dzheremi, I hear the confusion and concern in your note. I am sorry for the losses you have suffered, as well. Life can throw us more curveballs than we sometimes think we are capable of handling. As an older person, let me assure you that what…
My question is, "Who said it was a sin?" It is normal human behavior. Sexual desire is normal. Young men (and some young women) have particularly strong sexual drives; young men have nocturnal emissions as evidence that it has nothing to do with …
ilovestmark---No, it's not, but it's funny you ask, because I am ONLY NOW finally reading that book!! I mean, it's been out for, what, 20 years? It makes SO much sense (and it should definitely be read by men and women to learn about each other--w…
Yes, Love Language--haven't you heard of that? Check out "The Five Love Languages" by Gary Chapman and his follow up book about the languages of apology. And THEN see if it is worth making fun of (don't know if you were or not, but...). I first …
I agree with Father Peter--just because we join our flesh with another does not mean we should marry. Should one sin pay for another? NO.
But speaking about one flesh, and fornication, and marriage, I want to tell you something as a warning--
I …
I know I am piping up very very late on this post--if anyone's still reading it! I just wanted to say that having been married for twenty-five years (and then divorced) there are certain things that will make success more likely and others that mak…
After about age 10, my family no longer attended church. Before that, it had not been a huge part of our life--anything to do with God. I mean, we went to church on Sunday and I went to Sunday school, but it was not some overriding factor in our fa…
A very good book to read about the money symbols and MANY OTHER IMPORTANT THINGS is 1776, by David McCullough. It's fascinating history of the USA and includes lots of information about why certain things were chosen.
God does not accept you based on this stuff. God accepts you based on your relationship with HIM. PERIOD. Otherwise, Jesus was UNNECESSARY. Think about it.
As far as weight goes, I have struggled with my weight most of my life...I am far older …
You are young. There is lots of room for change in your life still. If you believe it is in your best interest to return to the school you left and your parents understand and agree, go for it. Your talk about wanting to shoot yourself concerns m…
Peter was a Jew. Christ, for him, was the Messiah, but Peter was not starting any "new religion." As far as the disciples and followers were concerned, Jesus was the Christ, the promised Messiah. There was nothing that told them to do anything di…
What is going on here? When St. Paul says, "There is neither Greek nor Jew, slave nor free, male nor female, but Christ is all and in all" don't you think that includes THIS???
Oh, for goodness' sake! I know some of the answers are a joke (at least I HOPE so). Next time you go just say, "Hey, last time I was here, I took some milk in a cup but did not realize that I was supposed to pay extra for that. How much do I owe …
What I hear is the sadness in your heart right now for the loneliness, and yes, you say your faith has been shaken. That is what life does. Remember that we are to be glad for trials because it is for the purifying of our faith, we are put through …
I think it depends very much on the situation. We are told to "tell each other the truth in love" but often we naively use that to point out someone else's (perceived by us) fault, while ignoring our own faults. Speaking as someone probably much o…
Hello, Everyone--
I want to ring in here from a psychiatric/psychological point of view. I think it is often difficult for believers to differentiate sin and a personality disorder. I understand this. However, there are such things as the latter…
I have heard different takes on this. I am not a member of (nor is there any near me) a Coptic church, so there are perhaps specific ways others will talk about this. However, I have[i][/i] been to charismatic churches, and when I first became a C…
So cry. Let your heart be broken for what life turned out having in store for you. Confession is not going to miraculously change what is; it only begins to prepare the heart to see even more of what we really are. The Holy Spirit of God does not…
Remember when the church insisted that the world was flat? Remember when the church insisted that the earth was the center of the UNIVERSE? Remember the church insisting that evolution was against God?
Wait a while.
I like what Mabsoota said--try finding the grace, forgiveness, and so on elsewhere.
I understand the whole questioning whether or not God even exists. Stephen Hawking, world-renowned physicist asked, "Why does the Universe go to all the bother of …
Wow...I guess there are some things I love about Orthodoxy and others that seem just out there to me.
What about the marriage bed being undefiled??? What about if our heart condemns us not?
I get the whole "if it degrades someone" but in a rel…
Certified Orthodox, tu parles francais, donc? Je voulais te dire que ta reponse etait si drole! That you are a big woman and so smoking isn't bad for you. Honey, it has nothing to do with the size of your body. It has to do with your lungs and he…
OK I am back from my run--three miles tonight.
I wanted to talk about forgiving my ex-husband after I found out about his adultery, and trying to restore our marriage, and the ultimate decision to divorce.
In my mind, when I said my vows, I truly …
I just saw your question--I am actually off to go work out right now, so I will post later when I am home. By the way, in case any of you wonder, Zan means Woman and Amrikai means American. ;^) (In Persian.)
Oh my goodness, I am almost in SHOCK at the different things people have written here! Never in a million years would I think you would be subjected to such scrutiny...neither on these boards nor in the situation of having coffee. "Are you a virgi…
I think you mean, "Good question, Sister"... ;^)
Last night, after watching many sacred music videos on YouTube, I pulled down my 30+ year old copy of C.S. Lewis' book, "Mere Christianity" and read a lot of it before sleep. As I wrote in another…