OrthoAnalytika
After reading part of Philippians 2, Fr Anthony talks about the work we are called to do, how our disordered minds thwart it, and what we can do about it. Enjoy the show!
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Fr. Anthony talks with Dn. Basil about recent findings on religion and the authoritarian personality. Dn. Basil in a a professional therapist; his practice is Mount Tabor Counseling (mounttaborcounseling.com). Enjoy the show!
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The Sunday of Orthodoxy: Embrace the Fullness of the Faith Fr. Anthony Perkins Every morning we join together and pray: Lord, save and have mercy on our civil authorities; protect our nation with peace, subduing our every foe and adversary. Fill the hearts of our leaders with peaceful, benevolent thoughts for your Holy Church and for all your people so that we, in their tranquility, may lead a peaceful and quiet life in true faith and in all godliness and purity. This same attitude is found amongst the most solemn intercessor prayers in all of Orthodoxy: those that occur during the Anaphora....
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MATTHEW 6:14-21 The Lord said, "If you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father also will forgive you; but if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. And when you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by men. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by men but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. Do not lay up for...
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Revelation Class 15; Heading to the Final Showdown 26 February 2025 Revelation, Chapter Twenty – Twenty-two Andrew of Caesarea, Commentary on the Apocalypse, ed. David G. Hunter, trans. Eugenia Scarvelis Constantinou, vol. 123, The Fathers of the Church (Washington, DC: The Catholic University of America Press, 2011). Fr. John Peck; Fr. Barnabas Powell. Rejecting RAPTUREMANIA: An Orthodox Look at a Dubious Doctrine (Function). Kindle Edition. Patrick Henry Reardon, Revelation: A Liturgical Prophecy (Yonkers, NY: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 2018). Chapter Twenty One thousand...
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St. Matthew 25:31-46. Fr. Anthony covers the literal meaning and two spiritual meanings of the parable, noting that it should come as no surprise that diligently following the Orthodox Way prepares us to move to the right-hand, glory and thanks to God! Enjoy the show!
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(Luke 15: 11-32). Riffing off of St Nikolai Velimirovic, Fr Anthony preaches on the attributes of love - patience, forgiveness, and joy - that the father exhibits towards his sons as he pastors and encourages them them towards perfection.
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Revelation Class 14 – 19; Heading to the Final Showdown 12 February 2025 Revelation, Chapter Fifteen - Twenty Patrick Henry Reardon, Revelation: A Liturgical Prophecy (Yonkers, NY: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 2018), 79–. Chapter Fifteen John sees in heaven the tabernacle of testimony from the Book of Exodus, the traveling tent of the divine presence that Moses and the Israelites carried through the desert. This tent, however, is “heavenly,” which means that it is the original model, the very pattern that Moses copied (Ex 25:9, 40; Acts 7:44; Heb 8:5). … The tent...
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Luke 18:10-14. In this homily on the Publican and Pharisee, Fr. Anthony loses his voice and misses a couple of his points but still manages to spend over twenty minutes preaching about the need for repentance and good habits on the way to holiness. Enjoy the show!
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Revelation Class 13 – The Woman and the Beasts 05 February 2025 Revelation, Chapter Twelve - Fourteen Patrick Henry Reardon, Revelation: A Liturgical Prophecy (Yonkers, NY: St. Vladimir’s Seminary Press, 2018), 70–78. Chapter Twelve … Nonetheless, this is not simply a description of the Lord’s nativity. The Woman in the vision is the mother of Jesus, but she is more; she is also the Church, which gives birth to Christ in the world. The sufferings and persecution of the Church are described as birth pangs (cf. Jn 16:21–22). The serpent, of course, is the ancient dragon...
info_outlineHomily on the Sunday of St. Mary of Egypt (St. Mark 10:32-45)
What are you willing to sacrifice for a better life? To improve the lives of those around you?
The power of deferred gratification. Save now – for something big later.
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We use this for all kinds of things: retirement accounts, education, residencies
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Think back: what sacrifices did you make in the past in order to obtain something you really wanted? Was it worth it?
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Some even look at the Christian life as a cosmic deferred gratification scheme: give up a bit of time and money now at the local parish and get into that awesome retirement community in the sky
But what if that wasn't what Christianity was about at all? What if it was less about sacrificing now for something I want later, and more about sacrifice as a means to become a better person now? What if living a life of sacrifice brought you a better life NOT because it allowed you to save up to get more and better stuff, but because it transformed you into a new person. Less broken, less needy, more joyful, more content, and more powerful?
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This is exactly what psychological studies have found. The marshmallow test.
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A strong sacrifice muscle is not just associated with the ability to getter stuff: researchers found that people with a strong one have better life outcomes, as measured by various “life measures”.
What are we willing to sacrifice to become better people, to become what our tradition calls “new creatures” (2 Corinthians 5:17), a “new self” (Ephesians 4:24). That will, more importantly, allow us to bring comfort, healing, and joy to all those around us whose lives are bing ruined by a world that is often cruel, brutal, and merciless in its oppression?
As people who have accepted that Christ is the Son of God, what are we willing to give up that will charge that acceptance with the kind of supernatural power that will allow us to join St. Paul in saying that it is “no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me?”
It's sacrifice. That's why silly things like giving up food and more difficult things like offering a substantial portion of our income to the church and other charities and of spending a substantial amount of time in prayer, worship, and community service are all built into what early Christians called “The Way”, but that we call “Orthodox Christianity”.
Any thing worth having requires hard work. All good things require sacrifice. The sacrifice of Christ made the salvation of mankind – a very good thing – possible. We are meant to imitate him in that so that, as St. Paul said, we might “save some.” (1 Corinthians 9:22).
This is what Christ meant when He said in today's Gospel; “whoever will be great will serve... and the one that desires to be first will become a slave.”
That is the way of Christ and it is The Way of the Christian. It will give us a better life and improves the lives of those around us.
May the Lord strengthen as we dedicate ourselves to sacrifice our time, our tithes, and everything we hold dear out of our love of God and desire to serve – and save - our neighbor.