Daily Meditations Archives - Page 288 of 348

Seventh Friday after Pascha

06/06/2014

Pentecost: The Descent of the Holy Spirit In the Old Testament Pentecost was the feast which occurred fifty days after Passover. As the Passover feast celebrated the exodus of the Israelites from the slavery of Egypt, so Pentecost celebrated God’s gift of the Ten Commandments to Moses on Mount Sinai. In the new covenant of the Messiah, the Passover event takes on its new meaning as the celebration of Christ’s death and resurrection, the “exodus”

Seventh Thursday after Pascha

06/05/2014

The Feast of Pentecost by Fr. Alexander Schmemann In the Church’s annual liturgical cycle, Pentecost is “the last and great day.” It is the celebration by the Church of the coming of the Holy Spirit as the end – the achievement and fulfillment – of the entire history of salvation. For the same reason, however, it is also the celebration of the beginning: it is the “birthday” of the Church as the presence among us

Seventh Wednesday after Pascha: Martha & Mary, Sisters of Lazarus

06/04/2014

Martha, Mary, and Lazarus of Bethany “Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus” (John 11:5). Martha and Mary of Bethany are well-known figures of the New Testament. The two sisters seem to have had different temperaments, and their characters are often polarized in the retelling of their story. These polarized characterizations are caricatures which obscure the real picture of the women, their faith and their situation. This article looks at some of the information

Seventh Tuesday after Pascha

06/03/2014

On the Sunday of Pentecost Sermon preached by Fr. Antony Hughes on Sunday, June 3, 2012 In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, one God. Amen. Pentecost is a theophany, a revelation of God I think best compared to other famous theophanies like Moses on Mt. Sinai or the Transfiguration on Mt. Tabor. Witnesses of these events try hard to describe them, but words fail, so there

Seventh Monday after Pascha

06/02/2014

Sermon: The Holy Spirit – True Inspiration Father James C. Moulketis Visiting New York City is always exciting. The museums, the theaters, Lincoln Center, Broadway, the sights and sounds of one of the greatest cities in the world. Seeing the great masters at the museums, hearing them at the city’s music halls and theaters brings joy and inspiration to our hearts. But in New York and in the highways and byways of America we also

Sixth Friday after Pascha

05/30/2014

The Ascension and the Glorification of Man (Part II) By Father Lawrence Farley The Church has always proclaimed that Man’s ultimate glory and destiny find fulfillment in Jesus. He is the Son of Man to whom God subjects all things, putting them under His feet. He is the One whom God crowned with glory and honour (see Heb. 2:6-9), the true and representative Man ruling over all creation. And the moment of this crowning, this

Sixth Thursday after Pascha: Holy Ascension Thursday

05/29/2014

The Ascension and the Glorification of Man (Part I) By Father Lawrence Farley In contemporary Orthodoxy, we are accustomed to referring to Christ as one of the Holy Trinity. He is usually referred to as “Christ our true God”, and the Gospel of John, which stresses His divine status, is, I would suggest, our favourite of the four Gospels. When announcing the reading from (say) Matthew’s Gospel, the deacon says, “Bless master him who proclaims

Sixth Wednesday after Pascha, Christ is Risen!

05/28/2014

Ascension: The Event between Events By the Very Reverend Vladimir Berzonsky “Thou hast ascended in glory bringing joy to Thy disciples with the promise of the HolySpirit. O Lord, glory to Thee!” (Exclamation of Holy Ascension Feast) I find it odd that the great and joyful feast of Ascension is often not well attended by our faithful. Understandably they are yet not over the euphoria of Pascha. Even forty days is not ample time to

Sixth Tuesday after Pascha, Christ is Risen!

05/27/2014

Through Your Glorious Ascension (Part II) By the Reverend John Breck By His incarnation, Christ deified the flesh, the body with its human nature, and thus He restored it to the perfection and glory for which God originally intended it. As the First Adam, the archetype of all human existence, and as the Last Adam, the Author of Life who gives life to those who dwell in Him, Christ ascends in his “divine flesh,” exalting

Sixth Monday after Pascha, Christ is Risen!

05/26/2014

Through Your Glorious Ascension (Part I) By the Reverend John Breck Psalm 67/68 is considered by most biblical scholars to be the most difficult of all psalms to interpret.[1] The current consensus holds that the psalm was an ancient cultic hymn, originally recited in an autumn festival by the covenant-community of Israel. Its theme celebrates the coming of God to His people, from Sinai to Zion, in order to actualize in their midst His past