Crumbs of Bread
http://www.ancientfaith.com/podcasts/parables/crumbs_of_bread
A few days ago we shared a simple supper with Fr Zacharias from the monastery of St John the Baptist in Essex and we welcomed him at the Lived Theology School house whi…
D. Coptic Writings of the Fathers (CW):
CW1. St. Acacius of Constantinople.
CW2. St. Acacius of Caesarea.
CW3. St. Agathon of Alexandria.
CW4. St. Agathonicus of Tarsus.
CW5. St. Alexander of Alexandria.
CW6. St. Amphilochius of Iconium.
CW7. St. An…
TREASURES OF THE COPTIC CHURCH
I. Coptic Collection (preliminary list):
A. Coptic Bible Series (CB)
B. Coptic History (CH)
C. Coptic Haiography (CS):
D. Coptic Writings of the Fathers (CW)
E. Coptic Rites (CR)
F. Coptic Canon Law (CL)
G. Coptic Mis…
Obviously, the primary intent of these promises was faithfulness in all circumstances over the course of an entire lifetime. The laws that surrounded marriage existed to enforce this promise and sought to make it difficult to do otherwise.
Divorce …
Marriage as a Lifetime of Suffering
http://blogs.ancientfaith.com/glory2godforallthings/2015/05/05/marriage-as-a-lifetime-of-suffering/
"When couples come to ministers to talk about their marriage ceremonies, ministers think it’s interesting to as…
"Making the Liturgy more "relatable" is the opposite direction one should take in presenting the Church to your child. Holiness speaks to a separation from the things of this world that distract us from God. Using cultural distractions to encourage…
@Tobit here's an article that also asks the question about Sunday School:
Orthodox Catechism and Teaching Children
http://www.pravmir.com/orthodox-catechism-teaching-children/
Archimandrite Vassilios Papavassiliou | 25 June 2014
An Address at a C…
@Tobit the article also seems to point towards the focus on activities as the main focus instead of beauty and worship as locus of theology.
“When theology is false, then Christianity is reduced to activities.”
- Fr. John S. Romanides
"Nowadays, …
Given that our Coptic Orthodox Church is often associated with the Sunday School movement (which was surely needed at the time when education was at an all time low), could it be possible that certain trends toward reductionism, traditionalist rigor…
Here are some interesting observations about language from canadox:
http://www.canadox.ca/?p=33
Even if the Liturgy is completely in English, if the culture of the parish is Egyptian, many will feel like aliens there and will not remain. I'm sorry…
Also on the theme is this quote from Liturgy and Life:
"...although the need for Christian education is generally accepted in principle, the same cannot be said as far as the forms and methods of Christian education are concerned. We must frankly s…
Now that the crisis in Orthodox Sunday schools has been brought forward, here are three ways we can improve the quality of learning in parishes.
English is Essential: The complete use of English is essential for a healthy Church life in America. …
Have any of you seen this blog?
http://www.canadox.ca/
Canadox is one of the most thoughtful and researched Contemporary Coptic Orthodox blogs I've seen. Each post reads like a chapter in a book and the questions raised are so pressing (and relevan…
Here's an example from Dr Albert Rossi:
Another really personal example is that my daughter Beth met a young man at the college that they both went to, really fine fellow, I dearly love him, Roman Catholic. And she began to date him and fell in lo…
I'm familiar with the Greek Orthodox Church, and I know that they automatically excommunicate a person who marries anyone who isn't Greek Orthodox.
Hi Mike not sure if that is the case. I thought that Orthodox who marry non-Orthodox Christians w…
I've heard that some EO Churches just sing the Resurrection Tropars. They're repetitive but also done beautifully, so I wonder if there's an exception to intricate theological poetry when beauty is communicating the theology (when it's done, how it'…
The above post is part two of this one:
...there is a much bigger enemy that accounts for the across-the-board decline in religious belief and church attendance.
This enemy accounts for the fact that while most Americans still believe in a God and…
A proposition for evangelism.
- By Fr. Jonathan Tobias
Real conversion to real Christianity starts with the awareness that God is not only real, but He is Love (and thus Trinitarian).
And as He is Love, His culture is Peace.Thus, His Church must …
For the impact of beauty on mission here's an article by Fr David:
Is Orthodox Evangelism is different?
by Fr David Moser
The first and most important thing to remember is that we do not bring anyone into the Church - its not our job. We do no…
Here's one on a recent Saint:
Evangelism - Elder-style
http://orthodoxpathway.blogspot.com/2010/09/evangelism-elder-style.html
I came across the following on the excellent blog 'Pithless thoughts' written by Steve Robinson whom some will remme…
Here's an interesting newspaper article by FrDn Joseph Gleason:
http://theorthodoxlife.wordpress.com/2014/04/04/parenting-is-more-important-than-evangelism/
----
Parenting is More Important than Evangelism
// The Orthodox Life
This article wa…
“And if the world is more tired than ever before of religion’s discourse and if the words do not move anyone, then we have a situation worse than that of the tower of Babel. It is not so much a confusion of languages but utter chaos at the very hear…
Where the gospel is effectively preached, the heart is speaking, and the speaker is listening to hear the sound of the heart’s own door opening. Saint Paisios famously offered this observation:
Often we see a person and we say a couple spiritual wo…