Monthly Archives: April 2015

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John Chrysostom: Part 3: The Second Banishment and Death

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Myself

By T.V. Antony Raj

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Statue of St John Chrysostom, at St Patrick's cathedral, New York City. (Source: wikimedia commons)
Statue of St John Chrysostom, at St Patrick’s cathedral, New York City. (Source: wikimedia commons)

 

Even though exiled, John Chrysostom found it possible to correspond with his supporters in Constantinople. He was still able to exert a measure of influence in his cause. His correspondences were discovered. Word came from Constantinople that he was to be removed from Caucasus to an even more remote place at the eastern end of the Black Sea to a so-called castellum, a rectangular fortress with towers at each corner, built by the Romans in the 2nd century AD in Pitiunt, in modern Abkhazia.

Imperial officials forced John Chrysostom to walk in bad weather to his new place of exile. He did not survive the exhausting journey. He died at Comana Pontica on September 14, 407. His last words are said to have been, “δόξα τῷ θεῷ πάντων ἕνεκεν”, meaning “Glory be to God for all things.“

After John Chrysostom’s death, people venerated him as a saint. Three decades later, some of his adherents in Constantinople remained in schism. Saint Proclus, the then Patriarch of Constantinople (434-446), hoping to bring about the reconciliation of these Johannites, preached a homily  in the Church of Hagia Sophia, praising his predecessor  He said:

“O John, your life was filled with sorrow, but your death was glorious. Your grave is blessed and reward is great, by the grace and mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ O graced one, having conquered the bounds of time and place! Love has conquered space, unforgetting memory has annihilated the limits, and place does not hinder the miracles of the saint.“

These homilies helped to mobilize public opinion.

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Coffin of St. John Chrysostom in Komani, Georgia.
Coffin of St. John Chrysostom in Komani, Georgia.

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The patriarch Patriarch of Constantinople received permission from the Emperor Theodosius II, son of Arcadius and Eudoxia, to return Chrysostom’s relics from Comana to Constantinople. On January 28, 438, the relics were solemnly received by the Archbishop Proclus and the Emperor Theodosius II and enshrined in the Church of the Holy Apostles.

The Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches commemorate John Chrysostom as a “Great Ecumenical Teacher” and honour him as a saint. They count him among the Three Holy Hierarchs, together with Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzus. These three saints, in addition to having their own individual feast days, are commemorated together on January 30, a feast known as the  feast known as the honour him as a saint. They count him among the Three Holy Hierarchs, together with Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzus. These three saints, in addition to having their own individual feast days, are commemorated together on January 30, a feast known as the  feast known as the honour him as a saint. They count him among the Three Holy Hierarchs, together with Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzus. These three saints, in addition to having their own individual feast days, are commemorated together on January 30, a feast known as the  feast known as the Synaxis of the Three Hierarchs.

There are several feast days dedicated to him:

  • 27 January, Translation of the relics of St John Chrysostom from Comana to Constantinople. Some Lutheran and many Anglican provinces commemorate him on this traditional eastern feast.
  • 30 January, Synaxis of the Three Great Hierarchs.
  • The Churches of the western tradition, including the Roman Catholic Church, some Anglican provinces, and parts of the Lutheran Church commemorate him on 13 September (Western feast day).
  • 14 September, Repose of St John Chrysostom
  • 13 November, St John Chrysostom the Archbishop of Constantinople (Eastern feast day).

The Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria also recognizes John Chrysostom as a saint (with feast days on 16 Thout and 17 Hathor).

Here is an excerpt from one of John Chrysostom’s Homilies on confessing one’s sins:

“Are you a sinner? Do not become discouraged, and come to Church to put forward repentance. Have you sinned? Then tell God, ‘I have sinned.’

What manner of toil is this, what prescribed the course of life, what affliction? What manner of difficulty is it to make one statement, ‘I have sinned’?

Perhaps if you do not call yourself a sinner, you do not have the devil as an accuser? Anticipate this and snatch the honor away from him, because it is his purpose to accuse. Therefore, why do you not prevent him, and why do you not tell your sin and wipe it out, since you know that you have such an accuser who cannot remain silent?do you not prevent him, and why do you not tell your sin and wipe it out, since you know that you have such an accuser who cannot remain silent?

Have you sinned? Come to Church. Tell God, ‘I have sinned.’

I do not demand anything else of you than this. Holy Scripture states, ‘Be the first one to tell of your transgressions, so you may be justified.’ Admit the sin to annul it. This requires neither labor nor a circuit of words nor monetary expenditure nor anything else whatsoever such as these.

Say one word, think carefully about the sin and say, ‘I have sinned.’”

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← Previous: Part 2: The Bishop of Constantinople

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John Chrysostom: Part 2: The Bishop of Constantinople

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Myself

By T.V. Antony Raj

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Saint John Chrysostom (Hagios Ioannis Chrysostomos) of Antioch. An early Byzantine mosaic from the Cathedral of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople. The mosaic is approximately 1,000 years old.
Saint John Chrysostom (Hagios Ioannis Chrysostomos) of Antioch. An early Byzantine mosaic from the Cathedral of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople. The mosaic is approximately 1,000 years old.

 

On September 27, 397, Nectarius, Bishop of Constantinople, died. There was a general rivalry in the capital for the vacant see.

After some months, to the great disappointment of the rival factions, Emperor Arcadius, at the suggestion of his minister Eutropius, asked the Prefect of Antioch to send John Chrysostom to Constantinople without the knowledge of the people of Antioch, due to fears that the departure of such a popular figure would cause civil unrest.

John Chrysostom was hurried to the capital. On February 26, 398 Theophilus, Patriarch of Alexandria ordained John Chrysostom as Bishop of Constantinople in the presence of a great assembly of bishops.

The life in Constantinople was more turbulent than what John Chrysostom  had at Antioch. As Archbishop of Constantinople, he refused to host lavish social gatherings. This made him popular with the common people, but unpopular with the wealthy citizens. He became unpopular with the clergy for his reforms of the clergy. He told visiting regional preachers to return to the churches they were serving, without any payout.

Here is an excerpt from a homily by St. John Chrysostom on the Gospel of Matthew (Hom. 50, 3-4, PG 58, 508-509). In this homily, he warns against adorning Church buildings at the expense of caring for the suffering members of the Church:

Do you want to honor Christ’s body? Then do not scorn him in his nakedness, nor honor him here in the church with silken garments while neglecting him outside where he is cold and naked. For he who said: This is my body and made it so by his words, also said: “You saw me hungry and did not feed me, and inasmuch as you did not do it for one of these, the least of my brothers, you did not do it for me.” What we do here in the church requires a pure heart, not special garments; what we do outside requires great dedication.

Let us learn, therefore, to be men of wisdom and to honor Christ as he desires. For a person being honoured finds greatest pleasure in the honor he desires, not in the honor we think best. Peter thought he was honoring Christ when he refused to let him wash his feet, but what Peter wanted was not truly an honour, quite the opposite! Give him the honour prescribed in his law by giving your riches to the poor. For God does not want golden vessels but golden hearts.

Now, in saying this I am not forbidding you to make such gifts; I am only demanding that along with such gifts and before them you give alms. He accepts the former, but he is much more pleased with the latter. In the former, only the giver profits; in the latter, the recipient does too.

A gift to the church may be taken as a form of ostentation, but an alms is pure kindness. Of what use is it to weigh down Christ’s table with golden cups, when he himself is dying of hunger? First, fill him when he is hungry; then use the means you have left to adorn his table. Will you have a golden cup made, but not give a cup of water?

What is the use of providing the table with cloths woven of gold thread, and not providing Christ himself with the clothes he needs?

What profit is there in that? Tell me: If you were to see him lacking the necessary food, but were to leave him in that state and merely surround his table with gold would he be grateful to you or rather would he not be angry?

What if you were to see him clad in worn-out rags and stiff from the cold, and were to forget about clothing him and instead were to set up golden columns for him, saying that you were doing it in his honour? Would he not think he was being mocked and greatly insulted?

Apply this also to Christ when he comes along the roads as a pilgrim, looking for shelter. You do not take him in as your guest, but you decorate floors and walls and the capitals of the pillars. You provide silver chains for the lamps, but you cannot bear even to look at him as he lies chained in prison.

Once again, I am not forbidding you to supply these adornments; I am urging you to provide these other things as well, and indeed to provide them first. No one has ever been accused of not providing ornaments, but for those who neglect their neighbour a hell awaits with an inextinguishable fire and torment in the company of the demons. Do not, therefore, adorn the church and ignore your afflicted brother, for he is the most precious temple of all.

In 399, through the intervention of John Chrysostom and the influence of the emperor Theodosius I, Flavian was acknowledged as the sole legitimate bishop of Antioch.

Theophilus, the Patriarch of Alexandria, wanted to bring Constantinople under his jurisdiction. He opposed John’s appointment as Bishop of Constantinople, even though he had ordained him under duress instead of securing the appointment for Isidore, his own candidate. At that time, Theophilus had disciplined four Egyptian monks, known as “the Tall Brothers,” over their support of Origen’s teachings.

Origen (184/185 – 253/254) was a scholar and an early Christian theologian. He was a prolific writer in many branches of theology, including textual criticism, biblical exegesis and hermeneutics, philosophical theology, preaching, and spirituality. Some of his reputed teachings, such as the pre-existence of souls, the final reconciliation of all creatures, including perhaps even the devil (the apokatastasis), and the subordination of the Son of God to God the Father, later became controversial among Christian theologians.

The Tall Brothers fled to Constantinople and were welcomed by John Chrysostom. Theophilus accused John of being too partial to the teaching of Origen.

John Chrysostom made another enemy in Aelia Eudoxia, the Empress consort of the Byzantine Emperor Arcadius. Eudoxia assumed that his denunciations of extravagance in feminine dress were aimed at herself.

In 403 AD, Theophilus Eudoxia, and other of enemies of John Chrysostom held a synod (the Synod of the Oak) to charge John Chrysostom. They used his connection to the four Egyptian monks who espoused the teachings of Origen against him. Eventually, this resulted in the deposition and banishment of John Chrysostom from Constantinople.

The people rioted over the deposition and banishment of John Chrysostom. Also, on the night of his arrest, there was an earthquake.  A frightened Aelia Eudoxia considered it as a sign of God’s anger. She beseeched Arcadius to reinstate John Chrysostom as Bishop of Constantinople.

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John Chrysostom confronting Aelia Eudoxia, in a 19th-century painting by Jean-Paul Laurens (1838-1921).
John Chrysostom confronting Aelia Eudoxia, in a 19th-century painting by Jean-Paul Laurens (1838-1921).

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However, peace between John Chrysostom and Eudoxia was short-lived. A silver statue of Eudoxia was erected in the Augustaion, near his cathedral. John Chrysostom denounced the dedication ceremonies. He spoke against her in harsh terms alluding to the events surrounding the death of John the Baptist:

“Again Herodias raves; again she is troubled; she dances again; and again desires to receive John’s head in a charger.“

Once again, John Chrysostom was banished, this time to the Caucasus, a region at the border of Europe and Asia, situated between the Black and the Caspian seas.

John Chrysostom wrote an appeal for help to three churchmen: Innocent I,  the Bishop of Rome (Pope);  Venerius, the Bishop of Milan; and Chromatius, the Bishop of Aquileia.

Pope Innocent protested against the banishment of John Chrysostom from Constantinople to the Caucasus. With the help of the western emperor Honorius, the Pope attempted to intervene, but the enemies of John Chrysostom thwarted his efforts. In 405, Pope Innocent sent a delegation to intercede on behalf of John. But the delegation never reached Constantinople.

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Next → Part  3: The Second Banishment and Death

← Previous: Part 1- Where Can You Find God?

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John Chrysostom: Part 1- Where Can You Find God?

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Myself

By T.V. Antony Raj

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If you cannot find Christ

 

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Saint John Chrysostom, Archbishop of Constantinople, was an important Early Church Father. He is considered the most prominent doctor of the Greek Church and the greatest preacher ever heard in a Christian pulpit. He is known for his preaching and public speaking. The zeal and his clarity of preaching appealed to all, especially the common people. This earned him the Greek surname “kihrys stymo” (χρυσή στόμιο) meaning “golden-mouthed.” He denounced the abuse of authority by both ecclesiastical and political leaders.

John Chrysostom was born in Antioch in 349 AD to Greco-Syrian parents.

In the fourth century, at the time of John Chrysostom’s birth, Antioch was the second city of the eastern part of the Roman Empire.  Throughout the fourth century, religious struggles troubled the empire. Pagans, Manichaeans, Gnostics, Arians, Apollinarians, Jews, made their proselytes at Antioch. The Christians were themselves separated by the schism between Bishop Meletius and Bishop Paulinus for the bishopric of Antioch.

John Chrysostom’s father, Secundus, a high-ranking military officer died soon after his birth. His widowed mother Anthusa, only twenty years of age, took the sole charge of her two children John and an elder sister. She raised him in piety. Using her influence in the city, she had him study under a distinguished pagan rhetorician, Libanius, the most tenacious adherent of the declining paganism of Rome. Soon John acquired the skills for a career in rhetoric, as well as a love of the Greek language and literature.

About 367 AD, he met the Bishop Meletius. John captivated by the earnest, mild, and the winning character of the bishop frequented the sermons of Meletius. He studied Holy Scripture and soon began to withdraw from classical and profane studies and devoted himself
to an ascetic and religious life.

According to the Christian historian Sozomen, Libanius was supposed to have said on his deathbed that John Chrysostom would have been his successor “if the Christians had not taken him from us“.

About three years later John Chrysostom received Holy Baptism and was ordained lector. Later, the young cleric, desiring a perfect life entered one of the ascetic societies near Antioch.

About 375 AD, John Chrysostom resolved to live as an anchorite in one of the caves near Antioch. There, he followed extreme asceticism. He spent the next two years, continually standing and fasting in frost and cold, committing the Bible to memory. He scarcely slept at all. As a consequence of these harsh practices, his stomach and kidneys were damaged. He returned to Antioch to regain his health and resumed his office as lector in the church.

John Chrysostom was ordained as a deacon probably in 381 AD by Bishop Meletius of Antioch, president of the Second Ecumenical Council. After the death of Bishop Meletius in Constantinople in the same year, Flavian I of Antioch (ca. 320 – February 404) was ordained as bishop or Patriarch of Antioch. The Bishop of Rome and the Patriarch of Alexandria refused to acknowledge Flavian, and Paulinus, who by the extreme Eustathians had been elected bishop in opposition to Meletius, continued to exercise authority over a portion of the church.

John Chrysostom separated himself from the followers of Bishop Meletius, but he did not join Bishop Paulinus.

On the death of Bishop  Paulinus in about 383, Evagrius was chosen as his successor. In 386 AD, John Chrysostom was ordained as a presbyter (a priest) by Evagrius.

Note: Actually, there is a difference of opinion on who ordained John Chrysostom as a presbyter. Some authors claim it was Bishop Flavian I, while others say it was Bishop Evagrius.

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St. John Chrysostom (Source: integrated atholiclife.org)
St. John Chrysostom (Source: integrated atholiclife.org)

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For 12 years, from 386 AD to 397 AD, John Chrysostom became popular for the eloquence of his public speaking at the Golden Church, Antioch’s cathedral. People liked his clear expositions of Biblical passages and moral teachings. The themes of his talks were eminently social. He explained the Christian’s conduct in life. His straightforward understanding of the Scriptures were in contrast to the Alexandrian tendency towards allegorical interpretation.

One incident that happened during John Chrysostom’s service in Antioch illustrates best the influence of his sermons.

Emperor Theodosius I, also called Theodosius the Great ruled from 379 to 395 made Christianity the official state religion of the Roman Empire. He was the last emperor to rule over both the eastern and western portions of the Roman Empire. He was a strong defender of the Orthodox Christian faith and honoured  as a saint.

When John Chrysostom arrived in Antioch its citizens were on a riotous rampage. They   mutilated the statues of the Emperor and his family. The Bishop had to intervene with the Emperor on behalf of the citizens of Antioch.

During the weeks of Lent in 387 AD, John Chrysostom preached 21 sermons in which he entreated the people to see the error of their ways. These sermons had a lasting impression on the citizens of Antioch. This resulted in many pagans converting to Christianity. Due to the conversions, Theodosius’ vengeance on the citizens of Antioch subdued and was not as severe as it might have been.

The most valuable of his works from this period are the Homilies he wrote on various books of the Bible.

He was most concerned with the spiritual and temporal needs of the poor. He spoke out against abuse of wealth and personal property. He particularly emphasized alms and charitable giving:

Do you wish to honour the body of Christ?

Do not ignore him when he is naked. Do not pay him homage in the temple clad in silk, only then to neglect him outside where he is cold and ill-clad.

He who said: “This is my body” is the same who said: “You saw me hungry and you gave me no food”, and “Whatever you did to the least of my brothers you did also to me”…

What good is it if the Eucharistic table is overloaded with golden chalices when your brother is dying of hunger? Start by satisfying his hunger and then with what is left you may adorn the altar as well.

After the death of Evagrius (c. 393), Flavian succeeded in preventing the election of a successor. However, the Eustathians still continued to hold separate meetings.

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Next → Part 2:  The Bishop of Constantinople

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Cricket, India, IPL 2015, Sports, This is Life, tvaraj

Cricket: Pepsi IPL 2015 (IPL 8) Tournament Schedule

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Myself

By T.V. Antony Raj

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The Teams
CSK (Custom) DD (Custom) KXI (Custom) KKR (Custom)
MI (Custom) RR (Custom) RCB (Custom) SH (Custom)

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Team Captains
IPL Captains (Source: iplt20.com)
IPL Captains (Source: iplt20.com)

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 Pepsi IPL 2015 (IPL 8) Tournament Schedule
Match 1
Wednesday,
8th April 2015
Match 51 (Custom)
 Mumbai Indians
vs Kolkata Knight Riders
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Eden Gardens,
Kolkata.
Match 2
Thursday,
9th April 2015		  Match 2 (Custom) Chennai Super Kings
vs Delhi Daredevils
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai.
Match 3
Friday,
10th April 2015		  Match 3 (Custom) Kings XI Punjab
vs Rajasthan Royals
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
MCA International Stadium, Pune.
Match 4
Saturday,
11th April 2015		  Match 4 (Custom) Chennai Super Kings
vs Sunrisers Hyderabad
4:00 pm IST (10:30 GMT)
Chidambaram Stadium,
Chennai.
Match 5
Saturday,
11th April 2015		  Match 5 (Custom) Kolkata Knight Riders
vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
 Eden Gardens,
Kolkata.
Match 6
Sunday,
12th April 2015		  Match 6 (Custom) Delhi Daredevils
vs Rajasthan Royals
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Ferozeshah Kotla,
Delhi.
Match 7
Sunday,
12th April 2015		  Match 7 (Custom) Mumbai Indians
vs Kings XI Punjab
4:00 pm IST (10:30 GMT)
Wankhede Stadium,
Mumbai.
Match 8
Monday,
13th April 2015		  Match 8 (Custom) Royal Challengers Bangalore
vs Sunrisers Hyderabad
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru.
Match 9
Tuesday,
14th April 2015		  Match 9 (Custom) Rajasthan Royals
vs Mumbai Indians
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Sardar Patel Stadium, Ahmedabad.
Match 10
Wednesday,
15th April 2015		  Match 10 (Custom) Kings XI Punjab
vs Delhi Daredevils
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
MCA International Stadium, Pune.
Match 11
Thursday,
16th April 2015		  Match 11 (Custom) Sunrisers Hyderabad
vs Rajasthan Royals
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
ACA-VDCA Stadium, Visakhapatnam.
Match 12
Friday,
17th April 2015		  Match 12 (Custom) Mumbai Indians
vs Chennai Super Kings
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Wankhede Stadium,
Mumbai.
Match 13
Saturday,
18th April 2015		  Match 13 (Custom) Sunrisers Hyderabad
vs Delhi Daredevils
4:00 pm IST (10:30 GMT)
ACA-VDCA Stadium,
Visakhapatnam.
Match 14
Saturday,
18th April 2015		  Match 14 (Custom) Kings XI Punjab
vs Kolkata Knight Riders
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
MCA International Stadium, Pune.
Match 15
Sunday,
19th April 2015		  Match 15 (Custom) Rajasthan Royals
vs Chennai Super Kings
4:00 pm IST (10:30 GMT)
Sardar Patel Stadium, Ahmedabad.
Match 16
Sunday,
19th April 2015		  Match 16 (Custom) Royal Challengers Bangalore
vs Mumbai Indians
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru.
Match 17
Monday,
20th April 2015		  Match 17 (Custom) Delhi Daredevils
vs Kolkata Knight Riders
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Ferozeshah Kotla,
Delhi.
Match 18
Tuesday,
21st April 2015		  Match 18 (Custom) Rajasthan Royals
vs Kings XI Punjab
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Sardar Patel Stadium,
Ahmedabad.
Match 19
Wednesday,
 22nd April 2015		  Match 19 (Custom) Sunrisers Hyderabad
vs Kolkata Knight Riders
4:00 pm IST (10:30 GMT)
ACA-VDCA Stadium,
Visakhapatnam.
Match 20
Wednesday,
22nd April 2015		  Match 20 (Custom) Royal Challengers Bangalore
vs Chennai Super Kings
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Chinnaswamy Stadium,
Bengaluru.
Match 21
Thursday,
23rd April 2015		  Match 21 (Custom) Delhi Daredevils
vs Mumbai Indians
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Ferozeshah Kotla,
Delhi.
Match 22
Friday,
24th April 2015		  Match 22 (Custom) Rajasthan Royals
vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Sardar Patel Stadium,
Ahmedabad.
Match 23
Saturday,
25th April 2015		  Match 23 (Custom) Mumbai Indians
vs Sunrisers Hyderabad
4:00 pm IST (10:30 GMT)
Wankhede Stadium,
Mumbai.
Match 24
Saturday,
25th April 2015		  Match 24 (Custom) Chennai Super Kings
vs Kings XI Punjab
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Chidambaram Stadium,
Chennai.
Match 25
Sunday,
26th April 2015		  Match 25 (Custom) Kolkata Knight Riders
vs Rajasthan Royals
4:00 pm IST (10:30 GMT)
Eden Gardens,
Kolkata.
Match 26
Sunday,
26th April 2015		  Match 26 (Custom) Delhi Daredevils
vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Ferozeshah Kotla,
Delhi.
Match 27
Monday,
27th April 2015		  Match 27 (Custom) Kings XI Punjab
vs Sunrisers Hyderabad
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Punjab Cricket Association
Stadium,
Mohali.
Match 28
Tuesday,
28th April 2015		  Match 28 (Custom) Chennai Super Kings
vs Kolkata Knight Riders
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Chidambaram Stadium,
Chennai.
Match 29
Wednesday,
29th April 2015		  Match 29 (Custom) Royal Challengers Bangalore
vs Rajasthan Royals
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Chinnaswamy Stadium,
Bengaluru.
Match 30
Thursday,
30th April 2015		  Match 30 (Custom) Kolkata Knight Riders
vs Chennai Super Kings
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Eden Gardens,
Kolkata.
Match 31
Friday,
1st May 2015		  Match 31 (Custom) Delhi Daredevils
vs Kings XI Punjab
4:00 pm IST (10:30 GMT)
Ferozeshah Kotla,
Delhi.
Match 32
Friday,
1st May 2015		  Match 32 (Custom) Mumbai Indians
vs Rajasthan Royals
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Wankhede Stadium,
Mumbai.
Match 33
Saturday,
2nd May 2015		  Match 33 (Custom) Royal Challengers Bangalore
vs Kolkata Knight Riders
4:00 pm IST (10:30 GMT)
Chinnaswamy Stadium,
Bengaluru.
Match 34
Saturday,
2nd May 2015		  Match 34 (Custom) Sunrisers Hyderabad
vs Chennai Super Kings
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium,
Hyderabad.
Match 35
Sunday,
3rd May 2015		  Match 35 (Custom) Kings XI Punjab
vs Mumbai Indians
4:00 pm IST (10:30 GMT)
Punjab Cricket Association Stadium,
Mohali.
Match 36
Sunday,
3rd May 2015		  Match 36 (Custom) Rajasthan Royals
vs Delhi Daredevils
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Brabourne Stadium,
Mumbai
Match 37
Monday,
4th May 2015		  Match 37 (Custom) Chennai Super Kings
vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
4:00 pm IST (10:30 GMT) 
Chidambaram Stadium,
Chennai.
Match 38
Monday,
4th May 2015		  Match 38 (Custom) Kolkata Knight Riders
vs Sunrisers Hyderabad
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Eden Gardens,
Kolkata.
Match 39
Tuesday,
5th May 2015		  Match 39 (Custom) Mumbai Indians
vs Delhi Daredevils
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Wankhede Stadium,
Mumbai.
Match 40
Wednesday,
6th May 2015		  Match 40 (Custom) Royal Challengers Bangalore
vs Kings XI Punjab
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Chinnaswamy Stadium,
Bengaluru.
Match 41
Thursday,
7th May 2015		  Match 41 (Custom) Rajasthan Royals
vs Sunrisers Hyderabad
4:00 pm IST (10:30 GMT)
Brabourne Stadium,
Mumbai
Match 42
Thursday,
7th May 2015		  Match 42 (Custom) Kolkata Knight Riders
vs Delhi Daredevils
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Eden Gardens,
Kolkata.
Match 43
Friday,
8th May 2015		  Match 43 (Custom) Chennai Super Kings
vs Mumbai Indians
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Chidambaram Stadium,
Chennai.
Match 44
Saturday,
9th May 2015		  Match 44 (Custom) Kolkata Knight Riders
vs Kings XI Punjab
4:00 pm IST (10:30 GMT)
Eden Gardens,
Kolkata.
Match 45
Saturday,
9th May 2015		  Match 45 (Custom) Delhi Daredevils
vs Sunrisers Hyderabad
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Chhattisgarh International Cricket Stadium,
Raipur.
Match 46
Sunday,
10th May 2015		  Match 46 (Custom) Mumbai Indians
vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
4:00 pm IST (10:30 GMT)
Wankhede Stadium,
Mumbai.
Match 47
Sunday,
10th May 2015		  Match 47 (Custom) Chennai Super Kings
vs Rajasthan Royals
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Chidambaram Stadium,
Chennai.
Match 48
Monday,
11th May 2015		  Match 48 (Custom) Sunrisers Hyderabad
vs Kings XI Punjab
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium,
Hyderabad.
Match 49
Tuesday,
12th May 2015		  Match 49 (Custom) Delhi Daredevils
vs Chennai Super Kings
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Chhattisgarh International Cricket Stadium,
Raipur.
Match 50
Wednesday,
13th May 2015		  Match 50 (Custom) Kings XI Punjab
vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT) 
Punjab Cricket Association Stadium,
Mohali.
Match 51
Thursday,
14th May 2015		  Match 51 (Custom) Mumbai Indians
vs Kolkata Knight Riders
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Wankhede Stadium,
Mumbai.
Match 52
Friday,
15th May 2015		  Match 52 (Custom) Sunrisers Hyderabad
vs Royal Challengers Bangalore
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium,
Hyderabad.
Match 53
Saturday,
16th May 2015		  Match 53 (Custom) Kings XI Punjab
vs Chennai Super Kings
4:00 pm IST (10:30 GMT)
Punjab Cricket Association Stadium,
Mohali.
Match 54
Saturday,
16th May 2015		  Match 54 (Custom) Rajasthan Royals
vs Kolkata Knight Riders
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Brabourne Stadium, Mumbai
Match 55
Sunday,
17th May 2015		  Match 55 (Custom) Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Delhi Daredevils
4:00 pm IST (10:30 GMT)
Chinnaswamy Stadium,
Bengaluru.
Match 56
Sunday,
17th May 2015		  Match 56 (Custom) Sunrisers Hyderabad
vs Mumbai Indians
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium,
Hyderabad.
Match 57
Tuesday,
19th May 2015		  TBD vs TBD (Custom) Qualifier 1
First Placed Team
vs Second Placed Team
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
TBC, TBC
Match 58
Wednesday,
20th May 2015		  TBD vs TBD (Custom) Eliminator
Third Placed Team
vs Fourth Placed Team
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
TBC, TBC
Match 59
Friday,
22nd May 2015		  TBD vs TBD (Custom) Qualifier 2
Winner of Eliminator
vs Looseers of  Qualifier 1
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
TBC, TBC
Match 60
Sunday,
24th May 2015		  TBD vs TBD (Custom) Final
Winner of Qualifier 1
vs Winner of Qualifier 2
8:00 pm IST (14:30 GMT)
Eden Gardens,
Kolkata

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Some Legends of the Easter (Paschal) Eggs.

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Myself

By T.V. Antony Raj

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Hand Painted Easte Eggs (Source: menorca-live.com)
Hand Painted Easte Eggs (Source: menorca-live.com)

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On Easter Sunday, at the end of the Paschal Liturgy, the faithful exchange Paschal greetings. In some churches the priests and the faithful present each other with Easter (Paschal) eggs.

Wooden eggs with icons hang as decorations from lamps and chandeliers in the churches, and from the vigil lights in the homes. The Coptic Christians of the Orthodox church in Egypt often hang ostrich eggshells in the front of their churches. The eggshells evoke the image of the mother ostrich’s single-minded and calm concentration on the eggs in her nest. It reminds the faithful how they should pray and conduct their spiritual life.

There are many legends about the Easter (or Paschal) Eggs.

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Mater Dolorosa with open hands. Artist: Titian 1555. Prado Museum, Madrid, Spain.
Mater Dolorosa with open hands. Artist: Titian 1555. Prado Museum, Madrid, Spain.

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One apocryphal legend concerns Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ. It tells of the time when she gave eggs to the soldiers at the cross. She entreated them to be less cruel towards her son and wept. As her tears fell upon the eggs, they spotted them with dots of brilliant color.

Through the ages, the egg symbolizing new life and fertility appeared during many spring festivals. To the Egyptians, Persians, Romans, Gauls, and the Chinese, the egg symbolized the rebirth of the earth at springtime.

Saint Augustine, an early Christian theologian and philosopher whose writings influenced the development of western Christianity described the Resurrection of Christ from the dead as “a chick bursting from an egg.” This analogy represents the rebirth of humans through Christ. Hence, the Christians identify the egg with the tomb from which Christ rose and used eggs during Easter celebrations.

Many cite the following apocryphal story as the tradition of the first Easter Egg associated with Mary Magdalene.

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Icon of Saint Mary Magdalene holding a red egg.
Icon of Saint Mary Magdalene holding a red egg.

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Mary of Magdala is a major saint in the East, where she is never associated with women of ill repute and known as being equal to the apostles. She traveled with Jesus as one of his followers and was present at two most important moments in the life of Jesus: the crucifixion and the resurrection.

After the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Christ, Mary Magdalene gained an audience with the Roman emperor Tiberius Julius Caesar. She denounced Pontius Pilate, the fifth prefect of the Roman province of Judaea from 26-36 AD for his mishandling of the trial of Jesus.

She then told the emperor about the resurrection of Jesus. The unconvinced emperor pointed at an egg on the dining table and riposted that there was as much chance of a human being returning to life as there was for the egg to turn red. As soon as the emperor said this the egg miraculously turned red!

Hence, from antiquity, Mary Magdalene has been associated with red color. Most icons of Mary Magdalene show her holding a red egg.

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Red Easter Eggs (Source: psalterstudies.wordpress.com) (Custom)
Red Easter Eggs (Source: psalterstudies.wordpress.com) (Custom)

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From these tales originated the basis for dyeing Easter eggs. While people use all the colors of the rainbow to dye eggs, red is by far the most usual color used, especially in countries of the Eastern Orthodox faith. Sometimes the priests bless the red eggs at Orthodox masses on Easter Sunday.

Chocolate Easter Egg

With changing times, chocolate eggs or plastic eggs filled with confectionery such as jellybeans have replaced the real dyed and painted eggs as gifts.

Fabergé eggs

While the commoners were happy to receive dyed and hand painted real eggs as gifts for Easter, the Russian Tsar Alexander III and his eldest son Tsar Nicholas II presented their wives and mothers jeweled eggs as Easter gifts. The two Tsars commissioned Peter Carl Fabergé and his company between 1885 and 1917 to create a series of 54 jeweled eggs. These eggs were often called the ‘Imperial’ Fabergé eggs.

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Russian Imperial Easter Fabergé egg, the Jeweled Hen Egg from the collection of Fabergé Museum in St. Petersburg.
Russian Imperial Easter Fabergé egg, the Jeweled Hen Egg from the collection of Fabergé Museum in St. Petersburg.

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Peter Carl Fabergé delivered the first Fabergé creation known as the “Jeweled Hen Egg” to Tsar Alexander III in 1885. It featured a seemingly ordinary egg, but inside was a yolk of gold that contained a golden hen with ruby eyes, seated on a nest of gold. Inside the hen was a miniature diamond replica of the royal crown and a ruby egg pendant that could be worn as a necklace. Tsarina Marie Feodorovna was overjoyed with the egg so much that Alexander III ordered a new egg from Fabergé for his wife every Easter thereafter.

While the Hen Egg is among those that have survived, the gifts inside have been lost to time. The Jeweled Hen Egg is currently located in Russia as part of the Vekselberg Collection and is housed in the Fabergé Museum in Saint Petersburg, Russia.

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A few Fabergé Eggs (Source: thesipadvisor.com)
A few Fabergé Eggs (Source: thesipadvisor.com)

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Other famous eggs include the Danish Palaces, Memory of Azov, Diamond Trellis, Caucasus, Renaissance, Rosebud, Twelve Monograms, Imperial Coronation Egg, Lilies-of-the-Valley, etc.

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Easter Vigil: The Light of Christ

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Myself

By T.V. Antony Raj

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Pope Francisattends Easter Vigil 2014 (Source: sacredspace102.blogspot.in)
Pope Francisattends Easter Vigil 2014 (Source: sacredspace102.blogspot.in)

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Easter is a joyful and happy occasion for all Christians. They decorate their churches with flowers and attend church on this day.

In some Christian churches, Easter worship begins at about 11:30 pm on Holy Saturday. At midnight, they ring the bells to tell the world that Christ has risen from the dead.

Roman Catholic monks of the Order of Saint Benedict preparing to light the Christ candle prior to Easter Vigil mass at St. Mary's Abbey in Morristown, New Jersey. (Photo: John Stephen Dwyer)
Roman Catholic monks of the Order of Saint Benedict preparing to light the Christ candle prior to Easter Vigil mass at St. Mary’s Abbey in Morristown, New Jersey. (Photo: John Stephen Dwyer)

In some churches of the Roman Catholics and the Church of England, people will hold a vigil. They will gather outside the church around a bonfire.

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Paschal Candles
Paschal Candles

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The church being in darkness, one of the Deacons or Acolytes (servers) will carry a large unlit candle called the Paschal candle marked with a cross and the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet Alpha (Α) and Omega (Ω).

The Celebrant after blessing the fire will turn towards the person carrying the large candle and prepare the Paschal candle by drawing with his finger or incising in the wax with a stylus a Cross while reciting these words:

Christ yesterday and today, (the vertical beam)
the beginning and the end, (the transverse beam)
Alpha (the Greek letter Α above the vertical beam of the cross)
and Omega, (the Greek letter Ω below the vertical beam of the cross)

Year
all time belongs to Him, (the first numeral of the current year in the upper left-hand angle of the Cross)
and all ages; (the second number of the current year in the upper right-hand angle of the cross)
to Him be glory and power, (the third numeral of the current year in the lower left-hand angle of the Cross)
through every age and for ever. (the fourth numeral of the current year in the lower right-hand angle of the Cross)
Amen.

Next, one of the Acolytes (servers) gives the grains of incense symbolizing the five wounds Christ received at the crucifixion one by one to the Celebrant who inserts them into the candle, saying:

Grains

By his holy (1)
and glorious wounds (2)
may Christ our Lord guard (3)
and keep us. (4)
Amen. (5)

Lighting the Paschal Candle (Source: catholiccourier.com)
Lighting the Paschal Candle (Source: catholiccourier.com)

The Celebrant lights the Paschal candle saying:

May the light of Christ, rising in glory,
banish all darkness from our hearts and minds.

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The Paschal candle is then taken through the church, with the deacon lifting it at three different times, singing: “The Light of Christ” (or Lumen Christi) and the congregation sings in reply: “Thanks be to God” (or Deo Gratias).

Everyone lights their candle from the Paschal candle and join the procession. The Paschal candle symbolizes Christ, the Light of the World.

After the procession with the paschal candle, before the beginning of the Liturgy of the Word, follows the glorious Easter song of the Catholic Church: the Exsultet (spelled in pre-1920 editions of the Roman Missal as Exultet) or Easter Proclamation (Latin: Praeconium Paschale).

The Exsultet is a magnificent hymn of praise sung, by a deacon, before the paschal candle during the Easter Vigil in the Roman Rite of Mass. Exsultet is also used in Anglican and various Lutheran churches, as well as other western Christian denominations.

In the absence of a deacon, a priest or by a cantor may sing the Exsultet.

The lyrics of Exsultet are beautiful and has profound symbolism. It describes the dignity and meaning of the mystery of Easter. It tells of man’s sin, of God’s mercy, and of the great love the Redeemer has for humanity. It admonishes the faithful to thank the Trinity for all the graces lavished upon them.

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Exsultet (Roman Catholic English text)

Exult, let them exult, the hosts of heaven,
exult, let Angel ministers of God exult,
let the trumpet of salvation
sound aloud our mighty King’s triumph!

Be glad, let earth be glad, as glory floods her,
ablaze with light from her eternal King,
let all corners of the earth be glad,
knowing an end to gloom and darkness.

Rejoice, let Mother Church also rejoice,
arrayed with the lightning of his glory,
let this holy building shake with joy,
filled with the mighty voices of the peoples.

(Therefore, dearest friends,
standing in the awesome glory of this holy light,
invoke with me, I ask you,
the mercy of God almighty,
that he, who has been pleased to number me,
though unworthy, among the Levites,
may pour into me his light unshadowed,
that I may sing this candle’s perfect praises).

(Deacon: The Lord be with you.
People: And with your spirit.)
Deacon: Lift up your hearts.
People: We lift them up to the Lord.
Deacon: Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
People: It is right and just.

It is truly right and just,
with ardent love of mind and heart
and with devoted service of our voice,
to acclaim our God invisible, the almighty Father,
and Jesus Christ, our Lord, his Son, his Only Begotten.

Who for our sake paid Adam’s debt to the eternal Father,
and, pouring out his own dear Blood,
wiped clean the record of our ancient sinfulness.

These, then, are the feasts of Passover,
in which is slain the Lamb, the one true Lamb,
whose Blood anoints the doorposts of believers.

This is the night,
when once you led our forebears, Israel’s children,
from slavery in Egypt
and made them pass dry-shod through the Red Sea.

This is the night
that with a pillar of fire
banished the darkness of sin.

This is the night
that even now throughout the world,
sets Christian believers apart from worldly vices
and from the gloom of sin,
leading them to grace
and joining them to his holy ones.

This is the night
when Christ broke the prison bars of death
and rose victorious from the underworld.

Our birth would have been no gain,
had we not been redeemed.
O wonder of your humble care for us!
O love, O charity beyond all telling,
to ransom a slave you gave away your Son!

O truly necessary sin of Adam,
destroyed completely by the Death of Christ!

O happy fault
that earned for us so great, so glorious a Redeemer!

O truly blessed night,
worthy alone to know the time and hour
when Christ rose from the underworld!

This is the night
of which it is written:
The night shall be as bright as day,
dazzling is the night for me, and full of gladness.

The sanctifying power of this night
dispels wickedness, washes faults away,
restores innocence to the fallen, and joy to mourners,
drives out hatred, fosters concord, and brings down the mighty.

On this, your night of grace, O holy Father,
accept this candle, a solemn offering,
the work of bees and of your servants’ hands,
an evening sacrifice of praise,
this gift from your most holy Church.

But now we know the praises of this pillar,
a flame divided but undimmed,
which glowing fire ignites for God’s honour,
a fire into many flames divided,
yet never dimmed by sharing of its light,
for it is fed by melting wax,
drawn out by mother bees
to build a torch so precious.

O truly blessed night,
when things of heaven are wed to those of earth,
and divine to the human.

Therefore, O Lord,
we pray you that this candle,
hallowed to the honour of your name,
may persevere undimmed,
to overcome the darkness of this night.
Receive it as a pleasing fragrance,
and let it mingle with the lights of heaven.
May this flame be found still burning
by the Morning Star:
the one Morning Star who never sets,
Christ your Son,
who, coming back from death’s domain,
has shed his peaceful light on humanity,
and lives and reigns for ever and ever.

Amen.

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