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A Primer of Spiritual Life

10/28/2020

SSCORRE! Saint Sophia Cathedral Online Resources for our Religious Edification Topic of the Week: A Primer of Spiritual Life “Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, most of us are far from even beginning to fulfill these precepts… nevertheless accept from me, sinful Aleksander, this Primer of Spiritual Life.” What follows are some excerpts from the Primer of Spiritual Life, by Father Aleksander Orlov of Omsk. The entire Primer was recently published here Sept 22-Oct 19, 2020 Daily Meditations by Papa

On October 28 the Greek Orthodox Church commemorates the Feast Day of the Protection of the Theotokos, the Mother of God and Ever-Virgin Mary.

10/28/2020

The feast-day of the Holy Protection of the Mother of God was established following a vision of holy Father Andrew during the course of a Vigil in the Church of Vlachernae at Constantinople. At the Fourth Hour of the night while deep in prayer, the Saint lifted up his eyes to heaven and beheld the Holy Mother of God watching over the faithful as she covered the faithful with her holy Veil. Epiphanius, the disciple

Early Christianity: Practice Prayer of the Heart

10/27/2020

Practice: Prayer of the Heart Abba Poemen said, “Teach your mouth to say what is in your heart.” [1] Many of the desert fathers and mothers, as well as the collected texts of the Philokalia in the Eastern Orthodox tradition, have described prayer as bringing your thinking down into your heart. It always seemed like soft piety to me until someone taught me how to do it, and I learned the immense benefits of the prayer

Feast of the Holy and Glorious Great Martyr Saint Demetrios, the Myrrh-Streamer

10/26/2020

Saint Demetrios suffered in Thessalonica during the reign of Galerius Maximian (c. 306). He belonged to one of the most distinguished families of the province of Macedonia and was widely admired not only because of his noble ancestry and grace of bearing, but also for virtue, wisdom and goodness of heart surpassing that of his elders. The military expertise of Saint Demetrios led Galerius, as Caesar of the Eastern Empire, to appoint him commander of

Holy Apostle James (Iakovos), the Brother of the Lord

10/23/2020

Holy Apostle James (Iakovos), the Brother of God (Adelphotheos) was the son of Righteous Joseph the Betrothed of the Most Holy Theotokos (December 26). From his early years James was a Nazarene, a man especially dedicated to God. The Nazarenes vowed to preserve their virginity, to abstain from wine, to refrain from eating meat, and not to cut their hair. The vow of the Nazarenes symbolized a life of holiness and purity, commanded formerly by

Call No Man Father

10/22/2020

By Abbot Tryphon, October 31, 2019 And do not be called teachers “Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ. But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted (Matthew 23:9).” Recently someone called me

Early Christianity: Practical Prayer

10/21/2020

In the same way as the early church, the desert Christians were deeply committed to Jesus’ teachings and lived practice. Withdrawal to the wilderness—whether into close-knit communities or solitude—was only for the sake of deeper encounter and presence. Diana Butler Bass describes the natural flow from prayer to active love: [Jesus’ invitation to] “Come follow me” was intimately bound up with the practice of prayer. For prayer connects us with God and others, “part of

Is God Really Indifferent to Our Suffering?

10/20/2020

SSCORRE! Saint Sophia Cathedral Online Resources for our Religious Edification Topic of the Week: Is God Really Indifferent to Our Suffering? “Since my teens I had been familiar with the common atheist argument that God either does not exist or He must be utterly indifferent to our suffering and therefore not good…” “The sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.“ (Romans 8:18).

Elder Porphyrios: Peace of Heart is Established Little by Little

10/20/2020

Your constant care should be not to let your heart become agitated or troubled, but to use every effort to keep it peaceful and calm. Seeing your efforts and endeavours, God will send you His grace and will make your soul a city of peace. Then your heart will become the house of comfort as is allegorically expressed in the following Psalm: ‘Jerusalem is builded as a city’ (Ps. cxxii. 3). God has required only

A Law for All Seasons

10/19/2020

By Fr. Stephen Freeman, September 21, 2015 From the screenplay of A Man for all Seasons William Roper: So, now you give the Devil the benefit of law! Sir Thomas More: Yes! What would you do? Cut a great road through the law to get after the Devil? William Roper: Yes, I’d cut down every law in England to do that! Sir Thomas More: Oh? And when the last law was down, and the Devil

SSCORRE!

A Primer of Spiritual Life

On October 28 the Greek Orthodox Church commemorates the Feast Day of the Protection of the Theotokos, the Mother of God and Ever-Virgin Mary.

Early Christianity: Practice Prayer of the Heart

Feast of the Holy and Glorious Great Martyr Saint Demetrios, the Myrrh-Streamer

Holy Apostle James (Iakovos), the Brother of the Lord

Call No Man Father

Early Christianity: Practical Prayer

Is God Really Indifferent to Our Suffering?

Elder Porphyrios: Peace of Heart is Established Little by Little

A Law for All Seasons

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