There is value in being friends with the saints, and Fr. John Whiteford uses the life of St. Matrona as an example.

Fr. John Whiteford preaches about the restoration of icons.

Fr. John Whiteford preaches on the Feast of Holy Pentecost about the seal of the Holy Spirit.

Fr. John Whiteford explains how the saints in heaven help us in his homily from the Sunday of All Saints 2023.

In the context of Mark 8:34 and Matthew 7:13-14, Fr. John Whiteford discusses how churches should be places of moral challenge, rather than marketing ploys.

Fr. John Whiteford continues his series of homilies on the Psalms of Ascent, this time focusing on Psalm 125.

Fr. John Whiteford's sermon from November 3, 2024.

From the outside, the practice of Orthodoxy seems rigid, complicated and intimidating. In this episode, Angela explores how Orthodoxy cannot be fully understood until it is fully experienced. Like a spiritual Tardis, it’s bigger on the inside.

We hear it all the time - God loves you - but our modern world has so lost the depth and beauty of God's love, we are in danger of emptying this profound truth of its powerful meaning. Today we look at a familiar passage of scripture with new eyes, with God's eyes, and what we discover is life changing!

Why does the Orthodox Church celebrate the Elevation of the Holy Cross? A device meant for torture and a grizzly death is held up, venerated, and even kissed! Why? Well, because what humanity meant for evil, God transformed into Victory and Life!

There wasn't a Jew within the sound of Jesus' voice when He said if any man would be my disciple, he must take up his cross... You see, there's only one use for a cross, and that's for an execution. The Christian message invites us not only to follow Christ but to die to everything that isn't like Christ in our lives. That's what it means to "bear your cross!"

So, why, on the Sunday before Christmas, does the Church call us to read this lineage of Jesus? Because there's an irreplaceable power to community memory. And more so for we moderns who have sacrificed our attention span for entertainment!

Jesus promised His disciples that He would transform them from fishermen to "Fishers of men." How does that apply to us today as Orthodox Christians? In fact, why are you Orthodox?

The central truth of the Orthodox Christian faith is Gratitude. If we can learn to live a grateful life, we will truly be shaped into the character of Christ and will reflect the life of Christ i.n our lives as well. But this life of gratitude is difficult in a world where we so easily dismiss our faith or reduce our faith to smaller ideas. How do we escape this all too easy temptation? By observing what is our initial reaction to being blessed with God's grace! What is our initial reaction to God's kindness to us? What is our reaction to the benefits of gifts? This internal clue reveals our true character!

Your memory is filled with all kinds of thoughts, some good and some bad. How do you choose to remember your life? Do you only focus on the bad things, stew about revenge, or do you ignore all the bad things and live in the delusion that "everything is fine." Well, the Faith invites us to deal with life in a realistic manner, always informed by the Good News of Jesus Christ.

St. John the Baptist declared he was unworthy to untie the sandals of the Lord. He also promised that, while he baptized with water, the Lord Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit! And this is both Good News AND terrifying News! Especially because Fire does more than illuminate!

The monks on Mt. Athos use to greet one another, not with "How are you?" or "How are you doing?" but with "How is your prayer?" St. Paul tells the faithful at the Ephesian Church that the gifts God has given to His Church were meant to bring each of us to the unity of the faith, to maturity, to the full stature of Jesus Christ. So, is that what is happening in your life? If not, why not?

On Palm Sunday a crowd shouted out their praise for Christ. This popularity at the beginning of Holy Week won't last. So, why are we humans so fickle?

The Sunday of the Samaritan Woman sees the Lord gently confront a dear lady who didn't realize Who she was speaking to, and this blindness to just Who Jesus is means she is missing the real point of her life!

Jesus confronts the people and the disciples when they can't heal a little boy!

Jesus heals a woman on the Sabbath Day and this reveals the hypocritical hearts of those around Him!

On the Feast of the Transfiguration, Jesus reveals the very central purpose for our existence and our true goal for our lives!

The current delusion of our day is that life should be free of suffering or struggle. But that lie is actually leaving people in a perpentual adolescence that is destroying lives. The Faith offers us another path where we expect struggle and have Joy THROUGH it!

Jesus tells the story of the Vineyard Owner and his problems with the workers he's hired to take care of his vineyard. Why do you think these wicked servants thought they could get away with this behavior?

In a world where our priorities are so disjointed that we find ourselves investing the best of our lives in temporary things while eternal things go without, we have to confront with honesty and repentance the challenge of authentic Christian Stewardship.

Updated: August 10th 2016 As we enter the first week of a brand new year, your motivations are probably higher than ever to make 2016 the year to finally achieve all you’ve been dreaming of. Whether you’re starting a brand new foray into making money online or you’re hoping to take your current income to […]

The post How to Make Money Online in 2016: An Unexpected Approach appeared first on ViperChill.

Today’s blog post will reveal my biggest goal for 2016, nine niche ideas with huge potential and the most effective productivity technique I’ve used over the last few years. Let’s begin by talking about the productivity technique which is often referred to as the Pomodoro Method. If you’ve followed any kind of productivity guide online […]

The post How a Simple Productivity Tool Helped Create the World’s Best Marketing Blog appeared first on ViperChill.

On the 15th of January 2008 the domain name Groupon.com went live for the first time. 2008 was also the year that IndieGogo became one of the first ‘crowdfunding’ websites. A year later, the biggest rivals of each would launch in the form of Living Social and Kickstarter. At the start of 2012 Uber – […]

The post How to Steal the Next Billion Dollar Website Idea: A Case Study appeared first on ViperChill.

In the Academy Award-nominated film Food Inc, filmmaker Robert Kenner reveals how the varied choice of items we see on the shelves of supermarkets is actually a false presumption. Instead, that seemingly endless variety is actually controlled by just a handful of companies. Today I’m going to reveal how the huge diversity we perceive in […]

The post How 16 Companies are Dominating the World’s Google Search Results appeared first on ViperChill.

Today I’m going to reveal some of the most interesting online niches where there is a lot of money to be made. These are niches which have a level of competition that allows you to compete, and fast. In other words, I wouldn’t expect to be waiting years (or even months, in many cases) to […]

The post 51 Profitable SEO Niches to Dominate with Low Competition appeared first on ViperChill.

Michael describes an Orthodox understanding of why we should care for the environment, and what the story of Cain and Abel teaches us about this important issue.

Racism is a serious wrong that no one should argue. However, from an Orthodox Christian point of view, it is a far deeper wrong than is ever portrayed in the public debate. Join Michael as he explains why racism goes against the core of Christianity, and through story and anecdote describes why it seems is so hard for us to celebrate and embrace differences.

One of the big challenges we face in today’s post-Christian era is the near complete erosion of seeing and understanding reality sacramentally. So how do we teach this reality to our young people who live in a society that rejects it? Focusing on the sacramental reality of sin, sickness and spiritual growth, Michael uses simple examples from everyday life and popular culture to offers strategies, thoughts and lessons that can help guide us to meaningful conversations with our youth.

Exploring the characters of Frodo, Gollum, Harry, and Voldemort from these two great works beloved by millions, and what they remind us about concerning love, sacrifice, choice, and more.

Join Michael as he explores the webs and patterns of our life, and uses poem, story, myth, metaphor, and examples from his own life to show how we can recognize God and continuity within our myriad choices, and know His peace.

Join Michael as he discusses false power versus real power, our attraction to the former at our own expense, and how the powerlessness Christ demonstrates for us is the true power we gain when we let go of our need for control and surrender to God.

Join Michael as he expounds upon these words we sing and chant between Pascha and Ascension Thursday and what they should mean to us even as we continue to face the reality of death.

Join Michael as he discusses how we should understand God’s authority versus secular notions of authority, and why rejecting and tearing down authority does not result in liberation and freedom but rather the opposite.

Join Michael as he examines the role expression of opinion plays in society today, how to guard ourselves against our own and other’s opinions that fuel our pride and cause anger and division, and what to do to maintain humility, thoughtfulness, and love of others.

Join Michael as he recounts a story of a good friend’s nervous breakdown and his experience of theophany, theosis, repentance, and God’s beauty amidst his trauma and suffering.

Join Michael as he discusses how we should see and experience ourselves and others as living icons of Christ, and how we achieve this through the difficult task unknowing ourselves.

Join Michael for a discussion of the primacy of focusing on loving more not sinning less and why this will be the basis of how God judges our lives.

Join Michael is a discussion on our need to navigate the difficult liminal spaces in our lives with patience and discernment, as illustrated beautifully in the story of St. Mary of Egypt, and how it is possible to overcome sin and depravity to fulfill our calling to become saints and living icons of Christ.

Fr. Seraphim reflects on his experiences confessing, the role of a spiritual father, and he gives three recommendations to help get the most out of each confession.