Archive

Ex Nihilo (1)

By Fr John Breck, February 1, 2022 In the very beginning, there was nothing. Nothing at all. There was neither time nor space, neither matter nor energy, neither life nor death. There were no galaxies, no stars or planets; nor were there molecules, atoms, or any of the vast array of subatomic particles that constitute physical reality as we know it. There was nothing. The concept of “nothingness” is impossible for us to grasp. “Nothingness”

Figures of the Nativity—The Shepherds

By Fr. Stavros Akrotirianakis, December 5, 2018 No parent in Bethlehem two thousand years ago hoped that their child would grow up to be a shepherd. Being a shepherd was a dangerous, lonely and nomadic life. It was dangerous, because sheep were often prey for wolves and other dangerous animals. Shepherds were armed with staffs, not guns, and could easily be hurt or worse by animals preying on the sheep. Shepherds had to be on

WATCHFULNESS IN HOLY SCRIPTURE (Part II)

In Luke 21:34, having foretold the fearsome events of His Second Coming, the Lord underlines a serious danger, that of our hearts “being weighed down”. And our hearts are “weighed down” by many and different causes. What can redeem them from that disastrous evil? Christ’s commendation: “Take heed to yourselves”, the attention, that is, the watchfulness which the Lord stresses in other words further down: “Watch therefore at all times praying … “(15). “At all

Saint Isaac the Syrian: Desperation, Prayer at Night

Desperation Nothing is so strong as desperation. It knows no defeat at the hand of any, whether on the right hand or the left. When someone has cut off in his mind all hope of life, no one is more daring than he; no foe can face him, no rumors of affliction can weaken his purpose, for every affliction which may come is less than death, for he has resolved to accept death for himself.