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  • Glory to God for All Things

    Silence and Tradition

    October 31, 2006 · Fr. Stephen Freeman

    If again we wished to oppose (Tradition) to all that belongs to the reality of the word, it would be necessary to say the the Tradition is Silence. “He who possesses in truth the word of Jesus can hear even its silence,” says St. Ignatius of Antioch [to the Ephesians, XV,2]. As far as I know this text has never been used in the numerous studies which quote patristic passages on the…

  • Glory to God for All Things

    Lutheran Pastor to Convert to Orthodoxy

    October 30, 2006 · Fr. Stephen Freeman

    Pastor John Fenton, of Allen Park, MI, announced to his parish his resignation and intention to seek reception into the Orthodox Church along with his family. The text is found on his blog: Conversi ad Domini.

  • Glory to God for All Things

    Can This Really Be the End?

    October 30, 2006 · Fr. Stephen Freeman

    O, Mama, can this really be the end? To be stuck inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues again. Bob Dylan   Ok. I’ll confess it right up front – I’m a Dylan fan. It shows my age and generation. My children have had to learn to put up with his voice, but more than that, to put up with a parent who seems to find lines from Dylan songs that fit…

  • Glory to God for All Things

    The Presence in the Absence

    October 29, 2006 · Fr. Stephen Freeman

    There is a strange aspect to the presence of God in the world around us. That aspect is His apparent absence. I read with fascination (because I am no philosopher, much less a scientist) the discussions surrounding “intelligent design” and the like. I gather that everybody agrees that the universe is just marvelous and wonderfully put together (I can’t think of a better universe). But then begins the parting of ways as…

  • Glory to God for All Things

    The Kind of Kingdom Our God Would Have Us Serve

    October 28, 2006March 16, 2017 · Fr. Stephen Freeman

    The Christian community’s openness to new life and our conviction of the sovereignty of God over that life are but two sides of the same conviction. Christians believe that we have the time in this existence to care for new life, especially as such life is dependent and vulnerable, because it is not our task to rule this world or to “make our mark on history.” We can thus take the time…

  • Glory to God for All Things

    The Onion

    October 27, 2006 · Fr. Stephen Freeman

    Once upon a time there was a wicked-wicked woman, who died. And she left behind her not one single good deed. The devils seized her and threw her into the fiery lake. But her guardian angel stood, and thought: ‘What good deed of hers might I remember, in order to tell God?’ He remembered, and told God: ‘She pulled up an onion in the kitchen garden,’ he said, ‘and gave it to…

  • Glory to God for All Things

    "Save Me Whether I Want It or Not"

    October 27, 2006 · Fr. Stephen Freeman

    A Prayer to Our Lord Jesus Christ My most merciful and all-merciful God, O Lord Jesus Christ! In Thy great love, Thou didst come down and become flesh in order to save all. Again, I pray Thee, save me by Grace! If Thou shouldst save me because of my deeds, it would not be a gift, but merely a duty. Truly, Thou aboundest in graciousness and art inexpressibly merciful! Thou hast said,…

  • Glory to God for All Things

    The Icon as Proof of God's Existence

    October 26, 2006 · Fr. Stephen Freeman

    God “adorns himself in magnificence and clothes himself with beauty.” Man stands amazed and contemplates the glory whose light causes a hymn of praise to burst forth from the heart of every creature. The Testamentum Domini gives us the following prayer: “Let them be filled with the Holy Spirit…so they can sing a doxology and give you praise and glory forever.” An icon is the same kind of doxology but in a…

  • Glory to God for All Things

    The Descent into Hades

    October 26, 2006 · Fr. Stephen Freeman

    Charles Williams, one of C.S. Lewis’ circle of friends, once wrote a book entitled, The Descent into Hell. In it he chronicles the slow inexorable damnation of a soul. Choices made or not made – a chronicle more of spiritual ennui than of willful rebellion – it is a very sobering novel. There is an understanding of hell that goes far beyond the typical lake of fire and burning Gehenna. Those images,…

  • Glory to God for All Things

    An Update on the Pontificator and Limbo

    October 24, 2006 · Fr. Stephen Freeman

    Al Kimel, writing on Pontifications, has posted another article on Limbo, this time doing a masterful job of stating quite clearly why the doctrine is wrong, why children, unbaptized, still enjoy the bliss of heaven. His reason is simple: the love of God. The problem that has plagued the West on this subject is accurately analyzed as well: the false assumptions by St. Augustine, et. al. concerning what we know. Al has…

  • Glory to God for All Things

    Worship and the Knowledge of God

    October 23, 2006 · Fr. Stephen Freeman

    We prove God’s existence by worshiping Him and not by advancing so-called proofs. We have here the liturgical and iconographic argument for the existence of God. We arrive at a solid belief in the existence of God through a leap over what seems true, over the Pascalian certitude. According to an ancient monastic saying, “Give your blood and receive the Spirit.” Paul Evdokimov Evdokimov’s insight follows quite literally the pattern of the…

  • Glory to God for All Things

    In Limbo No More

    October 22, 2006 · Fr. Stephen Freeman

    Al Kimel, over at Pontifications, has posted an excellent article that supports the Vatican’s possible abandonment of the doctrine of Limbo, that is, a doctrine that consigns unbaptized babies to somewhere other than the Beatific Vision of Heaven (in some Catholic accounts, limbo was a place of natural bliss, in others a place of torment.) He references an article by Fr. John Breck which is an excellent Orthodox statement on the subject.…

  • Glory to God for All Things

    Saving Beauty

    October 22, 2006 · Fr. Stephen Freeman

      “God will save the World Through Beauty”   This saying, often attributed to Fyodor Dostoevsky, never occurs in precisely this form in his novels – though the idea is present in such a strong sense that the phrase is correctly attributed to him. It is a phrase that is easily misunderstood. For Dostoevsky, in good Orthodox fashion, beauty is far more than a matter of aesthetics – it is the very…

  • Glory to God for All Things

    Putting the Finger on Modern Paganism

    October 20, 2006 · Fr. Stephen Freeman

      I spent a fortnight in England this summer. Staying in an excellent Orthodox monastery (St. John the Baptist in Essex) and touring the country for another week. The greatest part of the week, I believe, will prove to be the fact that I was roommate for 14 days with my 19 year-old son, James. He’s good company and very down-to-earth in his assessments of things. Solid man – the type you’d…

  • Glory to God for All Things

    Words for the Heart

    October 20, 2006 · Fr. Stephen Freeman

    You cannot be too gentle, too kind. Shun even to appear harsh in your treatment of each other. Joy, radiant joy, streams from the face of him who gives and kindles joy in the heart of him who receives. All condemnation is from the devil. Never condemn each other… Instead of condemning others, strive to reach inner peace. Keep silent, refrain from judgment. This will raise you above the deadly arrows of…

  • Glory to God for All Things

    Glory to God for All Things

    October 19, 2006 · Fr. Stephen Freeman

    Glory to God for all things. For things growing and things that are passing away. For a good walk on a summer day and the quiet of a country lane. Glory to God for all things both revealed and not revealed for He is good and Lord of all.

  • Glory to God for All Things

    What Matters?

    October 19, 2006 · Fr. Stephen Freeman

    God matters and what matters to God matters. I know that sounds very redundant, but I’m not sure how else I want to say it. There are many things that do not matter – because they do not matter to God. Knowing the difference between the two – what matters to God and what does not requires that we know God. And this is theology – to know God. If I have…

  • Glory to God for All Things

    Seeds from Different Worlds

    October 19, 2006 · Fr. Stephen Freeman

    God took seeds from different worlds and sowed them on this earth, and His garden grew, and everything came up that could come up, but all growing things live and are alive only through the feeling of their contact with other mysterious worlds. If that feeling grows weak or is destroyed in you, what has grown up in you will die. Then you will become indifferent to life and even grow to…

  • Praying in the Rain

    Guatemala

    July 31, 2006June 25, 2015 · Fr. Michael Gillis

    Glory be to God,I have just returned from a life changing trip to an orphanage in Guatemala city, Guatemala.This orphanage is run by four God-fearing Orthodox nuns. The founding nuns used to be Catholic monastics, but they became dissatisfied with thier church, and durring a tour of the Holy Land, discovered Orthodoxy, and converted, much to the Catholic church’s dismay.When they decided to start a convent in Guatemala, little did they know…

  • Praying in the Rain

    It's Only Reasonable

    May 6, 2006August 4, 2020 · Fr. Michael Gillis

    I was invited last week to listen to a professor of theology—quite famous for his Evangelical orthodoxy and at the same time his ecumenical openness. I was impressed. I was impressed by his tight case, his grasp of his opponents’ logical mistakes and unexamined assumptions. Overall, it was a marvelous ride for an overly educated Orthodox priest who mostly agrees and similarly wishes to resist the forces of religious indifferation. And as…

  • Praying in the Rain

    CHRISTIAN FAITH AND SAME-SEX ATTRACTION – A New Book from Fr. Thomas Hopko

    April 30, 2006June 25, 2015 · Fr. Michael Gillis

    Eastern Orthodox Reflections. Father Thomas Hopko draws on the wisdom of the Orthodox Christian Church and the Holy Scriptures to help us understand same-sex attraction, with both compassion and clarity. Combining theological and pastoral insights, this small gem will aid pastors, those who experience same-sex desires, and anyone seeking a deeper understanding of the nature of our identity and our sexuality. This book is in reality a primer on how to overcome…

  • Praying in the Rain

    Children in Church

    April 28, 2006June 25, 2015 · Fr. Michael Gillis

    Dear Brothers and Sisters, As God has seen fit to grant our mission growth, we are now experiencing growing pains. Particularly, we are learning how to incorporate families with young children into our parish life. I think over the last little while both parents and the community at large has felt some discomfort as parents have struggled to learn how to teach their children to behave in Church. With this in mind,…

  • Praying in the Rain

    Pascha Party!

    April 27, 2006June 25, 2015 · Fr. Michael Gillis

    Here is Jim heading home with his family’s many Pascha Baskets ‘Christ is Risen, Truly He is Risen!” (Fr. Michael and Family)The kids exploring on Fr.’s land! Thank God for such a beautiful Pasha Day! Thank god, we had a beautiful Pascha day, full of meat, cheese and sunshine! Christ is Risen, Truly He is Risen!

  • Praying in the Rain

    Christ is Risen!

    April 27, 2006June 25, 2015 · Fr. Michael Gillis

    Blessed Bright week!Thank God, we have just completed our third Lent and Pascha together here at Holy Nativity!This year’s celebration was especially meaningful as we have just recently recieved our official name and Antamincian from His Grace Bishop JOSEPH, our loving father in Christ!Here are photos of our Priest Fr. Micheal and our brand new deacon, deacon Chris, on Holy Pascha! Christ is Risen!

  • Frederica

    Bloody, to What End?

    March 8, 2004January 25, 2021 · Frederica Mathewes-Green

    [Newsday, March 7, 2004]

    “Were you there when they crucified my Lord?” asks the old Gospel hymn.

    Mel Gibson’s powerful film, “The Passion of the Christ,” has brought many viewers “there,” and I rejoice with those who say it deepened their faith. I can understand why this film moves them so much.

    But I don’t think they understand why a fellow-believer might prefer a different approach. It seems to them that any less-than-graphic portrayal is weak – “sanitized.”

    But is that the only way to see it? Here, for example, are two paintings made early in the 17th century. The one with the golden background represents the Eastern Christian tradition, and is by the iconographer Emmanuel Lambardos of Crete. The other, emblematic of Mel Gibson’s Western tradition, is by the Dutch painter Hendrick ter Brugghen.

  • Frederica

    To Hell on a Cream Puff

    January 1, 2000June 30, 2023 · Frederica Mathewes-Green

    [Christianity Today, November 18, 1995]

    It’s hard to know just how to take an invitation to write about gluttony. “We thought you would be the perfect person,” the editor’s letter read. “Gee, is it that obvious?” I thought, alarmed. “No, no,” I wanted to protest, “that’s not really me. It just these horizontal stripes.” But, if I’m honest, I have to admit that it is me. It’s most of us. Food is an intoxicating pleasure, and it appears superficially like an innocuous one; it’s not one of the bad sins, like adultery or stealing. We wouldn’t do that; gluttony is different. All it does is make you soft and huggable. It’s the cute sin.

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