Blessing assured![T]here are days when, out of fatigue or illness, we cannot do everything the way we should. It is bad when duties are completely neglected because the enemy gains ground and conquers our heart. In such cases, we must do something, even if it is the least possible, like the good soldiers who when they are not able to mount an offensive, fire a few shots from their trench, thereby keeping the enemy at bay. Later on, when they... Read more

Should the Orthodox church be in dialogue with the Roman Catholic one? Yes. Will we reunite? It would take a miracle. By Fr. Patrick Reardon For example, it should be obvious that the Roman papacy is the major obstacle to our reunion. Make no mistake–we Orthodox do not miss the papacy, not in the least, because we never had it. Not for a minute did the pope of Rome ever exercise over the church of the East the level of... Read more

From the St Paul “Pioneer Press” … by Kay HarveyIn state for award, he blesses faithful at local church The excited congregation of St. George Antiochian Orthodox Christian Church in West St. Paul filled the pews Saturday to greet and pray with one of the highest-ranking leaders of Eastern Orthodox Christianity. A long stream of men, women and children moved through a receiving line to kiss the hand of Ignatius IV, the patriarch of Antioch, and receive his blessing during... Read more

Mrs Allen was my 8th grade science teacher. She often let it be known that she did not believe in God. She also taught Evolution. Perhaps these two facts have tainted me. That is, I’ve always believed in God and, barring some days of college-fog, have always disbelieved in Evolution. Ol’ Mrs Allen done made a Creationist outta me. Recently, 30 years later, I blogged some questions about Evolution that today’s students are asking in science classes. I knew this... Read more

No, this is not another Evolution post. I take that back. In a way it is. I’ve subscribed to AOL, dial-up even, for 10 years. I shall pause momentarily while some of you chuckle, poke others’ ribs, and smirk, pointing at the screen. [Roll snicker sound effects.] Okay. I’m ready to “evolve”. For years I’ve threatened to do this. Every time I sign on to AOL, I sigh. I’m accosted by images of people that do not interest me and... Read more

Thx: Touchstone Read more

Arrested last September when security police raided a church conference he was attending, the Assemblies of God lay pastor faces charges of apostasy from Islam and of proselytizing Muslims. Both “crimes” are punishable by death. Here’s the story. From the Touchstone folks, three blogs worth a look. Michael Jackson. I liked him when he was little, just a little older than me. But since then, I’ve always thought he was weird. He wanted us to think that. Well, you know... Read more

Part 1Part 2Part 3Part 4Part 5 “Nothing in Christianity is original. The pre-Christian God Mithras — called the Son of God and the Light of the World — was born on December 25, died, was buried in a rock tomb, and then resurrected in three days. By the way, December 25 is also the birthday of Osiris, Adonis and Dionysus. The newborn Krishna was presented with gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Even Christianity’s weekly holy day was stolen from the pagans”... Read more

by His Eminence, Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos [I’ve read his books, admire his work, met him, and consider myself a “fan”. But I honestly have no idea what His Eminence is trying to say in this article. Perhaps something got lost in translation?] The Orthodox Church is the Church of the Resurrection, because it gives prominence to Christ’s victory over death. Pascha is the overcoming of death, the passage of the Word to the human nous and not the diffusion... Read more

Nearly 30 years of teaching evolution in Kansas has taught Brad Williamson to expect resistance, but even this veteran of the trenches now has his work cut out for him when students raise their hands. That’s because critics of Charles Darwin’s theory of natural selection are equipping families with books, DVDs, and a list of “10 questions to ask your biology teacher.” What some students are asking their biology teachers Critics of evolution are supplying students with prepared questions on... Read more