Lift Up Your Heads

The homilies in this volume were all delivered by archdeacon Robert Mitchell Jr. -- a transitional archdeacon in the Old Catholic tradition enrolled at Ekklesia Epignostika Church & Seminary in pursuit of Holy Orders of the priesthood -- during Holy Communion services between Palm Sunday, March 28, 2021 and Pentecost Sunday, June 5, 2022 in St. Barachiel Chapel in Richmond, VA. They reflect his Old Catholic stance on matters of faith and his deep appreciation for the "quadriga" -- the four most ancient senses of interpreting scripture -- the literal, allegorical, moral, and mystical.

What is an Old Catholic?

Old Catholics are not Roman Catholics. They are a relatively small denomination -- a loosely-associated group of sister churches, some in communion and others not -- who split from the Roman Catholic Church starting in the mid-to-late 19th century over various doctrinal and administrative disputes, primarily papal infallibility, the valid appointment of bishops, and particularities of Marian devotion. Because of their similarities to both the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Orthodox Church, Old Catholics are often described as "catholic but not Roman, orthodox but not Eastern."

Robert Mitchell is a writer, martial arts expert, and archdeacon in the Old Catholic tradition from Richmond, VA. A martial artist for over thirty years, he is the founder of Heritage Arts Inc., a 501(c)(3) federally-recognized non-profit educational charity providing free instruction in martial arts, fitness, outdoor skills, and spiritual development. In 2011 he was awarded the rank of Master by the Combat Martial Arts Practitioners Association, and in 2019 became an authorized instructor of Mark Hatmaker's Frontier Rough & Tumble Martial arts program.

On the subject of martial arts and related topics he has penned "Martial Grit: Real Fighting Fitness on a Budget" and "The Calisthenics Codex" which has been in Smashword's Top 10 fitness books since its publication in 2015. His fiction works include the novels "Chatters on the Tide," "Ghilan" and "The 14th Mansion," as well as numerous poems, 'zines, comic books, and short pieces. His work has appeared in the Journal of Asian Martial Arts, Hulltown 360 Literary Journal, and more.

He graduated from the University of Virginia in 1983 with a B.A. in English. He and his wife are the proud parents of four children and five grandchildren.