Today's Gospel reading, Luke 13:10-17, should be read in the context of the entire chapter 13 of Luke. Jesus heals the woman who was bent over for eighteen years in the midst of various parables and confrontational dialogues. What unifies all these segments of chapter 13 is the idea of community. A careful reading of this …
Priests of thanksgiving
Today, November 30th, we celebrate the memory of St. Andrew the Apostle, the brother of Saint Peter. The Gospel of John tells us that Andrew was the first of the apostles to follow Jesus and it was Andrew who then brought Peter to Jesus. Thus, in the Orthodox Church St. Andrew is called the First-Called. …
Remembering Wilhelm Furtwängler on the anniversary of his death
On this day (November 30th) Wilhelm Furtwängler died 60 years ago (1954). He was, in my opinion and in the opinion of many others, the greatest conductor of the 20th century - which pretty much means the greatest of all time, since the 20th century was THE century of great symphony conductors. He was especially known …
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“Everyone capable of thanksgiving”
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. So I want to share a 30-minute video produced by CBS to mark the death of Fr. Alexander on December 13th, 1983. This video is not only a remarkable memorial to Fr. Alexander, …
Why we need Mary
The feast of the Entrance of Mary in the Temple is celebrated by the Orthodox Church on November 21st. According to tradition, Mary was brought to the Temple in Jerusalem and she lived inside the holy of holies. It almost certainly is not a historical event in the life of Mary: Only one person, the …
Blessed are those who are scared
November 16 is the feast day of Saint Matthew, the evangelist. On this day, I call to mind another great saint, Antony of Egypt. At the end of his life, Antony is reported to have said to his disciples: “Live as though you were dying every day. Pay attention to yourselves and remember what I taught …
There are no crumbs in God’s kingdom
Today's Gospel reading, Luke 16:19-31, is the Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus. The parable is one of many that Jesus spoke about money and how God sees rich and poor people. Indeed, the context here is worth looking at. Chapter 16 of Luke's Gospel begins with another parable about money and Jesus concludes …
Guard Your Identity
There are many instances in the Gospels of Jesus driving out demons, and the most remarkable of these is the one in Luke 8:26-39 that we read in the Liturgy this morning (Oct. 26th). It is hard for many modern people - myself included - to relate to stories of demon possession and exorcism or …
“Where is your God?”
Today's (19 Oct 2014) Gospel reading at the Liturgy was Luke 7:11-16, Jesus raising the son of the widow of Nain. As I reflected on this miracle story, what came to mind was Psalm 42. I imagined this widow praying this psalm at her son's death and what she might have continued praying after her son's …
What would Atticus do?
Several years ago, the acronym WWJD was very popular. People wore bracelets with those four capital letters, which stood for "What Would Jesus Do." I don't see much evidence of that acronym any more. Perhaps it was just a fad - just another marketing ploy to tap into the hearts and desires of millions. An article …
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