The Byzantine Sexual Revolution

Many years back my wife and I attended a couples retreat. During one of the talks a woman shared that she feels closest to God after she has sex with her husband. After she said this, I thought that she was a real pervert. However, I was the pervert. Like so many other Christians, I was taught that sex was just for making children and as bonus it causes intimacy with your spouse. It had nothing to do with God other than the fact that occasionally God might infuse a soul into the results. Later I would learn that this way of thinking is a complete contradiction to scripture. Unfortunately, it seems like this contradiction is all the Church has to offer.

When God is separated from sex it causes moral problems. The fruit of this is all around us. Concerning the problems Christians often come up short in how to respond. Most often they try to make uncompelling arguments based on the bible or church teaching. They know how to tell people what’s wrong but fail to give a good answer why.  Saying that “God says so” doesn’t work anymore. In fact, those that practice sexual immorality often have a better argument. As long as Christians understand sex as just some regulated human activity, like going to the bathroom or driving an automobile, we will lose the moral argument.

For the most part, the Church has failed in its call to redeem human sexuality. Its no secret that many of the fathers were horrified of sex. For example, it was St. Jerome who said it was a sin to have sex if you don’t do it for children. Woe to those poor people in his church who were married and could not have kids!!! Some fathers even went further in their disdain for sex and debated if even women had souls. If it were not for Fathers like St. John Chrysostom, I doubt that the Church would even been celebrating marriage as a sacrament. He was in a sense one of the pioneers of a Byzantine sexual revolution. He championed the cause of marriages within the Church. He also understood that Christian marriage was the only way to fulfill God’s plan for sexuality.

The modern Catechism of the Catholic Church has adopted some of Chrysostom’s teachings. Its now taught that sex is ok for unitive purposes and not just to have kids, but the Catechism fails to adopt the vision of the Saint. You won’t find in the Catechism that sex in a Christian marriage is a revelation of God. Nor will you find teachings about the practice of chastity in marriage with the goal of making the sexual act a holy encounter within God. When we hear the word “chastity” it often comes with the understanding of, “no sex”. Chastity is actually the purification of our sexuality. For a celibate that means one thing but for those that are married another. With both kinds of people, the goal is a revelation of God.

When God made us, God created us in the divine image, male and female as the scriptures teach. It’s no accident that the Woman in scripture was created from Man just before the advent of the 7thday.  The language used to describe Adams sleep in the creation of Eve is the same language of ecstasy. The language of sex. It’s also the same language of the glory that is revealed of the 7thday. The day of the covenant. The day of human and divine union. The union of man and woman reveals God in creation.  Sexuality was never something that was to be separated from God. Sexuality achieves its purpose as a revelation of what God is.

We are created in God’s image and likeness. Likeness implies our role in accomplishing God’s purpose. Unfortunately, we don’t even know what we are anymore. Sex being reduced to just reproduction or pleasure has created a society of people who don’t know what they are. In our world you can now change your sexuality and there are many ways to find your sexual pleasure. There is no divine meaning to sex. It seems like the devil has been successful in destroying the image of God in this world. Without our sexuality there is no image of God. Don’t be deceived! Our sexuality is the most sacred part about us. Its no accident that a whole book in the bible ‘Song of Songs’ is about sex. Its time for us to redeem our sexuality! Its time to continue the work of our holy father St. John Chrysostom. To continue the Byzantine sexual revolution.

A Byzantine Gospel Tract

Several years ago, the Melkite Patriarch expressed the need for us to communicate the gospel in an uncomplicated way. He understood how complex our faith could be and recognized that other religions have an advantage over us in this regard. Over the years, I have thought about what he said and have tried to discover ways that we Byzantines can communicate our faith effectively. The following Gospel tract (trifold) is one of those ways. I took the following three points that we emphasize in our tradition:(incarnation, the victory over death, partaking of the divine nature) and presented them in a simplistic way. The tract is geared toward the unchurched person, so I tried to avoid any inclusive church language. Typically, in our culture people recognize that Christians use the bible as an authoritative source, so I reference the bible in that fashion. I presented the points in the tract so that the person reading can make a decision to accept what Christ has done for them.  However, unlike what is seen in most protestant tracts there is no prayer to accept Jesus as the savior. Saying that kind of prayer might be a good start, but I truly believe that God communicates the fullness of his love only through the Church, so I make the final point about seeking membership in a Catholic Church. This tract I hope can be a good guide for a brief presentation of our faith. You never know who might pick it up and start the journey of faith. Its fully editable if you want to change the content. I am using them for my parish so you might want to change the back if you are going to use them for yours. I know there are better ways to do this but if you can use this feel free to download t pdf  version (here).

The Argument of Ancestral sin vs Original sin

When I first started studying Byzantine theology I was deceived. I believed in a false tradition called Ancestral Sin. The term itself is not false, many fathers use the term. What is false is how some Eastern Christians have used it in the past 50yrs. The term at some point was hijacked by a tradition of apologetics that is based in the Orthodox Church. It’s now used to contrast what is called Original sin, which is said to be an invention of St. Augustine. The argument states: “the Eastern Church, unlike its Western counterpart, never speaks of guilt being passed from Adam and Eve to their progeny, as did Augustine. Instead, it is posited that each person bears the guilt of his or her own sin”. The problem with this argument is that it’s totally dishonest.

The dishonesty for this argument is found in the assumptions it makes. First, there is the huge assumption that the argument represent all of the Eastern Church. As I said, the argument represents a tradition of apologetics and not the Eastern Church. Next, there is the assumption that the Western Church was the only one to have a doctrine of inherited guilt. It’s true that St. Augustine developed “original guilt” far more systemically than any Church Father in the West. On the other hand, even the noted Orthodox Bishop Kallistos Ware himself admitted “the notion of an inherited sinfulness can be found, at any rate in a rudimentary form, in more than one Greek writer”. Last of all, there is the assumption that the Western Church had only one way of understanding sin. It might be true that St. Augustine played a major role in the catechesis of the West, but this catechesis was by no means universal. In fact, the modern Catechism of the Catholic Church leaves the notion of inherited guilt total open. In terms of inherited guilt, the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches the following, “the transmission of original sin is a mystery that we cannot fully understand(404)”.

This dishonest argument is usually further exaggerated with the following distinctions: “the doctrine of ancestral sin naturally leads to a focus on human death and Divine compassion as the inheritance from Adam, while the doctrine of original sin shifts the center of attention to human guilt and Divine wrath. It is further posited that the approach of the ancient church points to a more therapeutic than juridical approach to pastoral care and counseling”. When I hear Eastern Christians make these distinctions it makes me wonder why they are ignoring so many Greek Fathers. For example, St. Gregory Palamas had this to say about the so called shift to “human guilt and Divine wrath” , which is not the “ancient church”: “Yet God is also a 'jealous God' (Exod. 20:5), a just judge who takes terrible vengeance on those who dishonor Him, who disobey Him and who scorn His commandments, visiting them with eternal chastisement, unquenchable fire, unceasing pain, unconsolable affliction, a cloak of lugubrious darkness, an obscure and grievous region, piteous gnashing of teeth, venomous and sleepless worms - things He prepared for that first evil apostate together with all those deluded by him who became his followers, rejecting their Creator in their actions, words and thoughts”. This quote was taken right of the Philokalia, the most beloved book for the so-called, “therapeutic than juridical approach to pastoral care and counseling”.

The biggest problem I see with people that promote “Ancestral sin vs Original sin” is that they are creating a false dichotomy between the Eastern and Western traditions of the Church. On the subject of sin the fathers of the Church had diverse positions. This diversity is witnessed in the many forms of catechesis that can be found in Church history. Its even possible, as St. John Paul the Great said, to have one tradition of catechesis express the mysteries of our faith better than others. With this in mind, we should take advantage of the different forms of theological expression in the Church. Just like what the Roman church did when it changed its catechesis on sin, which now reflects what is emphasized in the Byzantine churches.  The Roman church’s current catechesis on the effects of sin now fits more organically into their tradition as opposed to the Augustine views of the past. Like the Roman church, we should discover what best helps our own tradition organically develop. Not by seeing how we are not like the other, but by truly learning how to “breathe with both lungs” of the Church.

Consuming the Flesh of the Mother of God

Recently, I was accused of putting too much emphasis on the Mother of God and the activity of the Saints.  My response was that my emphasis is important in understanding our relationship with Jesus Christ. St. Macarius said, “human free will is an essential condition, for without it even God himself does nothing”. It is true that our salvation comes from Christ alone, but he would not be here without our consent. This is important for us to realize because our actions do matter. There are wonderful things that God wishes to do with us, but without our participation we end up grieving the Holy Spirit (Eph 4:30).

The Greek theologian Panagiotus Trembelas once said, “From the beginning to end, in the work of man’s conversion and sanctification there run side by side two lines: divine grace and human free will. Continually these two lines converge and touch each other, and so together they contribute to our salvation….Yet at no moment and at no point in the development of this work does the one line obliterate and cancel out the other”. In terms of these two lines mentioned there is a whole history of their convergence in the saints of the Old Testament. Without the Old Testament saints, we would not be where we are today. There would be no Church. God set apart certain people and worked with these people in mediating his divine grace into this world. Through them, he was preparing the world for salvation through Jesus Christ.

Just as we can grow in experiencing divine grace, the Old Testament saints could as well. However, their growth was through many purifications and acts of divine condescension, God coming down to our level and bringing us up to his. These purifications and divine condescensions had a purpose and climax. God was creating for himself a most perfect and pure temple in which the fullness of divine grace could enter our world. In other words, God was perfecting our humanity by working with the O.T. saints, returning human nature to its purpose, a purpose that became obscured due to sin. It was through the conception of Theotokos that the purpose and climax of Old Testament sanctity was achieved.

God at any time could have picked anyone to become the Theotokos. However, as St. Macarius said God can do nothing without us. Our choices matter and the Theotokos would not be with us without the response of the saints of the Old Testament. Her conception was the height of what was possible in terms of human perfection. For this reason, the Church rightly honors her as the Immaculate Conception and the Panagia, "the All Holy". As the Russian Theologian Sergei Bulgakov taught, the life of the Theotokos is a series of gifts of grace given to us by the Holy Spirit, beginning with Her conception. She received naturally through her cooperation with God what we all receive now through our participation in the life of the Church.

St. Symeon the New Theologian said that when we partake on the Flesh our Lord, in the Eucharist, we at the same time partake of the flesh of the Theotokos. God took his flesh from the Theotokos. God became what we are through her. He could not have become what we are without us. The fiat of the Theotokos represents a long history of God working with us in order to bring about our salvation. In terms of our salvation, we can now have everything that God is. This is all thanks to the people that have worked with God, which includes both the saints of the Old and New Testaments. Without them we would not be where we are. This is a truth that we need to make our own. God is not done saving the world. There will come a day when God wipes away every tear (Rev. 21:4). This is a day that God is now calling us to work with him to bring about. It’s a mystery, but God truly is trusting each of us with the salvation of the world.

Attack of the Jehovah Witnesses

In the past month, I have had a visit from the Jehovah Witnesses every weekend. I admire them for their zeal and I wish that my fellow Byzantine Catholics would show more effort in reaching out to others like them. However, if they did I don’t think most Byzantines would know what to say. Unlike, what we see in the Roman church there is not much out there in terms of teaching people how to evangelize. Most of our resources seem to be focused on preserving our identity. Consequently, when we get opportunities to evangelize we sometimes end up talking more about ourselves than the Gospel. With this in mind, there is something that I noticed this month from the JWs in their efforts to convert me, which is that they keep it simple. For this reason, I wanted to share a simple outline for communicating the Gospel from a Byzantine perspective.  This is an outline that I use myself and I find it very fruitful. Be aware, its not to be used word for word, it’s just a guide. Also, keep in mind it’s not perfect and I am sure there are better presentations out there. If it’s used, it can be a quick and simple way to share what we believe. Sometimes the opportunities we get require it to be quick and simple, so I hope this can be of use to many.

1.  The Introduction

Introduce an idea that something is wrong with the world, that God seems to be missing. It can be as easy as saying, “did you see what happened on the news”. In coming to an agreement, you can make the point that there is a reason for this apparent absence. At this point, mention that the scriptures teach that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, (Romans 3:23)”. Make the point that things are the way they are because of us and that there is really nothing we can do about it. Now that you have given them the bad news, make it known that God has done something about this. Tell them that the son of God became one of us. Share with them the scripture “he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. (Philippians 2:7)”. Say with emphasis that Jesus Christ is God and that he is also one of us. Tell them that in Christ, the separation from God that we see has been overcome for man and God are one in him.

2.  The Basic Message

After introducing them to the idea that the division between man and God has been overcome. Make it known that this was not the only thing that God has done for us. Bring up in some way that we are all going to die. Tell them the scriptures even say this, “the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23a)”.  Bring to their attention that we sin and because we sin we die. Tell them it’s a cycle that no one has ever been able to break. Share with them that because we sin, if death were to come for us we wouldn’t be able to escape it. At this point, emphasis that there is however one who did escape, Jesus Christ. Tell them that Jesus Christ met death, like every man will, at the cross, but, death met God. Tell them you cant kill God and bring up the fact that he rose from the dead. Let them know that this is good news for us because there is now a way to defeat the power of sin in our lives that leads to death. Tell them that the scriptures even say that at the cross of Christ the “body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin”(Romans 6:6”).

3.  The Conclusion

At this point, see if there is an interest in what you have been saying. Tell them that God has given us as the scripture says, “very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, (2peter 1:4)”. Tell them that God wants to overcome anything that separates them from Him and that he wants to give them the power to overcome death. Bring up again what you just read, that God wants to make us to be partakers of the divine nature. Tell them that when death comes for us it can be defeated like it was on the cross but only if Christ dwells in you. Tell them that Christ can give them eternal life with God. Ask them if this is something that they want. At that point, tell them that what they seek can only be found in the Church. Tell them that Christ started the Church 2000yrs ago and that he has continued to offer himself to the world through the Church. Mention the scripture that the Church is,  “the pillar and foundation of the truth. (1Timothy 3:15)” and invite them to, as the Church teaches, to have faith in what Christ has done for them and to come participate in the gifts that God has given the Church that will make them a partaker of the Divine Nature.

A Union for the End Times

In the history of the Church, sometimes marriage has been portrayed as a lesser path of spirituality as compared to those that practice celibacy. Even though this understanding does not exist in the catechesis of the Catholic Church, it does exist as a prevailing mindset among many people. From time to time, we of the Eastern churches get to see this mindset since we have continued the tradition of married clergy, which was started by Jesus Christ.  Often when such negative distinctions arise it has nothing to do with the mystery of Holy Orders. Most of the time, it always goes back to an inferior spiritual understanding of marriage.

Paul Evdokimov once wrote, “The Gospel in its totality is addressed to each person; everyone in his own situation is called to the absolute of the Gospel. Trying to prove the superiority of one state over the other is therefore useless: it is an abstract, because impersonal, process. The renunciation at work in both cases is as good as the positive content that the human being brings to it: the intensity of the love of God”. As Evdokimov points out, the state that we are in has no bearing on the depth of our spirituality. Whatever state that God has called us to is the means by which we can best love God. On the other hand, to be called to certain state is to be called to make God known in a unique way. As Evdokimov would also teach, Christian celibacy and Christian marriage are both given a prophetic character in revealing the kingdom of God.

In regards to the prophetic character of Christian marriage, Pope Francis, in his ever popular Amoris Laetitia, called marriage the, “inexhaustible mystery”. When I read this, I wondered how many people considered their marriage in this way. I wondered how many people see their marriage as the object of encounter with God. I personally have heard marriage described in many ways. However, rarely have I heard it being presented as the means for participating in the divine nature. Most of time, its been taught as a foundation for procreation or the means of escaping, as the Apostle Paul said, the burn of passion.

In the beginning God created marriage for us to be like him. In other words, marriage was as a path for our deification. As the scripture teaches, we were created in the image of God and called to be like God.  Among many things, he called our Ancestors to become one flesh. By becoming one flesh they were becoming like the one who created them. As we all know, God’s plan for our Ancestors was not fulfilled. Consequently, marriage became many things, but a path to God it was not. It needed to be redeemed.  Thankfully, by Christ becoming one of us, in the words of St. Maximos, “God bestowed once again on human nature the supernatural grace of deification”. Now, as scripture teaches, marriage in Christ has become a Mysterion (Eph 5:32). Not only has marriage been redeemed it can make present the reality to which it is called.

There is an eschatological reality in marriage and it can only be experienced when we love like God. In a marriage the love shared can become eternal, it is a love that becomes God’s very own love. Concerning such love, St. John Chrysostom said once that, “marriage is a remedy to eliminate fornication”. This of course is often taken out of context by those that read him. Marriage becomes a remedy because it helps us to love the other person. It helps us overcome things that objectify the other person, like unchastity. Such a remedy is only possible when we let God love the other person through us.

We can all love others, even in a divine way, but only married people can make present in our world a love that all will see at the end of time. Concerning such love, there is even a whole book in the Old Testament dedicated to it, the Song of Songs. In this book it makes known a love that can only be described with the most poetic words. It is a love that Christ has for his Church. Outside of being poetic there really is no other human way that can express this love. However, there is a way, as I have been saying, to experience it.