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?

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.

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 of a life offered more wholly to God.

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?

In his third lecture, Dr. Demetrios Katos addresses the ways in which theology is scientific, why we should never say “mere symbol” in Orthodox thought, what we mean by essence and energies, what we mean by a personal God, and how the Bible and other sources are used in theology.

John's guest is Fr. Daniel Marshall talking about a new Orthodox book for children called St. Seraphim's Beatitudes available from St. Innocent Press.

Ancient Faith Radio presents Fr. Martin Ritsi speaking at the 2010 Orthodox Christian Mission Center benefit, sponsored by OCMC Mission Team Chicago. Fr. Martin is the Executive Director of the Orthodox Christian Mission Center and a commissioner on the World Council of Churches’ Commission on World Missions and Evangelism. The benefit was held on February 11, 2010, at St. John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church in Des Plaines, Illinois.

Bobby Maddex interviews Frederica Mathewes-Green about her upcoming trip to Russia with Orthodox Tours. Learn how you can join her and her husband Fr. Gregory as they visit some of Russia's holiest and most awe-inspiring sites.

Bobby Maddex interviews Fr. Lawrence Russell, priest at Church of the Annunciation in Santa Maria, California, about a truly remarkable Orthodox ministry, located in Adwa, Ethiopia, and the even more remarkable woman who started it.

Bobby Maddex interviews Elizabeth Crispina Johnson, author of the Conciliar Press children's books And Then Nicholas Sang and What Do You Hear, Angel? Both books were illustrated by Masha Lobastov.

Bobby Maddex interviews Dr. Andreas Andreopoulos, Reader in Christianity at the University of Winchester, about his new book This Is My Beloved Son: The Transfiguration of Christ, published by Paraclete Press.

Fr. Thomas Zain, Vicar General of the Antiochian Archdiocese, tells us about a US tour of the Choir of St. Romanos the Melodist from Beirut. More information can be found at the web site of the Antiochian Archdiocese.

John Maddex interviews Fr. Thomas Zain, Vicar General of the Antiochian Orthodox Church of North America, about the falling asleep in the Lord of His Beatitude Ignatius IV of Antioch and All the East.

Fr. Constantine Nasr is the retired priest at St. Elijah Antiochian Orthodox Church in Oklahoma City. During his many years there, speakers and conferences were videotaped and he now makes them available on a channel on YouTube.

Bobby Maddex interviews Andrew Boyd, the Director of Youth, Young Adult, and Campus Ministry with the Orthodox Church in America, about the OCA YouTube Challenge for Orthodox high school and college students.

Bobby Maddex interviews Christiana Roulakis, the Director of Development at Orthodox Christian Prison Ministry (OCPM), about Blessings Beyond Bars, OCPM's new Lenten youth project to teach children and young adults about prison ministry.

Ancient Faith Radio is at the GOA Clergy/Laity Congress in Philadelphia and while there we ran into Steven Christoforou, host of the very popular youth video cast - Be the Bee!

Fr. Chad Hatfield tells us about the upcoming 32nd Annual Alexander Schmemann Lecture on the campus of St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary. The speaker will be Bishop Nicholas of Brooklyn talking about the life and ministry of St. Raphael of Brooklyn. This year is the 100th anniversary of the repose of St. Raphael.

Ancient Faith Radio presents His Eminence Archbishop Makarios of Kenya speaking at the 2015 Orthodox Christian Mission Center benefit, sponsored by OCMC Mission Team Chicago. The benefit was held on February 19 at St. John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church in Des Plaines, Illinois.

An interview with Charles Ajalat about the Becoming Truly Human course in the Antiochian Archdiocese. Learn about this home-based and lay led approach to spreading the Gospel now available. Find out more at the Antiochian website.

Bobby Maddex interviews Dn. Stephen Muse, Director of the Pastoral Counselor Training program and Clinical Services for the D.A. & Elizabeth Turner Ministry Resource Center of the Pastoral Institute, Inc., in Columbus, Georgia, and the author of the book Being Bread, published by St. Tikhon's Monastery Press.

Bobby Maddex interviews writer and humanitarian Dr. Maria Khoury about her home in Taybeh, Palestine. Please consider visiting her and bringing attention to the last remaining Christian village in this region. Dr. Khoury is the author of the recent children's book Christina Goes to the Holy Land.

Are you dreading Great Lent? Is the Fast a struggle for you every year? Now there's help! Bobby Maddex interviews Cynthia Damaskos and Rita Madden, the individuals behind the new website My Beautiful Lent.

Ancient Faith Radio brings you a talk by Fr. John Behr, Dean and Professor of Patristics at St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary in Yonker’s New York. Fr. John spoke at the Center for Orthodox Thought and Culture at Eastern University in PA.

Bobby Maddex interviews Dn. Gregory Ealy, the music director at St. Mary’s Orthodox Cathedral in Minneapolis, Minnesota, about a new CD by the cathedral choir titled Make Ready, O Bethlehem: Orthodox Hymns for Christmas. Dn. Gregory also talks about an upcoming benefit concert for St. Vladimir's Seminary.

Bobby Maddex interviews Cynthia Damaskos, CHC, one of the individuals behind the website My Beautiful Lent.

Dr. John Mark Reynolds speaks at the Acton Institute on "Beauty and the Destruction of the Individual." Dr. Reynolds is the President of The Saint Constantine School, a K-college classical Orthodox school in Houston. He is also a Senior Fellow of Humanities at The King’s College in New York City, and a Fellow of the Center For Science and Culture at The Discovery Institute.

Bobby Maddex interviews Steven Christoforou, the director of the GOA’s Department of Youth and Young Adult Ministries, the co-host of the AFR podcast Pop Culture Coffee Hour, and the erstwhile host of the popular Orthodox video podcast Be the Bee.

We interview Graham Sparkman, a fifth-generation bluegrass-Mountain musician who now finds himself on the path into the Orthodox Church. Graham is here to talk about his new, unique, and frankly gorgeous CD titled Lestovka—available now at iTunes and cdbaby.

Meet Ron Smith, Orthodox Christian, former Oldies DJ, and one of the Executive Producers of the movie Heavens to Betsy as well as the sequel Heavens to Betsy 2.

Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick hosts a moving interview with Deacon Gabriel Abdel Nour of St. Demetrios Orthodox Church in Beirut (Achrafieh), Lebanon, sounding notes of both sorrow and hope in the midst of destruction from the recent explosions, economic desperation and pandemic.

Bobby Maddex speaks with Benedict Sheehan, composer and conductor of the new release on Capella Records, "Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom" featuring St. Tikhon Choir. Purchase a copy to support this work here!

Bobby Maddex interviews Dean Triantafilou and Stacey Mason of International Orthodox Christian Charities. Stacey Mason has worked in international relations for 15 years. Over the years, she has visited over 35 countries and has earned advanced degrees in international affairs. Stacey has served as Director of Operations for International Orthodox Christian Charities, or IOCC, for the last 5 years, where she is responsible for relief and development programs in Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and the US.   Constantine “Dean” Triantafilou has been leading IOCC for over two decades, where he brings a deep commitment to serving the Church and others.  Starting in the field, he has held several leadership roles within IOCC and served as a board member with international and domestic alliances, giving him a unique perspective on the organization and the humanitarian industry. As Executive Director and CEO, Dean guides IOCC’s strategic priorities and direction. 

Bobby Maddex interviews Benedict Sheehan and Lydia Given about Benedict's new composition out on Capella Records, simply titled, "Vespers". Together they discuss the creative process, inspiration, and development of this beautiful project as well as a unique perspective on American Orthodox music. Listeners can learn more and find links to purchase or stream the album at the Capella Romana website.

Bobby Maddex is joined by Dn. Andrei Psarev to discuss the upcoming "Links between Times: Conclusions and Perspectives" Conference taking place in Belgrade, Serbia from November 22–26, 2021. The aim of the conference is to make sense of processes connecting the past and present of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia. Interested listeners can learn more and register from the conference at the ROCOR Studies website. You can also learn more at the conference Facebook page.

The heritage and theology behind Russian bells with Mark Galperin of Blagovest Bells.

Kevin Allen interviews Abbess Aemiliane of the Sacred Monastery of St. Nina about her miraculous rescue in Kansas City when a Sky Walk came crashing down on the public on July 17, 1981.

The White House sides with Israel's ground assault of Lebanon while much of the world calls for a ceasefire. / Al Jazeera

Meanwhile, Iran is said to be preparing to launch a ballistic-missile attack. / The Wall Street Journal [+]

A long profile of Ta-Nehisi Coates, whose new book criticizes Israel and the corrupting influence of power. "I'm sad, but I was so enraged." / New York Magazine

Things to watch for in tonight's Vance-Walz debate. / Wake Up to Politics

Helene slamming a small town in North Carolina may disrupt the global supply chain for microchips. / NPR

A nuclear plant in Michigan will be the first in US history to restart. / CNBC

Your weekly white paper: "A systematic review about similarities in dog-human dyads." / Science Direct

A fascinating survey of how religious believers are using new technologies in their daily practices. / rest of world

An audio dive into Google's new niche product Notebook, which can turn a bunch of PDFs into a convincing podcast. / The New York Times [+]

See also: Barry C. Lynn on "Liberal democracy's last stand against Big Tech." / Harper's

From July, have you seen the trend of new books using multi-panel illustrations on their covers? They're called "bento books." / I Need a Book Cover

A celebrated new short story collection is about "people who just can't hang." / The New Yorker

Also, have you noticed worse service at restaurants lately? For the sake of society, that might be a good thing. / Economist Writing Every Day

See also: Britain experiences a rise in "zebra striping," where pub patrons alternate between alcoholic and non-alcoholic beer. / Semafor

Japan's smaller museums are praised for their elegance. / The Wall Street Journal [+]

Photographs of Japanese forests shimmering with fireflies. / Colossal

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"Bolivia, too, is undergoing a kind of disillusionment with democracy." How the rest of the world views this year's US election. / The Dial

See also: How British vernacular invaded America, or why everyone's saying "gutted" now. / The Guardian

More solar activity could again make the Northern Lights visible to more areas of the world this weekend. / BBC News

"A lot of people just said, 'This is too good to be true. This cannot be real.'" In early tests, visual therapy using flashing lights appears to halt the progression of Alzheimer's. / Nature

See also: Researchers find that, compared to viewing reproductions, experiencing art in person creates a 10-fold increase in people's emotional response. / Hyperallergic

"Not a single organism survived. This is unprecedented. It's Europe's first completely dead river." Ukraine accuses Russia of intentionally poisoning a river. / The Guardian

The US military has been updating various advanced weapons systems with gaming-style controllers. / WIRED

See also: The CIA is posting messages in Farsi, Mandarin, and Korean on social media and the dark web as part of an effort to recruit informants. / NBC News

This is a chilling development: By pairing Meta's smart glasses with facial recognition, Harvard students were able to instantly dox strangers on the street. / 404 Media

But at least the AI that Meta includes with the smart glasses seems incapable of deciphering much of what it sees, though it will confidently lie to you about it anyway. / Gizmodo

Parents of the surveillance era are facing the reality of having children away at college. / The Wall Street Journal [+]

"The emotions I feel for her are real." AI companions can be a lifeline for those who struggle with relationships. / Esquire

See also: Does anyone have time to be a good friend anymore? / Dazed

From initial novelty to immediate slop, the five qualities of every AI app. / Read Max

"Being online has always involved searching for the needles of 'real' content in a large and messy haystack of junk. But never has the hay been as convincingly disguised as needles." / The New Yorker

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Due to some unforseen events, we missed a couple days last week. Sorry about that! All is better and we appreciate the readers who reached out.

Israel reportedly says any attacks on Iran will target its military, not nuclear or oil facilities. / CNN

Republican campaigns spend more money at Shake Shack and Jimmy John's while Democrats eat at Sweetgreen and Le Pain Quotidien. / The Washington Post [+]

People whose homes were damaged by recent storms are likely to be forced to "build up or move out." / Heatmap

Related: Emergency workers in North Carolina were withdrawn for fear of trucks of armed militia "saying they were out hunting FEMA." The local sherriff's office says otherwise. / The Guardian, Citizen Times

Nepalese teenager Nima Rinji Sherpa breaks the record for the youngest mountaineer to summit Earth's 14 highest peaks. / BBC News

A team finds the remains of one of the first climbers to attempt Mount Everest. / National Geographic

Prior to the 20th century, oyster reefs covered more than 1.7 million hectares across European oceans. / Bloomberg [+]

Do more people die from heat or cold? Cold, but most die from "moderate cold." / Sustainability by numbers

The amount of tents on the streets of San Franicsco is down 60% since July 2023. / The San Francisco Standard

New Yorkers deploy "anti-influencer architecture" in neighborhoods popular with TikTokers. / Curbed

See also: A nonprofit called Mothers Against Media Addiction aims to follow the model of Mothers Against Drunk Driving. / The Information

Fitness bros on TikTok participating in "locktober" may not know the term's history as a chastity kink. / Them

Author Rumaan Alan's solution for his midlife crisis is to get tattooed with things he doesn't want to forget. / Esquire

An argument for skipping wellness and personal development for "wasteful intervals of pure, delicious nothingness." / The Good Question

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Fr. Tom Soroka and John Maddex will dive into the topic of Universalism and speak with Orthodox panelists who fall into one of three categories: Confident Universalists, Hopeful Universalists, and those who say Universalism was condemned as a heresy. We read in Scripture that God is not willing that any should perish (2 Peter 3:9). But we also read that It is appointed unto man once to die, and after that comes the judgment (Hebrews 9:27). There are those who claim that, since Christ died for all, we can be assured that all will indeed be saved and not face eternal condemnation. This is called “universalism” or “apocatastasis.” Was this teaching condemned by the Church? Who among the Church Fathers embraced universal salvation?

Fr. Pat explains how the myrrh-bearing women contemplated the mysteries of the Church.

Fr. Pat argues that the paralytic suffered from the sin of apathy—from claiming victimhood and not really wanting to change.

Fr. Pat again addresses the "transcendentals," this time explaining how the Incarnation is the manifestation of truth, goodness, and beauty.

Fr. Pat explains that love must be intelligent, practical and generous, and miraculous.

Fr. Pat presents a series of biblical quotations about kingship and priesthood.

How the Church moved from unbelief to belief is an immense mystery.

Holiness is not about an ideal to be striven for; it’s about a conformity to God’s will in the individual vocation of each person. In this homily from the Sunday of All Saints, Fr. Pat considers what it means to be holy.

In this homily based on 2 Corinthians 4:6-15, Fr. Pat reflects upon the glory of Christ in creation, in the Bible, and in our daily cross.

The Cross of Christ addresses the human condition. On the Sunday before the Elevation of the Holy Cross Fr. Pat examines three traits of the human condition.