Go Stand in the Corner: A Convert Reflects on Discipline
From one of our bloggers! Go Stand in the Corner: A Convert Reflects on Discipline I grew up in the 1980s as part of a large Roman Catholic family. My grandmother had nine children, and counting cousins, we were a tribe. Any grown up member of the tribe could dole...
Embracing All God’s Children, Part 5: Pastoral Concerns
As the parent of special needs children, church was often a challenge for us. While most of our time was spent serving smaller military chapels, a trip to a parish usually promised to be stressful – as my husband was serving in the altar and there were 5 children to tend to. ...
Looking Through Love
I was twelve years old and unable to appreciate the Biblical history of where we were, when we were on the island of Patmos, in the Dodecanese. We were on a tour of their famous monastery and the cave where Saint John the Evangelist dictated the Apocalypse. Instead of venerating the icons...
Being Ready with a Defense
How do we respond to defending our faith in dialogue, when we don’t want an argument? In this episode, Fr. Chris speaks with Michael Tishel, CrossRoad Director and Office of Vocation & Ministry (OVM) Asst. Director, on defending the faith in hostile and not-so-hostile situations. As children return to school, they will...
Children and Confession
Does a second grader need to know about confession or are they too innocent? In this episode, Fr. Chris speaks with Fr. Alexander Goussetis, pastor of Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church, in Lancaster, PA, to discuss when parents should start talking about the holy sacrament with their children. Allowing children to...
When We Are Too Busy for Prayer
Is prayer part of your daily life, or are you finding yourself out of time by the end of the day? Listen as Fr. Chris speaks with Fr. Stavros Akrotirianakis of St. John Greek Orthodox Church in Tampa, FL about some concrete things you can do with your family to ensure everyone...
The Children’s Word: How Good is Your Excuse?
Welcome to The Children’s Word, a weekly ministry of the Orthodox Christian Network brought to you by Presvytera Alexandra Houck! This week, Pres. Alexandra wants to know how you get to church every Sunday. Do you go every week? Is there a good excuse if you don’t go? Read about...
Our Children Reveal Our True Priorities at Christmas
The Christmas season has arrived, and I find myself thinking about my most cherished memories from every Christmas prior. As a mom, I find it important to pass along as many of these treasured traditions to my children as possible. As I was thinking about this, I was wondering if...
The Gospel of Matthew, Part 40
Matthew 18:1-14 The Essence of Christian Discipleship Seven qualities can mark the personal relationship of the Christian. They are: humility, responsibility, self-renunciation, individual care, discipline, fellowship, and spirit of forgiveness. Unless you turn Christ warns the disciples that they are going in the completely wrong way by asking “who is...
Mindfulness and Simplicity
Life is a series of one moment after another. If we want to really experience life, instead of it passing us by, we need to be cognizant of our experiences on a moment by moment basis. The most important part of living mindfully is to experience the moment, to not...
