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Pastoral Reflections

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How We Face the Future Without Fear? Together!

In the midst of these angst-filled days of the world, our society is filled with fear. Fear about the future. Fear about those who don’t see the world as we do. Fear of the strangers. Fear of the foreigner and immigrant. Fear of those who seem so different. Fear of the extremists, whether right-wing or left-wing. Fear of our former friends who have now become our enemies because of the pandemic or politics or other social issues. Continue Reading »

Noticing Our Neighbor

“During my second year of nursing school,” a student described, “Our professor gave us a pop quiz. I was a conscientious student and had breezed through the questions until I read the last one: “What is the first name of the woman who every morning is cleaning the building?" Surely this was some kind of joke.  I had seen the cleaning woman several times. She was a tall, dark-haired, Hispanic woman, but how would I know her name? Continue Reading »

The Demon of Laziness

What demons do you struggle with in your life? Let’s each think about this. Maybe you’ve never thought about them as demons, but what habits, temptations, inclinations, struggles and addictive behaviors have tried to direct and even control your life? We all have certain “demons” with which we wrestle! And if we aren’t careful, these demons can subtly lead us away from God and sometimes even take over our lives! Continue Reading »

How Open Are We to Encountering God?

How many of us can say we have ever seen God? Or could any say we have encountered God’s presence in some special way in our lives? We read about miracles in the Bible, and throughout Church history, and yet, some people will say, “Why don’t those things happen today?” Or if someone says, “Yes, God does act in the world today” there will be plenty of skeptics who doubt, question, and outright reject such claims of faith. Continue Reading »

The Golden Rule

“Do unto others what you want them to do unto you.” The Golden Rule. Jesus basically said this rule summarizes the law and the prophets. Here is the spirit of our Orthodox Christian faith. Treating others the way we want to be treated. Continue Reading »

Seven Steps to Christ

How do we find ultimate meaning and peace in our busy, and often confusing lives? Jesus Christ and His Church promise all believers a new and abundant life of unconditional love, unquenchable joy and deep peace. Continue Reading »

Christ Lives in Me

In today’s epistle reading from the Apostle Paul, we hear something enlightening. St Paul talks about himself and says, “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.” (Gal 1:20) Continue Reading »

Divine Love and September 11th

“Love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your heavenly Father.” The call to “love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” is one of the most radical teaching of Jesus Christ and His Church, and yet, it is a teaching upon which we need to reflect today more than ever. Continue Reading »

The Healing Aspect of Forgiveness

In today’s Gospel story, we get a glimpse of Peter wrestling with this topic of forgiveness. “How many times,” he asks Jesus, “do I have to forgive another? Seven times?” Continue Reading »

What and Who Influences Us?

What influences us most in our lives? Who are the people or figures who consciously or maybe unconsciously influence us? We all are surely influenced by a variety people, by certain ideologies, by contemporary movements or fads, by the things that surround us. There are societal influences, financial influences, political influences, cultural influences, and individual influences. Continue Reading »