ἀνθρώποισι πᾶσι μέτεστι γινώσκειν ἑωυτοὺς καὶ σωφρονεῖν.
Saint Isidore of Pelousion Mountain
TO COUNT HERMION:
That if the Priest does not live properly, the one he baptizes is not harmed in the least, in regard to the salvific Mysteries Continue reading “If a Priest does not live propeply will the one he baptized be harmed?”
“Giver rest, O Christ, among the Saints to the souls of Your servants, where there is no pain, no sorrow, no grieving, but life everlasting.” Continue reading “Why the Church of God performs the commemoration of souls?”
In Saint John’s Gospel we find this quote, “Christ said, ‘Unless a wheat grain falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit” (St. John 12:24). As Orthodox Christians we are awaiting the Second Coming of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and the General Resurrection of the dead, through Christ we have Life, Life everlasting. But, remembering the memory of our deceased beloved ones is an opportunity to pray for the souls of the departed. Continue reading “The Significance of Koliva (Boiled Wheat)”
Pascha (Easter) comes with a great note of joy in the Christian world. Christ is risen from the dead and our hearts rejoice. That joy begins to wane as the days pass. Our lives settle back down to the mundane tasks at hand. After 40 days, the Church marks the Feast of the Ascension, often attended by only a handful of the faithful (Rome has more-or-less moved the Ascension to a Sunday to make it easier). Some excitement returns with the Feast of Pentecost, 50 days after Pascha, which conveniently falls on a Sunday making its observance easier in a too-busy-to-notice world. Lost in all of this, however, is a subtext (perhaps it is the main text). Continue reading “Pentecost – a frontal assault on Hades!”
In the Catechist Homily by Saint John the Chrysostom, which is read during the Holy and joyful night of the Lord’s Resurrection, we hear the following words: Continue reading “Let no-one fear death!”
Fr. Stephen Freeman
The most difficult aspect of love is the freedom it inherently requires. Love, in its ultimate and proper form, only exists between equals. There can be a sort of benevolence and nobility towards another who is not equal, but never love. This makes it difficult to understand the God-who-is-love. Continue reading “Love and Freedom”
Novo Scriptorium 