Tag archive for ‘incarnation’
The Sunday of Orthodoxy
Today we commemorate the Sunday of the Triumph of Orthodoxy. We know it’s the day we bring icons to church, and celebrate the restoration of the icons after the iconoclast heresy long ago. But even though icons are highly visible, the Triumph of Orthodoxy does not simply mean we can have icons.
Resisting Advent
His fists flexed closed as he said, “I don’t want a God you can hold in two hands. I don’t want a God covered in afterbirth… I want pomp, and God-type things. I want thunder and rain and lightning, well-placed too.”
Icons of the Christ Child and His mother
What shall we offer Thee, O Christ, Who for our sakes hast appeared on the earth as a man? Every creature which Thou hast made offers Thee thanks. The angels offer Thee a song; the heavens, their star; the wise men, their gifts; the shepherds, their wonder; the earth, its cave; the wilderness; the manger; and we offer Thee a virgin mother. O Pre-eternal God, have mercy on us!
John 1 should blow your mind
This passage is often called the “prologue of John.” Some scholars once theorized that this section was a Hymn inserted based on the uniqueness of certain terms (logos and grace in the prologue that appear nowhere else in the Book). This idea doesn’t take into account much of the significance of this passage to the whole. The prologue in John sets the stage for the rest of the book. It shows the areas of focus John takes in Gospel…
Isaac of Syria on Humility
From Met. Hilarion Alfeyev”s The Spiritual World of Isaac the Syrian:
To speak of humility (mukkaka or makkikuta) meant to Isaac to speak of God, for God in his vision is primarily the One who is ‘meek and lowly in heart’. God’s humility was revealed to the world in the Incarnation of the Word. In the [...]
What did Christ do for us?
Life, and forgiveness, and holiness, righteousness, healing… it’s a mistake to think those are gifts God gives us. Instead Jesus IS the life in us. He Himself is our righteousness, our peace, our wholeness. You don’t receive these things as gifts, like created items separate from Him — instead in Christ you get all of God. More…
An ancient hymn on the Nativity of Christ
Sons of men,
do you truly speak of justice?
Dwellers on the earth,
do you truly judge with fairness?
We confess with unshakable faith
God, who was made man
and who was given birth by a Virgin.
Before all time he was begotten
of an immeasurable Father;
now we adore him who became incarnate
in a Virgin’s womb.
He is the creator or all,
himself remaining invisible [...]
Perichoresis: God and His mother
The Christian faith is not merely a set of beliefs and propositions. It is better described as a “relationship” – and even this modern word is inadequate. It is better to use the old word perichoresis, or “co-inherence.” This old Patristic term describes the current of love which flows within the union of three Persons in the Godhead.
The body of Christ
The body which was born of the Virgin Mary, without any stain, without destruction of her virginity, without opening of the womb, without presence of man, and which was crucified and which arose after three days from death…
God the Logos
My question was, “Is the Angel of the Lord Who appeared to Moses in the burning bush a manifestation of God?” “Of course it is!” came the rapid answer. “Is He created or uncreated?” The reply shot back, “Of course uncreated! We Jews do not believe that God reveals Himself by means of creatures!” I quickly responded, “That is our Orthodox doctrine of the Holy Trinity.”
Why did Christ become Man? (Athanasius, 318AD)
On the Incarnation
by Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria
Introduction by C.S. Lewis
1. Creation and the Fall
(1) In our former book [i.e. the Contra Gentes] we dealt fully enough with a few of the chief points about the heathen worship of idols, and how those false fears originally arose. We also, by God’s grace, briefly indicated that the [...]
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