The Cross Exalted!
"Until you have eradicated the evils in your heart, do not obey it, because the heart seeks to increase what it already has stored inside." St Mark the Ascetic, On the Spiritual Law We prideful humans can't understand the power of this wisdom without the "foolishness" of the Cross of...
Tempted to Give Up!
Ever thought about giving up? Yeah, I know. What time is it? I confess to struggling with this temptation all the time. And the temptation to give up seems to come in all sorts of shapes and sizes; from small things to big things. Plus, it seems we live...
The Cross as Cure For Spiritual Illness
The wonderful reality is that the parallel between physical health and spiritual health is very significant. If exercise is good to make you physically healthy then spiritual exercise is absolutely necessary for your spiritual health. If what you eat affects your physical health then what you spiritually consume affects...
I Have Been a Fool
Steve Jobs said ” Be a yardstick of quality. Some people aren't used to an environment where excellence is expected.” So true. Most of us are far too comfortable with mediocrity or “that’s good enough.” Because of this, we get a life that never is pressed to discover its...
Nothing Is Hid – The Light Reveals All
I had just bought a new flashlight for youth camp. It was one of my first times serving at camp as a newly ordained priest and my cabin was a bit of a hike away from the center of the retreat center. I confess I was a bit nervous...
Lord, Don’t You Care?
It was painful to watch. He was spiraling down into the abyss of human fear and addiction, and he was my friend. I watched as he struggled but still stumbled and I heard the desperation in his voice when he called me and asked that most human and most...
Enslaved to Perpetual Immaturity – Sunday Homily
At War With Yourself
Growing up as a young man in the 1970s meant I heard some of the best music in the world! One song I remember that got the whole car singing along was the anthem “United we Stand” by the Brotherhood of Man. The chorus was “For united we stand,...
Authority to Tread on Serpents
An old American comic strip called Pogo made famous an old saying from the War of 1812: "We have met the Enemy and he is us!" We seem to thrive on keeping track of enemies, real and imagined. And by doing so, we think we are staying "safe." I always...
Speaking Truth to Power
It's been a mantra of those who speak out in societies facing the consequences of oppressed people. It first appeared in the pamphlet "Speak Truth to Power: A Quaker Search for an Alternative to Violence" in 1955. But it's actually an ancient Greek concept known as "παρρησια" which literally...