The Falling Asleep (Dormition) of the Most Holy Theotokos:

"Pascha in the Summer" is how we can describe the Feast of the Dormition of the Mother of God.  The Feast itself is on August 15, but we are now fast approaching the Dormition Fast (August 1-14) that leads us to the "paschal joy" of the translation of the Mother of God to the Kingdom of Heaven.  A great Feast is always prepared for by a designated season of fasting.  This is our communal and personal response to the "dog days" of summer and the lack of spiritual vigilance that this time of year tempts us with.  A wonderful opportunity that we do not want to squander of "getting back on track" in and through the grace-filled life of the Church.  And in addition to Dormition, we celebrate the "Feast of Divine Beauty" - the Transfiguration of the Lord - as a festal interlude during the Fast on August 6.
 
The two weeks of August 1-14, will be quite filled with church services and other events that will hopefully bring this season alive for the entire parish, including the 40th anniversary of the glorification of our beloved St Herman,  Elder and Wonderworker of Alaska. All will be posted on our Worship Schedule page.
 
This should allow everyone some time to plan ahead.  The main thing is to respect the Mother of God by respecting the Fast that is observed in Her honor.  What is first in our lives: the Church or the surrounding culture?  Here is a good starting point for evaluating that question.



 
 
Mary, the Mother of God, Sermons by St. Gregory Palamas
Celebration of Faith vol. III:  The Virgin Mary by Fr. Alexander Schemmann
The Orthodox Veneration of Mary, the Birthgiver of God, by St. John Maximovich
Mary - The Untrodden Portal of God by George Gabriel
On the Dormition of Mary - Various Patristic Homilies on the Feast, ed. by Daley
On the Mother of God by Jacob of Serug
Wider Than Heaven - Eighth Century Homilies on the Mother of God, ed. and translated by Mary Cunningham

A History of the Apostles' Fast - This fine article surveys patristic testimony for the fast, the various traditions concerning its duration, and lastly the ascetical practices associated with it.  From the first paragraph:



"The apostles served the Lord Jesus and later provided leadership to the first generation Christian believers. They were of such importance that the word "apostle" occurs approximately seventy-nine times in the New Testament. Acts of the Apostles portrays the apostles as leaders of the first church in Jerusalem during the Church's first decade. The apostles truly established the church and with their fast we contemplate the glory of God, their faith, and hardships in which they overcame."  ~ From an article by Bishop Youssef of the Coptic Orthodox Church.  Continue reading...


The Apostles' Fast is a variable length, depending on the date of Pascha. Therefore this year, 2010, it is quite long, four weeks plus one day! Let us therefore consider this simple word from one of the Fathers, Blessed Augustine:



While most Orthodox Christians are perhaps aware of the general rule of fasting for Great Lent and the Dormition Fast (wine and oil allowed only on Saturdays and Sundays, except for a few feast days and vigils), many are probably not familiar with the precise rule governing the less severe fast of the Nativity and Apostles' Fast. Therefore, we shall quote this rule, from Chapter 33 of the Typicon:



From A Recent Church Father:

"We have many fasts: four lengthy ones, the Great Fast (Great Lent), the Apostles' Fast, the Dormition Fast and the Nativity Fast; and a number of shorter ones.

"What an amazing and un-Christian relationship so many people now have to these fasts. The fasts are violated by people without a qualm of conscience, as if the matter was about some nonsense which had no significance. The Church, on the other hand, takes a very serious view of the matter...

"Fasting is absolutely indispensable for man. From the external aspect, it is a struggle of filial obedience to God, Who has given us the rules of fasting through His Holy Spirit. From the inner aspect, fasting is a struggle of restraint and self-limitation. In this lies the great value and sense of fasting, since a strict observance of fasts tempers one's will and perfects the character of one who is firm in his religious convictions and actions. Let us not forget that Christ Himself fasted, and foretold that His apostles would also fast.

"We hear people claiming that fasting is harmful to the health. But strict fasting is not required of people who are ill, and they fast only according to their strength. Most important, one should remember that it is only those people who do not fast who speak about the 'harm to health' of fasting. But those who do observe fasting will never say this, for they know from personal experience that not only is fasting not harmful, but it is positively beneficial to bodily health.

"Fasting is not merely a restraining from food. During the days of the fasts, the Church sings, 'While fasting bodily, let us also fast spiritually...' True fasting includes deeds of Christian mercy. It is an alienation of the evil-one, a restraint of the tongue, a laying aside of anger, a cutting off of vices and an exposure of falsehood... Thus, for a Christian, fasting is a time of restraint and self-education in all respects, and a real Christian fast gives believers a great moral satisfaction. The great teacher of Christian asceticism Bishop Theophan the Recluse says of fasting:




SELF-CONTROL AS FASTING: The act of fasting is a conscious act to glorify God and his creation as it helps us overcome our actions based on our passions and bodily desires for pleasure.  It is an act that restrains our egoism and heightens our spiritual appetite.  Fasting demands will-power and the reestablishment of the domination of the soul over the body.

Gluttony is seen by our Church Fathers as the primary passion to overcome. Mastering it you can then master the others.  Continue reading (includes insights from Fr. Dimitru Staniloae)...


"Whosoever rejects the fasts, deprives himself and others of weapons against his own much-suffering flesh and against the devil, who have power over us especially as the result of our intemperance." 


"Do you fast? Then feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, visit the sick, do not forget the imprisoned, have pity on the tortured, comfort those who grieve and who weep, be merciful, humble, kind, calm, patient, sympathetic, forgiving, reverent, truthful and pious, so that God might accept your fasting and might plentifully grant you the fruits of repentance.

"It is necessary most of all for one who is fasting to curb anger, to accustom himself to meekness and condescension, to have a contrite heart, to repulse impure thoughts and desires, to examine his conscience, to put his mind to the test and to verify what good has been done by us in this or any other week, and which deficiency we have corrected in ourself in the present week. This is true fasting.

"Fasting of the body is food for the soul... As bodily food fattens the body, so fasting strengthens the soul; imparting it an easy flight, it makes it able to ascend on high, to contemplate lofty things and to put the heavenly higher than the pleasant and pleasurable things of life.

"Fasting is wonderful, because it tramples our sins like a dirty weed, while it cultivates and raises truth like a flower." 

"Gluttony makes a man gloomy and fearful, but fasting makes him joyful and courageous. And, as gluttony calls forth greater and greater gluttony, so fasting stimulates greater and greater endurance. When a man realizes the grace that comes through fasting, he desires to fast more and more. And the graces that come through fasting are countless...."

MIDFEAST OF PENTECOST - Learn about this pivotal and theologically profound feast, linking Pascha and Pentecost. Brief OCA Article - Troparia and Kontakia - In-Depth Article

THE SUNDAYS OF PASCHA - A very informative article on the Sundays of Pascha, from St Thomas to The Blind Man, by Fr. Thomas Hopko, included in The Orthodox Faith catechetical series.

ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN MEDITATIONS, by our pastor, Fr. Steven Kostoff.  Fr. Steven's own meditations, interspersed with brief insights from saints and fathers of the Orthodox Church, present a golden thread through the Paschal Season, nowhere more evident than in Fr. Steven's newest full-length article, The Resurrection of Christ and the Rise of Christianity (PDF format).

FROM PASCHA TO PENTECOST - A rich and comprehensive article from the MYSTAGOGY blog, covering the entire period from Pascha through to the Apostles' Fast and the Feast of Sts Peter and Paul.

Visit FEAST OF FEASTS - "An Orthodox Christian Celebration of Holy Pascha and the Resurrection of Christ," an online collaboration of the Antiochian Archdiocese and the OCA.

REMEMBER, we do not offer the opening prayer to the Holy Spirit, "O Heavenly King, O Comforter," until Pentecost! Instead we sing "Christ is Risen from the dead, trampling down death by death! And upon those in the  tombs bestowing life!" This Paschal Troparion is sung until Ascension Thursday.

When Mary became of age, according to Hebrew custom of the time, she could no longer stay at the Temple [see the section on the Entry of the Theotokos into the Temple, Nov 15], but had to either return to her parents or marry. Since Joachim and Anna had died, and Mary had proclaimed her vow of celibacy to the High Priest, it was decided to betroth her to an elderly distant relative who would protect and care for her. She, therefore, went to live in Nazareth with the elderly Joseph, who was a carpenter. Here according to tradition, while Mary was reading from the prophet Isaiah about the birth of the Messiah to a virgin, the angel Gabriel appeared to her. "And the angel came in unto her and said, "Hail, thou who art highly favored, the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women.' And when she saw him, she was troubled at his saying and cast about in her mind what manner of salutation this should be. And the angel said unto her, 'Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found favor with God. And behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb and bring forth a Son, and shalt call His name JESUS. He shall be great and shall be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God shall give unto Him the throne of His father David, and He shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of His Kingdom there shall be no end.' Then said Mary unto the angel, 'How shall this be, seeing I know not a man?' And the angel answered and said unto her, 'The Holy Spirit shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee. Therefore also that Holy Being who shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.' . . . And Mary said, 'Behold the handmaid of the Lord. Be it unto me according to thy word." And the angel departed from her" (Luke 1: 28-38).

In the Russian language this holy day is called Blagovescheniye - "the announcement of glad tidings," because this was the first time that the glad tidings of the coming of the Savior were proclaimed to the world. Annunciation generally falls during the Great Lent, but it is of such great importance that it is still celebrated even if it coincides with Holy Friday or Pascha.

From the very beginning, the Church saw in the Mother of God one who would pray for all of mankind. She is the haven of the mothers of the world. She teaches how to live in total faithfulness to the will of God. She, who kept in her heart the divine words, is an example of faithfulness, love and service.

From: Missionary Leaflet # E50
Copyright © 1999 and Published by
Holy Protection Russian Orthodox Church, Los Angeles, CA
Editor: Bishop Alexander (Mileant)

• She in Whom Salvation was Begun - Article from Monachos.net
• Sermon on the Annunciation - St. Proklos, Patriarch of Constantinople
  
• Explanation of the Annunciation, from The Orthodox Faith, by Fr. Thomas Hopko
  

Over the past few years we have created two significant online resources for those seeking to enter into the 'bright sadness' of Great Lent in order to stir themselves to renewed zeal and love for Christ our True God. For 2010, we have added several new articles and features to each, and checked all our links, so as to present as helpful a set of resources as possible:

The Fast of the Nativity is a time of preparation of the soul, an ascetical journey — not as rigorous as Great Lent perhaps, but ascetical still — one that is joyously opposed to the frivolous spirit of the world. From a superb article on Monachos.net:

In the city of Nazareth there dwelt a God-fearing elderly couple, Joachim, from the house of David, and Anna, from the priestly tribe of Aaron. In those days Hebrews, awaiting the Messiah, believed that any one who did not have children had in some way offended God and was being punished by having no descendants to be part of the Messiah's kingdom. Joachim and Anna grieved greatly because they were childless. Despite the ridicule and reproaches that Joachim and Anna received from their neighbors, they did not lose hope but continually prayed that God might grant them a child, which they promised to dedicate to the service of God. For their patience, their faith and their love of God and of each other, their prayers were heard: a daughter was born to them in their old age. An angel directed them to name the child Mary, which in Hebrew means "lady and hope." The one who was to be the Mother of God was born into a righteous family, known more throughout the generations for its goodness than for its royal blood.

Troparion - Tone 4

Your Nativity, O Virgin,
Has proclaimed joy to the whole universe!
The Sun of Righteousness, Christ our God,
Has shone from You, O Theotokos!
By annulling the curse,
He bestowed a blessing.
By destroying death, He has granted us eternal Life.


Kontakion - Tone 4

By Your Nativity, O Most Pure Virgin,
Joachim and Anna are freed from barrenness;
Adam and Eve, from the corruption of death.
And we, your people, freed from the guilt of sin,
celebrate and sing to you:
The barren woman gives birth to the Theotokos, the nourisher of our life!