Reflections in Christ

On August 1, we will commemorate the Seven Holy Maccabee Children, Solomone their mother, and Eleazar their teacher, all of whom were put to death in the year 168 BC.  As such, they were protomartyrs before the time of Christ and the later martyrs of the Christian era.  They died because they refused to reject the precepts of the Law when ordered to…

In the fifth chapter of the Gospel of Saint John we find the account of the healing of the paralytic by the Pool of Bethesda near the Sheep Gate in Jerusalem and the profound discourse that follows.  Archeologists have fairly recently discovered this pool, demonstrating the accuracy of Saint John’s description.  The paralytic had taken his place…

The liturgical book that we began with the Matins of Pascha is called the Pentecostarion.  This theologically rich book contains the hymnography for all the days of Pascha, and the Feasts of Ascension and Pentecost.  But it does not end with the Leavetaking of Pentecost.  We draw from the Pentecostarion one last time on the Sunday of All Saints,…

The Sunday of the Great Feast of Pentecost is named on the calendar as the Feast of the Holy Trinity or simply Trinity Sunday.  This emphasis on the Holy Trinity is based on the element of divine revelation that Pentecost discloses, for the coming of the Holy Spirit into the world through the mediation of the Church as gathered in the upper room is…

“And after He had dismissed the crowds, He went up into the hills by Himself to pray” [Matthew 14:23].

According to the Gospel of Saint Matthew 14:22-23, Jesus walked upon the sea and subdued the wind that was threatening to capsize the boat of the disciples, after He had fed the multitude of five thousand with two fish and five loaves of bread. …

As we approach the final days of Great Lent, I would like to turn my attention to a theme that surfaces often in my teaching and preaching in addition to my reflection and reading—the contemporary preoccupation and obsession with the “self.”  From therapists to talk-show hosts and even “spiritual teachers,” we are enjoined to “discover,” to “get in…

In the Orthodox Church, the Cross and Resurrection of the Lord are bound together in a unified mystery, though they remain distinct events in the unfolding of the divine economy.  As Archimandrite Roman Braga writes, “The Cross, the Crucifixion and the Resurrection of our Savior Jesus Christ are of great importance in the history of our salvation. …

O holy and honored Trinity, as we now enter upon the third week of the Fast, keep us safe from harm and condemnation.  Enable us rightly to pass through the time that remains, and to fulfill all Thy commandments so that, offering up our hymns of praise, with a pure conscience we may attain the glorious Resurrection [Matins, Monday of the Third…

I am sure that many Psalter readers have already come across Psalm 42, which actually begins Book II of the Psalter according to the Hebrew canonical division.  This psalm begins with a beautiful image that has captured the minds and hearts of theologians, artists and believers throughout the centuries:  “As a hart longs for flowing streams, so…

“Let us joyfully begin the all-hallowed season of abstinence, and let us shine with the bright radiance of the holy commandments of Christ our God, with the brightness of love and the splendor of prayer, and with the purity of holiness and the strength of good courage.  So, clothed in raiment of light, let us hasten to the Holy Resurrection on the…

In the Orthodox Church, the Parable of the Publican and the Pharisee [Luke 18:10-14) is the first of a cycle of appointed Gospel readings that inaugurates the pre-Lenten season.  In other words, on an annual basis, precisely four weeks before Great Lent begins, we hear this parable proclaimed in the Liturgy.  The intentions of the Lord in…

“The aim of the Christian life is to return to that perfect grace of the most holy and life-giving Spirit, which was originally conferred upon us through divine baptism”—Saint Ignatius Xanthopoulos and Saint Kallistos

Our recent celebration of the Great Feast of Theophany—the Baptism of our Lord, God and Savior Jesus Christ—provides a fitting…

In the Service of Prayer for the New Year, we offer the following prayerful petitions to God:

“That He will mercifully accept this present thanksgiving and supplication of us, His unworthy servants, on His most-heavenly Altar, and compassionately have mercy on us, let us pray to the Lord.

“That He will bless the beginning and continuance of this…

Within the Orthodox Church, the Sunday between December 11-17 is called, simply enough, the “Second Sunday Before the Nativity of the Lord,” and more specifically, the “Sunday of the Forefathers.”  This liturgical preparation for the Feast of our Lord’s Nativity—something of a build-up—is a conscious echo of the lengthy time of preparation,…

Not long ago, I ran across a copy of my granddaughter Nadia’s edition of “How the Grinch Stole Christmas”—a book that she had thoroughly enjoyed when she was younger.  That brought back memories of having read the Dr. Seuss classic and having watched the TV version in my own childhood.  And this further gave rise to some fantasizing on my…

In the Orthodox Prayer Book under the heading “Before Sleep,” we find “A Prayer of Saint John of Damascus, said pointing at the bed.”  This particular prayer begins, “O Master Who lovest mankind, is this bed to be my coffin?  Or wilt Thou enlighten my wretched soul with another day?”

As Saint John was a monk, we could, of course, dismiss or ignore…

Jesus then asked him, “What is your name?” And he said, “legion;” for many demons had entered him.  And they begged Him not to command them to depart into the abyss.  Now a large herd of swine was feeding there on the hillside; and they begged Him to let them enter into these.  So He gave them leave.  Then the demons came out of the man and entered…

Christians of East and West will agree that one of the premier preachers in the entire history of the Church is Saint John Chrysostom—the “Golden-mouthed.”  His “presence,” of course, is most alive in the Orthodox Church as we celebrate the Liturgy of Saint John Chrysostom on a weekly basis, find his icon adorning the apses and naves of many…

From my personal—and, admittedly, “subjective”—perspective, there is nothing quite like the fall among the four seasons.  For me, this season’s greatest attraction is found in the flaming red, orange, yellow and golden leaves that transform familiar trees into a series of neighborhood “burning bushes,” each one seemingly brighter than the other. …

I recently came across this very intriguing text that I wanted to share:  “I knew you that you existed but did not believe it was so real.”

To my mind, this anonymous text has a certain “modern” feel to it—as if somehow similar in meaning and intent to the title of C. S. Lewis’s autobiographical work, Surprised by Joy, in which he describes his…