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Prayer Behind the Ambo
Read more: Prayer Behind the AmboThis prayer from St. John Chrysostom’s Liturgy comes at the end of the service. It is a fitting summation of the Church’s prayer before God. Blessing those that bless thee, O Lord, and sanctifying those that trust in thee, save thy people and bless thine inheritance, preserve the fullness of thy Church, sanctify those that […]
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The Morning Prayer of the Last Elders of Optina
Read more: The Morning Prayer of the Last Elders of OptinaI have loved this prayer for years and found it essential in beginning the day. Key phrases have a way of coming back throughout the events of each day. It is worth committing to heart. O Lord, grant that I may meet all that this coming day brings to me with spiritual tranquility. Grant […]
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The Ecclesiology of the Cross – The Pillar and Ground of Truth – Part 4
Read more: The Ecclesiology of the Cross – The Pillar and Ground of Truth – Part 4We continue from our previous posts with the last two points: 3. All discussion of the Church and its life must include this self-emptying [of Christ], not only of God, but of each of the members of the Church. 4. Every description of the various aspects of the Church would do well to include the […]
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Preserving Peace of Soul
Read more: Preserving Peace of SoulFrom the teachings of St. Seraphim of Sarov One must by every means strive to preserve peace of soul and not to be disturbed by offenses from others; for this one must in every way strive to restrain anger and by means of attentiveness to keep the mind and heart from improper feelings. And therefore […]
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From the Desert Fathers
Read more: From the Desert FathersIt was said that there were three friends who were not afraid of hard work. The first chose to reconcile those who were fighting each other, as it is said, “Blessed are the peace-makers’ (Matt. 5). The second chose to visit the sick. The third went to live in prayer and stillness in the desert. […]
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Ecclesiology of the Cross – Pillar and Ground of the Truth – Part 3
Read more: Ecclesiology of the Cross – Pillar and Ground of the Truth – Part 3Following earlier posts on this subject, I take up the second of four points: 2. Any imitation of God, any conformity of our life to His, will involve this same self-emptying [as the self-emptying of God on the Cross]. There is a tendency when we think of the Church to think in institutional terms – to […]
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A Morning Prayer to the Holy Trinity
Read more: A Morning Prayer to the Holy Trinityby St. John Chrysostom Glory to You, our God, glory to You. Glory to You, O Lord our God, Who always overlooks our sins. Glory to you. O Lord our God, who enabled me to see this day. Glory to You, O most-holy Trinity, our God. I venerate Your ineffable goodness. I praise Your inexplorable […]
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Ecclesiology of the Cross – The Pillar and Ground of Truth – Part 2
Read more: Ecclesiology of the Cross – The Pillar and Ground of Truth – Part 2I suggested in my previous post on this topic that the Cross be a central part of our understanding of the Church. There is a natural tendency to compartmentalize in theology – it’s hard to think of everything all the time and everywhere. And yet, it is important that we always remember that our salvation is […]
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Our Capacity for Love
Read more: Our Capacity for LoveOur first child was born over 26 years ago. I remember feeling completely overwhelmed by the event – staggered at the seriousness of what had happened in my life. Evey aspect of her coming into our life was new – and I felt completely unprepared. On her first night home from the hospital, I slept […]
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Some Ground Rules for Blogging Here
Read more: Some Ground Rules for Blogging HereGlory to God for All Things, has been up for a little over a week. We’ve been blessed with very good readership (around 8,000 views). I am moved and grateful. I took the liberty of removing a couple of comments today, including one of mine, and am taking this opportunity to state what I will […]
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Very helpful Fr. Stephen. Thanks as always.
Simon, Yes. You, me, all of us need grace. And the grace we need comes to us in love. It’s…
Matthew, It’s easy to forget that Orthodoxy is not a tightly-run bureaucracy with departments of management and such. So, on…
Thanks also to you Byron.
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Fr. Stephen … after reflecting only a bit on Simon the Expectorator`s brilliant, honest, interesting, sad (so many adjectives could…