CROSSES

The tree which hung the fruit of the womb

“Whoever wants to run away from the calling they have followed on the course of their life will end up in a parched state, whilst those who withstand and seek to hold strong for the sake of the gospel whilst trusting in me – these will never be lacking. You may indeed gain much in this life but such things in life are temporary and nothing is certain; would you not aspire to gain that which lasts forever rather than exchanging that very opportunity via such worldly aspirations and then finding yourself outside the kingdom?” (Mk 8: 35-37)

The great divide has once again been presented by the Lord as he did with the parable of poor Lazarus and the rich man. It’s not about a robin hood setting where we condemn the rich and give everything to the poor, rather it’s about getting our priorities right and setting goals in our lives that secures an abundant harvest for our very persona: spirit, mind, and body!

We have often heard the saying “sharing is caring” – St. John the Baptist made it clear at the shores of the Jordan when people were asking him what should they do to attain the kingdom; giving what you can afford to someone who has nothing at all! (Lk 3:11) Yet greed gets in the way and like the Lord further exhorts in the parable of sower and seed; “The seeds that fall amongst thorns is a reminder for those who are surrounded by worldly wealth which ultimately binds them and chokes their spiritual journey.” (Lk 8:14)

It’s not the fact of one’s wealth which is in question, but the way they use what they have been blessed with to make the world a better place (humanitarianly speaking) rather than resembling Ebenezer Scrooge!

Depression is a growing concern and it is alarmingly present in the lives of those who are high and mighty in worldly contexts – spiritual bankruptcy is in actual fact the cause! If our spirit is not in good condition it most certainly manifests within the human mind and ultimately begins to show on the body! A recitation of the Lord’s prayer or a visit to church or even the lighting of candles or burning incense is just not enough – its’ a start but as the apostle Paul exhorted: “When I was a child I thought like one, but when I grew up – I acted accordingly!” (1Cor 13:11)

Hence, we need to develop a strong connection with God; although we are put off and rightfully so via the official channels (church groups) so to speak/write, but we need to allow our growth to be pruned via correction and effort if we are to truly be successful in all things!

“Whoever will be ashamed of professing me in so far as using my own words which I have left you in society that ever leans towards total harmful and repugnant attitudes to the gift of life bestowed; I assure you that when your hour comes and you stand before my presence where the Father and the holy dwell – I will shame you!” (Mk 8: 38)

When we try to smooth things over – butter it up or sugar coat, the truth will eventually hurt because when we wake up from the slumber of being in denial – the awakening of reality hits hard! Therefore, many Christians and so called churches these days tend to lay the cross aside or cover it up so it doesn’t offend others! We have developed a serious disease where however good it is to respect others, yet we compromise by allowing stupidity to take hold of us by denying the love of God who came to die in the flesh so all flesh may rise in his (Jesus) name.

The Apostle Paul once presented the Church in Corinth with a reflection stating: “We preach that the Christ was crucified. This is totally scandalous to the Jews for it is not possible for the Messiah to die at the hands of Rome. Yet this is total stupidity for the gentiles for how can the Christ succumb to such if he be the Saviour?” (1Cor 1:23) Here is the catch – the Cross (Jesus) has become a scandal (shameful) to his own people (Christians) we are quick to learn from other faiths yet we are just as quick to shun our own in order to fit the sway of our times!

As I stated in my Nativity Homily – bible bashers are absolute nut cases which tarnish the faith of the true Christians; the opening words of such preaching harbours imminent indigestion! This person began (Swanston St exhibitionism): “You are all going to hell….!” I was dressed in clerical attire and I had enough of this fodder – I stopped him in front of a few people stating: “If I had to follow your brand of so called Christianity I’d hang myself because its depressingly damaging and Non-Apostolic (untruthful) anyone who hears you would say I’d rather stick with paganism because it presents excitement and happiness and a purpose to life in making the most of it!” That shut him up to which he packed up very quickly after that.

He then called the people whose hearts desired fullness and then gathered his disciples around him whilst stating: “If you truly want to follow me - this then means that you will taste the pain of crucifixion because you will feel isolation, you will feel the pressure of many concerns as the weight of its wood, and you may ultimately follow me in the footsteps of martyrdom!” (Mk 8: 34)

Unfortunately certain denominations have used this passage to secure the path to celibate priesthood, yet when its true meaning is unveiled we discover that if you think priesthood is a brilliant career as many who are in it enjoy – true priests and Christians in general are people that know very well what it means to suffer especially at the hands of your own people! The problem the Church is in at the moment is all because of the wrong people thriving off a brilliant career…..we have never had a crisis in history as grand as this which has ushered in the greatest spiritual bankruptcy of all time!

Lord, save us your people and ever bless us as your inheritance; granting us victory over all enemies and preserving us via the merits of thy precious and life-giving cross. (Troparion/Seasonal Hymn of the Cross)

The troparion/seasonal hymn above highlights the third Sunday of Great Lent as the means of venerating the wood made holy by the life of He who is Holy! Although lent is the springtime for the soul where we go into the garden of our hearts and have a spring cleaning adventure; striping away the weeds that impede our growth/goals……should not this be a period of extreme penance where we employ morbid thoughts??? NO!!!

We all know the account which has left a profound imprint on humanity……..undoubtedly most of us have encountered crosses in various places along roadsides; automatically we say to ourselves “something tragic happened here – someone or various people have lost their life in this particular spot!” Hence, the cross which began as an instrument of torture has become the insignia of death and its hold over creation.

Unfortunately we are drifting way from our faith – our Apostolic heritage with various temporary alternatives society fathoms……! We believe in good luck rather than grace, in fate rather than the freedom of conscience given us by the giver of life and source of all blessings! A perfect example of this is found in the phrase “touch wood!” We have truly lost the origins of this notion which is used as a talisman so to speak against any negative occurrence; “what are its origins?” Hence, to remind us of what and why – the Fathers of the Church decided to insert veneration of the Cross on the Third Sunday of Great Lent to prepare and further acquaint us well for Holy Week!

Thus, on Good Friday we come to church to TOUCH the wood of the cross….to KISS the wood of the cross, to VENERATE the wood of the cross; this very wood which begun as the instrument of torture and death has become the means of redemption. Thus, hope for those who were lost but now have been reclaimed by love personified who shed his blood in the assurance that through his wounds we find strength and are healed. Thus, the cross is our story, our glory, and our song and as a holy people via the baptism we have received we cry out in hymnody and sing: “sweetest wood, and sweetest nails, sweetest weight is hung on thee!”

The Orthodox Church present in Greece is a divided people and here in the diaspora that division has been the cause of much heartache and persecution. Hence, when the Julian Calendar (Orthodox Calendar) was forced to succumb to the reforms of the Gregorian – Greece witnessed a blood bath (21st November 1927) of people who willed to remain faithful yet were opposed via military power ordered by the patriarchate in Istanbul (former Constantinople) Many martyrs were hushed and ordered not to be recognised in order for the new changes to prevail!

One such Martyr hushed and kept out of sight was Catherine Routis (1900-1927 AD) who used her own body as a human shield so that the police could not seize her parish priest (opposing change) …..At that she was violently hit in the head by a rifle to which the words of the Theotokon ‘Ave Maria” were on her lips until she reposed in the Lord!

Thus it is with great joy that our Exarchate acclaims Catherine as a Martyr of the Church and will be Canonized on the Eve of the Veneration of the Cross this weekend. I invite you to visit the Exarchal Decree section of our website for further information – an invitation for all to ask for her intercessions as we journey towards the week of all weeks!

Hence, in requoting the Lord “If you truly want to follow me - this then means that you will taste the pain of crucifixion because you will feel isolation, you will feel the pressure of many concerns as the weight of its wood, and you may ultimately follow me in the footsteps of martyrdom!” (Mk 8: 34) I would like to share an account which was witnessed by both sides in Greece – such an account which many do not like to refer too due to such being so obvious of the wrongs committed. I invite you to visit the webpage which such can be found on: http://orthodoxinfo.com/ecumenism/cross_sign.aspx

In 1925, on the eve, of the feast of the Exaltation of the All-Honourable and Life-giving Cross of our Saviour, 14 September according to the Orthodox Church calendar, the all-night vigil was served at the church of St. John the Theologian in suburban Athens. By 9 o'clock that evening, more than 2,000 of the true-Orthodox faithful had gathered in and around the church for the service, since very few true-Orthodox churches had been accidentally left open by the civil authorities.

Such a large gathering of people could not, however, go unnoticed by the authorities. Around eleven P.M. the authorities dispatched a battalion of police to the church "to prevent any disorders which might arise from such a large gathering." The gathering was too large for the police to take any direct action or to arrest the priest at that time and so they joined the crowd of worshippers in the already over-flowing courtyard of the church.

Then, regardless of the true motives for their presence, against their own will, but according to the Will which exceeds all human power, they became participants in the miraculous experience of the crowd of believers.

At 11:30 P.M., there began to appear in the heavens above the church, in the direction of North-East, a bright, radiant Cross of light. The light not only illuminated the church and the faithful but, in its rays, the stars of the clear, cloudless sky became dim and the church-yard was filled with an almost tangible light. The form of the Cross itself was an especially dense light and it could be clearly seen as a Byzantine cross with an angular cross bar toward the bottom.

This heavenly miracle lasted for half an hour, until midnight, and then the Cross began slowly to raise up vertically, as the cross in the hands of the priest does in the ceremony of the Elevation of the Cross in church. Having come straight up, the Cross began gradually to fade away.

On the subject of the cross, I would like to share with you a testimony of faith in the midst of corrupted service…..a certain bishop who I cannot name till the synod convenes and deposes him; this corrupted individual once made a false promise to a lady who had many misfortunes in her life. Now, holy relics are given only by approval of a ruling bishop and with authentication, yet this person who had the habit of liquidating people’s earning promised a splinter of the cross.

Therefore when he gave the fake article to the lady in question, she treasured it wholeheartedly and invited many of her friends and family to join in prayer: PARAKLESIS which is the Entreaty Service in this case of the Cross of the Saviour. Thus, because they believed and their faith was sincere, Divine Grace caused that splinter to flow with the fruit of the olive: Myrrh/perfumed oil as a means of God’s presence. This continued for 8 months to which she then invited that man (bishop) to serve the Divine Liturgy in her home.

Hence, disgraced by God in his act of simony (demanding a ridiculous payment for such a relic only churches can house) he then had to come clean and tell the lady the truth – to which the flow of oil ceased; yet he did not hand back the cash! What then is the moral of this story?

Our Lord puts it together quite well and most simple for all hearts who wholeheartedly believe in the power of his Name: “If you truly have faith even if you resemble the mustard seed which is smallest of seeds, power will be given you. Nothing is impossible when you ask in faith for it is as if you were to ask a mountain to move from one place to another or even to a tree to uproot itself from the land and plant itself in the sea!” (Mt 17:20)

As we move in a world that is uncertain of what direction it takes and societies fluctuate with their choice of ideals, let us take this opportunity of Great Lent to be a time where we (the baptised) withdraw from such bombardments and enter into the shelter of our Apostolic Faith. Here we will find stability, truth which is unchanged, and a resting place surrounded by the witness of the blessed who have gone before us and through their struggles - many to the point of their blood being shed; have aspired to live in Christ who came to Commune with us via the Mystery of his Intervention.

We unlike others have the grace to receive him in bread and wine, the grace to be strengthened by him via water and the grace to be healed by him via oil. Why would we want to abandon a freshly baked loaf of bread and fall down to something which only offers a few crumbs from the previous meal? This is the time we are called to anchor onto him (Jesus) who is the rock of salvation (Ps 18:2) in the midst of the stormy crisis we may face. He promised to be with us and will never leave us orphaned, (Jn 14:18) rather he will raise us up and make us whole! (1Cor 6:14)

Unlike us who try to keep our words but things get in the way; God’s word is eternal and unchanged – we have beheld that very word which called all things into being. Let us embrace the Lord who desires to reach out onto us and lift us from our burdens into the safety of his dwelling; that place where we can come to him – the heart in which the kingdom dwells! (Lk 17:21)

Lord, you ascended the wood of the cross in thy merciful love for us your people; as the lamb who goes voluntarily to his slaughter. You who are the unction from above; gladden us your Church who are preserved unharmed by thy Name. We venerate the wood of thy cross for you sanctified it with thy blood and as pearl of great price, you tear down the walls of oppression with thy weapon of peace. (Kontakion/complimentary Hymn of the Cross)