‘’My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9) To keep St Paul from being too elated by the abundance of revelations, a thorn was given to him in the flesh, a messenger of Satan, to harass him, to keep him from being too elated. Three times he besought the Lord about ... Read More »
The Orthodox Celebration of Christmas
By Professor Ioannis Foundoulis Preamble: In a few days we will celebrate the great Feast of the Christian world, the Feast of Christmas. The Church will bring once again before the eyes of our soul the event of the birth of the Lord and will summon us to venerate together with the shepherds and the magi the newly-born King and ... Read More »
The Rich Young Man: 13th Sunday of Luke; Lk 18:18-27
How can we acquire the grace of God in our hearts? St Isaac the Syrian said: ‘truly pure in heart are those who regard everyone as clean and who consider no one who exists as unrighteous or corrupt. They see everyone as a saint and all-holy, and they do not discern the righteous from the sinner’. Therefore, if we ... Read More »
9th Sunday of Luke: The Rich Fool (against greed and anxiety); Lk 12:16-21
Life is a gift of God. No amount of possessions, however abundant, can make it greater or give it security. The notion that life consists in possessions, in ‘having’ (the constant requirement of more), is cut in this pericope by the understanding that life cannot be secured by possessions, that existence is a gift outside human control. Humans have an ... Read More »
Sunday of Luke: The Gadarene Demoniac Lk 8:26-39
The Lord’s entry into the country of the Gadarenes was a testimony that He came into this world, to seek and save the darkened and fallen nature of humanity, because the situation cannot remain like this. Humans should not live with a fearful and darkened heart, but in joy, in love and in the light. The light is to know, ... Read More »
Sunday of the 7th Ecumenical Council; Lk 8:5-15 The Parable of the Sower
Are our hearts interested in knowing who we are and where we are going? Through the parable of the Sower, Jesus is trying to show us that there are four human reactions to God’s word, but only one path to salvation. The parable is about sowing seeds and how their growth depends on where they land. They can land on ... Read More »
“God has visited his people!” 3rd Sunday of Luke 7:11-16
The large crowd in today’s gospel were inspired to say: “God has visited his people!”(Lk 7:16). Now, we can say that there is only One who exists within us and around us, who exercises a different authority over the mystery of life, because “God has visited his people!” An insightful person will say: we are dying. But we can say, “God ... Read More »
Third Sunday of Great Lent: The Veneration of the Precious and Life-Giving Cross
On this the third Sunday of Great Lent, we commemorate the Veneration of the Precious and Life-Giving Cross. The Cross is the sign of purification, the presence of the kingdom of God, and an emblem of salvation. Through the Cross, Christ sanctified His body, during His life in the world. He rejected the temptations sent to Him by the world: ... Read More »
FACING UP TO MARY
By Peter E. Gillquist Source: http://thechristianactivist.com (Published by Conciliar Press 1987) Is it safe to say that no woman in history is more misunderstood by modern Christendom than the Virgin Mary? And it is also probable that in a discussion concerning Mary between two Christians, if their differences remain unresolved, most likely it will be due to differing interpretations of ... Read More »
Message for the Day of the Protection of the Environment
Prot. No. 758 †BARTHOLOMEW By the Mercy of God Archbishop of Constantinople-New Rome and Ecumenical Patriarchate To the Plenitude of the Church Grace and Peace from the Creator, Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ * * * Beloved children in the Lord, God’s grace renders us worthy today to commence yet another ecclesiastical year, one more festive cycle, within whose ... Read More »