Christianity

To Become Like God We Must Have Knowledge of Him

To Become Like God We Must Have Knowledge of Him - St. Basil by St. Basil the Great –
Those who are idle in the pursuit of righteousness count theological terminology as secondary, together with attempts to search out the hidden meaning in this phrase or that syllable, but those conscious of our calling realize that we are to become like God, so far as this is possible for human nature.

But we cannot become like God unless we have knowledge of Him, and without lessons there will be no knowledge. Instruction begins with the proper use of speech, and syllables and words are the elements of speech. Therefore to scrutinize syllables is not a superfluous task. [Read more…]

Happy Are They Who Practice Righteousness

Happy Are They Who Practice Righteousnessby Pope John Pall II (1999) –
The Psalmist refers thus to those who follow the path of the commandments and keep them to the end (cf. Ps 119:32-33). Keeping the divine law, in fact, is the basis for obtaining the gift of eternal life, that is, the happiness that never ends.

To the question of the rich young man, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?” (Mt 19:16), Jesus responds: “If you would enter life, keep the commandments” (Mt 19:17). This response by Jesus is particularly important in our modern reality, in which many people live as though there were no God.

The temptation to organize the world and one’s own life without God or even in opposition to God, without his commandments and without the Gospel, is a very real temptation and threatens us too. When human life and the world are built without God, they will eventually turn against man himself. [Read more…]

Speak the Truth and Carry Your Cross Toward the Kingdom of Heaven

by Chris Banescu –
“Pick up the cross of your tragedy and betrayal. Accept its terrible weight. Hoist it onto your shoulders and struggle impossibly upward toward the Kingdom of God on the hill. The alternative is Death and Hell.” ~ Jordan Peterson

This wisdom from Jordan Peterson is as close to an Orthodox understanding of what it means to be a Christian as you can get from a non-Orthodox Christian. He speaks the truth and honors the Truth. He helps people understand fundamental principles. A lot of his teaching is grounded in Scriptures. “If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it” (Matthew 16:24-25).

I believe that Peterson is an authentic follower of Christ and a trustworthy messenger, even though he himself does not seem to see it or is not willing to admit it. It’s not “flesh and blood” or earthly (godless) knowledge that have revealed these truths to him. It’s evident that the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth, Who proceeds from the Father, co-eternal with Christ (the Logos), illumines his teaching. This is why his words have authority and power. This is why he gives people genuine hope. [Read more…]

Why do the Righteous Suffer? God’s Answer is a Question

Why do the Righteous Suffer? God Answer is a Questionby Chris Banescu –

In his book, Making Sense Out of Suffering, Peter Kreeft offers us a partial explanation of the mystery of why righteous men are afflicted by seemingly random and unjust suffering and many trials and tribulations in this life. He points us to the Scriptures, specifically the Book of Job, and the lessons we can learn from the suffering of the righteous Job and God’s answer to Job. “Who do you think you are, anyway? By what right do you unquestioningly assume that you can know the answer to this question? Are you in a position to answer it? Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?”, the author paraphrases God’s response to the long-suffering Job.

Kreeft explains that for many of us, the suffering we experience in this life will remain a mystery. While sometimes we may grasp the reason “why” we endure afflictions or God allows us a glimpse into the purpose behind our tribulations, most often we cannot know. To truly understand why we suffer would mean to know the mind of an infinite, omniscient, and omnipotent God. And that’s impossible. [Read more…]

Entire Church is Engaged in the Battle Against Evil

St. Stephen the Great Battle of Baiaby Chris Banescu –
In his reflection on the Lord’s Prayer, Orthodox Christian theologian Olivier Clément reminds us that all Christians, especially Orthodox Christians, must fight against evil and the powers of darkness that assault us individually and the world we live in. This spiritual and physical warfare goes on continually and no baptized Christian should avoid or ignore it.

Clément points out that this internal and external battle against the “Evil One” (meaning Satan and all the fallen angels) must be fought both internally and externally by all Christians, including monastics, clergy, and lay men and women alike. He calls on Christians to struggle against the evil inside us and also to fight against the evil surrounding us, in our society and culture, that’s constantly being fueled by demonic forces driven by Satan whom the Scriptures identify as the “Lord of death.” [Read more…]