Preaching to a Choir

05/12/2026

https://open.substack.com/pub/preachingtoachoir/p/the-gospel-was-never-meant-to-be?r=4vyz7y&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

When I visited Vatopedi Monastery on Mount Athos, I had the chance to speak with one of the elders there, a spiritual grandson of Elder Joseph the Hesychast.

04/26/2026

https://open.substack.com/pub/preachingtoachoir/p/when-faith-begins-to-change-how-we?r=4vyz7y&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

Few years after a difficult conversation, someone came back to speak with me again.

04/13/2026

Blessed Demetrius of Dallas if he preferred his donuts plain or with sprinkles.

He said, “When we fast, we should fast. But when we feast, we should truly feast and be thankful.”

Thus, he reasoned, with a smile, that donuts with sprinkles were “more Orthodox,” than plain ones.

04/09/2026

04/03/2026

We hear many things in life.
But not everything we hear is received.

In the spiritual life, the difference between hearing and receiving is decisive. The same words can be heard many times, yet only begin to bear fruit when they are allowed to enter the heart.

The Church speaks patiently, not because we do not know, but because we are still learning to live what we already know.

New reflection:

When the Word Is Hard to Hear

Read here:

“Take heed how you hear.” (Luke 8:18)

03/30/2026

Many of us know the hymns. We recognize the melodies. We can follow the service without effort. And yet, familiarity can quietly become a danger.

Not long ago, someone told me they had been preparing for Holy Communion on their own, with sincerity and effort. But we had never spoken about it. Faith is deeply personal, but it is never meant to be lived alone.

In the life of the Church, we are not left to guide ourselves. The spiritual life is lived within relationship, with guidance, care, and responsibility. Not to control, but to help us walk the path rightly.

A short reflection from parish life:
When Faith Is Not Meant to Be Lived Alone

For those who know the hymns, who recognize the melodies, and can follow the service without effort, everything in the Church can begin to feel familiar.

03/19/2026

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Orthodox priest reflecting on faith, the difference between living Tradition and inherited custom, and the rediscovery of the life of the Church.

03/17/2026

We stand in church every Sunday. But how often do we truly stand before God?

The outward life of the Church is given to guide us inward, to help us become attentive, present, and alive in prayer.

A new reflection from Preaching to a Choir: Standing in Church and Standing Before God

Read here:

On attention in the presence of God

03/12/2026

https://open.substack.com/pub/preachingtoachoir/p/when-family-faith-is-no-longer-enough?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=post%20viewer

03/09/2026

https://open.substack.com/pub/preachingtoachoir/p/when-grandmother-babas-theology-replaces?r=4vyz7y&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true