Marriage or Monasticism?
Most young people don’t know how to discover their calling in the life. Whether to dedicate themselves to monasticism or select the marriage path. Some have the feeling that monasticism is a more superior choice than marriage and that marriage represents a lower situation. Others believe that any young man who chooses to become a […]
The Ancient of Days
The God of the New Testament in the Old Testament “The thrones were set and the Ancient of Days took His seat. His raiment was white as snow, and the hair of His head as pure wool. His throne was a flame of fire… A river of fire […]
Bearing the Shame of Confession
Question: In taking the steps which you have presented to us, the most difficult thing, I think, is to overcome the rear of shame. This is what I try to do in my parish. People will not come to confession although their souls are burdened and things are driving them crazy, because they cannot overcome the […]
Towards a better understanding of the phenomenon of addictions
Our subject today is an impressive contradiction in people nowadays. In particular, what we shall be concerned with is people’s willingness to become dependent [on substances] at the very centre of an era when so much effort has been expended on the acquisition- and now enjoyment- of the triumphant declaration of our independence! What is […]
The Importance of Sunday
An important Homily by His Eminence Metropolitan Methodios of Boston. Sadly, Sunday has lost its significance in our society, becoming less of a day of worship of almighty God and more like any ordinary work day. This especially affects our young people who are obligated to attend sports events on Sunday mornings rather than attend […]
Skull of Apostle Matthew Revealed during Church Celebration
A fragment of the skull of the Apostle Matthew is placed on display in an Orthodox church in Cairo, on Thursday, for the first time in recent memory. The skull was displayed during celebrations of the Church’s 80th anniversary since its foundation. Patriarch Theodoros of Alexandria told Reuters that Saint Matthew was killed in Ethiopia by the […]
Who wrote the Gospel of Matthew?
Who wrote the Synoptic Gospels? Their titles bear the names of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, but did those men actually draft them? Modern scholarship has called this previous assumption into question, with some going so far as to say that the men whose names adorn the books were long since dead. Ground Rules When writing […]
The Problem with Abundance
People are rarely satisfied with having enough. Many say to themselves,“If a little is good, then surely more is better.” This belief appeals to our desire for greater freedom: we want a larger selection to choose from to appease whatever mood strikes us at the moment. And people laud freedom as if it is a […]
Byzantine Iconography on Mount Athos
The Holy Mountain has been the great centre of Orthodox art since the fall of Constantinople. But art flourished on Mount Athos much earlier than that, as is shown by some icons and miniatures that have survived the severe vicissitudes through which the Holy Mountain has passed. Of the older iconographic works, there […]
The History of the Hymn “O Virgin Pure” by Saint Nektarios
One of the great and most beloved hymns of the Orthodox Church was written in the late 19th century by St. Nektarios of Aegina; it is called “Αγνή Παρθένε” (“O Virgin Pure”). In feeble human language St. Nektarios attempted to express the glory, beauty, power and love of the Panagia, our true heavenly Mother through […]