The Angel of the Lord and The Mountain of God. The Burning Bush at St. Catherine s Monastery Mount Sinai. Volume 34 December 30, 2018 Number 53

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1 The Church Herald Saint Nicholas Orthodox Church 2053 North Road, NE Warren, OH Church Phone: (330) Rectory Phone: (330) Pastor: The Very Rev. Protopresbyter Kenneth M. Bachofsky, D. Min. Parish Web Page: Volume 34 December 30, 2018 Number 53 The Angel of the Lord and The Mountain of God The Lord came down from Sinai and appeared to us from Seir; He hastened from Mount Paran along with myriads at Kadesh, angels with Him at His right hand! (Deuteronomy 33:2) Another Old Testament allusion in the fourth ode of the katavasias is the mount of shaded leafy trees, which is a reference to the Book of Habakkuk: God will come from Teman, the Holy One from the mount of shaded leafy trees. (Habakkuk 3:3). Teman is a region of the Sinai Peninsula, and the mount of shaded leafy trees is another name for Mount Paran, which is synonymous with Mount Horeb on Sinai. We know that God appeared to Moses on Sinai, but what is its connection with the Messiah, the Holy One, referred to by Habakkuk? To answer this, we must examine God s appearance to Moses in the Book of Exodus: Now Moses was tending the sheep of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian. Then he led them to the back of the desert and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. Then the Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of the bush. So he saw the bush burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed. So Moses said, I will now turn aside and see this great sight, why the bush is not consumed. When therefore the Lord saw him turn aside to look, God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, Moses! Moses!...I am the God of your fathers the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Moses then hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God. (Exodus 3:1-6). There is an apparent contradiction in the above passage, which many people overlook. We read that the Angel of the Lord appears to Moses in the burning bush. Yet the angel is referred to as god, and the angel declares Himself as God. Why is God being described as an angel? Angel means messenger. The Angel of the Lord is therefore one who is sent by God. Yet there can be no doubt that this Angel is God Himself. We read in Exodus that the Lord spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. (Exodus 33:11), and in Deuteronomy, there has not risen in Israel a prophet like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face. (Exodus 33:10). In contrast to this, John s Gospel tells us that no one has seen the Father except the one who is from God; only He has seen the Father. (John 6:46), and No one has seen God at any time. The Only-Begotten Son who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him! (John 1:18). It is clear then that the God who appears to Moses is not the Father, since no one has seen the Father, and the Father cannot possibly be an Angel (Messenger) of the Lord, for He cannot send Himself. So if this Angel is sent by God and yet is God, who is He? In John s Gospel we read, In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (John 1:1). The word of God is another term for Son of God. Although He is begotten of the Father and as the Lord Himself says no less than twenty-six times in the Gospels is sent by Him, He is of the same Divine Nature as the Father. He is with God (the Father), and yet He is God (the Second Person of the Holy Trinity). It therefore follows that when our Lord says, no one has seen God, He means the Father. Moses did not see God the Father; He saw God the Son, the Word of God, the Pre- Incarnate Christ! The Burning Bush is not the only instance where the Angel of the Lord appears and is declared as God. The same Angel appeared to and conversed with the patriarchs and prophets (e.g. Genesis 16:32; Judges 6:13). In all of these passages, those who see this Angel of the Lord are amazed that they have seen God and lived: I saw God face to face, and my soul was saved. (Genesis 32:30). The Burning Bush at St. Catherine s Monastery Mount Sinai

2 Gideon said, O Lord, my Lord! For I have seen the Angel of the Lord face to face. Then the Lord said to him, Peace be with you; do not fear, you shall not die. (Judges 6:22,23). When the Angel of the Lord appeared no more to Manoah and his wife. Manoah knew this to be the Angel of the Lord. And Manoah said to his wife, We shall surely die, because we have seen God! (Judges 13:21,22). In his famous Dialog with Trypho, St. Justin Martyr writes: Moses states in Scripture that he who is termed God, and who appeared to the patriarchs, is also called Angel and Lord, in order that by these expressions you may recognize Him as the minister of the Father of all things...wrestled in human form with Jacob. (Genesis 32:22-30). Neither Abraham, nor Isaac, nor Jacob, nor any other man saw the Father and ineffable Lord of all creatures...but [they saw] Him who, according to God s will, is God the Son, and His Angel because of serving the Father s will; Him who, by His will, became man through a virgin; who also became fire when He talked to Moses from the Bush. St. Justin is referring to the three men who appeared to Abraham at the Oak of Mamre (Genesis 18). Many consider these three men (commonly understood as angels) to be a type of the Trinity (a patristic exegesis that has been popularized by St. Andreei Rublev s famous Icon of the Trinity). However, in the earliest patristic commentaries and hymns of the Church, they are described as the Pre-Incarnate Christ accompanied by two angels. This is clearly the exegesis of the first ode of the Canon of the Sunday before the Nativity: Of old the sacred Abraham received One of the Three Persons of the Godhead. This may be what our Lord was referring to when He said, Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad! (John 8:56). But if it is indeed the case that God Himself was seen by so many, Why is Moses singled out as the one who spoke to God face to face? The answer lies in Exodus 33, when Moses asks to see God in all His glory: I pray, If I have found grace in Your sight, reveal Yourself to me, that I may see You clearly and find grace in Your sight Then God said, I will pass before you in My Glory, and I will proclaim My Name, the Lord, before you. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. But He said, You cannot see My face; for no man can see My face and live...here is a place by Me: you shall stand on the rock. So it shall be, while My Glory passes by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock, and will cover you with My Hand, and you shall see My Back, but My face shall not be seen! (Exodus 33:13-23). God appeared to the patriarchs disguised as a man or an angel. No one saw His true face, for to see God was deemed certain death. But when we consider Exodus 33, it is clear that the difference between Moses and the other patriarchs and prophets is that he saw God, as it were, uncloaked, and God permitted him to se His glory. That the Son of God, and not the Father, is the one who is manifest throughout the Old Testament is well expressed in the oldest synodal statement on Old Testament Christology that of the Synod of Antioch in 268/9 A.D.: The Son was not just a spectator nor was He merely present, but...came down and appeared to Abraham at the Oak of Mamre, [as] one of three, with whom the patriarch conversed as Lord and Judge...This is who, fulfilling the Father s will, appears to and converses with the patriarchs...sometimes as an Angel, at other times as Lord, and at other times being testified to as God. Truly it is impious to suppose that one can call the God of all an angel; however the Angel of the Father is the Son He is Lord and God, for it is written: His Name will be called the Angel of Great Counsel...And concerning Jacob: The Angel of God, [Jacob] says, spoke to me in a dream, saying I am the God who appeared to you at the Place of- God: where you anointed the pillar and made a vow to Me! So Jacob called the name of that place The Form of God ; For I saw God face to face, and my soul was saved...but we are also taught these things by Moses: Then the Angel appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of the bush....this is who, speaking the truth, says: Not that anyone has seen the Father, except He who is form the Father; He has seen the Father. And in the same Gospel: You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form, and: No one has seen God at any time. The Only-Begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him. The Apostle says of Him: He is the image of the invisible God....The Son however, being with the Father, is indeed God and Lord of all things made, yet He was sent by the Father from the heavens, and was made flesh, becoming man. The reference in the fourth ode of the katavasias to the mount mentioned in the prophecy of Habakkuk points us to the Old Testament theophanies, and, therefore, to the Divinity of the Messiah. Jesus is the same Divine Person who appeared to Moses on Sinai, the One who touches the mountains, and they smoke. (Psalm 104:32,33), the same God who led Israel out of Egypt. (Judges 2:1-3). The Lord of Hosts, the Lord strong and mighty, the Lord powerful in battle. (Psalm 14:8), now becomes a humble, defenseless, and vulnerable baby! And our response to this strange wonder is to fall down before this little Child in humility and awe, to worship Him as King and God:

3 God is with us, Understand, all you nations, and submit yourselves! For God is with us! (Service of Great Compline). * By: Archimandrite Vassilios Papavassiliou * Our Worship Schedule Sunday, December 30th 9:30 a.m. The Reading of the Third Hour. 1 0 : 0 0 a.m. The Sunday After the Nativity of the Lord, Tone 6 (Pages 96 & 138). The Virgin Martyr Anysia and Zoticus are c o m m e m o - rated. Epistle Galatians 1:11-19 Gospel Matthew 2:13-23 TUESDAY, JANUARY 1ST 10:00 A.M. THE FEAST OF THE CIRCUNCISION OF CHRIST! FEAST OF ST. BASIL THE GREAT! THE CIVIL NEW YEAR! BLESSING OF THE VASILOPITA (PAGE 140)! EPISTLE COLOSSIANS 2:9-12 GOSPEL LUKE 2:20,21,40-52 Wednesday, January 2nd 4:00 p.m. The Akathist Service to the Theotokos with prayers for the sick and anointing of the faithful! SATURDAY, JANUARY 5TH 7:00 P.M. THE VIGIL SERVICE FOR FEAST OF THE THEOPHANY OF THE LORD! A DAY OF STRICT FASTING! SUNDAY, JANUARY 6TH 9:30 A.M. THE READING OF THE THIRD HOUR. 10:00 A.M. THE FEAST OF THE THEOPHANY OF OUR LORD, GOD AND SAVIOUR JESUS CHRIST! THE GREAT BLESSING OF WATER (Page 145)! EPISTLE TITUS 2:11-14, 3:4-7 GOSPEL MATTHEW 3:13-17 MONDAY, JANUARY 7TH 9:00 A.M. THE FEAST OF THE SYNAXIS OF ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST (Page 148)! EPISTLE ACTS 19:1-8 GOSPEL JOHN 1:29-34 Wednesday, January 9th 4:00 p.m. The Akathist Service to the Theotokos with prayers for the sick and anointing of the faithful! Saturday, January 12th 4:00 p.m. The Evening Vesper Service. Sunday, January 13th 9:30 a.m. The Reading of the Third Hour. 10:00 a.m. The Sunday After the Theophany of the Lord, Tone 8. (Pages 102 & 148)! The Martyrs: Hermylus, Stratonicus and St. James of Nisibis are commemorated. Epistle Ephesians 4:7-13 Gospel Matthew 4:12-17 Nativity/Epiphany T h e Nativity Season of celebration continues today, the Sunday after the Nativity, with the commemoration of the Massacre of the Holy Innocents and the Flight Into Egypt of the Holy Family. Festive Anointing: At the conclusion of the service there will be Festive Anointing and the distribution of the Antidoron for the faithful in attendance! Faithful will be anointed this morning as well as at the other Divine Services that follow this week. May the blessing of the Lord be with all of us! Feasting/Fasting: We continue to observe the Fast Free observance this coming week, prescribed by our Holy Mother Church! This will conclude on Saturday, January 5, 2019, which is the Vigil for the Feast of the Theophany of the Lord. This will be a day of Strict Fasting. Faithful should not include meat or daily products in one s diet this coming Saturday, to prepare properly for the Theophany of Christ! Blessing of Vasilopita: On Tuesday, January 1st at 9:00 a.m. the Divine Liturgy will be celebrated, at which time we will commemorate the combined Feasts of the Circumcision of the Lord, and St. Basil the Great! It is the custom of our Church to bless a special sweet bread called the Vasilopita or Basil Bread after the Liturgy. Within this Vasilopita you will find the customary coin. Please examine the piece of

4 bread before partaking of this bread. History of Vasilopita: One of the most beautiful and inspiring traditions and customs of the Church is the observance of Vasilopita. It is this annual family observance, together with many other traditions of our Church, which joins our Orthodox Faith and heritage with the history of the Christian religion itself. The age old tradition commenced on the fourth century, when St. Basil the Great, who was Archbishop in Cappadocia of Caesarea, wanted to distribute money to the poor in his diocese. There are various traditions about the reasons behind the distribution, but the stories all agree in the matter of how he did it. One story is that the Emperor placed such heavy taxes on the Christians that they were left with so little money they could not afford to buy food to feed their families. St. Basil commissioned some women to bake sweetened bread, in which he arranged to place gold coins. Thus the families cutting the bread to nourish themselves, were pleasantly surprised to find the coins. Each year on St. Basil s Feast Day, January 1st, the Vasilopita, which symbolize the sweetness and joy of life everlasting, is baked by the faithful. It also symbolizes the hope that the New Year will be filled with the sweetness of God s blessing for all who participate in the Vasilopita Observance. When the Vasilopita is prepared, a coin is usually added to the ingredients. When the bread is cut and the observance begins, the individual who receives that portion of the pita, which contains the coin is considered blessed! As we partake of the Vasilopita, through the intercession of St. Basil the Great, may the Lord bless us with good health of body and soul, and save us for Many Years! We wish all of the faithful of our parish, the family, friends and neighbors, a very Happy and Prosperous New Year! B l e s s i n g of Water/Homes: Saturday, January 5th users in the Epiphany Season for our Church! This is a day of preparation by Strict Fasting. The Theophany Vigil Service will begin at 7:00 p.m. that evening. All our faithful are encouraged to attend. The Festal Theophany Divine Liturgy will be celebrated on Sunday, January 6th at 10:00 a.m. After the conclusion of the service the Ancient Rite of the Great Blessing of Water will be held! After the service the Church, and our Parish Complex will be renewed in the Grace of the Lord through prayer, and the Sprinkling of the Newly Sanctified Water. Then will begin the Blessing of the Homes of the faithful of our parish. The proposed schedule of Home Blessing is attached to this edition of The Church Herald, as well as posted on the complex bulletin boards. Please review the schedule. If there is a problem with the day and time please call Father Ken to arrange for an alternative day and time for your home to be blessed! Following the Feastive Anointing there will be a Memorial Service to which all of the faithful are invited to attend, adding their prayers to ours. Prayers will be offered for the blessed repose of +Libbie and +Michael Bachofsky and +Josephine Barriger, on the anniversary of their repose! These prayers are at the request of Father Ken and Pani Mary Bachofsky. Faithful may partake of the blessed bread and wine, from the Panachyda Service, in the Fellowship Hall in memory of the departed commemorated. With the Saints, O Lord, grant rest to the souls of Your servants: +Libbie and +Michael Bachofsky and +Josephine Barriger, where there is no pain, sorrow, nor mourning but only Life-Everlasting! Eternal be their Memory! Vicnaja jim Pamjat! Our Gifts to the Lord! One of the many acts of worship conducted at each Sunday Divine Liturgy, is performed in our generous donations made during the Church Offering! This is an excellent way of expressing our love, devotion to the Lord, as well as our thanksgiving, for the many blessings received from His Hands! We would like to share with you the Church Offerings for the following: Sunday, December 23rd: Regular Offering $1,836.00/ Candle Offering $87.00/ Church Dues $225.00/ Christmas Flowers $20.00/ Total Church Offerings = $2, From the Nativity Divine Liturgy: Special Christmas Offering $1,875.00/ Candle Offering $73.00/ Church Dues $75.0/ St. Nicholas Society Christmas Gift $20,00.00/ Total Church Offerings = $22, May the New Born Saviour, Jesus Christ, our Lord, bless all of you 100 fold for your gracious gifts offered for the continuing salvic work being done here at our beloved St. Nicholas Church!!!

5 TEST Christ PAGE is Born! 5 TEXT As we begin the new year of 2019 let us remember the words of the Apostle Paul: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must do as he has made up his mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for god loves a cheerful giver! God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance. So that you may always have enough of everything and may provide in abundance for every good work! (2 Corinthians 9:6-8). We encourage all faithful members of our Family-in-Christ, here at St. Nicholas Church, to give joyfully, regularly, and generously to our Church during the course of the year! With every dollar you give, you keep the doors of our Church open as we proclaim the Holy Gospel and charitably minister to those in need! We simply would not be able to do this without your gracious donations! Please pick up you box of 2019 Church Envelopes this morning before you leave for home! Along with the Church Assessment of $75.00 per person, and generous offering is also required. The envelopes system is the only way to enable us to keep track of providing contributions and budgeting finances for the year. God bless you 100 fold for your stewardship of the give from your treasures! Christmas Flowers At the conclusion of this morning s service the Church officers will carry the beautiful red and white poinsettia plants to the Fellowship Hall and place them on the tables to the right of the hall. Those who graciously gave donations may pick up their flowers. There will also be several plants left over for others to take home with them. Additional donations will be accepted if anyone is willing to contribute. As you receive these flowers, and place them in your homes during this Nativity/Epiphany Season, may it be a blessing for you, your family and your home! Thanks again for your gracious offerings used for the beautification of our Sanctuary for the Holy Day, and remaining season! God bless you abundantly for Many Years!!! Baptismal Font Icons Father Ken has received the sketches for the remaining Icons for the Baptismal Font of our Church. They have been prepared by our Iconographer, Dennis Bell, and approved by Father Ken. The sketches are on display on the vestibule bulleting board for your review. These Icons and Scrolls will now complete our magnificent Baptismal Font for our Church! These new additions will continue around, completing the decoration of all eight sides of the Baptismal Font. The theology of taking upon ourselves the Death and Resurrection, and the reception of the Gifts of the Holy Spirit, by way of Holy Baptism/Chrismation, is the theme for the remaining Icons and scrolls. When the Icons are finished they will be installed by Dennis. It is our hope that this project will be completed by the Feast of Holy Pascha 2019! It is our prayer that the Lord will bless us with many, many more children to be baptized in this font! We are grateful to all of the donors for making this possible! God bless all of our gracious donors abundantly for Many Years! Bible Study Class If Your Law had not been by delight, I would have perished in my afflictions! (Psalm 118). We invite all of our parishioners to rejoin us for our Bible Study Classes! This series will feature the Old Testament Book of Genesis! Come join us in fascinating study of the beginnings of God s revelation through the Holy Scripture! Theological interpretations, from our Orthodox Christian Tradition, will cover such topics from creation to the enslavement of the Hebrews in Egypt. The classes will beheld after the Saturday evening Vesper Service (that begins at 4:00 p.m.) as published in The Church Herald. We will continue this study on January 19th! The classes are broadcasted, via the internet, through our Diocesan Website (acrod.org) each week. You can also tune in by going to our parish Website (stnicholaswarren.org) and clicking on Bible Study Class on your computer or laptop. Come join us, and bring your Bible with you, along with your family and friends! Join us live or via the internet! What an excellent way of growing in your faith and deepening your relationship with the Lord!