- Nov 26, 2019
- 14,702
- 7,743
- 50
- Country
- United States
- Gender
- Male
- Faith
- Generic Orthodox Christian
- Marital Status
- Celibate
Today is, on the Gregorian Calendar and Revised Julian Calendar used by the Greek and Antiochian Orthodox and most of the OCA, the feast of the Three Holy Hierarchs (St. Basil the Great, St. Gregory the Theologian and St. John Chrysostom) and is January 18th, the Feast of St. Athanasius and St. Cyril of Alexandria on the Julian Calendar (used by the majority of Eastern Orthodox including the Russians, Serbs, Georgians, Belarussians, Latvians, Lithuanians, the some Polish Orthodox, and the Greek Orthodox Church of Jerusalem, and also by all Oriental Orthodox (Armenian, Syriac, Coptic, Ethiopian) in Jerusalem, and by the Coptic Orthodox and Ethiopian and Eritrean Orthodox.
Collectively, these five bishops are the five most important fourth century Orthodox Catholic bishops of the fourth and early fifth centuries, in the Eastern Church (in totality, we must also factor in the Western bishops St. Damasus of Rome, St. Ambrose of Milan, St. Augustine of Hippo and St. Celestine of Rome).
Specifically, it was these five bishops from Alexandria, Antioch and Cappadocia who confronted most directly the problems of Arianism, Nestorianism and in the case of St. John Chrysostom, the abuse of power by the Byzantine emperor and his wife, who had him exiled and death marched.
Of St. Athanasius, the Canon of whom describes Him in an acrostic as “The Boast of Orthodoxy”, there is a hymn at Matins “
Having the helm of the Church entrusted to thee by the providence of God, O Athanasius, as with a scythe thou didst mow down all the spiritually harmful prating of the heretics, cutting them down like weeds; and, watering the seed of the Word, thou didst wisely cultivate it. Thy fiery tongue burned up the confused affinity of Arius and the mingling of Sabellius, and every heretical blasphemy with them, which are boundless evil and absolute ungodliness, O Athanasius.”
The doctrine of these five hierarchs I think is well expressed by these hymns from Great Lent, a Stavrotheotokia (hymns of the Theotokos at the Cross) from the Lenten Triodion, the hymnal and service book used by the Eastern Orthodox during Lent and Holy Week that largely supersedes the Octoechos, the regular hymnal during this period (likewise the Syriac Orthodox have a book called the Fenqitho which supersedes the regular daily office of the Shimo during major feasts)
“When the Ewe saw Thee her Lamb, crucified upon the Tree be tween two thieves, O longsuffering Word, Thy side pierced by a spear, with a mother’s grief she cried: ‘O my Son, what is this strange and fearful mystery? How is God, whom nothing can con tain, confined within a tomb? What words have power to describe these things? Forsake not Thy Mother, my beloved Child.’” (Stavrotheotokion for Wednesday in Tone 1).
“Most glorious art thou, O Virgin Theotokos; we sing thy praises. For through the Cross of thy Son, hell was laid low and death put to death; we who were dead have risen and been granted life, receiving the joy of Paradise that was ours at the beginning. Therefore with thanksgiving we glorify Christ our God, for He is strong and alone rich in mercy.” (The same for Friday in Tone 2)
Collectively, these five bishops are the five most important fourth century Orthodox Catholic bishops of the fourth and early fifth centuries, in the Eastern Church (in totality, we must also factor in the Western bishops St. Damasus of Rome, St. Ambrose of Milan, St. Augustine of Hippo and St. Celestine of Rome).
Specifically, it was these five bishops from Alexandria, Antioch and Cappadocia who confronted most directly the problems of Arianism, Nestorianism and in the case of St. John Chrysostom, the abuse of power by the Byzantine emperor and his wife, who had him exiled and death marched.
Of St. Athanasius, the Canon of whom describes Him in an acrostic as “The Boast of Orthodoxy”, there is a hymn at Matins “
Having the helm of the Church entrusted to thee by the providence of God, O Athanasius, as with a scythe thou didst mow down all the spiritually harmful prating of the heretics, cutting them down like weeds; and, watering the seed of the Word, thou didst wisely cultivate it. Thy fiery tongue burned up the confused affinity of Arius and the mingling of Sabellius, and every heretical blasphemy with them, which are boundless evil and absolute ungodliness, O Athanasius.”
The doctrine of these five hierarchs I think is well expressed by these hymns from Great Lent, a Stavrotheotokia (hymns of the Theotokos at the Cross) from the Lenten Triodion, the hymnal and service book used by the Eastern Orthodox during Lent and Holy Week that largely supersedes the Octoechos, the regular hymnal during this period (likewise the Syriac Orthodox have a book called the Fenqitho which supersedes the regular daily office of the Shimo during major feasts)
“When the Ewe saw Thee her Lamb, crucified upon the Tree be tween two thieves, O longsuffering Word, Thy side pierced by a spear, with a mother’s grief she cried: ‘O my Son, what is this strange and fearful mystery? How is God, whom nothing can con tain, confined within a tomb? What words have power to describe these things? Forsake not Thy Mother, my beloved Child.’” (Stavrotheotokion for Wednesday in Tone 1).
“Most glorious art thou, O Virgin Theotokos; we sing thy praises. For through the Cross of thy Son, hell was laid low and death put to death; we who were dead have risen and been granted life, receiving the joy of Paradise that was ours at the beginning. Therefore with thanksgiving we glorify Christ our God, for He is strong and alone rich in mercy.” (The same for Friday in Tone 2)
