PHILOKALIA MINISTRIES

When Christ Reveals Himself and Every Illusion Falls Away “When I saw Him, I fell at His feet as though dead. But He laid His right hand upon me.”   — Book of Revelation 1:17 The opening vision of the Book of Revelation is not given to soothe us. It is not a consoling religious picture meant to decorate the mind. It is an unveiling that shatters every false confidence. It does not begin with speculation about the end of the world, but with the end of illusion. The first reali

A Reckoning with the Ego at the Edge of the Living Tradition “Such renunciation appears intolerable, insane even, to the self willed but the man who is not afraid to become a fool has found true life and true wisdom.” St. Sophrony of Essex Christianity, when you draw near to it, is not reasonable. It is not tidy. It does not fit inside the categories we use to manage our lives, protect our reputations, or justify our instincts. It is a scandal. The God who reveals Himself in