Author: ramez

Leadership Principles

By John

Original post by Becoming Fully Alive blogsite

I had an interview with Amazon not too long ago (for those out there who are curious, yes I got an offer and no this specific offer did not end up working out).

Besides the abnormal six hour length of the in-person phase, what struck me was their preoccupation with consistently asking me about what they call their leadership principles. Amazon’s ranking as the most valuable company currently oscillates anywhere in the top five so there must be something to these principles that they are so fond of. As I became familiar with them I realized that these principles are already found in our mother, the Church, in a much more deep and meaningful way.

Let us, therefore, walk through the principles one by one and make sure that we become the following type of leader in our own local parish:

Customer Obsession

Leaders start with the customer and work backwards. They work vigorously to earn and keep customer trust. Although leaders pay attention to competitors, they obsess over customers.

In the Church, who is our “customer”?

It’s probably not the first thing that comes to your mind. It is NOT the congregant; it is not the people who gather. Rather it is the One whom we gather to worship. He is our goal and aim. He is the One whom we seek to please.

“do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ.” (Galatians 1:10)

It is not about us. It is about Him. Worship doesn’t have to feel good or provide you with some experience. Rather, it is an encounter with the One True God.

Also, we do pay attention to our “competitors,” the demons who seek to shame us. Although we are not ignorant of the devil’s devices, our one true focus is Christ, the King of glory.

Ownership

Leaders are owners. They think long term and don’t sacrifice long-term value for short-term results. They act on behalf of the entire company, beyond just their own team. They never say “that’s not my job.”

Sacrificing future glory for the present indulgence is not a good investment. That’s what we do when we gratify our carnal desires instead of pursuing something to offer our Maker: “…giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love.” (2 Peter 1:5-7).And what is it said of he who lacks these things? He is shortsighted, even to blindness. Good leaders are not shortsighted; they think long term.

Furthermore, my sin affects my brother, my community. That is why in the early Church they would publicly confess their sins, and even to this day when someone confesses to a priest they are being reconciled with the whole body of Christ. There is no such thing as a victim-less crime.

Invent and Simplify

Leaders expect and require innovation and invention from their teams and always find ways to simplify. They are externally aware, look for new ideas from everywhere, and are not limited by “not invented here.” As we do new things, we accept that we may be misunderstood for long periods of time.

I want to view this one from the paradigm of serving in the diaspora. In the Council of Jerusalem, a dispute arose over whether new believers should be circumcised. The conclusion was “we should not trouble those from among the Gentiles who are turning to God, but that we write to them to abstain from things polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from things strangled, and from blood.” (Acts 15:19-20)

In a new culture, Christians will have to adapt and do things in different ways so that the message of the Gospel can be preached in a way the hearer can receive. Also, some traditions need to be done away with entirely as superfluous. Here I am talking about the traditions of men, and not paradosis.

Are Right, A Lot

Leaders are right a lot. They have strong judgment and good instincts. They seek diverse perspectives and work to disconfirm their beliefs.

It would be arrogant for anyone to think they are always right, even right a lot like this particular principle is suggesting. That’s why we have the consensus of the fathers, councils of bishops, and the collective lives of the saints to learn from. Never one, always together. However there is One who is always right, and if wholeheartedly united to Him you will be too:

Stratonicos, a wise and eloquent monk, full of his intelligence, has nothing to say when Silouan, in all simplicity, asks him how the perfect speak: he suddenly realizes that he does not know the first thing about perfect speech. But his inability to speak allows him to hear, and into his humbled silence Silouan plants the message that ‘The perfect never say anything of themselves. . . . They only say what the Spirit inspires them to say.’

Source

If you are truly speaking as He inspires and walking according to the Spirit of God, you will be right in your words and deeds. However be careful of thinking, ‘you know what God is telling you’ and everyone around you is wrong. Remember, never one, always together.

Learn and Be Curious

Leaders are never done learning and always seek to improve themselves. They are curious about new possibilities and act to explore them.

This one is pretty straightforward. Our Church has such richness and depth. There is an endless amount of things to learn until we come to “the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.” We should not be afraid to be exposed to new ideas that we can critically examine in the Light of the Truth of Christ.

“Let books be your dining table and you shall find delight. Let them be your mattress and you will sleep restful nights.” (St. Ephraim the Syrian)

Hire and Develop the Best

Leaders raise the performance bar with every hire and promotion. They recognize exceptional talent, and willingly move them throughout the organization. Leaders develop leaders and take seriously their role in coaching others. We work on behalf of our people to invent mechanisms for development like Career Choice.

The Church has something better than Career Choice. She has discipleship. Too many church leaders are overburdened by the load they have to carry because the work is not delegated well to the rest of the people:

So the Lord said to Moses: “Gather to Me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know to be the elders of the people and officers over them; bring them to the tabernacle of meeting, that they may stand there with you. 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; and they shall bear the burden of the people with you, that you may not bear it yourself alone. (Numbers 11:16-17)

Good leaders empower others to make a change. A sign of good leadership is the birth of strong, willing, and capable leaders.

Insist on the Highest Standards

Leaders have relentlessly high standards — many people may think these standards are unreasonably high. Leaders are continually raising the bar and drive their teams to deliver high quality products, services, and processes. Leaders ensure that defects do not get sent down the line and that problems are fixed so they stay fixed.

As Christians, holiness is our standard. True church leaders spurn others on to repent, not just by preaching about it but by modeling it in their own lives. If we break the chain of sin in our lives, those around us and those who come after us will be better off for it. We never lower our standard of holiness knowing that we are called to be holy as He is holy and even called to be perfect as our Father in heaven is perfect.

Pursue … holiness, without which no one will see the Lord (Hebrews 12:14).

Let us encourage one another to serve one another with love and humility, with Christ as the head and the goal.

Original blog found at http://becomingfullyalive.com/leadership-principles-part-1/

Gird your Waist with Truth

The Armour of God Part 1

Gird your Waist with Truth

By David Tadros

How many times are we inclined to rest our hands on our waist due to our fatigue, as if it is our main source of support? Did you know that the girdle used in war serves the purpose of strengthening the soldier’s waist, that is, his foundation of support? So then, what does it mean when we say to gird our waists with truth? And how does this truth give strength to our spiritual foundation, that we are in need of in our daily struggle with temptation?  

To gird, or to secure one’s waist with truth, is a concept that is reflected on by St Paul in his letter to the church of Ephesus. But before we begin to understand what it means to gird our waists with truth, we must understand what the truth is that St Paul is denoting.

‘From what we read of the Lord our Savior, throughout the Scriptures, it is manifestly clear that the whole armour of Christ is the Saviour Himself. It is He whom we are asked to “put on.” It is one and the same thing to say “Put on the whole armour of God” and “Put on the Lord Jesus Christ.” Our belt is truth and our breastplate is righteousness. The Savior is also called both “truth” and “righteousness.” So no one can doubt that He Himself is that very belt and breastplate.’ – St Jerome

In this light we are able to see that, in fact, all the different pieces of the armour of God are indeed referring to Christ! And when we put on the armour of God, we are putting on Christ Himself. We become enveloped by His power and protection and He becomes our defence. Just as the soldier’s foundation of support is strengthened by his girdle, so too is our spiritual foundation strengthened when we gird our waists with Christ, the Truth. Through this strength from Christ we can then stand, like St Paul says, to the wiles of the devil.

Who then is able to receive this truth, that is Christ?

25 At that time Jesus answered and said, “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes. 26 Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight. –Matthew 11:25-26

The real truth is not for the wise, nor those with high intellect, but rather it is revealed to the babes. It is for those who are simple in their ways, trusting God in all things and for all things. Even for the simple, this truth is not made up by their own understanding but rather it comes as a revelation from Christ. Therefore, we must humble ourselves to the simplicity of babes so we may accept the truth, that is Christ. For to those who are called saints, to them the mystery of truth has been revealed.  For as it says in Colossians 1:26-27,

“26 the mystery which has been hidden from ages and from generations, but now has been revealed to His saints. 27 To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.”

Let us then seek and gird our waist with the Truth, that is Christ, with all humility, in the hope that we may receive His strength against the temptations of the devil.

The Church: Why It Matters

The Church: Why It Matters

By Sara Malak

Original post by Becoming Fully Alive blogsite

In a world in which we are constantly bombarded with a need to be and to do, where we are frequently asked “what do you do? what do you want to be?” We seem to have lost a clear vision of what we are here for.

In the midst of the noise of trying to figure out who we want to be and what we must become, we hear a church bell ring, a symphony of praise, and a gathering of people like you and me. We have joined them many times but in the busyness of all the running around and our sweeping thoughts we did not notice what was happening, our senses could not be still, could not behold the great and awesome Presence before us.

Other times we were too busy all together – too busy trying to be busy – to take off our shoes, walk on holy ground, and enter into the divine place in which the Divine offers Himself. Consequently, we have hindered the body we are part of from being whole and unshaken.

You see, this great hostility that lies between the world and the church, as though the church were somehow pulling us away from moving forward and the world pushing us towards becoming something or someone, is a lie. It’s a lie that we have chosen to believe and commit our lives to living, but it is in striving to live that lie that we have silenced Truth. Since ‘Satan is a liar and the father of it’ (John 8:44) and ‘he who is of the devil has no part in Him’ (John 14:30) the more we pursue that lie the more we are left lifeless.

We are not here to ‘move forward’ to somehow be the masters of our destiny, or to ‘save’ the world. Indeed, I cannot even help myself, let alone be of use to the world. That is where the secret lies.

The church is a gathering of people who have dared to step away from that lie and allowed themselves to be useless for a moment, a people who are not afraid to know and see that they are broken, wounded, and lifeless. They come as one body and partake of one Loaf. Here they know there is no special ‘use’ to them, you do not receive a bigger portion because you are particularly useful, no my dear you receive all that is offered, you receive the fullness of Life, you receive Him who is Life, simply because you have come. You have come with a heart open to receive and not an ego too puffed up to believe it is in need.

Pour out your entire ego O my soul that the uncontainable may find room in that small heart of yours. Come knowing that your uselessness is not despised – it is welcome! It is welcome and it is given to stand in heaven on earth, where the Angels come down and we ascend, where the heavenly and earthly unite, and we stand before the only One who was and is and is to come.

Ephesians 2:10 says we are God’s workmanship. Workmanship or masterpiece in Greek translates to poem. We are God’s poem. What is a poem? Dare I say it – it is a useless thing! It is a beautiful, soulful, completely and utterly useless thing. In the language of today’s hustling and bustling world, things that are of no practical use are eliminated. But do you realize how much beauty we miss out on? You are God’s poem. He delights in you, he takes pleasure in you, He was thinking of you before you even came to be. He loves you and remains to adore you.

And to commune with His precious poem, to meet with you in a real and intimate way, He offers you His flesh and blood that you may have a share and inheritance with Him and his family, the saints who have pleased Him since the beginning. So that you can continue to live your life each day not believing the lie and striving to be something but living bravely and faithfully as the flesh and blood of Christ. So that the sound of that church bell ringing may be the sound we hear when you walk by reminding us we are on holy ground and so that your whole life may be a symphony of praise, that Christ may be seen in you, that pure precious temple in which He dwells.

The Church, why then does it matter? It matters because you matter; you are a beautiful, useless, gratuitous being who is called to make Christ incarnate in everything you do; you are the Church.

Original blog found at- http://becomingfullyalive.com/the-church-why-it-matters/

He Blessed, He Broke, He Gave

He Blessed, He Broke, He Gave

Adapted from a sermon by Fr Mark Basily

This is the First Sunday after the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. After the resurrection of Christ, our Lord appeared to many of His disciples and to others many times. If you read through the Gospels and in the book of Acts, you’ll be able to see at least twelve documented times that Jesus appeared after His resurrection. There probably may have been more that were not documented.

In one of these appearances He appeared to over 500 people at one time. St Paul says this in Corinthians, “He was seen by Caiaphas then by the twelve and after that He was seen by over 500 brethren at once of whom the greater part remain to the present but some have fallen asleep. After that He was seen by James then by the Apostles, then last of all He was seen by me as by one born out of due time.” An undeniable proof of the resurrection is the appearance to many eyewitnesses and as St Paul says at one point it was to over 500 people at the same time.

In today’s Gospel, we are presented with two of those appearances. The first is on the same evening of the resurrection – He enters into the closed doors where the Apostles were gathered and he enters with “peace be with you” in the upper room. The second appearance we read today is that Thomas was not present and He struggled to believe that Christ had risen and appeared to them. So Christ appears again, a second time eight days later, which would be the following Sunday. This time Thomas was gathered with them and our Lord demonstrates and shows the wounds in His hands and His side. These are some of the appearances of Christ.

What about His disappearances? We know that Christ appearing to them will give them tremendous joy and peace, but what about his disappearance? When He would leave them – how would that leave them? Remember as a child whenever we would have guests over our house and it would come time for them to leave, there would be always be this sad feeling. When they come there’s joy – family is coming over, friends are coming over, but when they come to leave you feel this sense of sadness and emptiness. We see here Christ appearing, but what about when He comes to disappear? It is always joyful and happy to say hello and welcome, but very difficult to say goodbye.

Another appearance that took place just before the appearance we read in today’s Gospel in the Upper Room, is a very beautiful appearance that happened with two disciples who were travelling on the road to Emmaus. St Luke presents to us this story on the day of the resurrection, on the Sunday. They leave Jerusalem and head seven miles a way to a village called Emmaus. As they were travelling on their way to Emmaus, they were talking. As they were talking, Christ appears and joins them. They did not know it was Him because their eyes were restrained. The Lord asked, “what conversation is this that you have with one another?” One of them named Cleopus answered and said, “are you the only stranger in Jerusalem and have you not known the things which happened there these days?” Christ entertains the question and says, “what things?”

 They then said to Him,

“The things concerning Jesus of Nazareth, who was a Prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered Him to be condemned to death and crucified Him. But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel.” (Luke 24:19-21)

You see here that the disciples had some loss of faith, they referred to Christ as the prophet, not the son of God. They said that they were hoping that it would be Him who would redeem Israel, as if now their hope have somewhat been dashed. Christ responds to them and says,

 ““Oh foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! Ought not the Christ to have suffered these things and to enter into His glory?” And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.” (Luke 24:25-27)

Essentially Christ walks with them and gives them the greatest Bible study in the history of mankind. He explains the starting from Moses and Genesis and throughout the prophets, and explains how all of these point to the crucified One – to Christ. When they had gotten near to Emmaus, which probably had felt like five minutes when walking with Christ, it was now time to say goodbye. Christ would continue His journey, and the two would go to their home. It was at this point they were meant to say goodbye. What actually happened was they constrained Him saying “…for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent.” They clung to Christ and said don’t leave us, stay with us, come into our home, have a meal. The Lord went to stay with them, however it did not last very long. He sat with them at the table and He took bread, blessed it, broke it and gave it to them. This action of Christ is unique to Him – the same action in the last supper and the same action in the feeding of the multitude of the five thousand. It was a trademark of Jesus. It was then their eyes were opened and they knew Him and He vanished from their sight – disappeared.

These days we are focusing on Christ’s appearances, but I would like us to think of his disappearances, like how He vanished from their sight. After He vanished, they said to one another, ““did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?” So they rose up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, saying, “The Lord is risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” And they told about the things that had happened on the road, and how He was known to them in the breaking of bread.”

Why did He disappear, why at that particular moment at the breaking of the bread? The reason is profound but simple. Jesus was pointing them to the way that He would remain present with them. When they begged Him saying stay with us, this was the way that He would stay with them – through the Eucharist. This is how He would remain with them. After His crucifixion and death, He appeared in different glorified forms, but now He is saying this is the way He will remain with you – the breaking of the bread, the eucharist, He is with us.

There is a story that came out of Russia during communism when the Priests and Bishops were thrown into prison and they could no longer celebrate the Eucharist. When they were sitting in the cell, they thought, ‘well they are giving us bread and cranberry juice, why don’t we pray the liturgy with the bread and cranberry juice.’ One of them said, “but we do not have an alter, not even a table,” they cannot put the offering and the Eucharist on the floor. So one of the priests lied down with his back on the floor, and they prayed the liturgy on the chest of the priest. Christ was present with them even in the prison cell. This is the extent that is taken to have Christ stays with us. In every liturgy, our Lord is answering this request of those two disciples who begged Him to “stay with us.” In every liturgy He is saying I am with you in the breaking of the bread, and he says to us I am with you always even to the end of time.

Glory be to God forever Amen.

The Thief’s Plea

The Thief’s Plea

By Shery Abdelmalak

“This is how we survive”
My father’s words piercing every time.
At every theft;
At every crime,
All I know is, this is how I survive.

I see the same look in their eyes,
Wishing someone would hear their cries.
At first, I would it feel so deep;
To my very core.
But there is so much more,
Than one person’s weep.

I see them all,
Praying to their God.
Waiting for some kind of lightening rod
But does He hear their call?

Their faith seems so strong,
Until their money is robbed.
Did they get it wrong?
They cry out but He doesn’t respond.

This is how I operate,
Waiting for their emotions to cloud their judgement
Knowing then will they cooperate
It isn’t long before my next target.

This is too easy.
I begin to become complacent.
One slip leaves me uneasy,
This day is my ultimate repayment.

The judge makes a final declaration.
For a life of theft,
I receive my arrest,
Death by crucifixion is their only request.

Theft felt like a simple transaction,
Yet it left my victims in torment
I have become the main attraction
But how can I lament?

It doesn’t seem fair,
Theft was all I had known.
Why does no one care?
I had nowhere to call home.
A life lived trying to fill a void
Yet now I am left decoyed.

But in His outstretched arms,
I see something,
I feel something,
That words could never describe.
The void I could never fill,
Was now right by my side.

I see love
I see why they run to Him
In His eyes,
I know that I have sinned,
I am so small,
Weaker than them all.
But even on the Cross,
He is mightiest to behold.
I know I am not alone.

I see love that inscribed my name on the palm of His hand
I see love that gives life to dry bones
I see love that was enslaved for my sake alone
I see love that can soften even a heart like mine.

For Him, I can only plead;
This one will make all the difference
I submit before His omnipotence.

Remember me, O Lord when you come into your Kingdom.
Remember me, in my pride filled spin.
Remember me, and fill me with Your wisdom
Remember me, when it comes time to pay the price of sin;

Remind me that it was You, that was eternally by my side.

The Peacemakers

The Beatitudes Series Part 7

Blessed are the peacemakers, For they shall be called sons of God

By Amy Saleam

Peace – is it more than just merely the absence of physical chaos?

To really answer this question, we need to think of where our peace comes from. In John 14:27, the Lord says “peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you.” When we think about cause and effect, we realise that for something to happen, there would be some sort of trigger or stimulus for it. In this beatitude we are called to be peacemakers, so it is very important as Christians to know where our peace comes from, truly acknowledge it and allow it to manifest into our actions, so that we may really live our lives as reflections of Christ.

When you switch on the news or even when you’re aimlessly scrolling through social media, you read and watch reckless behaviour, unforgiveness in the name of justice, humiliation of others, leaders of countries making derogatory comments about other nations and the list goes on. To a person who has not known Christ, this may seem like just another day in this “normal,” yet so broken world.

The difference for us is that having Christ as the centre of our lives means having His peace dwell within us. This peace can alleviate the anxiety and fear of what we see on the news and social media and gives us an opportunity to challenge these broken “norms.”  The truth is, however, we very so often take this lightly. Christ has given us something so precious, a peace that can be found nowhere else but in Him. With this peaces comes the responsibility to make our actions a reflection of He who dwells within us. For some, our actions of love and forgiveness can, at times, be the first taste of Christ for others. This is something we should consider when we are dealing with others in difficult situations. Are we going to respond in a way which reflects the corruption that is around us, or are we going to react in a way that will emit Christ? Understanding that by offering the grace and peace that the Lord has given us to others, we are in extension giving them an opportunity to know what it is like to have Christ.

So to answer the question, is peace more than just the absence of physical chaos? Yes. This is because in order for there to be a physical kind of peace, it is something that starts from the purity of our hearts and the treasure of the Lord’s peace in our lives. In Psalm 120:7 we read, “I am for peace, but when they speak they are for war.” St John Chrysostom comments on this and says:

This is virtue, this is above man’s understanding, this makes us near God…but if we are fighting and buffeting, we become far off from God: for enmities are produced by conflict, and from enmity springs remembrance of evil.

Identity – Who am I, who are you?

As we read through the beatitudes, we realise that each one is painting a montage of who Christ is, as He teaches us the virtues we are to exhibit. Living out each of these virtues is followed by a blessing. What is so special about the seventh beatitude is that It does not tell us what we will obtain, but rather it tells us about who we are.

When you first meet someone, your conversations will go something like this. You’ll start off with your name, your ethnic background, what your 9-5 is, perhaps you’ll even mention a hobby or two. These are all little bits and pieces of your character that are sown together. These are the conversation starters that can help connect us with other people. I’d like you to think of the part of you that you value the most. The piece of your identity that you cannot live without, that if it was taken from you overnight, you really cannot fathom what you will do.

What I love the most about this beatitude is that it reminds us that through the Lord, we can obtain the most valuable piece of our identity. Something that cannot be physically touched or seen, but something prized that cannot be taken from you. A title that your heart will be satisfied in, even if what you thought was the most important part of your life was not there anymore. How truly beautiful is it to know that you are the son or daughter of God.

So how can we live out Christ’s peace? I was listening to a sermon by Fr Benjamin Abouelkheir which was a part of a series called ‘Parting with Partiality’ He tells us that partiality is when we allow our own thoughts and emotions influence how we deal with and perceive other people, instead of using fact. Fr Benjamin points out Galatians 3:25-27 where we are told that we are all Sons of God through faith in Christ and that there is  “neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” This really had me thinking. Perhaps the first steps to create peace with others is to remove our own judgment and partiality, and to see others through the eyes of God. Removing this partiality will allow us to deal with others and situations not based on just their name, status, occupation or connections, but to be able to lift the bias and show them Christ through our actions.

How important is it that we become peacemakers?

“There is nothing better than peace in Christ, for it brings victory over all the evil spirits on earth and in the air. When peace dwells in a man’s heart it enables him to contemplate the grace of the Holy Spirit from within….all our desires, all our efforts, and all our actions should make us say constantly with the Church: “O Lord, give us peace!” When a man lives in peace, God reveals mysteries to him..”

St Seraphim of Sarov

The Lord has promised that by being a pillar of peace to others, your identity will be nothing less than being known as His child. Let us grasp onto the peace He fills us with and love others enough to share it with them and be the peacemakers that this world is yearning for.

Radical Hope

Radical Hope

By Monica

Original post by Becoming Fully Alive blog site

It’s been an ‘eventful’ few months, when you befriend every type of pain and anguish, it seems like the most radical thing you can do is be hopeful.

But what does hope really mean? We say it almost interchangeably with ‘wish’ or ‘good luck’. Understood correctly, it is not to be confused with a whimsical naivety. Hope is anything but fluffy, it’s as solid as an anchor.

 “We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain.” Hebrews 6:19 

It is not to be mistaken for escapism and retreat because that would be a direct contradiction to the command, “Take up your cross and follow me.” And it’s never been about indifference.

I’ve been thinking about what hope IS, and have come to the conclusion that it may be simply realising that often times, the new wine is yet to come. Hope is the power of a conviction that the life built on faith will produce its fruits. Hope is the confidence that, despite all darkness and sin, the light of the loving forgiveness of God is upon us to do, with us and for us what we can’t. It’s about redeeming what was lost.

Hope, is to proclaim that we believe in the Resurrection. It is to look at the nails and the cross and see victory and salvation for all mankind.

Hope is the part of the three fold cord (faith, hope, love), that cannot be broken. Because, one of the most important things I have learnt is that, hope is not just nice, it is necessary. When it really feels like you are drowning, hope is the air that keeps us breathing.

“Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, ‘So shall your offspring be.” Romans 4:18

Abraham had a hope beyond hope. Where all human logic and wishful thinking had expired, he remained steadfast.

Without hope we become cynics or we fall into despair.

Cynicism often means assuming the worst about people, their motives and the outcomes of decisions. It’s picking the dark shades out of the palette, to paint the world a shade of negativity. Without hope we are sick and we become unresponsive to the grace of God and the support of our brothers.

The dangerous thing is, it is so easy to justify, because, in truth, humanity is broken, bad things happen, sometimes people have sinful motives, maybe we know ourselves well enough to project that onto others. We can’t assume people will always do good but maybe we just need to give people the opportunity to be. With hearts and minds wide open, we will see God’s hand. We see that people are good, though this goodness is nuanced and idiosyncratic, and God is great.

We see a story of redemption throughout the Bible. In the book of Isaiah, we meet a Pagan king named Cyrus. Despite the fact he didn’t know God, God still used him to encourage the Jewish people to return to their homeland and rebuild their temple.

Finally, Let us remind each other to flee from the dark gripping forces of despondency and despair. With a renewed hope, let us walk in the palm of His sovereign hand.

“The force of despondence … overwhelms him and oppresses his soul; and this is a taste of hell because it produces a thousand temptations: confusion, irritation, protesting and bewailing one’s lot, wrong thoughts, wandering from place to place, and so on (Saint Isaac of Syria, 6th c., Directions on Spiritual Training).”

Original blog found at – http://becomingfullyalive.com/cynicism/

Am I Truly Clean?

Am I Truly Clean?

By Ereeny Mikhail

“When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ And when he comes, he finds it swept and put in order. Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first.” – Luke 11:24-26

Every year after Passion Week and the Resurrection feast, sometime in the following week, this is the first passage from the Bible that pops into my head. One moment we are attending prayers every morning and night, fasting, doing prostrations, singing at the top of our lungs, sleepless nights filled with prayer, not distracted by television, secular music and social media and spending the week in repentance. And then in a moment…everything changes.

When it should for the better because of what we just witnessed during Passion week, it becomes overeating, catching up on T.V., changing back to our normal Spotify playlist and our time with God drops dramatically. Of course, every year it takes me a few days to come out of the food coma in order to realise that this is the case. That is when this parable (which is also in some of the other gospels) comes to mind. Likewise, following confession this parable again arises. Every time I walk out of confession, I am cautious of my actions, my words and my thoughts. However, as humans we have weakness and we fall back into old ways.

So, I asked myself, what is the solution? How do we try to the best of our ability to maintain that spirituality? How do we not fall back? This parable tells us that when we become clean and our sin is wiped away, we then find that same sin and seven others make their way back into our hearts. Why? Aren’t we clean?

St Augustine of Hippo contemplates on this and says, “When there is forgiveness of sins through the sacraments, the house is cleaned; but the Holy Spirit must be a necessary inhabitant.”

It makes a lot of sense. We may be clean, but we are empty. We need to fill our home with good.

Think back to King David, who flourished in strength and victories but still fell like any of us. He saw Bathsheba bathing and lusted over her, fell into sin with her and left her with child. To cover up for his sin, he sent Bathsheba’s husband, one of his most trusted soldiers, Uriah the Hittite, to the front line of battle to get him killed. Let me just emphasise the loyalty of Uriah, so after his sin, David sent for Uriah in hope that Uriah would go home and lay with his wife and she would appear to have conceived from her husband. But Uriah was so loyal that when he found no one was protecting the king that night, he slept at David’s footsteps two nights in a row even after David tried to convince him to leave. It says “Uriah slept at the door of the king’s house with all the servants…” After all this loyalty, David sent him to the front line of battle and Uriah died. Although his sin was so great, he repented. But he says something very specific, “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from your presence, and do not take your Holy Spirit from me.” (Psalm 51:10-11). He repents and is sorrowful, but he specifically asks the Lord not to take the Holy Spirit from him. The Lord obviously saw his sorrow and repentance and amongst all his sins of murder and adultery, in Acts 13:22 it says: “I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all My will.” But to reach this, the importance of the Holy Spirit to him was tremendous. Why was it so important?

Again, St. Peter was not without fault. A number of times in the gospels St. Peter fell, to which the Lord answered and said to him, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men.” (Matthew 16:23). Or when he denied the Lord, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me.” (Luke 22:34) Contrast his actions here to following the resurrection of our Lord, he showed acts of desperation to return to Christ, “But Peter arose and ran to the tomb…” (Luke 24:12) and “…when Simon Peter head that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment (for he had removed it), and plunged into the sea.” (John 21:7) Likewise, when the Holy Spirit descended on the disciples and they began to bring all nations to Christ, St Peter says “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk,” (Acts 2:6) and “…Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them…” (Acts 4:8) He was not about the things of the world anymore, he only filled himself with the Lord. And he continued on to become one of the most important Saints of the church, with no more fear. To the extent, that he requested to be crucified upside down, because he felt unworthy to be crucified like Jesus. Why was the Holy Spirit also so important in this transition?

On both accounts, and many others, two of the greatest Saints in the church became the greatest Saints because they filled their life with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit already abides in us, but we must provide its fruits. In Galatians 5:22-23 it says, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.”

Against such there is no law.

Yes, we must repent like King David and we must desperately run to the Lord like St. Peter. But we cannot just repent and leave our house empty. We must fill it with the Holy Spirit like the both of them. They changed their life after the repentance. They didn’t just return to their old ways. They didn’t switch back to their secular Spotify playlist. They didn’t fill their lives with T.V. shows. They didn’t overindulge. When we do this, there is no space for Christ. They continued to fill their lives with the Lord. Because if we leave our house empty of the Lord, it will only be filled with more sin. It isn’t a fast solution. We will fall. But “…narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there is few who find it.” (Matthew 7:13-14) We must become resilient in the way to life by continuing to fill it with the fruit of the Holy Spirit.

St Cyril of Alexandria says; “For just as the Holy Spirit, when he sees a person’s heart desisting from all uncleanness, abides and dwells and rests in that one, so also the unclean spirit likes to take lodging in the souls of the lawless.”

The Persecuted for Righteousness’ Sake

The Beatitudes Series: Part 8

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

By Marc Eskander

The sermon on the Mount remains, to this day, one of the most uplifting sources of inspiration for Christians around the world. Far be it from Christ to do anything by chance, the very mountain on which He stood first resembles the heights of His love.

As Christians, we all aspire to climb the mountain that is our spiritual life, for if we are not climbing higher, we know that we are falling backwards. We endure injuries, setbacks, trials, tribulations but we continue to climb higher. We “run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith” (Hebrews 12:1).

The final beatitude says, “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness sake,” and again, its final position isn’t by chance with a promise that mirrors the first. The Beatitudes are widely regarded as the most concise summary of the spiritual life of Man. Each beatitude, a height of virtue that we climb. Why then, does Christ seal his sermon speaking about persecution, and furthermore, persecution for righteousness’ sake?

What makes persecution for righteousness’ sake different to other kinds of persecution? St Peter puts it very simply, “For what credit is it if, when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God” (1 Peter 2:20). The ultimate example of persecution for righteousness’ sake is in martyrdom – those that laid down their lives for the sake of Christ. But when we consider our own day to day lives, persecution for righteousness’ sake can still be emulated; we can still lay down our lives for the sake of Christ. For every, “why me?” or “this is so unfair” or “I don’t deserve this,” there is also an opportunity for us to lay down our will. Each of these moments, when given to Christ, takes us one step closer to persecution for righteousness’ sake.

In this life, we will have tribulation, Christian or not, righteous or not, but how we handle tribulation makes a world of difference. The Silent Patriarch by Fr Daniel Fanous gives a fascinating insight into the way that Pope Cyril VI embodied poverty of spirit and persecution, through his life of “kenotic ecclesiology.” While this book is a biography, it should be read as a guide for a life of asceticism, service and self-emptying. Pope Cyril undoubtedly led a near impossible revolution of the Coptic church in many aspects. It was done however, with little to no fanfare. One can see an echoing of Christ’s crucifixion – public and humiliating yet remaining in peaceful silence. While he enjoyed the glorious Resurrection in complete secrecy and humility. 

Pope Cyril’s revolution was a reflection of his inner life. He was simple, yet determined to instil inner silence and peace. His very source of life was prayer. Prayer unceasing, well-fed by humility. Many times he would be heard berating himself, “the boy has become a Patriarch.” As a Pope, he would write to a future bishop, “I am very sad because I cannot achieve humility up until now…” The many years he spent as Fr Mina in prayerful solitude in various settings, whether the desert or the windmills of old Cairo, had ingrained in him a strong sense of “self -emptying”. It is through this self-emptying that the Lord came and made His home. As a Pope, his method of constant prayer, sacrificial love for his congregation, and commitment to silence attracted much criticism and negativity, yet beneath the surface was being wrought an inner revolution in the Coptic Church on a scale that would create boundless positive change. 

In a teary recount, we read one of these instances; an instance of persecution for righteousness’ sake. There was a decision to move a certain priest against the wishes of his congregation who loved and adored him. For months on end, the Pope endured criticism in newspapers, protests, questioning of his judgement and much more…all with silence. When asked why later on, it was revealed the priest was guilty of financial misconduct within his parish. Had this been publicly revealed it would certainly have led to the demise and ill-repute of this priest. The Pope decided to reform and correct this priest quietly, while taking the backlash on himself, not saying a word. A move that would prove to restore this priest and correct him. At no point did Pope Cyril consider his own reputation but how he may restore the salvation of this priest. 

We see that we have now come full circle of the beatitudes. The First Beatitude, “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven,” lists the same blessing as the last beatitude; the Kingdom of Heaven. There is a correlation between being poor in spirit and those that are persecuted for righteousness’ sake. Christ begins and ends the same for His ultimate will for our lives is to enter the Kingdom.

Poverty in spirit is the condition for those that gain the Kingdom of Heaven. This is the first rung on the ladder of virtues that Christ has invited us to climb. Why is it so crucial? To be poor in spirit is to begin to look inwards. It is to see our own helplessness, smallness and unworthiness before God. To begin to be poor in spirit requires humility. It requires accepting that with Christ we can neither be nor go anywhere. The closer we begin to draw to God, the more we realise how big the gulf is between us and Heaven. 

By emptying ourselves and submitting our lives to Him, we begin to find ourselves in Him. If we were to find ourselves in another way, it would only lead to despair. For we are a creation made for the Creator. We cannot begin to attain mercy, peace, meekness, or mourning of spirit unless we empty all that is within us. As David the Psalmist says, “a broken and a contrite heart, these O God you will not despise.” Ps 51:17

Poor in spirit, when fully formed, will inevitably mean persecution for righteousness’ sake but having already attained poverty of spirit, the persecution no longer feels like persecution, but a loving encounter with our Father. Persecution for righteousness sake’ entails a higher spiritual level than to be persecuted when it is warranted. To be persecuted for your faith, your beliefs, when you are wronged because of no wrongdoing of your own – these are all ways in which we imitate the suffering of Christ and grow in compassion and love for both Christ and those around us.

This does not mean that we suffer abuse as a means of virtue, Christ never asked this of us. But to recognise that we are not our own, and any kind of blessing and abuse alike, is handed over to Christ. For the battle is not ours, but His. As St John Chrysostom says, “Scripture therefore does not mention the persons of the persecutors, but only the cause of persecution, that you may learn to look, not by whom, but why you suffer.”

When we look above the pain and the suffering and begin to look to Christ, the author and finisher of our faith, we are reminded that the purpose of this life is much bigger than our present situation. As St Paul teaches us, “Now no chastening seems to be joyful for the present, but painful; nevertheless, afterward it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it” – Hebrews 12:11.

We cannot forget the ultimate goal that Christ has prepared for those who love Him…

“For after your resurrection you shall begin to possess the earth delivered from death, and in that possession shall find comfort” – Ambrose of Milan

Preaching

Preaching

By Mina Tadros

Christ has trampled death by His death, but what now? “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.” – Mark 16:5

Whether it seems fitting or not, when you have a love so great, you can’t help but share it! We share it in preaching. This is no daunting task but one that can only be executed with love that can only come from above.

Fr Tadros Malaty helps by explaining that “God really is the initiator of the reconciliation. So it’s befitting for us then to plead with others to accept this reconciliation to God. We as “ministers” are ambassadors for the Lord Christ and we represent Him. We proclaim God’s will in our reconciliation to the Father. As representatives of Christ, we pray for sinners and plead to them to accept His atoning work, in order to enjoy His divine bosoms which carry them to the bosom of the Father.“

As representatives of God, our role as preachers is to take personal responsibility for proclaiming God’s love for all, His reconciliation and acceptance of His entire creation through His sacrifice, taking the love God shows us and spreading that to His children.

In order to truly represent Christ, we put the genuineness of our relationship with Christ to the test. How can someone truly represent another, unless they know exactly what they stand for?

On Christ’s meeting with His disciples in Galilee after His resurrection (Matt 28), Fr Tadros contemplates: “it is not possible for the servant to preach or make disciples to the Lord, or baptize unless the Lord declares himself in him inwardly. He would then taste and experience, and he offers nothing of himself, but what is declared to him by the Lord.”

However, the responsibility of preaching is not to be taken lightly. In Matt 10, Christ talks very plainly about how to approach preaching, what to expect, and gives encouragement to not be afraid. Let’s look at the main tips from our Lord.

Christ’s selection of disciples to preach Christianity throughout the world. Fr Tadros points out two things:

1) The disciples weren’t particularly talented, or prominent figures in society. They were ordinary people, most of them were from a poor class. This was to assure us that the source of power came from God and not from their own.

2) All the disciples were vastly different in personality. From tax collectors, to religious figures, fisherman. They all gathered in Jesus Christ to be sanctified together as members one to the other. They worked in one Spirit for the preaching of the one gospel.

St John Chrysostom explains that Christ, “wanted to train them in perfection, he asked them not to think about what concerns tomorrow. He was sending them as teachers to the entire world.” We can think of perhaps replacing these material necessities with Christ’s garment of virtues. Instead of gold, silver, copper and money belts, as we preach, we can take with us the heavenly virtuous life, the Holy Word of God, the power of the Cross, continuous repentance.

St Ambosios reminds us of St Peter’s miracle when he said “Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you; in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk” (Acts 3:6). The power of God in our life is more powerful than anything material. The work of God is spiritual and no physical possession is necessary to do God’s work, instead our own virtue and spirituality is what can prepare us for His work.

Attitude during preaching. “If the household is worthy, let your peace come upon it. But if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you” (Matt 10: 13). Fr Tadros explains that practically, “God didn’t want them disturbed by the service. They had to teach the word as it is, and not to get disturbed if it is refused by anyone! They are preachers for sure, but it is God who works in them and through them.”

The world’s rejection. “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves” (Matt 10: 16).  St John Chrysostom warns us that there is a risk of us being the wolves if we stand against our enemies contrary to Christ’s message to His disciples of spirituality and having inward peace. Instead as sheep, we are protected by our true Shepherd. As our Shepherd, the Lord is committed to protecting us and working through us.

St Augustine beautifully reflects, “when the serpent feels its getting too old, and the long years it has lived, it shrinks, and makes it a point to enter through a small hole, so its old skin would be stripped off. It is then that he starts a new life. You have to follow this example, as you are a Christian.” In this way we should be wise as serpents, and “put on the new man”. As doves, we should remain cheerful, and rejoice together in unity. Doves never quarrel but live peacefully together.

Facing trouble during preaching. The Lord offers us an important principle amidst external trouble. That we do not throw ourselves in the middle of these tempests and provoke those who annoy us. We should escape trouble and not give the opportunity for those that bother us to increase their rebellion. Pope Athanasius says that, “our Saviour commanded we run away when we are persecuted, and hide from those who search for us.”

Inward war. The church fathers explain that having now considered these external wars, to be conscious of the inward war that takes place. “It is an excessively ferocious war because it takes place in the inward soul. The enemy wages it so man would be divided against itself.” So it is wise to be diligent in our spiritual life so that we are armoured against anything that tries to divide us, and weaken us in our endeavour to do God’s work.

May we remember that when we live as children of God and embody Christ’s virtues we become beacons of light. As God did with the disciples, we become His ambassadors in the world; every interaction and every word we say, Christ will use as an opportunity for His Word to spread through us. Christ reminds us that when we fear Him and live in His light, that nothing in this world can harm us, for they can kill the body, but can never touch our soul.

📚Matthew 28, Acts 1, 2 Corinthians 5, Matthew 10, 2 Corinthians 11, Mark 10, Isaiah 19 📚