There is nothing necessarily inconsistent between the Big Bang theory (and it is just that, a theory) and the creation account in Genesis.
Atheists will, of course, try to resurrect the old 'science versus religion' dichotomy, but those sort of peo…
Hizz-Child is absolutely correct.
We need to get some things clear. God gives us free will, and he does not control this world like some puppet master. I don't know why bad things happen, any more than I know why good things do. What I do know is t…
I think we ought to be clear here. St. Cyril was not involved in the murder of Hypatia, nor in the destruction of the great library.
That is not to say he was perfect or without sin - only Our Lord fits that bill, but it is to say that he was a gre…
I don't think anyone was justifying anything - it is as you say, we can all stand against sin - if we stand in Him. But in this world we shall never be without sin - which is why we need the sort of reminder you have given us - for which many thanks…
Dear Severus,
You are so right - it is a mystery how those who have never known Him can be saved - but He who saves such sinners as ourselves made the heavens and the earth, and nothing is beyond His mighty power. In St. John 10:16 we read
10:16 An…
Dear Gregory,
Thank you for the fascinating pieces of information.
Let us remember that whilst we hate the sin, we are charged with loving the sinner. Nestorius was neither a bad nor a wicked man. He was a sincere Christian who fell into error in …
[quote author=mrcoptic link=topic=5748.msg77128#msg77128 date=1190127372]
Questions:
Are the owners of AL-AHRAM Christians or Muslims? And are they mainstream media in the Middle East or independant?
Currently the Muslims would like to discredit …
Dear Κηφᾶς,
I agree. In this present age, ego is not the sole contributor to the schism and there are other issues which must be looked into with patience, humility and discernment. However, looking at the Council of 451, the only conclusion I can…
The best source for this is Professor McGuckin's book on St. Cyril and the Christological Controversy.
He shows quite conclusively that whilst Hypatia was certainly killed by a mob which called itself Christian, St. Cyril had nothing to do with it.…
I think we can see already in this thread how confusing it can be- and it is just that confusion which, in the past, led to the schism, as our brother Κηφᾶς reminds us.
Just to put something straight. Eutyches was never a leader of the non-Chalcedo…
The Coptic Church has never been Monophysite, and the Chalcedonians have never been Nestorian, although there have been those in both communions who have believed it of the other.
We both hold to the Cyrilline view that thought there were two natur…
If he must be talked about, Orthodox11 is right on the button with 'Prophet of Islam' - if we read that as 'Father of Lies', well that's our business.
In Christ,
Anglian
Dear Gregory,
Interesting, but it looks a little like Modalism to me - that is:
a denial of the Trinity which states that God is a single person who, throughout biblical history, has revealed Himself in three modes, or forms. Thus, God is a single…
[quote author=Κηφᾶς link=topic=5740.msg76947#msg76947 date=1189785156]
[coptic]+ Iryny nem `hmot>[/coptic]
Dear John,
Fret not my friend, this exchange between kerestina and I is all in good fun (although, I'm sure it doesn't appear to be). A …
Well, certainly the change in calendar in the EO tradition has, as Orthodox11 says, brought much grief, and, as far as anyone can see, no real gains. If anyone can point to real problems with the current one then, of course, no doubt the Synod would…
I wonder if it is time to suggest that we don't let Islam get in the way of harmony here?
Given what Islam has said about Christians and done to them, a little quiet humour is not, perhaps, a big deal ???
Both Κηφᾶς and Kerestina bring so much joy…
Dear Kerestina,
I ought to have added a ;) when I wrote 'a dangerous area' - to signify that most married men will know what I mean - which is, as you say correctly, that women do care about these things in a way which most men totally fail to und…
Dear QT,
We may well want answers, but He is not obliged to give them, especially if His Church has already done so.
His ways are not our ways, and He cannot be judged by our standards. It may be that in some times and places in the OT people beha…
A good quiz game would be which is more inaccurate - newspapers or Wikipedia?
I wouldn't take either very seriously. The Church was here long before either - and will outlive them.
In Christ,
Anglian
Dear QT,
What Κηφᾶς says is much to the point; context is everything.
In OT times the very survival of God's people was at stake, and they were permitted to do what was needful to prevent themselves from being massacred.
But once the Lord had ris…
Nothing that Our Lord said could in any way be taken to contradict the Commandment that thou shalt do no murder.
We are commanded to love our enemies and to repent of our sins.
In Christ,
Anglian
Dear Κηφᾶς,
It was indeed.
It would seem as though the western (and I fear that is shorthand for North American) attitude towards sex is infecting our own young people.
Only experience will, alas, convince these young people of the wisdom and com…
Mmm, I think this is a dangerous area.
I hear what Kerestina says, but have never yet met a woman (including my two daughters) who would not spot the evasion involved in not complimenting them.
The problem is, I guess, that the western media peddl…
[quote author=Orthodox11 link=topic=5740.msg76803#msg76803 date=1189619482]
[quote author=QT_PA_2T link=topic=5740.msg76790#msg76790 date=1189611214]
Do u wear a hijab? Or have u ever grown your beard or mustache?
[/quote]
Headcoverings for women a…
To get technical:
Adultery = sex between two people who are married - but to two other people i.e. being unfaithful to your wife or husband and thus breaking your marriage vows. This breaches a sacrament and is a grave sin.
Fornication = sex outsid…
Dear Thomas,
I take your point, but the Crusades happened a thousand years ago, and it is a long time since the bad days of the Inquisition in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries; if Muslims have to go that far back, they are, frankly, making d…
John_S2000 advises us with wisdom and true compassion.
The fires of lust, once stoked, are often difficult to put out.
You only have to look at the western media to see what happens; women become objects used to sell almost anything. The body is t…