As Christ has taught us, nothing is more important for us than learning how to love (Matt. 22: 36-40). But how can we truly love others until we have learned to love Christ Himself who has loved us first, before any other, and far more greatly than any other? St Theophan shows us how St John, the Beloved Disciple, can help us learn to love Christ our God, with all our heart and … [Read more...] about How To Love Christ: Learning From the Beloved Disciple
Liturgy, Scripture & The Seasons of the Church
A Light So Shining Before Men: A Discourse on the Great Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord
Archpriest Artemy Vladimirov speaks on the spiritual meaning of the Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord, on our ascent following after Christ, about the event of the feast and about why namely Moses and Elijah appeared to the Savior, and about how to prepare ourselves for the feast and how to pass the day. Source: Orthodox Christianity By Archpriest Artemy … [Read more...] about A Light So Shining Before Men: A Discourse on the Great Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord
Frederica: Annual Dormition Fast Prayer Vigil to End Abortion
Occasions of joy sometimes elicit occasions of sorrow. This is so because the world is fallen, shorn from the full beauty and majesty of God. The world however, is not without hope because of the promise of the restoration of all things through the work of the Son of God, Jesus Christ the Righteous. The fallen world can be made new. The promise of restoration was given … [Read more...] about Frederica: Annual Dormition Fast Prayer Vigil to End Abortion
How to Read the Holy Scriptures
Because Orthodox worship is replete with scriptural references, the Orthodox tend to take them for granted, says Fr. Seraphim Rose in this lecture given in 1979. Instead, we should read them more often and with greater diligence because they have great benefit in the spiritual life. St. Seraphim of Sarov for example, used to read the entire New Testament once a week. Fr. … [Read more...] about How to Read the Holy Scriptures
Time and Place in the Healing of the Paralytic
Fr. Alexander Webster, Dean of Holy Trinity Seminary, masterfully compares chronological time and sacred time in the biblical story of the Healing of the Paralytic to reveal that both culminate in the healing work of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The paralytic waited for the stirring of the waters every year in order to be healed. Thirty-eight years he waited because he had … [Read more...] about Time and Place in the Healing of the Paralytic