Celebrating Michael and the archangels

November 8, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Michael and the Archangels

On November 8 the Orthodox church celebrates Michael and the archangels. The full title for the feast is "Synaxis of the Archangel Michael and the Other Bodiless Powers: Gabriel, Raphael, Uriel, Salaphiel, Jegudiel, and Barachiel." Feel free to shorten it if you like. Here's a helpful entry on the day from the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. I've included here two "songs" that might prove edifying. The first is from Nikolai Velimirovich's Prologue from Ohrid. The second is from … [Read more...]

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Prayers of the persecuted church

November 3, 2012 By 6 Comments
Syrian Christians in prayer, MaghrebChristians.com

“'For Your sake we are killed all day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.' Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.” --Romans 8.36-37 On November 4 this year Christians gather to pray for their suffering brothers and sisters. The annual International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church provides a time to lift up believers who suffer deprivation, torture, and death for confessing Christ. Martyrdom has been a part of Christian … [Read more...]

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Dependent on the body of Christ

October 31, 2012 By 7 Comments
Body of Christ

Paul speaks of the church as being the body of Christ, and he's rather literal with the metaphor. "The eye," he writes, "cannot say to the hand, 'I have no need of you,' nor again the head to the feet, 'I have no need of you'" (1 Cor 12.21). The Christian life depends upon other Christians. Ours is a contingent existence. Only in communion with each other do we find the means to live our faith. I reflected on that fact while recently reading about the death of Étienne de la Boétie. On … [Read more...]

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Fr. Peter Gillquist’s angelic welcome

July 1, 2012 By 7 Comments
Fr. Peter Gillquist

It’s appropriate to contemplate angels rejoicing at our homecoming. After all, if we are the heirs of salvation, and angels are ministers to the heirs of salvation as Paul says in Hebrews, then our final success is their success too. My mind turns to this subject after hearing about the passing of the beloved Fr. Peter Gillquist. Upon the passing of Acholius the bishop of Thessalonica, Ambrose of Milan said something that applies here too. He expressed regret that this “veteran . . . of … [Read more...]

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How I learned to love Mary, mother of Jesus

May 14, 2012 By 1 Comment
Icon of the Dormition

The first time I really got Mary was on Good Friday a few years ago. In a very solemn service the night of Great and Holy Friday, as the day is called in the Orthodox Church, a series of funeral dirges are sung, one after another. I stood there in a dark church, a bier with an embroidered icon of the crucified Christ in the middle of the room, as the chanters and congregation expressed the mystery of the Lord's Passion in somber melodies. How could the Lord of Life die? And to what end? … [Read more...]

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What the church calendar is for

April 2, 2012 By 1 Comment
calendar illustration

In these final days before Easter, it's worth contemplating the church year. Why do Christians follow a liturgical calendar? People cannot help but follow some sort of calendar. The question is whether we do it consciously or unconsciously. Our spiritual health can depend on how we answer that question. Consider the various schedules and agendas set for us; there's an election calendar, an agricultural calendar, a sports calendar, a work calendar, a commercial calendar, etc. Focus on the … [Read more...]

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In the community of God’s love

March 29, 2012 By 1 Comment
Three fish

The Trinity speaks to the interrelatedness of the Godhead, each person of the Trinity reaching into the others by an eternal bond of affection and love. That might seem abstract, but our love as Christians is supposed to mirror this love. But how, practically? It starts with charity -- less the noun and more the verb. "Whenever one person helps another by word or deed," said Mark the Monk, "let both understand that this is the grace of God at work." Charity, in other words, is God's love … [Read more...]

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Merry Christmas! In March?

March 25, 2012 By 1 Comment
The Annunciation

Today is March 25. Merry Christmas! Well, sort of. Let me explain. There is a widespread belief -- or maybe a suspicion -- that Christmas is little more than a baptized version of a pagan winter solstice celebration. The idea is that the church "christianized" the celebration so recently converted pagans would celebrate Jesus instead of Saturn or Sol or what have you. … [Read more...]

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Why Christians need the church

March 19, 2012 By 17 Comments
Blind men and elephant

There's an old story about several blind men who try describing an elephant after touching various parts of it. Because the elephant is quite large, each man can only touch a limited portion. So the man touching the leg says the elephant is like a tree, while the one touching the tail says it's like a snake, and so on, each man coming to a different, incomplete conclusion about the beast. That story comes to mind as I reflect on the increasing number of people who claim to be Christians yet … [Read more...]

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The church is room full of sisters

February 29, 2012 By 7 Comments
The Dormition

A woman sits in a church, her cheeks and breast wet with tears. She's come from Sweden to this basilica in Saint-Maximin-la-Sainte-Baume, part of Provence, not far from the Mediterranean Sea. In Roman Catholic tradition, Mary Magdalene is believed to have come the region before her death. Her relics are preserved in the church … [Read more...]

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