A Letter from Hieromonk Ambrose Young - All Saints of North America. Father Ambrose Young (Fr. Alexey Young before his monastic tonsure) is a dearly loved spiritual friend, teacher, guide, and author. He is a spiritual child of Hieromonk Seraphim Rose, and among other books, published a book of Father Seraphim's letters to him over the years, Letters From Father Seraphim .
He also wrote The Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia: A History and Chronology , Teachings of the Holy Fathers on the Body , Teachings of the Holy Fathers on the Passions , Teachings of the Holy Fathers on Illness , The Great Divide , The Rush to Embrace , and other works. Many of us have been blessed to know Fr. Ambrose personally, to have heard him speak, to have sought his blessing and guidance. He was diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease a few years ago, and when Father John wrote him, recently, Fr. This is a copy of a message I sent to good friends here who were inquiring about the status of my Alzheimer's Disease and were wondering if it is even even appropriate to ask. Mother without child: A Mother's Day reflection. All women share the gift of motherhood—whether they have children or not. I will not be attending church this Sunday, because it’s Mother’s Day, and I choose not to be present at that inevitable moment when all the mothers of the congregation are recognized.
I have nothing against mothers; this is about my life. At many churches, there comes a point in the service where the pastor says, “I’d like all you mothers to stand,” and everyone applauds as women of all ages rise and smile. In some congregations, prizes are given for those with the most children, those who are oldest, those who are the most recent mothers, and so forth.
I don’t think we do anything like this at my church, but there is always the Mother’s Day brunch after the service, and during the meal kids from the youth group scatter throughout the crowd and hand a carnation to every woman. For this reason, I don’t attend church on Mother’s Day. Enough of my story. Some of you are not mothers by choice. Image: Tom Wright. The Good Christian Girl: A Fable. Once there was a good Christian girl who dreamed of growing up, getting married, and having children. She read all the right books and did all the right things. She read about how she was a princess in God's sight and how he wanted the very best for her. She committed herself to sexual purity, to high standards, and to waiting for the good Christian man that God was going to bring her. Just as she was getting old enough to start dating, however, she noticed something. The heroine of our story observed that as these things were being taught, the level of romantic involvement among her peers at church, not very high to begin with, shrank to practically nonexistent.
But the knowing ones, the Christians who seemed to have all the answers, told her, "You're young, there's plenty of time, and you need to learn patience. " So the girl dated around for a while, but nothing seemed to work out. And the knowing ones shook their heads and said, "You're too picky. " So the girl worked on being passive. Jon Foreman: Possessed by Truth. I am in seat 23 E on a flight from San Diego to Dallas. It's a middle seat. I'm trying to remain composed and tranquil; I am failing. As far as I can tell the baby behind me feels about the same way I do. I thumb through the airline magazine (my regular watering hole for current events), until I start to wonder what viscous substance stuck the pages of the magazine together in the first place. I put the magazine back, stretch into the seat, and rub a sore neck.
Out of nowhere, I am struck by a thought. "Maybe truth is not something that I can possess. I look at the words now scrawled on the back of my hand. "Maybe truth is something which possesses me. " To be possessed by truth rather than the other way round is a thought that goes against much of what I have been taught. The idea that truth has no owner turns the whole arrangement on its head. We now have more information than thousands of years of humanity could ever dream of. Our market economy is fueled by ownership. Saved by fiction: Reading as a Christian practice. Over the course of my life, I have taken on all manner of spiritual practices, from now-I-lay-me-down-to-sleep to centering prayer.
I have prayed with the Psalms, with the rosary, with icons. I have picked up practices and put them down. Some still discipline and nourish my praying life. But of all the spiritual disciplines I have ever attempted, the habit of steady reading has helped me most and carried me farthest. Of course, reading scripture has been indispensable. But reading fiction—classics of world literature, fairy tales and Greek myths, science fiction and detective novels—has done more to baptize my imagination, inform my faith and strengthen my courage than all the prayer techniques in the world. For as long as I can remember, even before I could read, I have loved books. I still remember the shock of amazement and delight when I first learned to read by myself: the alchemical moment when random hieroglyphics on the page leapt into meaning, forming pictures in my mind. J. P. PostSecret. Stunning Self-Portraits by a 17-Year-Old (18 photos)
Like Valerie Chiang or Kalie Garrett, Alex Stoddard is one of those talented teenage photographers who knows how to express themselves. His self-portraits are all incredibly unique and after viewing them you're left wondering where he's going to take you next. What I enjoy most is that you can almost feel his passion come through. His commitment to not only executing on an idea but doing it well, is apparent to anyone who sees his photos. I got in touch with Alex to ask him a few questions, including how his style evolved while taking on the 365 project.
(That is, to shoot and share one picture each day.) Read that interview below after enjoying his very creative self-portraits. What have you learned from your 365 project? Your photos are all beautifully artistic. I see that you're friends with Rosie Hardy. How has Flickr helped you develop your style? Are there any quotes you live by?
Thanks for the interview, Alex. Check out more of Alex's incredible photos on his Flickr page.