Chaplain's Corner
Beloved parents and students
September the 1st marks not only the beginning of Spring but the beginning of the Church New Year. Also, this day has been dedicated by our Patriarch as a day of prayer for the environment. (Please keep 13 Oct free so you can all greet His All Holiness)
Our liturgical calendar is filled with great feasts, saint commemorations, fasting, and reading schedules, each specifically and purposefully placed by the Church in its wisdom to help keep us “on track” throughout the year. This new season is the appointed time for Orthodox Christians to recalibrate and reset, with the Church at our centre.
This season provides us with an opportunity to start fresh. Here are some practical ways we can reorient our lives towards Christ.
STEP 1: Goal Setting
“How can I realign my heart, my family’s priorities, and most importantly my time with the Church?”
Examples of goals might include spending more time in prayer, following stricter fasting practices, and becoming more involved within the church community, perhaps by attending a new ministry or joining a Bible study. Each person and family will set goals unique to their particular situation in life.
STEP 2: Prioritisation
Prioritizing our responsibilities is difficult for many. There are certain non-negotiables: sleep, eat, exercise, clean our homes, work in order to provide for our families. But we also have to make time for God and the Church. Attending Divine Liturgy and receiving the Eucharist is something we must do as Orthodox Christians. Another non-negotiable is educating ourselves about the Orthodox Faith through catechism and study.
St. John Chrysostom said:
We spare neither labours nor means in order to teach our children secular sciences, so that they can serve well the earthly authorities. Only the knowledge of the holy Faith, the service of the Heavenly King are a matter of indifference to us. We allow them to attend spectacles, but we care little whether they go to Church and stand within it reverently. We demand an account from them of what they learned in their secular institutes—why do we not demand an account from them of what they heard in the Lord’s house? —Twenty-first Homily on the Epistle to the Ephesians.
Our goal is making the active choice to prioritize the events and activities that will bring us closer to God.
STEP 3: Stay Organised
Once we have prioritised our responsibilities, it’s time to open our Google calendars or dust off our planners and use them. One of the best forms of accountability is to write down. Take our goals and priorities and put an action to them; add them to our calendars, sync our church’s calendar and activities to the calendar on our phone; decide upon the activities we will attend. Circle Divine Liturgy every Sunday and make it a priority.
STEP 4: Establish a Routine
Humans are creatures of habit, so consistency is key. Adding meaningful practices into our daily routine doesn’t have to be inconvenient. A widely used tool in time management is to combine similar tasks. Think of ways to streamline your schedule and be efficient with your time. If your resolution this Ecclesiastical Year is to spend more time in Scripture, then include the Church’s daily reading (available as an App) before you read the news headlines or your emails. These simple practices do not add much time to your already regular routine, but the benefits to your spiritual life are immeasurable.
Set some time to clear your mind and listen to what God is calling you to do in this Church New Year!
References: OCN. (2024). New Year, New Goals. [Online]. myOCN. Last Updated: 21 August. Available at: https://myocn.net/newyear-newgoals/ [Accessed 23 August 2024].
Rev. Fr Stavros Kakavas
School Chaplain and Parish Priest of Sts Anargiri