While, as the Gospel of John indicates, Jesus had performed miracles before his baptism, his public ministry began after John the Baptist’s work had come to its end. John knew he would have to decrease and finish his mission before Jesus would take up the mantle and present to the world what John said was coming, that is, the kingdom of God. Thanks to John, many knew something extraordinary was about to happen. John had told them if they wanted... Read more
God surprises us, doing things which are unexpected. The incarnation, certainly, is one of those surprises. This is not to say no one had any intuition that God could become incarnate, as clearly, many did, but the way of the incarnation, and what the God-man did in his earthly ministry, were things which could not be predicted. This is why St. John the Baptist was surprised when Jesus came to be baptized by him: Then Jesus came from Galilee to... Read more
Some people think the way we should engage and follow tradition is to simply repeat what was done in the past. They turn the past into an idol, sacrificing social and moral advances as they force society to conform to their ideological expectations for it. Tradition is important. Learning from the past is important, especially learning from the mistakes of the past so we do not repeat them. Tradition should be living, and as such, continue to develop, just as... Read more
True wealth is wealth which lasts, wealth that is eternal, and so not ephemeral. Jesus said that such wealth is not to be found in “treasures on earth” but in “treasures in heaven”: Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your... Read more
Jesus’ immediate family was important to him and, likewise, to Christians after his ascension. Though he did not have any biological brothers or sisters, nor a biological father, Joseph took on the role of being Jesus’ earthly father. Joseph’s family became his own. And, as a result, Joseph was given a special task, to protect Mary and the infant Christ, which he did: Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream... Read more
One of the worst forms of Christianity is Christian Nationalism. To follow its principles, Christians must deny many aspects of Scripture and the Christian tradition. It is a form of idolatry, as it idolizes nations, or particular races, perhaps even genders, viewing some as superior to all others, and in doing so, grant them more rights than everyone else. Those who are not of the favored class, whatever it is, are not only denied help when it is needed, they... Read more
The book of Jonah demonstrates the difference between human conceptions of justice and how it influences the way people believe God’s justice should be like with the way God actually acts and promotes justice. We tend to expect retributive not restorative justice, while God always acts for the greater good, helping to restore, with mercy and grace, the justice or goodness which humans have denied. This difference is played out with Jonah; he thought his purpose was merely to condemn... Read more
Christ is Born! Glorify Him! We can become so used to historical, or even, dogmatic facts, that we confuse their rote memorization and the acceptance of them as fact as the same thing as understanding them and believing all they imply. This has led us to lose sight of the questions which can arise, for we tend to reduce everything to the simplified fact, saying if you accept the fact, you accept the truth and all that we believe is... Read more
Before Christmas, the Byzantine tradition has us reflect upon all the holy men and women who came before Christ and consider how their lives helped shape the context in which Jesus, the incarnate God-man, was born. Likewise, it would have us look to his family line, to see how, throughout it, we find men and women whose engagement with God led to all kinds of graces being shared into the world, graces which were also accumulated in the family line... Read more
It is quite common for monastic communities, Christian or otherwise, to test strangers who want to join their community. They want to make sure any would-be monk would be able to follow the strict discipline expected by those within the community. There are many ways this test can be done. Sometimes, the would-be monk is insulted, with some reason or another given as to why they are not fit to join the community. This is done, not because they have... Read more
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