What is Christian Fellowship?

(Part 2)

Last week we looked at Christian fellowship from two perspectives: (1) fellowship in the church is driven by gratitude for what Jesus Christ has done for us, and (2) Christian fellowship is motivated primarily by the desire to save the soul of our neighbor.

This week we will examine fellowship in the church through the central event in the life of the church that is Holy Communion, and we’ll do this by looking at three points of connection between Holy Communion and fellowship.

                                                                                                                                   

1. Holy Communion connects us with God – the source of all real unity

 The gospel of St. John makes, perhaps, the strongest statement in the whole of scripture about what Holy Communion does for us:

Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.” – John 6:53-54

                                                                                                                               

St. Cyril of Jerusalem says the same thing in the reverse:

Without the Lord’s flesh [Holy Communion], it is impossible to live.

A Christian community can never have genuinely strong and healthy fellowship unless the foundation of that strength and health is unity in Jesus Christ – which can only be had through unity in Holy Communion.

2. The word “Liturgy” means “work of the people”

St. Ambrose of Milan explains that the central act of the church is Holy Communion:

                                 

The word “Liturgy” means “the work of the people” and this serves to underscore the corporate character of the Divine Liturgy….  The Eucharist is truly the center of the life of the Church and the way we nourish ourselves on our journey through life.

Our fellowship as a community must be defined by this central work (to put it differently, we need be seen by the world around us as a group of people who are united, first and foremost, in Christ).  Nothing can ever be more important than being at the Liturgy and receiving the Eucharist.  To the degree that anything else does define our fellowship, to that same degree our fellowship is not truly in Christ.

3. Holy Communion is the goal and end point of all Christian life

Many of you may not know this, but all of the sacraments have Holy Communion as their goal.  In the early church, weddings, baptisms, holy unction and confession, were all done in the Liturgy.  And today, Holy Communion (of course) and ordinations are still done in the Liturgy.  This points to the fact that Holy Communion is central to all that we are as a church.

In the Orthodox Church all roads lead to the chalice and Holy Communion.  The goal of the church needs to be to put this theory into practice – to truly have our fellowship grounded in the body and blood of Jesus Christ. 

- Offered by Fr. Panteleimon Dalianis

Monday

II Cor. 2:4-15; Matt. 23:13-22

Woe unto you..for ye shut up the Kingdom of Heaven against men (Matt. 23:13). This can be said to hierarchs who neither teach the people the saving path themselves nor compel the priests to teach them. This can also be said to priests who leave the people in neglect, not taking care to explain to them what is necessary for the salvation of the soul. Due to this, the people remain in blindness. Some remain in the certainty that they are proceeding properly; others, although they notice that things are not going the right way, do not go where they should, because they do not know how and where to go. This causes various silly ideas to spread among the people; this is why schismatics, Molokans, and Khlysts find acceptance among them, and this is how every evil teaching finds convenient access to them. A priest usually thinks that everything is fine in his parish, and rushes into action only when this evil has already spread and exposed itself. But then nothing can be done about it. A priest must consider it the first priority of his conscience to continually instruct the adults in the knowledge of the Christian Faith, and to prepare the young generation from their first conscious years, explaining to them what they can and must know. There is no need to wait for school. This must be done orally, gathering the children in the church and at home on Sunday evenings, or whenever and however it is convenient. 

-From St. Theophan the Recluse

Monday

1 Cor. 15:12-19; Matt. 21:18-22

The Lord condemned the fig tree to fruitlessness because in appearance it was so covered with leaves that there ought to have been fruit on it, but none could be found. In applying this to the Christian life, the leaves represent outward words of piety and outward spiritual asceticism, while the fruits represent inner dispositions. According to the law, the former should proceed from the latter. However, out of condescension to our infirmity, the latter should at least develop together with the former. When the former are strong but the latter are not even budding, a false life results, which expresses itself like this: to seem, but not to be. At first, perhaps this unfortunate state is not in one's thoughts, but then it appears unnoticeably and establishes itself as a way of life. When one applies himself excessively to externals and becomes passionately attached to them, his attention toward his heart is suppressed, his spiritual feelings die away, and coldness settles in. At this stage, spiritual life freezes, and there remains only an appearance of piety, but no piety. One's behavior is proper on the outside, but inwardly everything is wrong. The consequence of this is spiritual fruitlessness-works are done, but they are all dead. 

-From St. Theophan the Recluse

What is Fellowship? - an article by Fr. Panteleimon

What is Fellowship?

As we discuss the definition of what a church is called to do and be (see last week’s article, Highest and Best Use (of the Church?) at http://stbasilchicago.blogspot.com), allow me to break down each of the six points I made in my last article to better define what each one of these parts looks like.  I’ll begin with fellowship.

St. Paul is very clear that fellowship is not just “friendship” as we define it in the world, but something that has to do with God and being heirs of His kingdom.  He tells the church in Ephesus to walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God (Eph. 5:2).  Fellowship has something to do with what Jesus Christ has done to save our souls. 

Because of this, fellowship in the church has two components that fellowship in the world would never have.  First, fellowship in the church is driven by gratitude for what Jesus Christ has done for us – and an acknowledgment that nothing we can do can pay back God for what he has done for us in Jesus Christ.

At the core of any effort to love our neighbor is always the passage from the gospel of St. Luke which reads:

So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, “We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do” (Luke 17:10).

Secondly, Christian fellowship is worried primarily about the salvation of our neighbor.  And that salvation can only be found in the truth that is the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.  For this reason, St. James explains in his epistle:

Brethren, if anyone among you wanders from the truth, and someone turns him back, let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins (James 5:19-20).

What greater thing can a friend do than save us from eternal separation from God?  Fellowship in the church is about helping those around us get into heaven.

So as we reflect on the content of fellowship at St. Basil, we can ask two questions: (1) is our own motive for fellowship one of gratitude and indebtedness to God?  And (2) is the end-goal of our fellowship the kingdom of heaven for both us and our neighbor?

May St. Basil become a parish where these two motives are the central motives for all of the fellowship that we have.

- Offered by Fr. Panteleimon Dalianis

Monday

1 Cor. 11:31-12:6; Matt. 18: 1-11

Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the Kingdom of Heaven (Matt. 18:3). The structure of a child's heart is a model for all. Children, before egotistical strivings have arisen in them, are a model for imitation. What do we see in children? Complete faith which does not reason, undebating obedience, sincere love, peace and lack of worry under their parents' roof, and liveliness and freshness of life, with agility and a desire to learn and become more perfect. But the Savior particularly emphasizes one of their virtues-humility: Whosoever shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven (Matt. 18:4). For as soon as there is true humility, all of the virtues are there. It is revealed perfectly when the other virtues have already blossomed in the heart and reach maturity it is their crown and protection. This is the mystery of spiritual life in our Lord Jesus Christ. Whoever is higher is more humble, because he more clearly and tangibly sees that it is not he who labors successfully, but the grace which is in him (cf. 1 Cor. 5:10); and this is the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ (Eph. 4:13). For an essential aspect of Christ Jesus is that He humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death (Phil. 2:8).

-From St. Theophan the Recluse

Monday

1 Cor. 9:13-18; Matt. 16:1-6

The Pharisees and Sadducees wanted the Lord to show them a sign, but they did not see the sign before their very eyes. The Lord Himself was the sign. His teaching and works clearly showed Who He was, and no additional evidence was needed. The works that I do...they bear witness of Me (John 10:25), He said to the Jews. The Lord denounced them, saying: Ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye discern the signs of the times? (Matt. 16:3). Why did this happen with them? Because they lived an outward life and did not enter within themselves. Without collectedness, attentiveness, and self-searching it is impossible until this day. Christianity is before everyone's eyes as the true sign of God, but those who look at it do not see this, are shaken in faith, and step away. Their eyes lose the ability to see the stamp of divinity in it, and they are ready like the Jews to ask for special signs from heaven. But a sign is not given and shall not be given, because those who seek this do so only to tempt, and not in order to walk the path of Christ. Just enter onto this path, and from the first step you will see that is is Divine, that is leads to God and brings God nearer to you. The Lord said to the Jews: There shall no sign be given...but the sign of the prophet Jonah (Matt. 12:39). The Lord foresaw today's unbelievers as well, and prepared for them an answer: Then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the troves of the earth mourn. (Matt. 24:30).

-From St. Theophan the Recluse

Highest and Best Use (of the Church?)

Last Monday at our parish council meeting we spent some time at the end of our meeting talking about what the church is called to be/do.  I offered six thoughts in response to this question which I’d like to share with the parish at large.  They are:

1. Local – the church is a local manifestation of Christ (i.e. the people we are called to serve (primarily) are those geographically near the church);
2. A place of fellowship – the friendships and relationships we create through the church should be different than those in the world – since we have Christ as the foundation of those relationships;
3. A place of service – “for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink….  Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family,  you did it to me” (Matt. 25:35, 40);
4. A place of discipleship – A disciple is a follower.  So discipleship is the process of our becoming better and better followers of Jesus Christ – through education/worship/service (in some sense it’s all of the items on this list actively growing and operating in our lives);
5. A place of worship – The sacramental life is what connects us to Jesus Christ – and it’s something we can only get through the church and our active and regular participation in its life.  It is to our soul what blood and oxygen are to our body;
6. A place of outreach/evangelism/missions – Healthy organisms are growing organisms.  Our Lord is very clear that his followers are to “be witnesses to [Him] in Jerusalem [i.e. in our neighborhood], and in all Judea and Samaria [throughout America?], and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8).

No doubt as we read through this list we feel more comfortable with some of these items and less comfortable with others.  But, for a parish to be truly healthy, it has to have all of these things operating in a healthy way – the church is simply the sum of the parts.  To omit a part (or to do it very poorly) is to reduce the health of the church.

As you read this I would challenge you to ask yourself what you think about each of these items – are they a part of your own walk with God?  If not, why not?

I hope to expand on each of these points in the weeks ahead through short articles.  I invite you to (and very much hope you will) join me on the journey.  God bless.

- offered by Fr. Panteleimon Dalianis

Monday

1 Cor. 5:9-6; Matt. 13:54-58

The Nazarenes did not believe the word of the Lord, because when He lived among them, He had no attractive luster or outward dignity that might have commanded involuntary respect. "We know Who He is," they said; "there can't be anything extraordinary about Him." Their reaction, however, did not induce the Lord to assume an imposing appearance. He remained extremely simple in appearance. Later, the Apostles bore themselves the same way, as did all those who truly followed and emulated them. Why is this so? Because there is no man-made luster that could fully correspond to the light of life in Jesus Christ. Moreover, we recognize that it is better to relegate external appearance to the lowest value, so that it does not obstruct what is within. Let him who has eyes to see look directly at the latter, without arresting his attention upon the former. The Holy Apostle Paul expressed it is like this: We have this treasure in earthen vessels (II Cor. 4:7). If we could see the outward appearance of those persons whom we now never and call upon in prayer, we would not believe our eyes-they were so simple. But to this day, those who have come to know the life in Jesus Christ abandon what is outward and turn fully within. That is why the former falls away on its own, but the latter is raised up and grows. It often happens that no one even notices this inner brightness, not even the one who possesses it. The human eye is evil; it is not shown what is truly good, as long as it is capable of harming it. 

-From St. Theophan the Recluse