22nd Sunday after Pentecost – Orthodox Homily on the Rich Man whose soul is demanded of him

The rich man in today’s Gospel puts his trust in his financial well-being, on creating for himself the illusion of ‘security,’ thinking, that if he just can hide away enough surplus, well, then nothing of this world will be able to touch him. He says, I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid […]

21st Sunday after Pentecost – Orthodox Homily on Merciful Samaritan

The Nativity Fast begins this Friday, a time of preparation to ready ourselves for the Feast of Christ’s holy Incarnation and Nativity, an opportunity to grow in faith and be made ready to welcome the new-born King of Kings.  As we begin that journey just a few days from now, we’re presented today with the parable […]

20th Sunday after Pentecost – Orthodox Homily on the Healing of the Woman with the Flow of Blood

Today is the Synaxis of the Holy Unmercenary Healers or, as they are called elsewhere in the Orthodox Church—“Physicians without silver”, which still has a resonance in our day, given the high costs of medical care and health insurance for many.  The holy Uncercenary Healers whom we commemorate today,  Panteleimon, Cyrus and John, Cosma and Damian, and […]

19th Sunday after Pentecost – Orthodox Homily on Gadarene Demoniac

Christ’s last commandments to His Disciples, the Holy Apostles, before His Ascension was “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit…” (Matt. 28:19-20).  The Apostles and their descendants have carried out this holy mission since that time, planting the […]

18th Sunday after Pentecost – Orthodox Homily on on the Rich Man and Lazarus (Lk. 16:19-31)

“There was a certain rich man clothed in purple and fine linen who fared sumptuously every day.  But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate….”Today’s Gospel is sobering: We see one man who suffered great want in this life, saved, and another man, who had everything temporal […]

17th Sunday after Pentecost – Orthodox Homily on Luke 8:5-15, The Parable of the Sower

“A sower went out to sow his seed…”  Christ’s classic parable today challenges us to consider how we personally receive and act upon His Gospel of life.  He compares us to the seeds sown here in this parable and all of which have the potential for life and bearing fruit: “some fell on the wayside, some on […]

16th Sunday after Pentecost – Orthodox Homily on the Witness of St. Innocent

Today we commemorate the Feast of St. Innocent, Enlightener of North America, the first bishop in this land, a lover of the native American peoples of Alaska, planter of the True Faith on these shores, and example to us in our own day of the courage that comes from a life lived for the glory […]

15th Sunday after Pentecost – Orthodox Homily on What Is Agape Love?

Today we’re challenged by Christ to “love our enemies” and to “lend without hoping to receive anything in return.”  But before we can begin to understand the “how” of such commands that are so contrary to the way our world works today—the way we’re all trained to think in the world, the way our sinful impulses […]

14th Sunday after Pentecost – Orthodox Homily on the Great Commission

We see today another miracle of our Lord that bears particularly and personally on our faith and on our Mission church.  Christ once again reveals Himself as God incarnate in this calling of His foremost disciples: Peter, James, and John to become “fishers of men.”  It’s noteworthy that Christ doesn’t call them in the Synagogue but on […]

13th Sunday after Pentecost – Orthodox Homily on What The Cross Means To Us

The cross of Christ, the Lord’s triumphant and life-giving death on the cross whereby He destroys death, is so important for us to understand as Orthodox Christians, that the Church gives special significance and specific Scripture readings for both the weekend before the Feast and the one that follows.  This Sunday after the Exaltation, the Church […]