Old Testament Archives - Page 6 of 9

On Silence and Solitude (I)

08/21/2018

On Silence and Solitude (I) In the New Testament little is said of silence as such. The examples that do exist, however, are striking and significant. The people are reduced to awe-filled silence as they witness Christ’s ability to silence his adversaries (Lk 20:26). Jesus, in the presence of His disciples, displays the authority to still the waters and silence the thundering of the waves as a great storm threatens to swamp their boat. He

Transfiguring Practices

08/06/2018

By Aristotle Papanikolaou, PhD What happened on the day of our Lord’s Transfiguration? On this day, Jesus took with him three disciples, Peter, John and James, three of the better-known disciples. He took them to a ‘high’ mountain, the Bible tells us (Mt 17:1-9; Mk 9:2-8; Lk 9:28-36). They are at the ‘high’ mountain, which is often a place of revelation in the Bible, and at this mountain Jesus is transfigured. St. Matthew tells us,

The Gift of Silence III

07/19/2018

The Gift of Silence (III) From the time of Elijah through the period of classical prophecy, God continued to reveal Himself through His Word of blessing and judgment. At the same time, silence was increasingly perceived as something negative: the absence of God’s voice and thus of His presence. “The land of silence” became synonymous with Sheol, the place of the dead where, by definition, the life-giving God is not to be found (Ps 88:11-13;

The Gift of Silence (II)

07/18/2018

The Gift of Silence (II) There is an obvious and deep irony in any attempt to talk about silence. It’s like trying to describe the ineffable or depict the invisible. The task itself is inherently impossible. Silence can only speak for itself: not through words, but through experience. The best way to begin, therefore, is not by any definition or analysis, but by a story. There is a familiar little account in the alphabetical collection

Behind Every Rock and Tree – An Allegory

06/15/2018

By Fr. Stephen Freeman, January 17, 2015 How is an allegorical interpretation of the Scriptures possible? In the fourth chapter of Galatians, St. Paul invokes the story of Abraham and his two sons, one born of a bondwoman (Hagar) and the other of a freewoman (Sarah). As he prepares to draw a lesson from the story he says of it: “These things are an allegory.” He then proceeds to draw a very authoritative (for him)

The Thirty-Eighth Day of Christmas Advent. The Fiery Furnace of Christmas

12/22/2017

By Father Stephen Freeman The three youths, wise in God, who shone with joy in the furnace, proclaimed the birth of Christ on earth; For just as the Lord sent down a precious dew, He preserved from the flame her who gave birth; He keeps her undefiled and enriches her with divine gifts. Therefore, Daniel, pleasing to God, rejoiced and was glad, For having foreseen the stone from the unquarried mountain, he now prays

Face to Face—Beholding God

07/14/2017

My mind wandered back to these thoughts as I pondered the growing phenomenon of “selfies.” Of course, the “selfie” is the passion-driven distortion of the theology of the face – existence as ego. For the mystery of the face is not to look at myself, but to look at the other. You are God’s “selfie.” Ponder it. Nothing about the human body is as intimate as the face. We generally think of other aspects of

Friday after Pentecost. “Common” is the Root of “Community”

06/09/2017

And fear came upon every soul; and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common; and they sold their possessions and goods and distributed them to all, as any had need. Acts 2:43-45 In the Old Testament, we were introduced to the concept of the tithe, which is that ten percent of everything a person had was given to the temple, in

Leave-Taking of the Ascension. The Holy Spirit Comes Down as Fire on All People

06/02/2017

When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly a sound came from heaven like the rush of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire, distributed and resting on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. Acts 2:1-4

Wednesday of the 5ch Week of Pascha. Show Me Your Glory!

05/17/2017

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father. John 1:14 (From the Gospel at the Divine Liturgy on Pascha) Christ is Risen! How often do you think of the word “glory”, specifically, God’s glory? Have you ever wondered what “the glory of the Lord” might look like? Most of us probably don’t think about this

Tags

On Silence and Solitude (I)

Transfiguring Practices

The Gift of Silence III

The Gift of Silence (II)

Behind Every Rock and Tree – An Allegory

The Thirty-Eighth Day of Christmas Advent. The Fiery Furnace of Christmas

Face to Face—Beholding God

Friday after Pentecost. “Common” is the Root of “Community”

Leave-Taking of the Ascension. The Holy Spirit Comes Down as Fire on All People

Wednesday of the 5ch Week of Pascha. Show Me Your Glory!

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