Advent problem

I always forgot the amazing problem with the Advent fast, which is that November/December is the time that everyone likes to invite you out.

My housemate is moving away in 2 weeks and invited me out to La Barra this evening, so I went. After about an hour all of them were drunk and dancing, trying to drag me along. So, I got bored and left…

The good part is that I got the chance to go to Damascu Bite, the new Syrian takeaway on my road (Bethnal Green Road only Turkish, Pakistani, Lebanese, North Indian and Bangladeshi places, so a Syrian one was a nice change.)

Now time to watch some Adventure time, read another chapter of my book and sleep. Liturgy tomorrow at 9am. 😉

Patriarch Kirill chairs a conference on Theology in Universities: State-Society Cooperation

November 28, 2012 – a Conference on Theology in Universities: State-Society Cooperation began at the conference hall of Danilovskaya Hotel in Moscow. It is organized with the support of the St. Gregory the Theologian Charity. Its purpose is to systematise the experience of theological education in Russian universities and to elaborate measures for its extension on the basis of church-state and church-society partnership.

The presidium of the conference included Patriarch Kirill, Metropolitan Varsonofy of Saransk and Mordovia, chancellor of the Moscow Patriarchate, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk in his capacity of rector of the Sts Cyril and Methodius Post-Graduate and Doctoral School, Metropolitan Merkury of Rostov and Novocherkassk, head of the Department for Religious Education and Catechism, Archbishop Yevgeny of Vereya, chairman of the Education Committee, A. Fursenko, presidential advisor, V. Sadovnichy, rector of Moscow University, and S. Karpov, dean of the Moscow University’s Department of History.

The Conference is attended by hierarchs, federal and regional government officials, leaders of church academic institutions and directors of theological academic programs – altogether over 200 people from over 40 regions in Russia.

In his opening remarks, Patriarch Kirill focused on the renewal of religious faith in Russian society today and the need to respond to it by offering a high quality theological education as it forms an adequate knowledge of religion and the Church. Theology in universities, he said, does not contradict the principle of secularity understood not in the spirit of aggressive secularism but as a neutral worldview and offered to those who freely choose it. ‘Theology in university is not an exotic discipline or a whim of some churchmen or an attempt to interfere in the other’s space to impose the religious worldview on students or to put obstacles for teaching traditional academic disciplines. Theology in universities is a cultural imperative for society which for a long time has been actually alienated from religion as a special sphere of human existence’, he said.

Patriarch Kirill called upon ruling bishops to show all possible concern for the development of cooperation between their dioceses and higher education institutions since ‘the presence of Orthodox theology in the common academic space and its creative interaction with humanitarian arts and natural science disciplines should help raise the level of academic theology as a complex of educational disciplines and a sphere of research’.

Pointing to the progress made in teaching theology in universities in recent years, Patriarch Kirill draw the participants’ attention to the existing problems, the most important of them being the absence of a united system of theological education in higher education schools. As urgent measures for optimizing the situation, he pointed to the need to regulate the partnership between the state and religious confessions in theological education and to elaborate and adopt a long-term plan for the logistic and financial support of theological education in universities as a united system and for inclusion of theology in the list of research specialities recognized by the Higher Attestation Commission. He also called all healthy forces of society including the Church and other religious confessions and the religious and secular education system to unite efforts for solving spiritual and moral problems facing our society.

Mr. A. Sadovnichy spoke about the role of the Russian Orthodox Church in the history of Moscow State University and the cooperation between his university and Moscow Theological Academy. ‘From the historical perspective, the Orthodox Church played an exceptional role in the development of public education in Russia’, he said. He also informed the gathering about the work of the Board for Theology established together by the Moscow University’s Department of History and the St. Tikhon’s Humanitarian University and reported that as of today, chairs of theology have been opened in over 30 higher education institutes in Russia.

Mr. Fursenko, in his speech, dealt among other things with the existing experience of cooperation between the government and the Russian Church.

Metropolitan Hilarion, in his remarks, spoke about interaction between theology and other academic disciplines.

Several university rectors and scholars shared their experience of teaching theology in their schools.

On November 29, the Conference will continue working in sections. Section I will deal with the theme ‘Church, Society, University: Models and Strategies of Cooperation’ and Section II with ‘Theological Education: From a Baccalaureate School to a Research Center’.

Patriarch Kirill chairs a conference on Theology in Universities: State-Society Cooperation

The Patriarch of Romania Consecrated the General Hospital within the Centre of Diagnosis and Treatment of Dr. Victor Babes of Bucharest

On 24 November 2012, His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel inaugurated the General Hospital within the Centre of Diagnosis and Treatment of “Dr Victor Babes” of Bucharest.
The Primate of the Romanian Orthodox Church said on the occasion that the new medical settlement is very useful in Romania taking into account the increased demand of medical assistance and the physicians’ migration for finding better paid jobs.

“The Romanian Patriarchate declared the year 2012 as “Solemn year of the Holy Unction and taking care of the sick”. All these consecrations of medical centres of diagnosis and treatment or hospitals are included in this care of the Church so that man should feel the merciful love of Christ, the doctor of the souls and bodies”, His Beatitude said, as Trinitas Radio station informs us.

Lots of the body’s diseases are the result of the soul’s diseases. This is why the cooperation between physician and priest in hospitals is so much the more beneficial, also said the Patriarch of Romania.

“Besides updated technology love is also needed for relating generations one to another, the love for one’s neighbour. The physician must be both good in medical science and a man aware that the physician treats, but God heals”.

After the blessing service, His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel awarded the president of Victor Babes Foundation, Prof Dr Petru Calistru, the Diploma of Honour of “Saint Andrew the Apostle”.

Deeply impressed, the physician expressed his conviction that the setting up of the Centre of Diagnosis and Treatment would not have been possible without divine help.

“Only the divine hand showed us the doors that could be opened. All the doors opened for creating this private place of medical assistance completing to the public medical assistance. It is not an adversary in any case. Only if we think of the 350,000 services granted last year we have 10 – 15 % increase this year. Over 90% of these assisted persons within our services are insured in the public system, the services being available for the other ones. It is also important to say that we have, till the New Year, free services for all those willing to have an osteodensitometry done, certainly on schedule, 10 services a day and the programme is complete.

Our care is no other than divine care to make deeds worthy of the job we belong to”, declared the President of Victor Babes Foundation, Prof Dr Petru Calistru.

To end with, the Primate of the Romanian Orthodox Church visited the Chapel in the yard of the Centre of Diagnosis and Treatment of Dr Victor Babes and offered the servant charity priest of this holy place of worship several books published at the Publishing Houses of the Romanian Patriarchate.

The new hospital of the Centre of Diagnosis and Treatment of Dr Victor Babes provides new specialisations in medical assistance within the institution and an extra capacity of over 100 beds.

The Patriarch of Romania Consecrated the General Hospital within the Centre of Diagnosis and Treatment of Dr. Victor Babes of Bucharest

Festive time at the Patriarchate Palace

The day of 30 November, celebration of Saint Andrew the Apostle, was declared free day. The event was marked today in “Europa Christiana” Hall of the Patriarchate Palace in the presence of His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel, of the Assistant Bishops to the Patriarch Ciprian Câmpineanul and Varlaam Ploieşteanul, of the members of the Church National Council, as well as of the state and local officials.

To start with the event, His Beatitude Daniel, Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church, delivered a speech in which he emphasised the importance of the day of 30 November as feast of the entire Romanian nation – as Trinitas Radio station informs us.

“A Christian anniversary is first of all a remembrance or commemoration, full of love, of the merciful love of God manifested in persons and events which fulfil the holy aspirations of a people (…) According to the written church tradition (Ipolit of Rome, Origen, Eusebius of Caesarea, Sinaxis of the Constantinopolitan Church) as well as to the oral church tradition till nowadays, it is to Saint Andrew the Apostle, the first called of the disciples, that we own, as people and Church, the preaching of the Gospel in the first century to our Dacian-Romans forerunners in Dobrudgea and the foundation of the Church of Christ in today’s Romanian territory, as Church of apostolic origin”, said the Patriarch of Romania.

The law no 147 of 23 July 2012 was adopted by the Romanian Senate on 23 November 2011 and by the Chamber of Deputies on 26 June 2012. The President of Romania promulgated the law this year, on 29 July.

“This day is an occasion of holy joy and gratitude because after many efforts and requests of our Church expressed through the official applications of 2008 and 2011 which I personally addressed the Parliament, Presidency, and Romanian Government, through law no 147 of 23 July 2012 adopted by the Senate of Romania on 23 November 2011, and by the Chamber of Deputies on 26 June 2012, and then promulgated through decree 517 on 20 July 2012 by the President of Romania, the day of 30 November, when Saint Andrew the Apostle the First Called, Protector of Romania is celebrated, was declared free legal feast. Through this legislative act voted in the Chamber of Deputies by 236 deputies out of the 248 present, the Romanian Parliament confirmed the national, spiritual, missionary, and cultural educational importance of the celebration of Saint Andrew the Apostle as feast of the entire Romanian Orthodoxy and of all the Romanian people confirmed by now as a legally free feast, just as other peoples celebrate their national saint, although they received Christianity much later than the Romanian people”, His Beatitude also said.

The day of the celebration of Saint Andrew the Apostle is marked with a red cross in the Calendar of the Romanian Orthodox Church as a result of the decision of the Holy Synod taken in 1994.

“A very great moment for the celebration of Saint Andrew the Apostle in the Romanian territory took place from 12 – 19 October 1996, when the Romanian land was blessed with the first coming again of Saint Andrew the Apostle to Romania, in Iaşi and Galaţi, when his holy head was brought to Patras (Greece). Another significant moment took place in 2011, from 24 October – 1 November, when the Romanian people was blessed, in Bucharest and in Transylvania, in Sibiu (29 October) and Alba Iulia (30 October), with the second coming of the Holy head of Saint Andrew the Apostle to Romania. On this occasion, the Apostle of our people was received as “a useful divine redeemer of all needs and guardian”, calling our people to strengthen the apostolic faith received from him, almost two millenniums ago. Another sign of the Romanian people’s worship of Saint Andrew the Apostle is the fact that the new Cathedral of the Nation’s Salvation has Saint Andrew the Apostle, Protector of Romania, as saint patron”, emphasised His Beatitude Daniel, Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church.

During the event, the book entitled “Saint Andrew the Apostle. Protector of Romania, Beginner of the Baptism with the Romanian People”, published by Basilica Publishing House, was launched – as Trinitas TV station informs us. The medal dedicated to this feast issued by the State Mint was also presented – informs “Lumina” newspaper.

Festive time at the Patriarchate Palace

Metropolitan Tikhon addresses the Church in Video

A video address to the Church, featuring His Beatitude, Metropolitan Tikhon, is now available for viewing on the web site of the Orthodox Church in America.

The address was recorded on Monday, November 26, 2012 at the OCA Chancery in Syosset, NY.

“I have chosen to first address you in this direct way because it is important for Christians to communicate with one another with honesty and with clarity,” Metropolitan Tikhon said in his introductory remarks.  “The medium of our communication is never as important as the message but, in this age of multimedia, it is good for us to make sure that our message is always a simple one, coming from a heart that is as free from passions as possible.  I ask for your help in this so that all of us together might make the effort to purify our hearts, to pray for one another and to work together to communicate the glad tidings of salvation to the world around us.”

Metropolitan Tikhon addresses the Church in Video

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew Prays for Maxim, Bulgaria

Bulgarian President Rosen Plevneliev met Christian Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew in Istanbul Thursday.

“We prayed for the soul of the late Bulgarian Patriarch Maxim. We prayed for the Bulgarian people and Church, and for the swift election of a new patriarch,” said Bartholomew after the meeting.

“The Bulgarian Orthodox Church is the first spiritual sister of the Constantinople Patriarchy and has always been deep in our hearts,” added he.

The Bulgarian President expressed his gratitude regarding the support his country has from Constantinople.

“Patriarch Maxim‘s role for the unity and vitality of the Bulgarian Church through some difficult times was tremendous,” said Plevneliev.

“Bulgarian politicians have learned their lesson and the state has no intentions to meddle in the election of a new patriarch,” added he.

The Bulgarian president also expressed hopes that the office of the head of the Bulgarian Church will not stay vacant for long.

As part of his visit to Istanbul, Plevneliev also visited the Bulgarian St. Stephen Church, which is currently undergoing reconstruction.

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew Prays for Maxim, Bulgaria

I pray for your forgiveness for my outbursts and abusive language on the Palestine issue.

Please keep me in your Prayers this night.

Go to the tombs and see that the assurance of men is nothing. Why then does man who is dust indulge in vainglory? Why does he who is all stench exalt himself? Let us therefore weep for ourselves while we have time, lest, at the hour of our departure, we be found asking God for extra time to repent.

Saint Pachomius

howaboutnobear:

israelfacts:

Huge cheers erupt in UN general assembly as overwhelming vote passes recognizing Palestine as a sovereign state

I teared up a little.

This was my first fist pump moment in many years.

livingathousandlies replied to your post: So… politics people… Can any action be taken…

Historically, what basis does Palestine have to claim in that region? They have not behaved in a civil manner and should not be given the choice of sovereignty. Economically the Jewish people are far more beneficial to the world than the Palestinians

Sorry, you lost me at “The Jewish People…”

This is not a race or faith based argument. The Palestinians have a claim to that region as it belonged to them before it belonged to the modern state of Israel. his was recognised in the original partition plan before Israel as you know it even existed.

A group of immigrants being “More beneficial” to a region is no reason to deny those who live there beside the immigrants the right to freedom of mobility in their own land. To argue otherwise is simply a racist argument and brings flashbacks of British Imperialism in India and Africa.

As for acting in a Civil manner, are you suggesting that the illegal theft of land, destruction of homes and olive groves and bribing of foreign immigrants to build on illegal property is civilised? Israel has been just as uncivilised as the worst of the terrorist elements of the Palestinians. To claim that palestinians should be removed from their lands because they are ‘uncivilised again demonstrates a Xenophobic worldview.

Forgive me if I am wrong but in my view a racist ideology and 3,000 year old territorial claim based on fuzzy exegesis and denial of your own religious texts does not give a group of people the right to an inhabited land.

keep your bigotry to yourself next time.calling others uncivilised whilst spouting xenophobic territorial claims is a shameful act.

May God bless you and grant you peace.