"Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy." μακάριοι οἱ ἐλεήμονες, ὅτι αὐτοὶ ἐλεηθήσονται Today we enter the holy of holies of the Beatitudes. Everything so far has been preparation. Poor in spirit, meek, mourners, hungry and thirsty for justice - qualities that describe the disciple who follows Christ. "But I will show you …
It is good to be here!
The Christian churches have always looked for dogmas when reading the Bible, especially the Gospels and the Letters of St. Paul. This is an essential task, but sometimes in our eagerness to turn everything into dogma we miss some more immediate meanings and messages. The transfiguration of Christ is an excellent example. The Orthodox Church celebrates …
Gregory Palamas and the Theology of Deification
The second in a short series of Bible Study classes exploring the themes of the Sundays of Lent focused on St. Gregory Palamas, who is commemorated on the Second Sunday of Lent in the Orthodox Church (last Sunday, March 8th). Palamas is most associated with the Orthodox doctrines of deification and the distinction of essence and energies. …
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Simple words that make life possible
The lesson of our Gospel reading this morning is very simple: Say "thank you"! The lesson is simple, but the consequences are profound. Our failure in this simple but essential act is at the root of so much of our woes. Consider only the news of the past week or so. Fact: 2014 was the …
Theology, our last hope
A few weeks ago I wrote an article here titled, "Ecology is an Orthodox word." Today I came across an amazing little quote: The proposed solution to our environmental problems are no longer a matter of saving a few watts, using less plastic or stopping an oil pipeline... It is our entire industrialized lifestyle that is …
Life and Death on August 6th
On this day, 69 years ago, the B-52 bomber Enola Gay, dropped the atomic bomb "Little Boy" on the Japanese city Hiroshima. About 70,000 people were killed instantly and tens of thousands of survivors died in the months and years following from radiation poisoning. Three days later, a second atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki. …
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