Daily Meditations

Wednesday before the Holy Feast of Pentecost

From Pascha to Pentecost, by Protopresbyter Dr. George D. Dragas The Pentecostal Period. The word, Pentecost means “the fiftieth” and is used to designate the great event of the Outpouring of the Holy Spirit (Epiphoitesis) upon the Apostles and the Church on the 50th day after the Resurrection of Christ, just ten days after His Ascension into Heaven. Before His Passion, the Lord spoke to his Disciples about the gift of the Holy Spirit, which

Tuesday before the Feast of Holy Pentecost

Celebrating Pentecost, by Matushka Ioanna Callinicos Rhodes After the Ascension of Christ, the disciples were eagerly awaiting the Holy Spirit in Jerusalem as was promised them by Christ. They had no clue as to when this occurrence was going to happen. They never realized what the impact of that moment was going to be and how it was going to affect them. Finally, ten days after the Ascension, the Holy Spirit descended as in tongues

Monday before the Feast of Holy Pentecost

Introduction The Feast of Holy Pentecost is celebrated each year on the fiftieth day after the Great and Holy Feast of Pascha (Easter) and ten days after the Feast of the Ascension of Christ. The Feast is always celebrated on a Sunday. The Feast commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles on the day of Pentecost, a feast of the Jewish tradition. It also celebrates the establishment of the Church through the

Why Does the Lord Allow Evil?

SSCORRE! Saint Sophia Cathedral Online Resources for our Religious Edification Topic of the Week: Why Does the Lord Allow Evil? “When the same Abba Anthony thought about the depth of the judgments of God, he asked, Lord, how is that some die when they are young, while others drag on to extreme old age? Why are there those who are poor and those who are rich? Why do wicked men prosper and why are the

Feast of the Holy Apostles Bartholomew and Barnabas

Apostle Bartholomew of the Twelve The Holy Apostle Bartholomew was born at Cana of Galilee and was one of the Twelve Apostles of Christ. After the Descent of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, it fell by lot to the holy Apostles Bartholomew and Philip (November 14) to preach the Gospel in Syria and Asia Minor. In their preaching they wandered through various cities, and then met up again. Accompanying the holy Apostle

The Sixth Thursday of Pascha: The Ascension of our Lord

“AND ASCENDED INTO HEAVEN….” Rev. George Florovsky, D.D. “I ascend unto My Father and your Father, and to My God, and Your God” (John 20:17). In these words, the Risen Christ described to Mary Magdalene the mystery of His Resurrection. She had to carry this mysterious message to His disciples, “as they mourned and wept” (Mark 16:10). The disciples listened to these glad tidings with fear and amazement, with doubt and mistrust. It was not

ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ ΑΝΕΣΤΗ! CHRIST IS RISEN! The Sixth Wednesday of Pascha: The Apodosis (Leave-taking) of Pascha

Parish Leaflet: The Apodosis (Leave-taking) of Pascha May 22, 2017 Admin Parish Leaflets On Wednesday of the sixth week of Pascha, we celebrate the Apodosis or Leave-taking of the Feast of Feasts – Holy Pascha. While most Feasts have their Leave-taking on the eighth day, Pascha, the Feast of Feasts, has its Leave-taking on the thirty-ninth day. The fortieth day is the Feast of the Lord’s Ascension, which marks the end of the Lord’s physical presence on

ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ ΑΝΕΣΤΗ! CHRIST IS RISEN! The Sixth Tuesday of Pascha: Thoughts on the Ascension

By Michael Haldas, Quotes of the Day for May 17, 2018 “In raising human nature to heaven by His Ascension, Christ has given us the hope of arriving there ourselves.” (St. Thomas Aquinas) “Because we have so accepted this dichotomous rupture between body and soul as ‘reality’ we often describe our Faith in terms of “saving souls.” We seldom think of our bodies being eternally involved in salvation as well. However, the Second Person of

ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ ΑΝΕΣΤΗ! CHRIST IS RISEN! The Sixth Monday of Pascha: Bookends and the Resurrection

By Fr. Stephen Freeman, April 12, 2018 A series of recent conversations with a parishioner turned up the problem of “bookends,” that is, questions of the beginning and the end. It is only natural in our day and age to attack problems in this manner. “How did it start?” is a way of saying, “What is it?” The end, of course, is not so obvious, other than its connection with our insatiable desire to know how

“The demons wage a furious war against him who struggles with all his strength,  whereas they are uninterested in the negligent, since they have them at their beck and call; those who want the good find God to be their ally, Who permits wars for our spiritual profit.” 

SSCORRE! Saint Sophia Cathedral Online Resources for our Religious Edification Topic of the Week – “The demons wage a furious war against him who struggles with all his strength,  whereas they are uninterested in the negligent, since they have them at their beck and call; those who want the good find God to be their ally, Who permits wars for our spiritual profit.” The Evergetinos, Book 1, p246 Adults/Family:  ” ‘The Holy Fathers say (this is how Fr.