# High School Service # 2022-08-12: St Moses the Strong ##### Objective: The Transformative Power of Repentance ##### Key Verse: "Return to me, and I will return to you" (Malachi 3:7) ##### Visual Aid: Attached to this page. ##### Introduction:
- This week, we will study the life and stories of one of the great desert fathers - our father the Strong Abba Moses (Ⲡⲓϫⲱⲣⲓ Ⲁⲃⲃⲁ Ⲙⲱⲥⲏ) - I hope that when we learn the stories of St Moses, we will take him for ourselves as an intercessor and remember him in all of our prayers, and follow his example - St Moses is widely known in the whole world as a model of repentance - even in Egypt they call him "Anba Moussa el Aswad" - Moses the Black. And you might find him called that in English sometimes... yes, he was dark in skin. But the name refers to the darkness of his life. His sinful life which was missing the light of the Lord Jesus Christ. - So let's take some stories from his life, including some miracles, and see what we can learn from him
##### Stories of Abba Moses:
- His Early Life and Baptism - He was the slave of a high government official. The official could not tolerate Moses’ dishonesty and violence, so he drove him out. - Moses became the head of 70 leaders of robbers in the wilderness of Egypt. He was strong and fierce and committed all kinds of sins – any sin that you can think of. - He used to pray to the sun and say “If you are god let me know and You, the God whom I do not know, lead me to You” - One day, he heard a voice saying to him “the monks of the wilderness of Scetis know the real God. Go to them and they will inform you.” He went to Scetis and met with Abba Isidore who took him to Abba Macarius the Great who taught him about the Lord Jesus Christ, the Incarnation, the Redemption. - Moses accepted Christ, repented and confessed publicly all the sins he had ever committed, before being baptized. Abba Macarius saw a tablet that was all black and each time Moses would confess a sin, the angel would erase it from the tablet until it was white - The Story of the Robbers - St Moses entered his cell and found four robbers raiding it. - He overpowered them, tied them all together and lifted them over his shoulder like a bag of sand. He brought them to the church and asked St Macarius what he should do? He was still new to being a Christian and he didn’t know how he could deal with them without being violent. - St Macarius told him “yes let them take whatever they want! And set them free!” - (St. Macarius was known for another story when he found his cell being robbed and he let them finish robbing it. Then when they were done, he went in and saw that they left a jar of olives. So he ran outside and yelled to them that they forgot something). - When the thieves knew that St Moses was a former thief who had repented, they repented too. - Angels and Demons - St Moses multiplied his disciplines and especially in eating and in prayers. - But the less he ate and the more he prayed, the more he was consumed by dreams. - He couldn’t stand to be in his cell anymore. But Abba Isidore advised him to return to his cell. St Moses refused. - So Abba Isidore took him to the roof of his cell and they looked over one side and saw many devils trying to get into the cell. Then they looked over the other side and saw innumerable angels defending the cell. He went back to his cell without fear. - Buckets of Water - St Moses would go in the middle of the night to the cells of the elder monks and take their water pitchers and fill them with water without their knowledge. They lived far from one another and the cells were 2-5 miles away from the water - Welcoming to all Visitors - Abba Moses was very welcoming to all visitors and received them with joy. - One time a visitor came to the monastery and met with Abba Arsenius. And Abba Arsenius had taken a vow of silence. So the visitor left his cell very annoyed and offended that he received a cold welcome. Then he asked to see Abba Moses and Abba Moses rejoiced and received him and made him food. - Another time, there was a period of fasting in Scetis when everyone was to abstain from food. Some visitors came from Cairo to see Abba Moses. When he saw them, he started to prepare a lot of food for them. The monks around him saw the smoke coming from his cell and accused him of breaking the fast to the priests. But the priests knew his habits, so they said in front of the whole congregation of monks “O Abba Moses truly you have sacrificed the commandment of the people to fulfill the commandment of Christ” - Bag of Sand - Once the Fathers of the Scetis were holding a council to reprimand a monk who had committed a fault. St. Moses was invited, but he refused to attend. The priest went to him, and said, Come, for the people are expecting you. - St. Moses arose, took a basket filled with sand that had a hole in the bottom of it, carried it on his shoulder and started walking towards the council. When the monks saw him coming with the bag of sand, with sand pouring out of the hole, they asked him the reason of his behavior. - He said to them, The sand you see running from the bag represents my sins which are always following me, and yet, today I am coming to judge the grain of sand of my brother? - When they heard this, they left the council and every monk went to his own cell, as none could judge that monk. - Visitor for Abba Moses - One day a visitor was coming to the monastery and he said to Abba Moses “I am here to see Abba Moses the Black – do you know where I can find him?” Abba Moses replied “What would you want with him? He’s a sinner and nothing he can say is of any value” – the man kept walking to the monastery and asked the other monks in shock “Is it true what I heard about Abba Moses?” They said “What did the guy look like who told you that?” and he told them “Very big and strong and dark skinned” and they told him “that was Abba Moses” - Sickness and Healing - One day the devil envied him and struck him with sores on his foot. He was unable to move. When he knew it was a temptation from the devil, he increased in asceticism and worship until his body was like burnt wood. - God saw his patience and toil and relieved him from his pain and he was healed. - Ordination as Priest - He was elected to be ordained a priest. - He went in front of the Patriarch who decided to test him. The patriarch told the clergy to cast him out and reviled him saying “You think you are worthy of the priesthood, you who are black with sin?” and Abba Moses turned around and left saying to himself “It is good what they have done to you, O black one” - When the Patriarch saw his humility, he called Abba Moses back and ordained him to priesthood and said to him “Now you have become entirely white” - His Martyrdom - In 370 AD, St Moses went with some Desert Fathers went to visit St Macarius. - St Macarius said “My brethren, I see one of you worthy of the crown of martyrdom and he is going to shed his blood in the wilderness” St. Moses said “Probably me, since the Lord said that all who take by the sword shall perish with the sword” - When the Barbarians raided Scetis, Abba Moses was sitting with seven of his disciples. He told them to flee and that he would stay behind. Six of them stood behind and the Barbarians came and killed them all. The one monk who was hiding saw seven crowns coming down and crowning them - Some Sayings of Abba Moses - “Humility of heart precedes all virtues, and the desire of the belly is the source of all passions. Pride is the basis of all vices and love is the origin of all goodness.” - “Four virtues aid the young monk: Continuous meditation on the word of God, watchfulness, fervent prayer, and considering himself as nothing.”
##### Body:
- The power of repentance is TRANSFORMATION - Abba Moses who was head of 70 heads of robbers, became head of over 500 monks - Abba Moses who took many lives in murder, gave his life for Christ - Abba Moses who used to daily eat a whole lamb, ate ten ounces of dry bread - Abba Moses who hated all humankind, came to love everybody - Abba Moses who was a giant in stature, became humble in spirit - Abba Moses who committed every sin, we call him Saint and Abba - Transformation Comes from Repentance - Transformation comes from the renewing of the mind, as we read in St Paul's epistle to the Romans: “Be transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:2) - Renewing of the mind is the definition of Repentance - Repentance comes from the Greek "Metanoia" which means "Change of Mind" - “Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord” (Acts 3:19)
##### Application:
- It is never too late to repent of a sin and confess it - Repentance is not just a mental action or a thought or a decision - it is reflected in actions - Repentance goes hand-in-hand with the Sacrament of Eucharist
##### Contemplation: Sometimes the thing that stops us from sitting in confession is the very thing that we should be repenting of and confessing about! Lord, give us the strength of Abba Moses who overcame the demons that were enslaving him. Give us the courage of Abba Moses who left behind his old life and his past self, and was reborn and consecrated to You. Give us the humility of Abba Moses who recognized and admitted his weaknesses and his sins. Give us the patience of Abba Moses who even before his repentance, did not cease to seek You. Give us the asceticism of Abba Moses who despite his size and his strength, did not focus on the physical needs as much as the spiritual. Let us be like Abba Moses, Lord, we who are black with sin, who are slaves of sin, who are lacking in our repentance. Let us be light in the world of darkness as Your Saint, Abba Moses was. Through the prayers of St Mary and St Abba Moses the Strong and St Rebekah, grant this to us, O Lord, and more. Amen. ##### Resources:
- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FBrZk\_YPzHA](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FBrZk_YPzHA) - Fr Luke Maher on Abba Moses the Strong - [https://abbey.suscopts.org/about-us/saint-moses-the-strong/](https://abbey.suscopts.org/about-us/saint-moses-the-strong/) - Synxarion: Paone 24 (July 1) - Encyclopedia of the Saints and Fathers of the Church - Volume 3 - Fr Tadros Yacoub Malaty - The Sayings of the Desert Fathers (The Alphabetical Collection)
# 2022-09-09: Life of Martyrdom ##### Objective: Martyrdom in our Daily Life ##### Key Verse: "He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it" (Matthew 10:39) ##### Visual Aid: Attached to this page. ##### Introduction: - This week we will be celebrating the Feast of Nayrouz which is the Feast of the Martyrs... and these martyrs lived a drastically different life than we do - In our modern day, we want fame and status and comfort… - If we had a convention and we said “sorry but everyone is gonna have to sleep on the floor for one night," we would hear complaints and no one would register and parents would call Abouna or Sayedna and it would be chaos. - We have spiritual days and people complain about the food. - We want to plan a monastery trip and someone says "they don't have wifi there" - anywhere I go, if I can't get the wifi password, I'm upset - I come to the Liturgy and say "the pew is uncomfortable" or complain that the Church is not giving me a meal afterwards - We are so attuned to being comfortable. We don’t want to feel uncomfortable. - We want to gain status and fame and ranks and we wouldn’t give them up for anything. - But in these things, there is no fellowship with God. - When was the Lord Jesus Christ concerned about His status? It’s the opposite – He emptied Himself and took the form of man, despite being God. He left His throne and His chariots of Cherubim and was born in a manger – a feeding trough for animals in a barn. - When was the Lord Jesus Christ concerned about being famous? It’s the opposite – He would flee from the large crowds. - When was the Lord Jesus Christ concerned about comfort? Was it when He had “no place to rest His head”? Was it when He allowed Himself to be arrested and beaten and spat on? Was it on the Cross? - Fellowship with God can come from a variety of ways (Prayer, Scripture, Service, etc.) but in all of these there is a common denominator – Suffering. - Fellowship with God means to suffer. Means to leave your comfort zone. Means to offer yourself and your body as a sacrifice to God. - It means that I stand for prayer even if my legs hurt, or my voice hurts, or I'm tired - It means that I read the Scripture even if I don't have time, or if I don't understand it - It means that I stand in prayerful silence during the Liturgy even if I don't know this hymn - It means that I go and do my service even if it means I will be driving out of my way, or going to a bad area in the city, etc. - Take the examples of the saints - The Martyrs who suffered with physical death for the sake of the Lord Jesus - St Rebekah who had to first endure watching her children get beheaded and then she was beheaded, herself - St Abanoub who endured many kinds of physical torture - Sts Cosmas and Damian who after studying medicine and surgery, offered their services for free and then were tortured and killed by Diocletian - Millions of martyrs who suffered for the sake of Christ - The Ascetics who inflicted on themselves suffering for many years in the desert without food or water, in the heat, in prayers and fasting - St Anthony - St Paul - St Macarius - Etc. - The Bishops and the Patriarch who take upon themselves the responsibility of all of the people and their problems and their issues - Martyrs - The first of the saints are these Martyrs - those who gave their life to the Lord Jesus Christ and received for it an additional crown in heaven - That's why whenever we have hymns in the Church, we always start with worshipping God and then venerating St Mary and the angels, and then the martyrs are first line. Followed by the Confessors, and the rest of the Saints. - What lessons can we learn from the martyrs? How can we experience a hint of martyrdom in our daily life? ##### Body: - Martyrdom in our Service - "But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry." (2 Timothy 4:5) - Here we can consider the example of our Shepherd HG Bishop Youssef. - If you look at his schedule for the year you will see that every month he is visiting Texas, Tennessee, Florida and Georgia. In the 52 weeks of the year, he is trying to visit as many churches as he can, and minister to them. - If you look at his schedule for the week that he visits a church - Thursday night he does visitations - Friday night and Saturday morning he visits a community in the same area or a few hours driving. He gives a Bible Study and a Sermon. - Saturday night and Sunday morning he visits the Church and He gives Bible Study and then a Sermon (different from the ones he already gave) - Saturday after his Bible Study, he would love to attend the tasbeha, but he sits in the office and meets with the congregation one by one and listens to all the people's problems - Sunday night to Tuesday night he goes on visitations and by Wednesday he flies to the next state to do it all over again. - And he still makes time in the middle of the week to go to the Monastery in Texas and hear the confessions of the fathers the monks, and to go to the Convent in Georgia. When he has a long drive or a long flight, he is answering the countless emails and texts that he gets. And despite all of this, every day he prays all the hours of the Agpeya and every night he prays the Tasbeha and every morning the Morning Praises. He doesn't always have a place to lay his head. He is doing interviews for TV and answering questions for a whole diocese. He's managing 50 churches and 75 priests and several monks and nuns. He is called to serve on Clerical Councils... and all of this he does for the sake of the service. For you and me and the rest of the diocese. All of this he dies to himself for the Lord. - HG Bishop Gregory told a story one time that in the days of HH Pope Shenouda's departure, HG Bishop Youssef was in Egypt for a lot of the time just trying to figure out how they're going to pick the next Pope... and one day he called the monastery and said "I am coming to take confessions" and he got there very late around midnight, he sat with each monk one by one and took their confessions and the next morning he was back on a flight to Egypt. - HG will be visiting us next week for the Feast of St Rebekah and I hope that you will make as much time as you can to spend with him, to sit at his feet, to listen to the words of the Holy Spirit by his mouth, to ask for his wisdom, to tell him your name and ask him to pray for you - Martyrdom in our Daily Life - Scripture: - "Yet for Your sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter" (Psalm 44:22, Romans 8:36) - "But none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, so that I may finish my race with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God" (Acts 20:24) - "always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body" (2 Cor 4:10) - "as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold we live; as chastened, and yet not killed;" (2 Cor 6:9) - "Are they ministers of Christ? - I speak as a fool - I am more: in labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequently, in deaths often." (2 Cor 11:23) - Practical: - Wake up early to stand in prayer and to read the Scripture - Even though I'm in High School now and I have to be up at 6 - let me die to myself and my desire for sleep and wake up at 5:45 so that I can stand for prayer - Even though I have a ton of homework in the evenings, let me die to myself a little bit and read the Scriptures first - Fasting - Wednesday and Friday are fasting days - I can die to my desires on those days by fasting, abstaining from food in the morning even if I'm hungry, and then eating a vegan diet even if my friends or my school are not. Even if it's my favorite food at school. - At Lockheed Martin, we have Sushi day in the cafeteria on Wednesday. I've had it one time which was during the Holy Fifty Days - for me it is one of the ways I die to my desires especially when I see all my coworkers and friends at work having sushi. - Schools throw Pizza Parties and they're always on Fridays, or during Christmas time or before Spring Break (Lent) - can I die to myself on that one day? - When there's a line to eat a meal (e.g. at a convention, family gathering, school lunch, etc.) - I may be tempted to try and be first in line to get the freshest food. Let me die to myself every once in a while and resist that temptation, and instead be last and get the leftovers or get the food after it has sat for a little while. - When I enter a room and I see that there are many comfortable chairs and some uncomfortable chairs - let me sit in the uncomfortable one first, so that others may have the chance to be comfortable. And if everyone comes and there is space on the comfortable, then maybe I can take it. - I'm in Liturgy and my friends go to the Bathroom. Let me die to myself and my desire to socialize (which is a natural desire that is given to us by God) so that I can instead spend time with the Lord and honor His House - Let me die to myself and my desire (sometimes addiction) to have my phone at all times. And let me just have time with the Lord, or with my family, or with myself in silence without those distractions. - Let me die to myself and my desire to have the most expensive shoes and clothing and stuff, when I know there are others without clothes or shoes. Instead of 200 dollars on shoes, I can spend 100 on two pairs and donate one of them. Or 50 on four pairs and donate three of them. Or do I only give from the bottom of the barrel to those in need? Do I only give the things that are ripped and used, after I've gotten all the use out of them? No, let me die to myself. - When I am rebuked or challenged, let me deny my desire to fight back. Whether it's my parents, or someone at school, or my SS Servant, or my friend. - When I have an idea and I share it, or I give someone advice, and they ignore it or disregard it, or ridicule it, let me deny my anger. - Dying to yourself is more than just avoiding sin, but it's denying yourself pleasures and desires in order that you may better serve God and serve others. - Blessings and Rewards - The Lord has promised us many blessings and many rewards - some on earth, and some in heaven. - Fear God and not man - We might wonder how in the world these martyrs were not scared to give up their life... where did their fear go? If I was in their place, I would be terrified. - The fear of God casts out the fear of men. - "There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts our fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love" (1 John 4:18) - They contemplated on the heavenly and the glory of the heavenly, so their hearts clung to those things, and the worldly becomes valueless. - Genuine faith is tested - "that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ" (1 Peter 1:7) - Crown of Life - "Do not fear any of those things which you are about to suffer. Indeed, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and you will have tribulation ten days. Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life." (Revelation 2:10) ##### Conclusion: - Living a life of suffering or a life of martyrdom is difficult. It can't happen overnight - We should slowly find desires and passions and temptations in our life to die to, in order that we can grow in fellowship with the Lord - And we will receive the Crown of Life ##### Application: - Each person should decide in what way they can die to their desires this week and document it in their Bible Passport - Honor the martyrs by attending the Nayrouz Vespers and Feast on Saturday and Sunday ##### Contemplation: Lord, we have too often forgotten Your suffering on our behalf on the Cross, Your humility in emptying Yourself and taking our form, Your life of service, and all that You do for us on a daily basis. Even when we give thanks to You in our prayers, and utter words of gratitude, we find ourselves not living a true life modeled after Yours. Let us, O Lord, live a life of suffering. Let us leave behind our comforts - let us remember Your discomfort on the Cross when we have a minor inconvenience. Let us pray for those who persecute us and hurt us. Let us love them. Let us strive to serve You, even (and especially) at our inconvenience. Let us suffer for the sake of others - accept less for the sake of someone else receiving more. Lord, we can only strive to be like You, but through a life of suffering, and fellowship with You, we can know You. And may we, according to Your will, receive the reward that our fathers and mothers the martyrs received - those who truly lived in fellowship with You. ##### Resources: - Legacy Curriculum: [https://suscopts.org/ssc/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Grade11.pdf](https://suscopts.org/ssc/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Grade11.pdf) - Elements # 2022-09-30: The Book of Job #### Objective - To know the story and basic structure of the book of Job - To take the example of Job #### Key Verse - “I have heard of You by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees You” (Job 42:5) #### Body ##### Introduction - Job is considered to be one of the Poetic books of the Old Testament (along with Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, Wisdom, Sirach) - He lived after Abraham, but before Moses - We know because his friend Bildad the Shuhite is from the sons of Shuah (son of Abraham by Keturah) - No mention of Aaronic Priesthood, Mosaic rites - No mention of Exodus - Mention of Creation, Fall of Adam, Flood, Sodom and Gomorrah - He lived 140 years which is atypical for Moses time - 42 Chapters - Job was righteous - "blameless and upright, and one who feared God and shunned evil" (Job 1:1) - He was blameless, but he knew that. And this led to self-righteousness and pride. ("I am blameless, yet I do not know myself; I despise my life" (Job 9:21) - God allowed Job to be tempted by the devil in some extreme ways, to help Job work through his pride, and to defeat Satan - Possessions - he lost all of his wealth - Children - his children all died - Bodily Disease - he was struck with painful boils from the sole of his foot to the crown of his head - His friends - the devil used them to move him in the wrong direction. They all came to try and comfort him, but their worldly comfort had the opposite effect. - Structure: - Chapters 1-3: Job is tempted - Chapters 4-14: First Debate - Chapters 15-21: Second Debate - Chapters 22-31: Third Debate - Chapters 32-37: Elihu the Wise - Chapters 38-42: The Lord speaks to Job - The Book of Job asks a very important question: Why do bad things happen to good people? - This question is the pinnacle of Atheism and we should know how to give a good answer for it - The Atheist will say: - If God is all-loving and all-powerful then He will not allow any evil or pain or suffering to happen in the world - But the Atheist falls into the same pitfalls as Job and his friends here - We will act out the story of Job, then we will discuss this question - Why do bad things happen to good people? ##### Skit **Characters:** - Job - Eliphaz the Temanite - Bildad the Shuhite - Zophar the Naamathite - Elihu **First Debate** Job: My friends, I am so glad that you came by to comfort me. Eliphaz: Job, I had no idea you looked so awful. What in the world did you do for God to do this to you?! Job: I did nothing. I am totally innocent. Eliphaz: Yeah right... if you were innocent, this wouldn't have happened to you. But look at you, your sons are crushed and dead. Your possessions are completely gone. God is the one who does great things - who gives rain and water and children and prosperity. You DEFINITELY did something. Job: If only God would take my life, so that I no longer have to feel this pain! But as for you - you call this coming to comfort me? What does your arguing prove? You want to rebuke me? Then show me my mistakes! What did I do wrong to deserve this? Bildad: Look Job, I think what you need to do is ask God for forgiveness. I mean if your sons sinned, then they got their reward. But you're still here so ask God to forgive you! God is the one who holds the whole world in his hand! Job: That I can agree on. God is almighty. I am amazed at the wisdom of God that would allow a righteous person to suffer. I am blameless, yet I do not know myself. Zophar: You're all talk! You want to be vindicated? Stop talking - everything you're saying is foolish. You're a liar! Oh (*mockingly*) "my doctrine is pure and I am clean in the eyes of God" - get out of here. What God has done to you is less than your sin deserves. Job: Here I sit, being mocked by my friends. I, who call on God and God answers me. I, who am just and blameless - and I am ridiculed. I am as wise as you. I know that the Lord holds all of the world in his hands. (*praying*) Lord, I ask of you just two things - do not withdraw Your hand from me. And do not let me be afraid of You. Call out to me and I will answer. Or let me speak and then You respond to me. Make me know my transgressions and my sin. **First Debate Summary:** - Job's friends argue the following: - God is just - Therefore, God runs the whole world in a perfectly just way - Therefore, Job sinned and is being punished - Job is arguing the following: - God is just - But Job is blameless and has not sinned - Therefore, God's justice in the world is not as black and white as we think - But still, Job does not deserve to be punished **Second Debate:** Eliphaz: Is this conversation even worth my time? This is absolutely pointless. Who do you think you are? I'm telling you what all the elders have told us, and what I have seen with my own eyes. The WICKED lives in pain; he dwells in desolate cities; he will not be rich; he hungers. The WICKED. Job: You are all terrible comforters! Not one of you is wise! Lord, please give me relief. Bildad: You think WE are stupid?! You're the one tearing yourself in anger and not understanding us. The wicked loses everything. He lives in darkness. He lives in terror. He lives without shelter. He is surrounded by traps and destruction. These are the dwellings of the wicked and this is the place of him who does not know God. Job: How long will you torment me with your words? Aren't you ashamed of how you're treating me? No. I know that my Redeemer lives. Zophar: But Job, haven't you seen it yourself? Haven't you seen how the wicked in this world live? They don't live happy and joyful lives. They live in misery! We've all seen it. Job: I'll tell you what I have seen. I have seen that the wicked live and grow old and even mighty in power. I have seen that they have many children and descendants. I have seen that their houses are safe from fear. I have seen that their livestock and their animals reproduce. I have seen that they sing and dance and spend their days in wealth. Even though they reject God. How often does a wicked person live in darkness? How often does destruction come on them? Can anyone teach God knowledge? How can you comfort me with empty words that are full of lies and falsehood? **Second Debate Summary:** - The friends are telling Job of their experience of wicked people having bad things happen to them - But Job tells them the truth - good things happen to bad people, a lot. - We see it in our lives: - Someone who doesn't know God, and finds themselves rich and famous. But someone who loves God, and finds themselves poor. - Or someone who doesn't know God and is living in good health, but someone who loves God and serves Him, and finds themselves with cancer. - Someone who doesn't know God, and has many children, but someone who prays to God with their whole heart to have just one child, and they don't get pregnant. - If we ask "Why do bad things happen to good people" - then we also ask "why do good things happen to bad people?" **Third Debate:** Eliphaz: Why should God even care if you are righteous, or if you make your ways blameless. What do you think, that because you fear Him, he brings judgment on you?! That makes no sense. Your wickedness is great. Your iniquity has no end. You probably made people swear to you. You probably took clothing from someone who needed it. You probably didn't give water to the thirsty, or food to the hungry. You probably sent widows away empty and hurt orphans. You are so far into your sin that you can't even see it. Job: My complaints are futile. If only I knew where God was, so that I could go and present my case to Him. Then, at least I would know His answer to me. Then He would take note of me. I cannot see Him, He is not here. He knows my way - I have kept His way, I have kept His commandments, I have treasured His words. But others on earth have been violent - violent on others, on animals, and even on the land - and yet they are not charged with wrongdoing. And if I'm saying something wrong, which of you will prove me to be a liar? Bildad: How can any man be righteous? God has all dominion and fear. No one who is born of a woman can be pure. Job: No matter what, I will not forsake God. I will not speak wickedness. I will keep my integrity. Where does wisdom come from? From God! The fear of the Lord is wisdom, departing from evil is understanding. As I was in the days of my prime, when I had everything and people would come to me for wisdom and for help - even people older than me. But now even the ones younger than I am come and mock me. My wealth has been turned into poverty. If truly I have sinned, then let God's justice come upon me, but let it be weighed on honest scales. It's not fair. If I have looked at a woman in lust, then let others bow down for my own wife. If I have mistreated my male or female servant, or taken from the poor, or raised my hand against an orphan, then let me arm fall off my shoulder. If I have put my trust in gold, or rejoiced in my wealth, or stolen food or money from someone, then let thistles grow instead of wheat, and weeds instead of barley. **Third Debate Summary:** - Job is questioning God's fairness. He admits that if he has sinned, he needs to be punished, but doesn't think his punishment is fair. - What about the people who murder? Or the people who rob the widows? Those who are committing violence in the world and their punishment is not as severe. - "The words of Job are ended. So these three men ceased answering Job, because he *was* righteous in his own eyes. Then the wrath of Elihu was aroused against Job; his wrath was aroused because he justified himself rather than God. Also against his three friends his wrath was aroused, because they had found no answer, and yet had condemned Job." (Job 31:40-32:3) **The Fourth Friend: Elihu** Elihu: Since I am younger than all of you, I waited before speaking. And I listened to all of your words. So now you listen to my words. Job, I heard you saying many times: "I am pure, without transgression; I am innocent, there is no iniquity in me. Yet God finds occasions against me and counts me as His enemy." Look, Job, in this you are not righteous. Who are you to contend with God? How can you say whether or not God counts you as an enemy? Don't you realize that we should all be delivered to the Pit? Self-righteousness is in itself sin! God is good and He loves everyone - the righteous and the wicked - equally. He shows no partiality to anyone. ##### Conclusion - After everyone had spoken, God Himself spoke to Job through a wind - God explained to Job that He holds the whole world in His hand, and that executing justice in the world is not as easy as he thinks. It's complex. Job doesn't see the bigger picture that God sees. Job sees a miniscule slice. - God asks where Job was when He was forming the foundations of the world, or the sun and moon and stars. God reminds Job that He is the one who stops the sea from approaching on the land, tells the sun when to come up, brings snow and hail in the winter and rain in the summer, etc. - God asks what Job knows about the animals - when does a deer or a wild mountain goat give birth? How many months should it be? What about a wild ox? Will he serve you? The strength of a horse - Job repents and listens to what the Lord says to him - Then the Lord restores to him all of his losses. He got the same number of sons and daughters, and double all his possessions. And He gave him a long number of days. ##### Lessons **Lessons from Job** - Do not give up - the Lord is with you - Trust that all things are in God's hands - Live a life of integrity and honesty and righteousness - no matter your circumstances - Look for the future eternal reward **Lessons from Job's Friends** - When your friend is hurting or going through something difficult, give them good comfort **Why do bad things happen to good people?** 1. Who are good people? - "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23) 2. What are the bad things? - Sin that comes from man - Can we blame this on God? God has given free will to all people. When people sin against each other, this cannot fall on the shoulders of God - Natural Disaster - Nature does not discriminate good or bad - a fire might be warm to someone (favorable) and uncomfortably hot (unfavorable) to others. - Hurricanes are uncomfortable for Floridians, but they have ecological benefits in tropical environments. The rain gives a needed boost to wetlands and flushes out lagoons to remove waste and weeds. The winds move sediments from bays into marsh areas to revitalize the nutrients, etc. They help to balance the heat in the atmosphere. - But even Natural Disasters are a result of the Fall of Man - "For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now." (Romans 8:22) - Illness - Illness is also a result of the Fall of Man - However, God may use it for good 3. Why might God let a "bad thing" happen to someone - Suffering might be a warning to avoid future sin - Suffering might be an opportunity to have faith in a difficult time and to be rewarded - Suffering might be to widen your perspective about something or someone and push you to repent 4. Can we always know the reasons for suffering? - No - but what we know is that God uses all things for good. - "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose." (Romans 8:28) #### Application - This week, let us remember the "bad things" and give thanks for them - Let us give thanks to the Lord in faith, for the Hurricane that came on us - Let us give thanks to the Lord in faith, for the illnesses and diseases of our loved ones #### Contemplation Lord, we cannot stand before You and compare ourselves to Job - Your righteous and faithful disciple, who lived a life of love and sacrifice for You. And even Lord in his hardship and tribulation, in his temptations, he loved You. And yet we falter at the slightest inconveniences. I consider if I have said an evil word in traffic because I was inconvenienced by a few seconds. I consider if I have fallen into anger simply because of a common cold. I consider all of my sins O Lord before You, that were not worth the time or the effort that we put into them and yet we consider them small or insignificant, while falling short of Your glory. I ask You, O Lord, to give me the repentance and righteousness of Job that I may live my life in faith and in the trust that all good things come from You and that You will use all things for good. #### Resources # 2022-12-02: Manhood - Integrity #### Visual Aid: Attached to page #### Objective - The value of having integrity in "Being a Man" - Even the world values Integrity, but our integrity is different - To be a man of my word, but more importantly a man of THE Word #### Key Verse "Likewise, exhort the young men to be sober-minded, in all things showing yourself to be a pattern of good works; in doctrine showing integrity, reverence, incorruptibility, sound speech that cannot be condemned, that one who is an opponent may be ashamed, having nothing evil to say of you." (Titus 2:6-8) #### Introduction ##### What makes you a man? When do you go from being a boy to being a man? - The world tells us so many different things: - Some will say "When you turn 18" - Some will say "When you've gone through puberty... you have a deep voice, you have a beard, you gain some height and muscle mass, etc. - Some will say "When you have a career" or will base it off some measure of success - Some will say "When you have sex" - This is our third lesson in this series so we must know some things by now - We talked about the Godly View of Success and what it means to be successful - it's not about fame or fortune. We know people who are famous grown adults who we wouldn't consider them to be "men" - they don't act like "men." We know people with a lot of money, who don't act like "men" - We talked about how to deal with anger - this is a big part of being a man. When you see someone at a restaurant berating the waitress and yelling at her because she got the order wrong or she dropped something, you never think "wow he's such a man." Rather, you think "why is he acting like a child?" - And that's the thing about being a man: you can instantly recognize someone who is a man. And it's not by how they look, but by how they act. - Today we're going to talk about Integrity and what that means for us as Orthodox Christians and as men ##### Scripture on Becoming a Man "Likewise, exhort the young men to be sober-minded, in all things showing yourself to be a pattern of good works; in doctrine showing integrity, reverence, incorruptibility, sound speech that cannot be condemned, that one who is an opponent may be ashamed, having nothing evil to say of you." (Titus 2:6-8) St Paul is writing to Titus here and giving him instructions to exhort the young men with. To guide the young men into manhood. - Sober-minded - Pattern of good works - Integrity - Reverence - Incorruptibility - Sound speech that cannot be condemned We can relate these to many of our topics, but one that stands out is Integrity ##### Integrity The dictionary definition of Integrity is actually pretty good - The quality of being honest and having strong moral principles; moral uprightness. We are gonna break this down into two parts for today: 1. Being a man of your word 2. Being a man of THE Word In essence - Don't be Fake! One of the big attractors to non-believers in the first centuries to join Christianity was that the Christians were genuine and full of integrity. They did what they said. They believed in what they said. They acted morally and ethically even when the pagan society did not. Nowadays, many people leave Christianity or reject Christianity because of Christians. Because they don't do what they preach. They're fake. They don't have integrity. Today we're going to look at these two parts and take some case studies for them and decide in those case studies what the right thing to do is. #### Body ##### Case Study 1 Kyrillos is a 9th Grade boy who loves playing video games. He hops on Xbox Live twice a week with his friends from church around 8pm, after he finishes his homework and they play 2k for a few hours. One night, Kyrillos’ mom needed to head to bed a little early because she had an early morning; so she reminded him of one of his weekly chores: “Don’t forget to take out the trash tonight!” Kyrillos responded “Bet! I got you mom – after I finish this game.” She said goodnight and went to sleep. That night, Kyrillos and his friends played until midnight. Kyrillos was really tired at the end and couldn’t even focus on what was in front of him; he knocked out on the couch. In the morning, Kyrillos’ mom woke up very early, realized the trash was still in. So she took the trash out herself. - Did Kyrillos act with integrity? - Kyrillos did not act with integrity. If this is the first time, then hopefully Kyrillos will apologize and will make it a point to take out the trash every week. Maybe even without being asked. Integrity means giving priority to small things and not just big things. The Lord talks about going the extra mile – imagine taking out the trash without being asked at all! - What are the consequences of this scenario? (For Kyrillos, his mom, and in general) - She was giving him an opportunity here to be a man and help around the house and stick to his word. She trusted him, and this incident can start to form cracks in that trust. - What should Kyrillos have done differently? - He could have done it on the spot so he doesn’t forget - What would you say about someone who puts video games above helping his mom, helping his house, and keeping his word? Would you say that he's a man? ##### Case Study 2 Anthony is a 10th grade boy who has a lot on his plate – he is taking an almost full schedule in High School, along with 2 College Classes. He’s also on the school’s Basketball team. He does Preservants at church. He has chores to do at home. Anthony was visited in his home by two servants – they were surprised to find his Bible Passport completely empty… they explained to him the importance of reading the Scripture on a daily basis. Anthony agreed with them. Anthony gave them his word that he would start from that day and try to read at least three times a week. That night, Anthony read 12 chapters and filled in three boxes a week for the next four weeks. - Did Anthony act with integrity? - Integrity is not always just about results – it’s about how you get there. It’s about being honest with the end AND the means. - What are the consequences of this scenario? - Anthony missed out on the blessing and grace of daily Scriptural reading. Anthony also may find himself receiving a gift or a reward for something he didn’t do faithfully. Anthony does not build a habit of reading Scripture in this way, and loses the whole point of the Bible Passport. Anthony’s servants, unaware of what is happening, will consider him to be growing and may serve him in a way that is different, but not what he needs. ##### Case Study 3 Pishoy is a 9th grade boy who doesn’t have that much money. One day, he’s out with his friends and they decide to hit McDonalds for a quick lunch. Pishoy only has two dollars to spend, so he decides to grab two things from the dollar menu. He also gets a water cup. He sees that the rest of his friends also purchased a drink cup. When he gets to the soda machine, he looks behind him to make sure the employees aren’t looking, and he fills his water cup with Sprite. He takes his place with his friends and eats his meal. - Did Pishoy act with integrity? What are the consequences of this scenario? - Sometimes we use the excuse “well no one got hurt” – It’s true that McDonalds isn’t going to suffer a loss from the one drink Pishoy didn’t pay for. But someone got hurt here: Pishoy did. Pishoy is not being honest with himself and he has fallen into the sin of theft. And his integrity is in question. Pishoy did not end up repenting from his McDonalds sin… in fact, he justified it in his mind and said “well it’s not like McDonalds needs the money.” A few days later, he’s with the same group of friends and they decide to hit the 7-11 for some snacks. Unfortunately, he didn’t have any money. All his friends would be snacking on Takis and Hot Fries without him… he realizes that 7-11 is just as rich as McDonalds and they wouldn’t feel any pain from a bag of chips. He uses the “5-finger discount” and grabs a bag of Takis. - What do you think of Pishoy's progression? ##### Case Study 4 Petro is a 10th grade boy who maintains a 4.0 GPA. He is, by God’s grace, very intelligent and very hard working. This semester, he started to take a college math class in addition to his High School classes. The college class turned out to be much more difficult than any class he’d ever taken. Petro needed help. He needed to maintain his GPA… and it’s not like this class ACTUALLY matters for the career he wanted. Petro’s assignments were stacking up. He didn’t have time to focus on these difficult math assignments. Petro started googling the answers… he found a website made for his exact textbook. Just enter the numbers from your problems and you get a solution – with the work and the answer and all. Petro used this to solve all of his assignments and his online exam. Petro did not get caught. - Did Petro act with integrity? What are the consequences of this scenario? Petro, not learning from or repenting from his past indiscretion, took another college class the next semester – English Composition. This class was even harder and more workload than the math class. He had an essay due in just a few days that he wasn’t sure where to start with it. When doing his research, he found a similar essay online about a similar topic. He took the essay and changed several of the words in it from the other topic to his topic. The new paper was unrecognizable from the old one and Petro was proud of the work that he had done. Petro submitted it. The Plagiarism Checker returned a 75% match and Petro got caught. - What do you think of Petro’s progression? ##### Case Study 5 Samson is a 10th grade boy. He attends Sunday School and Bible Study every week, and he is a deacon. He understands the principles of his faith and tries to live by them. A girl at school takes interest in Samson. She starts showing him more attention and starts to text him pretty regularly. At lunch, she sits by him and sometimes they take pictures for the ‘gram. They aren’t officially dating or anything like that, but Samson starts to spend some time with her outside of school as well. Samson starts posting some of the pictures on his social media. When confronted by a servant, Samson tells the truth – they aren’t dating; they’re just friends; even though he knows that she likes him. - Is Samson acting with integrity? What are the consequences of this scenario? - Integrity doesn't just mean saying things that are truthful - it means telling the truth; the whole truth. Without omission. - Samson did not act with integrity because even if there’s no official title of “dating” or “girlfriend” or anything, there is clearly a 1:1 relationship happening where at least one side is romantically attracted to the other. Samson is also not acting with integrity with the girl – he is leading her on. She may think that he likes her or that he will eventually “give in” and start dating her. #### Contemplation Grant us, O Lord, to have integrity in everything that we do. Integrity in our school and work. Integrity in our homes with our wives and children and parents and siblings. Integrity in our ministry and our service. Integrity in all of our actions and interactions. Let us, O Lord, be like You - You who never wavered in doing what is right, in accomplishing Your ministry and Your goal, You who never said You'd do something and didn't do it. You, O Lord, who are the perfection of all that is good and the model for Integrity. Let us take the example of the saints before us who lived lives of integrity. The example of Job who when his friends even asked him "Why do you still have integrity" he knew to be unwavering. Let us not succumb to the temptations that test our integrity - peer pressure and image and falsehood. #### Resources # 2023-01-13: Offering of Incense #### Objective - A greater appreciation for the rites of the Offering of Incense #### Key Verse “Let my prayer be set forth before You as incense, the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice” (Psalm 141:2) #### Visual Aid Attached #### Body ##### Introduction - The use of incense in Scripture - Used in the Old Testament at the Altar of Incense - Used in the New Testament for Jewish worship - Used in Revelation in the heavenly church - Where does the Offering of Incense fit in the grand scope of the Divine Liturgy - Agpeya Prayers - Offering of Incense - Divine Liturgy - Offering of Incense was a big part of the daily life of early Christians - They would wake up in the morning and go attend Matins in the church before work - Then they would go to work - Then they would come to the church and attend Vespers before going home - Then they would go home - Now let's head into the church and go through the rite of Vespers and Matins Offering of Incense ##### Vessels of the Offering of Incense - The boys can sit/stand in the women's altar at first, and then in the deacons area on the right side - The Censer - Review what does it represent and how - The Cross - The use of the Cross - How the Cross and the Gospel book are used together and represent the Lord Jesus Christ - The Book of the Gospel - Readings of the Offering of Incense ##### The Order of the Rite - Thanksgiving Prayer - Verses of Cymbals - Minor Circuit of Incense - Litanies \[Order of the Litanies\] - Doxologies - Major Circuit of Incense - Creed - Ⲫⲛⲟⲩϯ ⲛⲁⲓ ⲛⲁⲛ - Psalm and Gospel - Short Litanies - Absolution ##### The Circuits of Incense - Two circuits of incense - minor circuit during Verses of Cymbals, major circuit during Doxologies - Demonstrate the route that Abouna takes when he goes around - Read the prayers that Abouna prays in both - The Three Litanies (Peace, Fathers, Assemblies) - Incense Prayers to the Trinity, on our behalf, with the angels and the saints - The blessing of the morning/evening incense, may its holy blessing be with us. Amen. - Prayer of Confession ##### The Litanies - Offering of Incense Litanies - Five Minor Litanies #### Application - Attend Vespers and Matins and try and pay attention to those things, remember that at all times you are praying and being prayed for - 2023 Resolution - to attend Vespers and Matins #### Contemplation Lord, we thank you for allowing us to experience and to live the work of salvation on a weekly and even daily basis. We thank you for giving us and preserving for us ritual practices that bring us closer to Your saints and Your heavenly ones. We ask you O Lord that our prayer is lifted up to you as incense and that You smell the aroma of our prayers as a sweet aroma of incense - well pleasing to You. Let us be dependent on Your will for us, and accepting of Your will for us - for we know that all good and perfect things come from you, and that all things that come from You are good and perfect. Let our prayer reflect this - let us continually pray that Your will be done. And in this way, we participate with You. # 2023-01-20: Theophany, Baptism, and Sanctification #### Objective - Understanding the place baptism has in the Scripture, History and Tradition - Understanding the preciousness of the gift that we have received in our baptism #### Key Verse “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3) #### Body ##### Introduction - When you are a kid, we always learn "Christ was baptized in order to set an example for us to be baptized and baptism is removing our sins." - None of this is wrong, but as high school seniors, we want to go deeper. We might have questions like "if Baptism replaced Circumcision, why was Jesus Circumcised AND Baptized?" or "if Baptism is to remove sin, why was Jesus baptized?" or "what is baptism and why did St John start doing it" - We want to understand what was happening in the Old Testament with Circumcision, where did Baptism come from? what happened at the baptism of Christ, what the Apostles and the Church taught about Baptism, what happens when I am baptized, etc. ##### What was the Purpose of Circumcision? - Circumcision came as a sign of the covenant made between God and Abraham in Genesis 17 - A Covenant has two sides - on God's side, He will establish the descendants of Abraham as a nation, He will give them the land of Canaan as an everlasting possession, and He shall be their God. On Abraham's side, they must be circumcised - God deigned to bring salvation upon the world through the incarnation of the Logos IN THE BEGINNING. And He foreknew everything. - Part of this economy of salvation was that God would not take one of the existing nations and become their God - for example, He did not go to the Canaanites and become their God. He did not go to the Hittites or the Amorites or the Amalekites. Of the 70 nations listed in Genesis 10, the descendants of Noah and those that were scattered after Babel, God did not choose any of those families. But rather, He chose Abraham and brought from him a new family. God's family. And Circumcision would be the sign of participation or membership in this family. It would be a sign that you forsake everything else and become one of God's family. - Circumcision was participation with God in His covenant with Abraham - Not to get off topic, but we'll see later on another covenant with Moses at the time of the Exodus, and this would be remembered by the Passover ##### Where did Baptism come from? - If you read the Old Testament, you won't see baptism mentioned anywhere. We have types of it like Noah's flood and Moses' crossing the Red Sea and Joshua's crossing the Jordan River - salvation through water. We have other hints like the four rivers that flow into the Garden of Eden that water the Tree of Life, or the Spirit of God that hovered over the waters in the beginning. But Baptism itself is not a regular practice in the Old Testament. - In the New Testament, St John the Baptist started to baptize people in the Jordan a baptism of repentance - Actually, this was not an abnormal practice - By the time of the New Testament there are a lot more Jews than before - a lot of people who have a lot of ritual washings to practice. They had the idea of Ritual Impurity and before you could become ritually clean, you had to offer sacrifices and you had to have ritual washings. But there were so many people that it would have been impossible for everyone to wash every day - So they setup in the Temple several pools that were used for ritual washings. The people would get in in large groups and come out the other side ritually clean. - So when John started baptizing, people were not surprised by the practice. But what John was doing was very different - He was baptizing in the Jordan on the other side away from the Temple - some people (especially the Sadducees were offended by this and took it as a sign that John was against the Temple) - He was baptizing a baptism of repentance - he called the people to "bear fruit worthy of repentance" - He was announcing the coming of Someone after Him - the Messiah - He was not doing it on his own authority, but he was instructed to by God - And John bore witness, saying, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him. I did not know Him, but He who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘Upon whom you see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ And I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God.” (John 1:32-34) - John's role was forerunner - to prepare the way for the Christ ##### What happened in the Baptism of Christ? - The Lord Jesus Christ went to be baptized before beginning His ministry - He approved of the work that John was doing and asked John to baptize Him, himself - When Christ entered the water, some things happened: - The Father spoke from heaven and affirmed that the Lord Jesus is the Son of God, the Messiah - The Holy Spirit showed Himself as a dove and came upon the head of Christ anointing Him as High Priest, as King, as Prophet. These are the three roles that were expected of the Messiah. - When the Holy Spirit came upon the Lord, He opened the door for God the Holy Spirit to dwell in humanity, Who we will accept on the day of our Baptism - Christ, in the water, conquered the demons and renews the Creation - "You have crushed the heads of the dragon hidden therein \[in the Jordan\]" (Lakkan Liturgy of Water) - "You divided the sea by Your strength; You broke the heads of the sea serpents in the waters. You broke the heads of Leviathan in pieces" (Psalm 74:13 - used in the Tasbeha Canticle for Theophany) - Creation in Genesis 1 came "out of the waters" - God's salvation for Israel through the Red Sea is a type of "new Creation" - All of these points are important for us in our own baptism ##### Baptism in the Church - The Lord Jesus instructed the apostles to baptize all the nations: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." (Matthew 28:19-20) - Since the beginning, the Church has baptized all believers - Acts, the Ethiopian Eunuch who asks "There is water, what prevents me from being baptized now?" and is baptized - St Paul was baptized by Ananias ##### What happens on the day of our Baptism? - Exorcism - "look upon Your creation, this oil, and let it become for the casting out of demons and their magic, sorcery, and all idolatry" (Baptism Prayers) - "In the name of the only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ, may \[this body\] be delivered from every demon and every uncleanness. Let all darkness flee from this body, and let all unbelieving thoughts flee from this soul. In the name of the only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, you shall be purified, and be delivered from all demons forever. Amen." (Baptism Prayers) - "I renounce you Satan, and all your unclean works, and all your wicked angels..." - "Come out O unclean spirit." (with the breath of the priest) - (Baptism Prayers) - Renewed Creation - "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new." (1 Cor 5:17) - "Take off the old man and put on the new and superior one" (Ⲁⲣⲓⲯⲁⲗⲓⲛ) - "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." (John 3:3) - "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit" (John 3:6) - Sanctification - The abiding in us of the Holy Spirit - The oil of the Myron sanctifies us on: - The head, the two nostrils, the mouth, the right ear, the right eye, the left eye, and the left ear (8) - The heart, the navel, the back and the spine (4) - The right shoulder above and in the armpit, the right elbow joint and around it, the right palm and on its back (6) - The left shoulder joint above and in the armpit, the left elbow joint and around it, the left palm and on its back (6) - The right hip joint and the right thigh, the right knee joint and around it, the joint of the tendon of the right foot and above it (6) - The left hip joint and the left thigh, the left knee joint and around it, the joint of the tendon of the left foot and above it (6) - We become members of the Body of Christ; the Lord Jesus abides in me and I abide in Him by the receiving of Baptism, Confirmation and the Eucharist - This is like the Circumcision and Passover that for Jews meant becoming part of the family of God - "Today, you have received the pledge of life and have become rooted in the true and orthodox faith. The day on which you were born, you were a slave and not free. But today, you have become a conqueror over the plots of the wicked." #### Application - You are now part of God's family - "Be diligent in learning the holy Scriptures which are the breath of God, and attend church services in the mornings and evenings, and fasting on Wednesdays and Fridays, the Holy Forty Days fast, and all the fasts; and in keeping the Church laws and apostolic commands." (Baptism Commandment) - Your body and senses are sanctified and sealed with the Holy Myron - "Guard yourself and do not go to unsuitable places, so that the Lord may guard you from satanic temptations. Cultivate inside you beautiful qualities. Plant within you righteousness and praise. Pour inside you purity. Plant within you obedience, love and holiness. Plant within you compassion, charity, and justice. Cultivate within you godliness, patience, and goodness. Plant within you honesty and every good work that pleases God so that your soul may live." - Don't forget that your mouth is sanctified, to use good language and sing hymns of praise. - Don't forget that your ears are sanctified, to listen to words and music that is fitting for them. - Don't forget that your eyes are sanctified, to see videos and movies and pictures that are holy. #### Resources # 2023-02-17: Be a Peacemaker #### Objective - If we are true Christians, we must behave as Christians - An evil person must not shake the inner peace, and we must not resist them - Let us not shake anyone else's inner peace #### Key Verse "But I tell you not to resist an evil person..." (Matthew 5:39) #### Body ##### Peace - What is peace? - The world defines peace as quiet, tranquility - Psychology also defines peace as ease, tranquility, awareness, peace of the unchanged - In both cases, peace seems to come about in certain places, times, conditions. - In both cases, peace is something that is internal or mystical in the mind - External peace is simply when there is no war or fighting - Is this definition in line with the Christian understanding of peace? - What is peace to Christians? - Peace is knowing that God is in control... even if I am surrounded by anger and fighting and conflict, I can have inner peace. Conversely, there may be no war or fighting, but internally I am really struggling with hateful thoughts, anger, etc. - What about Peacemakers? - The Lord is the source of all peace - "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled neither let it be afraid." (John 14:27) - The Lord Jesus Christ was a peacemaker on earth, and we as Christians, likewise, should be peacemakers - "So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath; for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God." (James 1:19-20) - There is a special blessing for peacemakers - "Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called sons of God." (Matthew 5:9) - Inner peace begets external peace - A peacemaker is someone who has inner peace and it can shine from him and manifest as external peace - "Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify Your Father in heaven." - When might I lose my peace? - In Rebellion: "He's trying to control me, so let me show him that he's not in control." - Testing Boundaries: "Let me see how far I can go and how much I can bother him before he snaps." - Vengeance: "He wronged me, so I need to hit back at the same level or harder." - With whom might I lose my peace? - With my enemies - With my parents - With my friends - Even with myself ##### Peacemaking & Troublemaking - Two categories of peacemaking 1. Peacemaking when you are provoked ("Do not resist an evil person") 2. Peacemaking when you are not provoked ("Don't be a troublemaker") - Peacemaking is a show of my love to God ##### Peacemaking - Do not resist an evil person - "You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. If anyone wants to take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away." (Matthew 5:38-42) - Imagine if you are being robbed by someone and they say "give me your wallet" and you respond with: "take my wallet and my phone too" - this is the principle that the Lord is teaching. This is the Christian life. - Do not resist an evil person - Christ did not resist the evil people who crucified Him. Joseph the righteous did not resist the evil brothers who sold him. Able did not resist Cain. - Some people went to St Anthony once and asked him for a spiritual word of benefit. And he told them “You read the Scriptures, and they will give you all the words you need.” So they said “please, something from your mouth our father.” So he recited to them this verse: “Whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.” And they said “we cannot do that” so he said “if you can’t turn the other cheek, then patiently endure the first blow.” and they said: “We can’t do that.” So he said “if you can’t do that, then do not return the blow you received” and they said “we can’t do that.” So he said “If you can’t do that and you won’t do this, then what can I do for you? You need prayers.” (Sayings of the Desert Fathers - Anthony 19) - It is a difficult principal to put into action in our lives today… but unfortunately, we do even worse than those young men who went to see St Anthony. Nowadays, we don’t even treat our NEIGHBOR or our FRIEND or the person WHO LOVES US, in the right way… let alone our enemies. - Imagine if the servant of your class, who loves you, who cares for your salvation, comes to you and says ‘you’re using your phone too much. Give it here.’ – what is your response? - Ignore him and rebel - Get upset and start yelling - Accuse the servant of whatever “being unfair” – “picking on me” – whatever. - So we make someone who is not our enemy into our enemy, and then treat him in a way that is non-Christian. - No my beloved, let it not be this way. But rather, let us learn the Christian response and make good habits. - Here will be an impromptu skit. - Kirollous will start to talk to Gabriel - Morcous: "Kiro" - Kiro keeps talking and ignores Morcous - Morcous (2 more times): "Kiro" - Morcous: KIRO - Kiro: What dude calm down - Morcous: Can you stop talking to Gabriel? - Kiro: I'm not even talking - Morcous: Yeah but you were - Kiro: Everyone else was talking - Morcous: Okay so are you gonna stop? - Kiro: We'll see - Let’s have a round of applause for Kiro on his acting skills. - Now I want to analyze what happened here? - When Kiro ignored me, I started to get angry – this is not good on my part, but if Kiro was a peacemaker and used the technique that I will teach you in a second, it wouldn’t have happened - When Kiro finally answered, he told me to calm down which I took as an accusation - Then Kiro didn’t take responsibility for his action when he said “I wasn’t talking” and he tried to reflect it on everyone else - Then when I asked Kiro for a resolution, he didn’t give me one. Just “we’ll see” - Do you recognize this conversation? It happens a lot in this class, in Bible Study, in Liturgy, in the Bathroom, etc. - So today I will teach you a technique to overcome all of these pitfalls and it is called "Yes" - "Okay" - "I have sinned" (na3am 7ader a5tet) - HG Anba Peter was telling us one time that one of the things they teach in the monastery is called “na3am – 7ader – a5tet.” They would tell the new novices that you can answer any conversation with “yes?” – “okay” – “I have sinned” - Someone calls you over? “Yes?” - Someone asks you to do something? “Sure!” - Someone rebukes you? “I have sinned” - Here will be another impromptu skit. - Andria will take out his phone and start using it - Morcous: Andria! - Andria: Yes? - Morcous: Can you put your phone away please? - Andria: Okay, I will - Morcous: How can you pay attention when you’re always on your phone? - Andria: I have sinned, forgive me - Let’s have a round of applause for Andria on his acting skills. - Now I want to analyze what happened here? - In this scenario, Andria used our new technique, and it made peace – even though I was acting as a character who didn’t want peace. - I was gonna go at Andria even after he put his phone away. But with those simple words “I have sinned, forgive me” he shut down anything I could have said or done. - There is power in the words “I have sinned, forgive me.” - With these three words, you can save yourself a lot of trouble ##### Troublemaking - The Opposite of a Peacemaker is a Troublemaker - No one likes to be called a troublemaker because typically, we are not setting out to make trouble! - I'm not using my phone in Sunday School to make trouble, I'm just checking the message I just got - I'm not sleeping during the Sermon in the Liturgy to make trouble, I'm just tired - I'm not going to the bathroom during the Liturgy to make trouble, I'm just bored and I want to take a walk - I'm not skipping my homework or my Passport to make trouble, I just forgot - I may find myself having a reputation for being a troublemaker... at home, at school, at church. - I may find that I have a reputation as a troublemaker in just one of those places... at church, at home, at school. - Why is this? - Sometimes, troublemaking is used as an outlet for our inner emotions and inner feelings - So how do I overcome it? Inner Peace that we talked about - One who finds himself living a life of prayer, will not at the same time find himself bored in the Liturgy - One who finds himself regularly reading the Word of God, will not at the same time find himself speaking the language of the world - One who finds himself submitting himself to the Lord in repentance and confession, will not at the same time find himself resisting his elders (parents, servants, priests) - One who finds himself regularly bringing his body into subjection through fasting and prostrations, will not at the same time find himself falling into the sins of the flesh ##### Peacemaking is a Show of my Love to God - St Basil has a writing called "The Morals" where he lists out 80 Morals one by one and then supports them with verses from Scripture and expounds each of the verses - **Rule #5**: "That we must be free from all enmity toward all men and love our enemies; and, when necessity requires, lay down our life for our friends with a love like that which God and His Christ had for us." - Cap 1: That the mark of the disciples of Christ is their love for one another in Him - Cap 2: That to wrong one’s neighbor in any way or to cause him such disedification that his faith is destroyed is a sure sign that one does not possess the love of Christ for one’s neighbor, even if what is done is allowed by the Scripture for a special reason. - Cap 3: That the Christian must serve even one who is vexed with him, in every way, at least so far as he is able. - Cap 4: That he who has the charity of Christ sometimes causes pain, even to one whom he loves, for his good. #### Application - "Yes?" - "Okay" - "I have sinned" - "Na3am" - "7ader" - "Akhtet" #### Contemplation #### Resources - St George and St Rueiss Curriculum G10 - The Sayings of the Desert Fathers - St Basil - Ascetical Works # 2023-02-24: Spirituality of Fasting #### Objective #### Key Verse #### Body ##### The Antiquity of Fasting - Adam - Fasting was the first commandment given to Adam from God - "Do not eat from a certain type of tree" - God was setting a limit for Adam not to exceed the desires of the flesh and to behave over the level of earthly and materialistic things - Adam was defeated by temptation. He gave greater authority to his flesh than to his spirit - Conversely, Christ, the Second Adam, began His service with fasting and did not fall into temptation - Old Testament Prophets Fasted - **King David**: Ps 35:13, Ps 69:10 - **Daniel**: Daniel 3 - **Ezekiel**: Ezekiel 4:9 - **Moses**: Exodus 24:18, Deuteronomy 9:18, 25 - Whole Congregations Fasted - Nineveh fasted and the Lord accepted their repentance (Jonah 3:5-10) - The Jews fasted in the time of Esther and the Lord was with her when she met the King (Esther 4:15-17) - The Lord Jesus taught about fasting - "However, this king does not go out except by prayer and fasting" (Matthew 17:21) - "Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites with a sad countenance. For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. But you, when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you do not appear to men to be fasting, but to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly." (Matthew 6:16-18) - The Apostles Fasted - **St Peter**: Acts 10:10 - **St Paul**: 2 Cor 6:5, 2 Cor 11:27 - **All the Apostles**: Acts 13:2-3 - The Early Church Fasted - Didache (1st Century): "But do not let your fasts be with the hypocrites; for they fast on Monday and Thursday; but you shall fast on Wednesday and Friday" (Chapter 8) - Fasting Precedes all Feasts - Advent Fast and Paramoun before the Nativity - Paramoun before the Theophany - Lent before Palm Sunday - Pascha before Resurrection - Fasting Precedes all Sacraments - Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, Unction of the Sick, Priesthood, and Matrimony (in the original rite) - The only exception is Repentance in order not to delay repentance - Fasting Precedes all Service - Christ fasted before beginning His ministry - Moses fasted before receiving the Tablets of the Covenant - St John the Baptist fasted before his ministry - The Apostles fasted before their ministry (Acts 13:2-3) - A priest who is ordained fasts for 40 days before beginning his ministry - A bishop who is ordained fasts for one year ##### What is Fasting? - What is Fasting? - Enrichment to the soul by means of denouncing the desires of the body - If there is no spiritual growth, then it is not fasting; it is just a diet - Let's look at the benefits to both body and soul ##### Fasting and the Body - Abstaining from Food - If we look at the physical part, fasting is not just eating vegan food, but the more important part is the abstaining from food. - Having a "no-food period" is the important part - The length of the time period is different from one person to another depending on: - Degree of spirituality of the person - Age of the person - Health of the person - Type of work and efforts required in it - In all cases, there is a minimum level that is coordinated with the Father of Confession - Christ - "And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry" (Matthew 4:2) - St Peter - "Then he became very hungry and wanted to eat; but while they made ready, he fell into a trance" (Acts 10:10) - St Paul - "I know how to be abased, and I know how to be abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need." (Philippians 4:12) - St Paul - "in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in fasting often, in cold and nakedness..." (2 Cor 11:27) - Fasting reaches its desired level when the person is hungry - "Devils take great delight in fullness, and drunkenness and bodily comfort. Fasting possesses great power and it works glorious things. To fast is to banquet with angels" - St Athanasius - Vegan Diet - God created man a vegetarian "And God said, 'See I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food.'" (Genesis 1:29-30) - After Adam forced himself out of paradise, his descendants were given meat to eat after Noah's Ark (Genesis 9:1-3) - When God led the people in the wilderness 40 years, he gave them vegetarian food (Manna) and then reluctantly gave them meat to eat (Quail) (Exodus 16:31, Numbers 11:33-34) - Vegetarian food was the choice of Daniel and his friends (Daniel 1:8-12, 10:3) - Ezekiel ate vegetarian food (Ezekiel 4:9) - You can think of it as - we try to become like spirit, who don't eat food. But when we fall weak, we try to go back to our original nature in the Paradise of the Garden where we eat without meat and dairy. ##### Fasting and the Soul - "Consecrate a fast, call a sacred assembly." (Joel 2:15) - Consecrate means to make something special and to dedicate it (i.e. to God) - The days of fasting are holy days, dedicated to God and not to the world - What is the Goal of your Fasting? - Fasting is to be accompanied by repentance - "Is this not the fast that I have chosen: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every yoke?" (Isaiah 58:6) - Fasting is to be accompanied by more prayers - "This kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting" (Matthew 17:21) - Living a victorious life over the temptation of the devil, requires fasting accompanied with prayers - Fasting is to be accompanied by spiritual readings - Set with your Father of Confession a plan for your Scriptural Readings - Take for yourself a spiritual book to read in addition to the Scripture, or read the lives of the saints - Fasting is to be accompanied by some alone time - "Now it came to pass in those days that He went out to the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God." (Luke 6:12) - The Lord used to take some alone time - To grow deeper in our spiritual life, we have to exercise silence around us and be alone - Turn off the phone, turn off the TV, the social media, the video games, even the social events and hangouts and just take some quiet time - Fasting is to be accompanied by participating in the church's spiritual activities/programs - More liturgies during fasting period - Attend the things that you haven't been attending (e.g. Bible Study, Sunday School) - Participate in more activities (e.g. like in our HSB class) - Rejected Types of Fasting - The fasting of the Pharisees (Luke 18:9-14) - The fasting of the people who said they will neither eat nor drink until they had killed St Paul (Acts 23:12-13) ##### Why Fast - We fast to prepare - The Church teaches us that fasting is used to prepare for the Sacraments, for the Feasts, and for Ministry (see above) - We fast to be set free - We fast to be fruitful ##### How to Fast - Avoid Extremes - **Nominalism**: Get through a fast with the minimum effort possible. - We don't want the fasting lifestyle to disrupt our regular lifestyle too much. We simply want to "pay our dues" and do the minimum possible to take communion and be a "part of this community" - Jonah fell into this when he didn't want to preach to Nineveh and he finally goes, he walks one day into the city - even though the city is a three day walk across - St Paul calls this "having a form of godliness but denying its power." (2 Timothy 3:5) - **Pharisaism**: Take fasting too seriously and focus on the minutiae of the rules - I am reading all of the ingredients on every box - I am researching the factory that produces this food and what else they produce in that factory to make sure there's no cross contamination with something "fitary" - **Unrealistic Expectations**: Trying to do what is beyond your spiritual level or abilities - "In this fast, I want to read the whole Bible" - "In this fast, I will abstain until 6pm every day" - "In this fast, I will pray all of the hours of the Agpeya every day" - When your expectations for yourself are unrealistic, or past your own spiritual level/ability, you will fail and stop halfway through - Start with Food - Deny Yourself - Talk Less - Cultivate Silence - Exorcise Your Mind - Be Purposeful #### Application #### Contemplation #### Resources # 2023-02-24: Consecrate a Fast #### Objective - How to make our fasting useful and beneficial #### Key Verse - "Consecrate a fast, call a sacred assembly" (Joel 1:14) #### Body ##### What is Fasting - Enrichment to the soul by means of denouncing the desires of the body - Without spiritual growth, then it is not fasting; it is just a diet ##### Why don't we like Fasting? - We are doing it wrong - Most of the time, when we are not enjoying something spiritual it is because we are not doing it right! - Someone who comes to the Liturgy but is on their phone the whole time, will say liturgy is boring - Someone who goes to school but doesn't pay attention to the lectures, will say school is not beneficial ##### Pitfalls in Fasting - Extremes - **Nominalism**: Get through a fast with the minimum effort possible. - We don't want the fasting lifestyle to disrupt our regular lifestyle too much. We simply want to "pay our dues" and do the minimum possible to take communion and be a "part of this community" - Jonah fell into this when he didn't want to preach to Nineveh and he finally goes, he walks one day into the city - even though the city is a three day walk across - St Paul calls this "having a form of godliness but denying its power." (2 Timothy 3:5) - **Pharisaism**: Take fasting too seriously and focus on the minutiae of the rules - I am reading all of the ingredients on every box - I am researching the factory that produces this food and what else they produce in that factory to make sure there's no cross contamination with something "fitary" - **Unrealistic Expectations**: Trying to do what is beyond your spiritual level or abilities - "In this fast, I want to read the whole Bible" - "In this fast, I will abstain until 6pm every day" - "In this fast, I will pray all of the hours of the Agpeya every day" - When your expectations for yourself are unrealistic, or past your own spiritual level/ability, you will fail and stop halfway through - Food Only - Fasting without prayer, repentance, spiritual readings, quiet time, participation with the Church, etc. is just a diet - If when I fast, the only thing I change is my diet, then I have not fasted ##### How to Fast - Avoid Extremes - Be moderate in your approach to fasting and avoid the aforementioned extremes - Start with Food - Change your eating and change your life - We revolve so much of our life around food - what we will eat, when we will eat, when we will prepare, when we will shop, how much we will spend, etc. In addition, what we eat, how much we eat, and when we eat affects how we feel, how we think, how we act and how we interact. - Change what you eat for the sake of following Christ, and our life in Christ will change - Food is something that we do every day; it keeps us alive; it makes us feel better - Since food is so integral to our body and our life, we can use fasting as a way of bridging our faith and our life - Fasting should SIMPLIFY our shopping, our meal planning, our cooking, etc. not complicate it - Some tips: - Eat less - Eat less often - Eat simply - Don't eat out if you can avoid it - Be bored by your menu from time to time - Think about food less often - Feel, and endure feeling, hunger at some point in your day - Spend less on groceries and use what you save for God's glory - It's not an effort, it's a fast - Deny Yourself - Self-denial is voluntarily choosing not to do things you want to do; saying no to our whims, impulses and preferences; refusing our instant self-gratification - The Fast is a good opportunity to deny yourself the things that you want to do, for a time: - Video Games - TV/Movies - Social Media - TikToks/Shorts/Reels - Talk Less - One of the topics most discussed in the Desert Fathers is Silence - "I have often repented for having spoken, but never for having kept silent" - St Arsenius - We use our words to impress, to dominate, to manipulate, to curse, to prove we are right, to get our way, etc. - We can take advantage of the fasting time to speak less - Speaking less = listening more (to God, to your neighbor") - Tame the tongue (quality and quantity) - Cultivate Silence - Talking less is related to our exterior silence, but there is also the silence of our environment - "All of humanity's problems stem from man's inability to sit quietly in a room alone" - Blaise Paschal - We don't like silence! We are surrounded by the noise and loudness of social media, of background music, of devices, etc. - It is good to take some time to cultivate silence and to fill our silence with "positive content" - Prayer - Reading - Walking - Sitting quietly - Choose your Weapons - Fasting is a form of spiritual warfare. Satan does not want you to fast, and he will fight it with temptations, with relaxation, etc. - Choose your weapons for this war - decide what they will be and arm yourself with them - Prayer Canon - What will your prayers look like during the fast? - Scriptural Canon - What will you read from Scripture during the fast? - Spiritual Reading - What else will you read during the fast? - Church Activities - What additional church activities will you commit to? - Liturgy on Tuesday - Bible Study - HSB Activities #### Application - Let us have a plan for the Holy and Great Fast #### Resources - [https://service.strebekahorlando.org/books/hsb-jr-sunday-school/page/2023-02-24-spirituality-of-fasting](https://service.strebekahorlando.org/books/hsb-jr-sunday-school/page/2023-02-24-spirituality-of-fasting) - Notes from the St George/St Rueiss Curriculum - When You Fast: The Why and How of Christian Self-Discipline by L Joseph Letendre # 2023-06-16: Ethics and AI #### Objective - Introduce Artificial Intelligence - What the Scripture and Tradition says about Knowledge - Talk about the dangers of AI - Talk about the appropriate and inappropriate uses of AI #### Key Verse "He who walks with integrity walks securely, But he who perverts his ways will become known.“ (Proverbs 10:9) #### Visual Aid [https://www.dropbox.com/s/zb7om5xwkp5yx8p/Artificial%20Intelligence.pptx?dl=0](https://www.dropbox.com/s/zb7om5xwkp5yx8p/Artificial%20Intelligence.pptx?dl=0) #### What is Artificial Intelligence ##### Neural Networks - Artificial Intelligence is a branch of Computer Science that attempts to simulate human intelligence processes by machines. - One of the most common sciences in AI is the idea of a Neural Network. And it's based on the science behind how the brain works. The brain has something called neurons that use electrical and chemical signals to send information between different areas of the brain, the spinal cord, and the entire nervous system. In 1943 a Neuroscientist and a Logician (McCulloch and Pitts) published a paper where they created a computational neural model based on mathematics and algorithms. That was the foundation of what is now called the Neural Network. - [![image-1686664228341.png](https://service.strebekahorlando.org/uploads/images/gallery/2023-06/scaled-1680-/image-1686664228341.png)](https://service.strebekahorlando.org/uploads/images/gallery/2023-06/image-1686664228341.png)Neural networks work by having an input, a bunch of hidden things and an output. And it looks/sounds basic, but obviously the hard part is in the hidden things. And the hard part is in training the neural network to have the right hidden things. - The example MarI/O helped me to better understand this concept. - In this video, the input is the position of Mario, the location of enemies and moving objects, and the location of static obstacles - The output is what button to press - Basically, he wrote a program that would develop this neural network and he ran it for 24 hours, and then the neural network figured out how to beat that specific level of Mario - So at first, it does random movements and it sees how far it gets in the level. And it gets a score for how far it got. Obviously, pushing "right" would get it a higher score. Then after it tries a bunch of things, the things with the highest scores get combined together and a little bit more randomness is introduced... and then it tries again. And it keeps trying and trying until it finally gets it. - The algorithm that he mentions - NEAT - was developed by a professor here at UCF. I first heard about it when I took an AI class at UCF during my undergraduate studies. ##### Knowledge-Based AI - In my Master's Degree, I took a class called "Knowledge-Based AI" and the assignments and projects were all about writing an AI agent that could solve a human IQ Test - [![image-1686665087107.png](https://service.strebekahorlando.org/uploads/images/gallery/2023-06/scaled-1680-/image-1686665087107.png)](https://service.strebekahorlando.org/uploads/images/gallery/2023-06/image-1686665087107.png)[![image-1686665072470.png](https://service.strebekahorlando.org/uploads/images/gallery/2023-06/scaled-1680-/image-1686665072470.png)](https://service.strebekahorlando.org/uploads/images/gallery/2023-06/image-1686665072470.png)[![image-1686665063367.png](https://service.strebekahorlando.org/uploads/images/gallery/2023-06/scaled-1680-/image-1686665063367.png)](https://service.strebekahorlando.org/uploads/images/gallery/2023-06/image-1686665063367.png) - These are called Raven's Matrices IQ Tests - We basically just had to figure it out... and so my algorithm basically did an analysis of each of the squares given to us, and each of the choices and then it did a comparison of A-B-C and D-E-F and then G-H-Option 1, G-H-Option 2, etc. to try and make a best guess about which one was right. - For some basic ones, it was very successful. But when you get to harder ones, it's hard enough for a human to spot the pattern, let alone a computer. - Note that the computer is not understanding the pattern and trying to find what fits it... it is looking for patterns in different ways - by pixels. By trying to understand shapes. This one has many black pixels on the left, and this one has many black pixels on the right. - During that class, our professor came out in the last week and said he had some news... one of our TAs this whole semester... was an AI! And we had to guess who it was. Half of the people guessed it wrong. And this was all over the news about this AI TA that no one noticed was an AI the whole semester. - But that AI was programmed to understand a few types of questions and answer them - usually common questions like "when is xyz assignment due" - "can I use xyz on my assignment" - "how do I contact the TAs" - etc. This is knowledge based AI ##### Probability - Another class that I took in my Master's was called "AI for Robotics" and it was all about programming a basic self-driving car - It was basically a probability class - We had one module about figuring out the probability of lane detection and how to stay in your lane for steering - We had one module about navigational systems - We had one module about using sensor data to predict what was a car and what wasn't - But the main take-away from the class, for me, was that it is all probability and probability distributions ##### Machine Learning - Back in 2012, Google did something crazy... they said that their computers could now tell if a picture contains a cat or not. - [https://blog.google/technology/ai/using-large-scale-brain-simulations-for/](https://blog.google/technology/ai/using-large-scale-brain-simulations-for/) ##### Uses of AI - Natural Language Processing - Google Translate - Grammarly - Computer Vision - Self-Driving Cars - Image Categorization - Surveillance Cameras - Facial Identification - Agriculture - Healthcare - Scanning MRIs/X-Rays to find tumors - Scanning MRIs to find commonalities between large numbers of patients that have the same diagnosis - that may not be visible to the human eye - Personalization - Targeted Advertising - Personalized Shopping - Personalized Learning - Gaming - Playing strategic games like chess - Giving a unique gaming experience every time - Travel - Suggesting hotels, rentals, etc. #### Is AI Good or Bad ##### What is Intelligence? - Kinds of Knowledge - Sensuous (comes through sight, touch, smell, taste, hearing) - This is the most basic of knowledge - the sky is blue, the grass is green, the pizza is hot, feseekh smells bad, medicine tastes bad, airplanes are loud, etc. - Sourced (books, newspapers, films, mass media) - This is the stuff you learn in school or from reading books or from watching movies/documentaries - Scientific (through hypothesis, experimentation, observation - knowledge of the physical world) - This is something you would learn through the scientific method, setting up an experiment, observing its results and drawing conclusions - Social (through experiences and relationships) - This is emotional knowledge - understanding how people feel, relating to them - HH Pope Shenouda did not mention this one in this book - Sophia/Wisdom (through the fear of God and by knowing His Scripture and His Commandment) - Wisdom in Greek is Sophia - This is the knowledge of discernment and being able to discern what is right or wrong - This is the knowledge of the Scriptures and Commandments of God - Spiritual (God reveals to His holy people what He wants them to know - There is knowledge revealed by God to those who are holy - Like when people would approach HH Pope Kyrillos and he would know what they were going to ask - Or like when God spoke through His Prophets - Or like when God showed St John the Revelation, or St Peter the vision - Or when the Lord guided St Paul to go to Macedonia - Ten Concepts Chapter 10 - The Concept of Knowledge ~ HH Pope Shenouda III - Note that HH Pope Shenouda talks about all of those, but does not present them in that order, nor does he use the same language there but rather I tried to find a "S" word for all of them - There is useful knowledge and there is harmful knowledge - "There is harmful knowledge like that in which our father Adam and our mother Eve fell. It led them to lose their innocence and simplicity and live in the dualism of good and evil, truth and falsity, lawful and unlawful." (Page 134) - Many people wept and regretted knowledge which they came upon - e.g. someone will say "I just want to know how alcohol tastes" - but that knowledge brought him to alcoholism - e.g. someone will say "I just want to try this drug once... to see how it feels" - but that knowledge brought him nothing more than addiction - e.g. someone will say "I just want to watch porn to see what sex is like" - but that knowledge was false and brought him addiction, depression and destroyed his relationships with others and gave him a false idea of what sex is like - e.g. someone will say "I just want to see the video of someone being killed" - but that knowledge haunted them and gave them nightmares and to an extent, desensitized or numbed them from the act - The fact is that all knowledge that comes to your mind will affect your sense and feelings and relationships with others; it will affect and influence your subconscious in the form of suspicions, thoughts, dreams, memories. It will extend within you and outside to a great extent and you may not be able to stop it. - HH Pope Shenouda (Ten Concepts) - Which types of knowledge would you expect an AI like ChatGPT to have? - Mostly Sourced Knowledge; some sensuous knowledge (e.g. computer vision or audio processing). But that's it. - ChatGPT cannot know what is right or wrong, cannot make wise decisions, does not and cannot know God, cannot relate to people or understand their emotions - Can you compare Human Intelligence to Artificial Intelligence? It is incomparable ##### What is Artificial? - AI is never certain - AI is either Probability or Trial and Error, or a combination of both - In MarI/O, it's Trial and Error... and mostly error - In the Raven IQ Tests, it was sometimes wrong and never completely sure - In Self-driving cars, although we could see clearly that those were cars, it was only 60% sure - AI can be manipulated by input - Adversarial Machine Learning is a whole field of study on how to fool AI Agents - By introducing noise to an image, the classification of it can be completely changed - By introducing perturbations to a physical stop sign, the AI Agent is completely fooled - AI can be manipulated by its owners - This was recently all over the news when SnapChat AI came out - The AI was heavily influenced by liberal ideas and would respond differently to conservative or Christian ideas ##### AI is a Tool - A tool can be very useful in the right hands, and very dangerous in the wrong hands - A saw is very good at cutting wood to make furniture... but in the wrong hands it can be used to murder - The internet is very good at connecting people who are geographically far away... but in the wrong hands it can be used to exploit people from very far away - AI, in the right hands with the appropriate uses, can be very helpful. But in the wrong hands, or for the wrong uses, can be very harmful. #### Dangers of AI ##### AI Can (and Will) Lie to You - The SnapChat AI was famously in the news for lying about knowing your location or not - A Lawyer was disbarred because he used ChatGPT to find relevant case citations and they all ended up being fake - made up by ChatGPT. He did not verify the information he got from it. When he presented them in court, the court could not find anything he was referencing. - [https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/08/nyregion/lawyer-chatgpt-sanctions.html](https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/08/nyregion/lawyer-chatgpt-sanctions.html) ##### AI Can Manipulate You - AI Virtual Assistants simulate human interaction (mimic human voice, facial expressions, body language) and can create the illusion of a personal relationship. - Deepfake videos, images and audio are highly realistic simulations of people saying or doing things they never did - AI is used to limit what information each person can see (e.g. on social media) and can ensure that only information that reinforces certain beliefs is prevalent, creating an echo chamber ##### AI Has a Fingerprint - College students used ChatGPT to write their essays in a Philosophy class. The professor said "it was really well-written wrong" and that was a red flag. So he simply asked ChatGPT if it thought these essays were written by AI. ChatGPT said "I am 99% sure these were written by ChatGPT." - The students failed the class - [https://www.businessinsider.com/chatgpt-essays-college-cheating-professors-caught-students-ai-plagiarism-2023-1](https://www.businessinsider.com/chatgpt-essays-college-cheating-professors-caught-students-ai-plagiarism-2023-1) - AI Generated results are easy to spot (especially by another AI) #### How to use AI ##### Inappropriate Uses for Artificial Intelligence - **Plagiarism:** - Asking ChatGPT to write you an essay - even if you're planning to "edit it" - Asking an AI to solve math problems for your homework - Why is it unethical? - You would not be putting in the work, and getting a grade you didn't work for (i.e. stealing) - You would finish a paper or assignment and learn nothing (i.e. wasting resources) - You are misrepresenting something as your own work (i.e. lying) - Like the lawyer - Imagine that you used ChatGPT to write a poem for your loved one - What would they think if/when they found out it was not from you? - How would they feel if they had built some feelings around a false idea of you? - **Cheating:** Requesting answers or solutions to exam questions from ChatGPT - **Cyberbullying:** Using AI to harass, intimidate or bully others online - **Fabricating Data or Sources:** Requesting fake data or sources or references to support your paper or project ##### Appropriate Uses for Artificial Intelligence - **Educational Support**: Using ChatGPT to clarify concepts, ask questions or seek explanations on topics you’re studying. - **Writing Assistance**: Grammarly or even ChatGPT can fix your grammar or give you some writing advice on an essay you have written yourself - **Learning New Subjects**: Ask questions about various topics - **Finding Sources**: Asking ChatGPT for relevant sources to a certain topic, and then exploring, reading, and analyzing those sources on your own - **Language Practice**: If you’re studying a foreign language, you can engage with ChatGPT to practice having conversations, ask for translations, improve your proficiency #### Contemplation #### Resources - HH Pope Shenouda - Words of Spiritual Benefit Volume I - Ten Concepts - All other sources related to AI are linked above # 2023-09-29: The Cross in Our Lives #### Objective 1. Learn the history of the Holy Cross 2. Learn the importance of the Cross in our lives #### Key Verse “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” (1 Corinthians 1:18) #### Body ##### What is the Cross to you? - Some might say the Cross is a symbol (of Christianity, or salvation, of my identity) - Some might say the Cross is a weapon or protection (i.e. it plays an active role in my life) - Before the Crucifixion of the Lord, the Cross was a torture and execution device that was used to execute criminals in a way that was very painful, public, and degrading. - The Lord took that which was bad - and used it for good. ##### The Power of the Cross: Good Friday - The day that the Lord gave the Cross its power - Imagine if a man is sitting at a table, and a dog comes by to eat food off the table, so the man takes his rod and strikes the dog with it and the dog backs away. Now, when the dog wants to come back, if the man puts his rod in view of the dog - what will the dog do? The dog will not want to approach and try to eat food off the table. The man gave power to the rod. The same with the Lord and Satan. - When we do the sign of the Cross, the devil remembers how he was defeated on Good Friday at Golgotha, and fears it. - Through the Cross, the Lord gave us authority to trample on serpents and scorpions and upon all the power of the enemy. ##### The Cross is our Weapon of Victory - The Cross is a Weapon of Victory over our enemies - In the 4th Century, in the time of Emperor Constantine, Emperor Constantine saw the symbol of the Cross in a vision before him and was told to put it on his military gear and by this sign he would conquer - What he saw is called the Chi-Ro ☧ - Indeed, he put it on all of their shields and weapons and they conquered. Emperor Constantine went on to legalize Christianity throughout the Roman Empire - The Cross is a Weapon of Victory over death - After Good Friday, the Jews wanted to bury the Cross so it wouldn't be found. So they started to pile dirt and all their garbage all over it - Constantine's mother, Queen Helen, wanted to find the original Cross of the Lord... so she started to ask around and listen to clues and stories from the local traditions until she found out where it was buried in Jerusalem under much garbage. So she had it excavated and they found three crosses. She did not have a way to know which one was the Cross of Christ (versus the crosses of the thieves). They also found the nails that pierced the Lord. - The Lord arranged that a funeral procession was passing by - so they took the dead man and placed him on each of the three crosses, and on on the Cross of Christ, the man rose from the dead. - She took the Cross and placed it on the mountain of Golgotha and built the Church of the Resurrection that is there until today, from where the Holy Light appears every year on Easter. - We celebrate these events on the 10th of Paremhotep (the finding of the Cross by Queen Helen) and the 17th-19th of Thout (the vision of the Cross to Emperor Constantine and the consecration of the Church of the Resurrection by St Athanasius and the other patriarchs) ##### The Cross as a Declaration of Faith - When we wear a cross, we declare to others that our faith is in Christ and we allow our good works and holiness to point to Christ - When we do the sign of the cross, we express our faith and the doctrines of our faith - E.g. the doctrine of the Holy Trinity - The doctrine of the Incarnation - The doctrine of Salvation - The Cross is humility - Because He who was crucified on the Cross is humble - To the Jews a stumbling block, to the Greeks foolishness ##### The Cross in the Church - The Cross is seen in the building of a church (sometimes in the shape of the church) - The Cross is held by Abouna - The Cross is placed on the altar - The Cross is seen in the iconography and woodwork of the Church - The Cross is used for blessing - The Cross is used for absolution - Every sacrament, liturgical service and action involves the Cross ##### The Cross was not Random - The Lord foreshadowed the Cross throughout the Old Testament - What are some of the Old Testament symbols of the Cross? - Tree of Life - The Slaughter of Isaac - Jacob Blessing Joseph's Sons - Passover - Aaron's Rod - Moses stretching his arms - Bronze Serpent - St Athanasius discusses this in his Tractates on John 12.11 - we'll read that passage together in the lesson ##### Conclusion The Cross is special. It is foreshadowed and typologized and pointed to from the beginning of time, it is an integral part of the economy of Salvation, and the life of the Church, and my personal life as a Christian. I can use the Cross practically in my life by holding it in my hand, by invoking its name, by signing myself, others, food, places, etc. with it. #### Application #### Contemplation #### Resources # 2023-10-13: The Eternal Existence of God #### Objective 1. What is God like 2. The eternal existence of God 3. Heresies regarding Gods eternal existence and how to refute them 4. How does Gods eternal existence affect my life #### Key Verse “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.” Revelation 1:8 #### Body ##### Introduction: The Name of God - Conclusion of the Anaphora: - "That as in this, so also in all things, Your great and holy name may be glorified, blessed, and exalted in everything honored and blessed, with Jesus Christ, Your beloved Son, and the Holy Spirit." (Liturgy of St Basil, St Cyril) - "That as in this, so also in all things, Your great and holy name may be glorified, blessed, and exalted in everything honored and blessed, with Your good Father and the Holy Spirit." (Liturgy of St Gregory) - The Daily Psalis are all psalis on the NAME of the LORD - Monday: "Everyone who says, 'my Lord Jesus', is likened to a sword, casting down the enemy" (2nd verse; other verses explicitly say 'His holy name' or 'Your holy name') - Tuesday: "Come unto us today, O Christ our Master, shine upon us, with Your exalted divinity. Send unto us, this great grace, of Your Holy Spirit, the Comforter. So that I may speak, with great honor, about Your Holy, and blessed name." (1st-3rd) - Wednesday: "Let them rejoice and be happy, those who seek the Lord, who are constantly, calling upon His holy name" (1st) - Thursday: "Let us incessantly, bless the name of Salvation, that is for our Lord Jesus Christ, proclaiming and saying..." (2nd) - Friday: "For truly I came eagerly, to a great leader, which is the name of Salvation, of our Lord Jesus Christ" (1st) - Saturday: "Remembering Your holy name, brings joy to our souls, O my Lord Jesus Christ, my good Savior." (1st) - Why the focus on God's name? - There is great power in a name. Names create an identity and it's how we are known by those around us. The first thing you inquire about someone is their name. The way you call out to someone. The way you refer to someone. - Nowadays, even our personalities are sometimes summarized by our names - Someone might be very sarcastic and his friend tells him "You pulled a Morcous!" - Someone might say a hymn very well and his friend tells him "Okay Ibrahim Ayad" - People are even called Karen if they complain at a restaurant or a store! - We have some responsibility to glorify, exalt and bless the name of God, to meditate on His name, to keep His name as a memorial, and to not take His name in vain. - After God told Moses His name, He said "Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: 'The Lord God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My name forever, and this is My memorial to all generations.'" (Exodus 3:15) - "O Lord, our Lord, How excellent is Your name in all the earth" (Psalm 8:1) - "O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together" (Psalm 34:3) - "Then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another, and the Lord listened and heard them; so a book of remembrance was written before Him for those who fear the Lord and who meditate on His name. 'They shall be mine,' says the Lord of hosts, 'On the day that I make them My jewels. And I will spare them as a man spares his own son who serves him.'" (Malachi 3:16-17) - God reveals His character and who He is through His names. So when God reveals Himself through a specific name, we get to know something very special about Him. How can we glorify God or His attributes if we don't know Him? - All of this begs the question... What is His name? ##### What are the names of God? - The names of God gives us comfort, reassurance and hope. The names of God declare His glory. - There are many names used for God in the Old Testament (names that God revealed to us through the Scripture, and revealed to the authors of Scripture through some other revelation) - Most High God (El Elyon) - The Almighty (El Shaddai) - The Eternal (El Olam) - The Lord (Adonai) - God, Judge, Creator (Elohim) - The Lord is There (Jehovah Shammah) - The Lord My Banner (Jehovah Nessi) - The Lord our Righteousness (Jehovah Tsidkenu) - The Lord Who Sanctifies You (Jehovah Mekoddishkem) - The Lord My Shepherd (Jehovah Raah) - The Lord that Heals (Jehovah Rapha) - The Lord Is Peace (Jehovah Shalom) - The Lord of Hosts (Jehovah Sabaoth) - The Lord Will Provide (Jehovah Jireh) - All of these are names used for God, and we see many of them start with the word "Jehovah" which we can say is THE NAME of God. Let us study how God revealed this name to us over time. ##### What is God's Name? - The Revelation of God's Name Over Time - We read in the beginning of Genesis that Abraham "called on the name of the Lord" (Genesis 13:4)... but what is the name of the Lord? What is God's name? - In the beginning, the Lord did not reveal his name. When Jacob wrestled with the Lord, he asked Him and the Lord did not reveal it to him. - "Then Jacob asked, saying, 'Tell me Your name, I pray.' And He said, 'Why is it that you ask about My name?' And He blessed him there." (Genesis 32) - In the time of Moses, Moses also asked the Lord His name but this time the Lord answered him... - "Then Moses said to God, 'Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you,' and they say to me, 'What is His name?' what shall I say to them?' And God said to Moses, 'I AM WHO I AM.' And He said, 'Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you.'" (Exodus 3:13-14) - "And God spoke to Moses and said to him: 'I am the Lord. I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty, but by My name Lord I was not known to them.'" (Exodus 6:2-3) - In the time of the Judges, Manoah (father of Samson) asked the Lord His name: - "Then Manoah said to the Angel of the Lord, 'What is Your name, that when Your words come to pass we may honor You?' And the Angel of the Lord said to him, 'Why do you ask My name, seeing it is wonderful?'" (Judges 13:17-18) - Isaiah writes that same name, "wonderful" and adds to it: - "And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace" (Isaiah 9:6) - "Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel." (Isaiah 7:14) - When we come to the New Testament in the Gospel of Matthew, he quotes Isaiah and specifies that Immanuel means "God with us" (Matthew 1:23) - And we know that God is Trinity: Father, Son (Jesus Christ), Holy Spirit; One God. - YHWH: The Tettragrammon - The principal name in the Old Testament by which God reveals himself is YHWH יהוה which we can pronounce "Yahweh" - The oldest Greek manuscripts of the Septuagint actually keep this Hebrew name of God in the midst of Greek - In later Greek, it starts to get replaced by ΙΑΩ (pronounced iawe) - This is considered by Jews to be "unpronounceable" and in general, they are not permitted to say out loud the name of God. So they replace it sometimes with other words like Adonai which means Lord. Later Greek manuscripts picked up on this word and started to translate it to κύριος which means "Lord" - Whenever you see (in the NKJV) the word "Lord" in small caps, you can check the footnote and see what it is being translated from and usually it is YHWH in the Hebrew - In the Coptic Bible, Exodus 3:14: - ⲟⲩⲟϩ ⲡⲉϫⲉ ⲫϯ ̀ⲙⲙⲱ̀ⲩⲥⲏⲥ ϫⲉ ̀**ⲁⲛⲟⲕ ⲡⲉ ⲫⲏ ⲉⲧϣⲟⲡ** ⲟⲩⲟϩ ⲡⲉϫⲁϥ ϫⲉ ⲡⲁⲓⲣⲏϯ ⲡⲉ ⲉⲧⲉⲕ̀ⲉϫⲟⲥ ̀ⲛⲛⲉⲛϣⲏⲣⲓ ̀ⲙⲡⲓⲥ̅ⲗ ϫⲉ **ⲫⲏ ⲉⲧϣⲟⲡ** ⲡⲉ ⲉⲧⲁϥⲧⲁⲟⲩⲟⲓ ϩⲁⲣⲱⲧⲉⲛ - So the Lord is revealing his name to Moses as **ⲫⲏ ⲉⲧϣⲟⲡ** and then tells him "Tell them **ⲫⲏ ⲉⲧϣⲟⲡ** sent you" - Then when ⲫⲏⲉⲧϣⲟⲡ is translated to English it usually comes back as "The BEING" ##### ⲫⲏⲉⲧϣⲟⲡ - Liturgy of St Basil - ⲁⲝⲓⲟⲛ ⲕⲉ ⲇⲓⲕⲉⲟⲛ... - ⲫⲏⲉⲧϣⲟⲡ ⲫⲛⲏⲃ ⲡϭⲟⲓⲥ ⲫⲛⲟⲩϯ ̀ⲛⲧⲉ ϯⲙⲉⲑⲙⲏⲓ - "O You, **WHO IS**, Master, Lord, God of Truth" - ⲫⲏⲉⲧϣⲟⲡ ϧⲁϫⲱⲟⲩ ̀ⲛⲛⲓ́ⲉⲛⲉϩ: ⲟⲩⲟϩ ⲉⲧⲟⲓ ̀ⲛⲟⲩⲣⲟ ϣⲁ ̀ⲉⲛⲉϩ - "**WHO IS** before the ages and reigning for ever" - ⲫⲏⲉⲧϣⲟⲡ ϧⲉⲛ ⲛⲏⲉⲧϭⲟⲥⲓ: ⲟⲩⲟϩ ⲉⲧϫⲟⲩϣⲧ ̀ⲉϫⲉⲛ ⲛⲏⲉⲧⲑⲉⲃⲓⲏⲟⲩⲧ - "**WHO IS** in the highest, and looks upon the lowly" - Liturgy of St Gregory - ⲫⲏⲉⲧϣⲟⲡ ⲫⲏⲉⲛⲁϥϣⲟⲡ ⲫⲏⲉⲑⲙⲏⲛ ⲉⲃⲟⲗ ϣⲁ ⲉⲛⲉϩ: ⲡⲓⲁⲓⲇⲓⲟⲥ... - O You, **WHO IS**, who was and who abides for ever, the Eternal, co-essential, co-enthroned, co-creator with the Father, who for the sake of goodness only brought man into existence out of nonexistence, and put him in the Paradise of joy. - Liturgy of St Cyril - ⲁⲝⲓⲟⲛ ⲕⲉ ⲇⲓⲕⲉⲟⲛ... ⲫⲏⲉⲧϣⲟⲡ ⲫⲛⲏⲃ ⲡϭⲟⲓⲥ ⲫⲛⲟⲩϯ ⲫⲓⲱⲧ ⲡⲓⲡⲁⲛⲧⲟⲕⲣⲁⲧⲱⲣ... - For truly it is fitting and right, and holy and becoming, and profitable to our souls, bodies, and spirits - O You, **WHO IS**, Master, Lord, God, the Father, the Pantocrator - at all times and in all places of Your dominion, to praise You, hymn You, bless You, serve You, worship You, thank You, and glorify You, and confess to You night and day, with incessant lips, with a heart that keeps not silent, and with unceasing doxologies." - The Advent Hymn ϥⲉⲙⲡϣⲁ ⲅⲁⲣ - ϥⲉⲙⲡϣⲁ ⲅⲁⲣ ϧⲉⲛ ⲟⲩⲙⲉⲑⲙⲏⲓ: ⲟⲩⲟϩ ⲟⲩⲇⲓⲕⲉⲟⲛ ⲡⲉ: ⲉⲑⲣⲉⲛϩⲱⲥ ̀ⲉⲫϯ ̀ⲛⲧⲁ̀ⲫⲙⲏⲓ: ⲡϭⲟⲓⲥ **ⲫⲏⲉⲧϣⲟⲡ** ϧⲉⲛ ̀ⲧⲫⲉ - It is truly worthy: and just that we sing: to the True God: the Lord **WHO IS** in heaven. - Ⲡⲉϥⲣⲁⲛ ϩⲟⲗϫ ⲟⲩⲟϩ ̀ϥ̀ⲥⲙⲁⲣⲱⲟⲩⲧ: ϧⲉⲛ ⲣⲱⲟⲩ ̀ⲛⲛⲏⲉⲑⲟⲩⲁⲃ: ̀ⲉⲧⲉ ⲫⲁⲓ ⲡⲉ ⲫϯ ⲫⲓⲱⲧ: ⲛⲉⲙ ⲡϣⲏⲣⲓ ⲛⲉⲙ ⲡⲓⲡⲛⲉⲩⲙⲁ ⲉⲑⲟⲩⲁⲃ - His name is sweet and blessed: on the mouths of the saints: this is God the Father: the Son and the Holy Spirit - The second verse clarifies that we are talking about HIS NAME which is ⲫⲏⲉⲧϣⲟⲡ **WHO IS**. We are confessing that the Lord WHO IS, is the Father Son and Holy Spirit ##### The Eternal Existence of God - What does all of this mean? - I AM, WHO IS, and THE BEING all mean the same thing. Let's see if we can figure out what they mean... - AM and IS are the verb BE which is conjugated to "am" - "are" - "is" (I am, we are, you are, he is, she is, they are) - And what does it mean "to be?" - to exist! - The Name of God YHWH, I AM, ⲫⲏⲉⲧϣⲟⲡ means "He Who Exists" - All of us exist... so what's the difference? - God is self-existent whereas we exist as a result of Him bringing us into existence (i.e. He is the SOURCE of existence) - God is eternally existent whereas our existence has a starting point - The name of God, revealed to us by God, tells us ABOUT God. One of God's unique attributes: His Eternal Existence. - What is Eternal - No beginning and no end ##### Verses about the Eternality of God - "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth" (Genesis 1:1) - The Scripture does not try to prove God's existence or His eternality but simply states that at the beginning of recorded time, God was already in existence. - "In the beginning was the Logos, and the Logos was with God, and the Logos was God" (John 1:1) - "For thus says the High and Lofty One Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: 'I dwell in the high and holy place, with him who has a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones." (Isaiah 57:15) - "Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: 'I am the First and I am the Lats; besides Me there is no God.'" (Isaiah 44:6) - "'I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End,' says the Lord, 'who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.'" (Revelation 1:8) - "Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever You had formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God." (Psalm 90:2) - "For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse." (Romans 1:20) - "Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, to God who alone is wise, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen." (1 Timothy 1:17) ##### What can we know about God? - It is not possible to fully comprehend the eternal existence of God. He is incomprehensible because we live and exist and measure everything in the realm of time. - God has always existed; there was never a time when He came into existence; there will never be a time when He goes out of existence. Because He created time, He is not limited to it. - St Augustine (on Genesis 1:1): “But even if we believe that God made heaven and earth at the beginning of time, we should certainly realize that there was no time before the beginning of time. For God also made time, and thus there was no time before he made time. Hence, we cannot say that there was a time when God had not yet made anything. For how could there be a time that God had not made since he is the maker of all time? And if time began to be with heaven and earth, there cannot be found a time when God had not yet made heaven and earth. When they say, “Why did He suddenly decide?” they speak as if some time passed during which God produced nothing. But a time could not pass that God had not already made, because he cannot be the producer of time unless he is before time.” - The word "before" and "after" are related to time, so we cannot logically ask the question of "what happened before God made time?" or make any statement like "before God created time..." - St Augustine adds to that, that God created heaven and earth at the beginning of time. This means that we cannot even say the statement "before God created heaven and earth..." since that is equivalent to saying "before God created time..." - St Augustine: "It is not in time that you precede all times, O Lord. You precede all past times in the sublimity of an ever-present reality. You have made all times and are before all times." (Confessions) - There's a story that St Augustine was walking on the seashore meditating on the Holy Trinity (he was writing "On the Holy Trinity"). He saw a child digging a hole in the sand and running to the ocean, filling a bucket with water and dumping it into the little hole he dug. So he asked the child what he was doing and the child said "I'm trying to empty the ocean into this hole" and St Augustine said "that's impossible!" The child said "Indeed! But I will sooner fill this hole with all the water of the ocean than you will succeed in penetrating the mystery of the Trinity." - St. Cyril of Alexandria: “If one wishes to inquire into these things, there is no doubt that he will be completely lacking in mental ability, in contrast to that \[the mind\] which God is perceived to have. That our faculties are insignificant or as absolutely nothing in comparison with God, he himself clearly states: ‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways’, says the Lord. ‘For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And my thoughts than your thoughts.’ (Isaiah 55:8-9) Let it be allowed, then, that extraordinariness and incomprehensibility are the touchstone concerning these things. For God creates as he himself knows how and as only he is able.” – Glaphyra on the Pentateuch Part 1 - St John Chrysostom: "I, too, know many things but I do not know how to explain them. I know that God is everywhere and I know that he is everywhere in his whole being. But I do not know how he is everywhere. I know that he is eternal and has no beginning. But I do not know how. My reason fails to grasp how it is possible for an essence to exist when that essence has received its existence neither from itself nor from another. I know that he begot a Son. But I do not know how. I know that the Spirit is from him. But I do not know how the Spirit is from him." - On the Incomprehensible Nature of God 1.19 ##### How does God's eternal existence affect my life? - It is important to learn Theology so that we can know what is true and what is false, the Truth will set you free - The doctrine of the eternality of God provides comfort to the believers. Since God will never cease to exist, neither will those who have put their trust in Him. - When I understand the Divine Liturgy, I can better practice and participate in it and enjoy it #### Application Do you sometimes worry about what might happen in the future? Contemplate on how knowing that God is eternal can help us to not worry about these things and on how we should act toward God to show that we understand that He is everlasting. # 2025 HSG Winter Convention (SALT): Intro Topic ##### Objective - The goal of this convention is to explore the struggles of fear, worry, stress, and anxiety that many girls experience during their adolescent years - Through open discussion, spiritual guidance, and practical steps, the convention aims to help participants confront these feelings with faith, peace, and confidence rooted in Christ ##### Introductory Topic The opening session will establish the foundation for the entire convention, preparing the hearts and minds of attendees for the discussions to come by covering these points: - Definition of fear, worry and anxiety - Healthy vs. Unhealthy Worry - Root causes of worry and anxiety - Effects of excessive worry and anxiety - Biblical perspective on anxiety - How to overcome anxiety ##### Overview of the Stations In addition to the introductory station, the convention will include three stations, each addressing a specific root of anxiety and offering a biblical approach and practical steps to overcoming it - “When life feels out of control” - Worry and anxiety about the future, uncertainty, and lack of control - ”When I don’t feel enough” - Anxiety rooted in comparison, insecurity, and perfectionism - ”When my heart is overwhelmed” - Emotional stress, heartbreak, loneliness, and the weight of relationships or responsibilities ##### Resources - [https://www.suscopts.org/resources/literature/counseling/anxiety/anxiety-part-one](https://www.suscopts.org/resources/literature/counseling/anxiety/anxiety-part-one) - [https://www.suscopts.org/resources/literature/counseling/anxiety/anxiety-part-two](https://www.suscopts.org/resources/literature/counseling/anxiety/anxiety-part-two) - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P6Fu8NU7A6g](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P6Fu8NU7A6g) "Overcoming Fear" - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjslLcbuO8M](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjslLcbuO8M) "Stress and Worry" - Functional and Dysfunctional Worry - If tomorrow I have an exam, and I have absolutely no worry - then what will motivate me to study? - As long as the worry is functional (not dysfunctional) and it motivates me to do things, then I am within the boundaries - If I am not worried about eternal life, then I will not repent - 'When I realize my many wicked deeds, and the thought of that awesome judgment comes to my heart, a tremble takes hold of me, and I take refuge in You, O God, the Lover of Mankind.," (Midnight Hour - Third Watch #3) - Love and Fear - "There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love." (1 John 4:18) - We are afraid of God because we don't know Him; we have a distorted image of Him; we don't trust His mercy. But if we know Him very well, then we know He is our LAWYER on the Last Days and will intercede on our behalf. - There are some who will be terrified of Him - those who rejected Him and closed the door in His face. But the reason isn't because God won't have mercy on them but because they rejected the mercy of God. - Most significant cause of fear, stress, worry in youth: - Future, relationships, peer pressure, fitting in, death - summarized as: **Lack of Faith** - Everyone should be worried about his relationships, career, etc. as long as that worry is functional and not impairing the person from attending to his activities, it is healthy. - When it becomes dysfunctional, then it is lack of faith - There is a psychological illness (imbalance of hormones, etc.) - we are NOT talking about that - St Peter faith to walk on water - He dropped his eyes from God and looked at the sea, and that's when he was afraid and lost his faith - St Stephen was being stoned but his eye was on God - If he was looking at the stones, maybe his faith would have been challenged - [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGgftslCV3U](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sGgftslCV3U) "Rational vs Irrational Fear" - [https://www.youtube.com/live/pp\_kY0Ddhts](https://www.youtube.com/live/pp_kY0Ddhts) "Biblical Guide to Overcoming Anxiety" #### Topic ##### Introduction - Anxiety, Fear, Worry - These are complex emotions that are physical, behavioral, spiritual, and psychological - They are HIGHLY related to our perception of reality - which is sometimes right and sometimes not - Anxiety is one of the most common struggles of our generation. - Anxiety does not mean you are weak. Anxiety does not mean you are faithless. Anxiety means your heart and your body are trying to protect you - sometimes, in the wrong way. - We can distinguish between Fear, Worry and Anxiety - although sometimes the terms can be used interchangeably - Fear: Related to something in the present (something in front of me) - Afraid of the dark - Afraid of a spider or a wild animal - Worry & Anxiety: Related to the Future - Worry: A healthy response to an impending challenge; healthy because it is what pushes us to tackle the challenge with wisdom. E.g. I am worried I won’t have time to finish my studying because of my work schedule and my service schedule. So I work to make a schedule and a plan for time management so that I can complete all of my responsibilities. - Anxiety: An unhealthy response to an impending challenge; unhealthy because I am focused more on my Anxiety than on tackling the challenge. - Both are based on my perceived skill level and my perception of the challenge level. Both are based on a low perception of skill level. But the difference between worry and anxiety is the perceived challenge level - anxiety very high, worry is not so high. - So anxiety is like the unhealthy form of worry. The problem is not when I care - the problem is when I am PARALYZED. - I can distinguish between worry and anxiety based on my response to them. - If my response is productive, then it’s a healthy worry. If my response is unproductive, then it’s an unhealthy anxiety. - If tomorrow I have an exam, and I have absolutely no worry - then what will motivate me to study? - As long as the worry is functional (not dysfunctional) and it motivates me to do things, then I am within the boundaries - If I am not worried about eternal life, then I will not repent - 'When I realize my many wicked deeds, and the thought of that awesome judgment comes to my heart, a tremble takes hold of me, and I take refuge in You, O God, the Lover of Mankind.," (Midnight Hour - Third Watch #3) - Activity (Healthy or Unhealthy) 1. “You have an exam next week, and you make a study plan.” 2. “You have an exam next week, and you keep thinking ‘I’m going to fail’ even though you’re studying.” 3. “You post something online and check it once.” 4. “You post something online and keep checking it every few minutes.” 5. “You’re worried you hurt a friend, so you talk to them.” 6. “You’re worried you hurt a friend, but you avoid them because you’re scared.” ##### Effects of Anxiety - As we said, Anxiety and Worry are psychosomatic and spiritual - so they are related to our mind, our body and our spirit. - Physical Effects - Headaches, Rashes, Bachaches, Upset stomach, shortness of breath, sleeping problems, fatigue, loss of appetite, etc. - Sometimes you see someone who is very tired because they are always worried. - Behavioral Effects - Some people attempt to overcome anxiety by sleeping more, eating more, or even as far as drugs or alcohol. - Some may throw tantrums or let their temper explode or blame others - Spiritual Effects - Robs of Joy - Because you are concerned over tomorrow, you are not able to enjoy the present moment. This moment may be full of God’s peace and goodness and blessings, but because I am just focused on tomorrow, I miss out on it all. - Overthinking texts or conversations LONG after they happened - Wastes Time - Anxiety over tomorrow consumes valuable time. If the time was invested in positive thinking, taking proactive measures, it would be more profitable. - Difference between anxiety and caution - Anxiety is preoccupying and preempting failure - Caution is careful planning, wise choices - Inhibits Sound Thinking - Preoccupied with tomorrow’s unseen and unrevealed incidents blurs our judgment - Weakens Faith - Pushes faith to the background - Paradoxical - The reason I am anxious is because I am concerned about my comfort or having a better or more comfortable life… but this anxiety causes discomfort and can even shorten life span ##### Cause of Worry & Anxiety - Social Media - I posted something and I only got 3 likes… my anxiety might even convince me to remove the post. - Everyone on my feed looks happier, prettier, more confidence than me. - I’m comparing myself to FILTERED or EDITED or AI’d images - What if people are talking to me in the group chat? - All of these are PERCEIVED CHALLENGES and they are affecting my perception of my worth. This is an existential anxiety - I feel that my social existence will perish. - Friendship Anxiety - Why wasn’t I invited to xyz? Outing, hangout, etc. - They’re acting different - did I do something wrong? - What if I lose my friends over xyz? - Body Image or Appearance - What if I don’t look good enough? - What if I’m judged for how I dress? - I hate how I look in pictures - SELFIE THING - This is a form of performance anxiety - Academic Anxiety - If I fail this class, my future is ruined - Everyone expects me to be perfect - If I don’t get into the right college, I’m a failure - This is also a form of performance anxiety. - Spiritual Anxiety - What if God is disappointed in me? - What if I keep falling into the same sin? - What if I never change? - Paradoxical Anxiety - Anxiety about being anxious… being anxious about how to get rid of my anxiety. - Social Anxiety - Wanting to please EVERYBODY (it’s impossible) - Unrealistic anticipation of rejection - I think I am going to be rejected - So the negative anticipation makes me act weird - Then I am rejected - This reinforces my anxiety and I remain a victim of an unending cycle that has no root in reality - **Anxiety shows us where we are lacking in faith** ##### Overcoming Anxiety - Matthew 6 - Reasons I should not worry - 25: Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? - **Because our life extends to eternal life.** - Without food, we would lose our life. - Without clothing, our body would freeze. - So why is He saying this? To show that our life and our body are more than just physical life. Don't be anxious about your soul and your body because those who might take away your food and your clothes and even cause your death, cannot take your real life of the resurrected body - Our life extends to eternal life. God will clothe us with the glorified body in eternal life. - 26: Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? - You are more valuable than the birds; and these birds are taken care of by God - Premise 1: God is so completely in control of the natural universe, that He is in control of feeding the birds of the earth - a berry from here, an insect from there, a worm from the ground, etc. it is God who provides that berry or that insect or that worm - Premise 2: You are of more value to God than the birds. God values you and is committed to you. He purchased you with His Blood. - "casting all your care \[worry\] upon Him, for He cares for you." (1 Peter 5:7) - 27: Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? - Anxiety does no good; it accomplishes nothing; it doesn't help you. - If you start to get anxious, remind yourself that the anxiety does not benefit you - 28-30: “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, *will He* not much more *clothe* you, O you of little faith? - Similar to point #2 but different - Here, the focus is that these lilies that God takes care of them, they last for only one day. But you are eternal! If God cares about the grass and lilies that lasts one day and clothes them more beautifully than King Solomon, then God definitely will care about you because you are eternal. God is active in the life of the grass and flower. - Anxiety is a trust issue; a faith issue. - 31-32: “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek." - Anxiety is understood for non-believers; they don't believe in God who takes care of them. They don't have history of 7,000 years of God taking care of His people - even those who were persecuted, martyred, etc. - But we, believers, we should not! Your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things - 32: For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. - Your heavenly Father knows - God is a Father and one of the responsibilities of a father is to take care of his children - He is Heavenly - so He has control over the earth - He knows - since He knows your needs, He will provide for your needs - 33: But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. - God wants you to be righteous; so He will supply everything you need to do His will and His righteousness - Parents tell their kids "don't worry about anything, just focus on your studies... don't worry about working, don't worry about meals, don't worry about anything I don't want you to be distracted. Just focus on one goal." - Same with God - I want you to focus on one goal - your eternal life. - I cannot stand in the last day and say "Sorry I was distracted by the worries of the world - He will say no! I promised you that I would take care of those." - Three Holy Youth in the fire - St Peter sleeping a deep sleep in prison - Paul and Silas chanting in prison - 34: Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day *is* its own trouble. - God, in His economy, does not overload one day with troubles more than can be endured - Sometimes when we worry about tomorrow, we overburden ourselves - Each day has its appointed amount - this is God's plan for us - Don't bring tomorrow's worries to today - Keep your eye on the Lord - St Peter faith to walk on water - He dropped his eyes from God and looked at the sea, and that's when he was afraid and lost his faith - St Stephen was being stoned but his eye was on God - If he was looking at the stones, maybe his faith would have been challenged - Seek Guidance - FATHER OF CONFESSION - TAKE HIS ADVICE - Anxiety grows in isolation - but when it’s shared, it weakens. - Prayer and Supplication with Thanksgiving - Philippians 4:6-7 - Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. - Kinds of Prayers - Supplications - Make a request - Prayer - Communication - Thanksgiving - Thank God for something - Praise - Praise God for who He is - Intercession - Pray for someone else - St Paul chose three of those very purposefully: Supplication, Prayer, Thanksgiving - Even in the way we deal with each other - if I have a request from you, I will start by communicating with you "hi, how are you" and end with my request - The peace of God is totally different from the peace of the world - Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. - The peace of God doesn’t mean that the problem disappears - it means that I am able to endure the problem and my heart is guarded as I endure it. - Turn your list of worries into a list of prayers - ACTIVITY? If time permits # 2026 Spring Break Spiritual Day - Introduction (IOTA) "There is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved" (Acts 12:4) ##### Introduction **Sunday Theotokia:** "You are called truly, • O blessed one • among women, • the Second Tabernacle • which is called • the Holy • of Holies, • wherein are the tablets • of the covenant • and the Ten Commandments • which are written • by the finger of God. • They have directed us • to the IOTA - • the name of salvation - • Jesus Christ." The Ten Commandments, given by God and written by His finger on two tablets, have directed us to the IOTA. And the IOTA is the name of Salvation: Jesus Christ. We have a category of hymn in the Church called "Psalis" which are said before the Theotokia. And these Psalis typically all focus on one topic: the name of the Lord. Saying the name of the Lord. There is great power in the name of the Lord. "The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run to it and are safe." (Proverbs 18:10) The name of the Lord means: 1. Enlightenment - **Monday Psali:** "Let the name of the Lord • abide within us • so that He may shine • upon our inner being" - **Tuesday Psali:** "When they uttered it • their minds were enlightened • and their hearts ascended • to the heights." 2. Ability to Give Others - **Wednesday Psali:** "If we are needy • for the money of this world, • and we have nothing • to offer as alms; • yet truly we have • the precious pearl of great price • which is the sweet name full of glory • of our Lord Jesus Christ. • When we continue to keep Him • in our inner being • He will make us rich • that we can give to others. • We do not ask for • the wealth of this world • but for the salvation of our souls • by calling upon His holy name." - Peter and John: "In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk." 3. Nourishment - **Tuesday Psali:** "For them it was • a Living food • which filled their souls • and their bodies too. • For them it was • a fountain of living water • sweeter than honey • in their mouths. • When they called upon it • their hearts rejoiced • and their bodies • blossomed." 4. Sweetness and Joy - **Friday Psali:** "Our hearts are happy • and our tongues rejoice • whenever we sing to the name • of our Lord Jesus Christ." - **Saturday Psali:** "The remembrance of your holy name • gives joy to our hearts • O my Lord Jesus Christ • my good Savior." 5. Power to Purify - **Monday Psali:** "Everyone who says: • 'my Lord Jesus' • is likened to a sword • casting down the enemy." - **Thursday Psali:** "Once more my beloved • let us keep away • the evil inclinations of our heart • that lead us to sin. • Let us incessantly • bless the name of Salvation • that is for our Lord Jesus Christ • proclaiming and saying: • O my Lord Jesus Christ • who is born of the Father • before all ages • have mercy on us according to Your great mercy; • O my Lord Jesus Christ... I want to focus on #5 - Power to Purify Purity is not only "behavior" - It is a war over the mind and heart. - It starts in the mind - When I fall into sin, it is rarely because "I chose evil" - but because I could not resist a temptation - "I stayed too long with a thought" - "Everyone is doing it" - "I saw something in a YouTube Short that triggered me" - "I just wanted to experiment" - "I was bored and didn't have anything to do" - Lust and Impurity are Goliath - Loud, Repeated, Intimidating - They try to make you feel weak - "You come to me with a sword, with a spear, and with a javelin. But I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied." (1 Samuel 17:45) - It's not me against the temptation - it's my Lord against the temptation - and my Lord is bigger. - But I must call upon His name - "Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Joel 2:32) What is my first response to a sinful thought? To a temptation? To an image I wasn't expecting to see? I come to you in the name of the Lord. "If you celebrate a feast and are joyful, say: Jesus; if you worry and suffering: Jesus; if the sons and daughters laugh: Jesus; those who touch water: Jesus; those who must flee from barbarians: Jesus; those who see wild beasts or other frightening things: Jesus; those who have pain or illness: Jesus; those who have been taken captive: Jesus; those who were unjustly judged and suffer injustice: Jesus. The name of Jesus alone is on their lips and is their salvation and their life: He and His Father." (St Shenouda - A Catechesis against Apocryphal Texts) Three Stations: 1. **Recognize**: How does temptation work in the mind? 2. **Respond**: Immediately with the name of the Lord Jesus, not negotiation 3. **Rule**: Build a rule of life so purity becomes sustainable and becomes my way of life