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The Smallness of God – A Rewrite
Read more: The Smallness of God – A RewriteWhom have we, Lord, like you – The Great One who became small, the Wakeful who slept, The Pure One who was baptized, the Living One who died, The King who abased himself to ensure honor for all. Blessed is your honor! St. Ephrem the Syrian We draw near to the Feast of our Lord’s […]
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And Now For Something Completely Different – Music From the Ethiopian Orthodox
Read more: And Now For Something Completely Different – Music From the Ethiopian OrthodoxI am barely familiar with the Ethiopian Orthodox. They are in communion with the Oriental Orthodox Churches but have a very close relationship with the Eastern Orthodox. Among the most ancient of Orthodox Churches, they are also perhaps the most unique. Ethiopian and East African culture are seen clearly in this music, although this is […]
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What Role Do the Fathers Play in the Reading of Scripture?
Read more: What Role Do the Fathers Play in the Reading of Scripture?It is easy from the outside to form an incorrect picture of the Orthodox interpretation of Scripture. There is actually quite a bit of variety among the Fathers when it comes to reading the Word of God. Even in the earliest centuries there were noted differences in the approach that obtained among those trained in […]
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How the Orthodox Read Scripture
Read more: How the Orthodox Read ScriptureThe following quote is from the Christian history website maintained by Christianity Today (an evangelical source). It describes the crucial teaching role of St. Irenaeus of Lyons, an early Bishop of the Church and later a martyr, and perhaps the most articulate spokesman of Orthodox theology in the 2nd century. The article discusses Irenaeus’ refutation of the […]
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Traditional Byzantine Hymn of Christmas – In Arabic
Read more: Traditional Byzantine Hymn of Christmas – In Arabic
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The Pontificator Posts Again – And It’s Worth the Read
Read more: The Pontificator Posts Again – And It’s Worth the ReadMany of you know of my long friendship with Roman Catholic priest and blogger, Fr. Al Kimel, a.k.a. The Pontificator. I would not be writing today except through his generosity and encouragement. Earlier this year he ceased writing. But he posted an article today that I heartily commend. It makes me long for more such […]
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Living in a Crowded Heaven
Read more: Living in a Crowded HeavenThere is an old joke in which some member of some religious group, dies and goes to heaven. He passes by various rooms and is told who is there. When he comes to one particular room he is told to be very quiet for he is not to disturb those in that room. When the […]
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Traditions and the Keeping of Family
Read more: Traditions and the Keeping of FamilyIt would be easy to speak of families keeping traditions – we all have them – some of them silly – some of them profound. Some are inherited from generations, others develop completely independent of what has gone before. What I know, as the father of four (most now grown), is at least two things: […]
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The Forefathers of Christ
Read more: The Forefathers of ChristAmong the greatest blasphemies ever constructed by humankind was that of Nazi Germany. Not satisfied with their political dominance, they also sought a religious dominance as well. The notion of an “Aryan Christ” was perhaps the depths of their theological blasphemies mirrored in their dehumanization and murder of the Jews. At many points in the […]
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Keeping It Real
Read more: Keeping It RealI have mentioned in earlier posts the new work by Aristotle Papanikolaou Being with God. It is not an easy read but brings its rewards. Papanikolaou offers the first comprehensive study of the works of Met. John Zizioulas and Vladimir Lossky, two of the 20th century’s most important Orthodox theologians, and offers a very helpful […]
Tolkien … wow … strong words. I had no idea.