SAINT LUKE THE EVANGELIST

GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH

oc tob e r 13, 2 013

s u n day of t h e holy fat h e r s of t h e 7 t h e c . cou nc i l
`Today the Church remembers the 350 holy Fathers of the Seventh Ecumenical Council under the holy Patriarch Tarasius (February 25). The Synod of 787, the second to meet at Nicea, refuted the Iconoclast heresy during the reign of Empress Irene and her son Constantine Porphyrogenitos. The Council decreed that the veneration of icons was not idolatry (Exodus 20:4-5), because the honor shown to them is not directed to the wood or paint, but passes to the prototype (the person depicted). It also upheld the possibility of depicting Christ, Who became man and took flesh at His Incarnation. The Father, on the other hand, cannot be represented in His eternal nature, because no man has seen God at any time ( John 1:18). The Martyrs Carpus, Papylus, Agathodorus and Agathonike suffered at Pergamun during the persecution of Decius in the third century. The governor of the district where the saints lived discovered that Carpus and Papylus did not celebrate the pagan festivals. He ordered that the transgressors be arrested and persuaded to accept the Roman pagan religion. The saints replied that they would never worship false gods. The judge then ordered them to be bound in iron chains and led through the city, and then to be tied to horses and dragged to the nearby city of Sardis. Agathodorus and Agathonike voluntarily followed after Carpus and Papylus. St Agathonike was choked to death with ox sinews and Sts Carpus, Papylus and Agathodorus were beheaded in Sardis. During his life St Papylus was known for his gift of curing the sick. Since his martyrdom, he has granted healing to all who pray to him with faith. New Martyr Zlata (Chryse) This golden vessel of virginity and undefiled bride of Christ, was born in the village of Slatena, Meglena diocese, on the border of Bulgaria and Serbia, while Bulgaria was under the Turkish Yoke. From her youth Zlata displayed an unusually strong character, a firm faith in Christ, and was both chaste and beautiful. A certain Turk was obsessed with her, and seized her one day as she was gathering wood. He carried her off to his house, and repeatedly tried to seduce the maiden and force her to accept Islam. Since persuasion did not work, he began to threaten her with grievous tortures.
1510 audubon drive columbia, missouri, 65201 tel. 573.817.0050 / fax 573.449.8452 email: info@saintlukecolumbia.org web: www.saintlukecolumbia.org

at the small entrance we sing

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apolyikion. Mode varys.

y means of Your Cross, O Lord, You abolished death. To the robber You opened Paradise. The lamentation of the myrrh-bearing women You transformed, and You gave Your Apostles the order to proclaim to all that You had risen, O Christ our God, and granted the world Your great mercy. apolyikion of the fathers. Mode pl. 4. upremely blessed are You, O Christ our God. You established the holy Fathers upon the earth as beacons, and through them You have guided us all to the true Faith, O greatly merciful One, glory be to You.

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apolyt. of the church. Mode pl. 1.

he holy Apostle, the All-hymned Luke, * who is acknowledged by the Church of Christ * as the recorder of the Acts of the Apostles, * and the splendid author of the Gospel of Christ. * Let us praise with sacred hymns as a physician, * who heals the infirmities of man, * and the ailments of nature, * who cleanses spiritual wounds, and prays unceasingly for our souls.

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Kontakion. Mode 2.

Protection of Christians that cannot be put to shame, mediation unto the creator most constant: O despise not the voices of those who have sinned; but be quick, O good one, to come unto our aid, who in faith cry unto thee: Hasten to intercession and speed thou to make supplication, O thou who

Abba Alonios said, If I had not destroyed myself completely, I should not have been able to rebuild and shape myself again.
sayings of the desert fathers

THE READINGS OF THE DAY

e p i s t l e r e a di ng g o s p e l r e a di ng
luke 8:5-15

The letter of paul to Titus 3:8-15

ITUS, my son, the saying is sure. I desire you to insist on these things, so that those who have believed in God may be careful to apply themselves to good deeds; these are excellent and profitable to men. But avoid stupid controversies, genealogies, dissensions, and quarrels over the law, for they are unprofitable and futile. As for a man who is factious, after admonishing him once or twice, have nothing more to do with him, knowing that such a person is perverted and sinful; he is self-condemned. When I send Artemas or Tychicos to you, do your best to come to me at Nicopolis, for I have decided to spend the winter there. Do your best to speed Zenas the lawyer and Apollos on their way; see that they lack nothing. And let our people learn to apply themselves to good deeds, so as to help cases of urgent need, and not to be unfruitful. All who are with me send greeting to you. Greet those who love us in the faith. Grace be with you all. Amen.

he Lord said this parable: A sower went out to sow his seed; and as he sowed, some fell along the path, and was trodden under foot, and the birds of the air devoured it. And some fell on the rock; and as it grew up, it withered away, because it had no moisture. And some fell among thorns; and the thorns grew with it and choked it. And some fell into good soil and grew, and yielded a hundredfold. And when his disciples asked him what this parable meant, he said, To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of God; but for others they are in parables, so that seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand. Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. The ones along the path are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, that they may not believe and be saved. And the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy; but these have no root, they believe for a while and in time of temptation fall away. And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature. And as for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bring forth fruit with patience. As he said these things, he cried out He who has ears to hear, let him hear.

Thursday, October 17, Vigil for the St. Luke the Evangelist, 7pm Saturday, October 19, Great Vespers, 5pm parish feast day - vigil october 17 On Thursday, October 17, we will celebrate a Vigil in honor of our patron, St. Luke the Evangelist. Services will begin at 7pm with Great Vespers, followed by Orthros and Divine Litrugy. Please make every effort to attend at least part of the vigil as we ask for St. Lukes intercession before His Master and our Lord for the protection and growth of our parish. philoptochos GIFT CARDS: The next deadline to order gift cards will be November 3. Check out the list of available giftcards. These cards make great gifts and also are great for everyday spending. Proceeds benefit the ministries of Philoptochos. baptism Today following Divine Services the daughter of Aaron and Kathy Hodges, Amia (Emilia), will be baptized. parish family night The next Parish Family event will be held on November 10, following Divine Services. Please complete the enclosed registration form if you would like to attend. give a month towards our future A little over one year ago we purchased land for our future growth. As we did last year, we would like to offer families and individuals the opportunity to help offset our additional mortgage payment with a donation of $640. If you would like to sponsor one month for 2013, please contact Fr. Michael. Thus far we have received committments for 5 of 12 months. As always, your geneorsity is a blessing to our community! dinner dance The Dinner Dance has been canceled due to poor ticket sales. If you purchased a ticket, please see John Pardalos or Julie K. for a refund. fr. joseph 25th anniversary Those who may interested in traveling together by bus for the celebration of Fr. Josephs 25th anniversary as Assumption Greek Orthodox Church in St. Louis should speak to Fr. Michael today following Divine Services. The bus would leave at approximately 7:15am on Sunday, October 20.

4 0 day b l e s s i ng: a m i a (e m i l i a) hod g e s u p c om i ng c h u rc h s e r v ic e s:

announcements

Abba Elias said, When someone wishes to render evil for evil, he can injure his brothers soul even by a single nod of the head.
Sayings of the desert fathers

synaxarion
The glorious martyr was not frightened by these threats, but said she would never deny Christ no matter what they did to her. For six months the impious Hagarenes tried to make Zlata accept their religion, but she remained steadfast. Then they ordered the saints parents and sisters to convince her to become a Moslem. Otherwise, they said, they would kill Zlata and torture them. The parents and sisters of the saint wept and urged her to deny Christ just for the sake of appearances, so that they all might be spared torments and death. St Zlata was unmoved by their pleas, and replied, You who incite me to deny Christ are no longer my parents and sisters. Instead, I have the Lord Jesus Christ as my father, the Theotokos as my mother, and the saints as my brothers and sisters! When the Moslems saw that they could not weaken the resolve of the saint, they tormented her for three months, beating her with clubs. Later, they peeled strips of skin from her body so that the earth was reddened by her blood. Then they heated a skewer and passed it through her ears. Nearby was her spiritual Father, the hieromonk Timothy of Stavronikita Monastery on Mt. Athos. She sent word to him to pray that she would successfully complete the course of martyrdom. It was he who recorded her martyrdom. Finally, the Moslems fell into a fury at having been conquered by a woman, so they tied her to a tree and cut her to pieces with their knives. Her pure soul was received by Christ, Who bestowed on her the double crowns of virginity and martyrdom. Certain Christians gathered her relics secretly and buried them with reverence. St Zlata suffered for Christ in the year 1795. Saint Nicetas the Confessor of Paphlagonia was a patrician at the imperial court during the reigns of the empress Irene and her son Constantine. He represented the empress Irene at the Seventh Ecumenical Council in 787, though his name does not appear in the Acts of the Council. He also assisted at the transfer of the relics of St Euphemia (September 16). Renouncing all positions and honors, Nicetas decided to become a monk. At the request of the emperor, he did not go into the wilderness, but rather remained in a monastery in the capital. When the Iconoclast Theophilus occupied the imperial throne, the venerable Nicetas was banished from the monastery by the heretics for opposing the heresy. He wandered for a long time throughout the country. St Nicetas died at the age of seventy-five about the year 838. During his life and after his death he worked many miracles. The Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, located on Mount Athos, has been glorified by many miracles. Accounts of the wonderworking image were spread throughout Russia by pilgrims. His Holiness Patriarch Nikon (then still Abbot of the Novospasky monastery) asked Abbot Pachomius of the Iveron Monastery on Mt Athos, (who was in Moscow collecting alms for the Athonite monasteries) to supply a copy of the wonderworking Iveron Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos. The Athonite monk Iamblichos painted the copy of the Iveron Icon, and after a year the icon was taken to Moscow, accompanied by monks of Athos. On October 13, 1648 it was solemnly greeted by a multitude of the people. The Iveron Icon of the Russian Orthodox Church was also glorified by the Lord with many miracles (February 12).

MONASTICISM: THE APOSTOLIC LIFE (pt. 2)

by the Very Reverend Abbot of St. Anthonys Monastery, Archimandrite Paisios

hen the Church was besieged by blasphemous heresies, the monks and nuns greatly contributed to fight against them. They fought against and hated the dogmas of the heretics, but sincerely loved the heretics. With sincere love in imitation of Christ they brought the heretics back to the bosom of the Church. The sacrament of communion was the final, the crowning stage of the heretics return to the Church. However, without the complete rejection of the heresy, this was impossible. Their confession of faith in the decision of the Ecumenical Councils was considered a basic prerequisite of the expression of the orthodoxy of the monks. The catholicity of the Church during the era of the Ecumenical Councils is lived in the eucharistic assembly with obedience to a bishop, as well as through the unconditional acceptance of the decisions of the Ecumenical Councils. The voice of the infallible Church is expressed both through the Ecumenical Councils and through the other regional councils, whose authority is acknowledged by the universal Churchs conscience. The champions of these decisions were the monks, distinguished for their orthodox faith. Since heresy appeared as a threat to the unity of the Church, the bishops, being responsible for their flock, sought the help of spiritual men to confront the heresies. St. Anthony the Great was summoned from his mountain by the bishops many times to help confront the Arians. St. Makarios was called upon by a bishop to help him against Ierakitos. The nun Melani was active in Palestine. Besides all the other public welfare institutions and womens and mens monasteries she founded, she brought about 400 schismatics back to Orthodoxy, who belonged

to the sect of the Meletians. Likewise, she worked with other spiritual men to bring all the Spiritfighting heretics of her area back to the Church. In the book of Barsanuphios and John, the faith in the Ecumenical Councils is praised and extolled. In Palestine, St. Efthymios and St. Symeon the Stylite brought Evdokia back from the anti-Chalcedonian heresy of Dioscoros to the Universal Church. And along with her, a multitude of people deceived by Theodosios returned to the Orthodox Church. The confessors of the Orthodox Church Sts. Savvas and Theodosios the Abbot also engaged in similar struggles. St. Savvas not only anathematized the leaders of heresies Eutuches, Nestor, and Severos but also supported the council of Chalcedon. Countless other monks struggled for the authority of the Ecumenical Councils and against the heresies. Not only did monks and hieromonks struggle for them, but they also took part in the Ecumenical Councils. In particular in the Seventh Ecumenical Council, out of the 350 Orthodox Fathers, 136 were abbots and monks. Even the emperors themselves believed in the positive role of the monks to bring back those who had gone astray from the Church, which is one. The letters of the emperor Marcian to the Fathers of Sinai which exhort them against Theodosios the heretic, show the conviction of the emperor that the peace of the Church and the return to her of those who have gone stray was possible through the sound advice and support of the monastics. The ascetic monastic fathers of the desert, having traversed the path of their spiritual journey free of deception, that is, by passing from the purification of their soul, and progressing to illumination

and theosis, in other words to the state of beholding God, to the true theology of our Church, were able to present the truth successfully against errors. Our Church honors marriage in Christ as well as virginity in Christ. So when a monk or nun criticizes or despises marriage, he shows that he does not have an ecclesiastical mind-set (phronema), since he criticizes something that the Church blesses. A true monk never criticizes the blessed state of marriage. And of course a married person should not criticize monasticism because this also shows a lack of an ecclesiastical mind-set (phronema). Divine Grace is acquired by the monk with virginity in Christ, while by the layman with a marriage in Christ. But in either case, a struggle, ascesis, is required, according to Orthodox teaching. St. John Chrysostom teaches: Those who live in the world, even though they are married, ought to resemble the monks in all ways. You are greatly deceived if you think that there are things that are required of laymen and other things of monks. All are equally accountable. St. Basil the Great says in his Ascetical Works: Submission to the Gospel is required for all men, both for monks and for laymen. How much, and to what degree must each and every person apply himself in order to attain salvation? According to Father Justin Popovitch, all of God and all of man, nothing less. It is not measured by just how much is needed and who gives more but God gives all of Himself and man must give all of himself, and in this consists salvation. And this again applies to monks as well as laymen. Monasticism expresses the apostolic life of the ancient Church as the continuation of that Church. It is the heart of the Church. But because the world does not provide the capability for people to live in it evangelically to the degree that many would want to, they withdraw from the world, aflame

with a divine inspiration, which for several people is uncontainable, for even in their sleep they keep the commandments of the Lord. They withdraw from the world not out of self-love or cowardice or to avoid assuming worldly responsibilities, but out of a purely holy desire to be freed of their passions and that their heart be cleansed, so that they be united with Him Whom they yearn for. A Monk, according to St. Nilus of Sinai, is he who, withdrawing from all men, is united with all men. A monk is he who regards himself as existing with all men and sees himself in each man. The more a monk overcomes the world, the brighter shines his grace-filled rays and the greater the number of people who can be warmed and illumined by them. From his isolate cell, he sees deeper and becomes familiar with his fellow human beings and grows far closer to them in heart than is possible for those living in the world, for he sees them all and is united with them in God. Monasticism is similar to the first apostolic parishes, not only in their common belongings and common daily prayers, but primarily in their common therapeutic treatment. In the ancient Church, the catechumen would pass through the stage of purification, would be enlightened in Holy Baptism, and would even reach theosis. In a similar fashion, a novice monk struggles in the stage of purification and repentance, as the catechumen would, and when his repentance is completed, he enters the stage of enlightenment with the Second Baptism which he receives, that is, in his tonsure, and then by the grace of God, he proceeds, if God wills it, towards theosis. If we study Orthodox Monasticism, we would understand how the first apostolic parishes functioned. The parish life can be inspired by the monastic life. Angels are a light for monastics, and the monastics are a light for laymen, according to St. John

of Sinai. The monastery reminds the faithful that the commandments of the Lord are common, they apply to all. It drives them on towards new spiritual struggles. Some even experience a spiritual rebirth, according to just how receptive they are to the Grace of the Holy Spirit. The monastery is a clinic, in precisely the same way that the first apostolic parishes were. The uncreated grace of God perfects man. Once man achieves the healing of this soul, he lives the tradition of our Church; he becomes a bearer of Tradition. When the great Fathers of the Church, who were for the most part monks spoke about purification, illumination, and theosis, they spoke as ones with the experience of the uncreated light; they lived this reality, they lived this tradition of the Church, they lived Orthodoxy. And Orthodoxy, according to Father Justin Popovitch, is: life and experience of grace, and through this grace, knowledge of God and men. The monks, and all Christians, who are cleansed of their passions, find the cure of their soul become the most social of people. And since they themselves have found interior peace and perceptibly know what it means to be a temple of the Holy Spirit, they are able to guide others as well towards the purification of their soul. Spiritual guides are not limited merely to the clergy or to the monks and nuns, but all clergy and laity, married and celibate, men and women are able to guide souls towards perfection if they themselves have been purified of their passions and have attained the state of enlightenment. Or even if they are still in the stage of the purification of their soul, they are able to help. The love that one has towards monasticism, towards the apostolic life is proof that one lives Orthodox tradition. It is love towards the essence itself of Orthodoxy and this is why all the saints loved ascesis.

The ascetical life is our effort assisted by the Grace of God to apply the commandments of Christ. As St. Gregory Palamas has said ascesis is primarily the evangelical life which is based on repentance. It is mans preparation for his union with Christ. The commandments of the Lord are directed to all married and celibate, without exception. The only difference is that monks pursue the more perfect application, according the words of the Lord, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and come and follow me. Ascesis along with repentance requires bodily effort. As Abba Isaac the Syrian says, The nous is not glorified with Jesus Christ if the body does not suffer for Christ. When by means of an ascetical life man is united with Christ, or at least is progressing towards this communion and union, then he is able to see within himself how the achievement of the image and likeness of God is brought about. When man struggles, he simply shows his good intentions to God, and it is the uncreated grace that performs the ineffable union. When a monk, or a Christian, lives properly, that is, when he progresses spiritually and passes through purification and attains enlightenment, and progresses in accordance with the will of God towards theosis, then he lives Pentecost. He comes into direct contact with Christ through His uncreated energies, which has an impact on the whole world for a persons spiritual rebirth, as the Fathers of the Church understand it and as it is lived primarily in monasticism, is noticed by all of creation. He effectively benefits all of creation. His teaching, his life, his behavior, his entire spiritual world are all different. He reflects the eternal life, the new life that Christ brought to the world. This new man is what we, too, are called to live in order to see in practice the difference between the genuine Orthodox Christian and the life of a worldly man.
To be continued