13-19 Sun Day of the Holy Fathers of the Seven Ecumenical Councils

8/14/2019 13-19 Sun Day of the Holy Fathers of the Seven Ecumenical Councils

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TheSundayoftheHolyFathersoftheSevenEcumenicalCouncils


WhichtheHolyChurchCelebratesontheSundayFallingBetweenJuly1319.1

OntheSundaythatfallsfromthe13thtothe19thofthepresentmonth,wechant

the Service to the Holy and Godbearing Fathers who came together in the Seven

EcumenicalCouncils, that is: theFirstCouncil, of the 318 Fatherswho assembled in

Niceain325tocondemnArius,whodeniedthattheSonofGodisconsubstantialwith

theFather;

the

Fathers

of

the

First

Council

also

ordained

that

the

whole

Church

should

celebratePaschaaccordingtothesamereckoning;theSecondCouncilofthe150Fathers

who assembles in Constantinople in 381 to condemn Macedonius, Patriarch of

Constantinople,whodeniedthedivinityoftheHolySpirit;theThirdCouncilofthe200

Fathers who assembled in Ephesus in 431, to condemn Nestorius, Patriarch of

1IntheRussianusage,onlythefirstsixCouncilsarecommemoratedtoday.

TheHolyOrthodoxMetropolisofBoston


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Constantinople, who called Christ amere man and not God incarnate; the Fourth

Council, of the 630who assembled inChalcedon in 451, to condemnEutyches,who

taught that therewasonlyonenature, thedivine, inChristafter the Incarnation,and

Dioscorus, Patriarch of Alexandria, who illegally received Eutyches back into

communionanddeposedSaintFlavian,PatriarchofConstantinople,whohaddeposed

Eutyches; the FifthCouncil in 525, of the 165who assembled inConstantinople the

secondtime,tocondemnOrigen andTheodoreofMopsuestia,theteacherofNestorius;

theSixthCouncilin680,ofthe170whoassembledinConstantinopleforthethirdtime,

tocondemn theMonotheliteheresy,which taught that there is inChristbutonewill,

thedivine;andtheSeventhCouncilin787,ofthe350whoassembledinNiceaforthe

secondtimetocondemnIconoclasm.

TheResurrectionDismissalHymnandKontakionoftheToneoftheWeekDismissalHymn.PlagalofFourthTone

OSTglorifiedartThou,OChristourGod,WhohastestablishedourFathersas

luminousstarsupon theearth,and through themdidstguideusall to the true

Faith.OMostMercifulOne,glorybetoThee.

M

AnotherDismissalHymn.FirstToneWhileGabrielwassaying

Efaithful, letushonor theSevenHolyCouncils,*whichChristGod theWisdom

has

set

as

His

houses

seven

pillars;

*

through

them

we

have

all

received

unchanged*theundefiledtraditionsoftheFaith.*Asouranchor,weholdfasttotheir

rightdecrees,*whilecryinguntotheFathers:*GlorytoHimthatilluminedyouall.*

GlorytoHimthatmagnifiedyou.*GlorytoHimthathathstrengthenedtheOrthodox

Faiththroughyou.

Y

Kontakion.PlagalofFourthTone

HEpreachingof theApostlesand thedoctrinesof theFathersconfirmed theone

FaithintheChurch.Andwearingthegarmentoftruthwovenfromthetheologyon

high,she

rightly

divideth

and

glorifieth

the

great

mystery

of

piety.

TTexts:TheGreatHorologion1997TheHolyTransfigurationMonasteryBrookline,Massachusetts02445and

TheMenaion2006TheHolyTransfigurationMonasteryBrookline,Massachusetts02445IconcourtesyofTheHolyTransfigurationMonasteryBrookline,Massachusetts02445



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The Icon Not Made By Hands

(SeeAugust16)

With

the

condemnation

of

Iconoclasm

at

the

Seventh

Ecumenical

Council

in

Nicea

787,

the350GodbearingFathersnotonlyexplicitlyconfirmed theprecedingSixCouncils

andtheirCanonsbutalso,sincetheytaughtnothingnew,reaffirmedineverydetailthe

content,bothwrittenandunwritten,ofApostolicTradition.

TheIconoftheHolyFace,ortheHolyNapkin,isthesummitoftheworkoftheholy

FathersoftheSevenEcumenicalCouncils.Explicitistheconfirmationthatthemaking

ofholyIconsisperfectlyconcordantwiththeApostolicpreachingsincethegiftofthe

IconsconfirmsthetrueandnotimaginaryincarnationofGodtheWord(TheDefinitionoftheHolyGreatandOecumenicCouncil,theSecondAssembledatNice,quotedinTheSeventhGeneralCouncil,tr.J.Mendham;LondonWm.Ed.Painter,342Strand;1850,p.439).

TheFathers

meeting

at

Nicea

for

the

second

time

in

787

proclaim

that

all

that

the

ChurchteachesanddoesrestsuponholyTradition.WeaffirmthatwepreserveallthetraditionsoftheChurchwhichhavebeenhandeddowntousin

her,whetherwrittenorunwritten,without innovation;ofwhichone is the formationofrepresentative

images,whichisperfectlyconcordantwiththehistoryoftheevangelicalpreachingintheconformationof

thetrueandnotimaginaryincarnationofGodtheWord,andwhichconducesnolesstoedificationthan

theother.Forthosethingswhicharemutuallyillustrativeofeachotherhavemutuallytheirimpressions

fromeachother(Ibid,p.439).



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WhentheApostlespreachedthatJesusChristhadfulfilledeachprophecycontained

in theCanonical Scriptures as found in theGodbreathed Septuagint relating to the

Messiah,theApostlesdeclareJesusChristtobetheexpectationofnations(Gen.49:11

LXX).SaintDavidseesChristsgloryandcriesout,Godshallcomevisibly,yea,our

God,andshallnotkeepsilence(Ps.49:3LXX).SpeakingwiththeambassadorsofKing

AbgarofEdessa,afflictedwithleprosy,theLordChristtakesawettowel,driesHisface

withit,andthenhandsitovertotheKingsartistwhowasunabletocapturetheLords

faceonpaper,suffusedasitwaswithlight.WhenthisNapkintouchedtheAbgar,the

Kingwas,exceptforaspotonhisforehead,healedofhisleprosybytheHolyNapkin.

IntheIconnotmadebyhandswenoeticallyadore,inverydeed,thehypostasis,or

person,of theSonofGod.WedonotseeHishumannaturealone;weseeHisdivine

andhumannaturesunconfusedlyunitedintheonehypostasisoftheSonofGod.Our

eyesbeholdChrist,LightofLight,TrueGodofTrueGod,begotten,notmade,onein

essencewith theFather.Through this iconour eyes are elevated to adore theHoly

Trinityfor

the

Holy

Spirit

is

also

consubstantial

with

the

Father.

TodaywebeholdtheSonofGodWhomAdamsawintheGardenofEden,andthen

lost sight ofHim through sin.Whenwe hear, By theWord of the Lordwere the

heavens established and all themight of themby the Spirit ofHismouth (Ps. 32:6

LXX),thewordsoftheProphetDavidproclaimthebeginningofallthingsinGodthe

Father,and theSon,and theHolySpirit.Wesee in the Iconof theHolyNapkinOur

ChristWho is Theanthropos, GodWho has forever unitedHimselfwith our humannatureinthewombofHisVirginMother,ourPanagia.Inherwombourbloodbecame

united,without anymingling,withhisBlood in such away that thismiracle of the

Incarnation,

never

to

be

repeated,

is

outside

the

power

of

either

human

thought

or

speech.We,byfaith,areHis,andHeisours.

OursoulsarecreatedbyourSaviourandthenunitedwithahumanbodyafterthat

bodyisformedinourmotherswomb.Everymotherswombholdsahumansouland

body,whosedestinyistobecomegod,afterGod,sosaytheholyFathers.

OurLordtookourhumanwillanduniteditwithHisDivinewillsothatthrough

thisunionourwillscanbedeifiedandsaved,first in theChurchsBaptismand then,

throughoutourlivesintheChurchsmyriadmysteries.AllthisHedidforusmenand

foroursalvation;Hediedourdeathsothat,inthemysteriesofChurch,wemaylive

HisLife.Owonder!ourdyinglifeistransfiguredbyandbecomesunitedwithHisown

lifegiving

Life.

We have spoken, in narrative form, of the victories of the first Six Ecumenical

Councils. In 787 the 350 Fathers of the SeventhCouncil atNicea confirm that these

doctrinesand the Iconof theHolyFacearegrounded inoneholyTradition.Wespell

out in the texts of theGospel thewonders of our salvation, andwe also show our

salvation in the first IconofChrist, theholyNapkin, toadyingworldso that it, too,

may be summoned to life in Christ. Our salvation comes from the true and not



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imaginary incarnation of God theWord as the holy Fathers proclaim. The Holy

NapkinshowstoallthisApostolicTruth:ifHedidnottakefleshandbecome,inHisflesh,depictable,wecouldnotusecolorsandpaintHimaswedo.Hetrulytookourfleshandsowehaveicons.

TheKontakionoftheSundayofOrthodoxy,whichwaspennedontheverymoment

theSaintTheodora theEmpress (whose relicsare incorrupt inCorfu)proclaimed the

VictoryofOrthodoxy,closeswiththesewords:Asforus,confessingoursalvation,we

recorditindeedandword.

TheMandylion(theHolyNapkin)isarecordofoursalvationasadeed.Hebecameman,saySs.IrenaeusandAthanasiustheGreat,thatwemightbecomegod.HeisGod

bynature;wearegodsonlybyadoptionandgrace.HehumbledHimselftowrapour

flesharoundHiminthewombofHisVirginMother;Hetookafacethatwemightsee

HimfacetofaceanddrawuntoldpowerfromthevisionofHim.

MyheartsaiduntoThee:IwillseektheLord.MyfacehathsoughtafterThee;Thy

face,O

Lord

will

Iseek(Ps.26:9

LXX).

Beloved,

He

is

the

only

One

Who

loves

us;

He

wearsour face.HeopensHismouthand,withahumanvoice,speakswordswecan

understand.We do not hear claps of thunder from amountain, nor is our vision

darkenedbyclouds.Hewishestodrawnearinlove,sothatwemayrespondtoHimin

loveby puttingHim on in Baptism, andby eating and drinking Him in the holy

MysteriesofHisBodyandBlood.

Doesitcome to this...thatwecannotgetenoughofHim?Dowemake theChurch

ourhomeandourhomesaChurch? Therearemanyways inwhich toworkonour

Transfigurationhereso thatwhenHeappears, thosewho loveHisappearingwillbe

recognized

by

Him

by

their

likeness

to

Him.

May

that

likeness

be

a

likeness

in

every

way,lackingnothingofHiminussothatwemaybeabletoabidebeforethefaceof

Godintheagetocome(Ps.60:7LXX).

AndtoourGodbeglory.

Our Most HolyTheotokos of the Sign

Saint Gregory MonasteryKelseyville CA 95451

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13-19 Sun Day of the Holy Fathers of the Seven Ecumenical Councils