Daily Meditations Archives - Page 139 of 333

The Natural World: The Substance of God

06/10/2019

Saint Irenaeus . . . taught that the whole of creation flows from the very “substance” of God. [1] All things carry within them the essence of the One. Irenaeus . . . signaled his concern about the doctrine of creatio ex nihilo, creation out of nothing. . .. This was to become the standard of Western Christianity’s approach to creation. Creation would be viewed not as coming forth from the substance of God but as fashioned

The Sixth Friday after Pascha. Getting Back Up

06/07/2019

By Fr. Stephen Freeman, May 8, 2015 One of the fathers was asked, “What do you do all day in the monastery?” He replied, “We fall down and get up; fall down and get up; fall down and get up again.” This, I think, may be the most accurate and faithful description of the Christian life that I know. We fall, and we fall repeatedly. Our very best intentions often serve to make the sting

The Ascension of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ

06/06/2019

Jesus did not live with his disciples after his resurrection as he had before his death. Filled with the glory of his divinity, he appeared at different times and places to his people, assuring them that it was he, truly alive in his risen and glorified body. To them he presented himself alive after his passion by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days, and speaking of the Kingdom of God (Acts 1:3). It

The Sixth Wednesday after Pascha. CHRISTOS ANESTI! CHRIST IS RISEN! Persons in Communion: From Individual to Person (Part I)

06/05/2019

The Body of Christ is not only unity but interchange, by which the ‘movement of love’ of the Trinity is conveyed to humankind. This movement, in which each effaces himself in order to give, is the transition from individual to person, a growing to maturity certainly, but only achieved by means of a succession of death-and-resurrections, in the course of which we are stripped down and recreated. We become unique, escape the repetitive character of

The Sixth Tuesday after Pascha. CHRISTOS ANESTI! CHRIST IS RISEN! “Lord, teach us to pray” (Luke 11:1)

06/04/2019

In ecclesiastical circles today one often hears the lament, “The faith is evaporating.” Despite an unprecedented “pastoral approach”, the faith of many Christians in fact appears to be” growing cold” or even, to put it colloquially, to be “evaporating”. There is talk of a great crisis of faith, among the clergy no less than among the laity. This loss of faith, which is so often lamented in the West, stands nevertheless in contrast to a

The Sixth Monday after Pascha. CHRISTOS ANESTI! CHRIST IS RISEN! Venerable Kevin of Glendalough, Wonderworker

06/03/2019

Venerable Kevin of Glendalough St. Kevin (also known as Coemgen) is one of the greatest saints of Ireland and founder of the famous and important Glendalough Monastery. He lived in the 6th and early 7th centuries. His Life was written some four hundred years after his repose. The future saint was born in the Irish province of Leinster to a noble family and was related to the royal house. His name, according to the most

The Fifth Friday after Pascha. CHRISTOS ANESTI! CHRIST IS RISEN! The Last Pascha – A Reverie

05/31/2019

By Stephen Freeman, May 31, 2015 I had a reverie around the time of Pascha. My life has had many chapters. I have loved friends and lost friends. My memory is filled with much that is bittersweet – not my favorite flavor. But my reverie was a dream of Pascha – the Last Pascha. I wrote this in a Facebook post and have looked it up numerous times for balm for my tired soul. Today, I

The Fifth Thursday after Pascha. CHRISTOS ANESTI! CHRIST IS RISEN! Members of One Another (Part XII): Compassion Towards Plants

05/30/2019

The compassionate love of St Silouan extends beyond animals to plants: ‘Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees’ (Revelation 7:3). On one occasion when the two of them were walking together, Fr Sophrony struck out with his stick at a clump of tall wild grass. The Starets said nothing, but he shook his head doubtfully; and at once Fr Sophrony was ashamed. In his own writings St Silouan says: That green leaf

The Fifth Wednesday after Pascha. CHRISTOS ANESTI! CHRIST IS RISEN! Black Tuesday, May 29, 1453, The Fall of Constantinople

05/29/2019

Constantine XI Paleologos, the last Emperor of the East Roman Empire, who was martyred by the forces of Sultan Mehmet during the assault on The City on May 29, 1453, was a man whose personal life was marked by tragedy, but who above all maintained steadfast his Christian faith and his dedication to his duties as the Christian Emperor. He is venerated among Orthodox for his deep faith in Christ, his faithfulness to his people

The Fifth Tuesday after Pascha. CHRISTOS ANESTI! CHRIST IS RISEN! The Desert and Temptation (Part I)

05/28/2019

One of the great themes of monasticism is the desert. The monks deliberately went into the desert to be alone and to seek God. The ancients considered the desert the dwelling-place of demons. Anthony went into the desert to fight the demons on their own turf. It was a heroic decision to push his way into the realm of the demons — and a declaration of war on the demons that plagued him and sought