Saint Paul's Greek Orthodox Church

Please join us for Divine Liturgy on Sunday, January 24th. Divine Liturgy 11:00 AM The Fourteenth Sunday of Saint Luke Livestreamed Internet Only www.stpaulsirvine.org

On January 21st, Orthodox Christians celebrate the memory of St. Maximos the Confessor (580-662AD) who had his tongue cut out so he could no longer preach Christ and his hand cut off so he could no longer write about Christ. "Blessed is he who can love all men equally..." "If we detect any trace of hatred in our hearts against any man whatsoever for committing any fault, we are utterly estranged from love for God, since love for God absolutely precludes us from hating any man...." "He who loves Me, says the Lord, will keep My commandments (cf. John 14:15, 23); and 'this is My commandment, that you love one another' (John 15:12). Thus he who does not love his neighbor fails to keep the commandment, and so cannot love the Lord." "God, who is by nature good and dispassionate, loves all men equally as His handiwork. But He glorifies the virtuous man because in his will he is united to God. At the same time, in His goodness, He is merciful to the sinner and by chastising him in this life brings him back to the path of virtue. Similarly, a man of good and dispassionate judgment also loves all men equally. He loves the virtuous man because of his nature and the probity of his intention: and he loves the sinner, too, because of his nature and because in his compassion he pities him for foolishly stumbling in darkness..." "Perfect love does not split up the single human nature, common to all, according to the diverse characteristics of individuals; but, fixing attention always on this single nature, it loves all men equally. It loves the good as friends and the bad as enemies, helping them, exercising forbearance, patiently accepting whatever they do, not taking the evil into account at all but even suffering on their behalf if the opportunity offers, so that, if possible, they too become friends. If perfect love cannot achieve this, it does not change its own attitude; it continues to show the fruits of love to all men alike. It was on account of this that our Lord and God Jesus Christ, showing His love for us, suffered for the whole of mankind and gave to all men an equal hope of resurrection, although each man determines his own fitness for glory or punishment." --First Century on Love 15-17, 25, 71

Saint John Chrysostom Saint John Chrysostom (347-407AD), Archbishop of Constantinople, was a bishop and preacher from the fourth and fifth centuries in the cities of Antioch and Constantinople. The Liturgy that bears his name is, to this day, the normal Sunday worship of the Orthodox Church. He is famous for eloquence in public speaking and his denunciation of abuse of authority in the Church and in the Roman Empire of his time. He was an ascetic and, for a time, lived as a m...onk. He gained considerable fame for his insightful expositions of the Scriptures and his moral teaching. Among the most valuable of his works are his Homilies on various books of the Bible. His straightforward understanding of the Scriptures meant that the themes of his talks were eminently social, explaining the Christian's conduct in life. He particularly emphasized almsgiving and was most concerned with the spiritual and temporal needs of the poor. He spoke out against the abuse of wealth and personal property, something which ultimately led to his exile by the Roman empress Eudoxia. After his death he was named Chrysostom, which comes from the Greek , meaning "golden-mouthed. He is also recognized as a saint by the Roman Catholic Church and the Church of England, both of whom commemorate him on September 13. His relics were stolen from Constantinople by the Crusaders in 1204 and brought to Rome, but were returned to the Church of Constantinople on November 27, 2004, by Pope John Paul II.

On Friday, November 13th, Orthodox Christians celebrate the life and witness of St. John Chrysostom (347-407 AD).