There is within us the very image of God: 'life and the kingdom...the treasures of grace.' If shame is part of our answer to the question, 'How do I feel about who I am?' this path reminds us that the truth of who I am is not found on the surface. Who I am is not to be mistaken for the 'garments of...

The Eucharist is a liturgy. And he who says liturgy today is likely to get involved in a controversy. For to some--the 'liturgically minded'--of all the activities of the Church, liturgy is the most important, if not the only one. To others, liturgy is aesthetic, and a spiritual deviation from the...

It was said of Abba John the Dwarf that he withdrew and lived in the desert at Scetis with an old man of Thebes. His abba, taking a piece of dry wood, planted it and said to him, 'Water it every day with a bottle of water, until it bears fruit.' Now the water was so far away that he had to leave in...

It was said of Abba John the Dwarf, that one day he said to his elder brother, 'I should like to be free of all care, like the angels, who do not work, but ceaselessly offer worship to God.' So he took off his cloak and went away into the desert. After a week he came back to his brother. When he...

When the same Abba Anthony thought about the depth of the judgements of God, he asked, 'Lord, how is it that some die when they are young, while others drag on to extreme old age? Why are there those who are poor and those who are rich? Why do wicked men prosper and why are the just in need?' He...