Homily - Acquiring Peace and the Spiritual Gut Check
OrthoAnalytika
The Feast of All Saints Hebrews 11:33-40; 12:1-2; St. Matthew 10:32-33; 37-38; 19:27-30 After clearing up potential confusion about "leaving" families as a sure way to heaven, Fr. Anthony asks how we are doing with the gifts of the Passion, Resurrection, and Pentecost (THE Holy Spirit!) God has given us to assist us in our healing and perfection. He encourages us to do a gut check on how we are doing by looking at the degree to which criticism and praise pull us from our peace. Enjoy the show!
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Homily - Pentecost and the Gift of Communification
OrthoAnalytika
Pentecost: The Language of Love This episode explores Pentecost as more than a miracle of tongues—it's a call to unity through the divine language of love. The Holy Spirit empowers us to truly listen, love, and live in communion. Through grace, repentance, and the Eucharist, we are formed into the family of God—one in purpose, diverse in gift, united by love. Enjoy the show!
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Homily - The Sunday after Ascension
OrthoAnalytika
The Truth Matters This homily explores why truth is essential—in logic, relationships, and faith. It examines the unique role of religion, the danger of distorting truth (like Arius did), and the deep meaning of Christ’s incarnation, resurrection, and ascension. Standing on the Rock of Christ, we’re called to live in love and invite others to the truth God gives as a gift. Enjoy the show!
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Talk - Spiritual Fatherhood and the Temptation of Tyranny
OrthoAnalytika
In today's class, Fr. Anthony talks about spiritual fatherhood and how the health of the parish flows from the health of the priest and back. The talk included the temptation of tyranny, young-eldership (mladastarstvo), and people-pleasing. Enjoy the show!
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Homily - What Really Sustains Us?
OrthoAnalytika
John 4:5-42. In today’s Gospel, Jesus talks about living water and secret food—not physical things, but spiritual truths. So here’s the big question: What truly motivates us? Is it money, health, happiness? Those things matter—but they don’t last. When life gets hard, they can’t sustain us. Jesus shows us something deeper. His true nourishment is doing God’s will—connecting with others, sharing love, offering grace. That’s the “living water” He gave to the Samaritan woman, and it transformed her life. And it can transform ours, too. Let’s find our purpose in loving...
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Homily - The Orthodox Way to Wellness
OrthoAnalytika
On Paralytic Sunday, Christ asks a man who had been sick for 38 years, “Do you want to be made well?” It’s a question that reaches beyond the Gospel and speaks directly to us. True healing—spiritual and physical—begins with recognizing our need, seeking real help, and committing to the path of recovery. Christ is the Great Physician, and the Church is His hospital. But healing isn’t automatic; it requires humility, trust, and obedience. As with the paralytic, Christ knows our pain and desires our healing. The question is: do we truly want to be made well?
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Homily - The Man Born Blind
OrthoAnalytika
In John 9:1–38, Jesus heals a man born blind, showing that suffering isn’t always caused by sin but can reveal God’s glory. St. John Chrysostom teaches that the man's blindness led to humility and spiritual insight, unlike the Pharisees who remained spiritually blind. The reflection calls us to open our eyes to God’s grace in everyday life, allowing ordinary things—like relationships—to become vessels of holiness through love and intention.
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Talk - Shortcuts to Sanctification
OrthoAnalytika
Today Fr. Anthony started out talking about some of the temptations that come with becoming Orthodox, but most of the conversation ended up being about the draw and danger of cults. Enjoy the show!
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Homily - Myrrhbearers
OrthoAnalytika
Today’s reflection centers on the Myrrhbearers — those who came to anoint Jesus’ body after His death. Their actions teach us a powerful lesson about love as duty rather than transaction or warm fuzzy. They approached the tomb thinking Jesus was still dead and knowing (!) that he was utterly unable to reward them for their sacrifices. But their actions found resonance with something deep and real - the Love that knows no death.
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Adult Education - Talking about Pascha
OrthoAnalytika
Fr. Anthony speaks about different liturgical traditions, their history and significance, especially Pascha. Enjoy the show!
info_outlineThe Banquet
St. Luke 14:16-24
· Greatest tragedies in history
o Separation from God
o Separation from one another
· Two of the great epidemics of our time resulted from this
o Loneliness: we were made for community (yes, even introverts!)
o Meaning:
§ We were made for a home, with a strong and enduring identity
§ We were made for a purpose, with an important part to play, and given the gifts and potential to play that part well.
§ Last week: when we have our community, we know our part and are developing our gifts, the result is a symphony or beautiful transformation.
o Without community and a song, purpose, or being part of a plan, we are sure to suffer
· This is our experience of sin. We have missed the mark of our calling, of being part of the things for which we were made
· So what is the solution?
o A theological math problem, with the calculus of proper soteriology coming to rescue?
o A juridical problem, with a proper understanding of God’s justice and the role of His Son’s sacrifice in appeasing it?
· No, I framed the problem of sin the way I did so that we could approach it properly: we have a relationship problem. We are separated from God and one another and thus suffer from loneliness and a lack of meaning.
· Today’s Gospel flows naturally from this understanding, and it corrects some imperfections in some Western theology that compound the problem and make a proper diagnosis all but impossible.
o Some “Western” Christians might slip the mathematical and juridical approaches and recognize that the restoration of a relationship with God is central. But their God is angry and even, dare I say it, capricious. And like an abusive father or husband, the key to assuaging his wrath is to satisfy it with the death of His son. This is a terrible theology, and Christ dismisses it with today’s description of the feast as the solution to the world’s pain.
· The Kingdom of Heaven is a great meal to which we are all invited.
· Are you lonely?
o A meal! Why is it so great? At festal meals, we learn to leave aside all the petty things that have divided us. Around a family table, we are reminded of who we are and what family we belong to and can relax into this. When strangers come, there need be no awkwardness as the purpose is fixed and everyone is fed. All of us have good things in common at the supper table. We lay aside all of our pettiness to engage in this beautiful fellowship.
o But it is also the meal of the king. The invitation is the invitation to a restored relationship with Him. And through accepting the invitation we restore our relations with one another.
o And because of the nature of the food that is offered, the restoration of the relationship grows and the problems of loneliness and meaning fade to nothing. And neither exist at all in the great banquet which is to come.
· This shows the love of our God and the beauty of True Theology. Restoration comes not from solving theological math problems, getting the right lawyer, or creating a codependency with a wrathful God.
· Restoration comes in accepting God’s invitation to a place at His Holy Table and to Feast at His Holy Supper.
· Some chose not to come – and we pray that they repent and come to the table before it is too late.
· But for us the way is clear, we have accepted the invitation, and thus we are being cured of the pain of sin and its separation.