lent Archives - Page 10 of 11

“. . . BUT BY PRAYER AND FASTING” (Part VI)

03/29/2013

What could be the meaning of Lent during the long hours we spend outside of home—commuting, sitting at our desks, taking care of our professional duties, meeting our colleagues and friends? Although no clear-cut “recipe” can be given here as in any other area, some very general considerations are possible. In the first place, Lent is a good time to measure the incredibly superficial character of our relations with men, things, and work. The “keep

“. . . BUT BY PRAYER AND FASTING” (Part V)

03/28/2013

Everyone will no doubt agree that the whole style of family existence has been radically altered by radio and television. These media of “mass communication” permeate today our whole life. One does not have to “go out” in order to “be out.” The whole world is permanently here within my reach. And, little by little, the elementary experience of living within an inner world, of the beauty of that “interiority,” simply disappears from our modern

“. . . BUT BY PRAYER AND FASTING” (Part IV)

03/27/2013

Attending liturgical services, fasting, and even praying at regular intervals do not exhaust the lenten effort. Or rather, in order to be effective and meaningful, they need the support of our whole life. They need, in other terms, a “style of life” which would not be in contradiction with them, would not lead to a “split” existence. In the past, in Orthodox countries, such support was given by society itself: it was that complex of

“. . . BUT BY PRAYER AND FASTING” (Part III)

03/26/2013

[Fasting] should be practiced on two levels: first, as ascetical fast; and second, as total fast. The ascetical fast consists of a drastic reduction of food so that the permanent state of a certain hunger might be lived as a reminder of God and a constant effort to keep our mind on Him. Everyone who has practiced it—be it only a little—knows that this ascetical fast rather than weakening us makes us light, concentrated, sober,

LENT IN OUR LIFE: “TAKING IT SERIOUSLY” (Part II)

03/19/2013

In regard to Lent, instead of asking fundamental questions—”What is fasting?” or “What is Lent?”—we satisfy ourselves with Lenten symbolism. In church magazines and bulletins appear recipes for “delicious lenten dishes,” and a parish might even raise some additional money by means of a well-advertized “tasty lenten dinner.” So much in our churches is explained symbolically as interesting, colorful, and amusing customs and traditions, as something which connects us not so much with God and

LENT IN OUR LIFE: “TAKING IT SERIOUSLY” (Part I)

03/18/2013

Now these questions must be asked: How can we apply [Lent] to our lives? What could be not only a nominal but a real impact of Lent on our existence? This existence (do we need to recall it) is very different from the one people led when all these services, hymns, canons, and prescriptions were composed and established. One lived then in a relatively small, mainly rural community within one organically Orthodox world; the very

Christmas Advent: The First Day

11/15/2012

ANTICIPATION LIFTS THE HEART. Desire is created to be fulfilled— perhaps not all at once, more likely in slow stages. Isaiah uttered his prophetic words about the renewal of the natural Creation into a wilderness of spiritual barrenness and thirst. For him, and for many other Old Testament seers, the vacuum of dry indifference into which he spoke was not yet a place of fulfillment. Yet the promise of God through this human mouthpiece (and

Saint Basil’s Academy Retreat

04/02/2012

We recently went on an overnight trip to Saint Basil’s Academy in Garrison, NY. This was a combined retreat with both Saint Sophia and Saints Constantine and Helen. We all shared a bus and traveled with over fifty people to New York and back. This was once again an amazing experience for both kids and adults. I thought we’d mix things up a bit and hear about an exciting Youth Retreat from their perspective.

Lenten Discipline (Part II)

04/02/2012

Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. Luke 4:1-13

I think of [Lent] as an Outward Bound for the soul. No one has to sign up for it, but if you do then you give up the illusion that you are in control of your life.

Lenten Discipline (Part I)

03/29/2012

Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. Luke 4:1-13 Do not bother looking for Lent in your Bible dictionary, because there was no such thing back then. There is some evidence that early Christians fasted forty hours between Good Friday and Easter, but the custom of spending forty days in prayer and self-denial

Archive

“. . . BUT BY PRAYER AND FASTING” (Part VI)

“. . . BUT BY PRAYER AND FASTING” (Part V)

“. . . BUT BY PRAYER AND FASTING” (Part IV)

“. . . BUT BY PRAYER AND FASTING” (Part III)

LENT IN OUR LIFE: “TAKING IT SERIOUSLY” (Part II)

LENT IN OUR LIFE: “TAKING IT SERIOUSLY” (Part I)

Christmas Advent: The First Day

Saint Basil’s Academy Retreat

Lenten Discipline (Part II)

Lenten Discipline (Part I)

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