Published by Pemptousia Partnership on December 2, 2021 George Arvanitis ‘Now you must be thinking, from what I’ve told you, that – well, I don’t know – I’m quite something. Well, I’m nothing, although I do try and am just beginning, it seems, to get a taste of the things that I talk about. I try to, I want to, and I actually do feel love for others, although I don’t want to force myself. But very often
Published by Pemptousia Partnership on August 2, 2021 Metropolitan Nikolaos (Hatzinikolaou) of Mesogaia and Lavreotiki To our unnatural and ‘illogical’ logic, it appears that each person does not bear full responsibility individually. The main weight lies with the all-powerful nature of the prevailing, impersonal social outlook and the uncontrollably frenzied times in which we live. These times have many characteristics and certainly their achievements are impressive. Our era has, on its own, identified incredible boundaries which it has
Published by Pemptousia Partnership on July 30, 2021 Metropolitan Nikolaos (Hatzinikolaou) of Mesogaia and Lavreotiki An experience which isn’t genuine produces Christians who, instead of being saved within the Church, feel as though they should save the truth. Instead of discerning the face of Christ in our brother and sister Christians, we see opponents whom we must overcome, or we see ‘our own people’, who have to support our views. Instead of entrusting the state of our soul
Published by Pemptousia Partnership on July 29, 2021 Metropolitan Nikolaos (Hatzinikolaou) of Mesogaia and Lavreotiki What are the characteristic features of the authentic Christian experience? We can begin by looking at the end of the first chapter of the Gospel according to Saint John, the section regarding the call of the disciples. This passage is of particular interest, because it’s an image of how Christ calls each Christian separately and what, in the end, the grace and love
1 February 2015 Saint Tryphon was born in Lampsakos, in Phrygia during the reign of the Emperor Gordian. From a young age, his task was to be a goose-herd. The ignominy of his work, however, did not deprive him of, but actually increased his spiritual knowledge through his exalting humility and his overwhelming love for Christ. Even as a young man he was able to perform wonderful things. Among many other things, he cured the
Published by Pemptousia Partnership on July 18, 2021 Metropolitan Nikolaos (Hatzinikolaou) of Mesogaia and Lavreotiki In the Gospel readings, we often come across the Apostles invoking the authenticity of their personal witness in order to be convincing: ‘which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have touched’ (1 Jn. 1, 1). ‘We know that his witness is true’ (Jn. 21, 24). The Samaritans [1] and the Honorable Forerunner also
Published by Pemptousia Partnership on August 19, 2021 Archimandrite Georgios Kapsanis, Abbot of the Holy Monastery of Gregoriou † Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ handed down to us the perfect teaching on salvation. And he himself was the first to implement what he taught. It is he who ‘practices and teaches’ (Matth. 5, 19). He also gave us the parable of the Good Samaritan as an example of real love. But the most outstanding Good Samaritan is
Published by Pemptousia Partnership on January 21, 2022 Georgios Martzelos St Maximos the Greek was one of the most distinguished monks and theologians of the 16th century, famed for his missionary activities and reforming achievements in the Russia of his time. He was born in Arta in around 1470 of respected and prosperous parents, and his name in the world was Mikhail Trivolis. At an early age he went to study in Italy, at major centres of the
Published by Pemptousia Partnership on August 22, 2021 Archimandrite Ephraim, Abbot of the Vatopaidi Monastery Nowadays when science and technology are flying, when cultures converge and there is a crisis in values, even the word ‘death’ is avoided and anything reminiscent of it is ignored and discarded. Modern man views death as something negative and as a loss; we usually say for the departed: ‘We’ve lost him’. Whoever does not have the proper knowledge about this issue of
Published by Pemptousia Partnership on January 5, 2021 By Fr. Lev Gillet Epiphany was the first public manifestation of Christ. At the time of His birth, our Lord was revealed to a few privileged people. Today, all those who surround John, that is to say his own disciples and the crowd that has come to the banks of the Jordan, witness a more solemn manifestation of Jesus Christ. What does this manifestation consist of? It is made up
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