“There is no neutral ground in the universe. Every square inch, every split second is claimed by God, and counterclaimed by Satan.” ~ C.S. Lewis
Theology
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…]
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…]
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…]
The Orthodox Church: Fighting Heresies and Resisting Worldly Errors
G. K. Chesterton points out the glorious sanity and vigorous life that has existed in the Christian Church since Her founding. While Chesterton doesn’t specifically mention the Orthodox Church I found his comments most appropriate for the Sunday of Orthodoxy we just celebrated. “This is the Faith of the Apostles, this is the Faith of the Fathers, this is the Faith of the Orthodox, this is the Faith which has established the Universe.” ~ Confession of faith from the Day of Orthodoxy
“This is the thrilling romance of Orthodoxy. People have fallen into a foolish habit of speaking of orthodoxy as something heavy, humdrum, and safe. There never was anything so perilous or so exciting as orthodoxy. It was sanity: and to be sane is more dramatic than to be mad. It was the equilibrium of a man behind madly rushing horses, seeming to stoop this way and to sway that, yet in every attitude having the grace of statuary and the accuracy of arithmetic. [Read more…]
The Orthodox Church: Fierce Defender of Theological Truths and Sound Christian Doctrines
The masterful and wisdom-filled writings of G. K. Chesterton remind us why the Christian Church cannot afford to swerve even “a hair’s breadth” on important theological truths. While not written with regards to the Orthodox Church specifically, his insights also describe how the Orthodox Church has continually fought to defend the Truth and the Christian faith as taught by Jesus Christ, embodied in the Scriptures, preached by the Apostles, attested by the Martyrs, reflected in the writings of the Saints, and expounded by the Fathers.
Chesterton writes:
“Last and most important, it is exactly this which explains what is so inexplicable to all the modern critics of the history of Christianity. I mean the monstrous wars about small points of theology, the earthquakes of emotion about a gesture or a word. [Read more…]
Living Among Immortals – C.S. Lewis
by Chris Banescu –
“There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal.” ~ C.S. Lewis
In his The Weight of Glory sermon C.S. Lewis reminds us that God originally created men and women as immortal beings. While our sin and rebellion has temporarily alienated us from God, resulting in the death of our physical bodies, our souls do not die. Past death, our souls live on waiting for the Second Coming of Christ and the restoration of our full humanity; when our renewed and transformed bodies will be once again in full union and symbiosis with our souls.
Lewis masterfully pulls aside the veil of worldly cares and materialist presumptions. He reveals the godly and eternal dimension of our existence with the wisdom and insight that only a messenger of the Lord could possess. “It is a serious thing to live in a society of possible gods and goddesses to remember that the dullest and most uninteresting person you may talk to may one day be a creature which, if you saw it now, you would be strongly tempted to worship, or else a horror and corruption such as you now meet if at all only in a nightmare.”
This timeless truth is important because it draws attention to how precious and special human life truly is. Nothing in this world compares with the value of human life. “There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal. Nations, cultures, arts, civilizations – these are mortal, and their life is to ours as the life of a gnat. But it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit – immortal horrors or everlasting splendours,” proclaims Lewis. [Read more…]