Music Monday: More Chant
I’m feeling pretty basic today, so here’s an hour of Byzantine Chant:
What does it mean to “gird up your loins”?
In Scripture the reader is often told to “gird up your loins”, but what does that actually mean?
“…Thus to tell someone to ‘gird up their loins’ was to tell them to get ready for hard work or battle. It was the ancient way of saying ‘man up!’…”
David Bentley Hart
A couple of months ago a reader mentioned David Bentley Hart, an Eastern Orthodox Christian philosopher. I’ve been listening to his lectures online and been quite enjoying them:
Friday Frivolity: The Offering

Did the Apostles screw up when they appointed Matthias?
A while ago we were studying Colossians in Bible study. In preparation for this I downloaded sermons and podcasts on this epistle of Paul to aid me in my study. One such MP3 I downloaded was a sermon series by a Protestant pastor in which he said something that rather shocked me.
During his presentation, he spoke for some time about the apostleship of St. Paul. He then spoke about the replacement of Judas following the Resurrection:
Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet… In those days Peter stood up…and said, “Brethren, the scripture had to be fulfilled…concerning Judas who was guide to those who arrested Jesus. For he was numbered among us, and was allotted his share in this ministry… So one of the men who have accompanied us…must become with us a witness to his resurrection.”
And they put forward two…and they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthi′as; and he was enrolled with the eleven apostles. – Acts 1:12-26
What shocked me was that, after recounting these events from the Acts of the Apostles, the pastor said that the Apostles made a mistake! He claimed that it was not Matthias who should have been selected, but they should have waited until the conversion of Paul! Wait…what?!
Wise Words On Wednesday: Slavery or liberty?

“To yield and give way to our passions is the lowest slavery, even as to rule over them is the only liberty”
– St Justin Martyr

