Tag: Elder Sophrony

What Should We Do About The Great Reset?

· Fr. Michael Gillis 20 Leave a Comment on %s
What should we do about the Great Reset?  About once a week I get a message from one or another of my parishioners with a link to a video that I “have to see.”  Many of these videos are of a monk on Mt. Athos (or a monk from some other place reputed for holiness), or it is a video by a conservative religious or political commentator decrying the loss of religious…

Finding Peace Despite Sinful Thoughts

· Fr. Michael Gillis 10 Leave a Comment on %s
It’s mid May and I’m weeding my garden again.  It is one of the most spiritually instructive physical activities of my year.  My on-going battle with one weed in particular functions as a genuine icon of my inner life.   Generally speaking, my wife and I are laissez-faire gardeners.  We have very few rows of anything, just areas where we plant one thing or another—often led by what volunteers in a given…

Shame and Forgiveness and God

· Fr. Michael Gillis 12 Leave a Comment on %s
St. Theophan the Recluse has a wonderful commentary on Psalm 118 recently (2014) revised and published by St. John of Kronstadt Press.  I’m being both inspired and stretched by it.  I got to thinking about what the Church means when it talks about forgiveness by some of St. Theophan’s comments on verse 31 of Psalm 118. I have cleaved to Your testimonies, O Lord; put me not to shame. St. Theophan’s commentary touches…

Trusting God To Hold You

· Fr. Michael Gillis 1 Leave a Comment on %s
One of the struggles I have as I strive to pay attention to my heart, is that (at the same time) I perceive in my heart very sad things and joyful, hopeful things.  It’s as if two realities, or two reflections of the world around me are manifest within me.  When I first started to notice this reality within myself I found the concept of “bright sadness” helpful.  I first ran across…

Stepping Back From Hell

· Fr. Michael Gillis 3 Leave a Comment on %s
We are constantly tempted to focus on the disharmony between us and those with whom we live and work. Focusing on our fellows’ mistakes is a recipe for judgment and anger; focusing on our own, a recipe for despair. If only we took a step or two back, we would hear the greater harmony that eludes our ears most of the time.  Mother Melania Mother Melania’s words about harmony and disharmony remind…