Danas

Слава на ви сини Богу, на Земљи ми р, међу људим а добра вољ а- Мир Божиј и, Христос се роди!

2008-01-04T19:46:00.001-06:00

Велика
Тајна
оваплоћења
Божијег,
тајна
велика као и
сама Тајна
Цркве
Божије,
објављује
се свим
народима и
престаје
бити тајном
у тишини
витлејемског
вертепа.
Обистињује
се оно о чему
Пророци
проповедаху
и верни
Божији од
давнина
сањаху. Бог
дође међу
нас, показа
се и онима
што звезде
читаху и
њима се
клањаху и
који
представљаху
цео људски
род, тј. све
три људске
расе. Он и
дође баш
зато да би
нас начинио
својим
вернима,
својом
црквом, и
прикључио
нас својим
небеским
силама у
сталном
прослављању
Њега,
односно у
саживоту са
Њим- онаквом
какав имаше
и први човек
у Врту
едемском.
Авај, тај Врт
над
вртовима
остаде
затворен за
род људски
од онога
дана када
људи
посегнуше
за тајном
вечног
живота- али
без Бога!
Сада Он дође
да га поново
отвори и
учини ову и
сваку другу
тајну
доступном-
али кроз
Њега, који се
очовечи за
нас да би смо
се ми
обожили!
Отворимо
наше очи за
разумевање
ове велике
тајне,
вежбајмо их
за то и
клонимо се
површног
чепркања по
дубинама
тајни
Божијих!
Клонимо се,
драги
правоверни,
потрошачког
поимања
неисказивог,
које се
своди на
грозничаво
трошење
времена,
здравља,
новца и
замислимо
се над
величином
љубави
Божије за
нас, због
које се Он
бескрајно
понизи и
постаде
човек (јер је
бескрајно
више него
човек, тј.
његов
творац)!
Мир Божији-
Христос се
роди!

St. Ephraim the Syrian

2008-01-04T19:18:00.001-06:00

Praise to Him, Who descended to us in human form! Praise to the Invisible
One who became visible for our sake! Praise to the Mysterious One Whom no
mind can comprehend, and Who through His grace made Himself manifest by
taking on flesh!
Blessed is He Whose good will brought Him to His mother's womb and bosom,
to be born and reared! Blessed is He Who made our flesh a dwelling place
for His mysterious being. Blessed is He who declared to us His mysteries
in our own tongue.
Let us worship Him Who has enlightened our mind with His teaching and laid
down a path for His word in our hearing. Let us give thanks to Him Who has
grafted His fruit to our tree.
Praise to Him Who invisibly cultivates our spirit. Blessed is He Who
att7uned the senses of our spirit, that it might ever play songs of
exaltation to Him on its lyre.
-St. Ephraim the Syrian-

Whoever perseveres until the end, will be saved. (Matt 10:22)

2007-04-06T12:18:00.001-05:00

The Christian world and each individual Christian have never, in the past 2000 years, been without crises and temptations as well as challenges of our faith, perseverance and patience, the two virtues so lacking in the contemporary Christianity. By means of such tempting situations, the madness of the worlds contemporary idol- media sensationalism- seems to strengthen some of us and yet, in others, it destroys the bits and pieces out of which both the patience and the endurance in faith are built. It appears that it was not by chance, at the beginning of this years Great Lent, the birth of the new child of media sensationalism- "Discovered tomb of Jesus" in documentary by James Cameron "The Lost Tomb Of Jesus," aired by the Discovery Chanel on March 4th. Did the contemporary prophets of Baal really think they could discourage us and destroy this years joy of the Resurrection? Truly speaking, in those "Christians" for whom Easter is just once a year and in those for whom only the red egg proves that it is the day of Resurrection again, it just may bee that their "joy" could be destroyed. But for all those Christians who, with perseverance and patience, feel Paschal joy every single Sunday, every single day, this will end up being just one of many attempts by the prince of this world to draw us closer to him. To all of those who are seeking for the "mysteries" I would strongly suggest to open their eyes and to see The Mystery of The Mysteries- The Holy Light- in the Jerusalem Holy Sepulcher Church, that occurs every Great and Holy Saturday for 2000 years, to remind us that there WAS a tomb of Jesus Christ in this place, that He DID rise from the dead after three days, and that the joy of His Resurrection is stronger than their media sensationalism or even death!

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DO NOT WORRY!

2007-03-17T20:19:00.001-05:00

A Priest had been on a long flight. The first warning of the approaching problems came when the sign on the airplane flashed on, "Fasten your seat belts". Then, after a while, a calm voice said, "We shall not be serving the beverages at this time as we are expecting a little turbulence. Please be sure your seat belt is fastened."
            As he looked around the aircraft, it became obvious that many of the passengers were becoming apprehensive. Later, the voice of the announcer said, "We are so sorry that we are unable to serve the meal at this time. The turbulence is still ahead of us."
            Then the storm broke. The ominous cracks of thunder could be heard even above the roar of the engines. Lightening lit up the darkening skies, and within moments, that great plane was like a cork tossed around on a celestial ocean. One moment the airplane was lifted on terrific currents of air; the next, it dropped as if it were about to crash.
            He shared the discomfort and fear of those around him. He said, "As I looked around the plane, I could see that nearly all the passengers were upset and alarmed." The future seemed ominous and many were wondering if they would make it through the storm.
Then, I suddenly saw a little girl. Apparently, the storm meant nothing to her. She had tucked her feet beneath her as she sat on her seat; she was reading a book and every thing within her small world was calm and orderly.                          Sometimes she closed her eyes, then she would read again; then she would straighten her legs, but worry and fear were not in her world. When the plane lurched this way and that, as it rose and fell with frightening severity, when all the adults were scared half to death, that marvelous child was completely composed and unafraid." The Priest could hardly believe his eyes.
            It was not surprising therefore, that when the plane finally reached its destination and all the passengers were hurrying to disembark, the Priest lingered to speak to the girl whom he had watched for such a long time.
            Having commented about the storm and behavior of the plane, he asked why she had not been afraid. The child replied, "Cause my Daddy's the pilot, and he's taking me home."
            There are many kinds of storms that buffet us, physical, mental, financial, domestic. In addition, many other storms can easily and quickly darken our skies and throw our lives into apparently uncontrollable disarray. We have all known such times. But don't forget,
            Our Father in Heaven is our Pilot. He is in control and the Lord is taking us home. So don't worry . . .

"The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace." Numbers 6:24-26

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Why go to Church?

2007-03-02T18:03:00.000-06:00

Why go to Church? (This is good)

If you're spiritually alive, you're going to love this! If you're spiritually dead, you won't want to read it. If you're spiritually curious, there is still hope!

Why Go To Church?

A Church goer wrote a letter to the editor of a newspaper and complained that it made no sense to go to church every Sunday. "I've gone for 30 years now," he wrote, "and in that time I have heard something like 3,000 sermons. But for the life of me, I can't remember a single one of them. So, I think I'm wasting my time and the pastors are wasting theirs by giving sermons at all."

This started a real controversy in the "Letters to the Editor" column, much to the delight of the editor. It went on for weeks until someone wrote this clincher:

"I've been married for 30 years now. In that time my wife has cooked some 32,000 meals. But, for the life of me, I cannot recall the entire menu for a single one of those meals But I do know this.. They all nourished me and gave me the strength I needed to do my work. If my wife had not given me these meals, I would be physically dead today. Likewise, if I had not gone to church for nourishment, I would be spiritually dead today!" When you are DOWN to nothing.... God is UP to something! Faith sees the invisible, believes the incredible and receives the impossible! Thank God for our physical AND our spiritual nourishment!

All right, now that you're done reading, send it on! I think everyone should read this! "When Satan is knocking at your door, simply say, "Jesus, could you get that for me?"

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About the word of God which is mightier than death

2007-02-23T12:27:00.001-06:00

"Whoever keeps My word will never taste death" (St. John 8:52).

But, what does it mean, to keep the word of Christ within ourselves? That means; First: to keep the word of Christ in our mind, thinking about it; Second: to keep the word of Christ in our heart, loving it; Third: to keep the word of Christ in our will, fulfilling it in deeds; Fourth: to keep the word of Christ on our tongue, openly confessing it when it is necessary to do so. Thus, to keep the word of Christ means to fill ourselves with it and to fulfill it. Whoever would keep the word of Christ in this manner, truly, he will never taste of death.

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Abraham Lincoln's 1863 Thanksgiving Proclamation

2007-02-09T16:15:00.001-06:00

Where is the faith of our ancestors, their devotion, humbleness, and love for our Lord? Why are we so proud, so hateful, self- justifying, and ungrateful? Did we forget about God who is everywhere, except in our minds, hearts, and souls?

These are the words of Abraham Lincoln:

It is the duty of nations as well as of men to own their dependence upon the overruling power of God; to confess their sins and transgressions in humble sorrow, yet with assured hope that genuine repentance
will lead to mercy and pardon; and to recognize the sublime truth, announced in the Holy Scriptures and proven by all history, that those nations are blessed whose God is the Lord. We know that by His divine law, nations, like individuals, are subjected to punishments and chastisements in this world. May we not justly fear that the awful calamity of civil war which now desolates the land may be a punishment inflicted upon us for our presumptuous sins, to the needful end of our national reformation as a whole people. We have been the recipients of the choisest bounties of heaven; we have been preserved these many years in peace and prosperity; we have grown in numbers, wealth and power as no other nation has ever grown. But we have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us, and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us. It has seemed to me fit and proper that God should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged, as with one heart and one voice, by the whole American people. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November as a day of Thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens.
(signed)
A. Lincoln
October 3, 1863

I'm Back!

2007-02-09T02:45:00.000-06:00

Happy New Year to everyone, and forgive me for not posting for such a long time. My little blog site got lost during the blogger update. My editor has finally solved the problem, and we will be posting regularly again.

Be watching as Great Lent approaching... During this important and holy season, I expect to share many spiritual messages with you.

God bless you!

THE WHISPERING VOICE

2006-12-13T22:09:00.000-06:00

Why is it that the younger generation doesn't have time for church or for God? Usually, you'll hear from them or their parents that they are too busy. It is true many of them are working and studying at the same time, and some of them are involved in sports as well. But trainers, teachers, professors, and bosses, don't ask them if they have time; they just expect it. On the other hand, God's friendly call (because He knows all our needs and duties) to spend some time with Him is often not listened to or possibly even thought a violation of our freedom. Why not spend free time having fun instead of meditating and praying? But what a mistake this is. Why is it that people ignore that sweet and soft Whispering Voice of God?

Let me tell you a real life story about a young man who at first ignored the voice; but later, when he was taken down to practically nothing, responded to its call:

This young man lived in Bosnia years ago when it was still a part of former Yugoslavia. He lived the typical secular life of kids of that time. His idols were from TV shows like Beverly Hills 90210 and sports heroes like Magic Johnson and Michael Jordan. He didn't care about God or His Church. He had the typical worldly dreams so many young people have--the good life, fancy cars, girls, and so on.

Then one day all of that changed dramatically for him--civil war came to Bosnia and created suffering all around. He didn't care at first: he was 20 and invincible. That was until the situation starting touching him personally. First, the girl he loved left him because he wasn't the "right" nationality. Then many of his friends turned their backs on him for the same reason. The world was turning upside down before his eyes. People who before were friends changed to enemies, and unbelievable hatred came between them. That's what a civil war brings.

The young man began to feel very, very lonely. And because he did not want to fight on any side, he decided to leave his town and his country. He had to hide from the police who were looking for any man capable of carrying a gun to conscript them for the war.

He sought refuge in a shelter. But even there he was miserable. He was starving, cold, depressed, and very afraid. He knew either way, fratricidal war or jail, things would be terrible. In those lonely and frightening days, he began thinking about life and death, about everything that was going on around him. Then one day he decided he didn't care about his life anymore, and he ran away from the madhouse that hiding had become. He was quickly caught and jailed. Jail was even more depressing and dangerous than the shelter. So once again he took a chance and escaped the jail.

Everything after this is the classic refugee story. After a few years, when he was finally safe, he realized all along God had been protecting him and leading him with His Whispering Voice. With this realization, he chose to be baptised and committed his life to serving God and His Church.

Today he is so grateful to the Lord, who lead him through all those dangerous situations and temptations. On that day when he had been so afraid for his life and miserable in the shelter, then realized there had to be something stronger than hatred, fear, and hunger. He knew now that God had been watching over him. He realized we should not be so concerned about our mortal bodies; they can perish any time. But our immortal souls, that's what we have to care about! Because we all have to give our lives back to God the Father one day, and, in that moment, we will be accountable for the condition our souls.

I pray to God that every human being, especially young people, will learn this truth as soon as possible without having to endure suffering to learn it. We all need to open our ears, eyes, minds, and hearts and respond to that Whispering Voice of God.
Amen

Thanksgiving song

2006-11-23T11:14:00.000-06:00

This was my first Thanksgiving Day, and I think that this old American tradition is very nice and God pleasing. It tells me, and to everybody else who comes to live in this state, a lot about how much did those first settlers in the New World rely upon God, and trusted in him, as it was written on the dollar bill. But, what’s left from that great faith, courage and confidence in God’s protection in this New World? Just about a few holydays and a few memories! New generations of people rely just on themselves, on their hi-tech machines, and it seems that there is no place for God in their lives.
Did you know that the original Greek word for what we are doing every Sunday (or every time we serve Divine Liturgy) in the church means exactly “to give thanks- thanksgiving”? What makes the Divine Liturgy so important and so different from the rest of the church services; actually from everything else that’s going on in the church, or around it- is this thanksgiving. This thanksgiving means that we are giving something back to God, and it means we are realizing that everything we have, we’ve received from Him. We are a part of nature, and whole nature is doing the very same thing constantly and repeatedly. Birds are doing it by singing their various and beautiful songs, flowers are giving thanks by fascinating blooming and smelling, the Sun is giving thanks by its life giving shine and warmth, the skies are giving thanks by letting the beneficial rain to fall down on earth, and the Earth is giving thanks by letting grass and trees to grow and to feed a numerous animals. Our song is just a tiny little voice in the hymn, sung by the Universe, grateful to its Creator for His kindness.

The eternal life!

2006-11-17T16:14:00.000-06:00

The God who orders the planets in their courses, who brings the stars nightly to the sky, and who controls the tides and the endless spaces of the universe, is a God whom we can trust in death to bring our beloved to life that is eternal!
Yes, dearly beloved, life is eternal! I know it’s difficult to accept the fact that once we are born, it is forever, because our immortal and boundless souls are tightened and locked inside of our mortal and limited bodies. But it’s not the body that is the carrier of life itself, or said more simply-we don’t live because we breathe, eat, sleep, walk… No, it’s the exact opposite- we do all of these things because we live! And what is the starting force that sparks and makes life grow? It’s, of course, the immortal soul! This is what makes the heart to run, blood to flow, and brain to think! It’s what we would call nowadays the Information Source, and this is exactly what remains a big unknown, a big unsolved mystery for scientists, philosophers, and everybody else who is trying to find the answer for that eternal question: What exactly is life!
Scientist Robert Milikan, looking back across a life’s studies of the secret of God’s scientific law, said, “The Divine Architect of the Universe has not built a stairway that leads to nowhere.” If this is the faith of a scientist, how much more it can be our hope, for we know that God has not given us our longing for life eternal without the trust that our dream will come true.

The Divine Mirror

2006-11-02T20:00:00.000-06:00

Do we realize how far we are from God; or do we just continue to justify ourselves, no matter how bad the things we are doing are? Let’s just for a while stop finding excuses for everything we do, and try to look at ourselves with God’s eyes! Let’s have a look in the mirror God has made for us in order to see ourselves just like we are!

The Ten Commandments are so well-known, so popular that you can even buy a little print of them in a store and put it on your screen-door! But the Ten Commandments are serious business. God gave them to us as a measure of the things we have to do in order to please Him, the Heavenly Father, and to deserve to be called a child of God.

Consider the first one: "I am the Lord thy God.... Thou shalt have no other gods before me." Do we live in accordance with this commandment? Or do we worship a whole bunch of other gods, such as: material wealth, pleasure, and fun of all kinds, Hollywood, sport stars, etc., etc.? What about our relationship to Jesus Christ, God who lived among us and humiliated himself for our sake? Do we keep the memory of Him and what He has done for us by fasting Wednesdays and Fridays, the days when He was betrayed and killed? Is it really Jesus Christ who we are celebrating on Christmas, by irrational spending of money and overeating? What about other holy days, like Halloween when we seem to venerate demonic creatures from the dark world of Satan? No matter how colored and “funny” it is in our imagination, all these things distract us from God and make us have other gods instead of Him.

The Fourth Commandment: "Remember the sabbath day to keep it holy" does not suggest that the rest of the days of the week could be unholy. God wants believers to obey His Commandments unceasingly without intervals in responsible life. The believers' deeds and thoughts should be godly in every respect, in work and play, in studies and worship, throughout the entire week, in order to be holy and worthy of the name of God. However, this commandment was given to us so we can dedicate our lives to the Lord for one whole day; that is, to study His message more and more, to sacrifice a part of our money and pleasure, to help others in the name of Lord, to prepare ourselves for the commencement of the new week. It is a disappointing phenomenon that even religious people use Sunday for their own pleasure and relaxation and for many other activities when these are the days set aside for the Lord.

His Eminence Metropolitan Christopher Visits Hibbing Parish

2006-10-23T14:15:00.000-05:00

Sunday, October 22nd was a big day for our little parish in the middle of the Iron Range. Everybody was so excited about the visit of His Eminence Metropolitan Christopher, especially the women from our Kolo (Serbian Sisters Circle) because on this day they also were celebrating their patron Saint's Day [Slava]--Venerable Mother Paraskeva, St. Petka of Serbia. In preparation, everyone took their part seriously: those who helped with cleaning and decorating church and parish hall, those who were preparing food for this occasion, our choir singers. For me as the parish priest, it was more than just a church supreme authority visit; it was a great spiritual experience as well! Everytime I've participated in Divine Liturgy performed by a Bishop, I have felt the unity between us, today's Christians and those from ancient times, in the bosom of the one and only Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic- living Church. Thanks to this ancient tradition, kept by our Church for twenty centuries, you can feel that a Bishop isn't just a "boss," an untouchable, and unmistakable supreme authority. He is a living symbol of Christ and His Disciples who became the first Bishops in the ancient cities of Rome, Constantinople, Alexandria, Jerusalem, and Antioch. His mission is to pray, teach, intercede, sometimes to correct, to instruct, just as the Apostle St. Paul instructs the new appointed Bishop of Ephesus, Saint Timothy: "Preach the Word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine." (2 Tim. 4:3)
Now and ever, and unto ages of ages, Amen!

Who is the mysterious teacher

2006-10-19T20:47:00.000-05:00

Today it's been four months since our son was born in Hibbing. This is a beautiful, peaceful, and quiet little town, just perfect to raise children and to watch them growing. From the moment he came into this world, I couldn't stop thinking about the Miracle of Life. That is the biggest of God's miracles! There are so many questions that science can't answer about this miracle. Yet thanks to science, we can admire this miracle even more. When you are watching the ultrasound picture of the growing baby in his mother's womb, you are just astonished and in wonder at where those bones, organs, head, hands, and legs with those little fingers and toes are coming from. "O God, how manifold are your deeds!" Then, the first cry, smile, step! Who taught them all of that? What are they dreaming about if it's true they don't know anything and have to be taught everything. As a proud father I have to admit in all humility: THERE IS ANOTHER TEACHER WHO TAUGHT MY CHILD BEFORE I DID!

Please Join Us Sunday for a Very Special Occasion

2006-10-18T19:38:00.000-05:00

We have the honor of having His Grace, Metropolitan Christopher, serve at our Divine Liturgy, Sunday, October 22, 10:00AM. We are going to celebrate our Serbian Sisters Kolo Slava Venerable Mother Paraskeva of Serbia - St. Petka, so this will be a very special time of worship and praise. To learn more about St. Petka, check the link above. Also see our newsletter, the MESSENGER NEWSLETTER to read a brief biography of his Eminence.

Happy Autumn to everyone

2006-10-18T18:22:00.000-05:00

Way up north in Hibbing, Minnesota, the weather is getting cold, and the leaves have turned to their beautiful fall colors, and the first snow has fallen. Now it is time for us to start thinking about the holiday seasons--Thanksgiving and the beginning of the Holy Nativity fast, slavas of Sv. Petka, Sv. Dimitrija, Sv. Nikola, and many others [see the Orthodox Saint's Calendar]. All of these occasions are reasons for Orthodox Christians to thank God for all of our blessings. Please join us for services at our lovely church in Hibbing. You will be blessed by the Holy Spirit as you come to worship the Most High God.

First Words

2006-10-15T23:37:00.000-05:00

Hello St Archangel Michael Church & all of our friends!

This is my first edition of Danas! -- a new way to exchange ideas with you, an internet blog. "Danas" means "Today" in Serbian. I chose this name because it from my first language and because it is an easy word for most of you to say and remember. Also in this little window on the internet I hope to express my ideas and that they will be current and pertinent to what is going on in our lives today in Hibbing and everywhere in the world.

Please feel free to leave me your comments and send me your concerns. My hope is to make you aware of God's community at St Michael's and to encourage you to join us in fellowship at services and special events.