Alexander Schmemann noted that our relationship with God will be manifest in the way we give him glory through our thanks. Thanksgiving is the state of the perfect, of those who truly love God and recognize the great gifts he has given us, including and not limited to, the forgiveness of our sins. That means, as Jesus is himself the perfect man, he himself gave the most perfect thanksgiving, making him the one true thanksgiving, the one true eucharist, by... Read more
God reveals himself to us, but what we can apprehend of that revelation is less than what God is in himself. We can talk about God as a result of that revelation. We can discuss, and try to understand, what we have received. We can explain our beliefs to others, knowing the limitations of all such explanations. For, when we talk about God, we must always keep in mind that God transcends anything and everything which we can say about... Read more
It is commonly accepted that St. Paul was not married. This is how his words, “I wish that all were as I myself am” (1 Cor. 7:7a) are generally interpreted, though it was also conceded that he thought that if he wanted to be married that he had the right to marriage like the other Apostles. “Do we not have the right to be accompanied by a wife, as the other apostles and the brothers of the Lord and Cephas?”... Read more
In one of the most important revelations concerning the nature of God in Scripture, God revealed to Moses the name which Moses should use to represent him to the people of Israel: Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, `The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, `What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” God said to Moses, “I AM WHO... Read more
As California faces the deadliest wildfires in its recorded history, with forty-two people confirmed dead,[1] President Trump has taken the opportunity to attack “forest management policies” as the reason for the fires, the Los Angeles Times explained: “He said poor forest management policies caused the fires plaguing the state, even though the massive Woolsey fire didn’t occur in a forest.”[2] This, likewise, was said on purpose, so that Trump could threaten to cut off funding to California, as the Wall... Read more
Kataphatic and apophatic theology are two ways we can talk about God. Dionysius, having expressed several apophatic denials for God, understood that apophatic theology has its limits. It does not present God to us any more than kataphatic theology does. God transcends either approach. Indeed, as we deny something to God, we begin to establish a new definition for God based upon those denials. What is left after such denials forms the basis for what we think God is to... Read more
When theologizing and philosophizing, we like to use reason to produce unconditional results. We gravitate to arguments based upon necessity. Metaphysically, anything which cannot be shown to be necessary seems questionable, and indeed, unlikely to be true. This desire for arguments which lead to necessary conclusions, alas, demonstrates egotism and pride, expecting too much out of ourselves and the ability of human reason. We think we can know it all. What we don’t know yet, we have the potential to... Read more
In the early years of the Christian faith, Christians found themselves in a rather unusual state of political being. On the one hand, many of them were Romans, but on the other hand, they often found that Rome was hostile to their very existence. As Romans, they had pride in the good they saw in Roman history, though they often felt Rome in their time had become corrupt and needed to be changed. They offered to support Rome as long... Read more
When we seek after God, we must realize that we can never comprehend him. Then, we can let go of our attempts to do so. We will silence our mind when it attempts to establish God based upon its limited capability, so that we can go to God in that silence, letting him reveal himself to us without any interference from our mind’s attempt to define him. But even then, we must be careful. It would be tempting to misconstrue... Read more
In the reflections recorded in his book, My Life in Christ, St. John of Kronstadt (1829 – 1908) noted that negative, hostile passions could spread through society like a disease: Passions are contagious owing to our spiritual organization; for instance, malice, even when not yet expressed in words – not expressed by acts, but still concealed in the heart, and reflected slightly in the face and eyes – is already transmitted to the soul of the an against whom I... Read more
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