How much does God know me?

Don’t let anyone tell you that they “know you well, they know your ways, and know how you think” – because simply, they know NOTHING about you. It’s just a threat they use to make themselves feel superior and more knowledgeable. Be comforted in knowing that only God knows you, cares for you and protects you. Also, we should not fear from knowing this, because of God’s immeasurable and great love for us, He protects us and is merciful to us when we sin against Him. He knows us well, He protects us, He plans our future and provides for us our needs and all things we desire; according to His will.

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1. God knows all of our moves, thoughts, habits and actions.

“O Lord, You have searched me and known me.
You know my sitting down and my rising up;
You understand my thought afar off.
You comprehend my path and my lying down,
And are acquainted with all my ways.” – Psalm 139:1-3

2. God knows our future – He knows us personally and plans for us. He provides the best for us, if we follow Him and know His will for us.

“‘For I know the thoughts that I think toward you,’ says the Lord, ‘thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.’” - Jeremiah 29:11

3. God knew us before we were created and before our existence!

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you;
Before you were born I sanctified you;” - Jeremiah 1:5

4. God knows all our features and characteristics, and as our Creator, He values us and cares for us greatly and more than we can imagine.

“But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.” – Luke 12:7

5. God understands us and is greater than our feelings and so He knows everything, even if we don’t tell Him.

 ^”For if our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and knows all things” – 1 John 3:20

6. God is watching us all the time and our every move. Without telling Him our troubles and our thoughts, He can see us and our actions.

“The eyes of the Lord are in every place,
Keeping watch on the evil and the good.” Proverbs 15:3

7. God is our Creator, He made us and knows every detail of our lives!

“See, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands;” Isaiah 49:16

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“God is the life of all free beings. He is the salvation of all, of believers or unbelievers, of the just or the unjust, of the pious or the impious, of those freed from passions or those caught up in them, of monks or those living in the world, of the educated and the illiterate, of the healthy and the sick, of the young or the old. He is like the outpouring of light, the glimpse of the sun, or the changes of the weather which are the same for everyone without exception.” – St. John Climacus (The Ladder of Divine Ascent)

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How to benefit from Pascha Week Coptic Hymns

What are Coptic Hymns? (In a nutshell) – Some characteristics:
- They are sung in mainly Coptic (thus most people may not understand)
- They have unique tunes, tones and pitch
- The tunes can be categorised into 6 categories (Joyful, Mournful, Annual, Palm Sunday, Lent, Kiahk/Advent) to match the fasts and feasts of the Church
- Some may take a long time to sing and have very minimal words e.g. A psalm of 6 or 7 words that can take up to 15-20 minutes to sing
- Some are praises to God, glorifications of Saints, Old Testament or New Testament readings, etc.

Pascha Week Hymns
Pascha Week is the most Holy Week in the Church calendar. It takes us through Christ’s journey of suffering and carrying our sins and leads us to finding joy in Eternal life with Him through His Resurrection. The rites of the Pascha week reflect this journey from the last Friday of Lent until Easter Sunday. The hymns of the Church become deep, complex and sometimes with a paradox. One who observes these hymns carefully – will benefit a great deal of Spirituality emerging from these hymns. The Church has chosen these hymns as they may reflect theological concepts, important spiritual aspects and should trigger our feelings throughout Christ’s journey to the Cross and beyond the Resurrection.

The most obvious tips I can give is to learn the hymns before and/or during Passion Week, to practice singing them, prepare at home before going to Church, etc… But this may not be practical for everyone. I therefore feel that it is VERY important for EVERYONE to benefit from the Pascha Week Hymns – it’s not just for the deacons (look at me, I’m a girl!) As well as this, I feel it would be a great loss to people who disregard the hymns of the Church… So, I will continue with some great, simple tips that absolutely everyone and anyone can follow!

1. Read the words of the hymns, carefully and with understanding!

This is the most important!  ”For God is the King of all the earth; Sing praises with understanding.” – Psalm 47:7

The absolute minimum requirement is to understand and know the words of the hymns being sung. Some things to look out for -

Is there any theology?  For example; in the hymn “Omonogenees” (O Only Begotten Son) sung on 6^th hour of Good Friday the Greek word “Atreptos” is repeated 3 times – it means “unchanged” – stressing that Jesus did NOT change – this is our Orthodox belief.
There are many more examples throughout many of the Pascha Hymns – Here’s a recommended reading from my friend Sam’s blog on the Paschal hymn “Pekethronos” and it’s theology >

http://gloryandrubbish.wordpress.com/2012/04/06/your-throne-o-god-the-theology-of-pek-ethronos-24/

Does it tell a story? For example; Judas’ hymn sung on Maundy Thursday with the rites twisted to become the opposite – the procession is around the wrong way, the deacons are walking backwards and the cymbals are used in the wrong way, etc. The words of the hymn reflects Judas’ great loss in denying Christ as well as highlighting other important events surrounding this. It mentions Barabbas the thief, Lazarus whom Jesus raised from the dead and also the prophecy of Jonah in the belly of the whale.

Does it mention any History? As evident in the final hymn of the Good Friday Service, in the 12th hour we sing the hymn “Golgotha” it includes theological concepts and also some history. It mentions that Joseph and Nicodemus were the first to say the trisagion - Ἅγιος ὁ Θεός, Ἅγιος ἰσχυρός, Ἅγιος ἀθάνατος, ἐλέησον ἡμᾶς” (Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us). Our Coptic Orthodox Church believes the origins of this ancient hymn originated from Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea who said it while taking the body of Christ off the Cross and as he saw Christ’s eyes open. It also stresses that Christ’s Divinity did not part from His humanity. This is very important – as they were astonished at how the God-man (Jesus) can die, we too should marvel at this great act of love; That Jesus died for us to live!

2. The significance of the long tunes

We can take note of the significance of the long tunes in hymns if we read the words carefully. If a hymn is very long in tune, but very short in words – how significant must it be!? For example; the hymn “Pekethronos” is the psalm sung in the 12th hour of Good Friday. As we don’t sing it in the tune of “Kai Epertou” (like all the other psalms) all the deacons stand and sing it together;

“Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; Alleluia.
A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom. Alleluia” – Psalm 45

There is a significant time spent on the words “forever and ever” and has a very repetitive tune which is supposed to make us feel like “forever and ever” indeed! We can thus contemplate on this while singing it. Because of it’s repetitive tune, it is also not hard to keep up with the deacons… I’m not saying it’s easy to learn, but it’s not too hard either – give it a go!

3. The tune, tone and pitch of the hymn

In Pascha week it becomes obvious that most/all of the hymns are in a mournful tune. For example, the annual hymns and readings such as the Pauline Epistle, Psalms, Gospels, the Trisagion hymn (“Agios Otheos“), the hymn of the censor (“Tai Shouri“), etc are chanted in the mournful tune during Pascha. The tunes of the hymns are important as they are help us express our feelings – therefore, we should pay attention! If we are not feeling a little mournful through being at Church and just reading the readings and trying to keep up with understanding them, through listening to the hymns we have the time to contemplate on Christ’s suffering and what it means for us.

So if we listen to the tune of “Pekethronos” for example, we can note that it came from the ancient Egyptian burial hymn that the Pharoahs would sing if someone who was considered Royalty died. The tune begins in the mournful tone and ends in a victorious, triumphal tone. The change in tone indicated the Pharoah’s sadness at the person’s death but happiness in knowing that they will have an afterlife with sun god Ra. The tune was later adapted and originated at the 1st Church in Jerusalem in the 1st Century at the time of St. James the Disciple. It thus mimics our feelings at the 12th hour of Good Friday – we are saddened by the suffering our Lord Jesus Christ went through but relieved at His triumph over evil, carrying our sins for us and thus granting us Eternal life with Him through His crucifixion!

Another notable unique tunes of Pascha Week include the reading of the Lamentations of Jeremiah which is a prophecy sung by the Priest on the 12th hour of Good Friday… It’s not entirely mournful but it reflects our feelings if you just listen to it carefully and contemplate on the words! (I’m finding it hard to describe this – but it’s VERY significant I had to mention it!)

There are many more examples where the tune, tone and pitch of Coptic hymns reflect and trigger our feelings, such as Bright Saturday – some of the hymns are half mournful and half annual/joyful!? Weird and awesome!

4. The Pascha Praise

To You is the power, the glory, the blessing, and honour, forever Amen. Emmanuel our God and our King.

To You is the power, the glory, the blessing, and honour, forever Amen. O my Lord Jesus Christ my good Saviour. The Lord is my strength, my praise, and has become my salvation.

To You is the power, the glory, the blessing, and honour, forever Amen.

This is the most important hymn in the Pascha Week. We should all know the words, the meaning of the them and spend time contemplating on it. I’ll outline a few tips on how we can benefit from this hymn known as the Pascha Praise.

Why do we repeat it A LOT?
- 12 times in each hour instead of 12 Psalms in each hour of the Agpia
- 5 times in the morning, 5 times at night – instead of the canonical hours of the Agpia
However, it doesn’t just replace Agpia prayers – it’s repetitive because the words are powerful and very important. This is highlighted in HH Pope Shenouda III’s book – “Contemplations on the Prayer of the Holy Week” which can be found here: http://tasbeha.org/content/hh_books/Thinpowr/index.html

Thine Is the POWER - “If the Cross had been a sign of weakness, it would have never been our boast and we should have never taken it as our symbol.”  - HH Pope Shenouda III

Thine is the GLORY - Pope Shenouda highlights Christ’s glory in Christ’s life – all the miracles He did, His baptism, transfiguration on the mount, His Birth, EVERYTHING!

Thine is the BLESSING - Once again Pope Shenouda in his book talks about the blessings Christ gave to us and the whole world, the unlimited blessings to all generations…

Thine is the HONOUR - A contemplation from Pope Shenouda’s book – “And though You (Christ) refused the worldly reign, You reign over the hearts and Your Kingdom is within us. Even those who did not give You their hearts feared you.”

Starting from the Eleventh hour on Tuesday, “my good Saviour” is added after the second paragraph of “Thok Te ti-gom.” This is a symbol of the Lord starting His passion, for on Wednesday, the Chief priests and the scribes discussed arresting and killing Jesus.
Furthermore, starting from the First hour of Good Friday Eve we add the words “the Lord is my strength, my praise, and has become my salvation.” commemorating the beginning of Christ’s journey to the Cross after His arrest and farewelling His disciples.

The way the Pascha Praise is sung in Church consists of two groups of deacons. They respond to each other and resemble the angels in Heaven that continually praise God with the same hymn. We don’t need to sing it 12 times at a time, we should sing it every second time (in accordance with 1 group of deacons) and in between we can pray the Lord’s prayer “Our Father” silently in our minds, slowly and with contemplation until it is time for us again to repeat the Pascha Praise.

Summary and tips:

1. Read the words carefully and with understanding
2. Long hymns are long for a reason – they may outline theological concepts and spiritual aspects of great importance
3. The tunes, tones and the pitch reflect and trigger our emotions and how we are supposed to feel
4. The Pascha Praise is repeated because it’s the most important!
5. Personalise Pascha Week – bring your own book, highlight or underline the important words and concepts, make indications about the tunes of the hymns
6. DO NOT disregard the hymns! DO NOT read a Spiritual book during the long hymns, you would rather re-read the readings that you did not understand or concentrate on the hymns (and you can read the Spiritual book at home)
7. Book recommendation “Christ in the Psalms” by Patrick H Reardon – You can read the one page spiritual contemplation on the psalm that is being sung, while it is being sung in Church

The Lord Christ left Jerusalem to Bethany, were we follow Him, saying,

“Thine is the Power, the Glory, the Blessing.” The Chief Priests were annoyed when the Lord cleared the Temple, and said “By what authority are you doing these things?” But we say, “Thine is the Power, the Glory, the Blessing, and the Majesty, Emmanuel our God and our King.” They planned to kill Him while we defend Him saying, “Thine is the Power, the Glory,the Blessing.” The Lord in humility, bent to wash the Disciples’ feet, and we praise Him saying, “Thine is the Power and the Glory, the Blessing and the Majesty.”

The Lord prayed at Gethsemane in such agony that Hissweat became as drops of blood and we proclaim, “Thine is the Power and the Glory, the Blessing and the  Majesty.”

We follow Him hour by hour; when arrested, put under trial in the presence of His enemies, crowned with thorns, flogged, falling under the Cross, nailed, till He commended His Spirit into the handsof the Father and when He took the robber on His right with Him into Paradise, and we continually chantunto Him the hymn, “Thine is the Power and the Glory, the Blessing and the Majesty, forever Amen ” – HH Pope Shenouda III

Please leave any comments or questions you may have and I will try and reply to the best of my ability.
I wish you a very blessed and holy Pascha week. May we all benefit from the amazing rites of our Coptic Orthodox Church through the readings, the psalms and the hymns which was inspired by the Holy Spirit.

Further reading recommendations:

http://www.copticheritage.org/rites – Scroll down to Pascha Week, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, etc…

http://tasbeha.org/hymn_library/cat/38 – Browse through the words of the hymns in English, Coptic and Arabic! (Some transliterations are included)

http://tasbeha.org/mp3/Hymns/Holy_Week.html – Listen to the Holy Week Hymns, this includes a great selection from different Churches

http://www.davidensemble.com/english/book/ChapterVI.pdf – Scroll and browse to the contemplations and explanations of Golgotha(2) and Agios (8)

Fasting makes you strong like Christ

This is my speech from a debate we had at Church titled “Fasting Food makes you strong” – I was on the Affirmative team and our team line was “Fasting food makes you strong like Christ”

Some parts of this have been omitted or edited to make it suitable for my blog
Also, it will be aired on CYC (www.cycnow.com)  - not sure when but I might add it to this blog when it’s posted on YouTube.

Fasting food makes you strong like Christ

Good morning Fathers (priests,) Adjudicator, Timekeeper, opposing team and fellow youth. I will be speaking about how God created us in His image and His likeness and how we accomplish this through fasting. And because of this, we are strong.

Fasting food makes you strong like Christ – if you acquire His image and likeness

In Genesis chapter 1 verse 26 we read; ‘Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness;’

HH Pope Shenouda reinstates this point by saying “God’s children should be strong because they were created in His image and likeness; and God is powerful. We say about Him; “Holy is the Lord God Almighty”; therefore, they should be strong like Him.”

Furthermore, the scholar Origen says “So that while the possibility of attaining perfection was given to him in the beginning through the honour of the “image,” he should in the end through the accomplishment of these works obtain for himself the perfect “likeness.””

This means, quite simply in St. Gregory of Nyssa’s words: “We possess the one by creation; we acquire the other by free will.” So His image is implanted in us, but we must struggle in our lives to become like Him. To be like Him, is to be strong.

In saying this, I would like to ask you all; how then do we acquire God’s likeness?

It is through fasting and prayer. Prayer is always implied whenever we talk about fasting in the Coptic Orthodox Church. In the gospels we see many times that fasting always associated with prayer. One of many examples include the verse in the book of Matthew chapter 17 verse 21 – “However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting” – as HH Pope Shenouda puts it – “such is the power of fasting, in terrorizing devils” – How can we say therefore that fasting and fasting food does NOT make you strong and powerful? How can we even think that true fasting does not give us divine strength to conquer demons?

Fasting food makes you strong like Christ if you struggle and have faith like the saints who became Christ-like

As mentioned in the 5^th Doxology for Lent we sing in our Church during vespers and matins, it is evident to see the saints’ struggles with fasting and prayer. For example, through fasting and prayer – the three saintly youths Sedrach, Meshach and Abednego were saved, Joseph was raised, ruled over Egypt and was saved from the adulteress… We sing also, that through fasting and prayer, God lifted His wrath from the people of Nineveh and forgave them their sins. It is inevitable to note here, that indeed – we have to struggle through fasting and prayer to see miracles happen in our lives. And when they happen in our lives we see the divine strength empowered in us from above. Also in the 5^th Doxology for Lent is mentions that “Fasting and prayer, are the weapons of victory, by which the Christians abide, through this life” – The words used “`n;w`ou pe `phoplon `mpi[ro” in Coptic; “weapons of victory” are very deep words which imply a strong and powerful nature acquired through prayer and fasting.

Fasting food makes you strong like Christ and does not make you weak

HH Pope Shenouda in his book “The Spirituality of Fasting” raises the question – Can a person fast but at the same time not consencrate his fast to God? He answered in a very humble way saying “Yes, many people fast, but God has no share in their fasting. For instance, someone may fast while they are far from God. He fasts, yet he does not change, and remains in his weakness.” I would like to highlight that HH mentioned that one who does not fast properly and does not change, stays in their weakness. This brings me back to my initial point – that fasting makes you strong LIKE Christ and to become LIKE Christ, we must have a spiritual life. As we have His image, we must work for His likeness.

Fasting food makes us strong like Christ through self control.

Food Is just a small portion of fasting, we are taught in the Coptic Orthodox Church that fasting should acquire all our senses for example our eyes – that we do not watch bad movies, or our ears – that we do not listen to bad music. Because, a person may abstain from food for a while and at the same time indulging in worldly desires which he cannot abstain from, does not mean his fast is acceptable to God. While we fast, yes, with fasting food, we must also fast with our other senses. We must restore the image of God within us.

(HH Pope Shenouda’s Sermon- ‘Spirituality of fasting’) “Fasting is not a mere bodily deed. Rather it is a communion with God. A fast that does not have God in it is not a fast at all. We eat and we fast for God.” HH mentions that; “we eat for God so that our body may gain strength to serve God and perform our duties and responsibilities towards others. It is also for God that we hunger, to subdue the body lest it sin against God, to control and not be controlled bodily desires and lusts so that they may not control our actions. We behave in accordance with the spirit, not the body, for the sake of our love of God and the fellowship with His Divine Spirit. God rejects fasting for any other reason.”

Conclusion:

If fasting made us weak, do you think our Church would promote it and encourage this practice?

Contemplation from Pope Shenouda’s book “Return to God:”

One ought to pray “I lost my strength when I went far away from You. Give me some of Your strength. Please give me the divine assistance to help me to return to You.”

Jonah the Prophet

Jonah the Prophet

The Scribes and Pharisees Ask for a Sign
^‘Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.” ³⁹ But He answered and said to them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. ⁴⁰ For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. ⁴¹ The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here. ⁴² The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here.’
- Matthew 12:38-42 (The Holy Bible NKJV)

Jesus Christ in contrast with Jonah the Prophet
“For Jonah was a servant, but I am the Master; and he came forth from the great fish, but I rose from death. He proclaimed destruction, but I am come preaching the good tidings of the kingdom. The Ninevites indeed believed without a sign, but I have exhibited many signs. They heard nothing more than those words, but I have made it impossible to deny the truth. The Ninevites came to be ministered to, but I, the very Master and Lord of all, have come not threatening, not demanding an account, but bringing pardon. They were barbarians, but these – the faithful – have conversed with unnumbered prophets. And of Jonah nothing had been prophesied in advance, but of me everything was foretold, and all the facts have agreed with their words. And Jonah indeed, when he was to go forth, instead ran away that he might not be ridiculed. But I, knowing that I am both to be crucified and mocked, have come nonetheless. While Jonah did not endure so much as to be reproached for those who were saved, I underwent even death, and that the most shameful death, and after this I sent others again. And Jonah was a strange sort of person and an alien to the Ninevites, and unknown; but I a kinsman after the flesh and of the same forefathers.“
- St. John Chrysostom (Homilies on the Gospel of St. Matthew 43:2)

Resemblance between Christ and Jonah
‘And when we examine the story of Jonah, great is the force of the resemblance. Jesus was sent to ‎preach repentance; Jonah also was sent: but whereas the one fled, not knowing what should come to pass; ‎the other came willingly, to give repentance unto salvation. Jonah was asleep in the ship, and snoring ‎amidst the stormy sea; while Jesus also slept, the sea, according to God’s providence, began to rise, to show ‎in the sequel the might of Him who slept. To the one they said, “Why are you sleeping? Arise, call ‎your God, that God may save us;” but in the other case they say unto the Master, “Lord, save us.” Then ‎they said, “Call upon thy God”; here they say, “save Thou”. But the one says, “Take me, and cast me into the ‎sea; so shall the sea be calm unto you”; the other, Himself rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a ‎great calm. The one was cast into a whale’s belly: but the other of His own accord went down, where the ‎invisible whale of death is. And He went down of His own accord, that death might cast up those whom he ‎had devoured, according to that which is written, “I will ransom them from the power of the grave; and from ‎the hand of death I will redeem them”.’
- St. Cyril of Jerusalem

Contemplation by HH Pope Shenouda
‘It was as though the Lord said to Jonah: ”Do you think, Jonah, that you have fled from Me? No, you have not. I will send you to the mariners, not as a prophet, nor as a preacher, nor as a voice crying out calling people to repentance, but as a guilty person and a sinner, and a cause of a dilemma and trouble for others. Thus I will save them through you. In this way you will be a blessing when I send you and a blessing when you flee. You will be a blessing to the people of Nineveh when they dread you as a prophet, and a blessing to the mariners when you are cast out into the sea as a guilty person. I will carry out My purpose through you in whatever state. Even when you are in the belly of’ the whale, not among the Ninevites nor the mariners, but when you are on your own in the belly of the whale, I will make you a prototype of My death and resurrection so that in mentioning your story people will learn.‘
- HH Pope Shenouda III (Contemplations on the book of Jonah the Prophet)

New Years Resolutions by the Desert Fathers!

1. Never stop starting over: “Abba Poeman said regarding Abba Prin that every day he made a new beginning.” “My God, do not abandon me. I have done nothing good before Thee, but grant me, in Thy compassion, the power to make a start” (Arsenios, 5th century).

2. Live intentionally, not aimlessly: “Think nothing and do nothing without a purpose directed to God. For to journey without direction is wasted effort” (St. Mark the Ascetic, 5th century). “Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” (1 Corinthians 10:31)

3. Never, ever despair, no matter what: “Let us eagerly draw near to Christ, and let us not despair of our salvation. For it is a trick of the devil to lead us to despair by reminding us of our past sins” (St. Makarios of Egypt, 5th century). “When someone is defeated after offering stiff resistance, he should not give up in despair. Let him take heart, encouraged by the words. . . . God raises up all who are bowed down (Psalm 145:14). Do all in your power not to fall, for the strong athlete should not fall. But if you do fall, get up again at once and continue the contest. Even if you fall a thousand times. . . . rise up again each time” (St. John of Karpathos, date unknown).

4. Pray simply, not stupidly: “Often when I have prayed I have asked for what I thought was good, and persisted in my petition, stupidly importuning the will of God, and not leaving it to Him to arrange things as He knows is best for me. But when I have obtained what I asked for, I have been very sorry that I did not ask for the will of God to be done; because the thing turned out not to be as I had thought” (Evagrios the Solitary, 4th century). Abba Macarius said, “It is enough to say, ‘Lord, as you will, and as you know, have mercy.’ And if the conflict grows fiercer, say: ‘Lord, help!’”

5. Renounce all self-justification: According to John the Dwarf, “We have put aside the easy burden, which is self-accusation, and weighed ourselves down with the heavy one, self-justification.”

6. Stop judging others: “The monk, says Moses, must never judge his neighbor at all in any way whatever.” “They said of Abba Macarius that just as God protects the world, so Abba Macarius would cover the faults he saw, as though he did not see them, and those he heard, as though he did not hear them.”

7. Stay put: Mother Syncletica (4th century), “If you find yourself in a monastery do not go to another place, for that will harm you a great deal. Just as the bird who abandons the eggs she was sitting on prevents them from hatching, so the monk or the nun grows cold and their faith dies when they go from one place to another.” “In Scetis a brother went to Moses to ask for advice. He said to him, ‘Go and sit in your cell, and your cell will teach you everything.’”

8. Celebrate theological modesty: “St. John Chrysostom says that we do not know wholly even what is given in part, but know only a part of a part” (St. Peter of Damaskos, 12th century).

9. Acknowledge my brokenness: “The person who has come to know the weakness of human nature has gained experience of divine power. Such a person never belittles anyone. . . . He knows that God is like a good and loving physician who heals with individual treatment each of those who are trying to make progress” (St. Maximos the Confessor, 7th century). “A brother said to Abba Theodore, ‘Speak a word to me for I am perishing.’ Sorrowfully, the old man said: ‘I myself am in danger. So what can I say to you?’”

10. Be ruthlessly realistic: “Saint Anthony said to Poemen, ‘expect trials and temptations until your last breath.’” “I am convinced that not even the apostles, although filled with the Holy Spirit, were therefore completely free from anxiety. . . . Contrary to the stupid view expressed by some, the advent of grace does not mean the immediate deliverance from anxiety” (St. Makarios of Egypt, 5th century).

11. Always think good of everyone: “Show the greatest gentleness toward all people” (Evagrios the Solitary, 4th century).

12. Read the obituaries: “When the death of Arsenius drew near, the brothers saw him weeping and asked, ‘Truly, Father, are you afraid?’ ‘Indeed,’ he answered them, ‘the fear which is mine this hour has been with me ever since I became a monk.’” “At the moment of our death we will all know for certain what is the outcome of our life” (St. Gregory of Sinai, 13th century).

HAPPY NEW YEAR!
May 2012 be full of blessings and great joy for all of us! +

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Poll: Language of the Liturgy – YOUR personal preference

time is of the essence

1. There is a time for everything

“1 To everything there is a season,
A time for every purpose under heaven:
2 A time to be born,
And a time to die;
A time to plant,
And a time to pluck what is planted;
3 A time to kill,
And a time to heal;
A time to break down,
And a time to build up;
4 A time to weep,
And a time to laugh;
A time to mourn,
And a time to dance;
A time to cast away stones,
And a time to gather stones;
A time to embrace,
And a time to refrain from embracing;
6 A time to gain,
And a time to lose;
A time to keep,
And a time to throw away;
7 A time to tear,
And a time to sew;
A time to keep silence,
And a time to speak;
8 A time to love,
And a time to hate;
A time of war,
And a time of peace.”
- Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 (NKJV)

There is a time for everything and everything happens for a reason…

2. “Wait on the Lord” and be PATIENT!

“Wait on the LORD;
Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart;
Wait, I say, on the LORD!” – Psalm 27:14

“But those who wait on the LORD
Shall renew their strength;
They shall mount up with wings like eagles,
They shall run and not be weary,
They shall walk and not faint.” – Isaiah 40:31

‎”We must happily ‘wait on the Lord’ for His time is always perfect, remembering the words of St. Augistine ‘Patience is the companion of wisdom.’”
 – HG Bishop Angaelos

“A Patient man will endure until the right moment, and then joy will burst for him.” – Sirach 1:23

3. “What a waste of time…”

“Whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away.” – James 4:14 (NKJV)

You have NO time to WASTE… Use your time wisely and use your time to always serve and praise the Lord. When you are on your way to school/work/Uni daily, you should invest your time in praying and thinking of God and ways to serve Him and glorify Him.

Tamav Irene sometimes used to sleep for 4 hours and pray that God will make her feel like it was 8 hours. Why? Because our time on earth is precious and is not enough – we should use all our time preparing for eternity. How? By glorifying God in all that we do.

“Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” 1 Corinthians 10:31

Not only by replacing listening to the radio with Tasbeha or Sermons, but helping someone in need when you are on your way somewhere. This could be helping a blind man cross the road, having a talk to an old lonely person on the train, etc…

“Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin.” James 4:17

So; if you are not always thinking about God and glorifying Him, you are wasting your time. If you are not doing anything good whenever you can, you are sinning.

“See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.” – Ephesians 5:15-16

In other words – We should live by being cautious, exhibiting common sense, fulfilling our time and purpose with all good things..

3. Time for God

“But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.” – 2 Peter 3:8

Do not worry about how much time you spend praying daily with your Agpia or reading the Bible – Just make sure its at an appropriate time when you are not tired or rushing. Think of quality over quantity! Don’t time your prayers, but rather pray without limitations, as much as you can, whenever you can.

If you spend time / “one day” with the Lord it doesn’t mean praying, reading the Bible and going to Church… It includes many things like visiting the sick, elderly, imprisoned; helping out with Church functions, events or even helping a child learn to read, etc…

4. Some notes from HH Pope Shenouda III:

 [ 5 ] The Appropriate Time

If you want your words to have their full effect, choose the appropriate time to say them. Put before you the words of the wise man who said: “A word fitly spoken [is] [like] apples of gold In settings of silver.”(Prov 25:11)

If there is a matter which you are concerned about, do not speak about it to anyone who is busy or tired, or who needs a rest or is not in the mood to talk. Do not speak to anyone about it either if he is annoyed or sad about something.

Speak when the ear is ready to listen to your words, and more preferable when it is eager to listen to you. An exception to this is a word of reprimand, like that spoken by John the Baptist to Herod. The important thing to keep before you is that you say your word when it finds an ear ready to listen.

[ 35 ] When? And When

The wise person knows how to behave and knows when to take a particular decision.

When is kindness the right thing and when is firmness? When is it right to take one’s time and when must one be quick? When is it right to keep silent and when is it right to speak?

It is wisdom which activates the appropriate behaviour at the appropriate time, and that is because in most cases it is the particular occasion which determines the suitability of the behaviour.

[163] Give Time a Chance

Patience solves many problems, problems which thinking might be incapable of solving, yet with time they can be solved and by patiently giving God an opportunity to intervene to solve them.

You might speak with someone on a particular subject and he does not agree. Do not be too persistent, though, because pressing him will probably annoy him. But leave him a little while and he may think again on the subject and be convinced, or certain events might happen which make him favour your view. He might also ask the advice of others whom he trusts and they might be of the same opinion as you…

Many matters require a period of time or a period of incubation inside the mind so that they grow and mature.

Those who love speed, however, may lose many situations because of their hasty manner.

Even matters which only need their agreement, also require a period of time in which they can be studied, considered, examined and advice can be sought.

Time is also needed to put these matters before God in prayer, so that His will in them can be revealed…

One more quote I read somewhere:

“The more I committed myself to knowing You by reading Your word and talking to You daily. The more I realized how much time I had wasted. The more I wandered If the end was today, it would be too early for my life to end and too late for where I needed to be in my spiritual life. Commit today. And don’t waste time.”

Can't go back in time!

The Desert Fathers on “Silence”

“Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
         Be acceptable in Your sight, 
         O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer.” (Psalm 19:14)

+ “Silence is the loudest cry” HH Pope Shenouda III

+ “Sometimes silence is not indicative of a lack of things to say, but a wise withdrawal until God provides the right opportunity for response.” HG Bishop Angaelos 

+ “…silence is the fastest path to virtue” Nikitas Stithatos (The Philokalia Vol. 4 pg. 84)

+ A brother in scetis went to ask for a word from abba Moses and the old man said to him, “Go and sit in your cell and your cell will teach you everything.”

+ Abba Nilus said, “The arrows of the enemy cannot touch one who loves quietness; but he who moves about in a crowd will often be wounded.”

+ “A man may seem to be silent, but if his heart is condemning others, he is babbling ceaselessly. But there may be another who talks from morning till night and yet he is truly silent, that is, he says nothing that is not profitable.” Abba Pimen

+ “Let us love silence till the world is made to die in our hearts. Let us always remember death, and in this thought draw near to God in our heart — and the pleasures of this world will have our scorn.” St. Isaac of Syria

+ Abba Poemen said: If we remembered that it is written, “By your words you will be justified and by your words you will be condemned,” we would choose to remain silent.

+ “Even if thy soul should suffer somewhat from an offense, keep the sorrow within thyself. For it is said: “Within me my heart is troubled” (Psalm 142:4), that is, the passion has not come out, but has been humbled like a wave that has broken up on the shore. Calm thy raging heart. Let thy passions be ashamed at the presence of reason in thee, as playful children are ashamed before a man commanding respect.” St. Basil the Great

+ A brother who shared a lodging with other brothers asked Abba Bessarion, “What should I do?” The old man replied, “Keep silence and do not compare yourself with others.” Venerable Bessarion the Egyptian

+ “If you are silent, you will have peace wherever you live.” Abba Poemen

+ “There are many who live in the mountains and behave as if they were in town, and they are wasting their time. It is possible to be a solitary in one’s mind while living in a crowd, and it is possible for one who is a solitary to live in the crowd of his own thoughts” Amma Syncletica

+ “By remembering one’s falls and mistakes, waiting for an impending death, putting on a beggarly garment, retiring to a quiet spot and acquiring permanent silence. One should avoid crowds, striving to be unknown and unaccounted for. Abiding by himself, hating intimacy and meeting and mixing with people, loathing profits, and barring his mind from blaming or bringing down anyone. He should not have any interaction with anyone, but should be solitary. for all these bring forth humility.” Saint Isaac

Coptic Hymn for St. Mary – Atai Parthenos / “Today, this virgin…”

CHORUS: Today, this virgin received honor. Today, this virgin received glory. Her clothing is woven with gold and adorned with many colors.

David moved the 1st string of his harp crying out and saying: At your right hand stands the queen O king (Ps. 45:9).

And he moved the second string from his harp crying out and saying: Listen, O daughter, consider and incline your ear; forget your own people also, and your father’s house (Ps. 45:10).

And he moved the third string from his harp crying out and saying: The royal daughter is all glorious within; her clothing is woven with gold (Ps. 45:13).

And he moved the forth string from his harp crying out and saying: Virgins shall enter to the king after her (Ps. 45:14).

And he moved the fifth string from his harp crying out and saying: Great is our Lord, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in His holy mountain (Ps. 48:1).

And he moved the sixth string from his harp crying out and saying: The wings of a dove covered with silver, and her feathers with yellow gold (Ps. 68:13).

And he moved the seventh string from his harp crying out and saying: The mountain of God is the mountain of Bashan; A mountain of many peaks is the mountain of Bashan (Ps. 68:15)

And he moved the eighth string from his harp crying out and saying: His foundation is in the holy mountains. The Lord loves the gates of Zion (Ps. 87:1, 2)

And he moved the ninth string from his harp crying out and saying: Glorious things are spoken of you O city of God (Ps. 87:3).

And he moved the tenth string from his harp crying out and saying: For the Lord has chosen Zion; He has desired it for His habitation (Ps. 122:13)

- Rare Coptic hymn and not very well known

- The verses are made of prophecies by King David in the Psalms about the Virgin St. Mary the Theotokos

- It can be sung during St. Mary’s fast and feast days, and even during Kiahk (Nativity fast)

- Listen to it in Coptic by Cantor Ibrahim Ayad: http://tasbeha.org/media/index.php?st=Hymns/Other_Occasions/Glorification_for_Saint_Mary/Higher_Institute_of_Studies/Part2/16.Atai_Parthenos.1370.mp3

- Listen to it in Arabic and Coptic by HICS (Higher Institute of Coptic Studies) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dd_JawWwrCc&feature=related

Have a blessed fast of the Virgin Mary the Theotokos! +

“Prayer before an Exam” – By HH Pope Cyril VI

My Lord Jesus Christ, I thank You for You have taught me to seek refuge in You, in times of need, when You said “Call upon Me in the day of your trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify Me.”

Now, Oh Lord, I appeal to You to give me wisdom and understanding at this time of exams.

Give me grace to pass this test in peace. Grant me Your profound peace and blessings in the time that I am writing my test.

Lord Jesus, I ask of You to find favor in my teachers’ eyes for You soften their hearts towards me as they mark my papers. Dear Lord, I am a sinner, and I have not pleased You or myself all year, but I ask You not to treat me according to my sins or hardness of heart, but according to Your mercy and sympathy.

Lord, You said, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” So, here I am, asking, and on the gate of Your mercy I am knocking. So, do not refuse my prayer, for you have said: “whoever comes to Me I will never drive away.” Answer me, through the intercessions of the Holy Virgin and all Your angels.

Amen.