Betrayal
“…most of our sins are not sins of violence, but sins of affection gone wrong. After all, who is it that we sin against the most? Our...
Daily Bread
“Give us this day our daily bread.”…Daily is a misleading translation of the Greek epiousios, which is literally “above the essence” or...
Deception
“The story of the first sin begins not with a choice, but with a lie. As much as we tend to emphasize “free-will” as the origin and...
Orientation/Reorientation
“Our orienting loves are like a kind of gravity—carrying us in the direction to which they are weighted. If our loves are absorbed with...
Joy and Happiness - Part 2
“Hidden under that English translation blessed is the Greek word makarios. This is not the usual word, evlogitos, which literally means...
Impartiality
“God’s love is without bias or favor and is not subject to influence. He loves each person He has created without taint of partiality...
Weak Faith
“Those who have strong faith can follow their conscience before God and avoid sin. According to St. John Chrysostom, those who are weak...
Sin and Forgiveness
“Sin is fundamentally a kind of demonic force that masters us and makes us demonic slaves when we give in to it (John 8:34)…Being an...
Engagement
“Christians must simultaneously engage the world around them (an invasion) and be aloof from it (a retreat). A believer plants one foot...
Prayer Life
“...you don’t have to be a monk or nun on a deserted island to have contemplative prayer in your life. It is something all believers...