Happy All Saint’s Day!! Yes, you heard me correctly “Happy” All Saint’s Day. Today is a what is considered by the church as a principal feast day. All Saint’s is one of seven great feasts and is also one of the preferred days to baptize new members into the church. Yesterday, All Hallow’s Eve (or […]

It is tradition to preach the Paschal or Easter sermon of John Chrysostom at the Easter Vigil. This custom was begun in the very early years of the church and maintained in the Orthodox tradition. That makes since as Chrysostom was the Archbishop of Constantinople which would retain its orthodoxy after the schism with the […]

The work of death—that’s what many of us think Good Friday is.  It is the day Jesus died, the day that death seemed to have claimed victory, the day the tomb is sealed and all of our hopes seemed doomed.  It is a day of doubt and darkness.  Death enters in this day and that […]

I wonder what love really looks like?  So often I think we are drawn to the idea that love looks like a touch or a gift or a hug—an outward expression of affection.  But unless that outward expression is driven from an internal recognition and desire that love is about setting aside one’s self for […]

On this mountain the LORD of hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food…  In reading these words from Isaiah and thinking about our friend Sam, I couldn’t help but think about all the food that Sam has provided to this congregation and others over the years.  Sunday morning breakfast, Thursday morning […]

It is hard to walk the path of another’s death.  And Gail was never alone—Charlie and Sam and Carol and Bill and Joe and James as well as countless friends and prayers accompanied her these last few years and didn’t leave her side these past few days on the earthly portion of her journey.  And […]