Christ is Born! Glorify Him!

Tonight we again celebrate the birth of our Savior. What does this mean for us? Is it just about the gifts, or the food, or the parties? It is something more than those--much more. It means that God loves us so much, as we see in the Gospel of John, that He would give His Son to us. It is the Light coming to us. It is God being with us. His birth means God has come down to us to be at our level, even if we do not deserve this. Yet He humbled Himself to be with us, to be close to us. That is the real wonder of this feast. And just as the angels did, we glorify Him for this. The heavens opened up and glorified Him, something that no mere man has the honor. Yet how many in those days noticed? Only a few shepherds--a prefigurement, if you will, of Him being the Shepherd. It was a glorious night. It was something which we should always remember, and look back to.

This day as well, let us not forget those who have recently suffered tragedy. Let us remember them in our prayers, that amidst their suffering Christ is there with them. Let us pray that they find peace and joy even amidst the trials, and most of all, that He is the Hope that shows us the way.

A Moment of Prayer...

For our brothers and sisters in Mindanao, especially in Cagayan de Oro and Iligan, who were hit by tropical storm "Sendong". Let us remember them and pray for them, that the Lord might have mercy on them. Let us also remember those who have perished in the disaster--may the Lord grant them mercy and compassion. May the Lord grant His compassion as well for the survivors, that they rebuild their lives with His help. As we who are safe look forward toward His birth, let us remember those who should be celebrating it as well, but now are in sorrow because of the disaster. May they find comfort in His birth, and that His hope is always present. Above all, our Lord's Nativity is about hope, and we all look forward to that day when there is no more sorrow and suffering, but joy in being one with the Lord.

Sunday of Genealogy

Yesterday was the Sunday before the Nativity, also known as the Sunday of Genealogy. Here we recall the roots of our Savior (Matthew 1:1-25). We read that His line include the great Patriarchs of Israel, as well as some who are sinners as well. That might sound strange in light of who Jesus is, but in reflection this actually highlights what His mission is all about: that He calls all towards Him. Everyone is welcome to Him. His own line attests to that: it includes those who are less than perfect to show us that all are welcome to the Kingdom if we sincerely are with Him and seek Him.

Matthew's genealogy also shows another aspect--to highlight that Jesus is a Jew's Jew, one who perfectly follows His Father. So as we reflect on this, we must realize that Christ's call is for all, and He will not turn away those who seek Him and repent of their sins. As we near towards His birth, that is what we must do--as The Forerunner has said, make straight the path of the Lord. We must do it not only at this time for His birth, but everyday. It is the call He makes each day to us.

Orthodoxy of the Heart

This is one topic I have wanted to touch, but for some reason keep forgetting it. Orthodoxy of the heart; if I am correct, Fr. Seraphim Rose has a book with this title. What is essentially Orthodoxy of the heart?

It is, quite simply, living the Orthodox Faith. It is not mere head knowledge about Orthodoxy, but living the faith, becoming a witness for the Orthodox Church. Often people think it is enough that we know something about our faith; that is not so. Even our Lord has said, "Not those who say, Lord, Lord' will enter the Kingdom, but the one who does My Father's will".

So what does this mean then? How do we live our Orthodox Faith? It's not merely memorizing the Creed, nor knowing what to do in Divine Liturgy. It is good if we know those. It is good if we read the Bible, read about the early Fathers, know about Orthodox theology. Those are important. But it is not complete. What is more essential is praxis, what we actually do.

So when we fast, it is not just fasting for the sake of it, but we fast with the Lord in mind and our hearts in prayer. When we are at Divine Liturgy, we don't just sit at one corner but we join in the chanting, our focus on the Lord. But most of all, we show to others the love Christ has for us. It is by being kind to our neighbors. It is giving that smile to a stranger, or to listening to a friend who is grieving. That is when we become true witnesses to our Faith.

Being Orthodox is not looking or acting stern then, but it is that joyful living of our Faith. It is when we are sincere in our Faith that it truly shines. So when we say we are Orthodox, we must show it in everything that we do. Then we live the Orthodox Faith. Then when people see us, they do not turn away from us nor go the other way when they see us, but they readily come to you because they realize that Christ is within you. Then it won't be hard to share the Faith, to show them what the Orthodox Church is all about.

This is also helpful for those who, for one reason or another, do not have access to an Orthodox church or community; it might be that there are no Orthodox living nearby. How then can one be Orthodox is often the question for them. This is the answer: live the Orthodox Faith as faithfully as you can. Of course, for non-Orthodox, that would also mean learning what the Orthodox Church is all about. Start with Orthodox praxis like making the sign of the Cross. From there it will flow until the opportunity comes for you to truly go to an Orthodox church and join in Liturgy. The opportunity will come, as there is nothing impossible with God. As we often say, God will make a way for things to happen if we but believe in Him and trust Him.

So it is not difficult to live the Orthodox Faith and know it by heart--it really simple. It takes a sincere faith and one that is ready to follow the Lord. It is when we say, "Here I am, Lord" that we have Orthodoxy of the heart.

Where That New Testament Church Is

I think this article here says it quite well: http://journeytoorthodoxy.com/orthodox-faith/finding-the-new-testament-church/#axzz1gOIdfizU For those asking, where is this New Testament Church that we should go to? Where can it be found? It is the Orthodox Church. This is the Church that has kept the teachings and Holy Tradition of the Apostles and early Church Fathers. I would not say this if I have not read and researched about it myself. But each of us makes our own journey, so your journey might be different from my own. However, I pray that it will lead you to the Church which has kept what the early Church believed in. Many today are making that claim--we are the church that knows the Bible; we are the church that is what was in the New Testament. Often though, when one look more closely, it turns out that their claims fall short. For most of my life I had been Catholic, until I began to realize that the Catholic Church's claims do not coincide with how the early Church actually was. I dug deeper, and I found the Orthodox Church. May that journey also lead you to our Lord's Church, the Church of the Apostles and the early Fathers.

My Wish List

A few weeks ago I posted about making a wish list; now I am posting here my own wish list. Of course, foremost we must turn to God if we ask for things. A faithful heart will not be turned away by the Lord, for He said that if we seek the Kingdom, He will give the things we need as well.

For the next year, I wish to see more growth in the Orthodox Church here in the Philippines. Whether under Antioch or the Ecumenical Patriarchate, a growth in Orthodox faithful is a good sign that the Faith is taking firm root. Of course, with a growth in numbers should come a growth in faith as well, and that orthopraxis would truly be taken to heart by every Orthodox faithful both here in the Philippines and in other countries.

Along with that, I hope that the communities would be fruitful, and that there would be more Orthodox chapels and churches built here in the Philippines. The communities here are crying for such. It would truly be a great blessing for the faithful to have more worship places for them, a place which they can call home. The Church after all is for them, not just for the clergy. 

The Gospel for Sunday

Yesterday (or today for those living in the U.S. and some other places) the Gospel was all about the parable of a rich man giving a feast, and inviting many to attend it (Luke 14:16-24; Matthew 22:14). But those who were initially invited had various reasons for not attending; because of this, he asked his servants to instead to invite the cripple, the lame and the blind. As we go on towards the Nativity of our Lord, we often are called as well. What is the response that we give? Are we so busy with our lives, that we lose our focus on Him? Do we give excuses for not being with Him? Our attitude must be that when Jesus says, "Come, follow Me", we say, "Speak Lord, your servant is listening". We must be attentive--ready to follow Him, just as the Apostles did when He called them and they dropped everything they did to follow Him. For He said that everything He will give if we seek the Kingdom, so we need not worry about our concerns if we are in Him.

So our lives must be one of constant preparation. Our lives should be focused on Him, and that everything that we do we pray to Him and ask for His guidance. Then even if we have other concerns, we constantly remember Him and are always in Him. Then as well we are strong in resisting temptation because we are in Him and He provides the strength to endure all things.

Beginning Orthodoxy: Start With The Sign of the Cross

This is probably the most basic in one's journey towards Orthodoxy. When I was Catholic, this was already a regular gesture for me. How we cross ourselves as Orthodox is different from how it is as a Catholic. Even before I became Orthodox I already crossed myself in the Orthodox way, starting in 2005.

It begins with the way we form the hand we cross ourselves with. As a Catholic, it didn't matter much how our crossing hand would be; we do what is most comfortable for us. However, in the Orthodox Church it is more specific. The thumb, second and third fingers touch together, while the fourth and the pinkie go down towards the palm area. All of these have meaning.

The three fingers touching together symbolize the Holy Trinity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit). The two remaining fingers symbolize the two natures of Jesus: human and divine. They go down to show us that He came down on Earth, and is flush in the palm area to show us that He came to us in the womb of His mother, Mary.

In itself that is already a small catechism, and it is a good starting point to teach people, especially the young ones, about our Orthodox Faith. But it doesn't end there; next of course we have to cross ourselves.

For Catholics, the cross goes from left to right. In the Orthodox Church, it goes right over left. So we begin the cross at the temple of our head, then move towards at the center of our stomach, then to our right shoulder first, then to the left. The main difference between the Orthodox and Catholic way of crossing is that part where we touch our right shoulder first, instead of the left. For us Orthodox, this means that the Son of God sits at the right hand of the Father.

So as one can see, the Sign of the Cross, taken in whole from the way we form our signing hand, to how we make the Cross, is a small catechism. It teaches us something about what we believe in as Orthodox. Beginning with that actually is the start of orthopraxis. By doing that, we slowly acquire an Orthodox mindset. So for those who ask, how can one become Orthodox? It begins with praxis. Make small steps; do the sign of the Cross first, and then from there one can slowly begin to acquire that Orthodox mindset.

Commemoration of St. Nicholas, the Wonder-worker

Today we celebrate the Feast of St. Nicholas, bishop of Myra in Asia Minor. He was a contemporary of the Emperor Constantine, and one of the participants in the First Council of Nicea in 325 A.D. He was known for his compassion and mercy, as well as his zeal for Orthodoxy. He is the patron of travelers, especially those at sea.

Apolytikion in the Fourth Tone

The truth of things hath revealed thee to thy flock as a rule of faith, an icon of meekness, and a teacher of temperance; for this cause, thou hast achieved the heights by humility, riches by poverty. O Father and Hierarch Nicholas, intercede with Christ God that our souls be saved.

Kontakion in the Third Tone

Saintly One, (St. Nicholas) in Myra you proved yourself a priest; for in fulfilling the Gospel of Christ, venerable One, you laid down your life for your people and saved the innocent from death. For this you were sanctified as One learned in divine grace.

The reading and Gospel for today reminds us as well about him. In the letter of St. Paul to the Hebrews (Hebrews 13:17-21), he reminds us to obey our leaders and submit to them, as they are from God. This reading reminds us of how St. Nicholas submitted to Orthodoxy, defending the faith against Arius. The Gospel likewise is the same (Luke 6:17-23), which is essentially the shorter form of the Beatitudes in Matthew. Jesus at the end of it tells us that those who suffer for His sake shall earn their reward, and we no doubt see in St. Nicholas as one who suffered for His sake, defending the faith against impiety and heresy.

This Sunday's Gospel

Today, the Gospel shows us Jesus in the synagogue, and a woman approached Him who was infirm (Luke 13:10-17). He cured her of her infirmity, and the leader of the synagogue was indignant because He did it on a Sabbath. Jesus pointed out to him that they untie their donkey and oxen and give them water on that day, and here is a woman who has been cured of her infirmity on the Sabbath. We should reflect on this, that doing God's will is not dependent on what day we should do it. We are called to follow Him everyday. As we see in the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus said that those who will enter the Kingdom are not those who call, 'Lord, Lord', but those who do the Father's will. We must not just be like those who listen to the Gospel, and like the seeds who fall on bad ground forget about it, but we must bear fruit; these are our works, which St. Paul has said the Lord has prepared for us in order for us to live in them. Our faith then should not be a lukewarm faith, but one that is active. In short, we must live our faith so as to be witnesses to the world, shining like a lamp on a hill. This is our call as Christians, that we witness to Christ, and that people will see His goodness in us.

Wish List

The other day my niece and nephew showed me the wish lists they made for Christmas. I thought about my own wish list, and inevitably what each one of us wishes for each year: peace on Earth. That, every year, is the main wish of everyone who lives here on Earth. But we have to ask ourselves: what kind of peace do we mean by it? Is this peace to come from others--those around us, from our communities and neighborhoods? Or shouldn't this peace start from ourselves? On top of it all, shouldn't this peace be first of all made with ourselves, and peace with God most of all? Shouldn't this peace be one that should mean a soul free of sin, free from our passions? As the Psalm said, 'My heart will not rest until it rests in Thee." We must then have peace with God first of all. As we continue on our journey, may our preparation be not just a fast from what we eat, but a fast from our passions. Or rather, it should be that we take out the passions from our lives, and live a life of dispassion. It is not then just a fast for a certain season or feast, but a fast that is one that comes from the heart. It is the most important fast of all--the fasting of the heart from our passions.

So as we make our wish lists, we must make it a priority to have this on top of our list--that of being at peace with the Lord, and being at peace with our selves. Then we can turn to that which is essential--a worship of God in spirit and in truth, a worship that is from the heart and free from any deceit.

Reflection on Yesterday's Feast

Yesterday was the Feast of St. Andrew, the First Called Among the Apostles. It is noteworthy when John the Baptist said of Jesus, "Behold, the Lamb of God!" Peter and Andrew immediately followed our Lord. Just as they followed Him without hesitation, so too we must follow Him without and reservation or doubt. Our response should be what the High Priest, Eli, advised to Samuel to say when the Lord calls out: "Here I am, Lord!" That should be our response: here I am. We must be ready to follow, just as Peter and Andrew and the other Apostles left what they were doing and followed Him. Are we ready to follow the Lord? Again, we read in Romans what Paul said: I am not ashamed of the Gospel. We must also be ready to stand up when we are called, ready to say, here I am. And when we stand before the Lord, He will raise us up and confirm us before the Father, for we answered His call when He needed us.