Category: Cross

Conformed to His Image

· Fr. Stephen Freeman 37 Leave a Comment on %s
One of the most distinctive doctrines in Orthodox theology is that of theosis – divinization – becoming “like God.” Those who inquire into the faith likely stumble across this teaching fairly early, and, no doubt, some are drawn to it. Of course, there are those who run away from it and fear that it is saying something that it isn’t. Perhaps the most attractive aspect of theosis is the unabashedly positive noteā€¦

It’s a Lying Shame

· Fr. Stephen Freeman 64 Leave a Comment on %s
The story of the first sin begins not with a choice, but with a lie. As much as we tend to emphasize “free-will” as the origin and dominant factor of human sin, we do well to remember the true nature of our lives. Things are much more complicated than freedom can account for. Rather, we act in the context of lies and deception, some from outside and some from within. It isā€¦

How Powerless Are You Willing to Be?

· Fr. Stephen Freeman 95 Leave a Comment on %s
“My spiritual efforts don’t do anything, they merely bring me to the place where I know I can’t do anything, to the place where I am utterly naked before God!” -Fr. Silviu Bunta Sometimes I run across a quote that strikes my heart so deeply that I’m surprised it wasn’t me who said it. The quote above is from Fr. Silviu Bunta, Associate Professor of Old Testament at St. Vladimir’s Seminary, inā€¦

Repentance for the World – Prayers by the Lake XXIX

· Fr. Stephen Freeman 16 Leave a Comment on %s
This XXIX prayer of St. Nicholai of Zicha from Prayers by the Lake, echoes the prayers of Pentecost. It teaches us a profound way of praying for the world. In our days, such a prayer is deeply needed. For all the sins of men I repent before You, Most Merciful Lord. Indeed, the seed of all sins flows in my blood! With my effort and Your mercy I choke this wicked cropā€¦

The Collapse into Chaos – Where Only God Makes Sense

· Fr. Stephen Freeman 178 Leave a Comment on %s
Nothing is more traumatic than the onset of chaos. Predictability breaks down, goodness seems to disappear, and the madness of sheer survival takes over. In chaos, everything seems plausible since reason itself has become unreachable. A recent spate of reading took me down the rabbit hole into the madness of the 14th century. For all of the “structure” and stability of the Middle Ages, a society where everyone seemed to have aā€¦

The Cross of Christ and God’s Love

· Fr. Stephen Freeman 47 Leave a Comment on %s
God is love; and the Holy Cross is nothing other than God’s love. Love has the character of the cross. The power, fire, and nature of love consist in the fact that love has the character of the cross; and there is no love that does not have the character of the cross. The cross is the sacrificial character ter of love, for love is sacrifice, self-surrender, self-renunciation, voluntary self-depletion for theā€¦

The Despised God

· Fr. Stephen Freeman 48 Leave a Comment on %s
  In On the Orthodox Faith, St. John of Damascus declares: ā€˜The Son is the image of the Father, and the Spirit the image of the Sonā€™. Such statements are easily read and passed over as among the more obvious Trinitarian statements. I add to this statement another from St. Irenaeus: “That which is invisible of the Son is the Father, and that which is visible of the Father is the Son.”ā€¦

The Despised God

· Fr. Stephen Freeman 24 Leave a Comment on %s
  In On the Orthodox Faith, St. John of Damascus declares: ā€˜The Son is the image of the Father, and the Spirit the image of the Sonā€™. Such statements are easily read and passed over as among the more obvious Trinitarian statements. I add to this statement another from St. Irenaeus: “That which is invisible of the Son is the Father, and that which is visible of the Father is the Son.”ā€¦

The Last Temptation

· Fr. Stephen Freeman 88 Leave a Comment on %s
I have pondered, from time to time, the oddity of Christ’s “last” temptation. The first temptation was that of turning stones into bread, the second, that of throwing Himself down from the Temple. The third and last temptation, however, was to be given “all the kingdoms of this world.” I understand hunger. Fasting for 40 days easily explains that the first temptation surrounds food. I have less comprehension regarding casting oneself downā€¦

A Cruciform Providence

· Fr. Stephen Freeman 109 Leave a Comment on %s
The entire mystery of the economy of our salvation consists in the self-emptying and abasement of the Son of God ā€“ St. Cyril of Alexandria Trust in the providence of God is much more than a general theory of how things are arranged in our lives and in the world. We tend to discuss the notion in the abstract, wondering whether this action or event is to be properly attributed to God.ā€¦