REFLECTIONS

For the past 15 years I've worked in technology, learning new tools and software that promise to help us work smarter, not harder. Yet I've also seen how these same tools, if left unprotected, can make us work harder and even cause us to lose something far more precious than data - our true identity. Last month we heard a presentation on Unseen Intruders reminding us how quickly artificial intelligence (AI) has become part of our daily lives. When ChatGPT launched three year

On the Sunday before the Nativity of Christ, we read the Gospel of St. Matthew 1:1-25, which traces the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. It's always a powerful thing when our Church reminds us that we come from a lineage that goes all the way back to Adam and Eve. As we celebrate Christmas, we need to be reminded where our roots are, where we're from, and who we are. The world is telling you so many things about who you need to be. We hear, "j

It's that time of year again! Need I say more? The stores are already decked out for the dark days of December making them a beautiful sight to the eyes. How many Christmas songs come to mind about the holidays - snowfall, holly, Christmas trees, reindeer and jingle bells. An exciting time for many. It also brings about a pressure to do it right, provide the best Christmas for the family and be joyful doing it all. For others, it is a time of mourning as they remember loved o

A few years back, a friend was talking to me and used the phrase, "Middle-aged people like us." It was one of those phrases that made me stop listening to whatever else he was talking about. I looked around and noted that only the two of us were present. I realized with shock that my friend thought that I was middle-aged. I received a second shock when it occurred to me that my friend was right. I suppose another indicator that I am aging happens when I'm around teenagers...

St. Paul challenges us to practice giving thanks to God, and our beloved St. Anthony's words implore us to have a peaceful and contented mind! We are called to filter the negative thoughts and to resist focusing on what is wrong with the world, what is broken in life, what needs fixing, and make time to cultivate a grateful heart. One way that helps cultivate a grateful heart is to recite the amazing prayers of the Akathist Hymn "Glory to God for All Things."

A dear, old friend texted me. She had questions about Orthodoxy. She was raised Catholic and has been Protestant over 45 years. We have known each other the same amount of time so she knows my journey and my joining the Orthodox church eight years ago after first attending a liturgy eleven years ago.

On November 21st we celebrate the Feast of the Presentation of the Theotokos in the Temple. The story of Mary's early life is not found in the Bible but rather the Book of James (also called the Protevangelion). According to tradition, Mary was just three years old when her parents, Joachim and Anna, fulfilled their promise to offer her to the Lord. She ran joyfully into the arms of the priest Zacharias, even danced, and remained in the temple for nine years until she was rea

We've enjoyed the fall colors, and now the crisp air fills our surroundings. Thanksgiving and Christmas are around the corner. For many, it is a time to reflect on blessings and to celebrate life's gifts with warmth and joy of the holiday season. Yet, for others, Thanksgiving can be a hurtful reminder of absence, loss, or unmet expectations. Cultivating a grateful heart in these circumstances requires intentionality, perspective, and compassion, for oneself and for others.

Sometimes, I forget to appreciate all that God has given to us. It's easy to get caught up in the minutiae of daily living and forget that He is at work all the time. We may not recognize God's visible and invisible work due to the worldly concerns and activities that press in on us. All things, living and inanimate, are here on earth by His design. God's abundant and everlasting love for each one of us on earth encompasses everything.

Jesus talks to us about the seed. The seed is so powerful. When you look at it from the outside, it seems like nothing—just a little thing. But if you really knew the holiness of a seed! An entire forest exists within a seed. If you put an acorn in the ground with the right conditions, it will eventually give you not just a tree, but a whole oak grove. A tiny apple seed has the power to grow an entire orchard. One seed! This is what yielding a hundredfold looks like.

Next time you are at Liturgy, consider the idea that there are three flames. The first flame burns before the throne of God always. The second flame is passed down to a candle at the altar in the Liturgy. The third flame is passed on to you, like a little candle that you light when you take communion. Imagine trying to keep that little candle lit as you leave the church and keep that little flame burning throughout the week. Of course, you might point out that there aren't re

In one of our recent Gospel readings, Jesus tells us: "If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me." (Mark 8:34). This is a radical statement! When we hear this, we sometimes think about the cross Jesus carried up that hill. We think about fasting, giving things up, enduring difficulties. And yes, this is part of taking up the cross, but the Church Fathers talk about a different kind of cross. Not just the external cross, but the dee