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!”

Even as Jesus showed mercy by tangible actions such as healing a Samaritan from a dreaded and isolating disease, we must take the actions available to us, no matter how seemingly small or imperfect, to manifest His love to our neighbors, regardless of who they are. Find the book Syria Crucified at store.ancientfaith.com/syria-crucified.

We must devote ourselves to prayer, fasting, almsgiving, forgiveness, and other forms of repentance in the weeks ahead if we are to open the depths of our brokenness to the healing of our Lord’s humble, suffering love. That is the only way to become like the tax collector in spiritual clarity, for he was aware only of his sin and need for God’s mercy. We must know the true state of our corruption and weakness as he did, if we are to enter into the joy of the Lord’s resurrection.

Like St. Mary of Egypt, we must take up the cross of doing whatever it takes to find healing for our souls in the Lord Who offered up Himself for the salvation of the world. That was the path to holiness for St. Mary of Egypt, and it must be our path in the remaining days of this blessed season of Lent.

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.

Now is the time to prepare for a spiritually beneficial Lent that will help us grow in the humility necessary to see ourselves and our neighbors clearly as we reorient our lives toward the great joy of Pascha.

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.”

Like the men in today’s gospel reading, we all need the healing of the Lord for our eyes, our mouths, and every aspect of who we are.

We remain in a period of preparation to behold Christ at His appearing. The One born at Christmas and baptized at Theophany is brought by the Theotokos and St. Joseph the Betrothed to the Temple in Jerusalem as a 40-day old Infant in fulfillment of the Old Testament law, which we will celebrate later this week at the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord. By the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, the old man St. Simeon proclaims that this Child is the salvation “of all peoples, a light to enlighten the Gentiles and the glory of Thy people Israel.” The aged prophetess St. Anna also speaks openly of Him as the Savior. At the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord in the Temple, we celebrate the appearance of the Lord Who fulfills the ancient promises to Abraham and extends them to all with faith in Him. By His appearance, He has enlightened the whole creation. Christ is “the true light which gives light to everyone coming into the world.” (Jn. 1:9)

This Sunday we listen in on Jesus’ appearance to the eleven, and then his special visit with St. Thomas, learning, with the help of the epistle of John, how Jesus is LORD and God over the whole created order. He answers our sensory questions, and not simply the abstract “spiritual” problems of life, bringing us to know Him intimately. John 20:19-31; 1 John 1:1-7 Genesis 2; Exodus 3

We consider the humility of Jesus and the Theotokos in the Presentation, as well as the reason why humility is so important, as seen in our readings for Divine Liturgy this Sunday (2 Timothy 3:10-15; Luke 18:10-14), in the light of Hezekiah’s plea before God in 4 Kingdoms 19:9-20 and our Lord’s own pattern in Philippians 2: 5-11.

This week, as we approach Great Lent, Dr. Edith Humphrey helps us prepare our minds by focusing upon godly humility, as seen in Job, in the model laid out for Timothy by St. Paul, and in the well-known parable of the Publican and the Pharisee.

We examine St. Paul’s poignant picture of the apostles (1 Cor 4:9-16) as the “refuse of the world,” noticing that even the OT is ambivalent towards outward success, considering the problem of calling something “father,” and focusing upon the utter humility of Jesus, who St. Paul sought to follow.

After completing our analysis on the troparia, kontakia, and theotokia, we turn to reading the epistles for Divine Liturgy, beginning with this week’s section from 2 Timothy. The Apostle Paul’s words to this young leader are applicable to everyone, not simply to those who lead the Church, since the Scriptures, Old and New Testament, are for all. We seek to understand the Apostle’s instructions by reference to Psalm 118 (MT 119), and by remembering those who have suffered for their faithfulness—most especially our Lord Jesus himself.

We look to Psalm 62 (LXX)/ 63 (Hebrew text) as a model for practicing the presence of God, and are assured that He is always with us, encouraging us to seek His face.

"The Parable of the Pharisee and the Publican" from The Parables of Christ by Spiritual Fragrance Publishing (2012)

"The Apostle Thomas Sees the Ascension of the Theotokos," from Feasts of Christ and the Theotokos and Miracles of the Lord by Spiritual Fragrance Publishing (2012)

Seeds of Life by Alisa Rakich Brooks, illustrated by R. E. Bursik (St. Sebastian Press, 2019) Available from St. Sebastian Press

129. A Pocketful of Seeds by Sylvia Leontaritis (Panagia Press, 2009).

Fr. Ted discusses the Gospel reading, John 9:1-38.

This week's homily was delivered by guest priest Fr. Nicholas Tambakis from Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church in Thunder Bay, Ontario.

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

Fr. Ted asks, "What happens when are neither the Publican or the Pharisee?" The Triodion calls us back to the roots of our faith to engage fully in the life of Christ's Church.

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

In this episode, the microphone is turned as AFR General Manager and founder John Maddex interviews host Kevin Allen on the catechism module he developed (with his priest's blessing) specifically for inquirers coming from New Age and Eastern spiritual backgrounds. Is the entrance of New Age and Eastern seekers perhaps a trend the Church needs to prepare for? Are the issues, concerns, and paradigms of these seekers the same as those inquiring from Evangelical backgrounds? Must the catechist know something about New Age and Eastern religions in order to catechize effectively? These are some of the questions that will be addressed in this program. You may download an attachment of the course outline here.

Fr. Jim Kordaris, Director of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese Department of Outreach and Evangelism, speaks candidly about how the GOA understands “Orthodox evangelism” in America, whether it is committed to growth outside of its ethnic heritage, the role of "Hellenism" in the GOA's evangelistic strategy, and whether he sees the GOA playing a vital role in bringing Orthodoxy to America.

In episode 4, Andrew helps us understand the transformation that takes place when we begin to see iconographically instead of pornographically. The transcript can be accessed HERE.

Listen to excerpts from this past Sunday's bulletin at St. John the Compassionate Mission, serving the most vulnerable in Toronto. "Jesus tells Mary Magdalene that He will meet His disciples in Galilee. That is the place where the community is fully alive having Christ in their midst. The place where you work, you celebrate, you heal the sick and feed the hungry with the Lord. The place where you break bread and drink good wine with the Lord and go fishing with no worry that you’ll toil all night without catching anything. The place where you take care of the sick and cure the demoniacs; where you celebrate the feast of marriage, plant, prune and harvest. The place where you learned what it means to be thankful for being alive because you tasted from life in abundance. Most of the time, life at the mission is called to find and to become a Galilee where the Lord can feel at home."

Glimpsing the hope of the resurrection, modeled by the insights of one displaced by war.

It is the cry of the poor who are in solidarity with those who suffer the most, today. The poor are not indifferent to the suffering, but lift it in prayer, with faith that God hears them.

All of the words of the Saviour are important, even the words spoken that were strictly rhetorical. One such utterance is found in the story of the sinful woman, told in Luke 7:36f.

In this inaugural episode, Fr. Maxym addresses the question "How can we see our sins in humility and how can we fight despair?”

Sermon on the Eighteenth Sunday after Pentecost (II Cor 9:6-11; Luke 8:5-15)

Beginning of the Lenten Triodion

As we begin preparing our hearts for the annual Lenten journey, the Church presents us with the parable of the Publican and the Pharisee. Fr Tom reminds us that fulfilling God's commandments should not be a cause for pride, because humility teaches us that we are only doing our duty to Him as unprofitable servants.

Our Lord taught his disciples to put away anxiety about life and instead trust in God. Fr Thomas reminds us that by seeing life through the teachings of Christ, even the difficulties and tribulations of life will build us up to be stronger followers of Him. (Third Sunday after Pentecost)

We can sometimes take the blessings we receive and miracles we read about in the New Testament for granted. The reading about the healing of the blind man is one such event, because the Lord didn't simply heal his sight, He actually created eyes for the man! Fr Thomas teaches us that the health of our sight is measured by what we're willing to see regarding the love and works of God.

The healing of the blind man in John 9 is a dramatic story of the healing power of God. Fr Thomas teaches us that we also have been healed by virtue of our baptism and we should tell others the story of our recreation.

In the story of the healing of the Blind Man, the willfully blind refuse to believe the truth about Jesus even when confronted with irrefutable proof. Fr Thomas reminds us that we must carefully consider all the teachings and deeds of Jesus so that we can be witnesses to the Son of God.

The famous parable of the Good Samaritan is often relayed as a story about doing good to others. However, Fr Thomas teaches us the background of the story and why the Good Samaritan points directly to Christ as the one who heals us in the Church.

In the healing of the Blind Man, Jesus restored the sight of a man born blind. Fr Thomas reminds us that the goal of our spiritual life is to purify ourselves so that we can see the glory of God.

Listen as Fr. Tom encourages all seekers to follow in the path of the Canaanite woman.

Fr. Alexander Rentel, Chancellor of the Orthodox Church in America brings us a preparatory message in anticipation of Great Lent: observe the religious practice of the Church like the pharisee, but beg our Lord for the humble heart of the publican.

In this back-to-basics message, Fr. Tom reminds us that the real triumph of Orthodoxy begins with being a true follower of Christ.

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 Thomas unpacks the Parable of the Wedding Feast and reminds us that union with Christ starts with baptism but continues in keeping our baptismal garment clean through righteous living. (2 Corinthians 1:21-2:4; Matthew 22:1-14) Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost

We are all called to a personal relationship with the Lord, but first of all, we must recognize that “Jesus Christ is the Lord” – our Lord. To achieve this, we need to have Him cure the blindness of our spiritual eyes, and this calls for an act of loving submission of our wills unto Him.

Fr. Christopher reminds us that St. Joseph and the Theotokos were confronted with far more challenges in their lives than any of us are ever likely to experience. However, their responses to those immense challenges offer us responses from which we can learn.

Fr. Dn. Emmanuel says we can ask Christ to intervene in our lives because of our faults and because of problems that we are not able to solve with our own wills and our own resources.