Articles

In our Coptic Church, the Holy Liturgy, in her essence of group prayer and worship, is the house of God and the door of heaven, the house of angels and the congregation of the saints. How do we spiritually gain from the Liturgy?

ecently heard a lecture by Dr. Paul Maier, a biblical scholar and professor of ancient history at Western Michigan University. Dr. Maier, a Christian, explores such extra-biblical disciplines of archaeology, geography and history to corroborate the events, people and locations in order to authenticate and confirm the biblical record.

“Father, what do you mean I can’t get married on June the 24th?!? June is traditionally wedding season. Yet this is precisely the time when we observe the “apostle’s fast” (from the Monday after All Saint’s Sunday till the feast of Ss. Peter & Paul).

Conflict is a normal part of human life. There is no record of a humanity where conflict did not exist. The Church, being composed of fallen, sinful human beings, has always had to deal with the issue of conflict.

Not sure what my reaction was supposed to be yesterday to the news that James Cameron and Simcha Jacobovici had found the bones of Jesus, his wife and son. Anger? Fear? Jubilation? What came out was boredom. Here we go again.

Every one of us, at some point in our life, has probably felt or been betrayed.

I doubt if there is a single committed member of the U.O.C.C. who has not asked the question, "What is it going to take to turn things around for our Church?" Sometimes they may be speaking of the Church in general and other times they may be referring to their parish.

Ah, ‘Tis the season for Parish Council elections. Every year as November and December roll around, many Orthodox parishes hold elections for their Parish Councils. In my ten year ministry, I’ve had Parish Council members who are shining examples of what it is to be an Orthodox Christian, who genuinely care for the mission of the church, who made a weekly habit of receiving Holy Communion, who came to confession, in addition to coming to Parish Council meetings, serving on committees and organizing community events.

0ne of the most controversial and potentially divisive questions for any "ethnic" parish, Orthodox or not, is the question of language. Parishes (and families) have split, harsh words have been exchanged, and whole ideologies have arisen over the question of liturgical language.

What is a pastor? In discussing "pastoral life", we understand that many particular problems or issues may not relate directly to all of the faithful, but that there is no pastoral concern which does not relate to the pastor. Who and what should the pastor be?