One Pilgrim's Eastern Exploration
St. Cyril's Catechetical Lectures (Part IV) Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, etc. ---Colossians 2:8 With this passage, St. Cyril begins his instruction on proper doctrine for the catechumen. It seems this lecture is being framed as the opposite … Continue reading Catechetical Lectures: Points of Doctrine
May Was Crazy I feel like I owe you all an apology. You see, I love writing and I love exploring Orthodoxy. I also love sharing that exploration with all of you. But this past month has been crazy. Mothers' Day This year, Mothers' Day was going to be rather quiet. My mother was on … Continue reading What A Month!
A Review The second installment of The Orthodox West has been released. The film follows Fr. Patrick Cardine on a visit to the Benedictine Fellowship of St. Laurence, an American Orthodox monastery in the Western Rite. His visit is in part due to one of his parishioners moving to the area; as a dedicated priest, he … Continue reading Ladyminster
A Response to Jason Barker A recent op-ed in the New York Times, written by an associate professor of philosophy Jason Barker, gushes and waxes eloquent about Karl Marx, stating he was "right". There's a number of problems with the article and given that Western culture at large has bought into Marxism --- and that … Continue reading No, Marx Wasn’t Right
St. Cyril of Jerusalem's Catechetical Lectures (Part III) Or do you not know that all we who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Were buried therefore with Him by our baptism into death ---Romans 6:3-4 In part III of St. Cyril's catechetical lectures, he examines baptism. This is directed primarily at … Continue reading Catechetical Lectures: For the Remission of Sins
A Review The Orthodox Church is expressed almost entirely by the "Eastern Rite". There are some --- one percent according to this film --- that is of the "Western Rite". This film documents the stories of various Western Rite Orthodox believers and their path to the Western Rite. It also gives a brief overview of … Continue reading The Orthodox West
St. Cyril of Jerusalem's Catechetical Lectures (Part II) In continuing my reading through St. Cyril's catechetical lectures, part II begins the major "lesson plan" after the introductory material of part I. The subject matter for this lecture is rather self-explanatory so I won't waste much time and dive right in. On Repentance and Remission of … Continue reading Catechetical Lectures: Of Sin and the Grace of God
St. Cyril of Jerusalem’s Catechetical Lectures (Part I) In my continued efforts to work through the writings of the Church Fathers in relatively chronological order, I find myself providentially reading St. Cyril of Jerusalem (AD 313–386). Through my studies, I have come to the point where I am almost certain I wish to join the Orthodox … Continue reading Catechetical Lectures: A Call to Repentance, A Call to Learn
I’ve come to a realization. When I started looking into Orthodoxy, I did so as a Reformed Christian following proudly in the tradition of Calvin, Luther, Whitefield, Warfield, Spurgeon, Machen, and many others. Years ago I had a desire to be the next big thing in the world of Reformed Polemics (I even had a … Continue reading It’s Time
Cyprian of Carthage Slightly Confuses Me The latest Father I read was St. Cyprian of Carthage. I enjoyed reading his works. As always, here are my thoughts: Unity Once again, a central theme of Cyprian’s writings, as it has been with every previous author, is that of unity within the Church. So much does he focus … Continue reading Much Brings Salvation, But Only The Church Does