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The Geography of Hell
Read more: The Geography of HellThe 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 – […]
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Soul Saturday – And Forty Days
Read more: Soul Saturday – And Forty DaysIn my early exposure to Orthodoxy, I became intrigued with the term, “Soul Saturday.” My family would visit an Orthodox monastery not too far away from here for their annual pilgrimage that occured on one of the weekends of a “Soul Saturday.” This is term from popular parlance – the more proper English title of the event […]
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Finding God in Abundance
Read more: Finding God in AbundanceAnother simple thing that is quite difficult: From Elder Paisios of the Holy Mountain I have realized that the destruction of man lies in the abundance of material goods, because it prevents him from experiencing the presence of God and appreciating His benevolence. If you want to take someone away from God, give him plenty […]
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The Poor in Spirit
Read more: The Poor in SpiritFew passages of Scripture are more familiar in the Orthodox Church than the Beatitudes – Christ’s sayings from the Sermon on the Mount which begin, “Blessed are….” With familiarity comes the occasional lack of attention, in which we forget to ask, “What does that mean?” I think this is particularly the case with the saying, […]
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Pray for your Accusers
Read more: Pray for your AccusersPray for those who make accusations against you. Say, ‘Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me’, not ‘have mercy on him’, and your accuser will be embraced in this prayer. Does someone say something to you that upsets you? God knows it. What you have to do is open your arms and say, ‘Lord Jesus […]
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At the Door of Thy Compassion
Read more: At the Door of Thy CompassionThis prayer is printed and framed and hangs among the icons in my church office: A Prayer of St. Isaac of Syria At the door of Thy compassion do I knock, Lord; send aid to my scattered impulses which are intoxicated with the multitude of the passions and the power of darkness. Thou canst see […]
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What Do You Say When You Turn Out the Light?
Read more: What Do You Say When You Turn Out the Light?From my childhood, I have had a habit of prayer at bedtime – whether formal or informal. There were nights as a child that I prayed with great fervency in fear of what was taking place around me. There were times as a teenager that I prayed with no confidence that anyone was listening. As […]
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The Knowledge of God
Read more: The Knowledge of GodThe knowledge of God, generally spoken of in a very experiential manner, is an absolute foundation in Orthodox theology. Nothing replaces it – no dogmatic formula – no Creed – not even Scripture – though Orthodoxy would see none of these things as separate from the knowledge of God. But the questions I have received […]
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The Beatitudes
Read more: The Beatitudes
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The Elder Sophrony on the Struggle of Prayer
Read more: The Elder Sophrony on the Struggle of PrayerPrayer is infinite creation, the supreme art. Over and over again we experience an eager upsurge towards God, followed only by a falling away from His light. Time and again we are conscious of the mind’s inability to rise to Him. There are moments when we feel ourselves on the verge of insanity. ‘Thou didst […]
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For everyone, Across the world every day, we average around 1300 murders. Wars, of course, would make that number much…