My beloved spiritual children in Christ Our Only True God and Our Only True Savior,
CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND ALWAYS WILL BE.
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ON NOVEMBER 17th OUR HOLY ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN CHURCH COMMEMORATES SAINT GREGORY THE WONDERWORKER, BISHOP OF NEOCAESAREA
Here is a man of God and a mighty wonderworker, who was called a second Moses! Born of wealthy and eminent pagan parents, Gregory at first studied Hellenic and Egyptian philosophy, but, seeing its barrenness and insufficiency, he turned to Christian teachers, particularly Origen of Alexandria, with whom he studied for several years and by whom he was baptized. Pure in soul and body, he desired to consecrate himself utterly to Christ, to which end he withdrew to the desert, where, in painful asceticism, he spent many years. His fame spread abroad everywhere, and Phaedimus, the bishop of Amasea, wanted to make him Bishop of Caesarea. The discerning Gregory was warned of Phaedimus's intention and hid in the wilderness from those sent to find him so that they failed in their quest. Finally, Phaedimus consecrated him by devious means, and Gregory had to accept the work of a shepherd. The Most Holy Mother of God, the Theotokos, appeared to him, together with Saint John the Theologian, and, at her command, Saint John gave him the Creed that is known by Gregory's name. Who can enumerate the miracles of this second Moses? He commanded evil spirits, commanded mountains and waters, healed every sort of pain and illness, became invisible to his persecutors and had insight into both distant events and men's thoughts. He finished his earthly course in the year 270 A.D., in great old age. When he arrived in Caesarea as Bishop, the whole town was composed of pagans, with just seventeen Christians. When he departed this life, the whole town was Christian, with just seventeen pagans. He, therefore, received a wreath of glory (photostephano) from his Lord in the Heavenly Kingdom.
(The Nicene Creed, that Gregory was instrumental in establishing at the Second Ecumenical Council in 381 A.D.)
FOR CONSIDERATION
The following examples from the life of Saint Gregory show how God guards and preserves the righteous from assaults. While he was still at the school of philosophy in Alexandria, Saint Gregory kept his purity of both soul and body, as he kept and preserved it to the end of his life. In this, he was exceptional among the dissolute youngsters of those days, and this called forth envy and hatred among his peers. To bring Gregory down, they found a harlot and among his peers. To bring Gregory down, they found a harlot and sent her to carry out their evil designs. One day, when Gregory was standing in the market-place with the most famous teachers and philosophers, this harlot came up to him and began to shout demands for payment by Gregory of debts incurred by immoral relations with her. The bystanders, hearing this, were divided into two camps, some being scandalized and others infuriated at the shameless woman, and they chased her away. But she began to shout even more loudly in her demand for money. The innocent Gregory blushed, as would any innocent man in the face of such coarse slander, but showed neither resentment nor hatred, and asked a friend who was with him to give her what she asked so that she would go away at once. His friend did so and gave the woman the money she demanded. At the moment, God sent punished that woman, and she began to writhe on the ground in convulsions, gnashing her teeth and foaming at the mouth. All the bystanders, seeing this, were filled with fear, but holy Gregory, kindly as a lamb, prayed to God for her, and the woman was healed and got to her feet. Far from being humiliated, Gregory thus received the greater glory.
When fierce persecution of Christians arose, Saint Gregory advised the Christians to hide, and he, together with his deacon hid on a hill. The imperial soldiers caught sight of them and followed them. Saint Gregory prayed to God for help, and God immediately made them invisible to their persecutors. The soldiers searched the vicinity in vain, then, being unable to find them, returned empty-handed.
Please note: Our Holy Orthodox Church has always encouraged the faithful to read the Lives of the Saints for inspiration and as a guide to spiritual living. There is no question that there is so much to learn about what it means to be an authentic Christian believer. There are many of our Faith that do not know how to read the Holy Scripture, how to pray, how to worship, how to behave, how to treat others, how to forgive enemies, how to grow in Christ, how to have a sacramental life.
Learning from the example of the Saints, the holy fathers, and mothers, of the Church is one sure way. Their lives were lives of humility, of kindness, of faith, of love, of self-sacrifice, of helping others, and of serving the Lord with compunction and true conviction. This is why the Holy Church has kept their lives visible and available for all to read and emulate their example.
If you don't have any books on the Lives of the Saints you can find them online on an Orthodox website i.e., Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America or others. Speak to your children about them and you may begin with their own patron Saint and when his/her feast day is celebrated. Children love stories, especially true stories. Of course, you know that the Orthodox Christian should over-emphasize the child's birthday but the feast of his or her Saint's feast day. For your information, the celebration of birthdays was a pagan custom.
It is not proper to celebrate birthdays during Fasting Days during the Ecclesiastical year, i.e., Great Lent, Holy Nativity Fast, Apostles Fast and Holy Dormition Fast, but especially during Holy and Great Week.
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"Glory Be To GOD For All Things!" - Saint John Chrysostomos
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With sincere agape in His Holy Diakonia (Ministry),
The sinner and unworthy servant of God
+Father George