Birth/Rebirth
“The opposite of death is not life; Life has no opposite. The opposite of death is birth…In Christ, our death becomes a birth into a new,...
Storms of Life
“To the Hebrews, the sea was a frightening place, full of chaos and death. To be cast into the sea was to sink down into Hades…God is the...
Born Again
“Salvation, then, is more than forgiveness of sins, more than a mental acceptance of Christ and His teachings. For in salvation we are...
Love Thy Neighbor
“The standard of judgment is uncalculated mercy toward others. The works produced by faith are emphasized, for saving faith always...
Thoughts and Feelings
“The abstraction that we call “thinking,” etc., in the contemporary world is a diminishment of what it means to be human. We have learned...
Tears
“I knew a woman who was a self-professed non-believer, though she was willing to believe. Her husband began bringing her to my parish....
Sin (Three Sins of Mankind)
“Note the three sins...of all mankind: (1) forsaking God; (2) false worship; and (3) preoccupation with themselves.” (Orthodox Study...
Free Will
“At times we may become so consumed and focused on our own problems and worries that we forget that God is there. We also may feel that...
Gripped (Enslaved)
“To be perfect, one must willingly sacrifice all and follow Christ. Nothing is gained unless this sacrifice is given freely. The...
Authority
“There is an etymological connection between authority and authenticity. The word authentic is from the Greek authentikos, meaning...