God is full of love and mercy. Why, then, do we read about various threats which appear as if they come from God, such as those given to the people of Israel by the prophets, threats which seem to suggest God wants to punish people instead of showing them mercy? How can this be if God a God of love? It is all due to how we understand those threats; instead of seeing them as an indication that God is... Read more
In a world filled with violence and hate, division and injustices consistently dominate society. The more such hate is solidified, the more humanity ends up fighting against itself, hindering its full potential. What is good and true must be promoted, hatred must be resisted, and injustices must be rectified, if there is to be any future for humanity. While this is not exclusive to Christianity, Christianity certainly finds these concerns to be central to the way Christians are to engage... Read more
When we commemorate the first six ecumenical councils, councils which were focused especially on the doctrines of the Trinity and the incarnation, we often do so by talking about the “Fathers” of the six ecumenical Councils. This is how the day, as it is celebrated in the Byzantine tradition, is listed on the Byzantine calendar: “Fifth Sunday after Pentecost; Fathers of the first six Ecumenical Councils.” But we must not forget that along with the fathers, the clergy at the... Read more
I believe that those who take their Christian faith seriously, those who try to live it out, will let their faith change them; they will learn from what Christ teaches, and engage those teachings, trying to become better, wiser persons over time. There are many different way this will happen, depending upon the person, their abilities and interests, and the situations they find themselves living in. Those who have the time, ability, and resources to study and learn Christian doctrine... Read more
In a way, we can say life is suffering. This is not because life should be so filled with suffering that all we think about when we think about life is such suffering; rather, it is because suffering is all around us, and is something we will experience throughout our lives. Evil, both that which we do, and the evil which others do, creates the conditions for such suffering. “Evil is a world-wide fact; all natural life begins in violence... Read more
I have never understood those who object to environmental concerns by suggesting that those who are concerned about protecting the environment, those who want to be good stewards of the world we live in, are engaging some sort of idolatrous worship of the earth and so must be denounced by Christians. It is like claiming those who clean their homes, patch their roof when it gets hail damage, or paint the walls, are worshiping their homes. No one would claim... Read more
We are called to pray without ceasing, and in this way, we can and should have God and God’s presence with us in all that we do. If and when we find ourselves able to do this, and to be sure, it is something which most will not likely be able to do outside of the eschaton, we should not become prideful, thinking it makes us better than those who have not. We should be humble, not proud. Our pride... Read more
Sin creates confusion as it corrupts and divides up humanity, seeking to destroy (or deconstructing) it from within. Humanity was meant to act together and work as one interdependent whole, but the embrace of sin has brought about the embrace of the ego over and above humanity, so now humanity has been cut up, as it were, into are many “parts,” parts which fight against each other instead of seeing how everyone is best off if they seek after the... Read more
Why Every Reading Is Interpretation: The Hidden Process Every time we read a text, we are interpreting it. No matter what the text is, no matter how simple it seems it should be for us to understand what its author wants us to know, we still have to engage some sort of interpretive process to get that meaning. Often, we are unaware that the process is happening as it is automatic, making us think there is no interpretation going on.... Read more
When I was young, my primary understanding of the value of the prophets was in the way Christians believed they predicted the coming of the messiah. It was only much later, when I was in college, and then later in my graduate studies, that I gained a greater understanding of who they were and why their texts should be read and engaged. I saw how vital their work was and why it was a terrible disgrace that many Christians only... Read more
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