Apostle and Evangelist St. Mark

The Holy Apostle and Evangelist Mark, also known as John Mark (Acts 12:12), was one of the Seventy Apostles, and was also a nephew of St Barnabas (June 11). He was born at Jerusalem.

The house of his mother Mary adjoined the Garden of Gethsemane. As Church Tradition relates, on the night that Christ was betrayed he followed after Him, wrapped only in a linen cloth. He was seized by soldiers, and fled away naked, leaving the cloth behind (Mark 14:51-52). After the Ascension of the Lord, the house of his mother Mary became a place where Christians gathered, and a place of lodging for some of the Apostles (Acts 12:12).

St Mark was a very close companion of the Apostles Peter and Paul (June 29) and Barnabas. St Mark was at Seleucia with Paul and Barnabas, and from there he set off to the island of Cyprus, and he traversed the whole of it from east to west. In the city of Paphos, St Mark witnessed the blinding of the sorcerer Elymas by St Paul (Acts 13:6-12).

After working with the Apostle Paul, St Mark returned to Jerusalem, and then went to Rome with the Apostle Peter. From there, he set out for Egypt, where he established a local Church.

St Mark met St Paul in Antioch. From there he went with St Barnabas to Cyprus, and then he went to Egypt again, where he and St Peter founded many churches. Then he went to Babylon. From this city the Apostle Peter sent an Epistle to the Christians of Asia Minor, in which he calls St Mark his son (1 Pet 5:13).

When the Apostle Paul came to Rome in chains, St Mark was at Ephesus, where St Timothy (January 4) was bishop. St Mark went with him to Rome. There he also wrote his holy Gospel (ca. 62-63).

From Rome St Mark traveled to Egypt. In Alexandria he started a Christian school, which later produced such famous Fathers and teachers of the Church as Clement of Alexandria, St Dionysius of Alexandria (October 5), St Gregory Thaumatourgos (November 5), and others. Zealous for Church services, St Mark composed a Liturgy for the Christians of Alexandria.

St Mark preached the Gospel in the inner regions of Africa, and he was in Libya at Nektopolis.

During these journeys, St Mark was inspired by the Holy Spirit to go again to Alexandria and confront the pagans. There he visited the home of Ananias, and healed his crippled hand. The dignitary happily took him in, listened to his words, and received Baptism.

Following the example of Ananias, many of the inhabitants of that part of the city where he lived were also baptized. This roused the enmity of the pagans, and they wanted to kill St Mark. Having learned of this, St Mark made Ananias a bishop, and the three Christians Malchos, Sabinos, and Kerdinos were ordained presbyters to provide the church with leadership after his death.

The pagans seized St Mark when he was serving the Liturgy. They beat him, dragged him through the streets and threw him in prison. There St Mark was granted a vision of the Lord Jesus Christ, Who strengthened him before his sufferings. On the following day, the angry crowd again dragged the saint through the streets to the courtroom, but along the way St Mark died saying, "Into Your hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit."

The pagans wanted to burn the saint's body, but when they lit the fire, everything grew dark, thunder crashed, and there was an earthquake. The pagans fled in terror, and Christians took up the body of St Mark and buried it in a stone crypt. This was on April 4, 63. The Church celebrates his memory on April 25.

In the year 310, a church was built over the relics of St Mark. In 820, when the Moslem Arabs had established their rule in Egypt and oppressed the Christian Church, the relics of St Mark were transferred to Venice and placed in the church named for him.

In the ancient iconographic tradition, which adopted symbols for the holy Evangelists borrowed from the vision of St John the Theologian (Rev 4:7) and the prophecy of Ezekiel (Ez. 1:10), the holy Evangelist Mark is represented by a lion, symbolizing the might and royal dignity of Christ (Rev 5:5).

St Mark wrote his Gospel for Gentile Christians, emphasizing the words and deeds of the Savior which reveal His divine Power. Many aspects of his account can be explained by his closeness to St Peter. The ancient writers say that the Gospel of Mark is a concise record of St Peter's preaching.

One of the central theological themes in the Gospel of St Mark is the power of God achieving what is humanly impossible. The Apostles performed remarkable miracles with Christ (Mark 16:20) and the Holy Spirit (Mark 13:11) working through them. His disciples were told to go into the world and preach the Gospel to all creatures (Mark 13:10, 16:15), and that is what they did.

ORDINATION OF SHINU .K. THOMAS ,JANAKPURI CHURCH , DELHI.

“NAMMUDA RAMBACHAN

SUBJECT:  BIOGRAPHY OF REV .M.S SKARIAH  RAMBAN

Respected
                   It’s with great vision and tedious efforts Delhi Diocese Metropolitian H.G  Dr Youhanon Mar Demertrios  have decided to portrait Rev M.S SKARIAH RAMBAN’S  full life history compiled all in one book. 

As you know, (affectionately alias), being a Priest of Delhi Diocese from the time he set his foot in, had built milestones in Diocese. He was an eminent and profound visionary leader in Administration area and setting up imprints in Malankara Orthodox Church. His explicit contributions are priceless and numerous ever since his initial stage of spiritual and generic enrichment being equally beneficial for all alike which urged us to ensure that this jewel must shine throughout this generation and forth coming ones.

                   In line to this we are humbly requesting an article about Rambachan  involvement  within and outside church/any others for our so planned biography by the name “NAMMUDA  RAMBACHAN ''.

 Humbly requesting your prayers and support throughout our work processes and for a timely completion.     

     I would be more than happy and extremely thankful if you could support by presenting this back to me atleast within 14th May 2018 so as to achieve my desired conclusion. 

  Respectfully looking forward for your valued work, also do let me know if any concerns, shall ensure to gladly suffice within my best.Yours In Christ 

Fr. Johnson Iype

Email: iypeachana@yahoo.com   Mobile: +91 9718025350

To Control Our Negative Thoughts.......

Their technique of guarding the heart bears some similarities with today's use of meditation.

The Desert Fathers, Christians who took shelter in the deserts of Mesopotamia, Egypt, Syria, and Palestine between the III and VII century, lived as hermits in huts, caves, in trees, or even on top of a stone pillar. They searched for a life of solitude, manual labor, contemplation, and silence, with the goal of growing spiritually. Convinced of the intimate union between the body, soul, and spirit, the Desert Fathers—who we could also say were the first therapists—developed recommendations to heal the “sicknesses of the soul.” Among these recommendations was that of controlling our thoughts, achieved thanks to one method in particular: guarding the heart. Jean-Guilhem Xerri, a psychoanalyst and medical biologist, has developed this practice,

 showing just how relevant it is in today’s society. 

Why should we control our thoughts?

According to the Desert Fathers, uncontrolled thoughts are the origins of some of the sicknesses of the soul. They identified eight non-psychological sicknesses of a spiritual origin, classified by the monk Evagrius as: greed of any sort, a pathological relationship to sex, a pathological relationship to money, sadness, aggressiveness, acedia (an illness of the soul expressed by listlessness, boredom, laziness – a precursor to slothfulness) vanity, and pride. These eight generic diseases have a pathological source: narcissism, which the Fathers called   philautia, excessive self-love.

One of the causes for these thoughts, which were considered as troubling, was the imagination. If an imagination is left uncontrolled it elicits visions which sometimes crowd our minds to the point of taking over. With worst-case scenarios stemming from pornographic images, undeserved accolades… “The imagination leads us to make up stories in our heads that are not always correct or pacifying,” sums up Xerri. Where it is in our power to control them: “Whether the thoughts trouble us or not is something beyond our doing. But whether they dwell within us or not, that they stir up passions or not, is something which is within our power,” wrote one of the Desert Fathers John Damascene, in his A Speech Useful for the Soul. We will always be a theater of sensations and thoughts: the question is, what do we do with it? “Faced with such a thought,” Xerri reminds us, “man has various possibilities: to acquiesce or not, to feed it or resist it.”

For these ancient monks the objective of gaining control of their thoughts was to reach Hesychasm; a state characterized by peace, calm, rest, silence, and deep inner solitude; necessary for the spiritual contemplation of things and beings, and the understanding of God.  The Desert Fathers prescribed many methods to achieve this: “guarding the heart”, sobriety, hospitality and practicing meditation.

What is “Guarding the Heart”?

Guarding the heart, in Greek nepsis (vigilance), is being attentive to everything that happens in our heart. It is a spiritual method which aims to free man of bad or passionate thoughts. It invites us to observe the thoughts which penetrate our soul, and to discern between the good and the bad. Evagrius said: “Take care of yourself, be the gatekeeper to your heart and don’t let any thought enter without questioning it.” As Xerri points out: “The elders noticed that holy thoughts led to a peaceful state, the others to a troubled state.”

The indispensable means of guarding the heart is paying close attention to thoughts and discerning between those which are good and healing, and those which are a source of distraction or obsession. The aim is to gain freedom, and to reach indifference, the ability to not be dominated by our thoughts.

Was guarding the heart the ancestor of mediation?

Today cognitive sciences are in agreement with the diagnosis established by the Desert Fathers concerning the illnesses of the soul, which are growing rapidly today, along with the therapies which they had already recommended nearly 2000 years ago. It is recognized that today we are all suffering from countless and continuous demands no our attention, and that this trend disturbs our interiority. Xerri lists a variety of areas in which we are over-stimulated, thanks especially to digital media: food, material goods, sex, leisure, self-image, superficiality, criticism…

Permanently in demand and needing to be available immediately, we have on average between three or four decisions to take each second, according to Xerri. Therefore, it is fanciful to expect to be able to voluntary control our decisions in all consciousness, it’s simply impossible. “We are victims of a real hold-up of our attentional abilities,” laments Xerri, “Yet our attention determines our relationship with the world.”

The patristic tradition and the neurosciences agree: taking back control of our attention is a fundamental challenge for our mental health. The Desert Fathers recommended guarding the heart; the fashion today is mindful meditation. Both these therapies practice the observation of what is going on in and around us. Meditation, in the contemporary and non-religious sense, means opening oneself to present experience, with attention given to what we are going through. Like guarding the heart, it invites us to change our way of being in the world, and to make it a habit to pay attention to our thoughts which infiltrate our soul.

A little prayer to help guard your heart

In their bid to find Hesychasm, the Desert Fathers would often empty their minds and recite the very simple Prayer of the Heart, or Jesus Prayer. So if you want a little help from our Orthodox forefathers in being able to control the thoughts that cross our minds, try and find time in the morning to say this prayer before the demands of the day really kick in: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” (Although “a sinner” was added over the years.)

Translated from French by Cerith Gardiner.

CASTING PEARLS BEFORE SWINE...

“Do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces.” (Mt 7: 6)

What does our Lord mean here, 1. by “what is holy” and by our “pearls,” and 2. Who are the “dogs” and “swine” before whom we are not to offer these? 

1. The “holy” and the “pearls” in us are our God-like and God-given gifts, like love, faith, wisdom, desire (both spiritual and physical), beauty (both spiritual and physical), creativity, compassion, etc.

 2. The “dogs” and “swine” on whom we might be tempted to waste our God-given gifts and energies are not other people, because we are never to regard other people as “dogs” or “swine.” They are the evil spirits that may entangle us in sinful obsessions, like lust of the flesh, love of money, vainglory, self-centered fear, idleness, or despondency. For example, in the widespread case of “lust of the flesh” (often misnamed as “unrequited love”), we might find ourselves giving away all our love, all our desire, all our beautiful, God-given energies not to the visible, flesh-and-blood human being who is the object of our lust (because he or she simply rejects it), but to a ravenous spirit that is “tearing us in pieces.” As St. Paul writes, “our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Eph 6: 12) And, as Bonnie Tyler reminds us, "It ain't right with love to share, / When you find he doesn't care / for you..." (Bonnie Tyler, "It's A Heartache").

So today, if I find myself being “torn to pieces” by some obsession, be it lust or workaholism or something else, let me not become bitter against other people or another person, somehow involved in this story. Let me, first of all, recognize the value of “what is holy” and what are precious “pearls,” in me. And then, let me gratefully and prayerfully place myself and my gifts where they belong, before God, asking Him to re-direct my love, my desire, and my beauty toward His purpose for me, as I forgive myself and others for the whole story of my “sin” (i.e., my “amartia” or “missing the mark” of my God-given purpose or vocation). Thank You, Lord, for guiding and keeping me, as Your precious work-in-progress, full of precious “pearls,” even when I don’t put them to proper use.

 Glory be to You.

DELHI DIOCESE SUNDAY SCHOOL PRIZE DISTRIBUTION 2017-18

Blessed Matrona (the Blind) of Moscow

 She was born in 1881 to a poor family in the village of Sebino-Epifaniskaya (now Kimovski). Though she was born blind — her eyes were without pupils — she showed a gift of spiritual insight from an early age, and by her prayer shealed many who came to her. 

 At about the age of fourteen she made a pilgrimage to several Russian holy sites. When she came to Kronstadt to receive the blessing of St John (20 Dec.), the holy priest, who had never met her, cried out "Matrona, come here!" and proclaimed "She will be my heir, the eighth pillar of Russia."  At the age of seventeen she was stricken with paralysis and was never able to walk again. For the rest of her life she lived in a room filled with icons, where she would sit cross-legged on her bed and receive visitors. She never bemoaned her blindness or paralysis; once she said "A day came when God opened my eyes, and I saw the light of the sun, the stars and all that exists in the world: the rivers, the forests, the sea and the whole creation."  In 1925 she settled in Moscow. After the death of her mother in 1945, she moved frequently, living secretly in the homes of the faithful. Despite this, throngs of believers found their way to her for counsel and healing. The Communist authorities, knowing her holy influence, sought many times to arrest her; but she always knew in advance when they were coming, and would be moved to a different secret location. She fasted much, slept rarely, and it is said that her forehead was dented by the countless signs of the Cross that she made.  Of the persecution of the Church by the Communists, she simply said that this was due to the sins and lack of faith of the Christians, and added, "Difficult times are our lot, but we Christians must choose the Cross. Christ has placed us on His sleigh, and He will take us where He will."  Having foreseen the day of her death, she said, "Come close, all of you, and tell me of your troubles as though I were alive! I'll see you; I'll hear you, and I'll come to your aid." She reposed in peace on April 19, 1952 (May 2 on the new calendar). Many miracles occurred at her tomb. In 1998 her relics were moved to the women's Monastery of the Protecting Veil of the Mother of God, where thousands of Orthodox Christians come to venerate her and, as she asked, to bring her their problems and concerns as though she were alive on earth.  She was glorified by the Church of Russia in 1999, for local veneration in the Diocese of Moscow.

Hymn of Kassian.....

My beloved spiritual children in Christ Our God and Our Only True Savior,
CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND EVER SHALL BE.

THE HYMN OF KASSIANI THE NUN - 4th Plagal Tone

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and to the Ages of Ages. Amen.

 The woman who had fallen into many sins recognizes Thy Godhead, O Lord. She takes upon herself the duty of a myrrh-bearer and makes ready the myrrh of mourning, before Thy entombment. Woe to me! saith she, for my night is an ecstasy of excess, gloomy and moonless, and full of sinful desire. Receive the sources of my tears, O Thou Who dost gather into clouds the water of the sea; in Thine ineffable condescension, deign to bend down Thyself to me and to the lamentations of my heart, O Thou Who didst spread out the Heavens. I will fervently embrace Thy sacred feet, and wipe them again with the tresses of the hair of my head, Thy feet at whose sound Eve hid herself for fear when she heard Thee walking in Paradise in the cool of the day. O my Savior and soul-Saver Who can trace out the multitude of my sins, and the abysses of Thy judgment? Do not disregard me Thy servant, O Thou Whose mercy is boundless.

HISTORY

Kassiani is one of the first composers whose scores are both extant and able to be interpreted by modern scholars and musicians. Approximately fifty of her hymns are extant and twenty-three are included in the Orthodox Church liturgical books. The exact number is difficult to assess, as many hymns are ascribed to different authors in different manuscripts and are often identified as anonymous. In addition, some 789 of her non-liturgical verses survive. Many are epigrams or aphorisms called "gnomic verse." An example: "I hate the rich man moaning as if he were poor."

She was born between 805 and 810 AD in Constantinople into an wealthy family and grew to be exceptionally beautiful and intelligent. Three Byzantine chroniclers, Symeon Metarphrastes, George the Monk (a.k.a. George the Sinner) and Leto the Grammarian, claim that she was a participant in the "bride show" organized for the young bachelor Theophilos the Iconoclast by his stepmother, the Empress Dowager Euphrosyne. Smitten by Kassia's beauty, the young emperor approached her and said: "Through a woman [came forth] the baser [things]," referring to the sin and suffering coming as a result of Eve's transgression. Kassiani (Kassia) promptly responded by saying: "And through a woman [came forth] the better [things]," referring to the hope of salvation resulting from the Incarnation of Christ through the Theotokos (Mother of God)

 According to tradition, the dialogue was:

"-Εκ γυναικός τα χείρω." " -Και εκ γυναικός τά κρείτω."

His pride wounded by Kassiani's terse rebuttal, Theophilos rejected her and chose Theodora as his wife.

The next we hear of Kassiani is that in 843 AD she founded a Monastery in the west of Constantinople, near the Constantinian Walls, and became its first Egoumenissa (Abbess). Although many scholars attribute this to bitterness at having failed to marry Theophilos and becoming Empress, a letter from Theodore the Studite indicates that she had other motivations for wanting a monastic life. It has a close relationship with the nearby monastery of Stoudios, which was to play a central role in re-editing the Byzantine liturgical books in the 9th and 10th centuries, thus ensuring the survival of her work.

She wrote many hymns for liturgies; the most famous being the eponymous Hymn of Kassiani, sung every Holy and Great Wednesday (liturgically; actually chanted late in the evening of Holy and Great Tuesday). [Source: Orthodox Wiki)

AN ANALYSIS OF THE Hymn of Kassiani

"Lord!...Do not disregard me…You, whose mercy is boundless."

The melodious harmony of this hymn reverberates through the Orthodox churches of the world, as the climatic conclusion of the service of Holy and Great Tuesday Evening. The faithful surrender to the waves of contrition, which descend from the chanters or choirs. The hymn spreads to the congregation the touch of another world, a world which the soul yearns for.

There are few hymns which move people so deeply as this one. In a quiet, mystical way, it enters into the deepest parts of our inner cosmos. Turned into ourselves, each one of us witnesses the journey of our soul down a path of slavery and darkness, for which it was not created, and its subsequent dramatic deliverance and emergence into the Eternal Light.

But what is it that is heard on the night of Holy and Great Tuesday in our churches? Is it sweet-sounding hymn? A lyrical song? Or a lamentation?

It is all of these, but chiefly, it is a drama with universal connotations. An act without scenery nor actors present on the stage. The chorals are replaced by the sobs and lamentations of the one and only central heroine of the drama. The musical background is "the source of her tears," "the groaning of her heart," "the embracing and kissing" of the feet of the Lord.

The dramatic act takes place before God in the human soul. Its shame is the realization of sinfulness which brings a person to contrition, and the "exodus" from the "night" of "intemperance" to the "boundless mercy" of the Savior.

So is it drama? Yes, a drama without active scenery. A drama that is universal and real. Universal because it concerns all people in the world, and real because it is relevant to human life on earth throughout the ages.

It is heroic, because it presents to us, the person, who stands before his sinfulness and is shaken, and confesses it, and even more heroically, looks to the "inexplorable depths" of God's great mercy to find salvation.

Even though this drama begins from an episode in the life of the Lord, described by Saint Luke the Evangelist (Luke 7:36-50), it surpasses both time and unfolds beyond time in a place which cannot place where the central character, the human soul, moves between two extremes: the human tragedy--"a dark and moonless love of sin"- and the Eternity of salvation to mankind by the God-Man, Who, in His "ineffable condescension, bowed down the Heavens", Who takes the soul out of the "ecstasy of darkness", which drives it to.

Of course, it is not Kassiani the nun who is "the woman who had fallen into many sins", as some thought. She is though, the poet who is anguished as she witnesses the fall of mankind. This anguish however, does not lead her to a pointless cursing of the 'fate' of humanity. She climbs onto the wings of Faith, and harbors in God's love, in order to present, with a unique sensitivity, the human pain that will eventually be healed and lead to the unending doxology of the "soul-saving Lord."

The sinful soul laments, but not in the emptiness of an inexorable loneliness. From the beginning of the hymn, we hear the cry "Lord!" The sinful woman is not by herself in her pain. Traveling with her on this painful journey is the Lord, to Whom her confession is being made

'The woman who had fallen into many sins', the heroine of the drama which Kassiani presents to us, concludes her prayerful monologue. She proclaims in a way which matches the overall tone-humble, supplicatory, modest-her basic request, which is also the message of the hymn--she expresses it with prayer in a tone of unshakeable faith and certainty:

 "Do not disregard me…You, whose mercy is boundless." (Translated from the original Greek.)

MY BLESSING TO ALL OF YOU

The Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God and Father, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.+

GLORY BE TO GOD FOR ALL THINGS!

With sincere agape in His Holy Diakonia,

The sinner and unworthy servant of God

+Father George
(from copied)

Puthencavil Kochu Thirumeni

Geevarghese Mar Philoxenos
April 17 – 67th Dukrono - (Puthencavil Kochu Thirumeni)

“His presence was joyful; His voice sweet, His words inspiring
His manners endearing; His smile unforgettable

”Holy Church conferred the title Catholicatinte Rathna Deepam (Jewel Lamp of Catholicate). He is known as the Gaanakokilam (gaanam=song; kokilam=cuckoo bird) of the Church.

  Just as Parumala Thirumeni, Puthencavil Kochu Thirumeni was called to his heavenly abode at a young age, Thirumeni passed away at age 54 and is entombed at St. Mary’s Orthodox Cathedral, Puthencavu, Chengannoor. He was chosen by God from his mother’s womb just as stated in Jeremiah, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you” [Jeremiah 1:5]. Thirumeni was born prematurely and for the first two days of his life, he did not move, nor produced any sound. But God had great plans for him; saving from the brink of death.

Vattaseril Thirumeni handpicked Dn. K.T. Geevarghese (later Mar Philoexnos) to guard the Catholicate. Dn. K.T. Geevarghese earned his MA and B.Ed from Serampore University, Calcutta. Dn. K.T. Geevarghese was ordained a priest by Vattasseril Thirumeni and consecrated as a bishop in 1930 by Catholicos Baselios Geevarghese II. As he was the youngest of the living Metropolitans in those days (33 years old), he was affectionately called "Kochu Thirumeni".

Thirumeni’s gifts were many. His command over English, Malayalam and Syriac, was unparalleled; his voice mesmerizing. He was not only a spiritual giant, but an able administrator, great orator, and erudite in versatile topics. Thirumeni traveled all over Kerala and through his sermons and speeches made the faithful unite under the Catholicate flag. Thirumeni used to continuously say “My God, My Church” (Ente daivam, ente sabha) with his hands on his chest.

He would labor along with the day laborers. He would carry bricks when he was at a construction site. At night, he would lie on the ground gazing at the skies admiring the Creator’s handiwork. He would walk miles and miles, or travel in buses to reach his people, no matter how far they were. Thirumeni maintained cordial relations with leaders of the other faction in the Church, and debated them in the hope they would realize the truth and end the feud. Thirumeni banned fireworks during the Church feast at St. Mary’s Orthodox Church, Puthencavu, and the money was redirected for organizing spiritual conventions. Thirumeni started St. Basil Monastery, and attracted many learned young men of those days to monastic life.

Just as Parumala Thirumeni, Puthencavil Kochu Thirumeni was called to his heavenly abode at a young age, Thirumeni passed away at age 54 and is entombed at St. Mary’s Orthodox Cathedral, Puthencavu, Chengannoor. During Thirumeni’s final moments, Dn. P.S Samuel sang Thirumeni’s favorite spiritual hymn “Karunakkadale njan nokkum” three times. Thirumeni called out “My God, My God” many times. As the priests finished reciting the Nicene Creed, Thirumeni’s soul departed to the heavenly abode.

“We are Christians, and We will die for Him .......

The Holy Nine Children of Kola: Guarami, Adarnasi, Bakari, Vache, Bardzini, Dachi, Djuansheri, Ramazi, and Parsmani (6th c.) (Georgia). (February 22 according to the Julian Calendar/ March 7 according to the Gregorian Calendar)

Many centuries ago, the village of Kola was located at the source of the Mtkvari River. There Christians and pagans dwelt together as neighbors. Christian and pagan children would play together, but when the Christian children heard church bells ringing, they recognized the call to prayer and dropped their games. 

Nine pagan children—Guram, Adarnerse, Baqar, Vache, Bardzim, Dachi, Juansher, Ramaz, and Parsman—would follow the Christian children to church.

But the Christians always stopped them near the gates of the church and reprimanded them, saying, “You are children of pagans. You cannot enter God’s holy house.” They would return sorry and dejected.

One day the nine pagan children tried to enter the church forcibly, but they were cast out and scolded. “If you want to enter the church, you must believe in our Lord Jesus Christ and be baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,” they were told. “You must receive Holy Communion and join the community of Christian believers.”

With great joy the youths promised the Christians that they would receive Holy Baptism. When the Christians of Kola related to their priest the good news of the pagan boys’ desire, he recalled the words of the Gospel: He that loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me: and he that loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he that takes not his cross, and follows after Me, is not worthy of Me. (Matt. 10:37–38).

He was not afraid of the anger that would follow from the pagan community, but rather took the boys on a cold winter night and baptized them in the icy river. A miracle occurred while the Holy Sacrament was being celebrated: the water became warm and angelic hosts appeared to the youths. Greatly encouraged in their faith, the children decided to remain in the Christian community rather than return to their parents.

When their parents learned that they had been baptized in the Christian Faith, they dragged their children away from the church, abusing and beating them into submission all the way home. The heroic children endured the abuses and, though they went hungry and thirsty for seven days, repeated again and again, 

“We are Christians and will not eat or drink anything that was prepared for idols!”

Neither gentle flattery, nor costly clothing, nor promises of good things to come could tempt the God-fearing youths. Rather they asserted, “We are Christians and want nothing from you but to leave us alone and allow us to join the Christian community!”

The enraged parents went and reported to the prince everything that had happened. But the prince was of no help—he simply told them, “They are your children, do with them as you wish.” The obstinate pagans asked the prince permission to stone the children. So a large pit was dug where the youths had been baptized, and the children were thrown inside.

“We are Christians, and we will die for Him into Whom we have been baptized!” proclaimed the holy martyrs, the Nine Children of Kola, before offering up their souls to God.

Their godless parents took up stones, and then others joined in, until the entire pit had been filled. They beat the priest to death, robbed him, and divided the spoils among themselves.

The martyric contest of the Nine Righteous Children of Kola occurred in the 6th century, in the historical region of Tao in southern Georgia.

.

HOUSE WARMING OF ANISH & TESSY KOLAMALA ,MURANI, MALLAPPALLY

TO BE OBEDIENT TO CHRIST.

OBEDIENCE TO CHRIST

The one thing that sets the Saints apart from the rest of us is their struggle to remain entirely obedient to Christ. There is no bargaining in their mind, no negotiating Christ’s teaching, no diluting His words to the point where they lose the strength to open for us the path of salvation.

Most of us receive the word of God with caution, and we immediately start turning it on all sides until we reach a compromise that works for us. Most of us fear the word of God. All we truly want is something that looks like His word enough to make us feel good about ourselves, enough to make us have the appearance of Christians, but not to the extent that we could lose control over our lives.

One can go through life either in obedience to Christ or in obedience to one’s own will. The challenges and choices of this world are simple and clear if we obey Christ’s word – we need to love, we need to forgive, we need to help. Ultimately, we need to allow the world to crucify us for His name and become true followers of the Crucified One. These are His words, and this is the way of the Saints.

Things only seem complicated when our brain gets in the way. Things only seen unclear when we begin negotiating Christ’s word, looking for a human version of it which does not lead to the Cross. Unfortunately, we always succeed. Unfortunately, we have the frightening ability to reduce Christ’s teaching to something that excludes the Cross. The danger, though, is that without the Cross there can be no Resurrection either.

The Saints are not like that. The Saints do not build an idol of their earthly lives. They have no vision of a perfect life here, no vision of a perfect self in this world. They remain faithful to Christ and His word, and allow nothing of this world to come between them and their God.

Look at St Cuthbert. Look at his faith, the faith of a young man who spent his nights into the cold waters of the North Sea, so he may control his mind and his body in prayer. Look at his obedience to his true calling – a hermit at heart, he left everything behind to be obedient to Christ. A man alone on his island, but carrying the world and its Creator in his heart.

Through his prayers, may we also be given the faith to obey Christ’s naked word, not our own tamed version of it.