Faith Encouraged
Can't Buy Me Love
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Christ is risen! They say that you can’t buy happiness. Well, that’s a bit subjective, because some folks are very happy for a short time when they spend money. There is even a genuine psychological disorder that deals with folks who are addicted to spending money. So, I guess it all depends on how you define “happiness.” The point of the old saying is meant to teach that true happiness or contentment…
Word of the Day
What Is True Repentance? (Wed. May 19)
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The word of the day is “repent.” We usually think of repentance as a change of heart and mind. But repentance can be insincere, pretended, or done for the wrong reason. In today’s reading of Acts 8:18-25, we read the case of a man named Simon who seemed to repent. After Peter condemned his wickedness, Simon said, “Pray to the Lord for me, that none of the things which you have spoken may come upon me (OSB vs. 24).  This plea seemed to indicate that he had turned around from his sinful ways. However, if we read this passage carefully, we discover his contrition was not genuine. Thus, from this negative example, we learn about the nature of true repentance.…
The Morning Offering
Restoration
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The Restoration of the True Self The Lord Jesus Christ was humble, meek and good, and with the help of the Lord we too can be humble. Fasting and prayer are the means by which God can change our hearts, but we must approach both with humility and purpose. Saying our prayers quickly just to get through them is no…
Glory to God for All Things
The Verbal Icon of Christ
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Any number of times, the late Fr. Thomas Hopko recounted how his predecessor as Professor of Dogmatics at St. Vladimir’s, Serge Verhovskoy, extracted an oath from him prior to signing off on his assuming that position. The oath was straightforward: never to present his own opinion as the dogma of the Church. If you’ve ever listened to any of Fr. Tom’s lectures (something I highly recommend), you’ll note how careful he always…
Faith Encouraged
Dazzled By Popularity
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Christ is risen! Everybody loves a celebrity. All you have to do is stand in line at the grocery store and see the many different magazines dedicated to keeping us informed about the lives of this or that celebrity and you can’t escape this weakness in we humans. But so many of our celebrities turn out to be just as weak and just as fallible as we are, and we love learning…
The Morning Offering
The Two Great Commandments
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“Love thy God with all your heart, mind…” and secondly, “Love thy neighbor…” We live in a world bombarded with thousands of messages, some subtle and some not-so-subtle, of merchandising that impact the way we interact with others, and the way we relate to God. Much of what we glean from these messages is narcissistic in nature, estranging us from…
Word of the Day
The Transformation of Evil into Good (Tues. May 18)
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The word of the day is “Samaria .” The Lord can take evil and use it for good.  Today in our reading of Acts 8:5-17, we find that fierce persecution has scattered the first believers. One of them, the Deacon Philip, went to Samaria, and as he went, he preached the Gospel. In response, the Samaritans eagerly “received the Word of God” (OSB vs.14). Thus, what seemed to be a setback for the early church advanced its mission.  Today we consider how God uses the worst in our lives for the best. The stoning of Stephen was a crisis for the growing Christian movement.  Immediately after it, we read, “At that time a great persecution arose against the church which…
Faith Encouraged
Uncircumcised Hearts and Ears
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Christ is Risen! “That boy is so hard-headed he wouldn’t even notice a rock hitting him between the eyes.” My grandmother had a way with words, but I’ve known people like this; so set in their ways that not even plain evidence would move them to change their ways. They were frozen in their thinking. Reminds me of some political arguments today! But that kind of attitude can create some real problems…
The Morning Offering
Becoming Your Best Friend
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Your closest and most intimate friend is yourself If you have never learned to accept and love yourself, you will never be able to love another person. If you don’t learn to forgive yourself, you will never be able to forgive another person. You must learn to be your own best friend. To love yourself is not about narcissism, an…
Word of the Day
How Our Faith May Be Confirmed (Mon. May 17)
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The word of the day is “so.” Nowadays, people are disposed to believe many things with little evidence to confirm them. Yet when it comes to religion, doubt, cynicism, and indifference to the truth prevail. Today in our reading of Acts 6:8-7:5; 47-60, the apostles face the Jewish council. And the high priest asks, “Are these things so? (OSB vs. 7:1). Just as the Jewish officials and Pilate demanded that Jesus answer the false accusations against Him (Matthew 27:12; Mark 15:4), the temple court challenges Stephen to answer the false charge of his opponents (vs. 7:1). But there is a deeper question behind the challenge, “Is it “so”?  Is what Stephen is saying and doing true? In today’s study, we…
The Morning Offering
He Who is Without Sin?
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Christ asked those without sin to cast the first stone “We have all sinned and fall short of the Glory of God (Romans 3:23).” We Orthodox often miss the mark in understanding and ministering to this world. We fail to heed the words of Christ, “to love one another as God has loved us”, and forget we are charged by…
Word of the Day
The Origins of a Continuing Historic Ministry (Sun. May 16)
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The word of the day is “appoint.”  Today’s society believes that there always is a better way.  Invention will improve anything. Innovation will make everything function more efficiently and easily. However, the foundations of Holy Tradition in the church are enduring. One of these is the church order of ordained clergy. Today in our reading of Act 6:1-7, we read of the establishment of the order of deacons in the church. The twelve apostles said, “Therefore, brethren, seek out from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, whom we may appoint for this business [of administration and caring]”  (OSB vs. 3). Based on this model, our deacons continue to serve the church today.…
Eastern Christian Insights
True Faith Requires Devotion Despite Disappointment: Homily for the Sunday of the Myrrh-Bearing Women in the Orthodox Church
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Mark 15: 43-16:8            Christ is Risen! It is easy to assume that we have strong faith when it seems like everything is going our way. All too often, that means that we have come to trust in ourselves for following a religion that we imagine will give us what we want.  When difficult struggles come, however, the truth about our weak souls is revealed. Then we come to see that real faith…
The Whole Counsel Blog
The Magnificat
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In the previous post, the visit of the Theotokos to St. Elizabeth was discussed with particular reference to St. Luke’s use of the Old Testament within the narrative to communicate a further depth and context to what is otherwise a reasonably simple event. This post will continue the narrative, particularly addressing the song of the Theotokos, the Magnificat, which would become the Ninth Biblical Ode. Luke 1:46: Verse 46 begins the Magnificat proper. the Theotokos’ response to receiving the sign of St. Elizabeth’s pregnancy and her prophetic testimony is to issue forth this prophetic song, which stands in parallel, as already mentioned, to the pattern within the Old Testament of biblical odes following great acts of deliverance by God in…
Word of the Day
Witness Without Compromise (Sat. May 15)
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The word of the day is “obey.” In every revolution, there is a moment when the rebels defy authority. Without the courage of some to do so, there is no change. There is only compliance. Today we find in our reading of Acts 5:21-33 that such a moment occurred when the apostles again appeared before the high priest and members of the Sadducees, the religious sect that ruled the temple.  When the high priest sternly reminded Peter that he was told to cease speaking of “this Name [of Jesus”] (OSB vs. 28), Peter was defiant. “We ought to obey God rather than men,” he said (OSB vs. 29). That was the decisive moment that would free the new Christian movement…
The Morning Offering
Laying Blame
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Putting the blame in the right place We all have a natural tendency to lay blame on others, when in truth we must blame only ourselves. When facing our own sins and shortcomings, it is always easy to put the blame on others, yet our faith tells us that spiritual progress can only come with the acquisition of a humble…
Glory to God for All Things
Stumbling Toward Salvation
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On occasion I have written on topics that seem to scandalize readers, or certainly cause difficulty for many. Some of those topics have been articles on the wrath of God; the radical forgiveness of everyone for everything; the commonality of our life and our salvation; and various posts on giving thanks always for all things (there are others as well). I am not intentionally contrarian – I do not write in order…
A Lamp for Today
Lighting Up the Apocalypse 8: Rewarding Works with the Morning Star
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Rev 2:18-29; Daniel 7:9-14; Daniel 10:1-9; 2 Kings (4 Kingdoms) 9:30-37 Each of the words to the churches comes with a self-given title by Jesus, and emphasizes one or more of the features of the vision that John has seen just before Jesus speaks. The Thyatiran Church hears from “the Son of God,” who has eyes like a flame of fire, and feet like burnished bronze. He searches their hearts. Here is…
Faith Encouraged
Wasting Energy Hiding!
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Christ is risen! I come from a generation that was suspicious of tattoos! And the generation before me, forget about it! My grandfather, a lifelong police officer, always said that tattoos were degrading to a man. Wow, some pretty strong words, especially in light of today’s generation that consider “body art” a form of expression and even something to be celebrated. Times do change. Now, this isn’t about tattoos; whether they are…
Word of the Day
When Dishonesty Threatens Our Oneness in Christ (Fri. May 14)
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The word of the day is “fear.” We may have a rosy picture of the life of the first believers who were filled with the Holy Spirit, bold in the proclamation of the Gospel, united in a common life, and fearless in the face of arrest, imprisonment, and death. Yet, in today’s reading of Acts 5:1-11, we hear a note of sobering realism. Luke reports the first instance of troubles in the community. As a divine punishment for cheating and lying, a couple fell dead at the feet of the apostles. Luke, the writer of Acts, summarizes the somber response of the faithful, “So great fear came upon all the church and upon all who heard these things” (OSB 5:11).…
The Morning Offering
Obscuring the Message
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Acknowledging Warts and Wrinkles If we do not live in repentance and humility, we clergy betray Christ, Whom we claim to serve. We must be willing to put aside all intellectual and romanticized notions of the Church, acknowledge the many warts and wrinkles and institutional flaws that have accumulated over the centuries, and live in imitation of Christ, Who came…
Every Thought Captive
Medicine in the Machine
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I was recently in the emergency room with the family of a parishioner who had had an unexpected medical emergency. After waiting a while for the results of the procedure a man abruptly appeared clad in the iconic medical digs. This was obviously the person we were anxiously looking to hear from. Before we received the eagerly anticipated news, I was given the once over. For, of course, I was clad in cassock and cross. Our eyes were not to meet again. What happened in the next two and half minutes is something to which I…
No Other Foundation
The Emigration of Abraham
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Significantly the story of the salvation of the world began in a pagan place far away from what would eventually become the Promised Land. That is, it began in Ur of the Chaldeans with the emigration of the family of Terah (Genesis 11:31). What prompted Terah to uproot his family from a prosperous city and to wander afar from all the security he had known we may never know. Was he part…
Faith Encouraged
Life or Judgement? You Decide
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Christ is risen! One of the oldest manuscripts we have for the earliest days of the Christian Faith outside the Gospels is the Didache or “The Teaching of the 12 Apostles.” This ancient writing dates from the First Century A.D. and begins with an intriguing phrase: “There are two ways, one of life and one of death, and there is a great difference between these two ways.” It seems this basic wisdom of two…
The Morning Offering
Postponing
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I postpone the day of my own repentance Every aspect of my life should be a reflection of my faith in Christ, yet I utterly fall short in living this out as a reality. I find it difficult to look closely at myself, and at my relationships with others. How easily I fall into the trap of judging others, finding…
Word of the Day
How to Fill Spiritual Emptiness (Thurs. May 13)
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The word of the day is “filled.” Most believers go through times of spiritual emptiness. They feel that they are in a spiritual “black hole.”  Their heart feels hollow.  They keep going but they are running on an empty tank. Today in our reading of Acts 4:23-31, we read that the new community of believers gathered after the religious authorities had released Peter and John. Luke then reports, “And when they had prayed… they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness” (NKJV vs. 3).  Today in our study of Scripture, we find a way to fill an empty heart. A Prayer for Spiritual Fullness St. Paul prays that God would grant…
Faith Encouraged
True Communion
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Christ is risen! St. Maximus the Confessor says “Food is not evil, but gluttony is. Childbearing is not evil, but fornication is. Money is not evil, but avarice is. Glory is not evil, but vainglory is. Indeed, there is no evil in existing things, but only in their misuse.” So, the evil one only wants to get you to misuse the good and make it a detriment to your soul! And this…
