Synaxarion From the Pentecostarion. On this day, the eighth Sunday from Pascha, we celebrate holy Pentecost.
Verses In a violent wind Christ distributes to the Apostles the Spirit in tongues of fire. On one great day, the Spirit is poured out on the fishermen.
Saint Iakovos Tsalikis of Evia once revealed to a monk: “Tonight, my child, I was concelebrating with saints and angels at altars beyond description. When I die, say that some old man was concelebrating every night and living with the Holy Trinity.“
Saint Porphyrios of Kavsokalyvia
On Pentecost, the grace of God was poured out not only on the apostles, but on all the people around them. It affected the believers and the unbelievers. What does Acts say? While the Apostle Peter was speaking his own language, his language was being processed in the minds of the listeners at that time. In a secret way the Holy Spirit made them understand his words in their language, secretly, without being noticed. These miracles are done by the influence of the Holy Spirit.
For example, the word “home” to someone who knew French would be heard as “la maison”. It was a kind of clairvoyance; they heard their own language. The sound was heard in the ear, but inwardly, with the illumination of God, the words were heard in their language. The Fathers of the Church do not reveal this interpretation of Pentecost very openly, they are afraid of distortion. The same is true of the Apocalypse of John. The ignorant cannot understand the meaning of the mystery of God.
Below he says: “And every soul was filled with fear” (Acts 2:43). This “fear” was not fear. It was something else, something foreign, something incomprehensible, something we cannot explain. It was awe, it was fulfillment, it was grace. It was being filled with divine grace. At Pentecost, people suddenly found themselves in such a state of deification that they lost it. Thus, when divine grace overshadowed them, it drove them all crazy – in a good way – it excited them. This has made a big impression on me. It was what I sometimes call a “state of being”. It was excitement. A state of spiritual madness. Source: Γέροντος Πορφυρίου, Βίος και Λόγοι, εκδ. Ι.Μ. Χρυσοπηγής, σελ. 207-209. Translation by John Sanidopoulos.
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When Christ enters our soul, everything within us will be altered The Lord said to His disciples, ‘When the Holy Spirit will come, it will teach you all things’ (Cf. John 14:26). The Holy Spirit teaches us everything.It sanctifies us. It assimilates us to God. When we have the Spirit of God, we become incapable of all sin, incapable of sinning. When we have the Holy Spirit, we cannot do evil. We cannot be filled with anger or hate or speak evil.
We must become filled, replete with the Holy Spirit. This is where the essence of spiritual life lies.This is an art – the art of arts. Let us open our arms and throw ourselves into Christ’s embrace. When Christ comes, we will have gained everything. Christ will alter everything within us. He will bring peace, joy, humility, love, prayer and the uplifting of our soul. The grace of Christ will renew us. If we turn to Him with intense longing and desire, with devotion and love, Christ will give us everything.
Without Christ it is impossible to correct ourselves. We will not be able to detach ourselves from our passions. On our won we cannot become good. Without me, you can do nothing (John 15:5). However much we try, we will achieve nothing. There is one thing we must do, and that is turn to Him and love Him with all our soul (Mark 12:30). Love for Christ: this is the best and sole remedy for the passions.
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“The secret lies in our devotion, our prayer to God for what is best for our brethren to come about through the grace of God. That is the best. What we are unable to do will be done through His grace“. We need to approach Christ just like we willingly, with a joyful heart, join with a loved one who approaches us with open arms for an embrace. It is a self-giving, a surrender, a joy-filled submission to His love. Once we are willing to accept His love without any conditions, the Holy Spirit will visit us and embrace us in God’s love.
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Elder Arsenie Boca
“If you will have patience in difficulties you know the Holy Spirit is within you; if you will also have the strength to be thankful in troubles that is when the Holy Spirit shines through you”.
O All-good Holy Spirit of God, do not depart from us either when we want You and when we do not want You. Be with us all the time until our death and save us for life eternal. Saint Nikolai Velimirovič https://iconandlight.wordpress.com/2022/06/12/80058/
Apolytikion of Holy Pentecost. Tone 8 (Plagal Tone Four)
Blessed are you, Christ our God, who revealed the fishermen to be most wise by sending down to them the Holy Spirit, and so through them catching the whole world in a net: Lover of mankind, glory to you!
Verse: Do not cast me away from your presence; and do not take your Holy Spirit from me.
Heavenly King, Paraclete, Spirit of Truth, present everywhere, filling all things, Treasury of blessings and Giver of life; come and dwell in us, cleanse us from every stain, and, O Good One save our souls.
Tone 4
The holy Spirit is light and life and living, spiritual spring. Spirit of wisdom, Spirit of understanding; good, right, spiritual, sovereign, cleansing faults. God and making divine; fire and proceeding from fire, speaking, working, distributing the gifts of grace; through whom all the prophets and Apostles of God with the Martyrs have been crowned. Strange tidings, strange sight: fire divided for the apportioning of gifts.
Idiomelon. Mode 1
The Holy Spirit supplies all things: He pours out prophecies, He perfects priests; He taught wisdom to the unlettered, He showed fishermen to be theologians; He welds together the whole institution of the Church. “O Comforter, You who share the same essence and throne with the Father and the Son, glory to You!”
Idiomelon. Mode 2.
We have seen the true light; we have received the heavenly Spirit. We have found the true Faith, worshipping the undivided Trinity; for this has saved us.
Mode pl. 2
Heavenly King, Comforter, Spirit of Truth, present in all places and filling all things, treasury of good things and giver of life: come; take Your abode in us; cleanse us of every stain, and save our souls, O Good one.
Glory. Both now . Mode pl. 4.
Tongues were confused once because people dared to build the Tower. Tongues now obtain skill, for the glory of divine knowledge. There, God condemned the impious for their transgression; here, by the Spirit, Christ illumined the fishermen. Then, discord was contrived as penalization; now a new concord has arrived, for the salvation of our souls.
Stand for the reading of the Synaxarion. Synaxarion. On November 1 we commemorate the holy miracle-workers and unmercenaries Cosmas and Damian, the sons of Theodota of Asia (3rd c.). On this day we also commemorate the holy women martyrs Cyriaina and Juliana of Cilicia. (305). On this day we also commemorate the holy Apostle Nereus, and his sister(1-2nd c.) mentioned by Paul in Romans 16:15 On this day we also commemorate the holy martyrs Caesarius, Dasius, Sabbas, Sabinian, Agrippa, Adrian, and Thomas, in Damascus (7th c.). On this day we also commemorate the holy hieromartyrs John the bishop, and James the Zealot, the Presbyter, of Persia. (345) On this day we also commemorate the holy martyr Hermeningeld the Goth of Spain (586). We also commemorate the holy new hieromartyr Iakovos of Mount Athos, and his two disciples, Iakovos the deacon, and Dionysius the monk, who died by hanging in the year 1520. On this day, the Our righteous Father Davidof Evia (Euboea), died in peace. On this day, the Our righteous Father Cosmas of Verkhoturye (1704). On this day, the New Virgin-martyr Helen of Sinope, Pontos (18th c.). On this day, the holy martyrs David the Great Komnenosand Last Emperor of Trebizond (1463) executed in Constantinople by sword together with his sons Basil, George and Manuel and his nephew Alexios On this day, the holy New Hieromartyrs Alexander (Smirnov), Theodore(Remezov) and BasilLuzgin Priests (1918). Repose of Elder Hilarion of Valaam and Sarov (1841) Repose of Father John Savvas Romanides(1927 – 2001) Professor of Theology and Teacher of Romiosini, one of the greatest Orthodox theologians of the 20th century and revivalist of our theology who strived to restore it to the genuineness of Patristic tradition
Your writings and godly teachings have gone out to all the world; you have revealed the way of repentance.(Vesperal Stichos to St. John Chrysostom)
Fr. John Romanides
The deceased himself had revealed in one of his rare self-introductions the following:
«My parents came from the Roman city of Kastropolis of Arabessus of Cappadocia, birthplace of the Roman emperor Mauritius (582-602), who had appointed Saint Gregory the Great (590-604) as Pope of Rome, who in turn appointed Augustine as the first archbishop of Canterbury (597-604).
I was born in Piraeus on the 2.3.1927. I left Greece and migrated to America on the 15th of May 1927 (just 72 days old) with my parents and was raised in the city of New York, in Manhattan, on 46th Street, between Second and Third Avenue.
I am a graduate of the Greek College of Brookline Massachusetts, the School of Theology of Yale University, a Doctor of the School of Theology of the National Capodistrian University of Athens, the School of Philosophy of Harvard University (School of Arts and Sciences); Professor Emeritus of the School of Theology of the Aristotelian University of Thessaloniki and Visiting Professor of the Theological School of Saint John the Damascene of the Balamand University of Lebanon since 1970.»
To these we will add that he also studied at the Russian Seminary of Saint Vladimir in New York; the Russian Institute of Saint Sergius in Paris and Munich, Germany. He was ordained a presbyter in 1951 and from then on, was ministering in various dioceses of the United States of America. Between the years 1958 and 1965 he served as a professor in the Theological School of the Holy Cross, but resigned in 1965, protesting against the removal of Father George Florovsky from the School. His appointment to the Seat of Dogmatics in the Theological School of the University of Thessaloniki took place on June 12th 1968, but he was not finally assigned there, because he was accused of being a “communist”! His assignment finally took place in 1970. In 1984 he resigned for personal reasons, was given full pension, but it was not deemed appropriate to award him the title of Professor Emeritus – something that comes to reveal the dysfunctions of our theological comrades.
He had written a plethora of studies, many of which are still unpublished and should be published altogether, in a series of volumes. These relics must be safeguarded, because they have much to offer and reveal.
…When reviewing his theological opus – educative, literary and militant – we are naturally compelled to refer to a pre-Romanides and post-Romanides era. Because he introduced a real section and a rift in our scholastic past, which resembled a Babylonian captivity for our theology. His dissertation decisively sealed this revivalist course, to the degree that even those who for various reasons criticized or ideologically opposed him, betrayed in their writings the influence of Father John in their theological thought.
….Respected and beloved Father John, your friends, your colleagues and co-spokesmen all express our gratitude, for everything that by the grace of God you gave us. As do the thousands of direct or indirect students also. We hold on to the theological trust that you left us, to be our rod in the darkness that calculation, ignorance, indifference and profit have spawned. You have united us with the patristic element within the realm of academic theology, by constantly urging us towards worship and ascetic exercise, where true theology is cultivated. We thank you! (Obituary for Protopresbyter John Romanides (+ 11/1/2001) By Protopresbyter George Metallinos, Dean of the Athens University School of Theology)[https://www.oodegr.com/english/biographies/newteroi/romanidis1.htm]
Fr. John reposed in Athens at the age of 74 from a heart attack, which came during his morning walk to the churches and marketplace of Athens, just as he was entering the 6th century Church of Saint Kyriaki on Athinas Street.
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Fr. John Romanides
Those who really speak about the end times are those who practice hesychasm, not relaxation. Genuine Orthodox eschatology is hesychasm.(Protopresbyter John S. Romanides, Patristic Theology: The University Lectures of Fr. John Romanides, trans. Hieromonk Alexios [Trader] pg. 108)
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Theology has only one aim: purification, illumination and glorification. Theology has no other purpose. Do you understand? Theology has no other aim other than purification, illumination and glorification.
In Orthodoxy, the very worst human being can be purified and reach illumination. Dogmas are a guide for those going through purification, and it continues to be a guide for those who go on to be illuminated.
According to the Fathers of the Church, someone who is visited by the Holy Spirit acquires illumination of the nous. The Holy Spirit enters a persons heart and gives us prayer, so we acquire noetic prayer, noetic worship. Otherwise we give God rational worship. When someone has the prayer associated with the state of illumination, that is to say, noetic prayer in the heart, this prayer illumines his nous. He now sees through faith, by the testimony of the Holy Spirit, things within his heart that he did not see before. He sees them through faith and understands words and concepts spiritually, not philosophically. He reads Holy Scripture. He understands the words and concepts, not from the point of view of philosophical method but from the point of view of methodology. Why? Because the words and concepts are regarded as medicines for man.
Poverty is an indispensable requirement for reaching illumination. Without being free of possessions one cannot reach illumination. It is impossible.
Priests sit all day long telling us to love one another, and none of them tell us how to love. Love “does not seek its own” (1 Cor. 13:5). How can someone acquire this love? How is it done? When the illumination of the nous begins and becomes an integrated and stable state, selfishness, egoism and self-centeredness are gradually replaced by love which “does not seek its own.” The perfection of love comes about through the appearance of Christ “in glory” to the one who is spiritually vigilant. When someone reaches this stage, he has reached theoria and is on the way towards glorification. These are not people who are merely moral, but people who have been cured in the core of their personality. When Christ said “You are the light of the world” He meant those Christians who were illuminated. Christians are not the light of the world simply because they believe in Christ. The essence of Holy Tradition, its core, is illumination, whereby we hand over the torch. One becomes a shining light in order to illumine others. Thus illumination is the essence of Christianity, where the illuminated who shed light hand over the light to others, which is diagnosis and cure. The cure is man’s illumination.
If I have not reached illumination I am not ready to face the glory of God. If someone has arrived at illumination and noetic prayer, provided he is faithful to the end, he will leave sacred relics. The clergy do not have a monopoly on this therapeutic treatment. Treatment can be given by anyone at all who has noetic prayer, whereas the clergy celebrate the Mysteries. These are two different things, so in Orthodoxy they were always separated. The celebrant is concerned with the rituals. But someone who has reached illumination will be the spiritual father.
Man was created to be in a state of illumination or glorification. Glorification is an empirical state. It has nothing to do with metaphysics. The glorification of man means union with God, or theosis. It is divine theoria, divine vision. Man becomes god by grace during the vision of God, if he reaches this point. The aim of Holy Scripture is to lead man to divine vision, to glorification, that he might see Christ in glory.
The theology of the Church is an expression of the experience of theosis, man’s glorification, when he attains to the revelation. Theology comes from the divine vision of the Prophets, Apostles, saints and all those who have been glorified. Noetic prayer is the foundation of theology and theologizing, according to the Fathers. In the early Church someone was allowed to theologize only when he had reached illumination. He was called a theologian when he reached glorification. This is the historical usage of these terms. Orthodox theology means that someone sees, and on the basis of the experience of divine vision and glorification, he theologizes. What does he see in the state of glorification? He sees all the dogmas. The one who prays theologizes, and the one who theologizes prays. Theology and prayer are the same thing. When the Fathers theologize they do not theologize only from Holy Scripture, but from their own experience. Expressions about God are therefore symbolic. This is why we have the term “symbolic theology”, because we use symbols to talk about God. According to the Fathers of the Church, glorification is perfect freedom, and purification and illumination are the beginning of freedom. Holy relics are the result of glorification, … These are the living sermons of Orthodoxy. Orthodoxy is always based on the lives of the saints. The calendar of saints is the backbone of Orthodox theology. Excerpted from Empirical Dogmatics of the Orthodox Catholic Church According to the Spoken Teaching of Father John Romanides, vol. 2, pp. 260-329. (Excerpts – Purification, Illumination and Glorification . )
***On divine inspiration By protopresbyter John S. Romanides University Professor
…When Christ said that He would send us the Holy Spirit, which would guide us to the entire truth, He was not talking about Ecumenical Councils; that is, He didn’t say that it would happen during the Ecumenical Councils of the Church. In other words, this novelty of the Ecumenical Councils’ infallibility is not included anywhere in the Bible. Christ had simply said that the Holy Spirit would be the One Who would lead us to the entire truth. But prior to that, He had said that “if you have love amongst you, my Father and I shall come and reside amongst you”, and He also said that “now you see me, but later you will not see me. But if you have love, you will see me again. And the Spirit will then come and reside amongst you and will lead you to the entire truth.”…
When Christ spoke of the effusion of the Holy Spirit in the Church and the faithful, He didn’t speak vaguely; He didn’t say that he would send it to all of the Church in general. Nor because bishops and priests may have a certain succession through ordination will the entire Church receive it in general. Nor did He imply that because of bishops’ ordinations there is a certain guarantee that the Holy Spirit will reside permanently inside the Hierarchy. The existence of a bishop is no guarantee that a Council will be animated by the Holy Spirit. Proof of this, is that there have been many bishops in the Church who have been condemned as heretics. If those bishops had the Holy Spirit, they would not have fallen into heresy. Hence, the ordination of someone as bishop is neither proof nor a guarantee that the Holy Spirit definitely resides inside that bishop. Therefore it is not the Grace of High Priesthood that leads the Church “to the entire truth”.
Christ here speaks of something else. The Fathers clearly specify that Christ here is speaking of two situations. On the one hand He is speaking of enlightenment and on the other, e is speaking of theosis. When Christ says “so that everyone becomes one”, who is He referring to? To the Apostles of course. He is asking the Father that the Apostles “be as one, just as we are as one” (John 17:11). He doesn’t say as one (person), but as one (whole). But how can the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit be one (whole)? Reply: They are united as one, in their glory (energy) and in their essence. As Personae, hypostases, they are not united. Because the Personae in the Holy Trinity – according to the Fathers – are not in communion with each other. The common things in the Holy Trinity are the essence and the natural energy of essence, i.e. the Glory.
And how can the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit be as one – the same “one” that we shall become one with – that is, between ourselves as well as the Holy Trinity? What will that common feature be? Answer: It is the ‘one’ in Glory
In other words, just as the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are as one in glory – because they have glory in common – thus we shall become as one, when we are participants in God’s glory; that is, when all of us (or the ones who become worthy) become participants in the Grace of the Holy Spirit – the uncreated Light. Because when a man becomes glorified, he becomes a communicant of the uncreated glory of the Holy Trinity and thus is also united with the Holy Trinity as well as those fellow men who are also united with the glory of God.
Therefore, that which Christ prays for during the Last Supper is, firstly, for their catharsis, then their enlightenment and finally their theosis.
Thus, the “leading you to the entire truth” is not referring to all people in general, but specifically to those who are going to participate in the experience of theosis. In other words, it is only when man reaches theosis, that he is led to the entire truth.. Subsequently, the entire truth (not of the created world, but of God) can be realized only inside the experience of theosis.
Because all of the Fathers had this experience or a similar one, being either in a state of enlightenment or theosis, for this, they also all had exactly the same perception of the Holy Bible and hence gave the same interpretation of the Holy Bible in its basic points, and the same interpretation of the texts of the other Fathers of the Church.
What do we surmise from the above? That whoever is in a state of enlightenment or theosis are divinely inspired, or not? Answer: They are most assuredly divinely inspired. Because divine inspiration means what? It means that someone is inspired by God. As opposed to what? As opposed to someone being inspired by the devil and the demons. He will be devilishly inspired and demonically inspired.
The sublimest form of Revelation with regard to divine inspiration, was that which occurred to the Apostles on the day of the Pentecost. The key, therefore, to Orthodox theology with regard to divine inspiration, is the Pentecost.If one can comprehend the significance of the Pentecost to Patristic tradition, then, even if he is not a theologian, at least he will know what Theology is and what a theologian is. Just as one doesn’t have to be a doctor to know what medical science is and what a doctor is, in the same way, one can know what Theology is, who the theologian is, and who the ‘theologizer’ is, without necessarily being a theologian or a ‘theologizer’ himself. John S. Romanides, “Patristic Theology”, Parakatathiki Publications, 2004, pages 115 –124, Prologue by Protopresbyter George Metallinos, Dean of Athens University; Supervision-Commentary: Damascenos, Holy Mountain Friar Translation by A.N. https://www.oodegr.com/english/ag_grafi/theopn1.htm
Troparion of the Martyrs Cosmas and Damian ― Tone 8
O holy unmercenaries and wonderworkers, visit our infirmities./ Freely you have received, freely give to us.
Apolytikion of St. Helen of Sinope― Plagal Tone 1
The most-fragrant flower of purity and the boast and divine offspring of Sinope, Virgin-martyr of Christ Helen most-pure, who struggled steadfastly, and cast down the enemy with the power of faith, and entreats for everyone, to have mercy on our souls.
The sweet smelling flower of purity and the boast of Sinopi, the divine blossom, the Virgin Martyr of Christ, Helen who is ever modest. She struggled fervently. She defeated the enemy with the power of faith. She constantly intercedes for us “have mercy on our souls.”
Kontakion of Sts. Jacob of Mount Athos, Jacob and Dionysius ― Plagal Tone 4
Let us worthily remember James, the new Preacher of the brilliance of repentance, and divine trumpet of the philanthropy of God. You bore the marks of the Lord, and fulfilled the needs of the Saints. Wherefore we say: Rejoice, Father James.
Apolytikion of Saint David of Evia― Tone 3
A great boast of Evia were you proved to be, the all-glorious, David the divine, as a holy descendant of virtue, and a most-true defender of Christ, and equal to all the Venerable Ones. Therefore Venerable Father, entreat Christ God, to grant us great mercy.
Apolytikion of Saint David of Evia ― Plagal Tone 4
With the rivers of your tears, you have made the barren desert fertile. Through sighs of sorrow from deep within you, your labors have borne fruit a hundred-fold. By your miracles you have become a light, shining upon the world. O David, our Holy Father, pray to Christ our God, to save our souls.
Synaxarion From the Pentecostarion.
On Pentecost, the grace of God was poured out not only on the apostles, but on all the people around them. It affected the believers and the unbelievers. What does Acts say? While the Apostle Peter was speaking his own language, his language was being processed in the minds of the listeners at that time.
When Christ enters our soul, everything within us will be altered
Apolytikion of Holy Pentecost. Tone 8 (Plagal Tone Four)
Stand for the reading of the Synaxarion.
«My parents came from the Roman city of Kastropolis of Arabessus of Cappadocia, birthplace of the Roman emperor Mauritius (582-602), who had appointed Saint Gregory the Great (590-604) as Pope of Rome, who in turn appointed Augustine as the first archbishop of Canterbury (597-604).
T
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On divine inspiration
Thus, the “leading you to the entire truth” is not referring to all people in general, but specifically to those who are going to participate in the experience of theosis. In other words,
Saint David of Evia (Euboea) the Elder and Sts. Cosmas and Damian the Holy Unmercenaries of Asia Minor, and their mother St Theodota
Troparion of the Martyrs Cosmas and Damian ― Tone 8
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