fully obeyed. OH, that my ways were steadfast in obeying your decrees! Then I would not be put to shame when I consider all your commands. I will praise you with an upright heart as I learn your righteous laws. I will obey your decrees; do not utterly forsake me.  Clearly there are benefits to obeying the commandments of God. Of course, there are also benefits for obeying the commandments of others, especially those in authority. The same can be said for breaking commandments

People today don’t normally believe in Hell. In fact, I would argue that most people today do not believe in Hell. But to the Orthodox Christian, Hell is just as real as Heaven, and to believe in one, a person must believe in the other. This isn’t a get out of jail free card from Monopoly, your actions, and your reactions to the teachings of Jesus Christ determine your eternal fate. I don’t want to discuss Hell in this blog, because its solely focused on obedience, but the consequence of Hell is important to our discussion. Disobedience of God’s commandments is sin. Im sure most reading this blog are familiar with that term. But sin, in the western world is a transgression against God, and God must enact justice upon those who sin. Sort of life a Judge, Jury and Executioner. But for us in the Orthodox Faith, that have kept the tradition and teachings of the Apostles, sin is rather a sickness. A disease that infects all mankind. We only can overcome this sickness through prayer, fasting and obedience to our spiritual father and elders. The more that we turn away from God and choose to do our own things as I mentioned in the opening, we create more sickness, more death inside of us. Some will scoff and say how could a good and benevolent God do something so evil as to condemn those who commit sin to eternal punishment? My response is this…You have already condemned yourself by turning from God and rejecting the very gift he has presented to you. It is not his fault you have sinned. He has given you every opportunity to repent and to come to the fullness of faith, but so many have rejected this path to “live their best life now” (looking at you Joel Osteen). 

Without a sense of structure, without obedience, without temperament, we cannot achieve spiritual success. This Lent, I am calling all of us, to look into our own hearts and find the obedience to listen to God. To follow his example. To take up our cross. This Lent, the Lent of Forgiveness, I am pleading for all to join together and find our pathway to the Tomb.

Amen.

Great Compline

 

One of my favorite services within the Orthodox Church is Great Compline. Great Compline is usually only done during Great Lent, so it’s a very special time and service. Its also not uncommon for many priests to hear confession during service, although it is not so at my local parish. Compline is the last service of the day in the cycle of prayers that the church offers, along with 1^st-9^th hours, liturgy, and vespers. As it is the last service of the day, in Greek it is referred to as Ἀπόδειπνον (after-supper). On Mount Athos this is an especially important service as those who have gathered as both pilgrims and the monks will venerate the relics kept by each monastery and the icons as well. It includes Psalms 4, 6, 12 along with the troparia for the day and the creed and the Trisagion. Other psalms included within the Great Compline are 24, 30, 90, 50, 101, 69 and 142 in order of when they are sung within the service. During the service the Prayer of St. Ephraim will be said as well as the Prayer of St. Basil the Great. The prayer of St. Basil is one of my favorite orthodox prayers and I love it when the service gets to this part. It reads, “O Lord, O Lord, Who hast delivered us from every arrow that flieth by day, deliver us from everything that walketh in darkness.  Receive as an evening sacrifice the lifting up of our hands.  Vouchsafe us also to pass through the course of the night without blemish, untempted by evil.  And deliver us from every anxiety and fear that come to us from the devil.  Grant unto our souls compunction, and unto our thoughts solicitude concerning the trial at Thy dread and righteous judgment.  Nail down our flesh with the fear of Thee, and mortify our earthly members, that in quietness of sleep we may be enlightened by the vision of Thy judgments.  Take from us every unseemly dream and pernicious carnal desire.  Raise us up at the hour of prayer, fortified in faith and advancing in Thy commandments; through the benevolence and goodness of Thine Only-begotten Son, with Whom Thou art blessed, together with Thy most-holy and good and life creating Spirit, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages.  Amen.”  Our aim within Compline like all other services is to contemplate our humanity and to seek forgiveness of our sins. One of the greatest examples of this is the King Manasseh who the Bible records as being a wicked King of Judah, but the Orthodox Church recognizes as a saint because he sought forgiveness for his sins in later life. Even in the Chronicles it says that he repented and turned the Jewish people towards God at the end of his reign. The prayer he wrote is included in compline and I have included it here as well for your viewing pleasure. It reads, “O Lord Almighty, the God of our fathers, of Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, and of their righteous seed; Who hast made heaven and the earth with all their majesty; Who hast bound the sea by the word of Thy commandment; Who hast closed the abyss, and sealed it by Thy terrible and glorious name; of Whom all things are afraid, and tremble from the presence of Thy might; for no one can endure the majesty of Thy glory, and unbearable is the wrath of Thy threatening toward sinners, but immeasurable and unsearchable is the mercifulness of Thy promise; for Thou art the Lord most High, compassionate, long-suffering, and plenteous in mercy, and repentest of the evils of men: Thou, O Lord, according to the multitude of Thy goodness, hast promised penitence and forgiveness to them that have sinned against Thee, and in the multitude of Thy compassions hast decreed repentance for the salvation of sinners.  Thou, therefore, O Lord God of hosts, hast not appointed repentance for the righteous, for Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, who have not sinned against Thee, but hast laid repentance upon me a sinner, for I have sinned more than the number of the sands of the sea.  Mine iniquities are multiplied, and I am not worthy to look upon and to see the height of heaven for the multitude of mine iniquities.  For I am bowed down with many iron bands so that I cannot lift up my head, and there is no release for me, because I have provoked Thine anger, and done evil before Thee, neither having done Thy will, nor having kept Thy commandments; and now I bow the knees of my heart, beseeching of Thee clemency.  I have sinned, O Lord, I have sinned, and I know mine iniquities; but imploring I pray Thee: Loose me, O Lord, loose me, and destroy me not with mine iniquities.  Neither in enmity forever keep mine evils, neither condemn me to the nethermost parts of the earth.  For Thou, O God, art the God of them that repent, and upon me Thou wilt show all Thy goodness; for Thou shalt save me who am unworthy, according to the plenitude of Thy mercy, and I will praise Thee continually throughout the days of my life: for all the heavenly hosts hymn Thee, and Thine is the glory unto the ages of ages.  Amen.”

            While not my typical blog post, I wanted to share a few thoughts about Great Compline and why it is so important. If you are near to an Orthodox Church this Great Lent please go and attend.

 

Amen.

 

The Lent of Forgiveness

 

We have finally reached the beginning of Great Lent. It seems only yesterday that we were in the churches singing and praising God for the glory of the Nativity of Christ and now we are preparing for the celebration of the Holy Resurrection. It is a time of many things, a time of struggle, a time of hope, a time of peace, but also most importantly a time of forgiveness. Forgiveness among all people of all times and places where we can return to the fullness of faith and rest in the Bosom of Abraham that is Jesus Christ. But like so many problems in the world today, people refuse to grant freely what Christ gave us and teaches us. We want to hold grudges and we want punishment for those who have wronged us. But this Lent, this Great Lent, should be the Lent of Forgiveness. If we are to become more Christlike on the path of theosis, then this should be our goal.

Forgiveness is a touchy subject among many people. You see it in the media today when a person commits a sin against the standards of the world. Often that person is cancelled and removed from public life because they are an undesirable, one who has views that cannot be shared by anyone lest they offend. There are those on the opposite end of the spectrum as well, who believe all things should and could be promoted and no apologizing is necessary for their actions. However, when we fall, forgiveness is the medicine not only we give the person who has offended us, but also the gift we give ourselves. St Paul writes, “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:32). He also says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” (2 Corinthians 5:17) Those of us in Christ who have enjoined ourselves with him through Holy Baptism are a new creation. We should act like it. We should not have the same views as those around us. 

We must forgive everyone whether we like it or not. Jesus reminds us that all of us have sinned, in John 8:7 when the pharisees bring the adulteress to him when he says…“Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” Jesus never withheld forgiveness to those who asked. Whether it be the blind beggars, the paralyzed man lowered from the roof into the house for Jesus to heal him, or the man with the withered hand that Jesus healed on the Sabbath. Jesus had compassion and forgiveness for all men regardless of the sins committed. Jesus even offered forgiveness to those who crucified him, which is when in the eyes of the unbelievers Jesus was at his weakest. Jesus said, “Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.  (Luke 23:34) Jesus also warns us in his words of what will happen if we refuse forgiveness to those who have wronged us when he says, “But if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” (Matthew 6:15) We will not be forgiven our own sins and trespasses if we do not forgive others. In a world that constantly seeks to destroy us and bring us into their conformity, we must rise above it and reject the earthly notion that people are not worthy of forgiveness. The last bible verse I will leave you with on this is Matthew 18:21-22 when Peter comes to Jesus to ask about forgiving someone who has wronged him. The verses say, “Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven.

What does forgiveness do? This is a common question among people today. By forgiving them are we condoning their actions?  Certainly not. We know that because of our fallen nature, that people will make mistakes, and that the world will not be completely restored until the Second Coming of Christ. We also cannot forget what they have done to us, or what we have done to them. Time itself goes forward; it cannot be rewound like a VHS tape.  However like I have said it is the gift we give both ourselves and the other party involved. St. Paul says of God when we seek forgiveness, “For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more.” (Hebrews 8:12) Christ also speaks of this when he says, “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.” (Matthew 5:7) Forgiveness grants us mercy. It grants us the freedom from our sins because God has looked upon us in our weakness and frailty and seen that we are but human.  It grants those who give forgiveness mercy because they are blessed. Forgiveness cleanses the soul and washes it clean. Its like clay that can be molded and fashioned into the image of Christ much more easily, than say an unrepentant heart that has turned to stone in its bitterness and cold. When we refuse to forgive, even ourselves, we become bitter. We ensnare our souls with hatred and anger.  The demons are freely allowed to enter our hearts and twist the clay of our souls into their image, not the image of Christ. It allows for more sin to corrupt us and we become prideful. Because really at the heart of all unforgiveness is pride. Whether its our own fault something has occurred and we must seek forgiveness from someone else, or not giving forgiveness to someone who has wronged us. When we let go our pride, then we can receive the blessing spoken in 1 John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

 

Amen.

St. Ignatius of Antioch

 

    One of the most beloved saints of the Church is St. Ignatius of Antioch, who lived around the first to second century AD. He is called Theophorus meaning God-Bearer and was one of the children Jesus took into his arms and blessed when the apostles refused the children to come to Him.  Not much is really known about Ignatius’ early life but we know he converted to Christianity at a very early age. We also know through various writings that St. Ignatius was the disciple of St. John the Apostle. St. Ignatius like many of the Christians of his era was martyred for the faith.  While scholars may debate the legitimacy of why he was sent to Rome to be executed, we as members of the Church have no reason to speculate. We understand that whatever the cause was or reason, that it was for the ultimate glory of God as is all the lives of God’s saints. While on his way to be executed in Rome, under the Roman emperor Trajan, Ignatius was able to write a series of seven epistles which the Church has carefully preserved to be read. While not included in the Holy Scriptures, St. Ignatius’ writings have been beloved by Christians since they began to be widely circulated and along with St. Clement of Rome and St. Polycarp is among one of the most widely read Saints of the early church.  St. Ignatius stressed the importance of the Eucharist, the loyalty of the church to a single bishop in a city with assistance by priests and deacons, and that Christ was divine, refuting those who deny the divinity of Christ. He said in his Epistle to the Magnesians, “Take care to do all things in harmony with God, with the bishop presiding in the place of God, and with the presbyters in the place of the council of the apostles, and with the deacons, who are most dear to me, entrusted with the business of Jesus Christ, who was with the Father from the beginning and is at last made manifest.”  For those who reject that the church has had hierarchy and the church should do away with bishops and priests in this modern age, St. Ignatius’ words are most piercing. St. Ignatius also believed in the universal church. That it could not be divided or split, and refutes the branch theory promulgated today with this statement to the Smyrnaeans, “Wherever the bishop appears, there let the people be; as wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church. It is not lawful to baptize or give communion without the consent of the bishop. On the other hand, whatever has his approval is pleasing to God. Thus, whatever is done will be safe and valid.” Without the Bishop as the spiritual father of the diocese and flock, there is no church. St. Ignatius knew this and he preached it.  He also warned us about those who hold heterodox views.  St. Ignatius was fully committed to teaching the truth, and did not have time for heretics and heterodox people. He again says to the Smyrnaeans, “Take note of those who hold heterodox opinions on the grace of Jesus Christ which has come to us, and see how contrary their opinions are to the mind of God. ...They abstain from the Eucharist and from prayer because they do not confess that the Eucharist is the flesh of our Savior Jesus Christ, flesh which suffered for our sins and which that Father, in his goodness, raised up again. They who deny the gift of God are perishing in their disputes.”  He understood that heterodox regardless of what they were able to retain as orthodox were opposed to the mind of God. That though they appear genuine and may hold fast to Christ, that in reality they did not know Him. It is no different than when Christ says, “Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!” (Matthew 7:22-23) St. Ignatius calls us to hold orthodox values and teachings above those of man.

    St. Ignatius’ life is a life led of grace and piety. It is a life that is to be respected and called to love. In a world where easiness and luxury are abundant and the world would have us be lukewarm, holdfast to your faith. Do not be tempted by the wiles of the devil, or the call to be indifferent. Know that Christ will hold you firmly and that you must hold him firmly to be called into eternal rest with Him at the Last Judgement.

 

Amen.