In Volume I, Doctrine of The Orthodox Faith four book series, Father Thomas Hopko provides a clear and thorough overview of the sources of Christian doctrines and the theology of the Orthodox Church. In the chapter titled “Man” Father Hopko explains how God created man in His “image and likeness” as male and female and gave them dominion over [Read more…]
Orthodox Church
Living Normal Lives in Troubled Times
by Chris Banescu –
After enduring two years of coronavirus disruptions and madness, we all hoped our lives would return to some semblance of normality. But thanks to Vladimir Putin’s terrible decision to invade Ukraine, the world may be at the brink of World War III. We just reached the end of one global life-changing crisis, only to face an even more ominous, potentially world-destroying, calamity.
How can we live normal lives when insanity spreads all around us? How should we conduct ourselves with potential Armageddon hanging over our heads? How do we preserve our humanity while the world descends into chaos and madness?
Similar questions were asked decades ago, when the arrival of atomic bombs changed the nature of war and forever altered the course of history. [Read more…]
To Become Like God We Must Have Knowledge of Him
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…]
Impossible for Holy Communion to Carry Germs or Diseases
by Archbishop Michael Konstantinides –
Consequently, not only is it not, nor could it ever be possible for Holy Communion to be a carrier of germs, but, on the contrary, it is by general rule the carrier of health and life and strength. [Read more…]
The Church Sanctifies the World, She Does Not Espouse Life of the World
“The purpose of the Church is to sanctify the world, to have the world enter the life of the Church, not to have the Church espouse the life of the world.” ~ Elder Athanasios Mitilianos
Entire Church is Engaged in the Battle Against Evil
by 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…]
Christian Martyrdom in Modern Age: Be Pious, Chaste, Moral, Faithful to God
by Chris Banescu –
“If you never chase God out of your house, your soul, and your heart, it is the last and greatest martyrdom.” ~ Fr. Calistrat Chifan
We often think of Christian martyrs as men and women who lived long ago and courageously gave up their lives in defense of their faith. We think of saints and disciples who were fed to the lions, tortured, maimed, burned alive, dismembered, or slaughtered for proclaiming Christ as Lord and Savior or refusing to renounce Christianity.
We also witness similar modern day martyrdom of Christians living in the Middle East, Africa, and China. Like their ancient brethren these innocents are persecuted, shot, decapitated, tortured, blown up, burned alive, and murdered for simply being Christian or daring to publicly proclaim the Gospel.
Few of us would think of modern Christians living in North America, South America, Europe, Russia, Australia, or other parts of the world, where there’s no widespread oppression or persecution of the faithful, as doing anything worthy of the title “martyr.” We have freedom and religious liberty to worship God as citizens or residents of secular democracies or constitutional republics, where Christianity is either protected (in Russia, Romania, and a few other Eastern European countries) or tolerated, at least for now (in other Western countries). [Read more…]