A Visit from Bishop JOSEPH
A couple of weeks ago, I had my first encounter with Bishop JOSEPH, Diocesan Bishop of Los Angeles and the West, in the Antiochian Archdiocese of the Orthodox Church. He came to visit the church that I attend, St. Barnabas. It was a unique and memorable experience. Bishop JOSEPH seemed to radiate with a love for Christ and genuine care for His Church. This made a deep impression upon me. In the liturgy that morning, I sensed the presence of God like I never have in my life. There was no doubt that Christ was in our midst! As I was in the liturgy, I began to reflect on how different my experience was of the Christian faith in that moment. There were no guitars, no drums, not even a variety of 'worship' expressions going fourth. There was no one who was shaking or having any physical manifestation of the 'holy spirit' as I had witnessed other places. Interestingly enough, however, the Holy Spirit was there. As I was there, I sensed a communion with the faithful saints that have gone before me. I sensed the spirit of the apostles in our midst. I felt the affirmation of God and the affirmation of the Holy Apostles that I was indeed right where I was supposed to be. There was nothing sensational about the moment but rather it was utterly divine. I began to weep and was overwhelmed with emotion--not because of any particular musical tone (though I'm not saying that is bad) but overwhelmed that God was there and there was such a safety in His arms.
I'm not sure if any of what I have said makes sense but I just didn't want to let this experience pass without making note of it on my blog.
A couple of weeks ago, I had my first encounter with Bishop JOSEPH, Diocesan Bishop of Los Angeles and the West, in the Antiochian Archdiocese of the Orthodox Church. He came to visit the church that I attend, St. Barnabas. It was a unique and memorable experience. Bishop JOSEPH seemed to radiate with a love for Christ and genuine care for His Church. This made a deep impression upon me. In the liturgy that morning, I sensed the presence of God like I never have in my life. There was no doubt that Christ was in our midst! As I was in the liturgy, I began to reflect on how different my experience was of the Christian faith in that moment. There were no guitars, no drums, not even a variety of 'worship' expressions going fourth. There was no one who was shaking or having any physical manifestation of the 'holy spirit' as I had witnessed other places. Interestingly enough, however, the Holy Spirit was there. As I was there, I sensed a communion with the faithful saints that have gone before me. I sensed the spirit of the apostles in our midst. I felt the affirmation of God and the affirmation of the Holy Apostles that I was indeed right where I was supposed to be. There was nothing sensational about the moment but rather it was utterly divine. I began to weep and was overwhelmed with emotion--not because of any particular musical tone (though I'm not saying that is bad) but overwhelmed that God was there and there was such a safety in His arms.
I'm not sure if any of what I have said makes sense but I just didn't want to let this experience pass without making note of it on my blog.
