Mary the Contemplative Some years ago I met Father Chrysostom, a Greek Orthodox monk, on Mount Athos. He lived in a hermitage with his disciple at the foot of Karoulia, the bleak rocky desert at the southernmost tip of this peninsula as it juts defiantly out into the blue waters of the Aegean Sea. On top, 250 feet above the waters, individual hermits rooted their one-room cells and sat like fearless eagles peering into eternity.
St. Mary Magdalene, called by the Orthodox Church both Myrrh-bearer and Equal-to-the-Apostle, is commemorated on July 22, as well as with the other Myrrh-bearers on the second Sunday after Easter. Born in the seaport town of Magdala on the Sea of Galilee, she played an important role during Christ’s ministry, crucifixion, and resurrection. The Gospels provide the little that we know about St. Mary Magdalene, from whom Christ cast out seven demons. St. Mary and
Introduction On the Saturday before Holy Week, the Orthodox Church commemorates a major feast of the year, the miracle of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ when he raised Lazarus from the dead after he had lain in the grave four days. Here, at the end of Great Lent and the forty days of fasting and penitence, the Church combines this celebration with that of Palm Sunday. In triumph and joy the Church bears witness
By Father Stanley Harakas On February 2, our Orthodox Church celebrates a beautiful moment in the life of Christ – The Presentation of Christ at the Temple. According to the Jewish practice at that time, the first-born son of a family was to be brought forty days after his birth to the Temple in Jerusalem for sacrifices to be made. Since the coming Messiah was expected to be a first-born son, it was done in
The Nativity of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ Bible Readings: Epistle: Galatians 4:4-7 Gospel: St. Matthew 2:1-12 Liturgical Services: Christ is born, glorify Him. Christ has come from the heavens. receive Him Christ is on earth, elevate Him. Sing unto the Lord, all the earth. And you nations, praise Him with joy, for He has been glorified —Vesper Service of the Nativity Your Nativity, O Christ our God, has shed the light of knowledge
In more ways than one, we are waiting in darkness. Isaiah prophesied Jesus’ birth, saying, “The people walking in darkness have seen a great light” (Isaiah 9:2). Yet, the darkness will never totally go away. I’ve worked long enough in ministry to know that moral evil isn’t going to disappear, but the Gospel offers something much more subtle and helpful: “the light shines on the inside of the darkness, and the darkness will not overcome
Meditation: You Shall Call His Name Jesus The Gospel of Matthew begins with a long list of Hebrew names that give the family tree of Jesus on the human side. As we read these names some two thousand years of history pass in review. At the end of the list we find the name above every name, the name of Jesus. The procession passes through the centuries and comes to rest at Bethlehem. “Joseph, son
By Father John Parker About seven hundred years ago Andrei Rublev, or one of his disciples, painted perhaps the most memorable and beautiful icon of the Nativity of Christ. The 14th century icon is warped and cracked, but is in remarkable shape despite its age and history. It tells us, in earthen pigments bound to the gesso plaster, the story of the birth of Jesus, each facet of the good news surrounding the Virgin Mother Mary and
By the Very Reverend Stelyios S. Muksuris, Ph.D Recently, a woman shared with me a series of endearing stories of how she feels called by God to spend time with elderly men and women in nursing homes, whose only hope and joy is a smile or hug or good word. But more than such acts is the presence of another person in their lives who simply listens and stands by them in their suffering. Now
It is fitting to present here the complete Theotokarion of St. Andrew of Crete, which, up to now, has been quoted only in parts and scattered verses: “Rejoice, O God after God. You have honors second after the Trinity and you directly receive the fullness of the gifts of God, transporting them to all, to angels and to men, O Bride of the Father, spotless Mother of the Son, holy and all-illumined Temple of the
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