Isaiah 13:2-13 (6th Hour)
2 “Lift up a banner on the high mountain, raise your voice to them; wave your hand, that they may enter the gates of the nobles.
3 I have commanded My sanctified ones; I have also called My mighty ones for My anger – those who rejoice in My exaltation.”
4 The noise of a multitude in the mountains, like that of many people! A tumultuous noise of the kingdoms of nations gathered together! The Lord of hosts musters the army for battle.
5 They come from a far country, from the end of heaven – the Lord and His weapons of indignation, to destroy the whole land.
6 Wail, for the day of the Lord is at hand! It will come as destruction from the Almighty.
7 Therefore all hands will be limp, every man’s heart will melt,
8 And they will be afraid. Pangs and sorrows will take hold of them; they will be in pain as a woman in childbirth; they will be amazed at one another; their faces will be like flames.
9 Behold, the day of the Lord comes, cruel, with both wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate; and He will destroy its sinners from it.
10 For the stars of heaven and their constellations will not give their light; the sun will be darkened in its going forth, and the moon will not cause its light to shine.
11 “I will punish the world for its evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; I will halt the arrogance of the proud, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible.
12 I will make a mortal more rare than fine gold, a man more than the golden wedge of Ophir.
13 Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth will move out of her place, in the wrath of the Lord of hosts and in the day of His fierce anger.
Proverbs 10:31-11:12 (Vespers, 2nd reading)
31 The mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom, but the perverse tongue will be cut out.
32 The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable, but the mouth of the wicked what is perverse.
1 Dishonest scales are an abomination to the Lord, but a just weight is His delight.
2 When pride comes, then comes shame; but with the humble is wisdom.
3 The integrity of the upright will guide them, but the perversity of the unfaithful will destroy them.
4 Riches do not profit in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death.
5 The righteousness of the blameless will direct his way aright, but the wicked will fall by his own wickedness.
6 The righteousness of the upright will deliver them, but the unfaithful will be caught by their lust.
7 When a wicked man dies, his expectation will perish, and the hope of the unjust perishes.
8 The righteous is delivered from trouble, and it comes to the wicked instead.
9 The hypocrite with his mouth destroys his neighbor, but through knowledge the righteous will be delivered.
10 When it goes well with the righteous, the city rejoices; and when the wicked perish, there is jubilation.
11 By the blessing of the upright the city is exalted, but it is overthrown by the mouth of the wicked.
12 He who is devoid of wisdom despises his neighbor, but a man of understanding holds his peace.
Saint Thomas, Patriarch of Constantinople
Saint Thomas, Patriarch of Constantinople, was at first a deacon, and later under the holy Patriarch John IV the Faster (582-595) he was made “sakellarios” [sacristan] in the Great Church (Hagia Sophia). After the death of holy Patriarch Cyriacus (595-606), Saint Thomas was elevated to the Patriarchal throne in 607. The saint concerned himself in every possible way about the spiritual needs of his flock.
During the patriarchate of Saint Thomas, an ominous portent appeared in the land of Galatia (Asia Minor). The heavy crosses which were carried during church processions began to shake and to strike against each other. The clairvoyant Elder, Saint Theodore Sykeotes (April 22), explained the meaning of this portent. He said that discords and disasters awaited the Church, and the state was in danger of barbarian invasion. Hearing this, the saint became terrified and asked Saint Theodore to pray that God would take his soul before these predictions were fulfilled.
After the death of the holy Patriarch Thomas in 610, disorders started in the Church. Saint Thomas’s successor, Patriarch Sergius (610-638), fell into the Monothelite heresy. Through God’s dispensation, war broke out with Persia, which proved grievous for Byzantium. The Greek regions of Asia Minor were completely devastated, Jerusalem fell, and the Life-Creating Cross of the Lord was captured and taken to Persia. Thus, all the misfortunes portended by the miracle during the church procession came to pass.
We are called by God to change
by Fr. John Breck
Food and drink were intended for nourishment and enjoyment. Passion transforms the natural acts of eating and drinking into gluttony and dissipation.
The theme of repentance is heard so often during Great Lent because it expresses the essential conviction of our Christian faith that the human person is called by God to change. This involves above all a struggle (podvig) against what the Holy Fathers term the “passions”. These include our basic inclinations as well as thoughts and feelings which drive a wedge between ourselves and God, between ourselves and other persons. The passions are not sinful in and of themselves. They are the product of “fallen” or corrupted nature, and as such they incite to sin. Here are a few examples:
Sexuality was intended for our participation through intimate conjugal union in God’s work of creating human persons in His image and likeness. Passion transforms sexuality into “sex,” meaning the self-centered drive to satisfy lust.
An innate longing for God characterizes human nature as it was intended to be. Passion transforms that longing into idolatry, and insatiable desire to worship, serve, and manipulate gods of our own making.
Passion turns righteous indignation into anger and condemnation.
Passion turns the desire for participation in the glory of God into “vainglory,” the need to please others and receive their praise.
Passion distorts a commitment to truth and justice into expressions of anger and a thirst for vengeance.
Our Church, however, not only takes seriously the consequences of the Fall, she offers an antidote: God’s saving plan for healing and transformation. Applying this antidote constitutes the “program” of Great Lent. Fr. Alexander Schmemann often used to say that Lent is simply the return to the natural order of things. We begin by acknowledging our need for thoroughgoing change. Then we take significant steps to effect such a change. Here are some of them:
Reading the Holy Scriptures and spiritual teachings to first learn and then begin to obey the commandments of Christ.
Praying, fasting, and giving alms that we may first see and then transcend our self-centeredness.
Joining confession of sins and receiving the Eucharist to an ardent quest for mutual forgiveness and a genuine reconciliation and union with God and our fellow human beings.
What is the source of this transformation? The Grace and power of the Holy Spirit.
God alone can save us; we can’t save ourselves. Nevertheless, there is an essential “synergy” or cooperation between ourselves and God. The goal is holiness. Only as we ourselves grow in it can we influence other people, even social structures and institutions.
It is holiness as divine energy or power that brings about change in ourselves and the world around us.
Adapted from a talk given by Fr. John Breck, and reprinted from the St. John the Evangelist Orthodox Church website.
This week’s calendar reminders:
Monday 3/17: Lenten Matins 8:30 am
Tuesday 3/18: no services or events
Wednesday 3/19: Presanctified Liturgy 6:30 pm (potluck meal to follow)
Thursday 3/20: Lenten Matins 8:30 am
Friday 3/21: Paraklesis to the Theotokos 8:30 am
Saturday 3/22: Memorial Liturgy for the Departed 9:15 a.m.; Catechumen Class 4:30 pm; Choir Rehearsal 4:30 pm; Great Vespers 6 pm
Sunday 3/23: Divine Liturgy 9:15am;
CLICK BELOW to donate online:
Christ the Savior Orthodox Church is located in Southbury, Connecticut, and is part of the New England Diocese of the Orthodox Church of America.
Mailing address: Christ the Savior Church, 1070 Roxbury Road, Southbury, CT 06488
PLEASE DONATE to help our parish do the work of the Lord, thrive and grow, and extend the Kingdom of God. May the Lord bless your generosity!
Fr. Moses Locke can be reached at frmoseslocke@gmail.com