Establishing and maintaining a prayer rule does not have to be an onerous experience, one that is more likely to fail than succeed, writes St. Theophan the Recluse. We need a prayer rule because we need discipline, but that discipline has to be doable, one that delivers the fruits of prayer and not one that drives us to frustration, or worse, despair, because we don't have the … [Read more...] about How to Establish a Prayer Rule
Spirituality
Understanding Orthodoxy
Dogma, Fr. John Romanides taught, exists to guide the faithful and to safeguard against false teaching. Dogmas don't contain the substance of the encounter with God, they describe and direct it. Dogma itself must be experienced, lit with the fire of Divine Life to effect salvation -- the healing, redemption, and restoration -- of the believer. Theology, in other words, must be … [Read more...] about Understanding Orthodoxy
It’s Pascha, Not Easter!
The right word can make the meaning of something clear, and the wrong word can obscure or even hide its real meaning. The right word for the celebration of the resurrection of Christ is the Greek word "Pascha" which means "Passover" in English. It opens up the rich and necessary association of Christ as the "Pashal Lamb" with the paschal lamb of Exodus and the flight of the … [Read more...] about It’s Pascha, Not Easter!
The Life of Our Venerable Mother Mary of Egypt
This Life of Our Venerable Mother Mary of Egypt was written down in the seventh century by Saint Sophronios, Patriarch of Jerusalem, some hundred years after the repose of the holy Mary, who fell asleep in the Lord April 1, 522. It is one of the most beautiful and edifying lives of a saint. Its obvious and stated purpose is to glorify God and to feed the souls of its … [Read more...] about The Life of Our Venerable Mother Mary of Egypt
Orthodoxy and the Beauty of Chastity
In the midst of an era that seeks to legitimize all modes of sexual license, this Lenten time of repentance offers us the distance from worldly passions that can allow us to fully appreciate the Christian virtue of chastity. As traditional forms of Western Christianity also remember, chastity is closely linked to sexual self-control or moderation (sophrosune). But Orthodoxy … [Read more...] about Orthodoxy and the Beauty of Chastity
