Paul Hand
Paul Hand
To Those Who Knock
It was May of 2014. I was staying Memorial Day weekend at All Saints of America Orthodox Church in De Queen, AR. I woke up early Saturday morning to take a day trip. 30 miles in, I was traveling 60mph approaching Broken Bow, OK when my engine started to sputter and the tachometer bounced forebodingly […]
How your own musical taste can be an oppressor or liberator
My favorite movie ever since I first saw it in high school is “O Brother Where Art Thou?” I bought the soundtrack and, as all millennials did in their teens, read every page of the booklet in the CD case. From page to page, as it tells the story of the songs, events, and characters […]
Why I’m Not Tempted to Apostate
I hope this title is appreciated, and that the article is appreciated at least half as much as the title. I enjoy approaching serious subjects with a casual, Kermit the Frog tea sip before I get serious. We are all naturally inclined to think that the proof is in the pudding. As Occam’s Razor interprets […]
Of Might and Memories
Never Forget. As I write this, an estimated 5.3 million posts have used the #memorialday tag on Instagram alone. As it always follows a Sunday, a quick “Memorial Day sermons” Google search yielded over 7.5 million hits. A search for “Good Friday sermons” yielded 10.3 million, much of which is surely international, for a modest […]
Two tactics for the disenfranchised voter
Another four years have passed and here we are once again, most of us dreading being forced to vote for the “lesser evil.” If you already know your choice and are happy about it, keep scrolling. However, if you’re like the powerless majority of Americans, I hope you will consider my two personal poll rules […]
A Journey to Eastern Christianity
The following is a talk which my departed grandmother invited me to give for her Sunday School class at First United Methodist Shreveport and which, due to some confusion, was given in its entirety to the wrong class. Because of that, I have never shared it until now. The talk zones in on Fr. Seraphim […]
From Confusion to Communion
“When the Most High came down and confused the tongues, He divided the nations. But when He distributed the tongues of fire He called all to unity. Therefore with one voice we glorify the All Holy Spirit.” Tribalism is deeply embedded in human DNA. I have read before of studies showing that when people are […]
The Teacher is a true master who can use even the strangest of tools
My faith is Orthodox Christianity. The life that led me to it was hardly orthodox (small o), nor was it anything special. Perhaps even less so is the world I have lived through since I came onto the Path. The Teacher is a true master who can use even the strangest of tools. Therefore I […]