11 posts tagged “jesus”
I hope that some Christmas they come up with an Orthodox Nativity postage stamp.
When I first saw an Orthodox icon of Mary I was a bit put off by the way Jesus is portrayed. He isn't very babyish even though He's small. I later found out that this is to emphasize that He was still God, Creator of the universe even when He was an infant. I have appreciated the mutual tenderness between He and His Mother, though. Now when I see a Roman Catholic representation, Jesus seems too normal, as if He were any baby. He looks like He's holding a rattle in this one, though I bet the wand has other significance. And he looks kind of bored and distracted in Mary's lap. So it's interesting to me how my reactions have changed since becoming Orthodox.
Another thing that's different is how I respond to "religious art" across the board. I used to be so prejudiced against it. In my Protestant background I had been taught that halo's are inappropriate because we are not supposed to worship other people. I was also taught that pictorial representations of Jesus were wrong because supposedly people worshipped them as idols and besides they were inaccurate. This carried over to my view of how Bible characters were portrayed as well, with or without halo's. After learning about how Orthodox view icons, I no longer object to depictions, but I do see significance in how Christ and His Saints are portrayed.
Theology of icons
Christianity believed that the immaterial God took flesh in the form of Jesus Christ, making it possible to depict in human form the Son of God. It is on this basis that the old prescriptions against images were changed for the early Christians. Also, the concept of archetype was redefined by the early church fathers in order to better understand that when a person shows veneration toward an image, the intention is rather to honor the person depicted, not the substance of the icon. As St. Basil the Great says, "The honor shown the image passes over to the archetype." He also illustrates the concept by saying, "If I point to a statue of Caesar and ask you 'Who is that?', your answer would properly be, 'It is Caesar.' When you say such you do not mean that the stone itself is Caesar, but rather, the name and honor you ascribe to the statue passes over to the original, the archetype, Caesar himself." So it is with an Icon.
In the Eastern Orthodox tradition, only flat images or bas relief images are used. The Greeks,
having a long, pagan tradition of statuary, found the sensual quality
of three dimensional representations did more to glorify the human
aspect of the flesh rather than the divine nature of the spirit and so
prohibitions were created against statuary. The Romans, on the other hand, did not adopt these prohibitions and so we still have statuary among the Roman Catholics
to this day. Because the Greeks rejected statuary, the Byzantine style
of iconography was developed in which figures were stylized in a manner
that emphasized their holiness rather than their humanity. Symbolism
allowed the icon to present highly complex material in a very simple
way, making it possible to educate even the illiterate in theology. The
interiors of Orthodox Churches are often completely covered in icons." (see this Wikipedia page for more info)
A newly illumined fellow parishoner shared this with me,
God
sends me moments in which I am utterly at peace. In those moments I
have constructed for myself a little creed in which everything is clear
and holy for me. Here it is: to believe that there is nothing more
beautiful, more profound, more compassionate, more wise, more
courageous and more perfect than Christ. - Fyodor Dostoevsky, written from a Siberian prison
Amen.
There are many voices that seek to define me.
I have traded them all in for the voice of the 2000 year old original Orthodox Church,
which verbalizes and manifests the will of the Father through the presence of the Holy Spirit and the effective work of Christ.
I do not attribute the opposing voices to the people voicing them, but to their generational earthly teaching that has indoctrinated them, of which some are not even aware. Some of these sources stem from Augustine, the western departure from the original Nicene Creed officially in 1054, Anselm, Acquinas, Luther, Calvin, Edwards, et al.
When the Augsberg Confession was presented before the Orthodox Patriarch Jeremiah II for his stamp of approval by the Lutherans shortly after Luther, he was embarrassed by their departure from the Apostolic Faith and said, 'you're on your own'. I got tired of being on my own, and chose, as Chuck Swindol put it, "a Jesus with skin on." I recognize Him in the Orthodox Saints more than any others.
Well, I got involved in a Christian internet forum again. I just went back to peek at Crosswalk.com on Monday and then felt compelled to join the "discussion" on Praying to the Saints and Mary. This is where I first learned about Orthodoxy over 3 years ago from a poster known as Unworthyseraphim. He's still shining the light over there, and though I didn't know about Orthodoxy when I joined a year earlier, I had picked the name Lightseeker, so I guess what followed was inevitable if I stayed true to my name, may my light increase.
I end up being more inspired to research during debates, though I don't know how much more I'll participate. Anyway, yesterday I found a wonderful collection of quotes from our most respected Church Fathers and posted them on this page, #1361.
Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death, and upon those in the tombs bestowing life!
The celebration of Pascha (called "Easter Sunday" in the West) in the Orthodox Church is not merely a historical re-enactment of Christ's Resurrection as narrated in the gospels. It is not a dramatic presentation of "the first Easter morning," and there is no "sunrise service", since the Paschal Matins and Liturgy are celebrated together in the first dark hours of the first day of the week in order to give men the experience of the new creation of the world, and to allow them to enter mystically into the New Jerusalem which shines eternally with the glorious Light of Christ!
The Church teaches that while the body of Christ rested in the tomb on the Sabbath (the day after the Crucifixion), His soul descended into Hades. Prior to the Incarnation, the gates of paradise were closed to mankind. Therefore Hades, not to be confused with Hell, was the place where the souls of all went upon death. It was neither a place of reward, nor a place of punishment. It had been likened to "Death's prison", where the souls of both the just and the sinners were confined. Since Christ actually died upon the Cross, Death claimed His Soul for Hades. However, Hades received more than it expected… it received the Giver of Life, who destroyed the power of Hades. The icon of the Resurrection portrays this concept.
Christ, the central figure of the icon, is robed in white to show
His divinity. The aureole (elongated halo) around Him also symbolizes
this brilliant Light. At His feet are the demolished brass gates
of Hades, with their broken keys and locks. Christ holds the hands
of Adam and Eve, depicted to his right and left, as he pulls them
from their tombs. Adam is an old man, recalled to his primordial
innocence; Eve is also depicted as elderly, and is set free from
her sin in Eden by the Incarnation. Behind Christ are aligned
the Righteous of the Old Testament (to the left, including Solomon
and David) and the New Testament (to the right, including John
the Baptist and Joseph the Guardian).
above content from this site.
Christ is Risen!
and the people respond, Indeed He is Risen!
Walking into the light that is brighter than I've known, I am blinded for not being used to it. What's there? Love, cleansing, nurturing and protection. I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me.
During our Paschal (Easter) Liturgy we sang,
"For as many as have been baptized into Christ,
Have put on Christ, Allelujah."
When we are baptized into Christ, we are baptized, through actual identification with His death, burial and resurrection, into His body, the Church. The gates of hell will not prevail against us when we are communing properly. Grant this, Oh Lord.
I wish I'd been rebaptized when I became Orthodox. Many are, and many others wish it. But one thing I've learned as I get to know my Church is that unity, safety, peace and joy are found in trusting God's presence and leadership in the Orthodox Church. Even if a Bishop is erring, God will soon fix it and has throughout her history. The worst offense is independent, prideful rebellion. So I will trust that any gaps in my previous baptism have been completely sealed by my Chrismation into the Church two years ago, as my Bishop has deemed.
George just gave me a better way to look at it. He said that he sees his previous protestant baptism as acceptable since God knew he would become Orthodox. Talking to him is always so helpful. : )
Little package once held where his warmth was meant to abide.
Taken against both our wills.
Both hearts broken at the parting.
He did not want to leave, I know this.
Isaac loves me, his dad, and his brothers and sisters.
He would have liked to join in their reindeer games here on earth
and occupied his own spot around our table.
His goodwill towards us radiates from heaven where, like Lazarus, he has been comforted, nurtured, and loved.
He is joyfully awaiting when we will be more substantially reunited in spirit, truth, and in body.
Thanks for your prayers, dear boy. I love and miss you too. See you soon.
Today is technically the last day of Lent as tomorrow marks the beginning of Holy Week with Palm Sunday. Today is also called Lazarus Saturday when we have a special Liturgy celebrating when Christ raised him from the dead days before His own voluntary death which defeated it's power. Today we also commemorate the repose of St. Innocent, enlightener of Alaska.
This, my third Lent, as have been my first two, has brought about enlightenment and change. The Church's inspired calendar with it's prayers, fasts and seasonal feasts demonstrates the wisdom and power of God to save us through connecting with His life in the Church. We are created with internal clocks and seasons which echo with universal rhythms, and the Church's liturgical calendar, and even the daily schedule of prayers, blend with that to bring us into harmony with the created order. The fall interrupted this special, beautiful, peaceful, natural order, but God restored it through His own created life, death, resurrection and ascension. Every year we are given the opportunity to fully participate in and celebrate His life in detail, and in the proper sequence that is supernaturally beneficial to our heart, mind, soul, and body.
This Lent has been transitional for me in many ways and with many who have surrounded me. My goal was to connect more with my husband and children and to have generally more healthy relationships. God has faithfully answered my prayer more than I could have anticipated. I believe He puts desires in my heart, corresponding with my natural need and ignorant perceptions, so that I ask for things I have no idea of or previous experience with. I know I still have a long way to go to reach the desired end of these changes, but I love the dramatic changes that occur during Lent that show me a concentrated look at God's interest and ability to conform me to His likeness in addition to His stamped image in all of us.
In the last few weeks I have genuinely enjoyed my husband and children even more, and seen their incredible beauty and amazingness. I'm loving watching my children blossom into intelligent, interesting, loving people, and I'm appreciating more my husband's genuine respectful, caring, constant love and companionship. I am most blessed.
When some windows are closed, God opens the Royal Doors.
In regard to recent responses I have gotten to this blog, I feel I need to try to clear a few things up.
To those who think my cave experience was unhealthy (my paraphrase), I would just like to say that 7 years ago, with my new situation of my second marriage, gaining 3 new children, and then getting pregnant the next month after Isaac was born, I did not have time to mourn my stillborn son's death. This past year, almost to the day, I have explored my heart and found a lot of past pain and sorrow that I had been burying over the years. Sorry if the unearthing was traumatic to my readers, including in my previous blog, but the exploration and the confession of it out loud is part of my therapy in getting over these things. I also thought I dealt with my perspective of it in this entry, but maybe it was too subtle.
To those who think I neglect Christ in my blog, I'd recommend you do a search on "God" because Orthodox believe Christ is God, which is why the term "Theotokos", Bearer of God, was chosen for the Virgin Mary, instead of just "Christotokos". We believe His deity needs to be emphasized. There are many references to Orthodox Trinitarian theology on the internet and in some wonderful books, including "The Incarnation" by St. Athanasius with a forward by C.S. Lewis. I haven't searched my blog entirely, but if this one was missed in your search, then I don't trust the search engines so why bother using that technique. I guess you'll have to read the whole thing over first hand.
I have also made many references to the Orthodox Church which we believe is the Body of Christ. They are one, so to mention one does not take away from the other. Our Church is the most Christ glorifying Church that I've ever been to in word, song, the numerous icons of Christ, some of which I have displayed in this blog, our strict guarding of the Eucharist, His Body and Blood, and our reverence for His mother as being part of His Incarnation, bringing God to us as Man. I believe Orthodoxy (Right Worship of God, including Christ) through His Body, the Church of Christ, is the only way to relate to God and man properly and is why I am so motivated to be one with Christ through the Church, and with the Church. I pray to be a better witness.
Plus I don't want to be presumptuous in explaining who Christ is, so I am cautious mentioning His Holy Name. And for those who think I need to approach Him more boldly, I do dare to pray, kiss His Holy Icon, and partake of His Body and Blood, and am so thankful that He, through His grace and compassion, deems me worthy to do so.
I just added Jesus and Christ to my tag, and also in
the Salvation entry but feel sort of blasphemous doing so as tags are
only in lower case, and it just seems sort of disrespectful to Him and
too casual on my part. But if it helps people find Him through His
grace, then I'll keep it for now.
A link from the above article says, " The one who is not theoritikos (in theosis), either has not yet accomplished the spiritual birth and participation, or he has accomplished it, but from ignorance he shuts off his seeing power and, as if untaught, turns away the divine rays of the noetic sun of righteousness. And while he became a participant in the force of theoria, he is unfortunately deprived of its energy, even if he is elevated toward sanctity."
And regarding my aforementioned, alleged faith, the glossary on the latter link says,
"Faith. The modern idea of faith, based on Aquinas's differentiation of knowledge from blind belief, is not what is meant in traditional Christianity. Although it can be a component of what the fathers of the church, such as Saint Maximos the Confessor referred to as "introductory faith", it can only be considered an initial stage in our ascent towards knowledge of the Word, which is true faith based on experience, a gift of God. At a higher stage, faith (gr. pistis) leads to noetic knowledge (gr. gnosis) that is founded on experience and completed by inspiration and, therefore, cannot be overthrown by reasoned argument. It changes the heart, it leads to substantial changes in being, it can move mountains, and it leads to salvation."
I think I'll read the rest of that article and corresponding links now.
