Rev. Peter M Preble – Page 94 – Open-Minded, Open-Hearted Minister & Soul Friend

Pascha Encyclical of Archbishop Nicolae

Posted on April 20, 2014 by Fr. Peter

PASTORAL LETTER ON THE FEAST OF THE LORD’S RESURRECTION 2014

† NICOLAE

by the mercies of God

Archbishop of the Romanian Orthodox Archdiocese in the Americas

To our Beloved Clergy and Orthodox Christians
peace and holy joy from Christ the Risen Lord,
and from us hierarchical blessings.

I await the resurrection of the dead
and the life of the world to come (The Creed).

Most Reverend Fathers,

Beloved Faithful,

Christ is risen!

For 2000 years we have greeted one another on this holy morning with these words, which proclaim a great miracle, the victory of life over death, a miracle that happened at a certain time and place, but has implications beyond time and the world we know. Through this greeting we both proclaim the historical event of the Savior’s Resurrection and witness to our belief that this event has value for us now and in eternity.

St. Matthew the Evangelist describes for us the first meeting with the Risen Christ as one having an historical nature: So they went out quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to bring His disciples word. And as they went to tell His disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, “Rejoice!” So they came and held Him by the feet and worshiped Him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell My brethren to go to Galilee, and there they will see Me (Matt. 28:8-10). We know that to this encounter were added others which establish a historical truth, the fact that Christ, who received death on the Cross and was buried in a tomb, arose on the third day. The historical nature of this event is assured by the multitude of the testimonies of those who encountered Christ after He had risen from the tomb.

Father Dumitru Stăniloae explains the perspective from which this historical event should be understood: “If the persons to whom the Risen Christ appeared were historical persons, then through them could be verified, according to all the rules of the historical method, if not the manner of Christ’s Resurrection and the character of His Risen Body, at least the fact of the Resurrection” (Dogmatic Theology). The Resurrection of Christ is an event that surpasses the ordinary history of humankind through the fact that it overturns man’s advance towards death. And through the participation of persons connected to certain places, times, and circumstances, this meta-historical event touches history. If we see history as a rigorous repetition of similar kinds of phenomena, then the Resurrection of Christ marks an opening of history toward an order that is above strictly immanent causality, as Fr. Stăniloae goes on to say. “The Resurrection is the single event that proves not only that history is made in collaboration with powers that are above human powers, but also that history is destined to be raised up to a higher plane, to that of incorruptible life, a spiritualized plane where the freedom of the human spirit reigns, rather than the uniform processes of nature.” The Resurrection changed the course of human history and gave it the meaning of eternity. The Resurrection introduced into time the One outside of time, the Eternal One. Christ entered into a certain relationship with history, but historical persons were also given the ability to recognize the meta-historical fact of the Resurrection.

We also, 2000 years after the event of the Resurrection, can experience this change that was introduced into history. That which we proclaim to one another is not only an historical event, but is the new reality of our life in history. St. Paul the Apostle tells us that we have also risen with Christ: “God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 2:4-7). We have risen with Christ and we live a new life. Christ’s Resurrection is a source of divine life for us in our earthly life, a source of power, of cleansing, and of growth in communion with God and our fellow man. “Let us cleanse our senses that we may behold Christ shining like lightening with the unapproachable light of Resurrection,” says a verse from the Paschal Vigil. We also meet the risen Christ in the Holy Eucharist, and this encounter brings about our change, our transition to the new life.

In a prayer after communion the priest says, “O Great and most holy Pascha, O Christ, Wisdom, Word, and Power of God, grant us to partake of You more perfectly in the unwaning day of Your kingdom.” The perfect and complete encounter with Christ will take place at the end of the ages, in the eternal Kingdom of God. Confessing the historical fact of the Resurrection, living with the Risen Christ during the time of our earthly life, Christians pray at the same time, in the Our Father, that the Kingdom may come, and they witness in the Creed to the expectation of the universal resurrection and eternal life. The history in which the event of the Lord’s Resurrection took place will be fulfilled at the Second Coming of Christ. History is not the realm of perfection, but of movement toward perfection. It is the realm of incomplete revelation, says Fr. Stăniloae. St. Paul tells us that “the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God” (1 Thes. 4:16), and that this event will take place “in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet (1 Cor. 15:52). History will have an end that will mark the unending day of the Kingdom of God.

Most Reverend Fathers, Beloved Faithful,

Confessing the Lord’s Resurrection as an historical fact that will be revealed in its fullness at the second coming of Christ, it is fitting that we perceive the meaning of history and of the world in which we live. Our history is one of turmoil, of “false prophets, increasing wickedness, and cooling love” (Mt. 24:11-12). But Christ Himself teaches us to persevere in patience and in fulfilling our mission, for this is how we will be saved. We proclaim the God who descended into history, the God-man who triumphed over death and rose again, and we are still filled with hope. For hope does not come from man, nor from the world, but from the Victor over death and the Giver of eternal life. With this hope it is fitting that we should always proclaim that Christ is risen!

I embrace you in Christ, the Risen Lord, and I wish you a Joyful Feast with health, peace, and joy in your families and parishes!

Your brother in prayer to God,

† NICOLAE

Chicago, The Feast of the Lord’s Resurrection, 2014

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Sunday Links Roundup

Posted on April 20, 2014 by Fr. Peter

Here are links to a few things I have been reading this past week.

Boston 1775 ~ The “No King But Jesus” Myth

The Junto ~ Yes, Virginia, there was an American Enlightenment

The New York Time Opinionator ~ Passover in the Confederacy

Sons of the American Revolution ~ Dedham man to get belated recognition for service in the Revolution

Glory to God for all Things ~ Judas Loves Money

Emerging Civil War ~ ECW Weekender: The Civil War Horse Memorial

Boston 1775 ~ William Dawes Tells a Good Story

The Way of Improvement Leads Home ~ “Is Blogging Scholarship?” The Video is Here!

Journal of the American Revolution ~ Who Shot First? The Americans!

Boston 1775 ~ Joseph Green, John Hamock, and the Freemasons

The Way of Improvement Leads Home ~ Thomas Kidd on Arthur Sherr’s Thomas Jefferson

Scottish Clan Blog from Scotland ~ 19th Century Clan Catalogue For Sale

First Things ~ The Dangers of Internet Orthodoxy

Emerging Civil War ~ The Absolution at Gettysburg (this is my essay)

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The Paschal Homily of St. John Chrysostom

Posted on April 20, 2014 by Fr. Peter

If any man be devout and loveth God, let him enjoy this fair and radiant triumphal feast! If any man be a wise servant, let him rejoicing enter into the joy of his Lord. If any have laboured long in fasting, let him how receive his recompense.

If any have wrought from the first hour, let him today receive his just reward. If any have come at the third hour, let him with thankfulness keep the feast. If any have arrived at the sixth hour, let him have no misgivings; Because he shall in nowise be deprived therefore. If any have delayed until the ninth hour, let him draw near, fearing nothing. And if any have tarried even until the eleventh hour, let him, also, be not alarmed at his tardiness.

For the Lord, who is jealous of his honour, will accept the last even as the first. He giveth rest unto him who cometh at the eleventh hour, even as unto him who hath wrought from the first hour.

And He showeth mercy upon the last, and careth for the first; And to the one He giveth, and upon the other He bestoweth gifts. And He both accepteth the deeds, and welcometh the intention, and honoureth the acts and praises the offering.

Wherefore, enter ye all into the joy of your Lord; Receive your reward, both the first, and likewise the second. You rich and poor together, hold high festival! You sober and you heedless, honour the day! Rejoice today, both you who have fasted and you who have disregarded the fast. The table is full-laden; feast ye all sumptuously. The calf is fatted; let no one go hungry away. Enjoy ye all the feast of faith: receive ye all the riches of loving-kindness.

Let no one bewail his poverty, for the universal Kingdom has been revealed. Let no one weep for his iniquities, for pardon has shown forth from the grave. Let no one fear death, for the Saviour’s death has set us free. He that was held prisoner of it has annihilated it.

By descending into Hell, He made Hell captive. He embittered it when it tasted of His flesh. And Isaiah, foretelling this, did cry: Hell, said he, was embittered when it encountered Thee in the lower regions. It was embittered, for it was abolished.

It was embittered, for it was mocked. It was embittered, for it was slain. It was embittered, for it was overthrown. It was embittered, for it was fettered in chains. It took a body, and met God face to face. It took earth, and encountered Heaven. It took that which was seen, and fell upon the unseen.

O Death, where is thy sting? O Hell, where is thy victory?

Christ is risen, and thou art overthrown! Christ is risen, and the demons are fallen! Christ is risen, and the angels rejoice! Christ is risen, and life reigns! Christ is risen, and not one dead remains in the grave. For Christ, being risen from the dead, is become the first-fruits of those who have fallen asleep.

To Him be glory and dominion unto ages of ages.
Amen.

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Great & Holy Saturday

Posted on April 19, 2014 by Fr. Peter

On Saturday, the high priests and Pharisees gathered together before Pilate and asked him to have Jesus’ tomb sealed until the third day; because, as those enemies of God said, “We suspect that His disciples will come and steal His buried body by night, and then proclaim to the people that His resurrection is true, as that deceiver Himself foretold while He was yet alive; and then the last deception shall be worse than the first.” After they had said these things to Pilate and received his permission, they went and sealed the tomb, and assigned a watch for security, that is, guards from among the soldiers under the supervision of the high priests (Matt. 27:62-66). While commemorating the entombment of the holy Body of our Lord today, we also celebrate His dread descent with His soul, whereby He destroyed the gates and bars of Hades, and made His light to shine where only darkness had reigned (Job 3 8 : 17; Esaias 49:9; 1 Peter 3:18-20); death was put to death, Hades was stripped of all its captives, our first parents and all the righteous who died from the beginning of time ran to Him Whom they had awaited, and the holy angelic orders glorified God for the restoration of our fallen race.

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Great and Holy Friday ~ The Lamentations at the Tomb

Posted on April 18, 2014 by Fr. Peter

A decorated “Tomb” for Holy and Great Friday

On Friday night, the Matins of Holy and Great Saturday, a unique service known as the The Lamentation at the Tomb (Epitáphios Thrēnos) is celebrated. This service is also sometimes called Jerusalem Matins. Much of the service takes place around the tomb of Christ in the center of the nave. A unique feature of the service is the chanting of the Lamentations or Praises (Enkōmia), which consist of verses chanted by the clergy interspersed between the verses of Psalm 119 (which is, by far, the longest psalm in the Bible).At the end of the Great Doxology, while the Trisagion is sung, the epitaphios is taken in procession around the outside the church, and is then returned to the tomb. Some churches observe the practice of holding the epitaphios at the door, above waist level, so the faithful most bow down under it as they come back into the church, symbolizing their entering into the death and resurrection of Christ.The epitaphios itself represents the body of Jesus wrapped in a burial shroud, and is a roughly full-size cloth icon of the body of Christ. Then the priest may deliver a homily and everyone comes forward to venerate the epitaphios. In the Slavic practice, at the end of Vespers, Compline is immediately served, featuring a special Canon of the Crucifixion of our Lord and the Lamentation of the Most Holy Theotokos by Symeon the Logothete.

Before the service begins, a “tomb” is erected in the middle of the church building and is decorated with flowers. Also a special icon which is painted on cloth (in Greek, epitaphios; in Slavonic, plaschanitsa) depicting the dead Saviour is placed on the altar table. In English this icon is often called the winding-sheet.

The Matins of Holy Saturday are usually celebrated on Friday night. They begin in the normal way with the singing of God is the Lord, the troparion The Noble Joseph, and the following troparia:

When Thou didst descend to death 0 Life Immortal, Thou didst slay hell with the splendor of Thy Godhead! And when from the depths Thou didst raise the dead, all the powers of heaven cried out: O Giver of Life! Christ our God! Glory to Thee!

The angel standing by the grave cried out to the women: Myrrh is proper for the dead, but Christ has shown himself a stranger to corruption.

In place of the regular psalm reading the entire Psalm 119 is read with a verse praising the dead Saviour chanted between each of its lines. This particular psalm is the verbal icon of Jesus, the righteous man whose life is in the hands of God and who, therefore, cannot remain dead. The Praises, as the verses are called, glorify God as “the Resurrection and the Life,” and marvel at his humble condescension into death.There is in the person of Jesus Christ the perfect unification of the perfect love of man toward God and the perfect love of God toward man. It is this divine human love which is contemplated and praised over the tomb of the Savior. As the reading progresses the Praises become shorter, and gradually more concentrated on the final victory of the Lord, thus coming to their proper conclusion:

I long for Thy salvation, 0 Lord, Thy law is my delight (Ps 119:174).

The mind is affrighted at Thy dread and strange burial.

Let me live, that I may praise Thee, and let Thy ordinances help me (119:175).

The women with spices came early at dawn to anoint Thee.

I have gone astray like a lost sheep, seek Thy servant, for I do not forget Thy commandments (119:176).

By Thy resurrection grant peace to the Church and salvation to Thy people!

After the final glorification of the Trinity, the church building is lighted and the first announcement of the women coming to the tomb resounds through the congregation as the celebrant censes the entire church. Here for the first time comes the clear proclamation of the good news of salvation in Christ’s resurrection.

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Great and Holy Friday ~ The Royal Hours

Posted on April 18, 2014 by Fr. Peter

In addition to the Vespers and the Orthros, the daily cycle of worship contains the Apodeipnon (Compline), the Midnight Service (Mesoniktikon) and the Service of the Hours. These latter services have their roots in the devotional practices of the early Christians, and especially in the communal worship of the monastic communities.

Each of the four Hours bears a numerical name, derived from one of the major daylight hours or intervals of the day as they were known in antiquity: the First – Proti – (corresponding to our sunrise); the Third – Triti – (our midmorning or 9 a.m.); the Sixth – “Ekti – (our noonday); and the Ninth -‘Enati(our midafternoon or 3 p.m.).

Each Hour has a particular theme, and sometimes even a subtheme, based upon some aspects of the Christ-event and salvation history. The general themes of the Hours are: the coming of Christ, the true light (First); the descent of the Holy Spirit (Third); the passion and crucifixion of Christ (Sixth); the death and burial of Christ (Ninth).

The central prayer of each Hour is the Lord’s Prayer. In addition, each Hour has a set of three Psalms, hymns, a common prayer (‘O en panti kairo), and a distinctive prayer for the Hour. Slight variations occur in the Service of the Hours on feast days as well as on fast days. For example, in the place of the regular troparia, the apolytikia of the feast are read; or in the case of the Great Fast, penitial prayers are added at the end.

A radical change in the Service of the Hours, however, occurs on Great Friday. The content is altered and expanded with a set of troparia and Scripture Readings (Prophecy, Epistle, and Gospel) for each Hour. In addition, two of the three Psalms in each of the Hours are replaced with Psalms that reflect themes of Great Friday. While the stable-fixed Psalm of the service reflects the theme of the particular Hour, the variable Psalms reflect the theme of the day. In their expanded version these Hours are called The Great Hours. They are also known as the Royal Hours. The services of the regular Hours are found in the Horologion. The Service of the Great Hours of Great Friday, however, is found in the Triodion.

Originally each Hour was read at the appropriate time of the day. In a second stage of development, the first Hour was attached to the Orthros, the Third and Sixth were read together in the late morning, and the Ninth preceded the Vespers. In a later development, the four Hours of Great Friday were grouped together and read in succession on the morning of Great Friday as a single office.

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Great and Holy Thursday

Posted on April 17, 2014 by Fr. Peter

On the evening of this day, which was the eve of the feast of unleavened bread (that is, the Passover), our Redeemer supped with His twelve disciples in the city. He blessed the bread and the wine, and gave us the Mystery of the Divine Eucharist. He washed the feet of the disciples as an example of humility. He said openly that one of them was about to betray Him, and He pointed out the betrayer by revealing that it was he “that dippeth his hand with Me in the dish.” And after Judas had straightway gone forth, Jesus gave the disciples His final and sublime instructions, which are contained in the first Gospel Reading of the Holy Passion (John 13:31-18:1 known as the Gospel of the Testament). After this the God-man went forth to the Mount of Olives, and there He began to be sorrowful and in anguish. He went off alone, and bending the knees He prayed fervently. From His great anguish, His sweat became as it were great drops of blood falling to the ground. As soon as He had completed that anguished prayer, lo, Judas came with a multitude of soldiers and a great crowd; on greeting the Teacher guile fully with a kiss, he betrayed Him.The Lord Jesus was then apprehended and taken prisoner to the high priests Annas and Caiaphas. The disciples were scattered, but Peter, who was more fervent than the others, followed Him even into the court of the high priest, but in the end denied thrice that he was His disciple.Then our divine Teacher was brought before the lawless Sanhedrin and was interrogated concerning His disciples and His teaching. The high priest adjured Him before God that He tell them whether He was truly the Christ. And having spoken the truth, He was judged guilty of death, supposedly as one who had blasphemed. Then they spat in His face, beat Him, smote Him with the palms of their hands, and mocked Him in every way, throughout the whole night until the morning.

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Great and Holy Wednesday ~ The Unction Service

Posted on April 17, 2014 by Fr. Peter

The Mystery of Holy Unction that we celebrate tonight is established upon the words and actions of our Lord Jesus Christ. It embodies, extends and continues His healing ministry. It is the sign of His transforming presence in a bruised and hurting world, and the emblem of His promise to deliver us from sin and corruption. It is the manifestation of the kingdom and the sign of what God has in store for the world when it reaches its state of ultimate completion.Sickness and death are inescapable indignities resulting from the Fall. These indignities are not forms of divine retribution, but the result of the world’s deep alienation from God. He allows death to terminate graceless life, not as punishment, but so that it may be restored to its fullness in the resurrection.

St. Matthew quotes the Prophet Isaiah in Chapter 8, “He Himself took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses.” He overcame the world and has given humanity access to imperishable life. The sacrament of Holy Unction places the sick person into this eschatological reality, where suffering, corruption and death are overcome.

Holy Unction is a sacrament of faith. In the Epistle of St. James we read, “Is anyone among you sick? Let him call the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.” (James 5:14-15) It is meant for any sick person and is always celebrated in the hope that it will bring healing. While this certainly is the desired effect, it is not the indispensable condition of the sacrament. The essential purpose of the sacrament is to allow the person to share in the victory of Christ and to raise him into the realm of God’s Kingdom. It communicates spiritual power so that the trials of sickness may be borne with courage, hope and fortitude. The sacrament is not a substitute for medical treatment. In time of illness, we are guided by the words of Scripture: From Sirach we read “When you are sick do not be negligent but pray to the Lord and He will heal you … And give the physician his place, for the Lord created him” (Sirach 38.9-10).

The Sacrament may be celebrated at any time for the sick. When the faithful are ill or facing an operation they should seek the Sacrament from the priest as St. James reminds us to call the elders of the Church. It is celebrated with special solemnity on Great Wednesday for the entire community for the healing of the spiritual and bodily infirmities of the faithful. Through the prayer of its priest, in one of the most intimate actions of the priest and his congregation, the congregation asks God for forgiveness, help and deliverance from the cycle of sin and suffering. The borders between the -sickness of the body and the sickness of the soul are not always strictly defined. Because we cannot draw a sharp distinction between bodily and spiritual illness, the Church confers Holy Unction upon all the faithful whether they are physically ill or not.

The solemn celebration of Holy Unction on Great Wednesday serves to remind the faithful of Christ’s power to forgive and liberate the conscience from the blight of personal and collective sin. Thus, it helps emphasize the glorious expectation of Pascha: the resurrection, redemption and sanctification of all life. In addition, it helps the faithful to realize how fragile human life really is and how dependent we are on God, if life is to have any true meaning and purpose. The sacrament also helps us to know that the integration of the human personality and the restoration of interior justice and holiness are basic presuppositions for healing. The corporate celebration should remind us also that caring for the sick and the afflicted, and comforting them in their distress and plight is both a personal as well as a communal responsibility. Finally, the sacrament helps us to recall that the defeat of suffering, sickness and death – the indignities of the ancestral sin – can be understood only in the light of Christ’s own death and resurrection.

By the streams of Your mercy, O Christ, and through the anointing by Your Priests, wash away, as a Merciful Lord, the pains and wounds, and the sudden assaults of suffering of those, tormented by passions, that they may be healed through Your cleansing.

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Southbridge in the Civil War 1862

Posted on April 16, 2014 by Fr. Peter

Southbridge Civil War Monument. Photo courtesy of Dick Whitney's History Site — Southbridge Civil War Monument.
Photo courtesy of Dick Whitney’s History Site

In my previous post I recalled the events of the Town of Southbridge in the year of 1861. In today’s post the actions of the Board of Selectman will take center stage. Most votes of the Board of Selectman in 1862 had to do with authorizing the expenditure of monies to support those who had volunteered for military service and their families.

The population of the Town of Southbridge in 1860 was 3,575. Southbridge sent 400 men to fight in the Civil War, far above the required amount. The Board of Selectman in the Town consisted of Verney Fiske, Malcolm Ammidown, and James Gleason. The Town Clerk was Daniel F. Bacon and the Town Treasurer was Samuel M. Lane.

July 1, 1862 the following resolutions, which were preceded by a preamble, were presented by Hon. E.D. Ammidown and adopted:

Resolved, That the treasurer be authorized to borrow the sum of four thousand dollars to pay soldiers and the interest on the money so borrowed, giving to each soldier, not to exceed thirty-eight, the sum of hone hundred dollars; said bounty to be paid to each soldier when mustered into the military service for three years and credited to the quota of the town.

Resolved, That the town-clerk be requested to obtain the names of volunteers who belong to Southbridge and are mustered into the United States service, and enter the same on the records of the town.

August 25^th, the treasurer was authorized to borrow six thousand dollars for the payment of a bounty of one hundred dollars to each volunteer, to the number of sixty, who shall enlist for nine months’ service and be credited to the quota of the town, provided the whole quota of the town under the recent call of the President can be filled by voluntary enlistments, and provided further that no volunteer shall be holden to serve unless the whole quota can be so raised.

Based on information from the book; The History of Massachusetts in the Civil War Volume II, William Schouler, 1871, Boston.