Daily Meditations

The Transparent World

Sermon preached by Fr. Antony Hughes on Sunday, October 15, 2017 The Reading from the Holy Gospel according to St. Luke. (8:5-15) “…there are many ways of ‘being’ in a place.” This was written by the wonderful Catholic mystic Teresa of Avila. She was writing about entering the Interior Castle, the interior kingdom of heaven. By this she means the soul. Then she says, “But since we are already there, how can I speak of

Apostle James, the Brother of our Lord, First Bishop of Jerusalem

Published by Pemptousia Partnership on October 23, 2017 James W. Lillie Saint James was the son of Joseph the Betrothed from his (first) marriage. He was blessed by God while he was still in his mother’s womb and was so righteous in his life that all the Jews called him the “Just”. Even from a very early age, James lived a very ascetic life. He did not partake of wine or other strong drinks. In imitation of Saint

Consent to Reality

By Fr. Stephen Freeman, July 22, 2018  Catholic philosopher, Alasdair MacIntyre (After Virtue), has presented perhaps the most cogent account of our modern cultural landscape. It is not an account of how one set of ideas gave way to another set of ideas, but how a once-upon-a-time consensus gave way to our current collection of competing truth-claims and world-views. Indeed, he demonstrates (Whose Justice, Which Rationality) that our present confusion is not primarily represented by

A Life of Luminous Actions

Sermon preached by Fr. Antony Hughes on Sunday, October 29, 2017 Mystics like De Chardin believed that the luminous heart of Christ is the center of the cosmos. We agree, of course. Professor Jaroslav Pelikan said that the problem with modern theology is that it has lost sight of the Cosmic Christ. True Christianity always rests in the revelation that Christ is Forever and All-Encompassing. The reason we have forgotten him, I believe, is encapsulated

Evangelist Luke, “the Beloved Physician”

Published by Pemptousia Partnership on October 18, 2021 Archbishop Lazar Puhalo It has become a commonplace of for critics to suggest doubts about the authorship of Luke’s Gospel and the Book of Acts. Such doubts are, however, clearly unfounded. The evidence is conclusive that both treatises were written by a physician, and Luke was “the beloved physician” (Col. 4:14) who wrote them. Both books demonstrate a knowledge of medicine and in both there are clear signs of medical

Two Dimensions

Sermon preached by Fr. Antony Hughes on Sunday, November 19, 2017 Let me preface my words with a quote from Thomas Merton. “Our real journey is interior; it is a matter of growth, deepening, and of an ever greater surrender to the creative action of love and grace in our hearts.” There are two major themes that today’s parable of The Rich Fool touches upon, if indirectly. The first is that there is there is

Martyr Longinus, the Centurion Who Stood at the Cross of the Lord

He stood transfixed at the foot of the Cross, watching and wondering, full of awe and amazement.  And then all at once, something was born in him – a spark of faith, a brand-new beginning.  And his life was changed forever. The divine Matthew the Evangelist describes the moment of his conversion to Christianity with enormous power: So when the centurion and those with him, who were guarding Jesus, saw the earthquake and the things

Be True to Yourself

By Stephen Freeman, October 11, 2017  I recall the excitement that I felt every year as a child and as a teenager as the signs of summer’s end came. Looming ahead was the beginning of a new school year. It never felt like a return to what I had known the year before, but as an opportunity for something new. In my teen years, the secret something new that felt exciting was a “new” me.

A Place Both Strange and Wonderful

Sermon preached by Fr. Antony Hughes on Sunday, November 26, 2017 The lawyer had eyes and he could not see. He stood before God incarnate and did not know him. “Those who have ears to hear, let them hear,” Jesus often says. The same is true, of course, of eyes. The lawyer had healthy eyes and could not see and healthy ears and could not hear. He did hear something with his ears and saw

The Authenticity of the Vision of Christ in the Life of Saint Silouan

Published by Pemptousia Partnership on September 24, 2021 Archimandrite Zacharias Zacharou Christ is the miracle that astounds us. He is the sign that God gave to all generations of all times. In His Person, every problem, every impasse, every tragedy received its solution. Being imitations of Christ and bearing Him in their heart, the saints are also the sign of God for their generation. They become tangible examples of the love of God in a world plunged into