God Infuses His Energies into the Icons The Old Testament God was revealed to us by Christ Jesus. Prior to the incarnation of the Logos, God’s people were forbidden to make any image of Him, for no one had seen His face. Yet when Christ said to His disciples, “he
Holding up Standards of Behavior We have all witnessed those embarrassing moments when someone has lost their temper. The boss who comes into the office with family worries, and shouts at his secretary, often over something very insignificant. We’ve sat uncomfortably as a hostess made a nasty remark to her
Your Closest and Most Intimate Friend is Yourself If you have never learned to accept and love yourself, you will never be able to love another person. If you don’t learn to forgive yourself, you will never be able to forgive another person. You must learn to be your own
The Holiness of the Church During each and every celebration of the Divine Liturgy, we, as the people of God, recite the Nicene Creed. This ancient declaration is the very core of our common faith, and connects us to the teachings of the Ancient Church. In this creed we declare
Hieromonk Paul reading during trapeza “Clericalism shouldn’t have anything to do with Christianity” For those who know me, they would not be surprised to hear that I am anti-clerical. I am sickened when I witness clergy who expect special treatment, or who gush before their bishops, like court officials in
We Orthodox are not Always Perfect, but Stay the Course! Orthodoxy is not always easy, and there are many parishes that seem to make living our Orthodox faith far more difficult than needs to be. The lack of joy in some quarters is not about Orthodoxy, but about the fallen
Humans are as Priests before the Altar of Creation “Everything that lives and breathes is sacred and beautiful in the eyes of God. The whole world is a sacrament. The entire created cosmos is a burning bush of God’s uncreated energies. And humankind stands as a priest before the altar
The Incarnation: God Joining His Divinity to Our Humanity The idea that Christ would have incarnated in the flesh, even if Adam and Eve had not fallen, was taught by a number of early Church Fathers. Although not a formal teaching of the Orthodox Church, the understanding comes from the view
We Inherit the Results of Adam’s Sin, and not his Guilt The doctrine of original sin as espoused in the West, is foreign to Orthodoxy, yet in no way suggests we do not need to be born again (born anew). We believe, as did the Early Church Fathers, that we
Through Little Victories Progress is Made The acquisition of holiness is not simply the result of having cultivated virtues, or controlling oneself through asceticism, but rather having a completely organic relationship with Christ. This organic relationship is the result of going through stages of repentance and purity, leading to a