Humility and Mercy as Opposed to Condemnation: An Eastern Orthodox Interpretation of Pope Francis' Comments on Whether to Judge Gay People

     

        It has been interesting to see all the attention given to Pope Francis’  “Who am I to judge?” comment on how he responds to gay people.  His reaction indicates that it is one thing to maintain Christianity’s historical—and apparently unanimous at least before the 1960’s—teaching that physical intimacy between persons of the same sex is sinful and quite another to judge particular people as though “we” are the sheep and “they” are the goats.  Jesus Christ was very clear that His followers were not to judge others.  He warned that they would be judged by the same standard they applied to their neighbors.  No, putting oneself in the place of God is never an especially good idea.

            As a priest of the Orthodox Church, I am not the judge of anyone and strive to concern myself chiefly with my own sins.  Even when I hear confessions, I do so not as a judge in a legal sense, but as an advocate for the healing of my parishioners.  Sins are not so much legal offenses to be judged as self-inflicted wounds for which we need therapy if we are to recover from their ill effects.  Priests apply the disciplinary canons of the Church pastorally and prayerfully for the healing of the soul of a particular person at a particular point in his or her recovery.  The priest is an unworthy icon of Christ and His salvation to the penitent. That is a very different role from being a self-appointed judge with the authority to impose a penalty.  When it comes to sin, we do not need more penalties, but forgiveness and transformation.  The priest is there to heal, not to pronounce a sentence.

            The spirituality of the Jesus Prayer is at the heart of our faith: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” Orthodoxy is not fundamentally about moralism or judging anyone by a legal standard.  Indeed, we are not the judges even of ourselves; that’s God’s business.  But we are all sinners in need of the Savior’s mercy and grace if we are to find healing for the myriad ways in which we have diminished ourselves as those created in the divine image and likeness.  That is why pious Orthodox go to confession regularly to be assured of the Lord’s forgiveness and to receive guidance on how to gain strength in holiness in relation to their particular challenges and spiritual maladies. People confess sexual sins in confession, as they do other sins.  Spiritual fathers provide guidance for healing in relation to whatever sins are named and do not assume that sexual inclinations are necessarily the defining issues of one’s life.  One step in the healing of many penitents is to place sexual passions in the larger context of the vocation to holiness and not in the driver’s seat of one’s identity.   

            Barring the truly extraordinary case of a scandal in the parish that has to be addressed for the salvation of all concerned, Orthodox clergy should come nowhere near judging others for anything.  For example, when I learn through the media that someone has been convicted even of murder, I do not know the person’s heart or repentance or how the Lord will judge him at the last day.  After all, King David was a man after God’s own heart and the good thief followed Christ into paradise.  If someone I know celebrates greed, disregard of the poor, racist attitudes, or the love of violence, I pray for them and am concerned for their well-being, but that is not the same as judging them as though I am God and they are simply sinners.  No matter what people reveal about their inclinations, relationships, and activities, condemning them personally is simply not the business of any Christian. 

            At the same time, it is the business of Christians to maintain the teachings and practices of the historic faith, including the reservation of intimate relations to marriage between one man and one woman.  Orthodox Christianity knows of no other form of sexual union that is blessed by the Lord and a path to holiness. Anything else is a distortion of the calling of man and woman to find salvation together in God.  To speak the truth about these matters is not to judge particular people, but instead to invite everyone to follow paths that have and continue to make saints. Those not called to marriage have other paths to sainthood through celibacy, which may be pursued either through the monastic life or an unmarried life in the world.  None of these paths is easy, but they all provide countless opportunities to fight our passions, love our neighbors, and take up our crosses as we follow Jesus Christ.

          Contrary to increasingly popular opinion, to remain faithful to basic Christian teaching on these matters is not to fall into the self-righteous judgment of others or to have irrational obsessions or fears about sexual inclinations of any kind.  It is instead to maintain the clear teaching of the Body of Christ since its origins, as displayed in the Scriptures, liturgy, canon law, and lives of the saints. So I agree with Pope Francis, “who am I to judge” any particular person as though I am God?  But at the same time, faithful priests must point their spiritual children to paths that lead to the healing of the soul, regardless of what sins they confess.  That is simply a matter of truth-telling toward the end of a person’s salvation and growth in holiness. And it is also what I want when I go to confession.

So to sum up:  We look to the Church for healing, not a legal sentence.  When spiritual fathers and mothers help us stumble along a path that leads to greater freedom from the control of the passions in any area of life, we grow personally in the knowledge that Christ came to heal and save, not to judge and condemn.  That is the good news of the Gospel to us all, regardless of what our temptations or inclinations may be in any area of life.  

Christ Heals our Paralysis: Homily for the Sixth Sunday of Matthew During the Dormition Fast in the Orthodox Church

Matthew 9:1-8

             Romans 12: 6-14             

            I am sure that we have all felt stuck, trapped, or paralyzed in one way or another at some point in our lives.  Whether we were physically ill or caught in an unhealthy relationship or an unfortunate situation at work, life is full of circumstances where we seem to lack the strength to move forward in freedom.  The same is true when we think about the spiritual life and our own personal characteristics.  Learning to put others before ourselves, to restrain various appetites and desires, and to stop behaviors to which we have become addicted are all very difficult things to do.  Sometimes we fall into despair and simply give up because we have had so little success in overcoming our paralysis.  Sometimes we feel helpless before the problems and challenges that we face.

            The good news is that Jesus Christ gives us all solid grounds for hope in gaining strength, freedom, and salvation. This Tuesday is the great feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord, when we celebrate the revelation of His divinity to Peter, James, and John, for Christ was illumined brilliantly with light, and the voice of the Father proclaimed, “This is my beloved Son in Whom I am well pleased.”  At the same time, we continue in the Dormition fast as we prepare to celebrate on August 15 how the Theotokos shared in the resurrection of her Son-- body, soul, and spirit—and followed Him into the heavenly Kingdom upon her death.

            Taken together, these feasts remind us that God’s salvation liberates us from captivity to the brokenness of our lives in our corrupt world, for the Son of God has truly taken on every dimension of our humanity and transfused it with holiness.  He was transfigured before His disciples and we too may be changed by uniting ourselves as fully as possible with the Lord.  His divinity will be revealed through us as we shine with light even as the paralyzed man was enabled to get up and walk toward his house.  As for him, the process of healing begins with the forgiveness of sins which Christ mercifully grants to all who come to Him with humble repentance.  His mercy is such that He forgave this wretched man without the fellow saying anything at all due to the faith of his friends who literally carried him to Christ.  Perhaps his paralyzed state was also a sign of his humility and dependence upon the Lord and an image of our collective sickness and decay.  The Savior did not stop, however, with forgiving his sins, for He transfigured his life by enabling—indeed, by ordering—him to get up, pickup his bed, and walk home.

            The truth is that Christ says exactly the same thing to us all, for His forgiveness is not some kind of legal degree but a true participation in His life, holiness, and divinity which heals and transforms us into living icons of His salvation.  He calls and enables us all to live the kind of life described by St. Paul:  “Let love be without hypocrisy.  Abhor what is evil.  Cling to what is good.  Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in honor giving preference to one another…Bless those who persecute you:  bless and do not curse.”  No, it is not easy to live that way, especially in relation to people who have wronged us or whom we do not find it easy to like or in situations where we have trained ourselves to see only the bad in others and what else can go wrong.  Likewise, it surely was not easy for the paralyzed man to transition from being an invalid to having an active life, for we tend to get used to whatever state of life we are in and find it stressful, frustrating, and scary to act differently.  No matter how miserable we make ourselves, we often prefer that to the difficult course of change for the better.   

            That is one of the reasons that the Church gives us periods like the Dormition fast in order to gain some experience struggling with our addictions, weaknesses, and bad habits.  As we remember the end of the earthly life of the Theotokos, we want to become more like her, able to say, “Behold the handmaiden of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word,” in response to God’s calling in our lives.  She said and did that in response to the totally outrageous and terrifying news that she was to be the mother of our Lord, God, and Savior Jesus Christ.  We all struggle, however, to carry out much smaller and easier acts of faithfulness every day.  Too often, we are like a person who wants God’s forgiveness, but does not want His healing.  We are like the paralyzed man would have been had he said, “Thank you, Jesus, for forgiving my sins, but my legs are weak from lack of exercise and I would rather stay in bed than get up and walk.” 

            Even though we fall down like toddlers taking their first steps with some frequency, we must keep moving forward as best we can in the new life that Christ has given us.  Otherwise, we will end up rejecting Him because we will worship ourselves and attempt to make Him in our own image, to use Him simply to get what we want and disregard everything else to which He calls us.  Certainly, we are all inclined to do that because of our self-centeredness and pride, but that is precisely why we have to gain strength in denying ourselves so that we can refocus our energies on serving the Lord and our neighbors in whom He is present to us each day.

            As anyone who has tried to fast, pray, show generosity to the needy, and forgive others learns very quickly, we all suffer from some degree of paralysis.  It is often astonishingly hard to inconvenience ourselves even a little bit in order to give attention to God and our neighbors or to restrain our slavery to our taste buds, stomachs, and bank accounts.  When the Church calls us to undertake these spiritual disciplines, it is not as a punishment or because God likes us to see us suffer.  It is because we need help in getting up from our beds and moving forward with our lives.  We are all too comfortable with the misery of our weakness and paralysis.  Our feeble struggles to embrace the spiritual disciplines reveal to us the truth about ourselves and should lead us to call in humility for the Lord’s help in serving Him more faithfully.

            I hope that we are all doing our best to observe the Dormition fast so that we will be better prepared to respond obediently as the Theotokos did to the Lord’s calling upon her life.  I hope that we are all doing our best to be transfigured into the new life that Jesus Christ has brought to the world as the Second Adam in Whom our corrupt, fallen humanity is healed, restored, and blessed.  I hope that none of us will rest content to lie in the bed of our passions, weaknesses, and self-indulgent addiction to life as we have come to know it on our own terms.  For our Savior did not come to make us feel better about ourselves, to help us succeed by worldly standards, or even simply to forgive us.  He came to make us participants in the life of the Holy Trinity, to become by grace what God is by nature.  Yes, that means shining with light and holiness as He did at the Transfiguration.  Let us use these few days of the Dormition fast to take even the small, faltering steps of which we are capable to become more like Christ—to rise, take up our beds, and walk as best we can, trusting that His grace and mercy are healing us from our paralysis and weakness, and ushering us out of misery into a new and joyful way of living.

                         

Christianity in India Through American Eyes: A Complicated Religious Culture

             

            You cannot go to India without thinking about the relationship between Christianity and other religions, at least if you are a theology professor and an Orthodox priest.  The intersection of various spiritual traditions really slaps you in the face with sacred cows, temples, pilgrims, calls to prayer, and many other reminders that this is a part of the world where faith in so many forms is a lively presence.

            There have been Christians in India since St. Thomas the Apostle, but they remain a small minority.  Both the evangelical ministry which hosted our group from McMurry University and the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Christians whom I met were quite comfortable working with and serving people of whatever religion.  The evangelicals spoke of bringing people to Christ and the Orthodox maintained their traditional worship and sacramental life.  Both sponsor ministries to needy children of many different faith communities. The evangelicals run a school with a Sikh principal, Hindu teachers, and a tiny minority of Christian students.  They also minister to a colony of lepers that includes Hindus and Muslims.  The Orthodox mentioned that Hindus and Muslims sometimes come to services on major feast days.  A guide told us that most of the visitors to a famous mosque in Mumbai are Hindus who venerate the relics of an Islamic holy man.  The Orthodox also told me that one of their Indian saints is commonly venerated by both Muslims and Hindus.  To put it mildly, these interreligious dynamics are a bit more complicated than the ones I encounter in West Texas.

             Both evangelicals and Orthodox commented that conversion to Christianity is a complicated matter in India, but not impossible.  Though the general Christian experience there has not been one of persecution, since returning home I have read reports of an increase in anti-Christian violence in some parts of the country in recent years.  Some Indian states have passed anti-conversion laws in response to Hindu nationalist appeals.  I was told that it is virtually impossible to change one’s religion or caste in official government records, but that in practice conversions definitely do occur.

            “Preach the gospel at all times.  When necessary, use words.”  That quotation, attributed to St. Francis of Assisi, came to mind in observing Indian Christians of whatever stripe.  To bear witness to the good news of Jesus Christ is a fundamental Christian practice which may be carried out in a variety of ways dependent upon the circumstances.  Actions often speak louder than words and a picture (such as an icon) is worth a thousand words.  The Lord invited His first disciples to “Come and see.”  The emissaries of Prince Vladimir were drawn to Orthodox Christianity because the beauty of the Divine Liturgy was such that they did not know whether they were in heaven or on earth.  To offer the worship of the Church and to demonstrate Christ’s love to the needy are both ways of becoming a living icon of God’s salvation that invites others to enter into the joy of the heavenly kingdom.

            Too much focus on the abstract question of the eternal destiny of adherents of other religions leads us, however, to matters beyond our rational knowledge.  People find salvation as persons in relationship with the Lord and one another, not due to our knowledge of ideas, even when they are about God.  Jesus Christ is surely the only Savior of the world, but the parable of the Last Judgment in Matthew 25 provides hope that some serve Him well without knowing that they do so.  Created in the divine image and likeness, all human beings can do better or worse; and the more truth we have received, the greater the expectations.   The witness of Indian Christians reminds us to live out what we say we believe with integrity, even as we bow before the mystery of how others relate to Him. As Christ taught, we will be judged by the same standard we apply to others; so it is good to be careful to focus on taking the logs out of our own eyes first.

            St. Seraphim of Sarov said “Acquire the Spirit of peace and thousands around you will be saved.”  That is the Holy Spirit, of course, and it is by His presence in our lives that we may become living icons of God’s salvation and partakers of the divine nature (2 Pet. 1:4).  If we want to live the kind of lives that point others to Christ by showing them His love and holiness, we must be transformed by the One to Whom we open ourselves in prayer, worship, and all the spiritual disciplines of the Christian life.  Whether in India, America, or elsewhere, Christians will be of no use if we are not enlivened by the same Spirit Who overcame national and linguistic boundaries on the day of Pentecost and even united Jews and Gentiles into one body.  Those whose lives manifest the presence of the Holy Spirit cannot help but be true evangelists as signs of what happens to human beings in whom God dwells.

            India is a complex and confusing place, at least for this recent visitor.  But the focus of Indian Christianity seems to be as clear as this admonition from St. James 1:27: “Pure and undefiled religion before God the Father is this, To visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world.”  Surely, there is no better way to proclaim the gospel. 

Kate LeMasters: Intern at West Africa AIDS Foundation in Ghana

Kate LeMasters '15

Washington and Lee University

International Poverty

West Africa AIDS Foundation
Ghana, Africa

About Kate

Hometown: Abilene, Texas

Majors: Economics and Global Politics

Extracurricular Involvement:

• Bonner Scholar
• General's Development Initiative (GenDev)
• Student Consulting
• Planning For a Globalized Tomorrow (P4T) Leader
• Generals Christian Fellowship
• Chi Omega Sorority
• Appalachian Adventure Trip Leader

Off-Campus Experiences:

• Spring Term Abroad in the Netherlands 2012
• Shepherd Intern at Caritas of Austin Summer 2012
• Spring Term Abroad in Belize 2013

Why did you apply for this particular internship? I knew I wanted first-hand experience in a developing country and most of my research has been based on Sub-Saharan Africa. I've become more and more interested in Global Health, so working for the West Africa AIDS Foundation was an opportunity to delve deeper into my interests from a hands-on perspective.

How did your work apply to your studies at W&L?  I was able to draw from my Global Politics major by trying to parse out the workings of the Ghanaian Healthcare System, I was able to draw from my Economics major by conducting a pilot research study on 'What Factors Impact Disclosure of HIV Status,' and I was able to draw from my Poverty Studies minor by simply working here. I was able to take experiences from my classroom and apply them to situations I was facing every day at the NGO and the clinic. It also gave me a perspective of the nuanced issues of Global Health that is not possible to gain from a textbook or lecture. I was faced with issues of food security, stigma, disclosure, and many more by working at WAAF that go far beyond what can be taught in a classroom.

What was the most unexpected aspect of your Shepherd Alliance experience? Before my first day, I had not spoken to anyone working at WAAF. I had no idea what my tasks would be, if I would be at a desk every day, doing field work, or talking to patients. I quickly learned that the most unexpected aspect was simpler than my tasks: it was the environment. Adjusting to working at an NGO that has a clinic, an NGO in a developing country, an NGO that has projects in 4 regions of Ghana, and an NGO that was completely open to what I wanted to do, leads to chaos. There is no schedule for the day or week; flexibility is key.

Favorite W&L Memory:Going on the Outing Club Spring Break trip to Utah and hiking through the ice-cold Narrows at Zion National Park.

Favorite Lexington Landmark: The view from the top of House Mountain.

What professor has inspired you? Professor Dickovick. He has taught me more than I can ask for, from classroom conversations at W&L, to what to eat in Ghana, to how to conduct a research study at WAAF. 

In the wee hours of the morning I'm awoken by roosters crowing far before dawn, women sweeping their patios of endless red dirt, and laundry being done outside before the heat of the day. By the time my alarm goes off at 5:30, most of the neighborhood is bustling before the sun rises and my fellow Shepherd intern, Alex, is getting ready for her commute to downtown Accra that should take about 20 minutes, but takes up to 2 hours with traffic. I start my morning run along the dirt roads of East Legon, the label of our neighborhood in Accra and the closest thing to an address that I have encountered. Along my route I see the man who runs in a ski vest, women roasting corn on the side of the road, children in their vibrant school uniforms, and the never-ending pile of burning trash that is used as a substitute for a landfill.

When I return to Mummy's house--I don't even know her real name, she insists we call her Mummy--she sends me off to have a "blessed, blessed day Auntie Kate." Now begins the trek to work. After about 5 weeks, I've finally mastered it. I begin by taking a 30-minute walk to Okponglo Junction, an intersection on the main road into and out of Accra. I do my best to avoid falling in the open, 3-foot deep drainage systems on the side of the road; I've been successful so far. Little children yell "Obruni, Obruni!" meaning, "white person, white person!" and I wave as they giggle and applaud each other for their courage. Taxis constantly honk, thinking that the only Obruni in sight must be lost. When I tell them I am going to the Tro-Tro, they are caught by surprise. The Tro-Tro is the public transportation system in Ghana, if you can call it that. It is a van from the 60's or 70's that violates just about every vehicle standard in the books. It seats 12 people, but usually crams about 15 and has a 'mate' hanging out the side and repeatedly screaming the final destination. There is no schedule, no map, no set rate, and no English spoken. I take the Medina Tro-Tro to Atomic Junction and then the Haatso Tro-Tro to the bus stop or Total Filling Station and then turn right at the big dirt road. Try being told that on your first day of work.

I arrive at the West Africa AIDS Foundation and read the 'schedule of events' that is the white board. I never know when I'll find my name next to a trip that only says the town of destination. Only en route have I realized that the bus ride over pot-hole filled roads would be 13 hours, that I would give a presentation in a tuberculosis training for peer educators, or that I would speak to 500 high-school aged girls on reproductive health. The developing world comes with a work culture that has no agenda for business trips and no adherence to meeting times. For now, the sporadic, weeklong trips to the northern and western regions of Ghana have seemed to cease, so it's back to life at the office.

Today, my name is not on the board. At first I'm disappointed that there are no big adventures planned, but I'm quickly reminded that a day at the office is never too typical. I quickly check in with the chairman, Eddie, the most energy-filled NGO supervisor that I've ever met, who tells me of all the upcoming meetings, the billion projects he has formulated in his head, and the incredible meat pies that he had last night. I go into the Projects Room and am all too excited when the AC and internet are both working. It's going to be a good day. I look over my concept paper for a grant proposal I've been working on. The proposal calls for USAID to expand HIV services for pregnant women to the community level in multiple districts in Ghana through a public-private partnership with Ghana Health Service. Currently, most funds are given to regional hospitals for state-of-the-art technology for antenatal care, while community level clinics don't have a midwife or registered nurse, much less an ambulance for emergencies. Working at an NGO with offices in four regions of Ghana and with the mission to combat the spread of HIV/AIDS leaves big shoes to fill for an ill-equipped intern. I am in no way accredited to write grants, meet with the Ghana AIDS Commission, or present my grant proposal to municipal health directors. But I've come to realize that my preconceived notions of my capabilities are far less important than the requirements of an agency working towards the elimination of the global HIV/AIDS epidemic.

I take my updated grant proposal to Dr. Naa, the CEO of WAAF, medical director of the on-site clinic IHCC, and the only medical doctor in the whole operation. She is superwoman. While I wait for her to finish seeing patients at the clinic, I hear the cries of an 8-year-old boy with a fungal infection covering his body. He is at stage 3 of HIV and is refusing all food and drink. No doctor, nurse, family member or other child can change his mind. Dr. Naa emerges, obviously discouraged by his state, but hopeful that the grant proposals and projects that she is about to check over will find a large-scale solution to the drastic delays in treatment that result in 8-year-olds with stage 3 HIV, the stage of AIDS diagnosis. A situation that could be prevented by increased HIV treatment for pregnant women and infants.

Next emerges Esther, an HIV positive woman wearing colorful traditional garments and scarves. She is one of the leaders of the Almond Tree Project, an income generation and microfinance group started at WAAF for HIV positive women. Most microfinance institutions won't lend to HIV positive groups because they believe they will be too sick to repay their loan, they may die before their deadline, and the MFI's simply stigmatize against those living with HIV as unworthy clients. I listen to Esther's story of Almond Tree; it gave her hope when she was hopeless and friends when she was abandoned. Finding out her status years ago was devastating. The discrimination in Ghana towards people living with HIV is startling. She and other women at the clinic started to meet under an almond tree as a support group and they began to teach each other how to sew, bake, and make beads. Funders have seen their unbreakable support for one another and we are currently working on expanding their work through skills training, more funding and showrooms for their work.

Ah, lunchtime. I make my way back up the 'big dirt road' to the marketplace and am bombarded by endless stands of waakye (a mix of just about every food possible), roasted plantains, fish heads, fried yams, and fresh fruit. I make my way to the mango stand on the end, where the young girl smiles at me, reassured by my daily return to her stand, and quickly prepares mangoes for the other interns and me.

Returning to the office, it's time to work on my project. In a developing country, it's all too easy to allow too much down time at work, take two-hour lunch breaks for groundnut soup with goat and say "oh, I'll do it tomorrow." For better or worse, I need to be busy. I set up a meeting with the clinical staff to ask what question they want answered. I know this is incredibly broad. However, I know from previous conversations that IHCC and WAAF have many unanswered and pressing questions that they need answered to better serve their patients. For now, they want to know what factors determine disclosure of HIV status to one's partner. The fear, worry and anxiety of sharing this information is often simply too much. It often leads to abandonment, violence and false accusations of infidelity and promiscuity. This is not an easy topic to cover or interview patients on, but Dr. Naa's smiling face reassures me, and I know this is a topic we must address. I prepare myself to interview patients and listen to heart-breaking stories of the fear and violence that the nurses have told me about. In a country that is considered a success for Africa and often overlooked by international organizations for support, the status of HIV/AIDS and the nuanced issues surrounding it in Ghana are hardly a success. Stigma prevents disclosure, fear prevents testing and corruption resulted in a $10 million refund to the Global Fund last year for AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis control programs from Ghana.

I take the long dirt road back to the Tro-Tro stop, this time on the look out for a car yelling "Accra, crrraa, crrraa, crrraa" and desperately hope that I can understand them this time. I carefully get on and off the Tro-Tro, remembering that I've already ripped 3 skirts during this process on the rusted steps. It's the rainy season in Ghana, but usually that just means extraordinarily high humidity and a soaked-through shirt when I take off my backpack. I hear Mummy making dinner in the kitchen and her children, grandchildren and countless other household members ask about our day. I still don't know who all lives in this pink-walled house in East Legon.

It's about 6:00 and I'm ready to call it a day. Alex and I share our daily stories of work and Tro-Tro hassles over dinner after we take off our matching Birkenstocks. We often discuss the option of leaving the house, but never make it past the mental block of navigating the Tro-Tro system and haggling the taxi drivers for a decent rate that isn't an "Obruni price." Today we are planning a trip for the weekend to the Volta Region. Alex laughs as I look through a guidebook and I quickly remember that planning much of anything here is a joke in itself; word of mouth and a flexible schedule are the keys to travel. At this point we watch an episode of LOST and I crawl into bed to read, excited to start my tenth book of the trip. After a few chapters I can't stay awake, knowing that the now-familiar sound of the sweeping of porches will wake me soon enough.

http://www2.wlu.edu/x60262.xml

Learning from Christians in India and Syria: Homily for St. Timon Sunday in the Orthodox Church

             

          My trip to India was fascinating in ways too many to count.  With cows, water buffalo, and goats wandering the streets, which are filled with several lanes of totally insane traffic, you know immediately that you are not in Texas anymore.  One of the great blessings of my trip was to meet Indian Christians, a small minority in a country with a vast population and a wide range of cultures.  Christians are by no means a dominant group in India; nonetheless, they live in peace with their neighbors and do their best to show the love of Christ to the needy and suffering people around them. 

 For example, the evangelical group with which McMurry works there runs a home for orphans and other children whose parents cannot properly care for them, as well as a school and a ministry to lepers.  When it comes to those lepers, literally no one else in the city has anything to do with them.  I also visited St. Thomas Seminary of India’s Orthodox Church, which traces its heritage back to St. Thomas the Apostle.  The seminary has the feel of a monastery, as the students begin their day with prayers at 5 am, have permission to go into town once a week for a few hours on Sunday afternoon, and otherwise live a disciplined communal life that few Americans would accept.  Adjacent to the seminary is a home for mentally retarded children which provides a residential education for vulnerable kids who are easily neglected and abused.

By doing this kind of work to the outcasts of their society, Indian Christians proclaim the love and mercy of Jesus Christ not only by their words, but more importantly by their deeds.     In a society where religious conversion is complicated and it is often a real accomplishment for different groups simply to live in peace, the Christians quietly seek to treat everyone as the Lord treats us all.  Their practices will not make them rich, famous, or powerful, but they are signs of obedience to the humble, selfless way of our Savior who came to serve, not to be served.

The situation of Indian Christians reminds us in some ways of that of Christians in the Middle East.  In both places, they are a small minority that seeks harmonious relations with others and ministers to the needy.  For example, International Orthodox Christian Charities (IOCC) is the most active philanthropic organization in Syria.  Apparently trusted by both sides in the conflict, they are able to show compassion to those who suffer from the effects of a brutal war, regardless of their religious or political affiliation. 

Especially as Antiochian Orthodox Christians, our thoughts and prayers are with our brothers and sisters in Syria.  Two bishops have been kidnapped there, one of whom is the brother of our Patriarch.  Metropolitan Saba of the Diocese of Hauran, our sister diocese, reports that he is able to visit only one of the communities under his care.  At his diocesan headquarters, he has set up a kitchen that feeds one hundred families every day.  Inflation is very high and so many people have lost their livelihoods and their homes.  They are caught between two warring factions and simply trying to survive with hardly any resources.

We think of Syria especially today, for it is  “St. Timon Sunday Day” in our diocese, when we remember Timon, one of the seventy apostles sent out by Jesus Christ and one of the original deacons mentioned in the book of Acts.  He became the bishop of Bosra in Syria and eventually became a martyr.  All Christians are in his debt as a pillar of the early Church.   He converted many Arabs to the Christian faith, and especially we Antiochian Orthodox should remember him with great appreciation.  For he played a crucial role in building the mother church of which we are a part and of evangelizing the part of the world where our faith began.

            So it is fitting that in the last few of years our diocese has established “the Hauran connection,” a way for us to help our impoverished Orthodox Christian brothers and sisters in southwestern Syria.  Life is impossibly hard now for everyone in Syria.  In a revolution or civil war, it does not matter what you call it, everyone’s life is at risk.  Along with people of other faiths, many of our Orthodox brothers and sisters are now refugees with nothing but the clothes on their backs.

            We sometimes forget how blessed we are to live in a country where, despite our many problems, there is not civil war or ongoing physical violence between political and religious groups.  Hunger and poverty certainly exist here, but not as they do in a war zone or a society where people have to flee for their lives.      

            None of us controls world events or the policies of our government.  If we think in worldly terms, there is not much that we can do about the problems of Syria or any other nation, perhaps including our own.  But as Christians we should not think in worldly terms for Christ’s kingdom is not of this world.   We are not called to lord it over others or force them to do our will, but instead to offer ourselves and our blessings as best we can to the Lord for Him to do with as He sees fit.  And that is why we take up a collection here at St. Luke each summer for “the Hauran Connection,” especially for our sister parish of the Dormition of the Theotokos.  I hope that you will put what you can in the collection plate today or next Sunday to help our struggling brothers and sisters in Syria.     

We can learn from Christians in places like the Middle East and India that we are not in charge of the course of human events.  We probably struggle enough just to deal with our own personal problems, much less to set the world right.  All that we can do is to offer what little we can to the Lord for His blessing with the humble trust that He will do the rest.

            That kind of offering is at the very heart of our worship in the Orthodox Church.  A couple of loaves of bread and a cup containing wine and water.   By themselves, they might make a decent snack, but not even a full meal.  But in the Divine Liturgy, we pray for God’s blessing upon the bread and wine.  By the power of the Holy Spirit, they become the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, the menu of the heavenly banquet.  We receive more than a mere meal, but the forgiveness of sins and life eternal in our communion.   We are nourished with heavenly food and in communion with our Savior and His Body on earth and in heaven.   

            Yes, God works miracles upon the small gifts we offer Him. He requires that we do our small part and then He does the rest, making our tiny gifts far more than they could have been on their own.  We often say in the Church that we are not simply to attend the Divine Liturgy, but to live it.  All of our life should be an offering to and communion with God, as well as with all those created in His image and likeness.  Now is the time to make whatever offering we can to the Lord for the poor people of Syria.  Like the Christians in India, let us show the love and mercy of Jesus Christ to the suffering not only with our words, but also with our deeds.  No, we do not run the world, but we are called to live peaceably and faithfully in it, doing what we can to show the love of our Savior to those who lack what we so often take for granted.     

              

Thoughts on Christianity in India

           

         

           At the risk of drawing overly broad conclusions, I would like to share a few thoughts about what American Christians may learn from their brothers and sisters in India.  A small religious minority in a country with a vast population and a wide mix of cultures, the Indian Christians I met over the last two weeks are under no illusions of being a dominant force in their society, let alone the brokers of political power.  Their faith is not associated with a particular party or interest group; instead, it gives every impression of focusing on bearing witness to the love of Christ and maintaining the practices and attitudes of discipleship.

 One such practice is ministry to the poor, needy, and outcast.  For example, Light Life Ministries in Aurangabad runs a home for orphans and other children whose parents cannot properly care for them, as well as a school and a ministry to lepers.  St. John’s English School serves children from families of very modest means who want a private education superior to that of the public system.  When it comes to lepers, literally no one else in the city has anything to do with them.  The lepers we met included people of different religious backgrounds, but they all experienced the presence of the Lord Jesus in the hospitality shown by Light Life Ministries.  

Outside the city of Nagpur, India’s Orthodox Church (which traces its heritage back to St. Thomas the Apostle) sponsors a theological seminary where the students begin their day with prayers at 5 am, share a disciplined communal life, and have permission to go into town once a week for a few hours on Sunday afternoon.   By our society’s hedonistic standards, that kind of spiritual commitment by young men is hard to understand.   But to prepare pastors who seek God’s kingdom above all else, at least a bit of asceticism is in order.  Adjacent to St. Thomas Orthodox Theological Seminary is a home for mentally retarded children called the Prerana Special School, which provides a residential education for vulnerable kids who are easily neglected and abused in any society.

By running schools, seminaries, and ministries to the weak and marginalized, Indian Christians manifest the love and mercy of Jesus Christ both by what they say and what they do.  In a society where religious conversion is complicated and it is often a real accomplishment for different groups simply to live in peace, the Christians seek to treat everyone as the Lord treats us all.  Their practices count for little by worldly standards and certainly will not make them rich, famous, or powerful.  Nothing wrong with that, of course, because our Lord’s  kingdom is not of this world.  Yes, we American Christians have a lot to learn from our brothers and sisters in India, for they remind us to live out what we proclaim with a generous and humble spirit.

           

Hearing and Obeying Christ's Call to "Follow Me": Homily on the Great Martyr Kyriake in the Orthodox Church

           

          Today we celebrate the memory of the Holy Great Martyr Kyriake, who gave the ultimate witness for Jesus Christ by refusing to worship pagan gods and giving up her life after suffering brutal persecution from the Romans.  A beautiful virgin girl, Kyriake came from a wealthy family and refused the offer of a marriage to the son of a magistrate who wanted their money.  That’s why the magistrate denounced the family as Christians to the Emperor Diocletian.  Even when offered great wealth and marriage to one of the emperor’s relatives, she refused and miraculously survived horrible tortures from four different rulers.  The Lord healed her wounds; her prayers destroyed a pagan temple and the wild beasts to which she was thrown would not attack her.  Immediately after praying before she was to be beheaded, Kyriake gave up her soul. 

            St. Kyriake’s story reminds us that the twelve disciples are not the only ones to whom the Lord has said “Follow me…”  They are not the only ones who have left behind a conventional life in order to follow Jesus Christ in the ministry of the Kingdom.  How odd, then, that of all the people who lived in those centuries long ago, we remember people like Peter, Andrew, James, John, and Kyriake who abandoned the things of this world in order to seek first God’s reign.  Christ said that “whoever desires to save his life will lose it and whoever loses His life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it.” (Mk 8:34-35)  They were hated and killed by the powerful, but remained steadfast in their commitment to the One Who conquered death and they now share in His glory.  They were treated as the least by earthly kingdoms, but now are they are among the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven.  

            The application to our lives is clear.  Though the particular path of discipleship to which we are called is probably very different from that of the Great Martyr Kyriake, we learn from her example that God will not abandon us when we are steadfast in our commitment to Him.  It is through such unflinching commitment that we will become our true selves in Christ.  The Lord sustained her through beatings that exhausted her tormentors, and through being suspended by her hair for several hours while being burned with torches.  The worse the torture, the more courageous she seemed. How amazing for a young virgin girl from a privileged family who had probably experienced little hardship previously.

            We all know of the kidnapping of the Orthodox bishops in Syria and of the killing, torture, and persecutions that our brothers and sisters in Christ endure today there and in so many other places.  Of course, people are murdered and abused for all kinds of reasons around the world.  No matter who the victim is, these are terrible crimes.  Even as we pray for innocent victims and do what we can to help them, we must not allow fear of anything or anyone to keep us from responding faithfully to the call “Follow me” that our Savior brings to each of us.  Faithfulness is not reserved only for those who are called to give the ultimate sacrifice of physical martyrdom.  Instead, their example should inspire us to become free of whatever nets have entangled us and held us back from following Jesus Christ as He calls us to follow Him here and now.

            In order to that, of course, we have to take our faith and our Lord seriously.  For example, if we do not get in the habit of attending to Him in prayer on a daily basis, we won’t be able to hear Him say “Follow me” in our own situation.  If we do not practice some kind of fasting or self-denial, we will probably be so addicted to our own pleasures and desires that we will find it impossible to put Him before ourselves.  If we do not take Confession and Communion on a regular basis with serious preparation, we will lack the spiritual strength to persevere in following Him.  We must embrace the basic spiritual disciplines of the Christian life if we want to live faithfully, even in the relative comfort and ease of our society.

            Otherwise, we will become spiritually lazy and morally weak, and without realizing it we will end up living according to the dominant trends of our culture.  Instead of being good stewards of our resources and generous to the poor, we will worship “the Almighty Dollar” and what it can buy.  Instead of pursuing chastity, purity, and fidelity, we will fall prey to hedonism and immorality. Instead of realizing that our enemies and nuisances provide our greatest opportunities to love Christ, we will turn away from Him by condemning them.  In these and many other ways, we will really come to believe that we simply have more important things to do than to take up our crosses and obediently follow our Lord.

            And in case all this sounds too dramatic, think about the challenges that we face every day.  It often doesn’t take much to inflame our passions against another person, even someone whom we love.  It doesn’t have to be a situation of life or death in order to be a situation of great spiritual significance that shapes us and others in decisive ways.  Every act of selfishness, dishonesty, thoughtlessness, or gossip weakens us in our ability to hear and obey our Lord’s calling.  When we focus on the past or the future in ways that distract us from the here and now, we overlook the only possibilities for the faithfulness that currently exist.  Just like daydreaming keeps us from hearing what someone else is saying, giving our attention to fantasies of any kind is dangerous because it draws us away from reality.

            In many times and places, young virgin girls like St. Kyriake have been thought to be unimportant and surely not of any great significance spiritually or otherwise.  But this young lady was able to stare down emperors and endure torture because, as St. Paul wrote,  she had put on Christ in baptism, in Whom “there is neither Jew nor Greek…neither slave nor free…neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.  And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.”  She had the dignity and power of a true child of God, as one who inherited by grace the great blessing and salvation fulfilled in our Savior. 

            Though it is hard to believe, the same is true of each of us.  Regardless of any of the details of our lives, we are all invited—each and every one of us—to manifest brightly the holiness of the Kingdom of God by responding to our Lord’s calling to follow Him as His sons and daughters.  Let’s not fool ourselves by saying that we will wait to do so until there is some great crisis in the world or our own lives.  Now is the time to follow Him by doing what we know we should be doing.  Now is the time to turn our backs on whatever separates us from Him.  Now is the time to follow the mighty example of the Holy Great Martyr Kyriake in hearing and responding faithfully to our Lord, for He calls us to follow the path trod by her and all the saints into the glory of the heavenly Kingdom.  The only question is how we will respond.