The High Priestly prayer of Jesus Christ.

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Holy Fathers Of The First Six Ecumenical Councils (celebrated on the Sunday on or after July 13)

The High priestly prayer of Jesus Christ contains not only sublime dogmas about Jesus Christ, but also a two-fold definition of salvation, and an example of how to attain it: we must care for others as Jesus Christ did.

John 17:1-13These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee: 2 As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him. 3 And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. 4 I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do. 5 And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was. 6 I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word. 7 Now they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee. 8 For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me. 9 I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine. 10 And all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them. 11 And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are. 12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled. 13 And now come I to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves.

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6th Fri after Pentecost - Parables of the field & pearl

6th Week After Pentecost – Friday

Matthew 13:44-54 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field. 45 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: 46 Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it. 47 Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind: 48 Which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away. 49 So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just, 50 And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth. 51 Jesus saith unto them, Have ye understood all these things? They say unto him, Yea, Lord. 52 Then said he unto them, Therefore every scribe which is instructed unto the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which bringeth forth out of his treasure things new and old. 53 And it came to pass, that when Jesus had finished these parables, he departed thence. 54 And when he was come into his own country, he taught them in their synagogue, insomuch that they were astonished, and said, Whence hath this man this wisdom, and these mighty works?

The following are notes about a portion of this Gospel.

The parables about the Kingdom variously describe the power of the Gospel to save, the great worth of the Gospel, and the way of living that those who will attain the Kingdom must have.

"And the former indeed, of the leaven and of the mustard seed, was spoken with a view to the power of the gospel, and to its surely prevailing over the world; but these declare its value, and great price." (St John Chrysostom, Homilies on the Gospel of St Matthew, Homily XLVII,
http://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf110.iii.XLVII.html)

Each parable gives us a different piece of information. We must believe in the ability of God to save us, must value the way of the Kingdom above all else, and must live in a certain way.

One must be careful to not over analyze any parable, otherwise, according to St John: "the parables must not be explained throughout word for word, since many absurdities will follow." (Ibid)

The parable of the field is a good example. In the parable, the field is the world. Remembering the proscription against worldliness, “For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?", (Mat 16:26) one wonders, why would the Lord urge us to buy the world?

It is because, as St John teaches, the Gospel is hidden within the world. The treasure is this Gospel. The way of life that leads to eternal life is hidden within the world; those who do not believe do not usually even see it, and when they do, it is "foolishness" to them. We fulfill the resurrection within us, by living the way of life in the world. We need the world in order to be saved. If it were not for the temptations and difficulties of the world, we would not value the treasure that is hidden within it. This is our nature; we forget easily, and become inured to Holy things, unless we continually struggle, and have temptations, and do everything possible to attain the treasure in the world.

The parable of the pearl says the same thing as the parable of the field, with an important addition: there is only one truth.

"One seeking goodly pearls, who when he had found one of great price, sold all and bought it. For the truth is one, and not in many divisions." (Ibid)

The size of the pearl is also of great importance. The Gospel treasure is very small (it is hidden in our heart), so those in the world cannot see it, and see that we are truly rich.

"And much as he that hath the pearl knows indeed himself that he is rich, but others know not, many times, that he is holding it in his hand (for there is no corporeal bulk); just so also with the gospel, they that have hold of it know that they are rich, but the unbelievers, not knowing of this treasure, are in ignorance also of our wealth." (Ibid)

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Temptation / искушение

St. Theophan the Recluse. Thoughts on every day of the year.

(1 Cor 3:18-23; Mt 13:36-43) “And they shall cast them (those who offend of do iniquity) into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth; then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.” In this manner, evil and good, light and darkness will be divided. Now, during this life, they are commingled, as it was pleasing to the Lord to order things such that his creation would grow and become stronger in good through the struggle against evil. Evil is allowed to freely exist within us and to influence us from without, but it does not determine our actions. Rather, it tempts us. When tempted, we must not fall but fight. Gaining the victory, we are freed from one temptation, and move onward and upward to meet a new temptation, and thus it is until the end of our life. O, when will we understand the meaning of the evil which tempts us, so as to order our life in accordance with this understanding! Those who struggle are crowned, and in the end, pass on to another life, where there is no sorrow or sickness externally, and where internally, like God’s angels, they will be pure, without the defilement of tempting movements and thoughts. Thus we may be prepared for the festival of light and good, which will be revealed in all its glory in the last day of the world.

Святитель Феофан Затворник. Мысли на каждый день года.

(1 Кор. З, 18-23; Мф. 13, 36-43). "И ввергнут их" (творящих соблазны и беззакония) "в печь огненную; там будет плач и скрежет зубов; тогда праведники воссияют, как солнце, в Царстве Отца их". Так совершится разделение добра и зла, света и тьмы. Теперь течет период смешения их. Господу угодно было так устроить, чтобы тварная свобода возрастала и крепла в добре через борьбу со злом; зло допущено и в сопредельности с свободою внутри, и в соприкосновении с человеком во вне. Оно не определяет, а искушает. Чувствующему искушение необходимо не падать, а вступать в борьбу. Побеждающий освобожается от одного искушения, и подвигается вперед и вверх, чтобы там вступить в новое искушение. Так до самого конца жизни. О, когда бы уразуметь нам это значение искушающего нас зла, чтобы по этому уразумению устроить и жизнь свою! Борцы увенчиваются, наконец, переходя в другую жизнь, где нет ни печалей и болезней во вне, и где они извнутри, как ангелы Божии, становятся чистыми без приражения искусительных движений и мыслей. Так заготовляется торжество света и добра, которое во всей славе своей откроется в последний день мира.

Why speakest Thou in parables?

10 And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables? 11 He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given. 12 For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath. 13 Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand. 14 And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive: 15 For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. 16 But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear. 17 For verily I say unto you, That many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them. 18 Hear ye therefore the parable of the sower. 19 When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side. 20 But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it; 21 Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended. 22 He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful. 23 But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. (Matthew 13:10-23)

St. Theophan the Recluse writes that we "seeing see not, and hearing hear not, neither understand" the word of God because we our hearts are so strongly tethered to worldly concerns. Our hearts are waxed gross, our ears are dull of hearing, and we have closed our eyes... This is why it is so difficult to read the scriptures, to listen to the church services, and to say our prayers. We are, by our own free choice, entirely enslaved to earthly cares. But in the end, all these cares will pass away, and only heaven will remain. And we, being strangers to heaven, will be left out in the darkness…

But Our Lord gives us hope, saying, "therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand." In other words, as Archbishop Averky of Syracuse explains, the parables make divine truths accessible to our earthly minds. If we attend to the Lord’s parables and attempt to live according to their teaching, then we will come nearer to the Lord and be enlightened by His grace. Gradually, then, we will grow closer to heaven, and will be able to understand the more sublime teachings of the Lord, and will find ourselves amid the guests at the heavenly banquet. Glory to our God!

St Nicholas is building a new temple!

Brothers and sisters:

I know many of you personally, and some only by email or the phone. Many of you know me, and I am always amazed and gratified when I travel to encounter people who thank me for our web ministry. http://www.orthodox.net is over 10 years old, and has reached literally over several million people (we have over 100,000 viewers a month). Our blog is slowly becoming more popular too.

I treasure the good will and friendships that my web presence has garnered. I have been privileged to hear some amazing stories and help missions from afar with our materials. I am also quite sure that our web presence has been a significant part of the conversion to the true faith of more than a few, and helped direct many to Orthodox churches all over the world.

I am writing you today to attempt to trade a little bit on this good will. We are a small and growing parish, at a critical time. We are about to build a new church on a beautiful piece of ground. We are a little bit short of the projected cost. At this point, we think we need to raise $20,000 dollars before we finish building in the Fall.

I am appealing to you, if your heart so leads, to help us in any way you think is right. Of course, we could use donations, but low or no interest loans, or being put in contact with a potential benefactor is helpful too.

The last part of this appeal is the content our building fund page - "http://www.orthodox.net/aboutus/building-fund.html.


May God bless you and help you in all things.

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St Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church Building Fund

"The ... founders, benefactors, and the brotherhood of this holy temple ... may the Lord God remember in His kingdom, always, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages."
From the Divine Liturgy

Would you like to be the benefactor of an Orthodox temple?

Every additional $130 in our building fund pays for a sq. ft. of our 1700 sq. ft. temple & hall which we plan to worship in by late Fall, 2008.

$

You may also send funds to "St Nicholas Orthodox Church', with memo "Building Fund" to St Nicholas Orthodox Church Treasurer, Reader Nicholas Park, 316 Corporate Dr. Lewisville, TX 75067

We are an active Russian Orthodox Christian community. Our Sunday services are in English with many hymns repeated in Slavonic. We have outreaches to the community in the form of prison ministry, nursing home visitations, and a very full liturgical and teaching schedule. We are the only church in the Metroplex which follows the same calendar used in Russia and regularly includes Slavonic and English in our services and homilies. We have purchased land in McKinney Texas, and are building a 1700 sq. ft. chapel with small hall, to be completed in late Fall, 2008.

We have a two phase building plan.

We plan to build our chapel, with a small hall affixed, for services in the Fall, 2008. The chapel will look like a "real church", with two cupolas, and it will be our worshipping home as we grow and get ready for phase two, which is to build our permanent temple on the same grounds; the chapel will be converted to a church hall with offices. The chapel will cost about $221,000 to build (about $130 per sq. ft., with a 120,000 loan at 7%, paid off in ten years). We are seeking benefactors to "donate a sq. ft.", or a part thereof.

We have set up an account to receive tax-free donations. We will be happy to send you a receipt, and to pray for you and your family as benefactors if you desire. You may also send checks, made out to "St Nicholas Orthodox Church Building Fund", to our treasurer, Reader Nicholas Park, 1.316 Corporate Dr. Lewisville, TX 75067. Email Fr Seraphim, with a list of your immediate family members, so we can begin commemorating you in the Divine Liturgy.

McKinney Texas is the fastest growing city in Texas, with a current population of over 100,000. City projections are a population of over 300,000 by 2020. We will be the only Orthodox Church in McKinney; the closest sister church, in Plano, will be about 20 minutes away by car (on a good day!).

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5th Sun after Pentecost 2008, Every occurence in our life is a meeting with Christ.

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The Healing of the Gergesenes demoniacs

Every occurence in our life is a meeting with Christ.

Matthew 8:28-9:1 And when he was come to the other side into the country of the Gergesenes, there met him two possessed with devils, coming out of the tombs, exceeding fierce, so that no man might pass by that way. 29 And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? art thou come hither to torment us before the time? 30 And there was a good way off from them an herd of many swine feeding. 31 So the devils besought him, saying, If thou cast us out, suffer us to go away into the herd of swine. 32 And he said unto them, Go. And when they were come out, they went into the herd of swine: and, behold, the whole herd of swine ran violently down a steep place into the sea, and perished in the waters. 33 And they that kept them fled, and went their ways into the city, and told every thing, and what was befallen to the possessed of the devils. 34 And, behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus: and when they saw him, they besought him that he would depart out of their coasts. 1 And he entered into a ship, and passed over, and came into his own city.

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Holy Royal Martyrs Of Russia 07/04/08 How were the martyrs "called according to his purpose"? How are we?

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The reading from Romans describes in perfect detail the attributes of the martyrs. They and we are all "called according to His purpose", and whether we be martyrs or not, it is the same exact purpose, which the Apostle describes clearly.

Rom 8:28-39 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. (29) For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. (30) Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified. (31) What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? (32) He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? (33) Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. (34) Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. (35) Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? (36) As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. (37) Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. (38) For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, (39) Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

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