Musing On Mission

There comes a time when pruning is necessary to increase the health of your flock. But this is no easy task, says Fr. Gabriel.

Fr. Gabriel muses on the power of the service by which we bring people into the church, as well as the genius of allowing seekers to convert at their own pace.

Fr. Gabriel explains why he just recently quit his job as an artisan baker and why he views this as a positive step in his life.

What do a local mysticism study group, the film Religulous, and the poem Invictus have in common? They all emanate from human ego and pride. Fr. Gabriel Rochelle tackles the heretical conviction that "whatever you can make up to believe religiously is probably okay and may be true."

What can we learn from Catholics in Ireland? Fr. Gabriel explains the Celtic way of evangelism, which he believes is directly applicable to the Orthodox Church.

A mission is not just built, it is literally prayed into existence!

As we near the end of the fast, Fr. Gabriel comments on the tendency in modern Christianity toward a dichotomy of the physical and spiritual as well as belief and actions.

As an artisan baker, Fr. Gabriel has some insight on the relationship between baking and ministry.

Questions from inquirers can be a regular occurrence at a new mission. What we say and how we say it makes a huge difference in the growth of the mission.

Should anyone notice or really care if just one person is missing from Church on any given Sunday?

Today Fr. Gabriel reflects on those moments in life where new territory is explored and we enter a strange land. He also celebrates the naming of the new Mission!

Fr. Gabriel muses on the necessity and value of being bi-vocational as a mission priest.

How do you maneuver in the waters of secularism when you are about a true alternative?

Bringing Orthodoxy to a new community involves a demonstration of the communal nature of salvation.

Returning from a brief vacation, Fr. Gabriel reflects on the old right brain, left brain model and explores the mindset of a priest.

Your relationships in the community matter a great deal not only on their own merit but in your efforts to establish a mission.

Its inevitable when you are starting a mission. There will be times of discouragement. But how should we react?

How should we look at the obvious need for finances when starting a new mission?

Fr. Gabriel even wonders if this is a post-post modern world or back to a modern world! Whatever age we are in, there are unique challenges facing us in planting a mission parish.

How do you unravel the Truths of our faith in a place where there is no history, experience or concept of Orthodoxy?