Podcasts about holy church

Delivered by Meisye Laurencia from the Parish of Sacred Heart of Jesus Cathedral in the Archdiocese of Makassar, Indonesia. Acts of the Apostles 9: 31-42; Rs psalm 116: 12-13.14-15.16-17; John 6: 60-69.THE BREAD OF LIFE SUSTAINS US TO GOFORWARD The title for our meditation today is:The Bread of Life Sustains Us to Go Forward. The horse of the priest from alocal parish could only eat at certain stops, because there was food and drinkavailable to it. The priest, during his pastoral visit to the mission stationsin mountains, sat on the horse's back along with a number of other items kept inseveral sacks. The horse was the friend of the priestin the journey. Although tired and hungry, the horse was able to avade temptationto stop and look for food or drink. The available food and drink for the horsewere in the village, a place that was familiar to. The food and drink motivatedthe horse to walk in the same direction and it was impossible for it to changethe course. The horse did not care about the burden carried and how fatigue itwas. The horse only knew that later when arriving at the place intended tothere was always food and drink available to satisfy all hunger and thirst. Jesus Christ as our bread of lifekeeps us going forward as the one and holy Church to certain goal that His willand power had prepared for us. Like food that motivated the horse to go on, JesusChrist, our Guide and Teacher encourages and sustains us to go on and stay inHis company along the journey of salvation. He makes himself our everlasting foodand drink. Teaching and welcoming new membersinto the Church, repentance and self-renewal, healing as the apostle Peter didin today's reading, and building community, all these reflect how we as theChurch with all her members move forward to realize the works and mission ofJesus Christ. The Church must move and walk forward. Jesus Christ as our bread of lifeshould encourage, urge and even demanding when it comes to the need of changefrom old to new life. Eating the Body and drinking the Blood of Jesus Christare the same as using Jesus Christ in our bodies and souls so that His Holy Spiritalways controls us. The consequence is there, that we must do His will. Many people with freedom,responsibility and optimism accept that consequence with joy. Thay is why theEarly Church grew rapidly in numbers and they all expressed a deep gratitude forthis new experience of faith. This Church continued to grow until it becomesthe one and holy Church as of today. Our Church today remains following thepath of Jesus Christ and continue to move forward. But some people are having trouble inthe journey of salvation. They decline in their faith orientation. They preferanother path to follow. There are some members of the Church today reject theteachings of Christ and the Holy Church because for them, becoming member ofthe Church is too hard and demanding. Therefore, they take their own way tofind salvation. We hope that we are not included in this type.Let's pray. In the name of theFather ... O Lord our God, praise and thank you for Jesus Christ Your son whois our way, truth and life. We hope we will be loyal to him now and forever.Our Father who art in heaven ... In the name of the Father ...

Delivered by Ellyane Theresia from the Parish of Saint James in the Diocese of Surabaya, Indonesia. Acts of the Apostles 5: 34-42; Rs psalm 27: 1.4.13-14; John 6: 1-15.BECOMETHE INSTRUMENT OF GOD Ourmeditation today is entitled: Become the Instrument of God. Our Christian lifeas expected to be in the spirit of Easter is not only a true practice duringthis Easter season but also during our life time on earth. The resurrection ofJesus Christ should animate our entire lives. The period after resurrection isa period when Jesus Christ is not physically present in the midst of all Hisfollowers, unlike when He was still living and walking with His disciples andpeople of His time. After resurrection, He went up to heaven and seated at theright hand of the Father. But as He had promised, He is forever with us at alltimes, because His Spirit lives with us in the world. Whatmust we do to make our faith strong and active in daily life by keeping alwaysthe spirit of Easter? The inspiration from our readings today can give us theanswer. God has chosen and made us his instruments. The Holy Church as thePeople of God carries out the ministry of Jesus Christ as her main mission toserve the humanity and the world. This has been the duty entrusted by Jesussince the foundation of the Church in Jerusalem. Who are those people to beministered by the Church? It maybe each one of us, our brothers or sisters andfriends. It maybe people we don't know who they are or where they are from. Itmaybe persons God has entrusted to us to be educated and cared for. Becomingthe instrument God is a basic calling for us Christians, as the Psalmist saysof the following: Here I am Lord, to do Your will (Ps. 40). The goal of thisvocation is to make the Lord truly present in a real and a personal way throughthe ministry of Jesus Christ that saves, heals, teaches, speaks of truth,comforts, and forgives. The Lord bestows to every person this vocation andleads every person the way of life as priest, religious and lay person. Whenevery person can carry out well his or her own vocation, it means that he orshe acts in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and fulfils the works of the Lord. Wehave an example about the apostles who bravely defended the truth of the Gospelthey preached, however, the Jewish Religious Court falsely tried and imprisonedthem. There was a famous Jewish priest, Gamaliel, also spoke in the name oftruth and at the same time defended what the apostles fearlessly did. Both theapostles and Gamaliel had proved to be the real instruments of God in preachingand teaching the true faith. Then on another occasion we can see also thepractice of this truth. The apostles became the instruments for the feeding ofthousands of people who were hungry after a full day following and listening toJesus away from the city. A child who provided a small portion of bread andfish also proved to be the instrument of God for the miracle of multiplicationof bread and fish. They were the instruments of God's mercy for the urgentneeds of people at that moment. Wecan be the instruments of God in any given condition in our lives today,especially the conditions that really needs urgent solution or treatment. Itall depends on our willingness and commitment to do. Let's pray. In thename of the Father ... O generous and merciful Lord, strengthen us in everystep and work that we take, so that we can be your true and useful instruments,especially for the benefit of our needy brothers and sisters. Hail Mary full ofgrace ... In the name of the Father ...

Pastor Zack Flipse preaches from Acts 4:32-5:11, “Impurity in a Holy Church.” —————————— More from Oostburg CRC Sermons: https://www.firstcrcoostburg.org/sermons Bible Study Resources: https://www.firstcrcoostburg.org/resources Original Music: https://open.spotify.com/album/4P7JbJlHzabPNW8GpdxKcB YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJSouYxM1rwWZ4cYAvTIqVA

April 27th: Kevin Ewaskow - Holy Spirit, Holy Church – A New DirectionScripture: Acts 10

A Holy Church of Strangers - 1 Peter 1:22-2:10 (March 30, 2025) by Michael B. Linton

Ephesians 4:25-32 Aaron Law

The Sunday of Orthodoxy: Embrace the Fullness of the Faith Fr. Anthony Perkins Every morning we join together and pray: Lord, save and have mercy on our civil authorities; protect our nation with peace, subduing our every foe and adversary. Fill the hearts of our leaders with peaceful, benevolent thoughts for your Holy Church and for all your people so that we, in their tranquility, may lead a peaceful and quiet life in true faith and in all godliness and purity. This same attitude is found amongst the most solemn intercessor prayers in all of Orthodoxy: those that occur during the Anaphora. In the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, the prayer is; We also offer You this spiritual worship for the whole world, for the Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church, and for all those who live in purity and holiness. And for all those in public service, permit them Lord, to serve and govern in peace, that in their tranquility we may lead a calm and quiet life in all Godliness and purity. This is our approach to politics, and this is the basis of our theology of church and state. We are expected to pray for our government, that it provides a safe place for us to pursue perfection. And don't forget that pursuing perfection is what we are all about. We are learning to radiate peace and joy and unity so strongly, to be transformed by the grace and mercy of Christ so completely, that the people and world around us are themselves transformed. That when people see us on the streets, they recognize us as something different because of our love; that when they see us together as a church they are awed by the love that radiates among us and warmed by the Spirit that burns within our hearts. It is wonderful when the government respects this and gives us a safe space to make it happen. But sometimes the government goes beyond this. Sometimes it wants to get more involved. Orthodoxy is a way of life – we do not simply pursue holiness in our minds and before the icons in our prayer corners or in our houses of worship: we do it 24/7, with an approach to life that is complete and holistic. The way we eat, the way we talk, everything we do – it's all designed to further this one goal: the healing and perfection of us and of this world. When the government sees it as its own responsibility to guide us towards a certain way of thinking and living – rather than as simply the force that protects us as we think and live – we quickly run into problems. On previous Sundays of Orthodoxy, I have preached about the transformative power of beauty, of the fact that icons are not only allowed by Christianity but required by it, I have explained the findings of the councils and why they are true. These are very important lessons, and I will, no doubt return to them in future years. But certainly one of the lessons to be learned from the whole nasty history of iconoclasm – when morality police came into our churches and destroyed our icons and told us we were wicked for having them – is just how dangerous it is for the government to get involved in the substance of theological disputes. And it gets even worse when it seeks to enforce the version it believes is best for us. But thank God we are free from such things here and now. Thank God the First Amendment [and the rest of the Constitution] encourages our government to protect us rather than change us. This, combined with the melting pot of cultures and religions here has created a widespread respect for the ideal of religious diversity, even when disparate beliefs are held with fervor. But here's the thing. There really have been times when people hid their icons because the authorities were confiscating them and persecuting the people who were caught with them. Here, don't just think of when the iconoclasts ruled in Constantinople in parts of the first millennium; the militant atheist iconoclasts in the Soviet Union destroyed plenty of icons in the 20th century and Muslims have done this more recently than in Kosovo and the Middle East. But in America we are free. No one is taking our icons. And yet even so it seems to me that the iconoclasts are winning, not just in our broader American culture (which we are called to sanctify), but perhaps even amongst us, in our own homes. When strangers come into our homes, are they greeted with an image of that which is central to our identity? The thing that drives and draws us toward peace and perfection? Are our wedding and patronal icons central to the “feng shui” of our living rooms and bedrooms? Do we have reminders in our kitchens and hallways that there is a Christian manner of eating and living? Is there an icon near our television to remind us that our every thought should be pure and chaste, that it is better to pluck our eye than allow it to pull us off the path of righteousness? And remember, it's not just about icons. All our life is to be transformed by our life in Christ. It is a holistic way of life that informs and blessed everything. The way we eat, the way we think, the way we love. If we have not sanctified our homes with icons, I wonder if we have sanctified them with prayer. If we have not sanctified them with prayer, then there is no way we can them with love. And if we have no love, our lives are full of noise and confusion, and we are little more than wasted potential; wasted skin and mind and soul. The world believes that icons are unnecessary. We know that to be a lie. St. John of Damascus lived in a time when icons were being attacked, both by the Muslim authorities who governed over him and his flock and by heretical religious authorities who shared their vision. He was a theologian, so he defended icons with theological arguments, but his strongest advice was pastoral: He wanted to see his people free. He wanted to see them healed. He wanted to see them holy. He knew that Orthodoxy – the fullness of the faith (and not some compromised watered-down version) was essential to that purpose. So he told them to embrace their icons, despite the surrounding culture. I want you to be free. I want you to be healed. I want to see you holy. I know that Orthodoxy – the fullness of the faith (and not some compromised watered-down version), is essential to that purpose. So I encourage you to embrace your icons. And not just icons. Resist every temptation and encouragement to water down any aspect of your faith; not by attacking the forces that mock or try to destroy your faith, but by committing yourself to a life in Christ. To prayer. To fasting. To sacrificial giving. To chastity. As we will proclaim together at the end of the Liturgy;  This is the Faith of the Apostles. This is the Faith of the Fathers. This is the Faith of the Orthodox. This is the Faith which has established the Universe. In the name …  

We continue through the Nicene Creed.

We Believe, The Nicene Creed

Ephesians 4:1-6

We Believe, The Nicene Creed

Ephesians 4:1-6

In this episode, we critically examine Young Life's approach to Roman Catholicism through their article, "What Do Catholics (Really) Believe?" We'll unpack the theological missteps and discuss the implications of their stance for gospel clarity. Additionally, we'll dive into one of our own recent articles exploring the Roman Catholic practice of praying to Mary and the saints. Is it truly equivalent to asking friends to pray for you, or does it point to deeper theological concerns? Join us as we navigate these important topics from an Evangelical perspective, holding fast to the truth of the gospel.Episode resources:https://younglifeleaders.org/2022/04/what-do-catholics-really-believe.htmlhttps://www.reformandainitiative.org/resources/why-praying-to-the-saints-is-not-like-asking-for-prayer-from-friendsExamples of prayers to Mary, Joseph and Guardian Angels from Rome's 1999 edition of the official "Manual of Indulgences. NORMS AND GRANTS. Apostolic Penitentiary." Translated into English from the fourth edition (1999) of Enchiridion Indulgentiarum: Normae et Concessiones.PRAYERS TO THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARYMaria, Mater gratiaeMary, Mother of grace and Mother of mercy, shield me from the enemy and receive me at the hour of my death. Memorare, O piissima Virgo Maria Remember, O most gracious Virgin Mary, that never was it known that anyone who fled to thy protection, implored thy help, or sought thine intercession was left unaided. Inspired by this confidence, I fly unto thee, O Virgin of virgins, my mother; to thee do I come, before thee I stand, sinful and sorrowful. O Mother of the Word Incarnate, despise not my petitions, but in thy mercy hear and answer me. Amen.(Liturgy of the Hours, Ordinary for Night Prayer)PRAYERS IN HONOR OF ST. JOSEPHA partial indulgence is granted to the faithful who invoke St. Joseph, spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary, with a duly approved prayer (e.g., Ad te, beate Ioseph). Ad te, beate Ioseph:To you, O blessed Joseph, do we come in our tribulation, and having implored the helpof your most holy spouse, we confidently invoke your patronage also. Through that charity which bound you to the Immaculate Virgin Mother of God and through the paternal love with which you embraced the Child Jesus, we humbly beg you graciously to regard the inheritance which Jesus Christ has purchased by his Blood, and with your power and strength to aid us in our necessities. O most watchful Guardian of the Holy Family, defend the chosen children of Jesus Christ; O most loving father, ward off from us every contagion of error and corrupting influence; O our most mighty protector, be kind to us and from heaven assist us in our struggle with the power of darkness. As once you rescued the Child Jesus from deadly peril, so now protect God's Holy Church from the snares of the enemy and from all adversity; shield, too, each one of us by your constant protection, so that, supported by your example and your aid, we may be able to live piously, to die in holiness, and to obtain eternal happiness in heaven. Amen.PRAYERS TO ONE'S GUARDIAN ANGELA partial indulgence is granted to the faithful who devoutly invoke the care of their guardian:Angele Dei, Angel of God, my guardian dear, to whom his love entrusts me here, enlighten and guard, rule and guide me. Amen.Support the show

Ephesians 4:1-6

Happy feast of St. Francis Xavier! On today's show, Matt Swaim and Anna Mitchell discuss the life and legacy of one of the Church's greatest missionaries. Guests include John Knutsen to talk about this weekend's collection for the Retirement Fund for Religious, and Kris McGregor from Discerning Hearts to reflect on the Office of Readings. Plus news, weather, sports and a whole lot more… ***** Collect for the Memorial of St. Francis Xavier O God, who through the preaching of Saint Francis Xavier won many peoples to yourself, grant that the hearts of the faithful may burn with the same zeal for the faith and that Holy Church may everywhere rejoice in an abundance of offspring. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. ***** Support the Retirement Fund for Religious at retiredreligious.org. Andrew Petiprin is online at spesalviinstitute.org. Full list of guestsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Based on the legend of Pope Joan.By professor98. Listen to the Podcast at Steamy Stories. The following account is fiction, which is based on the well-documented Legend of Pope Joan, the first, and last female Pope of the Catholic Church.As this story took place in the ninth century of the Christian era, or Year of our Lord; many of the terms are from ancient languages. Words such as slitten, which is Old English for slit, and sheath, later referred to as ‘cunny' or cunt. Although the specific accounts were not taken down on paper, the story refers to certain facts in which the legend was based.In the year of our lord, 823 A D, a girl, Joanna Wellen was born in a small village not far from Salisbury Plain in southern England. He mother died due to complications of the birth. As she grew, she would often visit Stonehenge, with her father who treated her with great love and affection. Stonehenge was a religious center, and an astronomical observatory; which lay not far from their village. It was used as a place of worship, especially by the surfs and peasants who were not allowed to attend Church.In those days in England and Europe for that matter, females were considered worthless and only good for birthing babies, cooking, scrubbing and cleaning for a man. They were not allowed to go to school, as society thought them incapable of learning.Joanna grew up as a scullery maid and worked on her Father's farm for years. From the time she learned to speak, Joan always wanted to learn about everything, so when she was fifteen and began to clean house for the village schoolteacher, they became friends and when she was not working, she begged him to teach her to read.As her father loved her very much, he had no complaints regarding her studies, and invited the schoolteacher for supper, four evenings a week in payment for teaching her.After several years, the schoolteacher, one Edmund Beddus was married to a fairly well to do somewhat older widow, Gwendolyn Vaughan, who's late husband was killed in a horseback ridding accident. It was not well known at the time; however he was drunk. As Edmund didn't earn much money, he jumped at the chance to marry Gwendolyn, mostly for her stature and wealth.After a while, Gwendolyn became angry due to the attention Edmund paid to Joan and threatened him with a divorce. Edmond ended his three-year relationship with the girl, and she had to return all of the books she had borrowed.The young village priest Father Paul had always seen Joan walking with a book in her hands and was taken with her beauty. One day he saw her passing the church, however she had no book. He called to her and said,"Are you no longer reading Joan?""I no longer have books available to me, Father." She said."Well Joan, if ever you wish books to read again, feel free to come by the rectory after supper and I will let you read some that belong to the church."This was a very special offer as there were no libraries and all books were written by hand. It would be six hundred years before; Johannes Gutenberg would invent moveable type and print his first bible.The following evening, after making supper for her Father, Joan walked to the church and knocked on the rectory door. Father Paul answered and invited her in. As the parish was pour, they only had four books. One was a bible, the second was a book called, "Entrance to Heaven", which was a guide for priests.The third and fourth were written in Latin, a language in which Joan had no knowledge. Father Paul told her to be seated by the fire, picked up the book in Latin and began to read."When a priest has a craving for a physical union, it is the duty of all females to give themselves to him willingly. This is the law of God. Sexual union is God's reward to everyone who follows his decrees. The female shall spread her legs wide and allow the priest to enter her with his phallic member."Father what is a phallic member?""All males have a phallic member Joan. It is the essence of a man.""I have no knowledge of such essence. What will it do?""It is the instrument that will allow a female to see God.""Do you have your phallic member with you Father Paul?""Yes, I do.""May I see it Father?""Of course my child."Father Paul lifted his short tunic and revealed his penis and testicles. Joan was very interested and asked how she would be able to see God, with his instrument. The Father invited her to repose on his bed of straw, and he would display the power of his essence.When she complied, Father Paul knelt down and lifted her tattered dress, revealing her slitten, the entrance to her passageway. As he spread her legs, Joan wondered what he was doing and why. In her eighteen years she had never heard of this type of ritual, and wondered who had written the book.Kneeling between Joan's legs, Paul stripped off his tunic and was naked before her; his member became erect and was pointing toward the ceiling. As he bent forward, and guided his penis toward the opening to her vagina, she wondered if she would really see God. A priest would never lie to her, she thought.As Father Paul rubbed the large head of his phallus up and down her damp slitten, she became more interested in his movements. They felt strangely pleasing, and her slitten began to tickle and was becoming very warm, and wet. She had felt nothing like this in her short life.It was wonderful and caused her to breath harder. Slowly Paul began to move his penis into her vagina and she screamed in pain. It felt as though he was entering her with a double-egged sword. She knew right then, she was about to see God, as his phallus would surly end her life. She had never experienced a pain such as this. Father Paul was deep into her vagina, and moving fast as she lay under him, her tears flowed down her cheeks as she waited for impending death.However as he continued to move, her pain was subsiding and pleasure was replacing it. She believed that Father moving his phallus in and out of her; was devoid of wisdom and good sense.Other than a nice feeling from between her legs, the whole process seemed fruitless, and a bit pointless. He continued for some time and pointless as the process appeared to be, she was developing a wonderful feeling in her belly. Father Paul was creating a desire, which previously Joan had no knowledge of. Her belly was tingling as the Father continued his thrusts, his phallus sliding in and out of her passageway. She found herself lifting her legs, then wrapping them around Father Paul's legs, pulling him tight into her channel.As he continued, Joan's feelings for the young Father were growing at an alarming rate and her need for some kind of satisfaction was increasing. Her emotions were on a never ending latter, climbing to the sky.Without any warning, Joan felt herself begin to discharge juices with a force. She felt fulfillment and gratification of an unknown desire and appetite, which lifted her to extreme pleasure and contentment.Father Paul had not yet discharged his essence and doubled his efforts. As Joan felt his increasing movements in to her, desire began to grow again almost exponentially and she held him tight to her. Father Paul called out to heaven,"Oh Lord my God, I am your humble servant and I do your bidding."Joan felt a new gush of liquid, however it wasn't coming from her, it was coming from Father Paul. The feeling was beautiful in design and execution, and although she did not see God, she believed she was closer to him. The whole occurrence was a delicacy as to arouse intense delight, and satisfaction. Joan cared little to see God, as she was taking great pleasure and delight in his glory.Suddenly a reoccurrence of her discharge began, and she was lifted beyond the bounds of Earth. Her blood ran hot as her juices flowed once again."Your phallus is as you said Father, truly the essence of man, and God.""Remember Joan, although my member, my penis, from the Latin, if you will, is a wonderful instrument. It would be useless without your marvelous passage of desire. My penis requires your vagina to achieve its primary and sacred function. Without woman, man has little purpose in life. It is God's design."Joan knew that her existence had taken a new direction. She was truly a daughter of God, and would do everything necessary to fulfill the Heavenly Father's design. As Father Paul lay in coitus relaxen, a Latin term for rest after sexual intercourse, Joan lifted his depleted penis and examined it carefully. She found a hidden beauty within its current state, although it was much more useful when it was swollen to a larger size.She felt closer to Father Paul than she had to any individual, except maybe her own Father. The closeness was of course the feeling most women would feel to a man; who brought her such euphoria and intense pleasure. Joan felt compelled to pay homage to his member and leaned down to kiss it.It had a strange yet inexplicable odor. Not a bad odor, but one, which could not be described. She had detected a similar odor before when the farm animals were ready for breeding. Joan kissed Father Paul's member on the tip once again, and suddenly it began to throb and swell. As she unexpectedly enjoyed the taste, she slid the head of his penis into her mouth, and for some unknown, but natural desire, began to suck on it.Father Paul squirmed in delight feeling something wonderful which he only had knowledge of, during confessions of travelers to the Far East. It was told to him that Egyptian girls reveled in sucking a man's penis, and excelled in elevating a man to an ultimate level of fulfillment and gratification.Strangely he had never heard of an English female performing such a wonderful service. This was something that God and the Church made no mention of, possibly because it had nothing to do with reproduction.Joan now had a challenge and believed she would be able to master it. As she sucked the Priest's penis he moaned, apparently enjoying her oral stimulation causing him arousal, and intense pleasure beyond that of which she provided with her vagina. The priest took hold of Joan's head and moved his hips upward in a masterful manner, emulating copulation.Joan was now eager to give the young priest something he would continue to desire, throughout their newly found friendship. As she sucked him, her hand took hold of his testicles and fondled them as one might do with a favorite pet. The priest in return moaned and mewed letting her know how much the manipulations of her mouth on his penis were appreciated.With little warning the priest began to spray his bodily secretions into her mouth with a degree of fluidity that surpassed his previous performance. Joan sat up wondering what was to be done with Father Paul's essence. Would it be a sin to expel it from her mouth? As it was a gift from God, she wondered what she should do. Father Paul saw the questioning expression on Joan's face and said,"Swallow it, Joan. God would want nothing less. Essence is too important to be splattered on the floor."Although the creamy liquid felt wonderful in her mouth, she followed directions and allowed the liquid to slowly slide down her throat. Although a bit salty, the essence was also sweet. A fascinating combination she thought."Do you want me to continue reading, Joan?""No. Not tonight as I believe Morpheus, the ancient Roman god of sleep and dreams, is calling to me. May I return after supper on the morrow, Father Paul?""Of course my child. You may visit me any time you desire, and I will teach you everything I have knowledge of."Joan joins a priest, who is entertaining another person.Joan slept the sleep of chastity, although she knew that she was no longer a maiden, and deserved little satisfactory sleep. She could not understand why she had such wonderful feelings throughout her body. Apparently it was God's desire, and he was pleased with her actions.She spent the day, milking the cows, currying the horses, cooking and cleaning. She fed all of the animals and cleaned their stalls, while her father worked in the fields planting vegetables. They broke for the mid-day meal and sat together while eating. Her Father asked,"Joan, what did you learn at the church with Father Paul, last eve?""Father Paul read to me from a large book in Latin. I learned about God's design and the essence of man. He also taught me how man should best serve God, and what God expects of his children.""My daughter is such a wonderful student; and has an admirable mind, unlike her ignorant father.""Father, if it was not for your understanding and love for me, I would never have learned to read and write. You are not ignorant and I love you.""Are you going to the church tonight little one?""Yes father, if that would be convenient for you. There is much work to be done.""Of course my daughter, although I feel you deserve some enjoyment and rest. You work here all the day, then study hard after dark. A girl should also have some good times in her young life.""Believe me Father, the enjoyment I have received from God's love has been wonderful and fulfilling. My life has found new meaning and absolute pleasure. Are you remaining home on this eve?No, I plan to go to the public house and have a tall glass of warm Ale.""In moderation, father. Do not forget your last venture to the public house. You were unable to get out of bed long past sunrise.""Yes daughter, I recall. I will only have a pint or so."Father and daughter then parted company. Joan washed the dishes, swept the floors, and then went out to feed the hogs. He father returned to his planting. They would have a good harvest on the year.Supper came and went. As night fell, Joan fed the fireplace and as the light danced on the walls of the room, she wondered if Father Paul would elevate her with his phallus and essence. Taking a torch from its storage place, she shoved the end of it into the fire. The tip burned brightly, warming her face.Leaving the house, she trudged up the path, in the dark toward the rectory. Upon arriving, Joan opened the door and walked in. Father Paul was naked and laying on top of her close friend Lily, a postulate, or nun-in-training. His phallus was deeply imbedded in her sheath.Joan stood there and watched as Father Paul continued to enter into and permeate her vagina, helping her temporarily ascend to heaven's gate. Lily was much involved in Father Paul's God-like movements, and was sinking her nails in his back, moaning loud and mumbling,"More Father Paul, more. Send me to see God."Joan sat in a chair, next to the bed of straw and watched as the Father's penis slid in and out of her friend. Everything seemed to be very wet and coated with a viscous liquid, and a small amount of blood. Joan wondered if it would be better for her to withdraw, as Father was fully involved in her friend."Joan", said Paul. "Please disrobe and join us in the bed. We can all do the Lord's work together."Quickly, as Father Paul began to eject his essence into the young girl, she moaned loudly and began to squirt her juices, pumping them past Father's penis and onto his testical sack.She stated to the priest; "More Father Paul, please do more. I want God to love me.""God does love you, my child, more than most women, whom would refuse to share their sacred passage with the sons of the church."Joan shed her clothing and joined the couple on the bed of straw, which was covered with a sheet like covering. Father rolled off of the girl as she lay in a semi unconscious state, moaning lightly.Joan took hold of Paul's phallus and began to stroke it as she had done the evening prior. It took some patient time and affectionate gestures of fondness, however when his penis again became tumescent, Joan lifted her leg over him and eased down onto his lap, allowing his coccus to impale her tight moist vagina.She moved front to back, feeling the priest's huge member inside of her, thanking God in a little prayer for bringing such knowledge and pleasure to her.She was full of cheer as she thought there would be more pain associated with another coupling, however she now understood that the

Based on the legend of Pope Joan.By professor98. Listen to the Podcast at Steamy Stories. The following account is fiction, which is based on the well-documented Legend of Pope Joan, the first, and last female Pope of the Catholic Church.As this story took place in the ninth century of the Christian era, or Year of our Lord; many of the terms are from ancient languages. Words such as slitten, which is Old English for slit, and sheath, later referred to as ‘cunny' or cunt. Although the specific accounts were not taken down on paper, the story refers to certain facts in which the legend was based.In the year of our lord, 823 A D, a girl, Joanna Wellen was born in a small village not far from Salisbury Plain in southern England. He mother died due to complications of the birth. As she grew, she would often visit Stonehenge, with her father who treated her with great love and affection. Stonehenge was a religious center, and an astronomical observatory; which lay not far from their village. It was used as a place of worship, especially by the surfs and peasants who were not allowed to attend Church.In those days in England and Europe for that matter, females were considered worthless and only good for birthing babies, cooking, scrubbing and cleaning for a man. They were not allowed to go to school, as society thought them incapable of learning.Joanna grew up as a scullery maid and worked on her Father's farm for years. From the time she learned to speak, Joan always wanted to learn about everything, so when she was fifteen and began to clean house for the village schoolteacher, they became friends and when she was not working, she begged him to teach her to read.As her father loved her very much, he had no complaints regarding her studies, and invited the schoolteacher for supper, four evenings a week in payment for teaching her.After several years, the schoolteacher, one Edmund Beddus was married to a fairly well to do somewhat older widow, Gwendolyn Vaughan, who's late husband was killed in a horseback ridding accident. It was not well known at the time; however he was drunk. As Edmund didn't earn much money, he jumped at the chance to marry Gwendolyn, mostly for her stature and wealth.After a while, Gwendolyn became angry due to the attention Edmund paid to Joan and threatened him with a divorce. Edmond ended his three-year relationship with the girl, and she had to return all of the books she had borrowed.The young village priest Father Paul had always seen Joan walking with a book in her hands and was taken with her beauty. One day he saw her passing the church, however she had no book. He called to her and said,"Are you no longer reading Joan?""I no longer have books available to me, Father." She said."Well Joan, if ever you wish books to read again, feel free to come by the rectory after supper and I will let you read some that belong to the church."This was a very special offer as there were no libraries and all books were written by hand. It would be six hundred years before; Johannes Gutenberg would invent moveable type and print his first bible.The following evening, after making supper for her Father, Joan walked to the church and knocked on the rectory door. Father Paul answered and invited her in. As the parish was pour, they only had four books. One was a bible, the second was a book called, "Entrance to Heaven", which was a guide for priests.The third and fourth were written in Latin, a language in which Joan had no knowledge. Father Paul told her to be seated by the fire, picked up the book in Latin and began to read."When a priest has a craving for a physical union, it is the duty of all females to give themselves to him willingly. This is the law of God. Sexual union is God's reward to everyone who follows his decrees. The female shall spread her legs wide and allow the priest to enter her with his phallic member."Father what is a phallic member?""All males have a phallic member Joan. It is the essence of a man.""I have no knowledge of such essence. What will it do?""It is the instrument that will allow a female to see God.""Do you have your phallic member with you Father Paul?""Yes, I do.""May I see it Father?""Of course my child."Father Paul lifted his short tunic and revealed his penis and testicles. Joan was very interested and asked how she would be able to see God, with his instrument. The Father invited her to repose on his bed of straw, and he would display the power of his essence.When she complied, Father Paul knelt down and lifted her tattered dress, revealing her slitten, the entrance to her passageway. As he spread her legs, Joan wondered what he was doing and why. In her eighteen years she had never heard of this type of ritual, and wondered who had written the book.Kneeling between Joan's legs, Paul stripped off his tunic and was naked before her; his member became erect and was pointing toward the ceiling. As he bent forward, and guided his penis toward the opening to her vagina, she wondered if she would really see God. A priest would never lie to her, she thought.As Father Paul rubbed the large head of his phallus up and down her damp slitten, she became more interested in his movements. They felt strangely pleasing, and her slitten began to tickle and was becoming very warm, and wet. She had felt nothing like this in her short life.It was wonderful and caused her to breath harder. Slowly Paul began to move his penis into her vagina and she screamed in pain. It felt as though he was entering her with a double-egged sword. She knew right then, she was about to see God, as his phallus would surly end her life. She had never experienced a pain such as this. Father Paul was deep into her vagina, and moving fast as she lay under him, her tears flowed down her cheeks as she waited for impending death.However as he continued to move, her pain was subsiding and pleasure was replacing it. She believed that Father moving his phallus in and out of her; was devoid of wisdom and good sense.Other than a nice feeling from between her legs, the whole process seemed fruitless, and a bit pointless. He continued for some time and pointless as the process appeared to be, she was developing a wonderful feeling in her belly. Father Paul was creating a desire, which previously Joan had no knowledge of. Her belly was tingling as the Father continued his thrusts, his phallus sliding in and out of her passageway. She found herself lifting her legs, then wrapping them around Father Paul's legs, pulling him tight into her channel.As he continued, Joan's feelings for the young Father were growing at an alarming rate and her need for some kind of satisfaction was increasing. Her emotions were on a never ending latter, climbing to the sky.Without any warning, Joan felt herself begin to discharge juices with a force. She felt fulfillment and gratification of an unknown desire and appetite, which lifted her to extreme pleasure and contentment.Father Paul had not yet discharged his essence and doubled his efforts. As Joan felt his increasing movements in to her, desire began to grow again almost exponentially and she held him tight to her. Father Paul called out to heaven,"Oh Lord my God, I am your humble servant and I do your bidding."Joan felt a new gush of liquid, however it wasn't coming from her, it was coming from Father Paul. The feeling was beautiful in design and execution, and although she did not see God, she believed she was closer to him. The whole occurrence was a delicacy as to arouse intense delight, and satisfaction. Joan cared little to see God, as she was taking great pleasure and delight in his glory.Suddenly a reoccurrence of her discharge began, and she was lifted beyond the bounds of Earth. Her blood ran hot as her juices flowed once again."Your phallus is as you said Father, truly the essence of man, and God.""Remember Joan, although my member, my penis, from the Latin, if you will, is a wonderful instrument. It would be useless without your marvelous passage of desire. My penis requires your vagina to achieve its primary and sacred function. Without woman, man has little purpose in life. It is God's design."Joan knew that her existence had taken a new direction. She was truly a daughter of God, and would do everything necessary to fulfill the Heavenly Father's design. As Father Paul lay in coitus relaxen, a Latin term for rest after sexual intercourse, Joan lifted his depleted penis and examined it carefully. She found a hidden beauty within its current state, although it was much more useful when it was swollen to a larger size.She felt closer to Father Paul than she had to any individual, except maybe her own Father. The closeness was of course the feeling most women would feel to a man; who brought her such euphoria and intense pleasure. Joan felt compelled to pay homage to his member and leaned down to kiss it.It had a strange yet inexplicable odor. Not a bad odor, but one, which could not be described. She had detected a similar odor before when the farm animals were ready for breeding. Joan kissed Father Paul's member on the tip once again, and suddenly it began to throb and swell. As she unexpectedly enjoyed the taste, she slid the head of his penis into her mouth, and for some unknown, but natural desire, began to suck on it.Father Paul squirmed in delight feeling something wonderful which he only had knowledge of, during confessions of travelers to the Far East. It was told to him that Egyptian girls reveled in sucking a man's penis, and excelled in elevating a man to an ultimate level of fulfillment and gratification.Strangely he had never heard of an English female performing such a wonderful service. This was something that God and the Church made no mention of, possibly because it had nothing to do with reproduction.Joan now had a challenge and believed she would be able to master it. As she sucked the Priest's penis he moaned, apparently enjoying her oral stimulation causing him arousal, and intense pleasure beyond that of which she provided with her vagina. The priest took hold of Joan's head and moved his hips upward in a masterful manner, emulating copulation.Joan was now eager to give the young priest something he would continue to desire, throughout their newly found friendship. As she sucked him, her hand took hold of his testicles and fondled them as one might do with a favorite pet. The priest in return moaned and mewed letting her know how much the manipulations of her mouth on his penis were appreciated.With little warning the priest began to spray his bodily secretions into her mouth with a degree of fluidity that surpassed his previous performance. Joan sat up wondering what was to be done with Father Paul's essence. Would it be a sin to expel it from her mouth? As it was a gift from God, she wondered what she should do. Father Paul saw the questioning expression on Joan's face and said,"Swallow it, Joan. God would want nothing less. Essence is too important to be splattered on the floor."Although the creamy liquid felt wonderful in her mouth, she followed directions and allowed the liquid to slowly slide down her throat. Although a bit salty, the essence was also sweet. A fascinating combination she thought."Do you want me to continue reading, Joan?""No. Not tonight as I believe Morpheus, the ancient Roman god of sleep and dreams, is calling to me. May I return after supper on the morrow, Father Paul?""Of course my child. You may visit me any time you desire, and I will teach you everything I have knowledge of."Joan joins a priest, who is entertaining another person.Joan slept the sleep of chastity, although she knew that she was no longer a maiden, and deserved little satisfactory sleep. She could not understand why she had such wonderful feelings throughout her body. Apparently it was God's desire, and he was pleased with her actions.She spent the day, milking the cows, currying the horses, cooking and cleaning. She fed all of the animals and cleaned their stalls, while her father worked in the fields planting vegetables. They broke for the mid-day meal and sat together while eating. Her Father asked,"Joan, what did you learn at the church with Father Paul, last eve?""Father Paul read to me from a large book in Latin. I learned about God's design and the essence of man. He also taught me how man should best serve God, and what God expects of his children.""My daughter is such a wonderful student; and has an admirable mind, unlike her ignorant father.""Father, if it was not for your understanding and love for me, I would never have learned to read and write. You are not ignorant and I love you.""Are you going to the church tonight little one?""Yes father, if that would be convenient for you. There is much work to be done.""Of course my daughter, although I feel you deserve some enjoyment and rest. You work here all the day, then study hard after dark. A girl should also have some good times in her young life.""Believe me Father, the enjoyment I have received from God's love has been wonderful and fulfilling. My life has found new meaning and absolute pleasure. Are you remaining home on this eve?No, I plan to go to the public house and have a tall glass of warm Ale.""In moderation, father. Do not forget your last venture to the public house. You were unable to get out of bed long past sunrise.""Yes daughter, I recall. I will only have a pint or so."Father and daughter then parted company. Joan washed the dishes, swept the floors, and then went out to feed the hogs. He father returned to his planting. They would have a good harvest on the year.Supper came and went. As night fell, Joan fed the fireplace and as the light danced on the walls of the room, she wondered if Father Paul would elevate her with his phallus and essence. Taking a torch from its storage place, she shoved the end of it into the fire. The tip burned brightly, warming her face.Leaving the house, she trudged up the path, in the dark toward the rectory. Upon arriving, Joan opened the door and walked in. Father Paul was naked and laying on top of her close friend Lily, a postulate, or nun-in-training. His phallus was deeply imbedded in her sheath.Joan stood there and watched as Father Paul continued to enter into and permeate her vagina, helping her temporarily ascend to heaven's gate. Lily was much involved in Father Paul's God-like movements, and was sinking her nails in his back, moaning loud and mumbling,"More Father Paul, more. Send me to see God."Joan sat in a chair, next to the bed of straw and watched as the Father's penis slid in and out of her friend. Everything seemed to be very wet and coated with a viscous liquid, and a small amount of blood. Joan wondered if it would be better for her to withdraw, as Father was fully involved in her friend."Joan", said Paul. "Please disrobe and join us in the bed. We can all do the Lord's work together."Quickly, as Father Paul began to eject his essence into the young girl, she moaned loudly and began to squirt her juices, pumping them past Father's penis and onto his testical sack.She stated to the priest; "More Father Paul, please do more. I want God to love me.""God does love you, my child, more than most women, whom would refuse to share their sacred passage with the sons of the church."Joan shed her clothing and joined the couple on the bed of straw, which was covered with a sheet like covering. Father rolled off of the girl as she lay in a semi unconscious state, moaning lightly.Joan took hold of Paul's phallus and began to stroke it as she had done the evening prior. It took some patient time and affectionate gestures of fondness, however when his penis again became tumescent, Joan lifted her leg over him and eased down onto his lap, allowing his coccus to impale her tight moist vagina.She moved front to back, feeling the priest's huge member inside of her, thanking God in a little prayer for bringing such knowledge and pleasure to her.She was full of cheer as she thought there would be more pain associated with another coupling, however she now understood that the

The Good Samaritan and Veteran's Day  St. Luke 10:25-37  Introduction.   The Deeper Magic of Unity. The Division of Mankind into Nations. The Demons,  our Fallen Psychology, and the Reification of Separation. The Coming of Christ, Pentecost, and the Promise of Unity.  And this is where we find ourselves today. We know that Christ has brought an end  to our division and allows us to be One as He is One; joyous, peaceful, and  continually progressing through the endless stages of perfection in peace … but  still living in a world where lives come to an end and violence between nations  ceases only so long as strength and vigilance are maintained.  The Good Samaritan   The need for our enemies and why our love for them actually brings us the light of  objectivity. Christ as the ultimate “other.”   Veterans Day  And so we come to the juxtaposition of this Epistle with our celebration of  Veteran's Day.  On the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month; temporary cessation of  hostilities, was declared between the Allied nations and Germany in World War I.  And yet we still have war. People and nations still prey on and threaten one  another. Even when we are between wars, we no not have the peace of Christ, but  the peace of strength. And where we do not have the peace of strength, we have  war and the lessons of martyrdom. Our Church prays and works for the Peace of  Christ; and as that peace is worked for and anticipated, we pray for and support the  peace that comes from military might. This is the practice and teaching of the  Church.  Right after the anaphora we pray:  We also offer You this spiritual worship for the whole world, for the Holy, Catholic,  and Apostolic Church, and for all those who live in purity and holiness. And for  those in public service; permit them, Lord, to serve and govern in peace, that in  their tranquility we may lead a calm and quiet life, in all Godliness and purity. From our Morning Prayers:  Lord, save and have mercy on our civil authorities; protect our nation with peace,  subduing our every foe and adversary. Fill the hearts of our leaders with peaceful,  benevolent thoughts for your Holy Church and for all Your people so that we, in  their tranquility, may lead a peaceful and quiet life in true faith and in all  godliness and purity.  And from St. Paul (1 Timothy 2:1-2):  First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and  thanksgivings be made for all men, for kings and all who are in high positions, so  that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life, godly and respectful in every way.  And how is this peace that we pray for maintained? Through the sacrifice of men  and women in our armed forces and police who are willing to put our security and  comfort ahead of their own. [a note on the special sacrifice of Christian warriors].  It is obtained and maintained by soldiers, sailors, marines, and first responders who  are willing to suffer, to fight, to die, and yes, even to kill – not out of glory or any  kind of sinful passion; but only so that we – in the peaceful space their efforts create and sustain – might pursue perfection in Christ, and through this an end to  all wars achieved not through military victory or a well thought out and executed  set of treaties and institutions; but through the union of all people and nations into  one humanity, humbled and perfected in Christ.  We thank all of our veterans and those serving now for your willingness to live the  kind of life that allows us the freedom to pursue true and lasting peace.  We pray that Lord our God grant that we always be so blessed with men and  women [like these] who are willing to sacrifice their lives for us and we pray that  He gives us, the civilians, the strength and commitment to live in such a way that  their efforts are not squandered through our impiety, selfishness, and unwillingness  to live and spread the Gospel.  Allow all of us to surrender ourselves to you, Lord, through the Cross, so that our  Union may be eternal and the peace between us become real and unending. Check out this episode!  

“And since these especially ruinous harms to all of Christendom are not to be tolerated or suffered any longer, so we have completely agreed – with a well-considered disposition, by means of much and various discussion and counsel, which we have earnestly undertaken concerning this among ourselves and with many other princes and lords of the Holy Empire, for the assistance of the Holy Church, the comfort of Christendom and the honour and profit of the Holy Empire – that we want fully and specifically to remove and depose the above-written Lord Wenceslas as a neglectful procrastinator, dismemberer and one unworthy of the Holy Empire from the same Holy Roman Empire and all the dignities pertaining to it with immediate effect.” End quoteSo concluded the Prince Electors of Cologne, Mainz, Trier and the Palatinate on August 20th 1400. King Wenceslaus IV, son of the great emperor Karl IV, king of Bohemia and duke of Luxemburg was to be deposed for his “evil deeds and afflictions [that are] are so clearly manifest and well known throughout the land that they can neither be justified nor concealed” end quote How could that happen. Last time we looked at the house of Luxemburg, they directly held almost a quarter of the German lands, controlled two of the seven electoral votes, had manoeuvred themselves into pole position to gain the Hungarian and the Polish crown, with even a long-term option on Austria, Styria, Carinthia and Tyrol . But now, a mere 22 years later, the great second Carolingian empire lies in tatters. How is that possible? That is what we will look at today.The music for the show is Flute Sonata in E-flat major, H.545 by Carl Phillip Emmanuel Bach (or some claim it as BWV 1031 Johann Sebastian Bach) performed and arranged by Michel Rondeau under Common Creative Licence 3.0.As always:Homepage with maps, photos, transcripts and blog: www.historyofthegermans.comFacebook: @HOTGPod Twitter: @germanshistoryInstagram: history_of_the_germansReddit: u/historyofthegermansPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/HistoryofthegermansTo make it easier for you to share the podcast, I have created separate playlists for some of the seasons that are set up as individual podcasts. they have the exact same episodes as in the History of the Germans, but they may be a helpful device for those who want to concentrate on only one season. So far I have:The Ottonians Salian Emperors and Investiture ControversyFredrick Barbarossa and Early HohenstaufenFrederick II Stupor MundiSaxony and Eastward ExpansionThe...

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Ever wonder if the Catechism of the Catholic Church is inspired by the Holy Spirit like the Bible? Patrick breaks down the distinction between divine inspiration in scripture and the wisdom found in the Catechism. Get clarity on how God breathes his Word through the apostles, while still allowing their personalities to shine.   James (email) – Your advice is so bad that people can take legal action against you. I also think Relevant Radio pays actors to call into the shows (01:36) Dawn (email) – Is the Catechism of the Holy Church inspired by the Holy Spirit? (14:16) Todd - I really appreciate this dialog you are having! We need to pray for this person who emailed in. Mary - My friend's husband has family who are babying and enabling him. (23:37) Mike - How can I talk about the Catholic prohibition against gay marriage to my son? (44:42)

In this episode, we look at Ephesians 2:11-22, where Paul tells us that the Law no longer separates the Gentiles from Israel.

St. Theophan's answer to arguably the most fundamental question for each man: How can I save my soul? "What does one say to the person who asks: 'How can I save my soul?' This: Repent, and being strengthened by the power of grace in the Holy Mysteries, walk in the path of God's commandments, under the direction which the Holy Church gives you through its God-given priesthood. All of this must be done in a spirit of sincere faith which has no reservations." -St. Theophan the Recluse -READ the text of this recording: http://orthodoxinfo.com/praxis/soul_save.aspx#:~:text=Theophan%20the%20Recluse,through%20its%20God%2Dgiven%20priesthood. -LISTEN to "What is an Anathema?" by St. Theophan the Recluse:https://youtu.be/N7LEV_WqRw0-LISTEN to "On Truth & Love" by St. Theophan the Recluse:https://youtu.be/rIOg5LTU-p4 -BUY “The Path to Salvation” by St. Theophan the Recluse: https://stpaisiusgiftshop.com/books/monastery-publications/the-path-to-salvation/ -BUY “Thoughts for Each Day of the Year” by St. Theophan the Recluse: http://www.sainthermanmonastery.com/mobile/Product.aspx?ProductCode=tedy _______ Orthodox Wisdom is dedicated to sharing the writings and lives of the Saints of the Orthodox Church. Glory to Jesus Christ!

A new MP3 sermon from Grace Bible Church is now available on SermonAudio with the following details: Title: Maintaining Holy Church Leadership Speaker: Mike Bonebright Broadcaster: Grace Bible Church Event: Sunday Service Date: 7/7/2024 Bible: 1 Timothy 5:17-21 Length: 50 min.

Because Jesus prays for the Church's faithful witness, we must minister boldly. John 17:6-19 6 “I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. 7 Now they know that everything that you have given me is from you. 8 For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. 9 I am praying for them. I am not praying for the world but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours. 10 All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them. 11 And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. 12 While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. 13 But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. 14 I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 15 I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 17 Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. 19 And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth.

Friends of the Rosary, On Holy Thursday, right before starting His Sorrowful Passion, Christ Jesus, God, and perfect Man, gave us His own body and blood, as we observed yesterday in the Solemnity of the Corpus Christi. In a classic, timeless piece of liturgical work, St. Thomas Aquinas wrote in 1264: "Desirous that we be made partakers of His divinity, the only-begotten Son of God has taken to Himself our nature so that having become man, He would be enabled to make men gods. Whatever He assumed of our nature, He wrought unto our salvation. For on the altar of the Cross, He immolated to the Father His own Body as a victim for our reconciliation and shed His blood both for our ransom and for our regeneration. Moreover, so that a remembrance of such great benefits may always be with us, He has left us His Body as food and His Blood as drink under the appearances of bread and wine." "In this sacrament, sins are purged away, virtues are increased, and the soul is satiated with an abundance of every spiritual gift. No other sacrament is so beneficial. Since it was instituted unto the salvation of all, it is offered by Holy Church for the living and for the dead, that all may share in its treasures." • The History of Corpus Christi Ave Maria!Jesus, I Trust In You! Come, Holy Spirit, come! To Jesus through Mary! + Mikel Amigot | RosaryNetwork.com, New York — Please pray for the health recovery of Hanna, so her seizures will stop. Her parents are surrendering courageously her life to God's will. __ • June 3, 2024, Today's Rosary on YouTube | Daily broadcast at 7:30 pm ET

St. Luke teaches: "With this deep and fiery repentance the force that prevented her from entering the church receded and she finally entered. There she fell before the life-giving Cross of the Lord and did not get up until the end of the service. Tears flowed from her eyes, from the eyes that once seduced men and are now cleansed with wholehearted and fervent repentance." -READ the Life of St. Mary of Egypt by St. Sophronius of Jerusalem: https://www.orthodox.net/saints/mary-of-egypt.html -READ St. Luke's homily here: https://www.johnsanidopoulos.com/2021/04/homily-for-fifth-sunday-of-great-lent.html -WATCH Trisagion Films video on the Life of St. Mary of Egypt: https://youtu.be/BBXvDuNElB8?si=Uk16Pa18mAXX9BMq -READ about St. Luke's life here: http://full-of-grace-and-truth.blogspot.com/2008/10/st-luke-archbishop-of-simferopol.html?m=1 -FIND an Orthodox parish and monastery near you: https://orthodoxyinamerica.org/ ______ St. Luke teaches: On the fifth Sunday of Great Lent, our Holy Church honors the memory of Saint Mary of Egypt. Her truly wonderful life is known to you because every year on this day it is narrated in the churches. But I will describe her again in a few words to remember the unusual and unique life of this Saint. Let us stand with Saint Mary at the gate of the church. We now see her heart overwhelmed by the fear of God, when she realizes that she cannot, in God's judgment, enter the church with the others. She alone is unworthy to enter, while everyone else enters freely. Her entrance is prevented by an invisible force. When she realizes her tragic situation, a strong flame of the fear of God lights up in her soul. She is shaken by the fear she feels in front of All-Holy, All-Wise, Almighty and Just God. It was not a fear of punishment, it was a shame that burned like fire, a shame for the impurity of her soul and body. It was a shame and pain for her that God, because of her impurity, did not allow her to enter the church and appear before Him. Then she prayed fervently. She fell before the icon of the Panagia which was placed above the entrance of the church and with tears begged the Mother of God to pray for her to her Son. With this deep and fiery repentance the force that prevented her from entering the church receded and she finally entered. There she fell before the life-giving Cross of the Lord and did not get up until the end of the service. Tears flowed from her eyes, from the eyes that once seduced men and are now cleansed with wholehearted and fervent repentance. ______ Orthodox Wisdom is dedicated to sharing the writings and lives of the Saints of the Orthodox Church. Glory to Jesus Christ! --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/orthodox-wisdom/message

Want to learn more about Radical?Instagram: @radicalchurchFacebook: www.facebook.com/radicalchurchtxWebsite: www.radicalchurch.lifeRadical Church | Sundays | 8:30AM, 10AM, & 11:30AM1151 Bunton Creek Rd Ste 1001, Kyle, TX 78640

When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they began to be afraid. But he said to them, “It is I. Do not be afraid.” John 6:19–20 On October 22, 1978, Pope Saint John Paul II was inaugurated as the 264th pope of our Holy Church. During his homily, the Holy Father said, “Brothers and sisters, do not be afraid to welcome Christ and accept his power.” The phrase “Do not be afraid” was repeated over and over again throughout his pontificate. In his book, Crossing the Threshold of Hope, which was written as a preparation for the new millenia, the Holy Father explained the following: “When pronouncing these words in St. Peter's Square, I already knew that my first encyclical and my entire papacy would be tied to the truth of the Redemption. In the Redemption we find the most profound basis for the words “Be not afraid!”: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son” (cf. Jn 3:16). This exhortation against fear is repeated throughout the Bible numerous times. It is found in the Old Testament over a hundred times in some form and in the New Testament over fifty times. Again and again, God wants us to conquer fear, worry, and anxiety. He wants us to trust in Him in all things and place all of our hope in Him. What is it that you fear the most in life? For some, fear comes on a daily basis. Perhaps you face financial insecurity, poor health, a broken relationship, psychological difficulties, etc. There are numerous things in life that can easily tempt us to fear. In the Gospel passage for today, Jesus walks toward His disciples on the water during a turbulent time on the Sea of Galilee. The wind was blowing, and the waves were distressing. And though these fishermen had spent many nights on the sea, Jesus chose to come to them at this moment, not so much to help them get to shore but to teach all of us that no matter what “storm” we face in life, He will be there in ways that are truly miraculous. Certainly, none of the disciples ever expected to see Jesus walking on the water in the middle of the night while the waves were crashing upon their boat. But Jesus did this and spoke those words, “Do not be afraid,” because He wanted us to know that no matter what we struggle with in life, He is always there, coming to us in love, and will see us safely to the shore of His peace. If fear is something you struggle with on a personal level, then turn your eyes to the reality of the Redemption. The Father sent the Son into the world to save you. Jesus did not only come to teach, or to inspire, or to help. He came to save. To redeem. To destroy death, fear, sin and all that keeps us from the Father. His saving act changes humanity forever. If you understand that and believe it, then nothing can steal away your peace and fill you with fear. Reflect, today, upon this powerful little phrase: “Do not be afraid!” Imagine yourself in the boat with the disciples at night, being tossed by the waves, surrounded by darkness. And then see Jesus coming to you speaking those words. Know that He speaks them to you in the darkest moments of your life and that He will never leave you. Hope in Him and let His saving act of the Redemption transform your life forever. Jesus, my Redeemer, I thank You for coming into this world to save us. Thank You for the gift of the Redemption of the world. When I am tempted to fear and turn my eyes to the difficulties of the world, give me the grace I need to turn to You in hope and trust. Enter the storms of my life, dear Lord, and lift my burden of fear. Jesus, I trust in You. Source of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2024 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.Featured images above: Jesus walking on the Sea of Galilee By Paul Bril and Frederik van Valckenborch, via Wikimedia Commons

Bible Study – Job Class Six: Job 8:1-11:1; 11:1-42:22  From the Orthodox Study Bible.  JOB 8: [Bildad's nonsense] TO THE EARS OF BILDAD, JOB'S SECOND RESPONDENT, a man even less tolerant than Eliphaz, the foregoing lament seems to be an attack on the justice of God and the entire moral order. Unlike Eliphaz, however, Bildad is able to make no argument on the basis of his own personal experience. He is obliged to argue, rather, solely from the moral tradition, which he does not understand very well. Indeed, Bildad treats the moral structure of the world in a nearly impersonal way. To the mind of Bildad, the effects of sin follow automatically, as the inevitable effects of a sufficient cause. The presence of the effect, that is, implies the presence of the cause. If Eliphaz's argument had been too personal, bordering on the purely subjective, the argument of Bildad may be called too objective, bordering on the purely mechanical. In the mind of Bildad the principle of retributive justice functions nearly as a law of nature, or what the religions of India call the Law of Karma. Both Eliphaz and Job show signs of knowing God personally, but we discern nothing of this in Bildad. Between Bildad and Job, therefore, there is even less of a meeting of minds than there was between Eliphaz and Job. We should remember, on the other hand, that Job himself has never raised the abstract question of the divine justice; he has shown no interest, so far, in the problems of theodicy. Up to this point in the story, Job has been concerned only with his own problems, and his lament has been entirely personal, not theoretical. Bildad, for his part, does not demonstrate even the limited compassion of Eliphaz. We note, for example, his comments about Job's now perished children. In the light of Job's own concern for the moral wellbeing of those children early in the book (1:5), there is an especially cruel irony in Bildad's speculation on their moral state: “If your sons have sinned against [God], He has cast them away for their transgression” (8:4). What a dreadful thing to say to a man who loved his sons as Job did! Like Eliphaz before him, Bildad urges Job to repent (8:5–7), for such, he says, is the teaching of traditional morality (8:8–10). Clearly, Bildad is unfamiliar with the God worshipped by Job, the God portrayed in the opening chapters of this book. Bildad knows nothing of a personal God who puts man to the test through the trial of his faith. Bildad's divinity is, on the contrary, a nearly mechanistic adjudicator who functions entirely as a moral arbiter of human behavior, not a loving, redemptive God who shapes man's destiny through His personal interest and intervention. Nonetheless, in his comments about Job's final lot Bildad speaks with an unintended irony, because in fact Job's latter end will surpass his beginning (8:7), and “God will not cast away the blameless” (8:20—tam; cf. 1:1, 8; 2:3). On our first reading of the story, we do not know this yet, of course, because we do not know, on our first reading, how the story will end (for example 42:12). So many comments made by Job's friends, including these by Bildad in this chapter, are full of ironic, nearly prophetic meaning, which will become clear only at the story's end, so the reader does not perceive this meaning on his first trip through the book. As Edgar Allen Poe argued in his review of Bleak House by Charles Dickens, the truly great stories cannot be understood on a single reading, because the entire narrative must be known before the deeper significance of the individual episodes can become manifest. As Poe remarked, we do not understand any great story well until our second reading of it. This insight is preeminently helpful in the case of the Book of Job. JOB 11 [Zophar's nonsense] WE NOW COME TO THE FIRST SPEECH OF ZOPHAR, Job's most strident critic, a man who can appeal to neither personal religious experience (as did Eliphaz) nor inherited moral tradition (as did Bildad). Possessed of neither resource, Zophar's contribution is what we may call “third-hand.” He bases his criticism on his own theory of wisdom. Although he treats his theory as self-evidently true, we recognize it as only a personal bias. Moreover, Zophar seems to identify his own personal perception of wisdom as the wisdom of God Himself. Whereas Bildad had endeavored to defend the divine justice, Zophar tries to glorify “divine” wisdom in Job's case. If it is difficult to see justice verified in Job's sufferings, however, it is even harder to see wisdom verified by those sufferings. Like the two earlier speakers, Zophar calls on Job to repent in order to regain the divine favor. (This is a rather common misunderstanding that claims, “If things aren't going well for you, you should go figure out how you have offended God, because He is obviously displeased with you.”) Zophar also resorts to sarcasm. Although this particular rhetorical form is perfectly legitimate in some circumstances (and the prophets, beginning with Elijah, use it often), sarcasm becomes merely an instrument of cruelty when directed at someone who is suffering incomprehensible pain. In the present case, Job suffers in an extreme way, pushed to the very limits of his endurance. It is such a one that Zophar has the vile temerity to call a “man full of talk” (11:2), a liar (11:3), a vain man (11:11–12), and wicked (11:14, 20). The final two verses (19–20) contain an implied warning against the “death wish” to which Job has several times given voice. This very sentiment, Zophar says, stands as evidence of Job's wickedness. The author of the Book of Job surely understands this extended criticism by Zophar as an exercise in irony. Though the context of his speech proves the speaker himself insensitive and nearly irrational in his personal cruelty, there is an undeniable eloquence in his description of the divine wisdom (11:7–9) and his assertion of the moral quality of human existence (11:10–12). Moreover, those very rewards that Zophar promises to Job in the event of his repentance (11:13–18) do, in fact, fall into Job's life at the end of the book. In this story of Job, men are not divided into those who have wisdom and those who don't. In the Book of Job no one is really wise. There is no real wise man, as there is in, say, the Book of Proverbs. While wisdom is ever present in the plot of the story, no character in the story has a clear grasp of it. True wisdom will not stand manifest until God, near the end of the narrative, speaks for Himself. Even then God will not disclose to Job the particulars of His dealings with him throughout the story. From St. Gregory the Great Ver. 3. Doth God pervert judgment? Or doth the Almighty pervert justice? xxxvi. 59. These things blessed Job had neither in speaking denied, nor yet was ignorant of them in holding his tongue. But all bold persons, as we have said, speak with big words even well known truths, that in telling of them they may appear to be learned. They scorn to hold their peace in a spirit of modesty, lest they should be thought to be silent from ignorance. But it is to be known that they then extol the rectitude of God's justice, when security from ill uplifts themselves in joy, while blows are dealt to other men; when they see themselves enjoying prosperity in their affairs, and others harassed with adversity. For whilst they do wickedly, and yet believe themselves righteous, the benefit of prosperity attending them, they imagine to be due to their own merits; and they infer that God does not visit unjustly, in proportion as upon themselves, as being righteous, no cloud of misfortune falls. But if the power of correction from above touches their life but in the least degree, being struck they directly break loose against the policy of the Divine inquest, which a little while before, unharmed, they made much of in expressing admiration of it, and they deny that judgment to be just, which is at odds with their own ways; they canvass the equity of God's dealings, they fly out in words of contradiction, and being chastened because they have done wrong, they do worse. Hence it is well spoken by the Psalmist against the confession of the sinner, He will confess to Thee, when Thou doest well to him. Ps. 49:18. For the voice of confession is disregarded, when it is shaped by the joyfulness of prosperity. But that confession alone possesses merit of much weight, which the force of pain has no power to part from the truth of the rule of right, and which adversity, the test of the heart, sharpens out even to the sentence of the lips. Therefore it is no wonder that Bildad commends the justice of God, in that he experiences no hurt therefrom. 60. Now whereas we have said that the friends of blessed Job bear the likeness of heretics, it is well for us to point out briefly, how the words of Bildad accord with the wheedling ways of heretics. For whilst in their own idea they see the Holy Church corrected with temporal visitations, they swell the bolder in the bigness of their perverted preaching, and putting forward the righteousness of the Divine probation, they maintain that they prosper by virtue of their merits; but they avouch that she is rewarded with deserved chastisements, and thereupon without delay they seek by beguiling words a way to steal upon her, in the midst of her sorrows, and they strike a blow at the lives of some, by making the deaths of others a reproach, as if those were now visited with deserved death, who refused to hold worthy opinions concerning God. We have heard what Job, his wife, and his three friends have to say.  They cycle through similar things several times.  Next week, we will briefly see what a new speaker, Elihuh has to say and spend most of the class – the last one before Great Lent – to look at God's conversation with Job.  During Great Lent, we will work through chapters of Tito Coriander's Way of Ascetics.     Scriptural review  Mentioned historically as Jobab in Genesis (4), Joshua (1), and 1 Chronicles (5) Ezekial 14:20. Though Noah, Daniel, and Job were in it, as I live, saith the Lord God, they shall deliver neither son nor daughter; they shall but deliver their own souls by their righteousness.  James 5:11. Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy. Liturgical review Mentioned (through James) at Holy Unction; “You have heard of the patience of Job.” From the Funeral for a Priest Beatitudes: Blessed are they that are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.   “Why do you lament me bitterly, O men? Why do you murmur in vain?” he that has been translated proclaims unto all. For death is rest for all. Therefore, let us listen to the voice of Job saying, “Death is rest unto man.” But give rest with Thy Saints, O God, unto him whom Thou hast received. Ode Six:   I remind you, O my brethren, my children, and my friends, that you forget me not when you pray to the Lord. I pray, I ask, and I make entreaty, that you remember these words, and weep for me, day and night. As said Job unto his friends, so I say unto you: Sit again and say: Alleluia.   Forsaking all things, we depart, and naked and afflicted we become. For beauty withers like grass, but only we men delude ourselves. Thou wast born naked, O wretched one, and altogether naked shall you stand there. Dream not, O man, in this life, but only groan always with weeping: Alleluia.   If thou, O man, hast been merciful to a man, he shall be merciful there unto thee. And if thou hast been compassionate to any orphan, he shall deliver you there from need. If in this life thou hast covered the naked, there he shall cover thee, and sing the psalm: Alleluia. Triodion Wednesday of Cheesfare Week; Matins Canticle Eight Let us preserve these virtues: the fortitude of Job, the singlemindedness of Jacob, the faith of Abraham, the chastity of Joseph and the courage of David. Saturday of Cheesefare Week; Matins; Canticle Two … a second Job was Benjamin in his constancy … Thursday of Clean Week (and Thursday of the Fifth Week); Great Canon Ode 4 Thou hast heard, O my soul, of Job justified on a dung-hill, but thou hast not imitated his fortitude. In all thine experiences and trials and temptations, thou hast not kept firmly to thy purpose but hast proved inconstant.          Have mercy on me, Oh God, have mercy on me. Once he sat upon a throne, but now he sits upon a dung-hill, naked and covered with sores. Once he was blessed with many children and admired by all, but suddenly he is childless and homeless. Yet he counted the dung-hill as a palace and his sores as pearls.          Have mercy on me, Oh God, have mercy on me. A man of great wealth and righteous, abounding in riches and cattle, clothed in royal dignity, in crown and purple robe, Job became suddenly a beggar, stripped of wealth, glory and kingship.          Have mercy on me, Oh God, have mercy on me. If he who was righteous and blameless above all men did not escape the snares and pits of the deceiver, what wilt thou do, wretched and sin-loving soul, when some sudden misfortune befalls thee?          Have mercy on me, Oh God, have mercy on me. I have defiled my body, I have stained my spirit, and I am all covered with wounds: but as physician, O Christ, heal both body and spirit for me through repentance. Wash, purify and cleanse me, O my Saviour, and make me whiter than snow. Read at Vespers/PSL on Monday of Holy Week: Job 1:1–12. Read at Vespers/PSL on Tuesday of Holy Week: Job 1:13–22. Read at Vespers/PSL on Wednesday of Holy Week: Job 2:1–10. Read at Vespers/Vesperal Liturgy on Thursday of Holy Week: Job 38:1–21; 42:1–5. Read at Vespers on Friday of Holy Week: Job 42:12–17 (LXX ending) --- Job 38  FROM FR. PATRICK REARDON NOW THE LORD HIMSELF WILL SPEAK, for the first time since chapter 2. After all, Job has been asking for God to speak (cf. 13:22; 23:5; 30:20; 31:35), and now he will get a great deal more than he anticipated. With a mere gesture, as it were, God proceeds to brush aside all the theories and pseudoproblems of the preceding chapters. … [Whirlwind, Lord] … At this point, all philosophical discussion comes to an end. There are questions, to be sure, but the questions now come from the Lord. Indeed, we observe in this chapter that God does not answer Job's earlier questions. The Lord does not so much as even notice those questions; He renders them hopelessly irrelevant. He has His own questions to put to Job. The purpose of these questions is not merely to bewilder Job. These questions have to do, rather, with God's providence over all things. The Lord is suggesting to Job that His providence over Job's own life is even more subtle and majestic than these easier questions which God proposes and which Job cannot begin to answer, questions about the construction of the world (verses 4–15), the courses of the heavenly bodies (verses 31–38), the marvels of earth and sea (verses 16–30), and animal life (38:39–39:30). Utterly surrounded by things that he cannot understand, will Job still demand to know mysteries even more mysterious? If the world itself contains creatures that seem improbable and bewildering to the human mind, should not man anticipate that there are even more improbable and bewildering aspects to the subtler forms of the divine providence? God will not be reduced simply to an answer to Job's shallow questions. Indeed, the divine voice from the whirlwind never once deigns even to notice Job's questions. They are implicitly subsumed into a mercy vaster and far richer. Implicit in these questions to Job is the quiet reminder of the Lord's affectionate provision for all His creatures. If God so cares for the birds of the air and the plants of the fields, how much more for Job! 39 - 41. On the Behemoth and the Leviathan Both behemoth and Leviathan are God's household pets, as it were, creatures that He cares for with gentle concern, His very playmates (compare Psalms 104[103]:26). God is pleased with them. Job cannot take the measure of these animals, but the Lord does. What, then, do these considerations say to Job? Well, Job has been treading on some very dangerous ground through some of this book, and it is about time that he manifest a bit more deference before things he does not understand. Behemoth and Leviathan show that the endeavor to transgress the limits of human understanding is not merely futile. There is about it a strong element of danger. A man can be devoured by it. It is remarkable that God's last narrative to Job resembles nothing so much as a fairy tale, or at least that darker part of a fairy tale that deals with dragons. Instead of pleading His case with Job, as Job has often requested, the Lord deals with him as with a child. Job must return to his childhood's sense of awe and wonder, so the Lord tells him a children's story about a couple of unimaginably dangerous dragons. These dragons, nonetheless, are only pets in the hands of God. Job is left simply with the story. It is the Lord's final word in the argument. 42.  Finale THE TRIAL OF JOB IS OVER. This last chapter of this book contains (1) a statement of repentance by Job (verses 1–6), (2) the Lord's reprimand of Eliphaz and his companions (verses 7–8), and (3) a final narrative section, at the end of which Job begins the second half of his life (verses 9–17). The book begins and ends, then, in narrative form. First, one observes in Job's repentance that he arrives at a new state of humility, not from a consideration of his own sins, but by an experience of God's overwhelming power and glory. (Compare Peter in Luke 5:1–8.) When God finally reveals Himself to Job, the revelation is different from anything Job either sought or expected, but clearly he is not disappointed. All through this book, Job has been proclaiming his personal integrity, but now this consideration is not even in the picture; he has forgotten all about any alleged personal integrity. It is no longer pertinent to his relationship to God (verse 6). Job is justified by faith, not by any claims to personal integrity. All that is in the past, and Job leaves it behind. Second, the Lord then turns and deals with the three comforters who have failed so miserably in their task. Presuming to speak for the Almighty, they have fallen woefully short of the glory of God. Consequently, Job is appointed to be the intercessor on their behalf. Ironically, the offering that God prescribes to be made on behalf of the three comforters (verse 8) is identical to that which Job had offered for his children out of fear that they might have cursed God (1:5). The Book of Job both begins and ends, then, with Job and worship and intercession. In just two verses (7–8) the Lord four times speaks of “My servant Job,” exactly as He had spoken of Job to Satan at the beginning of the book. But Job, for his part, must bear no grudge against his friends, and he is blessed by the Lord in the very act of his praying for them (verse 10). Ezekiel, remembering Job's prayer more than his patience, listed him with Noah and Daniel, all three of whom he took to be men endowed with singular powers of intercession before the Most High (Ezekiel 14:14–20). The divine reprimand of Job's counselors also implies that their many accusations against Job were groundless. Indeed, Job had earlier warned them of God's impending anger with them in this matter (13:7–11), and now that warning is proved accurate (verse 7). Also, ironically, whereas Job's friends fail utterly in their efforts to comfort him throughout almost the entire book, they succeed at the end (verse 11). Third, in the closing narrative we learn that Job lives 140 years, exactly twice the normal span of a man's life (cf. Psalm 90[89]:10). Each of his first seven sons and three daughters is replaced at the end of the story, and all of his original livestock is exactly doubled (Job 1:3; 42:12). St. John Chrysostom catches the sense of this final section of Job:   His sufferings were the occasion of great benefit. His substance was doubled, his reward increased, his righteousness enlarged, his crown made more lustrous, his reward more glorious. He lost his children, but he received, not those restored, but others in their place, and even those he still held in assurance unto the Resurrection (Homilies on 2 Timothy 7). ___ Saint Gregory the Great, Morals on the Book of Job, vol. 1 (Oxford; London: John Henry Parker; J. G. F. and J. Rivington, 1844), 83. Robert Charles Hill.  St. John Chrysostom Commentaries on the Sages, Volume One – Commentary on Job.  Holy Cross Orthodox Press. Patrick Henry Reardon, The Trial of Job: Orthodox Christian Reflections on the Book of Job (Chesterton, IN: Ancient Faith Publishing, 2005), 22. Manlio Simonetti and Marco Conti, eds., Job, Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2006), 4–5. Orthodox Church, The Lenten Triodion, trans. Kallistos Ware with Mother Mary, The Service Books of the Orthodox Church (South Canaan, PA: St. Tikhon's Seminary Press, 2002), 222. Mother Mary, Metropolitan Kallistos of Diokleia, trans., The Lenten Triodion: Supplementary Texts, The Service Books of the Orthodox Church (South Canaan, PA: St. Tikhon's Seminary Press, 2007), 60. Orthodox Church, The Lenten Triodion, trans. Kallistos Ware with Mother Mary, The Service Books of the Orthodox Church (South Canaan, PA: St. Tikhon's Seminary Press, 2002), 559. St. Tikhon's Monastery, trans., The Great Book of Needs: Expanded and Supplemented, vol. III (South Canaan, PA: St. Tikhon's Seminary Press, 2002), 283.        

The Holy Church

Today we look at the Theological Virtues, and the virtue of Faith in particular, how it is a theological virtue infused by God in baptism, that enables us to believe in God, and believe in everything that God has said and revealed to us through Jesus Christ, which the Holy Church presents to us and taught by God. Toward the end of the episode, I speak about how to overcome some challenges in your faith, and how to live it out in your daily life. - The topics discussed can be found in the Catechism, numbers 1814-1816. - Fr. Patrick Wainwright is a priest of Miles Christi, a Catholic Religious Order. - Visit the Miles Christi Religious Order website: https://www.mileschristi.org - This Podcast's Website: https://www.forcollegecatholics.org - To learn about the Spiritual Exercises (silent weekend retreat) preached by the Priests of Miles Christi, visit: https://www.mileschristi.org/spiritual-exercises/ - Recorded at our Family Center in South Lyon, Michigan. - Planning, recording, editing, and publishing by Fr. Patrick Wainwright, MC. - Gear: Shure MV7 USB dynamic microphone. - Intro music from pond5.com

This week, Host Ace McKay spotlights “On the Journey” as talk about it means to be one holy and apostolic catholic church and in the “Catholic Conversation” Beaky Greene shares here March for Life experience.

Hammam Farah is a Palestinian Christian based in Toronto - and right now, he faces unimaginable horrors. His family are sheltering in the besieged Holy Church in Gaza - and his relatives have been brutally killed by Israel's onslaught. Here he exposes an outrageous Israeli lie - and gives a harrowing testimony about the fate of Gaza's Christians, and Palestinians in general.Support this show http://supporter.acast.com/the-owen-jones-podcast. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

John and Jesus are both also murdered unjustly for speaking the Word of God in an attempt to silence their calls to repentance. Here, too, John prepares the way for the One who is greater than he. His whole life and death is a finger that points us to Christ. John is beheaded for the sake of defending holy marriage. Jesus is crucified that He might claim all humanity anew and take each of us to be a part of His Bride, the Holy Church. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/stjohnrandomlake/support

The Treatise on Prayer concludes by emphasizing the importance of praying for souls and the Church, delving into the difference between the death of a just person and a sinner. The Father speaks of the challenges faced by priests, urging prayers for their renewal and conversion. Sister Mary Madeline passionately narrates Catherine's prayer, highlighting the plea for God's mercy to restore and nourish the Holy Church.Episode 17 covers Treatise 3, subsections 30-32.LEARN MORE - USE COUPON CODE COM25 FOR 25% OFF:The Dialogue of St. Catherine of Siena: https://bit.ly/47t86b6TAN Classics Set: https://bit.ly/47OHCjVThe Life of Saint Catherine of Siena: https://bit.ly/3sIWZM6Saint Catherine of Siena by Mary Fabyan Windeatt: https://bit.ly/47vYc8tThe Interior Castle by St. Teresa of Avila (Deluxe Edition): https://bit.ly/42oGlwWThe Imitation of Christ by Thomas à Kempis (Deluxe Edition): https://bit.ly/44C8ymi The Commentaries is a podcast series from TAN in which you'll learn how to read and understand history's greatest Catholic works, from today's greatest Catholic scholars. In every series of The Commentaries, your expert host will be your personal guide to not just read the book, but to live the book, shining the light of its eternal truths into the darkness of our modern trials and tribulations.To download your FREE Classic Companion PDF and for updates about new seasons, expert scholars, and exclusive deals for The Commentaries listeners, sign up at TANcommentaries.com And for more great ways to deepen your faith, check out all the spiritual resources available at https://TANBooks.com and use Coupon Code COM25 for 25% off your next order.

We believe in one holy, universal and apostolic Church

We believe in one holy, universal and apostolic Church

This episode carries content warnings for imprisonment, withholding medical care, civilian deaths, medical experiments, blood, description of injury, and death,  “What sort of shape is it though?”  “It is empire.” “Yes, no, I get that, but...  Is empire a square? Is it circle? It helps to know the shape of a thing if you're hoping to break it.” “Yes. I understand. You tell me, then. What shape do you think empire takes? Perhaps you can see it in a way I cannot, because you first apprehended it from outside.” “Well, I can't tell you about all empires, but this one? It wants to be fractal. Each stel tries to make everything inside of it a repetition of itself.” “Yes. Yes, I see. Stel Apostolos shapes itself as a spear, and so it extends downward in echoing cacophony. Its military bases, its schools, its students, its children—all spears.“ “Yeah, something like that. The trouble is, a fractal is really strong. All those shapes, repeated inwards forever. They flex, like a tree's branches bending in the wind.” “Yes, but that is it. The Principality is not an abstract fractal, repeating forever. It is a tree. And a tree repeats only for so long.” “And when a strong enough wind blows…” “It can be uprooted.” This week on PALISADE: Honesty and Integrity Pt. 2 I grieve in stereo, the stereo sounds strange / You know that if it hides, it doesn't go away Dossier People Routine Rennari (he/him): Half-Apostolsian, scion of a minor Kesh noble house, and the Blue Channel's heavy.  Partial Palisade (he/him): A man who was once a Divine, now living in the shell of a being quite unlike what he once was. Eclectic Opposition (he/him): A delegate and member of the Cause who left Palisade to spend time working under Exeter Leap before returning to his home planet to investigate the strange factories being built by the Frontier Syndicate. Gallica (she/her): Elect of the Divine Present. Gallica spent years as Chief Emissary of Stel Nideo, Verse (missionary) in the Holy Church of Received Asterism, but in fact was a signatory to the Pact of Necessary Venture, and when the war spilled beyond Kesh and Apostolos, Gallica betrayed her home Stel to join Apostolos and Nideo. Currently, she leads high level intelligence and espionage operations for the Pact of Free States. The Glorious Princept, Dahlia (they/them): The second pretender to the title of Princept. Born to house Kesh, Dahlia was once kidnapped by a rebelious Sovereign Immunity known as the Farmer. After being rescued and raised by the then Apokine of Stel Apostolos, they integrated into Apostolosian culture. Though they were not part of the Pact of Necessary Venture at its founding, they welcomed the group's support, though focused their efforts on the war with the Branched instead of the ongoing civil conflict.  Cas'alear Rizah (cas/cas', they/them): Leader of the Swordbreakers, an elite unit of Apostolosian-trained pilots who have since sworn service to Millenium Break. Cas holds a reputation for beauty and bravery among allies, but is seen as unflinching and unpredictable by cas' foes.. Factions The Frontier Syndicate: A powerful conglomerate with a broad purview, including technology, heavy industry, entertainment, telecommunications, and transportation. Led by Exenceaster March (he/him), the Syndicate betrayed the Pact of Free States and joined the Bilats in order to be part of their colonization efforts on Palisade. The Pact of Free States: One of the two factions vying for leadership of the Principality, a joint operation by Stels Columnar and Apostolos. Led in name by the Glorious Princept, Dahlia (they/them), but operated in day-to-day matters by members of the original Pact of Necessary Venture, including Rye (he/him) and Gallica (she/her). Though they are reformist in some ways, their primary goal is greater autonomy for each Stel, freedom from the legal restraints, taxes, and oversights demanded by the Principality, with additional deregulation to follow downstream. STEREOMA: Pact truebeliver Cor'rina Corrine (cor/cors, they/them) and cor rival Misericorde (he/they) have begun building a surgical, anti-Bilat hit squad on Paliade.  Places Diadem Gravtrain: While the vast trench-city on Palisade's equator lays abandoned, Kesh has reactivated its railway via an operations center in Carmathen. Divines The Divine Motion (she/her): One of the founding members of the Pact, the necromantic Apostolosian divine once led its infamous retinue, the Black Century, on Partizan. They were defeated and dispersed, turned into part of Kalmeria, during Operation Shackled Sun.  Present (it/its): On first blush, Present might be confused for a small, if luxurious frigate. And sometimes, it is just that: Its oval structure houses living quarters, a humble armory, enough cargo space to hold a single hollow, and even a fully stocked bar. But at a snap of its elect's fingers, it transforms into a humanoid war machine that serves its elect loyally, outclasses any Altar currently in operation, and is capable of holding its own against many other Divines in combat. The Divine Commitment (it/its): A malleable divine made of inky black metal. Has historically required two pilots (both in a condition of ego death) in order to be operated, its current Elect is the Dahlia, the Glorious Princept, who operates it with the aid of the Divine Integrity. The Divine Integrity (it/its): Sometimes appearing as an articulated staff or a metallic spine, Integrity integrates itself into its chosen user. Once the two are connected, Integrity becomes a powerful exoskeleton, and supports its user in matters of military and morale. Currently, Dahlia, the Glorious Princept, is the elect of Integrity.  Objects Ekpyrosis: Flagship of the Pact's fleet, a transforming, beautiful monstrosity able to casually destroy worlds while simultaneously supporting life in a vacuum. Mysteries Perennial (she/her):  The Principality's so-called 'adversary,' who lives at the center of the galaxy and whose chaotic whims spread through her "Perennial Wave," an ever-present nanoparticle that has recently bonded with Kalmeria. Hosted by Austin Walker (@austin_walker) Featuring Janine Hawkins (@bleatingheart) Sylvi Bullet (@sylvibullet), Ali Acampora (@ali_west), Art Martinez-Tebbel (@atebbel), Jack de Quidt (@notquitereal), Keith J Carberry (@keithjcarberry) and Andrew Lee Swan (@swandre3000) Produced by Ali Acampora  Music by Jack de Quidt (available on bandcamp) Text by Austin Walker Cover Art by by aurahack (aurahack.jp) With thanks to Arthur B., chocoube, DB, deepFlaw, Edwin Adelsberger, Emrys, Greg Cobb, huw, Ian O'Dea, Ian Urbina, Irina A., Jack Shirai, K. Morris, Katie Diekhaus, Konisforce, Kristina Harris Esq, L Tantivy, Lawson Coleman, Mike & Ruby, Nich Maragos, Olive Perry, Patrick Murray, Robert Lasica, Shawn Hall, TeganEden, Thomas Whitney, viviridian, and Voi for their support We are playing Armour Astir: Advent with additional playbooks from Strangers in the Night and 106th Astir Squadron. If you enjoy the show, consider supporting the TTRPG.  This episode was made with support from listeners like you! To support us, you can go to friendsatthetable.cash.

Most of us don't think too much about belief or religion in our world because our lives are too busy for it. We are not concerned with what's true or what's right; we're concerned with what “works.” And so we don't think much about what's true or what we believe; we mostly think about whether what's happening in our lives works for us. And that works fine, until life stops working. This is why what we believe matters. Because truth runs deeper than utility. What's true matters more than what works. And so you need a deeper truth to be rooted in that can help you keep going even when life stops working. We believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church. I confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins

Ryan Bennett • Acts 4:32–5:11 • XCHANGE

The Saints have played a powerful role in defining Church Teaching, inspiring the Faithful to live for Christ and guiding the Holy Church. Tune in each day this week as we explore the saints celebrating feast days this week, and how God guided them with His Holy Spirit to make a lasting impact on the Church. Discover how God revealed the truth about Purgatory through St. Christina the Astonishing Understand how the legendary story of St. Christopher still communicates powerful truth. Through Sts. Anne and Joachim, be reminded that Jesus lived in a real family and through that blesses all of our families Allow St. Simeon Stylite to lead to you greater obedience Through St. Victor I, grow in appreciation for all the difficult choices Church leader have had to make, especially in the early days of the Church.  Check out the Catholic Sprouts Podcast ARCHIVES! https://catholicsprouts.com/podcast-archives/    Find fun, meaningful, faith-filled projects for your own family in the Catholic Family Resource Library. https://catholicsprouts.com/catholic-family-resource-library-signup/    Catholic Sprouts is a production of Spoke Street Media. For more great Catholic podcasts, check out spokestreet.com 

The Saints have played a powerful role in defining Church Teaching, inspiring the Faithful to live for Christ and guiding the Holy Church. Tune in each day this week as we explore the saints celebrating feast days this week, and how God guided them with His Holy Spirit to make a lasting impact on the Church. Discover how God revealed the truth about Purgatory through St. Christina the Astonishing Understand how the legendary story of St. Christopher still communicates powerful truth. Through Sts. Anne and Joachim, be reminded that Jesus lived in a real family and through that blesses all of our families Allow St. Simeon Stylite to lead to you greater obedience Through St. Victor I, grow in appreciation for all the difficult choices Church leader have had to make, especially in the early days of the Church.        Check out the Catholic Sprouts Podcast ARCHIVES! https://catholicsprouts.com/podcast-archives/    Find fun, meaningful, faith-filled projects for your own family in the Catholic Family Resource Library. https://catholicsprouts.com/catholic-family-resource-library-signup/    Catholic Sprouts is a production of Spoke Street Media. For more great Catholic podcasts, check out spokestreet.com 

The Saints have played a powerful role in defining Church Teaching, inspiring the Faithful to live for Christ and guiding the Holy Church. Tune in each day this week as we explore the saints celebrating feast days this week, and how God guided them with His Holy Spirit to make a lasting impact on the Church. Discover how God revealed the truth about Purgatory through St. Christina the Astonishing Understand how the legendary story of St. Christopher still communicates powerful truth. Through Sts. Anne and Joachim, be reminded that Jesus lived in a real family and through that blesses all of our families Allow St. Simeon Stylite to lead to you greater obedience Through St. Victor I, grow in appreciation for all the difficult choices Church leader have had to make, especially in the early days of the Church.        Check out the Catholic Sprouts Podcast ARCHIVES! https://catholicsprouts.com/podcast-archives/    Find fun, meaningful, faith-filled projects for your own family in the Catholic Family Resource Library. https://catholicsprouts.com/catholic-family-resource-library-signup/    Catholic Sprouts is a production of Spoke Street Media. For more great Catholic podcasts, check out spokestreet.com 

The Saints have played a powerful role in defining Church Teaching, inspiring the Faithful to live for Christ and guiding the Holy Church. Tune in each day this week as we explore the saints celebrating feast days this week, and how God guided them with His Holy Spirit to make a lasting impact on the Church. Discover how God revealed the truth about Purgatory through St. Christina the Astonishing Understand how the legendary story of St. Christopher still communicates powerful truth. Through Sts. Anne and Joachim, be reminded that Jesus lived in a real family and through that blesses all of our families Allow St. Simeon Stylite to lead to you greater obedience Through St. Victor I, grow in appreciation for all the difficult choices Church leader have had to make, especially in the early days of the Church.        Check out the Catholic Sprouts Podcast ARCHIVES! https://catholicsprouts.com/podcast-archives/    Find fun, meaningful, faith-filled projects for your own family in the Catholic Family Resource Library. https://catholicsprouts.com/catholic-family-resource-library-signup/    Catholic Sprouts is a production of Spoke Street Media. For more great Catholic podcasts, check out spokestreet.com 

The Saints have played a powerful role in defining Church Teaching, inspiring the Faithful to live for Christ and guiding the Holy Church. Tune in each day this week as we explore the saints celebrating feast days this week, and how God guided them with His Holy Spirit to make a lasting impact on the Church. Discover how God revealed the truth about Purgatory through St. Christina the Astonishing Understand how the legendary story of St. Christopher still communicates powerful truth. Through Sts. Anne and Joachim, be reminded that Jesus lived in a real family and through that blesses all of our families Allow St. Simeon Stylite to lead to you greater obedience Through St. Victor I, grow in appreciation for all the difficult choices Church leader have had to make, especially in the early days of the Church.        Check out the Catholic Sprouts Podcast ARCHIVES! https://catholicsprouts.com/podcast-archives/    Find fun, meaningful, faith-filled projects for your own family in the Catholic Family Resource Library. https://catholicsprouts.com/catholic-family-resource-library-signup/    Catholic Sprouts is a production of Spoke Street Media. For more great Catholic podcasts, check out spokestreet.com 

When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they began to be afraid. But he said to them, “It is I. Do not be afraid.” John 6:19–20On October 22, 1978, Pope Saint John Paul II was inaugurated as the 264th pope of our Holy Church. During his homily, the Holy Father said, “Brothers and sisters, do not be afraid to welcome Christ and accept his power.” The phrase “Do not be afraid” was repeated over and over again throughout his pontificate. In his book, Crossing the Threshold of Hope, which was written as a preparation for the new millenia, the Holy Father explained the following: “When pronouncing these words in St. Peter's Square, I already knew that my first encyclical and my entire papacy would be tied to the truth of the Redemption. In the Redemption we find the most profound basis for the words “Be not afraid!”: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son” (cf. Jn 3:16).This exhortation against fear is repeated throughout the Bible numerous times. It is found in the Old Testament over a hundred times in some form and in the New Testament over fifty times. Again and again, God wants us to conquer fear, worry, and anxiety. He wants us to trust in Him in all things and place all of our hope in Him.What is it that you fear the most in life? For some, fear comes on a daily basis. Perhaps you face financial insecurity, poor health, a broken relationship, psychological difficulties, etc. There are numerous things in life that can easily tempt us to fear.In the Gospel passage for today, Jesus walks toward His disciples on the water during a turbulent time on the Sea of Galilee. The wind was blowing, and the waves were distressing. And though these fishermen had spent many nights on the sea, Jesus chose to come to them at this moment, not so much to help them get to shore but to teach all of us that no matter what “storm” we face in life, He will be there in ways that are truly miraculous. Certainly, none of the disciples ever expected to see Jesus walking on the water in the middle of the night while the waves were crashing upon their boat. But Jesus did this and spoke those words, “Do not be afraid,” because He wanted us to know that no matter what we struggle with in life, He is always there, coming to us in love, and will see us safely to the shore of His peace.If fear is something you struggle with on a personal level, then turn your eyes to the reality of the Redemption. The Father sent the Son into the world to save you. Jesus did not only come to teach, or to inspire, or to help. He came to save. To redeem. To destroy death, fear, sin and all that keeps us from the Father. His saving act changes humanity forever. If you understand that and believe it, then nothing can steal away your peace and fill you with fear. Reflect, today, upon this powerful little phrase: “Do not be afraid!” Imagine yourself in the boat with the disciples at night, being tossed by the waves, surrounded by darkness. And then see Jesus coming to you speaking those words. Know that He speaks them to you in the darkest moments of your life and that He will never leave you. Hope in Him and let His saving act of the Redemption transform your life forever. Jesus, my Redeemer, I thank You for coming into this world to save us. Thank You for the gift of the Redemption of the world. When I am tempted to fear and turn my eyes to the difficulties of the world, give me the grace I need to turn to You in hope and trust. Enter the storms of my life, dear Lord, and lift my burden of fear. Jesus, I trust in You. Source of content: catholic-daily-reflections.comCopyright © 2023 My Catholic Life! Inc. All rights reserved. Used with permission via RSS feed.