“Therefore be sure that every prayer that is not fulfilled is certainly harmful; but a prayer that is answered is beneficial. The Giver of gifts is just and good and will not leave your prayers unanswered, for in His goodness there is no malice and in His truth there is no envy.”
(St. Ephraim the Syrian)
Sunday, October 17, 2010
Friday, October 15, 2010
Remembering the Fathers
One is remembered as a Church Father not because they are infallible with no short comings, but through their actions, words and thoughts, long after they departed this world bring more clarity and could edify others to live out the Orthodox Christian faith.
The Malankara Orthodox Church lists a multitude of Saints and Church fathers in the fifth diptych of it’s Holy Eucharist Service, when the community comes together as ‘Church’ and worship God. The list include the Church Fathers of the past 2000 years outside of India - those who live and declared the common faith of the Orthodox Church, those who particularly had interacted with the Church in India like St. Eldho Mar Baselios, those from Indian origin who taught by example to live out a life of prayer like St. Gregorios of Parumala, the beloved Saint of the Church in India – Vattasheril Gee Varghese Mar Dionysius Thirumeny.
A key point which we often miss out during the worship is that the list is endless – The Diptych ends with these words that we remember and beseech the Lord that prayers of the fathers listed – “... and those before them, and with them, and after them, those who have kept and handed down and entrusted to us the One genuine and undefiled faith” be a refuge to us the Church.
This compel us to remember that that for the Church the Fathers are live, continuing in their prayers, and we join them in our prayers. Also, there is a very serious responsibility entrusted to us - The Fathers have kept, handed down the Orthodox Christian faith and is entrusting to keep and hand it down to others.
A Father of the Malankara Church that comes to my mind today during our own times- exemplary in encouraging one another, strengthening each other to see with our eyes open what our faith entails is the departed Fr. V.C. Samuel of Memory Eternal. Some know him, many don’t, and some might have come across him at Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V._C._Samuel
To me what encouraged me to remember him today was reading this response from his book - ‘An Orthodox Catechism on the Faith and Life of the Church’ on the ‘Need of Divine Economy for Human Salvation ‘
“Man is a creature of God, endowed with creaturely freedom. As a creature, he has a beginning and the possibility of an end. Yet, unlike other creatures, he/she is created to attain eternal life, which God grants. To gain this goal, man is called to live on earth in communion with the Creator and follow His way, using his creaturely autonomy. However, man took advantage of his personal freedom to follow his own plan in life. This led to his fall from the Source of Eternal life, to which he had to be restored. This restoration required an absolute surrender to God on the part of man, which was possible only by God Himself helping man to do it. Therefore the coming together of God the Son and man into union was necessary, and God accomplished it in Jesus Christ”
Lord forgive us and have mercy on us, for while the Fathers knew you and lived You- We have fallen away . Strengthen us to seek you in our lives like the Church Fathers
The Malankara Orthodox Church lists a multitude of Saints and Church fathers in the fifth diptych of it’s Holy Eucharist Service, when the community comes together as ‘Church’ and worship God. The list include the Church Fathers of the past 2000 years outside of India - those who live and declared the common faith of the Orthodox Church, those who particularly had interacted with the Church in India like St. Eldho Mar Baselios, those from Indian origin who taught by example to live out a life of prayer like St. Gregorios of Parumala, the beloved Saint of the Church in India – Vattasheril Gee Varghese Mar Dionysius Thirumeny.
A key point which we often miss out during the worship is that the list is endless – The Diptych ends with these words that we remember and beseech the Lord that prayers of the fathers listed – “... and those before them, and with them, and after them, those who have kept and handed down and entrusted to us the One genuine and undefiled faith” be a refuge to us the Church.
This compel us to remember that that for the Church the Fathers are live, continuing in their prayers, and we join them in our prayers. Also, there is a very serious responsibility entrusted to us - The Fathers have kept, handed down the Orthodox Christian faith and is entrusting to keep and hand it down to others.
A Father of the Malankara Church that comes to my mind today during our own times- exemplary in encouraging one another, strengthening each other to see with our eyes open what our faith entails is the departed Fr. V.C. Samuel of Memory Eternal. Some know him, many don’t, and some might have come across him at Wikipedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V._C._Samuel
To me what encouraged me to remember him today was reading this response from his book - ‘An Orthodox Catechism on the Faith and Life of the Church’ on the ‘Need of Divine Economy for Human Salvation ‘
“Man is a creature of God, endowed with creaturely freedom. As a creature, he has a beginning and the possibility of an end. Yet, unlike other creatures, he/she is created to attain eternal life, which God grants. To gain this goal, man is called to live on earth in communion with the Creator and follow His way, using his creaturely autonomy. However, man took advantage of his personal freedom to follow his own plan in life. This led to his fall from the Source of Eternal life, to which he had to be restored. This restoration required an absolute surrender to God on the part of man, which was possible only by God Himself helping man to do it. Therefore the coming together of God the Son and man into union was necessary, and God accomplished it in Jesus Christ”
Lord forgive us and have mercy on us, for while the Fathers knew you and lived You- We have fallen away . Strengthen us to seek you in our lives like the Church Fathers
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Maneeso of St. Severus - An update
Manisa or Maneeso of St. Severus is found as the heading of one of the first songs sung at Holy Qurbana . In Malayalam the hymn starts of like ' Nin Maathave vishudhanmar... ' . For the Malankara Orthodox Christians , We spend so much time in ensuring every one sings together in harmony and do not take time enough to really understand what we are singing about. This song descibes the fundamental faith on ' Who is Jesus Christ ' and it is so fitting that the song is attributed to one of the greatest Church father of the Orthodox Christians that did not see Chalcedon as ecumenical and spent a life time teaching the true faith.
This caught my attention today seeing it at the back of fourth standard Sunday school text book and found from the net that ' Manisa' mean ' Song of Praise '. This is so fitting, for is it not this - 'Sing Praise to God 'that we are to do most when we come together to worship God as Church . I am posting the English translation from the text book and hope this will be edifying.
"By the prayers of your mother who bought you forth and by those of all your saints: My Lord and King! I will magnify You, Only begotton Son, Word of the Heavenly Father, Immortal by nature; who by your grace did come down for the life and redemption of all mankind ,who did become incarnate of the Holy and glorious pure Virgin Mary, Mother of God,and who became man without changing your divinity, and was crucified for us. O Christ our Lord, who by your death did trample down our death and destroy it ,being One among the Holy Trinity, You are worshipped and glorified in the unity of Your Father and your Living Holy Spirit ; Have mercy on us. "
See the parallel in the Coptic Tradition
O only-Begotten Son, and the Word of God, the Immortal, before all ages, Who has accepted everything for our salvation - the Incarnate of the holy Mother of God, the Ever-Virgin Mary.
Who without change became man; Who was crucified; the Christ God, Who has trampled death by His death; The one of the Holy Trinity, glorified with the Father and the Holy Spirit, save us.
Holy God, Who for our sake became man without change, still being God;
Holy Mighty, Who through weakness has shown what is greater than might;
Holy Immortal, Who was crucified for us and endured death upon the Cross in His flesh, still being immortal; O Holy Trinity have mercy upon us.
(Translated by Hegomen Athanasius Iskander)
See the parallel in the Eastern Orthodox tradition , where the prayer is attributed to Emperor Justinian considered as a saint by the Eastern Orthodox .
Only Begotten Son and Immortal Word of God ,
Who or our salvation didst will to be incarnate of the Holy Theotokos and ever virgin Mary ,
Who without change didst become man and wast crucified, O Christ our God,
Trampling down death by death, Who art one of the Holy Trinity,
Glorified with the Father and the Holy Spirit, save us.
It is proclaimed by Eastern Orthodox that Emperor Justinian brought this to the to refrain from Nestorianism ( Heresy denying St. Mary to be known as Theotokos implying that Jesus Christ to be someone less than God). It was almost 100 years before this our beloved Saint Dioscoros was tortured , deposed because he refused to acknowledge Jesus Christ continuing after his Incarnation in Two Natures - Human and Divine . He refused to accept this as this was exactly to him as the teaching of Nestorius that was rejected by the Church as a whole and explained by St. Cyril . Also, lest History not forget that our beloved St. Severus was deposed as Patriarch by Emperor Justinian in AD 518 . Perhaps God had to use Emperor Justinian to see the wisdom much later to see the truth that St. Severus and St. Dioscoros was openly proclaiming the truth that Nestorianism had crept in their tradition.
See note below from Wikipedia on how the Church still proclaim and refuse Nestorianism
"... explained the union between the divine and human natures of Christ as "inward and real without any division, change, or confusion." He rejected the Antiochene theory of "indwelling,", or "conjunction" or "close participation," as insufficient. Thus the Alexandrian formula adopted by Cyril and Dioscorus was "one nature of God the Word Incarnate," which translates into Greek as mia physis tou theou logou sesarkomene, by which Cyril meant "one nature"—that Christ is at once God and man. On the other hand, the Antiochene formula was "two natures after the union," or "in two natures," which translates to dyo physis. This formula explained Christ as existing in two natures, God and man. Nestorius was condemned and deposed by the First Council of Ephesus, which approved of the Second Epistle of Cyril to Nestorius.He succeeded Cyril as Patriarch of Alexandria in 444.[2] ."
As we come closer to another Passion week, may we remember pay attention and journey to Pascha seeking His mercy and cry out together Christ is Risen ! , Indeed He is Risen !! . The Lord has been merciful and though the differences are being reconciled among hierarchs and teachers from the Orthodox Christian traditions ( Eastern Orthodox and us labelled as Oriental Orthodox ) , In Calgary, Canada where the Lord has brought us to pay attention for the first time melodiously in plain English at an Eastern Orthodox tradition - ' Christ has risen from the dead trampling down death by death and today '
Calgary, Canada
March 15, 2016
This caught my attention today seeing it at the back of fourth standard Sunday school text book and found from the net that ' Manisa' mean ' Song of Praise '. This is so fitting, for is it not this - 'Sing Praise to God 'that we are to do most when we come together to worship God as Church . I am posting the English translation from the text book and hope this will be edifying.
"By the prayers of your mother who bought you forth and by those of all your saints: My Lord and King! I will magnify You, Only begotton Son, Word of the Heavenly Father, Immortal by nature; who by your grace did come down for the life and redemption of all mankind ,who did become incarnate of the Holy and glorious pure Virgin Mary, Mother of God,and who became man without changing your divinity, and was crucified for us. O Christ our Lord, who by your death did trample down our death and destroy it ,being One among the Holy Trinity, You are worshipped and glorified in the unity of Your Father and your Living Holy Spirit ; Have mercy on us. "
See the parallel in the Coptic Tradition
O only-Begotten Son, and the Word of God, the Immortal, before all ages, Who has accepted everything for our salvation - the Incarnate of the holy Mother of God, the Ever-Virgin Mary.
Who without change became man; Who was crucified; the Christ God, Who has trampled death by His death; The one of the Holy Trinity, glorified with the Father and the Holy Spirit, save us.
Holy God, Who for our sake became man without change, still being God;
Holy Mighty, Who through weakness has shown what is greater than might;
Holy Immortal, Who was crucified for us and endured death upon the Cross in His flesh, still being immortal; O Holy Trinity have mercy upon us.
(Translated by Hegomen Athanasius Iskander)
See the parallel in the Eastern Orthodox tradition , where the prayer is attributed to Emperor Justinian considered as a saint by the Eastern Orthodox .
Only Begotten Son and Immortal Word of God ,
Who or our salvation didst will to be incarnate of the Holy Theotokos and ever virgin Mary ,
Who without change didst become man and wast crucified, O Christ our God,
Trampling down death by death, Who art one of the Holy Trinity,
Glorified with the Father and the Holy Spirit, save us.
It is proclaimed by Eastern Orthodox that Emperor Justinian brought this to the to refrain from Nestorianism ( Heresy denying St. Mary to be known as Theotokos implying that Jesus Christ to be someone less than God). It was almost 100 years before this our beloved Saint Dioscoros was tortured , deposed because he refused to acknowledge Jesus Christ continuing after his Incarnation in Two Natures - Human and Divine . He refused to accept this as this was exactly to him as the teaching of Nestorius that was rejected by the Church as a whole and explained by St. Cyril . Also, lest History not forget that our beloved St. Severus was deposed as Patriarch by Emperor Justinian in AD 518 . Perhaps God had to use Emperor Justinian to see the wisdom much later to see the truth that St. Severus and St. Dioscoros was openly proclaiming the truth that Nestorianism had crept in their tradition.
See note below from Wikipedia on how the Church still proclaim and refuse Nestorianism
"... explained the union between the divine and human natures of Christ as "inward and real without any division, change, or confusion." He rejected the Antiochene theory of "indwelling,", or "conjunction" or "close participation," as insufficient. Thus the Alexandrian formula adopted by Cyril and Dioscorus was "one nature of God the Word Incarnate," which translates into Greek as mia physis tou theou logou sesarkomene, by which Cyril meant "one nature"—that Christ is at once God and man. On the other hand, the Antiochene formula was "two natures after the union," or "in two natures," which translates to dyo physis. This formula explained Christ as existing in two natures, God and man. Nestorius was condemned and deposed by the First Council of Ephesus, which approved of the Second Epistle of Cyril to Nestorius.He succeeded Cyril as Patriarch of Alexandria in 444.[2] ."
As we come closer to another Passion week, may we remember pay attention and journey to Pascha seeking His mercy and cry out together Christ is Risen ! , Indeed He is Risen !! . The Lord has been merciful and though the differences are being reconciled among hierarchs and teachers from the Orthodox Christian traditions ( Eastern Orthodox and us labelled as Oriental Orthodox ) , In Calgary, Canada where the Lord has brought us to pay attention for the first time melodiously in plain English at an Eastern Orthodox tradition - ' Christ has risen from the dead trampling down death by death and today '
Calgary, Canada
March 15, 2016
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Books on Shelves!!!!
"The fathers...kept the commandments; their successors wrote them down; but we have placed their books on the shelves. And even if we want to read them, we do not have the application to understand what is said and to put it into practice; we read them either as something incidental, or because we think that by reading them we are doing something great, thus growing full of pride. We do not realize that we incur greater condemnation if we do not put into practice what we read..."
St. Peter of Damaskos
St. Peter of Damaskos
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Feast of Pentecost - May 23, 2010
With the feast of Pentecost .
In the scripture, every single one who have been baptized are saints .To this sainthood are we called . Christians should take up the challenge to live in obedience to the Spirit. ( HG Mar Ivanios , Kottayam)
Read the message of our Bishop - http://www.ds-wa.org/thirumenis-message.htmlScripture
Readings - : ◦Evening ■St. John14:15-31 ◦Morning ■St. John 15: 20 -25
◦Before Holy Qurbana ■Numbers11: 16 - 35 ■I Samuel 10:9-15 ■II Kings 2:14 -17 , 12: 1-27 ■Ezekiel 11: 17-20, 36: 25 - 27 ■Isaiah42: 1- 27 ◦
Holy Qurbana ■Acts 2: 1-13 ■Galatians5 : 16 - 26 ■St. John 15: 1 - 14
◦Service of the First kneeling ■Genesis11: 1-9 ■II Kings 2 ; 14 - 17 ■Acts 19:1-7 ■I Corinthians 14: 20-25 ■St. John14: 1-17
◦Service of the Second Kneeling ■Ezekiel 37: 1 - 14 ■Joel2:25-32 ■Acts10: 34 - 48 ■I Corinthians 12: 12 - 27 ■St. John 14: 25 - 31
◦Service of the Third Kneeling ■Judges13 : 24- 14: 7 ■Ezekiel 47: 1-12 ■Isaiah47: 1- 1 ■Acts 2: 1-21 ■I Corinthians 14: 20 - 33 ■St. John 16: 1 - 15
In the scripture, every single one who have been baptized are saints .To this sainthood are we called . Christians should take up the challenge to live in obedience to the Spirit. ( HG Mar Ivanios , Kottayam)
Read the message of our Bishop - http://www.ds-wa.org/thirumenis-message.htmlScripture
Readings - : ◦Evening ■St. John14:15-31 ◦Morning ■St. John 15: 20 -25
◦Before Holy Qurbana ■Numbers11: 16 - 35 ■I Samuel 10:9-15 ■II Kings 2:14 -17 , 12: 1-27 ■Ezekiel 11: 17-20, 36: 25 - 27 ■Isaiah42: 1- 27 ◦
Holy Qurbana ■Acts 2: 1-13 ■Galatians5 : 16 - 26 ■St. John 15: 1 - 14
◦Service of the First kneeling ■Genesis11: 1-9 ■II Kings 2 ; 14 - 17 ■Acts 19:1-7 ■I Corinthians 14: 20-25 ■St. John14: 1-17
◦Service of the Second Kneeling ■Ezekiel 37: 1 - 14 ■Joel2:25-32 ■Acts10: 34 - 48 ■I Corinthians 12: 12 - 27 ■St. John 14: 25 - 31
◦Service of the Third Kneeling ■Judges13 : 24- 14: 7 ■Ezekiel 47: 1-12 ■Isaiah47: 1- 1 ■Acts 2: 1-21 ■I Corinthians 14: 20 - 33 ■St. John 16: 1 - 15
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Towards a direction
I remember today my grandmother , Mariamma Varghese, of eternal memory ,of her praying the 7 times daily prayer , of her continuing perserverence of keeping the Lents and fasts by living the life of the Church day by day each year of her life.
As I think of her today , the question comes to mind on what kept her going day by day, while for me it is an anticipation that on the coming Monday , Holy Lent begin ,and I must try to keep away from what binds me during this Lenten period.
I regret not getting the answer from her while growing up ,but think for her was not the goal of getting to heaven after this life ,but an attempt to a Christ centred life, right here ,begining here by focusing and living it out by what the Church taught .
I pray that strengthened by the faith that the fathers and mothers departed this life , each of us instead of thinking of what we will be after 50 days of Lent , begin the journey in the direction a direction oriented on our Lord and God Jesus Christ knowing that He is the Way and in Him is the journey of the Church and each of us .
May God bless you
February13,2010
As I think of her today , the question comes to mind on what kept her going day by day, while for me it is an anticipation that on the coming Monday , Holy Lent begin ,and I must try to keep away from what binds me during this Lenten period.
I regret not getting the answer from her while growing up ,but think for her was not the goal of getting to heaven after this life ,but an attempt to a Christ centred life, right here ,begining here by focusing and living it out by what the Church taught .
I pray that strengthened by the faith that the fathers and mothers departed this life , each of us instead of thinking of what we will be after 50 days of Lent , begin the journey in the direction a direction oriented on our Lord and God Jesus Christ knowing that He is the Way and in Him is the journey of the Church and each of us .
May God bless you
February13,2010
Sunday, December 27, 2009
December 27 - 'Feast Of The Slaughter Of The Infants'
In between the Nativity of our Lord and God, and New Year celebration, the significance of this feast sometimes lose its importance.
However as the Church consider it very important to be included as a feast in the liturgical life of the Church, It bothers me every year and try to ask others to reflect too a bit on it.
Today the world suffers with many innocent children killed by Hunger and Famine, slaughtered by War, Murdered by mothers even in wombs by Abortion, Mothers forced to have no choice than Abort, and while political agendas continue on just as it was for King Herod.
And
In the agenda of our Shepherds of the Church is the rush to built orphanages, are we turning a blind eye by not looking at the root cause? Should not these questions be thought through by each of us ?
• How did we as individuals and together as Church in which the Holy Spirit dwells in it's fullness contribute to this?
• How did we fail to respond to mend the broken and strained tension this world torn with sin and bearing the consequences of disobedience is facing?
• How did we the Church whose sole purpose, as His instrument for existence is to continue the Saving MISSION of Jesus Christ the Savior and God of all fail to guide those who by Baptism and Chrismation are its members?
• How have we become so complacent to become so secular hypocritical, unfaithful adulterous pretenders, failures who cannot raise eyes to ask God for Mercy and be sanctified by full participation in the liturgical life of Church lest alone become points of light and a royal priesthood separated out of the world, in the world yet not of the world?
Though this season is a time to be thankful to God for all the blessings we each have received by His mercy, it is also time we have reflect and cry out for the innocent victims today in this world, in our midst. For the children murdered by abortion, for children of female infanticide, for the innocent children of women assaulted & abused by men, for innocent children of those that we call fallen woman, for those children helpless to have been born from Aids parents, for those innocent children having to suffer cancer or other deadly diseases and for the orphans and for those children who become victims due to famine, war and conflict. Also, let us pray for the traumatized having to give up their children by abortion, for those who had to live bearing shame for their children day by day.
This is also a time when as individuals and Church we show ourselves totally against abortion, against killing of innocent children even if in the name of compassion, even for medical research like stem cell research.
Lord Have mercy on us
However as the Church consider it very important to be included as a feast in the liturgical life of the Church, It bothers me every year and try to ask others to reflect too a bit on it.
Today the world suffers with many innocent children killed by Hunger and Famine, slaughtered by War, Murdered by mothers even in wombs by Abortion, Mothers forced to have no choice than Abort, and while political agendas continue on just as it was for King Herod.
And
In the agenda of our Shepherds of the Church is the rush to built orphanages, are we turning a blind eye by not looking at the root cause? Should not these questions be thought through by each of us ?
• How did we as individuals and together as Church in which the Holy Spirit dwells in it's fullness contribute to this?
• How did we fail to respond to mend the broken and strained tension this world torn with sin and bearing the consequences of disobedience is facing?
• How did we the Church whose sole purpose, as His instrument for existence is to continue the Saving MISSION of Jesus Christ the Savior and God of all fail to guide those who by Baptism and Chrismation are its members?
• How have we become so complacent to become so secular hypocritical, unfaithful adulterous pretenders, failures who cannot raise eyes to ask God for Mercy and be sanctified by full participation in the liturgical life of Church lest alone become points of light and a royal priesthood separated out of the world, in the world yet not of the world?
Though this season is a time to be thankful to God for all the blessings we each have received by His mercy, it is also time we have reflect and cry out for the innocent victims today in this world, in our midst. For the children murdered by abortion, for children of female infanticide, for the innocent children of women assaulted & abused by men, for innocent children of those that we call fallen woman, for those children helpless to have been born from Aids parents, for those innocent children having to suffer cancer or other deadly diseases and for the orphans and for those children who become victims due to famine, war and conflict. Also, let us pray for the traumatized having to give up their children by abortion, for those who had to live bearing shame for their children day by day.
This is also a time when as individuals and Church we show ourselves totally against abortion, against killing of innocent children even if in the name of compassion, even for medical research like stem cell research.
Lord Have mercy on us
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