And the surrender of self-will There is freedom from stress, anxiety, and even anger, when we place our trust in God, and in he whom God has set over us as our spiritual guide. The invading enemies to our salvation have power over us only when we depend on ourselves.
Don’t react, be at peace Each day brings on new challenges regarding the health of your soul. Those moments when a family member or coworker makes a remark that are meant to anger you, are those times you need to guard your heart. When those around you are gossiping about
We are all in this together As we struggle in this life, it is good to remember that we are all together. We find our place of silence, where we encounter God, but even in this place set apart, we are together. In our journey to God, our common goal
Hell and hate One of my favorite authors as a young man, was Thomas Merton, the famous Trappist monk. In the introduction to his work New Seeds of Contemplation he wrote: “Hell was where no one has anything in common with anyone else except the fact that they all hate
To the founders of this holy monastery On behalf of the holy brotherhood, I want to thank all of you who have been donating towards the support of the monastery, either through PayPal, or by mail. These are difficult economic times for everyone, and as our $230,000.00 mortgage looms over
click on photos to enlarge Encountering drought in one’s soulLike much of the country, Washington State is experiencing drought. When most people think of Seattle, they think of rain, lots of rain. Anyone who would choose to live in the Puget Sound region, better like rain, we tell our visitors.
Wherein the temporal and the eternal are connected 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
Imparting the faith as a missionary people Two Byzantine brothers, Saints Cyril and Methodius, brought Orthodox Christianity to the Slavs in the ninth century. The brilliance of Eastern Orthodox missionary outreach, as opposed to that of the Latin Church, was in the very use of the vernacular. These great saints
Creating harmony out of chaos The inevitability of death is particularly difficult to face for most Americans, as we’ve become a people that eschew traditional funerals, preferring to “celebrate the life of our loved one, while disposing of the body, and banning any sign of death from the memorial service
The transformational power of a Faith unchanged In an age when many Christian denominations are trying to appear relevant and modern, I am finding that large numbers of people are drawn to the Ancient Faith by the beard and robe. I am constantly thanked for dressing as I do by