If we can say to ourselves with St Paul, “I am what I am”, and at the same time acknowledge the reality that Christ died and was resurrected then we will be living out that reality that St Paul sets for each of us in his Letter to the Philippians, Chapter 2, verse 13, “for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure”.
In the Afterfeast of the Dormition of the the Theotokos, we are mindful of the fact that it is a woman, the blessed ever-Virgin Mary, whom the Orthodox and indeed others venerate as the most honoured and significant of Christians.
How can I increase my faith? There is no way I can encourage you to increase your faith in Our Lord Jesus Christ unless I first increase my faith in Him.
Fr. Gregory's homily on the Feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos.
Fr. Gregory Hallam brings the homily on the Feast of the Transfiguration.
Christ had complete power over the forces of nature and could transcend them. It follows that His actions on earth were entirely voluntary. His truly endured the cross as a voluntary action.
Have no thought for tomorrow for day by day God will provide His bread and His wine and none shall hunger or thirst any more.
Forgiveness is waiting for us NOW when we turn to Christ. Use the help that is available and let us carry each other in love and prayer as we all strive to a greater perfection.
God alone is perfectly righteous but by His grace we are also able to acquire our own righteousness through active participation in and collaboration with Him.
Subdeacon Emmanuel gives the homily on the belief of the Centurion.
Fr. Dn. Christopher speaks on the Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul.
In this Gospel according to St Matthew, Christ sets out His plan for four people—the brothers Simon and Andrew, and the brothers, James and John, the fishermen from two families, living in the town of Capernaum. Christ’s plan for these fishermen consists of a request and a promise.
On the Sunday of All Saints, we are reminded to honour them in our generation that others by their example, fellowship and prayers may also become Friends of God.
In his sermon on Pentecost, Fr. Gregory says we have the promise of Christ that if we pray and wait on the power of God, the Holy Spirit will descend upon us.
The Ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ into heaven is not an isolated occurrence that befits only the Son of God. It is the promise to all those who are in Christ to ascend in and with Him to glory.
In the Ascension our humanity is taken up in Christ’s to the heavenly places. He came to earth that we might be raised up to heaven
We are all called to a personal relationship with the Lord, but first of all, we must recognize that “Jesus Christ is the Lord” – our Lord. To achieve this, we need to have Him cure the blindness of our spiritual eyes, and this calls for an act of loving submission of our wills unto Him.
Fr. Gregory speaks about the Woman at the Well who we know as St. Photini. As surely as Photini means “enlightened” it is our calling also to enlighten others with the Light of Christ.
Christ our God gave the paralytic a choice, and respected his free will, when He asked him:- “Do you want to be healed?”. As always, He asks the same question of each one of us.
Jesus Christ understood that both the disciples and us would be puzzled about how to react to Him after the crucifixion. What did Jesus do? He told the apostle St Thomas and us: “Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here with your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believe.” And the apostle St Thomas was empowered by this remarkable encounter with Jesus Christ to overcome unbelief and to say to Jesus: “My Lord and my God.”
The Pascha pastoral letter was read from His Eminence Metropolitan John, Archbishop of the Antiochian Orthodox Deanery of the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Fr. Gregory reads the sermon "Pascha in the West and the East" by His Eminence, Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos.
Subdeacon Emmanuel gives the homily on Great and Holy Thursday.
The entry to Jerusalem was a liturgical act; it was the entry into the great holy city of Israel by her rightful King and welcomed by the people as the fulfilling of national hope. Yet it is also proved to be a great disappointment.
Fr. Gregory preaches on the raising of Lazarus from the dead and the significance of the power of the Logos to create life.
In this final sermon on the Beatitudes, Fr. Gregory says that persecution can be an occasion of great blessedness.
We sometimes approach God and say, “I want you to do whatever I ask.” Does it work?
The great theme of Lent is repentance. That is the turning of our minds and hearts to God. The fact is that we can only do this through the work of Christ. He is the great Peace-Maker; He makes our repentance possible by His reconciling work.
The Theotokos stands for the whole biblical way of looking at the relationship between God and His creation as a mystery of LOVE.
Psalm 1 and the Beatitudes both seek to understand the challenging question, ‘Who will be blessed and what does it mean to be blessed?’
