Pope Shenouda III on Pentecost

In honor of the Feast, here is an article on that topic by the Coptic Pope, Shenouda III.

The Feast of Pentecost
by Pope Shenouda III

The Glorified Lord Christ lived with them in His body until He rose to Heaven then promised them the Holy Spirit to stay with them forever, the Spirit of truth, the Comforter. So what should we know about the Holy Spirit?

The Holy Spirit is God’s Spirit, therefore it existed since ever. We read about it in the first verses of the Genesis Book. The divine response says: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” (Gn 1:1, 2).

And Isaiah talks about the Holy Spirit and gives Him names in his saying: “The Spirit of the LORD…The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, The Spirit of counsel and might, The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD.” (Is 11:2).

And we add to that in the third Hour Prayer (Terce) of every day and say: “a spirit of prophecy and chastity, a spirit of holiness, justice and authority” and call Him by saying: “O Heavenly King, the Comforter, the Spirit of truth, who is present in all places and fills all, the treasury of good things and the Life-Giver”.

And the Lord says about Him in the St John’s Gospel “the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father” (Jn 15:26). And the doctrine of being proceeded from the Father was mentioned by the Ecumenical Council in Constantinople in the Faith Creed. Yet our brothers, the Catholics add to it “Filioque” meaning “and from the Son”. And this is opposing to the Holy Trinity Doctrine. In assimilating the Holy Trinity to Fire we say: "Fire brings forth heat; and light proceeds from it” and we do not say that the light proceeds from heat! But the light and the heat both come from the origin, which is the fire and not one from the other.

The Holy Spirit used to work in the Old Testament as well.

In the story of Samson we read that “the Spirit of the LORD began to move upon him at Mahaneh Dan” (Judges 13:25). And we also read that after Saul was anointed as king that “the Spirit of God came upon him, and he prophesied” (1 S 10:10). This also happened when David was anointed by Prophet Samuel to be king “the Spirit of the LORD came upon David from that day forward” (1 Sam 16:13). And the way the Holy Spirit came upon both Saul and David was through the Anointing Oil that the Lord ordered them to prepare in Exodus Book (Ex 30:22-31). And Aaron was anointed as a high priest when Moses poured from this holy anointing oil on Aaron’s head and anointed him (Lv 8:12), as we say in the psalm “It is like the precious oil upon the head, Running down on the beard, The beard of Aaron, Running down on the edge of his garments.” (Ps 133:2). And with this anointing oil the tent of meeting along with the altars and the utensils were anointed and became holy (Ex 40, Lv 8). With this anointing oil also kings and prophets were anointed (1 Kings 19). And as a result to the anointing, the Holy Spirit comes upon them and so comes His gifts as well.

And we read in prophet Joel the Lord’s saying: “And it shall come to pass afterward That I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your old men shall dream dreams, Your young men shall see visions.” (Joel 2:28).

And this is what happened on the fiftieth day (the Day of Pentecost), as St Peter the Apostle explained this verse from Prophet Joel’s Book (Ac 2:16, 17).

The Holy Spirit also could be transferred from one person to another.

This happened to the seventy elders on the days of Prophet Moses when the Lord said to him: “Gather to Me seventy men of the elders of Israel. Then I will come down and talk with you there. I will take of the Spirit that is upon you and will put the same upon them” (Nm 11:16, 17). And here the bible says: “Then the LORD came down in the cloud, and spoke to him, and took of the Spirit that was upon him, and placed the same upon the seventy elders; and it happened, when the Spirit rested upon them, that they prophesied” (Nm 11:25).

We notice that before Moses, when Joseph the Righteous interpreted the Pharaoh’s dream, “Pharaoh said to his servants, "Can we find such a one as this, a man in whom is the Spirit of God?"” (Gn 41:38). And here was the Holy Spirit’s gift interpreting dreams, i.e., the Spirit of knowledge.

Also there is another work for God’s Spirit in every art, so as to what the tent of meeting needed “Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying: "See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. And I have filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship, to design artistic works, to work in gold, in silver, in bronze, in cutting jewels for setting, in carving wood, and to work in all manner of workmanship” (Ex 31:1- 5).

Here we see that the Holy Spirit works even in the talent of workmanship that is given to some even in jewelry and carving woods.

Among the most important characteristics of the Holy Spirit is that it is Who spoke in the prophets.

This is a statement in the content of the Faith Creed. This means that the Holy Spirit is the source of the divine response of the Holy books. the Holy Spirit was the source of all what the prophets and apostles said in the holy books.

In this St Peter the Apostle said in his second epistle “for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.” (2 P 1:21).

Nowadays, in the New Testament, the Holy Spirit is given through three ways: The holy anointing, laying priests’ hands and the holy breath.

As for the holy breath, it was written in St John’s Gospel that our Lord Jesus, after His Resurrection, when He appeared to His disciples, the saints, in the upper room, He told them “As the Father has sent Me, I also send you." And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained."” (Jn 20:21-23).

In the ordination of the bishop or the priest we breathe in his face and say “Accept the Holy Spirit”, so he opens his mouth to accept the holy breath and says with the psalm “I opened my mouth and accepted myself a spirit”.

As for laying hands, the Holy Spirit in the time of our fathers the apostles was given through the apostles laying hands. This was mentioned in giving the Holy Spirit to the People of Samaria. The Apostles Synod in Jerusalem sent them St Peter and St John “Then they laid hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit” (Ac 8:14-17). And the same was done to the People of Ephesus “And when Paul had laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them” (Ac 19:7). Same applied to the Priesthood Sacrament, St Paul the Apostle said to his disciple Timothy “I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands” (2 Ti 1:6).

The holy anointing was also known in the apostolic age. St John the Apostle says about that: “But you have an anointing from the Holy One…” (1 Jn 2:20) “… But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you” (1 Jn 2:27).

We, in anointing children after baptism: we anoint them with the Holy Chrism (Myron) and lay hands on them and breathe in their faces. And say to them: “Receive the Holy Spirit”.

With the Holy Anointing Sacrament, we become temples for the Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit dwells in us. St Paul the Apostle talks about that in his first epistle to Corinthians and says: “Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” (1 Co 3:16), and “Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you” (1 Co 6:19). Then every one of should remember that on the day he was anointed with the Holy Chrism (Myron) that he became a temple for the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit became dwelling in him.

The Holy Spirit works in priesthood and priesthood is granted through the Holy Spirit. It has the power of forgiving sins. But someone may say: How is that? And no one can forgive sins except God alone! We say: Yes, the Holy Spirit that is in the priest is one who forgives sins. As we say in the Holy Liturgy “be absolved by my mouth through the Holy Spirit,” so it is the Holy Spirit that forgives sins. And this forgiveness comes from the priest’s mouth. And the absolution that the priest gives through the absolution prayer in which he says: may God absolve you, may God pardon you, may God forgive you. And the Holy Spirit is present also in all the Church Sacraments. He also is present in all the Holy Synod decisions. In the first decision that came from the Synod in Jerusalem on the days of our fathers the apostles, they said: “it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us” (Ac 15:28).

The Holy Spirit works in the Service too. The Church fathers, the apostles did not start the service until the Holy Spirit came upon them and the Lord’s promise saying: “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me” (Ac 1:8) was fulfilled in them. The Holy Spirit was the One choosing the servants, like when He said: “Now separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them” (Ac 13:2, 4). And it was Him who directed the servants in their paths and worked in them and using them.

Asking for the Holy Spirit is a point of our daily prayer of the Third Hour (Terce). We ask it to come upon us and purify us from all defilement of body and spirit. And we cry to God saying: Your Holy Spirit, O Lord, do not take away from us.

It is part of our freedom to accept the Holy Spirit, work with Him, and go into the “Holy Spirit Partaking”. And we are also free to reject and quench the Spirit and fight the Spirit. And the most serious thing is to blaspheme against the Holy Spirit, meaning to reject it completely all through the life. But how beautiful is the bible’s saying: “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God” (Ro 8:14).

Here I would like to warn those who are deceived and think that every spirit that leads them is God’s Spirit!! The apostle says: “do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 Jn 4:1).

New Bishops

H.G.Alexios Mar Eusebius

No, not those bishops; there are plenty of places to lose your Lenten peace over that.

On March 2, the Malankara Orthodox Church (Indian non-Chalcedonian Orthodox under the Catholicos Didymus I) appointed two new bishops for North America: H.G. Zacharia Mar Nicolavos is appointed Assistant Metropolitan attached to the North East Diocese of America, and H.G. Alexios Mar Eusebius is Metropolitan of the Diocese of South West America.

Many other dioceses were also created.

Many years to all.

Murder in an Indian Orthodox Church

It appears a man opened fire in an Indian Orthodox Church in Clifton, New Jersey, killing two people and wounding others. The news account says the suspect, 27-year-old Joseph M. Pallipurath of Sacramento, California, violated his estranged wife's restraining order and tracked her down in New Jersey. When she refused to leave with her husband, who reportedly abused her, he opened fire in the vestibule of St. Thomas Syrian Orthodox Knanaya Church during Divine Liturgy.

He remains on the loose as of this writing.

His father is begging him to turn himself in. The same story talks about how waves of parishoners protected their priest, risking their own lives to save him. What a touching sign of their faith.

The cousin of the second victim counseled the gunman, "Turn yourself in." He added Pallipurath "has to get his punishment, whether it's from the justice system or from God."

May God lay to rest those who have died, and bring this man to justice. Justice, as the young man in today's news story states, awaits us all, whether at man's hand or that of God. Lord have mercy.

(I'm certain someone somewhere will interpret this charity toward a non-Chalcedonian Orthodox Christian as "proof" of my apostasy and write some rambling blog post against it. Let them. A shooting in any church is an abomination, especially one like this.)

Update: Federal marshals captured Pallipurath in the Atlanta, Georgia, area on November 24. I saw a bulletin on television around 9:30 p.m. Pacific time.

Pope Shenouda III: Pentecost (and His Health)

For those who hadn't heard, we're sorry to report Pope Shenouda III, the head of the Coptic Church, broke his femur last week and had to have surgery. According to his hospital, the 84-year-old is "recovering well." Thank God for his recovery. Although we are not in communion with the pope nor his church, we have wished him well in the past, and he continues to preside over Christians living amidst adverse conditions. In honor of the Feast of Pentecost, and with wishes for his full and speedy recovery, here is one of his articles on the operation of the Third Person of the Trinity.

The Holy Spirit in the Church of the Apostles
by Pope Shenouda III

The descending of the Holy Spirit was the beginning of the work of the Christian Church. The Lord Jesus Christ started forming the Church when He chose the twelve apostles and sent them out (Matthew 10:1-16). He also appointed seventy others whom He also sent out (Luke 10:1-20), with separate groups of His beloved ones and disciples. Even though He appointed the apostles, He allowed them to start preaching only after the descending of the Holy Spirit upon them. This great occurrence was the point of great conversion in the beginning of preaching on the largest scale.

The Holy Spirit was the One who gave the necessary power for the work of preaching. The sending of the Holy Spirit was a promise from the Lord (John 14:26, 15:26, 16:7), however, despite this He said to them, "Behold, I send the Promise of My Father upon you; but tarry in the city of Jerusalem until you are endued with power from on high" (Luke 24:29). Where will this power come from? He said to them regarding this, "But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me" (Acts 1:8).

The Spirit of God was essential to them for they could not work without Him. The Holy Spirit worked with them in preaching and teaching. They waited according to the Lord's command. Their previous preparation for service which lasted more than three years did not dispense them of the Holy Spirit and His work in and with them. Perhaps these ten days which they waited were days of prayer and hope, from the heart, in preparation for the coming work.

How did the Holy Spirit descend?

1. The Holy Spirit descended upon them in the shape of tongues of fire. The result was that, "they were all filled with the Holy Spirit" (Acts 2:4). They spoke the tongues of all the nations gathered on that great day (people from about 15 nations), speaking about the glories of God (Acts 2:9-11). Peter spoke and the result was that the audience were cut to the heart, accepted the words with joy; three thousand were baptized on that day (Acts 2:37,41).
2. Thereafter, they granted the Holy Spirit by the laying on of hands, just as had occurred to the people of Samaria; the Bible says that the apostles sent Peter and John to them, "who when they had come down prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit...Then they laid hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit" (Acts 8:15,17). Likewise with the people of Ephesus, as the book of the Acts of the Apostles states, "And when Paul had laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke with tongues and prophesied" (Acts 19:6).
3. The Holy Spirit was then granted by the Holy Anointment. This is because there was no opportunity for the laying on of hands by the apostles after the spread of Christianity in many countries. Therefore, Christianity usd what is now known as the Holy Myron (Chrism). Saint John the Apostle alluded to this anointment by saying, "But you have an anointing from the Holy One...: (1 John 2:20) and, "But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you..." (1 John 2:27) (Also see 2 Corinthians 1:21).
4. As for the priesthood, the apostles received this through the Holy Breath. The Lord Jesus Christ breathed on them, "...and said to them, Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained" (John 20:22,23).
   

Thus, the Holy Spirit who was in them forgave or retained sins through them. The apostles then granted the Holy Spirit through the sacrament of priesthood by the laying on of hands. Here we remember the saying of Saint Paul the Apostle to his disciple Timothy, the bishop of Ephesus, "Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands" (2 Timothy 1:6). He also said to him regarding the ordination of others, "Do not lay hands on anyone hastily nor share in other people's sins" (1 Timothy 5:22).

We can also see in the sending of Barnabas and Saul that, "...having fasted and prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them away. So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia..." (Acts 13:3,4). Therefore, by the laying on of hands they were sent by the Holy Spirit. Likewise in the ordination of the seven deacons, "whom they set before the apostles; and when they had prayed, they laid hands on them" (Acts 6:6).

In this way we can see that the laying on of hands was accompanied by certain prayers, which are presently the rites of ordination. We can also see that the Holy Spirit descended upon the disciples from God directly, as there is none higher than them to whom He may grant the Holy Spirit. They became, "...stewards of the mysteries of God" (1 Corinthians 4:1). They became stewards of God who then granted the Holy Spirit with the laying on of their hands and their prayers, as in the ordination of bishops, priests and deacons. Or by the laying on of hands initially and then by anointing as with granting the Spirit to the believers in general. In this way the Spirit who is in them is transferred to others in the way that we mentioned.

At present we practice the Sacrament of the Holy Myron (Chrism) or the Sacrament of Anointing, after Baptism. During the rites of this sacrament, we anoint the child with the Myron (Chrism) on many parts of his body, and we also lay the hand on his head and breathe in his face saying to him, "accept the Holy Spirit...". With respect to ladies, the bishop can lay his hand on the woman's head with prayers to accept the Holy Spirit and anoints the visible parts of her body such as her head and hands.

May that Holy Spirit fully heal Pope Shenouda III.

Maybe Try Ethiopia?

German Archeologist on Trail of the Ark of the Covenant

More scientific and archeological support for Church tradition:

German researchers claim to have found the remains of the palace of the Queen of Sheba — and an altar that may have held the Ark.

The discovery, announced by the University of Hamburg last week, has stirred skeptical rumblings from the archaeological community...

Professor Helmut Ziegert, of the archaeological institute at the University of Hamburg, has been supervising a dig in Aksum, northern Ethiopia, since 1999.

"From the dating, its position and the details that we have found, I am sure that this is the palace," he said.

The palace, that is, of the Queen of Sheba, who is believed to have lived in the 10th century B.C.

After she died, her son and successor, Menelek, replaced the palace with a temple dedicated to Sirius.

The German researchers believe that the Ark was taken from Jerusalem by the queen — who had a liaison with King Solomon — and built into the altar to Sirius.

"The results we have suggest that a Cult of Sothis developed in Ethiopia with the arrival of Judaism and the Ark of the Covenant, and continued until 600 A.D.," an announcement by the University of Hamburg on behalf of the research team said.

The story adds some people have claimed the Ark is in Yemen and Ireland.

"Generational Curses"? Oh Dear

Someone today introduced me to the intersection of extreme Calvinism and Charismatic weirdness: the belief in "generational curses." What are those?

Generational curses are judgments that are passed on to individuals because of sins perpetuated in a family in a number of generations. Generational curses are similar to original sin curses because they can be passed down on a generational basis. They differ in that generational curses do not impose eternal judgment. They bring judgment or bondage during an individual's life, reducing the quality of life, until that individual addresses the sin issues that put the curses into place.

You see, "when Satan and his demons are able to possess or affect a man or woman because of a weakness in character that person has, they will try to establish similar control over the offspring of that person because they may inherit the same moral weaknesses."

Although there are a few resources from an Orthodox perspective on this, I'll append this article, written by Coptic Pope Shenouda III:

THE INIQUITY OF THE FATHERS ON THE CHILDREN
by HH Pope Shenouda


Question:
Could the iniquity of the fathers visit the children as the Bible says in (Ex. 20:5) and as we say "The fathers ate sour grapes and the children's teeth are set on edge"?

Answer:
The fathers can hand down to their children physically the result of their sins or sicknesses. The parent could sin and as a result of his or her sin they may have contract a sickness and then the son or the daughter could inherit that sickness. The children could be stricken by mental or neurological diseases, some blood disorders or congenital defects as a result of what was inherited from their parents. Often the sickness of the children and their suffering are a cause of pain for the parents especially if they knew that the sickness was a result of their sins.

The children might inherit ill-nature or bad character from their parents.

But this is not a rule; king Saul was cruel, merciless and of bad character. His son Jonathan was the opposite. Jonathan was a friend of David. He loved him and was faithful to him. Even if the children inherit ill-nature from their parents, they can with ease get rid of it if they wish.

A son can inherit poverty or debts because of his father's mistakes...

He suffers because of it, of course on earth, and that would have nothing to do with his eternal life. Many are the end results that the saying of the poet agrees with "This is what my father inflicted upon me, and I did not inflict on anyone."

As for judging the children for the sins that were committed personally by their parents, the Bible has refuted completely as written in he Book of Ezekiel "what do you mean when you use this proverb... the fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge? 'As I live' says the Lord God, you shall no longer use this proverb the soul who sins shall die... "

The son shall not bear the guilt of the father, nor the father bear the guilt of the son:

"The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself. (Ezek. 18:1-20). The righteous Jonathan did not bear the evil of his father king Saul nor Josiah the righteous king the sin of Aaron his father or Manasseh his grandfather or the rest of his forefathers.

The curses of the law in the Old Testament was abolished in the New Testament. As we say in the Anaphora of St. Gregory: "You have lifted the curse of the Law"

As an example of this curse, Canaan, did bear the curse of his father Ham, (Gen. 9:22-25) and his sons also bore it till the days of the Lord Christ and not only till the fourth generation. Now, we are in the era of "grace and truth" (John 1:17) so do not be afraid of the curse of the Law which was inherited by the children from their grandfathers. Often the father could be evil but the son is righteous refusing to
walk in his father's footsteps, and even he might resist him as the Lord says, "He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me." (Matt. 10:37).

Naturally it would be unjust for God to visit the sins of this evilfather on his righteous son who deserves to be rewarded.

Your Prayers, and Action, Please

I recently received this in my e-mail. The man in the story was born a Coptic Christian in Egypt. However, he later joined St. John Chrysostom Antiochian Church in York, Pennsylvania. If the government has its way, he may be put to death.

At this moment, the United States is threatening to deport Mr. Sameh Khouzam back to Egypt at the request of the Egyptian government. Mr. Khouzam is a Coptic Christian currently held at the York County Prison in Pennsylvania charged with crimes against a Muslim family in Egypt.

Why does that matter?

First, to date, no one has presented one shred of credible or verifiable evidence to substantiate the charges against Mr. Khouzam.

Additionally, we are certain that if Sameh is deported he will face torture and probable death upon his return. The government of Egypt has a well-documented history of human rights abuses against its own citizens, particularly against religious minorities like Coptic Christians.

In other words, Mr. Khouzam is facing imminent torture and likely death simply because he is a Coptic Christian--a member of a religious minority in Egypt.

The Institute on Religion and Public Policy will not stand still and let this happen. But, we need your help!

To save Sameh from certain torture and death we need you to click here and sign our Petition to Save Sameh Khouzam immediately.

Sameh Khouzam left Egypt in 1998 under intense pressure to change his religion. He was detained by the Egyptian government and forcefully "encouraged" to convert from his Coptic Christianity to Islam. He escaped Egypt, however, and fled to America - fearing for his life. Afterward, the Egyptian government informed United States officials that Mr. Khouzam was wanted for completely unsubstantiated crimes against a Muslim family.

Mr. Khouzam has proven to be an upstanding member of his local community yet when he voluntarily reported to U.S. immigration authorities last month he was detained, imprisoned, and scheduled for deportation.

He is now set to be deported MONDAY, JUNE 18!

This travesty of justice condemns Sameh to certain torture and death upon his return to Egypteven though there is NO CONCRETE EVIDENCE he committed any crimes in Egypt.

I believe he is being persecuted because of his religious identity.

And the potential for violence against Sameh is real. In fact, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals found it is "more likely than not" he will be tortured upon his return to Egypt. Yet, for apparent political reasons, our government still intends to deport him.

That's why I am determined to act to right this terrible wrong.

The Institute on Religion and Public Policy is poised to IMMEDIATELY deliver your signed Petition to Save Sameh Khouzam to Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and to Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice.

But there is no time to waste. Sameh is scheduled to be deported THIS MONDAY!

And the U.S. Government simply will not act unless confronted by an overwhelming outpouring of outrage from its citizens!

That's why I need you to click here and sign our Petition to Save Sameh Khouzam right now!

Your participation may help save Sameh's life. But I need you to do more than just sign the petition.

I need you to forward this urgent, life and death petition to as many of your family members, friends, co-workers, co-religionists and others as possible. At the very least, please take a moment and immediately forward this appeal to at least 5 others.

Your few seconds of effort can make all the difference in rescuing Mr. Sameh Khouzam from the likelihood of torture, and possibly, death.

Please pass it on. I know the Pope recently condemned Amnesty International (belatedly, in my opinion) for its support of abortion. Perhaps he could steer his followers to support organizations such as the one that sent out this alert?

The Five Pillars of...Orthodoxy?

I have no idea what the background of this is, but I think it's the first time I've heard the term "Five Pillars" applied to Orthodox Christianity. From the website of the late Abuna Yesehaq (formerly of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, "Oriental Orthodox"):

Amistu A-emade Mystir (Five Pillars of Mystery)

The Pillars of Mystery are five in number and are regarded by the church as basic knowledge for all faithful and the cathechism in particular. The following are simple literal translation from the Geez and Amharic text.

Mystire Selassie (Mystery of Trinity)

The Mystery of Trinity is to believe in the Father the Begetter, in the Son the Begotten, in the Holy Spirit the One Who proceeds, One in Three and Three in One. They are three in name, in person, in work. In name they are called Father, Son, the Holy Spirit. The Father has a perfect person, perfect face, and perfect form. The Son has a perfect person, perfect face, and perfect form. The Holy Spirit has a perfect person, perfect face, and perfect form.

As far as their work is concerned, the Father is the Begetter, the Son is Begotten, and the Holy Spirit is the One Who proceeds. The Father begets and causes procession, but is neither begotten nor proceeds. The Son is begotten, but neither begets nor proceeds nor causes procession. They are one in nature, in essence, in fullness, in substantiality, in divinity, in heart, in word, in breath.

They are called Ab, Wold, and Menfes Qidus. Ab means “the Father,” Wold means “the Son,” and Menfes Qidus means “the Holy Spirit,” One Who proceeds from the Father. (Yesehaq, 124)

Mystire Seggawe (Mystery of Incarnation)

Mystery of Incarnation deals with the creation of man and the birth of our Lord Eyesus Kristos (Jesus Christ).

Man has seven works or seven elements, four natures of the flesh and three natures of the soul.

The four natures of the flesh are wind, fire, water, and earth, and the three natures of the soul are rational thought, the power of speech, and the property of life.

“He is called man by reason of his created nature.” as Gregory Thaumaturgus said. The mystery teaches the two births of the Son, that is, His birth before the world from a Father without a mother and his birth from the Virgin Mariam, without a father. He was born of two births, Son of the Father, Son of Mariam, and was honored in the union, the union of Godhead and manhood. “…He was united being one person from two persons, one nature from two natures.” Being One of the Trinity, the Son became man and put on flesh; as was said: “This is My beloved Son in whom I am well pleased.” “That Word became flesh; He continually abides in us. We behold his Glory in accordance with his being the only Son of his Father.”

By what is it known that he is born before the world, from a father without a mother? It is known by His being born latterly from the Virgin Mariam without a father: “His first birth was made known by his latter birth.”

Mystire Timqet (Mystery of Baptism)

What is the Mystery of Baptism? It is to believe that the Lord Eyesus Kristos was baptized at the age of thirty to be an archetype for all men and all men are to be baptized in the water of life, which flowed from the right side of our Lord Eyesus Kristos on Friday and to obtain adoption from the Trinity, to eat His flesh and drink His blood and live a Christian life. How can one obtain the water of life that flowed from the right side of Our Lord Eyesus Kristos on Friday? The priest recites the Book of Baptism over water. He celebrates the pre-Anaphora and reads some chapters from the Holy Scriptures. At the end, when the priest blesses it, saying, “One is the Holy Father; One is the Holy Son; One is the Holy Spirit,” the water changes and becomes the water of life that flowed from the right side of Our Lord Eyesus Kristos on Friday. The baptized person will be freed from condemnation and released from bondage to the devil: “By baptism men will be completely freed from bondage to Satan and from servitude to impure demons.”

We are baptized after the manner of baptism by which our Lord Eyesus Kristos was baptized in the river Jordan, at the hand of John. One might ask why the Lord was baptized when He was pure and righteous. The answer is: He did this to be an example to us and “ that He might give us, by His baptism equality of righteousness.”

Mystire Qurban (Mystery of Eucharist)

The mystery of Eucharist is somewhat identical to the sacrament of Holy Communion.

What is the Mystery of the Eucharist? It is the Body and Blood of our Lord Eyesus Kristos Who was crucified on Friday for the salvation of all; it is what believers receive in the form of bread and wine. The bread and wine are changed into the real flesh and blood of Christ when the priest blesses them with the liturgical prayers: “This bread which I give to you is My flesh, this is the bread which came down from heaven, if any man eats of this bread, he shall live forever.” “This is My blood which will be shed for you and for many people which is the surety of the New Covenant.”
The flesh and blood we receive is the Godhead proclaimed, the freedom of spirit having descended into Sheol together with the Spirit, and the Godhead abides with the flesh in the tomb. Whoever receives the flesh and blood of Christ, having cleansed his conscience from grudges and vengefulness and persevered in faith and good works. It will be to him salvation of the flesh and of the soul, and by it he will inherit the Kingdom of Heaven.

Mystire Tensaea Mutan (Mystery of the Resurrection of the Dead)

The mystery of resurrection teaches that after death there will be resurrection. When a person dies, he will not remain destroyed and rotting, but rises again.

How does he rise? There will be a proclamation saying: “You who are dead arise.” There will be three invisible sounds of horns. At the first sound, all flesh will be gathered together. At the second, the flesh and bones and blood will be united, and they will be perfect bodies without any movement or signs of life. And at the third, the dead will rise in the twinkling of an eye. They will rise with all their works written out before them, whether good or bad. The males[will be resurrected] as mature youths of thirty years and the females mature maidens of fifteen years. The dead will arise following the example of the Lord Eyesus Kristos, the firstborn who arose, destroying corruption and the grave, having remained in the depths of the grave three days and three nights. He is the firstborn of all who died.

As Severus said, “during resurrection, they do not rise, as the tall, tall; the short, short; the fair skinned, fair skinned; the dark skinned, dark skinned; the fat, fat; and the thin, thin. Instead, each person will have the same body and form.” Those who did good will arise resembling Christ, shining seven times brighter than the sun. Those who did evil will rise resembling the devil, clothed in darkness.

“…The righteous will stand on the Lord’s right hand, and those who did evil on the Lord’s left hand.” Then he will make judgment, saying to those on his right hand, “Come blessed of my Father, and inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” To those on His left hand he will say “Be separated from me, enemies of my father, impure of soul to the fire of Gehanna, where the fire is not quenched, where the worm does not sleep, and where is eternal mourning, But the righteous into life eternal."

An Ethiopian Creed

From the website of the late Abuna Yesehaq, onetime archbishop of the Ethiopian (Oriental) Orthodox Church. I can't vouch for its historicity but just thought it was interesting:

The Confession and Prayer of Faith

The Following is the creed the apostles gave in Jerusalem as is written in the Ethiopic Liturgical Book in the original Geez (pg 40 and pg 63 in the English translation).

It is used in Divine Services, especially during the Anaphora of the Apostles.

We believe in one God, maker of all creation, Father of our Lord and Saviour Eyesus Kristos, because His nature is unsearchable.

As we have before declared, He is without beginning and without end, but He is ever living, and He has light which is never extinguished and He can never be approached.

He is not two or three, and no addition can be made to Him; but He is only one, living forever, because He is not hidden that He cannot be known, but we know Him perfectly through the law and the prophets that He is Almighty and has authority over all the creations.

One God, Father of our Saviour Eyesus Kristos, who was begotten before the Creation of the world, the only begotten Son, coequal with Him, Creator of all the Hosts, the principalities and the dominions.

Who in the last days was pleased to become man, and took flesh from Our Lady Mariam, the Holy Virgin, without the seed of man, and grew like men yet without sin or evil; neither was guile found in his mouth.

Then He suffered, died in the flesh, rose from the dead on the third day ascended unto heaven to the Father who sent Him, sat down at the Right Hand of power, sent to us the Paraclete, the Holy Spirit who proceeded from the Father, and saved all the world, and who is coeternal with the Father and the Son.

We say further that all the creatures of God are good as there is nothing to be rejected, and the spirit, the life of the body is pure and holy in all.

And we say that marriage is pure and childbirth is undefiled, because God created Adam and Eve to multiply. We understand further that there is in our body a soul, which is immortal and does not perish with the body.

We repudiate all work of heretics and all schisms and transgressions of the law, because they are for us impure.

We also believe in the resurrection of the dead, the righteous and sinners; and in the Day of Judgment when everyone will be recompensed according to their deeds.

We also believe that Christ is not in the least degree inferior because of His Incarnation.

But He is God, the Word Who truly became man and reconciled mankind to God being the High Priest of the Father. Henceforth, let us not be circumcised like the Jews. We know that He Who had to fulfill the law and the prophets has already come.

Western Rite Ethiopian Orthodox are Back on the Net

I reported on this blog a year ago that the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, under the late Abuna Yesehaq, had accepted a number of Western Rite parishes. Its old website disappeared, but it now has a new website. The URL is: http://www.westernriteorthodoxdiocesesaintgregory.org. (How's that for a mouthful?)

Moscow Patriarchal Bishop Meets with Indian Orthodox

In fact, he prayed with them and discussed the "strengthening of relations between the two Churches." (Indian Orthodox are Oriental Orthodox, Non-Chalcedonian, or so-called "Monophysites.") Heck, he even met with Roman Catholics! I'm sure before long someone will condemn His Eminence as a raving ecumencal heretic:

Russian Orthodox delegation led by Metropolitan Kirill visit Chinnai and Kerala, India

On December 7, Metropolitan Kirill of Smolensk and Kaliningrad, head of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate, together with his retinue visited the city of Channai, former Madras.

On December 8, Metropolitan Kirill blessed water at the grave of St. Thomas for the staff of the Russian General consulate in Chinnai. After the thanksgiving, he addressed the congregation, drawing in particular a parallel between the image of St. Thomas, who overcome his non-belief in the resurrection of Christ, and the history of the Russian people, who have gone through a difficult period of non-belief and is now returning to the path of faith. The metropolitan greeted the rector of the Roman Catholic basilica, in which the grave of the apostle is located, and passed over souvenirs.

Then the delegation visited the holy places in Chinnai, associated with the name of St. Thomas. According to tradition, the saint preached in that area for four years and suffered martyrdom there. The delegation also saw the cave in this the apostle hid himself from his persecutors and the hill from which he preached the gospel to the local population.

Later that day, Metropolitan Kirill and his retinue, accompanied by F. Rozovsky, director of the Russian Center for Culture and Science, and D. Topchan, a counselor of the Russian embassy, arrived in Kerala, the Indian state with the predominant Syro-Malankara population. At the airport of the city of Kochi, the delegation was welcomed by Metropolitan Philip Mar Eusebius, director for inter-Christian relations at the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church. From the airport, the delegation proceeded to the residence of the head of this Church in Kottayam. They were welcomed there by bishops, clergy and laity of the Malankara Church led by their primate, His Holiness Mar Baselius Mar Thoma Didymos 1, Catholicos of the East and Malankara Metropolitan.

Metropolitan Kirill took part in the presentation of the first volume of the five-volume edition of Philokalia in the Malayalam language, which took place at the Mammen Mappillai Hall in Kottayam. The presentation was held in the framework of a seminar on spirituality, which gathered together representatives of Christian communities from all over Kerala. Dr. Cherian Ipen, director of this publishing project, made an opening address. After his introduction, the choir accompanying Metropolitan Kirill and led by I. Yakimchuk of the DECR, sang several hymns of the Russian Orthodox Church. After that, the seminar was addressed by His Holiness Mar Baselius Mar Thoma Didymos 1 who stressed the significance of Philokalia as an important testimony to the rich spiritual tradition of Orthodoxy. He said that the publication of this book in the vernacular would promote dialogue between Christian confessions and religious traditions in India. F. Rozovsky greeted the seminar on behalf of his center. The next speaker was Metropolitan Kirill who pointed to the importance of Philokalia for modern man. His Eminence welcomed the fact that this book, cherished so much by the Orthodox, was published in the Malayalam language. He said it would not only make the Orthodox spiritual tradition more accessible for the local Christian community but would also help to introduce it to people of other religions in India.

On December 9, the Russian Orthodox delegation visited the Kottayam Seminary, the main educational institution of the Malankara Church. His Holiness Mar Baselius Mar Thoma Didymos 1 welcomed the guest to the seminary. After a prayer at the smeinary’s [sic.] chapel, Metropolitan Kirill had the honour of opening the newly-equipped classroom for foreign languages. A token was placed in the classroom in memory of the occasion.

A solemn meeting took place at the seminary’s assembly hall to welcome the Russian Church delegation. The rector of the seminary, Rev. K. M. George, was the first speaker. He made a survey of the relations between the Malankara and Russian Churches, referring to the historic visits made to Kottayam by Patriarch Pimen of Moscow and All Russia and Metropolitan Alexy of Tallin and Estonia, now Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia. Metropolitan Kirill’s visit, the speaker said, continued the chain of these important events. The rector pointed to the metropolitan’s special contribution to the development of relations between the two Churches, noting that Metropolitan Kirill, who had directed the theological schools in Leningrad for many years, was a teacher and mentor for many of those present in the assembly hall.

Catholicos Mar Thoma Didymos I, in his speech, stressed that the Russian Orthodox Church was highly esteemed by the faithful of the Malankara Church. He expressed the conviction that the visit of Metropolitan Kirill, an outstanding theologian and active participant in the inter-Christian dialogue, would contribute to the fostering of relations between the two Churches. Metropolitan Matthews Mar Sevir, who was the next speaker, spoke about the warm memories of his years at the Leningrad Theological Academy when it was headed by His Eminence Kirill.

The meeting culminated in the decoration of Metropolitan Kirill with a high award of the Malankara Church – the Order of St. Gregory of Parumala. Metropolitan Kirill was the first to be granted this award. Metropolitan Philip Mar Eusebius described the visit of the DECR chairman as another step on the way to the strengthening of relations between the two Churches. He defined two areas for cooperation: training theologians and translation of major texts of both traditions.

In his response, Metropolitan Kirill added other areas for common efforts, namely, cooperation in developing a concept of human rights and dignity and an agreed position in the dialogue with non-Christina [sic.] religions.

To read the story onsite in English, go to Moscow Patriarchate's main page and follow the navigation links.

The Feast of the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ (Christmas)

On this day, of the year 5501 of the world, as calculated by our glorious church, we celebrate the birth of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Incarnate God in the Flesh from the virgin St. Mary. Through the Divine plan of God and His foreknowledge, Caesar Augustus issued a decree for a general census in all the Roman Empire. For that reason, Joseph rose, and the virgin with him, and went from the city of Nazareth to "Bethlehem" to be counted in the census there because he was from the tribe of Judah, from the house of David. Bethlehem was the city of David. When they arrived in Bethlehem, the Virgin gave birth to her first born child and she wrapped him in swaddling clothes and put him in a manger, for they did not have a place for them in the inn.

Now there were, in the same country, shepherds living out in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. Then the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all the people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David, a Savior, Who is Christ the Lord. And this will be the sign to you: you will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling clothes lying in a manger." Suddenly there was, with the angel, a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying:

"Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."

So it was, when the angels had gone away from them into heaven, that the shepherds said to one another, "Let us now go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has come to pass, which the Lord has made known to us." And they came with haste and found the Babe, Mary, Joseph, and Salomi. The place was shining with light. Now when they had seen him, they made widely known the saying which was told them concerning this child. Then they worshipped the child and they returned, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen. (Luke 2:1-20)
On this day, the prophecies about the birth of the Lord from a chaste virgin had been fulfilled. Isaiah the prophet said, "Behold the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son and shall call His Name Immanuel." (Isaiah 7:14)

Ezekiel the prophet also said about this wonderful mystery, "And the Lord said to me, 'This gate shall be shut; it shall not be opened, and no man shall enter by it, because the Lord God of Israel has entered by it, therefore it shall be shut."' (Ezekiel 44:2)

About this child, Daniel the prophet said, "I was watching in the night visions, and behold, One like the Son of Man, coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought Him near before Him. Then to Him was given dominion and glory and the Kingdom that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His Kingdom the one which shall not be destroyed." (Daniel 7:13-14)

Jeremiah the prophet said, "Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, that I will raise to David a Branch of Righteousness; a King shall reign and prosper, and execute judgement and righteousness in the earth. In His days, Judah will be saved and Israel will dwell safely; Now this is His Name by which He will be called: The Lord Our Righteousness." (Jeremiah 23:5-6) We must therefore now direct our minds toward the manger of Bethlehem, where the Son of God was lying in it in the flesh at the time of His birth, contemplating in silence and reverence worthy of the mystery of the incarnation of God, and His birth in a manger for our salvation. Knowing that He teaches us through this mystery to despise the world and all the vain things in it, and that He urges us to be humble and to love our neighbor seeking his own good, and that we should live in virtue and holiness according to the Christian ethics; not ignoring the great dignity that has been granted to us by this Divine Incarnation.

Since we have kept this fast before the Advent, and have arrived at this glorious feast, we should receive it with purity and every good thing. We should extend our hand to comfort the weak, to help the poor, and to be instruments of peace and reconciliation among the people, taking our Lord Who has made an eternal peace by His Incarnation as our example. We should ask God in supplications to have compassion upon us and to forgive our sins, and to bless our gatherings, and to keep the life of His Holiness Pope ... , Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark, to keep his pontificate for many years with the joy, peace and the safety of the church, and the advancement of his people in virtue. May God grant us many returns of this feast, filled with the blessings of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Who came for our salvation.

To Him be the Glory and Honor forever. Amen.

— The Coptic Church Synaxarium for Christmas (Kiahk29).

Vagantes Hit the Coptic Church

Yes, the vagante Pseudodox now bedevil the Oriental Orthodox, as well. Note this report, discussing "a dissident bishop trying to set up a rival church":

[T]he self-proclaimed Archbishop Maximus I announced plans to start appointing bishops around the country and split from the Coptic Orthodox church.

"This man is married and has two daughters while bishops in our church should remain single," [Pope Shenouda III] said, adding that he believed Maximus would never receive government authorizations to pursue his project.

In an interview published last week, Maximus charged that Shenuda's pontificate had been disastrous and accused the patriarch of inciting sectarian violence in Egypt. [As if - BJ.]

When asked Monday if he would excommunicate Maximus, Shenuda [sic.] answered: "No need…he has already renounced the church."

Elsewhere, Pope Shenouda III noted, "The church has 20 centuries of history behind it. It has remained solid and was never harmed by the dangers threatening it, and it will not be affected by this development." Nope; the vagantes, for all their pride and self-importance, if they do not join Orthodoxy, pass out with a whimper and succeed in doing little aside from misleading trusting souls into placing their faith in a false ecclesiastical body.

Super-Orthodox vs. the Copts

Our friend Julio Gurrea submitted this comment, and I found it worth a post of its own. Nikolai Stanosheck from the "Russian Orthodox Autonomous Church" (ROAC) -- who is also webmaster of The Saint Euphrosynos Cafe -- had written in response to this post about the Malankara church, "You do realize the Monophysites (Oriental orthodox in PC-Eccumenistic talk) are anathema and have been for 1,500 years, right?" Julio responded:

Do you realize that anathemas are not self-enforcing "curses" that, once they are pronounced, just run away from the Church's control and function on their own without the bishops who govern the Church.

The anathemas of Chalcedon against Eutyches and his doctrine don't really matter to the Copts and other Oriental Orthodox. They also anathemize Eutyches and consider him a heretic. That is why the Copts have been insisting until they have no breath left that we can anthemzie Eutyches all we want- **HE IS NOT A SAINT IN THEIR CHURCH**. This fact is purposely overlooked. Sometimes even reliable sites (like orthodoxinfo.com) keep repeating the lie that the Copts venerate Eutyches as a saint.

Dioscorus was anathemized for not coming to the Council.

The non-Chalcedonians categorically reject the false doctrine of monophysitism as Eutyches taught it (i.e. that the humanity of Christ was swallowed up in His divinity like a drop of vinegar in the ocean). Countless Coptic liturgical texts (such as the "Tasbeha" or midnight praises) speak of Christ as "consubstantial with the Father in His divinity and consubstantial with us in His humanity" or that after the hypostatic union his human and divine natures became as one "without seperation, confusion, comingling, and without alteration."

This indicates that according to the Copts (and other churches in communion with them), the human nature which the Logos took from the Theotokos has not been mixed or blended into the divine nature as some sort of third human/divine "supernature" which is seperate from both human nature and divine nature.

You don't get a chance to find out what the bishops of this church are teaching their flock and what they believe and pray in their liturgies unless you sit down with them and actually *TALK*. When Eastern Orthodox Christians (which I am one) act like pharisees that can't talk with those of other communions, or when we always insist that other groups are lying to us when they tell us that they DON'T believe something, then we are strictly dependent on the polemics of schismatic bishops for our information.

As you may well know, these old, bitter schismatic "bishops" are usually interested in keeping their equally bitter and pharisaical flock/cult from talking with other Christians. This ensures that they keep a "fortress mentality" against the rest of the universe and always look to their pedophile pseudodox "hierarchs" for guidance. It doesn't do much for the growth of said cult, but at least it keeps the members sufficiently frightened and keeps them from leaving.

-Julio

P.S. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to the weekly Monday night Bible study held by the Coptic youth group at my school. This month we are working through Nehemiah. We only interrupted the Nehemiah lectures for one week so that my Antiochian priest could give a "guest lecture" on the Orthodox view of personhood. I'm soooo glad I'm not in the "True One Holy Traditional Orthodox Church of S. Florida" or some other similar group. Those are some depressing "churches" to be a member of.

I would only add two points: first, for a full view of the relations between OO and EO, see this site. Secondly, OrthodoxInfo.com is a mixed bag, IMHO. Otherwise, thanks for this much-needed injection of reality.

Indian Orthodox: New Catholicos-Designate

This is belated news, as it took place on October 12, but still of importance:

A meeting of the Malankara Syrian Christian Association , 4,051-member parliament of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church, held at the St Gregorios Nagar (Parumala seminary premises) on the banks of the Pampa at Parumala near Thiruvalla at 1 p.m. on Today is over by electing Metropolitan Paulos Mar Militheos as Catholicos-designate.

A meeting of the Malankara Syrian Christian Association , 4,051-member parliament of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church, held at the St Gregorios Nagar (Parumala seminary premises) on the banks of the Pampa at Parumala near Thiruvalla at 1 p.m. on Today is over by electing Metropolitan Paulos Mar Militheos as Catholicos-designate.

Catholicos-designate Paulos Mar Militheos, right, seated next to Catholicos Basileos Marthoma Didymus I (on throne).

The Catholicos is the head of the Malankara Church, the rough equivalent of a patriarch. The Malankara are Oriental Orthodox, not Byzantine Orthodox.

An Update on Pope Shenouda III

The health problems of Pope Shenouda III, the head of the Coptic Church, have been mentioned on this blog in the recent past. The papal residence in Cairo just released a statement on his condition:

His Holiness Pope Shenouda III had a successful spinal surgery at the Cleveland Clinic on Sunday, October 22, 2006. The surgery and immediate recovery have been excellent. His Holiness the Pope is currently receiving routine physical therapy, which is the natural follow-up to such surgery....

Read the whole thing. May God grant Pope Shenouda III speedy healing and many (more) blessed years.

Update on Pope Shenouda III

This blog mentioned some time ago that H.H. Pope Shenouda III, the head of the Coptic Church (Oriental Orthodox), had been reported ill. I'm happy to report he has returned to the public eye, having raised the flag while presiding over the ninth annual North American Annual Coptic Clergy Seminar. The seminar took place at Holy Virgin Mary Spiritual Vineyard in Charlton, Massachusetts, beginning August 28.



It is good to see him in public again, and as the Byzantines say, "God grant him many years."

(Hat tip: Coptic Perspectives)

St. Benedict Influenced Syrian Monasticism?

West Syrian monasticism, to be specific. At least, according to Fr. Dale A. Johnson (no relation, to the best of my knowledge), who writes the Rule of St. Benedict influenced the work of John of Mardin, the man who re-established the Monastery of Hananyo, today known as the monastery of Deir Zafaran (Saffron Monastery):

About the time John of Mardin was writing his rule in the East, sometime between 1124 and 1144 A.D., St. Bernard was carrying forth the reforms of the Cistercians in Europe. What is remarkable about the rule of John of Mardin is that it seems heavily influenced by the Benedictine characteristics, perhaps influenced by the Rule of Basil and perhaps even the rule of Benedict itself...I believe that the rule of John of Mardin is the first rule developed in the Mesopotamian world that is robust and rounded in the way the rule of Benedict can be characterized.

...John of Mardin’s rule has parallels to Benedict’s rule in 26 of the 31 chapters in a general thematic sense. This alone does not prove that John of Mardin knew directly of the Rule of Benedict. But it is highly suggestive.

...The genius of John of Mardin was his ability to synergize the Syriac monastic world with Benedictine influences. It is the same genius we see in Benedict, and each was able to affect their respective cultures in ways that spanned the centuries.

A truly engrossing account of how the father of Western monasticism had an enduring influence in the East, as well. You can read the whole article in "Shroro," the online journal of the Syrian Orthodox Church ("Monophysite/Jacobites").

And Best Wishes for Pope Shenouda III

Having posted that last article on the Coptic Church, perhaps I could take a moment to express my wishes for recovery and best health to Pope Shenouda III of Alexandria. The papal residence released a statement on July 6 stating he is currently in the United States due to health concerns, but they anticipated his return on July 9. However, I have read no follow-up that he has recovered and returned.

Having grown accumstomed to seeing this photo of Pope Shenouda III:


It was painful to see this picture from Cleveland, Ohio (presumably he's in The Cleveland Clinic?) from this spring:


May God grant him a long, healthy, and happy life -- many blessed years.

Patriarchal Letter on the Coptic Church

There had been some question about a speech reprinted in Al-Ahram Weekly (issue no. 740) of April 2005 by an Orthodox patriarch. Below is the text of an explanatory letter from H. H. the Greek Patriarch of Alexandria THEODOROS II concerning the faith of the Coptic Orthodox Church.



This documents referenced in the letter, and others, can be read at OrthodoxUnity.org.