Two Orthodox bishops kidnapped by Muslim Extremists Ibrahim. (Image frm) Two Syrian Orthodox bishops have been kidnapped on the outskirts of Aleppo. While both clergymen are believed to be alive, their driver was killed during the attack. Syriac Orthodox bishop Yohanna Ibrahim and Greek Orthodox Archbishops of Aleppo Paul, who
Youth from St. D’s in Seattle Christ’s Resurrection Paves the Way The fact that we Orthodox do not accept the doctrine of original sin as espoused in the West, does in no way suggest that we do not need to be born again (born anew). We believe, as did the
How to be a pious Orthodox Christian without stoking the flames of pride Many years ago I remember attending a Liturgy at a parish church and noticing a young man standing in the front of the temple, making profound bows, together with frequent, almost exaggerated signs of the cross. My
PLU Students visit Monastery God’s Love Consumes All According to Saint Gregory of Nyssa, heaven and hell are not about location, but about relationship. God is everywhere, and He did not create a heaven for some, and a hell for others. If we love God, His fire will be a
Within the Fold but Without Love That our Orthodox Church possesses the Truth is a given, yet in our weakness as believers, the obviousness of that Truth is often invisible to others. In our weakness as a people, clergy as well as laity, we fail to demonstrate a love and
Spring is in the Air I’ll do it Tomorrow We all have times when we procrastinate. There is a story of a young monk who confessed to his elder that he was always struggling with procrastination. His elder told him it was his lack of faith which made it impossible
A Priest Must Become Like a Funnel If a priest is truly to be an agent for grace, he must become like a funnel through which the Lord’s mercy can flow. That a priest has received the grace of ordination, if he does not attempt to live a life of
Suffer Criticism as Profitable for Your Salvation If we stop rejecting the criticism of others, be it justified or unjustified criticism, and see such criticism as profitable for our salvation, we will have gained a great spiritual treasure. When we gain the ability to see our own sinfulness, we see
to Service Service is about People and not about Self As many of my readers know, I have serviced King County and the Vashon Island community, as a police and fire chaplain for many years. Serving as a chaplain is certainly unusual for the abbot of a monastery, but not
How do we keep our youth in the Church? We are living in an age that has witnessed changes on a massive scale as never before. The way we communicate has changed with the coming of the internet, with information available that would have required a library and advanced degrees