In Heaven & His Holy Name – 3of10

/0 Comments/in , , , ,

Armodoxy for Today: 10x One Minutes on the Lord’s Prayer, Part 3 – In Heaven & His Holy Name

Our Father has a location; it is in heaven. Even though that beautiful blue sky and the clouds above our head are often referred to as heaven, we are merely conditioned to look up in reference to this word. As the dwelling place of God, it is more than just a location. Think of it as a state of being – a state of perfection, of communion, joy and transcendence.

Our Father, who is in Heaven, is another way of saying the God of the universe is everywhere – beyond us and within us. We each have the potential for goodness, completeness, and transcendence, as Jesus invites us to “Be perfect, even as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5)

In the Devine we acknowledge the sacredness of that perfection and therefore, Our Father’s name is hallowed – sacred and holy.

The third of 10, one minutes for Summertime.

Lord’s Prayer -2of10

/0 Comments/in , , , ,

Armodoxy for Today: 10x One Minutes on the Lord’s Prayer, Number 2 – Our Father

Jesus sets the tone for his prayer, with the first words. This is a conversation with God, but He is not overwhelming. He is “Our Father.” He is approachable. He is father, that is, one who cares, and is responsible to share His love with us. He is father, who embraces us in our pain and hurt and smiles with us in the beauty we absorb. He shares our joys and suffers with us in times of distress.

Furthermore, He is our Father, not my father, not your father, but our father. As such He is the God of all. There are no favorite children, we are all his children. He is the Father who distributes His love equally among all His children. And we therefore understand, that every war is a civil war, because the argument and misunderstanding is between us and with a brother or sister, for we all share the same father. The first two words of the prayer set the address of who we are talking with. Our Father.

This is the second of 10, one minute for Summertime.

Lord’s Prayer – 1of10

/0 Comments/in , , , ,

Armodoxy for Today: 10x One Minutes on the Lord’s Prayer, Number 1

Wars, threats of wars, floods, disasters, shootings, and the response to these tragedies seems to be a standard: Pray! Newscasters tell us, “We keep them (the victims) in our thoughts and prayers.” While thought we understand, our idea of prayer ranges from a shopping list of wants to put before God to a quiet meditation on the tragedy.

In his Sermon on the Mount, Jesus instructs us with the words, “When you are praying, do not heap up empty phrases… for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. Pray then in this way:

Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our debts,
as we also have forgiven our debtors.
And do not bring us to the time of trial,
but rescue us from the evil one.

Each word in this prayer is a power-word making the entire prayer meaningful and effective. Over the next few days we will look at each phrase and its meaning for the Christian today.

This is the first of 10, one minute for Summertime.

Covered Up at Ani

/0 Comments/in , , ,

Armodoxy for Today: Covered up at Ani

The City of Ani in Western Armenia was once known as the city of 1001 churches. These were Armenian Church, with domes that were patterned on the architecture of Holy Etchmiadzin, the first Christian Cathedral built in 303AD. Like Holy Etchmiadzin, the Cathedral and churches of Ani were in Armenia proper until the lands were occupied.

A few years ago I organized a pilgrimage to this sacred space and took 25 pilgrims with me. There we witnessed the first part of “operation cover up.” Informational signs that were placed at the entrance of the city read in English, French and Turkish, with absolutely no mention of the Armenian origins of these churches, nor any reference to their functionality as shrines of the Armenian Church.

Today, part two of “operation cover up” takes place as the Turkish government has decided to topple the shrines.

 Our Lord Jesus says, “No one, when he has lit a lamp, covers it with a vessel or puts it under a bed, but sets it on a lampstand, that those who enter may see the light. For nothing is secret that will not be revealed, nor anything hidden that will not be known and come to light.” (Luke 8:17-18)

Today’s one minute for Summertime.

Cover image: The entrance to Ani today, with three signs.

Learn more: Podcast series “Echoes of Ararat” with Gregory Beylerian at https://epostle.net/echoes-of-ararat

Truth Times Two

/0 Comments/in , , ,

Armodoxy for Today: Truth times two

There is a story about a race between a Russian and an American. The two men start at the same point, run around a track and the American comes in a few seconds before the Russian. The American news service reports, “American wins race. Russian comes in last place.” The Russian news service reports, “Russian comes in second place. American is next to last.”

Neither news agency reported false facts. Neither agency lied. They both told the truth as it best suited their purpose. That purpose is what you must decipher by looking at intentions. This is very important today as more and more individuals and groups rally for your attention.

In stark contrast, as Christians, our truth is a person. “I am the way, the truth and the life,’ says Jesus. Go ahead and test this truth for purpose and intention. You’ll find that this Truth has a genuine purpose which is Life itself.

Today’s one-minute for Summertime.

Spirit Articulated

/0 Comments/in , , ,

Armodoxy for Today: Articulating Spirit

 Jesus taught with parables. This one came with a question. He begins, “A man had two sons, and he came to the first and said, ‘Son, go, work today in my vineyard.’  He answered and said, ‘I will not,’ but afterward he regretted it and went. Then he came to the second and said likewise. And he answered and said, ‘I [will] go, sir,’ but he did not go.”

Jesus then asks the simple question: “Which of the two did the will of his father?”

They said to Him, “The first.” (Matthew 21:28-32)

The first said no but regretted his decision to disobey and did it. The other, said he would do what was asked, but did not.

Our words are articulations of our mouth. Our actions, are the articulation of our spirit.

Today’s one-minute for Summertime.

A Match to Light Our Worship

/0 Comments/in , , ,

Armodoxy for Today: A Match to Light our Worship

One Sunday morning, one of the young altar boys of our church, handed me a small box. On the box was a handwritten gift tag, “To the Church. Open now!” it said. It was wrapped in Christmas paper, though it was mid-July.

The celebration of the Divine Liturgy was about to begin and although I insisted on punctuality for the service, my curiosity got the better of me. Quickly I opened the package. In it was a book of 50 matches. I looked over at Mher, and he didn’t wait for me to ask. He reminded me that last week I looked all over for matches to light the altar candles. So this young boy took the initiative to solve the problem. During the week he went shopping and now provided enough matches to last the entire year.

At eight years old, Mher understood this was his church. He saw a need and took care of it. It’s not more complicated than that, or as Jesus taught, “The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand.” (Matthew 4:17)

Today’s one-minute for Summertime.

7×77, Really?

/0 Comments/in , , ,

Armodoxy for Today: That many times, really?

July 7 is a very special day for us at Epostle.net. It was on July 7, 2007 that we organized the first-ever forgiveness day international conference, under the In His Shoes banner, featuring speakers from Rwanda, Armenia and Mexico, events, discussions with scholars and produced a human chain of sevens. The day was numerically written as 7/7/7 which corresponded to Jesus’ answer to Peter’s question, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? till seven times?”

“I say to you, not seven times,” answered Jesus, “But, until seventy-seven times seven.” (Matthew 18:21-22)

Certainly, the numbers are irrelevant. That is, 7×77 is not to be worked out at 539, but as a code for countless. Jesus puts it out as the Christian imperative: Forgive, without limits. Further, he assures us that our Father in Heaven forgives us our trespasses, by the same scale that we forgive those who trespass against us.

Forgiveness is the hallmark and calling card of Christianity. It is central to understanding the power of Jesus’ message for peace and harmony in the world.

It doesn’t escape us that this year, the numbers once again line-up as 7/7/25, the sum of the 2-5 are yet another seven. It is merely a pointer, a way of remembering that our only hope – whether for individual relationships, or to achieve global harmony – our only hope is through this ultimate weapon of love.

Today’s one-minute for Summertime.

If you’d like to learn more about the international conference on forgiveness? Visit the links below.

https://epostle.net/peace-spiral and at https://epostle.net/7×77

Declaring and Doing

/0 Comments/in , , ,

Armodoxy for Today: Declaring and Doing

For years, part of my office decor has been a framed copy of the Declaration of Independence. This is the document that was signed on this day, the fourth of July in 1776, by a group of men who were expressing their dream of freedom and independence. They proclaimed that there were “self-evident” truths, “that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” And with these words the experiment in democracy, the United States of America, was born.

I find these thoughtful and beautifully crafted words to be sacred, because they express the inner dreams of humankind. In the Declaration of Independence can be heard the cries of the human soul for rights and equalities. Certainly, true religion has and always must advocate for those rights.

The Armenian Church has lived within monarchies, kingdoms, dictatorships, oppressive and barbaric regimes, and even through atheistic Soviet society. The Gospel Message of Christ is greater than any political ideology and within the expression of the ancient Apostolic Church, that Message maintains its integrity despite the political climate of the age.

Declaring these truths is only half of the story. Living out the dream with our actions is the other half. The Independence Day celebration grants us an opportunity to reflect on our responsiveness to freedom and liberty, to the declarations we make, and to how those declarations are played out.

Today’s one-minute for Summertime and a bit for today’s Celebration.

We pray for America, we pray for ourselves, and we pray for our Armenian Church today. Heavenly Father, bless those who bless you. Give wisdom to leaders. Keep us vigilant in our commitment to pursue that which is necessary for our lives. And keep us focused on our commitment to work for peace on earth and good will toward one another. Amen.

 

Nektarios: Seeking God

/0 Comments/in , , ,

Armodoxy for Today: Inside and Out

St. Nektarios, venerated in the Eastern Orthodox Tradition, directs us to “Seek God in your heart, not outside of it.”

The world is a big place. From mountain tops to ocean floors, the vastness can be overwhelming. In our attempts to engage with life and our passions, we may fall victim to that vastness, preventing us from fully exploring all that life has to offer.

God is the author of all. Seeking God within, that is, in the heart, is the starting point of all exploration because you are assured of being equipped with the necessary tools to appreciate the deepest and highest points of life.

Jesus says, “The Kingdom of God is within you.” (Luke 17:21)

Today’s one minute for Summertime.