SACRAMENTAL LIVING

“The question posed by the Pharisees and Herodians appears to concern Caesar and taxation, but its purpose is to force the Lord Jesus to choose between loyalty to God and obedience to worldly government. Christ, in turn, exposes the deep error involved in making God an alternative to Caesar. Such gross oversimplification distorts theology into manageable human concepts – an impossible task….The Pharisees and Herodians engage in reductionism, which attempts to minimize a compl

“The love of beauty and our desire for it are the most fundamental parts of our being. This is particularly true if we use the word “beauty” in the fullest sense of its meaning. Beauty encompasses being and truth as well. It is God’s word for His creation (usually translated as “good,” the word in Scriptures also means “beautiful”). That which is beautiful and good is reflective (iconic) of the God who created it. All of creation longs for union with this Beauty and groans fo

“The “Good” is a term that ultimately applies to God. God is good and the source of all goodness. Indeed, goodness has a place in the “philosophical trinity.” That trinity is truth, goodness, and beauty. These are the three properties of being. God alone has true being. Everything that exists does so because God gives it being. Creation thus has relative being. The purpose (telos) of all created things is to move from relative being towards greater likeness and union with God

“None of us can entirely separate ourselves from who we are. Our culture, education, family, nation, and religious background affect the way we view the world. We all accept as true many common presumptions of our era and culture. They are so deeply ingrained that we do not recognize them as cultural presumptions that may in fact not be true.” (Dr. Eugenia Scarvelis Constantinou) “There is a model of what it means to be human that is simply wrong, regardless of its elements o

“Christians are told by the authors of the New Testament to rejoice and be people of hope. However, living in the same world as nonbelievers, Christians still experience, like everyone else, moments of doubt, despair, despondency….The opposite of hope is despondency and despair. According to the spiritual tradition of the Church, the state of despondency and despair is the most grievous and horrible condition that a person can be in. It is the worst and most harmful of the si

“Due to significantly painful experiences, we may even lose trust in God. Many struggle to make sense of the trials and tribulations in their lives. As a result, we may find ourselves believing that God is punishing us, that we have done something wrong. We struggle with the deep feeling that God has withdrawn His providence from us, or that somehow we are unworthy of His love and protection. If we believe that God is punishing us, then how can we receive the love of God full

“Our minds seek to release and resolve emotional pain. God created us this way. We have a natural leaning towards healing that which is fallen and broken. This work can seem intimidating, but there is an end result which consists of resolution, closure, and peace. The actual act of discovering the source event of the pain in our lives alone can bring some relief. We then allow ourselves to talk about it, write about it, shed the tears, acknowledge and validate what we went th

“The work of God is the fashioning of the human being…this work is announced in Genesis, completed on the Cross, and continued in ourselves as we take up the Cross.” (Fr. John Behr) “When Christ said “It is finished” (Jn 19.30), He is not simply declaring that His earthly life has come to an end, but that rather the work of God is now “fulfilled” or “completed.” The divine economy, that is, the whole plan of creation and salvation, told from this perspective, culminates at th

“ ‘The fear of the Lord leads to life, And he who has it will abide in satisfaction; He will not be visited with evil’ (Proverbs 19:23). There are two kinds of fear in this verse. One is the fear of the Lord, which nourishes spiritual life in a man. The other is fear in places where knowledge is not examined. What place is this where Wisdom's knowledge is not examined? In this fallen world where many refuse to examine such knowledge. Failure to examine Wisdom's knowledge nour

“The “works” that a Christian does, are properly done in union with Christ, such that the works are not those of an individual, but of our common life with and in Christ. When we fast, it is Christ who fasts in us. When we pray, it is Christ who prays in us. When we give alms it is Christ who gives alms in us. And we should understand that Christ-in-us longs to fast. Christ-in-us longs to pray. Christ-in-us longs to show mercy. The disciplines of the Church are not a prescrip