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Lent Day 39: Leo the Great: Sermon XLIX (On Lent XI)

...n all the faithful without exception; because no one is so holy that he ought not to be holier, nor so devout that he might not be devouter.” Lent is a time of self-reflection and discipline, a time where we look at the life of Jesus and mourn his death as the disciples did, before we realise the reality of the resurrection which comes in a few short days. “Who is there who would not wish for additions to his virtue, or removal of his vice?” Leo asks rhetorically, referring to the benefits of the Lenten fast and discipline. “Blessed, therefore, is the mind that passes the time of its pilgrimage in chaste sobriety, and loiters not in the things through...

That Ancient faith is Expanding!

...EXCITING UPDATES! Just a quick update for you about a couple of new and exciting things I am offering now! Firstly, I have now launched a new range of faith-inspired clothing, which you can see some examples of in the image banner above. If you want to proclaim Christ and your faith via what you wear (especially in these dark times where churches are closed), head on over to: https://thatancientfaith.teemill.com     The second thing to mention, as you may gather from the logo above, is that I now have a YouTube channel! I have begun it by doing a read through of my book, 40 Days with the Fathers, through Lent, so you can listen to the whole book for...

Why do bad things happen to 'good' people?

...severe in faith even when those around us doubt - like Job's wife and friends did: Then his wife said to him, “Do you still persist in your integrity? Curse God, and die.” But he said to her, “You speak as any foolish woman would speak. Shall we receive the good at the hand of God, and not receive the bad?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips. The Tower of Siloam (James Tissot) But whether it is allegory, parable or historical, the righteousness of Job is one that is noted by God when speaking to Ezekiel, and James writes about Job's endurance as an example of being blessed by the Lord (Ezekiel 14:13-14; James 5:11). Even the discipl...

Lent: Day 11 - Ignatius to Polycarp

...steadfast faith, and also by reminding him off his duties and role as a bishop. There's a brief warning against “those who seem worthy of credit”, but actually “teach strange doctrines” which may fill Polycarp with some “apprehension”. This warning would seem to be against Docetism again, as in all of Ignatius's previous letters, which leads him to write this short creed about Christ just to reiterate the Church’s stance on the matter, and although it’s only short, I do like it, especially the parallelism: Look for Him who is above all time, eternal and invisible, yet who became visible for our sakes; impalpable and impassible, yet who became...

Lent Day 21: Athanasius: Life of Anthony: Chaps. 1-10

...se of his faith and trust in Christ’s death and resurrection, that those “who truly fight can say, 'not I but the grace of God which was with me’ (1 Corinthians 15:10)” because we can do nothing of our own. Not boasting nor being puffed up in this victory, he, “having learned from the Scriptures that the devices of the devil are many (Ephesians 6:11), zealously continued the discipline”, because he knew that the devil “would endeavour to ensnare him by other means” still. Continuing more with his discipline, he would not focus nor remember the past, but would press on with the current day and what lay before, meditating on Paul's words; Ph...

Lent Day 22: Athanasius: Life of Anthony: Chaps. 11-20

..., but the faith as a whole. Anthony is regarded as the father and founder of desert monasticism, and today we will see how it all started. The old hermit that Anthony met previously, he asked to go into the desert with him to dwell, “more eagerly bent on the service of God”. The old man declined due to his age, but also because “there was no such custom” of living in the desert, so Anthony left on his own to live in the mountains and the devil attacked him again. Twenty years of solitude After going into the desert, Anthony arrived at the Nile and found an abandoned fort on the other side of the river, where he set up camp to live, surviving only...