-
I Am Not A Theologian
Read more: I Am Not A TheologianIt was noted in a comment earlier that this Blog was not nominated (for the Eastern Christian Blog Awards) in the category of theology. I should say quickly that I’m honored to be suggested as a blog worthy of consideration in any category and that there are some excellent theological blogs out there that I […]
-
More on Peace from St. Silouan
Read more: More on Peace from St. SilouanHow may we preserve peace of soul among the temptations of our times? Judging by the Scriptures and the temper of folk today, we are living through the final period. Yet must we still preserve our souls’ peace, without which – as St. Seraphim said, who upheld Russia by his prayer – we cannot be […]
-
Peace
Read more: PeaceFrom the teachings of St. Silouan: The man who likes to have his own way will never know peace.
-
A Stranger in a Strange Land
Read more: A Stranger in a Strange LandThe Old Testament has a very discernible type within its stories: that of the stranger in a strange land. Joseph the patriarch is such a character in Egypt. Daniel is such a character in Babylon as are the Three Young Men. To a degree, Jacob is such a character in the house of his father-in-law. […]
-
How to “Read” the Church
Read more: How to “Read” the ChurchIf, as I have wrtten, the Orthodox Church itself is the proper interpretation of Scripture – then one might ask, “How am I supposed to read the Scriptures if their interpretation is the Church?” It is a good, even an obvious question, but one which points us to the very thing at hand: the nature […]
-
A Letter from Butyrskaya Prison – Pascha 1928
Read more: A Letter from Butyrskaya Prison – Pascha 1928Serge Schmemann, son of Fr. Alexander Schmemann, in his wonderful little book, Echoes of a Native Land, records a letter written from one of his family members of an earlier generation, who spent several years in the prisons of the Soviets and died there. The letter, written on the night of Pascha in 1928 is […]
-
More on an Orthodox Hermeneutic
Read more: More on an Orthodox HermeneuticIt is the common witness of the gospels that the disciples seemed to have no clue when it came to the death and resurrection of Christ – until after the resurrection. The classic story of this is to be found in St. Luke’s gospel: Now behold, two of them were traveling that same day to […]
-
An Orthodox Hermeneutic
Read more: An Orthodox HermeneuticIs or can there be such a thing as an Orthodox hermeneutic (method of interpretation) of Scripture? I asserted in a recent post that there was such a thing and that the Orthodox would do well to work towards its recovery rather than using the hermeneutics of others who do not hold the Orthodox faith. […]
-
The Boundaries We Draw and the Boundaries God Draws
Read more: The Boundaries We Draw and the Boundaries God DrawsI pushed the envelope a little in my last post, intentionally pressing against what I understand to be false boundaries created by an inadequate understanding of Scripture and a view of the world that establishes limits at places they need not be. I am not an enemy of boundaries – indeed – without them we […]
-
Literally Wrong
Read more: Literally WrongI have written on a number of occasions about the interpretation of the Scriptures and particularly about the problems of Biblical literalism. I have also, on occasion, made a link between Biblical literalism and a sort of “literalism” about the world and the universe about us. I believe that both are deeply connected and share […]
Fr. Stephen, I wonder what the place of dispassion is in this discussion. Several of the Fathers hold this state…