Fr. Stephen suggests that the truly great things are those that are most hidden from our sight - and that the last battle may be fought in the silence of a human heart.

If you have ever felt like the right words in an argument simply won't come, perhaps you should read these thoughts.

What do the Scriptures ask of us when they speak of "believing?" Fr. Stephen looks at the nature of true believing and its importance for our lives.

The simplest and sometimes most difficult task of the Christian life is to remember God: always, everywhere and at all times. Fr. Stephen looks at this simple practice that lies at the heart of the Orthodox faith.

Fr. Stephen looks at the image of Christ with the unrighteous gathered around Him and recalls a famous passage in Dostoevsky.

Fr. Stephen looks at the importance of understanding our relationship with God as involving all of who and what we are and not reducing our relationship to a set of ideas.

Reflecting on a sermon of St. Gregory Palamas, Fr. Stephen looks at the significance of the Cross as reflected in the writings of the fathers.

Fr. Stephen uses the image of a treasure in a box to describe the problems of a purely "historical" approach to the Christian faith.

Many efforts are made to convince modern Christians that they live "in between" Christ's first coming and His second - and that this "in between" period is somehow different and requires new understandings of the gospel. Fr. Stephen refutes this false understanding and describes where it is we now live.

Fr. Stephen looks at the very heart of fasting—not the foods, not the 'how to's'—but why we fast.

One of the temptations of our secular age is the public drive to make religious faith a "private" matter. Fr. Stephen looks at this tension within our culture and the importance of the Christian public response.

How do we lose God in the midst of our plans? How can we keep Him?

Fr. Stephen examines the use of legal imagery and the problems it causes when we try to apply it to our relationship with God. Instead, he looks at the language of "being" used in the Fathers.

Fr. Stephen looks at one of the most treasured notions of the modern world.

With this podcast, Fr. Stephen begins a series in which he looks at the reality of shame and its place in our emotional and spiritual lives. He introduces us to the teaching of the Elder Sophrony that we must learn to "bear a little shame."

Just how connected are we? Fr. Stephen Freeman looks at the classical understanding of human connectedness and what it means for our salvation.

Fr. Stephen Freeman speaks from his own experience about depression, anxiety, and a 40-year battle with panic attacks. He sets these within the wisdom of the tradition and offers a way of understanding as well as some helpful ways of moving forward.

Why do the Scriptures speak so frequently about the soul? Is it the same as my personality? Fr. Stephen Freeman speaks about the meaning of soul and its importance in a psychologized society.

Fr. Stephen Freeman reflects on Rod Dreher's book, The Benedict Option. He suggests that the virtues that shape our lives are largely formed in their context. How do we shape the parish for acquiring Christian virtues?

From ancient Rome to the present, public shaming has been a means of controlled violence. What is the Christian place in all of this?

Fr. Stephen Freeman looks at the "burden" created by the emotional and spiritual debts of things that others have done to us and how they can be forgiven.

Father Stephen Freeman tells us that the spiritual struggle in our life is not one of moral progress, forcing ourselves to behave better and better. Rather, it is the struggle to enter the depths of our lives and confront the truth - in the presence of Christ.

Fr. Stephen Freeman looks at the end of time and how it is thought about in Orthodox theology. It is profoundly important in our every day life.

Fr. Stephen Freeman describes some of the problems that arise when our morality is a "mere morality," marked only by our outward behavior rather than inward healing and transformation.

In the liturgy we pray that we have a "Christian ending to our life: painless, unashamed, and peaceful; and a good defense before the dread judgment seat of Christ." Father Stephen Freeman looks carefully at the true nature of that judgment seat. It might surprise you.

Fr. Stephen speaks this week about the "habit of prayer" and the understanding of prayer as communion with God.

Fr. Stephen describes the one-storey universe as a faith worth believing and addresses the difficulty that people in the modern world have in transitioning from the secularized religions that dot our landscape to a truly integrated religion such as the Orthodox faith.

Fr. Stephen looks at the aspect of seeing the world in wonder—an experience shared by both Christian and non-Christian—and suggests, following St. Gregory of Nyssa, that it is the place where our faith should begin.

The Triumph of Orthodoxy is also a triumph of the wholeness of God.

Fr. Stephen talks about one aspect of the Orthodox understanding of salvation by grace, and notes that a very large part of it consists in "just showing up," learning to be present to God and to accept faithfully the means of grace given to us.

In this talk Fr. Stephen continues with the imagery of the One-Storey Universe, but uses it to challenge our sense of finitude and scarcity and instead boldly proclaims that the risen Christ has raised us to a kingdom where we are not bound by limits, but by the endless abundance of His love.

Fr. Stephen looks at Orthodoxy and our lives as a matter of the "whole" truth, rather than a "one-sidedness." He urges us to press forward into the whole truth of Christ.

Fr. Stephen speaks of the difficulties and trials of those coming to faith in God and the challenges facing our children.

Fr. Stephen Freeman reflects on the nature of the Kingdom of God and its distinct reality when compared to the wars and struggles of the secularized world.

Fr. Stephen Freeman looks at the “allegorical” or “symbolic” reading of Scripture - and its importance for our daily life.

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