Fr. Abraam Sleman's Blog

أيها الأحباء في المسيح، إذا كنتم تقرأون هذه الرسالة بقلبٍ مثقل أو جريح - ربما مثقل أو جريح بالألم أو البعد أو الصمت في زواجكم - فاعلموا أنكم لستم وحدكم، ولستم بلا رجاء . يكتب القديس بولس : " وَلَكِنَّ الْكُلَّ مِنَ اللهِ، الَّذِي صَالَحَنَا لِنَفْسِهِ بِيَسُوعَ الْمَسِيحِ، وَأَعْطَانَا خِدْمَةَ الْمُصَالَحَةِ، أَيْ إِنَّ اللهَ كَانَ فِي الْمَسِيحِ مُصَالِحاً الْعَالَمَ لِنَفْسِهِ، غَيْرَ حَاسِبٍ لَهُمْ خَطَايَاهُمْ، وَوَاضِعاً فِينَا كَلِمَةَ الْمُصَالَحَةِ" (2 كورنثوس ٥: ١٨-١٩). قلب الله هو المصالحة. أرسل ابنه ليصالحنا ويعيدنا إليه. وبنفس النعمة، يدعوكم للسير معًا نحو المصالحة والشفاء والتجديد في زواجكم . زواجكم سرٌّ مقدس في الكنيسة، الزواج ليس مجرد اتفاق شخصي أو عقد قانوني. إنه سرٌّ مقدس، سرٌّ يُوحِّد اللهُ الرجلَ والمرأةَ من خلاله، ويُتوَّجان بالمسيح. في الزواج الكنسي، لا يُقدِّم الزوجان مجرد وعودًا شفهية لبعضهما البعض. بل يتلقَّيان المشورة الروحية من الكنيسة، ويُقادان إلى الاتحاد من خلال الصلوات المقدسة والبركات وطقس التتويج . يُختم هذا الاتحاد المقدس بنعمة...

Beloved in Christ, Today, I would like to present to you a message of encouragement and self-examination—one that I pray the Holy Spirit will use to confirm and awaken hearts to the beauty of the Christian life. Our Lord Jesus declared in Matthew 7:21: “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of My Father who is in heaven.” This verse reminds us that the Christian life is not merely about external appearances, but about inward transformation—a life shaped by the presence of God and the work of His Spirit. The signs we are about to reflect on are not in place of the holy sacraments, but rather the fruit that should flow from them. Through baptism, we are united with Christ in His death and resurrection; through the anointing with the holy oil (chrismation), we receive the seal of the Holy Spirit; and through the Holy Eucharist, we partake continually of the life of Christ, abiding in Him and being nourished by ...

Dear beloved in Christ, If you are reading this with a heavy heart—perhaps burdened by pain, distance, or silence in your marriage—please know that you are not alone, and you are not without hope. St. Paul writes: “Now all these things are from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation, namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their transgressions against them, and He has committed to us the word of reconciliation.” — 2 Corinthians 5:18–19 (LSB) God’s heart is reconciliation. He sent His Son to restore us to Himself, and through that same grace, He calls you to walk together toward healing and renewal in your marriage. Your Marriage Is a Holy Sacrament In the Orthodox Church, marriage is not merely a personal agreement or a legal contract. It is a holy sacrament—a sacrament through which a man and a woman are united by God and crowned in Christ. Unlike some traditions where the couple exchang...