The parable of the Pharisee and the Publican is a very important one for anyone who claims to be religious. Christians need to pay careful attention to it and learn what it is telling them, for it warns them of what can happen with a legalistic or judgmental understanding of religious devotion. External acts of piety, while they might represent true devotion to God, are not in and of themselves a true indication that someone has the right kind of... Read more
What is in our hearts affects our souls. If we wish to do some good, but don’t have the opportunity to do so, our desire to do it and will have a positive impact on our soul. It will help us grow in virtue, even as it will direct us, making sure we continue to seek after and so what is good. Thus, if a poor wished to share with the world the bounty of their love so that if... Read more
When many churches were being administered by Arians, often put in power by civil authorities, we find various people fleeing from the cities in which they were found. They formed their own, often separate (but not completely independent) religious communities, many of which became monastic communities. They helped preserve and protect the faith, giving a place of refugee to those who were fleeing from Arian authorities, such as St. Athanasius. St. Antony welcomed Athanasius, and indeed, became as it were,... Read more
Origen saw the cosmic significance of Jesus’ on the cross; he pointed out how Jesus, the Logos incarnate, revealed his work was universal by the way he stretched out his hands: The logos is about to say something, and I say that Christ sought God with the hands, on behalf of the whole cosmos, stretching them on the wood and making them fast so that, at that time, he would pray to him with stretching hands and when the whole... Read more
Christian should be concerned with and hope for the salvation of everyone, not just other Christians. Certainly, Christ offers salvific grace to those who believe in him. He expects believers to cooperate with that grace and follow after him for it to be fully activated. But, when they follow after him, they will listen carefully to what he said, and do as he told them to do. They would love him and prove that love through their actions. And what... Read more
Most of us love attention. We love showing off. We want others to look up to us, to praise us, as this makes us feel important. For this reason, we often speak on things we shouldn’t be speaking about. We want to appear to know everything, hoping if we do, others will look up to us and listen to our every opinion. We will try to fake it until we make it. Then, we believe our influence will increase, and... Read more
How many times do Republicans make it seem as if one of their desires, one of their points, is to embrace cruelty, instead of being merciful and trying to deal with difficult situations with compassion? It is possible, and probable, many of them are seriously incompetent, and do not understand the ramifications of the laws which they try to establish, but not all of them can be so incompetent. Some must understand what they are doing, because there is no... Read more
Those who have never succumbed to a particular vice or sin can be naïve and assume everyone else like them. They will ignore signs of people being attached to or addicted to that vice, thinking very few, if any, really are, as St. Gregory the Theologian once noted: “For someone free of vice is slower to suspect vice…”. [1] The more corrupt someone is, the more attached they are to sin, especially grievous sins, the more likely they will assume... Read more
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
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