The Orant

Today the Church remembers St. Mathew the Apostle and Evangelist (on my birthday September 21st). You probably know Matthew best for the stories of him in the Gospels. Matthew was a tax collector who was sitting outside the city of Capernaum when Jesus asked him to follow him. Matthew left his life behind and become one of the 12 disciples who lived and moved with Jesus during his earthly ministry.Tradition also tells us that Matthew wrote the first Gospel … [Read more...]

I have recently fallen in love with St. Isaac the Syrian.There are few church fathers who show the love of God and powerfully as he does. Expect to see more from him in the future:Here is a quote from him discussing the paradoxical nature of God's 'justice.'Enjoy!“How can you call God just, when you read the passage on the wage given to the workers?‘Friend, I do thee no wrong; I will give unto this last even as unto thee who worked for me from the first hour. Is thine eye evil, because I am goo … [Read more...]

I am a sinner in need of repentance.The word's "Lord have mercy" to me, seem sweet... They are my most common prayer or repentance.There are at times moments when I seek to repent with more words, and over more time... It helps me heal.This is something the church has embraced. She has even developed a whole season for repentance called Lent.Within Lent the Orthodox church has a beautiful liturgical setting focused on repentance... It is called The Great Canon of St. Andrew … [Read more...]

Anyone who knows me knows I have a deep love for the Lutheran confessions, and traditions.Don't get me wrong, I have certain issues with certain things in the Book of Concord. I am not in a strict sense a "confessional Lutheran." I do, however, appreciate a great deal of what that branch of the Christian Faith has to say.I ran into this video today and I thought it was something worth sharing...Do you agree with what this pastor has to say about Luther, Calvin, Grace and Parodox? … [Read more...]

John Chrysostom is known for his speech more then anything else. The title Chrysostom comes from the Greek surname chrysostomos, meaning "golden mouthed." He wrote some of the greatest sermons in the history of the Church, and is responsible for the creation of the Liturgy that is still in use in the Orthodox church.We remember him this week for it was on September 14th that he died in 407 with these last words, ""δόξα τῷ θεῷ πάντων ἕνεκεν" which mean "Glory be to God for all things"Here is what … [Read more...]

As we continue to explore the concept of "Missio Dei" together I would like to turn our attention to another area of the scriptures. This time I would like to took at the last five chapters of 1 Kings. These are chapters 18-22.Last week I brought up how the "Missio Dei" is both personal and difficult for the individual. This week I would like to look at the primacy of God's own perogitive in the "Missio Dei"There are two main characters in the final five chapters of 1 Kings: Elijah and … [Read more...]

Today we have a word from John Chrysostom on the sad state Catechesis in the Church in his day (c. 347-407):"If you ask [Christians] who is Amos or Obadiah, how many apostles there were or prophets, they stand mute; but if you ask them about the horses or drivers, they answer with more solemnity than sophists or rhetors"I wonder what he would say to the church today? … [Read more...]

The concept of "Missio Dei" is roughly translated this means the initiation of God (as opposed to) man in the mission of redemption in the world. It's a theological perspective that gained a good deal of traction in the later 20th century it helps frame the narrative we see in the scriptures as something we enter into rather then something we bring ourselves.Few biblical stories demonstrate "Missio Dei" as clearly as the story of the Exodus. We all know the story of the … [Read more...]

Instead of a Saint of the week, I thought this week we might explore one of the Churches ancient feasts, "The Nativity of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary." Most of us within the Protestant tradition don't give much thought to this feast, in fact  I believe only the Anglican communion has left it on their calendar. I personally think our disregard for this blessed day is a travesty. Mary was indeed the mother of  the Lord Jesus Christ, true God and true man, and so is rightly called … [Read more...]