By Faith Alone! Really???
Posted: October 30, 2017 Filed under: Etcetera | Tags: Against the Protestant teaching of Sola Fide, Faith and the works of faith: necessary for salvation, One is not justified by faith alone: James 2: 14 - 26, Sola Fide is unscriptural, We are to walk in good works of faith: Eph 2: 8 - 9, Work out your own salvation: Phil 2; 12 - 13 Leave a comment
Martin Luther
October 31, 2017 marks the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation initiated by Martin Luther’s posting of his 95 theses against the contemporary expression of the Roman Catholic Church. Granted, many of his objections were justified, but Luther could not maintain control of the forces of the Reformation. Because of other radical personalities of the day, the consequences of his actions — ultimately — led not to a reformation, but a deformation of the Christian faith.
The resulting theological assumptions of the Reformation include, among others, Sola Fide (meaning justification/salvation by faith alone). In this posting I will only discuss “by faith alone.”
Henry Walpole: English Martyr and Saint, and Model for Our Day
Posted: October 17, 2017 Filed under: Etcetera, The Eucharist and Living the Eucharist | Tags: Carved relics in the Tower of London, Contemporary persecution of western Christians by secular societies, persecution of American Christians, Pray for your Enemies, Salt Tower of the Tower of London, Solidarity with contemporary culture, St. Henry Walpole and the Tower of London, St. Henry Walpole Martyr and Saint, The 40 Martyrs of England and Wales, Tower of London and Henry Walpole Leave a comment
The Tower of London. It has quite a name. It is quite a place. From it you see the London Bridge and the Thames and a great deal of modern, bustling London. Today it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a tourist destination. However, its name for most denotes imprisonment, pain, and death. That was not its initial purpose. It was built to show the wealth and power of William the Conquerer. In actuality, few met their deaths within its walls, but it did serve as a prison and a very dark place for many. Among those imprisoned and tortured in the Tower was St. Henry Walpole.
The Dogs of Keswick
Posted: September 2, 2017 Filed under: Etcetera | Tags: England, photos of dogs in Keswick 1 Comment
“Pub Poodle”
Keswick, England is a beautiful town in northwestern England — in the Lakes District. My wife and I (together with my cousin and his wife) arrived via a bus ride into the heart of its market district. We stepped into dog central where the canine population that day nearly equalled the human population. I love dogs and a smile spread across my face. We spent three too short days in this lovely town, and a great deal of my time was spent watching the dogs and their interactions with their humans. I’m no longer a girl watcher — long gone are those days — only gets one into trouble. People watching? Equally problematic. But dog watching? That’s where it’s at, and it’s a wonderful way to get to know the people who love their dogs.
This is clearly a self-indulgent posting (but isn’t that what blogging is all about?). I hope you enjoy the photos taken of the dogs of Keswick!
Chistus Victor – A Primer (Part Three)
Posted: August 6, 2017 Filed under: Etcetera, The Eucharist and Living the Eucharist | Tags: The aspect of recapitulation within the salvation model of Christus Victor, The theological model of recapitulation explained concisely Leave a commentRECAPITULATION
Within the salvific model of Christus Victor there is the wonderful concept, or better, aspect of recapitulation. Since this posting is part three of a primer of Christus Victor, let me move immediately to the New Testament, specifically St. Paul’s epistle to the Ephesians:
Having declared to us the mystery of his will, according to his good pleasure which he intended for him [Christ], for the purpose of the fulness of time: to gather together all things [anakephalaiosasthai ta panta] in Christ, those things in the heavens, and those things on earth (Eph 1: 9 – 10).
Christus Victor – A Primer (Part One)
Posted: July 24, 2017 Filed under: Etcetera, The Eucharist and Living the Eucharist | Tags: A primer for Christus Victor, Christus Victor as model of atonement, Christus Victor as model of salvation, Explanation of Christus Victor as model of salvation Leave a commentINTRODUCTION
Anselm of Canterbury
Cur Deus Homo? , or, “why did God become man?” This is the historic question asked by Anselm of Canterbury. In answering this question, he set forth the typical western, and has arguably become the dominant Protestant, view of salvation. By extension, his answer puts forward the typical (again dominant Protestant) view of salvation — substitutionary atonement. Here, God the Son became human to satisfy the Father’s just demand for satisfaction for humanity’s rebellion against his will. God the Father pours out his wrath against humanity on his Son — Jesus dies a horrid death and the Father is satisfied. From this humanity’s sin debt is paid by Christ, and we are in a legal right standing with God the Father — we have peace with God. To the Eastern Church, this is foreign, and somewhat repulsive. As a historic, and ancient, alternative the Eastern Church puts forth the model of salvation known as Christus Victor. A primer is set forth in the following postings.
Sunday of the Prodigal Son
Posted: February 11, 2017 Filed under: Etcetera, The Eucharist and Living the Eucharist | Tags: restoration of the Prodigal Son to relationship with his father, Sacrament of Confession, Sunday of the Prodigal Son, The Prodigal Son and the Sacrament of Confession, the Sacrament of Confession restores prodigal sons and daughters to relationship with God, We all can be Prodigal Sons and Daughters 1 CommentThe Sunday of the Prodigal Son is the second pre-Lenten Sunday. The gospel reading for the day, is of course, from St. Luke’s account of Jesus’ parable. This parable is well known — even among those who embrace secularism and have never heard from, or read from, the Scriptures.
As we all know, a father’s youngest, selfish, and ungrateful son shockingly asks his father for his portion of his inheritance while his father is still alive. The father agrees and gives it to this son. The son of course leaves for a distant country where he squanders his wealth in immoral living. He comes to poverty, and a famine hits this land. He is forced to the despicable role of tending swine. He awakens to his condition and repents. He plans to return to his father, family, and home, but as a hireling — he is no longer worthy of sonship. His rehearsed confession before his father is composed, “I have sinned before heaven, and before you!” He journeys home in shame. However, his father graciously embraces his repentant son. The son is clothed, welcomed, and feasted back into the company of the family — as a son! All is forgiven, and all is restored!
That We Might See
Posted: August 29, 2016 Filed under: Etcetera, The Eucharist and Living the Eucharist | Tags: a dog's love and acceptance, eyesight of the child, Mt 9: 27 - 30, restoration of spiritual eyesight, seeing with the eyes of Christ, sight without prejudice, spiritual eyesight, the human through the eyes of a dog, the sight of innocence Leave a comment
The lectionary for seventh Sunday after Pentecost gives us the Gospel account of the healing of two blind men. The duo follow Jesus and cry out to him, “Have mercy on us, Son of David!” Upon entering a house these two men approach Jesus. Jesus says to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” They reply, “Yes, Lord.” Then “[Jesus] touched their eyes saying, ‘According to your faith let this be for you.’ “And their eyes were opened” (Mt 9: 27 — 30). For these two men the first object they see is their Healer, their Savior — the One who is God Incarnate. How blessed were those four eyes!
Others of us were born sighted. The first object we laid eyes on (however imperfectly as newborns) was likely the face of our mother, itself also a blessing. As sighted infants and then children we took in the creation around us with frequent awe and wonder. We saw creation through eyes of innocence. As a child I had eyes that took no account of the size of my friends’ houses, the cars their parents drove, and took no care of the occupation of father or mother.
John 2: 1 – 11 – The Wedding at Cana, Mary’s First Act as Queen Mother
Posted: August 13, 2016 Filed under: Etcetera | Tags: Exegesis of John 4: 4, Interpretation of the Wedding at Can, John 2: 1 - 11, Mary as Intercessor, Mary as Intercessor in John 2: 4, Mary as Queen Mother, Mary as Queen Mother to Jesus, Mary's act of intercession in the Wedding at Cana, Mary's first act of intercession in John 2: 4 Leave a commentThe title Queen Mother refers to the mother of the king, or the reigning monarch. In the Ancient Near East (ANE) the king would have multiple wives, as did David, and as did Solomon. To prevent favoritism, and intrigue, the ANE kings’ mothers were the queens — the Queen Mothers. Typically, the Queen Mother was an intermediary between subjects and the monarch.
We have a biblical example found in 3 Kingdoms (1 Kings) chapter two. King David has died and has named Solomon king. He has been anointed and enthroned to the surprise of David’s eldest son, Adonijah. With Solomon as king, his mother, Bathsheba, is now Queen Mother. In the following pericope, we see Bathsheba’s role and actions as the new Queen Mother:
Now Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bathsheba the mother of Solomon and bowed down before her… “Now I ask one petition of you. Do not turn away your face.” Bathsheba said to him, “Speak.” Then he said to her, “Speak to King Solomon, for he will not turn his face from you; and let him give me Abishag the Shunammite for a wife.” So Bathsheba said, “Very well, I will speak for you to the king (3 Kingdoms 2: 13, 16 — 18).
The Ever Present Present
Posted: June 30, 2016 Filed under: Etcetera | Tags: concept of time, ever present present, linear concept of time is an illusion, philosophy of time, theory of time, time is a measurement of movement Leave a comment
I recently overheard a conversation of a pair of elderly friends reminiscing about a wonderful experience they shared many years ago. One of the women wistfully commented, “I wish we could go back to those days.” She and her friend remained in the lobby — they were not whisked back to another year, say 1964 for example.
I come to a favorite topic of mental rumination: time. Time is simply the measurement of rate of movement of an object or objects within a defined spacial relationship. For example, a year is the measurement of the time it takes the earth to make a complete orbit around the sun. A day is only the amount of time it takes the earth to make a complete turn upon its axis. A day is broken down to 24 hours, each hour lasts 60 minutes, and each minutes lasts 60 seconds. Another measurement of time, for example, is the sprinters’ times to run the course of 100 meters. Time does not exist as an entity for us who are three dimensional creatures.
Sons of Holy Resurrection Orthodox Church
Posted: May 11, 2016 Filed under: Etcetera | Tags: Church as spiritual hospital, clergy of Holy Resurrection Orthodox Church Tacoma WA, Holy Resurrection Orthodox Church Tacoma Wa Leave a commentThe Church can be thought of as a hospital — a spiritual hospital. We participate in the life of the Church to be healed, to become whole, and holy. At this spiritual hospital Christ, the Physician, administers the medicines for the spirit, and even eternal life to his patients. We receive our medicines via the sacraments of confession and the Eucharist, by the reading and hearing of the Scriptures, and by the work of God done deep within us by our participation in the worship given God via the Divine Liturgy. Read the rest of this entry »
A HOMECOMING
Posted: May 10, 2016 Filed under: Etcetera | Tags: ordination at Holy Resurrection Orthodox Church, ordination of a priest, Tacoma, Wa Leave a comment
The Ramos family with Archbishop Benjamin
This year’s Paschal joy and celebration of the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ was augmented by the return home of Holy Resurrection Orthodox Church’s (HROC) second deacon, Joseph Ramos. He victoriously returned to us and his family after completing a year’s special study at St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary, Crestwood, NY. Read the rest of this entry »
Nous Sommes Paris!
Posted: November 18, 2015 Filed under: Etcetera | Tags: free will, Paris, Russia, solidarity, suffering, thanksgiving Leave a commentEarlier this year in January the world, in solidarity with Paris, declared, “Je suis Charlie!” Now and again our hearts go out to the city (and also with Russia). This time the slogan of solidarity seems to be “Nous sommes Paris!”
“She is Mary”
Posted: November 8, 2015 Filed under: Etcetera | Tags: prayer, The Theotokos Leave a comment
She is Mary
She, the long prepared vessel,
The well fashioned holder of our healing, held our Hope.
Yet she is a hope herself.
Nearest to Perfection himself,
She, the perfected offering of creation, bore the one Offering for our perfection.
She is Mary.
A Change of Season – A Reason for Thanksgiving
Posted: September 20, 2015 Filed under: Etcetera | Tags: finding beauty, prayer, St. Paul, thanksgiving Leave a commentI love the summer, and I dread its passing. I try to ignore the signs, but there are too many to ignore. There are natural witnesses which declare warm, longer day’s passing. The appearance of one of my favorite flowers, dahlias, announces the close of summer and the coming of autumn. The appearance of another, smaller bloom, cyclomen, also bears this news of passing and change. So, all is sealed and set in place. I cannot stop the orbit of earth around the sun.
Leave-Takings
Posted: August 23, 2015 Filed under: Etcetera | Tags: Proverbs 3:5, SVOTS Leave a comment
Fr. Dcn. Joseph & Mka. Felicity
The Feast of the Dormition falls on August 15 every year. The feast’s leave-taking comes on August 23 (also the feast day of St. Irenaeus of Lyons!). On Sunday August 23, Holy Resurrection Orthodox Church is also noting the leave-taking of our second deacon, the Reverend Deacon Joseph Ramos. He is leaving our parish to do a year of special studies at St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary (SVOTS) in Crestwood, NY. He is going so to be ordained a priest, God willing.
Deacon Joseph and I, and our families, have known each other for about 15 years. Read the rest of this entry »
