Let us draw near with faith and love . . .

"Let us draw near with faith and love, that we may become partakers of life everlasting."

Last week, we discussed some of the initially noticeable liturgical characteristics of the season of Great Lent. Now, we will continue with reflections on the features of the second portion of the Lenten period.

As the time of Lent passes, so too, the intensity of the services. Already, the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts has drawn our attention each Wednesday and Friday. With its tranquil and somber chants and texts, the service creates an atmosphere of reflection and quiet contemplation, conducive to the mood of Great Lent.

The Eucharistic portion of the Presanctified Liturgy contains prayers which beckon us to unity with the Lord, who is continually coming into the world around us. The quotation above is from the second part of the Cherubikon. The first part speaks of the "mystical sacrifice," Christ's Body & Blood, which the celebrant is about to bring to the altar for the communion of the faithful. After the silent procession with the consecrated gifts reaches to royal doors, the people, all on bended knees, conclude the hymn. It is only with "faith and with love that we may become partakers of everlasting life."

As we partake of the life-giving sacrament of Christ's presence, the communion hymn reminds us what a good thing it is to be in the presence of the living God. For those who have been fasting for three weeks now, the words become very real indeed. God-with-us and living in our midst is a good thing, which satisfies all human need and hunger: "Taste and see how good the Lord is. Alleluia."

After the third Lenten Sunday, the church calls us to accelerate our participation in worship. This Sunday itself is dedicated to the "Veneration of the Holy Cross" and is intended to give encouragement to the praying and fasting community, with the knowledge that Lent has run half its course and that the "sacred and solemn week of the Passion of Christ" will soon be upon us.

Following the fourth Sunday, during the fifth week, the Great Canon of St. Andrew of Crete, with many prostrations (profound bows on the floor), is sung during Thursday matins. It reminds us of the need to pay attention to the purpose of Lent: to better conform ourselves to the image of Christ through sincere repentance. A prostration is made after each troparion of the canon, during the verse, "Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy on me."

The Presanctified Liturgy is celebrated that evening, so that the people may be spiritually refreshed by the Eucharist, after the strenuous multitude of prostrations. On the following Saturday, the Akafist Hymn to the Theotokos is sung, as we ask Mary to accompany us, as she did her son, Jesus, on the journey to Jerusalem. The origin of the use of the Akafist to Mary at this time is probably closely related to the proximity of the Feast of the Annunciation (March 25/April 7), the biblical event to which the service is primarily dedicated.

Soon, the 40 days of fasting will conclude with the sixth Friday and the following Saturday of Lazarus, which directly precede the Feast of the Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem (Palm Sunday).

We observe the third Sunday of Lent and begin the fourth week knowing that time will pass quickly from this point forward. For us, we are nearing the Holy City and the solemn Passion Week is close at hand.

+Vladyka Mykhayil

New UAOC-America New Items

I would like to bring your attention to several news items recently posted at our website, uaoc.org.

Please follow this link uaoc.org/news to see the latest news and pictures.

About the Liturgical Life of Lent

In the Byzantine-Orthodox tradition, the season of Great Lent takes on an entirely unique characteristic. I thought it would be a good idea to explore some of the changes, terms and themes we find. I’ll try to touch on a few points each week.

Some important things to note are (1) the reading from scripture is done in order (lectio continua) with the following texts (a) On Saturdays & Sundays at the liturgy, the Gospel of Mark and the Letter to the Hebrews are read; (b) At daily Vespers (including days with the Presanctified Liturgy), readings are from the Hebrew Scripture (OT), books of Genesis & Proverbs; daily at the Sixth Hour, there is a reading from Isaiah. A special “prokeimenon” or psalm verse always introduces the readings. During Passion Week, the readings at vespers are from Exodus and Job.

(2) Each day has its own liturgical texts (tropars, stichera, prokeimena, verses, etc) which are taken from a book called the “Lenten Triodion” which literally means “Book of the Three Odes,” (referring to how the canon of Matins is sung daily). So, when you see “from the triodion” next to a certain text, it means that it is taken from this special Lenten book.

(3) Celebration of the Divine Liturgy (Eucharist) is forbidden on the weekdays of Lent. However, to strengthen the faithful in fasting, good deeds and prayer, holy communion is distributed on Wednesday & Friday evenings at a special version of Vespers in which the sacrament has been consecrated on the previous Sunday and reserved in the tabernacle (Presanctified Liturgy).

Traducciones del sitio web

Para nuestros lectores de habla Española, hay nuevas traducciones en los enlaces siguientes:

Icono de la Estación

CARTA PASTORAL PARA LA GRAN CUARESMA - 2008

REGULACIONES Y ORACIONES PARA LA CUARESMA - 2008

Predstoyatel Mundial de la IOUA Recive Saludos de la Comunidad Internacional

Worldwide Predstoyatel of the UAOC Receives Greetings from the International Community

KYIV, UKRAINE: His Beatitude, MEFODIY, Metropolitan of Kyiv & All Ukraine, Primate of the Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church throughout the world, received greetings from the international community on the occasion of his March 11 birthday.

The president of Ukraine, Viktor Yushchenko in a personal greeting to His Beatitude, Metropolitan Mefodiy, used these words, "I wish you much health, happiness, goodness and God's grace for many years," stated the office of the Press-Service of the president.

The president also mentioned that Metropolitan Mefodiy's wisdom and selfless service to God and Ukraine has given great spiritual enlightenment to the Ukrainian people.

In a communique from New York, His Eminence, Metropolitan Mykhayil, speaking on behalf of the clergy, religious and faithful of the UAOC throughout North & South America, conveyed the following sentiments to the visible head of the church:

"As we have expressed on other occasions, Vladyko, you have been and continue to be a source of encouragement for us who live as Ukrainian Orthodox Christians in the Diaspora. Your spiritual strength, intuitive wisdom and kindness of heart are always an inspiration for us to continue to walk the path of holiness according to our ancient and venerable traditions."

Our prayers are with our God-beloved Father in Christ, Metropolitan Mefodiy, that he enjoy many more blessed, happy and spiritually fruitful years in the seat of the primacy of our Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church.

Na mnohaya l'ita, Vladyko! - For many years, Master! - Para muchos años Señor!

PASTORAL LETTER FOR GREAT LENT

HIS EMINENCE
THE MOST REVEREND METROPOLITAN MYKHAYIL
Archbishop of New York
Metropolitan of All America
Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church

Cheesefare Sunday, March 9, 2008

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Great Lent is known by many names and comprises many themes. It is a combined effort of body and soul, to attain spiritual renewal, which is seen most completely and directly in the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

Lent is a season when we focus on the Passion of Christ, a term which has come to refer to Jesus’ suffering, death and burial. In our times, Lent then, has become principally a yearly spiritual journey with Jesus, to Jerusalem, to the olive garden called Gethsemane, to the hill of the Cross and to the rock-tomb, which was donated him by a close and well-to-do friend. Of course, what we know, that the first disciples did not, was that all this would be vindicated by the Resurrection.

Also during Lent, the church, through its liturgical books, reminds us to cast aside our own “passions” on the way to Jerusalem. Repeatedly, the services tell us that we must rid ourselves of those things which separate us from God, as we keep up the pace with Christ, towards to Holy City. If we keep the Lenten time seriously, we will gradually throw to the side of the road, all those things which are a hindrance to true peace of mind, to real solidarity with others and to a soul which is in close communion with God.

The icon I have chosen as a theme for this year’s journey of Great Lent is indeed unique in its message. Through the artist’s hand, Our Lord appears, with the marks of the crucifixion, gazing at us through the barbed wire of a prison window. What is not made known to us is if Jesus is looking from the inside out or from the outside in. For this answer, we ourselves must reflect and pray.

Certainly, there are many ways in which our sins imprison us and separate us from the road of Christ. In a similar manner, our sins and those of world humanity, continue to hurt Our Lord and to put him yet again in prison, as he was at the time of his passion. The Gospel of Meatfare Sunday, (Mt. 25: 31-46) assures us that Christ identifies with the “least ones” of the earth and that the suffering and alienation which they experience are also visited upon the Lord himself, who ultimately, shall judge the world accordingly.

We can use this time of Great Lent to reflect on this theme of imprisonment and suffering. We can make it an opportunity to change. We can reach Jerusalem as people who have experienced a spiritual awakening, who have cast off the oppressive ways of short-sightedness, selfishness, stubbornness and pride. In prayer, by concrete actions, through many prostrations and finally, through the sacrament of confession, we can repent of our faults and self-serving passions and become people cleansed and liberated from all that causes our lives to be off-balance with God.

It is my prayer that our journey through Great Lent will be one which frees us and leads us to a deeper relationship with the Lord, with each other and with ourselves. As members of humankind, we must take responsibility not only for our own faults, but for those of the entire human race. In this regard, we must use our voices and our abilities, to speak out against injustice wherever we may recognize it. In the final judgment, it will not be enough to “watch and pray” (Mt. 26:41) that things improve for the “least of our brothers and sisters,” but what “we do” or “neglect to do” (cf. Mt. 25:45) will be integral in compiling our “account before Christ.”

The future of this world is, to a large degree, up to us and Lent is a good time to ponder it. Let us do what we can. If we can help the environment by being more responsible, let us do so. If we can bring greater attention to the poverty, persecution, humiliation and oppression lived by our sisters and brothers throughout the world, let us speak our minds. If we can make use of our relationships in the local community, to bring about a more just society, then let us be visible and participate in those activities which will help God’s reign to be more firmly planted on the earth.

While we journey through Lent, in the hope of reforming our lives, we ultimately must deal with the idea of forgiveness. While we speak of this often, sometimes it is not easy to admit that we need to be forgiven. Let us not forget to ask forgiveness, repeatedly, from God and from each other. We need to recognize that our failings can cause suffering and moreover, that in a corporate way, the human race has collectively brought about many of the things that we like to find “wrong with the world.” For these times, we can only say, “God, be merciful to me a sinner” (Lk. 18:13).

While I assure you of my prayers during this holy time of the year, I humbly ask for your prayers and your continued cooperation as “co-workers in God’s fields” (1 Cor. 3:9). If we take this time seriously and, over the course of Lent, change and reform things about ourselves which are lacking, the Lord will be pleased with the good work we have begun. Our good efforts will be blessed with the joyful news of hope, given us by his glorious resurrection.

Faithfully Yours in Christ,

+METROPOLITAN MYKHAYIL
Archbishop of New York
Metropolitan of All America

PRAYER FOR THE BEGINNING OF GREAT LENT

As found in Slavonic Trebnyks:

O Lord Jesus Christ our God, hope of all on land and of those far away at sea, you have established these holy days of fasting by Your law and the prophets, as a way for our mortification and repentance. At the proper time, You manifested Yourself in the flesh on this earth, and by Your fast of forty days and nights, You sanctified the practice of fasting and commanded us to follow Your example. As a merciful and gracious God, enable us to begin these holy days of the Great Fast with perfect repentance, with humility instead of hypocrisy, with fervent prayer, with hunger and thirst, with frequent prostrations, and with a contrite heart. Enable us also to complete this time of the Great Fast without fault and with a pure conscience, keeping our faith intact and achieving victory over sin. Send us an angel of peace to watch over our lives, to protect us from all snares of our enemies, and to assist us in the performance of good deeds. Strengthen us by Your power so that we may accomplish the spiritual works of the Great Fast. Then, with our passions in control and our souls and bodies properly cleansed, we will be worthy to partake, without condemnation, of Your most pure Body and Your most precious and life-giving Blood. For You are the merciful and gracious Lover of Humankind, who came down to earth to save all; and we give glory to You and Your Eternal Father and Your all-holy gracious, and life-giving Spirit, now and ever, and forever. Amen.

Kosher for Passover?

While shopping for groceries on March 1 at a local, large supermarket chain, I came across the selection pictured here (click on it to enlarge). While I thought it was a bit early to showcase fresh foods for a celebration that is more than a month and a half away, some further examination of the product revealed the real underlying misconception. As can be seen, the products contain an expiration date of March 19, a full month before Passover begins.

On would think that here in the greater New York City area, where Jewish people represent larger percentage than in other parts of the US, retailers would be more sensitive to their religious practices. However, this is now the second incident that I am aware of, in which stores have placed Jewish observance into anachronistic categories. Religion writer Gary Stern first reported on this during the December "holiday season," when he highlighted one seller's attempt to push some lovely ham that was allegedly, "delicions for Hannukah.".

The underlying problem here appears to be that the majority of Americans consider Easter and Passover to be coinciding celebrations. While appropriateness of this has been debated for centuries, the Christian scriptures place the death and resurrection of Jesus at the time of Passover. One might assume then, that the two festivals are always close to each other.

In 325 CE, Christians meeting at the First Council of Nicea decidee on a common date for Easter or what is more correctly called "Pascha" or the "Christian Passover." Gary blogged on this theme last week, and offered a link to a site which discusses the way the date is determined. With the advent of the use of the Gregorian calendar and by ignoring the stipulation of Nicea I that the celebration of the resurrection always fall after the Passover of the Jews, Western Christians can find themselves with odd situations that would otherwise not happen, such as this year, with Easter a month earlier than Passover and St. Patrick's Day falling on the Monday of Holy Week.

Early church leaders wanted all Christians to celebrate the Resurrection on the same day, after the Jewish Passover. To that end, a council of bishops in the fourth century decreed that Easter would fall on the first Sunday after the first full moon, after the spring equinox... - Kim Lawton, managing editor, Religion & Ethics NewsWeekly -

Why do I take the time to point out these long-reviewed details? It is so that hopefully, Americans may become more readily aware that Easter as they know it in these times is not necessarily celebrated by all Christians simultaneously. Furthermore, the calculation of Easter which the American civil calendar now observes, has nothing to do with "the Passover of the Jews" or Jewish customs associated with Passover.

Fr. Ron Roberson from the office of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops offers the following reflection:

Especially in the East, the date of the celebration of Easter, over the years, has become identified with a kind of a Christian stance over and against the hostile forces of the world. So to adhere to those old traditions, the things they had been doing for so many centuries, was a way of really affirming their Christian identity, and the centrality of their Christian faith.

For grocery chain marketers, be careful of what you advertise and be sensitive to the religious practices of your customers. And . . . don't forget that according to Jewish regulations, a difference exists between what is "kosher" and what is "kosher for Passover," so, if you want to provide good customer service, learn the difference.

The Art of Giotto

In my last blog entry, I used a fresco of the "final judgment" which I thought to be inspiring for its iconographic and comprehensive portrayal of the Gospel scene.

In conversations with several people today, we discussed the work of artist, Giotto de Bondone. He lived in Italy from 1267-1337. The panel we see of the "last judgment" is from the rear wall of the Arena Chapel (Cappella Scrovegni)in Padua. It was commissioned by Enrico Scrovengni and according to historical accounts, Dante Alighieri, author of, among other works, The Divine Comedy visited the artist while working on the chapel's extensive system of frescos

What strikes me most, is the continued influence of iconography in this period of Italian painting. Not yet the "realistic" and "westernized" art of later centuries, these frescos maintain an order and style still followed by the stricter rules of Orthodox art.

The entire chapel is a wonderful piece of art, arranged much in the same way as would be an Orthodox church. The walls are filled with paintings from the life of Christ and the Virgin Mary, interspersed with other biblical and theological themes.

For more information on the artist and a vast selection of his frescos in the Padua chapel and elsewhere, visit The Art of Giotto.

A virtual, interactive tour of the chapel, can be taken facing front or looking from the altar toward the entrance . Enjoy these inspiring and rather interesting religious works of art.