Our pets are gifts from God Every evening I try to spend an hour or so in the library, sitting in front of the fire place. Our beloved Norwegian Forest Cat, Hammi, sleeps in the library/community room every night. Hammi is most happy when the entire monastic brotherhood is gathered
Category: The Morning Offering
All of God’s creation is to be redeemed and glorified “I do not worship matter, but the Creator of matter, who for my sake became material and deigned to dwell in matter, who through matter effected my salvation (Saint John of Damascus)”. Unlike angels, who are entirely spiritual beings, God
Prayer, Fasting, and Almsgiving Jesus Christ called for a thorough conversion of our heart and mind, and a complete turning away from the old man (our fallen nature). The main act that begins this conversion is metanoia, which means thorough change of mind. This happens when we become aware that
Where the temporal and the eternal connect We can be rich in liturgical correctness and wealthy in traditions, but if we do not have love and mercy, we are in reality bankrupt. Our Lord Himself made love and mercy the chief criterion whereby we will be judged on the Last
Turning the commute into a monastic cell Over the past thirty-five years, I have lost count at the number of lay people who have voiced interest in monasticism. Many have told me, had they’d become Orthodox at a younger age, they might have forgone marriage, for the monastic life. These
We must be quick to embrace the prodigal son Some people abandon themselves to sin in order to cover up their lack of self esteem. In their need for intimacy and acceptance, they seek out worldly pleasures, thinking these will fill the void that has kept them from happiness. In
Living our lives in total commitment 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
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 rational faculty and the noetic faculty The human soul has two faculties, the rational faculty and the noetic faculty. Through the rational faculty we relate to the world with our physical senses, but through the noetic faculty we have communion with God. Faith is found in one’s heart, not in
Manifesting God’s love in the midst of tragedy I’m in Cannon Beach, Oregon, to attend the Northwest Regional Training Seminar for the International Conference of Police Chaplains. I’ve been coming to this conference, held in February of every year, for about fourteen years. I am grateful to God for all