The Ecumenical Movement And Conventions

Last updated on: December 22, 2023 at 5:15 am By Henry Karlson

The modern ecumenical movement has brought about great insight into the Christian past as it has learned how often Christians became divided against each other, not because of any real, substantial dogmatic reasons, but because they failed to follow Christ’s expectation for them to be people who showed the world the way of love. Christ said the world should know they are Christians by their love; instead, animosity, distrust, and the pursuit of power and influence, led Christians to fight... Read more

We Are All In This World Together

Last updated on: December 22, 2023 at 5:16 am By Henry Karlson

0 Comments

While asceticism is meant to help spiritual seekers transcend normal, day to day, “worldly” experiences, it was and remains impossible for anyone, including the greatest ascetics, to live their lives completely independent from the world. Everyone will be affected by what happens in it. Everyone has basic needs which must be met, needs which include (but are not limited to): food, shelter, and clothing. No one can satisfy all their needs by themselves. We need each other, not only to... Read more

Christ Calls All To Glory

Last updated on: December 22, 2023 at 5:17 am By Henry Karlson

0 Comments

Christ came into the world to make it, and everyone in it, better. He does not do so through force, but through love. Just as God created an other, allowing the other to have freedom and self-determination, so in the recreation established by Christ, God continues to give us room to make choices for ourselves. Such freedom must not be misconstrued as being without boundaries or limitations, but within the domain which has been established for creation. We have been... Read more

Pope Francis And The Universal Declaration Of Human Rights

Last updated on: December 22, 2023 at 5:16 am By Henry Karlson

0 Comments

After the Angelus on December 10th, Pope Francis spoke on the Seventy-Fifth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which, at the time of its creation, promoted a new way of engaging the world, one in which human dignity and the rights which is accorded with it should be promoted and defended. Religious liberty, freedom of speech, freedom from fear, and freedom from undue want, are basic rights which should be granted to everyone. In the last seventy-five years,... Read more

St. Cyril Of Alexandria, Conventions, And The Truth

Last updated on: December 22, 2023 at 5:17 am By Henry Karlson

0 Comments

We must not confuse what we have apprehended of the truth and turned into some sort of fact, even dogmatic fact, as being the same thing as the truth in itself. It is, at best, a conventional expression of the truth. We can designate it as a conventional, or relative, truth so long as its conventional status is kept in mind and that the absolute truth itself is understood as being something other than our apprehension. When someone equivocates between... Read more

Challenges And Temptations

Last updated on: December 22, 2023 at 5:17 am By Henry Karlson

0 Comments

We often wish the challenges we face on a daily basis would go away. We think that would make our lives peaceful, and with such peace, we would find it easy to have fulfilling lives. The problem is that if we found ourselves having such peace, we would find ourselves attached to that peace we would feel as if we had little to no reason to push ourselves to grow, and to become someone even better. Despite how much we... Read more

The Enlightening Grace Of God

Last updated on: December 22, 2023 at 5:18 am By Henry Karlson

0 Comments

Jesus, the incarnate God-man, unites creation with God, making him the mediator between God and humanity, God and creation. In him the two are one and yet always two. He is God and man, creator and creature. Those distinct natures are preserved instead of becoming blended together and becoming a new, third nature. In his humanity, he shares with the rest of creation a created nature, allowing them to be one, even as they find themselves to be personally distinct,... Read more

Homoousios And Homoiousios

Last updated on: December 22, 2023 at 5:17 am By Henry Karlson

0 Comments

While the theological truths of the Catholic Church are expressed in and through words, they must not be confused with the words themselves. Even the best, most carefully chosen words can be misinterpreted, leading people to believe or accept erroneous teachings. Similarly, other words, which sometimes have had unorthodox interpretations associated with them, can later be employed by the church when it finds an orthodox way of engaging them. This was something the Fathers of Nicea came to recognize when... Read more

St. Nicholas Formed His Conscience On The Gospels

Last updated on: December 22, 2023 at 5:18 am By Henry Karlson

0 Comments

What made St. Nicholas so beloved, and well-known around the world, is that he was a bishop who did what his conscience told him to do. His conscience was formed upon the message of Jesus who told his followers to take care of those in need. While the legends concerning his life were quite late in being written down, the most famous ones were likely based upon oral tradition and so have a kernel of historical truth associated with them.... Read more

Tolkien And War: Would Tolkien Be Horrified In The Way His Fans Approach His Works?

Last updated on: December 22, 2023 at 5:18 am By Henry Karlson

0 Comments

War is hell. While it might sometimes be unavoidable, it should never be glorified. It is always an evil, and as such, even when it becomes necessary, it tends to corrupt those who are involved in it. Extra care should be had by those who are forced to defend themselves against an unjust aggressor that they do not become like those they oppose. From their own experiences, veterans know firsthand the horrors of war; many of them end up trying... Read more