“Then God spoke to Israel in the visions of the night, and said, ‘Jacob, Jacob!’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’ So He said, ‘I am God, the God of your father; do not fear to go down to Egypt, for I will make of you a great nation there. I will go down with you to Egypt, and I will also surely bring you up again; and Joseph will put his…

How swiftly Holy Week approaches! Just days away from the end of Great Lent and the beginning of our daily walk with Christ during His final hours before He enters into battle with death; a battle we know He wins! So, in our Genesis readings we shift from reading about Jacob to Joseph; that First Testament icon of our Lord Jesus. Joseph was envied by his brothers, and they sold him as…

Today, we continue to approach Holy Week by examining the life of St. Jacob the patriarch. Jacob’s life continued to be complicated by his tendencies toward deception, and because of this weakness in Jacob many people tried to deceive him as well. His father-in-law, Laban, was a prime example. But Jacob had some amazing and redeeming qualities as well. He was very faithful and really tried to come to grips with his…

In less than 7 days we will enter Holy Week; a time of intensified fasting and prayer and preparation for Pascha. It is never too late to start. It is never too late to intensify your struggle. It is never too late to learn to repent and grow. It is never too late until it is too late! And this is the theme of today’s scripture reading in Genesis. We read the…

It has been said that true veneration is the stepping stone to true adoration. Let’s unpack this insight. The wisdom of the faith calls us to learn how to truly and fully adore God. It is why I, personally, never use the word “adore” for anything but the Holy Trinity. Adoration carries the traits of humility, devotion, deep affection and love, and intimacy. But how do I develop the heart-felt ability to…

From our reading today from the book of Genesis: “So Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on Isaac his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and a knife, and the two of them went together. But Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, “My father!” And he said, “Here I am, my son.” Then he said, “Look, the fire and the wood, but…

The forgetting of wrongs is a sign of true repentance. But he who dwells on them and thinks that he is repenting is like a man who thinks he is running while he is really asleep. St John, “The Ladder of Divine Ascent” My grandmother use to say “I’ll forgive but I won’t forget.” Well, then, is there real forgiveness then? Now, I’m not saying we shouldn’t learn lessons from past behaviors, but…

 Listen to St. Mark, the Ascetic: “If you wish to remember God unceasingly, do not reject as undeserved what happens to you, but patiently accept it as your due. For patient acceptance of whatever happens kindles the remembrance of God, whereas refusal to accept weakens the spiritual purpose of the heart and so makes it forgetful.” A powerful tool of the evil one to throw you from the Ladder of Di…vine Ascent…