15
Mar 2020
We thank our heavenly father for all the blessings he gives us every day. We believe in the almighty. And He said, “I will never forsake you or forget you for all the days of your life until I come again.” We need to hear these verses, especially in these days. For when God is with us, nobody can be against us. Today’s the third Sunday of the great Lent, and we commemorate the healing of the paralytic man. It reminds us there is nothing that can help us except our savior......
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23
Feb 2020
This Sunday is the Sunday that we call for all the faithful departed. Next Sunday is going to be the first Sunday of the Holy Lent. And after that, we begin a beautiful and Holy journey to the crucifixion and resurrection. The departed were once among us, and we now believe they are up in a very good place. We know, most importantly they are with Jesus Christ and He is the life. Jesus says I am the life and the way and the resurrection. When we move from this earth, He......
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16
Feb 2020
This Sunday is to pray for thanks to all the priests or all the departed priests. We pray for all the priests who served the churches — those who departed and are living in heaven, and also the living ones. We also have to put in our minds something very important related to this day. Matthew 10:42, it says “And whoever shall give to drink to one of these little ones a cup of cold water only in the name of a disciple, truly I say to you, he shall in no......
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09
Feb 2020
When somebody walks without God, people tell me sarcastically. “Abouna, nothing happens to him. And to the good one, whatever problems of the world happen to them.” We have to put in our mind something very important — those who walk in fear of God and follow Jesus, they will be the target of the evil one. No one throws stones at a tree without fruit. They only throw stones at the trees with the fruit, in order to get the fruit. So even though you are walking in fear of God......
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19
Jan 2020
Unlike the winter snow, that is cold, we warm our heart with the blessing, full of love. The 15th of January according to our Syriac Orthodox Church calendar, is called the feast of the Virgin Mary of the Sowing. In our church, we have many feasts for the Virgin Mary, which is also the name of our church, so we feel closer to her during these feasts. Usually we have only one feast for each saint, and for their departure from life. But only Virgin Mary and John the Baptist have more......
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12
Jan 2020
After He was baptized, Christ chose his Holy disciples and spoke of repentance and coming back to the kingdom. Coming back where we came from to enjoy His kingdom, peace, joy and happiness. He began with a very important statement as He began to preach. The message for all of us to understand is the #1 priority in our all life. “Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand” or in another translation “…for the kingdom of Heaven is near.” And we don’t mean years, we mean seconds. The salvation won’t......
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05
Jan 2020
I would like to ask all of you to take a walk with me right now. Let us walk down to the Jordan River, where John the Baptist was baptizing others. He was a humble man, clothed in camel hair and a leather belt. He is the greatest of all the apostles, and he is the voice crying in the wilderness to make straight the path of the Lord. John the Baptist was preaching for the need of repentance and the washing of sins of all those who come to him. And......
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25
Dec 2019
Christmas is the day when the Savior is born; and He was not only the Savior, but the prince of peace, the one who made reconciliation between heaven and earth. When we celebrate, and say “Merry Christmas,” we should share the real joy that the heaven descended to earth, although the earth did not receive it well. There was no room for Joseph and Mary, but the shepherds were honored to assist. The angels came to earth and told the shepherds “Glory to God in the highest heaven and on earth peace......
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15
Dec 2019
During the past few weeks we were reading from the gospel according to St. Luke. Now we are in the preparatory season to receive the precious gift, from God, His son Jesus Christ who was to be born in our heart. We read about the annunciation to Zechariah, then Mary, and then the visitation of Mary to Elizabeth. And last Sunday, Abouna Andrew spoke of the birth of John the Baptist and used him as an example for how we can be like John the Baptist. And today, we are going to......
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08
Dec 2019
We are almost 3 Sundays apart from Christmas, the birth of Jesus, and today we celebrate the nativity of John the Baptist. We still remember a couple weeks ago when the Angel Gabriel came to John the Baptist’s father, and gave him the annunciation. He also told him something very important: this baby you will have, he will be great in the sight of the Lord. And somewhere else, Jesus himself said “among those born of women, there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist.” In both, we have a......
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