The Decline of Christianity in the Holy Land: A Response

Dear Parish Faithful,

Here is a strong elaboration from Ralph Sidway to a short article I sent out yesterday about the diminishing presence of Christians in the Middle East.

Fr. Steven

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Dear Father Steven,

Christ is Risen! Indeed He is Risen!

I am very glad to see your meditation today, especially your closing reminder exhorting us to have unwavering faith in the providence of God which allows the persecution of Christians in the world. Our Lord told us that we would be persecuted if we followed Him (MK 10:29-31, JN 15:20), and that the time was coming when those who killed us would do so out of a belief that they were following God's will. (JN 16:2) It was true two thousand years ago, and it is just as true now, especially in Islamic countries.

In addition to what you have written, I would like to offer some corrections to the New York Times article, and a survey of muslim persecution against Christians not only in the Middle East, but worldwide, consisting of both an article by author and Islam expert Robert Spencer and a brief (6 min 29 sec) video on this topic by the David Horowitz Freedom Center. (See below also for link.)

Ethan Bronner, in his NY Times article, states that "Christians were attacked for working with Americans." As news reports show, greatly heightened persecution against Christians in Iraq and in other muslim countries can be traced to the late 1990s and into 2002, well before the US-led invasion of Iraq, and as a direct result of the jihad proclaimed by Osama bin Laden in 1998 and signaled by the attacks of 9/11/01. While the war in Iraq no doubt sparked further attacks on Christians suspected of working with the Americans, the essence of all persecution of Christians in all muslim-dominated countries in the Middle East and elsewhere is religious in nature, and is a manifestation of the Islamic resurgence we see worldwide.

Bronner also conflates and parses the causes of the Christian exodus, confusing several key issues in the process. In listing the forces behind Christian emigration from the Holy Land, he cites "political violence, lack of economic opportunity, and the rise of radical Islam." Instead, we must realize that what Bronner labels as "political violence" is actually violent religious persecution against Christians by muslims. Churches burned and destroyed, Christians threatened with death if they do not convert to Islam, and attacks on individual Christians are all part of a pattern here. "Lack of economic opportunity" is more accurately understood as economic discrimination against Christians by muslims; Christians under muslim rule have an exceedingly difficult if not impossible time of finding good jobs, running a successful business, and even keeping their own income. Christians under muslim rule are forced to pay a jizya (the poll tax mandated in Koran 9:29 that "people of the book" — Christians and Jews — must pay for the privilege of living in an Islamic state) so large that they cannot sustain their lives. Thus, what Bonner lists last as "the rise of radical Islam" is actually the cause of all the Christians' woes and persecution, some of it institutionalized, some of it at the hands of the growing mobs of zealous muslims, who are merely living out the true tenets of their religion.

As Islam continues its resurgence, we will see greater and ever more horrifying persecution of the last remaining Christians. They literally have no hope, in an earthly sense. Under Islam, Christians must submit (i.e. convert to Islam and renounce Jesus Christ), or pay the jizya (to have "protected" status), or flee, if they are able. Otherwise, they are likely to be harassed, persecuted and killed. Those Christians who do pay the jizya are relegated to dhimmi status, and are treated as inferior to muslims, second-class citizens. They cannot practice their faith in public, they cannot wear crosses in public, they cannot build new churches, they cannot even repair old churches falling into disrepair; they certainly cannot evangelize. While a muslim man may marry a Christian woman (indeed, several if he desires), a Christian man who tries to marry a muslim woman is subject to death, as several recent harrowing news stories from Pakistan and Afghanistan have borne out. The list of dhimmi limitations and discriminatory practices against Christians pervades virtually every dimension of life. The dangers are real: any muslim who converts to Christianity is subject to death. So is any Christian who tries to convert a muslim. Recent news stories about the atrocities committed by muslims against Coptic Christians in Egypt illustrate all these points and more. These are not aberrations from the so-called "Religion of Peace." Rather, these are truths about Islamic law (sharia law) which have been put into practice at all times and in every place that Islam has become dominant over the past thirteen hundred years. We must acknowledge these facts about Islam. Denial and obfuscation do not help us in understanding the enormity of the calamity and its importance for our times.

As recent events have demonstrated (seizing of church property by muslim authorities, etc.), the Ecumenical Patriarchate suffers these trials in a perhaps more demeaning way than other Christian bodies under Islamic domination. Perhaps it is time at last for His All Holiness to cede Constantinople to the muslim Turks, pack his bags, and leave the Phanar ghetto behind for the relatively safe (for now) United States.

Here is the link to Mr Spencer's article; the video is embedded in it:
http://www.jihadwatch.org/archives/026126.php

Here is a link to the otherwise excellent full article by Ethan Bronner in the NYT:
http://www.jihadwatch.org/archives/026108.php

I would be glad to provide further articles and sources upon request.

Please feel free to forward this to the parish if you see fit.

in Christ,
Ralph

Essential, Real-Life Ministries

Dear Parish Faithful,

Christ is Risen!


Last Sunday evening, Presvytera Deborah and I were invited to the Warren Correctional Institute by Terry Morgan and Dan Georgescu, to attend a graduation ceremony for the Kairos Weekend Program, also known as a short course in "Practical Christian Living." This was an intense course that lasted from Thursday - Sunday on the grounds of the WCI. Many prisoners may know of Christian teaching, but this program is meant to assist them in taking a much deeper look at the Gospel, to embrace Christ and to seek the forgiveness and grace of God. We heard from some of those who did so at the graduation ceremony on Sunday evening. Articulate or inarticulate, their personal witnesses were all moving. We also heard a good solid talk by the prison warden, Wanda Jackson. While there, we noticed at least one of our posters prepared by our Church School students. This one had recognizable Orthodox crosses and the Jesus Prayer written on it.

Terry's role through the weekend was that of "table clergy," and Dan was a "table servant." Nicholas Georgescu volunteered to be a cook and his contribution was greatly appreciated. Also with us were Bernice Morgan and Cristiana Georgescu. Just this briefest of encounters with the atmosphere of the WCI impressed upon us the great challenges and difficulties of a prison ministry.

We deeply appreciate the efforts of both Terry and Dan in taking on this most difficult of ministries as they represent authentic Orthodox Christianity and our parish at the WCI. May God continue to bless their ongoing work. Let us all keep them in our prayers. Coincidentally, if you go to www.scoba.us you will find an encyclical statement from the Standing Conference of Orthodox Bishops in America (SCOBA) on Prison Ministry Awareness Sunday, designated for this coming Sunday, May 24.
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Our appeal for sponsorship of the senoritas at the Hogar in Guatemala received a tremendous response already, and thirteen of the fourteen senoritas are now covered for receiving a special gift from our parish faithful! We deeply appreciate the commitment and concern - together with the generosity - of our sponsors. May God bless your efforts. I am hoping that someone will agree to sponsor one last senorita. Please get back with me if you choose to do so.

We will continue to receive monetary donations for the Hogar on the next two Sundays with a basket by the Cross. There is also a list of other items requested by the Hogar in case someone would like to make a donation from that list. That list has been sent out, but please let me know if you would like to see it again.

These developing, expanding and essential ministries to prisoners (MATT. 25:31-46) and to "abandoned, abused and orphaned children" (DEUT. 24:17, 21; JM. 1:27) are a deeply encouraging sign of spiritual maturity within the parish. It is the application of Gospel principles to real-life situations and needs. I hope our parish circle of participants will continue to grow. And may the Lord continue to bless and strengthen our endeavors.

Fr. Steven

The Holy Fire in Jerusalem

Dear Parish Faithful,

Below is a very interesting link to information and testimony concerning the miracle of the "Holy Fire" in Jerusalem. It is both accepted and denied by Orthodox Christians. (And obviously denied strongly by the non-Orthodox). Please read for yourselves and acquaint yourselves with the phenomenon and the claims made around it, so you can form your own opinion. Perhaps we will hear something from Dinara once she returns from her pilgrimage to the Holy Land.

Fr. Steven

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Subject: Fwd: The Orthodox Miracle of the Holy Fire


I hope you are enlightened by this video. It really impressed me.

The Orthodox experience the Miracle of Holy Fire every year on Holy Saturday after 12:00 noon. "It happens in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, the holiest place on earth, where Christ was crucified, entombed, and where He finally rose from the dead." The Orthodox Patriarch walks into the tomb after it has been searched by officials who declare there is nothing in it that would start a fire. The Patriarch also removes his vestments. As he says prayers, miraculously, the Holy Fire begins burning.The Patriarch lights his candles with the Holy Fire, and comes out of the tomb to the waiting parishioners with some of their candles miraculously lit. This miracle only occurs with the Orthodox Patriarch. Three other times, non-Orthodox have attempted to experience this miracle, but failed. Since the fourth century this miracle has taken place every year. It is possible this occurred even before the fourth century. Below is more information about the Holy Fire:

http://www.holyfire.org/eng/

Below is a link to an actual video experiencing the Holy Fire. I had
to watch it twice; once to read the captions, and the second time to
watch the miracle. It helps to hit the pause button during the flashes
of light. A couple of times, you can actually stop the video and see a
perfectly round circle of fire.


http://oode.wordpress.com/2009/04/14/miracleofholylight/

This video is amazing!

Fr John Chryssavgis and Orthodox Ecological Teachings

Dear Parish Faithful,

On Saturday evening, we are going to hear the distinguished Orthodox theologian, Fr. John Chyrassvgis, offer some "ecological reflections on the beatitudes." (For info on this event, please visit our website.) This will hopefully help us to discern the "justice and beauty of the earth."

What I have learned, is that the very words "ecology/ecological" and "environment(al)" are heavily politicized terms in our contemporary culture. I am sure that you agree with me, but to make the point, all I have to say is: Al Gore! Many people swear by Al Gore. They believe that there may have been something "providential" in his loss to George Bush in the 2000 presidential election. That bitter loss then allowed him to discover his true vocation and to shift his focus in life. That was to become the great secular prophet of warning us in apocalyptic language of the present dangers to the environment - especially caused by global warming. All of this was supposedly validated when his film "An Inconvenient Truth" won an Oscar award; and Gore himself won a Nobel peace prize in 2007 together with the IPCC of the U.N. Many other people, however, swear at Al Gore as a charlatan who has no scientific credentials; who is thus way in over his head in this whole debate; and who is being manipulated by political interest groups bent upon promoting a particular environmental agenda based on fear tactics meant to alarm the government into massive spending that is all quite unnecessary. I am not so sure that there are many people somewhere in between those two extremes. Hence, the politicization of the terms "ecology" and "environment" alluded to above.

None of this has much to do with an Orthodox Christian theology of the natural world around us. In fact, what is so sorely missing in today's debate is precisely a theological approach, one that sees the cosmos and hence the "environment" and the "ecological system" in theocentric terms. The world is not divine, but it is sacred, in that it is created and sustained by God and filled with His energies. Usually, however, a genuinely Christian perspective on the environment is treated with indifference or scorn. And actually, many "green" groups blame Christian attitudes for the pollution and exploitation of the environment. But in recent decades, some Orthodox theologians, beginning with the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Bartholemew, have endeavored to articulate an Orthodox Christian ecological vision of the world and our place in the world as stewards of the environment. This is, again, a theological vision based upon the text of Genesis that reveals God as the Creator and source of the entire cosmos and our world.

Orthodox Christians may take divergent views on these contemporary debates, and support one or another position, but there exists an underlying unified vision that we are responsible for our stewardship of the world, based precisely upon the text of Genesis. The Lord has entrusted the world to our care and respect for all forms of life, because we are the "crowning" achievement of God's creation, made in His "image and likeness." As a body, we share a "priesthood" of offering the world back to God in thanksgiving and love. We "mediate" between the Uncreated and the created. Human persons are the "voice" of the world as it sings hymns of praise to God for its very existence - and which is "very good." The world itself is a "sacrament" of God's presence. But again, this means that we will "cultivate" the world with loving care. Any pollution or loss of the initial purity of the world is one more grim reminder of human sin and of the world's fallen state. No wonder the world "groans and is in travail" until its eschatological transfiguration. I could be mistaken, but I believe that Fr. John will address such important truths with clarity and eloquence.

Our contribution to a Christian vision of ecological issues is pretty modest, but here are a few titles that have appeared in recent years (links to resellers provided):

• Beyond the Shattered Image: Insights Into an Orthodox Ecological Worldview - John Chyrssavgis

• Animals and Man: A State of Blessedness - Dr. Joanne Stefanatos, D.V.M.

• Man and the Environment: A Study of St. Symeon the New Theologian - Anestis Keselopoulos

• Living in God's Creation - The Ecological Vision of Orthodox Christianity - Elizabeth Theokritoff (forthcoming in June)

- Fr. Steven

Re: Seven Secular Challenges - An Eighth Challenge, "Opinion"

Dear Parish Faithful,

Further commentary from Ralph Sidway ...

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Dear Father Steven,

I found this entry of yours most interesting. I believe the secularizing (or perhaps better, "de-sacrilizing") process is so far along and has been gathering momentum for so many decades and generations now, that it is exponentially more difficult now than in decades past for an Orthodox Christian to cultivate a true spiritual life and taste the real 'savor of Orthodoxy' (as Fr Seraphim Rose might phrase it). The analogy of "boiling a frog" comes to mind; if you throw a frog into a pot of boiling water, it will leap out, but if you put the frog into a pot of tepid water and slowly bring it to a boil, it will not notice it is boiling until it is way too late!

Another addition to the list of challenges might be "opinion." Thanks to the internet, everyone can share their opinions about anything constantly. Everyone seems to be blogging, chatting, sharing opinions, and arguing vehemently over them, but is anyone listening or being benefited? This surely extends to Orthodoxy, where the temptation exists for us "moderns" to assess and judge the veracity and Orthodoxy of previous generations, even holy fathers and mothers of recent times when we have barely dipped our toe in the sea of sanctity in which they swam. How many have been shipwrecked because they trusted in themselves and their own opinions. This might be a patristic starting point for further commentary on identifying and combatting these seven challenges.

in Christ,
Ralph

Re: Seven Secular Challenges - The Prayer of St Ephraim

* Revised 3/6/09

Dear Parish Faithful,

A very insightful commentary from Alexis Callender ... For those who may not have, or be aware of, the Lenten Prayer of St. Ephraim, I have attached a copy with some explanation*. It is meant to be used in the home as well as in the church.

Fr. Steven

* Webmaster's Note: The Prayer of St Ephraim in PDF format can be found on our Great Lent page. Scroll towards the bottom and the SPECIAL FEATURES section.
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Good Morning Fr. Steven,

Father bless,

I would like to share with you some further thoughts on the Seven Secular Challenges Facing 21st-Century Catholics. (Obviously, we can easily replace "Catholics" with "Orthodox" - Fr. Steven). In my humble opinion, we as Orthodox Christians must be prepared to respond to each of these seven challenges. This is indeed essential and critical. Although we are not “of the world”, we are “in the world” and therefore must be armed for the battle against such vices. They are all in direct contradiction with the Orthodox Way…the Way of Christ. They are the anti-thesis of our lives as Christians.

When we pray, “O Heavenly King, The Comforter and Spirit of Truth, Who art everywhere and fillest all things, come and abide in us and cleanse us from very impurity and save our souls O Good One”, we are asking to be protected from the worldly ways, which are sadly, “ever present” and “fill all things” in the secular society in which we live. While these challenges are very real and very much present in our daily life, God gives us the shield and armor to protect ourselves “from every evil and adverse work of the Devil”.

While contemplating further on this list, the beautiful and powerful prayer of St. Ephraim came to mind. This prayer in its profound meaning clearly guides us to beseech the “Lord and Master” of our lives to take from us “the spirit of sloth, despair, lust of power and idle talk”, which directly correlate with the secular challenges outlined by the author.

• Lack of respect for authority – lust of power and sloth
• Cynicism – idle talk , lust of power, judging our brethren
• Uncritical openness – idle talk
• Ideology – which can breed despair in our longing for what we want or desire or feel should be.
• Learned helplessness – sloth
• Anti-intellectualism – idle talk
• Political correctness – idle talk
• Although not part of the list from the book, we may consider adding desensitization or indifference and possibly hopelessness to the list of challenges, all which can breed despair and slothfulness.

Further in the prayer of St. Ephraim, we ask God to grant to us “the spirit of chastity, humility, patience and love” to His servants. These virtues can be our response to the challenges we face as Christians living in the world. They are the weapons against the *seven deadly passions. (*An interesting parallel to these seven challenges.)

The world teaches us to be self-centered and focused on how I can glorify myself so that others will glorify me. These seven challenges, which are fed by the seven passions play right into that line of thinking. But, through Christ and His Holy Church we are taught to be Christ-centric and focused on how I can glorify God so other others may glorify Him. Through prayer, fasting, “humility, patience and love”, we stay on course. Not considered a popular path by the worldly, but truly, there is no other way. “…I would rather be a doorkeeper in house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness.” – Ps.84:10

Thanks be to God for His infinite mercy which He bestows upon His children, for the wisdom and teachings of the Holy Church Fathers through which God nourishes us, and for the protection of Christ and His Holy Church as we continue our “spiritual warfare.”

In Christ,
Alexis

Seven Secular Challenges

* Revised 3/6/09

Dear Parish Faithful and Friends in Christ,

I like looking through book catalogues when they come through the mail. I recently noticed a book by a Roman Catholic scholar entitled Seven Secular Challenges Facing the 21st Century Catholic. Admittedly, I don't intend to read the book, but the seven challenges that this writer saw from secularism are the following, and it is a quite an interesting list:

1) lack of respect for authority
2) cynicism
3) uncritical openness
4) ideology
5) learned helplessness
6) anti-intellectualism
7) political correctness

Answering those secular challenges as Orthodox Christians is not an option for us - but an urgent necessity.

- Fr Steven