After months of deep immersion in my Master of Divinity program, I find myself writing again. The pause was necessary—absorbing, integrating, and wrestling with the content of five challenging, beautiful courses left little space for my own words to emerge. But now, after passing Intro to Theological Formation, Jewish Mysticism, Esoteric Christianity, Eastern Mysticism, and New Cosmology, I sense the words flowing back, shaped by study and by Spirit.
A Season of Study
Each course brought me face-to-face with traditions, wisdom, and mysteries that have stretched my soul.
- Intro to Theological Formation laid the foundation. It was less about “what to think” and more about “how to hold”—how to approach study with prayer, humility, and a willingness to be formed. One line from my paper still rings true: “Theology is not a ladder we climb toward God, but a lens polished by love through which God reveals Godself to us.”
- Jewish Mysticism awakened a deep resonance in me. The study of the Kabbalah, and especially the Tree of Life, became more than academic. Mapping the sefirot, I recognized the pathways not just as mystical architecture but as reflections of my own inner journey. In one paper I wrote: “The Tree of Life is not a diagram to master, but a mirror—each sefirah revealing both the wholeness of God and the fragments within myself longing for integration.”
- Esoteric Christianity reminded me of the hidden heart of my own tradition. Beneath dogma lies a wisdom that seeks transformation, not mere belief. I wrestled with the Gnostic voice that whispers through history, one that challenges and liberates.
- Eastern Mysticism drew me into silence. Studying Buddhism, Taoism, and Hindu philosophy, I found myself less inclined to write and more drawn to breathe. In my reflections, I wrote: “The East does not ask me to explain God but to dissolve into God, to release the grip of ego and allow the Eternal to breathe me.”
- New Cosmology expanded the horizon. To weave the story of the universe with the story of faith is to recognize the Christ who is both Alpha and Omega, the Cosmic Christ, whose song has been reverberating since the Big Bang.
I am also thinking of writing more in depth on each of these courses because of how they affected me deeply, each in different ways, and sharing them allows me to synthesize everything more fully as well as sharing these insights and experiences with others along the way.
A Conversation on Ordination
Somewhere between writing papers and chanting prayers, I sat down with Father Jorge. We spoke about ordination—about the path ahead. The plan is clear: Subdeacon after 10 courses (I’ve now completed 7 toward that goal), the Diaconate after the next 10, and then, finally, the priesthood after the last 9.
What makes me smile is the timing. There is a possibility that I will be ordained Subdeacon on the Feast of Theophany—which in Orthodoxy is actually the Feast of Nativity. That was the very day I entered into the Orthodox Church. A little synchronicity, a divine wink, that reassures me I am walking the right path.
Solaya Fellowship
Alongside study, something new has been born. Together with LeeAnn, I have founded Solaya Fellowship. Its purpose is to hold sacred space for growth, healing, and community, weaving together the threads of ancient wisdom and modern practice.
Already, we are offering classes at the Shrine of Holy Wisdom, a place that has become a spiritual home for me. My own offering, Sacred Resonance, blends sound, vibration, chant, and song with crystal singing bowls—transforming worship and healing into one embodied act. The bowls sing, and in their resonance I hear echoes of the very cosmology I study: creation itself humming, the Spirit vibrating through every particle of existence.
Returning to the Page
Now, as I write again, I recognize that study and practice are not separate from writing. They are its source. Every paper, every chant, every conversation, every resonance is a seed. And writing is how I gather them—how I weave together my journey into a tapestry I can share.
This is only the beginning.