Author: Abbot Tryphon

Experiencing the reality of God’s presence My own experience with God is manifold, with everything from witnessing the healing of illnesses of many people, including my own heart condition (I was on the operating table, awaiting bypass surgery, but was healed), to standing before numerous myrrh streaming icons, watching the

The importance of preparing for the Divine Liturgy That the Church requires us to prepare to receive the Holy Mysteries of the Body and Blood of Christ, prior to the celebration of the Divine Liturgy, by saying the Pre-Communion Prayers, is a given. The Church also requires us to fast

The limits of human reason and the knowledge of God There is the seen, and there is the unseen, the material and the immaterial. That which is material can be scientifically examined and experienced, the immaterial can only be seen and experienced spiritually. These are two worlds that are only

The ship that is the Church “And suddenly a great tempest arose on the sea, so that the boat was covered by the waves. But He was asleep. The his disciples came to Him and awake Him saying, “Lord, save us! We are perishing.” (Matthew 8:24, 25) The ship is

Returning to the place where it all began The place was just as I’d remembered it, with the cabin still the same color my grandfather had chosen, and Priest Lake, with the snow capped mountains off in the distance, and the little island just off shore, just as tranquil as

The importance of discovering God for oneself At the age of sixty-nine I find myself spending an increasing amount of time on area campuses, and hosting a growing number of young people making a pilgrimage to the monastery. At an age when many of my contemporaries are grandfathers, or even

The critic, fearing he will fail, does nothing It is easy to be critical of another person, finding fault with what we perceive they are doing, have done, or have not done. Yet the man who points out how another man has stumbled, finding fault in something he himself has

When we are the occasion of another person’s disdain Because we are all brothers and sisters, we are responsible for the way we impact others. Often we are entirely innocent, yet by our very existence we become a source of great irritation and anxiety for other people. The only way

The most arduous of all ascetic practices St Gregory of Sinai spoke of the effort involved in prayer, when he wrote, “No bodily or spiritual activity without pain or toil ever brings fruit to him who practices it, because ‘the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it

With authority comes responsibility When people are seeking professional help, they are vulnerable, and the trust they place in the professional makes them particularly open to exploitation. This is why we have institutions and lines of authority that hold professionals accountable. We can not allow anyone who is vulnerable, be