by Fr. John A. Peck

Dormition is one of the Twelve Great Feasts of the Christian faith, and particularly since it falls on a Sunday this year, many Orthodox Christians who otherwise might not celebrate the feast will have the opportunity.

Of course, this is a great preaching opportunity, so we here at Preachers Institute, are offering an article on Dormition and a few things which we hope you will find valuable as you prepare this festal sermon.

1. Preach the Gospel

Read more

The Survey Says…

Friends of Preachers Institute, thank you for participating in our online poll regarding a Doctor of Ministry degree in Orthodox Homiletics. During April and May, we asked you, our readers, what you would like to see in an advanced professional degree in Orthodox homiletics.

The specific question was:

What would you like to see in a Doctoral program in Orthodox Homiletics?

All in all, there were 194 respondents. Each could vote for as many selections as they wished.

Here are the results:

119 votes             Affordability: $50-100 (USD)/ month

115 votes             A Study of the Sermons of the Patristic Fathers

102 votes             Training in the Orthodox Tradition of communication, from classical rhetoric to new media

100 votes             A program that will bring my skill in preaching to a level approaching ‘expert’ in knowledge of preaching, communication, and its history

93 votes               I’d prefer a Ph.D. program – an academic degree, not a professional one

78 votes               Something I can do while working in my parish, with occasional seminars

62 votes               A practical program, honing sermon prep and deliver skills in many venues

58 votes               A program which offers a variety of venues; street preaching and evangelism, liturgical preaching, writing, posting on social media, blogging, etc.

24 votes               A historical study – primarily

22 votes               Something different – to get me out of my comfort zone

These are telling results, and we appreciate your input.

Sadly, not all Orthodox clergy are interested in improving their skill or advancing their education in homiletics, but for those of you who are, the Preachers Institute is preparing to serve your needs, and offer more for you, the preacher in the trenches of parish work, laboring prayerfully to rightly define the word of Truth, and proclaim the Gospel of Christ.

Dear friends of the Preachers Institute,

During the month of June, I’ll be taking a short break from the work at the Preachers Institute.

I have been most appreciative of your input, comments, suggestions and offerings during this past year. You have helped make the Preachers Institute better and better each week, and I thank you for that!

There are some articles which will be posted, but generally the pace of publication will lessen as I take some time away from the laptop, and the office – it’s my vacation. During this month I also celebrate the anniversary of my marriage to the lovely She-Who-Must-Be-Obeyed, and the anniversary of my ordination to the Holy Priesthood.

June is a very good month.

I ask your prayers for refreshment during this month, and assure you that when I return in July, we will pick up with our normal schedule of publishing the best, most helpful material for Orthodox preachers.

Please remember me in your holy prayers.

Fr. John

by Fr. John A. Peck

TAKE THE POLL!

When we were in the early stages of discussing the mission and goals of the Preachers Institute, one that stuck out was the opportunity for advanced, intensive study of homiletics among Orthodox clergy.

We decided early on that the professional degree (D. Min.), not an academic degree (such as a Ph.D. or a Th. D) would best fulfill our vision, as it was the  preacher on-the-ground, in the parish preaching that wanted more opportunities to advance his study and practice of homiletics where it counted most – in the local Church.

And indeed, a year since we launched Preachers Institute, we have over 10,000 unique visitors to our site monthly. Material is copied from PI daily!

In order to better facilitate the planning and implementation of such a degree, we’re asking each of you to take the poll in the sidebar. Choose as many as you like to answer, just be as honest as you can.

The poll will end on May 15th at midnight.

Please do not hesitate to

Share your opinions via the online poll;
Share your ideas and needs, if they don’t fit into the options listed;
Pass this to others, who can likewise, take this poll and help us.

Thanks for helping us out by registering your opinion on this poll.

We have much more coming this year from Preachers Institute. Stay tuned, as they say.

And, as always, pray for us.

By Fr. John A. Peck

The questions a preacher must consider when preparing his sermon are many.  One such question must be: “Is my sermon a vaccination against sin and indifference, or an inoculation against conversion?” Though we certainly believe that vaccinations are good science, the idea that a small, dead amount of something which is good (in this case, the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ) can be used to create resistance to the very living thing which heals and cures – and therefore is bad - make this an excellent metaphor for instruction.

I’m indebted to Alan Boyd, pastoral assistant at Assumption Church in Scottsdale, AZ for ideas contributing to this article.

Often a preacher must decide just how much ‘salt’ his congregation or listening audience can stomach (see my article, Sermons and Snickers Bars for more about ‘salting’ your sermons). Just as often, a preacher can default to a minimum announcement of the Gospel to his hearers, presenting a minimum of Gospel platitudes or moralizing, but staying a minimum safe distance from possibly incendiary, but basic, Christian topics (hell and how to get there, tithing and the other 90%, the moral teaching of the Church, etc) which are necessary for life, faith and spiritual growth in the Spirit. Such mini-sermons are often called ‘sermonettes,’ and parishes get to expect sermonettes, as opposed to real sermons. Read more

Happy Feast Day everyone!

Christ is baptized in the Jordan!

And we with Him!

At the completion of the twelve-day festival, starting on December 25, and ending on January 5, known as Christmastide or the twelve days of Christmas, (although some Christian cultures, especially those of Latin America and some in Europe extend it to as many as forty days, ending on Candlemas – February 2).

It goes by other names in various church traditions. In Hispanic and Latin culture, as well as some places in Europe, it is known as Three Kings’ Day (Span: el Dia de los Tres Reyes, la Fiesta de Reyes, or el Dia de los Reyes Magos; Dutch: Driekoningendag). Originally, there was just one Christian feast of the shining forth of God to the world in the human form of Jesus of Nazareth. It included the celebration of Christ’s birth, the adoration of the Wisemen, and all of the childhood events of Christ such as his circumcision and presentation to the temple as well as his baptism by John in the Jordan. There seems to be little doubt that this feast, like Pascha and Pentecost, was understood as the fulfillment of a previous Jewish festival, in this case the Feast of Lights.

In the Orthodox Church, this observance commemorates Christ’s baptism by John the Forerunner in the River Jordan, and the beginning of Christ’s earthly ministry. The Feast of Theophany is the culmination of the Christmas Season, which starts on December 25 and ends on January 6. In mystic commemoration of this event, the Great Blessing of Water is performed on this day, and the holy water so blessed is used by the local priest to bless the homes of the faithful.

Epiphany

This feast is also sometimes referred to as Epiphany by English-speaking Orthodox Christians, but that name more properly refers to the Western Christian feast falling on that same day and commemorating the visit of the Magi to the child Jesus. The term “Epiphany” does appear in the services for this feast, however.

Celebration of the feast

The services of Theophany are set up exactly as those of the Nativity. Historically the Christmas services were established later.

The Royal Hours are read and the Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great is served with Vespers on the eve of the feast. The Vigil is made up of Great Compline and Matins

The Liturgy of the feast begins with psalms of glorification and praise instead of the three normal Antiphons. And the baptismal line from Galatians 3:27 once again replaces the Thrice-Holy.

For as many as been baptized into Christ, have put on Christ! Alleluia!

The Gospel readings of all the services tell of the Lord’s baptism by John in the Jordan River. The epistle reading of the Divine Liturgy tells of the consequences of the Lord’s appearing which is the divine epiphany.

Since the main feature of the feast is the blessing of water. It is prescribed to follow both the Divine Liturgy of the eve of the feast and the Divine Liturgy of the day itself. But most local parishes do it only once when most of the parishioners can be present. The blessing verifies that mankind, and all of creation, were created to be filled with the sanctifying presence of God.

On the Feast of Theophany itself, the priest, wearing white vestments, will celebrate the Great Blessing of Waters, and in some regions frankincense, gold, and chalk.

The blessed chalk is used to write the initials of the three magi over the doors of churches and homes.

Not only do the letters stand for the initials of the Magi (traditionally named Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar), but of the phrase Christus mansionem benedicat, which translates as

“may Christ bless the house.”

In Alaska, candles are used  instead to mark the threshold of every doorway with the sign of the cross.

May Christ bless your home during this holy season, and on this glorious day!

Merry Christmas

to all our faithful readers, members, lurkers and writers!

On this day, the day of our Lord’s birth, we here at the Preachers Institute want to wish you all a very merry, safe, and spiritually fruitful Nativity celebration, and to assure you all of our prayers, particularly on this festive Holy day. This is a great feast, the feast of the Incarnation – the central theological doctrine of the Christian faith.

If the Eternal, unseen, invisible God can become today a little child, then, indeed, anything is possible! Spread the Word! Let no man or creature suffer ignorance of this joy!

Speak to all with joy and love and keep the feast with gladness.

God is with us!

On this Christmas day, we wish you and your loved ones every good thing, every perfect gift from above. May God grant you your heart’s desire.

Preachers Institute will be celebrating the “12 Days of Christmas” by offering daily patristic sermons on Theophany/Epiphany until Jan. 6th. In the meantime, be safe, and have a blessed Nativity!

Christ is born! Glorify Him!

– Fr. John

and your friends at Preachers Institute

Congratulations to our Bloggers who signed up for the 30 (40) Days of Blogging.

Today is the 40th day! Your marathon journey has come to an end! Axios!

I want to thank everyone for participating. I’ve been reading your blogs, and I must say, I’m impressed with your work and the incredible labor that went into it. We will repeat this exercise next year, starting (once again) on Nov. 15th.

In the meantime, I want to especially congratulation some especially distinguished and new bloggers:

Fr. Matthew Thurman, of St. Luke’s Mission in Solon, OH, and his blog “30 Days.”

Fr. David Eynon of Annunciation Church in Decatur, IL, and his blog “Shine Within Our Hearts.”

Fr. Seraphim Holland of St. Nicholas Church in McKinney, TX, and his blog “Redeeming the Time.”

Finally, Fr. Athanasios Haros, of  Transfiguration Church, Florence, SC, who is the author of the “Be Transfigured” blog. He blogged every single day of our 40 Day Challenge. Fr. Athanasios also blogged on the New Testament Challenge, not an easy thing to do with a full pastoral schedule, let alone to blog on. Frankly, it was a herculean feat!

I want to thank our most experienced bloggers, Fr. James Coles and Fr. Peter Michael Preble, who are very experienced and outstanding bloggers. You added some great inspiration, not only to blogging, but to preaching. More than once I have ‘borrowed’ material from your blogs for my sermons.

In fact, I’ve done that with all our bloggers. Thank you for helping me preach with more excellence.

Most of all, congratulations to all! See you next Nativity Fast!

Apart from the many helps for a Christmas sermon, the Preachers Institute would like to offer you one more article to spice up a Nativity service for those who attend your worship. There’s nothing better than when ‘the lights go on’ for our listeners, and they see or hear something perhaps they’ve never understood, or perceived before. Add these Scripture verses to your Christmas sermons, and offer a brief explanation of these points.

If your listeners learn something from your sermon, they will remember it. And that’s good preaching!

Scripture verses for Christmas Sermons

Virgin Birth:  Matthew 1:23

Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and you shall call His name, Emmanuel. Isaiah 7:14

A young woman conceiving and bearing a son happens thousands of times a week. It’s no sign from the Lord. Read more

Archbishop Job was an honest homilist, and this was the source of his preaching power. Like the late Bishop Innocent of Anchorage, Archbishop Job honestly and directly addressed the problems he faced in the Church.He spoke with love and passion for the Gospel of Christ, and with love for his beloved flock. This is one of his most inspiring sermons, given on Holy Monday, April 17, 2006.

His Eminence JOB, Archbishop of Chicago and the Midwest

Delivered at Holy Trinity Cathedral, Chicago, Illinois

1. The Completion of Great Lent

Great Lent is now over.  The school of repentance is closed but the ‘text book’, the Lenten Triodion, remains open and opportunities for repentance are still available to us – even for “those who have delayed until the eleventh hour’ (St. John Chrysostom). Read more