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Text Box: prayer between the remembrance of the Last Supper and the Epiklesis. Yet the substance of these prayers is in no way foreign to the Divine Liturgies of Saint John Chrysostom and of Saint Basil the Great. + PRIESTLY PROPRIETY When the children of Israel first began to offer sacrifices under the Law of Moses the temple had not yet been built. But after the temple was built the sacrifices were offered in the same manner, only there was a fixed place for all sacrifices to be made - in the Temple of Solomon. Even after the first destruction of Jerusalem and the temple, upon return from the Babylonian exile, the people re-learned and followed the procedures for sacrifice. One of the provisions was that the animal offered had to be without blemish. In some instances the sacrifice would come from the animals owned by the one who was requesting the sacrifice. In other instances the animals would be acquired by the king or what ever governing authority was in effect at that time. A very few sacrifices required the immolation or burning of the entire animal being offered. Most sacrifices required certain portions of the animal be burnt, and the remainder be for the use of the priests and temple attendants and their families. There ever were provisions for priests and their families who lived far from Jerusalem. The sacrifices were in continual operation, occurring from sunrise to sunset. It must have been a very bloody and smelly place. The Bible cites instances where thousands of sheep, goats, and cows or bulls were sacrificed daily for a week. At these times the streets must have been running with blood and the skies overshadowed with soot from the burning animals. By the time of Christ the system had

Text Box: become so corrupted that even if a person brought in a pure, spotless, unblemished animal for sacrifice, there was little chance of it passing inspection as being unblemished for sacrifice. The reason for this was many of the temple authorities and their favored associates sold animals for sacrifice. So, if someone brought their own animal for sacrifice, the corrupt authorities and their favored associates did not make money on the sale of an animal to be used for sacrifice. The situation make one wonder how many times an animal would be sold for sacrifice before it eventually was sacrificed. Only temple money could be used to purchase animals for sacrifice, so there were money changers as well as those who sold animal and produce to be used for sacrifice. So, if you brought your own lamb and your own wheat and your own bread to be offered for sacrifices, all probably would be found to have blemishes. If you desired to have the offerings sacrificed you would have to sell your lamb, wheat, and bread, at a loss, to a buyer of such things in the temple, be paid in regular coin of the day, change that money for temple money - and you had to pay the money changer for that transaction, then use the temple money to purchase a lamb, wheat, and bread from one of the approved temple vendors. You might actually wind up purchasing your original lamb, wheat, and bread. The system had become corrupt, almost as corrupt as our modern day government systems. This is what Christ cleaned up, at least as it existed on the temple grounds. And no one dared to oppose Him because it was well known the system was corrupt. And the honest religious leaders welcomed what Christ had done. But what Christ did is one of the reasons the corrupt religious leaders decided to kill Jesus. But notice what Jesus did after He cleaned up the system as it existed on

Text Box: the temple grounds. Since He had cleaned it up, it was now a worthy place for Him to teach. A place worthy of His exercising His position as Rabbi. And that is exactly what He did. In our time we often see the Church and other organizations which call themselves religions, used for the material, especially the financial, betterment of the leaders and selected individuals. The false religions do not need financial support because they are false religions. They do little or nothing. But the true Church does need material support otherwise laity would have no place to worship, no bread and wine from which to make the Sacred Eucharist, no olive oil from which to make Chrism or Holy Oil, no candles, and none of the other material things which are necessary for administration of the Sacraments and for teaching the Gospel. But a Priest can provide many of these things himself; and he will provide them at least for himself and a small number of people if he has any financial wherewithal at all. But if any Priest, religious, or person in a similar position in one of the organizations which call themselves “religions”, schemes to obtain money or any material excesses through his or her religious position, then such individuals have become as corrupt as were many of the religious leaders of the temple at the time of Christ. All should respect the position of priest or religious, and all should respect those who hold these positions for their exercise of and dedication to their vocations. But those who hold these positions should never expect to be treated as royalty for they are the servants of all. And they are the servants of all, voluntarily. Ref: 1 Cor. 10:6-13; Luke 19:41-47

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