Tag: Christianity

God tells Christians not to be afraid because he is always close, accompanying the faithful throughout their lives and through all their challenges, Pope Francis said.

“God says ‘Do not be afraid’ to Abraham, Isaac” and many others in the Bible, but “he says it to us, too. ‘Be not afraid,’ keep going,” because God “is your traveling companion,” the pope said Jan. 22 during his weekly general audience in the Paul VI Audience Hall.

The pope also expressed his closeness to and prayers for the people of Los Angeles, where severe wildfires continue to burn. “I want you to know that my heart is with the people of Los Angeles,” he said.

“May Our Lady of Guadalupe intercede for all residents so that they may be witnesses of hope through the strength of diversity and creativity for which they are known around the world,” he said at the end of his general audience.

The pope also told those gathered in the audience hall that during his daily phone call with the Holy Family Parish in Gaza yesterday, the people living there were happy with the ceasefire.

“Inside, there are 600 people in the parish and the school. And they told me, ‘Today, we ate lentils with chicken — something we weren’t used to in these times. Just some vegetables, a little something… They were happy,” he said.

He again invited Catholics to pray for Gaza, “for peace there, and in so many parts of the world,” and to “remember in your prayers the elderly in Ukraine, who are living through the tragedy of war.”

In his main address, the pope continued a series of talks on “Jesus Christ our hope,” which is the theme for his weekly catechesis throughout the Jubilee Year, by looking at the effect of God’s transforming power on a young Mary in Nazareth.

The angel Gabriel “brings a message of an entirely unheard-of form and content, so much so that Mary’s heart is shaken, disturbed,” the pope said.

Gabriel’s greeting, “Hail!” is an invitation to rejoice, and “God calls Mary with a loving name unknown to biblical history, ‘kecharitoméne,’ which means ‘filled with divine grace,’” he said.

Mary, full of grace, means that “God’s love has already for some time inhabited, and continues to dwell, in Mary’s heart … making her his masterpiece,” he said.

God immediately reassures Mary to “be not afraid,” he said, because “the Lord’s presence gives this grace of not being afraid.”

Mary learns of her mission to be “the mother of the long-awaited Davidic Messiah” whose name will be “‘Jesus,’ which means ‘God saves,’ reminding everyone forever that it is not man who saves, but only God,” the pope said.

“This absolutely unique motherhood shakes Mary to the core,” he said, but she reflects and hears an invitation to trust completely in God.

“Illuminated with trust,” he said, “Mary welcomes the Word in her own flesh and thus launches the greatest mission ever entrusted to a human creature,” placing herself in service, collaborating with God’s plan.

“Let us learn from Mary, mother of the Savior and our mother, to open our ears to the divine Word, to welcome it and cherish it, so that it may transform our hearts into tabernacles of his presence, into hospitable homes where hope grows,” the pope said.

Greeting different language groups after his main catechesis, the pope welcomed representatives of other Christian communities who were in Rome for the week of Prayer for Christian Unity, which concludes Jan. 25.

“This unity is not the fruit of our own efforts, but a gift we must ask the Father for, so that the world may believe in his only son, Christ the savior,” the pope told German-speaking visitors.

Iași, Romania, January 22, 2025

Sihăstria Putna Monastery. Photo: sihastriaputnei.ro     

The Synod of the Metropolis of Moldova and Bukovina met Monday, January 20 in Iași. Among its main decision was the opening of several new monastic habitations.

As St. John Climacus writes: “Angels are a light to monks, and monks are a light to men.” It’s often said that the spiritual health of a diocese or Church can be judged by the health of its monastic life.

The Moldova Metropolis consists of the Archdiocese of Iași, the Archdiocese of Suceava and Rădăuți, the Archdiocese of Roman and Bacău, and the Diocese of Huși.

Within the Archdiocese of Suceava and Rădăuți, four monastic dependencies for monks, attached to the Sihăstria Putna Monastery, were opened, reports the Basilica News Agency.

The Synod also approved the establishment of the men’s Monastery of the Nativity of the Mother of God in the village of Poiana in the city of Dolhasca, and the conversion of the Ascension of the Lord Monastery in Pojorâta, Suceava County, into a convent. The latter was consecrated in 1995 as a men’s monastery.

At the same time, the Synod approved the dissolution of the Nativity of the Mother of God Skete for nuns in Boroaia, Suceava County.

***

The beginnings of Sihăstria Putna date back to the middle of the 15th century. Seeking more tranquility, a monk from Putna Lavra named Atanasie retreated two miles away into the forest. Other hermits joined him, and together they built a small wooden church here.

Devastated by the Poles at the end of the 17th century, the little church would be rebuilt with support from treasurer Ilie Cantacuzino, during the time of Abbot Lazăr, a disciple of Metropolitan Dosoftei of Moldova. His successors in leading the monastic establishment were Teodosie (+ 1715) and Dosoftei (+ 1753).

In the second half of the 18th century, Sihăstria Putna experienced a special flourishing during the time of Abbot Sila (1753-1781). At this time, a stone church was built, dedicated to the Annunciation, consecrated in 1758, and other works were carried out with the support of rulers and boyars of the time.

After the occupation of northern Moldova by the Habsburg Empire (1775), many restrictions were placed on the Hermitage. Under Abbot Natan (1781-1784), the hermits there, in order to survive, resorted to begging alms from the faithful, until somewhere toward the end of the 18th century Sihăstria Putna was dissolved, like most monastic establishments in Bukovina. The inhabitants were transferred to Putna Monastery, along with the liturgical objects.

On April 24, 1990, when restoration work began at Sihăstria Putna, only the ruins of the old 18th-century church remained. At that time, the yellow and sweetly-fragrant bones of the three venerable fathers were How the relics of the new Putna saints were discoveredOn May 20, 2016 the local Synod of Moldova and Bucovina approved the proposed canonizations of Metropolitan Jacob Putneanul of Moldova, and the Venerable Fathers Silas, Nathan, and Paisios of Sihăstria Putnei Monastery.

“>discovered among the ruins: Sila, Natan, and Paisie.

They were canonized by the Romanian Orthodox Church in Four saints of Putna Monastery canonized by Romanian Orthodox ChurchThe official ceremony of glorification of four saints of Putna Monastery was celebrated over the weekend by His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel at Putna Monastery in Suceava Country in northern Romania.

“>May 2017.

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I have a 25-year-old nephew who is gentleness itself. His smile is shy and diffident, and his whole nature tends, naturally, to the good. 

After studying something mathematical in college and getting the usual shallow education in high school, he’s found there was a world of rich culture and philosophy in books he hasn’t read, and he is hungry. He dove into the world of literature haphazardly, and every time we speak about his random reading list, I ask the same question: “Have you read the Bible yet?”

It’s a question many people are asking themselves today, and responding in the negative. But they are doing something about it. 

According to book tracker Circana BookScan, Bible sales are up by 22% through October of 2024 compared to the same period last year. Print book sales overall, by comparison, rose by just 1% last year. 

It’s a Good Book revolution.

Many of these sales are to young Americans like my nephew, who somehow failed to read at home, school, or college the foundational text of our civilization. They may be, again like my nephew, Sunday Mass-going Catholics with a few years of CCD under their belts, and not much more in the way of formation. In any case, whether from religiously affiliated families or secular ones, they’ve found an empty place inside their hearts and brains where the rich and meaningful narratives of the Old and New Testaments belong. 

Buying and opening a Bible is a wise move on many levels. From a purely practical perspective, how can you understand or navigate modern civilization without basic knowledge of the Bible? 

Start with the arts: Even in today’s secular culture, it takes some of that knowledge to actually enjoy and appreciate the beauty of things like good architecture, novels, or even music. Can Shakespeare be understood while missing the scriptural allusions and metaphors that are woven into the story lines and gorgeous language? Or Steinbeck? Can Western music and its development be mapped and fully enjoyed while knowing nothing of the religious sensibilities of its august composers? Can you understand the layout of an old city, arranged around the house of God at its center, with spires inviting people in their houses and alleys to look up always? 

Then there are our Western familial, social, and political arrangements, which we too easily take for granted. Monogamy, the inviolability of children, the rejection of slavery, the dignity of work, the equality of women, the rules of waging a just war, the development of democracy — all are rooted in the ideas and values developed over millennia in the Bible. 

Can these things endure for a people not actively engaging with the source document? What about the institutions which we all agree are indispensable, like schools, orphanages, and hospitals? These may seem naturally occurring to us, but they are the pretty blooms on the living tree of Christianity, a tree which will wither at the root without knowledge of the Bible. 

This is part of the case I’ve made for my nephew, and which I suspect is in great measure moving the general public back toward the Good Book. There is something else, though, which is even more vital.

The thousands of years of prophecy, revelation, poetry, and adventure stories in one thick book whose sales have topped 5 billion over the centuries is not just a blueprint for the glories of Western society. It is also full of meaning. The loneliness, anxiety, sadness, dysfunction, and fragmentation that characterizes so much of modern Western man’s life can be laid at the feet of an absence of meaning. Why are we here? Where are we going? How are we meant to treat ourselves and others on the way to our goal? What are the enabling principles of a well-lived life? 

The Bible has the answers that fill us with hope, answers that show us how to live courageously in a harsh world full of bitter and unavoidable truths. 

Of course, I gave my nephew a handsome Bible for his birthday. Now when we speak, we talk about the significance of things like sacrifice and holiness, and how he can model his life on that of the heroes and heroines that leap at him from the dense pages. One day soon we will start to talk about belief and practice, and how the Word of God lives more gloriously than ever in the celebration of the Eucharist, and among an assembly of people singing his praises.

Moscow, January 22, 2025

Photo: ria.ru     

Nearly 40,000 pregnant women chose to continue their pregnancies in 2024 after receiving counseling and information about social support measures, according to Russian Health Minister Mikhail Murashko’s announcement at a reproductive medicine congress.

The Ministry’s expanded counseling program reached over 260,000 pregnant women last year, providing individualized information about available social support based on their specific circumstances. Additionally, more than 11,000 medical professionals received training in new psychological counseling approaches for women facing reproductive choices.

The initiative is part of Russia’s ongoing efforts to address its historically high abortion rates. Official statistics show a gradual decline, with 467,586 recorded pregnancy terminations in 2023, down from 503,809 in 2022. However, experts suggest the actual numbers could be significantly higher—potentially twice the official figures, which would amount to as many as 3,000 terminated pregnancies daily.

While the declining trend is noteworthy, Russia continues to maintain one of the world’s highest abortion rates, a legacy of Soviet-era policies when abortion was commonly used as a primary form of birth control. The current government has implemented various measures to reduce these numbers, combining increased access to family planning services with social support programs for expectant mothers.

“Thanks to all of this, nearly 40,000 patients chose to continue their pregnancies in 2024,” Minister Murashko stated, highlighting the impact of the enhanced counseling services implemented throughout the country’s healthcare system.

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The controversial lay movement Sodalitium Christianae Vitae was forced to confirm news that it was suppressed by Pope Francis after two of its members leaked the news to a Catholic news outlet.

In a statement released Jan. 20, the movement said the news site, Infovaticana, “published the news that the Holy Father had dissolved our society of apostolic life” and that while it was true, its article “contained several inaccuracies.”

According to Infovaticana’s report, Cardinal Gianfranco Ghirlanda, who was appointed as the movement’s delegate of formation in 2019, announced the Sodalitium’s suppression to its members during the group’s General Assembly in Aparecida, Brazil Jan. 18.

Two Sodalitium members, the statement said, “admitted to having violated the confidentiality of the case and, after asking for forgiveness from those present, were definitively expelled from the Assembly.”

“We regret that the misconduct of these two members may have been used by the press to generate doubts about whether it was” Cardinal Ghirlanda who leaked the news, the movement said.

The pope’s alleged decision to suppress Sodalitium — which was not yet officially confirmed by the Vatican and Vatican sources to whom OSV News reached out on the matter did not respond for a request for comment — would be the culmination of a series of decisions stemming from a 2023 investigation that also saw the expulsion of dozens of high-ranking members of the group, including its founder, Luis Fernando Figari, in August.

A month later, the Vatican announced the expulsion of 10 members, including Peruvian journalist Alejandro Bermúdez, who allegedly committed “abuse in the exercise of the apostolate of journalism.”

Bermudez served as the longtime executive director of Catholic News Agency, or CNA, and the ACI Group, part of the EWTN family, until his retirement Dec. 31, 2022.

Responding to questions by OSV News Jan. 19, Bermúdez said there was no question regarding the pope’s authority and that “if he decrees that the Sodalitium must be suppressed due to a lack of genuine charisma, then it must be suppressed,” he said, citing an alleged main reason for suppression.

“However, I firmly believe that the process leading to this decision was deeply flawed, marked by a blatant violation of due process, disregard for the truth, and ideological bias on the part of Msgr. Jordi Bertomeu Farnós,” he said.

“It is deeply saddening, though not entirely surprising, given that the individual leading this process, Msgr. Jordi Bertomeu, seemed intent on this outcome even before beginning the investigation of the community,” Bermudez told OSV News.

The Vatican launched an investigation in July 2023, led by Archbishop Charles Scicluna of Malta — adjunct secretary of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith — and Msgr. Bertomeu, also a member of that department. During their investigation, the prelates met with victims and leaders of Sodalitium, as well as journalists who investigated the organization.

The investigation’s findings are believed to have led to the series of expulsions from the group.

Bermúdez told OSV News that like any other group implicated in abuse, Sodalitium “warrants serious scrutiny and criticism.” However, he also criticized media coverage, which he said “overlooked” its reform efforts.

“Despite these publicly accessible reforms, the narrative of ‘complete disregard for the victim’ — promoted systematically by (Msgr.) Bertomeu — continues to spread. Detailed information about the Sodalitium’s genuine reform efforts, has always been available,” he said.

OSV News reached out to Msgr. Bertomeu Jan. 19 but he declined to comment.

However, for Peruvian journalist Pedro Salinas, a former member of Sodalitium Christianae Vitae who suffered physical and psychological abuse by Figari, “the Catholic Church took a while” to act since the first complaints surfaced 25 years ago by former member José Enrique Escardó.

In a message sent to OSV News Jan. 19, Salinas said that while he welcomed the unconfirmed reports of the group’s end, he was also concerned whether “the suppression will extend to the other branches which, in my humble opinion, should also be suppressed, as they carry the DNA of the abuse.”

“I am referring to the Christian Life Movement (CLM), which is an international association of the faithful and depends on the Pontifical Council for the Laity; the Marian Community of Reconciliation, whose members are known as ‘Fraternas,’ and the Servants of the Plan of God, also known as ‘Siervas,’ the latter two depending on the Archdiocese of Lima,” he said.

Bermúdez told OSV News that the alleged suppression only applies to Sodalitium, which is a “lay society of apostolic life (and) of pontifical right and thus falls into its own canonical category.”

“Both the Siervas and the Fraternas are similar entities but of diocesan right, therefore their situation is being decided at a diocesan level, in this case by the Archdiocese of Lima, their place of foundation,” he explained.

As an international lay movement, the CLM is not a religious institute, but an association of the faithful, and thus dependent on a different dicastery (the Dicastery for the Laity, the Family and Life),” Bermúdez added.

Nevertheless, Salinas warned that should those branch groups continue to exist, “the Hydra’s head will resurface in the offshoots of the so-called ‘Sodalite family.’”

Salinas and fellow journalist Paola Ugaz co-wrote a book titled, “Mitad Monjes, Mitad Soldados” (“Half Monks, Half Soldiers”), which detailed the psychological and sexual abuse, as well as corporal punishment and extreme exercises that young members of Sodalitium Christianae Vitae were forced to endure.

Since then, both were targets of threats as well as persistent litigation from persons associated with Sodalitium and its members, including retired Archbishop Jose Eguren Anselmi of Piura, who launched multiple lawsuits against them in 2018. Facing pressure from the country’s bishops, and the Vatican, the archbishop withdrew his lawsuits against both journalists.

Following the investigation by Archbishop Scicluna and Msgr. Bertomeu, the Vatican announced Archbishop Eguren’s resignation in April. At 67, the archbishop was eight years shy of the age canon law requires bishops to hand in their resignation. Pope Francis expelled him from Sodalitium in September.

Salinas told OSV News that Pope Francis gave Sodalitium “every opportunity to act correctly.”

“But it did not because their sectarian blinders and arrogant attitude made them believe that, once again, by applying the ‘Peruvian solution’ (i.e. intimidating ‘enemies’ with judicial threats and smear campaigns), they could turn the tables,” he said.

Salinas said the group’s alleged attempts at intimidation were thwarted thanks to the mission undertaken by Archbishop Scicluna and Msgr. Bertomeu, as well as “the final and decisive intervention of” Sister Simona Brambilla, who was appointed Jan. 6 by Pope Francis as prefect of the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.

“The truth, for a change, prevailed,” Salinas told OSV News. “It took time to assert itself, yes, but it finally came to light.”

For Ugaz, the decision to suppress Sodalitium, if confirmed by the Vatican, “lays bare the responsibility of members of the Peruvian Catholic Church, who, since the complaints against the group began in 2000, chose to look the other way.”

“The Sodalitium did not grow on its own; it needed the support of a Peruvian political, financial, and media elite that accompanied and elevated it, thanks to the deals made by Father Jaime Baertl, taking advantage of the Concordat signed between Peru and the Vatican.”

Expelled from Sodalitium in October, Father Baertl, a former spiritual assistant, was accused of sexual misconduct and involved “in numerous irregularities and illicit acts committed by companies linked to the Sodalitium Christianae Vitae.”

Recalling the various lawsuits made against her by members and associates of Sodalitium, Ugaz said she and Salinas “experienced unprecedented persecution that tested our resolve, our peace of mind, that of our families, and our freedom.”

“Thanks to the support of the international community, notably Pope Francis — whom I met with twice — I did not end up in prison,” she said.

Ugaz also said the pope’s decision to appoint Msgr. Bertomeu to oversee the process was “a decision that will hit the Sodalitium hard.”

“(Msgr.) Bertomeu has simultaneously demonstrated closeness to the victims through his commitment to truth and justice, and has also endured direct attacks from Sodalitium, through figures like Giuliana Caccia, Sebastián Blanco and Alejandro Bermúdez,” she told OSV News.

“The suppression makes it clear that both the Catholic Church and the state have fallen short,” Ugaz said. “But unlike the state’s debts, the Peruvian Catholic Church will be tested. Pope Francis and his team are watching them, and in this case, the emperor has been naked ever since the first complaint was made 25 years ago.”

The scandal-plagued society of apostolic life was founded in Peru in 1971. Once a powerful Catholic institution that gathered members of the Peruvian elite, the Sodalitium saw itself hit by dozens of denouncements of sexual and psychological abuse, physical violence, misappropriation of funds, and other crimes by former members and journalists.

The Vatican’s September document mentioned among reasons for the expulsions physical abuse “including sadism and violence,” deploying tactics to “break the will of subordinates,” spiritual abuse, abuse of authority including the cover-up of crimes, and abuse in the administration of church goods, and also “abuse in the exercise of the apostolate of journalism.”

Patras, Greece, January 21, 2025

Photo: Romfea     

The Orthodox Church of Greece festively celebrated on Sunday the 45th anniversary of the return of one of its greatest relics—the Cross on which St. Andrew the First-Called Apostle was crucified.

The joyous occasion was celebrated by two hierarchs and a host of clerics and faithful.

The return of the cross

All the people of Patras and beyond, led by the late Metropolitan Nikodimos of Patras and other local authorities, welcomed the grace-flowing Cross of the Apostle Andrew on January 19, 1980. The precious relic was being returned from the city of Marseille, France, and the Church of St. Victor, where it had been taken by the papal bishop Antelmos in 1205, who had occupied the throne of Patras.

In the Orthodox Metropolis of France, the late Archpriest Panagiotis Simigiatos from Patras served as General Archepiscopal Vicar. The priest learned from reliable sources that the Cross of the Apostle Andrew was in Marseille, at the Church of St. Victor.

Photo: Romfea     

In cooperation with the Metropolis of Patras and the Roman Catholic Church, with the help of the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece and the Ecumenical Patriarchate, the necessary actions were taken and the Cross of St. Andrew was returned to Patras in 1980.

The Cross, transported in a wooden case, was initially placed in an iron case and embedded in the wall of the Church of the Apostle Andrew, behind the proskynitarion where the precious head of the First-Called Apostle is kept and venerated.

Later, under the current Metropolitan of Patras Chrysostomos, the Cross was placed in a wooden case and covered with silver-gold plating, adorned with scenes from the life of the Apostle Andrew, and was placed in the northern aisle of the church, which was dedicated to the Cross of the Apostle Andrew and was decorated, like the rest of the church, with scenes from his life, miracles, and martyrdom.

This year’s celebrations

Photo: Romfea     

The celebration of the Cross’ return began on Saturday, January 18, when Met. Chrysostomos and Bishop Chrysanthos of Kernitsa served Hierarchical Vespers in the Church of St. Andrew with priests and deacons from Patras and beyond.

The Cross of St. Andrew was placed on a special platform in the middle of the church, for the veneration of the faithful. The Metropolitan offered a homily on the Apostle’s martyrdom.

The next morning, Met. Chrysostomos celebrated Orthros and Liturgy in a crowded church. In his homily, he recounted the history of the Cross of St. Andrew, its journey to the west, its discovery after many centuries, and its return to the city of his martyrdom.

He also spoke about the duty of the people of Patras toward the Apostle Andrew, to preserve his sacred teaching about the Trinitarian God, about our holy Church as the ark of salvation through the Holy Mysteries, and about the value of men as God’s creation, but also about the need to defend the Truth that the Apostle Andrew handed down to us, even to the point of bloodshed if necessary.

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Waugh, Greene, Mauriac, Tolkien, O’Connor. You know them — the heart of the 20th century Catholic literary canon. Less familiar, especially to American readers, but deserving of his own spot, is the British writer David Lodge, who died on New Year’s Day at the age of 89.

David Lodge wrote novels, essays, plays and teleplays. He also enjoyed a long academic career. His novels are comic, satiric and ever a bit elegiac, all with subtexts of the loss that comes of making a choice, even a desired choice, the comic-tragic folly of human beings who exist in the paradox of unbounded spirits and limited bodies.

His fiction may not be purely autobiographical, but each work emerges from a particular point in Lodge’s life: from his childhood during the Second World War (Out of the Shelter) to his required years of national service (Ginger’s Gone Barmy), academic life in the brilliant “Campus Trilogy,”  to his later works which provide a glimpse into the challenges of middle-age, including aging parents and the onset of his own deafness. (Deaf Sentence).

And, yes, Catholicism: Lodge was a cradle Catholic whose personal faith shifted over the decades. His first novel, The Picturegoers (1960) featured a protagonist with a nominal Catholic background much like Lodge’s own, who takes a room with a large Irish Catholic family. The character is deeply attracted to both one of the family’s daughters as well as their messy, animated faith. 

But in an introduction to a 1993 edition of the book, he commented: “Looking back at that aspect of The Picturegoers from my present demythologized, provisional and in many ways agnostic theological perspective, it seems like the work of another person.”

Lodge’s two most explicitly “Catholic” novels point us to the shape of this journey, reflecting the experiences of young British Catholics of his own generation in the years before, during and after the Second Vatican Council.

“The British Museum is Falling Down,” published in 1965, is a short, hilarious novel that follows a young British graduate student, Adam Appleby, through a single day of his frenetic life: trying to do research (in the British Museum reading room, of course) meeting academic obligations and, crucially, dealing with the pressures of family life. Those pressures are especially acute because the near-impoverished Applebys, faithful Catholics with their three children, seem to be hovering on the edge of something because Barbara Appleby’s period is late.  

Adam’s misadventures and interior monologues, written in a pastiche of varied literary styles in tribute to authors such as Graham Greene, Kafka and James Joyce, bring us into the experience of young adult Catholics of the period trying to sort through the knotty problems brought by the intersection of Church teaching, real life, and ambiguous signals from Rome at the end of the Second Vatican Council.

“Souls and Bodies” (or, in its much more wryly descriptive British title “How Far Can You Go?”) did this with a larger cast of characters over years, not hours. The novel opens in a college chapel in the 1950’s, where a group of Catholic college students have gathered for daily Mass. We follow them through their marriages, childbirths, vocational discernments, sexual adventures and spiritual searches, ending, brilliantly, with the group gathered for worship again, but this time in the early 70’s, in an open field for an Easter celebration featuring a liberation theologian imported from South America as the star.

What a difference fifteen years made. And in retrospect, how poignant is the question in the British title. The young adult Catholics had been obsessed with the question of how “far can you go” in intimacy before you commit a certain type of sin, but the greater question becomes “ … in matters of belief…how far can you go in this process without throwing out something vital?”

I am somewhat of an evangelist for Lodge’s work, especially those last two titles, among Catholics. Lodge’s characters are a generation older than I am, but the experiences he describes with such clarity and bite are recognizable even to me as important background for contemporary discussions. 

The fact is, we are still living in the middle of this history, and many of the arguments about where we should be as a Church today are rooted in our understanding of what the Church used to be like. Much of what we hear in our debates does not come from folks who actually lived it, but who project their expectations and ideologies on a fantasy of the past. This goes for those who ponder questions like, “How could people have abandoned that beauty and clarity?”as well as those who assert,“What a blessing all that pointless nonsense was tossed out!”

Lodge’s two novels offer more than a helpful historical record. They offer a way of seeing the human beings who lived it, a way of seeing that is paradoxically sharp, yet at its heart, quite generous.

Lodge, as his own words make clear, ended up with more “progressive” notions of Catholicism. But because he is ultimately sympathetic to all of his characters and honestly explores their behavior and motivations, the reader never loses sight of the yearning at the heart of every person’s spiritual journey.

David Lodge treated the oddballs and searching denizens of his fictional Catholic worlds with humor, honesty and an attempt, at least, at understanding. Perhaps his work can encourage us, in our very real Catholic world, to do the same.

Tallinn, January 21, 2025

Photo: orthodox.ee     

The Estonian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate held its third Council session on January 10, 2025, in Tallinn. The session addressed concerns raised by the Tartu County Court’s registration department regarding the Church’s statute adopted on Estonian Church amends statutes to reflect administrative independenceThe Council of the Estonian Orthodox Church (Moscow Patriarchate) adopted new statutes yesterday, granting itself administrative independence.

“>August 20.

Clergy and lay representatives participated in the session, including all active clergy, Synod members, and lay representatives from each parish.

Estonia is pressuring the Estonian Church to break ties with the Moscow Patriarchate and Estonian Orthodox Church formally rejects proposal to join Constantinople’s jurisdictionOn September 19, the head of the EAOC proposed at a session of the Estonian Council of Churches to create a Russian vicariate to subsume parishes of the EOC-MP.

“>join the Constantinople Patriarchate, which has its own presence in the country. While the Estonian Church has opposed the war and authorities confess they have Estonian gov’t sees no tangible threat from Estonian Church but pressuring its parishes to join Constantinople“We’ve already held the first [parish] meetings and plan to further expand this activity next week,” said Raivo Kuyt, Vice Chancellor for Population and Civil Society of the Ministry of the Interior.”>found no evidence of wrongdoing, the government expelled His Eminence Metropolitan Evgeny of Tallinn Metropolitan Evgeny forced to leave EstoniaHis Eminence Metropolitan Evgeny of Tallinn and All Estonia was forced to leave the country today after the authorities refused to renew his residence permit.”>in February and is demanding that the Church unilaterally end its connection to the Moscow Patriarchate, despite its autonomy in administration, at the threat of an entire Estonia: Bill submitted to ban churches tied to the Moscow PatriarchateThe Estonian Ministry of the Interior has seriously ramped up its pressure on the Estonian Orthodox Church as Minister Lauri Läänemets has proposed new legislation to ban religious organizations connected to the Moscow Patriarchate.”>ban.

The main agenda item for the recent Council session was resolving issues with the Church’s statutes, particularly the state’s requirement to change its name from “Estonian Orthodox Church” (“Eesti Õigeusu Kirik”), the Estonian Church reports. The Council adopted this name, dropping any official reference to the Moscow Patriarchate, but the state objected that this name is already used by Constantinople’s Estonian Apostolic Orthodox Church when presenting itself in other languages.

The Council also addressed the fact that the court rejected the August decisions based on the fact that His Met. Evgeny, who chaired the session remotely, had already been driven out of the country

The Council participants reached a compromise solution, agreeing to rename the church to “Estonian Christian Orthodox Church” (“Eesti Kristlik Õigeusu Kirik”) and make minor clarifications to the statutes. However, they maintained that Met. Evgeny leadership remains legal, as Estonian law allows religious organizations to have up to half of their board members as non-residents. The Council emphasized that the Metropolitan thus retains full legal rights to continue his activities as head of the Church and member of its Synod.

The amended statute and required documentation were submitted electronically to the Tartu County Court’s registration department on January 16, for official registration of the changes.

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Recently, the diary of a young North Korean soldier killed in Ukraine came to light. What attracted most commentary was the revelation that he and his unfortunate colleagues were being used, essentially, as bait for the deadly drones that hover over the battlefields of that beleaguered country. What I found even more desperately sad, however, was a more personal truth that was laid bare in the pages of that diary.

Explaining why he was committed to fighting in the Russia-Ukraine war, he said, “I put on the military uniform of the revolution for the sake of protecting the Supreme Commander,” and “I will unconditionally carry out the orders of the Supreme Commander Kim Jong Un, even if it costs me my life.” I want to be perfectly clear that I have nothing whatsoever against honest patriotism or passionate love of one’s own country, and I’m certainly not questioning this young soldier’s sincerity. But what I find tragic is the narrowing of his heart’s desire, for the young soldier expresses a loyalty, not so much to his country, as to “the leader.” And the leader in question, we know, is a petty, violent, and mean-spirited dictator. Again, I’m not casting blame on the soldier himself. He came of age in a dramatically closed society, and he had been propagandized from his youngest days that the supreme value was none other than Kim Jong Un. But to me it is just devastating to think that all his idealism, intelligence, energy, and emotion were ordered to such a pathetic end.

Now this is but an extreme case of a spiritual problem that is truly universal in scope. It is a basic conviction of the Bible that every human being, made in the image and likeness of God, possesses a heart that is oriented toward God, so that, as the Psalmist has it, “only in God will my soul be at rest.” To be sure, the fall has obscured and compromised that desire, but it remains, often inchoately, present and operative within each person. In some ways, the drama that defines every human life is the tension played out within the conflicted heart, when what is properly ordered to the supreme good devolves into being ordered to some lesser value. As St. Augustine put it with admirable economy of expression, we sinners have “substituted a creature for the Creator.”

So, we seek the deepest satisfaction in wealth, in power, in politics, in our human relationships, in our families, indeed in our countries. But these things are, at best, relative goods and not the supreme good, and hence in the measure that we place them at the center of our concern, we make of them idols, false gods, golden calves. The prophet Jeremiah understood this truth in his bones. In the seventeenth chapter of his book, he says, “Cursed is the man who trusts in human beings, who makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the Lord. He is like a barren bush in the wasteland . . . that stands in lava beds in the wilderness, a land salty and uninhabited.” The heart that is directed to the superficial goods of the world is like a tree with shallow roots in the desert. On the other hand, the one whose heart is ordered to the Lord, Jeremiah insists, is like “a tree planted beside the waters that stretches out its roots to the stream . . . in the year of drought, it shows no distress, but still produces fruit.”

One might be tempted to say that these are elementary spiritual truths—and indeed they are—but they are forgotten all the time. Though the Bible and much of the literature of the world are filled with the reminder that nothing in the finite world satisfies the aching of the heart, nevertheless, every generation, it seems, comes to believe the lie. Though it has never worked before, we somehow convince ourselves that this time around, if we just get enough of the world’s goods, we will find joy. Sermons, exhortations, indeed articles like this one, can provide a service to some degree, but the most powerful argument against idolatry is the witness of a life. When we see someone who lives as though only God finally matters, we tend to get it. And this is one of the principal reasons the Church has, from the beginning, encouraged the consecrated life, by which I mean, a life marked by poverty, chastity, and obedience, a life that makes sense only if God exists. This is why it has held up St. Augustine, St. John Chrysostom, St. Antony of the Desert, St. Francis of Assisi, St. Clare, St. Teresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross, St. Ignatius of Loyola, St. Thérèse of Lisieux, St. Edith Stein, and so many others who have heroically embraced poverty, chastity, and obedience out of total dedication to Christ.

Next month in my diocese, I will celebrate a Mass specially for those in consecrated life. Part of the purpose of that Mass is to thank these good people for their dedication, but a deeper purpose is to shine a light on them so that the world can see them more clearly. They are like trees whose roots go deep, deep into the ground, reaching all the way to the waters that bubble up to eternal life. And there are so many, languishing in the sadness of various forms of idolatry, who need to see that such a life as theirs is possible.

Svyatogorsk, Donetsk Province, Ukraine, January 21, 2025

Photo: svlavra.church.ua His Eminence Metropolitan Arseny of Svyatogorsk, the persecuted canonical Ukrainian Orthodox hierarch who has been Ukraine court refuses to release UOC bishop despite Parliament members’ guarantees, won’t review evidenceThe Metropolitan was initially detained in late April, just before Holy Week.

“>unjustly held in detention since April, reached his 30th anniversary as abbot of the Holy Dormition-Svyatogorsk Lavra this month.

The brethren of the monastery, the sisters of its many sketes, the refugees it has been housing for more than a decade, and pilgrims congratulated His Eminence on this significant event.

On January 10, 1995, His Grace Bishop Alipy of Gorlovka appointed then-Hieromonk Arseny, 26, as abbot of the reviving monastery. He was liturgically elevated to this post on January 20 in the monastery’s Holy Dormition Cathedral.

“This historic decision to appoint you to such a high and responsible position was made with the participation of truly great holy hierarchs, spirit-bearing elders, and confessors of our time: His Beatitude Metropolitan Vladimir (Sabodan), your spiritual father Bishop Alipy, and Schema-Archimandrite Seraphim (Mirchuk),” the message reads.

This trust in Met. Arseny has been fully justified, the message states, noting that the monastery has flowered under his rule, and 21 years ago it Svyatogorsk Monastery celebrates 20th anniversary as a lavraThe monastery dates back to at least the early 16th century. It was closed in 1922 and reopened in 1992.

“>acquired the status of lavra.

The brethren and others listed many of His Eminence’s great contributions to the life of the monastery:

• Restored the entire monastery complex from ruins, adorning the churches with holy icons and sacred items, and established several sketes near the main monastery.

• Designed and oversaw the construction of multiple church architectural complexes throughout the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, extending his influence beyond Svyatogorsk itself.

• Established and restored both secular and Sunday schools, created choir groups, and conducted extensive social work in education and cultural development.

• Initiated significant historical research about the monastery, establishing academic conferences that resulted in numerous scholarly publications about the monastery’s history.

• Revitalized the city of Svyatogorsk by restoring its historical name and transforming it into a major cultural and tourist destination in the Donetsk region.

• Created a new, strict monastic charter that modernized ancient Svyatogorsk traditions while maintaining their spiritual essence, making the Lavra famous for its disciplined monastic life.

• Demonstrated multiple talents as a preacher, spiritual father, choir director, builder, architect, artist, and administrator, using these skills to benefit the monastery and community.

• Facilitated the discovery of holy relics, wrote hagiographies, commissioned icons, and achieved the canonization of previous Svyatogorsk abbots and spiritual fathers.

• Made history as the first vicar in the Svyatogorsk Lavra’s history to govern it while holding the episcopal rank.

And concerning Met. Arseny’s nine months of groundless detention and abuse, the brethren write:

In the past year, you were destined to become an emulator of the Svyatogorsk abbots not only in the revival and beautification of the monastery. Our Lord Jesus Christ called you to the highest Apostolic feat of confession (being such an one as Paul the aged, and now also a prisoner of Jesus Christ Philem. 1:9), which you firmly endure in prison confinement, like the Svyatogorsk abbots and venerable confessors Joel (Ozeryansky), Tryphon (Skripchenko), Michael (Galushko), and others.

In these festive days of Theophany, we humbly pray to God, the Giver of all blessings, to send down upon Your Eminence the strengthening grace of the Holy Spirit, which fulfills and nourishes all! May the Queen of Heaven, the Abbess of the Holy Mountains, give you strength to firmly hold the abbatial staff in your hands and for many more years to rightly divide the word of Christ’s truth!

We pray with contrition and await your return, our dear Abba, to the walls of your beloved Svyatogorsk Lavra!

30th anniversary of persecuted abbot of Kiev Caves LavraThe abbot marked the occasion with a Divine Liturgy in the house church where he celebrates the services while the state continues its persecution campaign against him.

“>Last April, His Eminence Metropolitan Pavel of Vyshgorod, another persecuted hierarch of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, celebrated his 30th anniversary as abbot of the Holy Dormition-Kiev Caves Lavra.

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