OrthoAnalytika
657 episodes - English - Latest episode: 22 days ago - ★★★★★ - 22 ratingsWelcome to OrthoAnalytika, Fr. Anthony Perkins' podcast on spirituality, science, culture, the paranormal, prepping, and current events - all from a decidedly Orthodox Christian perspective. Fr. Anthony is the rector of St. Michael Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Woonsocket, RI, an adjunct professor of theology and political science, college chaplain, and retired intelligence officer. He has a diverse background, a lot of enthusiasm, and a big smile. See www.orthoanalytika.org for show notes and additional content.
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Episodes
The Way of Ascetics – Chapter 24
April 03, 2024 12:53 - 30 minutes - 27.8 MBToday we cover Chapter 24 of Way of Ascetics, "On an Interpretation of Zacchaeus." It has some beautiful imagery. This class was accompanied by Thai Tofu Fresh Rolls and Gypsy soup. If you are ever in the Anderson area, come and visit!
Class - Palamas and Becoming One (as God is One)
April 01, 2024 00:08 - 55 minutes - 50.6 MBToday Fr. Anthony wanted to share some ideas he's been playing with, resulting from his study of St. Gregory Palamas, theology (e.g. essence and energy), and relationships. Enjoy the show!
Homily - St. Gregory Palamas and Marriage
April 01, 2024 00:04 - 8 minutes - 7.67 MBMarriage as a Metaphor for Orthodoxy Homily of St. Gregory Palamas Today we celebrate the life and teachings of someone who really got it? St. Gregory Palamas; he experienced God's love for him in a real and tangible way, and he reflected that love back at God and on all those around him. That's what we are to do, as well. To open ourselves up to the deifying warmth and light of God; and then to send our thanksgiving and praise back up to Him and to use the energy of His grace to serve ...
The Way of Ascetics – Chapter 23
March 27, 2024 15:35 - 41 minutes - 37.6 MBToday, Fr. Anthony covers Chapter Twenty-Three: ON TIMES OF DARKNESS with the faithful of Christ the Savior in Anderson SC. We changed the format a bit, having the class as we enjoyed our after-Presanctified collation of PB&J's, PB&B's, collard greens, and tobouli. Enjoy the show!
The Way of Ascetics - Chapter 22
March 20, 2024 18:33 - 44 minutes - 41 MBChapter Twenty-Two: ON THE USE OF MATERIAL THINGS WE are made up of soul and body; the two cannot be separated in our conduct. Let the physical therefore come to your aid: Christ knew our weakness and for our sake used words and gestures, spittle and earth as media. For our sake He let His power flow from the fringe of His garment (Matthew 9:20; 14:36), from the handkerchiefs or aprons that were carried away from the apostle Paul's body (Acts I9:I2), yes, from the shadow of the apostle Pet...
Homily - Forgiveness
March 17, 2024 18:13 - 15 minutes - 6.86 MBMatthew 6:14-21 Romans 13:11-14:4 In today’s Gospel, the Lord tells us to lay up treasures in heaven, how do we do that? It’s not hard. And it’s, it’s actually a lot easier than fully investing in your 401k. Because the amount of love that is available to your heart, to share with others, that will then compound back into your own heart has no limit – its source is unending. The problem is that we are so often closing our hearts. One of the things that I study as a political scien...
Bible Study - Job:8 to the End
March 06, 2024 18:05 - 45 minutes - 41.9 MBBible Study – Job Class Six: Job 8:1-11:1; 11:1-42:22 From the Orthodox Study Bible. JOB 8: [Bildad’s nonsense] TO THE EARS OF BILDAD, JOB’S SECOND RESPONDENT, a man even less tolerant than Eliphaz, the foregoing lament seems to be an attack on the justice of God and the entire moral order. Unlike Eliphaz, however, Bildad is able to make no argument on the basis of his own personal experience. He is obliged to argue, rather, solely from the moral tradition, which he does not unders...
Homily - Prejudice, Objectivity, and Perseverance
February 18, 2024 23:49 - 17 minutes - 15.9 MBHomily – Prejudice, Objectivity, and Grit St. Matthew 15.21-28 Gospel: Then Jesus left and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and cried; “have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; for my daughter is severely possessed by a devil.” But Jesus did not answer her at all. So his disciples came and pleaded; “send her away, for she is crying after us.” Jesus replied; “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” The...
Bible Study – Job 2:16-7:14
February 14, 2024 23:35 - 51 minutes - 47 MBBible Study – Job Class Five: Job 2:16-7:14 The trial of ideas begins.
Homily - Spiritual Investing?
February 12, 2024 00:35 - 19 minutes - 18.1 MBHomily on the Talents Main point: What do we with the riches God has given us? Multiply them! How? By investing all those riches in spiritual activities that provide a strong return on investment and having enough self-discipline not to waste them on activities that cause spiritual harm. There are many kinds of riches that the Bible and Tradition teach about; today we’ll talk about spiritual and monetary riches. How to Get a Good Return on Spiritual Riches • Baptized Chris...
FSAW - Falling Short of the Glory of God
February 08, 2024 23:00 - 44 minutes - 40.4 MBIn this episode of "Father, Speak a Word," Fr. Gregory Jensen, PhD and Fr. Anthony talk about why we should celebrate our shortcomings (as we repent of our sin). The conversation is based on Fr. Gregory's substack article "It's Complicated; Thoughts On Falling Short of the Glory of God." [The audio has been corrected.]
Bible Study – Job 1:13-2:15
February 07, 2024 13:53 - 46 minutes - 43 MBBible Study – Job Class Four: Job 1:13 – 2:15 From the Orthodox Study Bible. Job Loses His Children and Property 13. Now there was a day when Job’s sons and daughters were drinking wine in the house of their elder brother, 14. and behold, a messenger came to Job and said, “The yokes of oxen were plowing, and the female donkeys were feeding beside them. 15. Then raiders came and took them captive and killed the servants with the sword; and I alone have escaped to tell you!” ...
Homily - What is a Home?
February 04, 2024 13:50 - 14 minutes - 13.1 MBHomily Notes on Zacchaeus Sunday: What makes a home? Walk in – can you tell (that a place is a home)? The feeling? · Feelings and intuition are unreliable; generally, they are the way the subconscious mind puts together other indicators · But to the sense our feelings are reliable, some places are haunted by memories of being home “The clutter?” There is something to this. · Imperfect indicator (museums have lots of stuff… & I hear there are homes wit...
Bible Study - Job 2:6-12 [
January 31, 2024 14:41 - 49 minutes - 45.7 MBBible Study – Job Class Two: Job 1: 6-12 From the Orthodox Study Bible. Satan is Permitted to Test Job 6. Then as it so happened one day that behold, the angels of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and the devil also came with them. 7. The Lord said to the devil, “Where did you come from?” So the devil answered the Lord and said, “I came here after going about the earth and walking around under heaven.” 8. Then the Lord said to him, “Have you yet considered my s...
Homily - Evangelism is Messy (in a messy world)
January 28, 2024 17:06 - 10 minutes - 9.76 MBHomily – Bringing Grace to a Messy World St Luke 18:35-43. The healing of the blind beggar. Three points: Jesus did not stay in one place. Jesus Christ is and was God. It is fitting that He reside in the throne room of God, surrounded by the cherubim and seraphim, with His holiness reflecting off all the angels and archangels around Him. But as the being of perfect love, He had to act on behalf of his beloved children (US!). So He took flesh and became man. Some would have expect...
Bible Study - Job 1:1-5 [Job is Righeous]
January 24, 2024 16:07 - 22 minutes - 20.5 MBBible Study – Job Class Two: Job 1: 1-5 From the Orthodox Study Bible. 1. Faithful Job and His Children 1 There was a man in the land of Austis, whose name was Job. That man was true, blameless, righteous, and God-fearing, and he abstained from every evil thing. 2 Now he had seven sons and three daughters, 3 and his cattle consisted of seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen, and five hundred female donkeys in the pastures. Moreover he possesse...
Homily - Gratitude and the Ten Lepers
January 22, 2024 01:29 - 10 minutes - 9.64 MBOn Gratitude (with thanks to St. Nicholai Velimirovich) Luke 17: 12-19 (The Ten Lepers, only one of whom returned) [Started with a meditation on the virtues of hard work and gratitude; hard work so that we can be proud of what we have done and foster an appreciation for the amount of effort that goes into the making and sustaining of things. This makes us grateful for what we have, and especially the amount of effort that goes into gifts that we receive from others. But what if these vir...
Bible Study - Intro to Job
January 18, 2024 01:51 - 35 minutes - 32.7 MBBible Study – Job Introduction Job is the first book of the Wisdom genre in the Orthodox Bible. The others are The Proverbs of Solomon, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, the Wisdom of Solomon, and the Wisdom of Sirach. Date and Authorship: Unknown, but Job lived during the time of the Patriarchs (about 1600 BC). From Fr. Joseph Farley; The story of Job is traditionally based on the life of Jobab, king of Edom, mentioned in Genesis 36:33. (This ascription is also reflected in the fin...
Homily - Are We All Teachers and Pastors Now?
January 14, 2024 14:54 - 28 minutes - 26.2 MBEphesians 4:7-13. In this homily (hostage situation?), Fr. Anthony talks about the temptations new technology brings for getting ecclesiology wrong. Noting that bad ecclesiology is bad theology, he offers to help everyone find their calling and develop their gifts, but warns that we need be careful to take our time and not fall into (or prey to!!!) prophecying, teaching, and preaching outside the blessing of the Church. Enjoy the show.
Homily - Salvation is a Banquet
December 18, 2023 01:24 - 9 minutes - 8.55 MBThe Banquet St. Luke 14:16-24 · Greatest tragedies in history o Separation from God o Separation from one another · Two of the great epidemics of our time resulted from this o Loneliness: we were made for community (yes, even introverts!) o Meaning: § We were made for a home, with a strong and enduring identity § We were made for a purpose, with an important part to play, and given the gifts and potential to play that part well. § Last week: w...
FSAW - The Need for (Virtuous) Friendship
December 13, 2023 02:37 - 55 minutes - 51.2 MBFather Speak a Word. Today Fr. Anthony talks with Fr. Gregory Jensen, PhD, about his recent essay, "Friendship." They cover the differences between friendships based on utility, pleasure, and virtue, noting that a virtuous friendship cannot be rushed, assumed, or coerced. They also compare the virtuous friendship, which needs to be reciprocal, with the relationship between a priest and his parishioners (which should not be reciprocal in that way). This leads to the basic truth that "prie...
Homily - The Whole Harmony of God
December 10, 2023 19:20 - 16 minutes - 15.4 MBST. PAUL'S LETTER TO THE EPHESIANS 6:10-17 Brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we are not contending against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withsta...
FSAW - Training the Youth
December 08, 2023 20:33 - 1 hour - 73.4 MBFather Speak a Word - Training the Youth Today Fr. Anthony talks with Fr. Gregory about his latest substack article; "When Adults Fail to Mentor Youth: A Lifetime of Failure for Graduation." In the spirit of St. Paul, they spend most of the conversation talking about the natural endurance of the family and comparing it with the generational decline in commitment to parish life and rituals. They also spend time talking about parenting and priesthood leadership styles. Enjoy the show!
Bible Study - Prophecies of the Nativity (Royal Hours and Vespers)
December 06, 2023 17:40 - 43 minutes - 39.7 MBNativity Bible Study The first Lord I Call verse from the Vespers of Nativity: Come, let us greatly rejoice in the Lord, as we sing of this present mystery. The wall which divided God from man has been destroyed. The flaming sword withdraws from Eden's gate; The cherubim withdraw from the Tree of Life, and I, who had been cast out through my disobedience, now feast on the delights of paradise: For today the father's perfect image, marked with the stamp of His eternity, has taken the ...
Homily - Exposing Darkness
December 03, 2023 17:24 - 9 minutes - 8.87 MBEphesians 5: 8 – 19 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light. (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of those things which are done by them in secret. But all things that are exposed are made manifest by the light, for whatever makes manifest is ...
FSAW - Ministry, Harmony, Resilience
November 30, 2023 22:28 - 58 minutes - 53.9 MBFather Speak a Work - Ministry, Harmony, Resilience Fr. Gregory Jensen, Ph.D., and Fr. Anthony talk about how important it is for priests to have balanced lives. This means more than scheduling "self-care;" it means adjusting our activities and approaches so that a graceful harmony is maintained between our capabilities and resources and the needs of those whom we serve. We should be at our best when we lead worship, preach, teach, and work with others. This requires that we build adequ...
Homily - Walk Worthy of the Calling
November 26, 2023 22:08 - 12 minutes - 11.8 MB[We're still having audio issues - the mic cut off half-way through. I re-read the second half but you'll notice the change. Thank you for your patience as we continue to work on this.] I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just ...
FSAW - Confession and the Holistic Art of Healing
November 23, 2023 02:01 - 50 minutes - 45.8 MBFather Speak a Work - Confession and the Holistic Art of Healing In today's conversation on the priesthood, Fr. Gregory Jensen, Ph.D. talks with Fr. Anthony about why we can't get to holiness by maximizing our resistance to certain sins and why an approach based on virtue is bound to be more effective. He also reminds us that it is best to think of confession as a process, with the confessor meeting the penitent where he/she is and helping (en-couraging!) them to grow from there. Enjoy t...
Bible Study - Genesis 13 & 14 - The War of the Nine Kings
November 22, 2023 14:42 - 47 minutes - 43.4 MBToday's Bible Study on Genesis 13 and 14 covers Abram and Lot moving apart, the War of the Nine Kings, and the mysterious encounter with Melchizedek. While Fr. Anthony relies primarily on St. John Chrysostom, he also draws from Fr. Patrick Reardon, St. Ambrose (numerology!), and academic research (via the Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Old Testemant). Enjoy the show! +++ Abraham II Fr. Anthony Perkins Chapter 13. Abram solves a problem and keeps everyone safe; the Lord mak...
Homily - Unity and the Wall of Division
November 19, 2023 13:45 - 12 minutes - 11.3 MBEphesians 2:14-22. Fr. Anthony gives his brain a much needed break by reading the homily. It's on his favorite theme - harmonious and joyful unity in Christ. Enjoy the show! Homily – On Unity (Ephesians 2: 14-22) The Reading from the Epistle of the Holy Apostle Paul to the Ephesians. [2:14-22]: Christ is our peace, Who has made us both one, and has broken down the dividing wall of hostility, * by abolishing in His Flesh the law of commandments and ordinances, that He might cr...
FSAW - Preaching as a Job Interview for Confession
November 17, 2023 00:17 - 1 hour - 71 MBFather Speak a Work - Preaching as a Job Interview for Confession St. John of the Ladder writes "we ought first to question and examine, and even, so to speak, test our helmsman, so as not to mistake the sailor for the pilot, a sick man for a doctor, a passionate for a dispassionate man, the sea for a harbor, and so bring about the speedy shipwreck of our soul." While he was writing for monastics, it is also important that non-monastic believers use discernment when selecting a spiritual ...
Bible Study - Genesis 11 & 12 - Abraham in Haran, Canaan, and Egypt
November 15, 2023 23:40 - 51 minutes - 46.9 MBGenesis 11:22-12:20. We start with a review of the latter part of Shem's genealogy, go through Abram's movement to Haran, his father's death, his movement to Canaan, and his time in Egypt (!). The latter included a discussion of Abram and Sarai's deception (half-truth). We rely primarily on St. John Chrysostom for our understanding. Enjoy the show!
Class - Confession II (Practical)
November 13, 2023 00:27 - 57 minutes - 52.7 MBIn today's Introduction to Orthodoxy class, Fr. Anthony follows up on Sdn. Scott's excellent class last week (alas, unrecorded!). Whereas Sdn. Scott covered the theology and history of confession, Fr. Anthony gave practical advice on how to prepare and how confession is done at Christ the Savior in Anderson SC. Enjoy the show!
Homily - Good Samaritan. and Loving Enemies
November 13, 2023 00:02 - 19 minutes - 18.1 MBLuke 10:25-37; 2 Corinthians 9:6-11. "Some days it starts out chicken and ends up duck". That was definitely the case today. Fr. Anthony is planning on reading his homilies for a while to give his brain a much-needed break. Enjoy the show!
Bible Study(ish) - Paranormal Episode
November 02, 2023 00:55 - 52 minutes - 48.2 MBWhat happens when Fr. Anthony talks about his favorite subjects (the supernatural, the paranormal, the Scriptures, and Theology) without notes? Well, it's a bit of a meandering mess of well-intentioned talk. Enjoy the show!
Homily - Jairus' Daughter and the Loss of Loved Ones
October 30, 2023 01:55 - 13 minutes - 12.2 MBLuke 8:41-56. Fr. Anthony draws on St. Nikolai Velimirovich to describe the relevance of the healing of the woman with the issue of blood and the raising of Jairus' Daughter.
Genesis 10 and 11 - Nimrod and the Tower of Babel
October 25, 2023 15:21 - 41 minutes - 38.3 MBToday we cover part of the genealogy of Noah, focusing on the line of Ham/Canaan. That means we get to talk about Nimrod, the Tower of Babel, the Divine Council, and how the nations forsook their angelic shepherds. Enjoy the show!
Bible Study - Genesis 10 & 11 - Nimrod and the Tower of Babel
October 25, 2023 15:21 - 41 minutes - 38.3 MBToday we cover part of the genealogy of Noah, focusing on the line of Ham/Canaan. That means we get to talk about Nimrod, the Tower of Babel, the Divine Council, and how the nations forsook their angelic shepherds. Enjoy the show!
Bible Study - Genesis 7-9 - the Flood and Uncovering Nakedness
October 25, 2023 15:09 - 33 minutes - 30.9 MBThe original class on Genesis 7, 8, and the beginning of 9 did not record well, so I recorded this one while I was getting ready for teaching Genesis 10 and 11. Thanks for your patience and enjoy the show!
Genesis 7, 8, and 9 - the Flood and Uncovering Nakedness
October 25, 2023 15:09 - 33 minutes - 30.9 MBThe original class on Genesis 7, 8, and the beginning of 9 did not record well, so I recorded this one while I was getting ready for teaching Genesis 10 and 11. Thanks for your patience and enjoy the show!
Homily - Dark Eyes, Demons, and Storms
October 23, 2023 00:01 - 17 minutes - 15.8 MBLuke 8:26-39. In this homily on Christ's exorcism of the demon (Legion) of Gardenes, Fr. Anthony notes that a dark eye exagerates the danger of storms, graveyards, and demons and encourages us to trust in the God who 1) loves us and 2) has command over all of creation.
Bible Study - Genesis 6
October 04, 2023 18:47 - 56 minutes - 51.9 MBToday Fr. Anthony takes us through the two primary Orthodox interpretations of Genesis 6: 1-4 (Sethite and supernatural) and the nephalim/giants, sharing a variety of patristic sources. He ends with the commentary offered in 1 Enoch. Here are the verses under consideration (King James Version): And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them, That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them ...
Homily - There Just Aren't Enough Real Enemies to Meet Our Demand!
October 01, 2023 23:24 - 21 minutes - 20.1 MB2 Corinthians 9:6-11; St. Luke 7:11-16. After sharing a brief meditation on the epistle reading (we are temples, made for divinity), Fr. Anthony talks about the requirement that we love our enemies, noting that it is made harder when our fallen imaginations constantly create them almost ex-nihilo and when our tribal propagandists are feeding us with a constant stream of opposition research that makes hating people we have not even met seem natural and righteous. We have to find a differen...
Bible Study - Genesis Four and Five
September 27, 2023 15:03 - 45 minutes - 41.6 MBToday we talk about murder, the geneologies of death and sin, the technologies (that seem to have been) given to man by fallen gods and God Himself, and Cain's line as evidence of our need for the Law and the Prophets - and better yet Christ Himself! The recording is a bit odd - it cut off a couple of times during the class so I filled in the gaps with a narrative summary. Enjoy the show!
Homily - Don't Try to Bind God with Spells
September 25, 2023 00:25 - 26 minutes - 24 MBLuke 5: 1-11. In this homily on the catching of fish (and men), Fr. Anthony riffs on the homily St. Nikolai Velimirovic gave, looking at it through the lens of Psalm 126:1a; "Except the Lord build the house, they that build labour in vain." After taking us through a tour of the conversion of Egypt and Kyivan Rus' and the way they were tempted to mix their previous pagan techniques with the True Faith, Fr. Anthony warns us that we are similarly tempted to bind God rather than enter into a r...
Class - Prayer Rules and Silence
September 24, 2023 15:32 - 43 minutes - 39.6 MBIn this edition of our Intro to Orthodoxy series, Fr. Anthony talks about the benefits of a prayer rule and of spending some time regularly in silent (but NOT monastic!) prayer. Enjoy the show!
Bible Study - Genesis Two and Three
September 21, 2023 00:17 - 56 minutes - 51.5 MBThis evening we continue working our way through the creation as described in Genesis 2 & 3. This includes talking about the fall and how our ability to image the Logos in creation was affected and how that is changed through our union with the new Adam/humanity - Jesus Christ (the Incarnate Logos). Enjoy the show!
Class - Questions, Answers, Pride, and Hesychasm
September 17, 2023 20:01 - 41 minutes - 38.4 MBFr. David Randolph of blessed memory, talked about how much he and everyone enjoyed Q&A classes about his homily on Sunday afternoons. Fr. Anthony decided to give it a shot. It went pretty well, glory to God. Then he segued into a summary of the lessons on pride, how Orthodoxy heals us from it, and introduced the topic of next week's topic - hesychasm. Enjoy the show.!
Homily - Don't Crucify Others!
September 17, 2023 19:44 - 23 minutes - 21.8 MBSt. Mark 8:34-38; 9:1. Before getting to the point about denying ourselves, taking up our cross and following Christ, Fr. Anthony deals with the preliminary issue of not crucifying others. Enjoy the show!
Bible Study - Genesis One I
September 14, 2023 01:55 - 48 minutes - 44.5 MBAfter summarizing the Orthodox approach to scripture, Fr. Anthony begins a verse by verse examination of Genesis One. We made it up to "Image and Likeness!" Review. We have to read texts according to their purpose and scope. The purpose of the Bible is to describe the economy of our salvation (i.e. mankind’s sin, Christ/Messiah as our savior). The Bible is inspired; God spoke through prophets and scribes who automatically presented His revelations in their own language, with their own s...