Orthodox New Media Conference

Posted on by Fr. Peter
To all those of you reading this who blog or podcast, Fr Greg and I are thinking of putting together an Orthodox New Media Conference late summer or early fall 2009 somewhere in the northeast.

The idea would be to bring together all of those who are working with new media in one room and have a discussion and some workshops and such. It would also be a chance for readers and listeners to come and meet the people behind the new media. Just an idea right now and we are looking for some partners to join us in this task. Would there be any interest? If so leave me a comment.

Everything Must Change Part 2

Posted on by Fr. Peter
Well the response was great to the last post, 15 comments so far and the discussion continues. I would like to go out a limb, okay that is usually where I am anyway, but here I am again on this limb. What do folks think about an alternative worship experience? Let me define what I am thinking.

Sunday is the traditional day that worship takes place in Christian Churches around the globe. Some Evangelical Church have mid week services and some have Sunday evening services. Many Catholic Churches are experimenting with Sunday evening Masses and of course they have mass during the week. What would you think of offering a Divine Liturgy on Saturday night or making a Divine Liturgy available during the week for folks who can’t come on Sunday for various reasons? Some people have to work on Sundays and so they cannot make it to church but would love to come. Some younger people who like to go out on Saturday night, have trouble getting up on Sunday morning. Now I know we should not make excuses for people but why not make church more accessible to them? This would not replace the present Sunday morning Liturgy as the main liturgy of the week.

Let the comments begin!

Everything Must Change

Posted on by Fr. Peter
If we start with the premise that we cannot change anything about the Liturgy in the Orthodox Church, then what else can we change to keep religion relevant in the minds and hearts of the people?

I am asking this as pastor of a parish that is loosing members left and right and has no youth in the parish save two. We have many members but most do not come to church on a regular basis. I think everyone is dealing with the same thing.

I mentioned in an earlier post the Emmanuel Orthodox Church. How is it they can attract 100’s of people to worship and the rest of us struggle to get 30 on Sunday. Is it location? Is it the music, or lack there of? Is it the preaching, or lack there of? Is it the people and the way they act when visitors come? Do our members invite people to come to church or do we like to keep things a secret?

What can we change about how we do church to change all of this? How do we make Orthodoxy more than an ethnic church and a church that is available to the masses? Let’s try and have a civil discussion about all of this. I will start by saying the language issue is dead so let us not even speak of that.

Confession

Posted on by Fr. Peter
Last night I had the rare opportunity, well rare for an orthodox priest anyway, of hearing first confessions. Emmanuel Orthodox Church in Warren Massachusetts will be received into Holy Orthodox this very morning by Chrismation. About 100 people will be welcomed home and I think I heard most of the confessions last night.

What makes this so special? Well I heard confessions from people who had not been to confession in 35 years and also people who had never had a sacramental confession before. People confessed sins that they had been carrying around with them for most of their live and were finally able to put words to what they were feeling. These were not your typical five minutes before liturgy confessions and I was honored to be asked to participate.

The interesting thing about Emmanuel is that it is a Western Rite Parish. Okay before you liturgical purists out there jump all over me rest assured that the Western Rite is as canonical as the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, St. Basil, St. James, or any of the other liturgies that we presently use in the Orthodox Church. Liturgy has been around for a long time and did not always look like what we are used too on Sunday morning.

The ritual is actually very beautiful and very simple. I was surprised at how simple it was. No triple litanies, just simple get to it kind of ritual.

Bless me, Father, for I have sinned.

May the Lord be in thy heart and upon thy lips, that thou mayest worthily confess all thy sins; In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

I confess to God Almighty, to all the Saints, and to you, Father, that I have sinned very much in thought, word, deed, and omission, by my own great fault. Since my last confession, which was (how long ago), when I received absolution and performed my penance, I have committed there sins: (get down to it). For these and all my other sins which I cannot remember, I am very sorry. I will try to do better, and I humbly ask pardon of God; and of you, Father, penance, advice, and absolution.

Our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath left power to His Church to absolve all sinners who truly repent and believe in Him, of His great mercy forgive three thine offenses; And by His authority committed to me, I absolve three from all thy sins, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Penance was new to me. Well not new in the sense of doing penance, I grew up Roman Catholic, but the giving of penance. I don’t think there is a proscription against the giving of penance in the Orthodox Church but it just seems that it is not done. If anyone of the readers has any other information this please leave me some comments. I need to research further this concept of penance in the Orthodox Church.

This was such a wonderful event and I was honored to be part of it. People actually confessed their actual sins, stuff they have been carrying around for years and in most cases while the absolution prayer was being recited, they came to tears, tears of joy that they were once and for all forgiven of all that stuff they had been carrying around for year.

One older woman, she had to be in her late 70’s confessed something from when she was a teenager. She had never confessed it before and had been carry this around with her all those years. She told me she felt like a great weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Praise God!

We do not know how lucky were are to belong to a church with sacramental confession. It is too bad more people do not partake of this on a regular basis. Yours truly included. If you are from St. Mike’s prepare to hear more about this tomorrow.

The Bishops Have Spoken, Sort of

Posted on by Fr. Peter
So all of the Orthodox Patriarchs, or their representatives have been meeting at the Phanar in Istanbul, Turkey. The heads of 14 Orthodox Churches were in attendance. They commented twice in their statement about the current world financial crisis. Well I guess it is a response, it is pretty lame if you ask me. I will put the two quotes below and a link to the entire document so you can read for yourself.

8. The gap between rich and poor is growing dramatically due to the financial crisis, usually the result of manic profiteering by economic factors and corrupt financial activity, which, by lacking an anthropological dimension and sensitivity, does not ultimately serve the real needs of mankind. A viable economy is that which combines efficacy with justice and social solidarity.

10. The Orthodox Church believes that technological and economic progress should not lead to the destruction of the environment and the exhaustion of natural resources. Greed to satisfy material desires leads to the impoverishment of the human soul and the environment. We must not forget that the natural riches of theearth are not only man’s property, but primarily God’s creation: “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the world and all who dwell therein” (Ps.23:1). We ought to remember that not only today’s generation, but also future generations are entitled to have a right to the resources of nature, which the Creator has granted us.

I often wonder in cases like this if they have the statement all drawn up before they even meet. That would seem the case here. These bishops are so out of touch with reality! It will take some time to read the statement in it’s full measure and comment on it. Here is the link to the entire document.

Orthodox Delegate Sees Pope’s Mission as Duty of Unity

Posted on by Fr. Peter
Says Tired Society Demands United Christian Voice

VATICAN CITY, OCT. 12, 2008 (Zenit.org).- A representative of the Orthodox Church who addressed the world Synod of Bishops spoke of the Bishop of Rome as a sign of unity among Christians.

Archimandrite Ignatios Sotiriadis, fraternal delegate from the Orthodox Church of Greece, spoke Saturday to the synod, which is focusing on the Word of God in the life and mission of the Church.

His address brought more applause than any other intervention in the first week of the synod.

“Your Holiness,” he said, “our society is tired and sick. It seeks but does not find! It drinks but its thirst is not quenched. Our society demands of us Christians — Catholics, Orthodox, Protestants, Anglicans — a common witness, a unified voice. Here lies our responsibility as pastors of the Churches in the 21st Century.”

“Here,” the Orthodox pastor continued, “is the primary mission of the First Bishop of Christianity, of him who presides in charity, and, above all, of a Pope who is Magister Theologiae: to be the visible and paternal sign of unity and to lead under the guidance of the Holy Spirit and according to Sacred Tradition, with wisdom, humility and dynamism, together with all the bishops of the world, fellow successors of the apostles, all humanity to Christ the redeemer.”

“This is the profound desire of those who have the painful longing in their heart for the undivided Church, ‘Una, Sancta, Catholica et Apostolica,'” he concluded. “But it is also the desire of those who, again today, in a world without Christ, fervently, but also with filial trust and faith, repeat the words of the apostles: ‘Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life!'”

Weekend Round Up

Posted on by Fr. Peter
I am dong this a little early this week because I am leaving right after liturgy today to head to my parents house. They have been on a cruise for the last 10 days and I am going to open the house and turn on the heat for them. I hear the cruise was nice but there was some kind of bug going around so everyday people were getting sick. Anyway they are on their way home and will arrive back in Quincy sometime after 6pm.

As some of you may know I was on the local radio station on Friday. My Shepherd of Souls program is heard on this station on Sunday mornings at 8:30 but the station manager invited me on to do the morning show with him. It was great fun and it looks like I am going to be invited back each Friday morning. More on this when I find out what is going on. It was an early start and for any of you who know me you know I am really not an early morning person.

After the radio time I went off to the Fire House for lunch with guys. I like to spend time on Fridays with them to see what is going on in their lives and how they are coping with different things. Ministry outside the walls can be difficult and it is not every ones cup of tea but I like it and I look forward to it.

Yesterday (Saturday) was spent doing laundry and getting the bulletin finished and working on the sermon for Sunday. Something I should be doing right now. Not much else went on. The Red Sox lost the second game but there are five more to go and they come home now for two so we shall see what happens. This is an odd time of year when all four Boston teams, five if you count the Revolution, that’s the soccer team we have, are all playing. Very strange to hear the hockey scores at the same time you hear the baseball scores.

So now back to the sermon. I am also uploading the new episode of Shepherd of Souls and other stuff. Multi-tasking this early in the morning.

error: Content is protected !!