Sunday of the Holy Fathers of The Seventh Ecumenical Council

Scripture readings

• Epistle: The Reading is from St. Paul's Letter to Titus 3:8-15
  


• Gospel: The Reading is from Luke 8:5-15

Saints and Martyrs

• Holy Martyrs Probus, Tarachus & Andronicus of Tarsus in Cilicia
• St Fiace, the Hierarch
• St Edwin, King & Martyr
• St Wilfrid, Bishop of York
• St Symeon, the New Theologian
• St John of Riga (Latvia 1934)

The Living in our prayers

• Olga (Soroka)
• Kathleen
• Luba
• June
• the newly Baptized child of God Alexander, Romeo, Christina and family, Lučiana and Dragoş
  
• the Archpriest Ilyan

The Departed we Commemorated today

• Caliopi
• Athanasios
• Stanojko
• Anastasia
• Romulus
• Savdelina

Welcome the family of the Church, Alexander

Alexander Emil, son of Romeo and Christina - Baptized at St Michael's on the 11^th of October 2008

Alexander's Godparents are Lučiana and Dragoş.

The Holy Fathers of the Seventh Ecumenical Council

About 726 AD a dispute arose in the Church about the place of Icons in Christian worship.

In 787 AD the Fathers of the Seventh Ecumenical Council resolved that it the use of Icons in Christian worship was appropriate and today we recall this.

The issue was not fully resolved until the time of Empress Theodora in 843 AD.

In truth it has continued through until today although not within the Orthodox Church, which laid this matter to rest well over a millenia ago.


St John of Damascus had this to say on the matter

Concerning the charge of idolatry: Icons are not idols but symbols, therefore when an Orthodox venerates an icon, he is not guilty of idolatry. He is not worshipping the symbol, but merely venerating it. Such veneration is not directed toward wood, or paint or stone, but towards the person depicted. Therefore relative honor is shown to material objects, but worship is due to God alone.

We do not make obeisance to the nature of wood, but we revere and do obeisance to Him who was crucified on the Cross... When the two beams of the Cross are joined together I adore the figure because of Christ who was crucified on the Cross, but if the beams are separated, I throw them away and burn them

Troparion (Tone 8)

Most glorious are You, O Christ our God!
You have established the Holy Fathers as lights on the earth!
Through them you have guided us to the true faith!
O greatly Compassionate One, glory to You!

Kontakion (Tone 6)

The Son who shone forth from the Father
Was ineffably born, two-fold in nature, of a woman.
Having beheld Him, we do not deny the image of His form,
But depict it piously and revere it faithfully.
Thus, keeping the True Faith,
The Church venerates the icon of Christ Incarnate.