A Living Breath of God

Phillip James Bailey, an English poet of the late 19th century, once said: “Let each man think himself an act of God; his mind a thought; his life, a breath of God; and let each try, by great thoughts and good deeds to show the most of heaven he hath in him.” One of the amazing revelations of the Orthodox Christian Faith is the high dignity humanity has in this wondrous creation.…

You Are Made in His Image

Shakespeare’s Hamlet has a character named Polonius and Shakespeare has him utter those now-famous words “For the apparel oft proclaims the man.” And then, of course, there’s the famous business advice “Dress for the job you want, not the job you have!” All this focus on apparel makes one wonder if men are unaware of their true selves. And that, dear one, is seen in the fervent scramble of humanity to “find”…

Forgive and Be Forgiven – Sunday’s Homily

On the Sunday of Forgiveness, we are confronted with the reality that if we don’t forgive we won’t be forgiven. That’s because a heart gripped by grudges, bitterness, and unforgiveness cannot receive forgiveness no matter how much it is offered by our Loving Lord. A clean heart is able to let go of past wrongs and is also able to receive forgiveness and be healed of the spiritual illness of untamed passions.…

God Starts the Clock

Harvey Mackay said “Time is free but priceless. You can’t own it, but you can use it. You can’t keep it but you can spend it. Once you’ve lost it, you can never get it back”  This “gift of time” is all about perspective and maturing enough in your life to appreciate the nature of your time here in this life. And time is, in fact, God’s idea. He created time; the…

When God Speaks

If this world is ever going to recover what we have trashed by falling for the delusion of materialism, we are going to have to start with the idea of Logos. It is this precious and vital fundamental understanding of human reality that locates true meaning in God’s Word. And I’m not talking about the Bible. Though the scriptures are treasures without compare, the true rediscovery of real meaning in the world…

All For Your Sake

Why do you do what you do for your children? I can’t tell you how many parents have shared with me the notion that they would do anything for their children. And I get it. I would do anything for my children as well. But why? Are you hoping they will be grateful and take care of you in your dotage? Perhaps you are motivated by having such good tax deductions from…

The Antidote For Ungodly Passions

I wish I would have learned this sooner! The power of the Faith to transform me into the man God has created me to revolve around the ascetical timing of my passions so that they become servants to me instead of unruly masters. Learning to tame my “ungodly passions” means an attentive practice of the spiritual disciplines enshrined in our annual entry into the “Arena of the Virtues” of Great Lent. This…

The Trembling Fearful Day of Judgement – Sunday’s Homily

The purpose of the Sunday of the Last Judgement is to arrest you in your rhythm of life to remind you that there is going to be an ultimate Judgement of your life, and it will be a judgment of how your life was shaped by eternal values and how you put those values to use in treating others. But make no mistake, bad theology produces an enslaved person gripped by the…

Sanctify A Fast

It set off the alarm. And with that, I about jumped out of my skin! Actually, I set off the alarm by accident and the next thing I know I hear sirens of police cars headed my way and the phone ringing from the alarm company asking if I was alright. Man, what a ruckus. But that’s what it is designed to do, shake up the pattern and disrupt the routine. It’s…

Acting Like Irrational Animals

In 1896, the author H.G. Wells wrote a horror story he called “an exercise in youthful blaspheme.” The title of the book was “The Island of Dr. Moreau” and it was a science fiction story about a mad scientist who was creating sentient animals and how the animals became so aware they were saying the humans were more like animals! The book is a true masterpiece of storytelling and quite revealing on…