Dearly Beloved in Christ,

Glory be to Jesus Christ!

On Monday, September 1st is the commencement of the New Liturgical Year for the Orthodox Liturgical Calendar. ‘The Orthodox Way’ is a phrase often used to depict what the Orthodox Church is because, as important as its teachings and doctrines are, they do not portray the full picture. To live as an Orthodox, we need to embrace its Tradition. That includes its Sacred Scripture, canons, doctrines and teachings, iconography, monastic life, church architecture, devotions, fasting practices, the lives of the saints and liturgical life. These aspects need to be in the center of our lives.

The liturgical calendar is an important key to understanding what this life is. The Orthodox Church lives according to its seasons. They include the Triodion of Great Lent, Holy Week, Pascha and Pentecost; the fasts and preparation for the celebrations of the Nativity of Christ, for the Blessed Virgin, especially for her Dormition, Saints Peter and Paul, as well as the daily commemoration of individual saints. Every one of these cycles has designated prayers to be used along with a synaxis (description) of the occasion. The overall effect, if embraced fully, will help us to live out the Christ’s call to repent, to live a life of humility, to be compassionate and forgiving and to focus on the Kingdom of God. If we strive to do these things, the Holy Spirit will help us to see that the Kingdom of God is within us and that we belong to the Communion of Saints.

Icons are another important part of the Tradition of the Orthodox Church. Every Orthodox Church structure contains images that seek to depict God’s plan of salvation. One aspect of that plan is the universe God has created. This universe reflects the glory of God. In almost every Orthodox Church one walks into, one sees the color blue in the background. It depicts the light of the Godhead that spreads throughout and permeates all of creation. Some churches take this further and depict stars all over the church ceiling. Thus, it is not only about the biblical stories and saints but the whole of the created universe. It is something the Orthodox Church does not want us to forget. Thus, it is very appropriate that the Church commemorates creation at the beginning of its liturgical year.

I have written previously about the scriptures and their many, many references to the created universe. The liturgical prayers of the Church also refer to creation many times, especially with major the feasts. I will not write about these themes here.

As members of the Communion of Saints, we too, have a role to play in fulfilling God’s plan of salvation in regard to creation. The first is to remember God’s creation when we wake up each morning and also when we are about to go to sleep. In the morning, thank Him for the many blessings He has gives us. The Church lists various Psalms to guide us in this task. The second is to pray for His creation. This is what He has called us to do. We have been given the extraordinary and sacred gift, through our baptism, of being able to intercede on behalf of the created world. The created world is suffering because of the sin of Adam and Eve. Never presume that we can leave creation to its own devices. God wants us to pray for it! The sacrament of Chrismation was given to us to call upon the Holy Spirit to help us to do so. With these two sacraments in which we are born again, as Jesus told Nicodemus, we have the ability to transform all that we encounter if we repent and pray with humility. The third is to embrace His creation through Christ’s body and blood in the sacrament of the Eucharist. He gave us elements of creation to eat His body and drink His blood to gain life not just for ourselves but for all of creation.

There is a pietistic tendency in the Western Churches to think that when we pray, all we need to pray for is ourselves and our families and so, God does not need prayers for creation from us. Nothing could be further from the truth! There is a spinoff from this thinking that presumes we do not have to worry about creation and our planet because God will take care of it. After all, He created it. From the very beginning, God told Adam and Eve to care for and name creation. That command is still with us but His command to have dominion over it does not exempt us from caring for it. To the contrary, just like St. Paul wrote about Christ and His Church in regard to husbands being the head of the household, he does not exempt the husband from caring for his wife like he cares for his own body!

We have been given a very solemn responsibility therefore to do what we can to care for creation. I have also previously written about the types of steps and choices we can make to limit our impact on the planet but with these suggestions I need to give a warning.
The scriptures are very clear about our responsibilities in caring for creation so, follow those and the teachings of the Church, not politicians and business people. They are needed in society but that need does not put them above what the Tradition of the Church has taught us about these things.

As disciples of Christ, whether it be in regard to creation or, whether it be any teachings of Christ, the fallen world will hate us for following Him and His Cross and not what they want us to adhere to.

Wishing you every blessing for the upcoming ecclesiastical year,

Yours, in Christ,

Archpriest Terence Baz
Holy Assumption Church
Clifton NJ
2025