“Parable” of the healing of the blind man of Bethsaida. I see men as trees.

Today’s Gospel reading is much like a parable. It is a factual recounting of the healing of the blind man at Bethsaida, and is one of the shortest recountings of a healing in the Gospels, but it has a very important and rare detail – and this detail makes it also a type of parable for us.

The blind man was healed by degrees, and not all at once, as in almost every other healing of Jesus. The first, partial healing, was that a man who formerly could not see anything could now “see men as trees, walking” – that is – he could see poorly, fuzzily. After Jesus put his hands again on him and made him look up … he could see clearly.

This can be thought of as a “parable” describing all spiritual healing. ….

He Who is became what He is not, so we are not can become like Him

I am at the 6th annual Winter retreat at St George Orthodox Church in Pharr Texas.  Of course, most of the people here have celebrated Nativity, but Matushka Elizabeth always takes care of me with no fuss. As part of the presentation by Fr Evangelos Pepps, he sang in the Byzantine tone "Joseph was amazed",… Continue reading He Who is became what He is not, so we are not can become like Him

Sermon by Bishop Peter on our feastday.

Bishop Peter visitied our parish for our feastday (St Nicholas) this year. His sermon during the liturgy is short and excellent. We caught most of it on video. He talks about intimacy with God and how it is obtained in the Christian life.

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Categorized as Homilies

Holy Apostle Andrew the first called. Questions and answers.

Today, Nov 29/ Dec 12. we celebrate the Holy Apostle Andrew. Besides taking the opportunity to eat fish during the Nativity Fast, due to St Andrew’s feast. it would be good to learn a few things about this holy Apostle. The followiong are some simple things about St Andrew, in a Q&A format.

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Categorized as 10 things

The Reason for the Season, by Fr David Moser

This excellent homily by Fr David Moser explains the "reason for the season" is fully laid out by the scripture read today. First of all, "Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners". The reason and effect of the incarnation is succinctly explained, including how the Lord calls to each one of us, and an example of its effect is given – the woman with the infirmity of 18 years, in which her physical infirmity is like the infirmity of the soul – bent over because of sin – and the only solution to this infirmity is the incarnation of the God-man, Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners. What is sin. Audio Homily 2010

The epistle read today succinctly sums up the reason for the incarnation of the God-man: “Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners”. To understand this, we must understand what sin is. Most have a great misconception about sin and only think that is is something that offends Almighty God, and do not understand that the reason God is offended is because all sin darkens us, and makes us “bent over”, unable to see God and know Him. The effect of sin is well shown by the woman with the infirmity of 18 years. Lets us explore what sin does to us, and the only solution to our terrible predicament.

All dogs do not go to heaven but most dogs have some heaven in them. Sasha

It looks like my dear friend Sasha is in her last days….

I do not have any illusions about dogs. I don’t have any patience for all that new age stuff. They do not go to heaven, and they are not angels. They have a soul, as all animals do, but their soul is not eternal. When they die, they pass out of existence, but while they live, the exceptional ones are a great gift from our creator, and Sasha has been so good to me so many times, than I have thought of her as a kind of “guardian angel”. …

A text that Elder Porphyrios loved. By St Symeon the New Theologion.

We should look upon all the faithful as one person and consider that Christ is in each one of them

By St Symeon the New Theologion
A text that Elder Porphyrios loved.

Icon of Elder Porphyrios http://www.orthodox.net/ikons/porphyrios-elder-02.jpg, originally from http://cyberdesert.wordpress.com/2008/11/28/elder-porphyrios/

Elder Porphyrios persistently taught that our love for our fellow man should be such that we look upon them as we look upon ourselves. At one time he had asked one of his spiritual children to photocopy the following article of St. Symeon, the New Theologian, which was handed out to his visitors. …