Clement of Rome

It seems that I just cannot get the hang of keeping up with the blog thing… Should I give it a go once more?

This past Saturday, I was priviledged to attend a Hierarchical Divine Liturgy on the occasion of the elevation/ordination of a Deacon to the Priesthood. What an amazing event it was. We were packed into the small chapel like sardines and yet it was heaven on earth (I pray that heaven will be so packed!).

The Priests and Monks seemed to come out of the woodwork. The chanting of the Liturgy by His Eminance Metropolitan Nicholas (ACROD) was angelic. Just an amazing time…as time stood still. The words of Met. Nicholas to the newly ordained Priest still resonante with me….”You’ve been called….NOW GO!”

I have been a Christian (of sorts) for as long as I can remember.  However, it is not until this past year that I have begun to love prayer.  Now, don’t get me wrong, I am still the least in the Kingdom when it comes to an adequate daily prayer rule.  I am beginning to get to a place where I am out of sorts if I miss Morning Prayers due to being rushed out the door.  Evening Prayers are less frequent, but slowly becoming more frequent.  Another thing that seems to be happening is that I look forward to praying…not for myself as much as to pray for others.  In the past, I would always say, “Yes brother, you will be in my prayers!”  But when there were no prayers, that brother would go unprayed for.  Now, all it takes is a simple “Lord have mercy” to have fulfilled my promise to my brother until time is made available for a more specific prayer to God for my brother.

The Orthodox Church has given me such wonderful tools with which to develop an active prayer life.  Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit!

spe·lunk·er
/spɪˈlʌŋkər/ Pronunciation Ke[spi-luhng-ker] –noun

a person who explores caves, esp. as a hobby.

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Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

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I love that word.  It can be applied to so many projects.  In a literal sense, I would be terrified to go spelunking in a physical cave….I am more the Luray Caverns kind of guy.  However, when it comes to my theological spelunking…..I am terrified, yet at the same time really jazzed.

Having discovered (or better, having been shown) the ancient caves of Eastern Orthodoxy, I can say that I have emotions that range from fear to jazzed.

Today is Palm Sunday….what a wonderful Divine Liturgy.  Really jazzed today!  More on fear soon…

An Intenet friend reminded me today in his blog, that an Abbot once told his novice “If they are not edified by my silence, they will not be edified by my words.”

See the Desert Calling blog at http://desertcalling.wordpress.com/

Given this sage advice, I am not sure why I finally decided to enter the world of “blogging.”  Certainly, the reason is not, in any sense of the word, that my words will edify. But, that I feel led to begin to recall some of my time in the caves.  I believe that this is more for my own reflection and contemplation than it might be for anyone else.  However, if an accounting of my theological spelunking and the ramblings that spew forth from said exploration do edify, it is because the Triune Creator God of the universe has seen fit for it to be so.  Glory to God!  Glory forever.

Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.