SACRAMENTAL LIVING

Understanding Christianity as a Way of Life

Faith (Rightly Oriented and Unyielding)

“To have faith in Christ is not merely to have warm feelings or nice thoughts about Him, but truly to seek first His Kingdom with every ounce of our being as we take up our crosses and follow Him.” (Fr. Philip LeMasters) “…the source of faith is Christ. It is the faith of Christ—His beliefs, His trust, His obedience—that justifies us, not our faith as such…True righteousness is the knowledge of Christ Jesus...A faith that obeys Christ is the very content and meaning of life..

Humility and Pain and Suffering

“The measure of a man’s spiritual growth is his humility. The more advanced he is spiritually, the more humble he is. And vice versa: the more humble, the higher spiritually. Neither prayer rules, nor prostrations, nor fasts, nor reading God’s Word— only humility brings a man closer to God. Without humility, even the greatest spiritual feats are not only useless but can altogether destroy a person.” (Abbot Nikon Vorobiev) “…we must guard against thinking that a humble heart i

Spiritual Fruit

“…let us heed Jesus’ warning to the fig tree. When He finds a lush but fruitless tree, He curses it to wither away (Matthew 21:19) and continues searching for those of true worship who will bear fruit from their hearts. This stark message is also full of hope: He gives life to those who seek Him and He withdraws life from us only if we turn away, investing in our own thriving businesses and thus failing to bear Him fruit.” (Dynamis 8/7/2020) “The word hell in the Bible comes

Spiritual Blindness and Deafness

“[Spiritual] Blindness narrows our options. Which of us can say that he sees clearly all that is coming toward him in life? We do the best we can to discern what may happen, surviving where we are, using what we have, making do with what we hear….there is a dimension of life we miss by living outside our hearts. This dimension contains the things of the Spirit, and most of us remain blind in that all-important realm.” (Dynamis 12/28/2020) “Before He restored the man’s sight [

Live Adult Religious Education on the Orthodox Christian Network to Resumes January 4.

Live Adult Religious Education on the Orthodox Christian Network to Resumes January 4.

Live Adult Religious Education through the Orthodox Christian Network's Facebook Page will resume at 12 noon ET on Monday, January 4. Live Adult Religious Education began in 2017 and ran from 11:30-12:30 ET on Sundays. The previous format was a classroom setting with people physically present in the room while others also joined the class online from around the world through OCN's Facebook page. When COVID-19 struck, it went to a non-classroom format with Michael Haldas simpl

Language

“God speaks to the world largely in symbol and sacrament. The direct assault on reason is rarely effective…The heart is too often on guard and unable to receive what is being given. As such, I think that symbol and sacrament have a way of speaking “laterally” (or some way that I do not have words for) such that the heart hears what the mind (or emotions) reject…Unfortunately, the language of the “heart” (kardia in Greek) has been co-opted in our culture and enlisted in the so

Future

Quotes of the Day for December 22, 2020 – Thoughts on living for the future or from the future “What does it mean to live in hope? It means to live “from” the future. That is, we do not have life in its fullness in the trials of what now is. We have the fullness of life in the expectation of what is to be. Our celebration of the Incarnation, therefore, has meaning in the light of our hope. And our hope is the salvation that is now ours in part by faith but will be ours in it

Heart (Hardened and Rebellious)

“…we must beware of the hardening of our hearts (Hebrews 3:15). In Greek, the word “harden” refers to “making stubborn” or “unbending...A hardened heart refuses to respond to the Spirit and closes itself off to the truth. It shields itself against the Gospel, lest the mercy and goodness of God penetrate the soul. The source of the hardness of heart can be extreme adversity such as the hunger and thirst of the Children of Israel in the desert. It can come from the disappoin

Effort

“God . . . set no limits for any of us on the spiritual plane . . . We are called to eternal life in the Kingdom of our Father which is in heaven.” Yet, as the Lord states, “entry into the Kingdom inevitably entails suffering. Many decline the Father’s gift of love precisely because the utmost effort is required.” (Archimandrite Sophrony, Dynamis 12/18/2020) “John 8:31-42, especially vs. 31: “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed.” Today’s passage from Saint Jo

Faith (During Adversity/Struggle)

“For this is faith. When things are turning out adversely, then we ought to believe that nothing adverse is done but all things in due order…It is the mark of a courageous and noble soul not to despair in adversity.” (St. John Chrysostom, St. John of Karpathos) “How readily we conclude, because we find ourselves in degrading or demeaning circumstances, that God is neither present nor active in our lives…we are encouraged to trust God with determination. We accept moments of

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