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The Sacrament of Humility – Part Two
Read more: The Sacrament of Humility – Part TwoIn my earlier article, I described humility as “our willingness to receive with thanksgiving those things (of whatever size) that come our way.” This describes humility as a virtue, but the article’s title described it as a “sacrament.” Oddly, I seemed not to have unpacked what that means. There are several ways to think about […]
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The Sacrament of Humility – Part One
Read more: The Sacrament of Humility – Part OneSome things are so obvious that you cannot see them. Their powers of invisibility do not lie so much within themselves as within those who cannot see them. We are hard-wired for danger, our eyes attuned to threats. We overlook the power of weakness and the vulnerability of humility – the queen and fount of […]
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The Sword that Pierces the Soul
Read more: The Sword that Pierces the SoulMary, the Theotokos, was described by St. Irenaeus in the 2nd century, as the “New Eve.” Like Eve, she is the “mother of us all,” if we have the eyes to see her properly. She is a quiet figure in the New Testament – not a preacher or worker of miracles. We see the […]
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Mother of Us All
Read more: Mother of Us AllA young friend recently lost his mother. It has been an occasion of reflection for me, thinking about the emptiness created by such a loss. Despite all of the confusion and conundrums in our contemporary culture surrounding gender issues – they only serve to underscore the fact that male-and-female, on the most fundamental level of […]
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Playing with God
Read more: Playing with GodThere are things that children understand instinctively. And the things that children know and understand are worth consideration. They have much to teach us. Among the most natural things children do is play. Depending on how you define play, it is among the first activities in which we engage. It comes to dominate the lives […]
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Of Whom I Am First
Read more: Of Whom I Am FirstIn the Orthodox Divine Liturgy, it is customary for a prayer to be offered by all who are coming to receive communion. I quote a portion: I believe, O Lord, and I confess that Thou art truly the Christ, the Son of the Living God, Who camest into the world to save sinners, of whom […]
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What To Do When God Is Everywhere
Read more: What To Do When God Is EverywhereIf there is no such thing as “secularism” (see my previous article), then how are we to live? If God is “everywhere present and filling all things,” how are we to spend our time in the day? It is possible to be distracted by such questions, to wonder whether Christians need to construct an alternative […]
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There Is No Such Thing As Secular
Read more: There Is No Such Thing As SecularJust so that we can be clear: there is no such thing as a secular world. By that, I mean that there is no such thing as the world-apart-from-God, a world without God, or a world existing in a “neutral zone.” The good God who created the heavens and the earth, sustains all things in […]
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The Difficult Task of True Theology
Read more: The Difficult Task of True TheologyNothing is as difficult as true theology. Simply saying something correct is beside the point. Correctness does not rise to the level of theology. Theology, rightly done, is a path towards union with God. It is absolutely more than an academic exercise. Theology is not the recitation of correct facts, it is the apprehension and […]
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As someone whose worldly memory is getting spotty, I am deeply grateful that Jesus’ memory of me seems stronger than…
Justin, Yes, we say the pre-communion prayer in our Greek Orthodox parish as well.
I am grateful to be remembered.
Matthew, Also, we recite it at the last of the Pre-Communion Prayers: Receive me today, O Son of God, as…
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Michael, et al What a terrible and insignificant thing it would be if what we carried into eternity were nothing…