The Bulgarian Orthodox, Who Are They?

"and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you." Matthew28 19-20

In the world of Christian Orthodoxy, the orthodox are world wide; they are communities who hold fast to the values and norms practiced by the earliest Christians prior to the split of the Greco-Roman church in the earlier centuries, about 900 years ago. They call it Schism. Schisms are not limited to the Christian world; they exist in most if not all the major religions of the world. While the two world wide faith communities, Roman and Orthodox, point to differences in their interpretations, and valuations of varying points, they are indeed more alike than they are different. And while differing with one another, they are not denying the other. Both are monotheistic; both believe in the Trinitarian father, son and holy spirit. They are Christians. Their patrimony is also alike, owing its start in Judaism.

And yet within the world of Orthodoxy itself, there comes some difference. Some causes are given as nationalistic, some as emphasis and some as interpretations of the ancient texts themselves. Recall that the Orthodox tradition has endured a long history of Divine Rulers, kings and emperors who ruled as the head of most these churches; thus they are not without their individual peculiarities as is the Roman Catholic world with its great See of Peter in Rome.

Examining for example the Bulgarian Orthodox Christian church, is to view a bit of their cultural traditions as well. And what, if any, are their policies? Then there is, here in the United States, a consortium of Orthodoxy, The Orthodox Church in America in which the Bulgarians take part. Writing for the curious and for the faithful, Father Thomas Hopko, Dean Emeritus of Saint Vladimir's Seminary, Crestwood, New York has compiled a series of books for educational purposes to give strong instruction in the continued meaning and witness of the orthodox tradition. He titles it simply as The Orthodox Faith. Readers may learn that the church is focused on teaching so that believers will go forth and teach, making disciples of the way. And yet not all within the world orthodox fold accept this group, the Orthodox Church of America.

I first came upon this constellation of orthodoxy while learning about the Inuit Indians of Alaska and was interested to learn that some Orthodox Monasteries are located there. So this truly is a part of the story of what makes the United States of America. Please challenge yourself to learn a bit more about the "hidden" America.

In the Presence of Gods and Goddesses

"People can get so over-involved with searching for mythic connections that they forget they also have personal associations to the symbols." Robert Johnson

Many times we dream of events from our past waking day, a sort of summation or re-hashing of events, or their parts. The mind in its curious method dissects, injects and reintroduces the subject in a way that is different from the events of our waking world. It's as if the mind sees with its own eyes, for its own purposes. Humanity has for eternity taken note of dreams. They perplex, confuse and inform in equal proportion. The bible as well as many other ancient texts serve as oracles to the perplexing nature of the dream state. Dreams and spirituality have always had a connection.

It is within our deepest self that we dream. In the silence of our nights images come to us; energies and feelings are portrayed as if on a movie screen while we slumber; watching the show which at times is so vivid and realistic filled with our emotions, hopes or fears that upon awakening we're not entirely sure if it "was real or just a dream." Often time the memory of the dream is deep; we ponder it, catching what little we can deduce and turning it outward concretely looking at others. But outward is not the solution, nor is it a resolution because the dream is the dreamer and the images are personal. No more is it true that dream symbols are standard than it is to assume that the loves one plays out at night are interchangeable!

If it were true that the loves, the gods and goddesses of our dreams were interchangeable, would not their value be so much less? What would we learn, and what could they teach us about our feelings, our beliefs and our own energies? Often dreams record and reflect changes a person has made, or is soon to make in their waking life; dreams then represent a reflection of their engagement with their own values and beliefs. In our spiritual journeys towards greater wholeness, dreams play an important role in representing to us what we most deeply think and feel.

We try on roles, we solve issues, paradoxes are presented and solutions, or part solutions, rendered. Feelings are deeply considered; the feelings that may have been squelched in our waking day, now are guides to what matters to us. Even if the images presented in the dream are borrowed, as in for example, your mother, your neighbor, the man in the store, an animal or a place, those images symbolize something that is going on. "You use that image to refer to something inside of you," writes Robert Johnson. With careful consideration, dreams can and often impart wisdom to the dreamer.