chris Grounding Our Lives on the Mercy of Christ, Not the Praise of Others By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2021-01-27T20:39:12+00:00 Across the centuries, the Lord has raised up such unusual saints in order to shock us out of our complacency about the alleged harmony between the narrow way leading to the Kingdom and what passes for a conventionally respectable life in any time or place. Full Article
chris Christ is Born to Restore the Beauty of the Souls of Distinctive Persons By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2021-03-05T02:09:44+00:00 Today we commemorate a distinctive person who bore witness in his own life to the healing power of Christ. St. Nicholas lived in the 4th century in what is now Turkey and had a sizeable inheritance from his family, which he gave away in secret to the poor. Full Article
chris Becoming Like Christ by Obeying His Commandments By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2021-04-01T17:17:27+00:00 Christ did not offer Himself on the Cross and rise from the dead in order to make us well-adjusted citizens of this world, but to heal every dimension of our brokenness so that we will shine brilliantly with His divine glory. Full Article
chris Christ's Healing Extends Beyond Self-Help or Willpower By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2021-04-19T23:57:04+00:00 Through the Lord’s great Self-Offering, even the most wretched person may enter into the blessedness of the Kingdom through humble faith and repentance. Even the most notorious sinner may become a glorious saint and shine brightly with eternal glory. Full Article
chris Seeing our Neighbors and Ourselves in Light of Christ's Bodily Resurrection By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2021-05-11T20:34:58+00:00 The season of Pascha has only just begun. Because of His bodily resurrection, we must become holy in our bodies and treat our suffering neighbors accordingly. Let us continue to celebrate by participating as fully as possible in the joy of the empty tomb. Now nothing other than our own refusal can hold us back from becoming truly human, for “Christ is Risen!” Full Article
chris Baptism, Chrismation, and Communion on the Feast of the Dormition By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2021-08-25T20:31:57+00:00 The feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos calls us to live faithfully as those who have put on Christ like a garment in baptism, been filled with the Holy Spirit in chrismation, and become guests at the heavenly banquet in the Eucharist. Full Article
chris Becoming “A New Creation” Through the Cross of Christ By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2021-09-27T20:25:48+00:00 It is only by dying to the old ways of death that we may live as His “new creation.” Full Article
chris Mindfully Becoming Who We Are in Christ One Day at a Time By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2021-10-27T14:05:00+00:00 We must remember who we are and find our true selves in Him, if we want to avoid the inevitable disintegration of personality and character that comes from slavery to our passions. Then we too will be able to obey with joy the Lord’s command to the formerly demon-possessed man: “Return to your home, and declare all that God has done for you.” Full Article
chris Embracing or Rejecting Christ's Mercy in How We Treat our Neighbors By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2021-11-03T20:02:23+00:00 There is simply no way around the truth that how we relate to other people reveals whether we participate in the life our Lord. What we do and refuse to do for neighbors who need our time, attention, and generosity in any form, we do or refuse to do for Him. Full Article
chris Preparing for Christmas by Offering Ourselves as Holy Temples By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2021-11-22T22:49:03+00:00 We must mindfully take the steps necessary to follow the Theotokos in becoming holy living temples of the Lord. That is the only way to celebrate this feast and to prepare to celebrate Christmas with integrity. Full Article
chris Homily for the Sunday of the Forefathers of Christ and Spyridon the Wonderworker By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2021-12-13T22:49:15+00:00 As “the poor and maimed and blind and lame,” we must prepare to accept the extraordinary invitation that is ours in Jesus Christ by gaining the strength to make our daily responsibilities points of entrance to the heavenly kingdom. They are not reasons to shut ourselves out of the heavenly banquet, but opportunities to unite ourselves ever more fully to Him in freedom. Full Article
chris Preparing for Christmas Requires the Right Kind of Hope By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2021-12-28T18:54:41+00:00 In the remaining days before Christmas, let us embrace the radically disorienting calling to hope in nothing and no one other than the God-Man Who is born to heal and fulfill all who bear the divine image and likeness. Full Article
chris Christ is Born! Glorify Him! By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2021-12-28T19:04:51+00:00 Thanks be to God, Our Lord’s Nativity is not a momentary escape from reality, but an invitation to enter into reality itself and find the healing of our humanity in Him. Full Article
chris Preparing for Christ's Baptism by Repentance By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2022-01-11T17:53:51+00:00 Those who have put on Christ in baptism and who receive the Communion of His Body and Blood must become epiphanies of His fulfillment of the human person in God’s image and likeness. As we prepare to celebrate Theophany, let us gain the spiritual clarity to behold the glory of Christ’s baptism by straightening the crooked areas of our lives. Full Article
chris Becoming Persons United to Christ in Love By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2022-05-10T21:40:25+00:00 The devotion of the Myrrh-Bearers, Joseph and, Nicodemus shows us what true faith looks like, and we will never acquire it by looking for ways to fit God comfortably into our lives in order to help us achieve our goals in and for this world, regardless of how noble we think they are. Full Article
chris We Have Everything We Need to Obey Christ's Call to “Follow Me” By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2022-06-29T14:29:30+00:00 We have everything that we need to follow in the path of the apostles and saints in humbly obeying our Lord. That is how we can become radiant with the divine glory and obey the Savior’s calling: “Follow Me.” Full Article
chris Learning to See Ourselves and Our World in the Light of Christ By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2022-07-06T15:13:09+00:00 If we want to know Christ’s peace, which conquers even the fear of the grave, we must become radiant with His Light, which means that we must unite ourselves to Him in faith, hope, and love from the depths of our souls. Full Article
chris Embracing the Therapeutic Mercy of Christ Through Repentance and Humility By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2022-08-07T16:42:26+00:00 To rise up, take up our beds, and walk home requires obedience to Christ’s commands, but not a legalistic obedience in the sense of following a code for its own sake. Instead, this obedience is like following the guidance of a physician or therapist who makes clear to us what we must do in order to regain health and function for our bodies. Full Article
chris Entering into Eternal Joy Through Obedience and Receptivity to Christ By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2022-08-19T20:18:22+00:00 Let us take the Theotokos as our great example of how to receive and follow Christ every day, even as we ask for her prayers for the healing of our souls. That is the only way to celebrate the great feast of her Dormition with spiritual integrity. Full Article
chris Christ Restores our True Personhood By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2022-10-24T14:19:22+00:00 When the struggle is hard and we cannot imagine being set free, we must remember the difference between a person disintegrated by the power of evil and one gloriously restored as a living icon of God. Full Article
chris Preparing to Receive Our Peace at Christmas By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2022-11-28T19:57:33+00:00 Like the rich man, many want a spiritual pat on the pack for continuing down whatever passion-driven path they have followed so far. Full Article
chris Preparing to Enter into the Freedom of Beloved Sons and Daughters at Christmas By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2022-12-05T19:51:47+00:00 Most people today surely do not think of the weeks before Christmas as a time of preparation for being loosed from bondage to the corrupting forces of sin and death. More commonly, we use this time of year to strengthen our addiction to the love of money, possessions, food, drink, and other worldly pleasures. Full Article
chris Putting First Things First as We Prepare for the Feast of Christ’s Nativity By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2022-12-13T01:55:19+00:00 Let us prepare for the banquet through fasting, prayer, generosity, confession, and repentance, so that we will have the spiritual clarity to accept the great invitation that is ours in Christ Jesus. Full Article
chris Homily for the Feast of the Circumcision of Christ in the Orthodox Church By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2023-01-02T18:25:15+00:00 If we want to share personally in Christ’s restoration and fulfillment of the human person in God’s image and likeness, we must cut off from our hearts and minds all that would separate us from embracing the great mystery of the One Who was circumcised in the flesh on the eighth day. Full Article
chris Seeing Heaven Opened as Living Icons of Christ By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2023-03-06T19:22:35+00:00 The disciplines of this season give us all countless opportunities to do precisely that as we prepare for nothing less than to “see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man.” Full Article
chris Christ is Risen! Indeed, He is Risen! By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2023-04-24T18:48:00+00:00 In order to follow our Risen Lord into the joy of the resurrection, we must open our deepest personal struggles and wounds to Him for healing. Full Article
chris Becoming Receptive to the Light of Christ Through Prayer, Fasting, and Almsgiving By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2023-06-19T14:57:05+00:00 The spiritual disciplines of the Apostles Fast provide us all with opportunities to clarify our spiritual vision and gain the strength to see all the blessings of this life as gifts to be offered to God. Full Article
chris The Shocking Response of Christ to the Humble Faith of the Centurion By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2023-07-10T21:09:48+00:00 Though it was commonly overlooked at the time, God’s promises to Abraham were for the blessing of all the nations. They have been fulfilled in Jesus Christ such that all with faith in Him are now rightful heirs. (Gen. 22:18; Gal. 3:8-9) Full Article
chris Those Who Have Received Christ's Merciful Generosity Must "Go and Do Likewise" By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2023-12-04T06:00:01+00:00 It is terribly tragic when people fall into the delusion of thinking that they love God and neighbor, when in reality they are using religion to serve only themselves and the false gods of this world. One symptom of doing so is to narrow down the list of people who count as our neighbors to the point that we excuse ourselves from serving Christ in all who bear His image and likeness. When we do so, we disregard not only them, but our Lord Himself, the God-Man born for the salvation of all. Our actions then reveal that we are not truly united with Him because we seek to justify ourselves by serving nothing but our own vain imaginations. Full Article
chris Entrusting Ourselves to Christ with Truly Humble Faith By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2023-12-11T06:00:01+00:00 It is worth asking what we want to achieve by practicing our faith. Why do we come to church, pray, fast, give to the needy, forgive our enemies, confess our sins, and otherwise struggle to reorient our lives toward God? Perhaps we do these things because we want to put God in our debt so that He will do our will. Maybe we want to become socially respectable, making ourselves look virtuous in our own eyes and in those of our neighbors. It could also be the case that we want to distinguish ourselves from our neighbors, especially those we do not like, presenting ourselves as more pious and moral than we think they are. Of course, these are all distortions of true Christian faith, but the real test of our faith is not simply in what we generally want from religion, but especially in how we relate to the Lord when we face deep challenges that break our hearts and threaten to lead us into despair. Full Article
chris Preparing to Welcome Christ with Joy Through Humility By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2023-12-18T21:30:00+00:00 As we continue to prepare to welcome Christ at His Nativity, we must keep our focus on becoming like those who first received Him with joy. That includes the Theotokos, whose Entrance into the Temple, where she prepared to become His Living Temple, we celebrated last week. That includes unlikely characters like the Persian astrologers or wise men, certainly Gentiles, who traveled such a long distance to worship Him. What better news could there have been than that the Prince of Peace was coming “to preach good news to the poor, to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord”? (Lk. 4:18-19) As we sing during these weeks of Advent, “Dance for joy, O earth, on hearing the gladsome tidings; with the Angels and the shepherds now glorify Him Who is willing to be gazed on as a young Child Who before the ages is God.” Full Article
chris We Must Open Our Eyes to the Light of Christ in Order to Prepare for Christmas By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2023-12-25T06:00:01+00:00 On the last couple of Sundays, our gospel readings have reminded us what not to do if we want to prepare to welcome Christ into our lives and world at His Nativity. The rich fool was so focused on money and possessions that he completely neglected the state of his soul. The rich young ruler walked away in sadness when it became clear that he loved his wealth more than God and neighbor. The weeks before Christmas are the most commercialized time of the year when we are all bombarded with messages that the good life is primarily about having a lot of money and being able to buy whatever we want. Since the Lord warned so clearly of the folly of giving our hearts to the false god of riches, it is sadly ironic that the celebration of His Nativity so often occurs in ways that contradict the blessedness of His Kingdom. Full Article
chris Homily for the Sunday of Forefathers (Ancestors) of Christ in the Orthodox Church By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2024-01-01T06:00:01+00:00 As we welcome Christ into our lives and world at His Nativity, we must remain focused. There is no shortage of distractions this time of year that appeal to our passions and threaten to convince us that there are matters more important than accepting His gracious invitation to enter fully into the joy of the banquet of the Kingdom of Heaven. The Savior calls us to embrace our true vocation not only during divine services or in the eschatological future, but in every moment of our lives. Full Article
chris Christ Comes to Free Us All from Our Infirmities By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2024-01-08T06:00:01+00:00 When Jesus Christ was teaching in a synagogue on the Sabbath, he saw a woman who was bent over and could not straighten up. She had been that way for eighteen years. The Lord said to her, “Woman, you are freed from your infirmity.” When He laid hands on her, she was healed. When the woman stood up straight again, she glorified God. As was often the case when the Savior healed on the Sabbath day, there were religious leaders eager to criticize Him for working on the legally mandated day of rest. He responded by stating the obvious: People do what is necessary to take care of their animals on the Sabbath. “So ought not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has bound for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath?” Then “all the people rejoiced at all the glorious things that were done by Him.” By restoring the woman in this way Christ showed that He is truly “Lord of the Sabbath” and that “the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.” (Mark 2:27-28) Full Article
chris Homily for the Sunday Before the Theophany (Epiphany) of Christ in the Orthodox Church By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2024-01-22T06:00:01+00:00 Today is the Sunday before the Feast of Theophany (or Epiphany), when we celebrate Christ’s baptism in the river Jordan and the revelation that He is truly the Son of God. His divinity is made manifest and openly displayed at His baptism when the voice of the Father declares, “You are my beloved Son” and the Holy Spirit descends upon Him in the form of a dove. Theophany shows us that Jesus Christ, who was born in the flesh for our salvation at Christmas, is not merely a great religious teacher or moral example. He is truly God—a member of the Holy Trinity– and His salvation permeates His entire creation, including the water of the river Jordan. Through Christ’s and our baptism, we become participants in the holy mystery of our salvation, for He restores to us the robe of light which our first parents lost when they chose pride and self-centeredness over obedience and communion. He enters the Jordan to restore Adam and Eve, and all their children, to the dignity of those who bear the image and likeness of God. Full Article
chris The Post-Christian Christendom of Our Time By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2014-05-13T01:30:44+00:00 In part one of his introduction to his new podcast, Fr. John reflects on the crisis of Christian civilization in modern times. He also defines "Christendom" and explains why it is worthy of study. Full Article
chris An Orthodox Perspective on the History of Christendom By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2014-05-13T01:31:13+00:00 In part two of his introduction to his new podcast, Fr. John offers a preview to the history of Christendom and describe the Orthodox perspective he plans to bring to it. Full Article
chris The Origins of Christendom in the Cosmology of Christ's Great Commission By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2014-05-13T01:32:06+00:00 Fr. John discusses cosmology, a concept that was very important to the early Church. Full Article
chris The Formation of a Christian Subculture in the Pagan Roman Empire By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2014-05-13T01:36:01+00:00 Fr. John explores what could be called the catacomb culture of the Church in relation to the Roman Empire. Full Article
chris Four Pillars of Traditional Christian Culture By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2014-05-13T01:36:23+00:00 Fr. John fills in the picture of the Church's early subculture. Full Article
chris The Consolidation of Christianity in the Byzantine Empire By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2014-05-13T01:40:59+00:00 Fr. John addresses the uncertainty in Byzantium following the death of Constantine and then the consolidation of Christianity shortly after that. Full Article
chris The Triumph of Orthodoxy and the Triumph of Christian Art By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2014-05-13T01:54:42+00:00 Fr. John explores the triumph of Orthodoxy in the year 843 and the way in which it enables the art of Christendom to express the deepest conviction about man's relationship with God and the possibility of communion with Him. Full Article
chris The Flowering of Christian Architecture I By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2014-05-13T01:57:02+00:00 Fr. John explores traditional Christian temple or church architecture and locates the principle of heavenly orientation at work. Full Article
chris The Flowering of Christian Architecture II By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2014-05-13T01:57:18+00:00 Fr. John continues his discussion of traditional Christian architecture. Full Article
chris Characteristics of Early Christian Hymnography By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2014-05-13T01:57:50+00:00 Fr. John discusses the development of Christian hymnography. Full Article
chris Paradise in Early Christendom's Hymns of Lent and Pascha By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2014-05-13T01:58:46+00:00 Fr. John looks at some of the actual texts of early Christian hymns and the way in which they gave expression to the vision of early Christendom. Full Article
chris Frankish Christendom and the Estrangement of East and West II By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2014-05-13T02:09:41+00:00 Fr. John looks at the development that took place within the Frankish lands themselves, especially those concerning the liturgy. Full Article
chris Frankish Christendom and the Estrangement of East and West III By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2014-05-13T02:10:10+00:00 Fr. John examines the tendency toward eucharistic piety in Frankish Christendom. Full Article
chris The Rise of Russian Christendom I By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2014-05-13T02:12:03+00:00 Fr. John discusses the baptism of Saint Vladimir and shares an introductory anecdote about the death and canonization of Saints Boris and Gleb. Full Article
chris A New Christendom I By www.ancientfaith.com Published On :: 2014-07-27T03:10:44+00:00 In this opening anecdote of a new reflection in the podcast, Fr. John examines a famous account of a medieval English knight's pilgrimage to Ireland and vision of purgatory there, relating how it documents the rise of a new type of piety in western Christendom. Full Article