00:00 Introduction
02:10 Post-modernism in literature
03:40 What to expect from season eight
08:48 Be The Body of Christ, be The Church
12:48 Bad Ecclesiology causes parish problems & soul problems
16:17 Spirituality is deeply practical, the purpose is to be changed
20:04 Obedience is central to humility & repentance
22:20 Loving compassion is helping people cease to sin
28:28 It makes no sense to be in The Church & make our sin our Identity
31:04 We live in a culture which doesn’t believe in forgiveness (or repentance)
33:43 What we believe is real, physically, mentally & spiritually
37:58 The Church is where we encounter reality most fully
42:00 We need to accept our diagnosis & the effective therapy to heal it
44:11 A welcoming, loving church is one who expects daily repentance
49:23 Closing

~~~

Who, What & Where Is The Church & Why Is It Necessary?
Orthodox Ecclesiology
S8E1

~~~

In this episode of the Christian Saints Podcast, we explore one of the biggest questions in Christian life: What actually is the Church? Is it an organization, a community, a building—or something deeper?

We discuss why the Church is practical without being banal and spiritual without being abstract. Through a conversation on repentance, identity, spiritual healing, and modern culture, we examine how the Church understands itself as the Body of Christ—not merely as a place people attend, but as a life people enter.

If Christianity is more than ideas—if it’s meant to heal, transform, and bring us into reality—then understanding the Church changes everything.

~~~

Subscribe for more conversations on Orthodoxy, theology, and practical Christian living.

~~~

#OrthodoxChristianity #OrthodoxChurch #Repentance #Ecclesiology #ChristianPodcast #Theology

~~~

Scripture citations for this episode:

Luke 15:11-32 - The prodigal son
John 9:1-38 - The healing of the man born blind

The Christian Saints Podcast is a joint production of Generative sounds & Paradosis Pavilion. Our hosts are Father Symeon Kees of Iowa City & James John Marks of Chicago.

Paradosis Pavilion - https://youtube.com/@paradosispavilion9555

https://www.instagram.com/christiansaintspodcast
https://x.com/podcast_saints
https://www.facebook.com/christiansaintspodcast
https://www.threads.net/@christiansaintspodcast
https://bsky.app/profile/xtiansaintspodcast.bsky.social

Iconographic images used by kind permission of Nicholas Papas, who controls distribution rights of these images

Prints of all of Nick’s work can be found at Saint Demetrius Press - http://www.saintdemetriuspress.com

All music in these episodes is a production of Generative Sounds
https://generativesoundsjjm.bandcamp.com
Distribution rights of this episode & all music contained in it are controlled by Generative Sounds
Copyright 2021 - 2026

00:00 Introduction
02:20 The structure of the vesperal portion
09:21 Why The Bible should have more than 66 books
11:22 The structure of the Divine Liturgy of St Basil for Holy Saturday
17:31 This service describes salvation in detailed images
31:55 Closing

~~~

Vesperal Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great - What is Salvation?

~~~

Reference materials for this episode:

Reference materials for this episode:

The rubrics of the services, in English translation, of The Vesperal Divine Liturgy of St. Basil the Great


Scripture citations for this episode:

The fifteen Old Testament readings
- Genesis 1:1-13
- Isaiah 60:1-16
- Exodus 12:1-12
- The Book of Jonah
- Jesus of Navi (Joshua) 5:10 - 15
- Exodus 13:20 - 15:19
- Sophronios (Zephaniah) 3:8 - 15
- 3rd Kingdoms (1st Kings) 17:8 - 24
- Isaiah 61:10 - 62:5
- Genesis 22:1 - 18
- Isaiah 61:1 - 10
- 4th Kingdoms (2nd Kings) 4:8 - 37
- Isaiah 63:11 - 64:5
- Jeremiah 38:31 - 34 (31:31 - 34)
- Daniel 3 (including the song of the 3 youths from the Greek manuscript tradition)

Epistle reading
- Romans 6:3 - 11

Gospel reading
- Matthew 28:1 - 20

~~~

In our series of reflections on the Lenten Triodion we have reached the service of Holy Unction, which, strictly speaking, is after Lent is over, but we're going to carry all the way through Holy Week here.

The morning of Holy Saturday finds us at the very brink of the celebration of Pascha, Passover, The Resurrection of Jesus The Messiah. All vespers services mark the beginning of the new day (there was evening, there was morning, the first day) & so in this service we transition from Sabbath to The Lord's Day. However, we're still in this accelerated timeline of Holy Week & so we cannot yet fully proclaim Christ is Risen. Yet, in the middle of this service we do transition from the darkness of Holy Week into the white of purity & resurrection & we proclaim who The Messiah is & what it is He saves us from & what it is He saves us for.

The Christian Saints Podcast is a joint production of Generative sounds & Paradosis Pavilion. Our hosts are Father Symeon Kees of Iowa City & James John Marks of Chicago.

Paradosis Pavilion - https://youtube.com/@paradosispavilion9555

https://www.instagram.com/christiansaintspodcast
https://x.com/podcast_saints
https://www.facebook.com/christiansaintspodcast
https://www.threads.net/@christiansaintspodcast
https://bsky.app/profile/xtiansaintspodcast.bsky.social

Iconographic images used by kind permission of Nicholas Papas, who controls distribution rights of these images

Prints of all of Nick’s work can be found at Saint Demetrius Press - http://www.saintdemetriuspress.com

All music in these episodes is a production of Generative Sounds
https://generativesoundsjjm.bandcamp.com
Distribution rights of this episode & all music contained in it are controlled by Generative Sounds
Copyright 2021 - 2026

00:00 Introduction
02:55 The structures of the services
07:05 How do we face the apparent loss of trust & hope?
10:14 The three stasis of The Lamentations hymn
21:06 Closing

~~~

Winding Sheet & Lamentations - How Can We Go On?

~~~

Reference materials for this episode:

The rubrics of the services, in English translation, of
- Vespers of Holy Friday evening (known as the service of The Winding Sheet)
- Orthros of Holy Saturday morning (known as The Lamentations)

~~~

In our series of reflections on the Lenten Triodion we have reached the service of Holy Unction, which, strictly speaking, is after Lent is over, but we're going to carry all the way through Holy Week here.

On Holy Friday there are typically two services which are conducted in community parishes: the vesperal service of Friday evening which is usually celebrated at 3p, the time Jesus hung on the cross, as well as the orthros service of the morning of Holy Saturday which is celebrated Friday night. These two services are known as The Winding Sheet & The Lamentations, respectively.

In this episode Jim talks about this pivotal moment for the faithful. God Himself, the source of all Life, is in The Underworld. What do we do when our trust & hope seem to be destroyed? How we respond shapes who we are becoming. The bulk of the episode is Jim reading the more than 70 verses of the Lamentation hymns for your reflection.

The Christian Saints Podcast is a joint production of Generative sounds & Paradosis Pavilion. Our hosts are Father Symeon Kees of Iowa City & James John Marks of Chicago.

Paradosis Pavilion - https://youtube.com/@paradosispavilion9555

https://www.instagram.com/christiansaintspodcast
https://x.com/podcast_saints
https://www.facebook.com/christiansaintspodcast
https://www.threads.net/@christiansaintspodcast
https://bsky.app/profile/xtiansaintspodcast.bsky.social

Iconographic images used by kind permission of Nicholas Papas, who controls distribution rights of these images

Prints of all of Nick’s work can be found at Saint Demetrius Press - http://www.saintdemetriuspress.com

All music in these episodes is a production of Generative Sounds
https://generativesoundsjjm.bandcamp.com
Distribution rights of this episode & all music contained in it are controlled by Generative Sounds
Copyright 2021 - 2026