Reflections on Orthodoxy in its Patristic and Monastic Heritage - The "A Word from the Holy Fathers" Podcast offers a weekly reflection on the writings of the Church Fathers, their significance, and their insights for the life of Orthodox Christians in every age.
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Glory to God Who Has Shown Himself to Us: St. Ephrem and St. John on the Nativity
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In a broadcast for the Feast of the Nativity According to the Flesh of the Lord Jesus Christ, we reflect on two hymns of St. Ephrem the Syrian and a portion of a homily by St. John of Shanghai and San Francisco on the glory of the night of Christ’s full revelation.Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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Remembering the Mother of God: St. Cyril on the Theotokos and the Incarnation
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In this season of Christ’s incarnate coming in the flesh, we take a moment to reflect, through the words of St. Cyril of Alexandria, on the role of the Virgin Theotokos in the nativity of the true God, Jesus Christ.Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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The Coming of the Lord - St. Leo the Great
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Archimandrite Irenei examines a sermon by St. Leo of Rome, normally read in the season of Pascha, yet which sheds great light on the coming of the Lord, and the pastoral message to be gleaned from the intense theological disputes about Christ’s natures that raged in the early Church.Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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St. Nicholas Cabasilas on the Assurance of the True Body and Blood
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In every age, there is the temptation to doubt the Mysteries of the Church—to question how it is that the faithful should remain secure in believing that Christ makes Himself truly present in Body and Blood at the Holy Table. In this week’s episode, Archimandrite Irenei examines an extended text by Nicholas Cabasilas on the substance of our faith i…
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Abba Poemen the Great: On Softening the Hardest of Hearts
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In this week’s broadcast, Archimandrite Irenei examines three sayings by Abba Poemen ("The Shepherd") of Egypt on the means by which the hardest heart can be softened by the Lord.Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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St. John the Dwarf: A Life of All the Virtues
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What has a man whose obedience once caused a barren stick to blossom forth a tree in the desert to tell us today about the life of virtue? Is it possible for man today to partake of all the virtues? In this week’s broadcast, Archimandrite Irenei examines two sayings of Fr. John the Short of Egypt on the accessibility of all the virtues through the …
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St. John Chrysostom on the Charity of Fasting
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In this week’s broadcast, Archimandrite Irenei offers a reflection on a selection of sayings of St John Chrysostom on the pastoral nature of fasting as an act of charity. In what sense does our fast minister to our neighbor?Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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St John of the Ladder on Seeking a Suitable Way of Life
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St. John of the Ladder, whom we normally read during Great Lent, is a Father who offers practical guidance to Christian life of every moment. In this week’s broadcast, Archimandrite Irenei explores a series of passages from Step 1 of St John’s Ladder to Paradise, on the specific issue of the universal calling of the Christian life, coupled with the…
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St. Cyprian on Cain, Abel, and True Self-Sacrifice
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What are we to make of the Genesis account of Cain and Abel? In this broadcast, Archimandrite Irenei examines a portion of St Cyprian of Carthage’s treatise on the Lord’s prayer that shows forth Abel as the first martyr, the example of true self-sacrifice. And it is a lesson with a practical aim: the quenching of anger and hatred, and the discovery…
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Defeating the Slavery of “Bad Habits”
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Among the greatest struggles in the Christian life are the "little things"—the day-to-day "bad habits" by which we continually fall, and which seem to trap us in our sin. Is there a way out? In this week’s episode, Archimandrite Irenei examines the Fathers on sin as habits, how these habits enslave us—and most importantly, how we can overcome our s…
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Can one call oneself a Christian without love? And what is the nature of the love we are called to show our neighbors? In this week’s episode, Archimandrite Irenei examines four patristic passages on love, and asks the question: What is it about Christian love that makes it unique in the world?Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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From the Bone of Adam: St. Irenaeus on the Creation of Eve
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The Genesis account of Eve being created from the rib of Adam has, throughout history, often been interpreted in negative ways. In this week’s broadcast, through a brief text by St. Irenaeus of Lyons, Archimandrite Irenei examines a patristic vision of this creation grounding the true intimacy and mutual responsibility of the human community, male …
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We look again at the theme of forgiveness in the writings of the Fathers—with an eye particularly toward practical injunctions on forgiveness and the relationship of repentance, forgiveness, and redemption in quotations from a variety of patristic sources. Archimandrite Irenei also introduces the Patristic Quotations Topical Index.…
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“God Is There, Where the Understanding Does Not Reach”
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In this episode, Archimandrite Irenei returns to the Life of Moses by St Gregory of Nyssa, and examines a key passage in which the Saint compares the ascent of spiritual life to Moses’s ascent of Mt. Sinai. What does it mean to ascend into "darkness," to converse with God "where the understanding does not reach"? And how does Moses’s example reveal…
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St. John Chrysostom: Practical Guidance on Dealing with Others
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St. John Chrysostom’s preaching is filled with practical advice on living a Christian life in the world, and in this broadcast we look at four sayings in which he addresses commonplace issues in the Christian’s dealings with others: combating envy, overcoming offence, learning to conquer anger with love, and living in unity to the glory of God.…
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St. Nicholas Cabasilas on the Trisagion Hymn
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In this episode, Archimandrite Irenei explores the commentary on the "Holy God..." by the 14th-century Byzantine lay theologian, St Nicholas Cabasilas. What is the significance of this ancient hymn of glorification of the Trinity? This episode features portions of recordings of the hymn by St Anthony’s Monastery, the Monastery of St John the Wonder…
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St. Gregory of Nyssa on Emulating the Fortuitous Birth of Moses
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In the first sections of the second book of his Life of Moses, St. Gregory of Nyssa instructs that Christians are to "emulate the fortuitous birth of Moses"—but how can this be done? Is not birth outside the realm of a person’s control? In examining the manner in which St. Gregory exposes "birth" as the constant making of choices by the free human …
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The Heritage of St. Paul in Orthodox Spirituality - Part 2
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This week we broadcast the second half of our lecture on the heritage of St Paul in Orthodoxy, given recently in Manchester, UK, to a largely non-Orthodox audience. In this portion, Archimandrite Irenei focuses on St. Paul’s injunction to "pray without ceasing," and explores the manner in which this is lived out in the Prayer of the Heart and exper…
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The Heritage of St. Paul in Orthodox Spirituality - Part 1
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In this first half of a lecture recorded live in commemoration of the "Pauline Year," celebrating 2,000 years since the birth of the Apostle, Archimandrite Irenei explores the heritage of the great missionary saint in Orthodoxy. Drawing connections to Elder Joseph the Hesychast of Mount Athos, St Symeon the New Theologian, and other great figures o…
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The “Wonderful and Confessedly Striking” Christian Manner of Life
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Examining a passage from the anonymous second-century Epistle to Diognetus, Archimandrite Irenei explores the witness borne by the early Christian community and asks: does it reflect our Christian testimony today?Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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St. Anthony of Egypt on Sobriety of the Heart
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Turning once again to the testimony of St Anthony the Great, this week’s broadcast examines an incident in the great Father’s life in which the true heights of sobriety of heart are witnessed. Might this feed us in our own moments of struggle in the spiritual life?Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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St. Clement of Rome on Living a God-Pleasing Life
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Are there practical measures at hand to help the Christian turn from the passions and live a God-pleasing life? In this week’s broadcast, Archimandrite Irenei examines a brief passage by St Clement on practical steps toward living in holiness.Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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In this broadcast, Fr Matthew looks at the "Evlogitaria" and Psalm 118, and considers the Church's moving reflection on the Myrrh-bearing women discovering the empty tomb. If you enjoy the music that is part of this episode, please consider supporting the choir by purchasing a copy of their newest CD, Chrysostom, by clicking here.…
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Celebrating the Holy Resurrection of Christ, our broadcast this Bright Monday looks at the writings of various Holy Fathers on the bright feast of Pascha and its meaning to Christian life.Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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Abba Dorotheos on the Sunday of Palms
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In this broadcast—recorded "on the road"—we examine a brief word by Abba Dorotheos of Gaza on the spiritual symbolism of Christ's entry into Jerusalem.Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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St. Mary of Egypt and the Grace of the Holy Mysteries
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During this week of Great Lent, wherein the Church reads the Life of St. Mary of Egypt, we explore a section of that text which reveals the relationship between "mystical theology" in ascetical life, to the grace of the Holy Mysteries in the Church. We are prompted to ask ourselves: Do I lose sight of the chalice in my desire to find Christ?…
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St. John of Sinai on Sorrow that Produces Joy
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In this week’s broadcast, Archimandrite Irenei examines several sections from St John’s Ladder to Paradise, read throughout Great Lent and particularly remembered in this Fifth Week, dealing especially with the paradoxes of spiritual life and the mystery of a "joy-creating sorrow."Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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St. Symeon the New Theologian on the “Impossible Beauty” of the Life in Christ
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In this fourth week of the Great Fast, when the Church commemorates the universal adoration of the precious Cross, our broadcast looks at an important passage by St Symeon the New Theologian, on being joined to the suffering Christ and so attaining the "impossible beauty" of His glory. We ask with the saint: how shall we approach such glory?…
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This week, Archimandrite Irenei explores two passages - one by St. John of Karpathos and the other by St. Ambrose of Milan - on the nature of the continual falling down and rising up of repentance, examining the question: How is the Christian person to respond to continual failings in his attempts to live a holy life?…
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Shall We Forgive? The Fathers on Forgiveness as the Gateway to Salvation
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This week, in anticipation of Forgiveness Sunday, Archimandrite Irenei explores a series of patristic texts that deal with the imperative of forgiveness, and the need to forgive as the gateway into the life offered by Christ in the Church.Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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All to No Purpose Have I Left My True Home
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The second of the pre-Lenten Sundays draws our attention to the Prodigal Son and his departure—and return—to his father’s house. In this week’s episode, Archimandrite Irenei examines the Fathers’ testimony to this event, found in the Church’s hymns, and examines the nature of sin as exile in every Christian’s life.…
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As the pre-Lenten weeks of the Triodion begin, this week’s broadcast explores the themes of the Fathers’ liturgical heritage, taking from the Church’s hymnography the vivid imagery of the Publican and the Pharisee. How do we, ourselves, speak when we stand before God in prayer—and how ought this Sunday cause us to change?…
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St. Irenaeus: The Church Which Has Been Handed Down to Us
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Father Irenei examines two passages from St. Irenaeus of Lyons, which speak of receiving the truth of "the Church that has been handed down to us" from the Holy Apostles, and in which right belief is found without adulteration or error.Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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The Father who Seeth in Secret Shall Reward Thee Openly
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St. John Chrysostom’s 19th homily on St. Matthew’s Gospel account addresses Christ’s promise of open rewards for secret acts—but what does this mean? In this broadcast, we explore the words of St. John on secret acts of virtue being shown forth "in the presence of the whole universe."Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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In this week’s episode, Archimandrite Irenei explores St. John of the Ladder’s beautiful testimony of repentance as "the daughter of hope and the renunciation of despair." What is the nature of such repentance, and how does it raise up the Christian to "a sure resurrection"?Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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In the Clash of Destructive Errors, the Truth of the Church Stands Revealed
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Focusing on a text by St. Hilary of Poitiers, Fr. Irenei explores the Saint’s conviction that the multitude of heresies and errors surrounding us in the world are not to be feared or to become a cause for despair, for through their very error the Truth of Christ is revealed all the more in the Church.…
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St. John Chrysostom on the Wonder of the Nativity, Part 2
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In the second part of his reflection on St. John Chrysostom’s famed Nativity Homily, Fr. Irenei examines the concluding segments of the sermon, in which the Saint draws our hearts into the experience of the One who brought joy into the midst of the earth.Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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St. John Chrysostom on the Wonder of the Nativity, Part 1
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Beginning a two-part reflection on the famous Nativity Homily of St. John Chrysostom, this week Archimandrite Irenei examines sections of this most-exalted sermon that deal with the unexpected wonder of our salvation, wrought of the spotless offering of the Virgin.Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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St Mark the Ascetic: Taking Up the Cross With Joy
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This week, Archimandrite Irenei examines a text by St. Mark the Ascetic in which the Christian is enjoined to "give himself entirely to the Cross," undergoing "with joy" the abasement that it brings. Do we live our lives in this way? Can we claim to be what St. Mark terms "true Christians"?Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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Taking up a passage from the writings of St. Theophan the Recluse, Archimandrite Irenei examines the nature of human freedom, not as a thing good in itself, but which is to be sacrificed as a perfect offering to God.Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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Do You Truly Believe in the Resurrection of Christ?
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In this week’s broadcast, Fr. Irenei examines a text by St. Cyril of Jerusalem, which prompts the Christian to ask the question, "Do I truly believe in Christ’s resurrection?" If so, how does this belief shape the actual decisions and determinations of our lives?Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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St John of Sinai: “Let Us Charge Into the Fight With Joy and Love”
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Drawn from a remarkable passage from St. John of the Ladder, Archimandrite Irenei examines the crippling effect of spiritual fear on the life of the Christian, and draws from the saint’s guidance the help towards overcoming it with a trustful love in the power of God.Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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From the Angel to St. Anthony: “Do This, and You Will Be Saved”
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This week’s broadcast focuses on an episode from the Life of St. Anthony the Great, in which the saint, seeking solace in his spiritual struggles, receives an angelic testimony to the way of salvation. Has this message something to teach the Christian struggling in the world today?Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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What We Receive is Not our Own: A Testimony of St Macarius the Great
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In a remarkable text by St. Macarius, the Christian is told that if he sees an arrogant man perform miracles, "even raise the dead," he should not follow. This week, Fr. Irenei explores what this message means for the Orthodox Christian, and how the good works of God are to be stored up secretly in the loving Christian heart.…
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St John Chrysostom on the Many Blessings of Calling God Father
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In this week’s broadcast, Archimandrite Irenei considers Homily 19 on St. Matthew’s Gospel by St. John Chrysostom, exploring the richness of what calling God "our Father" means for our relationship both to Him and to one another as brethren.Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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Did You Not Know That You Stood, Speaking to Him?
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Drawn from one of the sayings of the Desert Fathers relating to the life of Abba Ammon, this week’s episode focuses on the question of our attentiveness to God, in the Divine Services as well as in our whole life. Where is our mind—where our heart? Do we not know that we stand in His presence, speaking to Him?…
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The River of Jordan Streaming from my Eyes
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This week, Fr. Irenei reflects on one of the "Steps" from St John Klimakos’s Ladder to Paradise, in which the saint considers the life of the Christian and the judgement of others. Have we begun to live the life of repentance? Or does our judgement of our neighbor reveal that we have yet to grasp the true nature of our sin, and make a true beginnin…
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A Friend of God, a Brother and Son of Christ
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Beginning the second series of "A Word From the Holy Fathers," Archimandrite Irenei calls upon the spiritual homilies of St. Makarios the Great, reflecting on the saint’s profound question, "Do you wish to be a friend of God, and a brother and son of Christ?" What does it mean to be God’s "friend," and how should this affect how we see ourselves—an…
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The Wonder of the Incarnation - St. Gregory the Theologian
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We conclude the first series of A Word From the Holy Fathers with this fiftieth episode, in which Fr. Matthew examines a poignant reflection on "the wonder of the Incarnation" by St. Gregory of Nazianzus. The broadcast concludes with a small announcement about the conclusion of this series, and advance notice of its return with a new series in a mo…
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Glory to God Who Has Shown Himself to Us: St. Ephrem and St. John on the Nativity
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In a broadcast for the Feast of the Nativity According to the Flesh of the Lord Jesus Christ, we reflect on two hymns of St. Ephrem the Syrian and a portion of a homily by St. John of Shanghai and San Francisco on the glory of the night of Christ's full revelation.Av Archimandrite Irenei (Steenberg) and Ancient Faith Radio
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