Every Sunday of Great Lent is dedicated to person or event, with the sequence of these commemorations designed to prepare us for a deeper participation in Christ’s passion and resurrection. This Sunday is dedicated to the life and work of St. John of the Ladder. Saint John was an ascetic, a spiritual athlete, and a […]
Fast Mimicking Diet (dry eating)
March 20, 2015 By
From https://www.quora.com/What-is-an-example-of-fasting-mimicking-diet Grocery List Quick oats Wheat bread Baby carrots Broccoli Bananas Blueberries Strawberries Avocado V-8 Juice (normal) Macadamia nuts (unflavored) Dry roasted almonds Peanuts Recipe One: Easy Mode Day 1 Water 1 cup dry quick oats, ample water, pinch of salt, 2 teaspoons of butter (10g protein, 12g fat, 54g carbs) 3 ounces carrots (~9 […]
A Plea for Pastoral Gentleness
March 17, 2015 By
Thoughts on the calling of the Holy Apostle and Evangelist Matthew Matthew was a tax collector. When Jesus gave him the invitation to “follow me”, he responded with hospitality. He opened his house to the Lord, his disciples, fellow tax collectors, and unspecified sinners. Just to make sure everyone had a good time, this was […]
Homily on the Cross (notes)
March 15, 2015 By
St. Mark 8:34-9:1 Context: Christ has told his disciples about his coming passion. Peter rejected it; and Christ widened the coming persecution to include Himself. He had done this in his greatest homily saying “Blessed are you, when people revile you, and persecute you, and shall say terrible things about you falsely, for my sake.” […]
The Challenge of Post-Hoc Moral Decision Making
March 10, 2015 By
The Rational Decision-makerIn the post-enlightenment west, we have this idea that man is rational; that when he approaches a decision, he gathers the available data, calculates the costs and benefits of each alternative, and selects the one that he determines is most likely to be the best (i.e. expected utility maximization). Very few people […]
Homily on St. Gregory Palamas (notes)
March 8, 2015 By
What God do you meet in those moments of transcendence? Humans are built with the ability to enjoy and bask in the glory of God (brief warmth of sun after a long winter) Was meant to be a permanent reality; but we chose another way But we still have moments when we feel a special […]
Homily for the Sunday of Orthodoxy: Extreme Orthodoxy (notes)
March 1, 2015 By
A Note on Extremism Extremism is the only way to become perfect in God Extremism? Yeah it can be dangerous That’s why we’d better get it right What does Extreme Christianity look like? Orthodoxy! But what does that mean? Danger of Orthodox fundamentalism: the primacy of rules, Phariseeism, and judgmentalism How do we do Extreme […]
The Triumph of True-Worship and Defeat of Iconoclasm (and why it matters)
March 1, 2015 By
The Triumph of True-Worship and Defeat of Iconoclasm (and why it matters)A Homily on the First Sunday of Lent: the Triumph of Orthodoxy Note about length of services. This is traditionally a time of catechetical instruction, so sermons may be longer than usual. Your priest will do what he can to ensure that this is not […]
What is a “Peacemaker”? A Reflection
March 1, 2015 By
Then Jesus Christ said; “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.” (St. Matthew 5:9) We sing this every Sunday as part of the Beatitudes (sung during the Little Entrance, when the clergy process to the Holy Doors with the Gospel), but what does it mean? Let’s start with the […]
The REAL Reason People Leave the Church!
February 24, 2015 By
Google “why people leave the church” and you will get a bazillion links to articles describing why people leave the church (okay, there may be fewer than a bazillion… I stopped counting at a hundred when I ran the search this morning). Put the same query in at Amazon and you will get similar results. In […]
