This is the permissiveness condemned in the present Easter epistle… any questions?
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The MP official website reported that Patriarch Kirill Gundyaev of Moscow and all the Russias noted that spiritual rather than material values should guide advocates of freedom. In his Easter message to clergy and believers, to be read in churches across the country during the Paschal liturgy early on Sunday, he wrote, “We live at a time when freedom is often interpreted as permissiveness. Many people sincerely believe that only power and wealth, or health and physical strength can bring liberation. Whilst competing in serving the idols of modern times, they often fail to achieve the main thing… the true purpose of existence. Our resurrected Saviour has given us freedom and revealed to us this purpose, which consists in learning the Truth and living a life with God”. He added that only in the struggle with evil could people grow spiritually to become truly free.
Early on Sunday, right after midnight, Patriarch Kirill will serve liturgy in downtown Moscow’s Cathedral of Christ the Saviour. Up to 5,000 believers may attend the Easter service. This year, Russia will celebrate Easter, also known in Orthodox Christianity as Pascha, on 5 May, in line with the Julian calendar, following a long period of fasting. Easter is Christianity‘s most important and joyful feast, when the Church commemorates the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. The last days of Holy Week that precede Easter are its most important days. On Holy Thursday, the Church remembers the Last Supper of Jesus and the Apostles. Great and Holy Friday is considered the most sorrowful day of the liturgical year because Christians remember Jesus being crucified and dying on the cross. On Holy Saturday, believers flock to churches to have their Easter eggs and cakes blessed by priests in anticipation of Easter celebrations. According to the New Testament, Christ rose from the dead on the third day after His crucifixion, which is on Sunday, if Friday is included in the count.
In a related item, the RF MVD said that some 10,000 police officers, servicemen, and volunteers would ensure order in Moscow during festivities on Holy Saturday and Easter Sunday.
4 May 2013
RIA-Novosti
http://en.rian.ru/art_living/20130504/180971296/Patriarch-Kirill-Says-Freedom-Is-Not-Permissiveness.html
Editor’s Note:
Note well that HH interprets “permissiveness” as surrender to the zeitgeist of consumerism and greed… not so much sexual immorality. In other words, the struggle against godless libertarianism is more important than any “crusade” against “depravity” or marches for “pro-life politicians” are. The first involves a stand-up fight with a demonic ideology that says that there are no rules, no role for government (or any other outside institution, for that matter) in society, and that autonomous individuals are gods. The second is often a cartoonish caricature of the Church’s actual teachings. No politician who supports drone attacks is pro-life… as for homosexuality, do look at how the Church handled the affair of Nikon Mironov (it didn’t sweep it under the rug, as the OCA does, but it also didn’t allow Mironov to serve as a ruling bishop).
Ultimately, libertarianism says that there are no standards outside of the individual. In short, the Church has no real role to play, save as a chaplain to the idle rich (and issue unctuous soothing platitudes from the likes of Freddie M-G). Let’s not be coy… HH is right. Permissiveness is our enemy… a permissiveness that allows Bain Capital to slash employees’ wages… a permissiveness that allows the grasping Affluent Effluent to avoid their duty to the larger community… a permissiveness that spits on the social justice that Our Lord Christ taught. Depravity is a personal failing… serious, but not fatal to the body at large. Libertarianism is permissiveness walking in Seven-league boots. It’s more dangerous than the early communist persecution of the Church ever was… it sets up Man as an untrammelled and unbounded god, and that’s that. That’s why the upcoming Acton Institute seminar at SVS is absolutely evil and all decent Christians should avoid it. Don’t be fooled by their religious rhetoric… they’re just as much libertarians as the outright godless ones are… and they wink at the atheism implicit in libertarianism. Ponder that well…
You can follow Christ or you can follow the libertarians… it’s your choice.
BMD
May Day Labour Day Holiday in Greece Moved to 7 May to Help Struggling Store Owners
Tags: Easter, EU, European Union, Greece, Greek, Greek authorities, Greek government, Greeks, International Workers' Day, Labour Day, May Day, Orthodox Easter, political commentary, politics, Popular culture, popular customs
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The Labour Ministry agreed that the May Day Labour Day holiday would be on Tuesday, 7 May. The change came after a request by store owners, who feared that they’d lose vital business if May Day were on 1 May, which is also the Wednesday before Orthodox Easter. Traders hope that they’d see an upturn in the number of customers visiting their shops ahead of the Easter holidays. Therefore, the holiday would be on a day when stores would close anyway, due to the Easter break. Only businesses that work on Sundays or during public holidays would be able to operate normally on 7 May.
8 April 2013
Kathimerini
http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_wsite2_1_08/04/2013_492490