Monthly Archives: December 2012

A Prayer for the New Year

Posted on December 31, 2012 by Paul Wharton

  A Prayer for the New Year Almighty and Eternal God In the midst of all that is dark and icy In the midst of a winter’s day that grabs our senses with a cold beauty and yet fear of … Continue reading →

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Glory to God for All Things: An Akathist – Part 13    

Posted on December 30, 2012 by Paul Wharton

[“This Akathist, also called the “Akathist of Thanksgiving,” was composed by Metropolitan Tryphon (Prince Boris Petrovich Turkestanov) in 1934.  A copy was in possession of Protopresbyter Gregory Petrov shortly before his death in a prison camp in 1940. Suggestion: Light … Continue reading →

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The Lighter Side of New Year’s Resolutions

Posted on December 29, 2012 by Paul Wharton

HUMOR: The Lighter Side of New Year’s Resolutions Now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions. Next week you can begin paving hell with them as usual.  — Mark Twain on  New Year’s Day:  My New … Continue reading →

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The Scandal of the Babe-God by Tim Drake

Posted on December 28, 2012 by Paul Wharton

If the wood of the Cross was the scandal at the end of Christ’s life, the wood of the manger was the scandal at the beginning. At Christmas we fully encounter  the radical reality of Emmanuel – God with us. We’ve … Continue reading →

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Christmas Tale: The Music that Came from the House

Posted on December 27, 2012 by Paul Wharton

On Christmas Eve, the king invited the prime minister to join him for their usual walk together. He enjoyed seeing the decorations in the streets, but since he didn’t want his subjects to spend too much money on these just … Continue reading →

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What Jesus Could Have Said:  “How Great It Was To See You” by Michael Seagriff     

Posted on December 26, 2012 by Paul Wharton

[WARNING: People who don’t care about MY OPINION should skip the next of the paragraph and continue reading the post.   It won’t bother me a bit which is why I rarely offer my opinions about anything.  Anyway…….I often cringe … Continue reading →

Posted in Wisdom | 2 Comments

A Prayer and a Song Before Bed

Posted on December 25, 2012 by Paul Wharton

Glory to You, Almighty God, for You sent Your only-begotten Son that we might have new life.  Glory to You, Lord Jesus Christ, for You became flesh and dwelt among us that we might become Your people.  Glory to You, … Continue reading →

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A Mystery so Deep and Beautiful

Posted on December 25, 2012 by Paul Wharton

A Mystery so Deep and Beautiful May this eternal truth be always on our hearts: that the God who breathed this world into being, placed stars into the heavens, and designed a butterfly’s wing is the God who entrusted his … Continue reading →

Posted in Feasts & Seasons, Prayer, Songs and Poetry | 2 Comments

Mystic Monday –  The Mystic’s Christmas

Posted on December 24, 2012 by Paul Wharton

The Mystic’s Christmas     “All hail!” the bells of Christmas rang, “All hail!” the monks at Christmas sang, The merry monks who kept with cheer The gladdest day of all their year. But still apart, unmoved thereat, A pious … Continue reading →

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The Lighter Side of Christmas on a Silly Saturday

Posted on December 22, 2012 by Paul Wharton

Christmas has to be a warm, well organised, caring, considerate, social occasion. So, it’s unlikely that a man could take responsibility for making it happen. For starters, the vast majority of men don’t even think about Christmas until Christmas Eve. … Continue reading →

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