Wisdom of the Beloved Disciple

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The wisdom of the Beloved Disciple inspired the Fourth Gospel and the Book of Revelation in different ways, enabling three epistles to speak of her love of her Beloved who loved her, which is not mere sentiment but the profoundest wisdom. Love of her wisdom regenerates Holy Orthodoxy way beyond the boundaries of the old Byzantine Empire, inspiring many and speaking through… Read more »

Dynamic Completeness

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In the beginning, the Logos names the Holy Name upstream from ordinary language, showing us how to turn the light of awareness round to awaken the heart to the glory of God.  The Name unveils the Father through the Son in the Holy Spirit, crowning saints with uncreated light.  Crown and throne are ancient symbols of uncreated glory pointing to… Read more »

Two Lungs or three?

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There used to be talk in Papal circles of the two lungs of the Latin West and the Byzantine East, but this was to forget the Oriental Churches of Antioch and Edessa, of Nisibis and Tibet, of India and China.  Christians were first called Christians in Antioch and the Oriental Churches never ceased to bear witness to Christ as desert seers… Read more »

Friend of God

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Wisdom calls God ‘Abba, Father,’ because wisdom is friend, ahab, of God, who transforms enemies of God into ‘friends of God and prophets’ (Wisdom 7:27).  To be a friend of God is to commune with wisdom, friend of God, in divine friendship, like Abraham, friend and co-companion of God.  A friend of God loves wisdom, whose friendship with God is far… Read more »

Vision of God

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The purified heart beholds the vision of God that illumines saints in the age to come, restoring glory to God that was lost when the fall deprived seers of wisdom.  The ineffability of wisdom discerns the openness of glory, awakening wisdom to the spontaneous presence of glory in the Oneness of the Name.  The Spirit of truth abides with Christ… Read more »

Purification of the Heart

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Saint Sophrony the Hesychast imparted purification of the heart through illumination in uncreated light rather than through rational explanation, overcoming separation by curing confusion, communicating communion by overcoming division.  His vision of uncreated light on the Holy Mountain of Athos was communicated in the uncreated light of the Holy Spirit, through the uncreated light of Christ, unveiling the uncreated wisdom and… Read more »

Ineffable Words

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The Apostle Paul does not confuse the created words he writes in his Epistles with the ineffable words he heard in the paradise of the third heaven (2 Cor 12: 2-4).  The ineffable words of uncreated revelation are uncreated words of uncreated light, not created words  of ordinary human language, communicating mysteries of glory rather than human concepts or matters of fact…. Read more »

Eye of Faith

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The eye of faith trusts the Name to save beyond what visual sight can see but awakens its own kind of seeing, wisdom, that sees the glory of God in Christ.  The eye of faith trusts wisdom that turns awareness round and beholds the glory of grace.  So the eye of faith transcends ordinary sight but sees as wisdom sees, which is God’s… Read more »

Name above all names

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The Holy Spirit awakens the heart in Christ to the Name above all names, revealed at centre in the midst, in whom the Father is unveiled in uncreated wisdom, embracing uncreated glory.  The practice of wisdom turns light around into union with glory in the Name, which is no ordinary name, because it names God, ‘I AM,’ God’s ever-present awareness, discovered at… Read more »