In his “Four Books to the Church,” Salvian wrote what could be seen as a prophetic criticism concerning the state of the church of his day. The trouble he faced was that Christians were no longer expected to be Christians. They entered the church for political or social reasons, but they wanted their lives to remain relatively unaffected. The rich and powerful wanted accolades from the church without having to change their way of life, and as with many societies,... Read more
I am a fan and student of the writings of Vladimir Solovyov. His writings contain the foundation for many of my own theological developments, although I take what Solovyov wrote with a critical eye, realizing not everything he said is as useful or invaluable as the core intuition which guided him throughout his career. There are questions and concerns which one can raise with his Sophiological thought, but later Sophiologists like Bulgakov and Florensky have helped deal with those questions... Read more
A brother in a monastery was falsely accused of fornication and he arose and went to Abba Anthony. The brethren also came from the monastery to correct him and bring him back. They set about proving that he had done this thing, but he defended himself and denied that he had done anything of the kind. Now Abba Paphnutius, who is called Cephalus, happened to be there, and he told them this parable: “I have seen a man on the... Read more
In nineteenth century Russia, and throughout Europe, the relationship between Christians and Jews were strained, not because Jews were causing harm to Christians, but because Christians consistently and unjustly attacked the Jews. Riots and pogroms killed many Jews falsely accused of ridiculous crimes such as blood libel. Claims of international conspiracy theories about the Jews and their desire to take over and destroy Europe were spread, and as a result, their rights and privileges in the societies they lived in... Read more
One of the problems of modern Christianity is that so few are trained to read Scripture in its original languages, or know the commentary material behind each text. This is why so many, indeed most, end up reading into Scripture whatever they want to come out of it. Whatever theological hermeneutic they have coming to the text, given to them by their theological tradition, they readily bring out of it, making it seem as if their opinions are one and... Read more
Trump promotes torture as a good, saying it works. What exactly does it do? How does it work? It destroys the dignity of the human person being tortured, making them more willing to say and do anything as their will is destroyed. This is why saints have long said that those being tortured will not be guilty of what they say or do under duress.  Therefore, torture is not effective in information gathering, only in breaking someone down, undermining their... Read more
On Wednesday, Donald Trump, through executive orders, will once again make clear his administration’s plans for refugees and immigrants. Not only is he going forward with the wasting of funds by building a wall between Mexico and the United States, he is working to hinder and harm Syrian Refugees, going after anyone who gives them sanctuary as well as finding ways to deny such refugees any asylum in the United States. This is only the beginning of his policies for... Read more
Those who try to make themselves great in the eyes of others, those who put on shows of greatness for the sake of vainglory and power, might appear to be great but in fact are truly nothing. All they do is put on a show of glory, hiding their emptiness through feigning greatness.  Politicians use parlor tricks to hide the truth from the public, the truth that they are feeble, envious of others. They tend to lash out in anger... Read more
St. Ossius of Cordova was one of the more influential and well respected bishop-confessors at the time of St. Constantine’s conversion to the Christian faith. When Constantine wanted to follow the Christian faith, Ossius was one of the many bishops Constantine called to his court to teach him the intricate details and expectations of his newfound faith. Moreover, Ossius was the first Constantine trusted to serve as a mediator between himself and the Church, directing Constantine in his activity with... Read more
Social Justice is a major part of the Christian tradition. It forms one of the central pillars of moral theology. Contrary to the way some speak of social justice, it is not a new feature, but rather, it comes from the moral teachings found in the Torah, the Prophets, the Wisdom and Historical Books, and from the preaching of Jesus and his first Apostles. It continued to be found in patristic writers, with some like Salvian taking particular interest in... Read more
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