Tag: Christianity

Kampala, Uganda, December 15, 2023

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The founder of the Orthodox Africa charity and missionary priest in Uganda, Hieromonk Silouan (Brown) was brutally attacked in his home last night by a machete-wielding burglar.

Fr. Silouan writes:

Prayers appreciated, I am at the hospital; had a guy break into the house and started slashing me with a machete. Fortunately, it wasn’t very sharp otherwise he would have probably chopped my arm off (I think he was going for my head but in the struggle he just got my shoulder)…

As it is I have a pretty good stab wound and a very sore head from getting slammed a couple of times in the ensuing fight… And a very sore shoulder. I am pretty sure when the adrenaline wears off I am going to be hurting a lot more than I am right now.

Fr. Silouan is a former police officer and Marine combat veteran, having served in Fallujah, and although his injuries from Iraq have left him partially disabled, he was able to defend himself against his attacker.

And in his typical deadpan manner, Fr. Silouan concludes:

I just wish I could go more than a year in between people trying to kill me.

Fr. Silouan is referring to an incident that occurred in the Director of Orthodox Africa Escapes MobA mission without a mission car is paralyzed.

“>spring of this year. He was on his way with three others to celebrate the Divine Liturgy in a Ugandan village when the car he was riding in was involved in a terrible collision with a motorcycle in which one man died and another was critically injured.

An angry mob surrounded the scene and attacked Fr. Silouan and his traveling companions. Thankfully, cooler heads in the crowd prevailed, and Fr. Silouan and the others were able to get to safety.

Fr. Silouan, who has been working with African priests and missions for many years through the Orthodox Africa charity that he founded and directs, was well aware of the dangers of serving in Africa before he was ordained and sent to serve at the Holy Annunciation Church on Bukasa Island, Uganda, under the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia a few years ago (note that ROCOR has had a presence in Africa since before it reunited with the Moscow Patriarchate in 2007, thus its churches and missions are not part of the Moscow Patriarchate’s African Exarchate).

The St. John the Wonderworker Orthodox Christian Mission Center was also New mission center in Kampala will help Ugandan Church communities become self-sufficientSt. John the Wonderworker Orthodox Christian Mission Center was officially established on Palm Sunday 2022 with the blessing of the late Metropolitan Hilarion (Kapral) of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia. The main goal of this mission is to create an economically independent and self-sufficient group of local leaders.

“>established on Palm Sunday in 2022, with the goal of creating an economically independent and self-sufficient group of local leaders.

Fr. Silouan and the Mission are in need of prayers and financial support, which can be offered through the Orthodox Africa website.

Fr. Silouan has offered Fr. Silouan (Brown)Silouan (Brown), Monk

“>several interviews to OrthoChristian and Pravoslavie.ru over the past few years, where you can learn more about him and the work of Orthodox Africa.

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A new book, out this month from Foster Hirsch, is called “Hollywood and the Movies of the Fifties: The Collapse of the Studio System, the Thrill of Cinerama, and the Invasion of the Ultimate Body Snatcher — Television” (Knopf, $38.68). 

Finally, finally: I’m ahead of the curve.

“All About Eve,” “Anatomy of a Murder,” “Rear Window,” “The Night of the Hunter”: these are my mainstays. I just can’t get enough of those wide-screen black-and-white ’50s melodramas — and there are plenty outside the pantheon, too.

But I digress. It’s Christmas. “It’s a Wonderful Life” (1946) is of course obligatory this time of year.

Slightly more sophisticated and, in its way, just as moving is a superbly acted 1952 British film, directed by George More O’Ferrall and based on the 1950 play by Wynyard Browne: “The Holly and the Ivy.”

On Christmas Eve, the Gregorys convene at the family homestead in rural Norfolk. Holly and paper bells are being hung. A fire crackles. Tea is brought. Snow is stamped off boots as each guest arrives. Young carolers appear at the door.

Everyone has longed to be at Norfolk. No one wants to be alone at Christmas. But inside all is not well.

The renowned Sir Ralph Richardson is Martin, the recently widowed Irish pastor father.

Celia Johnson (of “Brief Encounter” fame) plays the dutiful daughter Jenny who wants to get married but is loath to leave her place at home.

Jenny’s younger sister Margaret (Margaret Leighton) is the fashion-conscious urban gadfly, in by train from London, who drinks too much, harbors a secret sorrow she feels she can’t share with the rest of the family — especially her father — and cannot possibly be called upon to help.

Michael (Denholm Elliott), Martin’s son, is a charmingly tippling soldier, home on 48-hour leave. His father wants to send him to university after his military service is completed, though Michael has zero interest and has additionally lost his faith. Margaret, after her ordeal, is also an atheist.

Two elderly aunts provide background. Bridget, Martin’s sister, did her duty by her own mother, staying home till the age of 45, and is now an embittered spinster overly attached to her cat. Aunt Lydia, also widowed and their late mother’s sister, is much softer. Given to dreamy soliloquies and much concerned with the younger generation’s happiness, she realizes that to have been loved, and to have loved, sustains a person for life.

The pastor is mild in temperament but oblivious. Coming in the door, he takes off his galoshes and casually hurls them across the room, calling for coffee and knowing Jenny will bring it.

A thousand sermons he’s preached and not one has been heard, he muses aloud, anticipating the Christmas service he’s to give the next morning

“That’s the worst of being a parson, nobody wants you. … If you don’t go near them, they say, ‘Here have I been in a place six months and the parson never comes near me.’ And if you do go, they say, ‘What’s he want to come poking his nose in here for?’ ”

He, too, is doing his duty, wearily resigned. He’s not exactly unhappy but he knows something is missing and he’s not sure what.

He’s also so blind to the hearts of the people around him that he doesn’t even know that Jenny and David (John Gregson), the engineer from down the lane, are madly in love and dying to be married.

David is leaving in a month for five years in South America so time is of the essence — but so much can’t be said! So much can’t be asked. So much can’t be aired. And Jenny can’t — won’t leave — unless Margaret or one of the aunts agrees to care for Martin.

A crisis occurs. Margaret and Michael take off for a local bar. When they return, Michael drunkenly blurts to his father, “You can’t be told the truth. You can’t be told the truth!” Can’t be told about Jenny, about Margaret, about Michael himself.

The pastor, appalled, replies, “D’you think because I’m a parson, I know nothing about life? … That I couldn’t face realities?” But he’s also forced to recognize that his whole life, he’s been distorting and misrepresenting religion without knowing it.

Seventy years on, the movie’s themes are still relevant. Undisclosed secrets, simmering resentments, generational wounds, set-in-stone patterns of communicating and relating. Religion used as a barrier rather than an invitation. Vocational crises, grapples with faith, duty to God versus duty to family.

I won’t spoil the ending but suffice it to say everyone more or less gets what they want, everyone ends up at the early morning Christmas service, and the beautiful traditional carol has the last word:

“And Mary bore sweet Jesus Christ for to redeem us all.”

Bonus feature: a 21-minute short, free on YouTube, called “Star in the Night” (1945). Directed by Don Siegel, it’s a modern retelling of the Christmas story, set in an isolated motel-café in the desert Southwest. The characters are stock. The story lacks subtlety. The resolution is poor.

And I defy anyone to watch this small gem without weeping tears of wonder, comfort, and joy.

Neapoli, Nea Ionia, Greece, December 15, 2023

Photo: orthodoxianewsagency.gr     

The incorrupt relics of St. Eleutherios of Illyria were festively transferred to a new reliquary last night during the Vespers for the feast of the hierarch who was martyred under Roman Emperor Hadrian.

For the past 100 years, the hieromartyr’s relics have been venerated at the Church of the Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos in Neapoli, Nea Ionia, outside of Athens. The Great Vespers for the feast was celebrated by Metropolitan Gabriel of Nea Ionia and a host of clergy from Nea Ionia and other dioceses, reports Romfea.

Photo: orthodoxianewsagency.gr     

During the service, the clergy solemnly transferred the relics of St. Eleutherios to a new silver reliquary that was donated by Elias and Ilioula Priovolou.

Met. Gabriel awarded Mr. Priovolou the diocese’s highest distinction, namely the insignia of the patron saint of the city, the Holy Martyr George of Neapolis, with prayers that the Lord cover and protect the Priovolou family.

In his homily, Met. Gabriel referred to the life of St. Eleutherios, “who represents a symbol of freedom for us Christians.” He also spoke of the great blessing that the diocese enjoys in preserving the grace-filled relics of the saint, which were brought to Neapolis by Asia Minor refugees.

***

Photo: orthodoxianewsagency.gr     

Hieromartyr Eleutherius the Bishop of Illyria, and His MotherSaint Eleutherius, the son of an illustrious Roman citizen, was raised in Christian piety by his mother.

“>Hieromartyr Eleutherios, his mother Evanthia and Caribus the Eparch: St. Eleutherios, the son of an illustrious Roman citizen, was raised in Christian piety by his mother. His virtue was such that at the age twenty, he had been elevated to bishop of Illyria. In the reign of the emperor Hadrian, St. Eleutherios was tortured for his bold preaching about Christ, then was beheaded at Rome with his mother Evanthia. The Eparch Caribus, who had tortured St. Eleutherios, also came to believe in Christ and was executed.

Troparion — Tone 5

Adorned with the robe of priest / Stained with the streams of your blood, / O wise and blessed Eleutherios, over-thrower of Satan / You hastened to Christ your Master. / Pray unceasingly for those who faithfully honor your contest!

Kontakion — Tone 2

We all praise and entreat you, O Hieromartyr Eleutherios, / Adornment of priests and encouragement of martyrs: / Free from danger those who lovingly celebrate your memory, / And pray unceasingly for us all!

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Is. 61: 1-2a, 10-11; Lk. 1:46-48, 49-50, 53-54; 1 Thes. 5:16-24; Jn. 1:6-8, 19-28

The mysterious figure of John the Baptist, introduced in last week’s readings, comes into sharper focus today. Who he is, we see in this Sunday’s Gospel, is best understood by who he isn’t.

He is not Elijah returned from the heavens (see 2 Kings 2:11), although like him he dresses in the prophet’s attire (see Mark 1:6; 2 Kings 1:8) and preaches repentance and judgment (see 1 Kings 18:21; 2 Chronicles 21:12-15).

Not Elijah in the flesh, John is nonetheless sent in the spirit and power of Elijah to fulfill his mission (see Luke 1:17; Malachi 3:23-24). And, John is not the prophet Moses foretold, although he is a kinsman and speaks God’s word (see Deuteronomy 18:15-19; John 6:14).

Nor is John the Messiah, though he has been anointed by the Spirit since the womb (see Luke 1:15,44). John prepares the way for the Lord (see Isaiah 40:3). His baptism is symbolic, not sacramental. It is a sign given to stir our hearts to repentance.

John shows us the One upon whom the Spirit remains (see John 1:32), the One who fulfills the promise we hear in Sunday’s First Reading (see Luke 4:16-21). Jesus’ bath of rebirth and the Spirit opens a fountain that purifies Israel and gives to all a new heart and a new Spirit (see Zechariah 13:1-3; Ezekiel 36:24-27; Mark 1:8; Titus 3:5).

John comes to us in the Advent readings to show us the light that we might believe in the One who comes at Christmas. As we sing in Sunday’s Psalm, the Mighty One has come to lift each of us up, to fill our hunger with bread from heaven (see John 6:33, 49-51).

And as Paul exhorts in the Epistle, we should rejoice, give thanks and pray without ceasing that God will make us perfectly holy in spirit, soul and body — that we may be blameless when our Lord comes.

Khodosovka, Kiev Province, Ukraine, December 13, 2023

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Yet another Orthodox church has been violently seized in Ukraine, this time by members of the territorial defense, with the help of the police.

The defense representatives were following the orders of Alexander Drabinko—a former canonical hierarch who betrayed Christ and His Church to join the schismatic “Orthodox Church of Ukraine” in 2018—when they seized the Church of the Great Martyr Paraskeva in the village of Khodosovka in the Kiev Province, reports the Union of Orthodox Journalists.

The incident occurred early in the morning of December 11, when about 20 members of the territorial defense, with the support of police officers, seized the church and cordoned off the territory, rector Archpriest Nikolai Komarnitsky said.

The schismatics cut off the locks on the doors of the church and the Sunday School building and replaced them with their own.

Fr. Nikolai noted that the Orthodox community had a case against the schismatics that ran for more than a year in a provincial court, but was redirected to a district court last month.

“They thought the court would rule in their favor. But no, and that’s why they decided to seize the church. They didn’t even have any court permits to seal the church,” the rector said.

Alexander Drabinko is behind the seizure, Fr. Nikolai says, noting that he has repeatedly sent a fake priest to speak to the canonical priest. The schismatic cleric is responsible for seizing five temples in the Kiev Province already, and has threatened Fr. Nikolai and attempted to force $1,500 out of him.

The church is currently closed, though the schismatics are planning to hold a “service” there on December 17.

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St. Virginia Centurione Bracelli was born in Genoa, Italy, on April 2, 1587. She was raised in an aristocratic but pious family, and when she was young, she wanted to consecrate herself to God in religious life. However, she was pressured into an arranged marriage when she was 15, and had two daughters. 

Virginia’s husband was a drinker and a gambler, and he died only five years after they were married. Virginia dedicated her time to raising her children, and praying and performing works of charity. After her daughters were grown, she began caring for the sick, the elderly, and the abandoned. 

In 1625, Virginia founded a refuge center in Genoa, which filled up almost immediately. In 1631, she rented an empty convent to care for the sick. Other women joined her mission, and she instructed them in the faith. 

Virginia constructed a church dedicated to Our Lady of Refuge, and soon, the women who worked with her were formed into two congregations: the Sisters of Our Lady of Refuge in Mount Calvary, and the Daughters of Our Lady on Mount Calvary. 

Virginia retired from administration of both orders to beg for alms and work among their patients, but she was called back to administrative duties. In her later years, she received visions and locutions.

Virginia died on December 15, 1651, and was canonized by Pope John Paul II on May 18, 2003.

    

So, here I am, trotting along the sidewalk, contemplating the ups and downs of my life.

“Help, in any way you can…” A thick voice, as if descending from another galaxy, catches me unawares.

I shudder as I return back to reality, then pause for a moment and look around. I see a shabby-looking, poorly-dressed guy with a haggard face and a glassy stare, but looking sort of sober. It is apparent that having wasted his life along the rough and rocky pathways, he was now at his lowest ebb and begged in order to extend his earthly subsistence.

“Help me, for Christ’s sake,” the man’s eyes brighten up as they register someone’s presence in front of him. Next, he extends his hand holding an empty plastic cup.

“Errr, but, I… you know… I can’t help you,” I mumble, checking if there are still a few coins left in my pocket. A feeling of justifiable squeamishness arises as if out of nowhere; but I am immediately ambushed by “right-minded” thoughts: Well, it’s vodka he needs, not food! I linger in hesitation, but about ready to make a step away from him. I just simply can’t do it, and that’s it!

The guy, seeing that I’m about to hit the road, knowingly nods his head, as if reading my thoughts:

“I don’t drink. I’ve had my fill. But I do want to eat. A pie or something.”

It’s so easy to share a few crumbs off your pie of well-fed life and simply feed a hungry man!

You suddenly feel all this struggle within yourself or, rather, all those “I can’ts” fighting with “I cans.” That’s when “I can” locks horns with “I want.” Ah, hello, “I want”, where are you? It seems nothing could be simpler than this: to share a few crumbs off your pie of well-fed life and feed the hungry… But do I really want it? Sure, I can, but I have no particular desire to assist outcasts like him.

“Help me, please…” mumbles the guy, losing any hope that my “I can” will win me over.

I feel sorry for him. Suddenly, I make up my mind:

“Alright let’s go, I’ll buy you something.”

And I do buy something: a meat pie, a couple of hot dogs, and a cup of coffee. I hand it over to the guy, he looks at all this, completely dumbfounded…. and then smiles:

“Thank you! God bless you…”

And my mood dramatically improves: my “I can” agreed with “I want”!

***

The Lord sends us the afflicted so that we would want to serve them—and through this apparent and tangible help, we would want to serve Him. Christ renders His power to our “I cans,” giving us everything we need to help those in need. For He doesn’t ask us to make great sacrifices, invest a lot, or spend big on poor folks. We can give only as much as we are able, but this bit will be pleasing to Him and He will accept it. For our part, we should WANT to help our neighbors, because by doing this we cultivate love in our hearts—On True Fasting and Love of NeighborWithout love, a Christian is not a Christian. And Christianity is not Christianity.

“>love for people and, of course, Cultivating Love for God and His ChurchLet us cultivate within ourselves every kind of love and heartfelt attraction to God, to Christ, to His holy Church. Let us give ourselves no rest until Christ, His Church, and the saints are dear to us not only in times of trouble, but also when we have no troubles, when we have nothing to implore, and there remains only to rejoice in the Lord and praise Him.”>love for God. What can be more sublime than this?

As for saying “I can’t” when, in fact, “I can”—this is playing a double game with ourselves. By our “I don’t want to,” when it actually should be “I can,” we deal cunningly with God, Who knows our hearts and expects them to turn towards the needs of our neighbors. This turn is the most important turn of our life and everyone needs to make it; that is, anyone who wants to call himself a Christian.

At the same time, if we really cannot help or we need what we could give for our own use, the Lord will not condemn us for our refusal to give. However, I’ll repeat myself, the Lord placed two small coins—the widow’s mite—well above all the offerings of the rich. In so doing, He showed for all future ages that in His eyes, it is not the sum of money donated to the poor that matters but the disposition of your heart. We may not be able to donate a hundred dollars at once—let’s give ten, but from the heart, and the Lord will accept this offering as if we had given a hundred. He will take it in and never abandon us, giving everything we need in our life.

One of my acquaintances and her two children, who really are dependent on the benevolence and assistance of strangers, once confessed to me that anytime she has any change to spare and someone asks alms of her, she never refuses, but gives a little. She does this in spite of her own desperate need. She says she knows what it means to be in great need and she simply can’t walk past someone else’s sorrow. And the Lord, because of her benevolent heart, blesses her with good people who, in turn, are not indifferent to her and her children.

Our major goal as Christians is to always want to be Be MercifulChrist promises a great reward for the fulfillment of His words: Ye shall be the children of the Highest. What could be higher than that? Christ is the Son of God, and we will be sons of God.

“>merciful and kind to others. On His part, the Lord will hand over to us what we can use to show that mercy. He is a rich and generous Master, and it is pleasing to Him if we give His wealth to the needy. “I want” means “I can”! If I can, it means that I want!

Let Us Fast in EarnestThus, let us begin on these fasting days to give ourselves to an intent study of fasting and prayer; and let us, at the same time, begin to fast and pray indeed.

” class=”tooltip”>Part 1/1: Let us Fast in Earnest
The Meaning and Significance of FastingFasting is a necessary means for success in the spiritual life and for attaining salvation; for fasting—depriving the flesh of excessive food and drink—weakens the force of sensual drives.” class=”tooltip”>Part 1/2: The Meaning and Significance of Fasting
Accustoming Ourselves to FastingTo make our disposition towards fasting firm, we have to accustom ourselves to fasting slowly, carefully, not all at once, but gradually—little by little.” class=”tooltip”>Part 1/3: Accustoming Ourselves to Fasting
Spiritual FastingLet the mind fast, not permitting empty and bad thoughts; let the heart fast, refraining from sinful feelings; let our will fast, directing all our desires and intentions to the one thing needful…” class=”tooltip”>Part 1/4: Spiritual Fasting
What is Prayer?A great prayerful power is at work in the prayers of the Holy Fathers, and whoever enters into them with all his attention and zeal will certainly taste of this prayerful power to the extent that his state of mind converges with the content of the prayer.” class=”tooltip”>Part 2/1: On Prayer. What is Prayer?
How to Prepare for Prayer?Thus, if you want to pray, gather all your thoughts, lay aside all external, earthly cares, and present your mind to God and gaze upon Him.” class=”tooltip”>Part 2/2: How to Prepare for Prayer?
How to Pray?Absorb every word of prayer, bringing the meaning of every word into your heart; that is, understand what you read and feel what you have understood.” class=”tooltip”>Part 2/3: How to Pray?
What to Do After Prayer?Begin, for example, to reflect on the goodness of God, and you’ll see that you’re surrounded by the mercies of God both physically and spiritually, and you’ll fall before God in an outpouring of feelings of gratitude.” class=”tooltip”>Part 2/4: What to Do After Prayer?
About the Jesus PrayerIn order not to get lost in the various methods and definitions of the Jesus Prayer, it’s enough to follow these teachers: St. John Climacus, St. Nilus of Sora, Fr. Seraphim of Sarov, and Dorotheos.” class=”tooltip”>Part 2/5: About the Jesus Prayer
On Prayerful Ascent to God in the HeartThe penitential prayers of this beginning, “O God, cleanse me,” and the others remind the attentive reader of the times of the Old Testament, when fallen mankind sighed to Heaven, which was closed to him, for mercy.”>Part 2/6: On Prayerful Ascent to God in the Heart

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But know that by himself, left to his own devices, in the work of salvation without the On GraceOh, how thankful we must be for all and everything—for the good and the evil; for the joy and the sorrow; and for the suffering and trials we must be grateful to God Who leads us along the path of salvation, not only by way of happiness, but above all and most of all by way of suffering.

“>grace of God, a Christian can’t even think anything good; but all his satisfaction is from God. He especially doesn’t know how and for what he should pray; and only the Holy Spirit instructs him about what he should pray for, and intercedes for him with unutterable groanings (Rom. 8:26). Knowing all this, a Christian turns to the Holy Spirit with the prayer “O Heavenly King” and the rest.

Having invoked the Holy Spirit into his heart and soul, purified from every defilement of flesh and spirit by His grace, and placed by Him on the path of salvation, the Christian thus establishes the ascent to God in his heart, raises his heart and mind to Him; and having renounced all things earthly and ascended, as it were, to the first heaven, sends up the thrice-holy hymn to God, once heard by a boy who was enraptured from Earth to Heaven: “Holy God, Holy Mighty, Holy Immortal” (3x).

Having sung the angelic Trisagion hymn, the Christian, aware of himself not as a heavenly holy angel, but an earthly sinner, boldly goes further, higher, closer to God with his mind and heart, and ascends as it were to the second heaven, tremulously, with reverence, crying out: “Glory to the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit;” and deeply aware of his sinfulness, his iniquity and his infirmities, he prays with a strong cry and tears, or, at least, he should pray: “O Most Holy Trinity, have mercy on us,” and the rest.

Not stopping there, with the prayer: “Lord, have mercy” (3x), a Christian aspires higher, with praise in his heart and on his lips; with “Glory, both now,” he mentally ascends as if to the third heaven, before the face of the Lord God Himself, eternally abiding in glory unspeakable, incessantly hymned by the archangels, angels, and all the saints of God; he ascends to this immeasurable height with a golden key from the very heart of God, so to speak, with the Lord’s Prayer, given to us by our Lord Jesus Christ; and with a living, sincere faith in the merits of the Cross of the Redeemer of mankind, having crossed himself, with filial boldness, he prays to the Heavenly Father: “Our Father, Who art in Heaven…”

Thus enraptured to the third heaven, like the holy The Apostle Paul’s “Hymn of Love”There are sixteen properties of love, each worthy of separate analysis, described in this chapter. Let’s consider them from the point of view of psychology, as far as that is permissible in relation to the Holy Apostle Paul’s Epistle.

“>Apostle Paul, and realizing he was sprinkled with the blood of the Son of God, embraced by the favor of God the Father and quickened by the grace of the Holy Spirit, the Christian again cries out from the depths of his soul: “Lord, have mercy (12x). Glory to the Father and to the Son, and the Holy Spirit…” And knowing Who gave him such grace, he falls into the dust before his Savior, calling out to Him with all the strength and feelings of his spirit: “Come, let us worship” (3x).

Then, calmly, consciously, with deep feeling, he reads the prayers in order, beginning with Psalm 50 and the Creed, in fulfillment of the first Gospel commandment: Repent and believe in the Gospel (Mk. 1:14).

This is not only at the beginning of our prayers, but also in the middle, and more than once—nine times a day, and more than twenty times during Great Lent; and this is so that our attention, which sometimes weakens, might be constantly kept at a prayerful height.

Such is the meaning and significance of the entrance prayers and usual beginning! The first gathers our scattered thoughts and feelings and focuses them on the incarnate economy of our salvation, without which no prayer is conceivable; and the second establishes the ascent to God in our heart, which is absolutely necessary for proper and saving prayer.

O, my beloved, if only you would delve into the meaning of our prayers, understand their meaning and acquire the spirit of prayer! Then, inspired by To Combine the Strictness of Fasting with Love for PeopleWe celebrate a prayer service to Greatmartyr Theodore the Tyro with gratitude to him and with the faith that true fasting is never put to shame, but the Lord covers the faster with His power, giving him spiritual joy and strength.

“>fasting and Prayer, Temperance, and the Battle Against EvilIf you want to enter into the joy of the Lord and live eternally with Him, be zealous to emulate the Apostle Paul who says: But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection (1 Cor. 9:27).”>prayer, we would irresistibly strive for God; then we wouldn’t have this unfortunate lethargy, dullness, laziness, or unwillingness to pray. On the contrary, then we would be burning in spirit and would strive for prayer with unquenchable thirst. In a word, then the words of the Psalmist would be realized in us: As the hart panteth after the fountains of water, so panteth my soul after Thee, O God. My soul hath thirsted for God, the mighty, the living; when shall I come, and appear before the face of God? (Ps. 41:1-2).

The U.S. bishops are asking Congress to provide at least $200 million in federal funds for grants that improve security for houses of worship and other nonprofit organizations.

In a letter to congressional leaders, written last month and released to the public this week, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) urged lawmakers to include additional funding for the Nonprofit Security Grant Program (NSGP) in a package that provides security assistance to Israel.

The federal government says that the NSGP “provides funding support for target hardening and other physical security enhancements and activities to nonprofit organizations that are at high risk of terrorist attack.”

New York archbishop Cardinal Timothy Dolan, chair of the USCCB’s Committee for Religious Liberty, said in the letter that the grants “enable vulnerable communities to gather for worship, prayer, and service without fear of being attacked.”

Dolan in the letter stated that “the Jewish community is especially vulnerable,” citing “stories of attacks” since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel, as well as reports of sharp rises in antisemitic incidents.

The Anti-Defamation League said in November that antisemitic incidents in the United States had skyrocketed by more than 300% year over year since the Israel-Hamas war began. In mid-October, meanwhile, Franciscan University in Steubenville, Ohio, a private Catholic university, expedited the transfer process for Jewish students who experience antisemitic discrimination at other universities.

“Muslims are vulnerable too,” the archbishop said in the letter, citing the killing of a 6-year-old Muslim Palestinian boy in Illinois, which resulted in first-degree murder charges for the alleged attacker.

Catholic churches have also faced multiple attacks in recent years. The USCCB estimates more than 300 attacks on Catholic churches in the U.S. since May 2020.

The attacks include arson — such as the destruction of the sanctuary of St. Joseph Church in Salem, Oregon — as well as vandalism such as the beheading of a statue of Christ in Miami.

The archbishop said in the letter that the U.S. bishops were joining the Jewish Orthodox Union in calling for “at least $200 million for the NSGP” in the military aid package.

“We ask that you work to ensure that these funds can be made available quickly, in a manner appropriate to the dire situation,” Dolan said in the letter.