The Intimate God (Sermon Oct. 20, 2013)
On this Sunday, Fr. Andrew tells us that all religions are not the same, that the one true God is our God, and we are His people.
On this Sunday, Fr. Andrew tells us that all religions are not the same, that the one true God is our God, and we are His people.
On this Sunday, Fr. Andrew explains how Jesus can be both the public Prophet who speaks for God, and the gentle, private Healer.
On this Sunday, Fr. Andrew discusses what Saint Paul defines as the ecstasy within the Church.
Bringing together the life of St. Theodora (the wife of the Emperor St. Justinian) with the Parable of the Good Samaritan, Fr. Andrew looks at how God likes to use those who are least likely.
On this Sunday, Fr. Andrew tells us that giving generously of everything we are is the key to having ears to ear.
On this Sunday, Fr. Andrew asks, what is the place of the rules and regulations of the Orthodox Church in the spiritual life?
On this Sunday before the Nativity, Fr. Andrew reflects on the place of the prostitute Rahab in salvation history and what it means for us.
On this Sunday after Theophany, Fr. Andrew reflects on the meaning of Christ's inauguration of baptism and how it affects not only the Christian, but other people and the whole world around him.
Fr. Andrew reflects on the Gospel account of the Ten Lepers and how they brought what they had, even if it was very little, to Christ.
On this Sunday of Zacchaeus, Fr. Andrew speaks on the desire for God placed deep within the heart of every human person.
On this feast of the Meeting of the Lord in the Temple, Fr. Andrew explains not only why we bring 40-day-old children to be dedicated in church but also opens up the inner meaning of meeting the Lord.
On this Sunday of the Publican and Pharisee, Fr. Andrew explores the role of humility in learning to pray to God.
On this Sunday of the Prodigal Son, Fr. Andrew relates a patristic 'spiritual' reading of the 'property' that the Prodigal receives from his father and then scatters on loose living.
On this Sunday of of the Last Judgment, Fr. Andrew focuses on what the righteous and the wicked experience at the Last Judgment through the Incarnation.
On this Sunday of Forgiveness, Fr. Andrew reflects on Adam's expulsion from Paradise and how we can return to a Paradise that we've never seen.
On this Sunday of St. John of the Ladder, Fr. Andrew speaks on how the spiritual life, the path to holiness and perfection, is pursued by climbing little by little.
On this Sunday of St. Mary of Egypt, Fr. Andrew reflects on the uniqueness of Jesus among the deities of the ancient world, that He came not to be served, but to serve.
On this Palm Sunday, Fr. Andrew shows how what sociologists have observed about how both kids and adults stay in church long-term is built into the Orthodox tradition.
On this Thomas Sunday, Fr. Andrew reflects on the awakening of Christ from the dead and what it means for us to awaken to the resurrection.
On this Sunday of the Myrrh-bearers, Fr. Andrew speaks of the hidden secret that Christians know about death.
On this Sunday of the Paralytic, Fr. Andrew speaks of the many ways in which we become spiritually paralyzed and how Christ can cure us.
On this Sunday of the Samaritan Woman, Fr. Andrew examines how Christ becomes a bridge for her, how she becomes a bridge between Him and her people, and how we may also become bridges.
On this Sunday of the Blind Man, Fr. Andrew explores how our spiritual sight can be healed and we can move from being only institutionally related to the Church to fully engaged in its life.
On this Sunday of the Holy Fathers of the First Ecumenical Council, Fr. Andrew draws on their witness and the witness of St. Justin Martyr to ask how we are to relate to those outside of Orthodoxy and those within it who are not fully faithful.
On this Sunday of Pentecost, Fr. Andrew discusses Jesus' prediction of the coming of the Holy Spirit as a fountain of living water that springs up within the believer.
On this Sunday of All Saints, Fr. Andrew speaks of how the saints were able to face death and what the resurrection means for us even before death.
On this feast of Ss. Peter and Paul, Fr. Andrew speaks on why these two apostles are so celebrated and what we can do to imitate them.
On the feast of St. Sisoes the Great, Fr. Andrew comments on how St. Sisoes was able to understand both death and life through the story of the Holy Scriptures.
On this Sunday of the Fourth Ecumenical Council (held in Chalcedon in AD 451), Fr. Andrew describes the definition of faith of this council and what it means for our salvation.
On this feast of the Prophet Elias, Fr. Andrew focuses on a moment when Elias meets with God on Mount Horeb.
On this Sunday before the Feast of the Dormition, Fr. Andrew reflects on the imminent passing of his own mother and what it teaches in the light of the Dormition of the Theotokos.
On this 10th Sunday after Pentecost, Fr. Andrew explores two things St. Paul shows in the epistle reading that are needed by the Christian: suffering and spiritual fatherhood.
Fr. Andrew reflects on the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant and how it reveals how we can see God and sense His presence.
Fr. Andrew tells the story of St. Aidan of Lindisfarne and stresses how he was not just a bishop but also a neighbor.
On this Sunday before the Elevation of the Cross, Fr. Andrew unpacks the great meaning in one of the most beloved of Bible verses.
On this feast day of the Prophet Jonah, Fr. Andrew relates the prophet's story to the story of the death and resurrection of Jesus and what that means for the salvation of mankind.
On this First Sunday of Luke, Fr. Andrew explores what Jesus uses to get into the lives of His first disciples.
In reflecting on the entrance of mankind into space, Fr. Andrew notes that telescopes and microscopes aren't the right tools for seeing God.
With the coincidence of the commemorations of the Seventh Ecumenical Council and Symeon the New Theologian, Fr. Andrew reflects on how these two feasts together reveal a crucial component of spiritual life.
Reflecting on St. Paul's discussion of justification in Gal. 2:16-20, Fr. Andrew describes the difference between the faith and works of the Law of Moses and the faith and works of righteousness in Christ.
Fr. Andrew discusses the phrase "redeeming the time" from Ephesians 5:15 in terms of building community in the local parish.
On this feast of the Apostle Matthew the former tax collector, Fr. Andrew discusses how he was healed of his problem with money and how we may be, as well.
Discussing St. Paul's saying 'Christ is our peace' from Ephesians 2, Fr. Andrew talks about the true nature of the peace that was inaugurated by the birth of Jesus.
On this feast of the Apostle Andrew the First-called, Fr. Andrew locates his legacy in the waiting of Advent.
Fr. Andrew discusses the place of piety in the Christian life and how it leads the Christian to Christ.
On this Sunday of the Forefathers of Christ, Fr. Andrew preaches on the parable of the banquet and those who made excuses not to come.
On this Sunday before the Nativity, Fr. Andrew speaks on St. Ignatius and martyrdom in the Christmas story and the spiritual life in general.
On this Sunday after the Nativity of Christ, Fr. Andrew talks about Paul's personal sense of Christ in himself.