This series continues with an examination of the Scriptural tradition during the period of the kings of Israel.The Period of the KingsThis situation began to slowly change under the kings of Israel and Judah. There had always been...
We continue this series with an examination of the Scriptures in the Mosaic period.The Mosaic PeriodIt was with Moses that the first written records of God’s dealings with His people began to be written. But even then, the main gift was...
Some months ago it was arranged by the good people of the Russian Orthodox diocese of Souroz in Britain that I would give a talk at their diocesan conference at the end of this month entitled Unveiling the Scriptures. That plan came to...
Lately I was listening to Jann Arden’s poignant song Will You Remember Me? and it occurred to me that in one hundred years from now, no one would. In this I am, of course, hardly unique: in one hundred years from now, no one will...
I remember once hearing a light-hearted and self-deprecating bit of comedy from a country music station, in which the person repeatedly said, “You might be a red-neck if…” followed by a series of scenarios. For example, “You might be a...
I have just finished reading a very interesting book entitled Mixed Marriages by the Reverend Anthony Roeber, an Antiochian priest and Professor Emeritus of Early Modern History and Religious Studies at Penn State University. As one...
Buried away in the Book of Deuteronomy lies a poetic treasure and an exegetical puzzle. In Deuteronomy 32 we find the Song of Moses, an old Hebrew folk song written by Moses to warn succeeding generations about the dangers of apostasy....
Like many, I was more than a little surprised to see an American Orthodox archbishop of prominence suggest that inter-communion is a good idea—i.e. that an Orthodox priest should give Holy Communion to a non-Orthodox person. Admittedly...
Recently I was listening to some very old music—that of Barry McGuire. Barry McGuire is perhaps best known in popular culture from his 1965 hit Eve of Destruction, but I was listening to him sing with the (then) young trio The Second...
This Lent we have lost so much. I am reminded of images that I sometimes see on television of people returning to their homes after forced evacuation due to flood or fire and of them pawing through the ruins to discover how much of what...
The year 2020 will be remembered by Orthodox as the year without Pascha. At the beginning of the year, and even at the beginning of Great Lent, it hardly seemed possible. I remember the second Sunday of Great Lent here at St. Herman’s....
It is a sad fact that historically many countries in which Orthodoxy has become well established have had a lamentable record of anti-Semitism. Anti-Semitism, like all forms of hatred, is of course demonic, and no one whose heart is...
National disasters and times of war seem to bring out the crazy in all of us, and the present Covid crisis is proving to be no exception. One finds some people suggesting that it is all a conspiracy and that no such virus actually...
After Israel was brought out of Egypt and as they journeyed to the foot of Mount Sinai, they faced a multitude of dangers in the howling wilderness. They faced the threat of starvation as they slowly trudged southward through the west...
I have just received by email a very nice brochure from the Canadian Council of Churches entitled, Hope, Gratitude, and Solidarity: a Message from Religious Leaders in Canada in Response to the Covid-19 Pandemic. It is well-produced,...
