Shepherd of Souls Pastoral Reflections to Form and Transform Your Life in the Spirit of the Orthodox Christian Faith

See What Happens When You Miss Church!

Fr. Peter shares his homily from the Sunday of St. Thomas.

Just Do It

Fr. Peter shares his homily from the Sunday of the Paralytic.

The Image We Project

Fr. Peter shares his homily from the First Sunday of Lent.

I Bind Myself

Fr. Peter shares his homily from Forgiveness Sunday.

The Pope Has Resigned

Fr. Peter interviews Fr. Jay Finelli about the resignation of Pope Benedict XVI.

What Are Your Gifts?

Fr. Peter shares his homily from the Sunday after Theophany and then introduces three new segments to his podcast.

Christ Is Born!

Fr. Peter shares his homily from this past Christmas Eve.

Making Sense of It All

Fr. Peter reflects on the recent tragedy in Connecticut.

For God So Loved the World

Fr. Peter explains that Christ came to earth for no other reason than to save each one of us.

Taking a Step in Faith

Fr. Peter shares his homily on Jesus walking on the water.

Getting to the Heart of the Problem

Fr. Peter shares his homily from July 29th in which he explains the need for a truly good confession.

Forgive Us Our Trespasses

Fr. Peter explains that forgiveness is the start of where we need to go in our spiritual lives.

Listening to the Heartbeat of God

Fr. Peter catches us up on what has been happening in his life, shares his Pentecost homily, and introduces a new book that he has just completed.

I’m Still Here

Fr. Peter touches base for the first time in many months to share his plans for next year's Great Lent, Holy Week, and Pascha.

Knowing God’s Truth: Part 6

Fr. Peter explains the seventh essential condition for coming to know God's truth and finding life.

Knowing God’s Truth: Part 5

Fr. Peter explains the sixth essential condition for coming to know God's truth and finding life.

Praise the Name of the Lord

Fr. Peter plays the song "Praise the Name of the Lord" by the Boston Byzantine Choir and then shares a follow-up sermon to last week's homily.

The Rapture and the Last Judgment

Fr. Peter shares his homily from Mother's Day and then the Orthodox position on the Rapture and the Last Judgment.

Knowing God’s Truth: Part 4

Fr. Peter explains the fourth essential condition for coming to know God's truth and finding life.

Knowing God’s Truth: Part 3

Fr. Peter explains that, according to Fr. Thomas Hopko, one must pray as he can in order to know God's truth and find life.

Knowing God’s Truth: Part 2

Fr. Peter shares homilies from February 13th and March 6th.

Knowing God’s Truth

Fr. Peter begins a series of homilies on "The Ten Essential Conditions for Coming to Know God's Truth and Finding Life" by Fr. Thomas Hopko.

Happy New Year!

Fr. Peter plays the song "Auld Lang Syne" and then shares his homily from the Sunday after Christmas.

Shepherd of Souls Update

Fr. Peter updates listeners on the status of Shepherd of Souls and then shares his homily from November 14, 2010.

FOCUS North America

Fr. Peter interviews Fr. Justin Matthews, the Executive Director and CEO of FOCUS North America.

Responsibility

Fr. Peter plays "Psalm 150" by the St. Vladimir's Seminary Chorale and then shares an archived homily on "responsibility."

The Eucharist

Fr. Peter shares his homily from September 5th and then plays an episode of the AFR podcast Pilgrims from Paradise on the Orthodox view of the Eucharist.

Classical Learning Resource Center

Fr. Peter shares a recent homily and then plays an episode of Ancient Faith Presents about the Classical Learning Resource Center.

Dormition

Fr. Peter plays the song "Sew My Soul" by Sharmane and then shares his homily on the Dormition of the Theotokos.

The Unrepentant Debtor

Fr. Peter plays the song "I Bow Down" by Sharmane and then shares his homily from the Sunday of the Unrepentant Debtor.

Mosque at Ground Zero?

Fr. Peter interviews Fr. Hans Jacobse, President of the American Orthodox Institute, about the proposed mosque at Ground Zero.

Parishioner

Fr. Peter plays the song "Follow You" by Scott Wilder, shares a homily on what it means to be a parishioner in an Orthodox Church, and plays an episode of the Fr. Lawrence Farley podcast Coffee Cup Commentaries.

Sustainability

Fr. Peter interviews Fr. Greg Christakos, his cohost on the podcast Facing East, about sustainability and local farming.

What It Means to Be Church

Fr. Peter plays the song "Glory to You, Lord" by Scott Wilder, muses on the restful joys of camping, and shares the introduction to his new homily series on what it means to be Church from an Orthodox perspective.

Feast of All Saints

Fr. Peter plays the song "Nothing" by Scott Wilder and then shares his homily on the Feast of All Saints.

Episode 100!

Fr. Peter looks back on three years of recording Shepherd of Souls.

Tradition

Fr. Peter plays the song "Wake Me Up" by Take No Glory and then shares his homily from the Sunday of the Fathers of the First Ecumenical Council.

Unwind

Fr. Peter plays the song "Unwind" by Take No Glory and then shares a recent homily.

Mid-Pentecost

Fr. Peter plays the song "Dream" by Take No Glory and then shares his homily from the Feast of Mid-Pentecost.

Sunday of St. Thomas

Fr. Peter plays the song "Forever" by Take No Glory and then shares his homily from the Sunday of St. Thomas.

Precious and Life-Giving Cross

Fr. Peter plays the hymn "Rejoice, O Bethany," shares his homily on the Life-Giving Cross, and mentions some online resources about the Orthodox Church.

Anointing of the Sick

Fr. Peter plays the Fifteenth Antiphon of Great and Holy Friday and then shares his homily on the Anointing of the Sick.

Fourth Sunday of Great Lent

Fr. Peter plays "The Canon of Holy Saturday" and then shares his homily from the fourth Sunday of Great Lent.

Sunday of Orthodoxy

Fr. Peter plays the song "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing" by the group Shiloh and then shares his homily from the Sunday of Orthodoxy.

The Sunday of Forgiveness

Fr. Peter plays the song "Proclaim His Love" by Mark Bishop Evans and then shares his homily on the theme of forgiveness.

The Last Judgment

Fr. Peter plays the song "Worship You Alone" by Mark Bishop Evans and then shares his homily from the Sunday of the Last Judgment.

The Prodigal Son

Fr. Peter plays a song by Mark Bishop Evans and then shares his recent homily on the Prodigal Son.

Haiti

Fr. Peter interviews a specialist on Haiti from the World Vision charity organization.

Why God Allows Tragedy

Fr. Peter interviews Fr. John Peck about why God would allow tragedies such as the earthquake in Haiti to occur.

The Path to Sainthood

Fr. Peter interviews Dr. Matthew Bunson, Senior Fellow at the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology, about possible sainthood (in the West and the East?) for Pope John Paul II.

Auld Lang Syne

On this New Year's Eve broadcast, Fr. Peter interviews Fr. Jay Finelli, the iPadre.

The Ecumenical Patriarchate

Fr. Peter interviews Fr. Hans Jacobse, President of the American Orthodox Institute, about the role of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Eastern Orthodox Christianity.

O Come All Ye Faithful

Fr. Peter plays the song "There's a Light/O Come All Ye Faithful" by Darrell Smith and then shares his homily from this past November 22nd.

St. Nicholas

Fr. Peter plays the song "It's Christmas Time" by Bree Noble, talks about the true St. Nicholas, and shares his homily from November 29th.

The Season of Advent

Fr. Peter encourages us to remember what we are thankful for, plays the song "Have It All" by Michelle Gold, and shares his homily from November 22nd on the Season of Advent.

85 Years!

Fr. Peter celebrates his parish's 85th year, plays the song "Don't Miss Me Too Much" by Michelle Gold, and shares his homily from November 8th.

Orthodox Unity

Fr. Peter plays the song "You Were There" by Michelle Gold and then shares his homily from November 1, 2009, on Orthodox unity.

To Heaven

Fr. Peter plays the song "To Heaven" by Michelle Gold and then share his homily from October 11, 2009.

Gossip

Fr. Peter plays the song "I Live in Awe of You" by The Flatland Music Group and then shares his homily from July 26th on "gossip."

Push Out into the Deep

Fr. Peter plays the song "Summer's Over" by Jonathan Coulton and then shares his homily on the Gospel passage in which Jesus teaches the disciples from a boat.

The Exaltation of the Holy Cross

Fr. Peter shares his homily on "The Servants and the Vineyard" and then looks back at the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross with Fr. Michael Abdelahad, Priest at St. George Antiochian Orthodox Cathedral in Worcester, Massachusetts.

Nativity of the Theotokos

Fr. Peter shares his homily from September 13th and then looks back at the Feast of the Nativity of the Theotokos with Fr. Michael Abdelahad, Priest at St. George Antiochian Orthodox Cathedral in Worcester, Massachusetts.

Missions and the Church

Fr. Peter interviews Fr. Luke Veronis, pastor of Saints Constantine and Helen Orthodox Church and former missionary to Albania and Kenya.

FOCUS North America

Fr. Peter features a special presentation by Jacob Lee of FOCUS North America, a new Orthodox organization that tackles various social issues in the United States and Canada.

The Four-Way Test

Fr. Peter plays the song "Why Can't I Go Home?" by Bree Noble and then shares a recent homily centered around the Rotary Club's "Four-Way Test."

Extraordinary

Father Peter plays the song "Extraordinary" by Sarah Bauer and then shares a CD that his parish created to promote the Orthodox faith.

Time and Judgment

Father Peter plays the song "Hands" by Joshua Burke and then shares his June 21st homily on the topics of "time" and "judgment."

Feast of All Saints

Fr. Peter plays "See Me Through" by Sarah Bauer and shares his homily from this past June 14th.

The iPadre

Fr. Peter interviews the iPadre, Fr. Jay Finelli, and shares his homily from this past Pentecost Sunday.

Spiritual Blindness

Fr. Peter plays "I Am Yours" by Sarah Bauer, talks a bit about his Russian pilgrimage, and shares his homily from the Sixth Sunday of Pascha.

Mary’s Got My Back

Fr. Peter shares a new song by Sarah Bauer, as well as his homily from the Sunday of the Man Born Blind.

Angels and Demons

Fr. Peter reviews the movie Angels and Demons and shares his homily from May 17th, 2009.

What the Church Believes

What does the Church Believe?

Spiritual Blindness

Are you Spiritually Blind?

Plough with Hope

Plough with Hope

Sunday of St. Thomas

In this episode we celebrate the Sunday of St. Thomas.

Christ is Risen

In this episode we celebrate Easter. Christ is Risen!

Palm Sunday

In this weeks episode we listen to some music for Holy Week in the Orthodox Church.

Preparation for Easter

In this episode we look at some ways to prepare during the lenten season.

Forgiveness Sunday

In this episode we look at Forgiveness Sunday in the Orthodox Church.

Orthodox View of Scripture

In this episode we explore the Orthodox view of Holy Scripture.

Orthodoxy and Salvation

In this episode we explore the Orthodox view Salvation.

March for Life

In this episode we talk about the March for Life.

Orthodox Missionaries

In this episode I interview Floyd Frantz of OCMC on his mission to Romania.

Sacred Gift of Life

In this episode we have an interview with Zoe for Life.

Orthodox Peace Fellowship

In this episode I interview Mr. Alexander Patico of the Orthodox Peace Fellowship.

Resolutions

In this episode we look at resolutions for 2009.

Revelation

In this episode we look at revelation from an Orthodox Christian viewpoint.

Bonus Episode: Orthodox Spirituality Part 2

In this bonus episode I present a second lecture on the theme of Orthodox Spirituality.

What is Faith?

In this episode we explore the definition of faith from an Orthodox Christian perspective.

The Role of Mary in the Church

interview Fr. Nicholas Apostola, Pastor of St. Nicholas Orthodox Church in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts on the role of Mary in the Orthodox Church. This is a continuation of the previous episode on the theme of the Orthodox and the Virgin Mary.

Bonus Episode: Orthodox Spirituality Part 1

Part One of the "Bonus" series (for podcast listeners) on Orthodox Spirituality

Mary worship?

In this episode I ask the question "Do Orthodox Christians worship the Virgin Mary?"

Sources of Orthodoxy

This week I begin a discussion of the sources of Orthodoxy and I continue with music from the Boston Byzantine Choir.

Orthodox Belief

n this weeks episode we begin a discussion of what Orthodox Christians believe. We also feature the music of the Boston Byzantine Choir.

Holistic Medicine 2

Join me this week for another discussion with Holistic Nurse Kim Ladue.

Aultman Hospice Program

In this episode I have a conversation with some friends form Aultman Hospital in Canton, Ohio about their hospice program.

Holistic Medicine 1

In this episode I interview Kim Ladue a Holistic Nurse from Brimfield, Massachusetts.

Church Tour 2

Join me this week as we continue the tour of St. Michael Orthodox Church in Southbridge, Massachusetts.

Church Tour 1

In this episode I take you on a tour of St. Michael Orthodox Church in Southbridge, Massachusetts. (The song is Dream On by Carrie Pettit.)

Campus Ministry

In this episode I interview The Rev. Irving Cummings Chaplain at Harvard University on the topic of the need for campus ministry. (The song is Here and Now by Jessica Smith Wright.)

Highland Games Chaplain

In this episode I have an interview with The Rev. Dr. John Turner of Colonial Williamsburg and Chaplain of the New Hampshire Highland Games. (The song is The Spirit in You by Stephen Billings.)

Episode 28

Episode 27