St. Mark Coptic Orthodox Church | Los Angeles, CA » understanding

Curriculum for Preparation of Sunday School Servants

Victor Hanna — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 16:47:20 +0000

Beloved of our Lord Jesus Christ:

May the grace and peace of our Lord be with you.

It is with great joy that we announce the publication of a new book “Curriculum For Preparation of Sunday School Servants”.

This book includes so many useful features that we believe will help Sunday School servants in accomplishing one essential element of their mission: that is to prepare new generations of servants of the Lord.

Some of these features are:

+ This book provides Sunday School servants with the necessary tools to start a servants’ preparation class right away.

+ It is written in a format suitable for the servant to deliver the lessons, as well as to be used by the students both in the classroom as a handout and at home as a reference.

+ It covers the three main elements of the service in Sunday School: the spiritual basis, the practical aspects of serving in the classroom and beyond, and understanding the psychology of children.

+ These elements are covered in a comprehensive program for one year.

+ The book is based on a program that has been taught for many years both in Egypt and in the Los Angeles area after being modified to fit the Sunday School service in America.

+ Thus, it will make a wonderful gift for servants in Sunday School, youth meetings, and other services in the church, as well as parents.

The book is available with minimum donation of $10 ($8 for orders of more than 20 books). Please order your books by filling out the order dform found below or contact the church.

Address: 1600 S. Robertson Blvd. Los Angeles CA 90035

Tel: (310) 275-3050 FAX (310) 276-6333

Email: stmarksundayschool@gmail.com

As we ask for your support for this effort, we pray that God will use it to glorify His Holy name.

ORDER FORM

2nd Sunday of Tute – One thing you lack

Administrator — Tue, 09 Oct 2007 01:57:03 +0000

Now as He was
going out on the road, one came running and knelt before Him, and asked
Him, ‘Good Teacher, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?’
So Jesus said to him, ‘you know the commandments: Do not commit
adultery, Do not murder. And he answered and said to Him, ‘Teacher,
all these things I have kept from my youth.’ Then Jesus looked at him,
loved him, then He told him, ‘One thing you lack. Go your way, sell
whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in
heaven; and come, take up the cross, and follow Me.’ And he was sad at
this word, and went away sorrowful, for he had great possessions. Then
Jesus told His disciples, "How hard it is for those who have riches to
enter the kingdom of God!" (Mark 10:17-23)

A question to the rich: What shall I do that I may inherit eternal life? It
is apparent that this youth is interested in his eternal life and the
inheritance of the kingdom of God. We see him running and kneeling
before the Lord Jesus asking Him how to inherit the eternal life? But
Jesus always examines the heart of those asking for the kingdom. To
those who ask that question, He answers them with a question. His
question does not mean that He is unaware of our conditions, but with
His question He is directly placing us into the light and the way
leading to life. He encourages us to enter into it The Lord Jesus
desires the salvation for all and for us to approach the truth. He
doesn’t desire the death of the sinner nor is He pleased with his
destruction. He has hope for the smoking wick and the bruised cane. You
know the commandments: Do not commit adultery, Do not murder, Do not
steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and
your mother. (Mark 10:19).

It is strange that the Lord didn’t mention to him the commandments from the start "To love the Lord your God from all your heart."
(Matt. 22:37; Mark 12:30; Luke 10:27). The Lord with His mercy He knows
and He observes. When the youth gave the answer, the Lord gave him a
look full of love, encouraging and saying: One thing you lack, go
sell whatever you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure
in heaven; and come take up the cross, and follow Me. (Mark 10:21)
Here the Lord reveals an important and dangerous entity: What good are
the commandments without loving God from all your heart? One might say, God, I thank You that I am not like other men-extortioners, unjust,
adulterers, or even as this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give
tithes of all that I possess. (Luke 18:11, 12) But my dear, do you
love the Lord from all your heart? What is your personal relationship
with God? That is what the Lord told the youth, that he lacked loving
Him from all his heart. The youth went away sorrowful because he loved
another! He loved the world, and he loved his wealth. He, who wants to
be a world lover, becomes God’s enemy. O my Lord I rather emphasize
being poor to achieve Your love than being rich without You. I rather
be alone with You on earth, than owning the heavens without You. There
is a kind of falsehood in understanding the divine commandments. An
understanding by reasoning:

For
an example, a person memorized Jesus’ commandments by heart. He argues
in the divine matters, and he imagines, within himself, that he knows
the Bible, though he is chained with the love of money. The love of the
world and the love of pleasures. The Lord Jesus says to those
individuals, Sell whatever you have, carry your cross and follow Me.
This youth doesn’t commit adultery, he doesn’t kill, he doesn’t steal
and he honors his father and mother. Then why does the Lord ask him
more than that? Aren’t there other youth who are known through the
community that they fear God and are worthy of entering the kingdom of
heaven? If such a youth is present in our community, he would be
praised by all, for his mannerism and his righteousness. The kingdom is
not offered because of mannerism, but it is given to those who love God
with all their hearts, with all their souls and with all their power.
This foundation makes the Pharisee, who prays to God and fasts twice a
week, eligible to enter the kingdom of God. But the Lord Jesus asks us
for the first and great commandment, to love the Lord your God with all
your heart, with all your thoughts and with all your might. So without
this commandment everything is in vain. There are many other examples
of those whom the Lord asked them to fulfill, what is considered
impossible. They joyfully carried out the task and reached the kingdom
of God. P Moses refused to be called the son of Pharos, preferring to
be humiliated with God’s people. His love of God made Moses frown on all the wealth and the riches of Egypt.

God told Abraham: Walk before Me and be blameless.
(Gen. 17:1). He heard and obeyed the divine voice. When God told
Abraham to get out of his family and his father’s house, he departed,
not knowing his destination. And when God told him. Take now your
son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah,
and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of
which I shall tell you. (Gen. 22:2), he saddled and offered his son. He didn’t hold back his only son.

And to the Levi, He told him, Follow Me (Matt. 4:19. So he left the tax office and everything and followed the Lord. Similarly, the rest of the Apostles "We have left all and followed You.
(Mark 10:28; Luke 18:28). But this youth, when He told him to sell
whatever he has and give it to the poor, he became extremely sad. Now
where was that appearance of interest for the kingdom? He was running
and kneeling on his knees in front of the Savior, diligently asking
Him. But when the Lord asked him to spend something for the sake of the
kingdom, he was sorrowful. He wants the kingdom without spending for
the kingdom’s sake. He wants to take and not give. But Jesus’ kingdom
is: One exalts in giving more than in taking.

The great Saint Anba Antoneous heard this same chapter of the Bible, in
the fourth century. He immediately left, sold his belongings (300 acres
of the best farm land), gave it to the poor and followed the Lord .
Though this message was useless to that youth. But Saint Antoneous
accepted it with rejoice, hid it in his heart and was obedient to the
law. He fulfilled it with courage. So the divine Word raised him up and
made him one of the great saints who pleased the Lord.

Follow Me carrying your cross.

This
is the true kingdom of Jesus. It is the way which many reject. Some
they draw an imaginary picture of the kingdom, seeking their comfort
and joy. They imagine that the kingdom is just a place of enjoyment.
But Jesus’ kingdom starts with self-denial and self-crucifixion. We die
in Jesus and live eternally. We are crucified with Him to rise in Him,
to dwell in the new life. Those who do not accept Jesus’ crucifixion,
they have no part in His glory or His resurrection. Therefore the core
of the matter is that the wealth of this youth created an obstacle, a
rock blocking him from salvation. His wealth became a flirt, lust and
pleasure, which are distant from the cross. We are in dire need of the
cross, which places a limit to the desire and worldly pleasures in our
lives. The cross nails our humanity, and with its crucifixion we are
freed from all bounds. The cross frees us from the worldly worship to
examine the freedom as the sons of God.

The Feast of the Pentecost

Administrator — Sun, 27 May 2007 10:34:25 +0000

Because of the importance of the Holy Spirit’s work with us, the Lord said to His disciples, the saints:

"Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you” (Jn 16:7)… And told them about Him “that He may abide with you forever… and will be in you” (Jn 14:16, 17).

The Glorified, Lord Christ, lived with them in His body until He rose to Heaven then promised them the Holy Spirit to stay with them forever, the Spirit of truth, the Comforter… So what should we know about the Holy Spirit?

The Holy Spirit is God’s Spirit, therefore it existed since ever.
We read about it in the first verses of the Genesis Book. The divine response says: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.” (Gn 1:1, 2).
And Isaiah talks about the Holy Spirit and gives Him names in his saying: “…The Spirit of the LORD…, The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, The Spirit of counsel and might, The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD.” (Is 11:2).
And we add to that in the third Hour Prayer (Terce) of every day and say: “…a spirit of prophecy and chastity, a spirit of holiness, justice and authority…” and call Him by saying: “O Heavenly King, the Comforter, the Spirit of truth, who is present in all places and fills all, the treasury of good things and the Life-Giver…”.
And the Lord says about Him in the St John’s Gospel “the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father” (Jn 15:26). And the doctrine of being proceeded from the Father was mentioned by the Ecumenical Council in Constantinople in the Faith Creed. Yet our brothers, the Catholics add to it “Filioque” meaning “and from the Son”. And this is opposing to the Holy Trinity Doctrine. In assimilating the Holy Trinity to Fire we say: "Fire brings forth heat; and light proceeds from it” and we do not say that the light proceeds from heat! But the light and the heat both come from the origin, which is the fire and not one from the other…

The Holy Spirit used to work in the Old Testament as well.

In the story of Samson we read that “the Spirit of the LORD began to move upon him at Mahaneh Dan” (Jg
13:25). And we also read that after Saul was anointed as king that “the
Spirit of God came upon him, and he prophesied” (1 S 10:10). This also
happened when David was anointed by Prophet Samuel to be king “the
Spirit of the LORD came upon David from that day forward” (1 S 16:13).

And
the way the Holy Spirit came upon both Saul and David was through the
Anointing Oil that the Lord ordered them to prepare in Exodus Book (Ex
30:2231).
And Aaron was anointed as a high priest when Moses poured from this
holy anointing oil on Aaron’s head and anointed him (Lv 8:12), as we
say in the psalm “It is like the precious oil upon the head, Running
down on the beard, The beard of Aaron, Running down on the edge of his
garments.” (Ps 133:2). And with this anointing oil the tent of meeting
along with the altars and the utensils were anointed and became holy
(Ex 40, Lv 8). With this anointing oil also kings and prophets were
anointed (1 K 19).

And as a result to the anointing, the Holy Spirit comes upon them and so comes His gifts as well.And we read in prophet Joel the Lord’s saying:

“And it shall come
to pass afterward That I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; Your
sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your old men shall dream
dreams, Your young men shall see visions.” (Jl 2:28).

And
this is what happened on the fiftieth day (the Day of Pentecost), as St
Peter the Apostle explained this verse from Prophet Joel’s Book (Ac
2:16, 17).

The Holy Spirit also could be transferred from one person to another.

This
happened to the seventy elders on the days of Prophet Moses when the
Lord said to him: “Gather to Me seventy men of the elders of Israel…
Then I will come down and talk with you there. I will take of the
Spirit that is upon you and will put the same upon them” (Nm 11:16,
17). And here the bible says: “Then the LORD came down in the cloud,
and spoke to him, and took of the Spirit that was upon him, and placed
the same upon the seventy elders; and it happened, when the Spirit
rested upon them, that they prophesied” (Nm 11:25).

We
notice that before Moses, when Joseph the Righteous interpreted the
Pharaoh’s dream, “Pharaoh said to his servants, "Can we find such a one
as this, a man in whom is the Spirit of God?"” (Gn 41:38).

And here was the Holy Spirit’s gift interpreting dreams, i.e. the Spirit of knowledge. Also there is another work for God’s Spirit in every
art, so as to what the tent of meeting needed “Then the LORD spoke to
Moses, saying: "See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, the
son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. And I have filled him with the
Spirit of God, in wisdom, in understanding, in knowledge, and in all
manner of workmanship, to design artistic works, to work in gold, in
silver, in bronze, in cutting jewels for setting, in carving wood, and
to work in all manner of workmanship” (Ex 31:15).

Here
we see that the Holy Spirit works even in the talent of workmanship
that is given to some even in jewelry and carving woods…

Among the most important characteristics of the Holy Spirit is that it is Who spoke in the prophets.
And
this is a statement in the content of the Faith Creed. This means that
the Holy Spirit is the source of the divine response of the Holy books.
the Holy Spirit was the source of all what the prophets and apostles
said in the holy books.In
this St Peter the Apostle said in his second epistle “for prophecy
never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were
moved by the Holy Spirit.” (2 P 1:21).

Nowadays, in the New
Testament, the Holy Spirit is given through three ways: The holy
anointing, laying priests’ hands and the holy breath. ™ As
for the holy breath, it was written in St John’s Gospel that our Lord
Jesus, after His Resurrection, when He appeared to His disciples, the
saints, in the upper room, He told them “As the Father has sent Me, I
also send you." And when He had said this, He breathed on them, and
said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any,
they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are
retained."” (Jn 20:21-23).

And
in the ordination of the bishop or the priest we breathe in his face
and say “Accept the Holy Spirit”, so he opens his mouth to accept the
holy breath and says with the psalm “I opened my mouth and accepted
myself a spirit”. ™ As
for laying hands, the Holy Spirit in the time of our fathers the
apostles was given through the apostles laying hands. This was
mentioned in giving the Holy Spirit to the People of Samaria. The
Apostles Synod in Jerusalem sent them St Peter and St John “Then they
laid hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit” (Ac 8:14-17).
And the same was done to the People of Ephesus “And when Paul had laid
hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them” (Ac 19:7).

Same
applied to the Priesthood Sacrament, St Paul the Apostle said to his
disciple Timothy “I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in
you through the laying on of my hands” (2 Ti 1:6). ™ The
holy anointing was also known in the apostolic age. St John the Apostle
says about that: “But you have an anointing from the Holy One…” (1 Jn
2:20) “… But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in
you” (1 Jn 2:27). ™ And
we, in anointing children after baptism: we anoint them with the Holy
Chrism (Myron) and lay hands on them and breathe in their faces. And
say to them: “Accept the Holy Spirit”.

And with the Holy Anointing Sacrament we become temples for the Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit dwells in us…

St
Paul the Apostle talks about that in his first epistle to Corinthians
and says: “Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the
Spirit of God dwells in you?” (1 Co 3:16), and “Or do you not know that
your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you” (1 Co 6:19).
Then every one of should remember that on the day he was anointed with
the Holy Chrism (Myron) that he became a temple for the Holy Spirit and
the Holy Spirit became dwelling in him…

The Holy Spirit works in priesthood and priesthood is granted through the Holy Spirit.

It
has the power of forgiving sins. But someone may say: How is that? And
no one can forgive sins except God alone! We say: Yes, the Holy Spirit
that is in the priest is one who forgives sins. As we say in the Holy
Liturgy “…be absolved by my mouth through the Holy Spirit”, so it is
the Holy Spirit that forgives sins. And this forgiveness comes from the
priest’s mouth. And the absolution that the priest gives through the
absolution prayer in which he says: may God absolve you, may God pardon
you, may God forgive you…

And
the Holy Spirit is present also in all the Church Sacraments. He also
is present in all the Holy Synod decisions. In the first decision that
came from the Synod in Jerusalem on the days of our fathers the
apostles, they said: “it seemed good to the Holy Spirit, and to us…”
(Ac 15:28).

The Holy Spirit works in the Service too…

The
fathers, the apostles did not start the service until the Holy Spirit
came upon them and the Lord’s promise saying: “But you shall receive
power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be
witnesses to Me” (Ac 1:8) was fulfilled in them.

The
Holy Spirit was the One choosing the servants, like when He said: “Now
separate to Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called
them” (Ac 13:2, 4). And it was Him who directed the servants in their
paths and worked in them and using them.

Asking for the Holy Spirit is a point of our daily prayer of the Third Hour (Terce).

We
ask it to come upon us and purify us from all defilement of body and
spirit. And we cry to God saying: Your Holy Spirit, O Lord, do not take
away from us.

It
is part of our freedom to accept the Holy Spirit, work with Him, and go
into the “Holy Spirit Partaking”. And we are also free to reject and
quench the Spirit and fight the Spirit. And the most serious thing is
to blaspheme against the Holy Spirit, meaning to reject it completely
all through the life. But how beautiful is the bible’s saying: “For as
many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God” (Ro 8:14).

Here
I would like to warn those who are deceived and think that every spirit
that leads them is God’s Spirit!! The apostle says: “do not believe
every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because
many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 Jn 4:1).

The Great Lent: The Journey to the Bosom of the Father

Administrator — Sun, 25 Mar 2007 10:25:38 +0000

The Church has a strong program during this fast put by the ‎Fathers
through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, which became to ‎the soul a
source of survival and spiritual filling, and to the Church ‎a source
of communal repentance and deep fellowship with the ‎Lord Jesus Christ
in His fast…for Christ fasted for us and with us– ‎and certainly He is
a partner with each fasting soul.‎

The monks used to take this
opportunity of the holy fast to ‎leave their monasteries to the
wilderness in solitude and in the ‎fullness of the company of the Lord
Jesus and the fellowship of ‎His Holy Spirit. At the end of Lent they
returned to their ‎monasteries (as was recorded for us in the story of
Saint Mary the ‎Egyptian and her meeting with Saint Zosima the priest).‎

In
addition, the Church considered the Great Lent a ‎dedication program
for the teaching of catechumens who were ‎admitted to the faith, and
who at Easter were baptized in the name ‎of the Holy Trinity-that is
they were buried and resurrected with ‎Christ. The procession which the
Church conducts, these days for ‎the newly baptized baby was in the
past the procession of ‎Resurrection which the catechumens experienced
at their baptism ‎and resurrection in the Lord at Easter.‎

These
days the Church as a body practices absolute ‎abstention, daily
liturgies, the life of repentance and contrition ‎before God. We can
find through meditation on the Sunday ‎readings a strong spiritual
program for every soul, which may be ‎titled, “The Journey to the Bosom
of the Father.” ‎

The journey starts in a frank and clear
invitation in the gospel ‎of the preparation Sunday for the entry into
the closet for a ‎dialogue with the Father.

‎1. Preparation Sunday (Matt. 6:1-8)

‎“When
you pray enter into your closet,…shut your door, ‎pray to your Father
which is in secret….” Also if you give alms or ‎fast that also should
be to the Father in secret….

The Point of Departure of the Journey

The
Church declares to us that the closet is the point of ‎departure of the
journey of Lent. If it does not start at the closet ‎then the journey
of our fast has deviated from its true course. The ‎fact that the
Church starts the fast by directing us to the closet ‎means that the
fast is not only related to the flesh but it is related ‎more to the
spirit and to Kingdom of God.‎ ‎ The week of ‎preparation is the week
of the closet.

Close Your Door

The journey starts after
closing the door-the door that looks ‎at the world. Then there opens
before us another door that faces ‎heaven, “Our father who art in
heaven”, “I looked, and, behold a ‎door was opened in heaven.” (Rev
4:1) “Fasting is not a fetter or a ‎prison to the senses but a soaring
without hindrance towards ‎contemplation of God.”

‎ Pray to your Father

The
Church has set a standard to the level of faith of the ‎catechumens
before they are allowed to receive the Sacrament of ‎Baptism. The
standard is the church continues teaching the ‎catechumens about the
Lord’s prayer, starts with “Our Father….”, ‎and at the moment they
perceive and comprehend the paternity of ‎God to them, they are
entitled to receive the Sacrament of Baptism.

Your Father Who Sees in Secret

This
is the secret of the prayer of the closet which the Church ‎perceived
so allotted to it the deepest of prayers like the prayer of ‎the five
wise virgins awaiting the coming of the Bridegroom, and ‎the prayer of
the fallen won feet of the Lord Jesus (Prayer of the ‎closet of
“Matins”). Where in the closet we discover our sins…and ‎we hold the
feet of the Lord to free our feet the prodigal road, and ‎we taste the
love of God, and learn contrition, and thus the goal of ‎the journey of
our fast becomes the withdrawal of the soul into ‎itself (in secret)
where the Lord purifies it with His blood and ‎dedicates her a temple
for Him and adorns her with His talents so ‎that she may participate
with the wise virgins in the meeting of the ‎Bridegroom.‎
Since
the journey is with the soul, it should be done in secret. ‎The
relationship between the human soul and Christ, is an invisible
‎relationship that begins in the chamber. So fasting is accompanied ‎by
a reduction in talking and visits and by concentrating on ‎spiritual
readings and attending the Divine Liturgy.‎

‎Brother, our
Heavenly Father is calling you to a holy ‎participation with Him in
secret, through which you may start your ‎fast, your prayers, and your
almsgivings. So beware of negligence.‎
Practice: The practice in
the week of preparation is the ‎prayer of the chamber and the worship
in secret which will ‎continue with us all through after the period of
fasting.

‎2. Surrender of Life to the Heavenly Father: (Matt. 6:24-34)

‎The
gospel of the first Sunday of Lent calls for the surrender ‎of life to
the Father. “Take no thought for your life, what you shall ‎eat…nor
yet for the body, what you shall wear….do not worry ‎about tomorrow.”
The reason for not worrying is that “your ‎heavenly Father knows that
you have of all these things.” (Matt. ‎‎6:32).

The practice of
this week is a call to a secure life in the care ‎of the Father and the
carrying out of what comes in the verse, “Do ‎not worry about
tomorrow,” physically, mentally and spiritually.

The Christian
commandment is full of risks but its assurance ‎is the care of the
Father. The woman who gave the two mites was ‎risking her meal. During
the fast, Satan wages his war by ‎convincing us that we are risking the
necessities of the body and ‎causes us to worry about our health.
Likewise, in charity, there is a ‎risk of wealth.‎

In this week, we experience the complete surrender to the ‎care of the Father and to His commandment.‎

‎3. Why does God forget us if He is our Father? (Matt. 4: 1-10)

The
gospel of the Second Sunday deals with the temptation ‎of doubting
God’s paternity to us, “If you are the son of God-why ‎does He leave
you hungry? Why does God allow the presence of ‎disease, failure and
the death of our beloved?”

Practice: It is our duty this week to
examine our faith in the ‎love of the Father who gave His Son for us.
Our faith should ‎surpass all temptations and emotions. Faith in the
Father should be ‎a faith that fortifies us against the temptation of
the Adversary, the ‎hardships of this world and the sufferings and
desires of the body.

‎4. Repentance in the Father’s bosom (Luke 15:11-32)‎

Repentance
in Christianity is different from any other ‎repentance; it is the
return of the son to his Father and the Father ‎falling on the neck of
His son to embrace him and kiss him (Luke ‎‎15:20). This is the gospel
of the third Sunday.‎

The Father’s paternity to us is not because
of our ‎righteousness, but because of His paternity to his children,
‎especially the sinners.‎

The Father’s paternity for us
challenges all our sins, our ‎failures, our betrayal of His love and
our mistreatment of His ‎name.‎

Practice: Brother, do not
permit this week to go by without a ‎true repentance and resorting to
the Father’s embrace….Examine ‎this in your chamber and taste the
Father’s embrace and His kisses ‎which are reserved only for those who
repent. This is the week of ‎repentance in the Father’s bosom, the
repentance of the whole ‎Church…the communal repentance.‎

‎5. Worship of the Father in Spirit and in Truth (John 4:1-42) ‎

The
next step after repentance is worship of the Father Who ‎accepted and
loved me and cleansed me from my sins and put me ‎in His bosom.
Contrition of the spirit and submission to the Father ‎and the love of
frequent prostrations in worship are the expressions ‎of our love for
Him who opened His arms for us sinners and kissed ‎us. This is the end
of the road of repentance in the Father’s bosom, ‎and this is the
sweetest fruit of the chamber and which the Father ‎gives us in secret.‎

The
Church, inspired by the Spirit, stresses in the period of ‎Lent the use
of prostrations during private prayers and in the ‎Divine Liturgy (At
the Offering of Incense after the readings of the ‎prophets).‎

The practice of this week is to worship the Father in spirit and ‎truth “for such the Father seeks to worship Him.” (John 4:23)‎

‎6. Bethesda and Baptism (John 5:1-18)‎

The
Gospel of the fifth Sunday talks about Bethesda which ‎symbolizes
Baptism. We, the crowds of Christians, were beside it ‎sick, lame,
blind and paralyzed; suffering every spiritual sickness. ‎The Angel
that moves the water symbolizes the Holy Spirit which ‎comes down on
the water of Baptism.‎

This is our share in Christ: those who are baptized have ever ‎in the Father even if they have been sick for 38 years.‎

The
practice of this week is to hope and never to despair—‎Baptism has
given us the grace of sonship and children are never ‎disappointed in
their hopes in the love of the Father.‎

‎7. Sonship is a Spiritual Enlightenment (John 9:1-41)‎

The last Sunday in Lent is the Sunday of Baptism, during ‎which we read the gospel of the man born blind.‎

a.
“I was blind and now I see.” This is our everlasting ‎experience as
children of the Heavenly Father. We were blind and ‎He opened our sight
so we beheld miracles of His laws and we saw ‎what the prophets longed
to see, and He gave us understanding of ‎the Scriptures.‎

b.
Baptism means washing (in the pool of Siloam), so we ‎become pure.
Repentance is a continuous washing, so we may see ‎clearly. Repentance
is a continuation of Baptism and it is the ‎means through which we can
see Christ clearly all our life. Lasting ‎repentance cleans our heart,
renews the intellect, protects the ‎contrite soul in the obedience of
the Father, and through ‎repentance, we can discover all the graces and
secrets of the ‎Heavenly Father.‎

8. The Kingdom of the Beloved Son (Mt. 21:1-17; Mk. 11:1-11; ‎Lk. 19:29-48; Jn. 12:12-19)‎

This
week begins with the entrance of Christ to rule ‎Jerusalem, riding on a
donkey and ends by Him ruling from the ‎Cross on Calvary where He draws
all to Him—all the children to ‎rule with Him in the Kingdom of His
Father

Drills while fasting

Administrator — Sun, 25 Mar 2007 10:05:55 +0000

What are these drills?

Since the fasting period is a sacred spiritual, during which one aims
to develop spiritually, it is proper that one should place before him,
some spiritual drills to convert these spiritual desires into a
practical mode of living. So, what are these drills?

Spiritual drills vary from one person to another according to their
requirements. These drills may include things like resisting some weak
facets in the life of a fasting person, gaining certain virtues that
such a person lacks, or spiritual longings pervading his heart.

Thus, they differ in the same person in accordance with his needs.

A person’s needs will differ from time to time in accordance with his struggles on the one hand and his degree of development on the other hand.

What is important is set up spiritual drills so that the person who fasts may feel that he has before him a certain target against which he will examine himself and which he will pursues to accomplish clear result in addition to the general virtues of fasting that are of benefit to him.

What we are going to discuss now is by way of example.

Every person should set whatever exercises are appropriate to him in his fast provided that this is done, as much as possible, under the supervision of his Confession Father.

1. Drills pertaining to fasting:

The purpose of these drills is to pursue a sound and developing fast.

Some of these drills pertain to self-control.

They may include stopping oneself from eating certain kinds of food that one covets. This may mean a total stop throughout the fasting period, a partial stop during a limited period or on a certain day, a reduction of the quantity of the food, or abstinence from a certain item of food.

Self-control drills may include the length of abstinence, its conditions and self-development during such a period. Some people resort to a system of gradual progression even within one fast. Lent for example, covers eight weeks during which one may gradually advance in degree of his asceticism and abstention from food.

Self-control also includes eating in moderation before beginning of a fast and on feast days. Eating on these days should not be gluttonous and uncontrolled. Self-control also includes the element of hunger.

Drills may embrace virtues accompanying fasting.

In this way they include the spiritual aspects of fasting such as self-control in areas outside the scope of eating such as control of the body, abstention from bodily lusts and all sensuous luxuries, spiritual vigils and keeping away from luxuries.

There are also drills that pertain to what fasting including humiliation and penitence before God and gradual growth in asceticism.

2. Drills pertaining to repentance:

Since fasting is a period of repentance, and repentance drills are numerous, let me mention the following:

(a) Concentration on a point of weakness or a favourite sin:

Each person knows perfectly well which sin he easily falls into and which sin he repeatedly commits and repeatedly referred to in his confessions. Try to discard on of these sins while fasting. In this way, your fast indeed becomes sacred.

(b) Train yourself to quit a certain habit while fasting.

An example of this is a smoker who trains himself while fasting to quit smoking. Likewise he who is addicted to drinking coffee or tea and cannot rid himself of this habit. Likewise the person who is addicted by to watching television, wasting his time, discharging himself of his responsibilities.

The period of fasting is an opportunity for to all of them to quit their habits.

(c)Fasting could be a period of quitting a sin of anger or judgement of others.

Many people fall into this well-known sin. Drills may deal with eliminating a number of verbal sins that one may have become accustomed to saying. In fasting, he may train himself in elimination them one by one.

(d) How easy it is for man to condemn his sinful actions by using verses from the bible:

For instance, if he slips into the sin of anger, he reminds himself of the Bible verse: For the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God. (James 1:20). He should repeat this verse often every day especially in situations where anger wars upon him. He should rebuke himself saying: What benefit is my fast if I anger and do not do the will of God?

If he slips into any of the spoken sins, he puts the following words of the Bible before his eyes: Every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. (Matt 12:36). He then says to himself in reproach: To what benefit is my fast in self-control but can not control my tongue saying to my brother: You fool thus deserving of hell fire? (Matt 5:22).

(e)Whenever you feel hungry and covet food, rebuke yourself:

Say to yourself: When you give up this sin, I shall allow you to eat, for the Bible says: If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat. (2 Thess 3:10), and you have not repented in a way befitting the fast or befitting a heart that is the residence of God.

Rebuke yourself, and say to it: What is the use of me shunning food if I have not yet given up the sin that separates me from God and that makes all my fast of no avail?

(f) Take your point of weakness and make it the topic of your prayers and the target of your efforts during your fast.

Concentrate fully to be careful and exacting and in resisting it.

Pour yourself before God, and say to Him: Save me, O Lord, from this sin. I admit my weakness in this particular case and will not conquer it without Your help. Have mercy, O Lord, on my weakness and helplessness. I do not want to conclude this fast before this sin is eradicated from my life.

Collect Bible verses that deal with this sin. Place them before you so that you may read them constantly.

Let fasting be a period of struggle with God so that he may grant you fortitude to conquer your sins. Train yourself while fasting in this kind of struggle, and say: Since, according to the Lord’s words, fasting exorcises the evil ones, may it exorcise the devils that wars within me with the sins with which I am weak. May it exorcise my sins as it exorcised devils when coupled with prayer.

3. Solitude and silence drills

The Bible states: Consecrate a fast, Call a sacred assembly. (Joel 1:14). Place this verse before you and train yourself in solitude.

What is meant by solitude is being in seclusion with God, for there are those who isolate themselves at home doing in no spiritual work and concentrate on the radio, television, or magazines, or delve into conversation with others at home! Or they may indulge in sinful thoughts!

Seclusion should actually be indulgence in spiritual work that you do with your bedroom door closed between you and God.

You seclude yourself with the Bible, with the biographies of saints, with prostration, and with prayer.

If you have a spiritual agenda you will love seclusion.

If you benefit by your seclusion in a spiritual way, you will pursue it and feel that it is a blessing from God.

Therefore, set a schedule, devote yourself to implement it. Try to free yourself during this period from your friends and recreations, for God will become your true friend in this period, and train yourself to do without useless talk and idle chatter. You will then be able to seclude yourself and labour with God.

If you cannot be in seclusion throughout the fast, then try the following:

Use the drill of Some closed days.

This means that you specify certain days during which you do not leave home. You should organise your business, concerns and visits in such a way as to enable you to seclude yourself on these closed days. You may begin with one day a week, then two, then more.

However, what should you do if you cannot seclude yourself with God?

If you cannot close your doors during a fast, then at least secure your mouth against sinful words.

How easy it is for our conversation with people to hamper our discourse with God. As one of the Fathers said: He who talks much is empty from the inside and is void of neither prayer, contemplation, nor spiritual recitations or spiritual work inside the heart.

Training in seclusion and retreat helps you remain silent, and silence rids you of the spoken mistakes and gives you the opportunity for internal growth which is the work of the soul.

Nevertheless, what full seclusion is not possible, what then?

There is another drill, which is:

4. Avoiding lost time:

There are one who wastes time. To him, time is trivial, wasted without benefit. This is his primary sin. He thus, neither prays, reads, nor has any spiritual contemplation. Consequently, spiritual laxity, and perhaps slipping into sin may ensue.

Such a person may say to himself: While fasting, I want to train myself to resist wasting my time and to make use of it. How can this be done?

Salvage the time lost in talking with people, in meetings, visitations, in useless discussions and in reading magazines and newspapers and expressing your view on their contents. The time wasted in listening in to the radio, watching television, and doing other dispensable and recreational things, should be used to do spiritual work for God.

We all know how we waste time, and therefore can best determine how best to save it as an integral part of his life. Let this then train ourselves on this point while we fast, God willing.

This drill helps us another way in fasting of the tongue.

Saint Isaac said that to fast the tongue is better than to fast the mouth. If you realise this, you will train yourself to remain silent as long as you can. If you are unable to do so, then use the following three exercises:

(a)Do not initiate a conversation except when necessary.

(b)
Give short answers.
(c)
Occupy your mind with some spiritual thought that will help you keep silent.

5. Penitence and self-abasement drills:

Fasting days are ones of penitence and self-abasement before God. Therefore, train yourself in them until you humble yourself down to the level of dust and ashes. This can be accomplished through the following exercises:

(a)Shun the love of praise, boastful talk, and self praise.

(b)Use penitent words in your prayers. For instance, repeat the words of the Psalm: O Lord, do not rebuke me in Your anger, Nor chasten me in Your hot displeasure. (Ps 6:1).

(c)If you feel hungry or sit down to eat, say to yourself: I do not deserve this food because of my sins, because I have done so and so. I do not fast out of holiness but out of my internal humility. He who attains penitence feels no desire for food no matter how appetising it is when laid before him. If hunger presses on him, he says to himself: Repent first, then eat. If he still finds himself fallen into sin, he scolds himself, saying: Is this a fast acceptable to God? Does this sanctify my fast?

(d)
Days of fasting are a good opportunity for confession and self-reproach inside oneself before God and before your Father confessor. It is a period to be honest with oneself, holding yourself accountable and for rebuke and discipline. Remember not to justify yourself by finding excuses however trivial these may be.

(e)
Train yourself in labour of humility which are numerous and about which we shall write a book for you, God willing.

6. Memorisation drills:

You may also take the period of fasting as a time for biblical verse memorisation of Psalms, chapters from the Bible, and church melodies and hymns.

(a)Take for instance the memorisation of the 111 verses of the Sermon on Mount. If you memorise three verses a day, you will finish with them in 37 days.

(B) Memorise for example, the passages of the prayers of the Agbia hours that are 36 in number. If you memorise one passage a day you will complete them in 36 days.

(c)Memorise the 8 hourly absolutions, as well as the common prayers like the Introductory prayer, thanksgiving prayer, psalm 50 and concluding prayer, as well as some passages that are unique in the morning or the evening prayers.

(d)
Memorise as many of the hourly psalms as you can, beginning with the short ones. (e)Memorise selected Bible verses, preferably with their references. If you memorise three verses a day, you will have managed to memorise 150 new verses every year during Lent alone.

(f)
You can memorise verses that begin with the letters of the alphabet. You may also memorise verses that carry certain meanings, or refer to the Church Sacraments or to certain parts of the creed, or those relating to every virtue.
(g)
During a fast, you may memorise well known chapter of the Holy Bible such as (1 Cor 13), which is devoted to love; (Rom 12), which is a set of golden verses referring to several virtues; (1 Thess 5:12-23); (Eph 6:10-18) which are devoted to spiritual warfare and struggle (Phil 3:7-14), and the like from selected Bible chapters.
(h)
Use the verses you memorised for spiritual meditation and nourishment during your fast and use them for practical application.
(i)
Always recite the prayers and Psalms you have memorised in order to add them to your daily prayers.
(j)
In the same way, set yourself a schedule for the memorisation of Church melodies and hymns.

Setting up a spiritual schedule, will make you realise the importance and value of this time of fasting, and will therefore treasure for use to your benefit.

7. Prayer drills:

Make it your aim throughout the days of fasting to increase your prayer. Do not fall short in your Agbia or your normal prayers. We place before you, the following drills which your should try to perform to the best of your ability.

(1) Prayer drill while travelling:

While on your way, use the psalms, short or special prayers to occupy and lift up your heart to God. You may say:

Forgive me my God and do not take my sins into account. Have mercy on me, You the all merciful God. Save me, O Lord, from my weaknesses and strengthen me. Bless O Lord these sacred days, and bless these days of fasting. Allow me, O Lord, to spend a period of time with Your. Unite my heart to You, O Lord and fill me with love. Grant me your blessings, O Lord and assist me. Bestow upon me a blessed and a pure heart. Wash me, and make me whiter than snow. Purify me and save me O Lord. Protect me from all evil. Partake in this work with me. Let it be according to Your mercy and not according to my sins.

Train yourself in these and other similar types of prayers while on the road travelling. What is important is to keep your heart occupied always with God.

(2) Train yourself to pray in the midst of others:

Whether you are in a meeting, with friends or relations, or in the midst of people anywhere, lift up your heart in silence to God. In this way, you keep quiet while your heart is busy conversing with the Holy Spirit. For a silent person is a store of God’s secrets. As the Spiritual man says, Silence your tongue so that your heart may speak.

(3) Learn to pray while working:

Manual labour can easily be intermingled with prayer. It was thus with our forefathers, but may be different to the work performed by people living in the world. Even if your work requires mental concentration, try to lift up your heart to God from time to time with a very short prayer, saying: I long for You, O Lord. I do not want to stay for long away from You. Make me work be dedicated for You. Bless all that I do. I love You, O Lord from all my heart and I long for You. I praise Your Holy Name while I work. Your Name is sweet and blessed in the mouths of Your saints. I thank You, O Lord, from all my heart. Be with me. Collaborate with me in my work. Do not let work detach me from my fellowship with You. Nothing takes me away from loving Jesus Christ.

(4) Train yourself in contemplation during prayer:

Take for example, the prayers of the psalms and the hourly Agbia prayers as a mean for spiritual contemplation. When you pray in this way by reciting them, you do so profoundly. Do the same with the Mass prayers and the church hymns so that they may influence your heart when you hear them.

(5) Train yourself to remain in pray:

Train yourself to prolong your prayer whenever you find that prayer is about to come to an end, even for two minutes longer. It is important is that you do not hasten to conclude it and leave the presence of God. Resist and continue even for a very short time. Then take your permission from God and end your prayer.

(6) Practice purity and spirituality in prayer:

These drills are numerous. They include prayers performed with understanding, depth, warmth, humility, and penitence as well as without folly and distraction. If you are unable, then carry out the following drill.

(7) Train your self to pray for the sake of praying:

Saint Isaac was asked: How do we learn to pray? and he answered: By praying.

There is no doubt that prayer, like any spiritual activity, comes down from the Father of lights. (James 1:17). Seek it as did the disciples who said: Lord, teach us to pray. (Luke 11:1).

Say to Him: Allow me, O Lord, to pray, and the sweet seclusion to be with You. Give me the words that I should say and grant me the desire to pray. Grant me love with which to love You and which makes me pray. Grant me warmth in prayer, tears and submission. I do not know how to pray, O Lord, so teach me how. Grant me the appropriate feelings for prayer. Speak to me, O Lord, that I may speak with You.

(8) Train yourself to pray for others:

Do not only pray for yourself when you fast, but also pray for others. How many people have asked you to pray for them and you did not? Try to remember during your fast, those whom you feel are in need of prayer because of a problem, hardship, sickness or in need of it for their spiritual life. Pray for them as well as for those who have departed.

Pray for the Church, for the safety of the country, for the general welfare, for those who do not know God, for the heretics, the reckless, and the infidels, and for God’s Kingdom on earth.

It is a good opportunity that you pray for others, especially for the following:

(9) Pray for your offenders:

This is more of a divine order than instructions. Thus, the Lord says: Pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you. (Matt 5:44). It is an opportunity for you to train yourself in carrying out this commandment while you fast.

Pray that God may forgive your offenders and save them. Pray for their love to you and your love for them so that your heart may not change towards them because of their offence. Wish them well and pray to God to have Him spare you from condemning them in thought or before others.

It is natural that you pray for those whom you love but it is much more pleasant to pray for those who have offend you.

Say to Him: O Lord protect, rescue and forgive them. Grant me a blessing in their eyes. Make me to love them as much as I love those who are dear to me. Make my heart pure towards them.

(10) Other drills for prayer:

(a)Train yourself to pray early in the morning and to have God as the first one to talk, even for a short prayer every day saying to him, Thank You, O Lord and bless this day. And grant me a sacred day that I may please You.

(b)
Train yourself in repeating prayers of saints. Look for them and use them in praying. (The prayers of Prophets are found in the bible and in the Church book of the Joyous Holy Saturday). (c)Read spiritual books that bear spiritual warmth that help you pray in earnest.

(d)
Pray before doing any work, and before every visit and every meeting.

Other spiritual drills:

a. Train yourself in spiritual readings:

Religious readings are numerous and limitless. However, sacred fasting days, should not be used to read books that increase your knowledge as much as the ones of worship. Concentrate on spiritual books that inflame your heart with God’s love, stimulate you, leading you to prayer, and urge you to repent and lead a life of purity. Such should be your reading material to stimulate you in a spiritual way. As for other religious books, I do not forbid you to use them. However, they come second in a fast, while spiritual books and biographies of saints take priority.

b. Train yourself in church hymns and melodies:

This is especially so in hymns and melodies that have the spirit of prayer, in which you feel you are communicating with God, which you recite from the heart and the soul, and which touch your emotions and affect your heart.

Try to memorise the hymns that move you and repeat them often.

c. Train yourself also in prostration:

If you neglect it at other times, be careful to observe it while fasting.

Drills in certain virtues:

It is possible to benefit by profound spiritual feelings that you may experiences while fasting. This may allow a person to gain any virtue that his heart longs for. This may include tolerance, forbearance, calmness, meekness, being cautious, respect for others, generosity, honesty in work, righteousness, discipline, etc.

If you came out of every fast well versed in one virtue, it would be of great spiritual gain for you.