Our Father among the Saints, Vincent of Lérins, celebrated May 24

(Oh boy, although I missed it on the 24th, here it is anyway. Ask Father Bernard and some of the founding members how St. Vincent helped them enter Holy Orthodoxy.)



A leading theologian of the Church of Gaul in the 5th century, St. Vincent settled in the island monastery of Lérins off the southern coast of France in order that "avoiding the concourse and crowds of cities... I can follow without distraction the Psalmist's admonition, “Be still, and know that I am God.” Here he wrote his celebrated Commonitorium, a "Reminder," where he wrote down "those things which I have truthfully received from the holy Fathers ," which they "have handed down to us and committed to our keeping." Among these things is the celebrated definition of orthodoxy as quod ubique, quod semper, quod ab omnibus: that which has been believed in the Church "everywhere, always, by everyone." St. Vincent lived in an age of great historical uncertainty; barbarian tribes were a constant menace and although four hundred years of Christian tradition had already passed, the foundations of the faith had been only recently clarified by decisions made in the Ecumenical Councils--the Council of Nicea (325), the Council of Constantinople (381) and the Council of Ephesus (431). It is, therefore, not surprising that St. Vincent was so concerned to preserve the authority of Christian tradition. This is not to say that he was opposed to progress or doctrinal development; each age must face its won particular problems and develop a Christian response in answer to them. "But it must be progress in the proper sense of the word, and not a change in faith. Progress means that each thing grows within itself, whereas change implies that one thing is transformed into another .... The growth of religion in the soul should be like the growth of the body, which in the course of year develops and unfolds, yet remains the same as it was."
"In ancient times, our forefathers sowed the seeds of the wheat of faith in that field which is the Church. It would be quite unjust and improper if we, their descendents, gathered, instead of the genuine truth of wheat, the false tares of error. On the contrary, it is logically correct that the beginning and the end be in agreement, that we reap from the planting of the wheat of doctrine the harvest of the wheat of dogma. In this way, none of the Characteristics of the seed is changed, although something evolved in the course of time from those first seeds and has now expanded under careful cultivation. What may be added is merely appearance, beauty, and distinction, but the proper nature of each kind remains."

His defense of the traditions of the Fathers and his condemnation of innovation and novelty in the Church are as appropriate today as they were in his time:

"The Church of Christ, zealous and cautious guardian of the dogmas deposited with it, never changes any phase of them. It does not diminish them or add to them; it neither trims what seems necessary, nor grafts things superfluous; it neither gives up its own nor usurps what does not belong to it. But it devotes all its diligence to one aim: to treat tradition faithfully and wisely; to nurse and polish what from old times may have remained unshaped and unfinished; to consolidate and to strengthen what already was clear · and plain; and to guard what already was confirmed and defined. After all, what have the councils brought forth in their decrees but that what' before was believed plainly and simply might from now on be believed more diligently; that what before was preached rather unconcernedly might be preached from now on more eagerly."

Read more, here, and read his commonitory here

The abbey of Lérins on the isle of St. Honarat, as it appears today. This current abbey was built long after the time of St. Vincent. The original monastery, founded by St. Honorat had become "immense" by the year 427 according to St. John Cassian. Even the great St. Patrick was reputed to have visited it.

Every Mystery and holy virtue is a little Pentecost

What is Christ the God-Man? What in Him is God and what man? How is God known in the God-Man, and how is man? What has God given to us men in and with the God-Man? The Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth, tells us all the truth there is about Him, about God in Him and man in Him and all that is given us through Him. All this immeasurably transcends everything that the human eye has ever seen, the ear has ever heard, or has ever entered into the heart of man (I Cor. 2:9; cf. Jn 15:26; 16:13; I Cor. 2:4; Eph. 3:5).

Through His life in the flesh on earth, the God-Man founded His theanthropic Body, the Church, and in this way prepared the earthly world for the Holy Spirit’s coming into the world, and His life and activity in the Body of the Church as the Soul of that Body. On the holy Day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit descended from heaven into the theanthropic Body of the Church and remains eternally in it as its life-giving Soul (Acts 2:1-47). This visible theanthropic Body of the Church was constituted by the holy apostles with their holy faith in the Theanthropos, the Lord Jesus, as the Savior of the world, as perfect God and perfect Man. The descent and activity of the Holy Spirit in the theanthropic Body of the Church is because of, and for the sake of, the Theanthropos (cf. Jn 16:7-13; 15:26; 14:26). “For His sake the Holy Spirit entered into the world.” Everything in the dispensation of salvation is brought about by the theanthropic Person of the Lord Christ, and everything comes about in the framework of theanthropy. This is also the case with the activity of the Holy Spirit. All His activity is of one essence with the theanthropic ascesis of the salvation of the world by the Lord Christ. Pentecost is, with all the immortal gifts of the Triune Godhead, of the Holy Spirit Himself, intended for the holy apostles; the holy apostolic Faith and Tradition, the hierarchy and everything that is apostolic and theanthropic.

The Day of the Holy Spirit, which began on the Day of Pentecost, is ever present in the Church in the inexpressible fullness of all the divine gifts and the life-giving powers (Acts 10:44-48; 11:15-16; 15:8-9; 19:6). Everything in the Church comes about through the Holy Spirit, from the least to the greatest. When the priest blesses the censer before censing, he prays to the Lord Christ to “send down the grace of the Holy Spirit.” The clearest testimony that the entire life of the Church comes from the Holy Spirit is at the consecration of a bishop, when God’s indescribable miracle, holy Pentecost, is repeated and the fullness of grace is given. There is no doubt that the Lord Christ is in the Church through the Holy Spirit, and that the Church is in the Lord Christ through the Holy Spirit. The Lord Christ is the Head and Body of the Church; the Holy Spirit is its Soul (cf. I Cor. 12:1-28). From the very beginning of the theanthropic dispensation of salvation, the Holy Spirit has made Himself a part of the foundation of the Church, the foundation of the Body of Christ, by “bringing about the incarnation of the Logos in the Virgin.”

In fact, every holy mystery and holy virtue is a little Pentecost; in them, the Holy Spirit descends upon us, into us. He descends in His energies, He, “the richness of the Godhead,” “the grace of the open seas,” “from Him come grace and life for every creature.”

The Lord dwells in us by the Holy Spirit, and we in Him. This is testified to us by the presence of the Holy Spirit in us. We live by the Holy Spirit in Christ, and He in us. We know this “by the Spirit which He hath given us” (I Jn. 3:24). Through the Holy Spirit, our human spirit is brought to a true and a right knowledge of Christ. That which is in God, and in the God-Man, we know by the Holy Spirit that “He hath given us” (cf. I Jan 4:13; I Cor. 2:4-16).

To come to the knowledge of Christ the Theanthropos, one of the Holy and Divine Trinity, we need the help of the other Holy Two: God the Father and God the Holy Spirit (cf. Matt. 11:27, I Cor. 2:12). The Holy Spirit is “the Spirit of wisdom” (Eph. 1:17); if we receive Him, we are filled with the wisdom of God. The Holy Spirit is also “the Spirit of revelation” (Eph. 1:17). By God’s wisdom, He reveals and proclaims the mystery of Jesus the Theanthropos in the heart of the believer, and thus the spirit-bearer acquires real knowledge of Christ. No human spirit can, by any imaginable effort, comprehend the mystery of Christ in its divine and saving perfection and completeness. This is revealed to the human spirit only by the Holy Spirit, and this is why He is referred to as “the Spirit of revelation” (Eph. 1:17; 3:6; I Cor. 2:10). The Apostle, enlightened by the Holy Spirit, therefore proclaims: “No man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the Holy Spirit” (I Cor. 12:3). The Holy Spirit, “the spirit of truth” and “the Spirit of revelation,” leads us into all the truth of Christ’s Person and His theanthropic dispensation of salvation, and teaches us all that is Christ’s (Jn. 16:13 14:26; I Cor 2:6-16). This is the reason why the entire Gospel of Christ, with all its theanthropic realities, is called the Revelation. This is the reason why every office, labor, service, sacrament and act in church in performed with the invocation of the power and grace of the Holy Spirit.

The entire life of the Church, in its innumerable theanthropic realities and aspects, is led and guided by the Holy Spirit, who is ever the Spirit of Jesus Christ, the Theanthropos. This is why it is said in Holy Scripture: “If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His” (Rom. 8:9). Saint Basil, angelically immersed in the theanthropic mystery of the Church as the loveliest and greatest of God’s mysteries, proclaims the truest good tidings: “The Holy Spirit builds up the Church of God.”

The newly-canonized Justin Popovich from his book, “The Orthodox Church and Ecumenism” via John Sanidopoulos

J. Craig Venter

Here is something I had heard about a few years back, but when it actually happened I missed it, which is not surprising considering the how these things are now treated in the media.

Scientists at the J. Craig Venter Institute have created the world's first synthetic cell. What this means is that for the first time life has been created artificially, not from pre-existing DNA, but completely from scratch.




Does this finally destroy the "myth" of our creation as described in Genesis?

Here is a quote by St. Macarius the Great used in an earlier post: "You are created in image and likeness of God; therefore just as God is free and creates what he wants ... so you are free."

Some in the Catholic church have called this "playing God", which is, if I might say, another way of saying "anti-Christ".

Other than that, I'm not sure what to think. I would be happy to hear from others on how to interpret this.

An Intern’s Reflection On the Great Fast and the Great Feast at the Mission

(Here are some reflections from one of our parishioners on Lent and Pascha, even if it is a little belated. Naomi Funk is now in Toronto, working at the St. John the Compassionate Mission.)

"I think we all groaned when we learned that Lent followed so closely on the heels of the Nativity Fast this year. Winter was wearing on us, we were longing for sunlight, and BAM! Here comes the Fast of all fasts.

But, quickly, the idea of Lent settled with me, as I knew I was in great need of it. There is a sort of comfort in the barrenness of Lent that reminds us that God is near and we are beckoned to come nearer as well.

On Cheesefare Sunday Fr. Roberto urged us not to begin the fast alone, but to come together that evening for the Vespers of Forgiveness. So we crowded into that little church that night, and began Lent together, and hearing those familiar Lenten words and melodies. Then we had the rite of Forgiveness. As I see the rite of Forgiveness, it is an opportunity to wipe the slate clean and start over with everyone, acknowledge that we all sin against each other, knowingly or unknowingly, and that we are aiming for the same thing. And from there we proceeded into the Desert of Great Lent. ..."

Read more...

Sunday of the Holy Fathers

Arianism.

At the beginning of the fourth century, a certain presbyter of Alexandria, Arius by name, a man of strict morality, but more attached to profane learning than to Gospel truth, preached that Christ was created by God the Father as a tool by means of which He might create the Universe; that He was the first of all created things but had not existed eternally; that there had been a time when He was not, and He was, therefore, inferior to God the Father. These platonic theories came to the notice of his bishop, Alexander, who summoned a local Synod in Alexandria in 321, and condemned them as contrary to the Gospel. But Arius, who believed that only the adoption of his theories could preserve monotheism in Christianity, not only continued to uphold his personal opinions, but — by means of hymns and other methods of popularization — disseminated them among an ever-widening circle. Other churchmen joined him, and as the unity of the Church was in peril, in order to calm men's minds and restore peace among them, Constantine the Great summoned to Nicaea in 325 a great Synod, which was attended by representatives from every part of the world, and was therefore known as an Ecumenical, or Universal, Synod.


The First Ecumenical Synod.

There were present at this Synod many distinguished men, some famous for their learning and virtue, some for their ascetic life, and others for the marks of martyrdom which Diocletian's persecution had inflicted on them. But in theological skill they were all overshadowed by Athanasius the Great, who was still only a deacon to the Bishop of Alexandria. On the basis of Holy Scripture and Tradition, he demonstrated that the Son of God, far from being created by the Father, was born of Him, of His own substance, before all the ages, and that consequently the Son does not differ in His nature from the Father, but forms with Him a single Godhead. Nearly all those present approved him, and the following formula was inserted in the Creed: "And [I believe] in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, begotten of the Father only-born, that is of the essence of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, Very God from Very God, begotten, not made, of one and the same essence of the Father; through Whom all things were made." This Creed was signed by all the Fathers present, over 300 in number, and was ordained as the exact expression of the Church's doctrine on her divine Founder. Arius and two of his supporters who refused to sign the Creed were sent into exile.

Fr. Constantine Kallinikos

Unbelief and Spriritual Reading

"Several years ago a friend of mine declared himself an atheist, and that was after having been an Orthodox Christian and a teacher of the faith for many years.

My own experience is that often I think that I live like an atheist. If I truly believed the Gospel I would act in a much different way then I do now. The times I live least like an atheist is when I'm regularly reading the Gospels and spiritually nourishing books. The temptation to unbelief is stayed when I am being spiritually nourished."

-Fr. Bernard

First Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in North and Central America

This is encouraging news for us in regards to Church Unity here in North America. Here is a look back on how this first came about.

Decision

The Fourth Pre-Conciliar Pan-Orthodox Conference was convened by His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, with the consensus of Their Beatitudes the Primates of the Most Holy Orthodox Churches expressed during their Sacred Synaxis at the Phanar in October 2008. The Fourth Pre-Conciliar Pan-Orthodox Conference met at the Orthodox Center of Ecumenical Patriarchate in Chambésy, from 6 to 13 June 2009 under the chairmanship of His Eminence Metropolitan John of Pergamon, representative of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.

This Conference, to which all of the most holy Orthodox Autocephalous Churches were invited and were represented, studied the issue of the canonical organization of the Orthodox Diaspora. Pursuant to article 16 of the Rules of Pre-Conciliar Pan-Orthodox Conferences, this Conference discussed the relevant documents submitted in 1990 and 1993 by the Inter-Orthodox Preparatory Commission, amending and approving them as follows:

1. a) It is affirmed that is the common will of all of the most holy Orthodox Churches that the problem of the Orthodox Diaspora be resolved as quickly as possible, and that it be organized in accordance with Orthodox ecclesiology, and the canonical tradition and practice of the Orthodox Church.

Read more...

And now, fast-forward to this month:

Archbishop Demetrios to Chair First Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Hierarchs in North and Central America May 14, 2010

NEW YORK – More than 50 hierarchs will take part in the first Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in North and Central America, to be convened by His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios of America in New York City, May 26-28.

This Assembly is the result of the decision of the Fourth Pre-Conciliar Pan-Orthodox Conference, which met in Chambésy Switzerland in June of 2009, after the extraordinary Synaxis of all the Heads of the Autocephalous Churches convened by His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew. This Assembly, one of twelve that will be convened around the world in regions where there is no single Orthodox presence, will consist of the active canonical bishops who reside in the region designated as North and Central America. In every Assembly, the chairman will be the senior bishop of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. ...

...it works to “prepare a plan for dealing with anomalies, such as more than one bishop in a given locale and other things that interfere with the life of the Church.” It is also designed “to project a unified witness of the faith.” As such, the Archbishop called the work of the Assembly “tremendously important. The function and outcome of this first meeting will determine how it continues in the future.”

Read more...

So, the long and the short of it is, if I understand correctly, the means and methods laid out by the Ecumenical Patriarch to heal the uncanonical jurisdictionalism with which we've lived for so long is moving ahead here in North America.

Three Dimensions of a Christian's Freedom

"The concept of freedom has several dimensions. Here we will note three of them as being the most relevant to the question of a Christian's freedom.

The first is the metaphysical. By freedom in this case is understood one of the most fundamental qualities of human nature - free will, expressed first of all by a person's moral self-determination in the face of good and evil.

Saint Macarius of Egypt said: 'You are created in the image and likeness of God; therefore, just as God is free and creates what He wants ... so are you free. Therefore, our nature is well capable of accepting both good and evil; both God's grace, and the enemy's powers. But it cannot be forced.'

The second is spiritual freedom. Unlike outward freedom it signifies man's authority over his own egoism, his own passions, sinful feelings, desires - over his own self.

The apostle Paul describes (the) state of spiritual slavery as the antithesis to true freedom in the following very expressive words: I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do ... For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing ... but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members (Rom 7:15, 19, 23)

The third aspect is social freedom. It indicates the sum of specific personal rights in a state or society. Most of the difficult questions arise in this realm, inasmuch as in society a multitude of different individuals come into mutual contact, all having their own free will.

On societal freedom St. Ignatius (Brianchaninov), put it thus: 'As long as mankind is subject to the influence of sin and the passions, rule and submission are necessary. They will inevitably exist throughout the course of the life of the world; only they may appear, do appear, and will appear in various forms... Neither equality, nor complete freedom, nor earthly welfare to the degree that (the world) wish it and promise it, can ever be... The relationship of rule and submission will perish when the world perishes -then will rule and submission cease (cf. 1 Cor 15:24); then will there be brotherhood, equality, and freedom; then will the reason for unity, rule and submission be not fear, but love.'"

A. I. Osipov from his book "The search for Truth on the Path of Reason"

The Ascension of the Lord

(Luke 24:50-53 and Mark 16:19-20).

The Evangelist Luke has the most detailed narrative about the final appearance of the Resurrected Jesus Christ, which concludes with His ascension into Heaven. Evangelist Mark also speaks about this briefly. This appearance took place in Jerusalem, where subsequently — after 40 days — the Apostles again arrived from Galilee, during which time the Lord appeared to them several times, teaching them about God’s Kingdom. Saint Luke conveys that in the first chapter of the Acts (1:2-5). The Lord gave instructions to the Apostles to remain in Jerusalem, until they were endued with powers from above, pledging to send upon them the Promise of His Father. This has to be understood as the descending of the Holy Spirit, to assist in their task of the universal sermon. The Lord then led His disciples out of Jerusalem to Bethany, situated on the eastern slopes of the Mount of Olives, where "He lifted up His hands and blessed them," and evidently pronouncing the traditional words, as it was typical of in the Old Testament, which the Evangelists didn’t record. The symbolic act of lifting the hands during a blessing, is well known in the Old Testament e.g. Leviticus 9:22.

"Now it came to pass, while He blessed them, that He was parted from them and carried up into Heaven." "What a wonderful kind of act," — comments the Moscow Metropolitan Philaret on this event: "The Lord is blessing and doesn’t stop but continues while ascending into Heaven. What does this mean? It means that He doesn’t want to cease His blessing, but continues endlessly to bless His Church and all that believe in Him. Let us ponder brethren, that even now His hands are lifted over us, and His gaze, and His blessing. What shame and fear to those who forget this in the earthly hustle and bustle. What joy is to those that love Him." The disciples worshipped the ascending to His Father Human God, "and returned to Jerusalem with great joy." This joy emanated from the fact that they then saw with their own eyes the glory of their Lord and Teacher, and were anticipating the fulfillment of His promise to send down the Holy Spirit. It was as though they were born again — no doubt, as a result of the Resurrected Lord’s 40-day stay with them, Who taught them the mysteries of God’s Kingdom. In this prayerful state of the elevated spiritual ascension, they "were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God" for everything that they had to endure, see and hear, and for their forthcoming high mission of preaching the Evangelic teaching.

Saint Mark adds that the Lord, having ascended into Heaven, "sat down at the right hand of God." This is a graphic phrase, based on a number of visions (Acts 7:36), which means that the Lord had accepted the Divine authority over humanity and the whole world with God the Father, because being placed on the right hand side, in the Biblical language, means the separation of authority between the one, who is seated, with that who is placed on the right side.

Saint Mark concludes his Gospel with the testimony of what had happened after the descent of the Holy Spirit: about how the Apostles "went out" of Jerusalem, certainly "preached everywhere", throughout the whole world, with "the Lord working with them," with God’s help, "and confirming the Word through the accompanying signs," — i.e. proving the truth of their words by the accompanying their sermons miracles. This is narrated in detail in the Apostolic Book of Acts.

All the Gospels end with the word: "Amen", which means: truly so, that is it all happened the way, as it was narrated in the Gospel.

Archbishop Averky Tauchev

Here is a post to let you know of some of the books that have been bought for our library recently. Read some of the Amazon reviews and pique your interest. We have great librarians in Bruce and Darlene. I'm sure they'd love feedback.

"The Desert Fathers: Sayings of the Early Christian Monks (Penguin Classics)" Benedicta Ward

"Sex and Society in the World of the Orthodox Slavs, 900-1700" Eve Levin

"Spiritual Direction in the Early Christian East" Irenee Hausherr

"The Gurus, The Young Man and Elder Paisios" Dionysios Farasiotis (I think those of us who have read this book can attest to it's excellence)

Surprised by Christ: My Journey from Judaism to Orthodox Christianity A. James Bernstein

The Sunday of the Blind Man

This Sunday commemorates the gift of sight to the man born blind by Jesus Christ. The miracle of the healing of the man born blind is very closely connected to the days of Pentecost by Christians: similar to others, it is commemorated by the Holy Church in this period, and by its occurrence this miracle announces the Divine power and glory of the risen Lord (John 9:31-33, 38). According to the explanation in the Synaxarion, the miracle of the healing of the man born blind is commemorated on this Sunday because it was accomplished in Pentecost. In the example of the man born blind, who was healed by Jesus Christ the Holy Church presents an image of any sinner, who is blind from birth, "because all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Rom 3:23), but by the spiritual and physical gift of the wonderful light the eyes of the blind man teaches that the Enlightener is truly the Lord alone, and only in His light is it possible to behold the true and saving light. Therefore the Holy Church in the hymns for this day also appeals to us to cry out: "O Christ God, the Sun of righteousness, Who by your most pure touch enlightened all, now give sight to our spiritual eyes and show us to be the sons of the day", and "our sight of sincere feeling"; "Since You were born from the Virgin, filling all with light, fill me with light for You are compassionate"; "On my wretched soul which battles at night with the darkness of passions, hasten and have compassion, and shine in me, O mental Sun, the rays of the bright star by which you took out the night from the light"; "Enlighten my mental eyes which are blind, O Lord, from the darkness of sin, and enlighten, O Compassionate One, my closed eyes being washed by tears of humility and repentance"; "Grant me, O Christ, a stream of inscrutable wisdom and knowledge from on high, O existing Light of those in darkness and Guide of all those gone astray".

Sergius Vasilyevich Bulgakov

College & Career Brunch at K & J's. The pancakes were great! Thanks guys!

Zeal for Piety is a good thing, but when combined with love!

"The zealot according to knowledge, motivated by the love of God and his neighbor, does all things with charity and self-effacement; he does nothing that might bring sorrow to his neighbor; such a zealot is enlightened by knowledge and nothing prompts him to deviate from what is morally right" St. Nectarios of Aegina

"For every pursuit and every endeavor involving great toil that does not end up in love and a contrite spirit is futile, and yields no profitable result" St. Symeon the New Theologian

"Zeal for piety is a good thing, but when combined with love" St. John of Damascus

Liturgy with the Parish of Holy Trinity

Today we were joined by Fr. Calin Marincas and Holy Trinity Romanian Orthodox Parish. Here is a quote from a Ch. 6 Maryland TV Newscast Recently on the Glory of the Liturgy of the Orthodox Church:

"We could take a cue from Orthodoxy, whose priests stand with their backs to their congregation, leading a liturgy that is neither clever nor impassioned, but simply beautiful, like stone smoothed by centuries of rhythmic tides. It’s an austere ritual, in the sense of – there’s nothing new here; it’s sublime, in the sense of – creating a clearer view into Heaven. The priest can be any priest. Who he is, what he looks like, how he speaks, and what he thinks matter little. He hasn’t written the service that he officiates. It isn’t about him or his prowess. He’s an interchangeable functionary draped in brocaded robes, obscured by incense, and, as such, never points to himself, a flawed human,pointing ever and only to the Perfection of the Mysterious Divine. That is the role of every priest or preacher – invisibility, while making God seen.”

Jill Manning

Valuable Link to Lecture on the Social Costs of Pornography and Its Impact on Women by Marriage and Family Therapist Jill Manning

Social Costs of Pornography

The Feast of Mid-Pentecost

"After the Saviour had miraculously healed the paralytic, the Jews, especially the Pharisees and Scribes, were moved to envy and persecuted Him, and sought to slay Him, using the excuse that He did not keep the Sabbath, since He worked miracles on that day. Jesus then departed to Galilee. About the middle of the Feast of Tabernacles, He went up again to the Temple and taught. The Jews, marveling at the wisdom of His words, said, 'how knoweth this man letters, having never learned?' But Christ first reproached their unbelief and lawlessness, then proved to them by the Law that they sought to slay Him unjustly, supposedly as a despiser of the Law, since He had healed the paralytic on the Sabbath.

"Therefore, since the things spoken of by Christ in the middle of the Feast of the Tabernacles are related to the Sunday of the Paralytic that is just passed, and since we have already reached the midpoint of the fifty days between Pascha and Pentecost, the Church has appointed this present feast as a bond between the two great Feasts, thereby uniting, as it were, the two into one, and partaking of the grace of them both. Therefore today’s feast is called Mid‐Pentecost, and the Gospel Reading, 'At Mid‐feast'—though it refers to the Feast of the Tabernacles—is used.

"It should be noted that there were three great Jewish feasts: the Passover, the Pentecost, and the Feast of Tabernacles. Passover was celebrated on the 15th of Nissan, the first month of the Jewish calendar, which roughly coincides with our March. This feast commemorated that day on which the Hebrews were commanded to eat the lamb in the evening and anoint the doors of its houses with its blood. Then, having escaped bondage and death at the hands of the Egyptians, they passed through the Red Sea to come to the Promised Land. It is called 'the feast of Unleavened Bread,' because they ate unleavened bread for seven days. Pentecost was celebrated fifty days after Passover, first of all, because the Hebrew tribes had reached Mount Sinai after leaving Egypt, and there received the Law from God; secondly, it was celebrated to commemorate their entry into the Promised Land, where also they ate bread, after having been fed with manna forty years in the desert. Therefore, on this day they offered to God a sacrifice of bread prepared with new wheat. Finally, they also celebrated the Feast of Tabernacles from the 15th to the 22nd of 'the seventh month,' which corresponds roughly to our September. During this time, they lived in booths made of branches in commemoration of the forty years they spent in the desert, living in tabernacles, that is, in tents (Ex. 12:10‐20; Lev. 23 LXX). "

From the Great Horologion