Eastern Christian Insights
Religion & Spirituality
About
Thoughtful homilies of an Orthodox priest who serves a small parish and teaches Religion full-time at McMurry University in Abilene, TX. Fr. Philip draws on his scholarly work in Christian theology and ethics, but most of all, these are the homilies of a pastor guiding his flock with insightful, practical suggestions on how to share more fully in the life of Jesus Christ.
Episodes
- The Sunday of the Samaritan Woman
In this homily, Fr. Philip reflects on the equal dignity and spiritual standing of men and women in Christ. Through St. Photini, the Samaritan Woman, we see the calling given to all who bear God’s image: to share fully in the life of the S…
- Palm Sunday
In this homily, Fr. Philip explains how events of Holy Week are not for us to try and understand fully, rather they draw us to entrust ourselves to our Lord's selfless love as demonstrated through the mystery of His Passion.
- The Sunday of St. Mary of Egypt
Today Fr. Philip reflects on The Sunday of St. Mary of Egypt. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in written form at https://easternchristianinsights.blogspot.com
- The Sunday of the Adoration of the Holy Cross
Today Fr. Philip reflects on The Sunday of the Adoration of the Holy Cross. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in written form at https://easternchristianinsights.blogspot.com
- The Sunday of St. Gregory Palamas
Today Fr. Philip reflects on The Sunday of St. Gregory Palamas. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in written form at https://easternchristianinsights.blogspot.com
- The Sunday of Orthodoxy
Today Fr. Philip reflects on the Sunday of Orthodoxy. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in written form at https://easternchristianinsights.blogspot.com
- Forgiveness Sunday
Today Fr. Philip reflects on Forgiveness Sunday. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in written form at https://easternchristianinsights.blogspot.com
- The Last Judgement
Today Fr. Philip reflects on the Parable of the Last Judgement. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in written form at https://easternchristianinsights.blogspot.com
- The Prodigal Son
Today Fr. Philip reflects on the Parable of the Prodigal Son. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in written form at https://easternchristianinsights.blogspot.com
- The Publican and the Pharisee
Today Fr. Philip reflects on the Parable of the Publican and the Pharisee. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in written form at https://easternchristianinsights.blogspot.com
- Repent like Zacchaeus
Today Fr. Philip reflects on the account of Christ and Zacchaeus. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in written form at https://easternchristianinsights.blogspot.com
- God Extends His Love to Outsiders
Today Fr. Philip reflects on example of the Samartian lepar and how God’s generous love extends to everyone, even those we might least expect. Fr. Philip wraps up with a reflection on St. Athanasius the Great and St. Cyril of Alexandria. Y…
- The Meaning of Baptism
Today Fr. Philip reflects on the importance of water, the purpose of baptism and our experience after baptism. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in written form at https://easternchristianinsights.blogspot.com
- Becoming Living Epiphanies
Today Fr. Philip reflects on the feast of Theophany and the message of St. John the Forerunner. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in written form at https://easternchristianinsights.blogspot.com
- The Faithful that Led to Christ's Nativity
Today Fr. Philip reflects on the Genealogy that leads to the birth of Christ, idolatry vs. faithfulness and the Holy Prophet Daniel with the Three Holy Youths. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in written form at https://…
- How to Accept the King’s Invitation
Today Fr. Philip reflects on the Parable of the King's Banquet and the commemoration of the Holy Forefathers including a quote from St. Porphyrios. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in written form at https://easternchris…
- We Are Crippled by Our Passions
Today Fr. Philip reflects on the Gospel reading of the healing of the crippled woman and how following the holy example of the Theotokos can heal our bent over, corrupted spirit. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in writt…
- Heed the Calling of Christ
Today Fr. Philip reflects on the life of St. Andrew the First Called and his ability to recognize the Messiah. He also reflects on every believer's calling to "come and see" and what that means for our lives. You can find his blog with thi…
- How to Be Rich
Today Fr. Philip encourages us as we continue on our journey through the Nativity season. Father weaves together the parable of the Rich Fool and the life of the Theotokos, demonstrating how one who follows God should be rich. You can find…
- The Unexpected King & His Friends
Today Fr. Philip encourages us as we begin the Nativity fast. He reflects on the expectations of the Jewish people on who the Messiah would be like and how Christ did not like meet those expectations, especially with whom he spent his time…
- Christ Came to Heal Our Corrupt Image
Today Fr. Philip offers a reflection on the Gerasene Demoniac and how Christ restored demon possessed man's divine image and how Christ came to do that for us. Fr. Philip ends with a reflection on the Life of St Demetrios. You can find his…
- Lazarus and the Rich Man
Today Fr. Philip offers a reflection on the parable of Lazarus and the Rich man with a focus on where each character chose to put their attention on, how that attention creates action and what this means in relation to God. You can find hi…
- The Uniqueness of Luke's Gospel
Today Fr. Philip offers a reflection on the commemoration of St. Luke and the aspects that distinguishes his gospel account from the gospel accounts of Matthew, Mark and John. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in written…
- Uncovering the Icon of Christ Within You
Today Fr. Philip offers a reflection on the commemoration of the Fathers of the seventh council, the importance of icons, having the icon of God on us and how to uncover that image within us. You can find his blog with this reflection and…
- Don't allow cultural attitudes to degrade your faithfulness
Today Fr. Philip offers a reflection on Christ's teachings on loving our enemies, and how this conflicts with common modern day cultural attitudes. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in written form at https://easternchris…
- Following Christ Offers Us Nothing According to the Values of the World
Today Fr. Philip offers a reflection on the leave-taking of the Elevation of the Cross, and how in our own lives we must raise our crosses. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in written form at https://easternchristianinsi…
- "But I say to you, Do not Resist an Evildoer"
Today Fr. Philip offers a reflection on part of the Sermon on the Mount, and how Christians should react to threats of evil. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in written form at https://easternchristianinsights.blogspot.c…
- Don't Despair... Embrace the Struggle
Today Fr. Philip offers a reflection on the Nativity of the Theotokos, and the lessons from it that we can use to help embrace our struggles. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in written form at https://easternchristianin…
- We must forgive to be forgiven
Today Fr. Philip offers a reflection on the parable of the unforgiving servant, and its implications for our own lives. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in written form at https://easternchristianinsights.blogspot.com/.
- To be faithful, you must allow yourself to be broken
Today Fr. Philip offers a reflection on Christ and the child with epilepsy. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in written form at https://easternchristianinsights.blogspot.com/.
- Feeling in Over Your Head Spiritually?
Today Fr. Philip offers a reflection on St. Peter's walking on water and the Feast of the Dormition. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in written form at https://easternchristianinsights.blogspot.com/.
- Being in Communion with God
Today Fr. Philip offers a reflection on the dormition fast and the Feast of the Transfiguration, which occurs halfway through the fast. You can find his blog with this reflection and more in written form at https://easternchristianinsights…
- Following the Apostles into the Life of Heaven
Fr. Philip LeMasters is an Orthodox priest who serves St. Luke Orthodox Church and teaches Religion at McMurry University in Abilene, TX. You can find his blog at https://easternchristianinsights.blogspot.com/.
- Christ's Building of the Kingdom of Heaven
Fr. Philip LeMasters is an Orthodox priest who serves St. Luke Orthodox Church and teaches Religion at McMurry University in Abilene, TX. You can find his blog at https://easternchristianinsights.blogspot.com/.
- What We Consistently See in ALL the Saints
Fr. Philip LeMasters is an Orthodox priest who serves St. Luke Orthodox Church and teaches Religion at McMurry University in Abilene, TX. You can find his blog at https://easternchristianinsights.blogspot.com/.
- Our True Calling as Orthodox Christians
Fr. Philip LeMasters is an Orthodox priest who serves St. Luke Orthodox Church and teaches Religion at McMurry University in Abilene, TX. You can find his blog at https://easternchristianinsights.blogspot.com/.
- Our One Essential Calling
Fr. Philip LeMasters is an Orthodox priest who serves St. Luke Orthodox Church and teaches Religion at McMurry University in Abilene, TX. You can find his blog at https://easternchristianinsights.blogspot.com/.
- Bearing Witness to the Lord
Fr. Philip LeMasters is an Orthodox priest who serves St. Luke Orthodox Church and teaches Religion at McMurry University in Abilene, TX. You can find his blog at https://easternchristianinsights.blogspot.com/.
- We Cannot Heal Ourselves
During the season of Pascha, the Church calls our attention to how particular people responded to our Lord, Who rose from the dead as a whole embodied person on the third day. Thomas did not believe until he saw and touched the wounds of t…
- Act out of Love, not out of Fear
As we continue to celebrate our Lord’s glorious resurrection on the third day and victory over Hades and the tomb, we should admit that all too often we live as though death still reigned. We do so especially when we somehow convince ourse…
- If Christ is not Risen, Our Faith is Empty
Today we continue to celebrate the most fundamental and joyful proclamation of our faith: Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death, and upon those in the tombs bestowing life! He is our Pascha, our Passover, from death…
- Entering the Mystery of Christ's Passion
The Desert Father Saint Antony the Great once tested a group of monks by asking them, beginning with the youngest, the meaning of a certain passage of Scripture. In response to their answers, he said, “You have not understood it.” Finally,…
- Healing from the Ravages of Sin
The more clearly that we see our personal brokenness, the more tempted we may be to think that there is simply no point in trying to reorient our lives toward the Lord.
- Keep Your Mind in Hell, But Do Not Despair
If we have embraced the spiritual practices of Lent with any level of integrity, the weakness of our faith has surely become apparent to us. Our minds wander when we pray and so much else seems more important than being fully present befor…
- Halfway Through Lent We Venerate the Cross
Today we venerate the precious and lifegiving Cross upon which Christ offered Himself for the salvation of the world purely out of love for those enslaved to the fear of death, which He conquered through His glorious resurrection on the th…
- Lent Calls us to Grow in our Knowledge of God
We will misunderstand these blessed weeks of Lent if we assume that they are intended to help us have clearer ideas or deeper feelings about our Lord’s crucifixion and resurrection. We will be even more confused if we think that our intens…
- Homily for the First Sunday of Great Lent (Sunday of Orthodoxy)
On this first Sunday of Great Lent, we commemorate the restoration of icons centuries ago in the Byzantine Empire. They were banned due to a misguided fear of idolatry, but restored as a proclamation of how Christ calls us to participate i…
- Great Lent Calls Us Back to Paradise
The gospel readings from the last few Sundays have called us all to return home from our self-imposed exile. Zacchaeus was restored as a son of Abraham when he gave more than justice required from his ill-gotten gains to the poor and those…
- Homily for the Sunday of the Last Judgment (Meat Fare)
In case you have somehow not noticed, Great Lent begins a week from tomorrow. On this Sunday of the Last Judgment, the Church reminds us that the point of the upcoming season of repentance is not the keeping of religious rules or the perfo…
- Repentance Requires Our Free Cooperation with the Merciful Grace of God
What does true repentance look like? Whenever we are tempted to think that it has to do only with how we feel and not with how we act, we should remember the story of Zacchaeus. As a Jew who had become rich collecting taxes from his own pe…