Today I am very excited to make an announcement! Earlier this year I finished writing a book. I thought about a lot of options for publication of it and decided that I was going to release it first for the Kindle. If interest is strong enough in the book I may look into getting it published through a more traditional publishing house. Please check it out and let me know what you think. Find it here: How the First Christians Changed Dying Please consider supporting my writing and... Read more

At it’s core, the Church is a living thing, “vivified” by Christ (Lumen Gentium, 8). It is like a tree planted deep in the earth that sprouts up in every place, and brings forth life giving fruit to every culture, and like any living thing, it continues to grow and develop as new environments create new challenges and new climates to adapt to. The developments of human history are not intrinsically contrary to the life of the church, but can... Read more

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This week me and the other doctoral students on the Crossed Purposes podcast talked about the humanity of Christ as well as talk about Harry Potter, Star Trek, C.S. Lewis’ space trilogy, Battlestar Galactica and Neanderthals.  I would love to hear your thoughts and other questions in the comments section below. Download it here If you cannot see the audio controls, your browser does not support the audio element Read more

This last week me and the other doctoral students on the Crossed Purposes podcast recordred our first episode. We discuss the concept of divinity and give you a glimpse into how difficult it is to say anything at all when you are as confused as we are.  Also, Doctor Who, video games, and something called “sports” get mentioned Download it: Episode 1 – Divinity If you cannot see the audio controls, your browser does not support the audio element Read more

I have a new podcast that I am doing on culture and theology. It’s a round table discussion with a bunch of PhD students in different theological areas talking about movies, books, TV, sports, computers, video games, and of course God. I am excited about it. Our first episode goes live tonight. crossedpurposes.com Read more

This is a guest post by Fr. Stephen Freeman, an Orthodox (OCA) priest. You can read More by Fr. Freeman at his excellent blog Glory to God in All Things or listen to his podcast.  Reading the lives of the saints often raises our expectations. We read of someone transfigured with light, or of someone who is present in two places at once. We read beautiful descriptions of the inner life, of an awareness of our union with God or clarity with... Read more

I got this compilation from Savas Zembillas. Thanks!You are not making a gift of your possession to the poor person. You are handing over to him what is his. Ambrose of Milan, 340-397. The property of the wealthy holds them in chains . . . which shackle their courage and choke their faith and hamper their judgment and throttle their souls. They think of themselves as owners, whereas it is they rather who are owned: enslaved as they are to their own property,... Read more

Why doesn’t the term “trinity” appear in the Bible? This video seeks to explain how Christianity changes the language that they use to explain the mystery of God as they encounter new world views. I’d love to hear your thoughts on it! Read more

Are you interested in figuring out where the Liturgy came from? Well below I have a list of “laws” that some scholars have implemented in trying to discern where and when certain things came into being. The First 2 are the original Baumstark rules, the rest have developed after. The Law of Organic Development – This law states that additions to the liturgy grow up next to older forms, but eventually supplant or cause an abbreviation to older forms That... Read more