St. George Orthodox Church Homilies and Reflections

Homily the Sunday after Ascension.

From the Gospel of John. At that time, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, in Hebrew called Bethesda which has five porticoes. In these lay a multitude of invalids, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water; for an angel of the Lord went down at certain seasons into the pool, and troubled the water; whoever stepped in first after the tr...

You can find the book Referenced in the Homily Here: The Ethics of Beauty, By Dr. Timothy Patitsas

St. John of the Ladder The memory of this Saint is celebrated on March 30, where his biography may be found. He is celebrated today because his book, The Ladder of Divine Ascent, is a sure guide to the ascetic life, written by a great man of prayer experienced in all forms of the monastic polity; it teaches the seeker after salvation how to lay a sound foundation for his struggles, how to detect a...

The Gospel According to Mark 8:34-38; 9:1 The Lord said: "If anyone wishes to come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it. For what does it profit a man, to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? For what can a man give in return for his life? For whoe...

Sunday of St. Gregory Palamas This divine Father, who was from Asia Minor, was from childhood reared in the royal court of Constantinople, where he was instructed in both religious and secular wisdom. Later, while still a youth, he left the imperial court and struggled in asceticism on Mount Athos, and in the Skete at Beroea. He spent some time in Thessalonica being treated for an illness that cam...

At the time of the homily there had been no voices of protest, other than Metropolitan Onuphry, within the Russian Orthodox Church that I had heard of. Since then many have raised their voices. Many have been arrested. I had expressed the opinion in the homily that perhaps Patriarch Krill was lacking in courage as he had not condemned the actions of  President Putin and the Russian Federation...

We clarify the terms “body” and “flesh” as they are used by St. Paul, and discuss the aims of asceticism; the false paths of dualism; physical posture during prayer; and the glorification of the whole person, body and soul, by the grace of God.

The Gospel According to Luke 15:11-32 The Lord said this parable: "There was a man who had two sons; and the younger of them said to his father, 'Father, give me the share of the property that falls to me.' And he divided his living between them. Not many days later, the younger son gathered all he had and took his journey into a far country, and there he squandered his property in loose living. A...

"We are called Christians because we believe that he is the true God and because we keep his commandments in our own personal life. We attempt to conform our lives to his own life." "Christ is not a perfect philosopher and a good lawgiver. He is not a moralizer and the leader of a religion, even the most perfect one. Rather, he is the champion over death, the devil and sin. He did not come simply...

The Gospel According to Luke 18:10-14 English Ελληνικά The Lord said this parable, "Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, 'God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week, I give tithes of all that I get.' But the ta...

The Gospel According to Luke 14:16-24 The Lord said this parable: "A man once gave a great banquet, and invited many; and at the time of the banquet he sent his servant to say to those who had been invited, 'Come; for all is now ready.' But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said to him, 'I have bought a field, and I go out and see it; I pray you, have me excused.' And another said, '...

From the Gospel of Luke: At that time, Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath. And there was a woman who had a spirit of infirmity for eighteen years; she was bent over and could not fully straighten herself. And when Jesus saw her, he called her and said to her, "Woman, you are freed from your infirmity." And he laid his hands upon her, and immediately she was made straight, a...

The Gospel According to Luke 8:41-56 English Ελληνικά Print At that time, there came to Jesus a man named Jairus, who was a ruler of the synagogue; and falling at Jesus' feet he besought him to come to his house, for he had an only daughter, about twelve years of age, and she was dying. As he went, the people pressed round him. And a woman who had had a flow of blood for twelve years and had spent...

The Gospel According to Luke 16:19-31 The Lord said, "There was a rich man, who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazaros, full of sores, who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man's table; moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's bosom. The ri...

Prokeimenon. Mode 1. Psalm 32.22,1 Let your mercy, O Lord, be upon us. Verse: Rejoice in the Lord, O ye righteous. The reading is from St. Paul's Second Letter to the Corinthians 9:6-11 Brethren, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must do as he has made up his mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a ch...

Polemics and war. Do they have a similar effect on the soul?  A culture warrior, or polemicist is one who is given to controversy, who wars with words. The object is not dialogue, but the destruction of one's opponent. Our face turned against them as an enemy, we engage in the sort of discussion that St. Paul urges Titus to avoid (Titus 3:9) - a factious discussion, one brother acting as an i...

The Gospel According to Luke 8:5-15 English Ελληνικά Print The Lord said this parable: "A sower went out to sow his seed; and as he sowed, some fell along the path, and was trodden under foot, and the birds of the air devoured it. And some fell on the rock; and as it grew up, it withered away, because it had no moisture. And some fell among thorns; and the thorns grew with it and choked it. And so...

The Gospel According to Luke 7:11-16 At that time, Jesus went to a city called Nain, and his disciples and a great crowd went with him. As he drew near to the gate of the city, behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow; and a large crowd from the city was with her. And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her, "Do not w...

Living In God's Creation; Orthodox Perspectives on Ecology , by Elizabeth Theokritoff On Themes in the Church Fathers: Matter and the mystery of Salvation And, On the Need for Wonder.  

Living in God's Creation; Orthodox Perspectives on Ecology , By Elizabeth Theokritoff. On the Section: Themes in the Church Fathers; The Body and Matter 

This Apostle was from Bethsaida of Galilee, and was the son of Zebedee and Salome, and the brother of James the elder. First a fisherman by trade, he became an Apostle and the beloved Disciple of Christ. Only he of all the Disciples followed Him even to the Cross, and was entrusted with the care of our Saviour's Mother, as it were another son to her, and a brother of Christ the Teacher. After this...

Introduction the the book, The Ethics of Beauty by Dr. Timothy Patitsas. 

The Gospel According to Matthew 5:14-19The Lord said to his disciples, "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hid. Nor do men light a lamp and put it under a bushel, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. Think not that I have come to aboli...

After the Saviour's Ascension into the Heavens, the eleven Apostles and the rest of His disciples, the God-loving women who followed after Him from the beginning, His Mother, the most holy Virgin Mary, and His brethren-all together about 120 souls returned from the Mount of Olives to Jerusalem. Entering into the house where they gathered, they went into the upper room, and there they persevered in...