Striving to attain holiness by embracing unfair treatment If we are always complaining about how unfairly we are treated, we will have failed in our imitation of Christ, Who was abused by His enemies unto death. We should strive to reign with Our Lord by loving our enemies and never
The afterlife, and the oneness of creation There is no formal doctrine in the Orthodox Church concerning the afterlife for animals, including our pets. Those Fathers of the Church who have expressed themselves on this matter were simply expressing theological opinions that have not become universally accepted, and remain known
Walking together into the Kingdom I once heard a wonderful story about a group of African children who were assembled before a large basket of fresh fruit. They were told that the first child who could reach the basket could have all the fruit for themselves. The Western adults who
The Gift of Property On August 1st of 1992, having exhausted all our resources, we announced during what was to be our last Monastery Pilgrimage, our decision to leave Vashon Island. The monthly rent for the old farmhouse had risen, our chief benefactor had a series of setbacks in his
Culture Shock The return to the United States After having spent almost a month in Greece, including ten days on Mount Athos, the return to the United States, via New York City, was major culture shock. I found myself grieving for the loss of the simple life of the Holy
Being the Body of Christ Each and every time we gather together to celebrate the Divine Liturgy, we are not simply commemorating an event that happened almost two thousand years ago. We are not simply commemorating the Last Supper, when Christ shared a meal with His disciples. When we come
Cooperating with the Physician of Our Souls Although imprecise, we often use anthropomorphic language when speaking about God. Thus, we can say that God is like a mother whose sick child is in need of healing, and is not offended by the child’s sickness. Yet, given the truth that God
Taking Orthodoxy beyond the self-congratulatory Archbishop Averky of Syracuse, of blessed memory, once said of converts, “they are like envelopes, they have a tendency to come unglued”. Many a convert, once they’ve embraced the Orthodox Faith, mistakenly given themselves over to a zealotry that is without any form of temperance.
We must not let the Light of Christ be shrouded in darkness We must try to share the joy and healing that is to be found within the walls of the Orthodox Church, and the depth of our encounter with Christ that brings about transformation, and the restoration of the
The Church is a living organism, guided by the Holy Spirit It is important that we always remember, the Holy Spirit guides the Church. The early Christians worshiped in secret places, and were not able to have formal temples, yet as the Church gained her freedom, public places of worship