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.
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 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)
Today is the feast of the Beheading of St. John the Baptist (see Mark 6:14-30). This holy day is a day of strict fasting in the Orthodox Church, as we remember the death of an innocent and holy man at the hands of a weak leader governed by his ego and insatiable appetites.
“And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.” (John 1:5)
Does God demand unwavering faith from us? Here’s what we learn in one of Jesus’ healing miracles in Matthew 17.
Good deeds are meant to be multiplied — to the glory of God and to the building up of his kingdom.
Everything Jesus said and did that’s recorded in the Gospels has something to teach us. In this episode, we discuss our “take-home” lesson in Jesus walking on water.
Here’s a link to the audio podcast on anchor.fm.
“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)
I’ll be putting this meme somewhere that I can see easily see it. I need the reminder.
Neuroscience tells us that what’s going on in this quote is a function of something called myelination. Myelin is a chemical that allows signals to travel faster in our neural pathways. We build up myelin by repetition. The more we do something, the stronger the pathways in the brain needed to get it done. That’s why “practice makes perfect.”
Myelination doesn’t just affect learning skills, it also shapes things like character and attitudes. Choosing to be positive will make us a more positive person, because we are strengthening the “positive” pathways in our brains. The same is true for negative thinking.
In the words of the 20th-century Eastern Orthodox monk, Elder Thaddeus:
Our thoughts determine our lives.
