| We are not a living body that contains a soul! We are a living soul that dwells within a living body! | May 2008 |
The American Orthodox Church
| We are not a living body that contains a soul! We are a living soul that dwells within a living body! | May 2008 |
The Orthodox Church is not a denomination, it is the living body of Christ.
The Word of God is not a book, It is a Person; Jesus the Christ.
The Prophets of the old and new covenant are those who have seen, heard and touched the Word of Life. (He who was from the beginning, the one whom we have heard, and have
seen with our eyes, have touched with our hands, we declare to you is the
Word of Life,) I John 1:1
Salvation, Worship in Vain.
Who is Jesus the Christ?
10 That the manifold wisdom of God may be made known to the principalities and powers in heavenly places through the church,
11 According to the eternal purpose, which he made, in Christ Jesus our Lord: 12 In whom we have boldness and access with confidence by the faith of him. 13 Wherefore I pray you not to faint at my tribulations for you, which is your glory. 14 For this cause I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, 15 Of whom all paternity in heaven and earth is named,
16 That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened by his Spirit with might unto the inward man, 17 That Christ may dwell by faith in your hearts; that being rooted and founded in charity, 18You may be able to comprehend, with all the saints, what is the breadth, and length, and height, and depth: 19 To know also the charity of Christ, which surpasseth all knowledge, that you may be filled unto all the fullness of God. 20 Now to him who is able to do all things more abundantly than we desire or understand, according to the power that worketh in us;
21To him be glory in the church, and in Christ Jesus unto all generations, world without end. Amen.
This is going to be a continuing series and it will run for a few months, pay attention to what is written and do the work, do not play at Christianity, you will not like the end of the game.|
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Teaching of the Church! | |||
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See also Orthodox Catechism by the Very Reverend Archimandrite Gregori
Canon XLV of the Holy Apostles
"Let any Bishop, or Presbyter, or deacon that merely joins in prayer with heretics be suspended, but if he had permitted them to perform any service as Clergymen, let him be deposed."
Canon LXV Of the Holy Apostles:
"If any clergymen, or laymen, enter a synagogue of Jews, or of heretics, to pray, let him be both deposed and excommunicated."
"Concerning the fact that those belonging to the Church must not be allowed to go visiting the cemeteries or the so called martyria of any heretics, for the purpose of prayer or of cure, but, on the contrary, those who do so, if they be among the faithful, shall be excluded from communion for a time until they repent and confess their having made a mistake, when they may be readmitted to communion."
"One must not join in prayer with heretics or schismatics."
3. Theological dialogue must not in any way be linked with prayer in common, or by joint participation in any liturgical or worship services whatsoever; or in other activities which might create the impression that our Orthodox Church accepts, on the one hand, Roman Catholics as part of the fulness of the Church, or, on the other hand, the Pope as the canonical bishop of Rome. Activities such as these mislead both the fulness of the Orthodox people and the Roman Catholics themselves, fostering among them a mistaken notion as to what Orthodoxy thinks of their teaching.
If any Bishop, or Presbyter, or Deacon celebrate the holy day of Easter before the vernal equinox with the Jews, let him be deposed.
As for all persons who dare to violate the definition of the holy and great Synod convened in Nicaea in the presence of Eusebeia, the consort of the most God-beloved Emperor Constantine, concerning the holy festival of the soterial Pascha, we decree that they be excluded from Communion and be outcasts from the Church if they persist more captiously in objecting to the decisions that have been made as most fitting in regard thereto; and let these things be said with reference to laymen. But if any of the person occupying prominent positions in the Church, such as a Bishop, or a Presbyter, or a Deacon, after the adoption of this definition, should dare to insist upon having his own way, to the perversion of the laity, and to the disturbance of the church, and upon celebrating Pascha along with the Jews, the holy Synod has hence judged that person to be an alien to the Church, on the ground that he has not only become guilty of sin by himself, but has also been the cause of corruption and perversion among the multitude. Accordingly, it not only deposes such persons from the liturgy, but also those who dare to commune with them after their deposition. Moreover, those who have been deposed are to be deprived of the external honor too of which the holy Canon and God's priesthood have partaken.
See also the Sigillon of 1583 which anathematized the Gregorian (Papal) Calendar.
Schisms is the name applied to those who on account of ecclesiastical causes and remediable questions have developed a quarrel amongst themselves. Parasynagogues is the name applied to gatherings held by insubordinate presbyters or bishops, and those held by uneducated laities. As, for instance, when one has been arraigned for a misdemeanor held aloof from liturgy and refused to submit to the Canons, but laid claim to the presidency and liturgy for himself, and some other persons departed with him, leaving the catholic Church—that is a parasynagogue.
"If any Presbyter, condemning his own bishop, draw people aside and set up another altar, without finding anything wrong with the Bishop in point of piety and righteousness, let him be deposed, on the ground that he is an office-seeker. For he is a tyrant. Let the rest of clergymen be treated likewise, and all those who abet him. But let the laymen be excommunicated. Let these things be done after one, and a second, and a third request of the Bishop."
Interpretation (of Ss. Nikodemos and Agapios):
"Order sustains the coherence of both heavenly things and earthly things, according to St. Gregory the Theologian. So good order ought to be kept everywhere as helping coherence and preserving the established system, and especially among ecclesiastics, who need to know their own standards, and to avoid exceeding the limits and bounds of their own class. But as for Presbyters, and Deacons, and all clergymen they ought to submit to their own Bishop; the Bishops, in turn, to their own Metropolitan; the Metropolitans, to their own Patriarch. On this account the present Apostolical Canon ordains as follows: Any presbyter that scorns his own bishop, and without knowing that the latter is manifestly at fault either in point of piety or in point of righteousness—that is to say, without knowing him to be manifestly either heretical or unjust—proceeds to gather the Christians into a distinct group and to build another church, and should hold services seperately, without the permission and approval of his bishop in so doing, on the ground of his being an office-seeker he is to be deposed; since like a tyrant with violence and tyranny he is trying to wrest away the authority which belongs to his bishop. But also any other clergymen that agree with him in such apostasy must be deposed from office too just as he must; but as for those who are laymen, let them be excommunicated. These things, however, are to be done after the bishop three times gently and blandly urges those who have seperated from him to forgo such a movement, and they obstinately refuse to do so. As for those, however, who seperate from their bishop before a synodical investigation because he himself is preaching some misbelief and heresy publicly, not only are not subject to the above penances, but have a right to claim the honor due to Orthodox Christians according to c. XV of the 1st & 2nd.
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From the pages of the American Orthodox Church/North American Orthodox Church
It is obvious that Jesus meant for the church to be one in Spirit and in teaching. There is only one truth.
There is only One God, One Lord Jesus Christ, One Holy Spirit, One Christian Church. It is plain and obvious that the Holy Spirit does work through those in many different denominations. God still uses those who are true to Jesus Christ. However, this does not change the truth of the teachings of the original Orthodox Church.
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Please give these things prayerful thought, meditate on these words, learn to be still and listen to the Holy Spirit in the quiet time.
This will continue next issue. See you then.
Monk Michael
I'll see you in the next issue. Send this to your friends and family and ask them to sign up. You cannot know Jesus without becoming concerned for the life of everyone you meet.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.
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This is your health, May 2008.
Health is a funny thing isn't it? Many people dream of financial health but when you witness far too many of those who have found financial health they are in emotional ruin, often times committing suicide, living foolishly and dying far too young, in and out of rehabs, life in constant turmoil. But then you have the exceedingly wealthy who own most of the money in the world and they live behind the scenes; their spiritual life is in ruin, they care about nothing or anyone except their own, no one else matters to them and they will face an eternity of things that I do not even want to think about.
What about those fanatics who worship health, spending hours upon hours
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