Enacting the Kingdom

Human beings are social beings.  We are meant to be in relationship with one another.  The counterfeit connections that we make in today's world don't meet those needs for true relationship, which means we need not be alone to feel lonely. What are these needs that aren't being met?  Where can we go to meet them? If you get value from listening to Enacting the Kingdom, please consider writing a sh...

"Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also".  Or to put it in modern terms: "Show me your bank account's monthly transaction list, and I'll tell you where your loyalties lie." Where have we spent our money?  Where have we spent our time?  The answers to these questions will speak volumes about where our heart is.  In this episode of the Liturgies of Life, Fr Geoffrey and Fr Yuri speak...

We must pay careful attention to the telos (the aim, or end purpose) of the rituals we participate in.  Nowadays it's common to pick and choose rituals that bring meaning to us, often without any connection to a complete tradition.  But we cannot have radical individualism and teleological purpose at the same time.  As Christians, we must have a good grip on what it is that we have given ourselves...

Our patterns of worship are more than just what happens on Sundays.  Our everyday rituals matter .  Is it the content or the action of a ritual which gives it meaning?  Would it be okay to replace the word "Father" in the Lord's prayer with anything else?  What makes Orthodox Liturgy different from other religious practices? In this episode, we welcome Jonathan Pageau, host of the Symbolic World b...

Welcome to the fifth season of Enacting the Kingdom!  During this season, we will explore the "Liturgies of Life", and consider the wider implications of our everyday rituals.  Social media, shopping, sports, you name it.  We explore how the mundane aspects of our daily existence become liturgies of life. A wise man (who happens to co-host this podcast!) once said, "We do in Liturgy what we are me...

Sunday is NOT the Sabbath. But why do so many Christians think that? And are we supposed to follow the rules of the Sabbath as Orthodox Christians? Join us as we chat with Dr Nicole Roccas about the Orthodox approach to observing the Sabbath! Dr. Nicole Roccas is a communications professional who has worked in both academic and nonprofit environments. She is also an adjunct faculty member at the O...

Playing Dungeons & Dragons is participating in a narrative about wizards, magic, and enchantment. Worshipping in the Divine Liturgy is participating in the story of God's salvation. Are these two stories at odds? Tune in as we're joined by special guest Fr Anthony Perkins in an exploration of the purpose of narrative in the lives of Orthodox Christians. In our fourth season, Fr Yuri and Fr Geo...

You can't just proof text the Fathers, can you?  Should the Church Fathers be read by anyone or just the experts?  Fr Geoffrey and Fr Yuri explore these questions and more with our special guest Dr Daniel Opperwall! Dr Daniel Opperwall is an Orthodox Christian author, teacher, scholar, father and husband.  He lives and writes in Hamilton, Ontario.  With a broad spectrum of tastes and interests, Dr...

Compared to the other fasting periods of the year, Great Lent has a much stronger presence, liturgically with its extra services and hymnography, but also with its severity.  It was never prescribed biblically to Christians, so how did the Lenten practice form?  Fr Geoffrey and Fr Yuri discuss this and also connect how the pandemic has thrust all of us into an experience quite akin to the "wildern...

In the East, we describe God as uncircumscribed.  You cannot capture Him with any human thought or human word.  You cannot place limits on Him.  The very act of placing Him within a syllogism is flawed and therefore any arguments attempting to prove or disprove the existence of God inevitably fall short.   What, if any, benefit is there to this type of debate? In our fourth season, Fr Yuri and Fr...

Fr Geoffrey and Fr Yuri discuss the often misunderstood concept of the purpose of infant baptism in the Orthodox Church. In our fourth season, Fr Yuri and Fr Geoffrey are releasing episodes on a variety of topics that were previously only available to our patrons.  If you like what you hear, and would like access to much more - including monthly livestreams - please consider supporting our project...

Myths and mistakes of the Orthodox Church... oof, this can be a touchy subject!  But really what are myths?  How are they formed?  What significance do they have?  What purpose do they serve?   In our fourth season, Fr Yuri and Fr Geoffrey are releasing episodes on a variety of topics that were previously only available to our patrons.  If you like what you hear, and would like access to much more...

How does intercessory prayer work for the dead?  For that matter, how does intercessory prayer work for the living?  Fr Yuri and Fr Geoffrey explore the importance of praying for the dead, and the ways in which we do this regularly as Orthodox Christians. In our fourth season, Fr Yuri and Fr Geoffrey are releasing episodes on a variety of topics that were previously only available to our patrons. ...

In Orthodox tradition there is a clear liturgical transition into the fast of Great Lent, but that seems to be largely missing in the Nativity Fast.  Fr Geoffrey and Fr Yuri help us look a little more carefully for the nuances of the Orthodox expressions of Advent - a period of waiting, or postponing, as we anticipate the coming of Christ.  As this experience of Advent disappears in the West, it i...

How important really are ecumenical councils to the Church, and to the individual Orthodox Christian?  Not surprisingly, the answer is complicated.  The Christological truths that were declared as dogma are obviously central to our faith, but we must also remember that the councils took place in a certain time at a certain place within a certain historical context.  Fr Geoffrey and Fr Yuri explore...

We wrap up the season with Fr Yuri asking Fr Geoffrey a series of questions about baptism, including how candidates and observers can participate fully in the service, and how this participation moves beyond the service as we enact the Kingdom in our daily lives. Thank you for listening to this public episode of our podcast!  If you'd like see this project continue, please consider becoming a patr...

There are many scenarios that require pastoral flexibility when receiving someone into the Church.  Fr Yuri and Fr Geoffrey explore many of these cases and describe how the Church approaches each one. Thank you for listening to this public episode of our podcast!  If you'd like see this project continue, please consider becoming a patron at patreon.com/enactingthekingdom.  We just introduced a new...

This week we'd like to offer you a little insight into the private episodes we create for our patrons over at Patreon, with this episode on Godparents that we released in February 2021.  If you like what you hear, and would like to see our public project continue, please consider becoming a patron at patreon.com/enactingthekingdom.  We just introduced a new entry level of support which we hope wil...

At this point in the service, the chrism is washed away, and yet not undone.  Rather, its true reality is revealed.  Just pay attention to the verb tense in the prayers!  Then the newly baptized is tonsured - don't worry, no medieval monastic haircuts here! - but the trimming of those few hairs carries so much meaning. Thank you for listening to this public episode of our podcast!  If you'd like s...

"The Lord is my light and my salvation, whom shall I fear?"  The prokeimenon sets the tone for all of the scripture readings at the point in the baptism.  As difficult as this is to live out, if we truly understood what baptism is, we would know that there really is nothing for us to fear.  Fr Geoffrey and Fr Yuri  We hope you enjoyed this public episode of Enacting the Kingdom.  We also regularly...

We now come to the chrismation, the commissioning; the one who has been baptized is being sent out, empowered by the operation and grace of the Holy Spirit. Thank you again for listening to this public offering of our podcast!  We hope you are able to take something from it that helps you move forward into the world, enacting the Kingdom.  If you would like to support our project and help it conti...

Psalm 31 reflects the sheer joy of one who has come from being miserable in the hiddenness of their sin to being completely enveloped in God's mercy, protected and hidden within Him.  Fr Geoffrey and Fr Yuri walk through the psalm verses, showing how they connect to what has come before in the service, and point to what is coming. Thank you so much for listening to this public episode of our podca...

The whole story has been building up to this moment, but really the baptism (or "dipping") is as quick as passing through a gate.  And it really is a gateway - a passing through death to Life.  Fr Geoffrey and Fr Yuri discuss this, and also touch on the controversial immersion debate. We hope you enjoyed this part of our public offering!  If you have appreciated this project so far and would like...

Water, oil, candles, incense - the makings of a good spa day, or the elements of a sacrament?  The use of oil in baptism certainly gets less "press" than the use of water, but the anointing contains so much depth of meaning.  Fr Geoffrey and Fr Yuri discuss the prayers during the blessing of the oil and the anointing itself. We hope you've received benefit from this public offering of our podcast!...

This week, Fr Yuri and Fr Geoffrey discuss the blessing of the water, when the presbyter breathes on the water (recalling God's breath upon the waters at the moment of creation) and the powerful moment when the presbyter dips his fingers and makes the sign of the cross (recalling the power and authority we all call upon when making the sign of the cross).  They also make an argument for reading th...