Saint Lydia of Philippi — Firstborn of the Church in Europe

Commemorated on June 2 Today the Holy Orthodox Church honours Saint Lydia of Philippi, the first recorded convert to Christianity in Europe, whose faith and hospitality mark the dawn of the Gospel’s journey across the continent. Saint Lydia was a…

The Lord Did Not Simply Curse the Fig Tree

by St. Isidore of Pelusium The Lord did not simply curse the fig tree ( a known symbol of the Jewish people) but to show to the ungrateful Judeans that He has the strength necessary to punish.

The Grandeur and Sanctity of Places

Epistle of a Patriarch of old to the Fathers of Sinai The grandeur and Sanctity of places, without virtue though, do not benefit a soul just as Paradise did not benefit Adam when he was disobedient Nor was Lucifer benefited…

The Novelty of a Shaved Face

The novelty of the Pope having a clean-shaven face, along with the rest of his clergy, was introduced in the papist church before Leo IX. Gregory Vii even went so far as to use force to make the clergy shave…

Leave-Taking of Mid-Pentecost: The Living Water Still Flows

Today we celebrate the Apodosis—the Leave-Taking—of the Feast of Mid-Pentecost, the moment that liturgically closes the eight-day period set apart to reflect on Christ as the Giver of Living Water. Positioned between Pascha and Pentecost, Mid-Pentecost reminds us of Christ’s…

Akathist to St. John the Theologian

Akathist to theHoly Apostle and EvangelistJOHN the Theologian Kontakion 1 Chosen from fisher nets for the preaching of the Gospel, and from catching fish to catching men into the light of the true knowledge of God, O great Apostle, disciple,…

The One who Lies….

St. Ephraim the Syrian The one who lies is wretched and miserable since the devil was a liar from the very beginning. The one who persists in the lie doesn’t have valour as God and man hate him.

Our Conscience is Called the Law of the Mind

St. John of Damascus Our conscience is called the law of the mind. The enemy’s attack or the law of sin dominates in the parts of our flesh and wars against us through the flesh. From the moment that we…