Homily 254 – Second Sunday of Great Lent (St. Gregory Palamas) Holy Transfiguration Orthodox Church, Ames, Iowa March 12, 2017 In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, One God. Throughout time, people have marveled at the miracles demonstrated by our Lord. At the crucifixion, even King Herod…

Homily 252 – First Sunday of Great Lent Holy Transfiguration Orthodox Church, Ames, Iowa March 5, 2017 In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, One God. In the reading for this Sunday, the First Sunday of Great Lent, we learn of our destination. We will see the…

Homily 250 – Cheesefare Expulsion from Paradise Holy Transfiguration Orthodox Church, Ames, Iowa February 26, 2017 In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, One God. Sometimes, frequently in fact, we evaluate the expectations of events. We classify something as good, or bad, even before we know the…

Homily 249 – Meatfare/Last Judgement Holy Transfiguration Orthodox Church, Ames, Iowa February 19, 2017 In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, One God. Throughout history, all of human history, people have asked a question. What does it take to be in favor with God. Sometimes it was…

Homily 248 – Prodigal Son Holy Transfiguration Orthodox Church, Ames, Iowa February 12, 2017 In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, One God. One of my mentors used to tell me that it is the person you identify with in the parable that is the most critical…

Homily 247 – Publican and Pharisee Holy Transfiguration Orthodox Church, Ames, Iowa February 5, 2017 In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, One God. What can I say about the publican and the Pharisee that hasn’t already been said? Likely, nothing. And still the Church gives us…

Homily 246 – Thirty-second Sunday after Pentecost Holy Transfiguration Orthodox Church, Ames, Iowa January 29, 2017 In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, One God. This morning we read two separate Gospel passages. One is the story of Zacchaeus, the tax collector who repented. The other is…

Homily 245 – Thirty-first Sunday after Pentecost Holy Transfiguration Orthodox Church, Ames, Iowa January 22, 2017 In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, One God. In his commentary on this passage, Blessed Theophylact notes that this is a rather mundane setting for a miracle. Jesus and the…

Homily 244 – Thirtieth Sunday after Pentecost Holy Transfiguration Orthodox Church, Ames, Iowa January 15, 2017 In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, One God. This encounter is fairly well known to us, and the interpretations also. We often hear of the commandment to sell everything, give…

Homily 242 –The Circumcision of Christ, Twenty-eighth Sunday after Pentecost St. John the Theologian Orthodox Church, Rapid City, South Dakota January 1, 2017 In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, One God. Obviously, our Lord loved the Temple. So much so that as a lad of only…