I have been sharing thoughts about the 25th Step of John’s Ladder, which is HUMILITY. John writes: There is a difference between being humble, striving for humility and praising the humble. We are tempted to be passive about the virtues. … Continue reading
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Eastern Eucharistic piety stands in vivid contrast to the late Medieval Latin practice of the veneration of the Host, an expression, on the level of spirituality, of the doctrine of transubstantiation. In the East, no philosophical terminology was applied specifically … Continue reading
As we complete the 18th week after Pentecost, we also celebrate the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross (this feast was celebrated on Wednesday the 14th of September). Our Epistle reading is again taken from Paul’s Letter to … Continue reading
This continues thoughts on the 25th Step of John’s Ladder, HUMILITY. One way to understand humility is that it is a continuous paradox of contrition and joy, the mingling of tears and gratitude. This is why humility overcomes all the … Continue reading
As I shared in the last issue, participation in the Eucharist was defined by the Fathers in Christological terms – as being “in Christ”. Being “in Christ” however, does not involve personal or “hypostatic” identification with the Logos, because the … Continue reading
As you will recall, I have been sharing what I think are the skills that we must develop in order to have genuine and real relationships with others. Why? Because our relationship with God is based on our ability to … Continue reading
What immediately takes place after the Epiclesis is the ANAMNESIS, that is the remembering. Anamnesis (from the Attic Greek word νάμνησις, meaning reminiscence or memorial sacrifice, is in Christianity, a liturgical statement in which the Church refers to the memorial … Continue reading
It has been traditional to speak of Basil as initially a Homoiousian. Truly this requires qualification. Basil does seem to have had some personal connection with Basil of Ancyra and he was strongly opposed to the 360 Homoian creed at … Continue reading
Blessed Andrew Sheptysky wrote this: “The veneration of the Holy Cross of the Lord is one of the most significant aspects of the worship of the God-Man. Signing ourselves with the sign of the Cross is one of the oldest … Continue reading
In this article I am still presenting a multitude of ideas about inspiration. As I have already suggested, the Church has been wrestling with this idea for centuries. She has attempted to preserve the fact that the writings that we … Continue reading