Sermon among the “dragon”

 

 

Sermon among the “dragon”

by OCP on July 4, 2011

in Articles,Featured Article

Consecration of the new crop of tea (performed by Fr Dionisy Pozdnyaev). Photos courtesy of Archpriest Dionisy Pozdnyaev

Vladislav Maltsev
English translation by Katherine Ilachinski
6/4/2011
Click here to buy Books on Orthodoxy in Chinese and English published in Hong Kong
Sermon among the “dragon”
In Asia, the foreign priests of ROC more than anywhere else feel like missionaries
The Russian Orthodox Church plans to revive the Orthodox mission and church-parish organization in China. On March 15 the chairman of the Department for External Church Relations Metropolitan Hilarion (Alphaeus) said about this: “Today the Orthodox Christians of China suffer from a lack of priests and regular worship. The Russian Orthodox Church as the Mother Church is interested in the restoration of the Chinese Autonomous Orthodox Church (CAOC). At this stage, our church is ready to provide comprehensive assistance to the Chinese faithful, and especially in the emergence of Chinese priests.” It is known that in China there are about 15 thousand Orthodox Christians, mostly descendants of Russian immigrants, or those Chinese baptized in the pre-revolutionary days, a country with a billion inhabitants there are only four officially registered CAOC parishes.
To the questions about the organization and the parish life of the Russian Orthodox Church, not only in China but throughout East Asia, the rector of the Orthodox Church of Saints Peter and Paul in Hong Kong and chairman of the eponymous Orthodox Brotherhood Archpriest Dionisy Pozdnyaev responds to the journalist of “NGR” Vladislav Maltsev.
— Currently where and how in East Asia are the Russian Orthodox Church and other Orthodox Churches represented?
— The parishes of Russian Orthodox Church today are in major East Asian cities: Tokyo, Pyongyang, Ulan Bator, Bangkok, Singapore, Jakarta, Hong Kong, Pattaya. Also there are regular worship conducted in the temples on the territory of Russian diplomatic missions in Beijing and Shanghai. Recently they opened an Orthodox monastery in Ratchaburi (Thailand). Unfortunately, the ROC does not yet have their educational institutions in East Asia.
It is worth noting that the ROC does not have separate dioceses in the region. All parishes are administered by the Foreign Parishes of the Moscow Patriarchate, although, of course, there are regular contacts between parishes in East Asia and the dioceses of the ROC in Siberia and the Far East. For comparison: the Patriarchate of Constantinople, whose congregations are in Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Hong Kong, East Asia, established three major canonical diocese – Hong Kong metropolis, Singapore diocese and the Korean metropolis.
In addition to the parishes of the ROC, in East Asia there are two autonomous Orthodox Churches under the jurisdiction of the Moscow Patriarchate – Japanese and Chinese, some ROCOR parishes (recognizing the union with the Moscow Patriarchate) in South Korea and Indonesia.
Of the other local Orthodox Churches there is the parish of the Romanian Patriarchate in Japan, for the Romanians living in that country. Contrary to what is sometimes claimed in Russia, there are no Antiochian Orthodox parishes in the Philippines yet, although there are plans to create them.
— How is interaction possible – competition with parishes of other Orthodox Patriarchates in the region?

— I would not talk about the competition – after all the Church in various jurisdictions are divided only administratively. In dogmatic, ecclesiological sense, we are a single body of the Orthodox Church. In many countries there are different forms of cooperation – Romanian hierodeacon serves the parishes of the Moscow Patriarchate in Thailand, and a Russian priest serves in the parish of the Patriarchate of Constantinople in Seoul. Orthodoxy is not a property of the Greek or Russian – so in Asia, where Christians are a minority, we are relying on the historical tradition of presence in the region closest to the countries of East Asia, the Russian Orthodox Church, and try together to bear witness of Orthodoxy.
— What represents the Orthodox congregation in Hong Kong and — more broadly – in East Asia at the nationality level?
— The congregation of the Orthodox Church in this region is multinational, and its social composition is non-uniform. This allows considering the Orthodox Church in various countries of East Asia, as the Church, open to all – without national, linguistic or social barriers. In Constantinople, and the Moscow Patriarchate there is an understanding that in East Asia, Orthodoxy has primarily missionary character. In my opinion, the task of pastoral care for the compatriots in East Asia is temporary in nature – there are not formed stable Diaspora of traditionally Orthodox nations. Most often, foreigners do not live in Asia constantly, so the main effort should be directed to the local population. Although, of course, the question of language plays a role: the Russian love to come where the services are in Russian, while the Greeks go where they can pray in Greek.
For example, in my parish in Hong Kong on a nationality basis parishioners are divided like this: 70% – Russian and Ukrainian – 15% Chinese, 15% – Americans, French and other nationals. In general, Russians in parishes of the Russian Orthodox Church in East Asia constitute the majority (except for Indonesia – where parishioners are mostly Indonesians). In China, there is a special situation – there are CAOC parishes and parishioners in general – very strongly assimilated with the Chinese descendants of Russian settlers. In parishes located in diplomatic missions in China- parishioners are Russian and some foreigners (mostly Americans). In South Korea, where in the parish of the Patriarchate of Constantinople serves our priest, our parishioners – mostly Koreans, however, there are presents a number of all other foreigners. In Singapore – Russian language parish of the Moscow Patriarchate and quite colorful in the composition is the parish of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. In general, everywhere there is variety of situations.
— Does the Russian Orthodox Church and other Orthodox Churches in East Asia use elements of the traditions of local peoples (decoration of churches, the closeness to local mores)? How is the translation of ecclesiastical and liturgical literature into local languages progressing? When entering into the life and experiences of the Church do they bring in some elements which are closer to local residents of words and concepts (it is known that the Western missionaries often translate for the Chinese, New Testament, “I am the bread of life” as more understandable to them, “I am the rice of life”)?
— A common practice of Orthodox parishes in Asia is the use of local languages and cultural elements (such as in China, Thailand and Indonesia, local craftsmen are busy carving iconostasis and candlesticks, are making their appearance with the local elements). In China, there is a custom to consecrate the tea of the new harvest. In Thailand, before entering the temple there is a custom to take off your shoes. Everywhere there are some local features, which give a special flavor to the parishes. However, the most important work – translation of liturgical and doctrinal books to local languages which is necessary as a mechanism for the life of the Orthodox tradition in the context of Asian cultures. Example of using the word “rice” – a private, in general in China is widely distributed bread, so in the basic translation of the Gospel the word “bread” is used in the above quote. Although there are different experiences, for example: “In the beginning was the Dao – one of the options for translating the first words of the Gospel of John.
— Do they send students from the local community to Russia for training in seminaries and theological academies and what is their fate in the dioceses of the ROC? As a whole how are in East Asia represented among the Orthodox clergy, on one hand, Russian and Greek as the representatives of the countries – centers of Orthodoxy, on the other hand – the representatives of indigenous peoples?
— At present in Moscow and Belgorod Theological Seminaries and the Moscow Theological Academy, students from China and Mongolia are studying, students from Thailand, Indonesia and Korea have already completed the training, students from China and Lao are preparing to enroll. Ordained to the sacred dignity are Korean, Thai and Indonesian graduates of our theological schools. In all East Asian countries they have both Greek and Russian priests – but one requires the presence of clergy from the local people, much of the work of preaching the word of God to their countrymen lies precisely on them. Rectors of some parishes in East Asia are the representatives of indigenous peoples: in Pyongyang (Korean graduates of MDS), Thailand (Fr Daniel Vanna – a graduate of St. Petersburg Theological Seminary). In Japan and Korea, almost all the clergy is made up of priests, of indigenous nationalities; the same can be said about Indonesia (where the clergy are the graduates of the Moscow and Belgorod Theological Seminaries). In China, the question of ordination of Chinese clerics still awaiting the solution until it is resolved, the status of the Orthodox Church in China can not be considered normal.

— You are also chairman of the NGO Council of Compatriots in Hong Kong. What is the Russian Diaspora in this city and elsewhere in East Asia?
— In Hong Kong, the Russian Diaspora is few in number – about 600 people, although its growth is observed, eight years ago, there was two times less Russians. In Singapore, there are about two thousand of our compatriots, a few thousand live permanently in Thailand. In different countries there are different trends of migration from country to country, the situation is very different. Almost anywhere (except Japan) it is already impossible to find the descendants of white emigration – in 60-70 years of the twentieth century, almost all of them have left Asia, so we are talking here about a new migration, and not of constant character.
— How are the relations with local representatives of non-Orthodox Christian Churches? Do they differ in composition of their parishioners from the Orthodox community? As a whole how the Christians of various denominations feel in the surrounding of non-Christian peoples of East Asia?
— In different countries the situation is different. In general everywhere we are developing good relationships – to this contributes a different believers environment in which all Christians are naturally closer to each other. I can say that for many Protestants and Catholics in Asia, Orthodoxy has become in recent years, a real discovery – and a lot of people are turning to the Orthodox faith from among the followers of these faiths. Their faith serves as a catechesis, a bridge from paganism to Orthodox Christianity. But the Protestants and Catholics have a long and proud history of service in Asia – in particular, in some countries they have created systems of education, have done a lot for the development of health systems. For example, in Hong Kong Catholics have managed to consolidate its status as a carrier of social justice. And have a great success – from 1950 to 2010, 480,000 people from the local residents embraced Catholicism. Orthodox Church should invest significant financial and human resources so Asian Orthodoxy would not be a marginal minority religion or for foreigners, and would be able to carry word of the gospel to local people in full force. Without the awareness of the missionary nature of the Church nor the Greeks, nor Russian in Asia will not be able to advance in the preaching of Orthodoxy.

Orthodox Churches in the Indian Sub Continent †††

 

 

Orthodox Churches in the Indian Sub Continent and South East Asia

† The Holy Chinese Orthodox Martyrs of the Boxer Rebellion†

The following article tries to discus an account of the presence of Orthodox Churches in India and other Asian countries.
India

Indian Orthodox Church: Also known as Malankara Orthodox Church or Orthodox Syrian Church of the East, it is the largest Orthodox Church ion India, considered to be the national Church of India. This Church traces its origin to the apostolic mission of St Thomas. The imperial domination of the Roman Catholic Church and its devastating effects lead the Church to come in contact with the Syrian Orthodox Church of Antioch. It uses Syrian liturgy though translations have been made to the local Malayalam language. Catholicate of the Church was established in 1912. The Primate of the Church is address by the title Catholicos of the East on the Apostolic Throne of St Thomas and Metropolitan of Malankara who resides at Develokam, Kottayam, Kerala, India. To this Church belong the world famous Orthodox theologians like Mor Pulose Gregorious, Fr V C Samuel, the first canonized Indian saint, St Gregory of Parumala and also the two church structures originally founded by the St Thomas the, Apostle, (Niranam and Thiruvithamcode) among which the Tiruvithamcode is considered to be the one of the oldest church buildings in the world. The Indian Church has made commendable contributions in the field of education and social change. It manages large number of educational, spiritual and social institutions. The Brahmavar Orthodox community, a reunited group from the Roman Catholic Church to the Indian Orthodox Church is yet another specialty of the this Church. The Latin community got reunited with the Indian Orthodox Church under the auspicious leadership of two saintly personalities, Metropolitan Julius Alvariz of Goa and Padre Rock Lopez Nuronoah. At present there are around 750 families and are organized into a Diocese.

Syrian Orthodox Church in India: Syrian Orthodox Church or the Jacobite Syrian Orthodox Church in Indian belongs to the Patriarchate of Antioch and All East. The local Primate of the Church in India is addressed by the title ‘Catholicos of India and Metropolitan Trustee’ who is responsible to the Patriarch of Antioch and All East. The Church Headquarters in India is located at Puthenkurishu Patriarchal Centre, Ernakaulam, Kerala. The Syrian Orthodox Church is the second largest Orthodox Church in India. It operates a number of well established spiritual and educational institutions. Manjaniakkara monastery in Kerala holds the mortal remains of St. Ignatius Elias (Patriarch). Large numbers of people from different parts of the globe make annual pilgrimage to the monastery. There are dioceses under the jurisdiction of the Patriarch of Antioch such as diocese of Middle East, Australia & New Zealand Malankara Archdiocese of Europe which includes Patriarchal Vicarate of Ireland & Patriarchal vicarate of Germany & Central Europe and the Malankara Archdiocese of North America. Simhasana Churches, Evangelical Association of the East and Knanaya Archdiocese also fall under the direct jurisdiction the Patriarch. The Jacobite Syrian Orthodox Church ion India is engaged in several missionary works through the St Paul’s Mission of India. Large numbers of missionary and philanthropic activities are performed by this organization.

* The schism between Indian Orthodox and the Syrian Orthodox Church in India is similar to that existed between the Coptic and Ethiopian Orthodox Churches. Though the Coptic and Ethiopian Churches solved the issue, the Churches in India is yet to reach a consensus on the conflict, which is mainly of administration, power and recognition rather than theological. 

Armenian Orthodox Church: The nation of Armenia has age old trade and cultural relations with India, since 2000 BC. At present a handful of Armenian remain in India, especially in Calcutta. They also run the Armenian College and Philanthropic Academy (ACPA) in Calcutta where a number of Armenian students from various parts of the globe finish their secondary and higher secondary education with scholarships. The Armenian Parishes in India are namely Armenian Holy Church of Nazareth, Kolkata, Armenian St. Gregory’s Church, Kolkata, Armenian Church at Chennai, St. Peter’s Armenian Apostolic Church in Mumbai, Armenian Church at Chinsurah, Church at Saidabad (renovated), Surabaya St. George’s Armenian Apostolic Church, The Holy Trinity Chapel (Church of Tangra). Also there have been many notable Armenian in India who has served with Mughal Kings and several others. The Armenian Community is striving in India despite of many challenges.

Greek Orthodox Church: The Greek Orthodox Community in India is taken care by the Metropolitanate of Hong Kong and Southeast Asia of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. The Greek Orthodox community has been active in Calcutta and near by areas for more than ten years or may be more. The Greek Orthodox Church is active with her mission and social activities in Calcutta and some parts of Bangladesh. There are a number of Muslim converts to Orthodoxy in Bangladesh. With assistance of Orthodox Christian Mission Centre (OCMC) and several others the Greek Orthodox Church maintains hostels, job training centers, health clinics and also vibrantly engaged in food distribution for the poor and needy. The Saintly Eldress Gabriella (nun) the legendary Greek Orthodox nun was in India for almost three years from 1963 where she lived in Nani Tal.
Russian Orthodox Church: The largest Orthodox Church in the world has opened a parish in India, New Delhi in the year 2010 within the campus of the Russian Consulate. They also operate a parish in Nepal. The Primate of the Russian Church is ‘Patriarch of Moscow and all Russia’. The Russian Church experience growth worldwide especially after the fall of Soviet Union and Church has become one of the most powerful institutions in modern Russia a key moral force for the common man. The Russian Orthodox Church has vibrant missions all over the world with large number of committed clergy and laymen. Russian Church has brought the largest number of people to Orthodoxy.

China: The Chinese Autonomous Orthodox Church belongs to the Moscow Patriarchate. It is believed that St Thomas the Apostle founded the first roots of Christianity in 68 A.D. Once the largest Church in the world, the Assyrian Church of East had its presence in China. Also there are evidences of Syrian Christian Mission in the Chinese mainland. The vibrant mission of the Russian Orthodox Church paved way for the opening of around 106 Orthodox Churches in 1949, but got disintegrated during the Chinese Cultural Revolution. The Church had around 10,000 followers with schools and orphanages. More than 200 Orthodox members were martyred in the Boxer Rebellion. They are commemorated as remembered on the icon of the Holy Martyrs of China every year in June. At present there are around 15,000 Orthodox Christians in China. There are several active Orthodox congregations in Beijing, in northeast China (in Heilongjiang and elsewhere) and in there are also Orthodox parishes in Shanghai and elsewhere. Two former Orthodox Churches in Shanghai are in the process of being returned to Chinese Church. The Chinese Orthodox Church is yet to be granted formal recognition from the government. The Coptic Orthodox church has built a parish in Guangzhou.

Hong Kong: The Orthodox Church operates freely without much trouble. Orthodox Metropolitanate of Hong Kong and Southeast Asia (OMHKSEA) is a diocese of the Ecumenical Patriarchate which began in the year 1997. The Metropolis of Hong Kong and Southeast Asia looks after the pastoral care of Orthodox Christians in Hong Kong, the Philippines, Taiwan, Thailand, Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia and Myanmar. The Coptic Orthodox Church of St Thomas is also situated in Hong Kong.

Taiwan: The first Orthodox Church was established in 2003. The Orthodox Metropolitanate of Hong Kong and Southeast Asia oversee the Holy Trinity Orthodox Church in Taipei, Taiwan.
Japan: The Japanese Autonomous Church was founded by St. Nikolay (Kasatkin) who came to Japan in 1861 on the decision of the Holy Synod of the Russian Church. He founded and headed the Russian Orthodox mission in Japan in 1870. He translated the Holy Scripture and liturgical books into Japanese and built the Resurrection Cathedral in Tokyo. The Russian Orthodox Church canonized Archbishop Nikolay in 1970. The Moscow Patriarchate granted autonomy to the Japanese Orthodox Church the same year. The Japanese Church is under the supervision of the Russian Orthodox Church. At present there are more than 30,000 Orthodox Christians in Japan. The Primate of the Church is Metropolitan of All Japan and Archbishop of Tokyo. It has three dioceses, a seminary and publishes books in Japanese language. The Coptic Orthodox Church has a Pariah in Kurayoshi City.

Pakistan: There are Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Churches in Pakistan, mainly the Greek (Ecumenical Patriarch) and Coptic Orthodox Churches. The first Eastern Orthodox priest Fr John Tanveer was ordained in November of the year 2009,. There are 400 Greek Orthodox faithful in Pakistan who are converts from Muslim and other Christian denominations like Roman Catholicism and various Protestant groups. Due to the lack of Church building, the Divine Liturgy is served in one of the houses. The Coptic Orthodox started its first Mission church in Islamabad in 2006 under the Diocese of Melbourne, West & South Australia, New Zealand and All Oceania. At present there are two church one in Islamabad and the other in Rawalpindi.

Sri Lanka: There are no sources about the presence of Orthodox Christians in Sri Lanka. But earlier there had been a good number of Orthodox Christians and several churches under the Indian Orthodox Church. The missionary works of Mor Rene Villate, the first archbishop of America. But later the entire community disbanded.
Nepal: The Indian Orthodox Church and the Russian Orthodox Church has congregations in Nepal as per the 2010 reports.

Indonesia: There are Russian and Greek Orthodox (Ecumenical Patriarchate) presence in Indonesia. The Indonesian Orthodox communities are engaged in vibrant mission activities though the number of Orthodox Christians remains limited. There are some noted Orthodox priest like Archimandrite Daniel (Russian Orthodox Church outside Russia – Moscow Patriarchate) and Father Yohanes Bambang (Ecumenical Patriarchate). Archimandrite Daniel played a pioneer and vital role in establishing the foundations of Orthodoxy.
Orthodox Christian Center Surabaya which was opened on the 15th of October 2008 by Father Yohanes Bambang. The head Orthodox Church in Indonesia, St Nikolas is also based in Surabaya. Orthodox Center Surabaya Foundation is engaged in large number of educational and philanthropic activities among the local Indonesian communities. As future activities it aims at establishing Play group, Kindergarten, Elementary School, Junior High School, High School and University in short, middle and long term and also an Orthodox Seminary for religious education. Fr Yohanes Bambang is constantly engaged in Orthodox mission and preaching Orthodoxy to various Protestants and other Christian denominations. The Russian Orthodox Church outside Russia (Moscow Patriarchate) has around 23 parishes and communities in Indonesia.

Mongolia: There was Orthodox presence in Mongolia from the very early times. The first Orthodox Church on Mongolian territory, the Church of St. Troitsky, was established at Khalkha in 1872. A Russian Orthodox Church was built in Ulaanbaatar in the year 2007. The Russian Orthodox Church in Magnolia is limited in numbers but several Protestants and Roman Catholics are getting interested in Orthodoxy. The Orthodox Church mission is getting slowly active among the Mongols. A TV programme introducing the basics of Orthodoxy is also broadcasted.

South Korea: The first Orthodox Divine Liturgy was celebrated in the year 1900 by the Russian Orthodox Priest. In the year 1955 the Korean Orthodox Church unanimously decided to be under the jurisdiction of the Ecumenical patriarchate. Today the Orthodox Metropolis of Korea comprises of ten parishes with several hundred members in South Korea, as well as one monastery.

North Korea: In 2006 the government of North Korea recognized the establishment of one Orthodox parish (Moscow Patriarchate) in the capital city of Pyongyang.

Singapore: Coptic Orthodox Church, Syrian Orthodox Church (Jacobite Syrian Orthodox Church of India), and Indian Orthodox Churches has members in Singapore. There is a historical Armenian Orthodox Church ‘Armenian Church of Saint Gregory the Illuminator’ located at Hill Street in the Museum Planning Area, within the Central Area, Singapore’s central business district, which does not have permanent clergy. Armenian and Eastern Orthodox services were held occasionally, on Christmas and Easter, for a number of years. But the Church is now regularly used by the Coptic and Syrian Orthodox communities to serve liturgy. The Armenian Church became a national monument in 1963. A small, but growing number of Eastern Orthodox congregation made up of ethnic Greeks, and Russians also constitute the Orthodox population in Singapore. The Holy Metropolis of Singapore is an Eparchy of the Ecumenical Patriarchate established in 2008 to serve the pastoral needs of Orthodox Christians in Singapore, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Maldives Islands, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Sri Lanka.

Thailand: Orthodox Christian Church in Thailand (Russian Orthodox Church) serves both foreign and local Thai believers who are converts to Orthodoxy. In March 2011 the first Orthodox monastery was established in Thailand. The Orthodox Church of Thailand has the Orthodox parish of Saint Nicolas in Bangkok and other congregations in Phuket and Chonburi province. They have translated the liturgy of Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, the Orthodox Book of prayer and a book about the history of Russian Orthodox Church into the Thai language. The Coptic Orthodox Church operates two parishes in Thailand.

Malaysia: The Indian Orthodox Church has a cathedral in Malaysia with almost 193 families. The Indian Orthodox Church in Malaysia comes under Diocese of Madras, together with churches in South India outside Kerala, the Andaman Islands, Singapore and Australia. Fr K A George conducted the first Divine liturgy in the moth of August 1956. Metropolitan Mathews Mar Athanasius conducted the consecration service of the church on 6 April 1958. This was the first ever Diaspora Church (outside India) of the Indian Orthodox Church. The Coptic Orthodox Church also operates a parish in Malaysia.

Vietnam: The Russian Orthodox Parish of ‘Our lady of Kazan’ was opened in the year 2002 in Vung Tau where there are many Russian employees of the Russian-Vietnamese joint venture “Vietsovpetro”. In Regular Paschal liturgies are organized in the parish. There shall be more than 500 orthodox members in Vietnam.The Ecumenical Patriarchate has plans to open mission in Vietnam but so far no activities have been reported.

Philippines: The presence of Orthodoxy in Philippines was evident from 1600s Armenian, Greek and Macedonian Orthodox Christians. Later the Russian Orthodox Christian arrived also St. John Maximovitch had established a church for the Russians, but did not preach Orthodoxy in the island. At present there are Greek, Antiochian and Russian Orthodox Churches (ROCR) in the island. There are three Filipino Priests and four nuns within the Ecumenical Patriarchate’s Orthodox Metropolitanate of Hong Kong and Southeast Asia. The Antiochian Orthodox Christian Mission in the Philippines was established under the Antiochian Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia and New Zealand. In 2008, two Filipino denominations were received into the Antiochian church, including 32 communities with some 6,000 believers. Some of them later joined ROCOR as Western Rite parishes under St Petroc Monastery Mission Society. Adamson University presently owned by the Vincentian Fathers of the Roman Catholic Church was originally founded by two Greek Orthodox Christians. Alexandros Athos Adamopoulos (Alexander A. Adamson), who was one of the first Greek Orthodox to arrive in the island along with his brother, co-founded the university in 1932.

Australia & News Zealand : Australia has strong presence of Orthodoxy in the form of Eastern and Oriental Orthodox churches. The Greek Orthodox church of Australia is very vibrant with several numbers of parishes, schools, colleges, theological seminaries, old age homes, orphanages, monasteries and other establishments. The Russian, Serbian, Antiochian, Romanian, Polish and Bulgarian Orthodox churches also have good number of followers and converts and also operate several educational and social institutions. Some of them do not have hierarchy – resident Bishop in Australia. The Russian Orthodox mission has taken up a number of abandoned church buildings from Roman Catholics and various Protestant denominations. The Orthodox Church in America (OCA) has one or two parishes in Australia. The Coptic Orthodox Church is well established in Australia with Seminaries, and other institutions. Also there are Indian, Armenian, Syrian and Ethiopian Orthodox Churches in Australia. New Zealand has Orthodox presence in the form of several Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Churches, especially Greek and Coptic Churches.

Fiji: The Coptic Orthodox Church has two parish Churches in Fiji. The Church has also purchased some acres of land for cultivation and other supportive activities for the local Fijian communities.

Timor: As per June 2010 a new Orthodox Church is being built in West Timor, Indonesia part of the province of East Nusa Tenggara. This is the first Orthodox church to be built in West Timor. The new church will be under the Orthodox Metropolitnate of Singapore of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.

*Apart from the above mentioned Churches, there are many main stream and traditional (old calendar) orthodox jurisdictions in different parts of Asia.
*The article includes the details Diaspora and native Orthodox Christians of different Churches
*The Orthodox communities are dynamically engaged in several spiritual, social, educational activities and have developed numerous institutions for the service of humanity.

Special Courtesy: Mithropan
George Alexander
Secretary &Spokesperson
Orthodoxy Cognate PAGE
Email:theorthodoxchurch.info@gmail.com

The forgotten Orthodox Christians of Bosnia and Kosovo

 

 

The forgotten Orthodox Christians of Bosnia and Kosovo

by OCP on December 3, 2010

in Articles,Featured Article

 

Lee Jay Walker, The Modern Tokyo Times:

I come from a member state of the European Union which is meant to uphold the rights of all religions, political ideologies, acknowledge national and cultural rights, and is meant to spread “European brotherhood.” However, it appears that this does not apply to the Orthodox Christians of Bosnia and Kosovo respectively because not only have they been abandoned but outside Islamic powers are stepping up their Islamization agenda in both Bosnia and Kosovo.
In Kosovo the de-Christianization of the Orthodox Christian community continues and hundreds of Orthodox Christian churches have been destroyed but little was done to protect this community. It should be remembered that the Christian Serbs helped to preserve the shared European identity in history from the marauding Islamic Turks who enslaved countless numbers of Christians throughout the Balkans during the Ottoman Empire.
Yet in modern times it is clear that Iran, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and other non-European nations, are intent on creating an Islamized Balkans and this applies to Albania, Bosnia, the Sandzak in Serbia, northeastern Bulgaria and the Rhodope Mountains region, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Montenegro. At the same time increasing Islamic immigration in Greece is creating tensions and Turkey is intent on preserving its armed forces in northern Cyprus.
The above mentioned places may sometimes have a continuous border line or they may be divided by geography and thinking because you have many branches within Islam. However, for pan-Islamists in Bosnia, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and a host of other nations, it is a dream and clearly the European Union alongside America supported the “green flag of Islam” during the collapse of Yugoslavia.
In my article called Islam in Bosnia is the new stepping stone I stated that Alija Izetbegovic stated that “… Muslim nations will never accept anything that is explicitly against Islam, because Islam here is not merely a faith and the law, Islam has become love and compassion. He who rises against Islam will reap nothing but hate and resistance. …”
Izetbegovic was a pan-Islamist and he allowed thousands of Islamic terrorists from all over the world to join his Islamic jihadist campaign by allowing them to slaughter innocent Orthodox Christians in Bosnia. At the same time he played the “Muslim victim card” in front of the Western media. However, Izetbegovic shared the same global jihadist ideals and pan-Islamic thought patterns because he stated “… In one of the thesis for an Islamic order today we have stated that it is a natural function of the Islamic order to gather all Muslims and Muslim communities throughout the world into one. Under present conditions, this desire means a struggle for creating a great Islamic federation from Morocco to Indonesia, from the tropical Africa to the Central Asia. …”
Vojin Joksimovich who is the author of “The Revenge of the Prophet” highlights the international nature of Islam in Bosnia because he states that “The jihadists, from their bases and support facilities in Iran, Sudan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and elsewhere, did not come to Bosnia only to fight against the ‘Serbian aggressor,’ but for the first European religious state at large, for the establishment of the only faith among the European Muslims.” (Page 145)
This comment highlights the reality of Izetbegovic and the pan-Islamic card. Vojin Joksimovich continues by stating that the “Creation of Islamic states, so-called Jamahirya states, was the ultimate objective of all these movements. With the Koran in their hands the jihadists did not distinguish between Catholicism and Orthodoxy, only between believers and unbelievers.” (Page 145)
However, Islamic jihadists and pan-Islamists from Bosnia and other parts of the world had only a short period to enact their Islamic jihad via the sword and this applies to when war broke out in Bosnia and Kosovo respectively. Yet the military battlefield and “Muslim victim card” image would lay the foundation for future political and religious ambitions in the Balkans and of course Bosnia would be the stepping stone that would help the ambitions of people like Izetbegovic.
In an article written by Bojan Pancevski in The Sunday Times newspapers which is published in the United Kingdom he comments (Saudis fund Balkan Muslims spreading hate of the west – March 28, 2010) that “SAUDI ARABIA is pouring hundreds of millions of pounds into Islamist groups in the Balkans, some of which spread hatred of the West and recruit fighters for jihad in Afghanistan”.
The article continues by stating that “According to officials in Macedonia, Islamic fundamentalism threatens to destabilize the Balkans. Strict Wahhabi and Salafi factions funded by Saudi organisations are clashing with traditionally moderate local Muslim communities.”
Sources also reveal that “Classified documents seen by The Sunday Times reveal that Macedonian officials are also investigating a number of Islamic charities, some in Saudi Arabia, which are active throughout the Balkans and are suspected of spreading extremism and laundering money for terrorist organisations.”
The article also highlights the sinister reality of Saudi Arabia by stating that “Hundreds of millions have been poured into Macedonia alone in the past decade and most of it comes from Saudi Arabia,” said a government source. “The Saudis’ main export seems to be ideology, not oil.”
“The West has put considerable political and financial efforts into helping build democracy in Bosnia following its civil war in the 1990s. Saudi organizations have also asserted considerable influence, giving more than £450m to build more than 150 mosques and Islamic centres.”
Therefore, while Muslim nations and radical Islamic charities are spreading radical Islam in the Balkans you have the reality of Serbian Orthodox Christians in Kosovo being abandoned and clearly the Bosnian Serbian entity is not desired by America, the European Union or important Islamic nations.
In my article called Radical Islamic Charities and Jihad in the Balkans I highlight Vojin Joksimovich again because he states that“Bosnia established a successful model for embattled countries around the world: organizing, arming, and funding mujahideen units, skimming money from humanitarian charities, linking up with crime bosses including narco-terrorists, etc. Islamism both produces and profits from mayhem. Albeit to a much lesser magnitude, the Bosnian model was replicated later on in Kosovo, Southern Serbia and Macedonia. Al Qaeda and the Taliban found a route for the heroin trafficking from Afghanistan into Europe via the Balkans.” Page 150
I also commented in the same article that “….just like the rise of the Taliban and radical Islam in modern day southern Thailand and Pakistan, it is the role of the Islamic madrasas which must be eliminated and not merely contained. The role of Islamic charities must also be tackled because many are a gateway to spreading radical Islam and if this “gateway” is not stopped and challenged, then alongside religious Islamic educational institutions which are sponsored by Saudi nationals and others; then the spread of radical Islam will not be defeated.
It is clear that America and the European Union desires a unified Bosnia and Islamic elites within the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina are hoping that the Republic Srpska will be swallowed up.
Currently you have a Christian majority within all of Bosnia but the majority is slender and given the higher Muslim birthrate and the reality of what happened to the majority Christian population of Kosovo in history then the future looks bleak. In truth, if you look at history then it is nigh impossible to find a stable Muslim democratic nation where democracy flourished and where religious minorities also grew and had full equality within the legal system.
De-Christianization in Kosovo is a modern day reality when it applies to the Serbian Orthodox Christian community and this applies to the decreasing Serbian population, destruction of Christian churches, the eradication of Serbian architecture, and constant persecution and marginalization by the majority Muslim Albanian population.
The late Patriarch Pavle who sadly passed away in November, 2009, stated (http://kosovo.net) that “This humble publication is our cry and appeal to the Christian and civilized world. It is distressing to learn that in the year of the greatest Christian Jubilee, at the end of two millenniums of Christianity, Christian churches are still being destroyed, not in a war but in the time of peace guaranteed by the international community. We hope that these photos of the destroyed and desecrated Orthodox shrines will awaken the conscience of those who are able to stop the crimes and believe that they who already stood up against one evil will not remain just passive witnesses of another evil happening now in their presence.”
However, the same mass media which distorted the conflict is now the same mass media which is mainly silent about current events in Kosovo. Also, the Bosnian Serbian leadership in Republic Srpska is marginalized by the international community because Western nations prefer the Muslim elites in Sarajevo.
Maybe one day the Serbian Orthodox Christian community in Bosnia will face the same fate which befell their co-religionists in Kosovo. After all, Islamic nations and organizations are funding many Islamic institutions throughout the region and added to the higher Muslim birthrate and pro-American policies towards the Muslims of Bosnia and Kosovo then this could become a future reality.
What is clear is that time is not on the side of the Republic Srpska because either it will join with Serbia or become an independent state whereby Serbians will be guaranteed their freedom. Or it will be swallowed up by the American backed unitary Bosnian state under the Muslim elites of Bosnia and with the full backing of many Islamic nations.
If the latter happens and with the reality of the higher Muslim birthrate then in time the Serbian population will be further marginalized. Or at worse the Bosnian Serbs will face their “Kosovo Golgotha” and given the events of past history and the ongoing reality of de-Christianization of the Serbian Orthodox Christian community in Kosovo then this scenario is a clear possibility.
(This article is dedicated to Liz Milanovich who cares deeply about the plight of Christian Serbs in Kosovo and throughout the former Yugoslavia. Liz Milanovich helps me greatly by providing daily information.)

Elder Thaddeus of Vitovnica

 From the Ignatius Orthodox Church website.  Madison, WI  --Ernie 2/28/12

 

Monthly Meditation – October 2011

“Our thoughts create either harmony or disharmony in the world.”

    

---Elder Thaddeus of Vitovnica

There can never be enough said to reprove the belief that whatever a man does behind closed doors, “as long as it doesn’t hurt anyone else,” is his own business. This erroneous way of thinking comes from the church of rugged individualism. It cannot be emphasized enough what a flat out lie this belief is, a masked entitlement that has become an embedded deception at the very foundation of what “enlightened” men call personal freedom.

Orthodox spirituality has a completely different paradigm upon which society is built. Men are not ruggedly individual but rather they are radically interdependent. Our main model is founded in our belief in the Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The relationship between the members of the Holy Trinity is ONE of mutual will, purpose, obedience and love. This is God’s nature which is the nature that was given to man when God created him “in our image, after our likeness” (Genesis 1:26). Man was created with one will, purpose and love with God and with his fellow man. Prior to the fall of Adam all of creation was in harmony unlike anything man have ever seen or experienced since. It is this harmony to which all men, and especially all believers from all time, have been called to aspire to. It is a harmony which, because of sin and self, eludes men in their pride and passion.

It is with this in mind that I believe we can also refute the notion that whatever a man thinks in his head, “as long as it doesn’t hurt anyone else,” is his own business. PLEASE DO NOT GET ME WRONG. I am not advocating for any kind of thought police. What I am saying is that a man must be willing to police his own thoughts and recognize how these thoughts “create harmony or disharmony in the world.” I am not speaking about some mystical karma which projects some sort of negative or positive energy through our hair follicles and finger tips. What I am speaking about is something that we all should be familiar with in one way or another. Who hasn’t or doesn’t struggle with thoughts from time to time? As a father confessor this is probably the sin I hear most frequently confessed. And while most thoughts are involuntary, called provocations, it is the voluntary thoughts which follow to further tempt a man that become problematic. Who hasn’t at one time or another gotten riled up by what someone said or did, and then allowed themselves to get even more riled up after the fact by repeatedly calling to mind what was said or done?

It is this “calling to mind” that I wish to set before us with a challenge. Involuntary provocations are one thing, (unless one complains about being unable to stop thinking about food after spending minutes in front of an open refrigerator door,) but what happens to a man once he engages his passions in this thought or that? He will be led to some degree of sin (missing the mark). And because men are radically interdependent we believe that all sin has an effect on all men and on the world itself. One can see this in the simple example of how a negative circumstance can put a man into a bad mood, and how that bad mood can affect everyone around him. But the Elder Thaddeus’ words are even more subtle than this brutish example. The fact is that whether in the subtlety of thought or the consequence of action sin never just affects the one who sinned! The good news, however, is that it works the same way with virtue, meaning that we do have the creative capacity to build rather than to destroy. What this means for us is that we must not only be watchful over our actions but also over our thoughts. Thoughts can either inspire or diminish the movement of men and the world towards virtue. Watchfulness, therefore, becomes everyone’s responsibility as an expression of love within the community and the boundaries of personal freedom. The even greater news is that with a commitment to this virtue a man will become even more aware of how his own inner life as well as the world around him can be transformed by his watchfulness. Then, eventually by grace, even our inclinations can be made harmonious in their very nature.

St. Nikolai Velimirovic

March Meditation – St. Nikolai Velimirovic

 

… Meditate On These Things                    Philippians 4:8

 Commentary of the Sunday of Forgiveness and Fasting (abridged)
“For a soldier in battle, the first rule is not to surrender to the enemy.  A lonely, hungry, cold and naked soldier will be greatly tempted to give himself up to the enemy.  The cunning enemy will make use of his predicament in all possible ways.  The enemy may himself be hungry, cold, ragged and naked, but he will, to show an illusion of the abundance that he has, throw the soldier a little bread and some piece of clothing.
Satan is constantly seeking men, right from the day when he deceived the first man.  He seeks to draw Christ’s soldiers to himself with every possible delusion, luring him with false promises and showing him his illusory wealth.  There is none hungrier than he, but he shows bread to the hungry, calling on them to surrender.  There is none more naked than he, but he attracts men to the colors of his false and illusory clothing.  There is none poorer than he, but he, like a magician at a fair, rubs two coins together and skillfully shows the onlookers the millions he seems to have.  “He is a liar; and the father of lies” (John 8:44), and all his power and all his possessions have only an illusory existence.  Pointing out to His followers all the devil’s deceits and weapons, the Lord Jesus showed them, by both word and deed, how to resist and with what weapons to fight.
Christ Himself is the main weapon for us His followers; His presence with us and His power within us are our chief weapons.  But, apart from Christ’s own presence and power that are our main weapons in the battle against the evil spirit, the Lord Jesus, with His aid, has offered other sorts of weapons.  These weapons are: constant repentance, constant almsgiving, constant prayer, constant joy in the Lord, fear of the Judgment, willing endurance of suffering for His sake with faith and hope, the forgiving of insults, looking on this world as it is as though it has no existence, partaking in His holy Mysteries, vigils and fasting.
When fasting is understood in a true, Christian sense it is not legalistic or pharisaic.  There is very little value in abstaining from food without abstinence from [sin] and the illusion of earthly riches.  The hypocrites are they who fast, not for the sake of God, nor for their own souls, but because of men, that men should see their fasting and praise them for it.  They have indeed received their reward.
The most important regulation that we are given about fasting is that we do so for the sake of God and for the salvation of our soul.  And this means: fast from all evil thoughts.  Do the same with your tongue.  Do the same with your heart.  Do the same with the will of your soul.  In other words: bridle and restrain your inner man, who is of priority and importance, from every evil, and incline him to everything that is good.
Keep your senses from everything that is superfluous and dangerous.  Restrain your eyes from constantly wandering; restrain your ears from listening to anything that does not serve the soul’s salvation; restrain your nose; restrain your tongue and your stomach; restrain the whole of your body from becoming over-refined and demanding of you more than it needs for survival.  This is fasting that leads to salvation.  This is the fast that Christ recommends, a fast free of hypocrisy, a fast that drives out evil spirits and brings man a glorious victory and many fruits, both in this life and the next.  How could a Christian not rejoice when he arms himself with this fasting against his soul’s most fearsome opponents?
So let us open our eyes while there is still time.  Let us be firmly convinced that the final victory will belong to Christ, our King and Commander.  Let us, then, hasten to take up the victorious weapon that He has offered us for the battle – the precious fast – the weapon that is, when rightly borne, fearsome and deadly to our enemy.
Let us refrain from excessive eating and drinking, so that our hearts do not fail us (Luke 21:26) and drown in corruption and darkness.  Let us refrain from choosing earthly treasures, so that Satan may not separate us from Christ and suggest surrender to us.  And when we fast, let us not fast for the praise of men but for our soul’s salvation and the glory of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  Amen.”

† African Roots of Christian Spirituality †

I  took this from the "Pious Fabrications Blog," w/o permission.   I think it's great, and I truly did this because I admire the mans writing!  

-vadermask 3/28/12


† † †

  The African Roots of Christian Spirituality

Today, Christianity is generally thought of as a largely European and, due to European immigration and influence, North American religious and cultural movement. Christianity's recent and ongoing remarkable growth in the so-called “Global South” of Latin America, Africa, and southern and eastern Asia, however, coupled with a significant decline in adherents to Christianity in Europe, poses a significant challenge to that assumed European hegemony of Christendom.¹ There are many new questions that have arisen as a result of these recent changes, including what the decline of Christianity in Europe means for the future of the Western Civilization which it shaped and what new forms Christianity will take as it becomes fused to new cultures. The most central question being asked by Christians from both Europe and Africa is whether these forms will be faithful to the Christianity the world has known for the past 2000 years or will become something else entirely.²

Too often overlooked in these discussions are the monumental contributions that non-Europeans have already made to the Christian faith, even in its supposedly European forms. This is especially true of Africa, whose residents played a central role in Christianity's first several hundred years. Great early and early Medieval Christian figures like the apologist Tertullian, the first Christian to write extensively in Latin, Athanasius and Cyril of Alexandria, whose Christology became the dominant understanding of the nature and role of Jesus to the vast majority of Christians throughout the world, and Augustine of Hippo, arguably the single most influential Christian thinker after the apostle Paul, were all Africans.³ The greatest contribution that Africa made to Christianity, though, was in the practice, piety, and intense devotion of the pioneers of Christian monasticism. Men and women like Anthony the Great, Pachomius the Great, and Syncletica of Alexandria, remembered by subsequent generations of Christians as the Desert Fathers and Mothers, developed a unique ascetic and mystical approach to Christianity which has been a major influence on all subsequent Christian history and continues to shape Christian practice, belief, and culture today.

The roots of Christian monasticism, a dedication to the practices of ascetic struggle and constant prayer coupled with a rejection of normal social expectations like marriage and family life, reach back to the faith's earliest days and even beyond. Judaism, from which Christianity emerged as a new religion, already possessed monastic traditions “like the Essenes or the group at Qumran from which the Dead Sea Scrolls come, or the Therapeutae of Egypt described by Philo of Alexandria.”⁴ It is not to be overlooked that the latter monastic group was specifically located in Egypt, near Alexandria, the same geographic location in which Christian monasticism would first spring up in its fullest form.

In writings that would later become part of the New Testament, the apostle Paul, writing in the middle of the first century, counseled widows, virgins, and unmarried men to remain unmarried and to use the freedom this afforded them to serve and worship God.⁵ Bart D. Ehrman, a scholar and professor of early Christian writings, suggests “it may have started with Jesus himself, who anticipated that this world and life as we know it would all come to an abrupt end when God appeared in judgment to overcome the forces of evil in control of this earth and set up his own Kingdom.”⁶ “If this world is soon to disappear, why be attached to its pleasures?” Ehrman goes on to ask, inviting us into the thought of the early Christians, and concluding, as many of them did, “It is better to prepare for the coming Kingdom, living simply and humbly in expectation of that final day.”⁷ This was certainly the thinking that led Anthony the Great, the earliest major figure of Christian monasticism, to take up the ascetic way of life.

According to the biography of Anthony written by Athanasius of Alexandria, an influential fourth century bishop of Alexandria, Egypt, Anthony entered into a church one day, “and it happened the Gospel was being read, and he heard the Lord saying to the rich man, 'If thou wouldest be perfect, go and sell that thou hast and give to the poor; and come follow Me and thou shalt have treasure in heaven.'”⁸ Antony, so Athanasius relates, went out of the church immediately and gave away the entirety of the inheritance he had received from his parents, who had recently died, commended his young sister into the care of an order of Christian virgins in Alexandria, and sojourned to the wilderness to take up the life of a hermit and ascetic.

Though not the first to retreat into the deserts of Egypt, Anthony's example gained such reverence and notoriety that he inspired thousands more to imitate him. After the legalization of Christianity by the first Christian Roman emperor, Constantine I, in 313 and the elevation of Christianity from the status of a persecuted minority religion to that of one with official imperial favor throughout his reign, which lasted until his death in 337, and beyond, ever larger numbers of former pagans began to flock to the churches for conversion. Very often, perhaps more often than not, these conversions were halfhearted and for the purpose of attaining political, social, or economic gain, keeping up with the changing times and trying to remain with the “in-crowd,” rather than being inspired by any real adoption of or devotion to the tenants of Christianity.⁹ According to Michael A. Smith, a scholar of early Christianity and Baptist minister, this dramatic “growth in numbers was accompanied by a lowering of standards.”¹⁰ “The monks,” on the other hand, “aimed to live the Christian life to the full, and felt that continued residence in the 'world' hindered this. They tried to achieve a pure Christianity and a deep communion with God which they considered unattainable in the existing churches.”¹¹ According to scholar and philosopher David Bentley Hart, “enthusiasm for the monastic life became so great that, as a famous quip put it, the desert had become a city.”¹²

One of the most incredible features of this new enthusiasm was the nature of the practices which so many flocked to the Egyptian deserts to engage in. According to Athanasius, Anthony

kept vigil to such an extent that he often continued the whole night without sleep; and this not once but often... He ate once a day, after sunset, sometimes once in two days, and often even in four. His food was bread and salt, his drink, water only... A rush mat served him to sleep upon, but for the most part he lay upon the bare ground.¹³

The monks who followed Anthony's example sought to imitate his extreme asceticism. According to Smith, “the main routine of the hermit was prayer and meditation, supplemented by reading of the Bible. Fasting was also important and they attempted many other rigorous feats such as standing for hours while praying.”¹⁴ This “extreme deprivation taught self-mastery, and was itself a physical form of prayer.”¹⁵

In addition to continuing the typical Christian prayer practices, such as the recitation of psalms and liturgical Eucharistic rituals, however infrequently the monks were able to gather for the latter, the monks also developed a new form of prayer, to which they attributed especially great spiritual efficacy. This new method of prayer was first fully described by John Cassian, a European Christian who traveled to Egypt to speak with the monks there, in the late fourth century. In his Conferences, a record of interviews he conducted with some of the most renowned monks of Egypt, Cassian wrote that “every monk in his progress towards continual recollection of God, is accustomed to ponder” a short prayer, “ceaselessly, revolving it in his heart.”¹⁶ Though a variety of short prayers were used by the monks, the most commonly used in Cassian's time in the late fourth and early fifth centuries, according to Cassian, was the opening verse of Psalm 70: “O God, make speed to save me; O Lord, make haste to help me.” The monks recited this and other short prayers like it continuously as they worked and ate, and even spoke, read, and slept. The purpose of the extreme ascetic practices, they said, was to train the body in order to make this continuous repetitious prayer possible, “for he cannot possibly keep his hold over it unless he has freed himself from all bodily cares and anxieties.”¹⁷

The final goal which the monks set before them was one of union with God via continuous and automatic prayer and recollection of him. In the words of Elaine Pagels, a professor of religion at Princeton University, “Anthony – and others like him – sought the shape of his own soul, hoping to accept the terrors and ecstasies of direct and unremitting encounters with himself and, having mastered himself, to discover his relationship to the Infinite God.”¹⁸ This was, ultimately, the purpose behind the asceticism and constant prayer of the monks. John Cassian related that the monks believed that through these practices

our mind will reach that incorruptible prayer … [which is characterized by being] ... not merely not engaged in gazing on any image, but is actually distinguished by the use of no words or utterances; but with the purpose of the mind all on fire, is produced through ecstasy of heart by some unaccountable keenness of spirit, and the mind being thus affected without the aid of the senses or any visible material pours it forth to God with groanings and sighs that cannot be uttered.¹⁹

One of the stories of the Desert Fathers, recorded in one of the several collections of the sayings and doings of the early Egyptian monks which made very popular reading throughout the Middle Ages, records an even more vivid description of the spiritual goal the monks set forth for themselves. According to the dramatic short story,

Abba²⁰ Lot went to Abba Joseph and said, 'Abba, as far as I can, I keep a moderate rule, with a little fasting, and prayer, and meditation, and quiet: and as far as I can I try to cleanse my heart of evil thoughts. What else should I do?' Then the hermit stood up and spread out his hands to heaven, and his fingers shone like ten flames of fire, and he said, 'If you will, you can become all flame.'²¹

The effect that this vibrant new Christian spirituality, intensely ascetic and mystical, had upon the popular consciousness, faith, and practice of Christians of later generations cannot be overstated. The Egyptian monks provided inspiration to men like Benedict of Nursia, whose Rule, based in large part on the ways of the Desert Fathers as recorded in the collections of their sayings and in the writings of John Cassian, became the standard monastic discipline in Western Europe through the Middle Ages and beyond.²²

Their influence extended well beyond the cloister as well. Their technique of repetitious prayer gave birth to the Rosary and the Jesus Prayer,²³ popular extra-liturgical devotional practices in Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Christianity respectively, both involving the repetition of short prayers whose number is tracked by counting on a set of beads, in the case of the former, or knots in a rope, in the case of the latter.²⁴ In addition to this outward introduction of new practices into the repertoire of Christian spirituality, the Desert Fathers also had a remarkable impact on Christianity's core, centering the goal of the Christian life in inner prayer, stillness, and mystical union with God.²⁵ This emphasis on the mystical side of Christianity had a great impact on such influential Christian mystics as Bernard of Clairvaux, Francis of Assisi, George Fox, Seraphim of Sarov, and Thomas Merton; in fact, the mystical tradition of which these and dozens of others were a part and the monastic tradition of which all but one of these was a part would not have existed at all had it not been for the influence of the Desert Fathers.

In addition to their impact on Christian spirituality, the Desert Fathers also had a significant impact on European popular culture throughout the Middle Ages and later times. According to Benedicta Ward, herself a Christian nun in the Anglican tradition, “they have inspired poetry, drama, opera and art as well as withdrawal into solitude and prayer.”²⁶ Whereas the first several centuries of Christians had found both inspiration and entertainment in the accounts of the deaths of the martyrs, such as the famous account of The Passion of Perpetua and Felicitas, perhaps written by the African Christian apologist Tertullian in the early third century, after the legalization of Christianity and the end of the age of the martyrs, the sayings and hagiographies of the Desert Fathers and other monastic saints who followed in their footsteps became standard Christian literary fare.²⁷ Throughout the Middle Ages, the sayings and lives of the great monastic saints were popular Christian literature. “The first and most influential of such biographies” was, according to scholar Jaroslav Pelikan, “Athanasius's Life of Saint Anthony,” the original fourth century account of the original Desert Father.²⁸

Perhaps one of the most famous examples of the place of the Desert Fathers in more recent European popular culture is the 1647 painting of The Temptation of St. Anthony by the Flemish artist David Teniers the Younger.²⁹ Though Teniers' painting is one of the most famous, this same scene has also been depicted by such great artists as Fra Angelico, Hieronymous Bosch, Michelangelo, and Salvador Dalí. The Temptation of St. Anthony also became the title and subject of a novel by the famous author Gustave Flaubert and, more recently, an opera, based upon Flaubert's book, by Bernice Johnson Reagon.³⁰

The Egyptian monks and their brand of Christian spirituality have also shown up in some rather surprising places in Western popular culture. One very recent example is the 1961 novel Franny and Zooey by J.D. Salinger, the author most famous for writing The Catcher in the Rye.³¹ In the novel, Franny, one of the title characters, carries around a copy of the 19th century anonymously written Russian book The Way of a Pilgrim, a story of a wanderer who travels throughout Russia reading and discussing the writings of the Desert Fathers and practicing their method of repetitive prayer;³² Franny also reveals that she herself prays the Jesus Prayer in a search for mystical experiences and spiritual enlightenment.

The Desert Fathers also had a number of unintended and unexpected effects on the subsequent developments of Christian theology. The most significant of these indirect consequences of the early Egyptian monks' pioneering ways may be the conversion to Christianity of Augustine of Hippo, one of the most important and influential Christian thinkers in all of Christian history, and himself a fellow African. Augustine, whose theology would later become the standard understanding of the Christian faith for the majority of Christians, originally struggled with acceptance of Christianity, wavering in his decision to join the Church. He was deeply impressed, however, by the example of Anthony. He relates his own reaction to first hearing about Anthony in his Confessions, writing as if speaking to God that “we were amazed, hearing Thy wonderful works most fully manifested in times so recent, and almost in our own, wrought in the truth faith and the Catholic Church.”³³ Later, in deep emotional turbulence over his indecision in his religious beliefs, he recalled the example of Anthony. According to Augustine,

I had heard of Anthony, that, accidentally coming in whilst the gospel was being read, he received the admonition as if what was read were addressed to him, “Go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven; and come and follow me.” And by such oracle was he forthwith converted unto Thee. So quickly I returned to the place where Alypius was sitting; for there had I put down the volume of the apostles, when I rose thence. I grasped, opened, and in silence read that paragraph on which my eyes first fell.³⁴

The passage which Augustine opened up to and read, Romans 13:13-14,³⁵ struck him deeply and finally convinced him to convert to Christianity. The Desert Fathers, then, were indirectly responsible for inspiring one of the most important figures in Christian history to become a Christian in the first place.

The Desert Fathers also served the world indirectly by creating a system which would ultimately save European literature, heritage, and culture from destruction. After the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the fifth century, the monasteries of Europe became repositories of learning, preserving art, literature, and the art of literacy through a period of rapid and dramatic European cultural decline and rampant warfare.³⁶ It was because of the monastics in Europe, part of that tradition founded by their forerunners in Africa, that Europe was able to save the Classical heritage of the Romans and Greeks from being destroyed.

The Desert Fathers were a ragtag group of men and women who came from a variety of backgrounds and had a diversity of characteristics and personalities, as can easily be seen from the titles attached to the names of many of them, such as John “the Dwarf,” Moses “the Strong” (also known as Moses “the Robber” and Moses “the Black”), and Paul “the Hermit.” Some, like Moses, had been outlaws before venturing into the monastic life in the desert, others, like Abba Arsenius, had been educated men of the Roman upper classes, others, like Pachomius, had been soldiers and civil servants, and still others, like Anthony the Great, had been peasants and farmers. As diverse a group as they were, what they all had in common was that they retreated into the deserts of southern Egypt in a search for a more intimate and personal relationship with their God and, in so doing, pioneered a new Christian way of life, one that would spread out through and from Africa and conquer the whole of the Christian world.

The Christian monastic, mystical, spiritual, and devotional traditions of today all trace their lineage back directly to these men and women in the deserts of Egypt in the fourth and fifth centuries. As Christianity continues to dwindle in numbers in Europe, with which continent it has come to be associated in the modern mind, and rises in prominence and numbers in other places in the world, especially Africa, it is in fact not going somewhere new but returning home.

Notes
 

¹ Philip Jenkins, “Believing in the Global South,” First Things, December, 2006, accessed 11 November 2011, http://www.firstthings.com/article/2007/01/believing-in-the-global-south-17.

² Philip Jenkins, The Lost History of Christianity: The Thousand-Year Golden Age of the Church in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia -- and How It Died (New York: HarperCollins, 2009), 3.

³ Hans Küng, Great Christian Thinkers: Paul, Origen, Augustine, Aquinas, Luther, Schleiermacher, Barth (New York: Continuum, 1999), 71.

⁴ Henry Chadwick, The Early Church (New York: Dorset Press, 1986), 176.

⁵ For instance, 1 Corinthians 7.

⁶ Bart D. Ehrman, Lost Christianities: The Battles for Scripture and the Faiths We Never Knew (New York: Oxford University Press, 2005), 44.

⁷ Ibid., 45.

⁸ Athanasius, “Life of Antony,” in Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Second Series, Vol. 4: Athanasius: Selected Works and Letters, eds. Philip Schaff and Henry Wace (Peabody: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 2004), 196.

⁹ Jaroslav Pelikan, Jesus Through the Centuries: His Place in the History of Culture (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1985), 113-4.

¹⁰ Michael A. Smith, “Christian Ascetics and Monks,” in Eerdmans' Handbook to the History of Christianity, ed. Tim Dowley (Herts: Lion Publishing, 1977), 205.

¹¹ Ibid.

¹² David Bentley Hart, The Story of Christianity: An Illustrated History of 2000 Years of the Christian Faith (London: Quercus, 2007), 56.

¹³ Athanasius, 197-8.

¹⁴ Smith, 205.

¹⁵ Frederica Matthewes-Green, The Jesus Prayer: The Ancient Desert Prayer that Tunes the Heart to God (Brewster: Paraclete Press, 2009), 4.

¹⁶ John Cassian, “The Conferences,” part 10, chapter 10, in Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Second Series, Vol. 11: Sulpitius Severus, Vincent of Lerins, John Cassian, eds. Philip Schaff and Henry Wace (Peabody: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 1994), 405.

¹⁷ Ibid.

¹⁸ Elaine Pagels, Adam, Eve, and the Serpent: Sex and Politics in Early Christianity (New York: Vintage Books, 1989), 82.

¹⁹ John Cassian, 408.

²⁰ “Abba” is the word in many Semitic languages for “father.” It is still used by most Middle Eastern Christians as a form of address for their priests and monks and is the origin of the English word “abbot,” used for the head of male monasteries.

²¹ Benedicta Ward, tr., The Desert Fathers: Sayings of the Early Christian Monks (New York: Penguin Books, 2003), 131.

²² Ibid., xx.

²³ “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy upon me, a sinner.”

²⁴ Matthewes-Green, 5.

²⁵ Bishop Kallistos Ware, The Orthodox Way (Crestwood: St. Vladimir's Seminary Press, 1995), 122.

²⁶ Ward, xxii.

²⁷ Jaroslav Pelikan, The Christian Tradition: A History of the Development of Doctrine, Vol. 1: The Emergence of the Catholic Tradition (100-600) (Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1975), 100.

²⁸ Ibid., 135.

²⁹ Hart, 58.

³⁰ Lydia Mann, “Toshi Reagon: Music for Your Life: Temptation of St. Anthony” (2011) http://www.toshireagon.com/parisTemptation.shtml (accessed 12 November 2011).

³¹ J.D. Salinger, Franny and Zooey (New York: Back Bay Books, 2001).

³² Helen Bacovcin, tr., The Way of a Pilgrim and The Pilgrim Continues His Way (New York: Doubleday, 2003).

³³ Augustine, “The Confessions of St. Augustin,” Book 8, Paragraph 14, in Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, First Series, Vol. 1: The Confessions and Letters of Augustine, with a Sketch of his Life and Work, eds. Philip Schaff and Henry Wace (Peabody: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 1994), 122.

³⁴ Augustine, Book 8, Paragraph 29, 127.

³⁵ As quoted by Augustine in his Confessions, “Not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying; but put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfill the lusts thereof.”

³⁶ Thomas Cahill, How the Irish Saved Civilization (New York: Anchor Books, 1996), 159.

Bibliography

Athanasius of Alexandria. “Life of Antony.” In Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Second Series, Vol. 4: Athanasius: Selected Works and Letters. Editors Philip Schaff and Henry Wace. Peabody: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 2004.

Augustine of Hippo. “The Confessions of St. Augustin.” In Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, First Series, Vol. 1: The Confessions and Letters of Augustine, with a Sketch of his Life and Work. Editors Philip Schaff and Henry Wace. Peabody: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 1994.

Bacovcin, Helen, translator. The Way of a Pilgrim and The Pilgrim Continues His Way. New York: Doubleday, 2003.

Cahill, Thomas. How the Irish Saved Civilization. New York: Anchor Books, 1996.

Cassian, John. “The Conferences.” In Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Second Series, Vol. 11: Sulpitius Severus, Vincent of Lerins, John Cassian. Editors Philip Schaff and Henry Wace. Peabody: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 1994.

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