Unlocking the Mysteries of the Resurrection of Christ

Sermon Delivered By Saint Nikolai Velimirovich

Pascha, 1934; Ochrid, Yugoslavia

Each Christian feast raises hundreds of questions and gives hundreds of answers. The questions are from men, the answers come from God through the feasts. This is especially true with the feast of Christ's Resurrection. Here He opens for us with His keys hundreds of locked doors. For God has more answers than man has questions; He has more keys than man has mysteries. Let us, then, consider a few such questions.

Here is a mystery: Why did Christ rise from the dead?

The key: Because Life could not remain in the grave. A thousand years before, the Prophet foretold concerning Christ:

"...nor wilt Thou suffer Thy Holy One to see corruption" (Ps. 15:10)

Christ revealed the living God, the Father, to the world; He revealed the heavens, the living realm of angelic hosts; He revealed life after death and the eternal heavenly kingdom. Would, then, the Restorer of life remain in the darkness of the grave and the embrace of death? Christ raised Jairus' daughter and the son of the widow of Nain and Lazarus of Bethany. Would He Who raised others not raise up Himself? Truly He arose; He could not do otherwise by virtue of His essence, His power, His greatness. Weak is the force of death that aspired to hold down the Giver of Life in its abyss. Small is the mouth of death that aspired to strangle the Bestower of resurrection. Only in the light of the Resurrection can one comprehend Christ's deeds on earth, His love for men and His divinity.

Here is another mystery: How has the belief in the Resurrection of Christ been preserved through so many centuries?

The key: In the same way that a well rooted tree withstands the winds, as light is preserved in darkness, and as truth is preserved amidst lies.

A third mystery: Is the Resurrection of Christ still felt today?

The key: It is powerfully felt, throughout the entire world, Gazing with the eyes of the spirit at the resurrected Lord, the weak are strengthened, the sorrowful are comforted, the sad rejoice, sinners repent, the wicked are corrected, the impure are cleansed, the persecuted are. encouraged, the despondent hope, sufferers pray, and those on their deathbeds no longer fear death.

"Today the Master spoiled hell and raised the prisoners from all ages whom it had held in bitter bondage." (from the Paschal canon)

A fourth mystery: What are the conditions for our own resurrection?

The key: To imitate here on earth Christ and His Apostles and al! these righteous ones who pleased God, according to one' s strength and God-given talents. To be humble, modest, compassionate, merciful, just, peace loving and persistent in every virtue. To pray to God, to repent of our sins, to constantly correct ourselves .... To read and listen to the Joyous News that is the Gospel of Christ, to accept every word of the Lore as sacred and to treasure it as a pearl, every word, every word. To believe all that Christ said, confessed or promised. And so we can not but have hope that we will rise rise up in this life from spiritual death, and in the life to come -- from eternal death. Thus spoke the resurrected Lord:

"I am the Resurrection and the Life: he that believeth in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in Me shall never die." (John 1 1:25-26)

Let us, therefore, believe in Him, for in Him we shall find all the conditions for our resurrection.

And so, let us fervently say: I believe, O Lord. Help my weak faith. And with joy let us greet one another, brother to brother:

CHRIST IS RISEN! TRULY HE IS RISEN!

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First Celebration of the 1241 Naousa Martyrs of 1822

On Bright Thursday, 19 April 2012, a Divine Liturgy was celebrated in the Katholikon of the Monastery of the Entrance of the Theotokos, or Panagia of the Rock, which until recently housed the Psychiatric Hospital of Petra Olympus. This was done to commeorate Hieromartyr John the New of the Holy Monastery of Petras Olympus, who was martyred in the holocaust of Naousa on Bright Thursday in 1822.

In 1822, the insurgence of the Greeks of Western Macedonia against the Turks came to a dramatic finale in Naousa. Abdul Abud, the Pasha of Thessaloniki, arrived on the 14th of March at the head of a 16,000 strong force and 12 cannons. The Greeks defended Naousa with a force of 4,000 under Anastasios Karatasos, Aggelis Gatsos, Tsamis Karatasos, Karamitsos and Philippos, the son of Zafeirakis Theodosiou, under the overall command of Zafeirakis Theodosiou and Anastasios Karatasos. The Turks attempted to take the town of Naousa on the 16th of March 1822, and on the 18 and 19 March, without success. On the 24th of March the Turks began a bombardment of the city walls that lasted for days. After requests for the town's surrender were dismissed by the Greeks, the Turks charged the gate of St George on Good Friday, the 31st of March. The Turkish attack failed but on the 6th of April, after receiving fresh reinforcements of some 3,000 men, the Turkish army finally overcame the Greek resistance and entered the city. In an infamous incident, as the rebels were abandoning the town, some of the women left behind committed suicide by falling down a cliff over the small river Arapitsa. Zafeirakis Theodosiou was pursued by a Turkish unit and was killed. The other Greek leaders retreated southwards. Abdul Abud laid the town and surrounding area to waste. The fall and massacre of Naousa marked the end of the Greek revolution in Macedonia in 1822. (John C. Vasdravellis, The Greek Struggle for Independence: The Macedonians in the Revolution of 1821 (1968), p. 123-24, 136)


Hieromonk John of the Holy Monastery of Petras Olympus represented his Monastery in the struggle of the Greeks. On Bright Thursday of 1822 Saint John celebrated the Divine Liturgy in the Church of Saint George in Naousa together with four other priests. At the end of the Divine Liturgy thirty faithful were in the church who had fled there to pray for God's mercy and to escape the fury of the Turks. Unfortunately, the siege of the Turks was persistent and they managed to enter inside the temple, and behead all those who were inside with the first being Hieromonk John, then Papa Gerasimos the Spiritual and Papa Dimitri the Sakelario, and two other priests whose names remain unknown.

On Sunday 26 June 2011, 1241 New Martyrs of Naousa were glorified by the Church. See: The Glorification of 1241 New Martyrs of Naousa

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Zoodochos Pege Church in Baloukli in the 1830's Illustrated

Thomas Allom (1804-1872) was an English architect, artist, and topographical illustrator. Allom is chiefly known for his numerous topographical works, which were used to illustrate books on travel. From the 1820s onwards, he travelled extensively through the UK and mainland Europe. In 1834, at the age of 30, he arrived in Istanbul, Turkey, and produced until 1836 hundreds of drawings during journeys through Anatolia, Syria and Palestine. The results of this expedition were published in 1838 in Constantinople and the Scenery of the Seven Churches of Asia Minor published in two volumes with text by Robert Walsh. His engravings depict every part of the city, from Yeniköy on the Bosphorus to the fortress of Yedikule, and are today invaluable documentary records of Istanbul in the 1830s.




The Church of Zoodochos Pege (Life-giving Spring) in Baloukli

Outside of Constantinople, towards the district of the Seven Towers, there was in ancient times a very large and most beautiful church named in honour of the Theotokos; it had been built about the middle of the fifth century by the Emperor Leo the Great (also called "Leo of Thrace," he is commemorated on Jan. 20). Before he became Emperor, he had encountered there a blind man, who being tormented with thirst asked him to help him find water. Leo felt compassion for him and went in search of a source of water but found none. As he became downcast, he heard a voice telling him there was water nearby. He looked again, and found none. Then he heard the voice again, this time calling him "Emperor" and telling him that he would find muddy water in the densely wooded place nearby; he was to take some water and anoint the blind man's eyes with it. When he had done this, the blind man received his sight. After Leo became Emperor as the most holy Theotokos had prophesied, he raised up a church over the spring, whose waters worked many healings and cured maladies by the grace of the Theotokos; from this, it came to be called the "Life-giving Spring." The Church of Christ celebrates the consecration of this church on this day.

After the fall of the imperial city, this church was razed to the ground and the materials from it were used for building the mosque of Sultan Bayezid. Nothing remained of that church's ancient beauty, except for a small and paltry chapel, almost completely buried in the ruins. This chapel had twenty-five steps going down into it, and a transom window on the roof, wherefrom it received a little light. Toward the western side of the chapel was the aforementioned holy Spring, fenced about with a railing, and with fish swimming in it. Such was the condition of the Spring until 1821. Then even that little remnant was destroyed, occasioned by the uprising of the Greek nation against the Ottoman Empire; the sacred Spring was buried with it and disappeared altogether.

But in the days of Sultan Mahmud, when those subject to him were rejoicing in their freedom to practice their religion, permission was sought by the Orthodox Christian community to rebuild at least part of the chapel. Thus the work was begun on July 26, 1833. When the excavation had been made, and the foundations of the ancient church were found, there was rebuilt -- by a later writ of permission from the Sultan -- not merely a chapel of the holy Spring, but another new church, constructed upon the foundations of the ancient one. The building of this spacious, beautiful, and most majestic temple began on September 14, 1833, and the work was completed on December 30, 1834. On February 2, 1835, the Ecumenical Patriarch Constantine II, serving the Liturgy together with twelve hierarchs and a great company of clergy, as well as a boundless multitude of Christians, performed the consecration of this sacred church and dedicated it to the glory of the Mother of God. On September 6, 1955, however, it was desecrated and destroyed again by the Moslem Turks; it has been restored again, but not to the former magnificence.

Apolytikion in the Third Tone
As a life-giving fount, thou didst conceive the Dew that is transcendent in essence, O Virgin Maid, and thou hast welled forth for our sakes the nectar of joy eternal, which doth pour forth from thy fount with the water that springeth up unto everlasting life in unending and mighty streams; wherein, taking delight, we all cry out: Rejoice, O thou Spring of life for all men.

Kontakion in the Plagal of the Fourth Tone
O Lady graced by God, you reward me by letting gush forth, beyond reason, the ever-flowing waters of your grace from your perpetual Spring. I entreat you, who bore the Logos, in a manner beyond comprehension, to refresh me in your grace that I may cry out, "Hail redemptive waters."

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Interview With President of the Decani Monastery Relief Fund

Interview with Archimandrite Nektarios Serfes: “I have come to Kosovo to convey to the Serbians that we are thinking about them”.

Interview led by Slavica Lazic

President of the Decani Monastery Relief Fund from the USA, The Very Reverend Archimandrite Nektarios Serfes, visited Kosovo and Metohija this year, and delivered humanitarian aid to the most struggling families. Serbians in the region largely depend on help from the Church, charities, and people of good will.

The following interview took place in Belgrade, Serbia on 2 February 2012, wih Slavica Lazic who is one of the writers of Pravolsavlje.

This is your sixth visit to Kosovo and Metohija. What is your impression after this last visit of the endangered Serbian enclaves?

I came intentionally at this time of year. I wanted to see how average people live everyday life under these conditions of a cold and extremely harsh winter. I plan to share my experience and photos with the donors of my Fund and to testify to our brothers and sisters in Kosovo that Orthodox in America and across the globe have not forgotten about them. I came over here to communicate my love and to assure them that we are committed to help them by any means we can, and that we will persevere in our work.

What would be the most essential/urgent help for the Serbian people at this very moment?

I traveled all over Kosovo. During this visit I have spoken to many people, with the seminarians in Prizren, with monks and nuns in Decani and Gracanica, etc., so that I can find out how we can help them in the future. At the seminary, which had no heating, and was under construction for a while after it was destroyed, the situation is slightly better; however, there are still many things that need to be done. Schools need more support, from heating to equipment and teaching aids. There are currently six soup kitchens, which experience shortages of food. Due to bad weather many roads are impassable and that makes the situation for soup kitchens even more unbearable. I want to convey to the people in my country, through these photographs, about the seriousness of the situation.

In addition to the seminary and monasteries, I have visited many homes. I have noticed that many of them are without running water, without proper and sufficient heating systems and are only furnished with basic furniture. However, they were glad to see a priest, or to have a monk visit their home or their village. They are happy and grateful, although they need human care and humanitarian aid. We cannot forget Kosovo, for there are still a lot of people who are suffering. We must take care of them. There was a war here and Serbians were fighting for their lives. We know that many of them saved their lives by fleeing to refugee camps. Some of them are now returning to their centuries old homes and it will take them decades to have decent and normal lives again. Serbian families are still not capable of living normal lives. We cannot afford to stop supporting them, for they are returning to their homes with a commitment to reestablish their lives, to rebuild their churches and to reconstruct their monasteries, and this project will take a long time. Returning Serbian people don’t have enough Churches in which to pray. If there were more Churches where people could pray, I’m sure Serbians would return in a greater number. Serbian people love their Orthodox Church and faith. If they see Churches rebuilt, and Divine Liturgy served in them – they will come back. As long as there is a Serbian Orthodox Church and monks in Kosovo, Serbians will survive. Serbians do not complain to anyone, they are not bitter or angry. As Christians we cannot close our eyes to their struggles and hard life.

The Decani Monastery Relief Fund is a non-profit organization. How much money have you distributed over all of these years?

We have donors from all over the world. Financial assistance comes from America, Canada, Europe and Australia. We have collected almost a quarter of a million dollars over these fourteen years. Since everything was demolished, robbed, and destroyed, we are grateful to our contributors, and they are aware that we use their money for education, medical needs, households, and construction material for rebuilding houses and Churches. With great joy, we announce that thirteen Churches have been rebuilt. I haven’t been back in a while because it has taken this long to raise enough money to bring as a donation. The current economic crisis is affecting the whole world, and naturally Americans are struggling as well, however I will not give up seeking more donations. When I go back I will continue advocating that Kosovo needs more humanitarian help and that it needs to rebuild more Orthodox Churches and monasteries. I wish those who were responsible for their desecration and demolition would reconstruct them. However, since this is unlikely to happen, we, Orthodox Christians, have to rebuild them and reestablish their glory. Our Churches are our glory. WE cannot forget the seminary in Prizren, which was burned down by Albanians in 2004’s pogrom, which is now being rebuilt. There is a first generation of seminarians attending the reopened seminary there; however, there are still other dormitories that need to be rebuilt in order for the seminary to be fully functional.

Serbians in Kosovo and Metohija are in danger; they live in a constant fear. Are you afraid to visit the most remote Serbian enclaves without protection of peace keeping troops?

People were asking me in the States: “Why are you going to Kosovo? That’s dangerous!” When I first visited this region a while ago, my mother was on her deathbed with cancer. I was afraid that I would not find her alive when I came back to the States; however, she encouraged me in my intention, saying that I was doing God’s work and that I should not be afraid. Ever since, I’ve seen horrible things, and I simply cannot believe that Albanians are taking reposed people out of their graves, that they are desecrating Serbian cemeteries, and doing other horrible things – they don’t even leave dead people to rest in peace. They persecute the living and the dead. They are killing priests and monks. Father Hariton who was doing humanitarian work, bringing food, helping struggling people and taking them to the hospital, was kidnapped and beheaded in 1999. I was in the States when that happened and I promised I would visit his grave. He was buried without his head. I couldn’t believe that happened.

The West cannot understand our love towards the Orthodox Church; that love and the Jesus prayer from the monks and nuns in Kosovo are what keep the Serbian people existing in that area. I’m bringing many prayer ropes back to the States. People are asking for them. They are even putting them on the babies’ hands to wear. I believe in prayer and love.

I’m always accompanied with Bishop Theodosije and monks from Decani, therefore I feel safe. God protects us.

Kosovo is the most struggling area in the world today along with Constantinople and Skopje. Average people in the West must see these struggles, and we as Orthodox Christians have to help each other. We are obliged as Christians to take care of our weak and struggling brothers and sisters through our prayers, love, and humanitarian work. In my parish in the States my parishioners pray for me before I leave and worry if I will return safely. And here I am, I haven’t been killed yet. With prayers and love we can accomplish a lot. While here, I’ve been serving a Divine Liturgy every day in the monastery of Decani.

I know a lot of children whom I visit every time I come. I bring them some gifts and some pocket change to buy some food or whatever they need. One boy lost a lot of weight since my last visit. That shocked me. I cried when I saw that because I haven’t been able to help more. Now when I go back to the States it’ll be difficult for me to start my life again. I have a heating system, I can turn on the lights with a switch, I can freely go to the store, I can drive my car in peace and without fear, but knowing how Serbian people live in Kosovo is killing me. People travel with fear and insecurity.

I met with Patriarch Irinej after the Liturgy in St. Mark’s Church. That was a fascinating moment to see a Patriarch serving the Liturgy in a freezing Church. What a great example of sacrifice and self-giving. He is an example of a true Christian, for there are not a lot of people who are ready to sacrifice for other people. Every time that I come here, I say to myself that I am a spoiled American.

You are also president of the Archbishop Jovan Fund. You went to Skopje with the intention to visit him in the jail. They have rejected your appeal to see him. What were their reasons behind that?

The Archbishop is my close friend, and we’ve known each other for six years. I spoke with him just before he was arrested. He told me that in December he was planning on returning to his diocese. “I have to go back to my people. I’m responsible for them like any other bishop. I am aware of what my happen to me when I go back, however I know that you will be praying for me,” he said. This is an example of a true love for Christ’s Church. A father has to take care of his children, especially with the responsibility as a bishop. He knows that his clergy and people are suffering and he doesn’t want to remain silent in Thessalonica. So far he has been arrested six times. Why? He is and Archbishop of the universally recognized Church. When the unrecognized Macedonian Orthodox Church separated from one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church he decided to remain faithful to his archdiocese and to his Patriarch. There were other bishops who followed his example. However, the government of the Former Yugoslavian Republic of Macedonia was looking for false accusations. The easiest way to defame someone is to accuse him of the embezzlement of money or to find something in his private life. He was accused with the former method. When he made an attempt to speak on behalf of his Church he asked – Why are you persecuting me? – He was accused that he has been speaking against his government. He replied: “My Church has to be free! And stop, don’t persecute us anymore!” To imprison an Archbishop is a scandal. He has a great love for God. I went to Skopje, but I wasn’t allowed to visit him at the prison. No one besides his mother and sister, who come to visit him once a month, are allowed to visit him – not bishops, not friends, not Patriarch. Prisons in Eastern Europe are much different than those in the States. The Archbishop’s life is in danger – he suffers from diabetes, he is in a cold cell without proper medication or diet. What’s the point of his imprisonment? His cassock and his insignias are taken away from him and he is thrown in a prison as if a robber. That’s a huge disgrace! The cassock is considered something holy for us. They want to strip him of his dignities and do away with him. Five times he was pronounced not guilty. If anything happens to him while he is imprisoned, we will tell the free world that the Macedonian government killed him. They are becoming extremely bad. Archbishop Jovan needs to be free now!

In Skopje I met with a representative from the US embassy, who showed a great understanding for our concerns. I have spoken with his Holiness Patriarch Irinej and I told him that we cannot remain silent about this. The more we keep silent, the more he suffers. We have to tell the world and the media that our Archbishop Jovan is in prison. He is dying on a daily basis. He is known in America as the confessor of Orthodoxy.

Our fund is financially supporting the clergy and faithful of the Archdiocese of Ohrid in Macedonia. They are persecuted, too. The whole Church is persecuted. They have to hide to pray, for the government destroyed all of their Churches. Nuns were praying once and the state police took them out of the Church, dragging them by their hair. That’s unthinkable in the West. They don’t have enough food, wood, warm water, and they have to hide when they pray.

I’ll never give up. I’ll try not to neglect my duties in my parish, but I’ll keep helping people in Kosovo as well. I pray to saints, especially to St. Steven of Decani to protect and guide his people in Kosovo and Metohija.

Serbia is being blackmailed to give up on Kosovo and Metohija in order to gain membership in the EU. What do you think about that?

I’m not a politician. I’m a parochial priest. Kosovo belongs to Serbia. Everything else is betrayal. The responsibility of the Serbians is to pray for their land and to protect it.

If anyone might be interested in sending donations to our fund please use the following address:

Decani Monastery Relief Fund
Very Rev. Archimandrite Nektarios Serfes
2618 West Bannock Street
Boise, Idaho 83702

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Archbishop Demetrios Requests From Hilary Clinton Release of Archbishop Jovan

The Archbishop of America of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople and Chairman of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of North and Central America with seat in New York, Archbishop Demetrios, sent a letter to the US Secretary of State, Ms. Hilary Clinton, in which he expressed his deep concern regarding the imprisonment of the Archbishop of Ohrid and Metropolitan of Skopje Jovan, and requested his immediate release.

In his addressing to the US Secretary of State, Ms. Hilary Clinton, Archbishop Demetrios of America points out: “in the name of the 65 Hierarchs who are part of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of North and Central America, I would like to draw Your attention to the truly sad situation in which Archbishop of Ohrid Jovan is found”, and adds: “his arrest has several years long history, from the time when the schismatic church of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia began the persecution of Archbishop Jovan, the canonical Archbishop of Ohrid. The church of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia is not recognized by any canonical Orthodox Church in the world, and her constitution by the internal powers is only one more example of action which is contrary to what is right and what is proper, and what is in accordance with the Canonical right of the Orthodox Church across the ecumene.

Archbishop Demetrios in his letter to Ms. Hilary Clinton also states: “With the members of our Assembly who reside and serve to the orthodox believers in the United States, we very much appreciate what our country is doing in the world regarding the human rights, religious freedoms and the protection of the human dignity and security of each person. Archbishop Jovan has been unjustly imprisoned while he was attempting to fulfill his religious obligations and we sincerely hope that our Government will intercede in his name and request his release on freedom.

We are deeply grateful to You for your unceasing efforts, especially for the improvement of the religious freedoms around the world. As Orthodox Christians, the most suitable way to express our gratitude is to continue to pray for You and for all our civil authorities, and pray that God be with You and greatly multiply Your noble efforts for America and for the whole world”, are the words with which Archbishop Demetrios concludes his appeal for immediate release of Archbishop Jovan, an appeal addressed to the US Secretary of State, Ms. Hilary Clinton.

Information Service of the Orthodox Ohrid Archbishopric

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Saint Michael the Breadseller (+1547)

Saint Michael the Mavroudis (Feast Day - Thursday of Bright Week)

Born in Granitsa, in the Agrapha area of Greece, of the pious and God-fearing parents Demetrios and Statera, Michael was brought up in the Orthodox Christian tradition. His parents were regular church attendants, and from an early age Michael took his religion very seriously. When his father died, Michael was quite young, so he was brought up by his mother. Later when he came of age, she arranged an Orthodox Christian marriage for him.

Some time later Michael moved to the city of Thessalonike where he worked as a breadseller. In Thessaloniki he became well-known not only for his genuine piety but also for his many kind acts and works of charity. In addition he rarely if ever missed any church services and listened attentively to the Scripture readings. In fact he had a great desire to become a monk, but he was reminded it was not right to abandon his wife.


On the feast of Mid-Lent (Third Sunday of Great Lent), Michael did not remain in church after the end of service, as was his custom, to hear the spiritual readings that were read, but went straight to the shop and sat for a time. Soon a Muslim boy known to Michael came to his shop to buy bread. Michael began to engage him in conversation , something he had done before. This time he asked the boy what he believed and whether or not he understood what his teachers told him about his Muslim faith.

By chance the boy's Muslim teacher appeared and the boy told him of Michael's questions and conversation. The teacher then said to Michael: "What is this you are saying to the boy, you infidel? You curse our faith which is glorious and honored, and our dress is glorious and priceless."

To this Michael replied: "With the grace of my Christ, the true God, I am faithful and truly pious, and I know what I say and what I believe, so much that I am ready to die for my faith. But you miserable men neither know what you say nor what you do. Truly you are mistaken and move in darkness. You have a religion full of myths and creatures."

This exchange attracted other Muslims who stood nearby and after hearing some of what was said, they took hold of Michael and brought him before the kadi, charging him with having insulted the Muslim faith and the prophet Muhammad.


When Michael was brought before the kadi, he was questioned about his Orthodox faith. To this questioning, Michael gave intelligent and brave responses which angered the kadi,* especially when he denied that Muhammad was a legitimate prophet. For this, Michael was sentenced to burned at the stake, to which Michael replied in a loud voice: "I believe in the Lord Jesus Christ who is true god and my Creator and Maker. I am ready, if necessary, to suffer tortures for his love. So from whatever money I have, take it and buy wood to burn me, for I do not wish to be offered as a sacrifice to God with your wood."

As soon as he said that he spit on the kadi and the papers he was holding. The kadi responded by having Michael put on the floor and flogged severely. Then he was put in jail.

Orthodox Christians who knew the jailer visited Michael whom they found chained, but calm and unafraid. In fact he related to them the following visitation he had:

Last night when I prayed my Lord appeared and strengthened my weakness and gave my soul courage, telling me: "Michael, my athlete, rejoice. Just as I put forward my soul and suffered death by crucifixion for your sake and for all humanity, in the same way it is necessary for you to die for my love so you might live and reign with me. See to it then that you are not afraid of the fire, for the fear is only in its appearance, and its taste is to be scorned. You will with all this be strengthened by my unconquerable power."

"Saying this," Michael added, "the Lord blessed me and left and I was enveloped by such incredible love and joy that I can't hold myself back. I can only wait for that blessed day to come that will separate me from this world and allow me to join my Christ."


A few days later a high-ranking kadi came and questioned Michael further, to which Michael replied with great boldness. Seeing his resolve, the kadi, although moved by Michael's testimony, nevertheless sentenced him to death. The official sentence read as follows:

Michael, of Orthodox Christian parents, moved by his own accord, came before me and many notables who happened to be in my court, and openly confessed Christ, that the prophets prophesied about him, and that the Virgin Mary who gave birth to Jesus Christ is primarily and truly the birthgiver of God. And he added this also, there were prophets up to the time of Christ, but those who followed are liars and deceivers, and openly called our prophet Muhammad a liar and a deceiver and degraded him with other insults, and therefore, being unwilling to repent over what he said, the law has decided to deliver him to the fire on the twenty-first of March, the fifth day of the week, at the ninth hour.


To frighten Michael at the place of execution, which was the courtyard of the Church of the Presentation of Christ, they placed his hands in the fire, then they took off most of his clothes and covered his body with sulfur. They then placed him in the fire and he ignited, singing hymns until the very end.

Thus Michael the Breadseller of Granitsa died for the love of Jesus Christ in Thessaloniki on March 21, in the year 1547 (some sources say 1544).

* This exchange can be read in Nomikos Michael Vaporis' book Witnesses For Christ, pp. 69-75, from which the above account was abridged.

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Russian Film Stars Support Orthodox Church In New Book

Marc Bennetts
April 18, 2012
RIA Novosti

With Russia’s powerful Orthodox Church facing a wave of criticism from what it has called supporters of “radical liberal values,” a Christian publisher presented on Wednesday a book on the religious beliefs of stars of show business and film.

“The Church has always been persecuted,” actor and presenter Boris Korchevnikov, just one of the 35 celebrities featured in the “The Stars On Heaven” book, told a downtown Moscow news conference. “And today we are seeing more persecution – just in a different form.”

Celebrities interviewed in the book, released by the Moscow-based Nikeya publishers, include Oscar-winning film director Nikita Mikhalkov, actor Yevgeny Mironov, and rock star Leonid Fyodorov. Famed Serbian film director – and Orthodox Christian – Emir Kusturica is also featured.

The presentation comes ahead of an April 22 “defense of the faith” nationwide prayer called by the Orthodox Church to protect it from attacks by “"anti-Russian forces.”

The Church’s Supreme Council said in a statement earlier this month that it had been targeted by “those pushing through radical liberal values” over its opposition to same-sex marriages and consumerism.

But while Orthodox Church spokesman Vladimir Legoida denied the book was designed to shore up support for Russia’s Christian establishment, he also admitted the timing of its release was fortuitous.

“There is no such thing as a coincidence for God,” he said. “But this is not our answer to bloggers.”

Orthodox Church head Patriarch Kirill was condemned by opposition figures for his public backing of Vladimir Putin in the run-up to the ex-KGB spy’s landslide victory at March 4 presidential polls. The patriarch called the 12 years of Putin's rule a "miracle of God" in a televised meeting, triggering a high-profile protest by all-female punk group Pussy Riot at Moscow’s largest cathedral.

Top Church officials have also been criticized by bloggers and by opposition media for their “lavish” lifestyles. The anti-Putin Novaya Gazeta newspaper also alleged in February a pre-patriarch-era Kirill profited from Church tobacco and alcohol sales in the early 1990s.

Patriarch Kirill was also at the center of a scandal this month regarding a $30,000 Breguget watch, which was airbrushed – although its reflection remained intact – out of an official Church photo following public indignation over his possession of the luxury timepiece. The patriarch had admitted owning the watch in an interview prior to the row, but said he never wore it. Famous blogger and anti-corruption activist Alexei Navalny - an Orthodox believer - called the incident “shameful.”

Patriarch Kirill was first spotted wearing the watch in 2009, while he was preaching austerity as a way out of an economic crisis.

But a spokesperson for Nikeya publishers stressed on Wednesday that the book contained no explicit expressions of support for the beleaguered patriarch.

A number of celebrities featured in the book express however the conviction that only religious belief can save Russia and Russians.

“Without belief, Russians transform into beasts,” says director Mikhalkov, who won an Oscar for the 1994 film "Burnt by the Sun."

“Russians are afraid of very little. That’s why they need the fear of God the most,” says television presenter Yury Vyazemsky. “Morals alone will not save them.”

“The first steps to the Church are very easy, as if God himself is leading you by the hand,” says actor Andrei Merzlikin, star of the popular gangster film "Boomer."

The release of the book coincided with a scandal involving pop star Filipp Kirkorov, who was photographed speaking at the altar of Moscow’s Ilya Proprok church during the April 8 christening of his daughter. Church officials said Kirkorov, the former husband of Russian pop icon Alla Pugachyova, may face excommunication.

Pussy Riot accused police of hypocrisy for not detaining Kirkorov. Three members of the all-female punk group face up to seven years behind bars after being detained in March over their performance of an anti-Putin song at the altar of the Christ the Savior Cathedral.

“Three Pussy Riot suspects have been behind bars for over a month for exactly the same thing,” the group said in a blog statement earlier this month.

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Video: The Holy Light Ceremony (2012)

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Video: "Christ Is Risen" in the Streets of Moldavia

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"The Day of Easter" by Dionysios Solomos (A Paschal Poem)

Greece’s National poet Dionysios Solomos (1798–1857) was born on the Greek island of Zakynthos, to an elderly count and his teenaged housekeeper. Solomos was educated in Italy, where he studied law and literature, but on returning to Greece he relearned Greek, and decided to write in demotic, or common modern, Greek. He gained fame early on with his ‘Hymn to Liberty’ (1823), a 158‐quatrain poem – the first two stanzas are sung as the Greek National Anthem.

The poem Η Hμέρα της Λαμπρής or The Day of Easter is most famous from a scene from the award-winning film "Eternity And A Day", by Theodoros Angelopoulos (1998). In the movie Alexandros (Bruno Ganz) and the boy (Achilleas Skevis) are on a bus ride and encounter the Greek poet Dionysios Solomos (Fabrizio Bentivoglio), who recites verses from his poem Η Hμέρα της Λαμπρής. Some consider this scene part of one of the greatest scenes in all cinema:



Η Hμέρα της Λαμπρής

Καθαρότατον ήλιο επρομηνούσε
της αυγής το δροσάτο ύστερο αστέρι,
σύγνεφο, καταχνιά, δεν απερνούσε
τ' ουρανού σε κανένα από τα μέρη,
και από εκεί κινημένο αργοφυσούσε
τόσο γλυκό στο πρόσωπο τ' αέρι,
που λες και λέει μες της καρδιάς τα φύλλα
«γλυκειά η ζωή κι ο θάνατος μαυρίλα».

Χριστός ανέστη! Νέοι, γέροι και κόραις
όλοι, μικροί, μεγάλοι ετοιμασθήτε,
μέσα στις εκκλησιές τες δαφνοφόραις
με το φως της χαράς συμμαζωχθήτε,
ανοίξατε αγκαλιές ειρηνοφόραις
ομπροστά στους Αγίους, και φιληθείτε,
φιληθείτε γλυκά χείλη με χείλη,
πέστε Χριστός ανέστη, εχθροί και φίλοι.

Δάφναις εις κάθε πλάκα έχουν οι τάφοι,
και βρέφη ωραία στην αγκαλιά οι μαννάδες,
γλυκόφωνα, κοιτώντας ταις ζωγραφι-
σμέναις εικόνες, ψάλλουνε οι ψαλτάδες,
λάμπει το ασήμι, λάμπει το χρυσάφι
από το φως που χύνουνε οι λαμπάδες,
κάθε πρόσωπο λάμπει απ' τ' αγιοκέρι,
οπού κρατούνε οι Χριστιανοί στο χέρι.

The Day of Easter

The last cool star of dawn was
foretelling the brightest sunshine;
no cloud, no drift of mist was travelling
across any part of the sky.
Coming from there, the breeze
blew so sweetly across the face,
so gently, that it seemed
to whisper to the depths of the heart:
‘Life is sweet and death is darkness.’

‘Christ is Risen!’ Young and old, maidens,
everyone, little and great, prepare!
Inside the laurel-covered churches,
gather in the light of joy!
Open your arms and with them offer peace,
that the icons of the saints may see.
Embrace and kiss each other sweetly, lip on lip,
let friend and foe proclaim, ‘Christ is Risen!’

Laurels are placed on every tomb,
beautiful babes are held in mothers’ arms,
the choristers sing sweetly
as they come before the icons.
Bright is the silver, bright is the gold,
under the light of the Easter candles.
Each face alights before the holy candles,
that Christians bear in hand.

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A Miracle of the Holy Light in Athens

Though I have never attended the miraculous ceremony of the Holy Light in Jerusalem which takes place annually on Holy Saturday afternoon, I once did have the blessing of seeing the Holy Light when I was in Athens in 1991, and was told of a miracle performed by the Holy Light not in Jerusalem, but in a tiny chapel in Athens.

After two months of pilgrimages to various holy shrines throughout Greece, my final day arrived and I was staying with my Uncle and Aunt in Glyfada, Athens. My Aunt Sia decided to buy me a gift before going home, so she took me across the street to the home of an iconographer whom she knew in order to buy me two hand-painted icons. We arrived at the home of this older couple and when I walked in the entire house was filled with icons, which was obviously also their studio. My aunt told me to choose two icons, so I picked one of Christ at Jacob's Well with St. Photine and another of All New Martyrs Under the Ottomans, both of which were very beautiful.

The couple whom we bought the icons from were a very devout and welcoming couple and were most impressed by the extensive pilgrimage I took, being only 15 years old at the time. They decided therefore to take me to a chapel nearby of which they were caretakers and is little known in Glyfada, dedicated to Saint Barbara but belonging to the Brotherhood of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. After venerating the icons they showed me a spot which contained a glass bowl of oil in which was lit a small fire. This fire they told me came from Jerusalem a few years prior when monks brought the Holy Light to Athens. Since then this fire burned perpetually.

When I asked how they kept the fire burning perpetually for so long, they told me about a miracle. They said that since they were the only caretakers of the chapel, they always took care of the Holy Light to make sure it never extinguished. One year however they went to go visit family abroad for more than a few weeks, and when they returned the Holy Light had extinguished. With sorrow they decided to reignite the oil lamp anyway, so they grabbed some oil and refilled the bowl. As they refilled the bowl the Holy Light spontaneously lit again without having to be reignited. Since then they always made sure to keep the fire going.


See more photos of the chapel here.

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Saint Nikandros the New Ascetic of Sinai

Saint Nikandros the Sinaite of Kastelorizo (Feast Day - Bright Wednesday)

A Sinai Codex of 1716 contains the life and deeds of Saint Nikandros the New Ascetic who shone with virtue and holiness at the Sacred Monastery of Saint Katherine at the holy and God-trodden mountain of Sinai. According to the codex, Saint Nikandros was born in 1581 on the island of Kastelorizo where there was a metochion of Saint Katherine's Monastery dedicated to the Holy Apostles. He became a monk at Sinai in 1611 and reposed in 1631 in the days of Archbishop Joasaph.

While at Sinai there was a very virtuous hieromonk named Ignatios from Rethymno in Crete. Ignatios took Nikandros as his novice. Since both desired to know the monasteries and hermitages of Mount Athos, they went and remained there for five years. But they again returned to the place of their repentance at Sinai believing they could find more quietness there, and there they lived for the rest of their lives.

Hieromonk Ignatios was a very good and virtuous spiritual father. He had perfect indegence and continence and his constant work was prayer. His disciple however, Monk Nikandros, surpassed his Elder. He had greater temperance and indefatigable obedience to his Elder and attained a state of complete dispassion. He never appeared to be joyous or sad but always stood with the same unchanging state of mind. He would do a prostration to everyone and to whatever someone said to him he would always begin by saying "bless father".

Nikandros reposed over a year prior to his spiritual father Ignatios. After a year the fathers went to the cemetery to bury another brother, and when Elder Ignatios entered to see the relics of Nikandros he found the corpse full and having the color of saffron and it was gushing myrrh. Fr. Ignatios left the cemetery with tears, saying: Thank you, Lord, that even while alive you gave me this information about my novice."

Note: Many sources give the feast day of Saint Nikandros as January 29th. But according to the Metropolis of Symi, Saint Nikandros is celebrated on Bright Wednesday. Rather, it is Saint Ignatios of Rethymno who is likely commemorated on January 29 (see here).

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Synaxis of Panagia Ypseni in Rhodes

The holy and most-honored icon of the Panagia "Ypsenis" was hidden beneath an olive tree in the eponymous village of Lardos, which was the site of an old Monastery of the Most-Holy Theotokos. In that place was often found in asceticism and prayer our Holy Father Meletios (February 12), who one night became an eye-witness to a marvelous spectacle. A column of light came down from the sky lighting up the tree and surrounding area.

Surprised he approached and found an old looking icon of the Mother of God. The next night the Theotokos appeared to him in a dream telling him to build in her name a temple at the place where he found the icon, in order to place the icon, and to establish a monastery, to continue in his asceticism.

At the same time she showed him a place near the area where she told him to dig to find the necessary money for such a large project. The Saint obeyed the command of the Panagia, dug at the place suggested, and found the buried treasure by which he managed to meet the costs of building. He built the temple in which he treasured the Holy Icon, and refounded the ruined monastery, where he lived in asceticism till the end of his earthly life.

The miraculous icon is treasured until now in the homonymous monastery and is honored by the faithful and is a source of many miracles to those who approach with faith and reverence.


The Monastery of Panagia Ypseni

On the South-Eastern side of the island of Rhodes, 50 km from Rhodes Town, in the direction of Lindos and the village Lardos, hidden in a once verdant forest is the monastery of the Panagia Ypseni or Gypseni.

There are two possible explanations for the title given the Panagia. Ypseni from the Greek word for height, indicating the monastery is built on high ground. There is a folk verse which says, “O Panagia of Ypseni, thou who art in the heights”. The other explanation says that it is a corruption of the word gypseni, because of the high amount of gypsum in the surrounding

According to the commemorative stone at the entrance of the Church, the monastery was built around 1855. It’s founder was St. Meletios of Rhodes.

Today about 15 nuns live within the monastery, under the spiritual direction of the abbess of the monastery, Mariam. The monastery’s first abbess was the nun Eugenia. The sisterhood was established by the Metropolitan of New Zealand, Amphilochios Tsoukos.

The monastery celebrates its patronal feast on the 22 and 23rd of August, on the leavetaking of the Dormition of the Mother of God, where multitudes of people come together. The monastery also celebrates the memory of St. Meletios on the 12th of February. There is also a celebration on Bright Wednesday.

The Synaxis of the Icon of the All-Holy Mother of God of Ypseni is celebrated on Bright Wednesday after Pascha. The faithful take the icon to the village of Lardos on Bright Monday. The priest and a multitude of people accompany the icon to every house, so that all can receive her blessing. On Tuesday of Bright Week the icon is returned to the Holy Monastery Ypseni accompanied by the priests and a multitude of the faithful who make the journey on foot.

The sisters of the monastery paint icons, sew, work the land (vines, olives, citrus fruits etc) and mount icon reproductions onto natural wood.

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Fr. Mitrophanes: The Monk Who Saw the Holy Light

For the complete account of Fr. Mitrophanes' vision of the Holy Light in Jerusalem, which authenticates the annual phenomenon that takes place at the Holy Sepulchre on Holy Saturday, read I Saw the Holy Light by Fr. Savva Achileos.

Below Fr. Mitrophanes, who was guardian of the Holy Sepulchre for 58 years, is interviewed regarding his experience (in Greek):

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Pilgrimage Rights of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem

Areti Kotseli
April 16, 2012
Greek Reporter

The Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, known as the Church of the Resurrection, has been an important pilgrimage destination since the 4th century. There are three major rights of the Greek-Orthodox Patriarchate over the pilgrimage area.

The first one is the key of the inside gate of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, as the Exarch explains to ana-mpa.gr. Responsible for the key of the main entrance of the Church is a local Muslim family whose roots are associated to Prophet Muhammad. The Holy Community of the All-Holy Sepulchre, also known as Templars, have the right to open the Church’s gate using the inside key. The Orthodox monastic fraternity has guarded and protected the Christian Holy places in the Holy Land for centuries. Keeping the Sepulchre, Jesus’ burial site, and Golgotha safe, are two of the most significant pilgrim rights of the Greek-Orthodox Patriarchate.

The Holy Community of the All-Holy Sepulchre or Brotherhood of the Holy Sepulchre administers the Greek Orthodox Church of Jerusalem.

The Brotherhood of the Holy Sepulchre was traditionally founded in year 313, and the foundation of the Churches in the Holy Land by Constantine and St. Helen is traditionally dated to year 326. At first, it bore the name “Order of the Spoudaeoi (studious, zealous, industrious, serious),” or “The Spoudaeoi of the Holy Resurrection of Christ.” The Brotherhood was distinguished primarily for their observance of uninterrupted mental prayer and heartfelt supplication in the Holy Lands.

The Patriarchal School of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem (School of Sion) provides the Orthodox testimony of the Christian Faith at the Holy Lands. The Patriarchal School, which is a Gymnasium and Lyceum and fully equivalent to the public schools of middle Education of the Greek State, recognized by the State since 1911, follows the complete program of the Ministry of Education enriched by special subjects which cover Christianity’s special role. Graduates may be inducted to the Brotherhood and under the care of the Patriarchate, continue their studies in Greek or foreign universities.

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St. Nikodemos the Hagiorite: Inappropriate Ways To Celebrate Pascha

By St. Nikodemos the Hagiorite

Now, my Christian brethren, do you bear it in your soul, instead of thanking and glorifying the sweetest Jesus Christ, and God the Father your Creator, you dishonor Him and intimidate Him with the demonic acts which you do on the day of His Resurrection? He endured so much to free you from sin, and you again bring it back to life? He resurrected to raise you from evil, and you again fall? And when? On the same days on which He raised you. O great ingratitude! O unheard of hard-hearted Christians!

You who throughout Holy Great Lent and Holy Week lift up your hands and pray and do your cross, and when Pascha comes, you dare to make those hands instruments of sin, playing tambourines and lyres and other diabolical games?

You who with your tongue and lips commune of the Body and Blood of Christ and chant such spiritual and divine songs on the day of Pascha, and after with the same tongue and lips sing pornographic and diabolic songs?

You who with your legs stand in the Temple of God and do prostrations and bend your knees to venerate Almighty God, and when the Bright Day comes you bear it in your heart to beat the same legs? To jump like rams? To dance like crazy people and the demonically possessed? And with those naughty moves you would venerate the devil?

You, to conclude, become temples of God and the Holy Spirit during the holy days of Great Lent and Pascha, and you the same again become temples of the devil and evil spirits with satanic games, dances and songs? These are things that do not match, acts which do not blend, because what union is there between light and darkness? The devil with Christ? The temple of God with the temple of idols? As Paul says: "Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?" (2 Cor. 6:14).

Therefore we say that during Pascha and Bright Week Christians should not play such games, dance and sing songs, and likewise during the days of Pascha Christians should not shoot rifles or pistols or other similar guns. Because the Risen Christ, not only has He no need of such things, but instead He hates and abhors them because - a) they traumatize many people and often get killed - b) from the noise Christians cannot hear the services and spiritual hymns and the songs of Resurrection.

And if in the old days there was gunpowder and Christians shot off these guns during Pascha, it is certain that all the Holy Fathers would have written about them and struggled with this evil and national habit. It is a national habit during festivals to shoot these things off and not Christian. It is the Christian habit only to strike the sacred bells and the simantron and to chant "Christ is Risen!" and other joy-giving songs of the Holy Resurrection.

From Christians of Good Repute (Χρηστοήθεια των Χριστιανών) by St. Nikodemos the Hagiorite. Translated by John Sanidopoulos.

See also:

A Syrian Style Easter

Guns On Pascha 1905

Paschal Fireworks Battle In Chios

Boy Dies In Athens From Pascha Fireworks

Greek Bombs Trouble Tarpon Springs On Easter

Tarpon Springs Explosion Rocks Greek Religious Celebration

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Fr. John Kalaidis and Sts. Raphael, Nicholas and Irene

Fr. John Kalaidis (1925-2009), known by many as Papa-John, reposed on the 4th of August of 2009 in Neohori, Serres. He was a Holy Elder of the people of Serres and for his simplicity was known as a Papa-Nicholas Planas of our times. Papa-John was also the founder of the Church of Saints Raphael, Nicholas and Irene in Neohori, Serres (see here for video of feast on Bright Tuesday).

He helped thousands of Christians who fled to him for help with their various problems. With prayers to his beloved Saints Raphael, Nicholas and Irene countless and great miracles took place. With his charismatic gifts of foreknowledge and clairvoyance given by God, he led many souls on the path of repentance, confession and salvation.

The first video above is of Papa-John serving the Supplication Service to Saints Raphael, Nicholas and Irene on their Bright Tuesday feast in March of 2001. The videos which follow below are a lecture he gave in Mytilene in June of 2001 to pilgrims of Sts. Raphael, Nicholas and Irene Monastery, the Church of the Archangel Michael Mandamadou, Saint Theraponta, and other places.

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Synaxis of Panagia of Asinou

In the central part of Cyprus, in the mountains of the Troodos range, some of the most important monuments of the history of Byzantine painting have survived. These are the painted churches which have to this day preserved brilliant examples of various trends of Byzantine and post-Byzantine monumental art, from the 11th to the 19th century. Ten of these churches have so far been granted World Cultural Heritage status by UNESCO.

The Church of Panagia Phorbiotissa, better known as Panagia of Asinou, is situated in the north foothills of the Troodos mountain range. It is built on the east bank of a stream, three kilometers south of the village of Nikitari. In 1985 it was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.


Panagia Forbiotissa (or Forviotissa) used to be the katholicon (monastery church) of the Monastery of Forbion, as its name implies. According to the dedicatory inscription above its south entrance, which is dated to 1105/6, the church was built with the donation of Magistros Nikephoros Ischyrios, who subsequently became a monk with the name Nikolaos. The monastery was founded in 1099 and it functioned until the end of the 18th century, when it was abandoned.


The church consists of two parts: the vaulted single-aisled nave and the narthex, which is a later addition belonging to the second half of the 12th century. The narthex with its two semi-circular apses belongs to a type directly influenced by Constantinople. Already from the 12th century a steep-pitched timber roof, covered with flat tiles, sheltered the church. Today no traces of the rest of the monastic buildings survive.

The interior of Panagia Forbiotissa is entirely covered with wall-paintings, which vary in date. The earliest group is dated to 1105/6 and it expresses the (then) latest style of the Comnenian period. These frescoes reflect the art of Constantinople, which is thought to be the artist's birthplace, and they are one of the most important groups of Byzantine art of this period. The strong influence of the Empire's capital can be explained by the fact that the prevailing geopolitical conditions of the time led Alexios Comnenos I (1081-1118) to render Cyprus his most important military base of the North-eastern Mediterranean.


Many of the original wall-paintings, dated to 1105/6, are preserved in the apse of the Holy Bema and the west wall of the church, which must have often suffered great damages especially from earthquakes. During the 14th century, for instance, the conch of the apse collapsed and was soon after rebuilt and redecorated. At the same time the external buttresses were added and a little later, the flying buttress at the eastern end of the north wall was built.


The narthex was decorated with mural paintings soon after its erection during the second half of the 12th century, and in 1332/3 it was redecorated following strong Frankish influences. In its iconographic programme, we distinguish the large number of donors.

In the same church there are also some later frescoes, dating to the 17th century.

Panagia of Asinou celebrates on Bright Tuesday.

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Synaxis of Panagia of Podithou

Travelling on the Nicosia-Troodos tourist road and entering the Galata community, on your right you face the "Panagia of Podithou" church. Panagia of Podithou is what remained from a small Monastery that today does not exist. The church is built at the centre of a long and narrow valley close to the riverside of Klarios. Panagia of Podithou has been designated by UNESCO in 1985, which includes nine other painted Byzantine churches of the Troodos range.

The church's shape is rectangular and - in the east - it ends in a semicircular apse. The internal dimensions without the apse are 12 x 4 meters. It is surrounded by a Π-shaped gallery that is covered by the same V-shaped, wooden roof, which is capped by tile plates made by tile-makers from Galata. It was built in 1502 by Demetrios de Coron and his wife Helen. Demetrios and his family were one of medieval Cyprus's families of Latin descent that were Hellenized. In 1461 Demetrios was the commander in the "Pentagia" region and was in favour of Iakovos, illegitimate brother of the legitimate queen Charlotte, who was illegitimately claiming the royal crown of Cyprus. Forty-one years later, in 1502, Demetrios de Coron built the "Panagia Eleousa" Church that was later renamed "Panagia of Podithou".

In the external side of the west wall, the Virgin Mary is figured above the central entrance. The donators are depicted under Her throne, a couple to the left and a man to the right, having a model of the church in their midst, which they offer to the Virgin Mary. Under this composition there is the following founder's inscription:

"THIS DIVINE AND VENERABLE CHURCH OF THE ALL-HOLY, MERCIFUL MOTHER OF GOD WAS RAISED IN THE YEAR OF OUR CHRIST 1502 THROUGH EXPENSES AND MUCH DESIRE OF KIROU MISER DEMETRI DE CORO AND HIS WIFE ELENI, FOUNDERS OF THIS HOLY MONASTERY, AND THOSE OF YOU WHO READ THIS PRAY FOR THEM AND WISH THEM BLESSEDNESS THROUGH OUR LORD, AMEN".

The monastery functioned until the beginning of the 19th century but like many other monasteries of the island it then fell into decline and was finally abandoned after the tragic events of 1821 when the Archbishop and other notables were executed following the Greek revolution. Around 1850 the monk Sophronios established Galata’s first primary school in the monastic buildings.

The building is single-aisled with a steep-pitched timber roof. A later portico surrounds the three sides of the church. The roof shelters both the church and the portico and it is covered with flat tiles. The Russian monk Vassili Barsky, who visited the monastery in 1734, mentions that there were two monks living in an adjacent small, two-storey building made out of mud-brick. This building survived until around the middle of the 20th century.

The church was never entirely painted. The mural paintings, which are contemporary with the church, cover the apse of the Holy Bema, both sides of the western pediment, as well as parts of the north and south walls. Only the figures of the Apostles Peter and Paul, on the north and south walls respectively, date to the 17th century.

The donor is depicted as an old man with his Greek wife, offering to the Virgin Mary a model of the church. It is obvious that he is a hellenised Frank who follows the Orthodox rites and speaks the Greek language.

The painter who worked at Podithou is affected, both in terms of style and iconography, by western art. Some of the scenes in this church are considered to be the best examples of the ‘Italobyzantine’ style of painting, which appeared and spread throughout the island during the period of Venetian domination. It combines Byzantine and Italian Renaissance elements.

Contemporary to the wall-paintings of 1502 is the wood-carved iconostasis, re-gilded in 1783, as well as a lectern.

The iconostasis is one of the earlier examples of this type that appeared in many Greek lands that were under the influence of Venice in the beginning of the 16th century, and it consists of late Gothic and Renaissance elements.

Panagia of Podithou celebrates its feast on Tuesday of Renewal Week.

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Synaxis of Panagia Trikoukiotissa

The Church of Panagia Trikoukiotissa is all that remains of this monastery built in the 13th century. The church contains an icon of the Virgin which is credited with the ability to bring rain to parched fields.

It is situated two kilometers from Prodromos towards Platres in a marvelous natural environment with a spectacular view.

Externally the church is made of stone; the roof is of wood construction and covered by tiles. Architectonically the internal of the church is ‘trikliti’. The monastery which is constituted by five old cells which are on the right side of the church are saved until today and take in seven nuns and two other novices. Another transept has been built and completed with fifteen more cells. The Monastery of Trikoukias is under the protection and support of the Archdiocese of Cyprus.

It is said that the name comes from Trikoukies (medlar trees that had three kernels). Another version says that is from the tree Kokkonia according to which the closest monastery of Kykkos was named by that too. Another tradition mentions that the monastery was supported during Turkish domination with the one third (trikoutsi) of the taxation of the Kouklia manors.

Its history, the same with the other monasteries, is not known although most of the historians locate its foundation in the Byzantine years. The monastery had met glorious days especially in the years of Frankish domination while the Panagia Trikoukiotissa was considered to be miraculous, and her original icon was considered to be a work of the Apostle Luke. The reputation of the monastery and its icon started to be limited when the fame of the Panagia of Kykkos increased. The Turks of Ottoman times respected the monastery and did not destroy it, just because of it’s great reputation.

In 1761 the monastery was renovated and kept functioning until the end of the 18th century when it was run down. It was revived again as a female coenobium in September of 1997.

The Panagia of Trikoukias is celebrated in the area on Tuesday of Renewal Week as well as on the 15th August when her icon is carried in litany.

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Saints Raphael, Nicholas and Irene of Lesvos

Sts. Raphael, Nicholas and Irene the Newly-Revealed (Feast Days - April 9th and Bright Tuesday)

On the island of Mytilene (Lesvos in ancient times), near the village of Therme, the villagers had a custom of ascending a certain hill on this day to celebrate the Divine Liturgy in the ruins of a small chapel, although no one knew whence this tradition sprang. In the year 1959, certain villagers began seeing persons who spoke to them, first in dreams, then awake, both by day and by night. Through these wondrous appearances, which were given to many people independently, the holy Martyrs Raphael, Archimandrite of the Ancient Monastery, and Nicholas, his deacon, together with the other saints martyred on the island, told the villagers the whole account of their martyrdom, which had taken place at the hands of the Moslem Turks ten years after the fall of Constantinople in 1463. The twelve‐year‐old Irene had been tortured, then burned alive in a large earthenware jar in the presence of her parents. On Tuesday of Renewal Week, Saint Raphael had been tied to a tree and his head sawn off through his jaws; Saint Nicholas had died at the sight of this. Although the feast is celebrated today because it is the day of their martyrdom, through the appearances of the Saints as living persons five hundred years after their martyrdom, it is also a singular testimony to the Resurrection of Christ.


Apolytikion in the Fourth Tone
On Lesvos, ye strove in contest for the sake of Christ God; ye also have hallowed her with the discovery of your relics, O blessed ones. O God‐bearer Raphael, with thee, we all honor Nicholas the deacon and Irene the chaste virgin, as our divine protectors, who now intercede with the Lord.

Kontakion in the Fourth Tone
On this day Thou hast appeared on the world like stars first as ascetics, then as athletes slain for Christ, and were translated to the heights, through the great torments that ye endured; and them that praise you, ye keep and protect, O Saints.

Kontakion in the Fourth Tone
Let all of us honour as our protectors and miracle-workers the holy Martyrs who manifestly contended for Christ. Whose relics were hidden under the earth for many years, and who have manifested themselves to us in wondrous ways, Raphael, Nicholas and Irene, as well as those who contended with them in a godly-minded manner.

Megalynarion
Let us honour with hymns the Hosiomartyrs of Christ, divine Raphael and venerable Nicholas, together with Irene, the guardians of Lesvos, for helping all.

Source

For many years a monk had been seen walking on the hill at Karyes in Lesvos, Mytilene in Greece. Many Christians and Turks had seen him. The hill was also called Kaloyeros after the monk, who was seen holding a censor and would disappear in a splendour of light.

In 1917 the Turk who owned an estate with olive trees on the hill at Karyes, Hasan Bei, commissioned the police officer of Thermi, Efstratios Sitara to solve this mystery. The short investigation was soon abandoned as the belief was held that these visions were of a supernatural nature.

There was a small chapel there in the name of Panagia. Residents of Thermi held a service there every Easter Tuesday without hindrance from the Turkish owner of the property.

Many saw the monk. Shepherds grazing their flocks heard singing and bells from the chapel.

Tradition said the monk was killed by the Turks, but when this had happened no one knew. There had also been a female monastery there, but had been destroyed by barbarians. There was a strong belief that the place had Divine Grace and was Holy.

After the destruction and problems suffered by the Greeks in Asia Minor, the Turkish olive tree property was given to a Mr Marangos and his family. They sought permission to build a church.

On 3rd July 1959, excavations began for the foundations of the church. A grave was found containing a human skeleton and giving off a sweet fragrance. The head of the skeleton was resting on a round stone, much like a pillow.The head was about 30cms away from the body. The lower jaw was missing. The excavators also found a ceramic tile from the Byzantine era with a Cross engraved on it.

After the discovery of the grave, amazing phenomena started to occur. The bones were put in a sack by a Mr Doukas Tsolakis. He was in charge of the excavations. He could not lift the sack up due to the excessive weight.Noises were heard from the bones. They were also producing a fragrant incense. One of the workers, a Mr Leonidas Sideras kicked the sack and his leg went numb. Tsolakis hand remained motionless. He could not lift the sack. The priest was asked to do a Trisagion - a prayer for the departed. The night before he was due to conduct the service, he was wondering what name he should use. During the night Saint Raphael appeared to the Priest. He told him who he was, and that he was born on the island of Ithaka.

Since then St Raphael has appeared many times to different people. He suffered martyrdom on 9th April 1463.

St Raphael was born Georgios Laskaridis. His father was called Dionysios and his mother Maria. They were a devout family. St Raphael served in the army. He then became a monk and clergyman taking the name of Raphael.

He served as parish priest in the parish of St Demetrios of Loumbardiaris in Athens. He then became Archimandrite and Bishop at the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.

It was when he traveled to France that he met St Nicholas at Morlaix. Nicholas was from a wealthy family. He was a young student from Thessalonika studying at a French university. Nicholas was moved by the teaching of st Raphael and they became firm friends.

They lived in the monastery for nine years. In 1462 Mohammed the conqueror captured Lesvos after a seventeen day siege. It fell on 17th September 1462. The Turks did not disturb the Monastery immediately. After 6 months, in April 1463, during Holy Week, a movement occurred in Thermi, causing some agitation. The Christians went up to Karyes to hide. The teacher Theodoros and the Commumity Chief Vasillios together with his family went up to the Monastery. St Raphael conducted the Divine Liturgy for the last time on Holy Thursday. On Good Friday the Turks came to the Monastery seized Abbot Raphael, Deacon Nicholas, the family of the Community Chief and the Teacher Theodoros. Everyone else had fled to the mountains. The Turks started torturing them to find out the hideout of the others.

Irene, the twelve year old daughter of the Community Chief had her hand cut off in front of her parents, who were tied to a tree. She was then put in a big earthen pot and burned to death. Her father, mother, and the teacher Theodoros were all murdered. St Raphael was horribly tortured in front of Saint Nicholas. St Nicholas died of heart failure, on seeing his mentor murdered.

The Monastery was then torched and the Turks fled. The next night some devout Christians buried the Holy Martyrs secretly.

When St Raphael started to appear to people he revealed everything - where the bones of the Martyrs were buried, the pot where little Irene was burned, the grave of the Teacher Theodoros, and the graves of Irene and her father.

At The site of the Ancient Church, icons were found, Holy Water, Sheets from handwritten Gospels and a round icon of Jesus. St Raphael also revealed the spot where his jaw was.

The grave of Mother Olympia, who suffered Martyrdom in 1235 when pirates destroyed Panagias Old Monastery and killed the nuns, was also found. Three large nails were found in her skull. More nails were found on her body.

In 1963 at the place of the Holy Martyrdom a Convent for Ladies was established.

St Raphael has performed and still performs many miracles to this day.

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A Paschal Greeting To Elder Paisios From the Panagia

Elder Paisios said:

"On Monday of Renewal Week I was sitting at Archontariki and saying the Prayer. Suddenly I sensed an aroma, unlike anything else! I went in the hallway to see where it was coming from, I went to the church - nothing. I went outside in the yard. The aroma was much more pronounced. I heard the talanton beating. I looked and saw descending down a litany, and I knew it was coming from the icon of the Panagia."

On Bright Monday every year the procession of the miraculous image of "Axion Estin" descends below Koutloumousiou Monastery to the Cells of the Holy Apostles (Alypiou). The Cell of "Panagouda" is one kilometer away. From this distance the Panagia sent a greeting to some extent to the Elder.

From Life of Elder Paisios the Athonite, Hieromonk Isaac, Mount Athos, 2004, p. 288.

Note: On April 16, 2012, Bright Monday, the litany with the Holy Icon of Panagia "Axion Estin" passed by the Cell of Elder Paisios.

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The Resurrection Gospel in Homeric Greek (and other Greek dialects)

This is a beautiful recording of the Gospel reading from the Agape Service (John 20:19-25) in Ancient Homeric Greek (not Koine) chanted by Protopsaltis Evgenios Hardavellas. This was translated into Homeric Greek by St. Nikodemos the Hagiorite. It is set to the Heroic Hexameter, which is a metrical line of verse consisting of six feet. It was the standard epic metre in classical Greek and Latin literature, such as in the Iliad and Aeneid. (Read more here)

Below is the Gospel text in various Greek dialects:

Koine Original

Liturgical Opening:

Καὶ ὑπὲρ τοῦ καταξιωθῆναι ἡμᾶς τῆς ἀκροάσεως τοῦ ἁγίου Εὐαγγελίου, Κύριον τὸν Θεὸν ἡμῶν ἱκετεύσωμεν.

Σοφία. Ὀρθοί. Ἀκούσωμεν τοῦ ἁγίου Εὐαγγελίου.

Εἰρήνη πᾶσι.

Ἐκ τοῦ κατὰ Ἰωάννην ἁγίου Εὐαγγελίου, τὸ Ἀνάγνωσμα.

Πρόσχωμεν.

Text:

Ούσης οψίας τή ημέρα εκείνη, τή μιά τών σαββάτων, καί τών θυρών κεκλεισμένων, όπου ήσαν οι μαθηταί συνηγμένοι διά τόν φόβον τών Ιουδαίων, ήλθεν ο Ιησούς καί έστη εις τό μέσον, καί λέγει αυτοίς· ειρήνη υμίν. Καί τούτο ειπών έδειξεν αυτοίς τάς χείρας καί τήν πλευράν αυτού. Εχάρησαν ούν οι μαθηταί ιδόντες τόν Κύριον. Είπεν ούν αυτοίς ο Ιησούς πάλιν· Ειρήνη υμίν. Καθώς απέσταλκέ με ο πατήρ, καγώ πέμπω υμάς. Καί τούτο ειπών ενεφύσησε καί λέγει αυτοίς· Λάβετε Πνεύμα Άγιον· άν τίνων αφήτε τάς αμαρτίας, αφίενται αυτοίς, άν τινών κρατήτε, κεκράτηνται. Θωμάς δέ είς εκ τών δώδεκα, ο λεγόμενος Δίδυμος, ουκ ήν μετ’ αυτών ότε ήλθεν ο Ιησούς. Έλεγον ούν αυτώ οι άλλοι μαθηταί· Εωράκαμεν τόν Κύριον. Ο δέ είπεν αυτοίς· Εάν μή ίδω εν ταίς χερσίν αυτού τόν τύπον τών ήλων, καί βάλω τόν δάκτυλόν μου εις τόν τύπον τών ήλων, καί βάλω τήν χείρά μου εις τήν πλευράν αυτού, ου μή πιστεύσω.

Homeric Greek (By St. Nikodemos the Hagiorite)

Liturgical Opening:

Όφρακε νωϊτέροισιν εν ούασι πάγχυ βάλωμεν
θέσφατον, ιμερόεσσαν, αγνήν Ευάγγελον όππα,
μειλίξωμεν άνακτα Θεόν, μέγαν ουρανίωνα.
Ιθυγενής. Σοφίη. Ευαγγελίοιο κλύωμεν.
Ειρήνη χαριεσσ’ επ’ απείρονα δήμον εσείται.
Εκ δ’ άρ’ Ιωάννοιο τόδ’ έστι βροντογόνοιο.

Text:

Αλλ’ άγετ’ ατρεμέσι χρησμούς λεύσωμεν οπωπαίς.
Εύτε δή ηέλιος φαέθων επί έσπερον ήλθε
καί σκιόωντο αγυιαί επί χθόνα πουλυβοτείρη,
ήματι εν πρώτω, ότε τύμβου άλτο Σαωτήρ,
Κληϊσταί δε έσαν θυρίδες πυκινώς αραρείαι,
βλήντο δέ πάντες οχήες εϋσταθέος μεγάροιο,
ένθα μαθηταί ομού τε αολλέες ηγερέθοντο,
μυρόμενοι θανάτω επ’ αεικέϊ Χριστού άνακτος,
Καὶ χόλον ἀφραίνοντα Ἰουδαίων τρομέοντες,
ήλυθε δή τότε Χριστός άναξ θεοειδέϊ μορφή,
έστη δ’ εν μεσάτω αναφανδόν καί φάτο μύθον.
Ειρήνη υμίν φίλοι, ησυχίη τ’ ερατεινή.
Ως ειπών επέδειξεν εήν πλευρήν ηδέ χείρας.
Γήθησαν δέ μαθηταί, επεί ίδον Ευρυμέδοντα.
Τούς δ’ αύτις προσέειπεν Ιησούς ουρανοφοίτης.
Ειρήνη υμίν φίλοι, ησυχίη τ’ ερατεινή.
Ως εμέ πέμψε Πατήρ, ός υπέρτατα δώματα ναίει,
Ώδ’ εγώ υμέας εις χθόνα πέμπω ευρυόδειαν.
Ως άρα φωνήσας μύσταις έμπνευσ’ αγορεύων.
Πνεύμα δέχνυσθ’ άγιον, φαεσέμβροτον, υψιθόωκον.
Ών μέν ατασθαλίας θνητών αφέητ’ επί γαίαν,
τοίσιν ή που αφίενται ες ουρανόν αστερόεντα.
Ών δ’ άρ’ επεσβολίας υπερφιάλων κρατέητε,
τοίσιν αλυκτοπέδης κείναι σθεναρής κρατέονται.
Θωμάς δ’ ώ επίκλησις άπασι Δίδυμος ακούειν,
ουχ άμα τοίς άλλοις μύσταις πρίν ομώροφος έσκεν,
Ιησούς ότ’ έβη είσω μελάθροιο εταίρων.
Ίαχον ούν άλλοι τούτω ερίηρες εταίροι.
Είδομεν οφθαλμοίσιν Ιησούν παγκρατέοντα.
Τούς δ’ απαμειβόμενος Θωμάς προσέφησεν ατειρής.
Ίχνια ήν μή ίδω μετά χείρεσιν ηλοτορήτης,
δάτυλον εμβάλλω τε εκείνου ένδοθι χειρός,
χείρα τ’ εμήν είσω πλευρής οί ρεία βαλοίμην,
ούποτε υμετέροισι λόγοις κεφαλή κατανεύσω.

(Νικοδήμου του Αγιορείτου, Συμβουλευτικόν Εγχειρίδιον, "Ήτοι περί φυλακής τών πέντε αισθήσεων", έκδ. γ΄, Βόλος 1958, σ. 200-201).

Attic Greek (set to Iambic Metre)

Liturgical Opening:

Ἐπαξίως κλύωμεν ἁγίου ἕπους.
Ἄγωμεν ᾠδὴν ἱκετήριον πάνυ
Ἡμῶν Ἄνακτι, δώμαθ᾿ ὃς πόλου ἔχει.

Ὀρθὴ σοφίη! ἀγλαῶν ἐφετμέων
Εὐάγγελον νῦν οὔασιν θῶμεν γ᾿ ὄπα.

Πάντεσσι χάρμα.

Ἐκ τῶν Ἰωάννοιο ῥητῶν ἐνθέων
Ἄκουσμα ὄντος τῶν πάνυ ψυχοσσόων.

Σιγήν τε πάντες σχῶμεν ἠδ᾿ ἡσυχίην.

Text:

Ἥμος δ᾿ ἄρ᾿ ἔσκεν ὀψίῃ τῶν Σαββάτων,
Εὔτ᾿ ἂν πυλάων κεῖτ᾿ ὀχεὺς τανυσμένος,
Ἔσαν θ᾿ ἑταῖροι ἔνθα δὴ βεβυσμένοι
Δέει μανίῃς Ἰσραὴλ θεοκτόνου,
Μέδων ποθεινὸς ἤλυθεν Παγκρατέων.
Τῆμός τε μέσσον ἵστατ᾿ αὐδάων φίλοις,
Θαρσεῖτ᾿ ὀπηδοί! χάρμ᾿ ὑμῖν ἀνασσέτω.
Ἧ, καὶ φίλοισι φῆν᾿ Ἄναξ τὰς ἐὰς χέρας,
Πλευρήν τε θείην δεξιὴν τ᾿ οὐταμένην.
Τοὶ δ᾿ ὡς ἄνακτα εἶδον ὑψιβρεμέτην,
Ἄφαρ χάρησαν, νόσφι βάλλον τε τρόμον.

Αὖτις δὲ τοῖσιν εἶπε πανσθενοῦς βίη,
Ὁμοφρονεῖτε! ἀσπάσαθ᾿ ἡσυχίην.
Ἀπφὺς ὥσπερ ἲς ἔπεμψέ μ᾿ ἐς χθόνα
Κἀγὼ φεραυγῶς ὑμμέας ὡς ἓς γ᾿ ἔθνη.

Ἦ, καὶ ἄημα Πνεύματος Παναγίου
Ἦκεν γ᾿ ἀπὸ στόματος ἄμβροτον μάλα,
Δέχνυσθε, φήσας, Πνεῦμα θεῖον προφρόνως.
Ὅτου βροτῶν κεν ἀμπλακημάτων μένος
Λύσητε, τοῖσι ταῦτα συγγνώστ᾿ ἄρ᾿ πέλει.
Ὦν αὗται δ᾿ ἔμπης ἐνδέδενται ἐν γέῃ,
-Τάων ἀσύγγνωστ᾿ ἐν πόλῳ τε τυγχάνει.

Θωμᾶς δὲ τῶν δε, δίδυμος κεκλημένος,
Ἀπῆν, παρόντος Παμμέδοντος ἐν μέσῳ.
Φράζεσκεν οἱ ἔπειτα οἱ ἄλλοι φίλοι
Ἄνακτα Χριστὸν λεύσαμεν λαοσσόον.
Ἀτὰρ μετηῦδα τοῖς λίην ἀραρότως,
Εἰ μή με λεύσω τρῆσιν ἥλων δριμέων
Χερσίν, ποσίν τε Δεσπότου τετρῃμένοις,
Οὐλῇ τε τῶνδε δάκτυλ᾿ αὖ ἐμὰ φέρω.
Αὗθις τε πλευρὴν χεῖρά γ᾿ ἀκριβουμένην,
Ἤκιστα πίστιν ἐμμέων λόγοις ἔχω

Modern Greek (according to Apostoliki Diakonia of the Church of Greece)

Liturgical Opening:

Ὥστε νὰ καταστοῦμε ἱκανοὶ νὰ ἀκούσουμε
τὸ Ἅγιο Εὐαγγέλιο, ἂς ἱκετεύσουμε τὸν Κύριο, τὸν Θεόν μας.

Σοφία. Ὀρθοί. Ἂς ἀκούσουμε τὸ Ἅγιο Εὐαγγέλιο.

Εἰρήνη σὲ ὅλους.

Ἀπὸ τὸ κατὰ Ἰωάννη Ἅγιο Εὐαγγέλιο, τὸ Ἀνάγνωσμα.

Ἂς προσέξουμε.

Text:

Κατὰ τὴν ἑσπέραν τῆς ἡμέρας ἐκείνης, τῆς πρώτης ἑβδομάδος, καὶ ἐνῷ οἱ πόρτες ἦσαν κλειστές, ἐκεῖ ποὺ ἦσαν συγκεντρωμένοι οἱ μαθηταί, διότι ἐφοβοῦντο τοὺς Ἰουδαίους, ἦλθε ὁ Ἰησοῦς καὶ στάθηκε εἰς τὸ μέσον καὶ τοὺς λέγει, «Εἰρήνη νὰ εἶναι μαζί σας».

Ὅταν εἶπε αὐτό, τοὺς ἔδειξε τὰ χέρια του καὶ τὴν πλευράν του.

Οἱ μαθηταὶ ἐχάρησαν διότι εἶδαν τὸν Κύριον. Ὁ Ἰησοῦς τοὺς εἶπε πάλι, «Εἰρήνη νὰ εἶναι μαζί σας. Καθὼς ἔστειλε ἐμὲ ὁ Πατέρας καὶ ἐγὼ στέλλω ἐσᾶς».

ὅταν εἶπε αὐτὸ ἐφύσησε εἰς τὸ πρόσωπον καὶ τοὺς λέγει,
«Λάβετε Πνεῦμα Ἅγιον, ἐὰν κάποιων συγχωρήσετε τὶς ἁμαρτίες νὰ εἶναι συγχωρημένες,
ἂν κανενὸς δὲν τὶς συγχωρήσετε, θὰ μείνουν ἀσυγχώρητες».

Ὁ Θωμᾶς, ἕνας ἀπὸ τοὺς δώδεκα, ὁ ὀνομαζόμενος Δίδυμος,
δὲν ἦτο μαζί τους ὅταν ἦλθε ὁ Ἰησοῦς.
Τοῦ εἶπαν λοιπὸν οἱ ἄλλοι μαθηταί,«Εἴδαμε τὸν Κύριο».

Αὐτὸς δὲ τοὺς εἶπε, «Ἐὰν δὲν εἰδῶ εἰς τὰ χέρια του τὸ σημάδι ἀπὸ τὰ καρφιὰ καὶ δὲν βάλω τὸ δάκτυλό μου εἰς τὸ σημάδι ἀπὸ τὰ καρφιὰ καὶ δὲν
βάλω τὸ χέρι μου εἰς τὴν πλευράν του, δὲν θὰ πιστέψω».

English (NIV)

Liturgical Opening:

That we may be found worthy to listen to the Holy Gospel, let us pray to the Lord our God.

Wisdom. Arise. Let us hear the holy Gospel. Peace be with all.

The reading is from the holy Gospel according to John. Let us be attentive.

Text:

On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!”

After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.

Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.”

And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone’s sins, their sins are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”

Now Thomas (also known as Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came.

So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!”

But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”

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