Bathsheba

Ladder of Divine Ascent, SMALL Steps 6,7, 13
Ladder of Divine Ascent

Ladder of Divine Ascent, Remembrance of Death, Joy Making Mourning, and Despondency, Steps 6,7, & 13

04/07/2023 Bruce Strom 1

St John Climacus continues:
Step 6.3. “Fear of death” “comes from disobedience, but trembling at death is a sign of unrepented sins.” Those who fear death the most are the disobedient who live only to party, who live for today, who live for themselves, and do not live for others, they are the unrepentant who tremble at death’s gates. Even “Christ fears death, but does not tremble,” so He can show us that he is both God and man.
Step 6.24. “It is impossible, someone says, impossible to spend the present day devoutly unless we regard it as the last of our whole life.” […]

Pinocchio
Literature and Myths

The Original Pinocchio, Deeply Repentant, Unlike the Disney and Jordan Peterson Pinocchio

03/03/2023 Bruce Strom 0

The original Pinocchio was very different from the happy-go-lucky Disney and Jordan Peterson Pinocchio. Although the Disney movie included the most memorable most memorable stories of the original, the short length of the movie fails to render the deeply penitential tone of the original, which emphasizes how daily struggle is needed to replace bad habit with good habits, how salvation and spiritual growth is never instantaneous but is rather a life long-term process, where for every two steps forward we take one step backwards. The original rebellious Pinocchio was much more of a rogue than the pleasant Disney, he is a juvenile delinquent from the moment he has been carved. […]

Ladder of Divine Ascent

St John Climacus: Ladder of Divine Ascent, Step 5, Repentance, and Perseverance of Winston Churchill

04/20/2022 Bruce Strom 1

Repentance is not merely a quick apology to St John Climacus. Repentance is not quick in the Ladder of Divine Ascent. The first four rungs, where we renounce the world, detach ourselves from worldly things, become an exile and pilgrim from the affairs of the world, and with daily discipline internalize God’s will in holy obedience, these first four rungs prepare us for the rung of repentance. Repentance is more an attitude and a process than an event. An attitude of humility and repentance will prepare us for the slow ascent up the remaining twenty-five steps of the Ladder of Divine Ascent. Without daily heartfelt repentance we cannot continue the climb to a godly life. […]

AntiSemitism

Martin Luther, Large Catechism on Decalogue, Do Not Envy, and Anti-Semitism

12/01/2021 Bruce Strom 1

“You should not covet your neighbor’s house.”
“What does this mean? We should fear and Love God, and so we should not seek by craftiness to gain possession of our neighbor’s inheritance or home, nor to obtain them under pretext of legal right, but be of service and help to him so that he may keep what is his.”

“You shall not cover your neighbor’s wife, or his manservant, or his maidservant, or his ox, or his ass, or anything that is your neighbor’s.”
“What does this mean? We should fear and Love God, and so we should not abduct, estrange, or entice away our neighbor’s wife, servants, or cattle, but encourage them to remain and discharge their duty to him.” […]

Command 9&10 Do Not Envy

Dr Laura and Her Rabbi Stewart Vogel on Ten Commandments: Do Not Envy

11/19/2021 Bruce Strom 1

If in your heart you keep shouting, I want! I want! I WANT!
Not only are you acting and living like a child, but when you focus excessively on getting more possessions and success, you risk becoming jealous of what your neighbor’s possessions and success, you risk becoming obsessed and possessed by jealousy and envy. Coveting and envy is a sin that is unique because it is a sin of our thoughts and mind, our “thoughts, desires, and feelings.” […]

Command 8 Do Not Bear False Witness

The Decalogue in the Torah, Blog 6, Do Not Bear False Witness Against Your Neighbor

10/06/2021 Jonah Fischer 2

A common misconception is that this Commandment only forbids us to lie. However, this Mitzvah goes deeper. Not only should we not destroy the reputation of our neighbor, we should also guard the reputation of our neighbor like we should build a parapet on our roof. Not only does this Mitzvah forbid us to lie, it also forbids us from telling the truth in a mean and heartless and cruel manner. […]