Made to Be a Kingdom

Today Fr. Harry shares his experience as a Canonist and he and Fr. Anthony talk about the joy of living in a parish that gets ecclesiology right. Enjoy the show.

In this episode, Fr. Harry and Fr. Anthony repond to a listener's concerns and talk about the "wellbeing of the holy churches of God," technological disruption of traditional institutions, and finding our particular ministries and modes of service. Enjoy the show!

Today Fr. Harry and Fr. Anthony use the prayer the bishop prays over the deacon when ordaining him to the priesthood to discern the central duties of the priest. Come to find out, it isn't a perfect match for many of the expectations we have of priests (and that priests have of themselves). Enjoy the show!

Fr. Harry and Fr. Anthony continue their discussion about healthy parishes by focusing on expectations that need to change if a parish is to grow. They use Carey Nieuwof's blog post; "7 Things Every Growing Church Struggle With" to frame their discussion.

Using Acts 6:1-7 as a springboard, Fr. Harry and Fr. Anthony talk about the need to be intentional when it comes to organizing parish life. There is a huge temptation on the part of both priests and parishes to set it up around pastoral care. Listen and learn why this model is problematic for everyone involved.

In this episode, Fr. Harry and Fr. Anthony discuss extra-terrestrial beings. They discuss sightings, whether some of these beings may actually be "enfleshed" demons or even angels (which are themselves by definition extra-terrestrial), as well as the possibility of other sentient beings besides angels and demons, the possibility of humans on other planets, and whether such a discovery would change the nature of our Faith. We hope you enjoy!

In this episode our hosts discuss the phenomenon of mass violence and sociopathy, how to deal with it when major turmoil appears in the world, as well as identifying and dealing with narcissists and sociopaths in our own lives, including workplaces, homes, and parishes, from the perspective of our Faith and as responsible members of the Royal Priesthood

*Parental Warning: some of the items discussed are graphic in nature as they contain descriptions of some of the grievous sins of heathen nations and of Israel In today’s episode, our hosts discuss idolatries of old and how they relate to us, the idolatry of syncretism (mixing with other religions or mixing pure faith with the profane), the importance of not doing these things, the uniqueness of Christianity in the world and how it differs from “world religions,” and how we must keep our offerings, our homes, and our churches purged of idols. Lastly, they discuss how we must repent even of sins that we were unaware were sins because they still injure us and others spiritually.

Fr. Harry and Fr. Anthony talk about the lure of idolatry, how the Israelites fell prey, and why we need to be especially valient lest we do the same (or worse).

We begin with the Beast of Revelation and his number etc., and with the concept of Antichrist and with the "not buy or sell" already being mentioned in the Gospels at the Temple with Christ overturning the money changers and those in the temple who would not take anything to purchase a sacrificial animal except a Tyrian Shekel which had the image of Heracles (Hercules) on it who was not a "hero" but rather a nephalim. So the final takeaway is that we have been given Solomon's dignity, let us not follow his path but rather heed his final warning and instructions. His heirs did not heed them, but they exist now so that we might heed them (the end of Ecclesiastes). This includes not joining any civil leaders in idolatry, since most of us won't personally multiply gold or horses (but maybe spouses).

Avoiding the sins against God’s definition of royalty in His Kingdom. More on avoiding the narcissism that our culture encourages. Here we look at Solomon, and the number of the beast! We also look at a divided Kingdom of Israel under Solomon and how Christ re-establishes and re-unites and expands it universally by His ministry on earth from conception to ascension, and how He is Christ both for the northern Kingdom and the southern Kingdom.

[Priestly Kingdom]: What it means for us to be chrismated Princes and Princesses of the Kingdom. Kill narcissism, and resurrect humility—from dust we are and to dust we must return. Here we discuss necessary aspects of being Royalty in God’s Kingdom. It is the opposite of being royalty in the world (Sts. Boris and Gleb, the Passionbearers; Sts. Katherine and Barbara of old who renounced Roman royalty; Sts. New Martyrs Elisabeth and Barbara who renounced Russian royalty to become full servants of God’s Kingdom).

Our hosts discuss what Orthodox phronema means and why it is important to understand it correctly.

Fr. Harry and Fr. Anthony finish their discussion of visiting the Holy Land, sharing the solemn joy of walking the way of suffering. Enjoy the show!

Fr. Harry and Fr. Anthony finish their discussion of visiting the Holy Land, sharing the solemn joy of walking the way of suffering. Enjoy the show!