By Fr. Stephen De Young, Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick, and Ancient Faith Ministries
The Seen and Unseen World in Orthodox Christian Tradition
People often say, "The Church isn't a building," or "We could worship anywhere." But is that actually true? Why do ancient Israel and the Church worship in buildings? Is it merely practical, to have a roof over our heads? Or...
In this pre-recorded episode, Fr. Stephen De Young and Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick answer your recorded questions! They cover such topics as nakedness in Genesis, cannibalism and the Eucharist, women’s ministry in the Church, transgenderism, and even the curse of...
How exactly does textual authority function within the Church? Whether discussing the Scriptures, the Apocrypha, the Church Fathers, the Ecumenical Councils, or the liturgical tradition, the Orthodox Church is awash in texts. How are they properly used? What about misuse?...
What is prophecy? Who is a prophet? Do prophets predict the future? Does prophecy still happen in our times? What is the difference between a prophet and an apostle? How can we recognize a true...
What happened to people who died before the Harrowing of Hades? What happened to those people after? And what happens at death after the Harrowing? And what’s going to happen at the resurrection of all the dead? Fr. Andrew Stephen...
What exactly is a blessing? Or a curse? Are these just religious-sounding synonyms for good things or bad things? What does it mean when God blesses or curses? Do the blessings and curses of human beings actually do anything? Is...
On this special bonus episode, Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick introduces and then reads the full text of the Harrowing of Hell from the Gospel of Nicodemus. Christ is risen! He truly is risen!
Reading the Bible is easier now than in any previous moment in history. And misreading it is also the easiest it’s ever been. What does it mean to read the Bible historically? To read it literally? What are some interpretive/hermeneutic...
In this pre-recorded episode, Fr. Stephen De Young and Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick tackle dozens of recorded questions sent in by listeners from all over the world, with topics ranging from catechism to giants to the evil eye to the...
When ancient Israel encountered pagan nations worshiping their gods (and sometimes joined in themselves), what exactly were they worshiping? Are they fallen angels, demons, ancestors, the spirits of dead humans, or maybe even nothing at all? How did the early...
What exactly is a priest? Who is a priest? Are all believers priests? Is that the same thing as presbyters? And what are those priests in the Bible wearing, anyway? Join Fr. Stephen De Young and Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick...
What exactly is a priest? Who is a priest? Are all believers priests? Is that the same thing as presbyters? And what are those priests in the Bible wearing, anyway? Join Fr. Stephen De Young and Fr. Andrew Stephen...
The podcast is back with all Q&A, all the time. Fr. Stephen De Young and Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick make it an open-line night at the podcast. With calls stretching from California to Romania, callers asked about God's foreknowledge, UFOs,...
When the prophets ascend in heavenly visions they see the divine council, the throne of God, the cherubim and seraphim, the angels—and a man. And sometimes, outside of prophetic visions, that man shows up on earth, and he talks and...
The phrase “son of man” appears over 100 times in the Old Testament, and most of them are in the book of the Prophet Ezekiel. It shows up again, dozens of times, in the Gospels and then gets used elsewhere...
Fr. Andrew and Fr. Stephen continue their four-part series on the Christology of the Old Testament. This time they discuss the Word of the Lord or the Word of God. Like "Angel of the Lord," this is another phrase that...
The Angel of the Lord is mentioned dozens of times in the Holy Scriptures, yet the identity and nature of this figure is fuzzy for many Christians. Is he an angel like one of heavenly hosts? Is he a symbol...
Werewolves. Vampires. Lilith. Lamia. Unicorns. Donkey-centaurs. Fr. Stephen De Young and Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick open up their demonic bestiary and their Bibles for this special episode.
Leviathan, Behemoth, and other monsters lurk in the Bible—demonic horrors and other assorted beasts. Did ancient people believe these were real creatures? Do they have some kind of global, geo-political meaning? How do they figure into the biblical narrative? Fr....
Melchizedek is a figure who gets mentioned three very brief and mysterious times in the Scriptures. But who is he? Why does he have a pagan name? Why does St. Paul’s Epistle to the Hebrews link him to Christ? Is...
The great biblical patriarch Abraham began his life in the shadow of the sacrificial ziggurat of Ur, dedicated to a pagan moon god. What does it mean that God called him out of that context, why did God direct Abraham's...
In the Scripture and throughout Orthodox Tradition, the holy Prophet, Forerunner, and Baptist John occupies a place parallel though not identical to that of the Holy Virgin Mary. Yet he is at the same time a more enigmatic and lesser-understood...
The keeping and veneration of relics of saints is one of the practices of Christianity that may disturb or even shock some. How do the bodies of saints relate to their lives? Is that body still their body even after...
The keeping and veneration of relics of saints is one of the practices of Christianity that may disturb or even shock some. How do the bodies of saints relate to their lives? Is that body still their body...
The word "Apocalypse" stirs up forebodings of the end of the world—natural disasters, wars, massive destruction, giant comets, etc. But is that how the Bible uses the term? What if there were apocalypse throughout the Scriptures? And even now? Join...
According to the Bible, how do we know things? What exactly is the mind? What is consciousness? What are thoughts, and how do they work? And what does knowledge do to someone? Join Fr. Stephen...
The Day of Pentecost is the end of a golden thread that begins with Eden and runs through the Tabernacle, the Temple, the Theotokos, Christ, Christians, the Church and the whole Cosmos. What is that thread? Fr. Stephen De Young...
The Day of Pentecost is the end of a golden thread that begins with Eden and runs through the Tabernacle, the Temple, the Theotokos, Christ, Christians, the Church and the whole Cosmos. What is that thread? Fr. Stephen...
The Ascension of Christ in glory is not merely Jesus going back where he came from when he was done on earth. Nor is it an abandonment of his disciples. But what is it? Fr. Stephen De Young and Fr....
The Ascension of Christ in glory is not merely Jesus going back where he came from when he was done on earth. Nor is it an abandonment of his disciples. But what is it? Fr. Stephen De Young and...
Christ appeared to his disciples and to many others after he rose from the dead, numerous times over the forty days leading up to his Ascension. What happened at those appearances? What was their purpose? And how do the Gospel...
It's all Q&A, all the time. Fr. Stephen De Young and Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick make it an open-line night at the podcast.
With this Holy Week / Pascha special episode, Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick and Fr. Stephen De Young take a close biblical look at what happens when the Lord of Spirits himself journeys into the underworld to set his people free.
With this second installment of their series on sacred geography, Fr. Stephen De Young and Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick take a journey into the shadowy and much-misunderstood realm of the dead—the Underworld, Hades, Hell, Sheol, the Grave. Do these words...
The Scriptures speak of what we might call spiritual places—sacred geography—the Mountain of God, Heaven, Paradise, the Underworld. Are these imaginary places? If not, how does one go there? In this first of two episodes on sacred...
"Atonement" is a word invented for the translation of the Bible into English, because there was no good English word for the concept it describes. So what does it mean? People have atonement theories. Is atonement purely theoretical? Does it...
Ancient pagans sacrificed to their gods, and ancient Israel was no exception when it came to offering sacrifice to the One they belonged to. But what did those sacrifices look like, and what did they do? Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick...
What exactly is worship? What does it do? Fr. Stephen De Young and Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick explore worship in the ancient world, both pagan and Israelite, showing how it all resolves into one act—sacrifice. And does that...
What exactly is worship? What does it do? Fr. Stephen De Young and Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick explore worship in the ancient world, both pagan and Israelite, showing how it all resolves into one act—sacrifice. And does that mean killing?
Fr. Stephen and Fr. Andrew continue their discussion on bodies. What about angel bodies? How many types of human bodies are there? Are human and animal bodies the same? And how many bodies does Christ have?