What are you Teaching / Preaching this week?

[mcommini]

I am curious how Eastern Christians reckon modern Jan 1 in their ancient liturgical calendar, if at all. And what do the Orthodox do with the Octave Day of Christmas? I would expect that they also honor the Theotokos on that day.
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Our pastor talked about Mary and her place in salvation history, and in our present salvation.

He also talked about the Epiphany Vigil coming up. We have big, BIG plans for that.... Jan 5 is the Vigil.

We celebrate St Basil the Great and the Circumcision of Christ on January 1- mainly by celebrating the longer Liturgy of St Basil (as opposed to the liturgy of St John Chrysostom, which we celebrate a decent majority of the time). Our big post-25th Marian feast is on the 26th where we celebrate the Theotokos as well Ss Joseph the Betrothed, James the Just, and David the King and Prophet.

And our big feast on the 6th is Theophany- we'll be celebrating the Baptism of Christ. The Eve of we'll celebrate a Vesperal Liturgy and prepare our holy water for the year. It is not uncommon for pious Orthodox Christians to take a large quantity home with them (I've seen yia-yias take home several large coolers with them. My mostly convert parish is a little more restrained- I probably take home the most out of anyone at my annual 1 gallon) and consume a small amount before or after their morning prayers as well a use it for emergency blessings or even drop a small amount in with their humidifiers. The following morning another Liturgy will be celebrated.

It is the custom for Orthodox parishes to then proceed (quite literally in a Procession if near enough) to the nearest large body of water- river, lake, ocean- and bless it as well, making all the water in the land holy water for a time. As the priest blesses the water he throws in a cross and the young men of the parish dive in after it (though with the "rivers" here in New Mexico, "dive" is sometimes decidedly in quotations- sometimes its more "saunter over, straddle the riverbed, and reach down"). Should the body of water be frozen over, because it is January freaking 6th!, a hole will be provided for cross and divers. Needless to say, our Slavic and Nordic brothers are hard-core.

The difference between Eastern and Western practice as regards the 6th is fairly easy to trace- before Nativity came to be celebrated as a separate feast on December 25th in the early 4th Century, it was celebrated on the 6th along with the Wise Men (Epiphany) and the Baptism (Theophany). When Christmas became it's own day, the East moved the Epiphany to the 25th along with it and kept the Theophany on January 6. The Western Church kept Epiphany in place and moved the Theophany a few days later.

And a quick Wikipedia check shows that the 1st used to be universally focused on the Circumcision- Higher Church Anglicans and Lutherans still celebrate it on this day. It did not become a Solemnity of Mary in the Roman Church until 1960. And some further searching shows that we both celebrated St Basil on the 1st in the past, but the Western Church changed the date to the date of his ordination as opposed to his passing in the 13th Century. The Roman Church later moved it to January 2 in 1969. The other Western liturgical churches have various days of celebration for St Basil.

[sweetandsour]

I'm scheduled to teach SS this Sunday, on John 19: 17-27.

[Del]

I am curious how Eastern Christians reckon modern Jan 1 in their ancient liturgical calendar, if at all. And what do the Orthodox do with the Octave Day of Christmas? I would expect that they also honor the Theotokos on that day.
====================================

Our pastor talked about Mary and her place in salvation history, and in our present salvation.

He also talked about the Epiphany Vigil coming up. We have big, BIG plans for that.... Jan 5 is the Vigil.

We celebrate St Basil the Great and the Circumcision of Christ on January 1- mainly by celebrating the longer Liturgy of St Basil (as opposed to the liturgy of St John Chrysostom, which we celebrate a decent majority of the time). Our big post-25th Marian feast is on the 26th where we celebrate the Theotokos as well Ss Joseph the Betrothed, James the Just, and David the King and Prophet.

And our big feast on the 6th is Theophany- we'll be celebrating the Baptism of Christ. The Eve of we'll celebrate a Vesperal Liturgy and prepare our holy water for the year. It is not uncommon for pious Orthodox Christians to take a large quantity home with them (I've seen yia-yias take home several large coolers with them. My mostly convert parish is a little more restrained- I probably take home the most out of anyone at my annual 1 gallon) and consume a small amount before or after their morning prayers as well a use it for emergency blessings or even drop a small amount in with their humidifiers. The following morning another Liturgy will be celebrated.

It is the custom for Orthodox parishes to then proceed (quite literally in a Procession if near enough) to the nearest large body of water- river, lake, ocean- and bless it as well, making all the water in the land holy water for a time. As the priest blesses the water he throws in a cross and the young men of the parish dive in after it (though with the "rivers" here in New Mexico, "dive" is sometimes decidedly in quotations- sometimes its more "saunter over, straddle the riverbed, and reach down"). Should the body of water be frozen over, because it is January freaking 6th!, a hole will be provided for cross and divers. Needless to say, our Slavic and Nordic brothers are hard-core.

The difference between Eastern and Western practice as regards the 6th is fairly easy to trace- before Nativity came to be celebrated as a separate feast on December 25th in the early 4th Century, it was celebrated on the 6th along with the Wise Men (Epiphany) and the Baptism (Theophany). When Christmas became it's own day, the East moved the Epiphany to the 25th along with it and kept the Theophany on January 6. The Western Church kept Epiphany in place and moved the Theophany a few days later.

And a quick Wikipedia check shows that the 1st used to be universally focused on the Circumcision- Higher Church Anglicans and Lutherans still celebrate it on this day. It did not become a Solemnity of Mary in the Roman Church until 1960. And some further searching shows that we both celebrated St Basil on the 1st in the past, but the Western Church changed the date to the date of his ordination as opposed to his passing in the 13th Century. The Roman Church later moved it to January 2 in 1969. The other Western liturgical churches have various days of celebration for St Basil.

Thank you for all of this. I had forgotten that that Jan 1 used to be the Circumcision. I knew that, at one time.

Epiphany is a special day of blessing water and salt in the West too, although few American parishes bother to remember this. We will.

Epiphany Water comes with a long ritual of blessing, including some powerful prayers of exorcism. Epiphany water is a powerful sacramental for those involved in actual spiritual warfare against actual demons. (I won't go anywhere near that. Praying on the sidewalks at an abortion clinic is bad enough.)

For our blessing of the water, we have invited a priest who is an active exorcist. It is going to be hardcore.

[coco]

... I had forgotten that that Jan 1 used to be the Circumcision...

Ron, a retired pastor, asked me at church if we were going to circumcise someone as part of the service.

[MrPiper]

This week teaching on Luke 19 and Zacchaeus. He was too short to see so he climbed a Sycamore tree.
This tree is actually not a Sycamore at all. It's a species of Fig that LOOKS like a sycamore. The tree has worthless wood so no one bothers it. It stands alone and lives 500 to 100 years! Worthless. The ONLY value it has is a unique picture. A unique wasp called the "sycamore wasp" found ONLY in this small part of the world will "visit" the tree and lay eggs in the seed pods that fall to the ground by the thousands, useless. But when the "visitor" comes, and lays eggs in the seed pods, they produce a fig that is edible.

The tree can ONLY bear fruit AFTER it has been visited. It can bear no fruit on its own.

Christ visited Zacchaeus, (and each of us) and when we receive Him, ONLY then can we bear fruit for the kingdom that is of everlasting consequence.

Christ said, "Without Me, you can do nothing." We stand worthless, useless, and most of all, helpless until we accept Christ as LORD and Savior and receive His gift of eternal life. Then we are changed. We are immediately and permanently, a new creation bearing fruit.

[Biff]

... I had forgotten that that Jan 1 used to be the Circumcision...

Ron, a retired pastor, asked me at church if we were going to circumcise someone as part of the service.

And you volunteered, right?

[coco]

... I had forgotten that that Jan 1 used to be the Circumcision...

Ron, a retired pastor, asked me at church if we were going to circumcise someone as part of the service.

And you volunteered, right?

Once is enough.

[Wosbald]

+JMJ+

Ron, a retired pastor, asked me at church if we were going to circumcise someone as part of the service.

And you volunteered, right?

Once is enough.

[coco]

Exodus 12:21-28, The Passover Lamb

[Del]

Most Christians of the Western Church are celebrating the Baptism of the Lord.