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Blessed is the Way – On Suffering Death and Resurrection in the Orthodox Church

Judgement 001This is a talk I gave on January 31st at the NTOM conference “Falling Asleep in the Lord: An Orthodox Perspective on Dying, Death and Grief” at St. Demetrios Greek orthodox Church in Fort Worth.

Blessed is the way in which thou shalt walk today, O soul, for a place of rest is prepared for thee (Prokeimenon of the Apostle, Funeral Service)

Reverend Brothers, Beloved Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

When confronted with the reality of death most people reveal a deep-seated fear of such an event beyond any human control. This is especially acute nowadays when the science of medicine has made great strides in curing diseases that only a century… Continue reading

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Looking Death in the Face or The Aesthetics of Dying

“Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your sting? O grave, where is your victory?” (1Cor 15:54-55)

As a parish priest one has the privilege to face all aspects of human life from birth until the final departure. In the eyes of a priest, humanity is exposed in its most glorious and most deplorable experiences. Among them one of the most challenging is death. Even writing about it is a difficult task because it is a very unpopular subject.  Nobody wants to die and even more so, nobody wants to talk about it, is a taboo, a place where you just don’t want to go… Continue reading

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Loosing weight and saving your soul in the process

There is no secret that I could loose some weight. I’ll admit it. Getting back into my ideal measurements is as much of a challenge for me as for anyone despite the claims of the insatiable industry that has developed behind this apparently simple goal. From the classical low calorie diet to the latest fashion in Hollywood dieting, we are sold out of the box, unfailing solutions that will miraculously make us loose those unsolicited extra pounds. But they all fail in most people with, of course, some notable exceptions.

I always wandered why this is and couldn’t find a satisfying answer until a few days ago when I stumbled over a book written by a “diet survivor”… Continue reading

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Work hard – Pray hard – Changing the paradigm

The  slogan “Work hard, play hard” has been in iconic standard for corporate culture for years. It initially meant to be as involved in your daily work as you are in your extra-curricular activities, but was rapidly transformed into a great excuse for irrational and destructive behavior in the after hours like alcohol abuse, recreational drugs, heavy partying etc.  More so the idea has infiltrated from the initial corporate environment to our homes rendering even our everyday life into a two dimensional universe of work and play; everything we do falls into one of these two buckets.

The Holy Grail of a happy life becomes therefore finding the balance between carrier and leisure. A plethora of… Continue reading

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The Theology of Marriage and Sexuality -Fr. George Morelli

The writer of Genesis said of Adam and Eve: “And God blessed them, and God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it;’ Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and cleaves to his wife, and they become one flesh” (Genesis 1:28; 2:24). St. Paul wrote in Hebrews: “Let marriage be held in honor among all . . .” (Hebrews 13:4).

St. John Chrysostom typified the Orthodox Church Fathers: “From the beginning God has been revealed as the fashioner, by his providence, of this union of man and woman, and He has spoken of the two as one: ‘male and female He… Continue reading

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Prayer for one’s spouse

Lord Jesus Christ, our God, Who taught us that we should always pray for each other, for in this way we will fulfill Your law and we will be found worthy of your mercy, look with compassion and safeguard my husband (wife), which you have granted me in order to spend our  lives together until the end. Continue reading