by St. Ignatius Brianchaninov –
The sons of the world consider distraction to be innocent, but the Holy Fathers consider it to be the beginning of all evil (Sayings of the Desert Fathers, “On St Pimen the Great”). [Read more…]
Philosophy
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…]
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 would like to believe that Peterson is a sincere 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 some of Peterson’s teaching. This is why his insights have authority. This is why he gives people genuine hope. [Read more…]
Socialism: Philosophy of Failure, Creed of Ignorance, Gospel of Envy
“Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy, its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery.” ~ Winston Churchill [Read more…]
Speak Out Against Evil and Reproach Evildoers To Preserve Justice
“In keeping silent about evil, in burying it so deep within us that no sign of it appears on the surface, we are implanting it, and it will rise up a thousand fold in the future.
When we neither punish nor reproach evildoers, we are not simply protecting their trivial old age, we are thereby ripping the foundations of justice from beneath new generations.” ~ Aleksandr I. Solzhenitsyn
What Are We to Make of Jesus Christ?
by C.S. Lewis –
There is no question of what we can make of Him; it is entirely a question of what He intends to make of us.
“What are we to make of Jesus Christ?” This is a question, which has, in a sense, a frantically comic side. For the real question is not what are we to make of Christ, but what is He to make of us? The picture of a fly sitting deciding what it is going to make of an elephant has comic elements about it. But perhaps the questioner meant what are we to make of Him in the sense of “How are we to solve the historical problem set us by the recorded sayings and acts of this Man?”
This problem is to reconcile two things. On the one hand you have got the almost generally admitted depth and sanity of His moral teaching, which is not very seriously questioned, even by those who are opposed to Christianity. In fact, I find when I am arguing with very anti-God people that they rather make a point of saying, “I am entirely in favour of the moral teaching of Christianity” — and there seems to be a general agreement that in the teaching of this Man and of His immediate followers, moral truth is exhibited at its purest and best. [Read more…]
The Parable of the Atheist and the Globe
by Elizabeth Banescu –
An atheist professor was on vacation exploring a town. He walked inside an Orthodox church and heard the priest teaching a Sunday class. The priest was explaining to the children how God created the whole universe, the solar system, and the earth.
The professor listened and when the class was over, approached the priest. “Father,” he began. “You still believe those children’s fairytales about some imaginary “god” who created the world and rules over everything in it?” The priest looked up from his notes. “Well, yes, of course we do. It’s certainly not a child’s tale,” he replied. The atheist smirked, “I thought so.” He then turned to leave.
But, as he was walking away something caught his eye. There on top of the pew, he saw the most beautiful globe. It had an intricate stand of silver, with oceans of blue stone, and the different continents and countries were fashioned out of various colorful gem stones. A ray of sunshine streaming through the window made the globe sparkle. It was magnificently crafted, thought the professor.
“Father,” the atheist gasped. “Who made this beautiful globe?” [Read more…]