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Archive for the OCN category
St. Brendan the Navigator
Posted on Tuesday, May 13, 2008 at 7:46 PM by Jason Barker
Fr. Christopher Metropulos has an interesting interview with Terry Mattingly about St. Brendan the Navigator. I mention this not only because it is an interesting conversation, but also because St. Brendan - whose feast day is May 16th - is my son's name saint.
You can learn more about St. Brendan, and order an icon, from Come & See Icons.
Posted in OCN, Online Resources
OCN Matching Grant Extended
Posted on Friday, May 02, 2008 at 10:44 AM by Jason Barker
Fr. Christopher Metropulos has announced that the Orthodox Christian Network's Pascha Appeal has been extended:
I hope you'll be as excited as I am to learn that the Orthodox Christian Network has received more than $35,000 in donations from supporters like you during this Paschal season, all of which will go directly to EXPANDING Orthodox Christian programming on the radio, the Internet and television!
That's truly amazing, especially when you consider that the vast majority of those donations came from individuals who gave $25 or $50. I believe this demonstrates the power of what we can do when we join together, and it proves that YOUR GIFT – no matter how large or small – REALLY DOES make a difference!
But the good news doesn't end there: I've just confirmed that we are able to EXTEND our Matching Campaign, so your Paschal donation can still be MATCHED dollar for dollar. With your support, we can continue to SHARE CHRIST'S JOYFUL RESURRECTION with thousands all around the world. Please join us. Every single gift makes a difference. Thank you so much!
Click here to donate.
Posted in OCN
Tools for Collecting Orthodox Quotes
Posted on Monday, March 24, 2008 at 2:41 PM by Jason Barker
The work I do requires a fair amount of organization - I have numerous different projects on which I'm working at any given time for different organizations, departments and/or ministries. I've therefore developed reasonable (for me) systems of organizing my time, my different projects, the resources for the different projects, and resources (such as Lingo scripts for Director) that I share between projects.
An area in which I tend to fail dismally, however, is in organizing my notes - and particularly quotations - that I use in articles and other documents I write. For some inexplicable reason, when writing I tend to simply have teetering piles of books stuffed with bookmarks on my desk - and a large number of websites bookmarked in my browser - but I have seldom gotten around to actually putting quotes and citations in some type of database or filing system. Thus, when I need a quote or reference that I used in a previous publication, I need to remember the specific publication, find it, and then read it to find the needed information (and too often I find that I misremembered the publication, forcing me to go through several works until I find the information).
My primary New Year's resolution for this year was therefore to turn around this abominable practice and develop a recording system that will enable me to easily find quotations on a topic. I was fortunate to use a type of application that works well with the way my mind organizations information; you might also find it to be helpful.
TREE-STYLE EDITORS
The application to which I'm referring is a tree-style text editor (you can also find them called such things as tree-view information organizers, tree-view PIMs, etc.). When working on the application for the Be Transformed study of Romans, I needed some way of tracking the location of objects on screens, the specific screens on which specific articles and indices appeared, and the location of individual objects (such as specific scripts) from within the cast of several thousand objects that are used in the application.
The free tree-style editor KeyNote (for Windows) served my needs very well: I created nodes for such things as the templates for the different types of screens, and then child nodes for each individual type of screen. Then, when I needed to find the location of an object on a screen, I could simply open the node for templates, and then look at the child node on which I had listed the object locations within that template. I created similar sets of parent/child nodes for articles and for cast members.
If I still used Windows as my primary OS I would still be using KeyNote. I eventually switched to a Mac, however, and I wanted something that would run on my Mac without necessitating the time and resource drain of continually running Windows in Parallels simply so that I could take notes. I eventually settled on Jreepad, a multi-platform application (it requires Java). Jreepad lacks many of KeyNote's features - particularly the ability to work with rich text (Jreepad uses only plain text) - but it saves files in the same format as the commercial application Treepad (which is a Windows app, but is supposedly coming to the Mac this year), and I like the fact that it allows me and others to use the files on both Windows and OS X.
Many readers may prefer Jreepad because, while it's more limited than KeyNote, it is also significantly easier to use than KeyNote: there are only eight simple commands, each of which has its own button in the application's toolbar.
SAVING AND ORGANIZING ORTHODOX QUOTES
I'll use Jreepad - which both PC and Mac users can use - as an example of how you can collect and organize quotations from Church Fathers and modern Orthodox writers. The image below displays the key elements I'll be discussing.
You'll start in the organizational tree by naming the main topic to be covered in this file: in my Jreepad file I simply named this topic "Patristic Quotes" (even though I also include modern quotations). Every topic that you will add to this collection will be added by clicking the "Add Below" button.
After creating a node for an individual topic (you can see my continually-growing list of topics in the left sidebar of the above image), you will then add a child to that topic. I organize the "children" of my topics in one of two ways: by subtopic, or by author. A huge topic - like Christ - will have a number of subtopics; a smaller topic - like Annunciation - will probably not have subtopics, and thus the first level of children will be the names of authors of various quotes. Further levels of children can be created as necessary.
To see an example of this, in the above graphic look at the node for "Annunciation" (which, at the time I am writing this, we will celebrate tomorrow). At this time I only have a quotation from St. Romanos the Melodist about the Annunciation; there is therefore only one child for Annunciation node. I also only have one quote from St. Romanos, and thus there is only one child of his node; if I had two hymns from him, then there would be two children of the "St. Romanos the Melodist" node.
If there is a subtopic that becomes so big that it needs to be made into its own topic, I can simply use the "Out" button to move the node further to the left (which also changes its level in the organizational hierarchy from a "child" node to a "parent" node). Conversely, when I create a topic that I later decide should instead be a subtopic of another topic, then I can use the "Up" button to move the lesser topic's node directly beneath the node for the greater topic, and then use the "In" button to move the lesser topic to the right (and thereby change it into a "child" of the greater topic).
This is the basic process I use for organizing and saving Orthodox quotations. The specific application commands will be different if you use KeyNote instead of Jreepad (or any other similar program), but the basic organizational strategy you use will be similar.
SOURCES FOR ORTHODOX QUOTES
There are, of course, many excellent translations of patristic works and modern works from St. Vladimir's Seminary Press and others that you can obtain from such sources as Light & Life, Conciliar Press and Eighth Day Books. There are also good modern Orthodox periodicals, like Conciliar Press' AGAIN magazine and The Handmaiden.
There are also websites with free translations of patristic works. In addition to the Christian Classics Ethereal Library's public domain collection of The Early Church Fathers, Matthew Steenberg's Monachos site has quite a few translations and articles.
I also recommend Fr. Stephen Freeman's Glory to God for All Things blog which, in addition to containing Fr. Stephen's valuable thoughts, also frequently contains quotations from ancient and modern Orthodox writers. Fr. Stephen also hosts the Glory to God podcast for Ancient Faith Radio, and frequently appears on Theologically Thinking on the Orthodox Christian Network.
Posted in Ancient Faith, Miscellaneous, OCN
Support the OCN
Posted on Friday, March 14, 2008 at 2:59 PM by Jason Barker
The Orthodox Christian Network has announced a matching donation program for Great Lent:
Thanks to a challenge grant from a private donor, your tax-deductible, Lenten gift to OCN of $25, $50, $100 or more will be matched DOLLAR FOR DOLLAR -- and it will help to share the light of Orthodoxy with the world! Please prayerfully consider taking advantage of this unique opportunity today. Call us at 877-273-2348 for more information or respond online.
Posted in OCN
Orthodox Teen Talk Online
Posted on Friday, January 25, 2008 at 1:31 PM by Jason Barker
The Orthodox Christian Network, with partners including members of Teen SOYO, is launching a new audio program called Orthodox Teen Talk Online, or OTTO. The program will involve Orthodox teens - guided by Fr. Christopher Metropulos and Emmy Louvaris - discussing issues involving contemporary teen life.
An MP3 of the first episode is available here.
Posted in OCN, Orthodox News, Youth Department
Sacred Gift of Life and Share the Light Sunday
Posted on Thursday, January 17, 2008 at 8:32 AM by Jason Barker
This Sunday - January 20, 2008 - is the date for two important events.
That is the date for the annual Sacred Gift of Life Sunday, in which members of Teen SOYO lead members of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America in protecting the unborn. You can find resources here.
January 20th is also the date for the annual Share the Light Sunday to support the work of the Orthodox Christian Network. You can find resources here.
Posted in OCN, Orthodox News, Youth Department
OCN Live Video Webcast
Posted on Thursday, January 03, 2008 at 12:37 PM by Jason Barker
The Orthodox Christian Network will host another live video webcast from 5-6 PM (EST) on Sunday, January 13th, to promote Share the Light Sunday (which occurs this year on January 20th).
Posted in OCN, Orthodox News
OCN to Stream Web TV Christmas Special
Posted on Friday, December 07, 2007 at 3:29 PM by Jason Barker
On Sunday, December 9th, from 4-6 PM (EST), the Orthodox Christian Network will stream a live, interactive Web TV Christmas special: "Affirming our Faith. Proclaiming Orthodoxy to the World." The OCN describes the event:
Simply visit www.myocn.net on Dec. 9 from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. EST to join listeners, supporters and special guests from around the world for an illuminating discussion of the Orthodox celebration of the Nativity and its meaning today. You'll be able to call in to make your own comments, meet the staff of OCN, hear from well-known Orthodox leaders and theologians, see the studios that produce Come Receive the Light, listen to Orthodox Christmas music, and discuss the exciting ways that OCN plans to expand its ability to proclaim the powerful relevance of our Lord's Incarnation in the coming year.
They have also announced that a supporter will match any donations made during their "At Year's End, You Can Make a Difference" campaign.
Posted in OCN
Final CRTL Study Guide
Posted on Friday, November 16, 2007 at 11:28 AM by Jason Barker
My final study guide for Come Receive the Light, What Are the Canons of the Church, is now available. Beginning next week, the CRTL study guides will be written by a different person (or persons).
Posted in OCN
Change in Status with the OCN
Posted on Monday, November 12, 2007 at 4:33 PM by Jason Barker
Effective at the end of this week, I will no longer be on the staff of the Orthodox Christian Network. Due to a restructuring in the OCN, Fr. Christopher Metropoulos and the board of the OCN have found it necessary to eliminate my position (as well as eliminating or redefining a number of other positions within the organization). This means that after this week I will no longer create the study guides for Come Receive the Light or OCN newsletters and program descriptions.
I want to emphasize that I am not being "fired," and this does not in any way adversely affect the areas in which the OCN and the Department of Youth Ministry are working together in partnership. I will continue to create GET WISDOM for the Youth Department, and it will continue to be streamed each weekend on The ARK. The program currently being developed by members of Teen SOYO for the OCN is also still scheduled to be launched this winter.
If you would like to help the OCN during this time of particular need in the organization, please click here.
The Department of Youth Ministry, of course, can also use your support to help make possible things like my Bible studies and radio programs.
Posted in Jason Barker, OCN
Last Week's CRTL Study Guide
Posted on Monday, November 12, 2007 at 4:32 PM by Jason Barker
My study guide for last week's episode of Come Receive the Light, Is Orthodoxy Reviving in Europe, is now available.
Posted in OCN
This Week's CRTL Study Guide
Posted on Friday, November 02, 2007 at 6:41 PM by Jason Barker
My study guide for this week's episode of Come Receive the Light, What Does it Take to Be a Teacher, is now available.
Posted in OCN
This Week's CRTL Study Guide
Posted on Friday, October 26, 2007 at 10:59 AM by Jason Barker
My study guide for this week's episode of Come Receive the Light, What Will You See Inside a Church, is now available.
Posted in OCN
This Week's CRTL Study Guide
Posted on Friday, October 19, 2007 at 11:34 AM by Jason Barker
My new study guide for Come Receive the Light, Should We Support Stem Cell Research? is now available.
Posted in OCN
This Week's CRTL Study Guide
Posted on Friday, October 12, 2007 at 12:02 PM by Jason Barker
My study guide for this week's episode of Come Receive the Light, How Can You Understand War & Peace, is now available.
Posted in OCN
Listen to GET WISDOM on The ARK
Posted on Thursday, October 11, 2007 at 1:13 AM by Jason Barker
In addition to listening to my Bible study audio program, GET WISDOM, by subscribing to the podcast, you can also listen to it on The ARK, the Orthodox Christian Network's contemporary Orthodox Christian music station.
GET WISDOM will stream on Saturdays and Sundays at 11:00 AM and 5:00 PM (EST).
Posted in Get Wisdom!, OCN
NEW BIBLE STUDY BOOKLET
Posted on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 at 9:45 AM by Jason Barker
You can now download my free, eight page, full-color booklet on Bible study, You Can Read the Bible: An Orthodox Guide to Bible Study.
The booklet gives a brief overview of why you should read the Bible, the role of Orthodox Tradition in Bible study, and three methods for engaging in transforming Bible study.
The first two episodes of GET WISDOM - and their study guides - were based on this booklet.
Download your free copy today!
Posted in Bible Studies, Get Wisdom!, OCN, Online Resources, Youth Department
Listening to The ARK and The RUDDER on OS X and Linux
Posted on Monday, October 08, 2007 at 1:05 PM by Jason Barker
As I've written before, listening to the Orthodox Christian Network's Internet radio stations can be difficult for users of OS X and Linux, because the player pages for those stations use Direct X to embed the Windows Media Player into a webpage. Since OS X and Linux do not use Direct X, the player cannot embed and play in those systems (plus, Microsoft stopped development of the Windows Media Player at version 9 for OSX, and it doesn't exist at all for Linux).
OS X users can use Flip4Mac to substitute QuickTime for Windows Media Player, although I've never been satisfied with the performance of this workaround.
I've therefore looked at the code for the player pages for The ARK and The RUDDER, and have found the URLs for the direct Windows media streams for these stations (I do this every few months when I notice that the stations have updated their streams, and thus the old URLs I've posted before no longer work). Simply paste the URL of your choice into your WMA-capable media player, and you'll be able to listen to the station on OS X or Linux:
THE ARK
128k Stream: http://stream.nwrnetwork.com:7475/SAM_WMA_3A-128
32k Stream: http://stream.nwrnetwork.com:7475/SAM_WMA_3A
THE RUDDER
128k Stream: http://stream.nwrnetwork.com:7475/SAM_WMA_1P-128
32k Stream: http://stream.nwrnetwork.com:7475/SAM_WMA_1P (Note: At this time I wasn't able to open this stream, but it is the one given in the code for the low-speed stream)
You will still want to go to The ARK and The RUDDER's player pages when you're listening to see the artist and song information.
Posted in OCN, Online Resources
This Week's CRTL Study Guide
Posted on Friday, October 05, 2007 at 11:11 AM by Jason Barker
Come Receive the Light's study guide for this week, How Can You Help Prisoners, is now available.
The new template was designed by Cameron Thorpe.
Posted in OCN
This Week's CRTL Study Guide
Posted on Friday, September 28, 2007 at 10:12 AM by Jason Barker
The study guide for this week's episode of Come Receive the Light, How Can You Overcome Your Passions? is now available.
Edited on: Friday, September 28, 2007 10:36 AMPosted in OCN
New OCN Blog
Posted on Tuesday, September 25, 2007 at 8:25 AM by Jason Barker
The Orthodox Christian Network has a new blog; you can see a list of recent posts on the left side of the OCN homepage.
I have just posted on the OCN site an article I first posted on this blog last week, Religious Teens and Happiness.
Posted in OCN
This Week's CRTL Study Guide
Posted on Friday, September 21, 2007 at 7:35 AM by Jason Barker
This week's Study Guide for Come Receive the Light, How Has the Church Reached the Unreached? is now available.
Posted in OCN
This Week's CRTL Study Guide
Posted on Friday, September 14, 2007 at 11:47 AM by Jason Barker
This week's free study guide for Come Receive the Light, What is Keeping You From Evangelism? is now available.
Posted in OCN
New CRTL Study Guide
Posted on Friday, September 07, 2007 at 10:36 AM by Jason Barker
My new Study Guide for Come Receive the Light, How Can You Help People with Disabilities?, is now available.
Posted in OCN
Study Guides for "Come Receive the Light"
Posted on Wednesday, September 05, 2007 at 11:36 AM by Jason Barker
Below is the current list of Study Guides I have created to accompany episodes of Come Receive the Light. I intend to post notices when I upload new Study Guides, but in case I forget (as I've done the last two weeks), the new Study Guide is available on the OCN website each Friday at 12:00 PM (EST).
- How Can You Experience Joy When You're Suffering?
- How Can You Talk to Your Kids About Sex?
- You Can Serve God By Serving Others!
These Study Guides are free to download.
Posted in OCN
Greg Floor Quintet
Posted on Tuesday, August 21, 2007 at 9:09 AM by Jason Barker
I've mentioned before that my favorite musical genres are classical and jazz. While working on program descriptions for the Orthodox Christian Network, I saw that the Featured Artist Block for The ARK next week will highlight the the Greg Floor Quintet, a jazz group.
You can purchase the Quintet's The Grand Inquisitor and Uphill...Both Ways - and hear sample tracks - from St. Romanos Records.
Posted in Miscellaneous, OCN
Study Guide Available
Posted on Saturday, August 18, 2007 at 8:30 AM by Jason Barker
The study guide I've created for the current episode of Come Receive the Light is available for download.
Edited on: Wednesday, September 05, 2007 11:28 AMPosted in OCN
On Staff with the OCN
Posted on Wednesday, August 08, 2007 at 10:10 PM by Jason Barker
I'm privileged to announce that - in addition to my work with the Department of Youth Ministry - I am now on the staff of the Orthodox Christian Network. I will be creating study guides to accompany episodes of Come Receive the Light.
I will continue, of course, to engage in the work in which the Youth Department and OCN are partnering: my online Bible studies and upcoming radio program.
I thank both Fr. Christopher Metropulos and Fr. Joseph Purpura for the opportunity to participate in their ministries.
Posted in Jason Barker, OCN, Youth Department
List of Orthodox Christian Network Posts
Posted on Tuesday, August 07, 2007 at 1:55 PM by Jason Barker
I've created a new archive category entitled "OCN" for posts about the Orthodox Christian Network.
Rather than go through the very time-consuming process of re-submitting and indexing all the posts I've written about the OCN in the past, I've simply listed them below in chronological order:
- Do You Listen to Podcasts?
- Listen to Come Receive the Light
- Fr. Christopher Metropulos on Media Ministry
- Orthodox Christian Radio
- New Orthodox Podcasts
- "Study to Show Yourself Approved"
- Fr. Christopher Metropulos on Reading Scripture
- New Programs on "The Ark"
- More About Listening to "The Ark" in OS X and Linux
- "The Ark" Song Info Fixed
- Orthodox Radio News
- Giving Increases Happiness
- The Rudder
- OSB on "Come Receive the Light"
- 20 Million Podcast Listeners by 2010
- The Need for Orthodox Media
- Orthodox Concerts Online
- Our Partnership with OCN
Posted in OCN