Blog: Fr. Robert

Strawberries as Ground Cover

2016-06-01 by Fr. Robert

I started a gardening experiment last summer.

After my strawberries fruited and started sending out runners, I put peat pots underneath the runners. This way once they rooted in the pots I could transplant them easily.

My strawberry bed was full so I had no real place in the garden for the runners but I had two empty spaces in my landscaping that needed some full sun ground cover. So I transplanted the runners into one of the empty spots as a test.

The runners rooted very well this fall and this spring have filled in the empty spot very nicely. Here is the bonus I was able to pick almost a quart of strawberries from my ground cover this morning.

Needless to say the other empty spot in the landscaping will be filled in with runners this fall.

strawberries

Wax Thread Prayer Rope

2016-05-31 by Fr. Robert

I ordered several prayer ropes for the church several weeks ago from Greece on ebay and they came today.

Besides the standard prayer ropes I also ordered a ten pack of wax thread wrist prayer ropes. This is the type of prayer rope my wife wears and I want to give it a try. While I like and have always used the traditional prayer ropes, I am always misplacing them because I have to take it off for some reason and then cannot remember where I put it.

These wax thread ones are waterproof and designed to slide onto your wrist like a bracelet. I am hoping that I can leave this one on during menial tasks and not lose it.

When you receive them they are very small but they are designed to stretch over your wrist. Below is a video I found explaining on how to put them on.

Note:The person on the video says you never need to take the prayer rope off. I hope his point is that you can wear it all the time. Because of course you need to take it off to use it to pray.

A Psalter for Prayer: Pocket Edition

2016-05-31 by Fr. Robert

A Psalter for Prayer has been out for several years but a new format has been released this year. A Psalter for Prayer is a version of Coverdale's translation of the Psalter but it has been edited to agree with the Greek text of the Septuagint.

A Psalter for Prayer is a great translation of the Psalms but the Pocket Edition makes it even better. The original edition suffers from what I call being home bound or church bound. No, I not talking about the binding. I am talking about the size. The original edition is big and heavy. Great when using it during church services but not something you can carry with you.

The pocket edition solves that proble. Small enough to fit in your pocket, purse, or backpack but the print is still readable.

So if you are looking for a great English translation of the Psalter that is portable look no further.

It is available from the Jordanville bookstore.

Which Greek Pronunciation to use?

2016-05-30 by Fr. Robert

The first question I had on my journey to relearning Koine Greek was which pronunciation to use? In terms of Koine Greek the two most popular today are Erasmian and modern. When I first took Greek almost eighteen years ago Erasmian was by far the most common. Almost every resource and text book used Erasmian. Today I am starting to see more resources available using modern pronunciation. So this go around I have a choice.

This time I choose modern for two reasons.

The first being the parish I am priest at is dedicated to St. Nectarios and my wife and I would love to do a pilgrimage to Agenia. So with that in mind already knowing modern Greek pronunciation puts me up a bit when I go to learn some conversational Greek.

The second being I have some friends that are Greek speakers so if I need to get some help learning they certainly will be using modern pronunciation.

My choice was based strictly personal reasonings. Your choice may be different.

Relearning Koine Greek

2016-05-29 by Fr. Robert

This summer I am taking time to relearn Koine Greek. The curriculum I am using is The Basics of Biblical Greek by Bill Mounce. I will let you know how it goes.