Author: Teva Regule
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Brief Book Review: The Euchalogion Unveiled
“The volume…expands our understanding of the ‘mysteries’ of the Church by using older lists of what was considered a ‘sacrament.'”
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Liturgies at the Passing of a Loved One—Part III
The Liturgies at the Passing of a Loved One I have lost three loved ones in the past 18 months. First, my mother died suddenly and unexpectedly (and, I suggest, prematurely) of a stroke. Then, months later, a dear friend of some 40 years was diagnosed with a terminal illness and died after a prolonged…
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Let Us Give Thanks to the Lord…
What are we doing when we gather together as the Body of Christ? And, more importantly, why? From the earliest accounts of our Eucharistic celebration, we know that Christians gathered on the Lord’s Day to read “the memoirs of the Apostles or the prophets” (which, in the received tradition of the Orthodox Church, is the…
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The Liturgies Marking the Passing of a Loved One
9/16/2019 – One Year Later It was one year ago this evening that I received an unexpected call from Life Alert saying that my mother had activated her button, thinking that she was having a stroke. Her own mother and sister had died of a stroke and she was always worried that this would be…
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A Virtual Vigil and Wake in the Time of the Coronavirus
A Virtual Vigil It was a Monday morning when I received the news that a dear friend of mine had become “unresponsive.” She had battled multiple illnesses in recent years and had just stopped her cancer treatments after being told there was nothing more medically that could be done for her. She had known that…
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Returning to Church Post-Quarantine: The Liturgy of the Senses
The Lenten Quarantine Like many houses of worship, the church I attend (not pictured) closed in March to all but “essential” liturgical personnel. In this case, “essential” meant clergy, an altar server (or two) and a chanter (or two.) Services were streamed over the Internet so the rest of the faithful could watch from our…
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Who do we trust and why? Reflections on Thomas Sunday (John 19:20–31)
Who do we trust and why? The question seems especially appropriate in this era of claims of “fake news.” However, it is not a new question in our political realm. Nor is it a new question within the Christian tradition. Our world-view is formed by our answer to this question. When we are infants, we…
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The words and Word of God that Create and Renew: A Reflection for the Beginning of Lent
Words carry meaning. They communicate our thoughts and feelings, tell others about who we are and our relationship with them. The can be used to invite, teach, praise, demean, ridicule, forgive, heal, and give hope—to name just a few ways we use our words. In short, words matter! I would like to focus this Lenten…
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Glimpses of Liturgical Renewal in Russia
Similar to the voices of the Liturgical Movement in the West, the Bishops of the Russian Church in the early 20th century were concerned with the participation of the faithful in liturgy. As one bishop wrote, “…the faithful must participate in it directly, consciously, and actively.”