https://open.substack.com/pub/sabaisper/p/the-faithful-and-secularism-part

I need a tractor in a bad way 😌

Therefore to this day the children of Israel do not eat the muscle that shrank, which is on the hip socket, because He touched the socket of Jacob's hip in the muscle that shrank. - Genesis 32:32 Just as the truth is quite plain in this case, however, so with the good man a kind of apparition occurred that had the effect of convincing the good man of the degree of care he enjoyed from God and the fact that Jacob would be unvanquished by all those plotting against him. Then, in order that the vision he had would not be forgotten by anyone in the future, “his thigh made him limp. For this reason the sons of Israel do not eat the nerve that stiffened on the flat of his thigh, because he lay hold of the flat of Jacob’s thigh, and it stiffened.” You see, since the good man had completed his lifespan and was about to leave this life, and since the providence accorded him by God and the marvelous considerateness should be known to the whole human race, accordingly it says, “The sons of Israel do not eat the nerve that stiffened on the flat of his thigh.” Aware of their ingratitude and the way, they forgot God’s kindnesses; he therefore devised a constant reminder for them to have of the kindnesses done by him and arranged for these reminders to be preserved in their observances of this kind. You can find this throughout the whole of Scripture. In fact, this in particular is the explanation of the great number of observances. They represent God’s wish that future generations would unfailingly meditate on God’s kindnesses and, by consigning them to oblivion, not have recourse again to their own errors—a particular weakness of the Jewish people. I mean, those who give evidence of their typical ingratitude in the face of these very kindnesses would all the more readily, had this not happened, have banished from their mind all that had been done for them by God. ☦️ St John Chrysostom

Death to the World Angels of Light By Fr. Turbo Qualls “[…] A marvelous thing it is not; for Satan himself transformeth himself as an angel of light.” II Corinthians 11:14 In the Book of Galatians, St. Paul the Apostle wrote, “But even if we, or an angel out of heaven, should preach a gospel to you besides what Gospel we preached unto you, let such one be anathema.” To many modern folk (including many modern Christians), such fervor and unrelenting fidelity to the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ seems archaic and backwards; yet, this is the mind that the Fathers of the Church maintained and transmitted through out the ages, and indeed, it is this very mindset that informs sincere and discerning Orthodox Christians today. In the book of 2 Peter, the Apostle Peter comments on the scoffing that would transpire in the last days. He writes: “Knowing this first, that during the last days mockers shall come, walking according to their own desires, and saying ‘Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.’” These words are no different than the common banter tossed about and aimed towards the faithful in the workplace, as well as in the homes of unbelieving relatives and friends. Unfortunately this common spirit of mockery belies a deeper and more insidious problem: the loss of faith and doubt of the Gospel. This apostasy comes not from an ignorance of the Gospel, rather its source is rooted in the delusion and vainglory of modern man, a condition the Orthodox Church calls Prelest. In the Life and Works of Fr. Seraphim Rose, Hieromonk Damascene quotes Fr. Seraphim: “Never has there been such an age of false teachers as this pitiful twentieth century, so rich in material gadgets and so poor in mind and soul. Every conceivable opinion, even the most absurd, even those hitherto rejected by the universal consent of all civilized peoples-now has its platform and its own ‘teacher’. A few of these teachers come with demonstration or promise of ‘spiritual power; and false miracles, as do some occultists and ‘charismatics’; but most of the contemporary teachers offer no more than a weak concoction of undigested ideas which they received ‘out of the air,’ as it were, or from some modern self-appointed ‘wise man’ who knows more than all the ancients merely by living in our ‘enlightened’ modern times…..where is the truth to be found in all this, if indeed it is to be found at all in our most misguided times?” Fr. Seraphim was no stranger to this unfortunate reality of the modern age. Before becoming an Orthodox Christian, Eugene Rose was an adept student and critic of such gurus and philosophers such as Alan Watts, and Frederick Nietzsche. These men represented, both in their day and our current time, a new form of religious and spiritual thought; a thought, that sought to depersonalize and discredit any belief or idea of a God that was person. This of course was accomplished by simply denying the possibility of such a God. Yet within this atheistic frame work, we see the lifting up of a new god: mortal man. What was at one time, simple attempts to throw off the perceived oppressive yolk of Christianity, has in hindsight been revealed to be steps in a myriad of historical movements toward an abysmal and spiritually dark period of history; a period, where the darkness of men’s deeds find their validation in the Luciferic light of false doctrine and erroneous practice. Whether it is the conflating of physiological phenomena such as the “lightness” and relaxed state one can achieve through yoga with genuine spiritual experience, the ecstatic experiences of Pentecostalism, or the dismissal and marginalization of sound and proven patristic doctrine—all in favor of subjective and sensational feelings--, Fr. Seraphim understood that the doctrines of the gurus of the secular world were bound to assault and influence the true teachings of the Church. What is an interesting, and many times an overlooked aspect of Fr. Seraphim’s conversion to Orthodox Christianity, is that it truly was from an atheistic and social (1960’s San Francisco) context; a context, that left Fr. Seraphim with a sympathy, understanding, and profound insight into the actuality and nuances of the modern mind. In his personal journal as a young man, he wrote: “Atheism, true ‘existential’ atheism burning with hatred of a seemingly unjust or unmerciful God, is a spiritual state; it is a real attempt to grapple with the true God whose ways are so inexplicable even to the most believing of men, and it has more than once been known to end in a blinding vision of Him whom the real atheist truly seeks. It is Christ who works in these souls…Nietzsche, in calling himself Antichrist, proved thereby his intense hunger for Christ” The absence of Christ as He revealed Himself to His apostles and His church and the subsequent thirst that arises from this void, has given birth to movements and phenomena more cunning and deceptive than one could’ve thought possible. Yet, Fr. Seraphim saw these traps of dubious teaching and ‘experiences’ coming to fruition. Fr. Seraphim understood that Orthodoxy is not a set of dusty rules and rituals that are to serve a bloated and self serving enclave; rather, it is the full and complete revelation of Jesus Christ, as not only savior of mankind, but Truth incarnate as a person. This mystery humbled and set upon him the indelible mark of discipleship. This discipleship like that of the Apostle Paul, would be one of obedience and conformity to something so much more than an ideal; rather, it would be a relationship of love that would supersede any temporal experience. The blind and dead adherence to exclusively political and fleshly ideologies and systems of belief were the order of the day in the time of Christ and his Apostles. Accordingly, this is what St. Paul saw and rejected: obedience to an outward conformity and experience devoid of truth. This is also what Fr. Seraphim saw and rejected; furthermore, it is what he understood to be the root of the then (and some would say, the now fully realized) coming waves of deception via false miracles and experiences. Instead of the exclusively cultural and superficial adherence to Judaism of St. Paul’s time, it is the flash and novelty of Occultism and Pentecostalism, the vain and sensual experiences of Yoga or the shallow and superficial ‘after glows’ and worship concerts of today’s mega churches; even, the ‘hyper-correctness’ and Neo-Pharisaic practice of many Orthodox. In all cases, both then and now, spiritual blindness and refusal to worship in spirit and truth are at the center. Regardless of the time and specific scenario, the Light of Christ dispels all darkness and falsehood, then and now! If one was to enter into almost any Orthodox Church, or do a quick internet search for an Orthodox icon of Jesus Christ they would likely see the same thing: an Icon of Christ, holding an open bible or scroll with the words “I am the light of the world: he that follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.” It is ironic that two seemingly opposing forces would yield such similar results. Why is this? What is it, that elevates and reveals Christ as The Light of the world? The fact of the matter is found within the power of Christ’s dominion and exaltation within His church; furthermore, this fact is compounded by the universal acknowledgment of light being a symbol and actuality of all things good and healthy. Light dispels darkness. Light comforts and gives assurance. It is no mistake that Christ reveals that light itself is a revelation of Himself. One could even say that Christianity is indeed the religion of light. It is mentioned over 250 times in the bible; as mentioned earlier, Christ Himself reveals that He is the light of the world. Accordingly and by extension, Orthodoxy champions and exemplifies the moniker of the religion of light, as no other. This claim is made plain and given proof with only the slightest of topical searches and doctrinal examination about Orthodoxy and her spiritual life. Whether it is the full and rich elucidation of the scriptural account of the Transfiguration on mount Tabor, the phenomenon of the Uncreated Light that is experienced within Hesychasm and Hagiographical accounts, or the revelation of light within the Icon, light is clearly a hallmark of Orthodox spirituality. Interestingly enough, it is perhaps the firm and sober warning of false and deceptive light that reveals the true nature of Orthodox spirituality. Indubitably it is the teaching on spiritual delusion or Prelest, which distinguishes Orthodoxy from the rest of the spiritual and philosophical rabble that is so prevalent today. It reveals the timeless truth and message of Orthodoxy to a modern world drowning in assumptions and lies. Very few have expressed the truth of this context more accurately and unwaveringly to the modern and Western mind than blessed Fr. Seraphim Rose! Blessed Seraphim Rose, pray for us sinners and strugglers groping for the Truth of Christ in this dark world! ☦️

Its incredible 🫂

Yes

Based 🤝

All of creation rejoices in thee, O Full of Grace, the assembly of Angels and the race of men. O Sanctified Temple and Rational Paradise! O Glory of Virgins! From thee, God was incarnate and became a Child, our God before the ages. He made thy body into a throne, and thy womb He made more spacious than the heavens. All of creation rejoices in thee, O Full of Grace! Glory to thee!

This is a reason why the Orthodox venerate relics of the saints ☦️ "The holy apostle Paul worked many miracles, and it was not only his hands which were wonder-working, healing every infirmity by their touch alone; but even his handkerchiefs and aprons, which had absorbed the sweat of his body, partook of the same miraculous power: for, when they were placed upon the ailing, they immediately healed them and expelled unclean spirits from the people. Seeing this, several itinerant Jewish exorcists invoked the name of the Lord Jesus over those possessed by evil spirits, saying 'We adjure you by Jesus, Whom Paul preacheth!' But the evil spirit answered them, saying: 'Jesus I know, and Paul I know, but who are ye?' And the man afflicted by the unclean spirit cast himself upon them, and, gaining mastery over them, received such power over them that he beat them and wounded them, so that, naked, they were barely able to escape the hands of the possessed man. This became known to all the Jews and Greeks of Ephesus, and fear fell upon them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was glorified, and many came to believe on Him. And even many of those who were sorcerers, after accepting the holy Faith, cast off their books of spells into a fire; and when the price of them was computed, it was found to be about fifty thousand drachmas. Thus did the word of the Lord grow mightily and spread." — Excerpted from The Life and Sufferings of the Holy, Glorious, All-Praised and Pre-Eminent Apostle Paul

No doubt... The assault on the family has been ongoing since Cain and Abel. ☦️