Sunset on the Strait of Juan de Fuca
If but ten among us lead a holy life, we shall kindle a fire which shall light up the entire city. ~ St. John Chrysostom
We must become enlightened bearers of the light within us, the Light of God, the very spark… of God’s divinity. ~ St. Gregory of Nyssa
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We must begin with thanksgiving for everything.
The beginning of joy is to be content with your situation.
~ St. Ambrose of Optina
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And he shall be as the light of the morning, when the sun riseth, even a morning without clouds; as the tender grass springing out of the earth by clear shining after rain. ~ 2 Samuel 23:4
My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up. ~ Psalm 5:3
…Joy cometh in the morning. ~ Psalm 30:5
This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it. ~ Psalm 118:24
The Lord upholds all who fall and lifts up all of us who are bowed down. ~ Psalm 145:14
It’s been said that sorrow looks back, worry looks around, but Faith looks up!
We glimpse this in our own gardens, with flowers blooming – regardless of debris from past storms.
For even when it’s raining, the Sun is shining above those clouds!
The fruit of the light consists in all goodness and righteousness and truth. ~ Ephesians 5:9
Sunbeams stream through church window before Evening Vespers.
O Gladsome Light of the Holy Glory, of the Immortal Father. Heavenly Holy, Blessed Jesus Christ. Now that we have come to the setting of the sun, and behold the light of evening, we praise God – Father, Son and Holy Spirit. For meet it is, at all times, to worship Thee with voices of praise. O Son of God, and Giver of Life, wherefore all the world doth glorify Thee! ~ Earliest known, recorded Christian hymn, still used in Orthodox Church Vespers
For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. ~ 2 Cor. 4:6
When a sunbeam falls on a transparent substance, the substance itself becomes brilliant, and radiates light from itself. So too Spirit bearing souls, illumined by Him, finally become spiritual themselves, and their grace is sent forth to others… ~ St. Basil the Great
May your day be full of Light!
Happy Mothers’ Day!
Thank you God, for the joyful blessings of spring flowers!
Try, then, to remember unceasingly all the blessings that have been given to you by God. ~ St. Mark the Ascetic
It’s been said, somewhere… what if we woke up today, with only the things that we thanked God for yesterday?
May your Lenten Journey be peaceful and fruitful.
Memory Eternal Ekaterina… 25 years now seem but as yesterday.
St. Basil the Great’s Monastery Church, carved into soft, volcanic, Cappadocian rock. Goreme, Turkey – 2004
Love of God is not something that can be taught. We did not learn from someone else how to rejoice in light or want to live, or to love our parents or guardians. It is the same – perhaps even more so – with our love for God: it does not come by another’s teaching. ~ St. Basil the Great
Preserve gratitude like a precious deposit within your soul, and from it you will receive a double portion of delight. Remember the apostolic word, “Give thanks in all circumstances.” ~ St. Basil the Great
The radiance of divine beauty is altogether beyond the power of words to describe. ~ St. Basil the Great
A dear friend shared this beautiful, numinous, prayer: “Speaking with God from the Depths of the Heart” by St. Gregory of Narek (951-1003 AD); it’s beyond the power of words to describe.
Autumn Raindrops on Weeping Japanese Maple
Blessed are ye that hunger now: for ye shall be filled. Blessed are ye that weep now: for ye shall laugh. ~ St. Luke 6:21
For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. ~ Romans 14:17
…The Lord wants us to bathe our soul in tears, by repentance to constrain it by the pangs of the conscience to press it, to clothe it with good deeds… ~ St. Nikolai Velimirovich
Contrite tears give rest, and it is also said that even one pained, deep sigh can weigh more than a bucketful of tears. Amid the afflictions and stress of daily life, when we understand and weep for our own sins (but not in a hopeless way), the Holy Spirit comforts us with spiritual joy, hope and peace. He is our Gladsome Light.
What a wonderful day the Lord has provided for us!
Detail of Mosaic Panel of Creation – St. Sophia Orthodox Church – Canada
…angels… are always being filled full of light, becoming ever more radiant and making blessed use of their natural ability to change. They dance for joy around the First Light, look continuously towards Him and are enlightened directly by Him, as they tirelessly sing the praises of the Fount of Light and, being ministers of light, transmit illuminating grace to those lower beings who are being enlightened. ~ St. Gregory Palamas
Christ, the Sun of righteousness (Malachi 4:2), is without beginning and pre-eternal. He is both immutable and unchangeable, as with Him there is no variableness, nor shadow of turning (James 1:17). He is without end, never-setting, beaming out the true and heavenly light of day without evening, in which the spirits of the righteousness live with the good angels. When this present age reaches its end, the righteous shall also have their bodies with them, as heirs of the light and sons of the true day. That day continues forever without evening, and neither has, nor ever did have, a morning, since it has no beginning. ~ St. Gregory Palamas
On occasion, I’ve orchestrated group observation with my youth choir to demonstrate how we, as created beings, are unable to fully comprehend the concept of Eternity or Pre-eternal.
After first discussing general definitions of the two words, we’d continue with the next part of the exercise. For just a few minutes, (it’s too difficult to try longer) we silently contemplate the concept of what Eternal means. How God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are Pre-Eternal (beyond time and space)… and have always “been” even before anything else existed. No beginning, no end. ✠
The attempts to try and wrap our mortal minds around the notion of eternal and pre-eternal is humbling and revealing.
Spontaneous laughter and amazement conclude these experiments. Exclamations from the youth range from “Wow, that’s impossible!” to “My brain exploded!”
God is simultaneously everywhere. (Yet another wondrous point to ponder!) He is the beginning, the continuation, the Life and Light of everything that exists. In His great and loving goodness, the Way to salvation is revealed through His Only-Begotten Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ… the Sun of Righteousness, the Dawn and Dayspring from on high.
And so, like the angels, let our souls rejoice and dance with joy; radiantly infused with the Pre-eternal Divine Light, and Peace… which surpasses understanding.
✠ Excellent Post Script from Anastasia, who shares: “A priest once said in my high school religion class: “Eternity is not a “line”. It is a “point”, and we are standing in it.” As he said that, he drew a line and then a dot on the board. I’ve remembered it these 50+ years it impressed me so.
Free Image – late 19th century photo of Mt. Tabor by the French photographer Bonfils
Greetings on the Feast of the Transfiguration of our Lord God and Saviour Jesus Christ!
Through the fall our nature was stripped of divine illumination and resplendence. But the Logos* of God had pity upon our disfigurement, and in His compassion He took our nature upon Himself. On Tabor He manifested it to His elect disciples clothed once again most brilliantly. He showed what we once were and what we shall become through Him in the age to come – if we choose to live our present life, as far as possible, in accordance with His ways. ~ St. Gregory Palamas
Logos* = Jesus Christ the Word and Wisdom of God
Beautiful Sermon on the Transfiguration by St. Gregory Palamas
When a sunbeam falls on a transparent substance, the substance itself becomes brilliant, and radiates light from itself. So too Spirit-bearing souls, illumined by Him, finally become spiritual themselves, and their grace is sent forth to others. From this comes knowledge of the future, understanding of mysteries, comprehension of hidden things, distribution of wonderful gifts, heavenly citizenship, a place in the choir of angels, endless joy in the presence of God, becoming like God… ~ St. Basil the Great
Memory Eternal dear godmother Eve!
