A 23-year ongoing chronicle of profound spiritual evolution written by an ex-Orthodox Christian Deacon: The lifelong journey from strict religious dogma to ultimate gnosis and an esoteric awakening. I uncover the hidden truths of religious typology, the occult, hermeticism, kabbalah, spiritual alchemy, ancient myths, demonolatry, Lilithianism, Samaelism, and the Left Hand Path.
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04 April 2022
POLL: The Pandemic & Orthodox Churches
If you are a part of any Orthodox Church (Eastern or Oriental) in the USA, please click on the link below to take part in a large national survey. It's about the effects of the pandemic on parish life, and is funded by the Louisville Institute. Your responses are strictly anonymous. Please also pass this on to any Orthodox friends or relatives; the more participants, the more meaningful the data will be! Thanks for sharing your thoughts. https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/PandemicAndYourParishNow
10 March 2022
Help and Pray for Ukraine
14 October 2021
Real Cancel Culture
Cancel culture is real and both the left and right are guilty of using it against their perceived enemies. Sometimes it can be used to shutdown a harmful practice, but often times it can also be harmful to the innocent. In my lifetime I remember BADD (Bothered About Dungeons & Dragons) trying to shut down D&D (Dungeons & Dragons) in the 1980's due to the Satanic Panic, which has been proven to be a false and unnecessary panic. My Dungeon Master's (referee's) parents bought into it and did not allow their son to play D&D anymore at his house. Instead we had to play a Christian RPG (Role-Playing Game) called Dragon Raid at his house. We still played Dungeons & Dragons at my house, because my parents did not buy into the panic. You can read more about the fraudulent Satanic Panic and attempts to cancel D&D at https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-26328105
Recently a priest's blog was removed from Ancient Faith Radio after multiple warnings about not posting about partisan politics. This was not a case of internet opinion charging him before he was in a court of law, but a company that warned a content provider to stop a prohibited activity over and over until they felt they had to remove him. People cried "Cancel Culture" but this is NOT cancel culture. He was removed from one platform, no judgement was made upon him as a bad person, and AFR even offered to help him set up his blog at new platform. AFR only made a statement about it because the priest had made one first, claiming he was cancelled (Which he has now, thankfully retracted). I am not even a fan of AFR, but these are facts, which I will not twist because I like and respect the priest in question.
However in the modern day, there are actual victims of cancel culture in the world. The problem is that this is done off of accusations, not someone being found guilty in a court of law. In fact, one of these cancelled creators, Zak Smith, actually ended up suing his accusers and was found that he was being defamed and that the accusers had to pay-up and/or post retractions to their accusations. But those facts were not important to the Twitter troll mobs who keep spreading the accusations (only made on social media) and as such, no one will publish Zak's work. Zak, thankfully, makes lots of money from his art, but the TTRPG is missing out by not having his Adventure Campaigns which are also works of art. There are others that are also being cancelled and it is hurting their ability to make a living for them and their family. To this end, I recently interviewed Zak, being a fan or his art and writing and wanting to get the facts of his story from his POV without the interviewer (me) passing judgement. WARNING: This interview has adult language and talks about adult situations.
01 July 2021
After Almost 20 Years, I Finally Found Book 4 of "The Monastery Builders" Series
For almost 20 years I had been looking for book 4 in The Monastery Builders series, and yesterday, I finally go it! Let me tell you, it was well worth the wait. This is an incredible hagiographical series that I recommend for all Orthodox Christians. They were all published and printed with the blessing of His Grace, ALYPY, Bishop of Chicago, Detroit, and Middle America of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia (ROCOR).
Here are links to all five books of The Monastery Builders series. Unfortunately, since it has long been out of print, they are not all available at good prices or even available at all.
- The Lives of the Monastery Builders [This brown book was published in 1988]
- The Lives of the Monastery Builders of Soumela [This green book was published in 1991]
- The Lives of the Monastery Builders of Meteora [This blue book was published in 1991]
- The Lives of the Monastery Builders of The Great Cave (Mega Spelaion) [This purple book was published in 1992]
- The Lives of the Monastery Builders of The Holy Mountain Athos [This black book was published in 1992]
25 June 2021
Rejoice! Book 5 of The Philokalia has Finally Been Published in the English Language!
The Philokalia is a collection of texts written between the fourth and the fifteenth centuries by spiritual Elders and Saints of Orthodox Christianity First published as a compiled manuscript in Greek in 1782, The Philokalia has exercised an influence in the recent history of the Orthodox Church far greater than that of any book apart from the Bible. It is concerned with themes of universal importance: how one may develop their inner powers and awake from illusion; how they may overcome fragmentation and achieve spiritual wholeness; how they may attain the life of contemplative stillness and union with God.
For many years, Orthodox Christians have been awaiting the English translation of the 5th and final book of the Philokalia, the first 4 books having long been translated by Bp. Kallistos Ware and Mother Maria. However, the fifth book of the Philokalia has been translated and published by Anna Skoubourdis and Saint George Monastery in 2021, in both hardcover and paperback, just like the other four volumes published in the late 1970's and early 1980's. Here are the links to all five volumes that are now available:
- The Philokalia: Volumes I, II, III, & IV in 4 paperback books
- The Philokalia: Volume I in hardcover
- The Philokalia: Volume II in hardcover
- The Philokalia: Volume III in hardcover
- The Philokalia: Volume IV in hardcover
- The Philokalia: Volume V in paperback
- The Philokalia: Volume V in hardcover
24 June 2021
The Teachings of the Holy Orthodox Church has Finally Been Completed!
Back in 1986, The Reverend Father Michael Azkoul, Ph.D. wrote The Teachings of the Holy Orthodox Church: Volume 1: God, Creation, Old Israel, Christ in 236 pages, which was edited by Hieromonk Gregory of Dormition Skete with the blessing of His Grace, ROCOR (Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia) Bishop Alypy of Cleveland. Save for its attacks on Blessed Augustine of Hippo, the author of The City of God, it is a good book that does a really good job of explaining the typology of the Old Testament revealed in the New Testament's Holy Gospels, Acts, Epistles, and Revelation, and I hoped to see Volume 2: The Church and Volume 3: Mystagogy of The Teachings of the Holy Orthodox Church in the future. Volume 1's five chapters are:
- Introduction
- God: The Holy Trinity
- The Creation
- The Economy of Old Israel
- Jesus the Christ
- The One Church
- Christ and the Church: The Heterodox
- The Church of God
- Mystagogy I: Holy Baptism
- Mystagogy II: The Eucharist
- Mystagogy III: The Other Mysteries
- The All-Holy and Ever-Virgin Mary, The Mother of God, with All the Saints
- The End of the Age
- Augustine of Hippo
23 June 2021
Which Orthodox Christian Prayer Book do you use?
Not too long ago, there were not many choices for an English Prayer Book for Orthodox Christians. But today there are 4 strong prayer books for Orthodox Christians who prefer to use English to pray. There are actually many Orthodox Christian prayer books today, but I can only strongly recommend these four:
I.) The (ROCOR - Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia) Holy Trinity Monastery "Jordanville" Prayer Book in hardcover for $18.69, first published in English in 1960 and revised constantly, is considered the Russian style gold standard. When verses from Holy Scripture are used, they previously used the King James Version and now use A Psalter for Prayer which is a new blend of the KJV and the Cloverdale Edition of the Psalter. It has evening prayers before sleep rather than the service of the compline.
II.) The (OCA - Orthodox Church in America) Saint Tikhon Monastery Press' Orthodox Christian Prayers in imitation leather for $24.95, published in 2019 as spiritual successor to many other lesser-quality OCA prayer books of the past. This newest version improves everything from all the previous OCA versions of the prayer book, and had excellent formatting that means most prayers start at the the beginning of a new page, rather than somewhere in the middle or bottom of the page. It means they made interesting decisions on font sizes to make this work, but in the end, a job well done. When verses from Holy Scriptures are used, they use A Psalter for Prayer. rather than the Psalter of the Orthodox Study Bible like some previous OCA prayer books had. It has both the compline and prayers before sleep as it is made for Orthodox Christians of any jurisdiction. It also has 3 bookmarks sewn into the spine!
III.) The (HOCNA - Holy Orthodox Church in North America) Holy Transfiguration Monastery's Prayer Book for Orthodox Christians in hardcover for $24.99 first published in 1987, it is very similar to the ROCOR Prayer Book, but made for members of Greek parishes. When verses from Holy Scripture are used, they use The Psalter: According to the Seventy. It has the compline rather than evening prayers before sleep.
IV.) The (GOA - Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America) Newrome Press' Orthodox Christian Prayer Book in hardcover for $29.99, published in 2016 is the first GOA prayer book to be considered as a good enough book to replace the earlier HTM prayer book. Newrome Press makes beautiful books inside and out. When verses from Holy Scripture are used, they use the Eastern / Greek Orthodox Bible. It has the compline rather than evening prayers before sleep. It also has 2 bookmarks sewn into the spine!
20 June 2021
The Orthodox Psalter has been Updated and Expanded! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
As you know, back in 2011 I highly recommended "The Orthodox Psalter" by Holy Apostles Convent in this blog post/article and continued to point out the superiority of the translation in another blog post/article the same year. I still stand by that recommendation, but recently I found that there is a new 3rd edition of this Psalterion published in 2017.
There are 9 more pages of patristics than the 1st edition, which includes explanations of verses and psalms from the Church Fathers from both the east and the west. The Orthodox Psalter includes both the Septuagint and KJV numbering systems, 20 Kathismas, 9 Biblical Odes, 160 pages of Patristic Commentary, 6 Tables for Usage, 2 General Listings, The Verses and Couplet to the Prophet David, and the excellent introduction, "In Praise of the Psalms" by Saint Basil the Great. All in a full-sized 6.25" x 9.25" sturdy Deep Purple Smyth-sewn case-bound book, with gold stamping, and a burgundy double-sided grosgrain ribbon marker. As an author I appreciate that it is printed on high-opacity acid-free 80-pound cream coloured pages, in a very easy-to-read 14-point bold typeface for the Psalms, and a readable and clear 10-point typeface for the Commentary.
Aesthetically, the "Deep Purple" that I think of more as an indigo, looks great with the green "The Holy Prophets", the dark navy "The Orthodox New Testament Volume One", and the dark burgundy "The Orthodox New Testament Volume Two". These books are must-haves for any Orthodox Christian.
The Orthodox Psalter and the other mentioned books are available at Amazon or can be ordered directly from the Convent.
14 May 2021
Politicians aren't Saviours and Political Parties are NOT the Church!
While I have blogged about government before such as in the post titled, "What the Bible says about those who govern us?", there are some essential verses of the Bible that it seems some politically-motivated Christians seem to forget in both the United States of America and other countries. Here is a verse that many seem to be forgetting as of the last decade or so. Here is a quick reminder.
Psalm 145(146):2 Do not have trust in rulers, in sons of men, in whom there is no salvation.Verses from The Orthodox Psalter: The Psalterion of The Prophet and King David, According to the Seventy, With the Nine Odes, And Patristic Commentary.
02 February 2021
My 2nd Novel, "Vhaidra & the DRAGON of Temple Mount" is NOW Available!
Many of you know that besides blogging here at the Orthodox Scouter, I am also top-selling author of epic fantasy fiction novels. My first novel, Vhaidra & the DESTINY of Nikodemos was a top-seller at Barnes & Noble, was a HPB Pick at Half-Price Books, and sold well at Amazon and more than 50 bookstores across the USA and in more than 20 countries.
Today, I wanted to share that yesterday I released my second novel in THE VHAIDRA SAGA, a sequel to Vhaidra and the DESTINY of Nikodemos that is titled, Vhaidra and the DRAGON of Temple Mount. This novel takes the characters through many years of peace followed by the beginning of some very big troubles. Here is the back cover blurb for it.
The War of the Dragons begins here...
What secrets lie in Sicyon's mysterious Temple Mount? Who are ATHIE, DAMIANOS, and KOSMAS, and what is their connection to the orphaned half-dragon MIKHAIL? Are the forces that are purportedly working for a better tomorrow in Sicyon truly what they say they are?
After the devastating Battle of Sicyon in “Vhaidra & the DESTINY of Nikodemos,” House Iroas ascends as VHAIDRA the dark elf monk and NIKODEMOS the human cleric raise a powerful house of half-drow warriors in the overworld. Meanwhile, the young half-dragon, MIKHAIL, his human milkmaid and astonishing ranger, MIRIAM, and the flirtatious dwelf dancer, TI'ERRA, change the ascetic half-orc wizard, ELDER DIONYSIOS, forever, as his hidden history intersects with his future, whether he likes it or not.
The obsidian half-dragon grows from a baby to Sicyon’s powerful stylite and protector, but will his abilities be enough to stave off both the imminent threat of the mighty white dragon from the north or will Sicyon get a long cold winter that it can never wake from? Will the diabolical forces within Sicyon that conspire against ARCHON JUSTINIAN and his allies be able to exploit VHAIDRA, NIKODEMOS, TI'ERRA, ELDER DIONYSIOS, MIRIAM, and MIKHAIL to create the civil war that they so desire? Find out the answers to these questions and more in the exciting adventures of Vhaidra & the DRAGON of Temple Mount!
It is currently available for purchase at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and eBay, and will be in many more bookstores very soon. It is already getting 5-star reviews, and like my previous novels it has been enjoyed by people of all ages and people who never had read fantasy novels before.
07 October 2020
The National EOCS Virtual Religious Retreat is this Saturday!
Please go to https://www.eocs.org/2020-religious-retreat-registration to sign up for this first virtual national retreat for the Eastern Orthodox Committee on Scouting!
Preliminary Schedule (times are EDT)
1:00 pm - Opening Remarks and Prayer
1:10 pm - Presentations from churches with Scouts chartered to them:
- St. Demetrios, Astoria, NY & St. John the Theologian, Tenafly,NJ
1:30 pm - Breakout sessions on North American Eastern Orthodox Saints Peter the Aleut & Olga Michael. Ambassadors from Holy Cross presenting to Scouts separated into Grade levels K-3, 4-5, 6-8, 9-12
2:00 pm - Presentations from churches with Scouts chartered to them:
- St. Nicholas, Flushing, NY,
- Holy Cross, Brooklyn, NY
- St. John the Baptist, Euless, TX
2:25 pm - Breakout Sessions on North American Eastern Orthodox saints
- Saint John Maximovitch
- Saint Nikolaj Velimirovic
Ambassadors from Holy Cross presenting
- Separated into Grade levels K-3, 4-5, 6-8, 9-12
2:55 pm – Presentations from churches with Scouts chartered to them.
- St. Demetrios, Camarilo, CA
3:05 pm - Scouting Religious Awards recognitions(only for those present)
- Scout & Ambassador Talent Show
- Closing Remarks and Prayers
- Vespers
15 August 2020
My Novel, "Vhaidra & the DESTINY of Nikodemos", is Available Internationally in Both eBook and Paperback Versions NOW!
My novel, Vhaidra & the DESTINY of Nikodemos, is now available as an eBook, for those of you who prefer electronic versions of books rather than the paper and print versions.
Currently at Amazon it is ranked #3 in Romantic Action & Adventure and #15 in Fantasy Action & Adventure for new releases (released in the last 90 days) as of today! At Barnes & Noble it is ranked #1 in English Drama, #4 in Fantasy Drama English Literature, and #22 in Epic Fantasy in new releases (released in the last 30 days)! Thank you to all of you helped my novel get such great numbers! I am super happy to be listed amongst the top books in these genres, (Othello, Richard III, Harry Potter, etc.)
I'm asking everyone to take a photo of them with my book or reading it for my readers collage, and to give the book a 5 star review if they can. If you cannot for any reason, please reach out to me with your feedback, as feedback is a gift! Here are some of the people who have already sent me photos of them with my novel.
If you would like to know where you can purchase my book, here are the links where it is currently available:
01 August 2020
On a Personal Note: My Novel, "Vhaidra & the DESTINY of Nikodemos" was released today!
- Yesterday, I, along with 110 others were laid-off by the Boy Scouts of America, a reduction that I am told was about 40% of its staff.
- Today, my side-gig became my only gig, as my first novel was published.
- USA: https://amzn.to/3fTpTNG
- UK: https://amzn.to/30EXZia
- GERMANY: https://amzn.to/2CGDPfF
- FRANCE: https://amzn.to/3eZ52XT
- SPAIN: https://amzn.to/30E9oP7
- ITALY: https://amzn.to/3hsAdN5
- JAPAN: https://amzn.to/3fZW8Le
- CANADA: https://amzn.to/3hrYpiA
- AUSTRALIA: https://amzn.to/2OPZsN5
- INDIA: https://www.amazon.in/dp/1734914009/
01 April 2020
Every Sunday is Pascha
19 March 2020
A Prayer in Time of Pestilence and Pandemics
Let us pray to the Lord. Lord have mercy.
Heavenly Lord and Creator of all things, have mercy on us your people, for we have strayed from the path which You have given us.
Forgive our many offenses and grant us your mercies.
We come to you today with tears of repentance and ask for your protection from the terrible disease that threatens us.
We have sinned, Oh Lord, and we have disobeyed your Commandments, but we beseech your mercy and compassion; have mercy on your servants, on the elderly and the children; have mercy on us all, and keep away from the terrible diseases and viruses which appeared in our days.
Send your holy angels, Oh Lord, to disperse every disease and calamity and keep us safe and healthy that we may worship and glorify your Most Holy Name of the Father and of the Son and the Holy Spirit, through the intercessions of the Holy Theotokos and of all your Saints.
Amen.
09 March 2020
The BEST Lean Six Sigma Books on the Market for Those Interested in Continuous Process Improvement and Change Management
Here I have categorized them into sections based on topics or philosophies and broken them into groups of books that I feel are best read together.
03 March 2020
The 5 Types of Love in Ancient Greek
Agápe (ἀγάπη agápē) means "love: especially charity; the love of God for man and of man for a good God." Agape is used in ancient texts to denote feelings for one's children and the feelings for a spouse, and it was also used to refer to a love feast. Agape is used by Christians to express the unconditional love of God for his children.
Éros (ἔρως érōs) means "love, mostly of the sexual passion." The Modern Greek word "erotas" means "intimate love". Plato refined his own definition: Although eros is initially felt for a person, with contemplation it becomes an appreciation of the beauty within that person, or even becomes appreciation of beauty itself. Plato does not talk of physical attraction as a necessary part of love, hence the use of the word platonic to mean, "without physical attraction". In the Symposium, the most famous ancient work on the subject, Plato has Socrates argue that eros helps the soul recall knowledge of beauty, and contributes to an understanding of spiritual truth, the ideal "Form" of youthful beauty that leads us humans to feel erotic desire – thus suggesting that even that sensually based love aspires to the non-corporeal, spiritual plane of existence; that is, finding its truth, just like finding any truth, leads to transcendence. Lovers and philosophers are all inspired to seek truth through the means of eros.
Philia (φιλία philía) means "affectionate regard, friendship", usually "between equals". It is a dispassionate virtuous love, a concept developed by Aristotle. In his best-known work on ethics, Nicomachean Ethics, philia is expressed variously as loyalty to friends (specifically, "brotherly love"), family, and community, and requires virtue, equality, and familiarity. Furthermore, in the same text philos is also the root of philautia denoting self-love and arising from it, a general type of love, used for love between family, between friends, a desire or enjoyment of an activity, as well as between lovers.
Storge (στοργή storgē) means "love, affection" and "especially of parents and children". It is the common or natural empathy, like that felt by parents for offspring. Rarely used in ancient works, and then almost exclusively as a descriptor of relationships within the family. It is also known to express mere acceptance or putting up with situations, as in "loving" the tyrant. This is also used when referencing the love for one's country or a favorite sports team.
Xenia (Greek: ξενία, romanized: xenía, meaning "guest-friendship") is the ancient Greek concept of hospitality, the generosity and courtesy shown to those who are far from home and/or associates of the person bestowing guest-friendship. The rituals of hospitality created and expressed a reciprocal relationship between guest and host expressed in both material benefits (such as the giving of gifts to each party) as well as non-material ones (such as protection, shelter, favors, or certain normative rights).
02 February 2020
Scout Sunday 2020/7528
Please see the following important announcement from the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States of America about Scout Sunday for 2020 / 7528:
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