Today is the first Sunday after Epiphany, which means for us in the liturgical West that we commemorate the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River. In the East, this is the story associated with the feast of Epiphany itself. It would seem that in the early Church, it all started as a general ‘festival … Continue reading God’s Righteousness Revealed: A Reflection on the Baptism of Christ
I remember many years ago listening to a dialogue between two theologians, one Protestant and one Orthodox, about our language surrounding light and darkness. The Protestant — I sadly don't remember who the participants were — made the statement that he didn't believe we would be able to successfully address racism in our culture until … Continue reading The Darkness of God
In the most recent post in the series exploring esoteric spiritualities, I touched briefly on Kabbalah and the Tree of Life. Today I want to use the Tree of Life as a jumping off point to talk about the language of ascent and descent, its philosophical history, and its impact on Christian spirituality throughout the … Continue reading Ascent or Transformation?
One of the things I love about having a regular practice of reading the Scriptures is how they can always surprise me. This morning’s Gospel reading was the calling of Philip and Nathaniel. And lo and behold, it contained for me this morning a perfect message for this the twelfth and final day of Christmas. … Continue reading Come and See (A reflection on John 1.43-51)
Matthew Root 