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God and Caesar (Part VI): Towards a Creative Secularism

In the inescapably pluralist life of the city today, Christians must strive for a creative secularism. An open civilization, free from ideocracy, must not be a spiritual desert abandoned to the instincts by the blind forces of production. Kirkegaard thought it necessary ‘to go more deeply into man as he actually exists’ before daring to speak to him of God. More than a thousand years before, the hardiest of ascetics, St John Climacus, remarked that

The Twelfth Day of Christmas: The Fiery Furnace and Jonah and the Seabeast

The Fiery Furnace As WELL AS BEING THE SCENE of a theophany, the fiery furnace is persistently referred to as a type of the Virgin Birth: The furnace moist with dew was the image and figure of a wonder beyond nature. For it burnt not the Children whom it had received, even as the fire of the Godhead consumed not the Virgins womb into which it had descended. Therefore let us sing in praise: Let

The Fortieth Day of Christmas Advent (Eve of Christmas): From the Manger to the Grave

THE CHURCH TEACHES US the theology of the Scriptures not only with hymns, but also with images. Iconography is one of the “languages” into which Scripture is translated. Thus many of our icons also contain allusions and references to Old and New Testaments. Of particular interest is the icon of the Nativity. We have touched upon a comparison between the birth and the burial of Christ in the katavasia concerning Jonah. This comparison is made

The Thirty-Ninth Day of Christmas Advent: For so has God Loved the World (Part II)

But the road from Bethlehem to Zion is long, and is leading us through Gethsemane and Golgotha. Already in Bethlehem the newborn Godchild is presented with funeral offerings by the Wise Men from the East. “Today God leads the Wise Men to worship through the star, prefiguring His three-day burial in gold, frankincense, and myrrh.” The very doors of the Bethlehem cavern are nearly stained with the innocent blood of the children who were killed

The Twenty-Seventh Day of Christmas Advent: THE TWO SUNDAYS BEFORE CHRISTMAS (Part I)

Come, let us faithfully celebrate the annual commemoration of Abraham and those who are with him, the fathers that lived before the Law. Let us honor the tribe of Judah as it is meet; let us praise the youths in Babylon, who, as an image of the Trinity, quenched the flame of the furnace, together with Daniel; and holding fast to the prophecies of the prophets, let us cry aloud with Isaiah: “Behold, a Virgin

The Holy and Glorious Apostle Thomas the “Twin”

The Holy and Glorious Apostle Thomas was born in the Galilean city of Pansada and was a fisherman. Hearing the good tidings of Jesus Christ, he left all and followed after Him. The Apostle Thomas is included in the number of the holy Twelve Apostles of the Savior. According to Holy Scripture, the holy Apostle Thomas did not believe the reports of the other disciples about the Resurrection of Jesus Christ: “Unless I see in

Sixth Wednesday after Pascha, Christ is Risen!

Ascension: The Event between Events By the Very Reverend Vladimir Berzonsky “Thou hast ascended in glory bringing joy to Thy disciples with the promise of the HolySpirit. O Lord, glory to Thee!” (Exclamation of Holy Ascension Feast) I find it odd that the great and joyful feast of Ascension is often not well attended by our faithful. Understandably they are yet not over the euphoria of Pascha. Even forty days is not ample time to

Fifth Monday after Pascha, Christ is Risen!

The Empty Tomb and the Overflowing Heart Sermon preached on the Sunday of the Myrrh-bearing Women, May 4, 2014 By Fr. Antony Hughes Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit, one God, Amen. I always ask myself these days, when preparing a sermon, why does anyone need to hear this?  How can I bring something out of the text that will help people understand more and live more beautiful

Fourth Friday after Pascha, Christ is Risen!

“Ambassadors of the Faith: PROCLAIM HIS RESURRECTION” By Father Luke Melackrinos I want you to think about bottled water for a moment. Just a few short years ago we were all content to drink water from a sink. If back then we asked the question, “Would anyone pay for water?” I doubt anyone would have expected that in the year 2004 alone, U.S. Consumers spent an estimated 8 billion dollars on bottled water. Let me

Fourth Thursday after Pascha, Christ is Risen!

“Let us be Radiant” By Father James Kordaris  (Paschal Hymn) In the 8th Century, Saint John of Damascus wrote this Hymn to theResurrection: The Day of Resurrection! O People, let us be radiant. It is Pascha, the Lord’s Passover; for Christ God has carried us over from death to life, from earth to heaven, as we sing a victory hymn. In the coming period from the Resurrection to Pentecost, the Sunday Epistle readings tell us