Author: Abbot Tryphon

Putting the Blame in the Right Place “A humble and spiritually active man, when he reads the Holy Scriptures, will refer everything to himself and not to another.” Saint Mark the Ascetic We all have a natural tendency to lay blame on others, when in truth we must blame only

Priests Must Acknowledge Their Warts Lest They Obscure the Message If we do not live in repentance and humility, we clergy betray Christ, Whom we claim to serve. We must be willing to put aside all intellectual and romanticized notions of the Church, acknowledge the many warts and wrinkles and

The Holy Orthodox Church The Orthodox Church is evangelical, but not Protestant. It is orthodox, but not Jewish. It is catholic, but not Roman. It isn’t non-denominational – it is pre-denominational. It has believed, taught, preserved, defended and died for the Faith of the Apostles since the Day of Pentecost

Setting Sensible Priorities We all need to set sensible priorities, making sure we pay attention to our health, our family, and our spiritual life. We must not let our life be so full of work that we don’t allot time to focus on the things that bring us joy. We

Living Our Lives in Ascetic Struggle Christianity is a religion of asceticism, instructing us to store up our treasures in heaven, where the benefits have eternal value. Throughout the New Testament we read of the importance of struggle, where focus on the acquisition of a humble and contrite heart is

Eternal Life Can Only Be Gained With Effort While observing our twelve hens laying eggs for the monastery’s table, it crossed my mind that a chick, while approaching life in the world, must first peck at the inside of the egg, break it open, and thus enter into the sunlight.

I am Forever Grateful for the Love of My Mother The most important gift I received from my mother was the gift of love. She loved me, and demonstrated her love for me throughout my childhood. She also showed me how to love others, and that ability to be willing

We Priests are Ambassadors of Orthodoxy It was relatively late in my life when I embraced Orthodoxy. Already forty-one, I’d found myself wandering in a spiritual wasteland, knowing I was drying up spiritually, and hoping there was something out there that would fill the void. Orthodoxy had not been in