SACRAMENTAL LIVING

Understanding Christianity as a Way of Life

Freedom (through Love and Service)

“We look forward to the time when our family can be reunited, and we can settle into a new, balanced routine. Regardless, there is still a need that must be met. Matushka still has patients, the physically suffering, that must be cared for. I have my own spiritual patients, both in the parish and at my base, who likewise find themselves in need of care. Throughout all of this, it is our hope that our children can learn from this experience, understanding that the needs of oth

Love (Nature of)

“Among human beings, love appears to spring from feelings and emotions. Thus some mistakenly characterize love as irrational. But love transcends feeling and reason. Love is not rationally justified nor is it just a “natural” affection. At its source, love is a divine reality. Love, as I have stated, is rooted in freedom, in the absolute freedom of God and, next, in the relative freedom of the creature.” (Vigen Guroian) “Love, in the Christian understanding of the word (which

Grace (of the Holy Spirit)

“Man of himself is powerless to fulfill God’s commandments, wherefore it is said, ‘Ask, and it shall be given you’ (Mt. 7:7). And we if we do not ask, we torment ourselves and deprive ourselves of the grace of the Holy Spirit; and without grace many things perplex the soul because she does not comprehend the will of God” (Saint Silouan the Athonite) “Sin leading to death is willful, continual disbelief in the grace of the Holy Spirit toward us.” (Orthodox Study Bible, 1 John

Self and Self-Will

“Many people today, dazzled by the possibility of “reinventing” themselves, perceive no limits on what they can become. “Be everything you can imagine,” they tell themselves. The illusion that we can define ourselves is as old as the human race. Christians, however, recognize that its source lies in the song of the serpent, who used identical “sales talk” to deceive our first parents into believing that they could “be like gods” (Gn 3:5). This fatal error has wreaked havoc on

Knowing God

“Today we have a “Christian” society, but to most people, God is still unknown… ” (Life Application Study Bible, Acts 17:23) “Somewhere in every one of us is a deep longing to make contact with the unknown, with some “higher power”—something greater or wiser or more powerful than ourselves.” (Derek Prince) “It is easier to measure the entire sea with a tiny cup than to grasp the ineffable greatness of God with the human mind…No matter what kind of language is used, it will be

Control/Self-Control

“God writes upon our hearts the knowledge of His will… Our hearts must yearn for the things of God. The hunger to do His will is the key…we must seek God’s will in all that we do. This means turning every area of life over to Him.” (St. Cyril of Alexandria) “Life's circumstances can make you bitter or better…There are a few different ways we can respond to them. We can let them control us; we can try to control them; or we can trust that God is in control no matter what and,

Blessed, Blessedness and Blessings

“From the beginning, God has revealed Himself to mankind. He never ceases to reach out to His creation with abundant blessings, desiring all to freely partake of the personal communion He offers.” (The Right Reverend Joseph, Bishop of Los Angeles and the West) “Being blessed or successful is not a once for all time, dramatic event, but rather a lifetime of choosing to follow God and His commandments…The Lord’s desire has always been to bless His people.” (Foundation Study Bib

God's Will (Knowing and Doing)

“The task of any person is to see to it that every act corresponds to the will of God. To do this one must ask God to reveal His plan for the particular person who is asking.” (Priest Daniel Sysoev) “How can you find out if you are living within the will of God? Here is the sign: If you are troubled about anything, this means that you have not completely given yourself over to the will of God. A person who lives in the will of God is not concerned over anything. And if he nee

Dangerous Pride

“The Hebrew word for pride comes from a root that means “to boil up”; it refers to a raging arrogance or insolence.” (Foundation Study Bible, Proverbs 11:2) “It’s not a stretch in any way to equate pride with evil. Christian tradition teaches that Lucifer, the angel of light and music, committed the first sin ever, in Heaven no less, which is something many do not consider…Pride is the first sin that was committed in heaven and on earth. It was the voice of Lucifer that cried

Joy and Happiness - Part 1

“…we have a misleading idea at the very head of our Constitution: the pursuit of happiness. One can not pursue happiness; if he does he obscures it. If he will proceed with the human task of life, the relocation of the center of gravity of the personality to something greater outside itself, happiness will be the outcome.” (Alexis de Tocqueville) “Modern western man has some basic misconceptions about the nature of happiness. The origin of the word is instructive: happiness s

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