SACRAMENTAL LIVING

“In our everyday speech, the words “to listen” and “to hear” are often used as synonyms. But in a spiritual sense, there is a vast difference between them—one that brings either salvation or condemnation. Listening is a process. You can stand in church, listening to the reading of the Epistle or the Gospel, and even understand the meaning of the words with your mind—yet remain deaf in your heart. External listening without inner acceptance is like looking in a mirror, walking

“Thus, we can’t look to Adam or the book of Genesis to see human perfection because Adam was not created perfect; he was only potentially perfectible. We will not find in the book of Genesis how to be a perfect human. Adam did not fall from a state of perfection, rather he failed to develop this potential in himself. Jesus Christ is the perfect human and it is only from Him that we can understand what human perfection means. And Christ was born as a baby who also had to grow

“In Christ there is no such thing as sacrifice without deliverance. And deliverance does not just mean remission of personal sins…but the ultimate transfiguration of the world, the overcoming of corruption and death.” (Metropolitan John Zizioulas) “We are saved by His life!” This involves a change of metaphors. The Greek word for “saved” takes us down two metaphorical tracks. The first word picture is the deliverance or rescue from some sort of danger…The second is the delive

“Today we continue to celebrate the most fundamental and joyful proclamation of our faith: Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death, and upon those in the tombs bestowing life! He is our Pascha, our Passover, from death to life, for Hades and the grave could not contain the God-Man Who shares with us His victory over corruption and decay in all their forms. In a world enslaved to the fear of the grave, He has illumined even the dark night of the tomb with

“The second category, hope, occurs when life becomes more troublesome. When things are more difficult and confusing, we may feel an uncertainty about where God is in the mix. We hope the Gospel is true though circumstances may cause us to doubt a little and feel uncertain about what God is doing or if God is really there. We experience the ambiguities of life which cause ambivalence in our hearts and minds. Perhaps we imagine the world should be better than it is if God is th

“A conference participant once asked the speaker, "What is the best way for a father to love his children?" The speaker replied, "The best way for a father to love his children is to love their mother." I reflect often upon that superbly accurate statement. And I think the reverse is equally true: the best way a mother can love her children is to love their father. More than anything else in the world, children need a loving family and parents who support each other, even if

“The striving of the proud mind to know that which is supposedly hidden from others—the temptation of gnosis, self-deification without...

“…pride is stupidity. Why? Because how can we be proud when everything we have is not ours? How can I be proud of my appearance if God...

“Christ then appears through shut doors in the midst of them and tells them one thing: ‘Peace be with you.’ For these to be the first...

“In shame, the only thing we accept is our failure and the idea that we deserve perpetual punishment….The shame we are speaking of is a...