The Practice of Closed Communion in the Orthodox Church When a stranger approaches the Holy Gifts during the celebration of the Divine Liturgy it is the norm in the Orthodox Church for the priest to ask the person to “kiss the chalice”. Not knowing if the person is Orthodox, or
Author: Abbot Tryphon
I am abbot of All-Merciful Saviour Orthodox Monastery (ROCOR) on Vashon Island, WA. The island is a twenty minute ferry ride from West Seattle, and a fifteen minute crossing from Tacoma.
Surrounded by the Salish Sea, the island is some 87% undeveloped forest, with a rural population of around eleven thousand citizens. If you wish to contact me personally, you can email me at: abbottryphon@vashonmonks.com
When We Do the Wrong Things Habitually That we must struggle with our passions is a given. All the holy fathers counsel us to do battle with the passions, yet we continue committing the same sins over and over.Sometimes it is because we’ve allowed ourselves to fall into the habit
Becoming Partakers of the Divine Nature Although our regeneration began with baptism, our repentance opens the gates to grace after grace. Repentance is the second regeneration in that through our repentance, the door to the mercy of God opens wide. In being regenerated by God’s mercy, we are justified before
The Communal Nature of Our Salvation Salvation is communal by its very nature. The fierce individualism found in much of what claims to be Christianity is in opposition to the Orthodox understanding of faith. The Church as the Body of Christ is where we are united in Christ, becoming part
Remembrance of the Things of God Today is the perfect day to start doing battle with the passions that create a state of unrest in our hearts. Tomorrow may be too late to begin this battle, for none of us knows the day we will face God, and be called
The Paganism That is the New Age Movement The Western World is seeing a mass departure from her Christian roots, leaving a huge spiritual vacuum in its wake. Filling this spiritual void is a newly constructed form of ancient paganism, called the “New Age movement.” This seductive philosophy is luring
The Lord Used My Pain to Help Others in Pain As a child I was bullied by other children, and even a few teachers, because they all thought I was stupid. I suffered from dyslexia at a time when it was an unknown learning disability. It was not until I
The Kindly Priest and the American Tourist A protestant woman from Tacoma, WA. was on vacation with her husband in the Greek city of Athens. Each day she walked to a small sidewalk cafe near the hotel for her coffee and watched the locals pass by. One of these locals