Walking an Ancient Path

Lynnette grew up with Good Friday and Easter. Nobody in her Protestant past talked about what Jesus did in the in-between space on Holy Saturday. By celebrating Jesus’ Harrowing of Hades, we reclaim the fulness of the Paschal message and Jesus’ victory over death.

Lynnette grew up with Good Friday and Easter. Nobody in her Protestant past talked about what Jesus did in the in-between space on Holy Saturday. By celebrating Jesus’ Harrowing of Hades, we reclaim the fulness of the Paschal message and Jesus’ victory over death.

A few days ago we celebrated the Sunday of the Holy Cross. In this brief episode we consider the Church’s intention to encourage us in the doldrums of mid-Lent as we struggle and look ahead to Christ’s victory over death.

How can I tell my priest what I really struggle with? What if I keep failing and confessing the same things, over and over? Lynnette interviews Fr. Theodore Dorrance, from St. Catherine Greek Orthodox Church in Greenwood Village, Colorado, about the priest’s point of view and the spiritual freedom that comes from authentic and honest confession.

How can I tell my priest what I really struggle with? What if I keep failing and confessing the same things, over and over? Lynnette interviews Fr. Theodore Dorrance, from St. Catherine Greek Orthodox Church in Greenwood Village, Colorado, about the priest’s point of view and the spiritual freedom that comes from authentic and honest confession.

In this fifth installment in “Stumbling Stones on the Orthodox Road,” we examine public confession of sins in the Scriptures and in the practice of the early Church. We also consider the significant differences between Roman Catholic and Orthodox understandings of the Sacrament of Confession and describe what a confession appointment looks like.

On‌ ‌Sunday‌ ‌we‌ ‌began‌ ‌the‌ ‌Triodion‌ ‌period,‌ ‌a‌ ‌three-week‌ ‌season‌ ‌of‌ ‌readying‌ ‌ourselves‌ ‌for‌ ‌the‌ ‌forty‌ ‌days‌ ‌of‌ ‌Great‌ ‌Lent.‌ ‌In‌ ‌this‌ ‌episode‌ ‌we‌ ‌examine‌ ‌the‌ ‌Church’s‌ ‌purposes‌ ‌during‌ ‌this‌ ‌long‌ ‌warm-up‌ ‌period,‌ ‌when‌ ‌we‌ ‌begin‌ ‌to‌ ‌limber‌ ‌up‌ ‌hearts‌ ‌and‌ minds‌ ‌that‌ ‌have‌ ‌become‌ ‌stiff‌ ‌and‌ ‌neglected‌ ‌throughout‌ ‌the‌ ‌year.‌

Except for reciting the Lord’s Prayer, written prayers are virtually unknown in non-liturgical Christian churches. Isn’t it cheating, or somehow unspiritual, to use “canned prayers”? In this episode, we explore a few drawbacks of spontaneous prayer, and with help from some AFM content contributors (Dr. Jeannie Constantinou, Fr. Barnabas Powell, and others), we consider the benefits of praying with the wisdom of the Church. It’s not an either/or proposition, but both/and.

Except for reciting the Lord’s Prayer, written prayers are virtually unknown in non-liturgical Christian churches. Isn’t it cheating, or somehow unspiritual, to use “canned prayers”? In this episode, we explore a few drawbacks of spontaneous prayer, and with help from some AFM content contributors (Dr. Jeannie Constantinou, Fr. Barnabas Powell, and others), we consider the benefits of praying with the wisdom of the Church. It’s not an either/or proposition, but both/and.

Issues in our own hearts can make it difficult to enter fully into the Orthodox worship experience. Lynnette identifies four common struggles among newcomers to the Faith (as well as old-timers): confusion with the unfamiliar, intellectual understanding versus real-life parish experience, the effect of “palate training” on our expectations of worship, and our need for inner healing.