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The Pastoral Epistles of Saint Paul
Talk by Metropolitan Jonah (Paffhausen), part 20, Ephesians 2
October 25, 2022

Topics include: 
(1) Review of the connection of Chapter 1 to the Anaphora ("offering up") and the Liturgy as the ascent to the throne of God in His Kingdom; 
(2) The Church as the body of Christ, the vessel of salvation; 
(3) A further discussion of predestination: God did not create anyone for damnation. He knows that some will ultimately choose hell, but He has not chosen it for them ... they choose it for themselves. Calvinism is a radical departure from the doctrine of free will; 
(4) On Hell and punishment. Hell is not separation from God per se, or else those who go there would cease to exist, but is being in the loving presence of God yet hating it. God does not punish us --- we punish ourselves plenty; 
(5) On the Orthodox view of Providence: God provides trials for our salvation. In the East, people don't blame God for everything bad that happens to them. The Fathers took it as the chastisement of God for our salvation; 
(6) On Holy Tradition and Scripture: The New Testament Canon was completed after 360 years, and for many years, churches had maybe only one or two letters. The Bible is based on the life of the Church. The Church is the central interpretative concept from which the Scriptures make sense. cf. "Sola Scriptura"; 
(7) Christ offered himself for the whole of humanity ... a cosmic reconciliation. He abrogated the Law of Moses ... the covenant with Moses is gone ... there is a New Covenant in Christ, as prophesied by the Prophets Jeremiah and Isaiah and others. We are freed from prescriptive laws (cleansing, etc.), which became almost an idol. We are freed from the curse of the Law due to breaking it. The Church has replaced the Law. The "New Testament" is not a "replacement" for the "Old Testament." Rather *the New Covenant is to be united with Christ and have the Holy Spirit write His law on our hearts so that we intuitively know it*; 
(8) On Jews and Gentiles: We are all now united with Christ in the Holy Spirit, by grace through faith, a new reality in Him. We share in Jesus' own relationship with His Father. The "dispensationalist doctrine" of some Protestants is contrary to Scripture: there is not a separate way of salvation for Jews and Gentiles, but one: to be reconciled to the Father by faith in Christ through the Holy Spirit. The Church is the New Israel.