John Simmons

The Orthodox Church has always celebrated the beginning of the New Year on September 1, following the tradition of ancient Rome, and in accordance with the decree of Caesar Augustus in about 3 BC. This was the custom in Constantinople until its fall in 1453, and in Holy Russia until the reign of Peter the Great. September 1st is still festively celebrated as the New Year at the Patriarchate of Constantinople; among the Jews also, the New Year, although reckoned according to a moveable calendar, usually falls in September. The service of the Menaion for January 1 is for our Lord’s Circumcision and for the memorial of Saint Basil the Great, without any mention of its being the beginning of a new year. Now, some thoughts about the inner meaning of the Church New Year…

It can be jarring to move suddenly from the end, back to the beginning of something. It reminds me of a certain board game we used to have. I would always be way ahead on the game board, when suddenly, some kid, would draw a terrible card with which he could send ME (not him) tumbling all the way back to the beginning space. But this is what Orthodox believers do as we move from August 31st — the last day of the old year, to September 1st, the first day of the new year.

It is part of the goodness of God, that He, who has no beginning and no ending, the Eternal Trinity, should take such care to give us a year which begins and ends, and then begins all over again. In our human and finite state we need fresh starts, and this is one of them. From the peaks of Pascha, Ascension, Pentecost, and Transfiguration, we move back to beginnings, the Nativity of the Mother of God, and then in December of the Son of God Himself. We start this wonderful cycle all over again. But the Holy Spirit, as we trust Him, will renew this new year to us, and give us a whole new understanding of it.

“Behold I will do a new thing”, God says through the prophet Isaiah (43:19). The new wine will come to us in new wineskins (Matthew 9:17).

The God who has put eternity in our hearts, knows our human frailty. He knows that marriages need their anniversaries, and all of us, especially children, need their birthdays from year to year. We in the Orthodox Church also hold a special place for the anniversaries of those who have died in Christ. We recall every year the glorious deaths of the saints. But the whole of this is held in a solid framework – the Orthodox Calendar. Through the God inspired wisdom of our fathers and mothers, we have a beautifully constructed lectionary, which flows through the year, like the streams of an effortless river, blessing whatever they touch.

It is significant that the last great feast of the old year is that of the Dormition of Mary, the Mother of God. Her human passing was to heaven’s glory. And the first great feast of the new year is her Nativity. It is not that Mary is more important that Christ, around which most of the Calendar revolves. Mary is not God. She did not exist from eternity. But she is honored in this way because she is our supreme example. She lived a life of complete obedience to God.

Q. Why do some women cover their heads with a scarf in church while others do not?

A. This is an ancient practice that comes to us first from Judaism and then from the early Christian church. It pre-dates Islam by a couple thousand years at least! In fact, the holy apostle Paul makes a point to the believers in Corinth that this is one practice that should NOT be done away with. If we look at St. Paul’s First Epistle to the Corinthians, chapter eleven, we see his explanation – it has to do with glory. You see, in the church and especially in the worship of the church, we have many symbols. These symbols unite us to heavenly realities and mysteries. The veiling of women is a symbolic act, much like the vestments of bishops, or priests, or deacons. As these point to the nature of the spiritual world, the glory of God, the glory of angels, etc., the woman, by veiling her hair, puts on a vestment of sorts which also points to heavenly truths. And what are these? Firstly, as St. Paul says, that God created the world, then He created man (Adam) and from man he took his wife (Eve.) Even though she is taken from his side, woman is different from man. She is her own person. She was created to be his helper but not his slave. She is taken from his side to signify that it is at his side that she stands, as St. John Chrysostom points out. In the Jewish scheme of things, both men and women covered their heads to pray. In the Greco-Roman world (i.e. the pagan gentiles) neither men nor women covered their heads to pray. St. Paul seems to split the difference. Interestingly, he allows the women to retain the symbol of the covering of human glory in the presence of God, but not the men. And perhaps this was more important for the women, for by covering their heads with a sign of God’s glory (the veil) rather than human glory (the unveiled head, their hair) they also show that they undo the deception of Eve. Eve was tricked by her head; fooled by the serpent by suggestions. The Orthodox woman, because of Christ’s Cross, and following the example of the Most Holy Theotokos, shows in a symbol that she is not fooled by the arrogant suggestions of the evil one. In fact, the symbol of the veil reveals that she is fully illumined and reflects the glory of God. So as Moses, when he descended from the holy mountain was radiant with the glory of God and hence was compelled to veil himself in the presence of others (Exodus 34), so she is veiled as a sign of that same closeness to God.

Must, then, every woman cover her head in Church? This is the wrong way to ask the question. Everything that we do in the church we do in complete freedom. Even in St. Paul’s day there were those who did not understand. There were Jewish Christian men who grumbled and judged harshly those men who prayed without covering their heads. There were also Gentile Christian women who felt uncomfortable covering their heads. St. Paul answers both of these groups with these words: “If any one is disposed to be contentious, tell him that this is what we do as well as all of the other churches of God” (I Cor.11:16). Tradition does not force, it invites. But it always has a reason for what it does.

by Archpriest Steven Kostoff

August 1 – is the beginning of the relatively short Dormition Fast that culminates with the celebration of the Great Feast of the Dormition on August 15. Every fast presents us with a challenge and a choice. In this instance, I would say that our choice is between “convenience” and “commitment.” We can choose convenience because of the simple fact that to fast is decidedly in-convenient. It takes planning, vigilance, discipline, self denial, and an overall concerted effort. It is convenient to allow life to flow on at its usual (summer) rhythm, which includes searching for that comfort level of least resistance. To break our established patterns of living is always difficult, and it may be something we would only contemplate with reluctance. So, one choice is to do nothing different during this current Dormition Fast, or perhaps only something minimal, as a kind of token recognition of our life in the Church. I am not quite sure, however, what such a choice would yield in terms of further growth in our life “in Christ.” It may rather mean a missed opportunity.

Yet the choice remains to embrace the Dormition Fast, a choice that is decidedly “counter-cultural” and one that manifests a conscious commitment to an Orthodox Christian “way of life.” Such a commitment signifies that we are looking beyond what is convenient toward what is meaningful. It would be a choice in which we recognize our weaknesses, and our need precisely for the planning, vigilance, discipline, self-denial and over-all concerted effort that distinguishes the seeker of the “mind of Christ” which we have as a gift within the life of the Church. That is a difficult choice to make, and one that is perhaps particularly difficult within the life of a family with children who are often resistant to any changes. I still believe, though, that such a difficult choice has its “rewards” and that such a commitment will bear fruit in our families and in our parishes. (If embraced legalistically and judgmentally, however, we will lose our access to the potential fruitfulness of the Fast and only succeed in creating a miserable atmosphere in our homes). It is a choice that is determined to seize a good opportunity as at least a potential tool that leads to spiritual growth.

My observation is that we combine the “convenient” with our “commitment” within our contemporary social and cultural life to some degree. We often don’t allow the Church to “get in the way” of our plans and goals, and that may be hard to avoid in the circumstances and conditions of our present “way of life.” It is hard to prevail in the neverending “battle of the calendars.” The surrounding social and cultural milieu no longer supports our commitment to Christ and the Church. In fact, it is usually quite indifferent and it may even be hostile toward such a commitment. Though we may hesitate to admit it, we find it very challenging not to conform to the world around us. But it is never impossible to choose our commitment to our Orthodox Christian way of life over what is merely convenient – or simply desired. That may just be one of those “daily crosses” that the Lord spoke of – though it may be a stretch to call that a “cross.” This also entails choices, and we have to assess these choices with honesty as we look at all the factors that make up our lives. In short, it is very difficult – but profoundly rewarding – to practice our Orthodox Christian Faith today!

I remain confident, however, that the heart of a sincere Orthodox Christian desires to choose the hard path of commitment over the easy (and rather boring?) path of convenience. We now have the God-given opportunity to escape the summer doldrums that drain our spiritual energy. With prayer, almsgiving and fasting, we can renew our tired bodies and souls. We can lift up our “drooping hands” in an attitude of prayer and thanksgiving. The Dormition of the Theotokos has often been called “pascha in the summer.” It celebrates the victory of life over death—or of death as a translation into the Kingdom of Heaven. The Dormition Fast is our spiritually vigilant preparation leading up to that glorious celebration. “Behold, now is the acceptable time; behold now is the day of salvation!” (2 Corinthians 6:2).

(based on a homily by Fr Joseph Honeycutt)

At the conclusion of the Divine Liturgy on the Great Feast of the Transfiguration of our Lord on Mount Tabor, the bishop or priest blesses grapes and fruits.

Why?

Here follows some answers …

The blessing of grapes, as well as other fruits and vegetables on this day is a most beautiful and adequate sign of the final transfiguration of all things in Christ. It signifies the ultimate flowering and fruitfulness of all creation in the paradise of God’s unending Kingdom of Life where all will he transformed by the glory of the Lord.

This is an ancient Christian custom. The first week of August, on the sixth of August, the farmers used to gather the early fruits of their summer harvest (grapes, figs etc.) and to present them in the Church to be blessed and distributed for free to the congregation and to the poor. These fruits are called the “beginnings”.

In a text from the 7th century (“The Laws of the kingdom” by emperor Constantine “Porphyrogenitos”) this custom is described vividly: “The Emperor of Constantinople gathers the “beginnings” (“aparches”) in Chalcedon, where there are many vines, and then he waits for the Patriarch of Constantinople to come on the Holiday of Transfiguration, to bless the fruits and to personally hand out the grapes to the laymen”.

This custom is honored in many places in Greece where there are plantations with vines.

We must not forget that the Church was presented once as a “vine.” So, [the] Church blesses the first fruits of vine giving a “theological” meaning to the farmer’s work.

In footnote 2 for Canon III of the Canons of the Holy Apostles it says that, “during the festival of the Dormition…they used to offer bunches of grapes to the patriarch…at the end of the divine service. Today however [this is St Nikodemos Agiorite writing in the early 19th c] it is the prevailing custom in most regions for such grapes to be offered at the festival of the Transfiguration of the Saviour, and for them to be offered by the priest.”

A nun, Mother Evfrosinia adds …

However, as grapes do not ripen at the same time everywhere, the Church adapted this tradition in various ways. In some places in the Holy Land, for instance, grapes are blessed on the feast of the prophet Elijah. In Russia, where grapes were not always readily available, apples were more commonly blessed, and Transfiguration is known as “Yablochny Spas”, “the Apple Feast of the Saviour”. In northern Russia, where even apples weren’t ripe by August 6/19, it was traditional to bless peas. Nowadays, when you can buy any sort of fruit or vegetable year round, we’ve lost the sense of getting a blessing to partake of the first fruits. But we can still try to keep to the spirit of this tradition. In our monastery we bless all sorts of fruit on Transfiguration, but we abstain only from grapes, taking care not to eat grapes of the new harvest until the feast, in keeping with the ancient monastic practice.

In addition, the blessing of grapes, that is specifically mentioned liturgically, is an allusion to the Mystery of the Holy Eucharist, the New Wine that is Christ’s Blood that nourishes us spiritually. The liturgical prayers also refer to Christ Himself as the “Divine Cluster” attached to the Cross from which “Drips the Mystic Wine.”
Source

Some ancient Typicons prescribe the blessing of fruit of the vine (grapes), not on the feast of the Transfiguration, but on the feast of the Dormition. In the Greek Nicolo-Casulan Typicon of the twelfth-thirteenth century, we read: “Let it be known that, on the feast of the Dormition of the Most Holy Mother of God, the 15th of August, grapes are blessed and eaten in church after the Divine Liturgy according to an ancient tradition.” The Typicon of Sinai of the year 1214 contains the same prescription. Similarly, the Typicons of the Lavra of St. Athanasius on Athos prescribes the blessing of grapes on the 15th of August. We have the custom of blessing flowers on the feast of the Dormition.

The Fourth of July is always a time for celebration in our land. It is a chance for family and friends to gather together for barbeques, outdoor activities, and fireworks. On Independence Day, the cause of our celebration is freedom, freedom from a cruel, repressive government, and freedom from a tyrannical king. This freedom is not only about liberation “from,” but also liberation “to!” Freedom means the ability to chart our own course, to work for our own goals, and to reap the fruits of our own labors.
It is common practice in our churches to offer a Prayer Service, a Molieben of Thanksgiving on the “Glorious Fourth,” and here, in the Pacific Central Deanery, it has been our custom for nearly 100 years to make a pilgrimage to Fort Ross and offer the Divine Liturgy there at the chapel in thanksgiving to God for this wonderful country of ours. This year is no exception. Liturgy on the 4th of July will be at 10:30 am at the Fort!

While this important civil holiday may not be found on our ecclesiastical calendars, we can certainly derive some spiritual food from it, right along with our festive foods and ice-cold beverages! The Fourth of July can be an opportunity for us to recall that there is a spiritual struggle for independence that goes on in our lives, and in our hearts, every single day. The tyrannical king is the devil; his cruel government is this fallen world and death; the overwhelming tax burdens and the tax collectors are our sins along with the demons who wait in the aerial toll-houses to accuse us at our death. These are the same demons, who would love nothing more than to kick the Heavenly King out of our hearts, and replace Him with seven more, more ferocious than themselves (Matthew 12:45)!

Nothing is better, nothing is more natural to human beings than spiritual freedom. The Lord Jesus Christ said: “If the Son (of God) therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed” (John 8:36.) But in order to gain this freedom, this freedom which is only found in Christ, there needs to be a revolution, a revolution in us! Now the word “revolution” literally means to turn around. Isn’t that what repentance is? A turning around? A change of direction? A change of mind? Repentance is a spiritual struggle to turn, a spiritual revolutionary war against the tyranny of evil. Repentance is a noetic rebellion and an ascetic strategy of separation that employs spiritual armaments given to us by the grace of God. St Paul wrote to the Corinthians: “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: For the weapons of our warfare are not fleshly, but our weapons have Divine power to pull down strongholds; casting down vain imaginations, and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and brings into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:3-5.)

So, then, the Fourth of July can serve as a good reminder to us that we need to keep up the struggle and “Fight the good fight of faith” (1 Tim. 6:12.) It’s only when we let our guard down, relax our efforts and our resolve, that we find ourselves slipping back into the clutches of our Adversary, the King of wickedness, and falling into the tyranny of his cruel and oppressive government. “Stand fast therefore” (says St. Paul) “in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage” (Galatians 5:1.) Amen.