True worship has therefore always been at the center of true faith. This worship of the True God has been revealed in Liturgy. So it was in the Old Testament and so it is in the New. As Orthodox Christians we must at least begin to comprehend the mystical depths of the Divine Liturgy. If
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“Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women (Luke 1:28).” This salutation addressed to the Virgin Mary by the Archangel Gabriel, forms a part of the hymn of the Church most frequently sung in her honor. Elizabeth, the Virgin’s cousin, considering it an honor for the Mother of her
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In this age where secularism is on the rise, and materialism has become a major distraction from spiritual pursuits, Christian friendship has never been more important. The pursuit of personal fulfillment, entertainment, worldly pleasure, and the acquisition of material goods, has become the dominant theme of our age. Families that once placed the life of
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The path of a true Christian can be nothing other than the Cross. The Lord asks His disciples, James and John, when they sought passing glory (for they were still thinking that Christ had come for the glory of the material nation of Israel), “Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, and be
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In the Gospels of St. John and St. Luke there is an account of a woman that approached Jesus as he was eating at a Pharisee’s table. St. John identifies her as Mary, the woman who had been possessed by seven demons. The same Mary that had been exercised by Christ. This woman approached Christ
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In the ninth chapter of the Gospel according to St. Mark, we have the story of Jesus' encounter with the boy who is possessed. The Father seeks Christ in the hope of having his boy released from this evil and the story is presented to us every lent on the fourth Sunday of each lent
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It is only human to become despondent when we have failed in keeping to our moral, ethical and spiritual standards, succumbing, instead, to temptation. Our Orthodox Faith teaches that we must be compassionate towards others, loving, quick to forgive, exemplar in our Christian living, and always demonstrating to the world that we belong to Christ.
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The saints show us what a glorious destiny we have in God, and through the example of their lives, point the way to our becoming “partakers of divine nature.” The saints, as the cloud of witnesses in heaven, are present in the divine services, worshiping the Holy Trinity with us. They, as our friends, intercede
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Christ gives us the living example of submission, which is the opposite of demonic self-will. He comes to us, as a new man with new precepts. He calls us to abandon, to leave behind, and to put to death the old way of living, The old way of life that is living according to our
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It is important to understand that genetically, all humans are of but one race. Indians, Arabs, Jews, Caucasians, Africans, and Asians, are not different races, but rather, different ethnicities of the human race. God created all humans with the same physical characteristics, with only minor variations. Furthermore, He created all humans in His image and
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We are not compelled to love God, having been created with free will. God does not, nor can He, compel His creatures to love Him. Mutual love requires, by its very nature, freedom to either respond in love, or not. Yet when we respond to God’s love with love His mercy leads us into holiness,
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Cultivating the heart in Christ Jesus is vital to true Christianity and steadfast confession. Our Lord Himself warns us to guard our hearts so that they do not grow cold with the times (cf. Matt. 24:11). God’s thunder sounds forth to call the hearts of men back to Him, most of all to arouse slumbering
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The cure for the societal, political and demographic decline in Nordic and European countries is not to be found in nationalistic racism, nor in war against foreigners. The cure for all that ails the western world is a return to piety and fear of God. Spiritual decline has led to the total meltdown of societies
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Walking through life with a smile on your face and a song in your heart is the best way to keep your mind and heart in a good place. Life has many turns and many trials, but when you keep centered on all the good that is in your life, the trials are short lived.
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The people at Public Orthodoxy have issued a declaration against the Russian Church in which they accuse the Russian Church of heresy -- which they assert is the idea of "Русский мир" or "The Russian World." They included accusations against the Russian Church for failing to condemn one of the three major parties in the war in Ukraine
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In the 10th chapter of the Gospel according to St. John, Christ warns us to be weary, weary of the distinction between true shepherds, and hirelings. Christ says to us, the good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep. Christ, of course, not only taught this command but he lived it. He gave us
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Our thoughts really do have an impact on our world. Negative thoughts about family members or fellow employees change our relationships. If we dislike someone at work and allow ourselves to think poorly of them, they are likely to fulfill our low expectations. If we pray for them and ask God to bless them, while
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