Eastern Christian Insights

Lenten practices are not instruments of punishment or legalism, but blessed tools for becoming more fully our true selves as living icons of God.

As we begin our Lenten journey, we remember today how Adam and Eve stripped themselves naked of the divine glory and were cast out of Paradise into a world enslaved by death. During Great Lent, we follow the path that leads back to Paradise.

In preparing for Great Lent this year, we must remain on guard against the temptation of self-exaltation in any form.

If we want to approach Lent in a spiritually healthy way that will enable us to participate already in life eternal, we too must offer up ourselves.

We celebrate the Presentation of Christ forty days after His birth, in the Temple in Jerusalem. The Theotokos and St. Joseph bring the young Savior there in compliance with the Old Testament law, making the offering of a poor family, a pair of turtle doves or two young pigeons. By the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, the old man St. Simeon proclaims that this Child is the salvation “of all peoples, a light to enlighten the Gentiles and the glory of Thy people Israel.” The aged prophetess St. Anna also recognizes Him as the fulfillment of God’s promises.

Given what we do know about the divine mercy we have received, gratitude must become an abiding characteristic of our lives. That means that we must become like the Samaritan leper in today’s gospel reading.

Let us get over our pride and become living epiphanies of the salvation of the One Who was baptized by St. John the Forerunner in the Jordan.

At Theophany, we celebrate that no dimension of our life or world is intrinsically profane or cut off from sharing in the holiness of God. All things, physical and spiritual, visible and invisible, are called to participate in the divine glory that our Lord has brought to the world, to become even now signs of the coming fullness of God’s Kingdom.

The Lord’s genealogy in St. Matthew’s gospel traces the Savior’s human ancestry back through many generations to Abraham. The story of the ancestors of Christ, who helped to prepare the way across the centuries for the incarnation of the God-Man, certainly does not read like a Facebook posting. The Old Testament presents them realistically as unlikely members of His family tree.

In today’s gospel lesson, there were people so used to focusing on their daily routines and worldly responsibilities that they had lost the ability to recognize something new and joyful. One owned real estate, another had animals, and a third was married. Even though these are commonplace conditions, they used them to justify their refusal to accept the invitation to the great party. No one forced them to do so; instead, they excused themselves. As a result, the master commanded his servant to “Go out quickly to the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in the poor and maimed and blind and lame.” Because there was still room, the master ordered him to go out even further to “the highways and hedges, and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled.”

We are all bent over and crippled in profound ways in relation to the Lord, our neighbors, and even ourselves. The good news of Christmas is that the Savior is born to set us free from captivity to decay, corruption, and weakness.

Christ came to restore sight to the blind beggars of the world. Let us embrace the disciplines and spirit of the Nativity Fast in ways that will help us see that that is precisely who we are. Let us acquire the humility necessary to receive and share the peace that He was born to bring to the world. That is how we must all prepare to welcome Him into our hearts and lives at Christmas.

We have all had experiences in which we have learned uncomfortable truths about ourselves. When that happens, we have a choice about what to do next. It is possible to recognize a weakness or failing and then to do what we can to overcome it. Too often, however, we give up hope and fall into despair due to our hurt pride. That is precisely what the man in today’s gospel lesson did when Jesus Christ gave him a commandment that he lacked the strength to obey: “Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”

Fr. Philip LeMasters shares about the rich, foolish farmer. "The barn of the rich fool was a pagan temple in which he worshiped only himself. If we live according to the standards of our world of corruption, we will become just like him by seeking to lay up treasures for ourselves to the point that we will shut ourselves out of the new life that Christ has brought to the world."

It is sobering how easily we can corrupt any good thing, including faith in Jesus Christ. Some people fall into the delusion of thinking that they love God and neighbor, when in reality they serve only themselves. One symptom of doing so is to narrow down the kind of people who count as our neighbors such that we excuse ourselves from seeing and serving Christ in all who bear His image and likeness. When we do so, we disregard not only them, but our Lord Himself. Our actions then reveal that we do not truly have faith in Him because we are only seeking to justify ourselves.

From the story of the healing of the Gadarene demoniac, Fr. Philip LeMasters shares about how we can become our true selves in Christ.

Fr. Philip LeMasters reminds us to keep our attention on Christ.

Fr. Philip LeMasters shares the story of the raising of the son of the widow of Nain. The Savior has conquered death and shares His great victory with those who respond to Him with humble faith and repentance.

Fr. Philip LeMasters shares about the calling of the Apostles and the Conception of St. John the Forerunner.

Fr. Philip LeMasters speaks about the importance of the Cross.

Fr. Philip LeMasters speaks about our God-given purpose in life on the Feast Day of the Nativity of the Theotokos.

Fr. Philip LeMasters shares from Luke 4:16-22, reminding us that earthly distinctions between different groups of people have no significance in the Kingdom of God.

Fr. Philip LeMasters shares a homily based on this Sunday's Epistle and Gospel readings, reminding us to follow St. Paul's humble obedience to the way of Christ.

Fr. Philip LeMasters shares a homily based on this Sunday's Epistle and Gospel readings, reminding us to build our lives on the true foundation of Christ.

Fr. Philip LeMasters gives a homily on the Gospel reading on the feeding of the five thousand with five loaves of bread and two fish.

Fr. Philip LeMasters reflects on the Feasts of the Transfiguration of our Lord and the Dormition of the Theotokos.

Fr. Philip LeMasters shares the story of Saint Timon, and how his parish and the Diocese of Wichita and Mid-America help participate in a Sister Diocese relationship with the venerable Archdiocese of Bosra-Hauran.

Fr. Philip LeMasters recounts the life of Saint Kyriaki, powerful example of obedience to Jesus Christ.

Fr. Philip LeMasters preaches on the example of the twelve holy apostles who sacrificed all for the sake of following Jesus.

Fr. Philip LeMasters shares the importance of becoming saints in the Orthodox Church.

Fr. Philip LeMasters preaches on the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.

Fr. Philip LeMasters reflects upon the significance of the ascension of Jesus into the fullness of the Kingdom of God.

Fr. Philip LeMasters preaches on the Gospel reading of the healing of the Blind Man.

Fr. Philip LeMasters explains the impact of the resurrection of Christ through the story of the Samaritan Woman.

Fr. Philip LeMasters preaches on the healing of paralytic.

Fr. Philip LeMasters preaches on the Gospel reading from Thomas Sunday.

Fr. Philip LeMasters invites us to embrace humility, as did St. Mary of Egypt who became a model of sanctity through the healing of her soul.

Fr. Philip LeMasters describes the way in which we can be blind to Jesus, the Messiah, because he is not what we are looking for.

Fr. Philip LeMasters reflects on faith and doubt and our need for spiritual clarity regarding our own unbelief, on the Fourth Sunday of Lent.

Fr. Philip LeMasters addresses our need to see our challenges in life in light of the Kingdom of God rather than through the lens of anxiety, worry and fear.

Fr. Philip LeMasters explains how we can become fully alive through taking up our cross and following Christ.

Fr. Philip LeMasters preaches on the Gospel reading of the healing of the paralytic.

Fr. Philip LeMasters introduces the significance of the Sunday of Orthodoxy and the restoration of the Holy Icons.

Fr. Philip LeMasters reminds us of the purpose of the Great Fast on the Sunday of Forgiveness.

Fr. Philip LeMasters reminds us that the path to the Kingdom of God is through our suffering neighbors.

Fr. Philip LeMasters draws our attention to the estrangement of the prodigal son by his self-centered desire, and the love of the Father upon his return.

Fr. Philip LeMasters considers how the parable of the Publican and the Pharisee relates to our lives today.

Fr. Philip LeMasters reflects on the gospel reading from the Sunday of the Canaanite Woman and the persistent humble faith that she exhibited.

Fr. Philip LeMasters calls us to offer our lives in service of the Kingdom of God.

Fr. Philip LeMasters asks, "Can physical things, including our bodies, become holy?"