With these words, St. Ephraim the Syrian places in front of us the greatest vices to be fought, along with the greatest virtues to be attained. This Prayer is one that is especially prayed during the divine services of Great Lent, as Lent is a time of spiritual reflection and renewal, as we walk towards the Cross and Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. This year, iEcclesia will be featuring this great Prayer as the centre of our Great Lent podcasts – the vices and virtues of Christian Life, and how these influence our journey to the Kingdom.

Today’s first podcast deals with the first two vices. The one reminds us of a lazy Homer Simpson, slouched on his couch, while the other reminds us of the nosy neighbour who we always watch out for.

We sit down with two first-time iEcclesia guests to discuss, Sloth and Idle Curiosity: The Lazy Meddler.

The program begins with the first vice, Sloth. When we hear “sloth”, we think of laziness, idleness, not having any life in us. Host Costa asks our panel if when St. Ephraim the Syrian wrote this prayer, if this what he was talking about? Any sin (or any problem, for that matter) is never alone – it always carries with it other baggage. Our guests discuss what problems (or other sins) does sloth carry with it (including physical, mental and spiritual). Today’s society is one that has everything at its fingertips: remote controls, Wireless Internet, Bluetooth for calling in our cars. Our host asks if sloth is  almost being encouraged in our society today. The program continues with a thought on whether beating sloth is merely getting a personal trainer, or if it is more than engaging in physical activity. Also, the panel examines if it is it ok to relax and “take one’s ease”.

The second part of the program deals with the second vice, Idle Curiosity/Meddling. Whenever people think of “meddling”, the images of people gathered around a coffee table whispering, “Did you hear?” usually surface. Our host asks if the stereotype is right, or if it's just an activity of the elderly. Next, our panel answer the question: why do we meddle? The second part continues with why St. Ephraim the Syrian identifies meddling as such a great vice. Our panel then explores and discusses how the prayer (and meddling itself) takes on a different form with the rise of the information age. Also, for every problem, there has to be a solution (or a number of them). Our host asks what are solutions to this problem, both during Lent and also throughout one’s life. The program concludes with final thoughts.

Rev. Fr.Konstantinos Tsiolas

- Born in Greece and raised in Toronto

- Parish Priest of Sts. Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Church (Surrey, British Columbia)

- Graduate of the Toronto Orthodox Theological Academy

- Previously served as a counsellor at Camp Metamorphosis Ontario and British Columbia

Rev. Fr. Evangelos Aravantinos

- Originally from Montreal, Quebec