George Kelly defined guilt as: “A perception of one’s apparent dislodgement from his core role structure.” This “core role” develops out of our relationships with significant others whom we construe ourselves in certain ways: loving, responsible, secure, etc. It seems to follow that any religious paradigm which casts human beings as essentially good makes guilt…
I’m an Orthodox Christian. We fast like it’s going out of style. In a former life, for almost 20 years, I was an Evangelical Protestant of the Word of Faith persuasion. We fasted like… never. Back then the churches I attended did not encourage fasting, still I was always dabbling with it from time to…
As a blogger who writes on both theological and psychological themes it seems inevitable that I would have to join the discussion on same-sex marriage. I have avoided it like the plague because, well… it is a plague; it’s a guaranteed lose-lose outcome for someone like me. From a religious standpoint I am an Orthodox…
Recently I’ve been reading a fascinating book called “The Art of the Icon,” by Paul Evdokimov, which presents a theology of beauty from an Orthodox Christian perspective. As a relatively recent convert to the Orthodox Church (nearly 5 years, i.e., just long enough for one to realize how much he doesn’t know) I am always…
I’ve been thinking about writing on this topic for a long time. I hasten to write it now while the thoughts are still fresh on my mind. I need to get it down, no doubt, more for myself then for my readers. Over the years I have witnessed some of the most frustrating and, in…
I was recently asked if I could write an article giving the distinctive elements of the Eastern Orthodox Church which cause it to stand out when compared with Roman Catholicism, Anglicanism, and the various Protestant faiths. This is a tall order and no doubt difficult to cover even in a multiple volume work. That said,…
The following is taken from the Prologue of Ohrid, April 22. During the time of Patriarch John the Merciful, a young monk appeared, who, as soon as he arrived, compiled a list of all the prostitutes in Alexandria. The asceticism of this young monk was exceptional and unique. During the day he would offer himself…
