Dear friends,
In two weeks Orthodox Christians worldwide will begin the seven week long “Great Lent“, followed by a week-long “Passion Week” which will end with the greatest Orthodox feast of all: Holy Paskha (aka “Easter” in the West). This is by far the most important and intense part of the religious year for Orthodox Christians. The most visible manifestation of this period is the fact that Orthodox Christians restrict themselves to vegan foods and attend numerous, and often lengthy, religious services.
This blog is not primarily a religious blog, but I have decided that it might be useful if from time to time I posted something here which would give you a sense of ancient Christianity (as opposed to the pseudo-Christianity Ersatz we have to put up with nowadays, with “Easter bunnies”, “Santas” and all the rest of the commercial crap which passes for Christianity in our society).
Today I am sharing with you an interesting text. It is called a “synaxarion” and it is read during the “Matins” service. It constitutes a summary of the meaning of the event commemorated in any specific day. On the so-called “Sunday of Meatfare” the Church commemorates the parousia, the second coming of Christ. As part of this synaxarion, a condensed summary about the original teachings of the Fathers about the Antichrist is included.
You will rarely hear this synaxarion read in modernist parishes however. Not only do modernists not like to bother with synaxaria any more, but in this case it contains the unambiguous statement that the Antichrist will be a Jew, and it also indicates that he will “show especial love to the Hebrew race, restoring them to Jerusalem and rebuilding their temple” which, of course, is viewed by the doubleplusgoodthinking modernists as an “anti-Semitic” view which, therefore, ought to be shoved down the memory hole and forgotten. Yet another good reason for me to post this here :-)
I hope that you will find this interesting. I will, from time to time, post ancient Christian documents on the blog in a hope to provide at least some kind of insight into what Christianity used to be 2000 years ago and what it still remains nowadays in small communities scattered worldwide.
The Saker
——-
Sunday of Meatfare: On the same day, we commemorate the Second Coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and His impartial Judgment.
Verses:
When Thou, O Judge of all, shalt sit to judge the earth,
Mayest Thou judge me, too, worthy to hear Thee say, “Come hither.”
Synaxarion:
The most Divine Fathers placed this parable after the first two [those of the Publican and Pharisee and of the Prodigal Son], lest anyone, learning about God’s love for mankind in those parables, should live carelessly, saying: God loves mankind, and when I cease from sinning, I shall be ready to accomplish everything. They set this fearful day here, in order to instill fear, through death and the expectation of future torments, in those who are heedless, and to bring them back to virtue, not trusting in God’s loving-kindness alone, but taking into account that He is a just Judge, Who will render unto each man according to his deeds. Moreover, since the souls of those who have died stood in our midst yesterday, it was fitting that the Judge should come today. In a certain way, the present Feast is, as it were, the consummation of all the Feasts, just as it will be the final day for all of us. We should reflect that the Fathers will assign the beginning of the world and Adam’s fall from Paradise to the following Sunday, and that the present Feast is the end of all our lives and of this world. The Fathers assigned it to the Sunday of Meatfare, so as to curb greed and gluttony through the fear aroused by this Feast, and to summon us to show compassion to our neighbors. Furthermore, since, after reaping delight, we were exiled from Eden, and came under judgment and the curse, the present Feast is placed here, and also because, on the next Sunday, on which we commemorate the fall of Adam, we are going to be figuratively cast out of Eden, until Christ comes and brings us back to Paradise.
Christ’s coming is called the Second Coming, because whereas He first came to us in bodily form, quietly and without glory, He will now come from Heaven with wonders that transcend nature, with conspicuous radiance, and corporeally, so that He may be recognized by all as being He Who first came and delivered the human race, and Who is going to judge it, to see whether it has preserved what was given to it. When His Coming will take place, no one knows; for the Lord kept this hidden even from the Apostles. But until then, at any rate, He indicated that it will be preceded by certain signs, which some of the Saints explained in greater detail. It is said that the Second Coming will occur after seven millennia have passed. Before Christ comes, the Antichrist will come.
He will be born, as Saint Hippolytos of Rome says, from a harlot, who will appear to be a virgin, but will be of the Hebrew race, of the tribe of Dan, the son of Jacob; and he will supposedly live as Christ did, and will perform as many miracles as Christ, and will raise the dead. But all of these things—his birth, his flesh, and everything else—will be an illusion, as the Apostle says; and he will then be revealed as the son of perdition, with all power, with signs and deceitful wonders. However, as Saint John of Damascus says, the Devil himself will not be transformed into flesh, but a man who is the offspring of fornication will receive all the energy of Satan, and will suddenly rise up. He will appear good and gentle to all, and then there will be a mighty famine. He will supposedly satisfy the people, will study the Holy Scriptures, will practice fasting, and, compelled by men, will be proclaimed king; he will show especial love to the Hebrew race, restoring them to Jerusalem and rebuilding their temple. Before seven years have passed, as Daniel says, Enoch and Elias will come, preaching to the people that they should not accept him. He will arrest and torment them, and will then behead them. Those who choose to remain pious will flee far away into the mountains; when he finds them, through the agency of demons, he will make trial of them. Those seven years will be cut short for the sake of the elect, and there will be a mighty famine, and all the elements will be transformed, so that everyone will all but disappear.
The Last Judgment
After this, the Lord will suddenly come from Heaven like lightning, preceded by His precious Cross, and a river of boiling fire will go before Him, cleansing the entire earth of pollution. The Antichrist will immediately be seized, and he and his minions will be handed over to the eternal fire. As the Angels sound their trumpets, the entire human race will be gathered together from the ends of the earth, and from all the elements, in Jerusalem, because this is the center of the world, and there are set thrones for judgment, but with their souls and bodies all transformed into incorruption and having a single form, the elements themselves having been transformed into a superior state, and by a single word the Lord will separate the righteous from the sinners; those who have done good will depart, gaining eternal life, whereas the sinners will go to eternal punishment, and never will there be an end to their torments.
It should be known that Christ will not be looking at that time for fasting, bodily hardships, or miracles, good though these things are, but for things that are far superior, namely, almsgiving and compassion. To the righteous and the sinners He will speak of six virtues: “For I was an hungred, and ye gave Me food; I was thirsty, and ye gave Me drink; I was a stranger, and ye took Me in; naked, and ye clothed Me; I was sick, and ye visited Me; I was in prison, and ye came unto Me; for inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these My brethren, ye have done it unto Me.” Everyone can do these things according to his own ability. Then every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. The torments which the Holy Gospel recounts are these: “there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth, where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched; and cast him into the outer darkness.” Clearly accepting all these things, the Church of God believes that the abiding of the Saints with God and the perpetual effulgence of His light and their ascent to Him are the delight of Paradise and the Kingdom of Heaven, and that alienation from God and the consumption of souls by the awareness that, through carelessness and temporal pleasure, they have been deprived of Divine illumination are the torment, the darkness, and the like.
In Thine ineffable love for mankind, O Christ God, count us worthy to hear Thy desired voice, number us with those on Thy right hand, and have mercy on us. Amen
Well, thank you, for posting this kind of stuff, I will undoubtely read it as I find it very interesting
Only I would like to have the time to read all.
Thank you Scott for posting this,this is a great article,even more than that,is a piece of profound contemplation for all who trust in our Lord Jesus Christ the Savior.I am waiting for His coming since my childhood.My life was difficult and without the trust in Him I couldn’t get trough.Many thanks again.
PS.I also like the way you are naming The Evil !!!
Ja,of course,it’s you Saker,thank you,it looks like I’m getting old…
Thanks Saker, interesting how the last book of the bible tells of the demons inciting the worllds nations to gather to Har meggedo or Armageddon for the final battle (Rev 18 ), while I recently heard the Dassh believe much the same in that a few “true believers” will defeat the gathered nations at another location not far away. IMHO the western nations appear to exibit demonic attitudes, also sorry to be pedantic but the immortal worms are not gospel but refered to in the last ch of Isaiah. Love learning a little about the Eastern church though.
Thank you. Much to contemplate. Could you speak about the top image of two Christs?
not two Christ. One Christ and One Antichrist looking *almost* the same. This is a painting by the Russian artist Ilia Glazunov.
Cheers!
The blue-eyed version would be the good guy? (rhetorical question)
Fair enough, but isn’t a bit dodgy to portray a Middle Eastern Jesus as blue eyed? I understand the artist wanted to make the good Jesus beautiful, but giving him blue eyes always leaves a white supremacist sour after taste, you know? Also, the artist should know that the pentagram behind the antichrist should be upside down, because… it’s supposed to represent a deity often associated with the devil; baphomet, who has a goat-like appearance. Hence; the upside down pentagram is a simplification of his head, two horns at the top and the two goat ears on each side. It makes no sense to use an upright pentagram.
-TL2Q
The pentagram in the background is on an axle and the Anti-Christ will flip the horns up once the gullible and sinful are all in his thrall and have abandoned their own reason and responsibility, in thee aggregate. Before that day he wishes to deceive and not be too obvious what he is really up to. Does it make sense now?
I don’t have much to add to these discussions, fascinating though I find them. Suffice it to say that the Antichrist apes and mimics Christ somewhat, plays the eternal victim so as to deceive. Nobody nowadays would think that it is morally right to bomb poor people halfway around the globe, but call it humanitarian intervention or American leadership and people come on board. The whole Nato involvement in Yugoslavia, for example, was predicated on stopping alleged genocide. Susan Powers wrote her thesis on genocide. The passion in the gospels can be seen as a meditation on the very nature of politics. It is oversimplifying a bit, but one could say that Dostoevsky’s Myshkin (The Idiot) is a Christ-figure while Stavrogin (Demons) represents more of an Antichrist. The fact that in many ways Stavrogin is a more sympathetic figure gives one a lot to think about.
@ Anon:
“The pentagram in the background is on an axle and the Anti-Christ will flip the horns up once the gullible and sinful are all in his thrall and have abandoned [..]” + “Before that day he wishes to deceive and not be too obvious what he is really up to. Does it make sense now?”
Fancy! The pentagram is on an axle! /end sarc
No :/
a) I’ll venture that you don’t understand the meaning of symbolism in paintings – the one thing renaissance artists where big-on and one of the reasons why they’re so revered to this very day. You might not know it, but contemporary symbolism – inspired by renaissance artists – is commonly used on the film industry (Hence: this is a tribute we pay to the legacy they passed onto us) b) The upright pentagram symbolizes protection, but only in ‘Pagan’ rites, why would a Christian artist care about what an upright pentagram symbolizes for pagans/infidels/heretics in order for the antichrist to fool the masses and then flip it over? Nonsense!
The guy screwed-up! Plain and simple.
-TL2Q
In regards to symbolism, the west has its own canons or sets of meaning. In particular, neo-platonism which can be traced to a misunderstanding of late pagan thought in relation to Christianity, informs much of the Renaissance.
It does seem odd to portray the Christ with blue eyes, but if one follows rabbinic writing, the Davidic line was noted for its blue eyes. The icon writer is conforming to tradition.
Exactly, the antichrist, the guy on the right with pentagram and the letters 666 (you can see one of the sixes) represents the devil within each one of us, as we must fight his temptations at every step we take. Hence, his Christ look alike.
thank you saker, this is very moving, it is so enlightening, please keep up this practice…
Fine with me if you worship these stories, but please do not discriminate “unbelievers” like me.
I worship a nature and would not be any more happier.
And by the way I used to be catholic for ~20 yrs, now i am free.
Hello dear Saker,
I would be very happy if you could help me, I wanted to read an orthodox bible but 1. I dont know which I should buy and 2. I would need an english translation. Thank you and keep up the good work.
The Orthodox Study Bible!
http://www.christianbook.com/the-orthodox-study-bible-hardcover-edition/9780718003593/pd/003590
The kink goes to a bible published by a jew company Thomas Nelson, and is probably copyrighted by them also. Not saying not to buy it, but take what I said with a grain of salt.
Your right, its owned by News Corp and our “beloved” Rupert Murdoch is owning it…any answer from Saker?
I like this one. Recent, and very carefully done:
http://www.amazon.com/EOB-Orthodox-Testament-Patriarchal-extensive/dp/148191765X/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1457555891&sr=8-5&keywords=greek+orthodox+bible
Start with Philokalia. Before that,Bible was incomprehensible to me. After that layers begun to peel.
Dear Dragan, I have searched what Philokalia is and I have found that is a very huge work of 5 volumes, each volume with hundreds of writings, by various saints. It seems that one would need a lifetime to read it all, and you say that would be a first step to read the Orthodox bible….
Then it seems to me, for several quotes that I found and read, like a path to holiness, really elusive for most of all. So, do you think it is a useful read for anyone, even if not a monk or a priest? If so, which volume from the 5 you would recommend? Coincidentally, I found a Spanish translation of the 4th volume….
Perhaps are you a monk, Dragan ?, if you do not consider an indiscretion that I ask you this.
Elsi,
The Philokalia is not to be read like a novel, not as the “Bible” either outside the Church life. It is a collection of instructions of Great spiritual Fathers of the Church for ascetic work. In the Orthodox Church, the Scriptures are read in a liturgical context (over the whole liturgical year). Yes, one has to go to Church if he/she wants to understand the Scriptures. But today people think that they are free if they don’t.
But I am a Communist, a weird kind of spiritual one, but Communist after all, and while I have nothing against any religion, but on the contrary, and I am very inclined to read all the “books” available searching for knowledge and enlightment, I do not like going to Churches/Mosques unless when they are empty of people and at certain times of the day or through the seasons, when they have a special lighting because of the stained glass windows or the distribution of light there or there is someone inside singing or playing an organ beautifully…….
I am more willing to read this kind of books/readings on my own in the quiet of my house or some holiday retreat.
OK. The only thing is that you cannot understand much if you read from a position of deliberate antagonism to religious approach (which Communism is by definition).
Nevertheless, if you want to search the Philokalia it is better to start with St. Maximus the Confessor, who gives the best exposition of Christian doctrine.
My position, as I was telling you in my previous post, is not of antagonism to any religious approach, I have already told that I am a spiritual person, despite being a Communist.
So, as you can see, I respect all of you, and I am very pleased that you can practice your religions, only I wish you could accept me the same, as I am. So, I have no problem whatsoever with none of you from the different religions in this world, only I wonder whay you have with me.
Jesus has no problem accepting anybody to hear his sermons and even into his group of disciples, and, do you know what? I think that Jesus was also a Communist, for the things he said, which I know from my Catholic upbringing, and this is why he was died, since his words on liberating ownself from the tirany imposed by men on Earth were definitely too defiant to the Roman Empire.
About me not being able to understand much from the Philokalia, perhaps you are underestimating me, not to mention that I do not thnik I must believe any human interpretation of the scriptures, even when willing to hear what anybody could have to say about it, but it would be its personal interpretation amongst many others, as happen with Islam and all religions in the world.
This is not as to say that I would not like to discuss what I could read in the scriptures with others, but I prefer doing my own interpretation in the end. One of the things I find very dissapointing in any religion, is placing us, the usually so called in religions “sheeple”, as if we were minors or simply retarded.
Once said this, comrade WizOz, thanks a lot, I will follow your advice and will read St. Maximus the Confessor ( in fact I have read some the other day ):
https://orthodoxchurchquotes.files.wordpress.com/2013/07/st-maximos-the-confessor-2.jpg?w=150
“The person who loves God cannot help loving every man as himself, even though he is grieved by the passions of those who are not yet purified. But when they amend their lives, his delight is indescribable and knows no bounds.”
+ St. Maximos the Confessor, Four Hundred Texts on Love 1.13, The Philokalia: The Complete Text (Vol. 2)
P.S: Are you a monk, WizOz?
Have a great day!
@Jesus has no problem accepting anybody to hear his sermons and even into his group of disciples
Jesus had no problems accepting anybody to hear his sermons. The real problem is that He actually enjoined everybody to follow and apply (to practice, in other words) his commandments. Because, like it or not, He really commanded people to do things a certain way because ““All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” (Matthew 28,18)
“If ye love me, keep my commandments.
And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.
I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you. Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also. At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you. He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. Judas saith unto him, not Iscariot, Lord, how is it that thou wilt manifest thyself unto us, and not unto the world? Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father’s which sent me.
These things have I spoken unto you, being yet present with you. But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.” (John, 14, 15-26)
There is no much way for personal or willful interpretations, which is the Protestant attitude. See what St. Peter, who was given along with all the Apostles “the keys of interpretation”, said:
“So I will always remind you of these things, even though you know them and are firmly established in the truth you now have. I think it is right to refresh your memory as long as I live in the tent of this body, because I know that I will soon put it aside, as our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me. And I will make every effort to see that after my departure you will always be able to remember these things.
For we did not follow cleverly devised stories when we told you about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ in power, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. He received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with him on the sacred mountain.
We also have the prophetic message as something completely reliable, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation of things. For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” (2 Peter 1, 12-21).
Now I know that people take offence if they are treated as religious “minors”, but this is what they truly are until they finish learning (from professional teachers, that is). But even the Apostles knew that “the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, 4and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths.”
Jesus might have been a Communist, but certainly the Communists who killed hundreds of thousands of priests, monks and relentlessly persecuted Christians, burned churches and icons, fought tooth and nail to promote “scientific atheism”, were not “Christics”.
P.S. No, I not a monk. I just learned these things the proper way, listening to the “professionals” (monks among them) of Christian religion.
For me, it is how we are in the time of the second coming of Christ now, that matters, not only something of the church, and of the world’s great religions, but of the earth itself, and of humanity – each other, – of empathy, and responsibility for our planet. This is the cracks, the leaks in the damn, where truth and the light may be seen, and felt. Whenever we do some small deed for the earth and for each other, or great acts of courage, like Berta Cáceres the Honduran rights campaigner who lost her life three days ago, in the fight to protect the earth, then we are part of a second coming.
That’s how I see it, not distant or remote hope and glory, but common every day hope and glory, co-creators of hope and the future of the earth.
Yes, well said. There is much to be thought about in this interpretation, especially with connection to the reading which also comes with it from the first letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians, on the subject of what is lawful as far as the consumption of our daily bread. He also emphasizes what would be appropriate to do as affecting other persons around one, rather than what is ‘purifying’ on a personal level. And his message elsewhere is to fast not for public recognition but secretly, putting on a joyful demeanor in public – I love that one.
If you want proof that this is real:
http://www.USAdevils.com
Thank you for posting this interpretation of Meatfare Sunday, Saker. I will simply say that scriptural readings about the antichrist (or even an icon depicting him) were never part of my Orthodox heritage, and I am very glad of that.
I never have thought of the passage from Matthew that is given during the liturgical Sunday service as one being placed in the sequence of services for the quoted reason in the synaxion you present: “. . .They set this fearful day here, in order to instill fear . . .”; nor did it ever to me evoke the image or questions about the image of the antichrist.
Rather, the passage deals mainly with the problem of understanding Christ to be present in the very least of our brethren, as you say. There’s nothing in the reading about the antichrist. A sobering reading it is, to be sure, but the message, it seems to me, is a positive one, one which many nonbelievers agree with, especially today.
“Truly I say unto you, as you did it not to one of the least of these,(hungry, thirsty, a stranger, the naked, the sick, the imprisoned) you did it not unto me.”
Forgive me for saying this, but to me (I paint icons) to have such an icon as the above is not possible (Indeed,I am shocked by it), and to speculate as the Fathers appear to have done here is best left out of the canon of preparatory feasts, not because the clergy do not like to bother with it, but because it doesn’t fit here but in discussions outside of the liturgical meetingplace. The Fathers, bless them, were human and loved to speculate as we all do. So, it isn’t that some parishes don’t bother with the synaxion; it is that they are troubled by its preliminary message.
I will, however, say that the Sunday reading which provokes fear in me is that of the Publican and the Pharisee – for that, it seems to me, contains the most difficult charge of all: the one against selfsatisfaction or even thanksgiving to God for how well-off we feel ourselves to be in comparison to others. That’s a toughie!
I learned the same things in the Seven Days Advent church. This is a church that also considers itself kin to those of the early days in the 1st and 2nd century.
@This is a church that also considers itself kin to those of the early days in the 1st and 2nd century.
But sadly, it isn’t.
I do know that our creator, The real Deal, by now is up to his eye balls , of humans killing other humans just for the pleasure of it, but most important with those who call themselves God chosen people which gives them the right to decide who should live and who should die, The real deal is tired of that non sense, so is about time to set the record straight and show all those morons who’s in charge to of do some cleaning of he’s house.
Well said, sir; well said. I do not mean to suggest by my post that evil does not on occasion stalk the earth. We appear to be living in a time of it. I have always been struck by the music of the Russian Easter hymn so closely resembling the ‘dies irae’ theme. What that suggests to me is that the line of that hymn “…trampling down death by death…’ is being embodied in the music itself. The final line goes ‘. . .and upon those in the tomb bestowing life.’
Eschatologically speaking, for the Orthodox, and for many other Christians as well, that terrible darkness of ever recurring plague-like depravity that infects the human soul was and is overcome by the Resurrection of Christ, himself having on the cross asked forgiveness of those who were killing him, ‘for they know not what they do.’
Considering the befores and now afters of that critical moment, with western and eastern observations of Easter very far apart this year, my thanks to Saker for bringing us close to the Orthodox Lenten season here.
I also very much appreciated this posting.
As a child, I was unimpressed by talk of evil and mostly thought it was just a state of ignorance. Over the past few decades, life on this planet has changed to the point that I do no understand how anyone can think that way. Up is down, black is white, gross immorality is “just a little fun”, murder is everyday policy, etc. A rather stunning example showed up recently:
A couple of Chinese researchers (possibly students) published a detailed analysis on the function of the human hand (with implications for robotics, I believe). In the abstract, they made mention of “the Creator” regarding the perfection of the design. It is not clear whether the Creator reference was simply a translation glitch referring to “nature”, or whether they had religious inclinations.
Turns out it did not matter. A flood of complaints poured into the journal and the editors swiftly retracted the paper. In our times, a very deep, dark veil has been pulled over the eyes and hearts of people. Scientists, who are generally intelligent and educated, are no longer able to see past their own mental constructs. The most basic understanding of the scientific method reveals that one can neither prove nor disprove the existence of God using science. Of course, that did not stop great minds like Isaac Newton from spending the majority of his later years studying and writing about scripture. He was a deeply religious person.
Where we used to value clear vision and a purified mind, the default now is adherence to politically correct memes that have been foisted on society with remarkable cunning. Science has liberated humans, or so people think. In fact, it has disconnected individuals, families, societies, and the whole race from the only true moorings we have. It is a sad turning to watch, and although I never thought much about the antichrist, it is easy to see how people are being prepared for the ultimate deception.
I have two novels to recommend with respect to your post – well, three really if you include Dostoievski’s “The Devils” as a template. The other two are Bulgakov’s “The Master and Margarita” and for us westerners Cormac McCarthy’s “No Country for Old Men.” (The latter I almost gave up reading halfway through, am glad I took it up again.)
“Apocalypse” is ‘apo – calypso’. Calypso was a Greek island where Odysseus and his men were held captive by a beguiling sorceress. ‘apo’ is ‘from’. I take the word to mean the drawing back of the sea exposing and revealing the foreshore. This happens on a regular basis tidally, but also in extremis, during a tsunami. Another time it happens is during an iceage, when the planet’s moisture is captured in ice sheets on the land and the sea shrinks.
I’ve always thought that the Book of Revelation, the Apocalypse is visionary in the way that the Prophets of the Old Testament were visionary – in an out of time glimpsing of eternal matters that only can happen during timely terrible events. Saint John saw the early church being put to the fire by insane empiricists, a cataclysmic occurrence to him. So he wrote that, and sometime before or after (or before and after) he wrote his amazing gospel.
The gospel answers the apocalypse.
There is probably a typo. It is the island OF Calypso. Calypso was as a nymph in Greek mythology. Her island was called Ogygia, where she detained Odysseus for several years. She is generally said to be the daughter of Atlas the Titan, why she was called also Atlantis (Ατλαντίς), which means the daughter of Atlas.
BTW, it would be a further proof that the adventures of the Odyssey took place in the Atlantic (according to an extremely plausible theory that Troy was in England).
Apocalypse comes from Ancient Greek (ἀποκάλυψις apokálypsis, from ἀπό=from and καλύπτω=to cover, meaning “uncovering”) It literally means “a lifting of the veil” or “revelation”. In religious contexts it is usually a disclosure of something hidden,“a vision of heavenly secrets that can make sense of earthly realities”. There have been many Apocalypses in the religious literature. The one of St. John is one of them and the Church entertained many doubts about its authenticity.
Wiz, you are close, but I have a small correction.
αποκάλυψη is still used in Greek language and it means revelation as you said, and yes the core word is καλύπτω which means “I do cover as well as I am covering”.
Juliania, good try which I thank you for, as well as for bringing up my favored hero Odysseus.
There was much debate about the color of Jesus’ eyes, as well as about his physical appearance. The Orthodox icons, which originate in the Acheiropoietos (Αχειροποίητος, literally “not-made-by-hand”) icon, the Holy Mandylion, invariably depict Him with dark eyes. The oldest known icon of the traditional bearded Christ, from the catacomb of Comodilla (IVth Cent.) depicts him with dark eyes.
The origin of the “blue eyes” lay most likely with the famous Letter of Lentulus, the allegedly apocryphal epistle supposedly written by Publius Lentulus to the Roman Senate, giving a physical and personal description of Jesus.
(From Wiki) “The letter was first printed in the “Life of Christ” by Ludolph the Carthusian (Cologne, 1474), and in the “Introduction to the works of St. Anselm” (Nuremberg, 1491).But it is neither the work of St. Anselm nor of Ludolph. According to the manuscript of Jena, a certain Giacomo Colonna found the letter in 1421 in an ancient Roman document sent to Rome from Constantinople. It must be of Greek origin, and translated into Latin during the thirteenth or fourteenth century, though it received its present form at the hands of a humanist of the fifteenth or sixteenth century. Christopher Mylius, the 18th century librarian of Jena, stated the letter was written in golden letters on red paper and richly bound, and lost.
The 19th-century scholar Friedrich Münter believed he could trace the letter down to the time of Diocletian, but this is generally not accepted by present-day scholars.”
The letter says:
“Lentulus, to the Senate and the Roman People, greetings.
There has appeared in these times, and, indeed, is still living, a man of great power named Christ Jesus, who is said by the Gentiles to be the prophet of truth, but his disciples call him the Son of God.
He raises the dead and heals all diseases. He is a man of average size and pleasing appearance, having a countenance that commands respect, which those who behold may love or fear. He has hair the color of an unripe hazelnut, smooth almost to the ears, but below his ears curling and rather darker and more shining, hanging over his shoulders, and having a parting in the middle of his head according to the fashion of the Nazarenes. His brow is smooth and quite serene; his face is without wrinkle or blemish, and a slight ruddiness makes it handsome. No fault can be found with his nose and mouth; he has a full beard of the color of his hair, not long but divided in two at the chin. His facial expression is guileless and mature; his eyes are greyish and clear (oculis glaucis uariis et claris). In his rebukes he is terrible, but in his admonitions he is gentle and kind; he is cheerful, but always maintains his dignity. At times he has wept, but he has never laughed.
In stature he is tall and erect and his hands and arms are fine to behold. His speech is grave, reserved, and temperate, so that he is rightly called by the prophet, “Fairer than the sons of men.”
Glaucus/Glaukos, “greyish blue” or “bluish green” and “glimmering”.
Fine post, thank you! I will love it when you post about ancient Greek or Russian Othodoxy. Living in New Haven, Connecticut environs a long time, I was invited to go to a regular Sunday service in a several hundred year old Orthodox church. Tiny it took worshipers in teams so to speak.No pews, not one. Everyone stood. The effect of everyone standing was incredibly more powerful. Never forgotten.
I did Shahada in Cambridge, Connecticut weeks before 9/11 after months of Muslim instructions in the basement of the Cambridge Mosque. Living at the Young Women’s Christian Association residence (6 years in all) 9/11 was on the kitchen help’s dining room tv for weeks after 9/11. Never before for residents. I removed my head covering and long skirts and each meal time we met in, friends would debate, wonder, endlessly talk about it. A Greek Orthodox friend recommended I become Greek Orthodox member to hide the fact I was Muslim. I accepted, knowing even then 9/11 was federally allowed to happen. With a top secret FBI file on me the year my first son was born by J.E. Hoover I knew what would happen to me if I did not “hide” as these FBI criminals guys watch you sleeping of they can. I read the 147 laws Bush11 signed to replace the US Constitution.
My God mother was in Boston University becoming a formally educated choir leader. You cannot become Orthodox without a God-person inviting you.. Shahada was in 2001, Orthodoxy was in 2003 maybe. My living space in Amsterdam opened up in 2005.Arriving in Amsterdam in May? by December Homeland Security had closed down my Boston Bank account and the personal trust I set up to pay my rent and food..at that same Residence. I got my old job back too.
Best, Suzanne
later aligator