ἀνθρώποισι πᾶσι μέτεστι γινώσκειν ἑωυτοὺς καὶ σωφρονεῖν.
On Holy Saturday 1579, according to the Church chronicles of the city of Jerusalem, the Turkish governors forbad the Greek patriarch and the Orthodox faithful to enter the Church of the Resurrection for the customary rite of the Holy Fire. Continue reading “The column that was split by the Holy Fire (1579) – Saint Tounom the Emir”
by Panayiotis Christou
A further step was taken in Egypt by Pachomius (d. 346). As well as administration and prayer, he placed the shelter, dress, diet and work of the monks under supervision. Continue reading “The monastic life in the eastern Orthodox Church – The coenobitic system”
“Nowadays people often feel sadness, despair, lethargy, laziness, apathy, and all things satanic. They are downcast, discontent and melancholy. They disregard their families, spend vast sums on psychoanalysts and take anti-depressants. People explain this as ‘insecurity.’ Our religion believes that these states derive from satanic temptation. Continue reading “Saint Porphyrios of Kavsokalyvia: Overcoming Depression”
The Akathist Hymn is a profound, devotional poem or chant, which sings the praises of the Holy Mother and Ever-Virgin Mary (Theotokos). It is chanted in all Orthodox Churches throughout the world during the five Fridays in the Great Lent, and constitutes a very concrete spiritual preparation for the Holy Week and Easter Services. Continue reading “The Akathist Hymn (a very concrete spiritual preparation for the Holy Week and Easter Services five Fridays in the Great Lent)”
by Michael Bressem, Ph.D.
A round white mound, frosted with powdered sugar and decorated with candied almonds, sits on top of a silver platter with a thin lit candle in the center of it. Is it someone’s birthday? No, it’s the anniversary of someone’s death. It’s the almost weekly macabre reminder of our eventual demise, decay, and doom. Continue reading “Prayers for the dead”
by Panayiotis Christou
During the middle of the third century, persecution of Christians became so severe that many of them were forced to withdraw from the cities. Continue reading “The monastic life in the eastern Orthodox Church – The development of the monastic life”
