May I begin by acknowledging and thanking the hundreds of brethren that are attending the funeral service this morning in this church and the thousands that have lined the streets of this city these past days to pay their respects and honor Jim.

I thank His Excellency Bishop Uglietto and Father John MacGinnis, the pastor of this community, and thank them for extending their welcome to the Saint Vasilios Greek Orthodox Community. I thank the firefighters and policemen of Peabody and throughout the Commonwealth and from neighboring states that are in attendance. I am grateful to our governor and all officials of the Commonwealth together with the mayor in Peabody who have come to honor the memory of a man loved by all.

We gather today to pray that Almighty God may open His arms and welcome into His loving embrace a man respected and befriended by everyone. We offer our sympathies to his beloved family – his parents, his loving wife Amy and his three precious children, Katelyn, Alyssa and Ryan.

The Church and the streets of this city are filled with Jim’s colleagues and friends from the Peabody Fire Department who mourn the passing of a man of character and courage, of inner strength and ethos who earned their friendship and admiration.

Last Friday when I learned the tragic news, I recalled what our Lord and Savior taught His Disciples. He told them that “greater love hath no man than this, to lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13). That truth, treasured in the fifteenth chapter of the Gospel according to John, was surely etched upon the heart and soul of Jim Rice.

On December 23 he and his fellow firefighters rushed into a burning building to save the endangered lives of the residents. In the line of duty, James was ready to even lay down his life – (if need be) – to save, his friends. Yes his friends! The residents of that building on Hancock Street were Jim’s friends, even though he may never have met them. They were God’s children. They were Jim’s brothers and sisters in the household of God.

What Jim did last Friday was heroic – but I’m sure he would say that he and his fellow firemen were only doing what they loved to do, to be firefighters – to serve the public – to save lives. To be a firefighter or a policeman is not a job, it’s a vocation. It’s a calling. It’s a special life lived by very special people.

In a generation that has come to be known as the ME generation, when many of us selfishly think only of our selves… in an age of entitlement – when many of us feel we are entitled to what we have or what we can get from others (including our government)… In times such as these, I thank God for men like Jim Rice and men and women like him that have character, ethos, courage and inner strength that help make the world a better place.

Every day as they leave their homes to go to work, firemen and policemen know in their hearts that it could very well be the day that they may be called to prove, “greater love hath no man than this – to lay down his life for his friends.” For Jim Rice that day was December 23, 2011.

Let us join in prayer that our Benevolent Lord grant eternal rest to this beloved son, this dedicated and loving husband, this adoring father, this respected and revered colleague and friend.

-I definitely prefer the Roth era of VH to the Van Hagar era.  Early Van Halen was fun party music, while the Sammy stuff is VH for grownups.  There are some great moments with Sammy and he is technically a better singer but Dave is an awesome frontman and I like his stuff best.

-Dave’s leaving of the band in the mid-80s was shattering to us little VH fans.  People forget this now but initially Dave had a very successful solo career although within a few years he slid into irrelevance.  But there was always the pull of him coming back to Van Halen, as the Sammy Years became a time of soap opera – like drama.

-It is hard to believe that Sammy last recorded an album with VH in 1995 – 17 years ago!   (There was a touring reunion and the recording of a few new songs in 2004).  I was an avid reader of various guitar geek magazines at that time and the back and forth between Eddie and Sammy in interviews was dizzying.  It really seemed then that fifty years on we would still be talking about the Dave vs. Sammy argument.

-I mentioned above that I loved the new song Tattoo.  It is catchy in a way that new material from heritage bands (and I don’t mind calling VH that – it is a good thing) often isn’t.  The lyrics are clever Dave-speak and it is good to see the guys bouncing around on stage.  The song is way better than the two they recorded during their initial reunion in 1996.  It is sad that Michael Anthony is no longer welcome in the band.  To me the sound of Van Halen was four special parts combined – the guitar prowess (and keys) of Eddie, Alex’s drumming, which is the most easily identifiable drum sound this side of John Bonham, Dave’s unique voice and phrasing, and the distinctive backing vocals of Michael Anthony.  We will see how much his vocals are missed on the album.

Sandie filled me in on the epidemic of pet obesity, which is a very real problem that mirrors the larger problem of American obesity.  Surely the well-intended use of dog food like Beneful (the name is, I assume, meant to invoke the word beneficial) is a contributing factor.

Here is the ingredient list (emphasis mine):

INGREDIENTS
Ground yellow corn, chicken by-product meal, corn gluten meal, whole wheat flour, animal fat preserved with mixed-tocopherols (form of Vitamin E), salmon, rice flour, soy flour, sugar, propylene glycol, meat and bone meal, water, tricalcium phosphate, soybean oil, animal digest, salt, phosphoric acid, sorbic acid (a preservative), potassium chloride, dried carrots, dried green beans, L-Lysine monohydrochloride, calcium propionate (a preservative), choline chloride, Vitamin E supplement, zinc sulfate, added color (Red 40, Yellow 5, Yellow 6, Blue 2), ferrous sulfate, DL-Methionine, manganese sulfate, niacin, Vitamin A supplement, calcium carbonate, copper sulfate, Vitamin B-12 supplement, calcium pantothenate, thiamine mononitrate, garlic oil, pyridoxine hydrochloride, riboflavin supplement, Vitamin D-3 supplement, calcium iodate, menadione sodium bisulfite complex (source of Vitamin K activity), folic acid, biotin, sodium selenite.

Christmas Reflection 2011

Beloved in the Lord,

“And the Logos became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14).

On Christmas day, the Church proclaims to humanity the good tidings of the birth of the Savior who is “Light of Light, True God of True God, begotten not created… who, “for us men and our salvation came down from heaven and was Incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and became man” (Confession of Faith).

Holy Scripture, the hymnology of the Church, and the Orthodox Christian icon help us to focus on this, the greatest of mysteries. “He who knows no beginning now begins to be, and the Logos is made flesh” (Doxastikon of Christmas Orthros).The Divine Logos, “He who by nature is invisible is seen today in the flesh”. “He lowered the heavens and came down to fashion corrupt Adam anew” (hymns from the Lity authored by John the monk).

St. Paul writing to the Galatians proclaims that God sent forth His Son, “so that we may receive adoption as Sons” (4,5). To the Romans, he speaks of the consequences of this salvific miracle: “If we are children of God, then we are heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him” (Romans 8:17).

Studying the icon of the Nativity, we learn that Christmas is a Paschal mystery which culminates in the passion, death and Resurrection of Christ. The Incarnate Savior is seen in a sepulcher–shaped manger. He is wrapped in a winding burial cloth foreshadowing His repose in a sepulcher hewn from rock following his Crucifixion (Luke 23:53). The infant Jesus is not placed in a cradle, but on an altar of sacrifice symbolizing His death. The icon of the Nativity, however, points beyond darkness and death. A brilliant ray of light and an image of a dove pierce the darkness of the cave to symbolize the presence of the Holy Spirit. Above is the hand of the Father, the source of life. On the altar lies the incarnate Christ. In the poverty and misery of a manger, the three persons of the Holy Trinity appear. God is present and makes Himself known.

It is of paramount importance for us “to arise and behold the divine condescension from on high that is made manifest to us.” (Sticheron of the Sixth Hour). This is indeed difficult. The obstacles to Christian faith and practice raised by secular culture have unquestionably affected our lives. We are immersed in an environment beset by cynicism, apathy and selfishness — in a society that has lost its spiritual roots. Our culture has no time to reflect upon the “reason for the season.” It is reported that 98% of the references in various media highlight the impact of Christmas on the economy, on travel, on retail sales, etc. Few stories refer to the Son of God. Sadly, the media is only part of our culture which is determined to push Christ out of our sphere of interest. Public and private schools throughout America have removed references to Christmas from the classroom. The lyrics of traditional Christmas songs have been changed. ‘Silent Night’ has been changed to “Cold in the Night”. “We wish you a Merry Christmas” has been changed to “We wish you a swinging holiday.”

Under the influence of hedonistic consumerism, Christmas has lost its true meaning. Recently, shoppers filled retail department stores beginning at midnight in what has come to be known as “Black Friday”. Regrettably, some individuals — armed with pepper spray cans! — proved that they knew the price of everything and the value of nothing. The wisdom of the world claims that happiness comes from what you own, how much money or influence you have, how important other people think you are. St Paul reminds us that we celebrate the birth of Him who, “through he was rich, yet for your (our) sake became poor, so that by his poverty you (we) may become rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9). We celebrate the birth of Him who asks us,“what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? (Matthew 16:26)

Christmas has always disturbed the conscience of the materialistic world. It has always challenged those who are on a frantic race to enrichment at all cost. It has always challenged those individuals whose selfishness and greed exploit the dignity and rights of their fellow human beings.

My brothers and sisters,

This Christmas, let us pause from the hustle and bustle of our daily routines to be alone with God. To pray. To read Holy Scripture. To read and reflect upon the beautiful hymns of our church which help us to focus on the Christmas miracle. Let us turn off our radios and televisions, our IPhones and IPads and everything else that is electronic. Let us hear the voices of the archangels proclaiming the birth of the Savior. Let us close our eyes to the blinding lights of the world so that we may see the light emanating from the cave in Bethlehem.

May that light radiate in our hearts and enlighten our minds this Christmas and every day of the New Year 2012.

With Archpastoral love

in the Incarnate Lord,

M E T H O D I O S

Metropolitan of Boston

The resourcefulness Greeks showed in feeding themselves during the war is, like their standing up to Mussolini, a reflection of the ancient Greeks.  The ever-popular domades – stuffed grape leaves – were invented when Alexander’s troops destroyed Thebes.  To make the most of the meager amount of meat they had, they rolled it up with other stuff in grape leaves to make it seem more substantial.  Mezedes have never been the same…

American Christmas largely developed through the popular reception of the writings of Washington Irving and Charles Dickens.  Traditions like Christmas trees, Santa Claus, and yule logs are largely German or Germanic in origin, and were popularized by those writers.  Even before their time, the many German- and Dutch-speaking enclaves in the Colonies and early America celebrated with these traditions.  Santa Claus is a combination of St. Nicholas and Father Christmas, a religious figure with pagan origins going back to the Anglo-Saxon god Woden, the equivalent to the Norse god Odin and the source of the word Wednesday (Woden’s Day).  Santa Claus today appears rather cartoonish, with his red suit and boots and hat, but if you look at depictions of him going back a few centuries you can see the evolution from his religious roots.  The attached illustration of Father Christmas from the late 17th century could almost have been copied from an Orthodox icon of St. Nicholas.  The name Santa Claus itself comes from the saint, and he was known for his generosity and gift-giving.  Forget the elves and North Pole stuff; Santa Claus is a modern depiction of our saint and offers us a teaching tool as we return to the religious roots of Christmas.

I held this view until recently.  Last year I talked about how it seems that Thanksgiving has turned into an excuse for gluttony.  This is actually an acceptable part of the culture of Thanksgiving; if you watch the news or read news websites there are features on how to deal with eating too much turkey or whatever on the holiday.  I am not trying to be a wet blanket here, and yes, I will probably overdo it a bit today – in our case there are tons of appetizers where we go – but by the time dinner rolls around I am full and usually eat almost nothing at the formal sit-down part of the day.  Gluttony is the only one of the seven deadly sins that we always dance around – you have to eat, after all – so every meal is a potential opportunity for gluttony.  Thanksgiving almost sanctions it.

This year’s rant is more about the holiday’s place in our culture and how it is has lost much of its bite.  Thanksgiving has been secularized just like other holidays (and keep in mind I am a defender of Santa and the Easter bunny, so I am not a no-fun, super strict person).  I have heard the phrase “give thanks” many, many times in the lead up to today.  Give thanks to whom?  This key part is missing, as is any acknowledgment of the Almighty in reference to the day.  So, in addition to my suggestion that we don’t overdo it on the food front, I have to add – please remember to whom we are giving thanks, and be sure to think about this and give voice to it.  Happy Thanksgiving to all, and more later…