The Divine Flame will consume you At the very first moment you decide to turn to God, your heart begins to be warmed by the action of the Holy Spirit. Your heart is kindled with the divine flame that will transform you. This flame will consume you completely, and will
The role of suffering in the salvation of human kind Elder Ambrose of Optina Monastery said, “We should not forget that in our age of ‘sophistication’ even little children are spiritually harmed by what they see and hear. As a result, purification is required, and this is only accomplished through
Looking only for the good in others Saint Paisios of the Holy Mountain said there are two types of people. There are the bees and the flies. The bees are attracted to flowers and sweet smells, whereas the flies are only attracted to dirt and stench. Ask a bee where
A day set aside to give thanks to God Thanksgiving has officially been an annual tradition since 1863, when during the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national day of thanksgiving to be celebrated on Thursday, November 26. The word Thanksgiving has it’s roots in the Greek word, εὐχαριστία
Children must be taught kindness at an early age More and more frequently we read about children taking their own lives, having reached a place where they would rather be dead, than live another hour suffering from bullying. Too often parents and teachers have ignored the problem of bullying, dismissing
Permissiveness is not required when dealing with abuse There are times when distancing yourself from someone who is angry, is necessary. There is absolutely no good reason for you to remain with another, when they are being abusive. For the wife of an abuser to remain in danger, in an
Holy Tradition supports the proper interpretation of the Bible Many evangelical protestants see Holy Tradition as standing in direct contrast to Scripture, as though Tradition is always relegated to “the traditions of men”. However, there are numerous references in Holy Scripture to Holy Tradition. For example: “Many have undertaken to
We must live a life of repentance, not regret. There are many people who cling to memories of past sins, holding on to guilt and shame, reliving things long ago confessed, as though they happened yesterday. They struggle with regrets, often revisiting shame as though they were archeologists, digging for
Humankind is a microcosm of the 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 the noetic powers of the cosmos. Created as we were for immortality, it is our fallen nature that
Amending a small part of the Church Whenever we hear of problems in the Church it is our natural inclination to want to read all about it and root out all the details. Yet if we really want to benefit our soul, we should take the advice of the Saint