01 Jan-Feb 06

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On a recent trip, I was robbedof something which, at the time,

was valuable and important to

me. My human frailties surfaced

immediately. As well as being

upset at the loss of the stolen

goods, I felt violated, vulnerable

and exposed.

There was nothing to be done

about my loss, but I could change

my logismo, my mindset. What

did I lose? Worldly goods. Ilooked towards our Lord. Did the

worldly goods matter so much

when looked at in the light of the

eternal? No, not really. A friend

emailed and reminded me that

nothing matters under the sky but

our inner peace, and what

remains inscribed in our hearts.

So, clutching my prayer-rope, I

tried to concentrate on the

Invisible in the face of the lost

visible.

Contemplating the subject of

loss, I turned over some pages in

the Bible. Job came to mind

immediately. He suffered great

losses but also received many

blessings. Lingering a little in the

gospels, I came across a section

in the Gospel of St Luke which

seemed to be dedicated to thetheme of lost and found.

In the Lukan Gospel we read

about voluntary loss of

attachment to worldly

possessions and relationships,

even of ones own life in order to

follow Jesus. (Luke 14:25-33)

And remember the salt that loses

its taste? (Luke 14:34) A disciplecan lose enthusiasm.

Of course there is the lost sheep

(Luke 15:4-7) ninety nine are

safe so the one which is lost is

the most valued and when it is

found there is much rejoicing.

Further, in an example given by

Jesus, a woman lost a coin and

swept her house top to bottom to

find it. (Luke 15:8-10) It was one

coin, but for her it was more thanjust a coin. It was part of her

status as a married woman akin

to a wedding ring. Her joy at

finding it is also shared with her

friends and neighbours. Whose

heart is not wrenched at the loss

of the son in Jesus parable of the

prodigal son? (Luke 15:11-32).

There is at least a partial happy

ending to the story. The lostson

isfound. Jesus tells us that thereis much rejoicing in heaven when

a person repents; a lost soul is

found.

We all suffer losses.

Sometimes we experience the joy

of things found. Sometimes it is

we ourselves, who are lost. Let

us strive to be found. Finally,

there is only one thing needful

and we cant lose that! (Luke10:42).

yearXXXI

Ja

nuary-February2006

Taking the Heat

out of AustraliaAndreea Hrincu

Lost and FoundPresbytera Eisodia Menis

Melbourne

Being born in Romania and livingthe first years of your childhoodthere, does not set you up for mov-ing to Australia and living out theremaining years of your childhood.The differences are astounding.Freedom, climate, the way peopletreat you, the language, etc., they

are completely different to whatyouve been used to.At the beginning everything is

unusual and extremely scary. Youdont fit in, you barely know the

language, and on top of that youreabout to melt. What do you do when

everything has been turned on itshead?

The fact that every new immi-grant, the exception being thosewho already speak English, feels

pretty much the same, doesnt con-sole you. All you can do is be toughand stick it out. Hopefully being a

page 2

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Parochial Life | january - february 2006 |

pag. 2

Romanian youth in Austra-lia will soon cease to be sodifferent.

I remember how it felt tomove to a new country.

You were leaving every-thing you knew behind.

Goodbye to friends, fam-ily, a home which youknew like the back of yourhand.

How could you possiblybe expected to cope wheneverything was in this cha-otic state? The first thingyou have to do is learn thelanguage. Although thereare books, cassettes, CDs,I found watching TV to bethe best thing. You pick upthe language without evenknowing it. Following tele-

vision would have to bespeaking to people your

own age, or anyone speak-ing English.

People are very friendlyin Australia and the envi-ronment in which you havesurrounded yourself isbeneficial to you. Therearent any beggars and the

political stagnation whichcaused them, does not ex-

ist. People arent treateddifferently because of theirskin colour, and this dis-

tinction between the coun-

tries really impacts on youas a person. You learn totreat everyone the same,which can only result in awin-win situation. Becauseyou are young, and you

may not understand thecultural difference, yet you

still treat everyone all thesame, which shows thestrength of Australian val-ues.

The harsh juxtapositionof the climate can also cre-ate problems. While youwere used to lower tem-peratures all year round, inAustralia, things are totallythe opposite. Blazing sum-mers, cool winters, whathappened to the freezingcold which was a part ofyour nature?

On top of that going toschool for the first time in

Australia completely con-trasts to what going toschool in Romania feltlike. The teaching style iscompletely different towhat you were used to.Communicating to every-one was hard, and some-

times you even had to goto a special class, which

shattered your self-esteem.Over time though, you be-gin to slowly pick up the

language and things start to

go your way. Your self-esteem picks up as youretaken out of English class(a.k.a. ESL class) and youbegin to make progress.

Out of school life you

have to get used to: look-ing in the opposite direc-

tion when crossing theroad, not watching planeswhen they fly overhead,the soon-to-be hobby ofshopping, the fact thatAustralian culture does notexist when compared toEuropean culture, swim-ming properly, and mostimportantly the unerringfact that traditional Roma-nian holidays arent goingto be the same.

Thankfully, becauseyoure young you over-

come these things easily.Yet there is still one more

thing which cant bechanged, no matter howmuch you want it to be.The endless roaming andfun which was a part ofevery day life is gone. Youhave to get used to beingcooped up in the house,

with technology to enter-tain you. The extra time

you have from finishingthat tiny pile of homeworkis usually filled in by stay-

ing at home.

You might have alsobeen attached to some ofthe animals which yourfamily owned. Because itis extremely hard to buy orrent a house when coming

to Australia the chance ofever replacing those ani-

mals which were left be-hind is pretty slim. Evenowning a pet would be-come a hassle, as the livingspace has decreased.

Another issue which youdid not face before ishomesickness. Missingfamily members, friends,things which you know cancontribute greatly to thepsychological effects ofmoving to another country.And though you do not seethis happening, parents are

also affected by this, al-though they try to hide it.

The best thing to do is totry and not think about itand be glad you have someof your family with you.

Although moving toAustralia seems like such ahuge thing, soon it willbecome your home. You

will grow up in a multicul-tural country which has

some excellent values thewhole world can learn.Very soon, you will begin

to call yourself Australian.

Taking...page 1

Angels everywhereMarika Kalafatis, Sydney

There are angels all around us that

touch our hearts and visit us as peo-ple who come into our lives for a

divine purpose. If we stray awayfrom God he may choose to put

those angels in our path to lead uscloser to himA lot of the time God puts strugglein our path to bring us closer to him.Many people complain and sayWhy do I constantly have struggleand pain in my life, Lord?It is a blessing in disguise.Some people completely forget

about God until they experience a

crisis. God in his infinite wisdom isaware of this. Gods plan for all ofus starts to work for us when westart to pray for help as well as relieffrom struggle. God is merciful

Going to church regularly is food for

the soul. We go to church to worshiphim, to thank him for his protectionand love but most of all to be part ofa Christian community. The churchis the house that God through Christbuilt for us. Start coming to thechurch. Bring your spouses, bringyour children, your brothers, yoursisters, your friends. Bring everyone.This wonderful planet that God de-signed and built is for us to enjoy.

God wants us to enjoy his gifts and

to praise him together as part of aChristian community.God bless you all.

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pag. 3

The readingsThe Apostle: 1 Timothy 1:15-17The Gospel: Luke 18:35-43

The texts speak of the spiritual

awakening.

St Paul was spiritually blind till

he was called by Christ to the light

of the true knowledge. He first

rejected Christ, but now he real-

izes that Christ is the only way of

salvation: Christ Jesus came intothe world to save sinners.

Covered by Christs light, every-

one should awake, realising his/

her sinful, alienated condition. St

Paul considers himself one among

the sinners, and more: of whom I

am the worst. Realising the sinful

condition, hope must flourish, for

our God is truly merciful, giving

light to those believing in him, the

way he did with St Paul: I wasshown mercy so that in me, the

worst of sinners, Christ Jesus

might display his unlimited pa-

tience as an example for those

who would believe on him and

receive eternal life.

For those experiencing the

awakening, there is no other ap-

propriate way of expressing the

greatness of God but by doxology/

glorification: Now to the King

eternal, immortal, invisible, the

only God, be honour and glory for

ever and ever. Amen. Doxology

reveals a renewed conscience,

built upon the criteria of Christs

good news of the kingdom/eternal

life.

Metaphorically, this is what hap-

pened with the blind man of Jeri-

cho, and as usually the Apostles

reading plays the key for decipher-

ing the ecclesial meaning of theGospel.

The blind man of Jericho had the

opportunity not only to experiencethe bodily healing of his sight, but

the inner healing of his soul/

conscience. His doxology tells

everything about this inner proc-

ess: immediately he received his

sight and followed Jesus, praising

God.

The meeting of Christ and the

blind man becomes here, in the

liturgy, and scrutinised from the

point of view of the Apostle, aparable. The allusion to the prime-

val event of Adam and Eve experi-

encing the opening of their eyes

(cf. Genesis 3:7) is transparent. In

fact, the paradisaical ancestors

represent, in the ecclesial mind,

the antithesis of the awakening.

The Scripture speaks ironically of

their loss of spiritual sight. Now

the blind man of Jericho paradoxi-

cally represents both the result andthe antithesis of Adam and Eve.

He represents the result, because

his myopia is the ultimate conse-

quence of the fall; he represents

the antithesis, because bodily

blind he looked for the Light of

the world, Jesus (cf. John 8:12).

What should have happen to the

ancestors becomes now reality: the

sight/contemplation of the Tree of

Life, Jesus.

We all need to experience awak-

ening in order to meet Christ (that

is we must start practise virtue, a

process of renewing our mind and

life), but the true awakening is to

meet Christ. No one could experi-

ence this process if one wants to

keep attached by his/her old hab-

its. Awakening takes the courage

of living everyday the new oppor-

tunities of understanding and liv-

ing, in Christs light. When allthe people saw it, they also praised

God.

Sunday, 22 January 2006

Meditation on the texts read

during the liturgyBy Revd Dr Doru Costache

Spirited love!!Simona Strungaru

(14) (Sydney)

On a mid summers day the

country is bare,And the warm summers

wind plays through my

blonde hair.

I lie on the grass and ad-mire the view,

When a sudden creature

makes its way through.

His shoulders are broad and

his body is firm,

His long hair is muffled yet

his features are stern.He approaches with cau-

tion and calls out my name,

While I stare in his eyes and

wonder from where he

came.

He stands there beside me,

watching my moves,

While his gentle aroma,

makes me want to snooze.

His unspoken words showme his home,

And his loving caress feels

like sugar filled foam.

We ride in the sunset, his

black coat shines

And in that split second I

knew he was mine.

We stop and rest and ad-

mire the sky,

As my heart thumps fast

beats a million at a time.I tell him I love him while I

fondle his back,Lets never part and that

was our pact.

We headed back home,

while he took out the lead,

As I thought the rest of the

night, of my fairytale steed.

The spirited stallion, the king

of the land,

The ride of my life, thememory that will never

end!!!

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pag. 4

the Fathers of the Church

St Basil the Great (329-379)Vicki Petrakis, Sydney

He was an orator among orators,

even before the chair of the rhetori-cians, a philosopher among philoso-

phers, even before the doctrines of

philosophers: and what constitutes

the highest tribute in the eyes of

Christians he was a priest even be-

fore the priesthood.1 Our holy fa-

ther among the saints, St Basil was

one of ten children of St Basil the

Elder and St Emmelia. Four of his

nine brothers and sisters were also

saints as well as his grandmother StMacrina the Elder3. In his lifetime,

he was a successful orator and law-

yer, a monk, he became a priest and

eventually a Bishop and then

Archbishop of Caesarea. His contri-

butions to the Church were many.

He ranks with St Athanasius as a

great defender of the Church

against the heresies of the fourth

century. Along with his friend

Gregory the Theologian and his

brother Gregory of Nyssa, he isidentified as one of the three

Cappadocians.

Basil studied in most of the fa-

mous schools of his day, in

Caesarea, Athens and Constantin-

ople. After completing his studies,

he opened a school of oratory

(public speaking) and became a

lawyer. He became well known for

his teaching and speaking abilities.

He was so successful, and so popu-lar as a speaker that his brother St

Gregory records how Basil was be-

coming overconfident on account of

his rhetorical abilities and univer-

sity achievements. Having been

taught by his family that pride was

dangerous because it takes ones

thoughts away from Gods mercy,

he turned to Holy Scripture and

abandoned his previous life and

turned his gaze to the heavens.

He became a monk and undertook

the systematising of religious life

by writing a set of rules for mo-

nastic life that are still used today.

His question, What is more

blessed than to imitate on earth thechoir of angels? was answered by

him in this life, practically when he

chose to distribute his property to

the poor and retire to ascetic life so

that he could teach his heart how to

unlearn the prejudices and still the

passions. He lived poorly, pos-

sessed one garment, ate bread and

water only and occasionally in-

cluded salt and roots from plants. St

Basil founded a monastery inPontus and directed it and his fel-

low monks for five years. After

founding several other monasteries,

St Basil was finally ordained priest

in 364; a position which he ac-

cepted reluctantly and in 370 he

became Bishop of Caesarea.

His friendship for the poor was

enduring in an age distinguished by

saints. Accordingly he founded a

hospital treating the sick and dis-

tributing food to the poor whichbecame known after him as the

Basiliad. He gave many battles for

the orthodox faith and with firm-

ness and courage he refuted the

heretics. He taught the ascetic way

of life, he made plain the theory of

beings and he guided his flock to

Christ. In his post as bishop, he

spoke and taught against the heresy

of Arianism; which fought against

the term homoousios in reference toChrists identical nature to the Fa-

ther2. The denunciation of the Ma-

cedonian heresy (denying the divin-

ity of the Holy Spirit) at the Coun-

cil of Constantinople in 381-82 was

in large measure due to his efforts.

Basil fought simony, aided the vic-

tims of drought and famine, strove

for a better clergy, insisted on a

rigid clerical discipline, fearlessly

denounced evil wherever he de-

tected it, and excommunicated

those involved in the widespread

prostitution traffic in Cappadocia.

He was a statesman and a person

of great personal holiness, and one

of the great orators of Christianity.He was a man of great learning,

ceaseless activity, eloquence and

charity. Admired and respected in

his life time, as a representative of

Gods Truth, he was called Great

and named a Father of the Church

after his death at the early age of

50.

He is remembered by the Church

on 1st and 30th January. One of the

liturgies performed in the OrthodoxChurch is attributed to him.

1 St Gregory the Theologian wrote these

words for St Basils repose, cited in The

Lives of the Three Great Hierarchs: Basil

the Great, Gregory the Theologian and

John Chrysostom (Colorado: Holy Apos-

tles Convent, 1998), 5.2These included, St Makrina; St Peter,

Archbishop of Sebastia; St Gregory, Met-

ropolitan of Nyssa; and St Naukratios, an

ascetic and wonder-working saint.3

St Basil accepted the term homoousios in

reference to the Son but qualified it by the

words, like in essence. In time St Basil

further fine tuned his reply to the Arians,citing Scripture (John 14:28) he replied

that the Son was indeed unlike the Father

and that by the words, My Father is

greater than I He reveals to us that Godthe Father is beyond knowing but that His

Son as Logos defined Jesus truly as God

and equal to the Father.

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pag. 5

St Gregory the Theologian em-

phatically proclaimed the truth of thedivinity and the homoousia (onenessin essence), of the Holy Spirit withinthe Holy Trinity: God is Father, Sonand Holy Spirit, Trinity of one es-

sence and inseparable as we sing atevery Divine Liturgy. His theologywould have the desired lasting effectthat he had hoped for however, as hereturned to Cappadocia in 381 AD,

following the Second EcumenicalCouncil of Constantinople, bitter

from his experience, he knew littleof the great impact that his theologi-

cal orations would have on the lifeand understanding of the OrthodoxChurch. It is for this reason that theOrthodox Church has given him thetitle The Theologian, a title whichhe shares with only two other Saints,the Apostle John and St Symeon theNew Theologian.

St Gregory was a prolific writerand it is through his own autobio-graphical works, poems and lettersthat so much is known about his life.St Gregory was born into an aristo-

cratic family in 329/330 AD in thecity of Karbala, which was one of

the family estates at Arianzen nearNazianzus in South West Cappado-cia. His mother, St Nonna, was aChristian and his father, St Gregory,was the Bishop of Nazianzus, havingbeen converted to Christianity by his

wife. It was through St Nonnassteadfast faith that St Gregory was

initially influenced in his own Chris-tian faith.

Due to his familys affluence, theexpectation was that St Gregorywould be well educated and he hadthe opportunity to study in some ofthe great schools of the time. He

studied rhetoric at the university inCaesarea which was established by

Origen. It was here that he first met

St Basil the Great, of Caesarea. Hisfriendship with St Basil would belong and arduous, describing theirfriendship as being of one soul,

only separated in body. He contin-

ued his studies at the great city ofAlexandria, but it was in Athens thathe really flourished, arriving in 348AD. His stay in Athens lasted 10years during which time he devel-

oped and honed his rhetorical skillsand he was exposed to everythingthat a Greek philosophical educationcould give, while remaining stead-fastly Christian.

On his reluctant return to Cappa-docia, he was eventually coerced

into the priesthood by his father. StGregory had wanted to live a monas-

tic life of peaceful meditation. How-ever he resisted St Basils attemptsat persuading him into the monasticlife, since he was opposed to StBasils idea of monasticism, whichcentred on physical labour. He hadalso rejected any career in rhetoricthat would remove him from his

Christian roots, and his father sawthis as an opportunity for the churchto gain a rhetorician of great quality.After his ordination he fled to Pontusto be consoled by his friend, St

Basil, who eventually convinced himto face up to his responsibility as a

presbyter of the church and return toNazianzus. It was in 372 AD, that StBasil, now the Bishop of Caesarea,with the aid of St Gregorys father,persuaded him to be ordained theBishop of Sasima, an insignificant

village in Cappadocia.At this time the majority of the

Eastern Christian Empire, and thecapital, Constantinople, was Arian.The Arians believed in the heresythat the Son was a creation of theFather and that there was a timewhen the Son did not exist. In 379AD Theodosius, a staunch follower

of the true Nicene faith of the Ortho-dox Church was crowned emperor.

Theodosius was preparing to enter

Constantinople for the first time asEmperor, and would follow this withreligious reforms, reinstating andreinforcing the Nicene faith as the

state religion. St Gregory was asked

to be a missionary Bishop to Con-stantinople, in order to prepare theway for Theodosius arrival.

Thus at the age of fifty, St Gregorytravelled to Constantinople in order

to resurrect the Nicene faith. From379 to 381 AD St Gregory wrote andpresented his most profound works.During his short stay in Constantin-ople he prepared and delivered

twenty two of his forty two orations,and composed many epistles and

poems. Among his orations were thefive theological orations, as they are

now known (orations 27-31). Thesefive theological orations are the pri-mary reason that St Gregory isknown as the Theologian,par ex-cellence, within the OrthodoxChurch. It is the theology withinthese orations which the doctrine ofthe Church is based on.

On his arrival in Constantinople heestablished a house church fromwhere he preached. He called thechurch the Anastasia, having the twofold meaning of the resurrection of

the Lord and the resurrection of theNicene faith in Constantinople and

the Eastern Empire.To many of the people in Constan-

tinople he was considered a provin-cial with an odd Cappadocian ac-cent, who was attempting to make aname for himself in the capital. The

Arian Bishop of Constantinople, De-mophilus, and the clergy of the capi-

tal ignored his existence, however itwasnt long before they sensed a realthreat. The local population of Con-stantinople were mainly Arian andthe crowds were initially hostile to-wards St Gregory, although his ora-tions were well attended by the few

Nicene faithful left in the city. Dur-ing a baptismal service held during

Pascha of 380, the church of Anasta-

sia was attacked by an angry neo-Arian mob. There was also an assas-sination attempt on St Gregorys life.

page 7

the Fathers of the Church

The Life of St Gregory the TheologianKelly Anna Tsoi, Melbourne

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pag. 6

The silence on the Holy Mountain

invites the ascetic to contemplate, tobe temperate, silent and in constant

prayer; to love God in other words.Here in the world all this seems sofar awaythe noises of city life, thedemands of work and family, orother obligations and yet, it is pre-cisely from this point, to quote StSilouan (1866-1938) of the HolyMountain that we should understand

that, no man of himself can knowwhat is Gods love, unless he betaught of the Holy Spirit; love isknown in our Church through theHoly Spirit, and so we speak of thislove. (Cf. Archimandrite Sophrony,Wisdom from Mount Athos The Writ-

ings of Staretz Silouan 1866-1938(Crestwood, NY: St Vladimirs Semi-

nary Press, 1995), 26.)

As Christians we should not de-spair if matters pertaining to thespiritual life are difficult to pursue orindeed if sometimes it is difficult topray. Who indeed has time with ourbusy lives to sit in contemplation, toread, to pray as much as we should,even though St Paul advises us topray without ceasing (1 Thessaloni-ans 5:17). However, St Silouan hasleft us some rules about the practiceof our faith, showing us how in sim-ple everyday life we may invite theHoly Spirit and in turn Jesus Christinto our lives. Let us look at some of

these basic principles.St Silouan tells us, the Lord is

love; and He commanded us to loveone another and to love our enemies;and the Holy Spirit teaches us this

love (Ibidem, 20). How simpleone may say! If we love everyonewe are on the right trackand yet

how difficult is it to love everyoneeven though love amongst those pro-fessing to be Christians and whatsmore amongst those professing to beOrthodox Christians is the basis ofwho we are.

The first words St Silouan intro-duces above is that the Lord islove. Who amongst us is capable ofsacrificing our child for the sake of

another and yet God does. God so

loved the world that He gave up Hisonly begotten Son (John 3:16). Our

mind cannot comprehend Gods lovebecause it is given to us freely andout of His goodness. All those greatmen and women throughout theages, the prophets, disciples, apos-tles, martyrs, hermits etc. who haveworked and lived in the name of theLord have operated within love and

their lives have been filled with loveas guided by the Holy Spirit. There-fore, if as St Silouan tells us thatthe Lord is love, then to be in theLord and to be working and cooper-ating with Him on a daily basis wetoo must be functioning within the

Lord; that is thinking and actingaround this love. Only then can we

say as St Paul says, I no longer live,but Christ lives in me (Galatians2:20).

That God is love then is grantedbut to invite God into our lives wemust love one another, as St Si-

louan tells us above and furtherlove our enemies! He places em-phasis on loving our enemies be-cause to love one another may beeasy, but to love ones enemies is tofind favour with God. In the saintswords:

Here are tokens: If you battlefirmly against sin the Lord loves

you. If you love your enemies youare even more beloved of God. Andif you lay down your life for others

you are greatly beloved of the lord,who Himself laid down His life for

us (Ibidem, 20).Of course we are not in this day

and age asked to sacrifice or lay

down our lives for anyone. We ac-knowledge the Cross of Christ as ourgift from the Father, through theSon, however we are asked to liveour lives in cooperation with theHoly Spirit. The life giving Cross isindeed our passage to a resurrected

life here and after death, but it isonly a life lived in the Holy Spiritthat may ultimately secure this pas-sage. Let us look at this further.

Loving one another and loving ourenemies is a task that can only belived out by those having a humblespirit. As St Silouan says, Humbleyourself beneath the strong hand of

God, and grace will be your

teacher (Ibidem, 20). Nurturing ahumble spirit allows us to love ourfellow humans because we are nolonger puffed with our own self im-portance but we see the other person

as important as ourselves, and in thecase of our enemy as the person who

is in greater need of finding theLord; after all, who truly is our en-emy but another face of ChristLoving our neighbour and our en-emy is agreeable with God and pre-sents itself as an opportunity for manto cooperate with the Holy Spiritbecause, as St Silouan says, theHoly Spirit teaches us this love. Dowe seek to be guided by the HolySpirit and to know God through theHoly Spirit? It seems that God is

willing to work with us; are ourhearts cultivated in order to receiveHim? St Silouan teaches that if we

wish to arrive at this love with thehelp of the Holy Spirit we must

hate sin and wrong

thoughts (Ibidem, 21). Let us thenbury thoughts and vicious move-ments of the mind that lead to sin

and death, and ultimately to the lossof grace; lets bury the hate for our

fellow friends; after all, what is itthat the Lord asks us to divide andshare in order that we should livepower and wealth, or the Bread ofLife?

St Silouan A Man of the HeartVicki Petrakis, Sydney

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pag. 7

However St Gregory showed re-straint, patience, kindness and lovetowards all those who fought againsthim. He believed that it was betterto be patient and to give an example

of patience to many by [his] suffer-

ings (Epistle 77). After strugglingwith these difficulties, the violencetowards him and his congregationeventually settled down into a verbaland intellectual battle, which suitedSt Gregory well.

In 381 AD he was ordainedArchbishop of Constantinople, andfound himself presiding over theSecond Ecumenical Council. Afterattempting to guide and control theproceedings, and those attending the

council, he resigned from his posi-tion in exasperation. St Gregory wasa sensitive soul who was not cut outfor ecclesiastical politics.He had

been greatly disappointed; not onlyby the infighting among the Bishops

but also at the lack of convictionwhich many of the attendees, mostlyBishops, had with regard to a cate-gorical proclamation of the Spirit asGod. However the emphasis whichhe had placed on the importance ofarticulating the theology and deity ofthe Holy Spirit is reflected in therevised Creed which was ratified atthis council. The text on the Holy

Spirit in the Creed was expanded,and has not been altered to this daywithin the Orthodox Church.

In 381 AD St Gregory was pres-sured into resigning from his posi-tion as Archbishop of Constantin-

ople, after which he retired to Na-

zianzus, where he administered hisfathers church until a suitable re-placement could be found. In 384AD and with increasingly ill health,he retired to his estate in Arianzum.It was during this time, whilst livinga secluded monastic life, that hewrote vast amounts of poetry. It iswithin his poems that his sensitivityand humanity comes through. Theyshow his struggle with life and hislove for God. He was steadfast and

passionate about his beliefs, some-times angry, and he was unwaveringto the point of stubbornness, as aChristian ought to be about the

Truth.It was sometime between 389 and

391 AD that St Gregory fell asleepin the Lord, leaving behind a lastingtheological legacy. In 451 AD StGregory was designated The Theo-logian by the Fourth EcumenicalCouncil of Chalcedon. His relicswere at rest in Constantinople untilthe siege of the city in 1204 ADwhen they were taken to Rome.They were at rest in the Vatican until

22 November 2004, when they werereturned to the Patriarchate of Con-stantinople in a gesture of love bythe Roman Catholic Church. Thefeast day of St Gregory the Theolo-gian is January 25th and he is also

remembered on the feast day of the

Three Holy Hierarchs, January 30th

,along with St Basil the Great and StJohn Chrysostom.

[For further reading on St Gregoryslife, see John McGuckin, Saint

Gregory of Nazianzus. An intellec-tual biography. Crestwood, NY:SVS Press, 2001.]

The Life...page 5

Scripture is a mother. Nei-

ther a teacher nor a preachertrying to instruct you in someintellectually consistent way,but a mother feeding you withher sweet warm life-givingbreast.

Scripture does not teachyou doctrine but it speaks oflife and how to live it.

Scripture is a mother; youcannot approach it using thelens of the scholar because

in doing that you will kill itsspirit and you will kill yourspirit.

Our brother in Christ, the

Brazilian Jew Rubem Alvesencourages us to approachthe Scripture by our mouth,not through our sight. Theeyes are connected to thebrain, while the mouth is thedoor of our being, thus en-compassing the brain itself. Ifyou approach the Scriptureby your eyes and your brain,you will vainly wait to be ableto live it. Of course, you could

become a Bible scholar ormaybe someone very proudof her/his biblical knowledge,

always quoting the Bible

against those who are spiritu-ally feeding themselves fromthe life-giving breast.

One has to move beyondany scholar prejudices andapproach Scripture like ababy looking for the breast.One has to learn how to ex-tract the milk and not to lookfor ideas. Approaching Scrip-ture represents a eucharisticact.

Of course, for those ac-quainted with the Scriptureand the fathers of the

Church, maybe the term milk

is not satisfactory. Well, theycould use instead of milk StMaximus three terms: thebody, the blood, and thebones (Questions to Thalas-sius 53). The idea neverthe-less remains the same feeding, not reading; living,not arguing.

In the end, and eucharisti-cally speaking, reading theScripture is to spiritually eat

the body that previously gaveyou milk (like in Revelation10:9).

The Scripture Is a Mother:Reading the Bible in a Eucharistic WayRevd Doru Costache

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pag. 9

On Thursday the 5th of January

2006, our Parish Sunday schoolof St Marys had went to the City

for an excursion.

Well first we had to walk to Par-

ramatta River to catch the river

cat ferry to get to the City. Then

the ferry took us to Circular Quay

and there we saw the Harbour

Bridge and the Opera House.

As soon as we got to Circular

Quay we saw an Aboriginal man

playing the didgeridoo; we

watched him for 2 minutes he

was very talented. Then from

there we walked to the Opera

House and we saw a beautiful site

of the Harbour Bridge.

Then we went to Darling Har-

bour, where we got somefood and ate lunch.

Then we walked to the

shops and there was an

arcade room. Then from

the shops we caught train

from Town Hall and we

got off at Parramatta sta-

tion and looked around in

the shops.

This is how our trip to the City

was and ended. Id like to thank

Father Doru and our two new

teachers at Sunday school, Ms

Marika and Ms Vicki. I had fun

on this excursion and it was a

great experience.

The Sunday schools

excursion to the CityAdrian Cruceanu(12) (Sydney)

Australia DayLily Strungaru, Sydney

Australia Day, January 26, is thebiggest day of celebration in thecountry and is observed as a public

holiday in all states and territories.On Australia Day we come together

as a nation to celebrate whats great

about Australia and being Austra-lian. Its the day to reflect on whatwe have achieved and what we canbe proud of in our great nation. Itsalso the day for all of us to re-commit to making Australia an even

better place for the future.

The first celebrations were held onJanuary 26, 1788, when Captain Ar-thur Phillip took formal possessionof the colony of New South Wales

and became its first Governor. Thefledging colony soon began to cele-brate the anniversary of this date.Historian Manning Clarke notes that

in 1808, the anniversary of thefoundation of the colony was ob-

served in the traditional manner with

drinking and merriment.

The first official celebrations how-

ever, were held in 1818, to mark the30th anniversary of white settlement.Governor Macquarie officiated at a

thirty-gun salute during the day anda dinner ball at Government House.

While the historical aspects of theday are always acknowledged, there

is now a greater awareness of theneed to celebrate contemporary Aus-tralia with our diversity, remarkable

achievements and bright future.

There are many great things aboutthis country: firstly the people - thelife savers on the beach and thefarmers in the bush; the larrikins,our sporting heroes, artists and vi-

sionaries; the volunteers who dedi-cate their lives to others; the spirit of

pulling together in hard times andachieving beyond expectation; theAustralians from all walks of life,the battlers and the ordinary Austra-

lians who are anything but ordinary.

Our land fragile yet enduring;

harsh and extreme, lush and bounti-

ful, a continent like no other.

Our diversity a nation of differ-

ence and unity. People from the city,

the country, different nations andbackgrounds; we are one people,living together.Through our diversebeliefs and experienceswe learn from eachother and grow to-

gether.

Our indigenous cul-tures the rich spiritu-ality; the knowledge,art and history. Abo-riginal and TorresStrait Islander peoplesare all part of Austra-

lias identity and cul-

ture.

Australia is a society built on funda-mental rights and responsibilities,freedom of thought and expression.Participation in government, respectfor and equality under the law whooffers a fair go for all. Above allAustralians have an enduring spiritof mateship and fairness, who live in

a land of opportunity where any-

thing is possible.

Australia day today is a community

day. With formal ceremonies aroundthe country, flag raising, citizenshipceremonies and the presentation ofcommunity awards, combined withlocal events and fun activities, the

day belongs to the people. It shouldalso serve as a reminder to us all,that we are blessed to live in thislucky country, and like the Aussie

song goes: I still call Australiahome.

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editor:

Rev. Doru Costache, PhDlayout design:

Ion Nedelcu (Bucharest)address:

64 Linthorn Ave,Croydon Park,

NSW 2133.phone: (02) 9642 02 60

www.geocities.com/sfmaria_sydney


pag. 10

The Australian Flag came into

being after the federation of the

Australian States into the Com-monwealth of Australia on 1st

January, 1901. In April 1901, the

then Prime Minister Edmund

Barton announced a competition

for the design of a federal flag.

Over 32,000 entries were re-

ceived containing a wonderful

diversity of images and symbol-

ism, with one entry depicting na-

tive animals playing cricket with

a winged cricket ball.

Seven judges representing Army,

Navy, Mercantile Marine, Pilot

Services and Parliament, unani-

mously chose five identical win-

ning designs, and thus was pro-

duced the the flag of stars.

The design that was chosen was

rich in symbolism that still speaksto Australians today. The Com-

monwealth Star with six points

representing the States and the

seventh point which was added in

1908 to represent Australias ter-

ritories symbolises the unity of

the Australian nation. The Union

Jack acknowledges our historical

links with Great Britain. TheSouthern Cross, a constellation

seen only in the night skies of the

Southern Hemisphere, is a strik-

ing and evocative symbol for our

location in the world.

The Australian National Flag

should be displayed only in a

manner befitting the national em-

blem: it should not be subjected

to indignity, nor displayed in aposition inferior to any other flag

or ensign. It should always be

flown aloft and free. Flying the

Australian Flag is a way of exhib-

iting pride in our nation and re-

spect for our heritage.

International Year of Deserts and

Desertification 2006The United Nations has declared 2006the International Year of Deserts and Desertification

Nationally, the Department of

the Environment and Heritage is

the Australian focal point for the

United Nations Convention on

Deserts and Desertification

(CCD), and in this capacity, is

inviting organisations and com-munities to register activities for

inclusion in Australias calendar

of events for the International

Year of Deserts and Desertifica-

tion.

The year will highlight the grow-

ing threat that desertification

represents for humans, and cele-

brate the unique ecosystem and

cultural diversity of deserts

worldwide.

A website has been created toannounce the event. Your help in

promoting the event through

your networks would be appreci-

ated. For more information see:

http://www.deh.gov.au/events/iy

dd/index.html

THE AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL FLAGLily Strungaru, Sydney

"Have faith in God. For most cer-

tainly I tell you, whoever may tell

this mountain, 'Be taken up and

cast into the sea,' and doesn'tdoubt in his heart, but believes

that what he says is happening;

he shall have whatever he says.

Therefore I tell you, all things

whatever you pray and ask for,

believe that you have received

them, and you shall have them.

Whenever you stand praying,

forgive, if you have anything

against anyone; so that your

Father, who is in heaven, may

also forgive you your transgres-

sions. But if you do not forgive,

neither will your Father in

heaven forgive your

transgressions."

(Mark 11, 22-26)

Documents

01 Jan-Feb 06