:: St. Stephen's Musings ::

:: Tuesday, January 06, 2004 ::

A Brilliantly Lit Heaven

In my reading I came across this quote which I think is timely: "In finding the Church of the apostles, you aren't finding some disembodied place where people sit around and have high minded theological discussions all day. It's a place where sinners are called to repentance and we're all struggling, both individually and corporately to live up to our calling as Christians and as the Church."

So, for those who may be a bit confused, Orthodoxy's foundation is not blogs, books, liturgies and texts. It is a way of life guided by the Holy Spirit and informed by the witness and teaching of those who, through the grace of God, have become holy and pure in heart. It was not created from discussions, built around texts, or gleaned from liturgies. Rather, it is the community from which all these things flow and find their meaning, origin and telos.

As we say in the Thanksgiving prayers after communion, "The Church has become a brilliantly lit heaven, leading the faithful in the way of life. Standing within, we cry aloud, "Make firm the foundations of this house, O Lord!"

As today is the Feast of Theophany it is appropriate that we would once again celebrate the real foundation of our Faith: the way of life that allows us to most fully enter into a deep relationship with God, with our fellow man, and with all of creation through the love of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

:: Karl :: 9:27:00 AM [Link] ::