The Morning Offering
The Kiss
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Kissing the hand of the priest is all about Christ The kissing of the hand of the priest is not about the man, but rather about Christ. It is much like the kissing of an icon, which is not about the veneration of paint and wood, but about the archetype represented in the icon. When we kiss the hand of…
Father Bill's Blog
130. 2011 Trip, Part Two - Going to Church on Crete
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As you know from last week’s Post, we’ve left the problems of the world behind, and now we’re seeing the world. Which raises another problem: Why is it so hard to get to church while we’re on vacation? It’s because we’re out of our routine which, as I said last week, is good for us – but often by the time we’ve remembered church it’s too late. Besides, in the US or…
The Whole Counsel Blog
The Oak of Mamre
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The episode at the oak of Mamre, recorded in Genesis 18, is one of the strangest and most mysterious in the scriptures. It has long been depicted in Orthodox iconography as the Hospitality of Abraham. Beginning with Andrei Rublev, a detail of this scene has been the only approved Orthodox iconographic depiction of the Holy Trinity. This Trinity icon is used by some local Orthodox churches as the icon for the feast of Pentecost. The coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost marked the conclusion of the revelation of the Holy Trinity to humanity. The episode of the oak of Mamre, in many ways, represents the beginning of that revelation. Genesis 18 begins by stating that Yahweh appeared to Abraham…
Faith Encouraged
You Should Have Listened to Me!
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She just rolled her eyes. I’m getting that more and more from my 12 year old lately! Sure, I had just used one of my old, worn out Dad sayings, one of my favorites when I say that everyone would be happier if they would all just do as I say! She thinks I’m silly, and I do mean it in jest most of the time. But I confess a part of…
The Morning Offering
Acquiring Virtues
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Like a bee one should extract from each of the virtues what is most profitable “Like a bee one should extract from each of the virtues what is most profitable. In this way, by taking a small amount from all of them, one builds up from the practice of the virtues a great honeycomb overflowing with the soul-delighting honey of…
Nearly Orthodox
Life, the Internet, and Everything...
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Thunderstorms are my favorite thing. The crack of lightning, the rumble of thunder. Strong rain on my roof and me, warm in my bed, watching. Let me amend this to say that thunderstorms are my favorite thing when I am in a safe, warm, dry place. If I were camping, or stuck on the side of the road, or walking home from the bus stop, they might feel far more menacing, and…
Behind the Scenes
Statement in response to “Orthodoxy’s Appeal to the Liberal Left” by an author with the pseudonym Ioannis Constantinou
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No Other Foundation
Do We Really Need Deacons?
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Recently I overheard a conversation about deacons and someone opined that if there were no deacons in the Church no one would notice, and that they could be eliminated with no ill effect at all, since they were simply a speed bump a priestly candidate encountered on the way to priestly ordination. I take the point, and admit that this accurately sums up the reality of the diaconate in much of North…
Faith Encouraged
Paul Says He's Alive!
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Jesus gave us many promises as he preached and taught during His ministry. The problem is we want to pay attention to the “happy” promises like “ask, and it shall be given to you.” We have a bit more trouble hearing this promise to us from Jesus: “If the persecuted me, they will persecute you as well.” (John 15:20) That doesn’t sound like fun at all, does it? And yet, the truth…
The Morning Offering
Drought
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Encountering drought in one’s soul Washington State is experiencing drought, and for the first time in ages, Western Washington is being impacted. When most people think of Seattle, they think of rain, lots of rain. Anyone who would choose to live in the Puget Sound region, better like rain, we tell our visitors. We love lush green forests, and rushing…
Glory to God for All Things
The Distraction Delusion - Get Your Hands Dirty
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I recently bought a pickup truck, a twenty-five year-old clunker that runs ok. I paid $600 for it and have been slowly tending to the little fixes that it requires. It’s old enough to lack the computerization that puts vehicles beyond the reach of a shade-tree mechanic. My father and his father were both auto mechanics. I had forgotten how much satisfaction I get from doing what they did. When I was…
Praying in the Rain
Indifference and Trying Harder
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In my last post, Finding Peace Despite Sinful Thoughts, I spoke of the struggle to accept the struggle, to be at peace despite ongoing sinful thought. I compared this struggle to the battle I have in my garden with bindweed. One of the readers of that article wrote the following comment, and I thought that I would share my response with everyone. Here’s the comment: Thank you Father, One of the problems…
Faith Encouraged
Take Courage
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When I am at peace with the direction of my life I find that restfulness spills over onto those around me. But that makes perfect sense. After all, we constantly pray in the liturgy “For our deliverance from all affliction, wrath, danger, and necessity, let us pray to the Lord. Lord, have mercy.” Freed from my life being driven by “necessity” I am invited to a life of peaceful sobriety that quiets…
The Morning Offering
Faith in a Disbelieving World
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Living as Orthodox Christians in a Non-Christian World In this pluralistic society there are many Orthodox individuals who’ve found themselves sharing their lives with non-Orthodox family members. Sometimes these families are not even practicing Christians, so the struggle to keep to the traditions and practices of the Orthodox Faith can be difficult. The lenten periods can be especially hard when…
Roads from Emmaus
St Columba and the Water of Artbranan
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Faith Encouraged
Full of the Holy Spirit
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This famous conversation between St. Seraphim of Sarov and a young, Russian nobleman is a true treasure for us today: Movilof asked: “What does it mean, acquiring the Holy Spirit?” Abba Seraphim replied: “When you acquire something you own it, like owning money. The Holy Spirit is your heavenly capital. Let us pray to be filled with Holy Spirit and let us be silent in His presence in order to hear what…
The Morning Offering
True Knowledge
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Simplicity and humility lead to true knowledge The Apostle Paul tells us that it is better to be ignorant in speech rather than in spiritual knowledge (2 Cor. 11:6). Being skilled in speaking is a matter of human learning, as are the other forms of worldly education, but they do not contribute to the salvation of the soul. Even if…
Walking an Ancient Path
Liturgy Survival Guide: Traveling Companions on the Journey
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Faith Encouraged
The Gift of Prophecy
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There are real and debilitating consequences to living life asleep. Wow, what a way to begin a devotional! But seriously, the ancient saying “the unexamined life is not worth living” hits home precisely because most of my troubles in my life are self-inflicted AND result from not taking the time and not developing the insight necessary to avoid the potholes in my life! You can’t hope to avoid trouble if you never…
The Morning Offering
The Critic
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The critic, fearing he will fail, does nothing It is easy to be critical of another person, finding fault with what we perceive they are doing, have done, or have not done. Yet the man who points out how another man has stumbled, finding fault in something he himself has not done, and in what he himself thinks he could…
The Morning Offering
How to Forgive
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We must put aside all resentment The decision to forgive another person a wrong done to us begins when we decide to let go of resentment and thoughts of revenge. To forgive someone does not mean that we forget what they did to us, for this may be impossible. The memory of the hurt might always remain with you, but…
Eastern Christian Insights
Ascending with Christ into Heavenly, Not Earthly, Glory: Homily for the Sunday After the Ascension and Commemoration of the Holy Fathers of the First Ecumenical Council of Nicaea in the Orthodox Church
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Acts 20:16-18, 28-36; John 17:1-13 Forty days after His glorious resurrection, our Lord, God, and Savior Jesus Christ ascended in glory into heaven and sat at the right hand of God the Father. He did so as One Who is fully divine and fully human, One Person with two natures. He ascended with His glorified, resurrected body which still bore the wounds of His crucifixion. The Ascension shows that through Him…
The Morning Offering
Mystery of Mysteries
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The Holy Eucharist is the Mystery of Mysteries The Holy Eucharist is the source of our sacramental life within the Church of Christ precisely because through the Eucharist we are joined to Christ crucified, and to His holy resurrection and ascension. It is through this Holy Mystery of the Eucharist that we are joined to the uncreated and divine grace…
Father Bill's Blog
129. 2011 Trip, Part One - Getting out of Town, "Givens" and Greece
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It’s summer. Enough talk about troublesome issues. Time to put all that behind us and go traveling again. Get out of Town! Brothers and sisters, taking a break from regular life is important. We need to get out of the house, away from the job, and do something different – even if we only go to grandma’s house. This gives us a new perspective on life, on whatever we’ve been doing or…
Glory to God for All Things
Living In The Real World - And Really Living
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Nothing exists in general. If something is beautiful or good, it is manifest in a particular way at a particular time such that we can know it. And this is our true life. A life lived in a “generalized” manner is no life at all, but only a fantasy. However, this fantasy is increasingly the character of what most people think of or describe as the “real world.” A monk lives in…
Faith Encouraged
Rules, I Hate Rules!
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“They have to keep the rules, just like us!” Yeah, that’s true. We should all be held to the same standard. But wait a tick, have you kept the “rules” you expect others to keep? I know it’s hard to get your mind to shift from “what should be” to “what is,” but that’s what our lesson requires today. And there’s the rub, dear ones. But what if the purpose of the…
The Morning Offering
Salvation
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More than acquittal and justification Salvation can not be explained in legalistic terms of acquittal and justification, for salvation is much more than simply being forgiven and getting into heaven. The close tie between faith and works, when it comes to the Orthodox view of salvation, is not about being “saved” by our works, for this is impossible. Works do…
