Silence is the School of the Soul
First looking at St. Basil’s three hundred and something letters, I was afraid I would not find direction toward the spiritual life for quite some time. Well, I was wrong. In Letter II: Basil to Gregory, that is St. Gregory of Nyssa, a friend of his, I hit a key word that really sparked my […]
Homily on Fasting from St. John Chrysostom
Homily On Fastingby St. John Chrysostom Fasting is a medicine. But medicine, as beneficial as it is, becomes useless because of the inexperience of the user. He has to know the appropriate time that the medicine should be taken and the right amount of medicine and the condition of the body which is to take […]
Why Fast?
Our Lord began his ministry with a fast, and addressed fasting not with an indifference of saying “if you fast”; rather teaching his disciples with the words “when you fast . . . ” Matthew 6:16-18 16 Moreover when ye fast, be not, as the hypocrites, of a sad countenance: for they disfigure their faces, that […]
Great Lent & Fasting
The season of Great Lent is the time of preparation for the feast of the Resurrection of Christ. It is a time of renewed devotion: of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, repentance & renewal of our minds, hearts and deeds in conformity with Christ and His teachings, our return to the great commandments of loving God […]
Preparing for the Journey to Pascha!
Pre-Lent The paschal season of the Church is preceded by the season of Great Lent, which is itself preceded by its own liturgical preparation. The first sign of the approach of Great Lent comes five Sundays before its beginning. On this Sunday the Gospel reading is about Zacchaeus the tax-collector. It tells how Christ brought […]