I enjoyed reading your responses to the annual AFIELD Notes Survey. In the event you are still hoping to provide your own thoughts, I will keep it live through the rest of today. The common theme from most of those who responded is that you enjoy reading my Perspective pieces. I admit this came as a bit of a surprise. I had a feeling that the photography was popular, and I personally love the fiction, but to hear you’ve enjoyed my often erratic mix of perspective gives me a bit of visibility on what brings you back to substack. In the interest of your interests, I figured I would start this next cycle of AFIELD Notes with a piece about how I’ve found something new in my life in the oldest of places.
I stood with a small group of people for about an hour. Byzantine chant and our hymns rose with the twisting flow of incense. We looked upon an icon of the Theotokos (Mary) and her young child, Jesus. Around us, the eyes of the saints looked on and scenes from the history of Christianity reminded us of the narratives that ascended to become the story of our time, of all time, of whatever there is beyond time. It was beautiful, it was enlivening. It was a strange way to spend a Friday evening. But since becoming a catechumen in the Antiochian Orthodox Church, strange is the new normal.
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to AFIELD Notes to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.