Search results for: “theology of the cross”
-
It’s a Lying Shame
Read more: It’s a Lying ShameThe story of the first sin begins not with a choice, but with a lie. As much as we tend to emphasize “free-will” as the origin and dominant factor of human sin, we do well to remember the true nature of our lives. Things are much more complicated than freedom can account for. Rather, we […]
-
The Kingdom of God – One-Storey in Time
Read more: The Kingdom of God – One-Storey in TimeAmong the stranger phrases found in St. John Chrysostom’s Liturgy is this: It was You Who brought us from non-existence into being, and when we had fallen away [past tense], You raised us up again [past tense], and did not cease to do all things until You had brought us up to heaven [past tense], […]
-
St. Melito and Pascha – Hell Is Not the Last Word
Read more: St. Melito and Pascha – Hell Is Not the Last WordAmong the most powerful meditations on Pascha are the writings of Melito of Sardis (ca. 190 AD). His homily, On Pascha, is both a work of genius as poetry and a powerful work of theology. Its subject is the Lord’s Pascha – particularly as an interpretation of the Old Testament. It is a common example […]
-
Living with Ignorance
Read more: Living with IgnoranceGerman theoretical physicist Max Planck was told by his professor not to go into Physics as “almost everything is discovered already”. So Planck said he did not want to discover anything & just wanted to learn the fundamentals. He went on to originate Quantum theory & won a Nobel Prize. – a recent fact that […]
-
Living Large – And Long
Read more: Living Large – And LongModernity is in love with time – or with a certain version of time. That version goes under the heading of the “future” and is married to notions of “progress,” “change,” “advancement,” and the like. It is inherently a version of time that appeals to those who are young, in that it privileges the future […]
-
Fleeing Paris with Vladimir Lossky – and Some Afterthoughts
Read more: Fleeing Paris with Vladimir Lossky – and Some AfterthoughtsI posted this article a year ago, thus the reference to events in August of 2020. Times of relative peace and prosperity are far more rare than we realize. Our present difficulties reflect stresses and strains that have been common in many parts of the world and through time. I have found some comfort in […]
-
“Make It So!” vs. “Let It Be!”
Read more: “Make It So!” vs. “Let It Be!”Abba Poemen said, “Teach your mouth to say that which is in your heart. +++ Some years back, while driving through the mountains here in Tennessee, with an out-of-date GPS system in my car, I was instructed to take a particular turn and cross a bridge. Something inside me (guardian angel?) whispered a word of […]
-
Grace Enough
Read more: Grace EnoughSome years ago I was in hospital for a time and not in the least bit happy about it. One sleepless night I was walking the halls of the unit, unable to sleep, and tempted with self-pity. I thought to myself (in rebuke), “Father Arseny endured the Soviet Gulag with more hope and patience than […]
-
The Greatest Battle Is at Hand
Read more: The Greatest Battle Is at HandIn his letter to the Ephesians, St. Paul warns of the dangers of being “tossed about with every wind of doctrine.” Early Christianity had very little institutional existence or stability. Churches met in homes (usually those of the wealthy). They gathered around their Bishop (or Bishops) with their Presbyters and Deacons. They were grounded in […]
-
Singing the Lord’s Song
Read more: Singing the Lord’s SongIn my first parish as an Anglican priest, I approached my first Midnight Mass with eager anticipation. I was trained “High Church,” with a very traditional liturgical emphasis – but I was serving in a “Low Church” parish. I was the first priest in their history to wear Eucharistic vestments as a normal practice. But […]
Matthew, Romans 13 should not be read in such an extreme way (“obey in all matters”). The balance is, “we…