Musings from the High Desert

Fr Gabriel Rochelle reminds us of the utter cruciality of passages like this in terms of both the history of the written New Testament and, more importantly, in terms of our faith. This passage is central to Paul's faith and he is passing it on so that it is central for ours.

The passage from Luke 4 that records Jesus' text in the Synagogue at Capernaum has long been the text for the Indiction, or Ecclesiastical New Year. Fr Gabriel Rochelle looks at the unusual nature of this text in the Gospel against the backdrop of the Isaiah prophecies and asks us to consider how we might live out this Gospel in our lives, newly committed each year.

Fr. Gabriel Rochelle begins with a comparison between the aims of both writers, Mark and Matthew, who record this healing incident in the life of Jesus (John 17:14-23). He also explores the significance of the placement of this story closely following the Transfiguration.

Fr Gabriel Rochelle offers, on the basis of an overview of Paul's writings (I Corinthians 4:9-16), four qualities that Paul intends when he tells the Corinthians to be "imitators of me:" zeal, conviction, commitment, and a sense of community.

Deacon Ted Brinegar reflects on the Gospel through the lens of mountain biking to show us the meaning of following Christ in all circumstances.

Fr. Gabriel Rochelle brings us some simple words about the profound festival that concludes the Church year.

Fr. Gabriel Rochelle reflects on the meaning of the feeding of the 5000, the only miraculous event which is recorded in all four Gospels, for those who first wrote about it and for us today.

Fr Gabriel offers a brief homily on the meaning of the Transfiguration for our lives, beginning from the words of the Tropar, "revealing your Glory to your disciples as far as they could bear it..."

Fr Gabriel considers the "Orthodox mind" with special reference to Romans 8:5-9; the idea is in the Epistle for Pentecost 7, but usually not visible because of translation. Paul's contrast between the carnal mind and the spiritual mind is apropos: the carnal mind is the whole person turned away from God, while the spiritual mind refers to the whole person turned toward God. Fr Gabriel explores these two frames of mind in relation to recent violent random shootings in El Paso, Texas, and elsewhere.

Deacon Ted Brinegar weaves together the Epistle from Romans 12 with the Gospel from St. Matthew 9 in this week's homily to challenge us to the exercise of our faith.

What do most Orthodox Christians - for that matter most Christians, and perhaps not many Jews - know about Prophet Ezekiel? Perhaps couple of songs learned in childhood, one about wheels in the sky, one a spiritual about them dry bones. Listen in for an informative sermon on the Prophet.

The concept of justification so dominated western Christianity during the period of the Reformation that it is important for us to understand how this image drew lines between, and exaggerated the differences between, Catholics and Protestants, works and faith, that lasted into the 20th century. This is an argument that by and large bypassed Orthodoxy and allowed us to perceive a unity between faith and works. (Romans 5:1-10)

Since Fr. Gabriel considered All Saints at the Vespers on Saturday, on Sunday he turned to the Gospel and specifically to the strange words of Jesus about leaving parents and siblings behind. In our parish, composed mostly of people who have come to Orthodoxy as adults from another tradition or none, this can be a poignant, emotionally piercing, and personal word. Without denying that these words were doubtless addressed to a community on the verge of actual persecution, Fr. Gabriel looks at the potential meaning in the lives of those who have entered Orthodoxy and "left father and mother behind."

Fr Gabriel looks at this festival from the viewpoint of the absence of understanding of story and myth afoot in our culture which so emphasizes science and logic.

Fr Gabriel looks at this story from a different angle this year, that of the Evangelist/Theologian, asking what forces and tensions in his community may have contributed to the way the story is told. He ends with what this might mean for our local communities of faith. (John 9:1-39)