By faith in Christ, we have become the new tenants of the vineyard with an obligation to “give him the fruits in their seasons.” That, of course, is precisely what the original tenants refused to do. Instead of tending the vineyard and offering its fruit to their rightful owner, they wanted everything for themselves and even killed the son of the owner in order to take his inheritance. We must read this passage as a reminder that, in order to be good tenants of the Lord’s vineyard, we must offer ourselves in union with His great Self-Offering on the Cross for the salvation of the world.

In the midst of the ongoing tragedy unfolding in the Holy Land, we must attend to the wisdom of our father in Christ, His Beatitude Patriarch John X of Antioch, who stated this week that “Peace does not come from the bodies of children, killed people, innocent people, and women. Peace comes when the decision-makers in this world realize that our people have dignity, as all the peoples of the world. We are not advocates of war, we reject violence and killing, and we are seekers of peace…” He writes that we pray “for peace in the entire world, for stability, and for the repose of the souls of those who have passed away. We pray that the wounds of the sick be soothed and they might recover, for the wounds of every hurting person, every bereaved mother, every brother, and every sister, for everyone’s wounds. We ask the Lord to protect us and grant us peace…”

Unless we are very careful, it is easy to fall prey to the temptation of defining holiness in ways that serve our preconceived notions, which may have very little to do with finding the healing of our souls by sharing more fully in the life of the Savior by grace. We often see righteousness through the lens of our own sensibilities about worldly divisions and disputes in ways that have more to do with serving our own passions than with serving the Lord. Today’s Scripture readings challenge us to wake up from such delusions and to see ourselves clearly before His infinite holiness.

After a transition to his new parish assignment, Father John returns to the podcast with a discussion of the atmosphere of catastrophe that hung over the old Christendom of the east as the Muslim Turks advanced on Byzantium, while a defender of traditional Christianity, Saint Mark of Ephesus, prepared to depart for the unionist Council of Florence in the west.

Fr. John introduces the force that kept traditional Christianity on course at a moment of crisis in the east, Hesychasm, and how it maintained Christendom's focus on paradise.

In this episode, Fr. John describes why Saint Gregory's defense of hesychasm against the westernized Barlaam represented a defense not only of Orthodoxy, but of Christendom itself.

In this episode, Fr. John draws upon several scholarly works to show how hesychasm protected eastern Christendom from the forces that had begun to lead the new Christendom of the west away from traditional Christianity.

Fr. John gives an account of the atmosphere in Italy in which Orthodox and Roman Catholic delegates met to discuss the possibility of union in the middle of the fifteenth century. Only one of the Orthodox would refuse to sign the resulting Treaty of Union, Saint Mark of Ephesus.

In this final episode of Reflection 17, Fr. John relates the final catastrophe to befall eastern Christendom during the period, the fall of Constantinople to the Turks in 1453.

Edith Humphrey takes us to Isaiah 8:13-18 and Psalm 107:23-31 for insight into St. Paul’s teaching on the people of God as the Temple, and Jesus’ rescue of the faltering apostle Peter on the water. Christ our God is the foundation of the Temple and the foundation of our faith, and issues an astonishing call—that we become signs in this age, showing forth His nature!

This week we tackle the paradox of service and freedom, and the fruit that comes from service to God, as seen in Romans 6:18-23 and Galatians 5:22-26; 6:1-2. We are helped in understanding this through the words of Saints Augustine and Chrysostom, and by reading Genesis 22 and Leviticus 26:12-18.

"The Parable of the Fruitless Fig Tree" from The Parables of Christ by Spiritual Fragrance Publishing (2012)

"Saints Aquila and Priscilla," from The Co-Workers for the Gospel, Illustrated Biographies, Book 5, by Spiritual Fragrance Publishing (2012)

The Suitcase: A Story About Giving by Jane G. Meyer, illustrated by Chiara Pasqualotto (Paraclete Press, 2017) Available at Paraclete Press.

Fr. Ted offers a beautiful homily for the Feast of Transfiguration. He urges us to live life within the Church, so that when we come into contact with the light of Truth, we do not squint and turn away.

Fr. Ted challenges us to give away the best of our possessions, rather than just what we can not use for ourselves.

Fr. Theodore Paraskevopoulos explains how we acquire the mind of Christ, by living in Christ through the life of Church.

Dr. H. Tristram Engelehardt, Jr. concludes his fascinating interview about life in a “neo-pagan” culture with “competing moral alternatives”.

Medical doctor (M.D.) and doctor of Philosophy (PhD.), author and university professor, Dr (Herman) Tristram Engelhardt, Jr. explains why our culture is post-Christian and post-metaphysical, how it got that way, and what the implications and challenges are for the Orthodox family.

Are converts to Orthodox Christianity dominating the media with their "journey stories" and "fast-paced, high-energy" perspectives, while the more quiet, perhaps lumbering, but deeply-rooted faith of cradle-born Orthodox is obscured in the process? Are traditions and customs being introduced by some convert clergy and laity that feel new and even strange to those with deep Orthodox roots? Is there a growing "cradle - convert gap" in the Orthodox Church in North America? Cradle Orthodox blogger, and writer Janice Bidwell expresses her concerns in this conversation with host Kevin Allen.

Host Kevin Allen speaks with Father Steven Tschlis about the role of the spiritual guide - father or mother - in the Eastern Orthodox tradition, and how such a guide may differ from one's parish priest or sacramental confessor. Should we look for a "spiritual father or mother" in a monastery? What role does the parish priest play? These and other questions will be addressed in this conversation.

Kevin Allen talks with Fr. Peter Gillquist about the status of Orthodox Evangelism and the Church in America.

On January 15th my personal podcast, "Steve the Builder," begins airing on Ancient Faith. The focus will be about my 56 years of "real" life, our culture, living and working in the world, and just being a layperson seeking to be a Christian. Bill and I will still be producing Our Life in Christ programs in the future as we can hammer out some studio time together, but Steve the Builder will fill in the blanks in between Our Life in Christ productions.

Up until this point, we have focused on understanding the concept of an Orthodox phronema—what it is and how it is different from the Western phronema. In this episode, we explore five actions you need to take in order to acquire an Orthodox phronema. Thinking Orthodox by Dr. Jeannie Constantinou

Pd. Nicolás predicó sobre las piedras que nos separa de la alegria del Señor y como podemos quitar estos piedras malas de nuestras vidas. Marcos 15:43-16:8 Fr. Nicholas preached about the stones that separate us from the joy of the Lord and how we can remove these evil stones from our lives. Mark 15:43-16:8.

Padre Nicolás predicó sobre el amor que Dios tiene para la gente perdida y como el Señor nunca va a abandonarnos. (Lucas 19:1-10) Fr. Nicholas preached about the love that God has for the people who are lost and how He never abandons us. (Luke 19:1-10)

Padre Nicolás predicó sobre la maldad en el mundo que puede tentarnos. Padre compartió la sabiduría de San Juan de la Escalera quien explicó las tres maneras que nos hagan a caer en la oscuridad. (Marcos 9:17-31) Fr. Nicholas preached about the evil in the world that can tempt us. Father shared the wisdom of St. John of the Ladder who explained the three ways we can fall into the darkness. (Mark 9:17-31)

Padre Nicolás predicó sobre la importancia de la paciencia. Nuestros metas toca tiempo y vamos a tener exito con Cristo cuando perseveramos. (Juan 5:1-15) Fr. Nicholas preached about the importance of patience. Our goals take time and we have success with Christ when we persevere. (John 5:1-15)

Padre Nicholas predicó sobre quien es Dios, y donde está. Dios siempre está con nosotros, aunque a veces no lo creemos. Juan 17:1-13 Fr. Nicholas preached on who God is, and where He is. God is always with us, even if sometimes we don’t believe it. John 17:1-13

Padre Nicholas predice que aveces pensamos que estamos en control. Pero Dios está en control. Lucas 13:10-17 Fr. Nicholas preaches that sometimes we think we are in control. But God is in control. Luke 13:10-17

El Padre Nicolás predicó sobre la importancia del ser. Father Nicolás preached on the importance of being.

Our minds get bombarded with unwelcome thoughts but what can we do with them? Molly shares what has been helpful to her.

Molly Sabourin presents a parable of sorts that came to her while she was taking a walk.

Steve returns to podcasting after five years of silence. He reflects on "the will of God for your life" in light of his recent life events.

What does it mean to be mentally healthy?

Listen to Fr. Nicolaie's reflections on Ezra that he shared at the recent Volunteers Appreciation Night Celebration at the Mission.

Martha looks back on 2011, remembering the many relationships she built through food.

Nick Heer on the ever-increasing user-hostile demand for your attention from the biggest social platforms #

in some cases, Meta is automatically creating the pages #

they're asking people not to access NYT games or cooking apps until it's over, so give up that Wordle streak #

There are stupider things to do than arguing with a culty fundamentalist. As the late great Jim Croce reminded us, you don’t tug on Superman’s cape, you don’t spit into the wind, and you don’t pull the mask off the ol’ Lone Ranger. Arguing with a culty fundamentalist is, I admit, not as stupid as any of these things, but it is pretty stupid nonetheless, for it is a waste of precious time and utterly futile.

Fr. Apostolos shares about the miracle of the feeding of the multitudes with the five loaves and two fish, and encourages us to offer our best unto the Lord.

After the recent news of Robin Williams' untimely death, Fr. Apostolos talks about depression and suicide, and the hope offered by Christ and His Church.

During the annual parish festival, Fr. Apostolos Hill addresses the difference between the Church building which patrons toured, and the Church which--or rather, who--were serving them on the festival grounds.

Part 1 of a 2 part series on prayer.

Sermon on the Sixth Sunday after Pentecost (Romans 12:6-14; Matthew 9:1-8)