SACRAMENTAL LIVING

“Our lives are a gift from God and not of our own making. The Classical Christian spiritual life is not marked by choice and self-determination: it is characterized by self-emptying and the way of the Cross. When a modern Christian confronts the season of Lent – the question often becomes: “What do I want to give up for Lent?” The intention is good, but the question is wrong. Lent quickly becomes yet another life-choice, a consumer’s fast.” (Father Stephen Freeman) “Lent is a

“Sonic seeds of teeming individualism…now chokes new growth on both side of Christian divide…The path of “each man for himself” or “by myself” is the road to destruction. It is much easier the roaring lion, who walks about seeking whom he may devour, to destroy us one by one than to confront a united flock. Only by bearing one another’s burdens can we become like Christ, who bore the burdens of the whole world—and thereby enter into that joy which God has prepared for those w

“Christ is the New Adam. He comes to repair the damage inflicted on life by Adam, to restore man to true life, and thus he also begins with fasting. ‘When he had fasted 40 days and 40 nights, he became hungry’ (Matthew 4:2). Hunger is that state in which we realize our dependence on something else – when we urgently and essentially need food – showing thus that we have no life in ourselves.” (Fr. Alexander Schmemann) “To understand fasting as simply abstaining from meat and d

“…we are content to say that God has no place in our lives. We think we want to be left alone to figure it out for ourselves. We have all seen how well this is working out!...Devotion to God’s will is the peaceful and restful haven in all temptations and sorrows, while reliance on one’s own powers is destructive.” (Reverend Christopher T. Metropulos, D. Min, St. Ignatius Brianchaninov) “The spiritual disease of the last times is the weakening of our will and determination. It

“Our modernity thirsts for fun and is quite refined at coming up with ways to amuse ourselves. But having fun doesn’t mean having joy. Fun is often just the feverish fluttering of the wings of a soul stricken by despair. Joy lives by the invincible certainty that its object can never be forcibly taken away—not today, not tomorrow, never. Modernity has lost faith in the very possibility of such joy. Thus, we must remind it all the more insistently that such joy is possible in

“Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one (Col. 4:6), teaches the Apostle Paul. Speech is our main means of communication, and it is precisely speech that can build up or destroy, bring light or utter darkness. The Apostle Paul is speaking about everyday speech—the words we use in all of life’s ordinary situations. Even the simplest words we say on the phone, in a shop, or type in comments should be filled wi

“ We would like to think that gaining spiritual understanding comes from the sudden unveiling of a revelation, a quick flash of insight....

“As we look to the scriptures, with the crucified and exalted Christ as our starting point, we can, only now, recognize that the world...

“I truly felt the presence of God, and this feeling was reflected in my love for going to church… And I didn’t have this religious life...

“The second active character in this event [Matthew 26:6-16] is the sinful woman, whom the Church’s tradition and hymns tell us had...