Podcast Summary: The Lord of Spirits – "Blessings and Curses"

Date: April 28, 2022
Hosts: Fr. Andrew Stephen Damick (Emmaus, PA) & Fr. Stephen De Young (Lafayette, LA)
Network: Ancient Faith Ministries
Theme: Exploring the nature and meaning of blessings and curses in Orthodox Christian tradition, focusing on their spiritual, relational, and cosmic significance rather than just “good” or “bad stuff.”

Episode Overview

In this episode, Fr. Andrew and Fr. Stephen explore what blessings and curses truly are within the Orthodox Christian tradition, challenging modern, superficial understandings. Far from simple synonyms for good or bad fortune, these realities concern the deep, interconnected nature of humanity, creation, and God—a web of relationships and a state of existential harmony or alienation.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Introduction: What Are Blessings and Curses? (01:07–04:00)

• The hosts open by questioning popular uses of “blessed” (such as “God bless you” after sneezing, or #blessed on social media).
• They note the ambiguity of the term and ask: “Is this just Christian magic or superstition? Do our blessings or curses actually do anything? How does this language work biblically and theologically?”

2. The Biblical Foundation: Deuteronomy’s Blessings and Curses (04:04–13:00)

• Textual Focus: Deuteronomy 28–30: God presents Israel with life and death, blessings and curses—inviting them to choose.
  • "Today I lay before you life and death, blessings and curses. Choose." – Fr. Stephen (04:30)
• The “hackneyed” understanding: Obey, and you get good things; disobey, you get bad things. But this is a shallow reading, akin to Job’s friends’ error.
• “Blessing is life, curse is anti-life—death, corruption, separation.” – Fr. Stephen (08:33)
• The Bible frames blessings and curses not as transactions with God, but as consequences of living in or out of harmony with God’s created order.

3. Harmony, Order, and Relationality (13:00–21:00)

• Fr. Stephen: "Blessing is always about reconciliation... reconnection... putting things back in order." (14:21)
• The cosmos is portrayed as a web of relationships; blessing affirms and tightens these bonds, while curse fractures and alienates.
• Justice = everything in proper place and relation; blessing and curse have to do with how individual relationships support or damage overall order.

4. Not Simply Natural Law or Moralism (15:55–21:00)

• The Orthodox approach is distinguished from Western “natural law” traditions or simple legalism.
• The “path” (cf. Aristotle) is not about following a set of rules because God commands them, but because it aligns with the purpose and telos God embedded within creation.

5. Dismantling the Prosperity Gospel & Modern Misconceptions (21:04–30:00)

• Modern culture equates blessing with material “stuff.”
  • "Blessings isn’t stuff. Blessing is a relational category... a state of blessedness or accursedness." – Fr. Stephen (25:13)
• Their highest saints were those who surrendered all, yet were most blessed.
• Asceticism is presented as an essential Christian discipline which makes sense only if blessings are not about possessions.

6. Desire, Alienation, and the Modern World (33:25–38:00)

• The “bundle of desires” anthropology of capitalism and modernity is critiqued; both conservative and progressive strains promise fulfilling all desires, but both are illusory and dehumanizing.
  • "That's a fundamentally misshapen view of what it is to be human. That's reducing a human to a giant consuming mouth." – Fr. Stephen (37:50)

7. Scriptural Language: “Bless” in Hebrew & Greek (39:07–46:00)

• Hebrew (Barak/Baruch): Root meaning “to kneel”—to change posture/orientation; blessing the Lord is to kneel before Him.
• Greek (Evlogia): Means “good (eu) word (logos/logia);” but historical use is closer to “endorsement” or “putting in a good word.”
• Blessing is about being in right relationship—endorsed or reoriented toward God, or having objects rightly aligned in creation.

8. The Reciprocity and Community of Blessing (50:13–60:00)

• Blessing is not a one-way transaction: “We are blessing and being blessed, blessing God and each other, blessing and being blessed by creation.” (55:57)
• Not just individual—blessedness is fundamentally communal and is the structure for communion (koinonia/kinonia).

9. The “Blissful” Life: Makarios and the Beatitudes (60:30–64:54)

• Makarios: Used for “blessed” in Psalm 1 and the Beatitudes, and in Greek paganism for the blissful life of the gods.
• In Christ, the “blissful”—the life of the angels and saints, communion with God—is offered to those who are poor, meek, merciful, etc.; i.e., not those with “stuff,” but those living in divine harmony.

10. Curses: Spiritual, Not Magical (68:31–76:00)

• Examples from Ugaritic texts: death curses “invoke” spiritual powers; not superstition, but attempting to harness spiritual reality out of harmony with God’s will.
• Such cursing is a cooperative act between human and demonic agency—contrasted to blessing, which is human alignment with God.

11. Objects, Idolatry, and Amulets (73:35–75:54)

• Blessing objects (water, homes) is about returning them to their proper order, not about magic.
• Using “blessed” amulets (e.g., the “evil eye”) as talismans distorts their meaning and can participate in a cursed, idolatrous dynamic.
  • “If you use [a religious object] in a way that's contrary to God's intention... you are effectively putting it in the wrong relationship.” – Fr. Andrew (75:54)

12. Do Christians Need to Worry About Curses or Witchcraft? (80:13–86:53)

• No—the Christian, united to Christ, is protected; even if dark powers are real, they cannot ultimately harm those “in a state of blessedness.”
  • “The person who has their desires fulfilled is not the blessed person... being in a state of blessedness is being correctly aligned to God, neighbor, and creation—not about stuff.” – Fr. Stephen (83:43)

13. Curse as Alienation; Blessing as Reconciliation (87:42–110:00)

• To be under a curse is to be alienated from God, others, and the web of creation (see life of Cain).
• Two kinds of impurity in Scripture:
  • Moral impurity: Result of actions in cooperation with evil (demonic energies) = existential curse.
  • Ceremonial impurity: Result of exposure to death’s effects (e.g., touching a corpse)—needs to be addressed, but distinct from moral evil.

14. Sin as Demonic Power; Repentance as Restoration (92:04–102:00)

• Sin is not something God created; it is alien—a demonic power co-energized by human agency.
  • “When you sin, you’re using demon power.” – Fr. Andrew (96:51)
• Repentance means genuinely repairing, reconciling, and restoring broken relationships, not merely being declared innocent.

15. Christ “Becomes a Curse” (114:03–126:32)

• In atonement, Christ “becomes a curse” (Galatians 3:13) by embracing the full alienation and death of humanity, like the “goat for Azazel” in Yom Kippur.
• Christ restores not just management of curse (as in the Old Covenant), but the possibility of actual blessedness, reconciliation, and divine life.

“The blood of Christ is the life of God Himself, so there’s no comparison (to animal sacrifices)…” – Fr. Stephen (130:32)

16. Psalm 1 as Model of Blessing/Cursing (133:52–144:42)

• Detailed verse-by-verse unpacking: the “blessed man” lives in harmonious order (not prosperity as the world counts it); the wicked are alienated and insubstantial (“chaff”).
• The psalm models the two ways: union (blessedness) and alienation (curse).

17. Liturgical and Existential Application (146:06–150:59)

• The Beatitudes describe and invite us into the “blissful” life—sung at funerals to commend the soul into this blessed state, and at Divine Liturgy as we enter the worship of heaven.
• The liturgy is an actual participation in this divine bliss and reconciliation—the “kingdom” opened to us here and now.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• [14:21] Fr. Stephen: “Blessing always involves a certain level of reconciliation... of reconnection, where those points of alienation have taken place.”
• [25:13] Fr. Stephen: "Blessings isn’t stuff. Blessing is a relational category... a state of blessedness or accursedness.”
• [37:50] Fr. Stephen: "That's a fundamentally misshapen view of what it is to be human. That's reducing a human to a giant consuming mouth."
• [96:51] Fr. Andrew: “When you sin, you’re using demon power. That’s scary. But it makes so much clear…"
• [102:01] Fr. Stephen: “We’re able to cooperate with demons because they are our fellow creatures… [but] we've been made partakers of the divine nature because of Christ’s incarnation.”
• [119:06] Fr. Stephen: “Managing curse is not the same as being in a state of blessedness. It's not the same as participating in the divine life.”
• [150:59] Fr. Andrew: “The Divine Liturgy is an entrance into and a participation in that blissfulness, that divine happiness that the angels and saints share with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit...”

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Opening premise; popular misunderstandings (01:07–04:00)
• Deuteronomy & blessings/curses in biblical context (04:04–13:00)
• Harmony, order, and justice (13:00–21:00)
• Critique of prosperity gospel/materialism (21:04–30:00)
• Blessing/cursing as spiritual & communal realities (39:07–60:00)
• Makarios and the blissful state (60:30–64:54)
• Curses, witchcraft, and spiritual warfare (68:31–76:00)
• Objects, idolatry, and proper use of blessings (73:35–75:54)
• Sin as demonic power, repentance, and restoration (92:04–102:00)
• Christ becomes a curse for us—atonement (114:03–126:32)
• Psalm 1: the two ways (133:52–144:42)
• Liturgical application and the Beatitudes (146:06–150:59)
• Final reflections: Alienation, reconciliation, and eternal life now (151:04–158:23)

Conclusion & Takeaway

Blessing in Orthodox Christian life is deeper than “good fortune” or public declarations; it is a state of union and harmony with God, others, and the world—a participation in divine, blissful life. Curse is fundamentally alienation, chaos, and death, not merely “bad luck.” The Church’s liturgy, sacramental life, and way of being are all about drawing people (and all creation) from curse to blessing, from alienation into communion, now and into eternity.

For further inquiry:

• Refer to episode “The Priest Shall Make Atonement” (on atonement ritual and typology)
• Examine the language and structure of the Divine Liturgy and funerals, especially the Beatitudes, in light of these concepts