The season of Advent is not only a time when we prepare for the Feast of Christ's Birth; it is also the season in which we reflect more directly on the Second Coming of Christ. In this homily from 2009, Fr. Pat preaches from Colossians 3:4-11 about the Hope that is within us.

The heart of Feast of the Annunciation is evangelism in its most perfect reception, by a Woman who hears and believes the proclamation of the Gospel.

In this homily from 2006, Fr. Pat reflects upon the Body of Christ, the Sacraments, and our own transfiguration in Christ.

n 1 Corinthian 4:9-16, the Apostle Paul gives a portrayal of a style of life very much in contrast with the style of life preferred by the Corinthians. In this homily from 2009, Fr. Pat looks at the contrasts enumerated by St. Paul.

A homily on 1 Corinthians 15:1-11, given on August 26, 2012.

Preaching from Luke 6:31-26, Fr. Pat discusses the Golden Rule.

A vesperal homily based upon Joshua 1:1-9

In this homily from Thanksgiving of 2010, Fr. Pat considers with us God's Covenant with Noah given in Genesis 9.

The theory of the perenial philosophy says that there’s a certain core experience of truth that all human beings have. Fr. Pat discusses this theory in light of Luke 14:16-24, the Parable of the Great Banquet.

Fr. Pat gave this brief meditation at approximately midnight on January 1, 2014.

There’s a sense in which The Vocation of Mary was the most special and the most common. In this homily given on the Feast of the Dormition in 2010, Fr. Pat considers these two vocations of our Lord's Mother.

On the occasion of the third night of Hanukkah, Fr. Pat talks about the divisions God built into creation, about the consecration and desecration of sacred space, and about dedication of God's temple and of ourselves.

When blessings are temporary, sadness follows thankfulness. But does God want our blessings to be so short-lived?

Most people don't keep their new year's resolutions. Is it because we're too busy trying to do more rather than be more?

Fasting can fatten up our wallets. What should we do with that extra money? And how else can we give?

We're answering another viewer question. Why is the Sacrament of Confession so important?

What can the Transfiguration teach us about being the bee?

Faith needs to be something we put into action. A wonderful example of this is the life and person of Dr Martin Luther King, Jr. The Christian Faith teaches the equality of all people—and Dr King acted on that belief.

Jesus Christ is our savior, but what does He save us from? To answer that, we need to take a closer look at Creation and the Fall. God made us neither mortal nor immortal, but with freedom: we could choose to either move closer to God, the source of life, or away from Him, and find death. When Adam and Eve sinned they separated themselves from God and each other, creating the wounded, sick humanity that they passed down to us.

We can summarize salvation in three words: Christ is Risen! Salvation, our participation in God's true and eternal life, only happens in the divine-human person of Christ. He took on all that is ours so we could have all that is His.

Parishes across the country will host their annual festivals and offer great food, music, and dancing to their neighbors. We also have something even more amazing to offer: Christ and the Good News of salvation.

Love isn't simply something to talk about, it's something to live. Help us support IOCC in this year's Project for Awesome, and live the Gospel. Together, we can make the world a more awesome place.

Vestments are more than decorations: they reveal something important about our relationship with God and the role of our clergy.

Can you be spiritual without organized religion? What does it even mean to be spiritual? Maybe we need to rethink what we mean by spirituality and religion... Maybe we need to live like Christians: full of the Holy Spirit.

“Thoughts are like airplanes flying in the air. If you ignore them, there is no problem. If you pay attention to them, you create an airport inside your head and permit them to land!” (Saint Paisios the Athonite) Does having bad thoughts make you a bad person? What should Christians do with the temptations we experience? The Church refers to these thoughts as logismoi: the thoughts that tempt us and can lead us into sin. And Christians have been dealing with these temptations from the beginning. In fact, Jesus Himself had these same thoughts. Yet He overcame them. And so can you. Steve shares three simple keys to handling temptations and staying focused on Jesus Christ. As always, we've prepared a FREE downloadable workbook to help you act on what you'll learn. mailchi.mp/goarch/bethebee156

“Christ is the one who came in order to do what Adam did not do: to be the priest of creation...not just for the human being, although it was achieved through the human being. Christ came so that the whole world may live, and the human being may become that which he was meant to be when he was created by God, namely the priest of creation.” -Metropolitan John (Zizioulas) of Pergamon Some Christians think the world is bad: that we need to escape our bodies and physical things. But the spiritual life isn't just about the spirit. Matter matters. Our job isn't to abandon the physical world, but to save it. And this is exactly what we see in the great feast of Theophany. As always, we've prepared a FREE downloadable workbook to help you act on what you'll learn. mailchi.mp/goarch/bethebee162

“Nothing makes us so like God, as our readiness to forgive the wicked and wrongdoer.” (Saint John Chrysostom) The Greek word for forgiveness means "sharing the same space." At the doorstep to Great Lent, we're given the opportunity to both seek and offer forgiveness. Forgiveness Sunday (especially Forgiveness Vespers) is our chance to overcome resentments and share the same space with both God and neighbor. So that, together, we can journey to salvation and an experience of God's Kingdom. Because right and wrong is about more than what’s right or wrong for you. As always, we've prepared a FREE downloadable workbook to help you act on what you'll learn. https://mailchi.mp/goarch/bethebee168 .

“If you cross the Jordan, you will find glorious rest.” (Life of Saint Mary of Egypt) Jesus tells us that He came to shed His blood and "give His life as a ransom for many.” But what exactly does that mean? What does the Orthodox Church teach about atonement? We're going to learn about the redemption and atonement that Jesus offers us. And this redemption isn't simply *from* something, but also *for* something. And Saint Mary of Egypt (who we celebrate on the Fifth Sunday of Great Lent) is a perfect example of what that looks like. Christ saves us *from* sin and death so we can be *free* to live as Christians, loving and serving both God and neighbor. As always, we've prepared a FREE downloadable workbook to help you act on what you'll learn. https://mailchi.mp/goarch/bethebee173

On the most recent "Ancient Faith Today," The V. Rev. Fr Thomas Hopko, Dean Emeritus of St Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary, helped us understand how Orthodox Holy Tradition interprets and applies the prophetic texts of Scripture in light of the many modern-day "end times" interpretations, including the rapture (pre-Tribulation), the antichrist (the beast), millennialism, and much, much more.

Host Kevin Allen talks with Faith McDonnell and Ralph H. Sidway about the rising tide of Christian intolerance and genocide—the intentional killing of people for their Christian faith—and why global Christophobia is rarely covered by Western media or addressed by the United Nations. Faith McDonnell is the Director of Religious Liberty Programs at the Institute for Religion and Democracy and the author of the book Girl Soldier: A Story of Hope for Northern Uganda's Children. Her blog is titled "Juicy Ecumenism." Ralph H. Sidway is the author of Facing Islam and the blog of the same name.

Kevin's guests are Scripps-Howard columnist and Orthodox Christian Terry Mattingly and Fr. Hans Jacobse of the American Orthodox Institute. They discuss the complex issues surrounding religious freedom as well as the prospects of losing it.

Dr. Philip Mamalakis and Andrew Williams, the creators and facilitators of “Finding the freedom to live in the image of God,” a new therapeutic program based on Orthodox principles for sexual addictions and sex-related issues.

Father Daniel Rogich (PhD), author of the book Becoming Uncreated: The Journey to Human Authenticity, is Kevin's guest as they discuss a growing trend in the Millennial generation regarding religious belief.

Guests: Father John Whiteford (ROCOR) and David J. Dunn, PhD, author of the Huffington Post article, “Gay marriage: An Eastern Orthodox Perspective.”

Kevin's guest is Fr John Breck, theologian of the OCA specializing in Scripture and ethics, and the topic is "Orthodox Bioethics: Contraception, Stem Cells, and Reproductive Technologies."

Kevin's guest is Dn. Michael Hyatt, former Chairman and CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishers and the host of the AFR podcast "At the Intersection of East and West."

Guest: The V. Rev. Patrick Henry Reardon, pastor of All Saints Antiochian Orthodox Church, Senior Editor of Touchstone magazine, AFR podcaster, and author of the newly released The Jesus We Missed: The Surprising Truth About the Humanity of Christ, speaks about the often misunderstood human nature of Christ just two days before His Advent celebration!

Are Humans the Centerpiece of Creation? This episode deals with "Human Exceptionalism" and its threat by the animal and nature rights movements. Kevin Allens's guests are lawyer and award-winning author (and Orthodox Christian) Wesley J. Smith ("A Rat Is a Pig is a Dog is a Boy"), and Fr Christopher of New Skete monastery.

Kevin Allen speaks with the William F. Orr Professor of New Testament at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary, Dr Edith M. Humphrey, on the relationship between the oral and written traditions of the Bible and how the various Christian faith traditions have made a relatively modern dichotomy between Scripture and Holy Tradition.

Guest: The V. Rev. Jon Braun, ex-Campus Crusade for Christ Regional Director and former leader of the Evangelical Orthodox Church.

Most Christians are not aware that in the latter part of the 16th century, early Lutheran Reformers - close colleagues and followers of Martin Luther - set in motion an eight year contact and correspondence with the (then) Ecumenical Patriarch, Jeremias II of Constantinople. The outcome might have changed the course of Christian history. Kevin Allen speaks with scholar Dr Paraskeve (Eve) Tibbs about this fascinating and largely unknown chapter in post-Reformation history.

Fr. George Aquaro, author of the blog "Orthodoxy and Recovery," and Dr. Albert Rossi, a licensed clinical psychologist in the state of New York, discuss addiction and ways to overcome it.

In this episode, Kevin and his guest clinical psychologist Dr Albert Rossi address depression, an increasingly common mental health issue that men, women and children struggle with, and discuss among other aspects whether it is primarily a medical or spiritual problem.

Many Orthodox Christians are wondering how to live and raise their families in an increasingly secularized and anti-Christian culture in the U.S. and Western Europe where many believe Christianity has lost the "culture wars." In this episode of Ancient Faith Today, host Kevin Allen speaks with author and journalist Rod Dreher, of The American Conservative, about what he calls "The Benedict Option."

In this first episode of 2016, host Kevin Allen speaks with Archimandrite and Abbot Sergius of the Monastery of Saint Tikhon of Zadonsk, the oldest Orthodox monastery in the U.S., about practical ways Christians can cooperate with the grace of God to "...be transformed ..." (Rom. 12:2) into the Likeness of Christ. Abbot Sergius is the author of the book "Acquiring the Mind of Christ: Embracing the Vision of the Orthodox Church" (St Tikhon Seminary Press). Father Sergius is the 16th Abbot of Saint Tikhon’s Monastery and Lecturer of Orthodox Spirituality at Saint Tikhon’s Orthodox Theological Seminary.

We are seeing eastern meditation and mind-body practices like hatha yoga, tai chi, qi gong; and mindfulness-based therapy gaining wide credibility and attracting more and more adherents. Whether we as Orthodox should adopt eastern spiritual mind-body practices is a matter of great debate in the Orthodox Church. In this edition of Ancient Faith Today, Kevin discusses with his guest Christopher Kies what “Mindfulness” meditation is in its secular and Buddhist spiritual contexts; the Orthodox Christian correlative approach of Nipsis or Watchfulness; how they differ in goals and approaches; and whether formal Mindfulness meditation practices are appropriate for Orthodox Christians.

1 Corinthians 15: 1-11 So what is at the heart of the Gospel? Did the Resurrection happen?

So how did you spend the day?

The Apostle Paul tells us about justification by faith of Christ who is always loving and giving himself for us.

The Lord calls us all to work alongside Him in the Gospel. Even the most unlikely people are called. So what about you?