Dormition
Philippians 2:5-11
2015-08-30
SYNOPSIS:Philippians 2:5-11 is read on feasts of the Theotokos. We ask why. This is one of the most important Christological passages in the Scripture. We do an exegesis of it, emphasizing two points. 1. We must continually be changing and renewing our mind. How is this done? This is a skill that all Christians must learn, or else they are not really Christians. 2. All theology, all dogma is moral. That is, if your knowledge does not directly affect the way you live, and continually change the way you live, it is useless for the salvation of your soul.

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All of our sermons about Deasts of the Theotokos:

Annunciation
A Homily By Saint Proclus

Entry Of The Theotokos
By Saint Gregory Palamas
Also in Format: Word DOC

Nativity Of The Theotokos
A Homily By Saint Andrew Of Crete

Nativity of the Theotokos, Sep 8/21
"Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus"
Philippians 2:5-11
2008-09-21
Also in Format: Word DOC or mp3
SYNOPSIS:Before the homily, a little bit about those special "moments of clarity" and what we should expect each time in the holy services. The homily addresses the Epistle reading, where the Apostle tells us: "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus." This is the totality of the Gospel, just as the two great commandments are the totality of the law. If we fulfilled this command, we would never sin! Let us explore how to attain this "mind". Everything we do or think of doing should be evaluated in the light of this command.

Dormition
Explanation Of The Dormition Troparion
2009-08-28
Also in Format: Word DOC or mp3 You can watch this sermon on the following video platforms: YouTube, Yahoo, MySpace, Metacafe, DailyMotion, Blip.tv and Veoh
SYNOPSIS:We can learn what the church values most about the Theotokos from the Dormition Troparion: In giving birth thou didst preserve thy virginity, / in thy dormition thou didst not forsake the world, O Theotokos. / Thou wast translated unto life, / thou who art the Mother of Life. // And by thine intercessions dost thou redeem our souls from death

Luke 10:38-42: 11:27-28
2010-12-04
Also in Format: Word DOC or mp3
SYNOPSIS:The Entry of the Theotokos is one of the "great forgotten feasts" in the church calendar, even though it is one of the "12 great feasts". There are good reasons for this - this feast is especially about holiness, humility and submission, which our modern egalitarian world does not understand. The Theotokos is holy because she chose to be holy, of her own free will. We do not denigrate her by thinking that God in any way made her holy by making her different in some way from the rest of humanity. The Gospel reading for this feast (and all feasts of the Theotokos) is explained in detail. It is a peculiar reading, because the Mary in the reading is not the Theotokos, and it is also a concatenation of two sections of Scripture that are not related in time to each other, but it describes fully the virtue of the Theotokos, which we must emulate. Let us be in awe of the holiness of the Theotokos and all the Saints, and see our destiny in them. Let us explore holiness in this arrogant and egalitarian age.

Dormition of the Most Holy Theotokos
"Mary hath chosen that good part" and "blessed are they that hear the word of God and keep it."
Luke 10:38-42,11:27-28
2011-08-28
SYNOPSIS:The usual reading for feasts of the Mother of God is actually a composite reading in which she does not appear at all, but another "Mary" (the sister of Lazarus) is mentioned, who shares her name. The reason why is because this selection, coupled with a later part of the same Gospel succinctly sums up the virtues of the Theotokos: "Mary hath chosen that good part" and "blessed are they that hear the word of God and keep it." On this great day, let us examine ourselves, as to whether we have also chosen that good part, and kept the word of God. This is why we venerate the Most Holy Theotokos with such love; our veneration is in vain if we do not also emulate! Let us examine how we can accomplish this.

Dormition
2012-08-28
SYNOPSIS:A homily/talk with the children about Dormition.

Meeting of the Lord
2014-02-15

Dormition
2014-08-288
SYNOPSIS:We venerate the Theotokos because of her great, voluntary holiness. Many people are not comfortable with this level of holiness. Many others, who read the Scripture without deep understanding, or think in secular ways, do not believe that the Theotokos was virgin before, during and after giving birth. The unanimous witness of the church on this dogma is clear to those who know such things scholastically, and our God-inspired services mention it often and scripture speaks of it in a type shrouded, and mystical way. There is however, one clear witness to her virginity that is not in books, but is in the heart, if it experiences even a little bit of holiness. We discuss this important witness, and also ways to learn of it.

Nativity of the Theotokos
Genesis 28:10-17 Ezekiel 43:27-44:4 Proverbs 9:1-11
2014-09-20
SYNOPSIS:Nativity of the Theotokos: Exegesis of the Old Testament Readings for the Feast. We learn about the ladder reaching from earth to heaven, the ever-virginity of the Theotokos which was prophesied, and about the house which wisdom hath builded for herself.

Nativity of the Theotokos
The Jesus Prayer
Philippians 2:5-11
2014-09-21
SYNOPSIS:The epistle for feasts of the Theotokos is from Philippians, and contains this theologically rich command: "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus." Paul brackets this command with an explanation of the moral life we are to lead, and the theological significance of the incarnation. All this is good to know, but the most important thing to learn is how do we develop this mind in Christ Jesus. On the Nativity of the Mother of God, we contemplate the example of the Theotokos, who developed this mind. We look at how she did it, and give the most important practical advice that we MUST follow if we are to develop this mind.

Luke 10:38-42:11:27-28
2014-12-04
Also on the Ancient Faith Radio Audio Blog "Redeeming the Time" playable here or downloadable here
SYNOPSIS:The typical reading at liturgy for feasts of the Theotokos us a curious composite selection of two events that did not occur in close proximity to one-another. This fact must mean that the selection is teaching us something important about the Theotokos. We discuss the reading, which beings with the story of Mary and Martha, and the complaints of Martha and the answer of Jesus, then segues to the cry of a woman in the crowd, and the answer of Jesus (usually not translated correctly): "Yea indeed, blessed are they that hear the word of God, and keep it." We discuss why the Theotokos is so-called, and why we say "Most Holy Theotokos save us." It is all about the incarnation, and obedience, and the striving for holiness. We also discuss why veneration of the Theotokos is very important in our increasingly impure society.

Dormition
Philippians 2:5-11
2015-08-30
SYNOPSIS:Philippians 2:5-11 is read on feasts of the Theotokos. We ask why. This is one of the most important Christological passages in the Scripture. We do an exegesis of it, emphasizing two points. 1. We must continually be changing and renewing our mind. How is this done? This is a skill that all Christians must learn, or else they are not really Christians. 2. All theology, all dogma is moral. That is, if your knowledge does not directly affect the way you live, and continually change the way you live, it is useless for the salvation of your soul.

Dormition
Luke 1:39-49,56
2015
SYNOPSIS:We ask on the feast of Dormition, what is the purpose of this feast. This is a general question, and not about the theology of the feast and the historical event. It deserves a spiritual answer. Why do we come to church today? We have just finished reading the selection from the Gospel of Luke, about Mary Going into the Hill country and greeting Elizabeth, 14 days in a row, since it is part of the Paraclesis service (Service of supplication, when the supplicatory canon to the Theotokos is swung in sweet melody; we serve it every day during the Dormition fast). We also read it during matins for the feast, as we do for all the feasts of the Mother of God. It tells us of a holy moment, which should be our ultimate goal. Let us meditate for a little while in wonder, mixed with desire and regret, on the important words from Luke: "And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit".