John the Evangelist commented on the entrance of the risen Jesus on His disciples who were assembled in the upper room, for fear of the Jews: “Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord” (John 20:20). This is the fruit of Pascha that Jesus offers us to rejoice. We all know that Jesus’ ...
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Resurrection of Christ
Pascha in Antioch
His Beatitude Youhanna Yazigi, Patriarch of Antioch, concluded his visitation to the city of Antioch, Alexandretta and Mersin. I am not chronicling the visitation, but listening to the hymns of the Paschal Liturgy celebrated by His Beatitude and the delegation accompanying him on the ruins of the Church of the Apostles Peter and Paul in ...
Read morePelikan’s Gift
Professor Jaroslav Pelikan’s statement drew my attention: “If Christ is risen, nothing else matters. And if Christ is not risen, nothing else matters”. I loved to know more about him who said it. My reading revealed to me that he was a Lutheran pastor who converted with his wife to Orthodoxy in 1998, that is, ...
Read moreA Feast for All
The feast passed by some brethren of ours without their taking notice! A salvific event is taking place for our sakes. By adhering to it in the communion of the Church, I am declaring that I am grateful to God for bestowing His love on me. It is not true that the feast is a ...
Read moreMeeting with Friends
A while ago, my friend Laith Hanna asked me to suggest a picture for a post I wrote for you. I was surprised by his request. This is so unlike him. The man is a creative artist who does not need help with his work, which includes synthesizing the word and the image on this ...
Read moreChrist is Risen!
A few decades ago, were you to address one of the faithful with the Paschal greeting (Christ is risen!) after the apodosis of the feast, during the condolences for a brother’s death, for example, a startled look on his face would betray his bewilderment! Nowadays, many people started racing to throw off the greeting at ...
Read morePascha!
Christ is risen! This Pascha is my victory at all times. Death is lurking around every time. It is death or the possibility of death. In this life, I have no salvation from death except in Jesus alone. How do I receive Him as Living and Life-Giving? This is the question of the feast; rather ...
Read moreLazarus
The feast of the raising of Lazarus, celebrated by the Church in the past on this day, was one of the four days on which the qualified catechumens used to receive the sacrament of baptism. Two things are essential in the celebration of this feast: the first is that the position of the feast seems ...
Read moreChrist is Risen!
This morning, we woke to the news of the departure of two angels from among us to heaven, Nabil Al-Dibs from Mina Tripoli, and Rony Saad from Qannabet Brummana. Both men were two of our brethren who were well-pleasing in love and service, loving the Word and serving its people. Rony was a beacon in ...
Read moreNathanael
You remember Nathanael the Apostle. We have read about him on the first Sunday of Great Lent (John 1:43-51). What is unique in the account of his call is that it differs from the call of the other apostles in that he alone is called by Jesus, through his friend Philip’s word. John the Evangelist ...
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