The next letter of St. Paul’s that we must consider when we are looking at a chronologically accurate New Testament (NT) is his letter to the Philippians. This letter is the most consistently affectionate of all of his letters. Philippi … Continue reading
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The Apostles and first Christians retained from the Old Testament the feasts of Passover (Easter) as well as the feast of Pentecost (Pentecost – the same name is used). Why? Because of the similarity in the ideas that essentially brought … Continue reading
This weekend, since it falls within the octave of the Feast of the Ascension, we not only celebrate this great feast but also remember the Fathers of the First Ecumenical Council, the Council of Nicaea, held in 325 CE. This … Continue reading
Sources of the first three centuries do not speak of the feast of the Ascension. Experts in Liturgy are of the opinion that in the first three centuries the celebration of this feast was combined with the feast of Pentecost. … Continue reading
Theophan suggests that we humans naturally tend to become preoccupied with the things that we see and touch. The things of this world become our highest good, although they cannot truly satisfy our feeling of emptiness. Only God can, Theophan … Continue reading
In this article I have been sharing the thoughts of the Fathers of the Church about the revelation made to humankind that we have been created in the image and likeness of God. As my readers may have already surmised, … Continue reading
We have been called to holiness through our Initiation into the Church. In fact we express this quite dramatically during our initiation ritual. We walk around the Tetrapod three times with the person being initiated into the Church and we … Continue reading
In the last issue of this article, I tried to suggest that we come to envision our own lives represented by the bread on the paten and the wine in the chalice since they are food and are symbols of … Continue reading
In addition to illustrating Paul’s rhetoric of persuasion, Philemon, his smallest letter, provides a case study of what life in Christ, in Christ-communities which were the new creation, was to be like. The issue was larger than resolving a conflict … Continue reading
On this fifth week of our celebration of Easter, I hear, as I reflect on our readings, two different messages: (1) what I must do in order to be saved, and (2) Jesus IS the true source of insight into … Continue reading