Category: Orthodox

by Morning Walk

Morning Walk Conference: Join Our Livestream!

Greetings! The Morning Walk Conference has been in the works for a year, and it will start tomorrow afternoon! For those unable to attend, we will stream our conference on YouTube. On both Saturday and Sunday, feel free to join in the livestream chat and type in your questions for the keynote speakers. All times are Central Standard Time. August 22nd Keynote Speeches on Prayer: https://youtu.be/VbEvxWKSRh4 August 23rd Q&A with Keynote Speakers: https://youtu.be/j96o2_sD1q8 God Bless, Morning Walk

by Daniel Sutkowski

A Manual for Catholics on How to Dialogue with Orthodox Christians

Orthodox convo

I thought I would write a fun article that, while it contains some pearls of truth, is largely meant to tease Catholics, Orthodox, and Protestant Christians. Enjoy! Many a Catholic has gone through their entire lives without knowing what the Orthodox Christian is. For some, the word “Orthodox” often should be followed with the category of “Jew!” For other Catholics, Orthodox Christians are that weird combination of far east mysticism and Christianity, complete with bearded priests in smoke filled rooms (straight from Woodstock I suspect). For still other Catholics, Orthodox Christians were just fun people to go on Crusades with … Continue reading “A Manual for Catholics on How to Dialogue with Orthodox Christians” →

by Daniel Sutkowski

What Is the Deal with Mary?

About a year ago, a friend asked me to write about Mary and why Apostolics (Catholics and Orthodox) have such a unique affinity for the Mother of God (Theotokos). So I am now acting upon that request! This article is not meant to seek to prove why one (or any) devotion to the Blessed Mother is good and holy, but simply to reflect on the history of Early Christian attitudes towards Mary and present some current day examples of Marian devotion. While I hope to encourage all readers in a greater appreciation for Mary and her unparalleled role among the … Continue reading “What Is the Deal with Mary?” →

by Jacob Zelion

Rediscovering Lost Horizons

Rediscovering the relationship between faith and reason is necessary for understanding and engaging with the atmosphere of our times. Indeed, it has been the church’s constant tradition to show those outside its fold how they possess vague glimpses of what the church teaches, believes, and confesses. However, before analyzing the relationship between faith and reason, we must know what faith and reason are. For through understanding the two terms we can better understand the nuances and particularities of their relationship. The moderns have often overlooked the dual nature of reason: intellectus and ratio. D. C. Schindler points out that the … Continue reading “Rediscovering Lost Horizons” →

by Daniel Sutkowski

The Call to Evangelize

“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matthew 28:19-20) One of the primary duties of a Christian is to make disciples of others. More importantly the Church, however we may understand it, is a missionary church and charged with spreading the Gospel to the whole world. This duty is one of the most important, if not THE most … Continue reading “The Call to Evangelize” →

by Vlad Smetanko

Possible Directions for This Blog

This blog is just about a year old, and it is a good time to take a breath and examine the direction in which we have gone and the possible places to go from this point on. There has never been a precise idea of what the content of this blog ought to be like, and perhaps that is a good thing. Yet there has been a general understanding that we produce intellectual posts that relate at least somewhat to Christian theology or religion in general. Let us divide such content into three groups: (i) confirming or illustrating a point … Continue reading “Possible Directions for This Blog” →

by Lewis Monaxios

An Orthodox Christian’s Reflections on Abortion

This is a pro-life article by a pro-life author. This article will not, however, lay out arguments against abortion. I rather want to use the topic of abortion to muse on what I believe to be an even larger issue. What worries me most about abortion is not the 60-million-plus terminated pregnancies in the United States since Roe v Wade. It isn’t the systematic dismembering of babies’ organs during the surgical procedure or the disproportionate fraction of terminated pregnancies among American minority groups. What worries me the most about abortion is the millions of cases in which a woman had … Continue reading “An Orthodox Christian’s Reflections on Abortion” →

by Vlad Smetanko

Political and Theological Divides

The Eastern Orthodox Church, of which I am a member, has had a schism within itself during this past fall. Patriarch Kirill of Moscow broke all ties with the Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople over a land dispute in Ukraine. Opinions on this event within the Orthodox community have been split, and the debate continues. Both Patriarchs have been accused with acting on behalf of world political entities and even ties with intelligence agencies. I knew since the event that it would take a while for me to form a coherent opinion on this issue. It has been about two months, … Continue reading “Political and Theological Divides” →

by Vlad Smetanko

Religious Freedom in the Original Colonies

Barry_Lawrence_Ruderman_thirteen_Colonies

We all hear about American founding principles, including freedom of speech, freedom of religion, the right to self-defense, and many others. Yet we less often hear about the fact that these founding principles were, in many ways, a crossover between competing sets of values. We even less often think about the fact that these sets of values remain in contest with one another to this day. The history of religious freedom in three of the most important colonies (Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Virginia) says quite a bit about the contrasting sets of principles that compete for American values. I am uncertain … Continue reading “Religious Freedom in the Original Colonies” →