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Unknowing: Ascent and Descent

07/01/2021

When it says, “He went up,” it must mean that he first went down to the deepest levels of the earth . . . to fill all things. —Ephesians 4:9-10 Philosophies and religions are either Ascenders, pointing us upward (toward the One, the Eternal, and the Absolute) or they are Descenders, pointing us downward (toward the sacred within the many, the momentary, the mystery, and the earth), seldom both at the same time. Yet that’s what we need. Metaphors of

Synaxis of the Holy, Glorious and All-Praised Twelve Apostles

06/30/2021

The Synaxis of the Glorious and All-Praiseworthy Twelve Apostles of Christ appears to be an ancient Feast. The Church honors each of the Twelve Apostles on separate dates during the year, and has established a general commemoration for all of them on the day after the commemoration of the Glorious and First-Ranked among the Apostles Peter and Paul. The holy God-crowned Emperor Constantine the Great (May 21) built a church in Constantinople in honor of

The Holy Glorious and All-Praised Leaders of the Apostles, Peter and Paul

06/29/2021

Sermon of Saint Augustine, Bishop of Hippo Today the Holy Church piously remembers the sufferings of the Holy Glorious and All-Praised Apostles Peter and Paul. Saint Peter, the fervent follower of Jesus Christ, for the profound confession of His Divinity: “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God,” was deemed worthy by the Savior to hear in answer, “Blessed art thou, Simon … I tell thee, that thou art Peter [Petrus], and on

You Barely Make a Difference and It’s a Good Thing

06/28/2021

By Fr. Stephen Freeman, December 1, 2015 You are not saving the world. In fact, you barely make a difference. These are harsh words. They are meant like a splash of cold water to wake us up from the dream in which we live. They are by no means meant to say that you don’t matter. In fact, you have infinite value. But your value is not based on saving the world or making a difference. I’ll

Simply Living

06/25/2021

By Fr. Stephen Freeman, November 30, 2015 Because you asked… Reflecting on my …article comparing the life of worldly cares and the monastic life, I have been asked to describe what the proper life in the world should look like. I will offer a few observations, but, in truth, I know of no better description than the 55 Maxims for Christian Living authored by Fr. Thomas Hopko of blessed memory. I know that his list

Our Common Enemy. Peace of Heart.

06/24/2021

Our Common Enemy It is not our persecutors and detractors who are our enemies By Abbot Tryphon, November 30, 2019 Sometimes the humiliation we experience at the hands of others can be daunting, to say the least. Those moments when we are confronted with hatred, sometimes based on the jealousy of another, are often the most difficult to bear, for we know the origins of the abuse, and naturally want to strike back at the

On Difficulties in Christian Life: A Mountain Ahead. Hurray?

06/24/2021

SSCORRE! Saint Sophia Cathedral Online Resources for our Religious Edification Topic of the Week: Topic of the Week – On Difficulties in Christian Life: A Mountain Ahead. Hurray? “As a rule, when running up against difficulties in our ordinary, daily life, we try to get around them however we can. This is perfectly natural—after all, if we, let’s say, are walking home and on our path is an icy hill, it would be more reasonable to

Unknowing: Beyond Comprehension

06/23/2021

My thoughts are not your thoughts, my ways are not your ways. . . . As high as the heavens are above the earth, so my ways are beyond your ways, and my thoughts are beyond your thoughts. —Isaiah 55:8-9 We cannot comprehend the work of God from beginning to end. —Ecclesiastes 3:11 Within his Judaic tradition, Jesus was formed by the passage above from Isaiah which teaches humility before the mystery of God. When we

Are We a Bee or a Fly? Joyful Living.

06/22/2021

Are we a Bee or a Fly? We must look only for the good in others By Abbot Tryphon, November 27, 2019 Saint Paisios of the Holy Mountain said there are two types of people. “There are the bees and there are the flies. The bees are attracted to flowers and sweet smells, whereas the flies are only attracted to dirt and stench. Ask a bee where there is stench, and he will say, what

Monday of the Holy Spirit

06/21/2021

On the day after every Great Feast, the Orthodox Church honors the one through whom the Feast is made possible. On the day following the Nativity of the Lord, for example, we celebrate the Synaxis of the Most Holy Theotokos (December 26). On the day after Theophany, we commemorate St John the Baptist (January 7), and so on. Today we honor the all-Holy, good, and life-creating Spirit, Who descended upon the Apostles at Pentecost in

Blog

Unknowing: Ascent and Descent

Synaxis of the Holy, Glorious and All-Praised Twelve Apostles

The Holy Glorious and All-Praised Leaders of the Apostles, Peter and Paul

You Barely Make a Difference and It’s a Good Thing

Simply Living

Our Common Enemy. Peace of Heart.

On Difficulties in Christian Life: A Mountain Ahead. Hurray?

Unknowing: Beyond Comprehension

Are We a Bee or a Fly? Joyful Living.

Monday of the Holy Spirit

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