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Father Andrew, the local padre gave me your book. Thank you for writing it.

Thank you so much, this is very helpful.

It bothers me that Tommy Green, ex-Sleeping Giant, having refently converted to Orthodoxy, still calls his rock music ‘worship’ and engages all the tropes of Christcore punk rock as though he were still a Protestant. He really ought to reassess this situation.

Wonderful conversation! Thank you both. 🙏

Perfect

definitely right about breaking up service types - this seems to have become the norm in even more conservative reformed type bodies also.

Thank you

It is mans way of trying to put what they see as important and give it to God. Yet it really comes down to the heart, which is unseen.

12:35

Thanks!

I have commented here on YT about a certain high court placement that would not define the word. Woe man.. Those comments were ALL sensored, almost immediately, over various times and types of videos. We can know the things most threatening to the principalities by what is not allowed to be spoken in to the public arena.

Thank you, Father!

God isn't real and there is zero evidence for God.

As a young 25 year old Orthodox Christian ive began to feel great calling toward serving in the church further. Where that may be, i dont know. Im praying with His Grace Bishop Benedict visiting soon that i may join the ranks as a reader to start. Something that deters me slightly is i have zero degree so to even consider seminary at this point in my life, i have at least 6-8 years till im at a point of being considered ordained. I will serve wherever God needs me, and im not against education, but frankly theres just not enough young men in the minor orders either, which traditionally is how we grow and learn in the liturgical life. Young men should get involved reading the epistle, old testament readings, the hours, and serving in the altar well into adulthood. Not everyone is called to these things, but it should be encouraged to at least get them to try something. You cant learn how to serve from the pews

"You do you" is exactly the temptation in the Garden. You will be as gods. We're seeing the fall play out. The answer is the fulfillment of that story in Christ and Mary as the new Adam and Eve. The new humanity. The redeemed woman as the mother of all living continually plants the seed of Grace in the world, perpetually saving it by allowing her son to sacrifice himself for the sake of the whole world. This is the mustard seed Christ was telling us about. This is the work we are all called to do. It's a pattern that the whole scripture is pointing to, first by showing its opposite and ending with Christ as he flips it. The fallen woman perpetuates the fall by passing on the teaching of her sin to her children, while the redeemed woman redeems the whole world in the same way.

Continue reading Genesis 4 and you find Cain's descendants were the first to create musical instruments. It's interesting that contemporary Christians are making offerings to the Lord using the things that were created by Cain's descendants and calling it worship. I imagine Cain's original sacrifices were also the things of this world, built to improve social reputation, status, and earthly wealth and not to bring one closer to God. A common theme in the scriptures is of those who choose the world over the kingdom of heaven facing judgement for violating God's commandments. All the way down to the Pharisees.

This was helpful, thank you. Is the idea of prayers being “like” incense but not replacing it the same idea behind Romans 12 where it says to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice?

I believe for sure your faith can grow. If you were not a cradle Christian it does not happen overnight or in a moment. Thank you for this good explanation and yes keep your faith !

certainty

37:56 'What is the relevance, by the way, of writing papers to being a good pastor?' 💯

The time of harvest has come, the wheat has been separated from the chaff, and the righteous by faith are secure in the kingdom. What my Father loves is justice (faith) and faith consists of believing in My Word, the Light and putting it into practice. It is faith founded on the rock, blind faith is not faith, believing without awareness is an illusion, one cannot base one's faith on emptiness. What my Father hates is evil, going against His Will. ( living love and divine truth ) I heard a voice speaking to me in my brain, I believed it was the archangel Saint Michel, because the latter had been united with me for several years, in order to keep the demons chained until the time of the preaching of the Antichrist. The son of perdition who had subjugated me by his words, came to sit as an angel, on my Father's person, who did not have a personal angel at that time, this is how he managed to seize royalty. The reign of the son of perdition lasted only a short time, just long enough for Lucifer to gather his chosen ones, so the tares were uprooted and thrown into the fire. Unmasked, the son of perdition has been removed from my flesh.

I’m pursuing a MDiv through a small, still-barely-beyond-charter institution for “continuing” Anglicans - it costs me around $150 per class and it’s all very personal, informal teaching. Having come from a larger seminary prior to this, I think I can say I haven’t noticed much difference in terms of content - Hebrew is Hebrew and Greek is Greek. If you can’t AT LEAST engage with the canon texts (not meaning mastery but at least the ability to have a generally orthodox hermeneutic and ask intelligent questions), you probably have no business being behind a pulpit or conducting anyone in the Christian life. (There’s more to it than that, but certainly not less) That said the cost threshold need not be so high. And if we really go back to a NT model, we will have a place for dual calling, where a Pastor/Priest does not need to walk into a small Church with 401K, housing and healthcare requirements since they are gainfully employed already. This might sound impossible, but I have found that I am actually able to resonate better with my congregants as a dual career guy because I know firsthand what they go through. They know I am not just sitting there reading books and drinking coffee all day 😂

When the wisdom of God is hides your whole life it’s a wonder anyone lives any life at alll. That’s real War learn the meaning of it ❤

☦️🇱🇹☦️🇵🇱☦️

Thanks be to God for inspiring you to speak on this topic. As a cradle Orthodox Christian, so many of these common words like Faith are assumed to be understood when in fact, it’s more of us just leaning on our ‘own understanding’. This can be so dangerous for us and impact our salvation. I’m so grateful for messages like this that help set me straight. 🙏

Because my life is different with Jesus in it than it was without.

I'm still lost, but this was healing. Thanks for the video, both of you.

GOSPEL - A announcement of a victory, a proclamation 1. Who the victor of battle is. 2. What the victor has accomplished and the benefits of living under his rule. 3. What the Victor and new ruler expects of everyone. The Gospel of Jesus Christ 1. Who is Jesus? 2. What did he do? 3. What does he expect? It’s like a public service announcement- it has happened whether you like it or not. The true Gospel is about Jesus. It’s not about you. 😊

Kierkegaard said that faith is a movement.

Is there a podcast feed for this

Amen not a rock and roll concert. i keep saying when people are looking for God as far as my experience has taught me they want to see something different than the world

Fr. Andrew--I have read most of your books and listened to most of your podcasts, esp. LOS and O&H. Please do not continue the "I'm looking at the other guy and not right at the camera" thing. But I still love your content.

I'm afraid of a new martyrdom age tbh. But it may happen soon.

Hebrews 11:1 “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” (KJV) As for increasing faith, I believe that our capacity for faith/belief in spiritual things grows along with our relationship with God.

"And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is LOVE."

Dear Father, these are some helpful thoughts. One point we could discuss is that ones ability to love, without desire, as you stated, should be reconsidered. We can and should "do the works of love even if you do them without love in the beginning." St. Amvrosy of Optina leads us to believe that "works of love" can be done without love, in the beginning, but these deeds require or presuppose desire. Without the will or desire to love God, or one's spouse, neither the works of love nor love will be offered. The distinction seems to be between simple obedience and love. The first is expected of a slave, the second of a son. Methodius, priest.

I disengage in a christian chat room because people come in to cause problems. They don't listen they don't hear they don't change.

I'm glad the military is standing up to Netanyahu and having 11 hours of peace to get peace and aid to Palestinians

Peace be with you Father Andrew and to all who are checking in. At the onset of hearing your message about how (in your words) “…Faith is a gift from God…that He has given us a way of faithfulness…” - upon hearing those words it immediately led me to think of what Christ our Lord and God and Savior said - “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life” (John 14:6-7). We need only look to Christ to find our way to the path of faithfulness. For the path to faithfulness starts with our love for God much as our love for those we hold near and dear is the reason why we make sacrifices for them and oftentimes even go beyond what is expected of us. Therefore let us bring our faith to a high level by picking up our cross and always walking in the path in which God has intended for us by looking to Christ as our guide always. Thanks Father Andrew for having enlightened me.

Evidence of what you can’t see, not evidence you don’t have for

"how can you agree that Jesus can do this but also disagree? That doesn't make any sense." I'd have to disagree with that. There are many things that i have a greater or lesser degree of belief in. Many things i say i believe, often related to what i believe God can do in my life, but when the rubber hits the road it turns out i didn't believe that strongly after all... Belief is in degrees almost always, it's not binary, like certainty or nothing at all.

Haleluja live breath eat and drink Jesus

Very accurate approach!

It is not just an acknowledgement of what is true. It is believing Christ died for your sins, and you are trusting in Him for salvation.

Faith is an invisible hope, belief, and trust that can't be measured, tested, and used in any practical (worldly) sense. It is the opposite of the physical realm, where ideas and things can put into practice, measured, tested, used to mankind's physical benefit. Both of those realms can sometimes be used to promote a good feeling - plus, in both cases God is not necessarily involved. Faith can frequently be disappointing in that it fails one at times. The material world also does that except that the material world is more easily understood and the spiritual realm stays more mysterious without explanation.

Why is there no longer missionaries to the middle east? to non christian communites? as a non christian from the middle east Iam struggling to become christian, seems that i got a bit lost along the way, iam not obident to God, i stopped praying, and iam on my own in my community, its very hard to convert and leave everything behind me, and its hard to pray everday not knowing if iam doing it right or not, its a great sacrifice that i dont know if iam ready for.

If faith is faithfulness, does that mean that an agnostic could be said to "have faith" if they were to earnestly participate in the christian way of living?

I’m 32 and for a few years now I have been on a search for a church to call home for my family and I. I’ve never tried visiting any churches I’ve just done a ton of research. I am not and was not driven by political views or ideological views. I was raised Baptist and Pentecostal and I haven’t been to a church since I was 13. Something about Orthodoxy called out to me or maybe the Holy Spirit has compelled me but I actually went to a Divine Liturgy for the very first time of going to any church since 13 and I felt filled. My heart was no longer empty. My soul sparked back to life in reverence to the Lord. God bless Orthodoxy.

Fr. Damick’s explanation of the biblical concept of the word “love” is in alignment with the translators of the Authorized (King James) Version of the Bible. This is why they utilized the word “charity” instead of “love” in 1 Corinthians 13. Charity is when love is put into practice.