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Dear Don,

I agree with the post of DJS. Please do not call yourself 'no one'. You ARE someone, and you are precious to God, and I am sure to many others! You are a valued member of this forum! May God bless you and may our Holy Mother in Heaven protect you, comfort you and console you!

With much love in Christ for you dear brother,
Alice

Bless, Father Don!

If you were a "nobody," would I be asking you for your blessing?

Not just anybody can do that, you know!

Alex

Dear Don if I offended you with anything I may have said I apologise. I spoke in ignorance, as I often do, please accept my apology and know that I did not intend to be malicious or to make you feel like 'no one'.

From Kathimerini (http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_politics_4130932_09/03/2005_53855)

Party snub to Church over oath
In a protest against the swearing-in of Greece�s new president by the head of the scandal-tainted Church of Greece*, Synaspismos Left Coalition is to abstain from the ceremony Saturday, the party said yesterday.

Synaspismos leader Alekos Alavanos said the head of state ought to officially assume his office in a secular ceremony before the House of Parliament.

After serving his maximum two terms, President Costis Stephanopoulos will hand over to former Socialist foreign minister Karolos Papoulias. Allegations of widespread corruption and promiscuity among Church officials have prompted calls for the president to be sworn in by the Parliament speaker.

Alavanos said that, by eschewing the ceremony, Synaspismos MPs would show �our obvious respect for the new president, to whom we wish every success.�

�We do not wish to acquiesce to a process that places institutions of state under the mantle of a religious oath and of senior Church of Greece officials,� he said.

But Stephanopoulos said he saw no reason to change the ceremony �right now.�

*Althought our Lord Jesus Christ did forbid His disciples to swear (Mt 9 "In the Law men are told, 'Don't swear falsely in taking an oath and if you swear an oath to God, carry it out.' But here is my teaching: don't swear an oath of any kind. For instance, don't say 'I swear by the earth' -because the earth is God's footstool. Don't say 'I swear by Jerusalem' - because Jerusalem is the City of the Great King. Nor should you swear 'by my head,' because you haven't the power to change the color of a single hair. When you assert something, let your yes be a simple 'yes' and your no a simple 'no.' Anything beyond that has the taint of falsehood")
the President of the Greek Democracy, the Government and the members of the Greek Congress do pronounce a solem religious swear in a special religious servicice celebrated by the Archbishop of Athens at the Greek Congress

How does this build UP the Church of Christ? How does this help unity of the Body of Christ? How does this help to uplift and bring us each to greater holiness of life? How does concentrating on the negative news in the world---spread the Gospel?

It's simply tiresome...and a 'downer' for those who have to see it constantly.

Sadly,
+Fr. Gregory

Bless, Father Gregory!

I am with you here all the way, Father!

Alex

I do completely agree with you father. Certainly this concentration of negavite behaviours (certainly this concentration of "negative behaviours" (both of clergy and laity) and not the concentration of "negative news", as you say, by my humble person is a danger for the salvation of the souls and "for the stability of the holy churches of God") do not help to build UP the Church of Christ, do not help the unity of the Body of Christ, do not help to uplift and bring us each to greater holiness of life and do not help to spread the Gospel.


Also very sad and tired

Francisco

You guys... :rolleyes: Having to look at all this bad news! No offense intended, but you remind me of the little old lady who calls the police because she sees a naked man in the next house through her bedroom window. The police officer arrives, looks through the window and says, "I don't see a naked man." "You will," says the little old lady. "If you stand on this chair and look through these binoculars."

There is a balance to be struck.

The seemingly simple question of "what builds, unifies, and uplifts" underscores the need for balance. Every Bishop who swept things under the rug was doing it to avoid scandal, division and "downers". Ultimately, however, the secrecy could not be maintained; the combined effect of the bad acts, misjudgments, and failed secrecy - all coming to light at once, was extremely injurious - both to the victims who might have been spared, and to the whole Church.

byzanTN & djs, What you fail to understand is that SOME of " us guys " are of a sensitive soul (it IS after all part of the monastic temperment to be so)...and because of this the constant hashing and re-hasing of the same things that seem to titillate people in the world are not helpful to monastics or to people who ARE sensitive spiritually. You may belittle this if you wish, but how would YOU like to be told when you come into Cofession for example: "Ah don't worry about that---it's no big deal." This sort of thing has the same effect upon people with a sensitive soul. (By now I'm sure you think I'm speaking Greek or French-Canadian and don't have the slightest idea what I'm talking about!) Those of us who have been gifted with spiritual sensitivity do NOT find it helpful to be constantly reminded (with DAILY updates) of the falleness of other believers...much less those set-apart by ordination and configured into the persona Christi . If you wish to expose yourselves to this constant dribble, by all means do so, but kindly respect those of us who come here to be supported in our faith and uplifted by those who are struggling for holiness, as we are. Maybe there are two extremes at work here, 1. those of us who are sensitive SPIRITUALLY and, 2. those who need a little tad more sensitivity toward others? We not only have to read all of this tiresome news in English, but now also in Greek! Enough is enough. I was taught that the Lenten Spring was to, as St. Ephraim says, "Grant me to see MY OWN TRANSGRESSIONS, and not to judge my brother..." Did either of you SERIOUSLY not know that the Church is the home of sinners? And that our human nature is fallen? And that EVERYONE has sinned and fallen short of the glory of God? Why do you wish to wallow in this daily then?

Formerly sad, now discussed,
+Fr. Gregory, who thinks maybe a break from all this is in order!

P.S. Do you realize that this thread here with its 144 entries is almost as large as the entire 'PRAYER' section of the Forum? Isn't something unbalanced here?




In Him,
+Fr. Gregory

I believe this thread has at least 3 or 4 subjects by now, including the original topic. I appreciate your sensitivity, but at the same time, realize no one is holding a gun to your head and making you read a topic you find unsettling. I read this stuff (English only) at Kathimerini, so it makes no difference to me whether or not it's posted here. I think Francisco has the best of intentions in posting this, and it's clear that it is something that greatly bothers him. I think you protest too much, since this topic is too easily avoided.

Dear Charles,

Forgive me, Brother, but I feel you may have overstepped toward Fr. Gregory in your post above.

Alex

No offense intended, but I don't understand why anyone would read a topic that's upsetting to them. That really puzzles me, since I don't do it. Every now and then, one of those hot political threads shows up on the Forum. I have learned it's best if I just don't open them. So obviously, Fr. Gregory gets upset over this topic, and I am really baffled as to why he reads it. Now granted, it might have been better for Francisco to post links instead of entire articles. With that I would certainly agree. This forum is not my primary source of news, so I just don't look to it for that kind of information.

Father,

I have no interest in the news postings on this thread. I have not commented on them, in fact I haven't read them. Even the English. I don't need any other reminders about the fallen nature and of sin over what I see when I shave.

What sparked me to post was Don's name change, which made me think of him, not as a dribbler, but in need of sensitivity and a word of support. I would have PM'd it if that were possible.