The Orant

I ran into this song today. It's a little before my time, but it reminds me of a lot of the people I grew up around in the Word of God Community. … [Read more...]

I ran into this video via MYSTAGOGY in it Archbishop Lazar Puhalo is interviewed by OMNI Television host Randall Mark. They discuss some very interesting things.Here are some questions I walked away with:1) When does morality fall into the realm if heresy?2) What makes the eastern Orthodox understanding of Sin and Hell "different"?3) Is Atheism a rejection of the Western God, not just disbelief in God?4) Is the co-suffering of God opposed to a juridical understanding of soteriology?5) What … [Read more...]

Joan and I have returned home from our adventure in Alaska this past June. The trip was both challenging and refreshing. We are so glad to have gone, but are also happy to settle back into our home in Chicago. We decided to go to Alaska about nine months ago when some close friends of ours told us about the work they had been doing at a Camp out in a section of Alaska called the Bush. The Bush is essentially a part of the state that is off the Road system. In Alaska most of the State is not … [Read more...]

A little while ago I put up a video about the controversial mosque that was being put up near 'ground zero' in New York. In it a bunch of leaders lined up to talk about how the right of the muslim community to build there.This brought up an interesting issue. There was a Orthodox Church that was destroyed in 2001 in the 9/11 attacks that still has not been rebuilt. I thought it would be fair to post a conversation about it that Al Kresta had yesterday with someone closely related to this matter, … [Read more...]

This week the Church in the West remembers Gregory the Great (Gregory the Dialogist if you are Orthodox). Gregory was the Bishop of Rome during a time of great trouble. He was a great man who found himself in a position of power, although he did not want it. He was a monk who sought to live out his days in quite prayer. When he was elected Pope in 590 he laid aside his own desires and took of the office. His love for christ and his church was renown winning him the title, "the last good Pope" by … [Read more...]

This week's Patristic quote comes from Saint Basil. It deals with how Scripture and tradition interact with one another. I would like to hear different people's perspectives on this. Is the Gospel indeed "Bare Words" without the traditions of the Church? Why?Concerning the teachings of the Church, whether publicly proclaimed (kerygma) or reserved to members of the household of faith (dogmata), we have received some from written sources, while others have been given to us secretly, through … [Read more...]

This week the Western Church remembers Augustine of Hippo. If you are a part of the Orthodox church you may remember his feast a couple months ago on June 15th.Augustine is THE teacher of the West. He was hugely influential on both Catholic theology and the theology of Luther and Calvin. Much of his theological influence came out of his fights against others which led to some strong positions on the nature of Original Sin, and predestination.Augustine was a convert to Christianity later in life. … [Read more...]

This week I would like to highlight two sayings by one of the fathers, St. John Climacus  Both of these quotes are related to the dangers of a conscience that no longer bothers you..."We ought to be on our guard, in case our conscience has stopped troubling us, not so much because of its being clear, but because of its being immersed in sin. St. John Climacus"A 'good' conscience is one that stands ready to convict oneself immediately with shame. There IS a difference between … [Read more...]

This week the Western Churches remember Saint Bernard of Clairvaux. Bernard worked for peace within the church during a time of division.  Born in 1090 he lived through a time of tumult in the church. The church had just split with the east, and the crusades were about to begin. Bernard played a major role in the history of the church during his life.I have always had a bit of mixed feelings about Bernard. On the one hand he fought against Abelard, who I strongly dislike. On the … [Read more...]