『OrthoAnalytika』のカバーアート

OrthoAnalytika

OrthoAnalytika

著者： Fr. Anthony Perkins
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概要

 Welcome to OrthoAnalytika, Fr. Anthony Perkins' podcast of homilies, classes, and shows on spirituality, science, and culture - all offered from a decidedly Orthodox Christian perspective. Fr. Anthony is a mission priest and seminary professor for the UOC-USA. He has a diverse background, a lot of enthusiasm, and a big smile. See www.orthoanalytika.org for show notes and additional content.Common courtesy. キリスト教 スピリチュアリティ 聖職・福音主義
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  • Homily - The Publican, the Pharisee, and the Seeds of the Kingdom

    Homily - The Publican, the Pharisee, and the Seeds of the Kingdom
    2026/02/01
    Sanctifying the Moment: The Publican, the Pharisee, and the Seeds of the Kingdom Fr. Anthony Perkins; Luke 18:9-14 All of creation is good—and yet it was never meant to remain merely good. From the beginning, God made the world not as a finished product, but as something alive, dynamic, and capable of growth. Creation was designed to become better, to move toward beauty and perfection. Humanity was placed within it not as passive observers, but as gardeners, stewards, and priests—called to tend what God has made and lead it toward and into His glory. This brings us to the heart of the matter: The question is not whether God gives us good seeds, but whether we cooperate with grace so that the good becomes better—and the moment becomes a place where Christ and His Kingdom are made manifest among us. Nothing in God's creation is neutral. Everything that exists participates, however faintly, in the goodness of God—otherwise it would not exist at all. What is not offered toward its true end will still "grow," but in distorted directions—toward thorns rather than fruit. Grace is not resisted only by doing evil; it is resisted just as often by refusing to cultivate what God has given. Creation stands ready, waiting for the attention of its stewards. When what God has placed into our hands is met with humility, love, and understanding, it grows into something beautiful, bearing fruit that nourishes others and manifests the glory of God in tangible ways. But when it is met with pride, fear, or apathy, it still grows—only into something misshapen and bitter. As God warned after the Fall, we are perfectly capable of harvesting thorns and thistles as well as wheat. This is not abstract theology; it is how life actually works. Consider a newly married couple. Their relationship carries extraordinary potential. Will they cultivate it with patience, repentance, and self-giving love, allowing it to grow into a marriage that blesses their family and their community? Or will they water it with pride and resentment, forcing it to grow into something poisonous that wounds everyone who comes near? The same gift can grow in either direction. Consider, too, the life hidden in the womb. Like time and treasure, it is a gift entrusted to us, carrying breathtaking possibility. Will it be received with love and protection, allowed to grow into a bearer of light? Or will it be met with fear and rejection—so that what should have grown into life instead grows into wounds—shaping both a person and the culture that failed to guard it. Or think of the first meeting between strangers. In that brief moment lies the possibility of friendship, love, cooperation—or of manipulation, exploitation, or cold indifference. The moment itself is a seed. Whether it bears fruit depends on how it is received. If these examples feel distant, let us turn to what Americans understand very well: money and time. Every dollar we possess is a seed. It holds the potential to heal, to feed, to comfort, to build—or to be spent in ways that reinforce our addictions and fears. And every moment of time is heavy with possibility. Will it be offered in prayer or surrendered to distraction? Will it draw us toward communion or deeper into delusion? Each moment asks to be sanctified. This applies even to moments that seem only painful or broken. St. Dionysius reminds us that nothing exists without some participation in the Good, because God alone is the source of being. Even sorrow can become a seed—not because suffering is good, but because God can transfigure what we cannot fix. Such moments should not be rushed or explained away. But when they are met with humility and trust, God can draw forth fruit that would otherwise remain hidden. Today's Gospel gives us a clear image of how moments are either redeemed or ruined. The Pharisee was praying. He had the appearance of cultivation—fasting, tithing, religious seriousness—but pride spoiled the soil. The moment was not merely wasted; it was corrupted. The Publican was praying too. Whatever he had done with the gifts of his past, in this moment he offered humility. And God entered that small, pure offering. That single moment, received rightly, grew like a mustard seed, crowding out what had grown before. One humble moment outweighed years of distorted cultivation. St. John Chrysostom says it plainly: God is not offended by fasting; He is offended by pride. Humility can lift a life full of sins, and pride can ruin a life full of virtues. Within each of us lies the possibility of perfection, ready to manifest itself through every thought, word, and action. But this possibility can be warped by willfulness and pride. Let us not do that. Instead, let us receive every moment as an opportunity to cooperate with grace—to do something good and something beautiful—so that we ourselves, and the world entrusted to us, may become better and more beautiful. The Gospel today shows us...
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    8 分
  • Retreat - Justifiable but Not Helpful: Discernment in an Age of Manipulation

    Retreat - Justifiable but Not Helpful: Discernment in an Age of Manipulation
    2026/01/29
    In this pair of talks, Fr. Anthony examines why discernment so often fails in the Church—not because of bad faith or lack of intelligence, but because discernment is a matter of formation before it is a matter of decision. Drawing on insights from intelligence analysis, psychology, and Orthodox anthropology, he shows how authority, moral seriousness, and modern systems of manipulation quietly exploit predictable habits of perception, producing confidence without clarity. True discernment, he argues, is neither technical nor private, but ecclesial: formed through humility, ascetic practice, and participation in the Church's communal rhythms, where judgment matures over time through accountability, repentance, and shared life in Christ. --- Talk One: Why Discernment Fails Expertise, Authority, Manipulation, and the Formation of Perception Fr. Anthony Perkins Introduction Brothers, I want to begin today not with Scripture or a Father of the Church, but with a warning—from someone who spent his life studying failure in complex systems. Nassim Nicholas Taleb, in The Black Swan, writes this: "You cannot ignore self-delusion. The problem with experts is that they do not know what they do not know. Lack of knowledge and delusion about the quality of your knowledge come together—the same process that makes you know less also makes you satisfied with your knowledge." (pause) Taleb is talking about intelligence analysts, economists, and technical experts—people who are trained, credentialed, experienced, and entrusted with judgment under uncertainty. But if, just for a moment, you change one word in your mind—from expert to priest—the danger becomes uncomfortably familiar. We wear cassocks instead of suits, but the temptation is the same. Not arrogance. Not bad intentions. But unintentional self-delusion born of taking our calling to serve well seriously. A Necessary Pastoral Safeguard Before we go any further, I want to be very clear—because this matters. Taleb is not accusing experts of pride. He is not describing a moral failure. He is describing what happens to the human mind under complexity. And clergy live permanently in complex systems: human souls suffering families conflicted parishes incomplete information real consequences The danger is not that we don't care. The danger is that experience can quietly convince us that we are seeing clearly—especially when we are not. A Lesson from Intelligence Work When I worked in military intelligence, there was a saying—half joking, half deadly serious: The most dangerous person in the world is an intelligence analyst in a suit. At first, that sounds like gallows humor. But it isn't. The danger wasn't that analysts were malicious. The danger was that analysts don't just possess information—they interpret reality for others. And here's where psychology matters. Robert Cialdini has shown that one of the strongest and most reliable human biases is deference to authority. People are far more likely to accept judgments when they come from someone who looks like an authority—someone in a suit, a lab coat, or standing behind an official desk. Jonathan Haidt adds something crucial: people formed in conservative moral cultures—cultures that value order, continuity, and tradition—are especially inclined to defer to legitimate authority. That's not a flaw. It's one of the strengths of such cultures. It's one of the strengths of our Orthodox culture. But it carries a cost. Because when authority speaks, critical perception often relaxes. And when authority speaks with confidence, coherence, and moral seriousness, people don't just listen. They trust. And they trust in a way that they, like us - the ones who guide them - feel connected with the truth and the Source of all truth. But in our fallenness our sense of certainty may be driven by something other than a noetic connection with the deeper ontological of truth. Scripture about the devil appearing as angel of light (2 Cor 11:14-15) and wolves going around in sheep's clothing (Mat 7:15) are not just designed to keep us from trusting everyone who offers to speak a good work; a spiritual meaning is that our own thoughts can be deceptive, appearing as angelic and meek but lacking true virtue. All of this, combined with the seriousness of our calling, should reinforce our commitment to pastor humbly and patiently, erring on the side of gentleness … and trusting in the iterative process of repentance to bring discernment and healing to those we serve. From Suit to Cassock In intelligence work, the suit mattered. In science, it's the lab coat. In the Church, it's the cassock. When a priest speaks—especially confidently, decisively, and with moral gravity—people don't just hear an opinion. They receive guidance. And that means any blind spot—any overconfidence, any unexamined habit of thought—does not remain private. It spreads. Why This Is ...
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    1 時間 19 分
  • Class - The Architectural Beauty of Eden

    Class - The Architectural Beauty of Eden
    2026/01/21

    From Eden to the Church
    Beauty, Architecture, and the Space Where God Dwells

    Christian architecture is not primarily about style or preference.
    It is about ordering space so that human beings learn how to dwell with God.

    The Church building is Eden remembered and anticipated—a place where heaven and earth meet, so that God's people can be formed and then sent back into the world.

    Key Biblical Insights

    1. Eden Was God's Dwelling Place

    Eden is first described not as humanity's home, but as God's planted garden—a place of divine presence, beauty, and order.

    • Genesis 2:8–9 — God plants the garden; trees are "pleasant to the sight."

    2. Eden Is a Garden and a Mountain

    Scripture explicitly identifies Eden as elevated sacred space.

    • Ezekiel 28:13–14 — "Eden, the garden of God… the holy mountain of God."

    3. Eden Is a Source of Life

    Life flows outward from God's dwelling.

    • Genesis 2:10–14 — A river flows out of Eden and becomes four rivers.

    4. Eden Is Not the Whole World

    Eden is placed within creation, not identical with it.

    • Genesis 2:8 — Eden is "in the east."
    • Genesis 1:28 — Humanity is commanded to "fill the earth."

    5. Humanity's Original Vocation

    Human beings are called to guard sacred space and extend its order outward.

    • Genesis 2:15 — Adam is placed in the garden "to till and keep it."

    6. Gardens and Groves as Sacred Space

    After the fall, God's presence continues to be associated with cultivated places.

    • Genesis 12:6–7; 13:18; 18:1 — God appears to Abraham at the oaks of Mamre.
    • 1 Kings 6:29–32 — The Temple is carved with palm trees, flowers, and cherubim.
    • Psalm 92:12–14 — The righteous are "planted in the house of the LORD."
    • Isaiah 51:3; Ezekiel 36:35 — Restoration is described as becoming "like the garden of Eden."

    7. Sacred Space After the Fall

    God re-establishes Eden's pattern through mountains and temples.

    • Exodus 24:9–10 — God enthroned on Sinai.
    • Psalm 48:1–2 — Zion as the mountain of the Great King.

    8. The Church as Eden Continued

    The Church gathers the patterns of Eden—mountain, garden, throne, and life-giving water—into one place so that God may dwell with His people.

    9. Eden Fulfilled, Not Abandoned

    Scripture ends with Eden expanded to fill the world.

    • Revelation 21:3 — "The dwelling of God is with men."
    • Revelation 22:1–2 — River of Life and Tree of Life healing the nations.

    Why Architecture Matters

    • Architecture forms us slowly and quietly through repeated dwelling.
    • Ordered, beautiful space trains us for patience, reverence, and stability.
    • The Church is not an escape from the world, but a seed of the world's renewal.

    Takeaway

    Architecture is theology you inhabit.
    Eden is still the pattern—and the Church is where we learn to carry that pattern into the world.
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    1 時間
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