We need both truth and love to row through the fog of this world.

Jesus does not say he will show us Truth. He claims to BE Truth. He is full of Truth, full of Grace, and the very definition of Truth.

The girls saw the new children’s movie, Smallfoot. They discuss the complex nature of truth, how important it is to ask questions, and how we can use technology to create false images of ourselves. They close with their Top 5 Mythical Creatures.

The girls take on the highly anticipated Disney movie, Frozen II, and (spoiler alert) they weren't impressed. They discuss how we ought to gauge the next right thing, whether newness of knowledge equates with wisdom, and how we should acquire a spirit of service. They end with their Top 5 Sequels (That Were Actually Good).

We have all had experiences in which we have learned uncomfortable truths about ourselves. When that happens, we have a choice about what to do next. It is possible to recognize a weakness or failing and then to do what we can to overcome it. Too often, however, we give up hope and fall into despair due to our hurt pride. That is precisely what the man in today’s gospel lesson did when Jesus Christ gave him a commandment that he lacked the strength to obey: “Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”

The path to eternal life runs through our neighbors, especially those we are inclined to overlook, disregard, and even despise. How we treat the hungry and thirsty, the stranger and the naked, the sick and the prisoner reveals the true state of our souls. How we serve our suffering and inconvenient neighbors, whoever they are, is how we serve our Lord.

There is no point in pretending that all is well when it obviously is not; that was true for the bleeding woman and for Jairus, and it is also true for us. We must face the reality of our own brokenness with brutal honesty, if we are ever to acquire the humble faith necessary to enter into the joy of those who hear the Lord say, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace” and “Do not fear; only believe, and she shall be well.” The question is not whether the Savior wants to fulfill His gracious purposes for us, but whether we will open ourselves to receive His healing mercy.

How we treat the hungry and thirsty, the stranger and the naked, the sick and the prisoner, manifests whether we serve a Kingdom not of this world in which the last shall be first or whether we have become conformed to corruption.

Through the many struggles of this season of Lent, we all have the opportunity to grow in the faith necessary to entrust ourselves more fully to Christ.

We look to the gospel and epistle readings for this feastday, in order to give us wisdom and courage in meeting the challenges of our own. Luke 1: 1-80, 3:16-20, Malachi 4, Romans 13:11-14:4

Welcoming the Christ Child: Family Readings for the Nativity Lent, "Ruth’s Story and The Young Prophet Samuel," by Elissa Bjeletich, illustrated by Jelena Jeftic (Sebastian Press, 2017).

Fr. Ted explains why the Orthodox Church has never modernized—and never will!

Fr. Ted reminds us that while the worldly spirit changes with time, the truth of the Church endures forever.

Fr. Ted discusses the importance of the Holy Fathers of the First Ecumenical Council and St. Justin, the Philosopher and Martyr.

Fr. Ted addresses the staff at the headquarters of World Vision Canada on the Orthodox view of charity as it relates to Great Lent.

Fr. Ted explains the importance of the Ecumenical Councils and how they make a difference in our lives today.

Fr. Theodore Paraskevopoulos gives the homily on the Sunday of the Samaritan Woman about the need to speak truthfully to one another.

Fr. Theodore Paraskevopoulos explains the way in which God chooses to work with us (synergy) in our lives.

Dr. Bruce Foltz, a professor of Environmental Philosophy at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida, delivers a talk titled “The Truth of Nature.” The occasion for this lecture was the ecclesiastical new year, which St. Vlad’s marked by gathering to offer praise and thanksgiving to God the Creator and to contemplate the many gifts He has bestowed.

On January 30, 2021, New York Times bestselling author Rod Dreher delivered the 38th Annual Father Alexander Schmemann Memorial Lecture. Dreher’s lecture, “Living in Truth: How the Communist-Era Suffering Church can Prepare Us to be Dissidents,” defined the challenges and explored the gifts the suffering church has for a complacent West. His talk coincided with the publication of A Voice for Our Time: Radio Liberty Talks, Vol. 1, featuring an English translation of Schmemann’s broadcasts into the Soviet Union that began in 1953. This first volume of the two-part series, being published by St. Vladimir’s Seminary (SVS) Press, features a foreword by Dreher.

Meet Ruth, one of the treasures at the Mission. Taken from Walking Humbly: The Holiness of the Poor, by St. John the Compassionate Mission.

What do you do if you're in both a recipe and prayer rut? Martha has some solutions.

What happens when we become burned out on cooking and end up in a recipe rut? Martha shares some ideas on reinvigorating your cooking and prayer life.

Fr. Apostolos Hill discusses the Gospel reading from Matthew 6 and the Sermon on the Mount. He conducts a brief overview from Holy Writ of the pitfalls of money and our pursuit of it and that Jesus didn't say we "mustn't" or "ought not" serve God and Mammon, but that it cannot be done. He also refers to the writings of Solomon, Isaiah, and Jeremiah who each underscored how oppression of the poor invited the correction of God which saw Israel captive in Babylon for 70 years.

Fr. Apostolos Hill delivers a homily about the 1st Ecumenical Council and how only the God-man Jesus Christ is the Bridge that unites Heaven and Earth.

Sermon on the Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost (Galatians 1:11-19; Luke 8:26-39)

Sunday of the Samaritan Woman - Fifth Sunday of Pascha

As the Church prepares us to celebrate the Elevation of the Precious Cross, Fr Tom reminds us that the Cross is the sign and reminder of the firm, unchanging truths found in the the person of Christ. (Sunday Before the Elevation of the Precious Cross)

St Paul's letter to the Galatians opens with an impassioned plea to those who once embraced the truth of the Gospel, to return to it. In our own day, numerous Christians are succumbing to the spirit of the age and compromising fundamental truths. Fr Thomas makes his own fervent plea not to accept any other Gospel but that which is given to us by the apostles and their successors. As a listener to the podcast wrote, "truth doesn't bow to feelings."

On the first Sunday of Lent, we celebrate the triumph of Orthodoxy over the icon smashers. Fr Thomas gives us some straight talk about the Orthodox Christian faith, the nature of truth, and our relationship with world religions. (Sunday of Orthodoxy)

During a Saturday Divine Liturgy, Fr Thomas taught from John 8:31-42, "you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."

At the incredible encounter of the Samaritan Woman with Jesus as the well, Fr Thomas teaches us that the Lord models how to speak the truth in love.

Listen as Fr. Tom reminds us that the Sunday of Orthodoxy is about so much more than icons alone . . . it is about the triumph of truth.

Lest we forget the cosmic realities of our Orthodox worship, Fr. Tom unpacks the reading of the Samaritan Woman in order to remind us that worship in spirit and in truth is not bound to space or time, and includes - not least of all - personal sacrifice.

Truth is more than an internal reality or a set of external precepts - it is the transformative power of Christ!

On the Sunday of the Samaritan Woman, Fr. Tom reminds us of the deep human need for Truth and how the Holy Spirit guides us into that truth, both in belief and in worship.

Fr Thomas teaches us that we need to cultivate in ourselves an openness to the truth based on all the goodness of the teachings of Christ. (John 9:1-38) Sunday of the Blind Man, May 21, 2023

Fr. Christopher sets the record straight on the celebration of Christmas.

Fr. Emmanuel Kahn gives the sermon on the Woman at the Well.

Fr. Gregory Hallam gives the sermon on Sunday, May 13, 2018.

In this very important sermon, Fr. Gregory Hallam tells us that we do not believe in God to satisfy our ignorance about the world; in short to give us a nice and comforting alternative to science with its allegedly godless explanations and “theories.” If we are thinking like that then we do not truly believe in the God who is the source of ALL truth both religious and scientific, nor do we understand the world as it truly is.