{"id":6792,"date":"2020-10-06T22:41:14","date_gmt":"2020-10-06T12:41:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.stmark.com.au\/Blogs\/?p=6792"},"modified":"2020-10-06T22:53:20","modified_gmt":"2020-10-06T12:53:20","slug":"upside-down-kingdom","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.stmark.com.au\/Blogs\/upside-down-kingdom\/","title":{"rendered":"Upside Down Kingdom"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>\n

Upside Down Kingdom<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Monica<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Originally seen on Becoming Fully Alive blog site<\/em>, March 21, 2016<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u2018Do you fast? Give me proof of it by your works. If you see a poor man take pity on him\u2026\u2019 St John Chrysostom<\/em>
As Orthodox believers are called to practice what we believe. If Orthodoxy means\u00a0the \u2018correct belief\u2019 than Orthopraxy means \u2018correct practice.\u2019 This correct practice involves preaching by using\u00a0our hands to serve. It means clearing the stench of economic division with the air of reconciliation. It means doing more than theorising. It means acknowledging the empowering presence of the Holy Spirit in\u00a0the Church, and walking humbly \u2013 and boldly \u2013 into the thick darkness, so that we might proclaim\u00a0freedom to the captives, and demand justice for the oppressed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The thing about social justice\u00a0is that it\u2019s not \u201celsewhere,\u201d it is\u00a0here and it is a part of us. It is\u00a0healing the wounds that\u00a0we have created in\u00a0the body of Christ.\u00a0It is\u00a0breaking every barrier that stops us being gathered together into the arms of Christ.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHow often I wanted to gather your children together, as a\nhen gathers her brood under her wings, but you were not\nwilling!\u201d (Luke 13:34)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Would you do honour to Christ\u2019s body? Neglect Him not when naked; do not while here you honour Him with silken garments, neglect Him perishing without of cold and nakedness. For He that said, \u201cThis is my body,\u201d and by His word confirmed the fact, This same said, \u201cYou saw me hungered, and fed me not;\u201d and, \u201cInasmuch as you did it not to one of the least of these, you did it not to me (Matthew\u00a025:42-\u00a045<\/a>).\u201d\u00a0For this indeed needs not coverings, but a pure soul; but that requires much attention.
-St. John Chrysostom Homily 50 on Matthew<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the story of Lazarus\nand the rich man (Luke 16:19-31<\/a>), the rich man saw poverty and suffering around\nhim, but he chose apathy. Maybe, he, like the priest who passed by the man in\nthe story of the good Samaritan, was on his way to church or some service.\nBusying himself, he forgets to act justly. He forgets he is made\nfor justice. Maybe in serving at the table of the Lord, we have forgotten\nto serve the table of the poor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen His table indeed is full of golden cups, but He perishes with hunger? First fill Him, being a hungered, and then abundantly deck out His table also. Do you make Him a cup of gold, while you give Him not a cup of cold water? And what is the profit? Do you furnish His table with cloths bespangled with gold, while to Himself you afford not even the necessary covering? And what good comes of it? For tell me, should you see one at a loss for necessary food, and omit appeasing his hunger, while you first overlaid his table with silver; would he indeed thank you,\u00a0and not rather be indignant?\u201d <\/strong>-St John Chrysostom, Homily 50 Matthew<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The thing about social justice is that it is forgotten.\u00a0<\/strong>We forget\u00a0that\u00a0working towards social justice is\u00a0what it means to celebrate the liturgy on\u00a0the streets.<\/em>
When seeking the kingdom of heaven, let us remember that in the parable of the pearl, the pearl was not found in the clouds but amongst the dirt, hidden under rocks and soil (Matthew 13: 45-46). It takes getting your hands dirty to get it out; hidden behind the poor, the broken, the marginalised.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you desire greatness this lent, and in your spiritual\nlife?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jesus\u00a0redefined it:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201che who is greatest among\nyou, let him be as the younger, and he who governs as he who serves. For who is\ngreater, he who sits at the table, or he who serves? Is it not he who sits at\nthe table? Yet I am among you as the One who serves.\u201d (Luke 22:26-27)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

We serve a God of an upside-down Kingdom where the meek will inherit, where those who serve are greater than those who sit on thrones, there is strength through weakness, exaltation through humility, receiving through giving, freedom from servitude.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is this not the fast that I have chosen:
\nTo loosen the bonds of wickedness,
\nTo undo the heavy burdens,
\nTo let the oppressed go free,
\nAnd that you break every yoke?
\nIs it not to share your bread with the hungry.
\nIsaiah 58:6<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

O Lord Jesus,<\/strong>
Let your upside-down kingdom come<\/strong>
Help us fast from injustice<\/strong>
Keep our eyes wide open to suffering<\/strong>
Help us flee from apathy<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This post is dedicated to a friend in Jordan<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Original blog available at- https:\/\/becomingfullyalive.com\/upside-down-kingdom\/<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Upside Down Kingdom By Monica Originally seen on Becoming Fully Alive blog site, March 21, 2016 \u2018Do you fast? Give me proof of it by your works. If you see a poor man take pity on him\u2026\u2019 St John Chrysostom As Orthodox believers are called to practice what we believe. If Orthodoxy means\u00a0the \u2018correct belief\u2019 … Continue reading “Upside Down Kingdom”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":6793,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[177],"class_list":["post-6792","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorised","tag-kingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.stmark.com.au\/Blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6792","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.stmark.com.au\/Blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.stmark.com.au\/Blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.stmark.com.au\/Blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.stmark.com.au\/Blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6792"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"http:\/\/www.stmark.com.au\/Blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6792\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6802,"href":"http:\/\/www.stmark.com.au\/Blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6792\/revisions\/6802"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.stmark.com.au\/Blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6793"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.stmark.com.au\/Blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6792"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.stmark.com.au\/Blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6792"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.stmark.com.au\/Blogs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6792"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}