This year has taken a huge toll on our lives. Next to the millions who got sick, the rest of us have suffered emotionally and spiritually. We have lived in fear for ten months, and the anxiety will continue for many more months. Our sentiments of love and affection have been put on lockdown, and …
Continue reading "Babies grow up. When will ‘baby Christianity’ grow up?"
As I mentioned in a post yesterday, Orthodox icons show the birth of Christ taking place in a cave. I was surprised to come upon a fascinating passage G. K. Chesterton wrote about 100 years ago. Here it is in an abridged version published on the Plough website, one of my favorite places on the Internet …
The icon is by the very excellent modern Greek iconographer Georgios Kordis, which I downloaded from his website, https://kordis.gallery. It paints the traditional Orthodox iconographic representation of the Nativity: angels giving glory from heaven and announcing to the shepherds on the right, a midwife washing the infant Jesus on the bottom right, a young shepherd …
It is blessed to anticipate the celebration of our Lord's Nativity. We all are making sacrifices in how we will celebrate this great holy day, but even a deadly virus cannot stop the holiness that flows from this feast into our lives. Holy, Holy, Holy - the only word that is adequate to expressing the …
When all things were enveloped in quiet silence, and when the night had reached the mid-point in its course, your all-powerful Word leaped from he height of the heavens, from the royal throne, into the midst of the land that was doomed… (Book of Wisdom 18:14-15) Don’t look for the Book of Wisdom in your Bible. …
Adrienne von Speyr, whom I introduced in my previous post, wrote a 4-volume series of meditations on the Gospel of John that run to 1,600 pages! The following excerpts are from her meditation on verse 18:37 – For this I was born… – when Jesus faced Pilate. These thoughts, born out of prayer and contemplation of divine truth, …
Lord, you tell us from heaven that you are the first and the last. Grant us understanding of this word in faith, this word that you speak to us over and over again, that you say again and again, like a confession of love to us and to the Father at the same time. Let …
Hans Urs von Balthasar (1905–1988) was a Swiss theologian widely regarded as one of the greatest theologians and spiritual writers of the 20th century. What an amazing century it was! In the midst of so much spiritual darkness there shone luminous spirits like von Balthasar. I offer here four very short quotes that I came across …
Continue reading "On the bridge with Hans Urs von Balthasar"
The jasmine behind my house has been completely ruined by the rains and storms of the last few days. . . . But somewhere inside me the jasmine continues to blossom undisturbed, just as profusely and delicately as ever it did. And it spreads its scent round the House in which You dwell, oh God. …
On this Thanksgiving Day, I’m reminded of a remarkable man who was my teacher at St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary: Father Alexander Schmemann. Father Schmemann of blessed memory celebrated his last Thanksgiving on November 24th, 1983. Less than three weeks later he passed on to eternity. On that Thanksgiving Day he celebrated the Liturgy at the …
