Jun 11, 2011

Some people are convinced that sacred tradition is guarded by episcopal synods. But contemporary synods are not like those in the age of the early Christians: their aim was to preserve and protect the Church’s therapeutic method.

Mar 16, 2011

The person that is struggling to the best of his abilities, who has no desire to live a disorderly life, but who, in the course of the struggle for faith and life, falls and rises again and again, God will never abandon.

Sep 3, 2010

When does morality fall into the realm of heresy? What makes the eastern Orthodox understanding of Sin and Hell "different"?

The beginning of theology is not the card catalogue, but doing battle with the passions. And the end of theology is not becoming a professor, but becoming a saint.

Jan 24, 2010

It was Thursday. The day was gloomy. The snow lay eight inches deep on the ground; and dry, crisp snowflakes were falling thickly from the sky when Father Seraphim began his conversation with me...

Nov 6, 2009

The parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31) has a long history of teasing Christians into dangerous territory. I suspect that many if not most Christians have more than a little curiosity about life after death. We want to know what happens. We want to know “how things work.” And this parable – at least on its surface – seems to give more indication of “how things work” than almost any other passage in Scripture.

Jun 19, 2009

 
“…in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free.”

May 18, 2009

It is the nature of things that Christ did not come to make bad men good, but to make dead men live. This is to say that the nature of our problem is not moral but existential or ontological. We have a problem that is rooted in the very nature of our existence, not in our behavior. We behave badly because of a prior problem. Good behavior will not correct the problem.

Apr 6, 2009

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…