Glory to God

Fr. Stephen looks at the story of the “Hospitality of Abraham” (Gen. 18) and his conversation with God concerning Sodom and Gomorrah, and sees in it a lesson for our time.

Modern management theory has crept its way into Christian thought over the years, suggesting that parishes are best served when we are sorted into our gifts and talents slots. Fr. Stephen looks instead at the Biblical description of the Church in which our weaknesses rather than our strengths are to be valued.

Fr. Stephen Freeman looks at the “allegorical” or “symbolic” reading of Scripture - and its importance for our daily life.

Fr. Stephen Freeman looks at the mystery of love and freedom, and the limits God places on Himself as He raises us, by love, to be His “equals."

Fr. Stephen Freeman shares about the importance of the sacraments in our lives - particularly in light of the Bible verse that says, “There is but one mediator between God and man, the man, Christ Jesus.”

Fr. Stephen Freeman looks at our transformation into the image of Christ and the forgiveness of our sins in terms of concrete reality - thinking through the work that God is doing in us.

It is one thing to believe that God exists. But beyond that, it is important, even vital, that God is good. Fr. Stephen Freeman explores this importance.

Fr. Stephen Freeman reflects on the nature of the Kingdom of God and its distinct reality when compared to the wars and struggles of the secularized world.

We rarely think of God as meek. Instead, we picture Him as mighty, powerful, and overwhelming. Fr. Stephen Freeman looks at a number of clear indications in Scripture concerning what we know of God through the revelation of Christ. God is meek.

Ever wonder what the phrase, “the Divine Energies,” means? Fr. Stephen looks at its inner depths and its constant place in our lives. Give thanks to the Lord for He is good! His mercy endures forever!

Fr. Stephen Freeman offers some honest thoughts on the sacrament of marriage and its importance in our culture.

Fr. Stephen speaks of the difficulties and trials of those coming to faith in God and the challenges facing our children.

Fr. Stephen Freeman speaks on icons as doors that open onto other rooms. He also speaks about how we view evil in this understanding of God's world.

Fr. Stephen looks at Orthodoxy and our lives as a matter of the "whole" truth, rather than a "one-sidedness." He urges us to press forward into the whole truth of Christ.

In this podcast, Fr. Stephen speaks about the Orthodox use of the word "fullness," both as a description of the Church but also, and especially, as a description of what we long for in the Christian life.

Fr. Stephen Freeman describes a reading project, comparing the writings of Richard Leigh Fermor (1933), to those of Nick Hunt (2011) as they made walks across Europe. Fermor's descriptions belong to a world that has disappeared, while those of Hunt seem thin and attenuated. They point towards much deeper realities of our modern world.

Fr. Stephen Freeman offers thoughts on the virtue of contentment and its place in the spiritual life.

Fr. Stephen Freeman offers some thoughts on one of the more common Morning Prayers for the Orthodox, in which we pray, “O Lord, Save me whether I want it or not.” It is a hopeful meditation.

Fr. Stephen Freeman examines in some depth why success and progress are not the right measures of the spiritual life.

Community is rooted in a mutual need, and so depends on our weakness. Fr. Stephen Freeman tells us that this is God's intention for the Church.

"It's not until we cease to divide the world into ordinary and extraordinary, into usual and unusual, into sacred and secular, that we will have either the possibility of knowing God, much less living the Christian life." — Fr. Stephen Freeman

Fr. Stephen Freeman looks at the notion of "allegory" as it is used in the New Testament and in the Orthodox worldview. He also considers the true nature of "literalism" and how we should understand it.

In this talk Fr. Stephen continues with the imagery of the One-Storey Universe, but uses it to challenge our sense of finitude and scarcity and instead boldly proclaims that the risen Christ has raised us to a kingdom where we are not bound by limits, but by the endless abundance of His love.

Fr. Stephen looks at the way icons help us to see the world as it truly is rather than as a window to a "second story."

Continuing with his illuminating series, in part four Fr. Stephen Freeman discusses those (both non-Orthodox and Orthodox) for whom knowledge of God is but a relationship with a book (albeit a sacred book) or with ideas about God. These people are what Fr. Freeman calls "practical atheists." "Although a person may espouse a belief in God, it's quite possible for that belief to be so removed from everyday life that God's non-existence would make little difference."

Fr. Stephen continues his look at the world from an Orthodox perspective.

In his inaugural podcast, Fr. Stephen describes the Orthodox view of the world in terms we can all understand.

Fr. Stephen looks at the words "relationship" and "fellowship" and notes that they are very "weak" translations of the Greek word koinonia in Scripture. He suggests how we should understand this word in its true, Orthodox sense.

Father Stephen comments on some of the thoughts found in a recent work by Archimandrite Zacharias of England. He looks at the "inverted pyramid," the humility of Christ in which authority is to be found not at the top but at the bottom of things, in Christ's bearing the sins of the whole of humanity.

Fr. Stephen looks at the quiet role played by grace-filled persons in our world. In many ways, God preserves us through the presence of such saints.

Fr. Stephen continues his thoughts on the Church as the proper interpretation of Scripture. In this talk he looks at how we "read" the Church.

Fr. Stephen sets for a case for an "Orthodox Interpretation of Scripture" in which the Church itself is seen as the proper way to interpret the Sacred Writings.

Fr. Stephen speaks about the doctrine of the Church (ecclesiology) and how it is best understood by looking at the cross of Christ.

Fr. Stephen discusses the Orthodox understanding of the difference of heaven and hell and some of its implications for how we speak about them.

In this podcast Fr. Stephen looks at the importance of "learning to sin," meaning the importance of learning what it is as a Christian that keeps us from the Kingdom of God.

In this podcast Fr. Stephen speaks of the God who is "everywhere present and fills all things," and the importance of our being open to Him everywhere, always, in all things.

Fr. Stephen talks about one aspect of the Orthodox understanding of salvation by grace, and notes that a very large part of it consists in "just showing up," learning to be present to God and to accept faithfully the means of grace given to us.

The Triumph of Orthodoxy is also a triumph of the wholeness of God.

In this podcast, Fr. Stephen speaks about giving thanks to God and its foundation in the belief that God is good. He focuses on four aspects of that goodness.

In this podcast Fr. Stephen speaks about the experience of standing at the "edge" of Tradition as people look at the Tradition of the Church and discuss it, seek to appropriate parts of it, but remain outside of that Tradition. He emphasizes that the Tradition of the faith is nothing other than our union with the True and Living God and His union with us.

Fr. Stephen talks about eight different ways that the divided, "two-storey" universe, a world divided between sacred and secular, affect us as Christians, and offers reflections on how we should see and cope with each of them. This is the largest summary of his work to date.

Fr. Stephen looks at the relationship between Orthodox Christianity and culture and argues that since Orthodoxy is the fullness of the faith, it should also be productive of the fullness of what it is to be human. Healthy Orthodox nations have always had a healthy Orthodox culture.

Fr. Stephen looks at the aspect of seeing the world in wonder—an experience shared by both Christian and non-Christian—and suggests, following St. Gregory of Nyssa, that it is the place where our faith should begin.

Fr. Stephen looks at morality and virtue, particularly as understood during the so-called "Age of Enlightenment," and compares it with an Orthodox understanding of right actions in the life of a Christian.

Fr. Stephen makes a distinction between the truth of the Christian faith and the many distortions and misperceptions of the Christian faith that surround us. He makes the case that we need only defend the search for the true and living God.

Fr. Stephen describes the one-storey universe as a faith worth believing and addresses the difficulty that people in the modern world have in transitioning from the secularized religions that dot our landscape to a truly integrated religion such as the Orthodox faith.

In this week's podcast Fr. Stephen notes that things are not always as they seem. In our busy world we often only see things in a blur. We want things quickly. He notes that grace has a slowness about it and urges us to "be still" and "know" God.

In this podcast, Fr. Stephen speaks about salvation and the Church in the Orthodox understanding. He states that: "the Church is what salvation looks like," and explains how the Tradition of the Church sees our salvation in Christ as something we work out in the context of the believing community rather than as mere individuals.

Fr. Stephen continues his series on the One-Storey Universe and looks at what it means for the Church. The Church is concrete and real. The "Fullness of Him that Filleth All in All" is not an abstraction or an "invisible" Church, but rather the very real Church established by Christ.

Fr. Stephen describes the spiritual warfare that Christians are to engage in as a battle within the heart—which is where we find the very depths of heaven.