“…remember Thy Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church…establish, and strengthen, and expand, increase, pacify, and keep Her unconquerable by the gates of hades; calm the dissensions of the churches, quench the raging of the nations, and quickly destroy and uproot the rising of heresy…”
Morning Intercessions from the Jordanville Prayer Book
Hello! Welcome to my blog, The Based Byzantine, where I discuss topics related to Eastern Christianity, the interface between the Latin and Greek Churches, and the reunion of Slavic Christendom in the Universal Church under Rome.
Please comment on anything intriguing or of interest. Slava Isusu Christu!
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A Byzantine Perspective on Integralism – Part V
See links to previous segments below: Part IV Part III Part II Part I Introduction Life’s been crazy and it’s been a while since I’ve written much, but now I’m back again to type up the fifth and final installment of my series on Integralism! From the notorious “hijacking” of the Second Vatican Council (I…
Christ the King Icon Finally Finished!
After many alterations and revisions, I at last now feel satisfied with my effort in depicting the image of our divine Savior. After I finished the icon of our blessed Lady, it was only proper to turn my hand to the One to whom she always points. The inspiration for this icon came from several…
Traditional Liturgy: The Path to True Ecumenism – Part II
The Second Vatican Council occurred at the heyday of the Liturgical Movement, which ideally sought to inspire a renewed appreciation for the Roman Mass and correct modern abuses that distanced Latin practices from those of the East.[1] But instead of re-harmonizing Latin practices with Greek and Syriac customs, for example by restoring the Sung Mass…
Traditional Liturgy: The Path to True Ecumenism – Part I
Part I Behold how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity. (Ps. 132:1 DRV) Ecumenism is an often invoked but infrequently understood term in the Catholic Church today. The word comes from the Greek oikumene – the inhabited or civilized world – specifically, the area governed by the Roman…
A Byzantine Perspective on “Integralism” – Part IV
As a result of secularism’s ascendency, the last century was the most chaotic of all human history, marked by repeated revolutions, the rise of extremist political ideologies such as Nazism and Bolshevism, and famine, genocide, and total war. The anti-modernist popes of the “Pian” dynasty who reigned during the 19th and early 20th centuries accurately…
A Byzantine Perspective on “Integralism” – Part III
By contrast, the Latin model saw a strong distinction between the clerical and civil powers develop early on in the Middle Ages with the Holy Roman Empire. Charlemagne and his successors attempted to exert influence and sometimes even directly control the clergy in the manner of the Eastern Roman emperors. But unlike the East, the…
A Byzantine Perspective on “Integralism” – Part II
The development of Eastern Christendom was characterized by the gradual perfusion of the existing pagan society with Christianity, rather than a rupture. Even during the Latin Middle Ages when the ecclesiastical and political powers were most closely connected, the West distinguished the roles of each realm. And after the close of the medieval era, this…
A Byzantine Perspective on “Integralism” – Part I
Read the Introduction It has been a while since I first wrote on this subject, but as promised, I am finally back to it again, and here is the next post in my series on “integralism.” Even long before the present crises, there was a growing tendency in Western Christendom back to the Renaissance, Ockham,…
Some More Thoughts on the Filioque
A deeper issue behind the Filioque debate is the question of divine simplicity. Latin Catholics who follow the Thomist school assert that there is not only a lack of composition in God – that is, He cannot be divided into parts – but in His being there is really no distinction among discrete qualities we…
Some Thoughts on the Filioque
Yes, I’m going there! But I don’t want to add yet another argumentative voice to this debate. Instead I’d like to non-confrontationally bring up some factors on both sides of the issue that can lead to misunderstandings from the other side. For it is my position that on this topic, as in so many others,…
Support the Russian Greek Catholics!
My brother-in-Christ Timothy Flanders from The Meaning of Catholic and OnePeterFive is a dedicated advocate for the small but mighty Russian Greek Catholic Church (Russian Orthodox Christians who have come back into full communion with Rome while preserving their own heritage in liturgy, theology, traditions, etc.) and I wanted to give a shout-out for his…
How the New Roman Rite can be Reformed
Now I will give one example, focusing on the revival of sacred music, as to how the modern-day Roman Rite can be reformed (returned-to-form) in light of the principles elucidated in my last two posts, namely, the process of giving life to old Latin traditions by following the model of contemporary Eastern practices. As we…
How Some Latin ‘Trads’ have Accomplished True Reform
However, on the flipside, there has been a shift over centuries in how the Latin Church conceived the nature of the services that was in need of reform. The universal church of the first millennium considered the Eucharist and Divine Office as inherently public actions, a view preserved in the Eastern Churches. But later developments…
What is the Nature of Church Reform?
Some “rad trads” have the idea that if the Latin Church turns back the clock to the time before the Second Vatican Council in terms of teachings, disciplines, and practices, she will automatically be restored to her full vitality and integrity. But the reality, as more moderate traditionalist thinkers realize, is that the Latin Church…
Byzantine Worship as Corporate Work of Christ’s Body
Latin Catholics can fall into two extremes when it comes to understanding the nature of worship. While the old Roman Rite has been criticized excessively in this respect, it is true that there is a tendency toward “clericalization” in the TLM. And this more clerical focus makes perfect sense in light of the historical and…
Troparion and Kontakion to the Theotokos of Fatima
O most holy Theotokos and Mother of our God, you appeared in an age of wars and revolutions to warn of worse calamities should mankind not repent of its evils and turn back to the way of truth. But if our fallen race were to be humbled and return to its Maker, you announced a…
Theotokos of Fatima Icon Finally Finished!
I was temporarily diverted by Holy Week and Pascha (Christos voskrese!), but today I at last got around to put the finishing touches on my icon and here it is! It is both amazing and humbling to see how wonderfully it turned out in the end. I am sure this image did not come from…
Theotokos of Fatima Icon Almost Done!
After the Holy Father made his act of consecration for Russia and Ukraine, I felt that I should do something in my own small way to commemorate the occasion. For some time now, I’ve been wanting to try my hand at iconography, but have been intimidated by the challenge of it. When I began to…
An Authentically Byzantine “Rosary”
Any serious scholar of church history recognizes that there has been cross-pollination over time between the various particular churches of Christendom. This fruitful interchange naturally occurred to a greater extent during the initial centuries and then began to slow down as the various rites began to crystallize. But it has continued to a greater or…
A Byzantine Perspective on “Integralism” – Introduction
One buzzword now being tossed around a lot in the Latin world is integralism. This term can be summed up as denoting the idea the Christian faith cannot be divided or separated from the other aspects of human life but rather must be connected or integrated with everything else. All things: from the humblest tasks…
A Byzantine Defense of the Immaculate Conception – Part II
In part I, I summarized the excellent work of Fr. Kucharek on this topic. There is really nothing more needed to prove the case; his evidence speaks for itself. And I cannot add anything more that would serve to enhance his argument. However, I thought it might be interesting and helpful to present some of…
A Byzantine Defense of the Immaculate Conception – Part I
Most modern Eastern Orthodox Christians claim that they do not accept the Catholic understanding of the Immaculate Conception, which can be briefly summarized as the teaching that the Holy Theotokos was preserved free from all stain of original sin at her conception by the merits of Christ our God, applied retroactively (back in time) from…
Caesaropapism and the Liberty of the Church – Part II
And such a focus on the secular over the sacred brings us to the crux of it all: the institutionalized hypocrisy called “separation of church and state.” For it is impossible to separate governance from notions about how things are and the way they ought to be ordered. And this philosophy of governance ultimately comes…
Caesaropapism and the Liberty of the Church – Part I
The horrific conflict occurring in Ukraine has been at the forefront of our consciousness in recent days. And one aspect of the tragedy that stands out from a religious perspective is the servile position of the Russian Orthodox Church under Patriarch Kirill in relation to Putin’s government. George Weigel recently published an interesting piece at…
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