It took a little longer to return to this subject than I thought. But, what is Holy Tradition? In order to understand more about Holy Tradition, it is very helpful at this time to use a way of speaking that is much more common in the East than in the West. And that is what […]
Roots of Mysticism, post 02
In God, the ‘eros desire’ is outgoing, ecstatic. Because of it lovers no longer belong to themselves but to those whom they love. God also goes out of himself . . . when he captivates all creatures by the spell of his love and his desire . . . In a word, we might say […]
Scripture, Tradition, and Ecumenical Councils, part 04
And now, back to our regular programming. As we have been talking about Holy Tradition, part of the problem that I see is that many people want Holy Tradition to be a list of canons, a list of practices, a list of dress codes, a list of personal grooming codes, etc., all of which can […]
Scripture, Tradition, and Ecumenical Councils, part 03
Let me make some comments, as an aside, in order to make myself clear before I return to what I was discussing. The Holy Spirit works through many means. I am only mentioning three of them: Scriptures, Holy Tradition, and Ecumenical Councils. I list the Scriptures as separate from Holy Tradition, not because I have […]
Scripture, Tradition, and Ecumenical Councils, part 02
Yesterday I gave examples of how Tradition has vetoed Papal bulls, Roman Catholic Councils, and Ecumenical Councils. In each case, there are still many who would insist that those pronouncements are valid and to be obeyed, even while there is significant disobedience to the pronouncements. That is, Tradition is not a static set of statements […]
Scripture, Tradition, and Ecumenical Councils, part 01
On Sarx a question came up about that made me think about the relationship between Scripture, Tradition, and Ecumenical Councils. And, not surprisingly, my conclusion is that the relationship is a complex interaction that does not boil itself down to a set of easily memorizable doctrinal statements. I can, however, perhaps give some generalized thoughts […]
Saturday Night Live
So, I watched the take-off of Gov. Sarah Palin and Sen. Hillary Clinton done by Saturday Night Live. I can see why it has become such a popular clip. The humor was almost slapstick without being rude, and the comic timing was faultless. If they can keep this up, they may very well take over […]
How big is your cross?
Today is the Feast of the Elevation of the Cross. Most of us think of its historical side, of St. Helen, the mother of St. Constantine making a pilgrimage to Jerusalem in the year 325 and having a hand in identifying the true Cross. But, my mind has wandered in a different direction, and that […]
St. Leo the Great on the Cross
Our understanding, which is enlightened by the Spirit of truth, should receive with purity and freedom of heart the glory of the cross as it shines in heaven and on earth. It should see with inner vision the meaning of the Lord’s words when he spoke of the imminence of his passion: The hour has […]
St. Theodore the Studite on the Cross
How precious the gift of the cross, how splendid to contemplate! In the cross there is no mingling of good and evil, as in the tree of paradise: it is wholly beautiful to behold and good to taste. The fruit of this tree is not death but life, not darkness but light. This tree does […]
