“We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ”
Eve (Genesis 3:2-3)
I had no human interaction for over 70 years until I met and was later buried by the father of monasticism.
St. Paul the Hermit (Anba Bola)
_________ love has no one than this, than to ______ down one’s life for his ________. (John 15:13)
Greater
lay
friends
"Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important."
C.S. Lewis
Hey, Zaccheus here-- I would really like to see Jesus of Nazareth but unfortunately the crowds are massive and I am short of stature. I think if I climb this tree, I may have a shot! If I need to tell this story to someone in the future, I should probably know what kind of tree this is. Can you remind me?
Sycamore Tree
“Let no man’s heart fail because of him; your servant will go and fight with this Philistine.”
David (1 Samuel 17:32)
Many people refer to me as the Samaritan woman.
Saint Photini
And above all things have fervent ______ for one another, for “love will cover a _______ of sins.” (1 ______ 4:8)
love
multitude
Peter
"Whoever has not experienced temptation cannot enter into the kingdom of heaven."
Saint Antony the Great
Hey Noah here-- now that you all know what type of wood I will be using for this ark, I am trying to estimate how long this will take to build. Any ideas?
120 years
“Son, why have You done this to us? Look, Your father and I have sought You anxiously.”
St. Mary (Luke 2:48)
I was a defender of the faith who was exiled on 5 separate occasions.
Saint Athanasius
He who does not ______ does not ______ God, for God is love.(1 ______ 4:8)
love
know
John
"The primary goal in the education of children is to teach, and to give the example of, a virtuous life."
Saint John Chrysostom
Saint Paul here-- oh look, its my old Pharisee teacher! Hopefully he remembers to call me by my new name and not my old name, Saul. What was his name again? Oh, this is embarrassing!
Gamaliel
“Do you still hold fast to your integrity? Curse God and die!”
Job's wife (Job 2:9-10)
The view from up here is really nice-- hey! Jesus, Moses, Peter, James and John are all here!
Elijah
By this all will ______ that you are My _______, if you have ______ for one another.” (John 13:35)
know
disciples
love
Imagine that the world is a circle, that God is the center, and that the radii are the different ways human beings live. When those who wish to come closer to God walk towards the center of the circle, they come closer to one another at the same time as to God. The closer they come to God, the closer they come to one another. And the closer they come to one another, the closer they come to God.
Dorotheos of Gaza
"One day he is collecting our taxes and pocketing extra for himself, the next day he is a known disciple of the Lord and giving money to the poor, performing miracles, everything-- in my old life as a part of my radical group, he wouldn't be alive if I saw him in public, but now we are on the same team as disciples of Christ! Thank Jesus!"
Who is speaking and who is he speaking about?
Simon the Zealot, speaking about Matthew the tax-collector
“Speak, for Your servant hears.”
Samuel (1 Samuel 3:10)
I was a disciple of St. John the Beloved and was ordained the bishop of Smyrna. Later I was burned at the stake and when the fire failed to consume me, I was stabbed to death, making me a martyr.
St. Polycarp of Smyrna
But ________ all these things put on love, which is the bond of ___________. (___________ 3:14)
above
perfection
Colossians
No one who is in this world will deny that evils exist. What, then, do we say? That evil is not a living and animated substance, but a condition of the soul which is opposed to virtue and which springs up In the slothful because of their falling away from good.
Saint Basil the Great
Saul here-- look at my son being best friends with the enemy! Why would he do this to me? The betrayal! Not as bad of a betrayal as David will later commit as history will testify. It's hard to tell if Bathsheeba is even really sad for the death of her husband... What a great warrior he was! What was his name again?
Uriah