Reflections in Christ

I would like to share with you an easy technique for avoiding moral accountability.  Whenever you are caught and called to account for doing something wrong (that is, when you are “busted”), you simply invoke the figure…

The Parable of the Publican and the Pharisee confronts us with a stark contrast between religious pride and self-righteousness on the one hand, and heartfelt humility and repentance on the other hand. The pharisee…

Psalm 65

Blessed is he whom thou dost choose and bring near, to dwell in thy courts!

We shall be satisfied with the goodness of thy house,
thy holy temple!
(Psalm 65:4)

Psalm 64

Hear my voice, O God, in my prayer; preserve my life from fear of the enemy.
The righteous shall be glad in the Lord and trust in Him.
—Psalm 64(63):1,11 (LXX)

In the liturgical life of the Church, yesterday—Sunday, February 2, 2014—was called “The Sunday of Zacchaeus,” based on the narrative found in Luke 19:1-10.  This is the first “signal” or “echo” that the season of Great Lent is approaching – four weeks away from today to be exact.  (Great Lent…

With the possible literary exception of Tarzan, real men do not climb trees.  At least they didn’t in the Middle East in the time of Jesus.  Neither did they run.  Running was for children, professional messengers, and soldiers.  Adults who were neither professional runners nor soldiers did not…

Orthodox Christians believe that the New Testament Church and the Christian faith itself appeared at a particular point in history because the crucified Jesus of Nazareth was raised from the dead. The cause behind the emergence of the Church and…

Psalm 63

A Psalm of David, when he was in the Wilderness of Judah.

O God, Thou art my God, I seek Thee [LXX: I rise early at dawn for Thee],
my soul thirsts for Thee;
 my flesh faints,,,

• Synaxis of the Three Hierarchs: Saint Basil the Great, Saint Gregory the Theologian, Saint John Chrysostom

Psalm 62

For God alone my soul waits in silence;
from Him…

“Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of working, but it is the same God who inspires them all in every one” [1 Corinthians 12:4-6].