The place where heaven and earth are united As a priest, I bear the awesome burden of offering the Holy Oblation before the Throne of God, on behalf of all the people who’s names are submitted to the monastery, and who are Orthodox. I offer for my spiritual children, and
College Student Staying Orthodox in an anti-Christian environment The summer months are coming to a close and many young people will be facing the prospect of heading off to college, some for the very first time. A scripture passage comes to my mind as I think of these wonderful young
Abbot Tryphon with Father Yeghia Isayan Put aside all resentment The decision to forgive another person a wrong done to us begins when we decide to let go of resentment and thoughts of revenge. To forgive someone does not mean that we forget what they did to us, for this
Kissing the hand of the priest is all about Christ The kissing of the hand of the priest is not about the man, but rather about Christ. It is much like the kissing of an icon, which is not about the veneration of paint and wood, but about the archetype
Keeping a positive attitude Our attitude has an impact that can keep us from growing spiritually. A bad attitude impacts the way we live, and hurts those around us, negatively influencing our family, our friends, and our church community. We must commit ourselves to keeping a positive attitude, for
The great virtue of forgiving our enemies There is the story of Saint Epiphanius of Cyprus who invited Hilarion the Great to dinner, and in order to show his hospitality place fried chicken on the table. Hilarion, when he saw the fried chicken, asked forgiveness, but said he had not
Simplicity and humility lead to true knowledge The Apostle Paul tells us that it is better to be ignorant in speech rather than in spiritual knowledge (2 Cor. 11:6). Being skilled in speaking is a matter of human learning, as are the other forms of worldly education, but they do
Situation ethics versus biblical morality Situation ethics has become the norm for our times, having replaced the biblical ethics of past generations. In situation ethics as long as no one is hurt one can do as one pleases. Taking drugs, watching pornography and aborting the unborn child, all can come
The lengths some will take to slander Russia I received the following post in the comments section of my blog: “When the groupies finish your canonization, will you redo all your pictures with halos added? You wisely keep your slanders against Ukrainian Catholics off the website. Why not post the
Step by step, progress is made We can feel discouraged when we struggle to change our bad behaviors, or overcome sins that seem to follow us like bad debt. We feel overwhelmed and wonder if we will ever have victory. During times like these it is good to remember the