Eastern Christian Insights
The Danger of Justifying Ourselves by Narrowing Down our Neighbors
It is sobering how easily we can corrupt any good thing, including faith in Jesus Christ. Some people fall into the delusion of thinking that they love God and neighbor, when in reality they serve only themselves. One symptom of doing so is to narrow down the kind of people who count as our neighbors such that we excuse ourselves from seeing and serving Christ in all who bear His image and likeness. When we do so, we disregard not only them, but our Lord Himself. Our actions then reveal that we do not truly have faith in Him because we are only seeking to justify ourselves.
Monday, November 11, 2019
Listen now
Download audio
About
This podcasts presents the thoughtful homilies of an Orthodox priest who serves a small parish and teaches Religion full-time at McMurry University in Abilene, TX. Fr. Philip draws on his scholarly work in Christian theology and ethics, his travels around the world to participate in Orthodox conferences, and the insights on the faith he has gained from serving on the Board of Trustees at St. Vladimir’s Orthodox Theological Seminary. But most of all, these are the homilies of a pastor guiding his flock with insightful, practical suggestions on how to share more fully in the life of Jesus Christ.
Contributors
Fr. Philip LeMasters