In the next litany of the Divine Liturgy, we pray for our Bishops, Priests, and Deacons. Fr. John tells us why this is so important.

Fr. John now reflects on the litany for those in civil authority and our armed forces.

All around the world there are droughts, famine, and disease. How do our intercessory prayers at the Divine Liturgy on Sunday mornings touch the people impacted by them?

As Fr. John continues through the litanies of the Divine Liturgy he reminds us of the quote, "we are saved together but we are damned alone."

In this final reflection on the petitions in the Divine Liturgy, Fr. John gives some alarming statistics of those "in tribulation, wrath, danger, and necessity."

Fr. John offers a reflection on the recent tragedy in the Gulf of Mexico.

In his second podcast, Fr. John helps us define a Christian worldview and how it should change the way we process life around us.

Fr. John gives an instructive comparison of two divergent worldviews.

Fr. John compares the worldviews of Joni Erickson Tada and Christopher Reeve.

Fr. John notes how Orthodox Christians see things in an iconographic way-- the images are connected to the larger reality they represent.

FYI, this episode is a gentle rant. It's not PC, but GTGFAT.

Children, parents and grandparents - whatever condition we find ourselves in, God knows and understands.

Fr. Michael shares an article about happiness he wrote for the Death to the World zine.

Many of us have had mountain-top experiences at one time in our life or another. We have had times when God seemed right there, so close that, at that moment it seemed like nothing to offer God everything, to sacrifice all for the sake of Christ. These mountain-top experiences, at least for me, are very few and far between. It is a kind of miracle when this happens. But like most miracles, it happens not so that we don’t have to suffer, don’t have to slog through the rest of life on the plains. Rather, God gives us these moments as signs, as encouragement to keep us on the way, as a foretaste so that we know what the coming main meal will be. But the wonderful experience of nearness to God soon passes and we find ourselves back in the world, back in the arena of our salvation, back now having to fulfill the promise of giving our life to God. On the mountain top it seemed that it would be so easy, but on the plains, in the mud and snirt (a Canadian term referring to snow mixed with dirt), in the messiness of the lives we actually live, giving our life to God is much more difficult and messy than we ever imagined it would be.

"Those in the monastic life have spiritual fathers and mothers to help them in obtaining humility. We in the world have the very life in the world itself to humble us. "

Fr. Michael Gillis has us look at the world we find ourselves in. We are mentored by media that exploits and seduces us for its own profit, political leaders whom we know are lying, businesses that we know are cheating us and an educational system piloted by women, men and “others” who want to obliterate basic human nature. It seems we find ourselves, like young prophet Samuel, being raised in a corrupt and predatory culture. Yet nevertheless, like the prophet Samuel, we too can grow into very holy people, people who can learn to listen for God even as we are surrounded by innumerable sins and evil influences.

Today we live in a time of uncertainty; but really, today is no more uncertain than yesterday nor the day or year or century before. Certainty is a kind of delusion. It is a delusion that conveniently forgets that there is much, much more going on in the world than we know and can see. How, then, can we live in peace when our life is enveloped in uncertainty? How do we escape the fear of uncertainty?

One of the great "I Am" statements in Scripture is in John's Gospel where Jesus said, "I am the Light of the world" (John 8:12). Today Fr. Tom explores the word "light" and the significance of Christ's claim.

Fr. Philip encourages us to be the light of the world by serving Christ in our immediate circumstances.

Jesus called his followers to become the light of the world by becoming holy, united through the healing and transforming grace of the One who is the Light of the World.

Fr. Philip LeMasters calls us to live as the reflection of the One who is 'Light of the World.'

Fr. Philip LeMasters addresses the violence in our world today by reflecting on the call to love our neighbor in the story of Lazarus.

The Lord’s genealogy in St. Matthew’s gospel traces the Savior’s human ancestry back through many generations to Abraham. The story of the ancestors of Christ, who helped to prepare the way across the centuries for the incarnation of the God-Man, certainly does not read like a Facebook posting. The Old Testament presents them realistically as unlikely members of His family tree.

At Theophany, we celebrate that no dimension of our life or world is intrinsically profane or cut off from sharing in the holiness of God. All things, physical and spiritual, visible and invisible, are called to participate in the divine glory that our Lord has brought to the world, to become even now signs of the coming fullness of God’s Kingdom.

On this second Sunday of Great Lent, we commemorate St. Gregory Palamas, who defended the experience of monks who, in the stillness of prayer from their hearts, saw the Uncreated Light of God.

At Pentecost, we celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit as a sign of the restoration of human persons, both individually and collectively, in the divine image and likeness.

As odd as it will sound to many in our culture, Christ does not call us to become successful or powerful by earthly standards, including those of our own society. He calls us to shine with holiness such that His glory radiates through us and illumines a world darkened by sin and death. Doing so requires that we do not rest content with being good citizens or moral people, regardless of how those terms are defined.

As we celebrate the Exaltation of the Cross, let us examine ourselves to see if our lives appear foolish and scandalous by the standards of the world because of our faithfulness to Jesus Christ.

On this feast day of the Holy, Glorious, All-Laudable Apostle and Evangelist Luke, we have an opportunity to celebrate the great witness to the Lord made by the patron saint of our parish. Our small community is named in his honor and memory. We see his image on our iconostasis and regularly ask him to pray for us in the Divine Liturgy. Author of both a gospel and the Acts of the Apostles, as well as an iconographer and a physician, St. Luke died a martyr’s death at the age of 84.

As we continue to celebrate Theophany in a world that remains in “the region and shadow of death,” let us focus mindfully on living each day as those who have died to sin and risen with our Lord to a life of holiness. That is how we may wear a garment of light and become living epiphanies of the salvation of the world.

We must live distinctive lives that draw others to share in the divine healing that our Lord has made available to all.

Whenever we pray, fast, and serve others with humility, we open ourselves to the healing light of the Lord and become more like Him. These practices are not reserved for those who have abandoned the world, but are necessary for all of us who remain weak before our passions with spiritual vision darkened by sin. The circumstances of our lives never excuse us from answering the call to become radiant with the divine energies of our Lord, but present their own opportunities to rise, take up our beds, and walk.

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.

In today’s gospel reading, Christ teaches that the humble faith of the Roman centurion surpassed that of any of the Jews. Since the dominant expectation in Israel was for the Messiah to set them free from Roman rule by military victory, the Lord’s statement was surely perceived by many as terribly unpatriotic.

By the grace of our Lord, we may become the light of the world as we do what the world does not prize: praying in secret; struggling to fast as we best we can; giving generously to the needy without drawing attention to ourselves; forgiving and praying for those who wrong us; mindfully rejecting the temptation to praise ourselves or to condemn anyone else; and confessing and repenting of our sins on a regular basis.

In the remaining days before Christmas, let us embrace the scandalous 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.

It is easy to fall into despair before our own personal problems, the challenges faced by loved ones, and the brokenness of our society and world. It is tempting to refuse to accept that we remain responsible for offering ourselves to Christ as best we can for healing and transformation in holiness, regardless of what is going on in our lives, families, or world

Fr. John discusses the importance of worship to Byzantium, the immense degree to which its culture was influenced by liturgy, and the significance of "facing East."

Fr. John reflects on the final Plenary Speeches of Pastor Rick Warren and Cardinal O'Malley of Boston from the World Meeting on Families in Philadelphia at the end of September.

This week’s readings for divine liturgy correct any notion we might have that the physical, material world does not matter. While the physical is ordered under the spiritual realm by God, it is also meant to be taken up into it, transformed. We see this careful balance and valuing of the spiritual and material worlds in the lives of the Theotokos and St. Edith of Wilton, as well as in the Old Testament narratives of the “fiery serpent” and the promised “new heavens and new earth.”

This week we unpack the reading from Hebrews 11-12 for the Sunday of Orthodoxy. Looking to Exodus, Judges, 1 Kings 17, and Daniel, we fill in the stories of Moses, Barak, Gideon, Sampson, Jephthah, Daniel, and Elijah with the woman whose son was resurrected. We see that, though exemplifying weakness and sin, they show us the importance of dependence upon God and hope in His promises. For this faith and hope, they are rightly celebrated as righteous, and are part of God’s covenant family.

The Edge of Mysterion, a note on the world of Mysterion, by Richard Rene (Conciliar Press, 2011)

58. Book 1:"The Creation of the World" from The Bible for Young People by Zoe Kanavas (Narthex Press, 2005) (8.30 mins) Book 2: Ella's Story: The Duchess Who Became a Saint by Maria Tobias, Chapter 4 (Conciliar Press, 2004) (begins at 9:50, duration 16.45 mins)

Metropolitan Sotirios of Canada gives the homily at St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church in Winnipeg.

Fr. Ted reminds us that we must be a spiritual light to our children.

The reason the Nativity fast exists is to remind us of who we are in Christ and what we cannot take with us to the world to come.

Fr. Ted gave a presentation at the Romanian Orthodox Youth Assoc. (ROYA) North American Conference held in Beaverton, Ontario, Canada from October 5-7, 2017. In his talk, Fr. Ted explores the current political landscape and how it affects Orthodox youth who attend secular schools where Christianity is subtly oppressed by often ultra-liberal agendas.

The Death To The World crew reports back on their week at Cornerstone 2009 - the largest Christian rock festival in the world. This is the third year DTTW has set up shop in the exhibitors area as an Orthodox outreach at this largely Evangelical youth gathering. John Valadez, Gary Allen and Julia Gatalskaya report to host Kevin Allen that the 'times they are a' changing' in the world of contemporary Christian youth, reflecting a broader trend towards ancient faith!

Addressing members of the Orthodox Inter-Seminary Movement (OISM), St. Vladimir's Seminary President Fr. Chad Hatfield offer some thoughts for future ordained and lay leaders who will be serving in an "aggresively anti-Christian" world. His insights and suggestions for further reading will be of interest to the seminarian and non-seminarian alike.

A brand new season of At the Intersection of East and West. Dcn. Michael will lead his Sunday-school class through Alexander Schmemann's book For the Life of the World: Sacraments and Orthodoxy. Listen to the first episode here.