Religion

Wednesday, January 09, 2008

I read this quote and wanted to share

"The Orthodox Church is the light of faith in the Word of God in the darkness of whimsical opinions...”

The phrase “the darkness of whimsical opinions” is a very compelling phrase to me.  FYI, it is from an interview of Met. Herman (http://www.oca.org/News.asp?ID=1415&SID=19) in describing the role of the Orthodox Church in the modern world.

The complete question and answer was “Q. How would you define the role of the Orthodox Church in the modern world?

A. The Orthodox Church is the light of faith in the Word of God in the darkness of whimsical opinions, the pillar of morality amidst the quicksand of relativist societies. Our purpose is to transform the modern world, rather than conform to it, as the Scripture tells us.

Wednesday, April 11, 2007

so, what’s the weather like for pascha around here

Our new Priest, God bless his soul, asked our Warden, “So, whats the weather like for Pascha around here?” To which the Warden replied, “Oh, anywhere between 80 and snowing.” Well, the poor Priest didn’t believe our good Warden as our new Priest was from Florida, and “Surely, it doesn’t snow in April!”.

Well, As you can see from the attached two pictures… yeah, it does.... Welcome to Holy Saturday!

You might not be able to see the speckles of snow which is a little more clear on the left picture (buy me a better camera, i’ll give you better pictures) ... but if you look off in the distance… that is not fog. 

That is snow…

Snow!  The thing about Kentucky is… if you don’t like the weather, wait around a few hours, it will change!

Tuesday, April 10, 2007

Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death (lots of pics, so expect long download)

For me, this was probably the best Pascha yet. This time I feel like I got a real sense of the timing of things. This time I got a real sense of the emotion of the event. When Jesus wept at the tomb of Lazarus, I understood the emotional side of it (at least to some extent). Father Justin, (see pic to the left) did a good job reading the Gospel. Of course, he just read (canted) it, perhaps it would be better to say that I did a better job than in the past of understanding, listening, contemplating, and empathsizing with the Gospel readings this year.

Every year the tomb area looks fantastic, and this year was no exception. As you can see in the picture on the right and below, there were a ton of flowers that greatly accented the service and “framed” the alter area - specifically “the doors” area.

The team that purchases and arranges these do such a good job each year. I think that the added beauty that they provide adds such a fantastic setting and “ambiance” to the services. Having been to several funerals recently and seeing people laying in state, and the amount that we pay for flowers to be arranged in baskets, to be hung on metal frames, and to be “just right” to help us deal with the dieing.

This is especially interesting in the midst of reading ”For the Life of the World” by Alexander Schmemann - may his memory be eternal - specifically chapter six, “Trampling down Death by Death” and the comparrison of Religion, Secularism and Christianity and how Religion and Secularism both try to make death something that is either “normal” - i.e. the funeral home looks like a “normal” house, the corpse looks “good” - or is a natural condition - “death is a part of life”, “we all die, so live life to the fullest”. Christianity, on the other hand, is not here to be a help. It is here to show truth. The truth is that “death” is one of the enemies (along with sin and the devil). Life is a Sacrament - a Mystery in which we are called to experience and commune with God - and thus, death takes us away from this, and is thus an enemy.

The Ressurection Icon was framed well as well as you can see to the left. I tried to capture the scene of Christ entombed, but it is dark (gee, all the lights are low and using a flash probably wouldn’t be a good idea), but you get the picture (pun intended) from below right.

The picture is shown double the size of the other ones so that you can get a better view of the detail. It didn’t look right at 320x256 so I made it 640x512 even though the actual pic is double that.

Some of the things that stuck out to me this year are…

1) The juxtaposition of Judas counting the cost of the Harlot’s gift to Christ versus his determination of the value of the the life of Christ (which would be immeasurable).
2) The juxtaposition of the Harlot’s kiss of humility and repentance vs. Judas’ kiss of betrayal
3) The “attack of presence” that Jesus did - cf. John 18:3-6 -

Judas got a band of soldiers 3 and guards from the chief priests and the Pharisees and went there with lanterns, torches, and weapons. Jesus, knowing everything that was going to happen to him, went out and said to them, “Whom are you looking for?” They answered him, “Jesus the Nazorean.” 4 He said to them, “I AM.” Judas his betrayer was also with them. When he said to them, “I AM,” they turned away and fell to the ground.

The closest that Hollywood can do to the impact that “I AM” has here, has to be “ I know what you’re thinking. Did he fire six shots or only five? Well, to tell you the truth, in all this excitement, I’ve kinda lost track myself. But being as this is a .44 Magnum, the most powerful handgun in the world, and would blow your head clean off, you’ve got to ask yourself one question: Do I feel lucky? Well, do ya punk?”

Of course, Dirty Harry had fired six, and God still had all his cylinders full… cf. ”Gospel of Nichodemus, Part II”.

Friday, September 08, 2006

Memory Eternal Betty Arlene Estep I will miss you.

Betty Estep

Funeral Time: Saturday, September 9th at 12:30PM

Estep, Betty Arlene, 61, of Independence, KY, formerly of Lexington, wife of Ron Estep, died Wed., Sept. 6, 2006 at her residence. Born in Lexington, she was the daughter of the late Kyle and Eulene Coyle White. Mrs. Estep was a graduate of Versailles High School and was an office manager/bookkeeper for Cutter Construction Company. She participated in the Big Brothers/Big Sisters Program and was a member of Mt. Edwin Methodist Church. Survivors other than her husband include a daughter, Angel (Ed Mowl) Harris; a son, Joey (Lauren) Harris; five grandchildren, Andrew Sells, Alyssa, Aaron, Alex, and Aidan Harris; four brothers, Jim (Agnes) White, Bill (Ruth) White, Jack (Linda) White, Joe White; a sister, Carolyn (Hank) Conley; and numerous other family members. She was preceded in death by a brother, Arnold White; and a niece, Barbara Connor. Funeral services will be 12:30 pm Sat. at Kerr Brothers Funeral Home, Harrodsburg Rd. by Rev. Burt Eyster. Burial will follow in Blue Grass Memorial Gardens. Visitation will be 5-9 pm Fri.

Memory Eternal in Russian - a must listen

MEMORIAL SERVICE FOR THE DEAD (Orthodox Church)

Blessed are You, O Lord, teach me Your statutes.

The choir of Saints has found the fountain of life and the door of Paradise. May I also find the way through repentance. I am the sheep that is lost: O Savior, call me back and save me.

Blessed are You, O Lord, teach me Your statutes.

Of old You created me from nothing and honored me with Your divine image. But when I disobeyed Your commandment, O Lord, You cast me down to the earth from where I was taken. Lead me back again to Your likeness, and renew my original beauty.

Blessed are you, O Lord, teach me Your statutes.

I am an image of Your ineffable glory, though I bear the scars of my transgressions. On Your creation, Master, take pity and cleanse me by Your compassion. Grant me the homeland for which I long and once again make me a citizen of Paradise.

Blessed are You, O Lord, teach me Your statutes.

Give rest, O God, to Your servant, and place her in Paradise where the choirs of the Saints and the righteous will shine as the stars of heaven. To Your departed servant give rest, O Lord, and forgive all her offenses.

Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.

The threefold radiance of the one God let us praise, and let us shout in song: Holy are You, eternal Father, coeternal Son, and divine Spirit! Illumine us who worship You in faith and deliver us from the eternal fire.

Now and forever and to the ages of ages. Amen.

Rejoice, gracious Lady, who for the salvation of all gave birth to God in the flesh, and through whom the human race has found salvation. Through you, pure and blessed Theotokos, may we find Paradise.

Alleluia. Alleluia. Alleluia. Glory to You, O God (3).

With the Saints give rest, O Christ, to the soul of Your servant Arlene where there is no pain, nor sorrow, nor suffering, but life everlasting.

Among the spirits of the righteous made perfect, give rest, O Savior, to the soul of Your servant. Preserve it in a life of blessedness which is from You, O Lover of mankind.

Within Your peace, O Lord, where all Your saints repose, give rest also to the soul of Your servant, for You alone are immortal.

Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. You are our God who descended into Hades and loosened the bonds of those who were in chains. Grant rest also, O Savior, to the soul of Your servant.

Now and forever and to the ages of ages. Amen. Most pure and spotless Virgin, who without stain did give birth to God, intercede with Him for the salvation of the soul of your servant.

Priest: Have mercy upon us, O God, according to Your great love; we pray to You, hear us and have mercy.

People: Lord, have mercy (3).

Priest: Again we pray for the repose of the soul of the departed servant of God Betty Arlene Estep who has fallen asleep, and for the forgiveness of all her sins, both voluntary and involuntary.

People: Lord, have mercy (3).

Priest: May the Lord God place her soul where the righteous repose. Let us ask for the mercies of God, the kingdom of Heaven, and the forgiveness of her sins from Christ our immortal king and God.

People: Grant this, O Lord.

Priest: Let us pray to the Lord.

People: Lord, have mercy.

Priest: O God of spirits and of all flesh, You have trampled down death and have abolished the power of the devil, giving life to Your world. Give rest to the soul of Your departed servant Betty Arlene Estep in a place of light, in a place of repose, in a place of refreshment, where there is no pain, sorrow, and suffering. As a good and loving God, forgive every sin she has committed in thought, word or deed, for there is no one who lives and is sinless. You alone are without sin. Your righteousness is an everlasting righteousness, and Your word is truth.

Priest: For You are the resurrection, the life and the repose of Your departed servant Betty Arlene Estep Christ our God, and to You we give glory, with Your eternal Father and Your all-holy, good and life‑giving Spirit, now and forever and to the ages of ages.

People: Amen.

Priest: Glory to You, O God, our hope, glory to You.

Priest: May Christ our true God, who rose from the dead and as immortal King has authority over the living and the dead, have mercy on us and save us, through the intercessions of his spotless and holy Mother; of the holy, glorious, and praiseworthy Apostles; of our venerable and God‑bearing Fathers; of the holy and glorious forefathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; of his holy and righteous friend Lazarus, who lay in the grave four days; and of all the saints; establish the soul of His servant Betty Arlene Estep, departed from us, in the dwelling place of the saints; give rest to her in the bosom of Abraham and number her among the righteous.

People: Amen.

Eternal memory, eternal memory.  Blessed repose and eternal memory.

Priest: Through the prayers of our holy Fathers, Lord Jesus Christ, our God, have mercy on us and save us.

People: Amen.

Monday, April 25, 2005

Holy Week

In some ways it seems like it is not time for Holy Week.  I really like the separation from Easter.  However, due to various reasons - mostly legitimate, but also laziness, I have not been to a number of services that I have gone to in the past. 

Something to take to confession....

Anyway, Sunday I could “feel” pasca coming.  I sang with the choir.  Afterwards it was declared that I do not sing saprano, alto, tenor or bass.  The first description was that I sing “moose”.  This wasn’t said in a bad way.  In fact the person saying it went on to clarify - to which several people agreed.  She said that I sing saprano, only two octives (maybe three I think...) lower.  What she really meant was that I sing the melody.  They did agree that I sing the same chord, so it is not a problem.  They decided that I sing sapramoose.

I sing that way because

1) That’s the part I can hear - i.e. I can’t hear the others distinctly enough to sing what they are singing - including the basses.
2) I have a bass singing voice so it is octives lower.

I did apologize to the choir director, who was more than kind in allowing me to belt out with them and not take too much offense.  In fact, he was quite encouraging.  But that’s part of his nature - I can’t hold that against him. 

Of course, I can’t read music.  I know what some of the symbols mean - like where a refrain is and when to go back to it.  I vaguely know some of the timing (although i’m much better if people would say a song in the same timing instead of the numbers - i.e. sing it the way you would sing “Gladsome light” or something like that).

I understand the concept of music and the notes and stuff… like speed versus the kind of note, etc.  What I don’t know is what the notes sound like.  Well, I might know what the “A” sound like, it sounds like “saprano, alto, tenor, bass” (maybe it’s A#, I dunno).  I can hear that one in my head.

Last time I tried to do a reading my two best friends gave me crap.  One is a reader and the other is a reader/choir director.  But, if you can’t take crap from your friends, why keep them around?? 

Anyway, I look forward to this week, but it is going to be tough.  My schedule is booked every night.  Some of it is work related, some of it is church.  All of it will be good for me.  I just hope my lovely can endure it all.

--Moose