Abkhazia is the Georgian Church's

Tbilisi, May 23 (Interfax) - Constantinople recognizes the jurisdiction of the Georgian Orthodox Church in Abkhazia, Catholicos-Patriarch Ilia II of Georgia said on Thursday.

"We had a meeting with the Ecumenical Patriarch. We considered various issues and accord emerged on everything. I am grateful to His Holiness for this support. He said repeatedly that Constantinople recognized the jurisdiction of the Georgian Orthodox Church in Abkhazia and, with God's help, everything will end peacefully," the Georgian Patriarch said.

Patriarch Ilia II said that it was planned to organize his visit to Abkhazia in the company of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew. The Georgian patriarch will also introduce during his visit to Sukhum his personal representative among clerics, natives of Abkhazia.

"All local Orthodox Churches and the entire world recognize Abkhazia as a part of the Georgian Church, a canonical part. Everyone admits this and so all issues existing in Abkhazia are to be definitely considered by the Georgian Orthodox Church and its Synod. We have agreed that the Georgian Church would do everything so priests came there. I am Metropolitan of Tskhum-Abkhazia and Bichvinta and I have to go there as well to calm down the situation there," Patriarch Ilia II said.

"We have agreed with the Ecumenical patriarch that he would help us with this and everything would be fine. The Russian Church recognized Abkhazia as part of the Georgian Church. The church problems of Abkhazia are the result of political issues. And we have to do everything so that political fights and disagreements do not reflect on church life. On the contrary, Church should do everything so that peace comes to our country," the Georgian Patriarch said.

Georgian Minister for Reintegration, Paata Zakareishvili, commented on the patriarch's statements on Thursday.

"The state should not interfere with the issue of Catholicos-Patriarch of All Georgia's visit to Abkhazia. His Holiness is in Constantinople, where he has met with the Ecumenical Patriarch. Naturally, it would come to Abkhazia and he probably reached an agreement. The visit of the Patriarch to Abkhazia will take place upon a certain agreement. This is not a political structure. They have their own relations. If this happens, I will welcome this and state channels should not be involved to interfere with the church activities," the minister said.

"They probably want to implement this with the Russian Church's accord because information emerged that the Russian Church is also involved in this process, this is also to happen in Abkhazia with the permission of the de-facto authorities," Zakareishvili said.

Patriarch Theophilus of Jerusalem on trip to Moscow

(Pravoslavie.ru) - His Beatitude Patriarch Theophilus of Jerusalem has arrived in Moscow for his official visit. The program of the visit of the head of the Church of Jerusalem includes: celebrations of the Day of Slavic Writing and Culture, visits to the Holy Trinity-St. Sergius Lavra, and holy places of St. Petersburg and Valaam Monastery. His Beatitude Patriarch of the holy city of Jerusalem and all Palestine was ceremoniously met at Vnukovo airport. In the evening the delegations of the Jerusalem and the Russian Orthodox Churches will hold discussions in the throne room of the Patriarchal residence, reports Sinfo.

On May 24, in the morning, in the Patriarchal Dormition Cathedral in the Moscow Kremlin, his Beatitude Patriarch Theophilus of Jerusalem and his Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and all Russia will serve a Divine Liturgy after which the Cross procession will proceed from the Church of the Theophany to Slavyanskaya square, where the heads of the Russian and the Jerusalem Orthodox Churches will hold a solemn prayer service at the monument of Sts. Cyril and Methodius, Equals-to-the-Apostles.

Patriarch Theophilus’s participation in celebrations of the Day of the Slavic Writing and Culture is a continuation of the tradition of inviting heads of local Orthodox Churches to this holiday. His Holiness Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople took part in the celebrations of 2010. A delegation of the Patriarchate of Constantinople takes part in these celebrations annually, and this year it is headed by Bishop Kyrillos of Abydos. On the same day, Patriarch Theophilus will visit the holiday concert, "Our Favorite Songs", in the evening on Red Square in Moscow, which open to all.

On May 25, 2013, on the 100th-year anniversary of canonization of Holy Patriarch Hermogenes, his Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and all Russia and his Beatitude Patriarch Theophilus of Jerusalem will bless a newly-erected monument to St. Hermogenes in the Alexandеr Garden near the Kremlin walls. St. Hermogenes, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia from 1606–1612, inspired the popular uprising that put an end to the Time of Troubles in Russia. The Polish Catholic rulers who martyred St. Hermoges for his steadfastness in the Orthodox faith were finally expelled.

On May 27, the head of the Church of Jerusalem will come to St. Petersburg where he will take part in blessing of the St Nicholas naval Cathedral in the town of Kronstadt; during the following days he will be visiting Churches of St. Petersburg, the St. Alexander Nevsky Lavra, and will also make a pilgrimage to the Valaam Monastery.

What is hell?

From the blog Eclectic Orthodoxy, "What is Orthodox hell?"

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What is the Orthodox doctrine of hell? I honestly do not know. I do know what many Orthodox have taught about hell during the past seventy-five years or so, and I know something about what the Church Fathers taught about it during the first millenium of the Church’s history; but I cannot tell you what the Orthodox Church authoritatively and irreformably teaches about hell. My ignorance on this question is partly determined by the fact that a huge portion of the Eastern theological patrimony has never been translated into English. I read neither Greek (modern or patristic), Russian, Romanian, Serbian, or Syriac. I suspect that my position is not that different from most other English-speaking Orthodox believers, including the clergy. The fact that so much theological reflection is inaccessible to us puts us at significant disadvantage.

This doesn’t mean that the ordinary American parish priest does not believe that he knows what the authoritative Orthodox understanding of hell is. Quite the contrary. At least within English-speaking Orthodoxy a particular understanding of hell and perdition has established itself as the Orthodox position; and this understanding, we are told, is dramatically different from what is taught in Catholicism and Protestantism. Patristic scholar Archimandrite Irenei (Matthew) Steenberg has described this view as “hell is heaven experienced differently”: God does not retributively punish the damned; the damned experience God as torment because they have rejected, and eternally reject, the divine mercy and love. They cannot tolerate his inescapable presence. God does not actively inflict pain at the Last Judgment; he simply allows the damned to experience the suffering they have freely chosen, and he allows this for all eternity. This view can be found in the writings of John Romanides, George Metallinos, and Hierotheos Vlachos. For popular presentations see A Study of Hell by Nick Aiello, “Heaven and Hell in the Afterlife” by Peter Chopelas, “Hell and God’s Love” by Eric Simpson, and “Why We Need Hell” by Frederica Mathewes-Green. Yet as Steenberg notes, serious questions can be raised whether this understanding of hell as “heaven experienced differently” in fact represents the consensual teaching of the Church Fathers: “this view has little to no grounding in either the Scriptural or patristic heritage of the Church,” Steenberg argues, “and in fact that heritage very regularly makes assertions that wholly deny the possibility of this view.”

Unfortunately, it is not an easy matter for an English-speaking non-scholar to assess patristically the “hell is heaven experienced differently” thesis. Look high and low, but you will not find a comprehensive, detailed, and in-depth scholarly discussion of the eschatology of the Church Fathers, much less of the two thousand year old Eastern tradition. Perhaps such surveys are available in French, German, Russian or Greek, but alas not in English. I find this surprising—especially given how popular eschatology has been in theological circles over the past fifty years. One can find extensive discussion of what the New Testament teaches about hell, especially by Protestant scholars. And one can find extensive discussion about what the Catholic Church dogmatically teaches (or “should” dogmatically teach) about hell by Catholic theologians. But when one turns to the Church Fathers, one immediately hits a wall. In fact, it’s hard to find in-depth scholarly treatment of individual Church Fathers on this subject, with the exceptions of Origen, Gregory Nyssen, and Augustine. J. N. D. Kelly devotes a couple of pages to hell and judgment in his book Early Christian Doctrines. Jaroslav Pelikan’s first volume of The Christian Tradition is even less helpful...

Complete article here.

Harbor for the Poor: Almsgiving and St. John Chrysostom

When time and money allow, I think I'll pick this up. A reasonable $20 on Amazon.

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(Wipf and Stock) - Harbor for the Poor: A Missiological Analysis of Almsgiving in the View and Practice of John Chrysostom by Eric Costanzo.

Urban poverty in the developed world is an ever-present problem, and Christian approaches to poverty throughout history have much to teach us. The practice of almsgiving, which is the consistent practice of giving and sharing resources to meet the needs of the poor, is a sadly neglected part of this Christian heritage. This book explores the Christian lifestyle of almsgiving through the study of John Chrysostom.

The sermons and writings of John Chrysostom (c.347-407 CE), pastor in Antioch and archbishop of Constantinople, contain perhaps the greatest concentration of teaching on almsgiving in all of Christian literature. John's teaching on almsgiving was both biblical and practical, and his ministry helped strengthen care for the poor throughout the Roman Empire of late antiquity. John preached his sermons to congregations filled with people who lived very comfortable lives. From his perspective, the churches of Antioch and Constantinople had grown complacent regarding poverty, when in fact God had called them to become a harbor for the poor.

Details out on 109th St. Tikhon's Pilgrimage

I'll be there!

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(OCA) - Final preparations for the 109th Annual Pilgrimage to Saint Tikhon of Zadonsk Monastery here over Memorial Day weekend, May 24-27, 2013, are underway.

“It is always a joy to welcome hierarchs, clergy and faithful from the Orthodox Church in America, other Orthodox jurisdictions and guests from near and far,” said Igumen Sergius, the Monastery’s Abbot.

A detailed schedule of the weekend’s divine services and other events is available here (PDF).

In related news, Saint Tikhon’s Seminary will hold its 71st annual Commencement on Saturday, May 25. The day will open with the celebration of the Hierarchical Divine Liturgy at 9:00 a.m. and continue with graduation ceremonies at the Monastery Bell Tower at 1:00 p.m.

Saint Tikhon’s Monastery is the oldest Orthodox Christian monastic community in North America. Saint Tikhon’s Seminary, established in 1938, is celebrating its 75th Anniversary in 2013.

Silent march for the safe release of Syrian bishops

(Zenit.org) - Over two thousand people marched through the streets of in a candlelit procession praying for the release of two Syrian bishops who were abducted a month ago in Aleppo in Syria.

On April 22, Syrian Orthodox Metropolitan Mar Gregorios Yohanna Ibrahim and Greek-Orthodox Bishop Boulos al-Yazigi were kidnapped by unknown abductors during a humanitarian mission. There has been no news on the whereabouts of the two prelates since their abduction.

According to Fides News Agency, the March was attended by various leaders and representatives of Churches and ecclesial communities in Jordan. The procession began at the Greek Orthodox Cathedral of the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple and ended at the Syrian Orthodox Church of St. Ephrem.

A statement signed by the bishops and heads of Churches condemning the kidnappings was read by Archbishop Maroun Laham, Patriarchal Vicar for Jordan of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem.

Calling the kidnappings of the two prelates “unacceptable”, the Heads of the Churches stated that the abduction raised concerns not only over their lives, but over the moral of the Syrian people in Aleppo.

“The bishops and Representatives of the Churches in Jordan hope that this silent candle march, prayers and calls will soften hearts and bring back the esteemed Bishops immediately,” the statement read.

“In this silent march, the bishops and representatives of the Churches in Jordan express solidarity with the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and all the East, represented by His Beatitude Patriarch Youhanna 10th Yaziji Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, and the Syriac Orthodox Church represented by His Holiness Mar Ignatius Zakka IIwas, and call for prayer for the two sister churches and for all the churches in the world, whose leaderships never seized to call upon all people of conscience and good will in collaboration with all official, religious and civil authorities for the release of the esteemed Bishops.”

The representatives of the Churches of Jordan also called for restore peace in Syria as well as for respect for the Holy Sites in Palestine. They expressed their hope that renewed unity and solidarity would flourish between Christians and Muslims in the Middle East.

Renewing their call for the release of the two Bishop, the statement asked that they be “returned unharmed to their churches and society.”

Myrrh-Bearing Women Sunday, St Mary Magdalene Convent

(ROCOR) - On Sunday, May 21, 2013, the Sunday of the Holy Myrrh-Bearing Women, His Grace Bishop Agapit of Stuttgart celebrated Divine Liturgy (and all-night vigil the evening before) at the Russian St Mary Magdalene, Equal-to-the-Apostles Convent in Gethsemane, Jerusalem. He was joined by Archimandrite Roman (Krassovsky) and other clergymen of the Russian Ecclesiastical Mission in Jerusalem of the Russian Church Abroad and a multitude of worshipers.

Malankara Orthodox hierarch hosts Met. Tikhon

(Malankara-NAD) - His Grace Zachariah Mar Nicholovos, Metropolitan hosted a luncheon in honor of the newly enthroned Primate of the Orthodox Church in America, His Beatitude Metropolitan Tikhon at the Diocesan Chancery in Muttontown, New York.

Other honored guests in attendance included His Eminence, Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan, Eastern Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America; His Grace, Bishop Anoushavan Tanielian, Vicar, Eastern Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America; His Grace, Bishop David, General Bishop and Patriarchal Exarch, Coptic Archdiocese of North America, His Grace, Bishop Mark of Baltimore,Orthodox Church in America; Archpriest Leonid Kishkovky, OCA Director of External Affairs and Interchurch Relations; and Archpriests John Behr and Chad Hatfield, Dean and Chancellor of Saint Vladimir’s Seminary, Yonkers, NY.

During the luncheon guests discussed the problems facing Christians all around the world. The persecution of Coptic Christians in Egypt and the recent events in Middle East were brought up as concern. The group together decried the fundamentalist and militant religious forces in the world.

His Grace Mar Nicholovos spoke briefly acknowledging the love and care that the Indian Orthodox community in North America has received from the Orthodox Church in America. Mar Nicholovos wished His Beatitude Metropolitan Tikhon, a fruitful ministry as the new Primate of the Orthodox Church in America. His Grace also conveyed deep gratitude to His Beatitude and the Seminaries of the Orthodox Church in America, for their service in training the priests of the Diocese.

His Beatitude Metropolitan Tikhon expressed his gratitude to Mar Nicholovos for the wishes and congratulated Mar Nicholovos on the second anniversary being enthroned as Metropolitan of Northeast American Diocese. His Beatitude also stated that it is important for the Christians in America to be aware of the problems that Christians face globally. His Grace Bishop Davi of the Coptic Orthodox Church called the luncheon an “agape meal” modeled on the love of the early Church and thanked Mar Nicholovos for the solidarity of the Indian Orthodox community with the present trials of the Coptic Church in Egypt. Bishop David also shared his belief that such meals express the common desire for greater unity among Orthodox communions.

Rev. Fr. M. K. Kuriakose, Diocesan Secretary, Rev. Fr. Paulose T. Peter, Director for Ecumenical Relations, and Rev. Fr. Sujit T. Thomas, Director of FOCUS & Family & Youth Conference Coordinator were also in attendance.

The guests offered their prayers and greetings to His Grace Zachariah Mar Nicholovos, on the second anniversary of the enthronement of His Grace as Metropolitan of the Northeast American Diocese.

A month on, two Syrian bishops still in captivity

(The Guardian) - One month after two Orthodox Christian bishops were kidnapped by gunmen in Syria, officials say they still have no idea what has happened to the missing prelates.

The clerics, the most senior church officials to be targeted since civil war engulfed the country, have not been heard of since their abduction at gunpoint in the northern city of Aleppo on 22 April.

"We are deeply worried for the lives of archbishop Mor Gregorius Yohanna Ibrahim of the Syriac Orthodox Church and bishop Boulos Yazigi of the Greek Orthodox Church," said Katrina Lantos Swett, who chairs the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (Uscirf).

"These two religious leaders put aside their own safety by travelling to one of the worst areas of fighting to help those Syrians left with few basic necessities after more than two years of war," she said in a statement released on Tuesday.

"The United States and the international community must leave no stone unturned to free the archbishops and halt sectarian violence."

The two men, who are based in Aleppo, were seized as they returned from a humanitarian mission in neighbouring Turkey. Their driver, a cleric with the rank of deacon, was shot and killed in the attack.

Although there have been an array of rumoured sightings since, authorities admit they have made little progress locating the bishops or establishing which group is holding them.

"We are in daily contact with officials across the region," said A Greek foreign ministry spokesman, Gregory Delavekouras. "Information is coming through all the time but absolutely nothing has been confirmed so far," he told the Guardian. "We remain completely in the dark."

Athens has set up a crisis management team, sent an emissary to the Middle East, contacted governments across the region and used its considerable contacts with the Syrian opposition in a bid to shed light on the clerics' whereabouts.

The Greek Orthodox Church, which has representatives across the Middle East, has also weighed in, and the Greece's prime minister, Antonis Samaras, has appealed for help to Istanbul-based ecumenical patriarch, Bartholomew, spiritual leader of the world's Orthodox faithful.

"All the stops have been pulled out," said one insider, saying that because of its geopolitical position at the east-west crossroads, Greece had "better contacts and better chances" of finding the bishops than other western allies.

Will Copts start accepting Catholic baptisms?

(ACN) - A leading Coptic Catholic bishop has expressed hopes that a historic meeting between two popes may lead to the Coptic Orthodox Church recognising Catholic baptism.

Bishop Kyrillos William of Assiut described the meeting between Catholic Pope Francis and Coptic Orthodox Pope Tawadros II earlier this month as a “watershed” in ecumenical relations – and expressed optimism that the two Churches would grow closer.

One key contention between the churches is that the Coptic Orthodox Church does not recognise Catholic baptism.

Catholics converting to marry Coptic Orthodox Christians have to be rebaptised. Such conversions are not unusual, as anyone marrying outside the Coptic Orthodox Church, or one of its sister Oriental Orthodox Churches, is barred from the sacraments.

Rumours in February 2010 that Pope Shenouda III would allow marriage between Catholics and Orthodox, because of the two Churches’ theological and doctrinal closeness, were quickly quashed by Coptic Orthodox officials.

During an interview with Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need, Bishop William was asked if he expected movement on the issue of Catholic baptism being recognised. He replied: “Yes, Tawadros has said this himself”.

Describing the current difficulties, the bishop added: “Pope Shenouda demanded rebaptism because he was of the opinion that unity in faith was a condition for recognising Catholic baptism.

“He quoted the Epistle to the Ephesians, where there is talk of one Lord, one faith and one baptism.”

But, Bishop William said that any change in the position on baptism will be far from straightforward.

“The difficulty will be that there are still many of Shenouda’s adherents in the Coptic synod.

“But there are also bishops who have gone along with Shenouda’s line on rebaptism for reasons of obedience and not conviction.

“I cannot therefore risk a prediction that the line will change – but my impression is that [Pope Francis’s] cordial nature and the openness of Tawadros’s curia representatives and his companions, including also disciples of Shenouda, have made a positive impact.”

He added that improving relations between the two Churches were being driven by the common problems Catholic and Orthodox Christians were experiencing in Egypt.

“When the revolution broke out two years ago spontaneous consultations arose between us Catholics and the Orthodox Church as well as Protestants. We wanted to speak with one voice.”

And according to Bishop William, the new Coptic Orthodox Pope’s actions reveal a commitment to ecumenism.

He said: “Pope Tawadros has shown from the very beginning that he wishes to come closer to the other Churches.

“Just after the election of Pope Francis he pushed for a meeting on 10th May – that is the 40th anniversary of the meeting between Pope Paul VI and Pope Shenouda III.

“Now it isn’t easy to obtain an audience in the Vatican at short notice. But great efforts were made to meet Tawadros’ wishes.

“I think that this really is a watershed. Tawadros is quite different from his predecessor Shenouda as far as the ecumenical movement is concerned.”

Armenian Catholicos Karekin II consecrates church

(Armenian-WD) - On Tuesday, May 14, 2013, Sourp Hovhaness Mgrditch (St. John the Baptist) Church was consecrated in the city of Abovyan, in Armenia’s Kotayk region, by His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians. 

Divergent Interpretations of the Same Statistics

I have been asked no fewer than three times to post this article from the blog Ancient Christian Wisdom entitled "Divergent Interpretations of the Same Statistics: Differing Suggestions from Christianity and Sociology." I have acceded below. It is a fine post and well worth reading. Please do give the blog a read, too, as it is worth following.

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Statistics often present a sobering mirror of our society and the problems that people face. A friend of mine recently sent me an interesting New York Times article by Ross Douthat entitled, “All the Lonely People.” Douthat notes that since 2000, the suicide rate among men aged 35-54 in the United States has increased 30% while the rate for men in their 50’s increased 50%. This is indeed a disturbing trend. Douthat cites University of Virginia sociologist Brad Wilcox who perceives a link between the rise in suicides and weakened social ties as well as economic difficulties.

While sociological interpretations about the environment have their place and certainly seem true, they cannot hope to provide the whole explanation. Yes, we all know that we have outwardly observable lives as social beings within financial limitations, but we also have inner lives as well. Looking at only the external, seemingly objective aspect of the problem, we can hardly expect to find more than a surface solution, especially when even that outward description of reality is incomplete, leaving out the most important person in human life and death, namely, the person of God. I suspect that the real root causes of suicide may be found not so much in a lack of quality relationships or the absence of a good economic situation, but in the health of the subjective, interior life, that is, the quality of our thoughts and how we view the relationships we already have. Suicide, like every other behavior, springs first from the most private world of our innermost thoughts. If one entertains and foments negative thoughts about self, which includes all the things and people attached or not attached to the self, then despair and hopelessness can certainly set in. If one views relationships as a quid pro quo contract, we become stuck in the rut of measuring the behavior of others rather than focusing on changing our own negative thoughts or actions. In an earlier post “The Blessing and Bane of Expectations” I wrote, “Sometimes, patients list aims over which they have little control, such as changing someone else’s behavior. In such cases, therapists encourage them to rework the goals that they set for others into behavioral goals for themselves. In dealing with this particular issue, the ancient fathers have a similar approach, alongside recalling Divine Providence, ancient monastics also advise the faithful to use self-reproach as a basic interpretive principle in order to avoid judging others who sin as well as to prevent agitation, anger, and pride. For example, when Saint Dorotheos would notice a brother failing in some way to lead a Christian life, he would say to himself, ‘Woe is me, him today and surely me tomorrow. Instead of expecting others to be different, we expect ourselves to be no better, but even worse, if we fail to repent. And so repent we do.” If our lives are focused on imitating Christ by loving others there is little room for self-centered thoughts about how much others love us in return. If Christ is our chief treasure, acquiring thirty pieces of silver for our own selfish desires is no longer a trade that interests us.

Read more »

Blogs that interest you

It's time once again to ask readers to comment with links to blogs they enjoy and think others might as well. In a continuing effort to expand the resources this blog uses for content it helps quite a bit to have new blogs, news sites, etc. to pull from. So, comment away!

Prayer: can it "favor" one religion?

WASHINGTON (LA Times) — The Supreme Court has agreed to revisit the issue of church-state separation and decide whether a town council can begin most of its monthly meetings with a prayer from a Christian pastor.

Thirty years ago, the court upheld a state legislature's practice of beginning its session with a nondenominational prayer. The justices said that "to invoke divine guidance on a public body entrusted with making laws" did not violate the 1st Amendment's prohibition on an "establishment of religion."

But since then, several lower courts have said that a city council or county board may violate the 1st Amendment if its opening prayers favor one religion. What does this even mean? "Lord God, as you are present with us and only us at First Baptist Church on Mockingbird Lane I ask you, please convert dear Councilman Gupta from his vile cow worshipping. And, Lord, bless this city council meeting that it may outlaw dancing and the devil's brew, that it may bring everyone to the Wednesday Bible study at our good church after this meeting (light meal provided), and that Councilwoman LaRouche return to her dear husband and leave that boy toy she has taken up with. Ahhhmen!"

Last year, the U.S. 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the town of Greece, N.Y., near Rochester, had crossed the line by inviting Christian pastors to deliver nearly every opening prayer. Though the town's policy does not favor one religion, the appeals court said its practice had been to favor Christianity to the exclusion of other faiths.

"In practice, Christian clergy members have delivered nearly all of the prayers relevant to this litigation and have done so at the town's invitation," the appeals court said.

Lawyers for the town appealed to the Supreme Court, arguing that opening prayers are a standard practice at town councils and county boards across the nation.

Ken Klukowski, a lawyer with the Family Research Council, a conservative Christian group, predicted the court would "not only affirm prayer but significantly strengthen the religious liberty rights of Americans in public life and in the public square."

But the Rev. Barry Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, urged the high court to "affirm government neutrality on religion. A town council meeting isn't a church service, and it shouldn't seem like one," he said. His group represented Susan Galloway and Linda Stephen, two local residents who objected to the monthly prayers. Christ isn't innocuous and impotent ("Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword."). Neither is Muhammad. Nor is Confucius even. If you are stripping benedictions to "Keep this thing peaceful and productive," you might as well have the clergyman solemnly intone selections from Robert's Rules of Order.

The court said it would hear the case in the fall. The justices took no action on another pending religion case, about whether a public high school could hold its graduation ceremony in a church.

The justices also agreed to hear a search case from Los Angeles and to decide whether disgruntled "frequent fliers" can sue an airline. This I fully support.

Walter Fernandez, who was sentenced to 14 years in prison for robbery and gun crimes, objected to the search of his apartment. A girlfriend had consented to the search after police arrested him and took him away. The court will decide whether such a search is legal.

Rabbi Binyomin Ginsberg was a frequent flier on Northwest Airlines who sued the airline in San Diego after he was dropped from its "World Perks" program in 2008. Northwest has urged the Supreme Court to throw out the suit on the grounds that the federal Airline Deregulation Act bars claims in a state court over a "rate, route or service" of an air carrier.

From the Edict of Milan seminar in Constantinople