https://youtu.be/uyNc1lKK3fE?t=23m7s Notes for a Homily on the Publican and the Pharisee (St. Luke 18:9-14) What was the purpose of this parable? Best to look at the context. In this case it isn’t hard. Here is the sentence right … [Continue reading]
A Boring Essay on Culture and Evangelization (class notes)
January 30, 2015 By
Fedotov and the Spirituality of Kyivan Rus’ This semester, I am teaching a class on “The Spirituality of Kyivan Rus’”. It’s a fun course because I get to discuss topics like the dynamic between native cultures and Christianity and the effect this … [Continue reading]
Fr. Stephen Freeman: Gifts and Talents and the Road to Hell
January 28, 2015 By
“Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so … [Continue reading]
A Vanishing Christian Virtue: Commitment
January 25, 2015 By
[Excerpted from the Homily on the Sunday of Zacchaeus.] There are three main steps in the life of the Christian – all of them are necessary. A Need. A sense of the gap between how things are and how they should be. This is often caused by a … [Continue reading]
Evangelizing Men without Chests – can it be done?
January 23, 2015 By
Professor Anthony Esolen has a real gift for juxtaposing the depravities and weaknesses of modern culture with the strength of traditional Christianity. While his critiques are strong, one of the things I appreciate about him is that he is … [Continue reading]
Nazerite Vow Completed – anybody have 2 bits?
January 2, 2015 By
The Setting: the church fire brings new challenges At four-thirty in the morning of the feast of St. Michael, the police came to the rectory bearing some terrible news: the church was on fire. It had obviously been burning for several hours; … [Continue reading]
Memory Eternal – Fr. Gleb Yakunin (3/4/34 – 12/25/14)
December 31, 2014 By
Soviet Dissidents: martyrs and confessors of freedom, truth, and human dignity I chose to major in political science back in the 80's in large part so that I could study the Soviet Union, the "evil empire" that held a huge swath of the world's … [Continue reading]
40 Days of Blogging: Eden
November 21, 2014 By
Today's topic is "Eden". Genesis is one of my favorite books of the Bible, and its description of our life in paradise is certainly one of the reasons. Humanity has been plagued since that time by its sense of loss and emptiness and driven by the … [Continue reading]
40 Days of Blogging: Bread or Beer? Or Bozhe?!
November 20, 2014 By
Today's topic is "bread or beer"? I'm writing from Constantinople (Istanbul), a country that was once the heart of a vibrant Christian empire... but is now 99% Mulim. It's a shock. But I've seen it before even in my lifetime: so many Christian … [Continue reading]
40 Days of Blogging: Immortality
November 19, 2014 By
Today's topic is immortality. Priests spend a lot of time immersed in the reality of death, and yet we simlutaneously proclaim the truth of Christ's victory over death. How can a rational mind keep such concepts juxtaposed without compromise or … [Continue reading]
