Category: The Morning Offering

A religion for the sick Our Orthodox Church has always seen herself as a hospital for the soul, the place where her children can seek healing. It is within her walls that we find the medicine we need to make us holy (whole), and where we can find the means

of the Holy Brotherhood of Christ Our All-Merciful Saviour Today our brotherhood celebrates the Patronal Feast of our monastery. Thirty years ago the beloved and ever memorable Archimandrite Dimitri (Egoroff) of Santa Rosa, CA tonsured Father Paul and me as Orthodox monks. Guided and inspired by Father Dimitri’s kind and

Cruel and Depraved is the Killing of the Unborn Child We are living in a period of history that has seen the cause of human rights take the forefront as never before. We champion the cause of equality under the law for minorities, and continue the struggle for equal rights

The ancient practice of standing for worship Standing before God has been the only acceptable posture for Orthodox Christians from the earliest of times. We recognize that a faithful servant would never sit before his master, for the faithful are all servants of the Lord, whom we worship as we

We are created by a God Who invites us into a relationship that is personal One of the primary differences between Islam and Christianity has to do with the basic view of the nature of God. Islam teaches total surrender to a God who demands submission. There is no invitation

Ending isolation through 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 our cities talking on cell phones. At a time in our history when

Keeping vigil against those habitual sins There are certain sins that have become habitual, and behavior that we would like to change, but seem to repeat, even against our will. Saint Isaac the Syrian suggested that we confront these struggles head on. “If you bear your weakness constantly in mind,

More than acquittal and justification Salvation can not be explained in legalistic terms of acquittal and justification, for salvation is much more than simply being forgiven and getting into heaven. The close tie between faith and works, when it comes to the Orthodox view of salvation, is not about being

When the gift of sexuality becomes an occasion for sin Sins of a sexual nature are common among many people today. Much of the struggle is directly related to the fact that people do not take advantage of having a regular confessor. If you are your own spiritual guide, the

And the acquisition of a humble and a contrite heart When the monk attempts to rely on his own strength to do battle with his fallen nature, he will be defeated. The arena, his field of battle, takes place in his own heart, and will be a life long battle.