A team of young men from Seattle’s Union Gospel Mission (click to enlarge photo) Humankind is a Microcosm of the Whole Universe It has been said that humans are a microcosm of the whole universe because we have within ourselves the entire material world and with it all the noetic
Author: Abbot Tryphon
I am abbot of All-Merciful Saviour Orthodox Monastery (ROCOR) on Vashon Island, WA. The island is a twenty minute ferry ride from West Seattle, and a fifteen minute crossing from Tacoma.
Surrounded by the Salish Sea, the island is some 87% undeveloped forest, with a rural population of around eleven thousand citizens. If you wish to contact me personally, you can email me at: abbottryphon@vashonmonks.com
Bob Harrison of Portland, Oregon, painted the abbot’s cabin When God Seems to Distance Himself from Us. There are those times in our lives when God seems distant, even absent from you. These are usually times when your faith seems weak and you struggle to believe God really cares for
Quarter Master Harbor on Vashon Island Give Thanks to God for Everything Whatever the circumstances in which we find ourselves, God is giving us an opportunity to gain the freedom that comes from acquiring humility. Whatever our job, which ever task we are asked to perform, whatever life places before
Living the Evangelical Life of the Gospels Monks are not necessarily holy, but by vocation are attempting to become holy. The world is constantly asking for compromised, but the monk tries to live a life that is an ancient ideal, where Christ reigns in the heart and the world is
My dear friend, Archpriest Nicholas Letten of Portand, Oregon, spent three days with us. Isolation and the Christian Life In an age when families no longer eat dinner together, children watch TV, play computer games, and text message their friends from their bedrooms. When adults can be seen walking in
What about non-Orthodox Christians? Saint Silouan the Athonite was once traveling by train with an archimandrite who was a zealot quick to correct others about the True Faith. Coming upon a group of traveling Roman Catholics, Saint Silouan’s traveling companion proceeded to tell them that they must become Orthodox because
to Love God Children Learn Love of God From Their Parents Every Orthodox parent wants their children to grow up attending Sunday Liturgies and staying active in the life of the Church throughout their lives. Yet many parents don’t demonstrate the importance of having a relationship with God in front
The Washington Orthodox Clergy Association met at the monastery on Tuesday. A New Year, a New Beginning Today we celebrate the Church New Year and with it a chance to recommit ourselves to working harder at making changes in our lives that will lead to spiritual growth. The Lord’s patience
the Self The Light of Dawn You must declare war!You must declare war on yourself if you hope for the transformation of your life. The Lord Himself calls you to do battle with your passions. That part of you that is centered in the self, even worshiping self, must be
Roman Bursak, a seminarian from Saint Petersburg Theological Academy in Russia, together with sponsoring board members of Seattle Sister Churches, visiting the monastery for a final farewell dinner. And the Clock is TickingMy recent bout with my heart brought the subject of mortality to the forefront for perhaps the first