St. Mary Orthodox Christian Church of Cambridge and Greater Boston

September 15, 2024 - by Dn. James Wilcox

If the goal of the Christian life is union with God, we must first understand that God is truly found within. God is always ever-present. We simply need to discover this illuminating presence that is already there. Know that God suffers from no passions, and has no attachments. And therefore to find God in our inmost depths, we must learn to, likewise, to rid ourselves of our own attachments.

September 01, 2024 - by Dn. Jeff Smith

There is no problem in today’s gospel. It is simply Christ with his people and his beautiful reception. It is a new day as every day is a new day. Today is our new day to begin again, and again.

August 18, 2024 - by Dn. James Wilcox

The opening verse of today’s Gospel lesson tells us that Christ had compassion on the crowd. And some versions our Scriptures have this translated as 'He was moved inwardly with compassion for them.' And I love this translation because it asks us to consider… What does it mean to genuinely feel 'inward compassion' for our fellow human beings?

July 28, 2024 - by Dimitri Newman

So then if we have at least the same belief as demons to recognize Christ, in our case to recognize Christ in other people, even people we are conditioned to be afraid of and hate, should we not do more than merely recognize? Is it enough to simply not fear or hate my neighbor because I recognize Christ in him? Then are we much better than demons?

July 21, 2024 - by Fr. Antony Hughes

At some point, as God wills and we are willing, the Holy Spirit will open our eyes and we will be able to see things as they really are in bright and living color. And we will begin to see as God sees and hear as God hears.

July 14, 2024 - by Dn. James Wilcox

Jesus tells us that we ARE God’s light, and that the light of God which exists within us forms the true 'city on a hill.' A city on a hill cannot be contained because the very light of the divine burns so brightly within. People of this nature are marked as blessed peacemakers, merciful, pure in heart, and in fact, children of the living God.

June 16, 2024 - by Fr. Antony Hughes

What is more, we learn here and in other places that the Lord's incomparable intimacy with his Father mirrors the intimacy the Holy Trinity desires to share with us - a real union, a radical communion far beyond anything we could ever hope for or imagine. The theophany of God as divine relationship includes us.

June 09, 2024 - by Dimitri Newman

If we, as St. Paul exhorts us, deal with others with mutual love, and labor fairly, we avoid being like the masters in today’s epistle. And if we should ever be confronted with our misuse of our fellow human, let us not react as they did, in anger, bringing accusations against those who call us out, but instead use it as a chance for repentance and bring our work life back in line towards the glory of God and not the lining of our own pockets. 

June 02, 2024 - by Dn. James Wilcox

And so, here is where the example of Jesus Christ in today’s Gospel passage can help us readjust our attitudes and open our hearts beyond the focus and satisfaction of our egos. Jesus drew no cultural boundaries. He boxed no one out. He had no ego to satisfy, and therefore had no use for religious rules which exclude others from the truth of who they are as children of God.

May 26, 2024 - by Fr. Antony Hughes

The Paralytic's healing did not come from the troubled water. It came from the One who stilled the troubled waters of the Galilee and walked on them as on dry land. It came from the One who turned ordinary water into sacred wine and then into his precious blood. The troubled waters of this world are changed by Christ into still and peaceful waters. These are the waters of baptism, rebirth, renewal and refreshment.

May 12, 2024 - by Dn. Jeff Smith

Have you ever noticed how before the explosion of Pentecost, everything is still quiet and hidden? Let me explain. We exist in a liminal time, an 'in-between' time. In between the poles of creation and the kingdom of heaven, and right now between the time of Pascha and Pentecost. 

April 29, 2024 - by Dn. James Wilcox

From the beginning of His public ministry, Jesus consistently told those to whom he ministered that God’s Kingdom is NOT of this world. Perhaps most striking is the moment Jesus was lead into the desert to be tempted by Satan following a 40-day period of fasting. After being lead to the top of a mountain, the adversary shows Him all the kingdoms of the world shining in their glory. And very slyly, Satan leans in and whispers to Jesus, I will give you all this….'if only you bow down and worship me.'

April 21, 2024 - by Dn. Jeff Smith

Last week, Father Anthony called us to exchange our broken brains for hearts that are transformed. This is exactly what St. Mary did. She recognized her own sickness and her need to be healed. She followed the path of humility, obedience, and grace. She went from being a monster, and an apparition, to Zosima’s inspiration.

April 18, 2024 - by Fr. Antony Hughes

Interestingly, the last rung of the Divine Ladder is Love. That is why Jesus talked about Love so often and why I preach about it nearly every Sunday. God is Love, the inescapable power which accompanies us through all the steps of life and Love is also the endpoint of the eternal journey. All resistance to Love is sinful because it obscures the Truth. If Lent is about anything, it is about connecting more deeply with the Lord, with our neighbors and ourselves, not for ourselves alone, but for the life of the world.

April 07, 2024 - by Dimitri Newman

The Church has set the third Sunday of Lent as the Veneration of the Cross. It stands in the very middle of lent as a reminder of why we are struggling through this period. It stands in the middle as a tree, offering its shade, a staff and support to help us through, to encourage us along the way. It is a promise that our small suffering that we are willingly taking on will be of spiritual benefit for us. 

March 31, 2024 - by Claire Koen, PhD Candidate

Today, on the Sunday of Gregory Palamas, we remember this great saint and his defense of hesychastic prayer and theology, and we reflect on how his teachings illuminate for us the process of drawing ever closer to both God and neighbor.

March 17, 2024 - by Sarah Byrne-Martelli

I suggest we try to forgive and remember. Not to remember the hurt, but to remember what’s involved in the process of healing. To remember how far we’ve come. To remember that we can do the hard work. To remember the power of forgiveness keeps us centered in our faith.

March 10, 2024 - by Sarah Riccardi-Swartz

The criteria for the Last Judgement should not evoke fear for us but rather become the guidebook by which we live our lives—not because we fear judgement but because we love.

March 03, 2024 - by Teva Regule

This parable is not just a story of three strangers. It is a story of us.  As the younger brother, the Church gives us the sacrament of confession to free us from our sins and get back on the path towards God. As the older brother, the Church gives us the sacrament of Unction to heal what ails us. The Church gives us the opportunity to forgive others every Sunday with the Exchange of Peace and, as we approach Great Lent, with the rite of forgiveness at Forgiveness Vespers. 

February 25, 2024 - by Fr. Antony Hughes

The Publican is representative of those who actually have a clue, at least enough to know that they are undeserving of receiving anything from God. You see, no one is deserving and the good news is that you don't have to be. Worthiness is not the issue. Openness is the issue. The Publican was unworthy, and yet his humility saved him, because he was open to God in his humility. He knew more about himself than the Pharisee did, that's for sure. Humility is openness to God.

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