President Putin Venerates Shrines in Jerusalem and Bethlehem

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President Vladimir Putin in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre

During the night of June 26, 2012, while on a working visit to Israel, President Vladimir Putin visited the Church of the Lord’s Sepulchre. At the church entrance, the head of the Russian State was welcomed by His Beatitude Theophilos III, Patriarch of the Holy City of Jerusalem and All Palestine, together with members of the Brotherhood of the Holy Sepulchre. Among the welcoming party were also Archbishop Mark of Yegoryevsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate’s office for institutions abroad, Archimandrite Isidore (Minaev), head of the Russian Ecclesiastical Mission in Jerusalem, as well as his deputy, Hegumen Feofan (Lukyanov) and secretary of the Mission, Hieromonk Anthony (Gutnik).

Entering the church, Vladimir Putting kneeled at the Stone of the Anointing. It was at this place that Righteous Joseph and Nicodim laid the lifeless body of Jesus after taking Him down from the Cross and anointed Him with incense and wrapped Him in the Shroud.

After that the president was taken to the Kuviklia, the chapel erected at the place of the three days-long burial of the Saviour.

Then Mr. Putin ascended Golgotha, the place where the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ was crucified and after that descended to the cave in which St. Helen Equal-to-the-Apostles found Christ’s Life-Giving Cross.

President Putin presented Patriarch Theophilos with an icon of the Saviour.

In the morning of June 26, Mr. Putin came to the Church of the Nativity of Christ in Bethlehem, a Byzantine basilica with the 5th century mosaics built over the cave in which Jesus Christ was born.

In the church the head of the Russian State was welcomed by Archbishop Theophylactos of Jordan (Patriarchate of Jerusalem), who told him the story of the basilica.

Then Mr. Putin was presented with a token, a copy of the Star of Bethlehem executed by Palestinian masters.

The president lighted a candle at the place where Christ was born.

Original Author: Department for External Church Relations of the Russian Orthodox Church -

Patriarch: Church will never agree to surrender of Kosovo

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Patriarch Irinej (Source: Tanjug)

BELGRADE -- Serbian Orthodox Patriarch Irinej called for unity among Serbs, adding that the Church (SPC) would never agree or come to terms with Kosovo "being given away".  

Irinej called on the people to be united in politics and everything else, because the Serbs are a small people and the only way to survive was through unity and some values the world would understand and support.

"It is unrealistic to us, and I think the Serbs and the SPC, which has always been with the people, will never agree to what can be read in the press nowadays - 'a civilized surrender of Kosovo'," he told Tanjug in an interview on Wednesday.

No one in the world has ever done something like that and called it civilized, Irinej noted, adding that it was well known how territories were taken and conquered - through war and force.

The Serbs do not see Kosovo as a geographical area, but as holy ground, he stressed, adding that it was also the view of the SPC Holy Assembly of Bishops.

The holy sites in Kosovo are not from yesterday, but have been there for centuries, he noted.

"And finally, the patriarchal residence is in the Peć Patriarchate (in western Kosovo), which means the residence would, according to that logic, be in another country," he remarked.

He fears that some day, when there is no military force in Kosovo, Serbs will not be able to survive.

"Everything has been done to make survival impossible for what few Serbs have returned. The murders (of Serbs) that are happening were conceived to intimidate them into leaving their homes," the patriarch believes. 

Greek Orthodox Church in the Israel (Holy Land)

Languages: English, Hebrew The Greek Orthodox Church of Jerusalem is considered the “Mother Church” of the Holy Land. The biggest single group of Holy Land Christians belongs to this Church and many Christians who belong today to other Churches have their origins in the Greek Orthodox Church. The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem sees itself as a direct descendant of the chair of St James the Apostle, venerated as first bishop of Jerusalem. The Church celebrates its liturgy in the Byzantine rite, whose original language is Greek, and follows its own calendar of feasts, preserving the Julian calendar (that is thirteen days behind the Western (Gregorian) calendar. Although most Greek Orthodox Christians in the Holy Land are Arabs and Greek refers to the original language of the liturgy of the Church, ethnic Greek priests administer the Church. The Patriarch, the vast majority of bishops and many of the monks are thus ethnic Greeks whilst the lower clergy are mostly Arabs. In the course of its history, the Church began to celebrate the liturgy in Arabic for the numerous parishes of Arab faithful where Greek is neither spoken nor understood. The Greek Orthodox Church is also a custodian of the Holy Places in the Holy Land, maintaining an unbroken presence at the two most important churches: the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem (in Greek and Arabic, the Church of the Resurrection) and the Nativity in Bethlehem. The seat of the Patriarchate is in Jerusalem, where the Patriarch is assisted by numerous bishops and administers parishes, monasteries and other institutions in Israel, the Palestinian territories and in Jordan, also directing a network of schools and centers of social service. One of the best schools in the Arab sector in Israel is the Orthodox School in Haifa. The Church has a seminary for training the clergy on Mount Zion. The Church owns extensive properties throughout the Holy Land, making it one the most important landowners in the area. The supreme authority in the Church is the Fraternity of the Holy Sepulcher that elects the Patriarch. The Patriarch of Jerusalem, because of Jerusalem’s historic and symbolic importance, is looked upon with particular esteem by the other Orthodox Patriarchs. Greek Orthodox churches can be found throughout the Holy Land. At the Holy Places, Greek Orthodox churches often exist alongside Roman Catholic and/or Armenian churches that commemorate the same event (eg. Bethlehem, Nazareth, Mount Tabor, Capharnaum, etc). The Church of the Holy Sepulcher is shared by numerous denominations, most importantly by the Greek Orthodox, Armenians and Roman Catholics with smaller chapels belonging to the Syrian Orthodox, the Copts and the Ethiopians. Greek Orthodox parishes are to be found in most towns and many villages throughout Israel and Palestine.

The Law of Moses in Eastern Orthodox

The Law of Moses can refer to either the Pentateuch or the first five books of the Bible. These books contain the story of the creation of the world, the stories of the Jewish patriarchs, Israel's enslavement in and its liberation from Egypt under the leadership of Moses, and Israel's journey to Sinai towards the Promised Land. These books contain a great deal of legal material that makes up much of the covenantal agreement between God and Israel, hence the name The Law of Moses. The term can also refer to the covenant itself, the agreement between God and Israel, transmitted by Moses. . The Eastern Orthodox church preserves the text of the Law of Moses.

Orthodox Chant of Psalm 102 (103) Mt Athos, Byzantine style.

Holy Fire on Eastern Orthodox Easter at Old Jerusalem's Church of the Holy Sepulchre

Principles for relations

The following principles were adopted at the meeting:

• Judaism and Christianity while hearkening to common sources inviolably maintain their internal individuality and particularity.

• The purpose of our dialogue is to remove prejudice and to promote a spirit of mutual understanding and constructive cooperation in order to confront common problems.

• Specific proposals will be developed to educate the faithful of both religions to promote healthy relationships based on mutual respect and understanding to confront bigotry and fanaticism.

• Being conscious of the crises of ethical and spiritual values in the contemporary world, we will endeavor to identify historical models of peaceful coexistence, which can be applied to minority Jewish and Orthodox communities in the Diaspora.

• We will draw from our spiritual sources to develop programs to promote and enhance our common values such as peace, social justice and human rights, specifically addressing the concerns of religious minorities.

Participants agreed to establish a permanent coordinating committee to maintain and foster continuing relationships. The Committee would jointly monitor principles enunciated at the meeting and would further enhance the dialogue and foster understanding between the respective religious communities.

Views on salvation and pluralism

The traditional Jewish view is that non-Jews may receive God's saving grace (see Noahides), and this view is reciprocated in Orthodox Christianity. Writing for the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, Rev. Protopresbyter George C. Papademetriou has written a summary of classical Christian and Greek Orthodox Christian views on the subject of the salvation of non-Christians, entitled An Orthodox Christian View of Non-Christian Religions.

In our times, Professor John N. Karmiris, University of Athens, based on his studies of the Church Fathers, concludes that the salvation of non-Christians, non-Orthodox and heretics depends on the all-good, allwise and all-powerful God, who acts in the Church but also through other "ways." God's saving grace is also channeled outside the Church. It cannot be assumed that salvation is denied non-Christians living in true piety and according to natural law by the God who "is love" (1 John 4:8), In his justice and mercy God will judge them worthy even though they are outside the true Church. This position is shared by many Orthodox who agree that God's salvation extends to all who live according to His "image" and "participate in the Logos." The Holy Spirit acted through the prophets of the Old Testament and in the nations. Salvation is also open outside the Church.

Some compare the Church to Noah's Ark. It is not impossible for someone to "survive the flood" of sin by clinging to whatever driftwood is around or by trying to cobble together a raft from bits and pieces of whatever floats, but the Ark is a far safer choice to make. Likewise, the heterodox and even non-Christians might be saved simply through God's own choice, made for His own reasons, but it is far safer for any individual person to turn to the Orthodox Church. Thus, it behooves Orthodox Christians to exhort others to take this safer path. Likewise, the Orthodox remember that Christ mentions one, and only one thing that unfailingly leads to perdition—blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. No other path is explicitly and universally excluded by Christ's words.

As is common in many other faiths, the question of salvation for those outside of Orthodox Christianity is understandably secondary to what the Church expects of its own adherents. As St. Theophan the Recluse put the matter: "You ask, will the heterodox be saved... Why do you worry about them? They have a Saviour Who desires the salvation of every human being. He will take care of them. You and I should not be burdened with such a concern. Study yourself and your own sins... I will tell you one thing, however: should you, being Orthodox and possessing the Truth in its fullness, betray Orthodoxy, and enter a different faith, you will lose your soul forever."

Fifth Academic Meeting Orthodoxy & Judaism

The Fifth Academic Meeting between Judaism And Orthodox Christianity was held in Thessaloniki, Greece, on May 27-29, 2003. The meeting was organized by Metropolitan Emmanuel of France, who heads the Office of International and Intercultural Affairs to the Liaison Office of the Ecumenical Patriarchate to the European Union, Brussels, in cooperation with the International Jewish Committee for Interreligious Consultations, New York, Co-Chaired by Rabbi Israel Singer who is also Chairman of the World Jewish Congress, and Rabbi Joel Meyers who is also the Executive Vice President of the Rabbinical Assembly. In his opening remarks, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew denounced religious fanaticism and rejected attempts by any faith to denigrate others

Prophet Isaiah

Prophet Isaiah; illustration from a Bible card published by the Providence Lithograph Company (c. 1904)
Prophet
Born	8th Century B.C. Judah (?)
Died	7th Century B.C.
Honored in	Judaism Roman Catholic Church Eastern Catholic Churches Eastern Orthodox Church Lutheranism Islam[1] Armenian Apostolic Church
Feast	May 9 [2]

Isaiah( /aɪˈzeɪ.ə/ or UK /aɪˈzaɪ.ə/;^[2]Hebrew:יְשַׁעְיָהוּ, ModernYeshayahuTiberian Yəšạʻyā́hû ; Greek: Ἠσαΐας,Ēsaïās ; "Yahu is salvation"^[3]) was aprophet who lived in the 8th-century BCKingdom of Judah.^[4][5] Jews andChristians consider the Book of Isaiah a part of their Biblical canon; he is the first listed (although not the earliest) of theneviim akharonim, the latter prophets.^[6]

Isaiah's wife was called "the prophetess" (Isaiah 8:3), either because she was endowed with the prophetic gift, like Deborah (Judges 4:4) and Huldah (2 Kings 22:14-20), or simply because she was the wife of "the prophet" (Isaiah 38:1). The second interpretation, that it was simply an honorary title, "Mrs. Prophet" as it were, is likely.^[8]They had two sons, naming one Shear-Jashub, meaning "A remnant shall return"Isaiah 7:3 and the younger, Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz, meaning, "Spoil quickly, plunder speedily."Isaiah 8:3

Isaiah is not mentioned anywhere outside of the Bible^[7]. It is stated in the first verse of the Book of Isaiah that he prophesied during the reigns of Uzziah (or Azariah), Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, the kings of Judah (Isaiah 1:1). Uzziah reigned fifty-two years in the middle of the 8th century BC, and Isaiah must have begun his career a few years before Uzziah's death, probably in the 740s BC. Isaiah lived until the fourteenth year of Hezekiah (who died 698 BC), and may have been contemporary for some years withManasseh. Thus Isaiah may have prophesied for as long as sixty-four years.

In early youth, Isaiah may have been moved by the invasion of Israel by the Assyrianmonarch Tiglath-Pileser III (2 Kings 15:19); and again, twenty years later, when he had already entered on his office, by the invasion of Tiglath-Pileser and his career of conquest. Ahaz, king of Judah, at this crisis refused to co-operate with the kings of Israel and Syria in opposition to the Assyrians, and was on that account attacked and defeated by Rezin of Damascus and Pekah of Israel (2 Kings 16:5; 2 Chronicles 28:5–6). Ahaz, thus humbled, sided with Assyria, and sought the aid of Tiglath-Pileser against Israel and Syria. The consequence was that Rezin and Pekah were conquered and many of the people carried captive to Assyria (2 Kings 15:29, 16:9; 1 Chronicles 5:26).

Isaiah receives his vision of the Lord's house. A stained glass window at St. Matthew's German Evangelical Lutheran Churchin Charleston, SC

Soon after this Shalmaneser V determined wholly to subdue the kingdom of Israel, Samaria was taken and destroyed (722 BC). So long as Ahaz reigned, the kingdom of Judah was unmolested by the Assyrian power; but on his accession to the throne, Hezekiah, who was encouraged to rebel "against the king of Assyria" (2 Kings 18:7), entered into an alliance with the king of Egypt(Isaiah 30:2–4). This led the king of Assyria to threaten the king of Judah, and at length to invade the land.Sennacherib (701 BC) led a powerful army into Judah. Hezekiah was reduced to despair, and submitted to the Assyrians (2 Kings 18:14–16). But after a brief interval war broke out again, and again Sennacherib led an army into Judah, one detachment of which threatened Jerusalem (Isaiah 36:2–22; 37:8). Isaiah on that occasion encouraged Hezekiah to resist the Assyrians (37:1–7), whereupon Sennacherib sent a threatening letter to Hezekiah, which he "spread before the LORD" (37:14).

“

Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, That which thou hast prayed to me against Sennacherib king of Assyria I have heard. This is the word that the LORD hath spoken concerning him; The virgin the daughter of Zion hath despised thee, and laughed thee to scorn; the daughter of Jerusalem hath shaken her head at thee. Whom hast thou reproached and blasphemed? and against whom hast thou exalted thy voice, and lifted up thine eyes on high? even against the Holy One of Israel.

”

According to the account in Kings (and its derivative account in Chronicles) the judgment of God now fell on the Assyrian army and wiped out 180,000 of its men. "Like Xerxes in Greece, Sennacherib never recovered from the shock of the disaster in Judah. He made no more expeditions against either southern Palestine or Egypt."^[9]

The remaining years of Hezekiah's reign were peaceful (2 Chr 32:23–29). Isaiah probably lived to its close, and possibly into the reign of Manasseh, but the time and manner of his death are not specified in either the Bible or recorded history. There is a tradition (reported in both the Martyrdom of Isaiah and the Lives of the Prophets) that he suffered martyrdom by Manasseh due to pagan reaction.

In Christianity

Gregory of Nyssa (c. 335–395), believed that the Prophet Esaias (Isaiah) "knew more perfectly than all others the mystery of the religion of the Gospel." Jerome (c. 342–420) also lauds the Prophet Esias, saying, "He was more of an Evangelist than a Prophet, because he described all of the Mysteries of the Church of Christ so vividly that you would assume he was not prophesying about the future, but rather was composing a history of past events."^[10]

In Islam

Although Isaiah is not mentioned by name in the Qur'an or in the authenticated sayings of Prophet Muhammed, some Muslim sources have accepted him as a prophet.^[11] Some Muslim scholars, such as Ibn Kathir and Kisa'i, reproduced Jewish traditions, transmitted through early Jewish converts to Islam, regarding Isaiah. Such Old Testament stories, which are not confirmed by the Quran or prophetic hadeeth, are referred to as Isra'iliyyah, and are not considered strong enough to be used as evidence in Islamic law. Isaiah is mentioned as a prophet in Ibn kathir's Stories of the Prophets and the modern writersMuhammad Asad and Abdullah Yusuf Ali^[12] accepted Isaiah as a true Hebrew prophet, who preached to the Israelites following the death of King David. Isaiah is well known inMuslim exegesis and literature, notably for his predictions of the coming of Jesus andMuhammad.^[13] Isaiah's narrative in Muslim literature can roughly be divided into three sections. The first part establishes Isaiah as a prophet of Israel during the reign ofHezekiah; the second part focuses on Isaiah's actions during the siege of Jerusalem bySennacherib; and the third part is primarily focused upon Isaiah warning the people of coming doom.^[14]

Muslim exegesis preserves a tradition, which parallels that of the Hebrew Bible, which states that Hezekiah was the king that ruled over Jerusalem during Isaiah's time. Hezekiah obeyed and gave an ear to what Isaiah advised him but, nonetheless, this was a turbulent time for Israel.^[15] Tradition, however, maintains that Hezekiah was a righteous man and that the turbulence increased after Hezekiah's death. After the death of the king, Isaiah told the people to not forsake God and he warned Israel that the people must cease from their persistent sin and acts of disobedience. Muslim tradition maintains that the unrighteous people of Israel were angered and sought to kill Isaiah.^[15] In a death which resembles that attributed to Isaiah in Lives of the Prophets, Muslim exegesis recounts that Isaiah was martyred by Israelites by being sawed in half.^[15]

Rabbinic literature

Main article: Isaiah in Rabbinic Literature

According to the Rabbinic literature, Isaiah was a descendant of the imperial house ofJudah and Tamar (Sotah 10b). He was the son of Amoz (not to be confused with ProphetAmos), who was the brother of King Amaziah of Juda. (Talmud tractate Megillah 15a).^[16]

References

1. ^ Historical Dictionary of Prophets in Islam and Judaism, B. M. Wheeler, Appendix II
2. ^ Wells, John C. (1990). Longman pronunciation dictionary. Harlow, England: Longman. p. 378. ISBN 0-582-05383-8.
3. ^ New Bible Dictionary, Second Edition, Tyndale Press, Wheaton, IL, USA 1987.
4. ^ The Scofield Study Bible III, NKJV, Oxford University Press
5. ^ De Jong, Matthijs J., Isaiah Among The Ancient Near Eastern Prophets: A Comparative Study of the Earliest Stages of the Isaiah Tradition and the Neo-Assyrian Prophecies, BRILL, 2007, p. 13-17 [1]
6. ^ JPS Hebrew English Tanakh, Jewish Publication Society, 2000
7. ^ Hugh Williamson Ed., Interpreting Isaiah: Issues and Approaches (288 pp. Nottingham: Apollos, 2009)
8. ^ A Brief Introduction to the Old Testament, Michael D. Coogan, Oxford University Press, 2009, Page 273.
9. ^ Sayce, Archibald Henry. The ancient empires of the East. Macmillan, 1884, p. 134.
10. ^ The Lives of the Holy Prophets, Holy Apostles Convent, ISBN 0-944359-12-4, page 101.
11. ^ Encyclopedia of Islam
12. ^ The Holy Qur'an: Text, Translation and Commentary, Note. 2173 to 17:4: "The Book is the revelation given to the Children of Israel. Here it seems to refer to the burning words of Prophets like Isaiah. For example, see Isaiah, chap, 24. or Isaiah 5:20-30, or Isaiah 3:16-26."
13. ^ Encyclopedia of Islam, Shaya, Online Web.
14. ^ Tabari, History of the Prophets and Kings, i, 638-45
15. ^ ^a b c Stories of the Prophets, Ibn Kathir, Isaiah bin Amoz
16. ^ Isaiah at Jewish Encyclopedia
17. Further reading

• Church, Brooke Peters (1953). The Private Lives of the Prophets and the Times in Which They Lived. New York: Rinehart.
• Cohon, Beryl D. (1939). The Prophets: Their Personalities and Teachings. New York: Scribner.
• Herbert, Arthur Sumner (1975). The book of the prophet Isaiah : Commentary. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-08624-8.
• Herbert, Arthur Sumner (1975). The book of the Prophet Isaiah, chapters 40-66. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-20721-5.
• Kraeling, Emil G. (1969). The Prophets. Chicago: Rand McNally.
• Miscall, Peter D. (1993). Isaiah. Sheffield, England: JSOT Press. ISBN 1-85075-435-7.
• Quinn-Miscall, Peter D. (2001). Reading Isaiah : poetry and vision. Louisville: Westminster Press. ISBN 0-664-22369-9.
• Phillips, J.B. (1963). Four Prophets, Amos, Hosea, First Isaiah, Micha: A Modern Translation from the Hebrew. New York: Macmillan.
• Sawyer, John F.A. (1996). The fifth gospel : Isaiah in the history of Christianity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-44007-6.
• Scott, R.B.Y. (1968). The Relevance of the Prophets. Macmillan: London.
• Smith, J.M. Powis (1941). The Prophets and Their Times. Chicago: University of Chicago