Food for Thought – Page 39

The Splendour of Icons

Beaded droplets of Holy Water grace a newly blessed icon of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Note the ancient lettering style inscriptions. Icons are venerated and not worshipped. They are beautiful, spiritual, windows into heaven.

– I venerate the Creator… who came down to his creation without being lowered or weakened, that He might glorify my nature and bring about communion with the divine nature. …Therefore I am emboldened to depict the invisible God, not as invisible, but as He became visible for our sake, by participation in flesh and blood. I do not depict the invisible divinity, but I depict God made visible in the Flesh. ~ St. John Damascene

The Church, through the temple and Divine service, acts upon the entire man, educates him wholly; acts upon his sight, hearing, smelling, feeling, taste, imagination, mind, and will, by the splendour of icons and of the whole temple, by the ringing of bells, by the singing of the choir, by the fragrance of the incense, the kissing of the Gospel, of the cross and the holy icons, by the prosphoras, the singing, and sweet sound of the readings of Scripture. ~ St. John of Kronstadt (My Life in Christ)

Icons in churches and houses are necessary because they remind us of the immortality of the saints; that they live unto Him, that in God they see, hear, and help us. ~ St. John of Kronstadt

Church services, that is, all the daily services, together with the entire arrangement of the church’s icons, candles, censing, singing, chanting, movements of the clergy, as well as the services for various needs (e.g., Molebens, Pannikhidas, etc.); then services in the home, also using ecclesiastical objects such as sanctified icons, holy oil, candles, holy water, the Cross, and incense – all of these holy things together acting upon all the senses – sight, hearing, smell, touch, and taste – are the cloths that wipe clean the senses of a deadened soul. They are the strongest and only reliable way to do it… The entire structure of our Church services, with their tone, meaning, power of faith, and especially the grace concealed within them, have an invincible power to drive away the spirit of the world. ~ St. Theophan the Recluse (The Path to Salvation)

Secret Garden Secrets

Vibrant, Autumnal, Garden Nasturtiums

The Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to work it and keep it. ~ Genesis 2:15

There’s an inherent yearning deep within, to return to The Garden where God originally placed us.

Blossoming backyard gardens and bursting balcony flower boxes have become our private little gazebos for God. Surrounded by nature’s wondrous beauty, we can’t help but worship and extol Creation’s Planter!

And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul. And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed. ~ Genesis 2:7-8

Preparing wild violet seeds to sprout in time for spring, I plunge bare fingers into rich, loamy soil. Earthy, delightful fragrances exude forth, and I’m reminded, For dust thou art and unto dust shalt thou return… whither all we mortals are going... Alleluia!

Pondering these fleeting thoughts, I thirstily drink in the gardens’ sights, sounds, and myriad of scents. Even in autumn, it’s a living thing, both below and above the soil… organically connected through the roots and tendrils of past, present, and future.

What satisfaction there is living within the gentle furrow of the moment, garnering the herbs, vegetables, fruits and flowers that blossom forth!

What joy there is in giving oneself to the garden… To hear its secrets, to harvest its gift of contentment… To reap its sheaves of peace; and to glean and store its spiritual grains of abundance, within the silos of our hearts!

Thankful

Stone Art – by Caroline

Counting my blessings with gratitude… for the great and the small. Amen!

Coincidences are spiritual puns. ~ G. K. Chesterton

He reached down from on high and took hold of me; he drew me out of deep waters. ~ 2 Samuel 22:17

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. ~ Philippians 4:6

Constantly, each day, each hour, God is sending people, circumstances, tasks, which should mark the beginning of our renewal; yet we pay them no attention, and thus continually resist God’s will for us. Indeed, how can God help us? Only by sending us in our daily life certain people, and certain coincidences of circumstances. If we accepted every hour of our life as the hour of God’s will for us, as the decisive, most important, unique hour of our life – what sources of joy, love, strength, as yet hidden from us, would spring from the depth of our soul! ~ Fr. Alexander Elchaninov

Congratulations on your 25th Baptismal Anniversary and Saint’s Day, Anastasia! May God grant you many years!

Light of the World

Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. ~ St. John 8:12

The Cause of all things, through the beauty, goodness and profusion of His intense love for everything, goes out of Himself in His providential care for the whole of creation… He relinquishes His utter transcendence in order to dwell in all things while yet remaining within Himself… ~St. Maximos the Confessor (The Philokalia)

Jesus Christ, in His infinite love has become what we are, in order that He may make us entirely what He is. ~ St. Irenaeus of Lyons

One and the same grace is from the Father in the Son, as the light of the sun and of the radiance is one, and as the sun’s illumination is effected through the radiance… ~ St. Athanasius (The Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers)

…Light of Light, True God of True God, Begotten not made. Of one Essence of the Father by Whom all things were made… Excerpt from the Nicene Creed

As From One Great Heart

You cannot pray at home, like you can at church, where there is a great multitude; where exclamations are cried out to God as from one great heart, and where there is something more: the unions of minds, the accord of souls, the bond of charity, the prayers of priests. ~ St. John Chrysostom

The Church, through the temple and Divine service, acts upon the entire man, educates him wholly; acts upon his sight, hearing, smelling, feeling, taste, imagination, mind, and will, by the splendour of the icons and of the whole temple, by the ringing of the bells, by the singing of the choir, by the fragrance of the incense, the kissing of the Gospel, of the cross and the holy icons, by the prosphoras, the singing, and sweet sound of readings of the Scriptures. ~St. John of Kronstadt

We ought to have the most lively spiritual union with the heavenly inhabitants, with all the saints, apostles, prophets, martyrs, prelates, venerable and righteous men, as they are all members of one single body, The Church of Christ, to which we sinners also belong, and the living Head of which is the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. This is why we call upon them in prayer, converse with them, thank and praise them. It is urgently necessary for all Christians to be in union with them, if they desire to make Christian progress; for the saints are our friends, our guides to salvation, who pray and intercede for us. ~ St. John of Kronstadt

Seasons of Time

Backyard Foliage as it Turns… Turns… Turns

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; 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 together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace. ~ Ecclesiastes 3:1-8

The Book of Ecclesiastes is attributed to King Solomon and written circa the 10th century BC. During the mid- 20th century AD, the King James Bible’s version of these verses were borrowed and adapted into a folk melody called Turn, Turn Turn.

Initially “written” and arranged by Pete Seeger in the late 1950’s, it was The Byrds’ 1965 recording of his song that made it a number 1 hit with the oldest lyrics.

The song became synonymous with that decade’s escalating protests and poignant pleas for world peace.

Even in my youth, this song made a huge impression on me, and the wise words quoted from Ecclesiastes are… Timeless.

Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end. ~ Ecclesiastes 3:11

So we do not focus on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. ~ 2 Corinthians 4:18

Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. ~ Romans 13:11

Nature is the Secret Gospel

Scripture Art Photo by Juliana

I love seeing raindrops reflect like jewels on flowers and leaves. They’re mysterious, beautiful, and the centre of each drop contains a single speck of cloud dust.

Like the sphere of our own world, every raindrop is globe-shaped, and holds a microcosm of Earth’s history within. All water on Earth is – and always has been – continually recycled through the hydrosphere of our oceans, rivers, lakes and clouds.

Raindrops remind us everything’s connected.

Who knows… Perhaps a raindrop that falls on us today was once part of the Jordan River, surrounding Christ where He stood to be baptised?

Maybe that fluffy snowflake melting on our nose could have at one time, splashed against the bow of The Ark during the Great Flood?

Perchance this morning’s dew which sits serenely on a rose petal, once glistened in Eden’s Garden?

Raindrops are ancient and possess the numinous beauty of Creation. Water is life, and blessed water is Holy Water.

Let us keep looking up… for the heavens declare the glory of God!

…Accept the fountain of my tears, Thou who dost gather the waters of the sea to clouds... ~ Hymn of Kassiani

For when the ground soaks up rain that often falls on it and continues producing vegetation useful to those for whom it is cultivated, it receives a blessing from God. ~ Hebrews 6:7

…All things become opportunities for us to be joined more closely with everything and everyone. They become occasions for thanksgiving and prayer. Live in the midst of everything, nature and universe. Nature is the secret Gospel. But when one does not possess inner grace, nature is of no benefit. Nature awakens us, but it cannot bring us into Paradise. ~ St. Porphyrios (Wounded by Love)

Reflections of Living Water

Scripture Art Photo by Irena

May the living water of the Holy Spirit fill my heart, and may rivers of living water flow from my heart to the glory of God… The only requirements of our soul are righteousness, holiness, truth, love, mercy, meekness, kindness, peace, spiritual freedom, or the grace of God in the heart. These treasures give life to our whole being and are eternal. ~ St. John of Kronstadt

Drink Holy Water as often as possible. It’s the best and most effective medicine. I say this not as a bishop, but as a doctor, from my experience in medicine. ~ St. Luke of Simferopol

Efforts Yield Reward

We must not despair when we struggle and continuously see nothing but the slightest progress. We all do nearly nothing – some a little more, some a little less. When Christ sees our little effort, He gives us an analogous (corresponding) token; and so our “nearly nothing” becomes valuable, and we can see a little progress. For this reason we must not despair, but hope in God. ~ St . Paisios of Mt. Athos

God does not interfere in our lives, but waits for us to ask Him to help us, for He respects our freedom. ~ St. Paisios of Mt. Athos

A gardener cuts off branches so that the tree would grow faster and bear more fruit. If he cuts off too many branches, the tree will dry up. Be assured that God watches every man more carefully and mercifully than any gardener. ~ St. Nikolai Velimirovic

Silence is a Mystery

The highest form of prayer is to stand silently, in awe before God. ~ St. Isaac the Syrian

Words are instruments of this world, but silence is a mystery of the age to come. ~ St. Isaac the Syrian

Very desirable is the prayer of the heart. Very desirable is the silence of the heart. ~ St. Ignatius Brianchaninov