God reaches down to redeem us in the material world Unlike angels, who are entirely spiritual beings, God has made each of us as creatures dwelling in a material world. To be whole, we must worship God both in body and soul. This teaching is central to our Christian faith
Category: The Morning Offering
Sharing the Orthodox Faith in a secular age The first missionary monks to the North American continent came to a land where Orthodoxy had never been. Their encounter with the native peoples was one of mutual respect. They did not greet their new neighbors as pagans, but as a people
The priest must be like a funnel If a priest is truly to be an agent for grace, he must become like a funnel through which the Lord’s mercy can flow. That a priest has received the grace of ordination, if he does not attempt to live a life of
It is not about the priest, but about the Great High Priest We are all broken and in need of healing. None of us is beyond reproach, and many of us who are in leadership roles are just as broken as those who seek our help. The Church is the
Hammi and his abbot friend Soon after moving our monastery from a rental house and into the temporary quarters of an old trailer house, Hammi arrived. We startled each other midway between the foundations of what is now the library and the trailer. I reached down to him and he
Troublesome passages of the Old Testament It is important when reading the Old Testament, to remember that it was written as an account of a peoples journey to God. As the Israelites journey continued, they came to know God, little by little, through God’s self-revelation to their prophets, and their
God is still in charge As Orthodox priests our true nation is the Church, and the head of our nation is Christ Himself. Therefore, our pastoral response to the madness of this present political scene, and the divisiveness that has resulted during the presidential campaign, must be to help our
The Orthodox practice of standing for worship Standing for worship has been the only acceptable posture for Orthodox Christians from the earliest of times. Through the discipline of standing we act as the faithful servants of the Lord, worshiping before the Throne. We recognize that the temple is not a
Ask for repentance in your prayer and nothing else In our struggle on the path to God, repentance must be the central theme. Only in repentance will we find the true meaning of life, for only in repentance can one enter into communion with God. This life has been given
Where communion with God is restored At the Mystical Supper in the Upper Room Jesus gave a dramatically new meaning to the food and drink of the sacred meal. He identified Himself with the bread and wine: “Take, eat; this is my Body. Drink of it all of you; for