PARISH VOICES

More Than Just a Holiday Like many things in life, holidays often come and go and for some, holidays have lost their meaning and have become just another day. In recent years many have called Thanksgiving, "Turkey Day" or it has become a day to watch football and eat a big feast without a second thought. ​ As we prepare to come together as family and friends, let’s intentionally strive to make Thanksgiving a day to remember our abundant blessings. As Orthodox Christians we a

Growing up in the Midwest, I became quite accustomed to severe weather events. Thunderstorms, tornadoes, blizzards, and ​ice storms were a regular part of life. Yet, in my 40 years, I can't recall ever being without power for more than 24 hours. Now, I am facing up to four days without power. Even during missionary work in a remote village in the Dominican Republic, we had electricity, albeit with occasional short outages. The culture and environment there somehow made it eas

The Nature of Human Relationships It is hard to imagine a deep friendship or marriage without some sort of forgiveness being asked of one another. As we dance together in life, we have surely stepped on each other's toes at some point and have felt hurt by the other and, for sure, have regretfully caused suffering as well. You know the feeling. When this happens, we will feel awkward, distant, and perhaps angry or become silent. We feel blamed and judged, wronged. Or we blame