Category Image St. Demetrius the Myrrh-streaming


Fr. Freeman, who's blog is listed in by blogroll, has recently begun podcasting. His first podcast deals with a subject he has addressed extensively on his blog, the question of how many storeys exist in our universe. To summarize, he asserts that modern Christianity has developed a notion that we live in a 2 storey universe, where God exists up on the second floor, and we're down here on the first. The problem with this view is that it seems to limit, or even eliminate the presence of God from our immediate world. A lot of this is the fallout of the so-called enlightenment, which, while it may have improved our knowledge of the physcal world, has thoroughly darkened our knowledge of the spiritual world.

Okay, so what does this have to do with St. Demetrius? Well, one of the stories that Fr. Freeman relates has to do with the miraculous events that occur with relics of Saints. Demetrius is one of those saints, whose relics give off a very fragrant myrrh well known for its healing powers. We have been blessed to receive a small amount of that myrrh from the Abbess of the Monastery of the Life Giving Spring in Dunlap, CA. Orthodox Christianity, and by that I mean historic Christianity, understands that Christ saves not only our souls, but the whole world. In the Saints we see that taking place, as the material world is transformed by the penetration, if you will, of the Holy Spirit. In the "modern" world, many who call themselves Christian don't think this stuff happens. Over the years, I've heard of various people who have felt the need to explain why miracles don't happen anymore. Usually it has to do with the fact that the Apostles are no longer walking the earth. However, we need to understand that just because the Apostle's are no longer walking among us, does not mean that God is no longer among us. As the Orthodox pray every morning, "Heavenly King, O Comforter, who art everywhere present and fillest all things..." St. Demetrius is one such example. Our only hope of salvation is precisely that God is with us (hence one of the names for Jesus, Immanuel, or God with us), that He has transformed and will transform the very universe. Our hope is not that we someday will leave the first storey and move to the second, but rather that we will become transformed into the very image of He who is here on the first floor, but who is so often ignored.

For those interested in some Biblical examples of relics, here they are:

Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ
St. Elisha
St. Paul

Posted: Thursday - October 25, 2007 at 11:24 AM          

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