The Morning Offering
October 1 / September 18
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Saints of the Day Afterfeast of the Exaltation of the Cross. St. Eumenes, Bishop of Gortyna. Martyr Ariadne of Phrygia. Martyrs Sophia and Irene of Egypt. Martyr Castor of Alexandria. St. Arcadius, Bishop of Novgorod. Great-Martyr Prince Bidzini and Martyrs Prince Elizbar and Prince Shalva of Georgia. Repose of Blessed Irene of the Green Hill Monastery (18th century) and Elder…
Praying in the Rain
Food, Sex and Humility
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In the Garden of Eden, Eve was tempted by food. The draw to the food, or the justification for the draw to this particular food, was intellectual, not biological. That is, she was not drawn to the forbidden food because she was hungry. Eve’s mind and the machinations of her mind (with the help of a serpentine friend) increased desire and justification to the point that she was overcome by desire. The…
The Morning Offering
September 30 / 17
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Saints of the Day Martyr Sophia and her three daughters Faith (Vera), Hope (Nadezhda), and Love (Lyubov) at Rome. Afterfeast ofthe Exaltation of the Cross. Martyr Agathocleia. Martyr Theodota at Nicaea. 156 Martyrs of Palestine, including Bishops Peleusand Nilus, presbyter Zeno, and noblemen Patermuthius and Elias. Martyrs Lucy and her son Geminian of Rome. HieromartyrsHeraclides and Myron, Bishops of Cyprus.…
Praying in the Rain
Politics and the Image of God
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“Never confuse the person, formed in the image of God, with the evil that is in him; because evil is but a chance misfortune, an illness, a devilish reverie. But the very essence of the person is the image of God, and this remains in him despite every disfigurement.” — St. John of Kronstadt It is often hard for us to believe that the person who hurts us, opposes us, takes from…
Glory to God for All Things
Servanthood and Freedom - A Word to Neurotic Christians
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Be both a servant, and free: a servant in that you are subject to God, but free in that you are not enslaved to anything – either to empty praise or to any of the passions. Release your soul from the bonds of sin; abide in liberty, for Christ has liberated you; acquire the freedom of the New World during this temporal life of yours. Do not be enslaved to love of…
The Morning Offering
September 29 / 16
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Saints of the Day Afterfeast of the Exaltation of the Cross. Great-Martyr Euphemia the All-praised Martyrs Victor and Sosthenes at Chalcedon. St. Sebastiana, disciple of St. Paul the Apostle, martyred at Heraclea. Martyr Melitinaof Marcianopolis. St. Dorotheus, hermit of Egypt. Martyr Ludmilla, grandmother of St. Wenceslaus, prince of the Czechs. Reposeof St. Cyprian, Metropolitan of Kiev. St. Procopius, abbot of…
Glory to God for All Things
Silent Sentinels
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On October 1, the Church will celebrate the feast of the Protection of the Mother of God. Icons of this feast portray the Mother of God extending her veil over the whole Church – a graphic presentation of her prayers and maternal love. A similar love and prayer belongs to the saints of heaven, who stand as “a great cloud of witnesses,” urging the Church forward and always surrounding us with their…
The Morning Offering
September 28 / 15
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Saints of the Day Afterfeast of the Exaltation of the Cross. Great-Martyr Nicetas the Goth. St.Philotheus the presbyter. Martyr Porphyrius the actor. Opening of the Relics of St. Acacius, Bishop of Melitene. Opening of theRelics of Holy Protomartyr and Archdeacon Stephen. Martyrs Theodotus, Asclepiodotus, and Maximus of Adrianopolis. SaintsBessarion I and Bessarion II, Archbishops. Larissa. St. Gerasimus, abbot of Mysia.…
Praying in the Rain
Because I Carry You In My Heart
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To the Philippians, St. Paul says, “I thank God at the remembrance of you…being persuaded of this very thing, that the One who began a good work in you will bring it to perfection until the day of Christ Jesus.” Isn’t it wonderful: the good work that God has begun in us will be perfected, if not in this life, then in the next. My perfection in Christ (“perfection” in the…
Glory to God for All Things
The God Who Raised Jesus from the Dead
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Stanley Hauerwas (Duke University) has written a fine article on who God is – or the limits by which we know Him as Christians. I studied under Hauerwas when I was a grad student at Duke and have often found him clarifying on things that should be clear (but often are not). In the article he quotes the Lutheran Theologian Robert Jensen who is also an acquaintance and a theologian of substance.…
The Morning Offering
September 27 / 14
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The Exaltation of the Holy Cross Saints of the Day: THE UNIVERSAL EXALTATION OF THE PRECIOUS AND LIFE-GIVING CROSS. Repose of St. JohnChrysostom. Martyr Papas of Lycaonia. St. Placilla the Empress, wife of Theodosius the Great. New-Martyr Macarius ofThessalonica. (Greek Calendar: Holy Fathers of the Seventh Ecumenical Council. Martyr Theocles and Child-martyr Valerian.)Lesna Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos. Quote…
The Morning Offering
September 26 / 13
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Saints of the Day Commemoration of the Founding of the Church of the Resurrection (the Holy Sepulchre) in Jerusalem.Hieromartyr Cornelius the Centurion. Hieromartyr Julian of Galatia (same as September 12). St. Peter of Atroe. Martyrs Elias,Zoticus, Lucian, Valerian, Macrobius and Gordian at Tomi in Rumania. Martyrs Cronides, Leontius and Serapion of Alexandria.Martyr Seleucus in Scythia. Martyr Straton (same as September…
Glory to God for All Things
Mere Existence and the Age to Come
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C.S. Lewis, in his marvelous little book, The Great Divorce, uses the imagery of “solidity” versus “ghostliness” to make a distinction between those who have entered paradise, and those who have not. He clearly did not mean to set forth a metaphysical model or to suggest “how things are.” But the imagery is very apt and suggestive when we take a look at what it means for something or someone to exist.…
The Morning Offering
September 25 / 12
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Saints of the Day Hieromartyr Autonomus, Bishop of in Italy. St. Coronatus, Bishop of Iconium. Martyr Julian of Galatia and 40Martyrs with him. Hieromartyr Theodore of Alexandria. St. Athanasius, disciple of St. Sergius of Radonezh and abbot of theVysotsk Monastery in Serpukhov, and his disciple St. Athanasius. St. Bassian of Tikhsnen (Vologda). Translation of the Relics ofRighteous Simeon of Verkhoturye.…
Praying in the Rain
Motivation
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[An e-mail exchange] Dear Fr. Michael, If you are looking for a blog topic, I’d love to hear you explore motivation within an orthodox understanding of existence. Education is locked in the intrinsic/extrinsic dichotomy (I think they’re two sides of the same coin and arise from an individualistic understanding of humans) and I have some of my own ideas, but you could help my thinking by sharing yours. Dear Educator, I…
Praying in the Rain
Love and Equality
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“The Lord wants us to love each other; this is the essence of freedom: love for God and for your neighbor. This is both freedom and equality. But in earthly titles there can be no equality; this is of no concern to the soul, however. Not everyone can be a king or a prince; not everyone can be a patriarch or an abbot, or a leader, but no matter what your title…
The Morning Offering
September 24 / 11
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Saints of the Day Afterfeast of the Nativity of the Theotokos. Translation of the Relics of Saints Sergius and Herman of ValaamSt. Euphrosynus the Cook of Alexandria. Martyr Ia of Persia and 9,000 Martyrs with her. Martyrs Diodorus, Didymus, andDiomedes of Laodicea. Martyrs Demetrius, his wife Euanthis, and their son Demetrian at Skepsis on the Hellespont. MartyrsSerapion, Cronides (Hieronides) and…
Praying in the Rain
Icons and Idols
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(From a letter to an inquirer) Probably to begin with, I suggest that you get some icons (if you haven’t already) and set up an icon corner or wall or space in your house where your family can say prayers together (and individually). Just one icon will do and it need not be an expensive hand-painted one. You can cut the icons out of the Orthodox Study Bible and put them on…
Praying in the Rain
Love Every Person
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The Morning Offering
September 23 / 10
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Saints of the Day: Afterfeast of the Nativity of the Theotokos. Martyrs Menodora, Metrodora, and Nymphodora at Nicomedia.Martyr Barypsabas in Dalmatia. Saints Peter and Paul, Bishops of Nicaea. St. Pulcherius the Empress. Synaxis of the HolyApostles Apelles, Lucius and Clement of the Seventy. St. Ioasaph, monk of Kubensk (Vologda). St. Paul the Obedient of the KievCaves. St. Cassian, abbot of…
Glory to God for All Things
Existence and Truth
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Fr. Sergius Bulgakov, as a young man who returned to the faith following a flirtation with Marxism, came to an understanding that the Christian faith is not to be understood as a moral structure, but as a matter of true existence. This distinction is deeply important in Orthodox understanding, and has been a hallmark of Orthodox teaching in the 20th and 21st century. Few matters of the faith draw out this distinction…
The Morning Offering
September 22 / 9
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Saints of the Day Afterfeast of the Nativity of the Theotokos. Holy and Righteous Ancestors of God Joachim and Anna. MartyrSeverian of Sebaste. St. Joseph, abbot of Volokolamsk (or Volotsk). Martyr Chariton. Martyr Straton. St. Theophanes the confessorand faster of Mt. Diabenos. Blessed Nicetas the Hidden of Constantinople. St. Joachim, abbot of Opochka Monastery (Pskov).Opening of the Relics of St.…
Praying in the Rain
Tolstoy and the Orthodox Church, Some Reflections
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One of the ways to understand Tolstoy’s relationship with the Orthodox Church is in the context of his search for certainty, certainty regarding truth. Tolstoy’s relationship with the Orthodox Church is paradoxical, that is, very Russian, quite Orthodox. In 1878 at the age of 50, Tolstoy was experiencing a kind of religious awakening during which he frequently attended the village Church wanting to absorb the spirituality of the people. However in the…
The Morning Offering
September 21 / 8
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The Nativity of the Theotokos Saints of the Day THE NATIVITY OF OUR MOST HOLY LADY THE THEOTOKOS AND EVER-VIRGIN MARY. St. Serapion, monkof Spaso-Eleazar Monastery (Pskov). St. Lucian, abbot of Alexandrov. St. Arsenius, abbot of Konevits. New-Martyr Athanasius ofThessalonica. New-Martyr Alexander (Jacobson) (1930). (Greek Calendar: Martyrs Rufus and Rufianus. Martyrs Severus andArtemidorus. St. Sophronius of Iberia, Bishop) Icons of…
Praying in the Rain
Speaking in Tongues
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My internet connection has been down, so I’m late responding to Anonymous’ question about speaking in tongues. As many of you know, I was a Charismatic/Pentecostal Christian before I became Orthodox. I was a tongues speaker. After I became Orthodox, I found myself using (what we called) “prayer language” less and less–not because anyone told me not to pray in tongues. What I found was that the Jesus Prayer as a prayer…
The Morning Offering
September 20 / 7
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Saints of the Day Martyr Sozon of Cilicia St. John, Archbishop and Wonderworker of Novgorod. Martyr Eupsychius of Caesarea inCappadocia. Apostles Evodus (Euodias) and Onesiphorus of the Seventy. St. Luke, abbot near Constantinople. Martyrdom of St.Macarius, archimandrite of Kanev. St. Cloud (Clodoald), abbot-founder of Nogent-sur-Seine near Paris. New-Martyr priest John Maslovsky. Repose of Elder Macarius of Optina (1860). Quote of…
The Morning Offering
September 19 / 6
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Saints of the Day Commemoration of the Miracle of the Archangel Michael at Colossae (Chonae) Martyr Eudoxius and those withhim Martyrs Romulus, Zeno, Macarius and 11,000 others in Armenia. St. Archippus of Herapolis. Martyrs Cyriacus, Faustus,Abibus, and 11 others at Alexandria. Hieromartyr Cyril, Bishop of Gortyna. St. David of Hermpolis in Egypt. Martyrs Calodote,Macarius, Andrew, Cyriacus, Dionysius, Andrew the soldier,…
