Of the four Gospels, the Gospel of Luke offers the most systematic account of Jesus’ life and teachings. In this episode, we look at the beginning of Luke 5, where Jesus calls three fishermen to be his apostles. This passage shows us how sharing the Gospel is a spiritual discipline.
Tag: Community
Faith and culture

A criticism of Eastern Orthodoxy in America has been that it is more focused on ethnic heritage than Christian identity. The understanding that this pitfall is not exclusive to the Orthodox is an important insight for believers everywhere.
Morning Prayer

Lord, give rest to the souls of your departed servants, in a place of brightness, refreshment, and repose; where all suffering, sorrow, and sighing have fled away.
The availability heuristic

It’s true, you learn something new every day. Yesterday, I learned about the “availability heuristic.” As the definition above indicates, the availability heuristic says that people will make judgment calls based upon the data that is most available to them, regardless of what other data and relevant facts reveal.
Continue reading “The availability heuristic”“I was glad when they said…”
I always enjoy the peaceful moments in church before Sunday Liturgy. There is a mix of both tranquility and anticipation.
“‘I was glad when they said to me, ‘Let us go into the house of the Lord.'” (Psalm 122:1)
Taste and see…

Christianity was never meant to be merely a topic of academic study. Christianity is communion with the living God. “Taste and see that the Lord is good.” (Psalms of David)
Yes, we must use our heads when learning the Faith. But Christ doesn’t want us to leave him in our heads, he wants us to invite him to sit on the throne of our hearts.
Community and Fellowship in a COVID-19 World
In July, I was honored to be a presenter at the OCA’s seventh annual Parish Development Forum. Sponsored by the Archdiocese of Western Pennsylvania, Diocese of the Midwest, and my own Bulgarian Diocese, this year’s forum was an on-line event, due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
The Forum theme was “The Orthodox Parish: Charting a Course in Challenging Times.” I gave a talk on “Re-establishing Community and Fellowship.” In addition to the video on my YouTube channel, here’s a link to my session slides.
Good deeds

Good deeds are meant to be multiplied — to the glory of God and to the building up of his kingdom.
All ends of the world shall remember

“All the ends of the world shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you.” (Psalm 22)