In the thirteenth century the great Jacobite Christian Bishop Gregory Bar
Hebrćus (died 1286), called Abű 'l Faraj in Arabic, fleshes the story out
and includes the famous epigram about the Koran. Again there is no clue as
to where he found the story but it seems to have been one doing the rounds
among Christians living under the dominion of the Moslems. Gregory is happy
to record plenty of far fetched tales about omens and monstrosities so we
must treat this story with the greatest suspicion. As it is not even
included in the original version of his history but only in the Arabic
version that he translated and abridged himself very late in life, he may
not have known the story when he first put pen to parchment. In The Vanished
Library, Canfora mentions a Syriac manuscript published in Paris at the end
of the nineteenth century by François Nau. It was written by a Christian
monk in the ninth century and details the conversation between John and
Caliph Omar. After help from email correspondents, I have finally been able
to find this elusive document in its French translation and ascertained that
it makes no mention of any library and appears to be an example of a
theological dialogue between two representative individuals. In other words
it is not historical and has to pretensions to be……..
To read more and find out what happened to the Grate Library of Alexandria
http://www.bede.org.uk/library.htm




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Mel Gibson apparently is bringing out a movie on Christ entirely in
Latin and Aramaic (with no subtitles!). Read below for news from
Yahoo News at
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?
tmpl=story&u=/nm/20020920/film_nm/leisure_gibson_christ_dc_2
--------

Gibson Breaks Hollywood Mould with Film in Latin
Fri Sep 20, 3:25 PM ET

ROME (Reuters) - A film in two ancient tongues with no subtitles?

The off-beat formula hardly sounds like the recipe for a hit movie
but Mel Gibson thinks language should be no barrier. "Passion" -- a
Gibson-directed flick about Christ's last 12 hours -- will be in
Latin and Aramaic.

"For me that's more real and hopefully I'll be able to transcend
language barriers with filmic story-telling," Gibson told reporters
on Friday.

"It's very visual and it's about something that has...affected
civilization in every possible way you can imagine," the 46-year-old
actor, a devout Catholic, added.

But Gibson, a perennial Hollywood favorite with lead roles in the
hit "Lethal Weapon" series, "Braveheart" and more recently "Signs,"
acknowledged his choice of languages for the new film was causing
headaches as far as U.S. distributors were concerned.

"No one wants to touch something in two dead languages. They think
I'm insane, maybe I am," joked Gibson, who was born in New York but
grew up in Australia.

The abolition of the Latin mass was one of the key reforms adopted in
the 1960s by the Second Vatican ( news - web sites) Council, which
sought to bring the liturgy closer to ordinary people.

But Gibson is very much of the old school, and a Latin service is
still held at the private chapel of his California home.

He also had some sharp words for the modern-day Catholic Church,
rocked this year by allegations of child abuse.

"It's very easy to be shaken these days faith-wise. All this kind of
pedophilia stuff in the United States, it's hard to hang on to a
foundation with this stuff going on," he told Reuters.

Shooting will switch between the famous Cinecitta studios just
outside Rome and cave-riddled Matera in southern Italy.

Gibson acknowledged he was filming "in the shadow of the dome" but
brushed aside questions on whether the Vatican would approve of the
film.

"I don't know what they like these days," he said, adding his
priority was to make a credible film.

"Many people have told the story but...it's like looking at it from
the wrong end of the telescope, I mean Jesus either suffers from bad
hair or it's inaccurate or you don't believe it," he said.

But Gibson, who turned down Martin Scorsese's offer of playing Jesus,
has once again shied away from the role, giving it to Jim Caviezel,
star of "The Count of Monte Cristo" and "High Crimes."

"There's two things I wouldn't do on film and I said this when I was
in my 20s -- I will never play myself if it ever comes to that and I
will never play Jesus."

----- Original Message -----

From: Thomas Daniel

To: SOR Forum ; Gergorian Study Circle ; Indian Orthodox ; socm forum ; Wilson George new ; orthodox forum

Sent: Wednesday, September 25, 2002 2:29 AM

Subject: [SORForum] The Second annual Prayer service of the Standing Conference of SCOBA & SCOOCH

Title: Public Invited to St. Vartan Armenian Cathedral for Service and Reception Sept. 30th

 

NEWS RELEASE (from GOA Department of Internet Ministries)

For Immediate Release: .September 23rd, 2002

 

CONTACT: Chris Zakien

Tel: (212) 686-0710; Fax: (212) 779-3558

E-mail: prl@a...

Website: www.armenianchurch.org

 

RUSSIAN AMBASSADOR LAVROV AND UNITED NATIONS UNDERSECRETARY GENERAL BENON SEVAN TO SPEAK AT PRAYER SERVICE FOR UN C0MMUNITY

 

Public Invited to St. Vartan Armenian Cathedral for Service and Reception Sept. 30th

 

New York, NY - The Standing Conference of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas (SCOBA) and the Standing Conference of Oriental Orthodox Churches (SCOOCH) will sponsor their second annual Prayer Service and Reception for The United Nations Community, at the St. Vartan Armenian Cathedral, 630 Second Avenue corner of 34th Street), New York City, on Monday, September 30th at: 6:30 p.m.

 

The distinguished speakers for the occasion will include His Excellency Sergey Flavor, Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the UN; and Mr. Benon Seven, UN Undersecretary-General and Executive Director of the Iraq Programme. Both speakers have long and honored records of service at the highest levels of world diplomacy.

 

Archbishop Khajag Barsamian, Primate of the Diocese of the Armenian Church Of America (Eastern) will deliver the homily at the Prayer Service. The master of ceremonies for the occasion will be Deacon Bishoy Mikhail, Ecumenical Officer of the Coptic Orthodox Church.

 

The public is invited to attend the Prayer Service and Reception to follow in the Haik and Alice Kavookjian Auditorium. Among those expected to attend are all Oriental and Eastern Orthodox ambassadors and delegates of the various missions to the United Nations, Orthodox staff of the UN Secretariat and Orthodox NGO delegates.

 

This Prayer Service for the UN Community was inaugurated last year to establish an Orthodox presence for the cause of world peace and understanding and to enable Oriental and Eastern Orthodox Christians to share in their common religious heritage.
Last year's speakers at the Greek Orthodox Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity were Archbishop Demetrios, Primate of the Greek Orthodox Church in America; United States Ambassador to the United Nations John D. Negroponte and Ambassador of Armenia to the United Nations Khajag Barsamian (Eastern Diocese of the Armenian Church of America) and His Grace Bishop Dimitrios of Xanthos (Greek Orthodoxrchdiocese).

 

Members of the UN committee event include Fr. Emmanuel Gratsias (Greek Orthodox Archdiocese); Fr. Leonid Kishkovsky (Orthodox Church in America); Fr. Anthony DeLuca (Syrian Orthodox Church), Fr. Simeon Odabashian (Eastern Diocese of the Armenian Church) and Deacon Bishoy M. Mikhail (Coptic Orthodox Archdiocese of North America).

----------
"Let every man be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger."
(James 1:19)
Syriac Orthodox Resources: http://sor.cua.edu

Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service.

---

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This is a general question. Does the Syrian tradition have the
idea of certain colours for certain feast days (such as the
Romans, Greeks, Slavs?). Is there a set idea of symbolism as
far as colours? What decides what colours a set of vestments,
or altar cloths will be?

Also, do all priests wear the pectoral cross? Or is it only for
Chorepiscopus, or Bishops only?

shlomo,

Ari Adams

I am not aware of any colors used in specific feast days. The cross is
currently used by Chorepiscopoi, bishops, catholicoi, and patriarchs. It is
also worn by priests and monks when granted (as a form of a promotion).

George Kiraz

--------------------------
George A. Kiraz, Ph.D.
Beth Mardutho: The Syriac Institute
http://www.BethMardutho.org

Read Hugoye: Journal of Syriac Studies: http://syrcom.cua.edu/Hugoye
----- Original Message -----
From: "Drake Aristibule C. Adams" <ari@...>
To: <SOR-Forum@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Monday, October 14, 2002 7:36 PM
Subject: [SORForum] Colours in the rite.


> This is a general question. Does the Syrian tradition have the
> idea of certain colours for certain feast days (such as the
> Romans, Greeks, Slavs?). Is there a set idea of symbolism as
> far as colours? What decides what colours a set of vestments,
> or altar cloths will be?
>
> Also, do all priests wear the pectoral cross? Or is it only for
> Chorepiscopus, or Bishops only?
>
> shlomo,
>
> Ari Adams
>
>
>
> ----------
> "Let every man be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger."
> (James 1:19)
> Syriac Orthodox Resources: http://sor.cua.edu
>
> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
>
>
>

WASHINGTON, Oct. 21 —  A burial box that was recently discovered in
Israel and dates to the first century could be the oldest
archaeological link to Jesus Christ, according to a French scholar
whose findings were published Monday. An inscription in the Aramaic
language — "James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus" — appears on an
empty ossuary, a limestone burial box for bones.

ANDRE LEMAIRE SAID it's "very probable" the writing refers to Jesus
of Nazareth. He dates the ossuary to A.D. 63, just three decades
after the crucifixion. Lemaire, a specialist in ancient inscriptions
at France's Practical School of Higher Studies, published his
findings in the November/December issue of Biblical Archaeology
Review.

Read more at http://www.msnbc.com/news/823945.asp?pne=msn&cp1=1

I found the name of St. Aristibule , one of the 70/72 Apostles, in a copy of
"The Pearl". I have found the commemoration dates for him on the Coptic,
Greek, and Roman calendars. Is he commemorated on the Syrian calendar? Any
help would be appreciated.

ari adams

On 22nd October, the Church commemorates the 238th Dhukrono of
Maphriyono Mor Baselious Shakralla Bava, the Patriarcahal delegate of
the Holy See of Antioch who reached Malankara in 1751 and entombed at
the Kandanad Marth Mariam Syriac Orthodox Church in AD.1764.

Link to the Biography of Mor Baselious Shakralla Bava :
http://morshakralla.cjb.net/

21.10.2002.

President Robert Kocharian received today the Supreme Head of the Universal
Syrian Orthodox Church, His Holiness Moran Mor Ignatius Zakka I, accompanied
by the Armenian Catholicos, His Holiness Garegin II and other high-ranking
clergy.

Having welcomed the Patriarch’s visit to Armenia, Robert Kocharian said that
the Armenia Church has had an extremely important contribution and role in
the life of the Armenian nation. According to him, the Armenian Church has
always supported the Armenian state.

The Patriarch of the Universal Syrian Orthodox Church highly praised the
cooperation between sister-churches and emphasized that the friendship
between the two nations and the two Churches dates back to the earliest
years of Christianity.

The Armenian Catholicos emphasized the importance of the Patriarch’s visit
and said that such visits are mutually enriching. The Catholicos
particularly emphasized the importance of close cooperation between
spiritual leaders of Churches with similar beliefs.

Source: The official site of the President of Armenia
URL: http://news.president.am/eng/?sub=news&id=616&year=2002


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