SACRAMENTAL LIVING

“The Hebrew word לֵב (lev) “heart” includes the mind. Hebrew does not separate “heart knowledge” and “head knowledge.” While “heart” may convey a deep commitment, the “mind” is crucial to considering and adopting the instruction. To have the instruction “on your mind” is critical to the deliberate talking to oneself needed to conform to the instruction, to meditating on it and assimilating it into one’s world view.” (NET Bible, Proverbs 6:21) “St. Diadochos who distinguishes

“…the entire purpose of Great Lent is repentance, which is cleaning up our Christian life, and our church communities so that people will want to come and see more of Christ based on our witness of Him.” (Fr. Stavros N. Akrotirianakis) “In the coming fast we have the opportunity to awaken our hearts and minds to Christ, who calls us to undertake the regimen of fasting. However, He does not wish us to abstain in narrow, slavish obedience to a set of rules concerning the intake

“The Church is not merely a refuge from the troubles and sorrow of the world, though it can be that. Its real purpose is to equip us to go out of the church and into the world to be witnesses to the Gospel (Luke 24:48), to be a light to the world (Matthew 5:14), and the salt of the earth (Matthew 5:13). We don’t go to church to escape the world or to withdraw from it. When Jesus prayed for us to His Father, he petitioned: I am not asking you to take them out of the world, but

“Why, then, does the God-man invert our expectations by seeking John’s baptism of repentance? Why does He ritually unite His sinless humanity with our corrupt humanity? Why subject His Light to our darkness and sin? Saint John, filled with the Holy Spirit, perceives this contradiction, and he “tried to prevent Him, saying, ‘I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?’” (Mt 3:14). Christ understands that the humanity He is saving must be fully assumed. He is not re

“Christ our Lord helps us move from faith to holiness, and from there to genuine love. But before such ultimate love can be attained, holiness must take root in us in order to purify our hearts, souls, and bodies. We are aided in this work of purification by the Holy Spirit. As we engage in the life and worship of the Church, we commit ourselves to live in a way pleasing to God.” (Dynamis 12/1/2021) “St Paul’s hope for the parishioners at Thessalonica was that they would both

“When we separate faith from everything else, we make it into belief. It becomes the assent to the truth of something that cannot be proven by empirical evidence. The Book of James addresses this mistaken thought directly when it says, “You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only” (OSB James 2:24)… Paul speaks of “faith active” in love. This poignant phrase indicates that Paul would agree with James, who wrote against the idea of “faith alone.” He ins

“God gave men and women a natural law within them—the ability to choose the good and avoid the evil—but they chose selfishness. Then God gave the law of Moses, and it too was broken. Great darkness falls upon the soul that is without the light of the commandments….Why was the law given then? Because Israel was transgressing what they knew of God's law through conscience and nature. So God put it in writing! The law was never a savior, but a tutor (Galatians 3:24) to convict I

“It is very hard for us to believe that God loves us as much as He does. It’s hard to believe because our hearts and minds are so caught up in this empty and ever-changing world. We think we have life in this world somewhat figured out, and just then, WHAM!, everything changes. And we wonder, if God loves us, why is life so painful and confusing? When times are good for us, we can come up with all sorts of arguments to explain away the pain of others and the existential angst

“…the concept of godly sorrow (2 Cor 7:10) is not well understood. How easy it is to settle into spiritual languor, remaining content with externals, satisfied with routine righteous acts and a limited idea of God. We either join our secular neighbors in thoughtless avoidance, or else we assume a false righteousness that does not respond to the call of Christ.” (Dynamis 7/1/2014) “There are two kinds of regret for the wrong we have done. In…2 Corinthians 7:1-10, Paul teaches

“How do we make idols in our time? Whenever organizations, behaviors, and enterprises claim the commitment and loyalty that belongs to God alone, they tempt us to idolatry. When anyone or anything demands our ultimate dedication, that is, our worship, we can be sure that the demons are hovering around us. When we join in a group, ambition, or habit whose spirit carries us away and controls us, we can be assured that the devil has recruited us…every created thing is, in its de