In the ninth century the use of unleavened bread had become obligatory in the West, while the Orthodox continued the exclusive offering of leavened bread. The issue became divisive when the provinces of Byzantine Italy which were under the authority of the Patriarch of Constantinople were forcibly incorporated into the Church of Rome following their […]
Did St. Mark of Ephesus Consider the Latins to be a Church?
May 13, 2017 By
by Metropolitan Hierotheos (Vlachos) The following is an excerpt from the Metroplitan’s very important “Intervention and Text to the Meeting of the Hierarchy of the Church of Greece (November, 2016),” which can be found here in Greek and here in English. Unfortunately, during the “Council of Crete” some supported the idea that St. Mark of […]
Can a Scientist Believe in the Resurrection?
April 17, 2017 By
by Ian Hutchinson, MIT I’m a professor of nuclear science and engineering at MIT, and this weekend, I’m celebrating the resurrection of Jesus. So are dozens of my colleagues. How can this be? Hypothesis one: We’re not talking about a literal resurrection. Perhaps it is just an inspiring myth that served to justify the propagation […]
Are John 3 and 6 About Baptism and Eucharist?
April 4, 2017 By
by Seraphim Hamilton There is a convergence of language in John 3 and 6. Both chapters contain the rare (for John) phrase “Son of Man” a reference to the ascending High Priest in Daniel 7. Both contrast flesh and Spirit. Both refer to the promise of the new exodus. Both allude strongly to Ezekiel 36-37. […]
The Spiritual Pathology of Sola Scriptura
December 19, 2016 By
by Fr. John Guy Winfrey I was recently asked by an old friend of mine to address sola scriptura from the stand point of spiritual pathology, or more closely to his words, what does this do to one’s soul and how does one heal that? For decades Orthodox Christians have written about sola scriptura in […]
The Shape of the Lord’s Prayer
November 26, 2016 By
by Fr. Sava Medakovic And to everyone who has ever attended one of my Bible studies – see, I was right! In biblical studies there has been a group of scholars who have been looking at the shape or the literary structure of scripture to determine more precisely the author’s intended meaning of scriptural passages. […]
Epistle on Islam and Muslims
November 25, 2016 By
Selected from the saint’s letters; sections on Islam and Muslims. by St. Ignatius Brianchaninov Vainly and erroneously you think and say that virtuous… Muslims will be saved, that is they will join intercourse with God! Vainly you consider the contrary notion a novelty, a brief error! No! Such is the eternal teaching of the true […]
On Infant Baptism – Is it Biblical?
November 23, 2016 By
by Robert Arakaki Another exceptionally well written and reasoned piece, from the Reformed-Orthodox bridge. Martin wrote: I have a question. Baptists and Pentecostals say infant baptism is not biblical. Do we find infant baptisms in the Bible? I heard someone say that this practice started around year 200. Where can I find the earliest teachings […]
