Vestiges of Christianity is a news blog maintained under the direction of Bishop Bryan D. Ouellette, Ph.D., SOSM. Our goal is to reconcile ancient Christian theology with contemporary orthodox Christian practices and understandings. Our praxis carries with it a strong eastern liturgical focus while maintaining a freedom of spirituality that is true to ancient Christian ideology. We welcome anyone who desires to discover gnosis through the expression of early Christianity. We use the word "gnosis" with the intention to reflect its original meaning of soteriological knowledge, mystical wisdom and spiritual realization. While we encourage a working philosophical comprehension of Classical Gnosticism from antiquity, we are not a Gnostic or reconstructionist church. Our theology is orthodox, our approach, furthermore, is mystically liberating.
Showing posts with label Bryan Ouellette. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bryan Ouellette. Show all posts
On this brand new edition of Vestiges of Christianity, Bishop Bryan Ouellette will revisit the authentic metaphysical properties of the subject of reincarnation and explore its compatibility with Christianity. Is reincarnation an erroneous myth spawned out from eastern religion or can it be reconciled with Christian soteriological dependence upon having one life and one life only?
In 1954, a Republican Congress, along with a Republican president, Dwight D. Eisenhower, passed a piece of legislation that prohibits federally tax-exempt 501(c)(3)'s from participating in a political campaign [either in support of or opposition to any candidate]. In particular, if ministers were to endorse or oppose a candidate from the pulpit, they would put at risk their tax-exempt status. It would be called the Johnson Amendment and it is still in force to this day.
With the now dramatic shift in political perspective, these old conservative values no longer hold true, as many Republicans want the Johnson Amendment repealed. If they succeed, the line between Church and State will blur.
Is the Amendment a bad thing for Christianity or does it protect Christianity from inching back ever closer into the realm of theocracy? Find out what Bishop Bryan Ouellette and Deacon Thomas Moreland have to say about it on this edition of Vestiges of Christianity.
Last week, Bishop Bryan Ouellette and Deacon Thomas Moreland outlined the evils inherent within the Women's March movement and explained how closely it relates to the atrocity of abortion. This week they discuss how the Church attempts to help those who have had an abortion reconcile themselves to God on both an emotional and spiritual level.
If you or anyone you know has participated in an abortion, you will not want to miss this show.
Today, on this special two-segment episode of Vestiges of Christianity, Bishop Bryan Ouellette welcomes Deacon Thomas Moreland to the show to discuss the results of the presidential election. It has certainly been one of the most controversial elections in U.S. history. How should the world respond now that the results are in?
During the second segment, they will discuss the controversial new Louisiana law that protects priests from being mandatory reporters for child abuse, thus protecting the sanctity of the Seal of Confession. They will talk in detail about the nature of the Seal of Confession and the Sacrament of Reconciliation in general. Should priests be manditory reporters? Why is the Seal of Confession such a big deal? Find out today!
Today, Bishop Bryan Ouellette offers some insight into what a Christian's role should be regarding the upcoming, and very controversial, presidential election. He will look at the primary issues involved (abortion and health care) and discuss how Christians should approach them. He will also discuss what role prayer plays in this process, including how much God involves himself in the affairs of men.
On this new series of Vestiges of Christianity, Bishop Bryan Ouellette takes questions he receives from the audience through email/social media and answers them on the air. Using both a theological and mystical framework, Bishop Bryan provides compelling answers to your challenging inquiries.
This edition will be be tackling the following two questions:
1. Will the Devil ever be completely destroyed?
2. Should Christian teenagers have boyfriends/girlfriends?
Exorcist Bishop Bryan D. Ouellette of the Sacred Order of St. Michael the Archangel (Order of Exorcists) and Presiding Bishop of the autocephalous Holy Nicholean Catholic Church continues his previous lecture on Exorcism by breaking down the identity of Satan on a theological, mythological, and esoteric level. By building upon the mystical foundation of what he calls "archetypal patterns," Bishop Bryan will expose Satan for what he really is. Once the mask is off, will we discover Lucifer the Fallen Angel or ultimately come face to face with the darkness within ourselves?
On this final segment of this "Who is Satan" series, Bishop Bryan provides his final contention that ultimately answers this very question. We have seen how the conventional theology rectifies the many problems of Satan's fundamental identity. We have also explored the more enlightened esoteric/mystical considerations. Now we draft our response to the ancient question of Who Satan is and where he came from.
Last time Bishop Bryan introduced you to the problematic translations that gave rise to both Jesus and Satan being referred to under the same Biblical reference (i.e., satan {Hebrew for accuser} lucifer {Latin for Morning Star/Light-bearer} with the lower cases intentional). On Part 2, he will discuss the theological, esoteric, and mystical implications of this seemingly benign issue of semantics. Is the traditional interpretation correct? Is this just a play on Satan wanting to be worshiped like God? Is it simply an awkward translation problem? Or is there something deeper at work that only a reference to Hindu emanations can clarify? Find out!
Bishop Bryan discusses both the conventional and esoteric views on the nature of the Holy Trinity. Who is the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit? How do they relate to each other? Can Hinduism and Gnosticism shed some light on the nature of this Christian reality? Find out on this episode of Vestiges of Christianity.
Upon entering the Easter season, Bishop Bryan reflects upon the Resurrection of Jesus. How does the Resurrection of Christ impart its Grace into our mortal bodies so as to make it possible for us to enter into the New Heaven and the New Earth? Is this blessing accomplished immediately upon death for those saved in Christ or is it more complicated than that? Find out the esoteric answer to these questions and more on this edition of Vestiges of Christianity.
On this installment of Vestiges of Christianity, Bishop Bryan Ouellette engages the esoteric side of the nature of sin. Continuing his thoughts from last week, he will discuss how we can best avoid falling into the trap of sin. If things like self-defense, even to protect a greater good, remain as sinful actions, how can one protect oneself against the dangers inherent in always "turning the other cheek?" And what of culpability? How can we be guilty of sin and yet exempt from its consequences under certain conditions? Find out on this edition of Vestiges of Christianity.
Last time, Bishop Bryan discussed the Levitical prohibition against tattoos and offered a stern warning to those who chose to have one. In this episode, Bishop Bryan elaborates further on Leviticus 19:26-31
"26‘You shall not eat anything with the blood, nor practice divination or soothsaying. 27‘You shall not round off the side-growth of your heads nor harm the edges of your beard. 28‘You shall not make any cuts in your body for the dead nor make any tattoo marks on yourselves: I am the LORD. 29‘Do not profane your daughter by making her a harlot, so that the land will not fall to harlotry and the land become full of lewdness. 30‘You shall keep My sabbaths and revere My sanctuary; I am the LORD. 31‘Do not turn to mediums or spiritists; do not seek them out to be defiled by them. I am the LORD your God."
Is divination evil? What was meant by "defilement" when it pertains to seeking the assistance of a medium or spiritist? If tattoos are so dangerous, wouldn't tarot cards be just as harmful? These subjects and more today on Vestiges of Christianity!
(Please note: Times and dates of shows subject to change)
Harmless popular body art or hidden sorcery? Bishop Bryan Ouellette will discuss the esoteric implications and consequences of tattoos. Leviticus 19:28 specifically prohibits the acquiring of a tattoo under Jewish law. Was this prohibition just an antiquated Old Testament rule or was there a deeper, esoteric reason behind it? And what of the "Mark of the Beast" discussed in Revelation 13:16? Is this related to Leviticus 19? Find out today on Vestiges of Christianity!
Bishop Bryan Ouellette discuses the soteriology of the Holy Nicholean Catholic Church and offers a complete esoteric Christian perspective on how one successfully enters into the Kingdom of Heaven promised by Jesus Christ.
Prepare yourselves while Bishop Bryan takes you through the processes of death and dying as he has studied it through his work in paranormal investigation, exorcism ministry, and mystical observation. Does reincarnation play a part in the afterlife and if so, how does the Christian reconcile with it? How does the Buddhist Doctrine of Dependent Origination play a useful part in understanding death from a Christian perspective? What's the actual difference between a spirit and a soul? This and more, today on Vestiges of Christianity.
This episode is not intended for all audiences. Listener discretion is advised.
Bishop Bryan takes on the subject of purgatory, limbo, and ghosts from an Esoteric Christian perspective. What is purgatory exactly? Do ghosts really exist or are they demons in disguise? Do unbaptized children end up forever in limbo? This and more on today's edition of Vestiges of Christianity.
Bishop Bryan Ouellette discusses why he chose to become an "Independent Catholic" and what function such autocephalous Catholic churches serve. Many conventional Roman Catholics seem quite perplexed when then encounter the ISM (Independent Sacramental Movement). The immediate assumption is that such churches are not "really" Catholic. Some fear the authenticity of the clerical Orders held by their clergy, while yet others maintain that the Church of Rome holds a monopoly on the word "Catholic," stating that it alone can decide what or who the term can be applied to.
These questions answered and more today on Vestiges of Christianity.
On October 17, 2015, EWTN's National Catholic Register published an article by Connie Rossini entitled: "Why Centering Prayer Falls Short of True Intimacy With Christ." Through a series of poorly thought out refutations against Fr. Thomas Keating, one of the Roman Catholic Church's leading advocates for Centering Prayer, Rossini argues that Centering Prayer bears little resemblance to what mystics like St. Teresa of Avila experienced.
In response to this position, Bishop Bryan works to develop a more enlightened understanding of Centering Prayer by discussing why it is an essential practice to those who seek a deeper relationship with Christ. Not only is Centering Prayer a vital tool to the esoteric Christian, it is something the conventional Church cannot afford to do without.
This episode of Vestiges of Christianity aired as another test show. It had no sound issues reported. It would seem the sound problems from last week have been fully resolved.
+Bryan D. Ouellette, Ph.D., SOSM is a semi-retired bi-ritual autocephalous eastern Orthodox/western Catholic bishop and exorcist for the Order of St. Michael the Archangel also currently offering private instruction in Gedo Zen, meditation, mysticism, prayer, and Christian esotericism. Through his commitment to the clerical life, Bishop Ouellette has brought the theological diversity of the early Church to our contemporary world. Formulating a specific praxis, he has established programs for his monks, clergy, and students that offer a direct and tangible relationship with God, one that is based primarily on experience rather than on a faith in what is often left to unjustified speculation.
Bishop Ouellette is a modern, revolutionary Catholic bishop with an unyielding respect for ancient tradition; yet, he advocates strongly for the evolution of the Church and for that of spirituality itself. He presently holds the Office of Patriarch for the esoteric religious organizations: the Holy Nicholean Catholic and the Holy Imperial Russian Orthodox Churches. These Churches function internally, behind the Christian cloister, hidden far away within the heart of contemplative monasticism.
We are an autocephalous Patriarchate operating under the pastoral apostolic care of Sovereign Patriarch Nicholas III. Our tradition exists to heal the wounds of division so prevalent today within the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church. Our special charism is to inspire a revival of ecumenism that respects all individual traditions of the Body of Christ, the Church.
Holy Imperial Russian Orthodox Church
The Holy Imperial Russian Orthodox Church is an autocephalous reestablishment of the true Imperial Church of Rusland that existed before the fall of the Russian Tsars in 1917. Based on more than 1,000 years of tradition, our church wishes to reawaken the image of Russian Christianity founded upon the inspirations of Tsar Peter the Great, whose current heir, Mikhail Ivan Freyovich Yngling-Romanov {Tsar Peter Alexander Mikhailovich Romanov}, is the first to appoint a Patriarch to the Imperial Church since the 18th Century.
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