Orthodox Apologetics

We must believe in free will — we have no choice.

John 3:14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the serpentine "S" be lifted up on an upright "I"-shaped pole: 15 That whosoever believeth in "$" should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Those of you who've been there, know what I'm talking about;
those who don't, pray that you never will.

The one in the middle is the Father of the Universe, who in the Sacred Scriptures is called by his proper name, I am that I am ; and the Beings on each side are those most ancient Powers which are always close to the living God, one of which is called his Creative Power, and the other his Royal Power. And the Creative Power is God, for it is by this that he made and arranged the Universe; and the Royal Power is the Lord, for it is fitting that the Creator should lord it over and govern the creature.

...began in Communist prisons.

After serving at the Temple in Jerusalem for the Day of Atonement, offering up incense and prayers for the people of Israel, the righteous Zechariah remained there for the Feast of Booths or Tabernacles as well, continuing to execute the function of his priestly office before God on behalf of the people, and then, seven days later, on the twenty-second day of the seventh month, when the Feast was over, returned home to his wife, Elizabeth, and -by their bodily union- conceived Saint John the Baptist, the Holy Prophet and Forerunner of our Lord, God, and Savior Jesus Christ.

We interrupt this blog to bring you this important news-bulletin:

Because there is a law such as gravity, the Christ-Child can and will create itself from nothing. Spontaneous creation is the reason there was something rather than nothing in Mary's womb, why Jesus exists, why we Christians exist.

It is not necessary to invoke God to light the blue touch paper and set the conception of Christ Jesus going.

The question is: is the way the Messiah was conceived chosen by God for reasons we can't understand, or was it determined by a law of science? I believe the second. If you like, you can call the laws of science 'God', but it wouldn't be a personal God that you could meet, and ask questions.

1 Peter 2:5 Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 2:9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light.

Revelation 1:5 Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, 6 And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

Revelation 5:9 Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; 10 And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

Revelation 20:6 Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

Can anyone tell me what's wrong with using the above verses as proofs that the New Testament supposedly abolished the notion or idea of there being a special class of priests, the so-called sacerdotal priesthood? Anyone? Anyone?

Exodus 19:6 And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.

Exodus 23:22 (LXX) If ye will indeed hear my voice, and if thou wilt do all the things I shall charge thee with, and keep my covenant, ye shall be to me a peculiar people above all nations, for the whole earth is mine; and ye shall be to me a royal priesthood, and a holy nation: these words shall ye speak to the children of Israel, If ye shall indeed hear my voice, and do all the things I shall tell thee, I will be an enemy to thine enemies, and an adversary to thine adversaries.

Isaiah 61:6 But ye shall be named the Priests of the LORD: men shall call you the Ministers of our God: ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves.

Because the talents God gave us do not multiply themselves automatically.

A disturbing proof of the capacity of oral literature to keep entire texts unaltered over millennia consists in this incantation, gathered at the end of the previous [nineteenth] century in Oltenia [south-western Romania], and which is identical with the one cited by Marcellus Empiricus fifteen centuries earlier:

Original Latin	Romanian version	English translation of both
Pastores te invenerunt Sine manibus colligerunt Sine foco coxerunt Sine dentibus comederunt	Ciobanasii te aflara Fara maini te culesera Fara foc te fripsera Fara gura te mancara	Shepherds found you Without hands they plucked you Without fire they fried you Without mouth they ate you

Before Augustine was, I am.

I am Augustine, thy Father: Thou shalt have no other Fathers before me.

The total depravity of the children of wrath, born in sin and conceived in iniquity, inheriting the guilt of original sin, righteously imputed upon them by God's justice for Adam and Eve's disobedience:

Matthew 19:13  ¶Then were there brought unto him little children, that he should put his hands on them, and pray: and the disciples rebuked them. 14  But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven. 15  And he laid his hands on them, and departed thence.

Mark 10:13  ¶And they brought young children to him, that he should touch them: and his disciples rebuked those that brought them. 14  But when Jesus saw it, he was much displeased, and said unto them, Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. 15  Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein. 16  And he took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed them.

Luke 18:15  ¶And they brought unto him also infants, that he would touch them: but when his disciples saw it, they rebuked them. 16  But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Suffer little children to come unto me, and forbid them not: for of such is the kingdom of God. 17  Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child shall in no wise enter therein.

Taking things out of context since 1517.

On the first day of the seventh month, Orthodox Jews celebrate the Jewish New Year; on the first day of the seventh month, Orthodox Christians celebrate the Ecclesiastical New Year.

On the tenth day of the seventh month, Orthodox Jews celebrate the Day of Atonement, by observing a very strict fast; on the fourteenth day of the seventh month, Orthodox Christians celebrate the Uplifting of the Holy Cross, also by fasting, commemorating Christ's atoning sacrifice on Golgotha.

As seen on AncientFaith Radio, from the podcast Search The Scriptures, by Presbytera Jeannie Constantinou:

These two videos, done by a former Continual Anglican who later turned Mennonite, show how a lot of the added verses were already known to a number of Early Christians as Scripture, hence they weren't by any means something new, but were rather already embraced and accepted by some as canonical. They also show how the Byzantine text-type embraced and unified these two variants, of both East and West, into one single tradition:

Well... Stalin WAS a seminarian...

1 Corinthians 1:22-24

²² For the Jews require a sign, the Greeks seek after wisdom, and Western Christians after gaps: ²³ But we preach Christ crucified: unto the Jews, a stumbling-block; unto the Greeks, foolishness; and unto Westerners, a mystery and a paradox; ²⁴ But unto them that are called, whether Jews or Greeks or Occidentals, Christ: the power of God, and the wisdom of God.

How Protestants would name the first five books of the New Testament, if they would be truly faithful & fully honest to their anti-traditional stance, and apply their anti-traditional principles and presuppositions more thoroughly and rigorously:

First Book of Jesus Christ	1 Jesus
Second Book of Jesus Christ	2 Jesus
Third Book of Jesus Christ	3 Jesus
First Letter to Theophilus	1 Theophilus
Second Letter to Theophilus	2 Theophilus

In the letter which Mangu Khan sent to the king of France through Ruysbroeck, we find the highest profession of faith of the Mongolian nation: This is the order of the eternal God: There is but one everlasting God in heaven, and there shall be but one ruler on earth: Genghis Khan, the son of God. And Genghis Khan's seal bore the following inscription: One God in heaven, and the Khan on earth: The seal of the ruler of the earth.

A series of posts I recently wrote at my personal blog, Pious Fabrications, entitled "Why I'm not an atheist." I've received several replies to various aspects of this series from atheists, but none of them have been even remotely challenging (in fact, most haven't even been logical or truthful to historical fact).

Articles

Christ's Death: A Rescue Mission, Not a Payment for Sins, by Frederica Mathewes Green.

The Sacrifice of Christ as "Expiation", by Fr. Patrick Henry Reardon.



Audio

God So Loved The World, by Frederica Mathewes Green, Fr. Ted Stylianopoulos, and Presbytera Faye.

Recovering the Scandal of the Cross, by Kevin Allen, Steve McMeans, and Dr. Joel B. Green, Professor of New Testament Interpretation at Asbury Theological Seminary (Wesleyan-Methodist).

Salvation in Christ - The Orthodox Approach, a lecture by Metropolitan KALLISTOS Ware.

Sola Scriptura And Philosophical Christianity - Part 10, by Matthew Gallatin.

Sola Scriptura And Philosophical Christianity - Part 11, by Matthew Gallatin.

Sola Scriptura And Philosophical Christianity - Part 12, by Matthew Gallatin.

Sola Scriptura And Philosophical Christianity - Part 13, by Matthew Gallatin.

Sola Scriptura And Philosophical Christianity - Part 14, by Matthew Gallatin.

Sola Scriptura And Philosophical Christianity - Part 15, by Matthew Gallatin.

Sola Scriptura And Philosophical Christianity - Part 16, by Matthew Gallatin.

The Love of God and the Passion of Christ, by Fr. Patrick Henry Reardon.

The Wrath Of God, by Fr. Thomas Hopko.



Video

Salvation in Christ - The Orthodox Approach, a lecture by Metropolitan KALLISTOS Ware.

Prosperity Gospel

The Purpose Driven Life

On one hand, we loved Christ so much that we began worshipping Him as a God ¹; on the other hand, we make up all these fancifully-imaginary stories about Him partaking of a shameful and painful death, by crucifixion, being abused, beaten, cursed, flogged, hurt, insulted, laughed at, mocked, punched, ridiculed, scorned, scourged, slapped, smitten, spat upon, tortured, and finally exposed naked on the rough wood of a Cross, for anyone to look upon Him with disgust, and consider Him as accursed by God Himself! ²


On one hand, Islam denies Christ's divinity; on the other hand, its teaching about the Crucifixion being an illusion was adopted from Docetism, an early Gnostic sect, whose Christology is diametrically-opposed to that of Muslims, considering Jesus to have been solely-divine, possessing only a spiritual body -- and since disincarnate beings like gods, ghosts, and spirits can't die...


¹ itself a question-begging double-standard, since early Christians abhorred the idea of deifying men, no matter how holy or high-up they were -- so why make an exception for Christ?
² Deuteronomy 21:23; Galatians 3:13.

Don't lust. Don't hate. Give all your money to the poor.