The Orthodox Observance of Great And Holy Saturday On Great and Holy Saturday the Church observes the day on which Christ reposed in the tomb. Foreshadowing this day as the blessed the seventh day, by Moses, the Church sees it the Blessed Sabbath. In other words, this is the day
Category: The Morning Offering
The Orthodox Observance of Great And Holy Friday The commemorations of Holy Friday begin with the Matins service of the day which is conducted on Holy Thursday evening. The service is a very unique Matins service with twelve Gospel readings that begin with Christ’s discourse at the Last Supper, and
Taking Orthodoxy beyond the self-congratulatory We must guard against noticing when another parishioner seems careless in the making of the sign of the cross, while we go about demonstrating for all around us, the proper way. Making sweeping signs of the cross that are done in such a way as
Suffering is Meant to be Salvific The Lord does not allow anything beyond our power of endurance, to afflict us. Whenever difficulties come our way, we only sin if we are unwilling to endure. Suffering is meant to be salvific, for the Holy Apostle Paul tells us, “God is
We are all God’s children in our common humanity News of yet another hate-crime perpetrated upon the Jewish community, with the shooting spree that killed two people Sunday afternoon in the parking lot behind the Jewish Community Center of Greater Kansas City, and a third person at a nearby Jewish
Lifeless things offer no satisfaction The lifeless things of this world offer no spiritual satisfaction, yet we often sell ourselves off to things or people by giving them power over our hearts. It is easy to feel abandoned or hurt by those to whom we’ve given power. If we need
Palm Sunday Palm Sunday is the feast of the Church where we believers greet the Lord our king, the Logos (Word) of God made flesh. He is greeted not simply as the One who came to us once riding on a donkey, but as the One who is always present
Loosed from the stench of sin In the mystery that is the sacrament of holy confession, which Christ established after His Resurrection, He said to His disciples, “Receive ye the Holy Spirit: Whose so ever sins ye forgive, they are forgiven” (John. 20:22-23). As we wind down our Lenten journey,
Accepting the invitation I received an email from a man from India, questioning why there is evil in the world, and wondering how he could come to know the true God, overcome sin, and live a life in transformation. This is my response to him: We live in a fallen
Arming our children with spiritual weapons It is essential that we expose our youth to the teachings of the Church, and offer them serious facts about traditional Christianity, while letting them see that faith is not simply a religious expression of the ethnic heritage of their parents, or of keeping