Rain in the Desert

Fr. Apostolos Hill speaks on the theme of the Sunday before the Exaltation of the Cross with a challenge to consider that we have been viewing the Cross incorrectly; e.g. as an impediment to our happiness and not as the cause of joy in the life of the redeemed.

Fr. Apostolos Hill speaks on the difference between Independence and Freedom with a brief history lesson about Independence Day.

Fr. Apostolos speaks about the evangelical imperative of the Apostolicity of the Church.

Fr. Apostolos Hill shares a homily on the Sunday of the Blind Man about the Causes and Cures of Spiritual Blindness.

Fr. Apostolos speaks about the meaning and application of the Greek word for "Grace" and its connection with "joy" and "gratitude."

Fr. Apostolos Hill shares a Palm Sunday homily about the Triumphal Entry and the many questions provoked by Jesus' life and ministry throughout the Gospels. We can come to a deeper and greater experiential and relational understanding of Jesus in the services of the week.

Fr. Apostolos Hill deconstructed the soteriological heresy of the Penal Substitutionary Atonement of Anselm of Canterbury and an explanation of how the Orthodox Church understands and applies the Cross of Christ and its efficacy for our salvation.

Fr. Apostolos Hill delivers a homily on the Sunday of Orthodoxy and provides an examination of what our faith is and is not.

Fr. Apostolos Hill delivers a homily that is focused on the Epistle reading from Colossians. The newness of the year should remind us that we serve a loving and merciful God, whose mercies are new every day.

Fr. Apostolos Hill shares a homily about stewardship as a Eucharistic offering of our entire life to God. He recalls Fr. Hopko's discussions about our earthly labors being represented in the offering of the bread and wine, hence, the sacralization of our workaday lives.

Fr. Apostolos Hill speaks about the Parable of the Good Samaritan and the image of the man beset by robbers on the road down to Jericho. This is about the lethal reality of sin as the Prophet Ezekiel stated "the soul that sinneth, it shall die," and the totally effective cure available in the blood of the Christ.

Fr. Apostolos Hill preaches on what to do when we come upon disagreeable passages in Holy Scripture, such as Abraham's statement to the Rich Man that he has already received his "good things" in his life and can expect nothing more.

Fr. Apostolos Hill addresses the Parable of the Sower and the Seed of the Gospel which is but scarcely proclaimed, having been supplanted by an array of false ones.

During the annual parish festival, Fr. Apostolos Hill addresses the difference between the Church building which patrons toured, and the Church which--or rather, who--were serving them on the festival grounds.

Fr. Apostolos Hill gives a straightforward line-by-line examination of the Gospel message in John 3:16.

Fr. Apostolos Hill homily about the parable of the unforgiving servant.

Fr. Apostolos Hill challenges us with reflections on the Gospel reading of St. Peter's impetuous faith on the Sea of Galilee.

Fr. Apostolos Hill speaks about the importance of being transfigured in Jesus Christ.

Fr. Apostolos Hill shares a homily about the Apostles' Fast and the command to share the Gospel.

Fr. Apostolos Hill shares a tribute to fathers after having buried his father the week before.

Fr. Apostolos Hill preaches about the Living Water that only Christ can give to quench the thirst in the deepest part of humanity.

On the Sunday of St. Mary of Egypt, Fr. Apostolos Hill shares on the Prophet Micah's closing comment on God throwing our sins into the depths of the ocean. As St. Mary's life indicates, we cannot out-sin the measureless mercy of God's love.

"I'm no longer content for our faith to be stuck in a mason jar. Our faith is food, and hungry, starving people need to eat what we uniquely can give them."

Fr. Apostolos speaks about Divine Judgement and the pardon offered to all through the blood of Christ.

Fr. Apostolos Hill shares a homily from the Gospel reading for the Three Holy Hierarchs, Matthew 5:14-19.

The Parable of the Ten Lepers provided an opportunity to examine Levitical laws pertaining to leprosy and to the offering of sacrifices of thanksgiving in the Temple. Fr. Apostolos Hill underscore thes essentiality of the Holy Eucharist as the means whereby we as Orthodox Christians can offer our own sacrifices of Thanksgiving to God.

Fr. Apostolos Hill shares a homily based upon the Gospel reading of the Genealogy of Christ and the adoption of humanity into the family of God.

Fr. Apostolos Hill examines the feast of the Presentation and its application to the theme of collaborating synergetically with God as did the Virgin and her parents in the events of the feast.

Fr. Apostolos Hill shares a homily on this Sunday's Gospel reading, an examination from Holy Scripture of the nature of true healing.

Fr. Apostolos Hill shares a scriptural survey of the demonic horde and what our response to their influence ought to be in this season.

Fr. Apostolos Hill took the opportunity of his and Presvytera Denise's 38th wedding anniversary to offer a homily about marriage in the Orthodox view.

Fr. Apostolos Hill shares a homily on the Gospel reading, an examination of the difference between following or pursuing Jesus and being casually associated with Him.

Fr. Apostolos Hill gives a brief historical review of the excavation of Golgotha and the history of the Precious Cross of Christ, then an examination of the challenge of understanding the Cross in our own time.

Fr. Apostolos Hill shares a homily from the service for the Indiction regarding the Orthodox view of of time and how it is consecrated through the prayer of the Church.

Fr. Apostolos Hill delivers a homily from the commemoration of the 5th Ecumenical Council which condemned the many heresies of Origen of Alexandria and of Universalism in particular.

Fr. Apostolos Hill provides a straightforward expository of the peace that Jesus provides.

Fr. Apostolos Hill delivers an offering on All Saints Sunday, a reflection on the gritty reality of the saints in all three dimensions of life and not the two-dimensional caricatures to which we often reduce them.

Fr. Apostolos Hill delivers a homily about the 1st Ecumenical Council and how only the God-man Jesus Christ is the Bridge that unites Heaven and Earth.

Using some recent surgeries in his eye, Fr. Apostolos Hill explains the importance of staying vigilant to the blindness of our soul.

Fr. Apostolos Hill delivers a homily detailing the bridal imagery running through the Divine Liturgy and the Bridegroom Matins services of the week.

Fr. Apostolos Hill gives a "book report" on the Ladder of Divine Ascent of St. John Climacus and the expectation of progress in our Life in Christ.

Fr. Apostolos Hill delivers a homily at the 200 year anniversary of Greek Independence about the true freedom wrought for us in Christ.

Fr. Apostolos Hill speaks about the Canaanite woman as an example of urgent prayer.

Fr. Apostolos Hill delivers a homily on Zaccheus' response to Jesus proclamation of salvation, the giving away of his earthly wealth and the restoration of those he had swindled.

Fr. Apostolos Hill delivers a homily on the blindness of ingratitude, while wearing a blindfold for effect. This is the perfect reminder for those listening to be grateful for that which is given to them.

Fr. Apostolos Hill delivers a simple homily from the Gospel about touching Jesus during a period of necessary distancing.

Fr. Apostolos Hill offers a Lord of the Rings based depiction of the centrality of the Kingdom of Heaven as the context for our lives in Christ, and a clean break from the various "kingdoms" which vie for our loyalties here below.

Fr. Apostolos Hill gives an exposition on the nature of the Holy Priesthood in the Church.

Fr. Apostolos Hill returns after undergoing eye surgery to reattach the retina in his left eye. He speaks about the times when God allows us to undergo trials to strengthen our Faith in Him and sharpen and correct our priorities.

Fr. Apostolos Hill discusses the phases of crisis and the importance of wisdom to cling to the One who gives us hope.