Abba Isaac the Syrian, the "Unjustly Accused" Saint (3 of 7)

Metropolitan Hilarion Alfeyev

...continued from part two.

3. Irreverent Chatter Regarding the Person of Saint Isaac

Let us now turn to the book by Alfeyev. "From Wensinck's preface and other works I learnt who Isaac was" writes Bishop Kallistos Ware in the Foreword. "I discovered that he belonged to the Church of the East, commonly called 'Nestorian'. But, so I gradually came to realize, this did not mean that either Isaac himself, or the ecclesiastical community to which he belonged, could justly be condemned as heretical." From the writings of Bishop Kallistos, as well as the entire book by Bishop Hilarion, it is immediately understood that they have eliminated from their consciousness the ecclesiastical tradition regarding the Life of Saint Isaac the Syrian, which they "learnt" from Wensinck and other works, saying that Abba Isaac was a Nestorian!

Abba Isaac the Syrian, the "Unjustly Accused" Saint (2 of 7)

...continued from part one.

2. What the Holy Fathers Say About Abba Isaac

Despite the lack of a day for commemorating this Saint and many others, the Church accepts them as authentic in Christ, their Life as in the Holy Spirit, their teachings as a distillation of their experience of theosis, of their "sensation in God" as Abba Isaac writes.

Abba Isaac the Syrian, the "Unjustly Accused" Saint (1 of 7)

By Protopresbyter Fr. John Photopoulos

This paper has been prompted by the book The Spiritual World of Isaac the Syrian by the bishop Hilarion Alfeyev, as well as by the three volume editon of the writings of Pseudo-Isaac published by the Sacred Monastery of the Prophet Elias in Thera titled The Ascetic Discourses of Saint Isaac the Syrian: A Translation from the Syriac. After this article there follows a letter by the author to the Abbot of the Sacred Monastery of the Prophet Elias in Thera on the issue of the cacodox writings of Pseudo-Isaac.

1. Introduction - Abba Isaac the Syrian

Metropolitan Nikodemos of Ierissos and the Discovery of the Relics of St. Akylina

By Angelo Paklaras, Theologian

The late Metropolitan Nikodemos of Ierissos (1981-2012) immediately upon his enthronement in Arnaia, was interested in establishing new parishes and erecting sacred churches to honor the local saints of his Metropolis.

His first concern from the moment he visited the parish of Saint George in Zagliveri and was informed of the life and martyrdom of Saint Akylina was to erect a church and establish a parish in her honor.

Thus through the actions of the Blessed Hierarch the second parish of Zagliveri was established by presidential decree in honor of the Holy New Martyr Akylina.

The Theology We Need Today

Technologizing Instead of Theologizing

By His Eminence Metropolitan Hierotheos

of Nafpaktos and Agiou Vlasiou

"The dogmas of the Fathers have been entirely disregarded, the apostolic traditions withered, the inventions of younger people are observed in the churches; people are therefore technologizing* when they should be theologizing; the wisdom of the world seems to be pushing aside the boasting in the Cross. Pastors are sent away, and in their place are inserted harsh wolves, who disperse Christ's flock."

(Basil the Great, Epistle 90, "To the Most Holy Brothers and Bishops in the West")

Earthquakes in the Synaxarion of the Orthodox Church

By His Eminence Metropolitan Hierotheos

of Nafpaktos and Agiou Vlasiou

In early September [1999] we experienced the consequences of the terrible earthquake in Athens, which was felt in other parts of Greece. Previously we were affected by the terrible effects of the earthquake in Turkey. The land shook for entire days while at the same time shaking the hearts of the people.

During these earthquakes we have been able to see human suffering from the loss of loved ones, and we empathized with them, seeing others lose all their property, the acquisition for which they labored tirelessly over a lifetime. Yet we were given the opportunity to also see the heroism of the men of EMAK who selflessly entered into the wreckage to retrieve lives, as well as the interest we saw in other people running out of sympathy to offer various aid. We are not indifferent also to the assistance of various rescue groups from other nations who came to help us and showed their solidarity. However, one cannot ignore the irresponsibility of the many who were responsible for the construction of the buildings that collapsed.

***

Saint Silouan the Athonite Resource Page

 

About

  

Synaxarion For Saint Silouan the Athonite (+ 1938) 

 

Protocol of the Ecumenical Patriarchate for the Recognition of Silouan the Athonite as a Saint 

 

The Life of St. Silouan the Athonite in Icons 

 

Saint Silouan the Athonite as a Model for our Lives 

 

The Birthplace of Saint Silouan the Athonite

 

The Mill and Monastic Cell of Saint Silouan the Athonite 

 

St. Silouan the Athonite and the Earthquake of September 14, 1932On Saint Silouan the Athonite (St. Nikolai Velimirovich)    

 

Papa Fotis the Fool Meets St. Silouan the Athonite 

 

An Interview With Elder Sophrony About Saint Silouan the Athonite (1 of 4) 

 

An Interview With Elder Sophrony About Saint Silouan the Athonite (2 of 4)  

 

An Interview With Elder Sophrony About Saint Silouan the Athonite (3 of 4)

 

An Interview With Elder Sophrony About Saint Silouan the Athonite (4 of 4)

 

Fr. George Florovsky on St. Silouan the Athonite  

  

A Homily on Saint Silouan the Athonite (Metr. Anthony of Sourozh)  

 

The Russian Monk Who Drank Tea and Vodka Daily with Saint Silouan the Athonite 

 

Archimandrite Zacharias on the Theology of St. Silouan and Elder Sophrony  

 

Contemporary Testimonies of the Vision of God on the Holy Mountain 

 

 

Teachings 

 

The Union of Saint Silouan and Saint Sophrony (2 of 5)

 

The Relevance of Saint Silouan's Teaching for Today 

 

St. Silouan the Athonite: "Adam's Lament"

 

On the Love of Enemies According to Saint Silouan

  

On the Love of Enemies: The Teaching of St. Silouan 

 

The Salvation of the World According to St. Silouan 

 

Aspiring To Be Saints 

 

St. Silouan the Athonite: "Unbelief Proceeds From Pride" 

 

On Preserving Peace Within Our Soul (St. Silouan the Athonite) 

 

Saint Silouan the Athonite on How to Benefit the Non-Orthodox 

 

Finding Pity in Sinners and Praying for Enemies 

 

The Five Joys of the Apostles Following the Ascension  

 

St. Silouan Narrates Two Miraculous Interventions of St. Nicholas 

 

The Eagle and the Rooster: A Parable of St. Silouan the Athonite 

 

Saint Silouan the Athonite on Smoking 

 

On Vigils and Sleep 

 

Fr. Raphael Noica: "We Do Not Need To Despair" 

 

"The Fathers Who Made the Mountain Heavenly"

 

The Mystical Journey of the Christian, Through the Desert, Towards the Resurrection and Pentecost (1 of 5)

  

The Mystical Journey of the Christian, Through the Desert, Towards the Resurrection and Pentecost (2 of 5)

 

The Mystical Journey of the Christian, Through the Desert, Towards the Resurrection and Pentecost (3 of 5)

 

The Mystical Journey of the Christian, Through the Desert, Towards the Resurrection and Pentecost (4 of 5) 

 

The Mystical Journey of the Christian, Through the Desert, Towards the Resurrection and Pentecost (5 of 5  

 

 

Shrines and Relics 

 

The Skull of St. Silouan the Athonite 

 

Monastery of Saint Silouan the Athonite in Saint-Mars-de-Locquay, France 

 

The Cave Chapel of Saint Silouan the Athonite in Meteora

Protocol of the Ecumenical Patriarchate for the Recognition of Silouan the Athonite as a Saint

+ Demetrios, by the grace of God Archbishop of Constantinople, 

New Rome and Ecumenical Patriarch,

Protocol No. 823/1987

Right it is and exceeding profitable for the fulfillment of the Church that they who excelled in virtuous deeds while in the flesh, and are now departed this life, be venerated and honored and glorified and celebrated annually, and that the praise accorded to them that lived virtuously is directed to God Himself, Who is the source of every human virtue, as we are told by Gregory the Theologian. And in as much as the praise of good deeds inclines and exhorts the slothful and idle to acquire virtue, while the lovers of virtue are made even the more inspired.

Was Zechariah, the Father of John the Baptist, a High Priest?

By John Sanidopoulos

According to the entire tradition of the Church, Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, was the High Priest who entered the Temple in Jerusalem on the Day of Atonement in September and received a revelation from an Angel of the Lord. St. Nikodemos the Hagiorite informs us that it is for this reason that the Church celebrates the conception of John the Baptist on September 23rd and his birth on June 24th, nine months after the conception. Since the Gospel of Luke tells us that Jesus was conceived six months after John was conceived, the Church celebrates the Annunciation to the Virgin Mary on March 25th and the Birth of Christ nine months later on December 25th. Forty days later, on February 2nd, Jesus was presented to the Temple. Hence, according to St. Nikodemos, the immovable liturgical calendar of Despotic Feasts of the Orthodox Church revolves around the fact that Zechariah was the High Priest who entered the Temple on the Day of Atonement in September and received a revelation from an Angel of the Lord.

Anti-Orthodox Pietism

By Archimandrite Kyrillos Kostopoulos

Pietism (pietismus) is a phenomenon of Protestant religious life, which first appeared in the 17th century in the circles of Lutheranism that sought to renew the spiritual life within Protestantism with the intention of stimulating religious sentiment. In Greece pietism appeared in the broader context of the "Europeanization" of the country.

The Icon of Saint Eustathios That Fell Without Being Touched

Eustathios Glymenopoulos as a lawyer of the Mixed Courts of Egypt

The uncle of Mr. Laskaris, Eustathios Glymenopoulos, president of the Mixed Courts of Egypt, was in Athens with his mother, who was the caretaker of Mr. Laskaris, and they were talking. She showed him the icon of Saint Eustathios on the wall and said: "Know that whatever good you have in your life was given to you from Saint Eustathios. He protects you."

The Rod of Moses in Constantinople

Rod of Moses at Topkapi Museum

By John Sanidopoulos

It is clear from the Life of Constantine by Eusebius of Ceasarea that many connections are made between Constantine and Moses, the latter being considered a model of a perfect leader and bishop. As Gregory of Nyssa says in his Life of Moses, "The great Moses is set forth as a common model for all those who look to virtue." Yet we also have a literal connection that establishes more firmly the typological connection.

Synaxis of All Saints of Thessaliotidos

On the Sunday following the Feast of the Universal Elevation of the Honorable Cross, which falls some time between September 15 and 21, the Holy Metropolis of Thessaliotis (or Thessaliotidos) and Fanariofersala, located in the Thessaly region of Greece, dedicates to All Saints of Thessaliotidos. In the choir of these Saints are included:

When St. Gabriel the Fool Visited a Synagogue, a Mosque and a Baptist Church

Fr. Gabriel often visited people who had different religious views. He tried to share grace with everyone and lead them to the true faith. He says himself:

"Once, dressed as I was in my monastic schema, I went to the Synagogue. At the entrance hung a large portrait of Moses. I venerated it. The attendees liked this. Moses was a great prophet and I gave him his due respect. I had entered as they were reading from the Bible. Few were there and they looked at me with surprise. I began to preach, and when they heard about Christ they called for their High Priest. He came out but he did not stop me. Afterwards he invited me into his office. He listened with great interest and attention to what I said about Christ. Finally, he thanked me and we bid farewell.

New Website Launched: "Daimonologia"

In my continued efforts of launching websites that focus on specific subjects for deeper exploration, a few days ago I launched the website titled Daimonologia: Hallowed Entries About Dark Culture & Thought, the Fantastic and the Supernatural. Perhaps it is not a subject many will be interested, but for those who are, it can be accessed at the following URL: www.daimonologia.org. An introduction was posted that explains what this website is basically about. The subjects covered in this new website will no longer be explored on this website.

For those interested, you can follow Daimonologia on Facebook and Twitter at the links below and it will soon be added to my app:

Facebook: www.facebook.com/daimonologia

Twitter: http://twitter.com/#!/daimonologia

The website can also be accessed through this site for your convenience in the link at the top of this page and each page of all my websites, as well on the sidebar where the latest posting will be linked.

When Orthodox Theologians Theologize Like Protestants

Breaking the Unity of Theology

By His Eminence Metropolitan Hierotheos

of Nafpaktos and Agiou Vlasiou

In our days there is much talk about so-called "post-patristic theology". Whatever definition anyone gives to this phenomenon, one thing is certain, that it is a "theology" that alters Orthodox ecclesiastical theology and associates it with so-called "scientific" theology, which in many ways deconstructs all the basic principles of the theology of the Church.

Portions of the True Cross That Exist in the Monasteries of Mount Athos Today

"To date the most surviving portions of the True Cross belongs to Mount Athos, where they add up to 870.760 cubic millimeters, while in Rome there are 537.587, in Brussels there are 516.090, in Venice there are 445.582, in Ghent (Flemish region of Belgium in East Flanders) 436.456 and in Paris 237.731 cubic millimeters. The least amount is in England and those are in the hands of the members of the Roman Church."

(From the book: The Holy Mountain by Hieromonk Gerasimos Smyrnakis of Esphigmenou, Athens, 1903 [in Greek].)

Saint Euphemia Resource Page

St. Euphemia the Great Martyr (Feast Day - September 16 & July 11)

September 16 - Feast of St. Euphemia

Synaxarion of Saint Euphemia the Great Martyr, with the Holy Martyrs Victor and Sosthenes

Holy Great Martyr Euphemia: Epistle and Gospel Reading

The Passion of the Holy Great-Martyr Euphemia the All-Praised

Saint Euphemia the Great Martyr as a Model for our Lives

A 9th-century Salutation in Honor of St. Euphemia

St. Euphemia, St. Melitini and the Island of Lemnos

A Description of the Martyrdom of St. Euphemia Based on a Fourth Century Icon

Saint Joseph the New of Partos, Metropolitan of Timisoara (+ 1656)

St. Joseph the New of Partos (Feast Day - September 15)

Saint Joseph the New of Partos was born in 1568 in Raguza of Dalmatia (today Dubrovnik, Croatia), from a Wallachian Christian family, and was baptized as Jacob. His father was a Venetian named Giovanni Fusco, and his mother, Aikaterina, was originally from Limnos, a Greek island. More precisely, she had Morlach ancestry, which is another name for "Mavro-Vlachos" (Black Wallachian), one of the different Romanian populations spread throughout the entire Balkan peninsula, south of the Danube.

Holy Cross Resource Page

September 14 - Universal Exaltation of the Honorable Cross

Synaxarion for the Exaltation of the Honorable and Life-Giving Cross

Exaltation of the Honorable and Life-Giving Cross: Epistle and Gospel Reading

Saint Nektarios on the Exaltation of the Holy Cross

Homily for the Exaltation of the Honorable Cross (Archim. George Kapsanis)

The Orthodox Celebration of the Power of the Cross

On the Two Accounts of the Discovery of the True Cross

The Foreshadowing of the Cross in the Old Testament According to St. Kosmas the Melodist

Old Testament Prototypes of the Cross of the Lord

Why Do We Fast on September 14th?

Pontian Customs for the Day of the Cross

The Orthodox Tradition of the Blessed Prozimi

Chapel of the Finding of the Holy Cross in the Holy Sepulchre

The Place Where St. Mary of Egypt Repented

St. Silouan the Athonite and the Earthquake of September 14, 1932

A Wondrous Vision of the True Cross in 1967

Feast of the Exaltation of the Honorable Cross In Jerusalem (video)

The Elevation of the Honorable Cross at the Patriarchate of Alexandria

Why Does the World Reject the Cross of Christ?

By Protopresbyter Fr. Themistokles Mourtzanos

The Cross of Christ teaches us a great truth - that the Christian life is not easy. It hides persecution, rejection, trouble and sorrow according to the world.

The Apostle Paul, writing to the Galatians, dispels every illusion that faith in God ensures comfort and an enjoyable journey through life. "Those who want to impress people by means of the flesh are trying to compel you to be circumcised. The only reason they do this is to avoid being persecuted for the cross of Christ" (Gal. 6:12).

The Foreshadowing of the Cross in the Old Testament According to St. Kosmas the Melodist

By John Sanidopoulos

Many of the events in the Old Testament are interpreted within the tradition of the Church as a prophetic image of the events of the New Testament, and these are called "types" or "foreshadowed images".

The Fathers of the Church see the foreshadowing of the Cross of Christ in many events of the Old Testament. Indeed the hymnographers also, especially Kosmas the Melodist, who wrote the Canon for the Feast of the Exaltation of the Honorable Cross, associate these events with the Cross.

The foreshadowing of the Cross in the Old Testament can be seen in the following events:

Despite War, Saydnaya Convent in Syria Celebrates its Feast Day (photos)

The Convent of Our Lady of Saydnaya was built by Emperor Justinian in the 6th century and he designated as its primary feast to be celebrated on September 8th in honor of the Nativity of the Theotokos. Inside is housed also an icon of the Theotokos that is said to have been painted by the Apostle Luke and is responsible for many miracles throughout the centuries. Despite the civil war in Syria and the persecution of Christians there, the nuns and people of Saydnaya did not hesitate to celebrate the birth of the Mother of God as always this September 8, 2014.

From Saint Kosmas to Anastasios of Albania

Maximos Harakopoulos

August 31, 2014

Romfea.gr

United the congregation responds to the call of the Deacon and they say with one voice the "Our Father" in Albanian.

To my mind come the words of the Regional of Epirus, Alekos Kachrimanis, along the journey from Ioannina, Greece to Kolikontasi, Albania where the Monastery with the grave of Kosmas the Aitolos is.

In 1991, when Archbishop Anastasios liturgized for the first time as Patriarchal Exarch in Albania, with the mission of resurrecting the Albanian Church from the ashes, many Albanians were sitting cross-legged in the pews smoking and chatting.

The Honoring of St. Kosmas is an Old Tradition for Albanians

The 19th century fresco of Saint Kosmas in the monastery dedicated to him.

After attacking Archbishop Anastasios, after attacking the people that work for the Orthodox Autocephalous Church of Albania, after spreading all sorts of slander and lies about the Orthodox canons and statutes, after defaming the history of faith, it is now the turn of our saints. Specifically, most recently the articles that have appeared in certain media, in which they speak evil about one of the most revered saints among the Albanians and beyond – St. Kosmas (martyred in 1779).

What Saint Porphyrios of Kavsokalyva Said About Old Calendarism

Venerable Porphyrios of Kavsokalyva said the following about Old Calendarism:

"If you are going to live in the world, follow the calendar of the Church, that you may not bring turmoil to the people, unless you want to live on Mount Athos."*

An Orthodox Interpretation of the Results of Terrorist Actions on 9/11

By His Eminence Metropolitan Hierotheos

of Nafpaktos and Agiou Vlasiou

It is known that journalists report on contemporary events, and they analyze them according to their beliefs and their ideological positions. Therefore they offer knowledge, which is then transmitted and creates for many a pseudonymous knowledge of things. Of course, later, after a lapse of many decades and centuries, history corrects things a bit. However, the personal approach to these events, even if it is incorrect, creates many problems.

A Hymn of Praise to Faith (St. Nektarios of Pentapolis)

By St. Nektarios of Pentapolis

Faith! Divine Gift, fruit of Divine Revelation, knowledge of mysteries, heavenly wisdom, teacher of divine truths, ladder of heaven and earth, link of God and man, evidence of divine friendship and love, expression of the transmission of heavenly gifts.

Metr. Mesogaia: "I Want to Die and for My Metropolis to be Found Empty"

During Great Vespers for the feast of the Nativity of the Theotokos on September 8, 2014 in the Church of Panagia Eleousa in Legrena Sounio, His Eminence Metropolitan Nicholas of Mesogaia and Lavriotiki was given a gift of an episcopal omophorion and epitrachelion from the parish priest Fr. Irenaios Georgopoulos as a thank you for his visit. His Eminence responded to this generous gift as follows:

Parents Build Church Where Their Child Was Killed

September 4, 2014

Metropolis of Fthiotida

About a year ago in Kyrtoni of the municipality of Lokroi there was a tragic event. Hunters believed the late Anargyros Tsampas, who was on his own property, to be prey and fatally injured him.

The Miraculous Icon of Saint Anna in Bistrita Monastery

The icon of Saint Anna was donated by Roman Emperor Manuel II Palaiologos (1350 - 1425) and his wife Anna to Voivode Alexander the Good of Moldavia, in gratitude for the hospitality he gave to his son Andronikos while in Moldavia.

This icon has performed many miracles.

Saints Joachim and Anna Resource Page

September 8 - The Nativity of the Theotokos

Nativity of the Theotokos Resource Page

September 9 - Synaxis of Sts. Joachim and Anna

The Life of the Holy Ancestors of God, Joachim and Anna

On the Chaste Couple Joachim and Anna (St. John of Damascus)

The Grandparents of Christ and Soteriology

The Veneration of Sts. Joachim and Anna According to Elder Paisios

Supplicatory Canon to Saints Joachim and Anna, the Ancestors of God

Akathist to Saints Joachim and Anna, the Ancestors of God

Nativity of the Theotokos Resource Page

Verses

Anna, all mothers truly you surpassed,

Until your daughter should become your Mother.

Anna brought into the light on the eighth of this month God’s own Mother.

About the Feast

Synaxarion of the Nativity of the Theotokos

Nativity of the Theotokos: Gospel and Epistle Reading

On the Nativity of the Theotokos - Various Church Fathers

Oration on the Nativity of the Holy Theotokos Mary (St. John of Damascus)

Why Was the Virgin Mary Born of a Sterile Woman? (St. John of Damascus)

On the Nativity of the Theotokos (St. Andrew of Crete)

Homily on the Nativity of our Most Holy Lady the Theotokos (St. Photios the Great)

Encomium on the Nativity of our Most Holy Lady the Theotokos (St. Nicholas Cabasilas) - 1 of 5

Encomium on the Nativity of our Most Holy Lady the Theotokos (St. Nicholas Cabasilas) - 2 of 5

Encomium on the Nativity of our Most Holy Lady the Theotokos (St. Nicholas Cabasilas) - 3 of 5

On the Saving Nativity of our Most Pure Lady the Theotokos and Ever-Virgin Mary (St. Gregory Palamas)

On the Nativity Of The Theotokos (St. Dimitri of Rostov)

Homily on the Day of the Nativity of the Most Holy Mother of God (Archpriest Rodion Putyatin)

Homily on the Nativity of the Theotokos (St. John of Kronstadt)

On the Nativity of the Theotokos (St. Nikolai Velimirovich)

Homily on the Nativity of the Theotokos (St. Luke of Simferopol)

The Immense Joy of the Birth of the Theotokos (Elder George Kapsanis)

The Nativity of the Theotokos as a Feast of Universal Joy (Elder George Kapsanis)

Sermon for the Nativity of the Theotokos

The Historical Development of the Feast of the Nativity of the Most Holy Theotokos

An Explanation of the Icon of the Birth of the Theotokos

Interpreting the Icon of the Nativity of the Theotokos

The Blessing of the Panagia by the Priests When She Was a One Year Old

Saints Joachim and Anna Resource Page

Panagia Stomiou Monastery in Konitsa and Elder Paisios

Orthodoxy in Greece has built in the most beautiful places many monasteries that testifies to its ascetic character. In one of these places, within the heart of the gorge of the River Aoos, is the Sacred Monastery of Panagia Stomiou in Konitsa of Ioannina.

Synaxis of Panagia Skiadeni in Rhodes

Synaxis of the Most Holy Theotokos who is called "Skiadeni", 

Which is Celebrated on the 8th of September.

Verse

Your Icon produces grace,

Overshadowing the souls of those who sing to you, Daughter.

St. Chrysostomos of Smyrna and the Hierarchs with Him, Together With Clergy and Laity, Massacred in the Asia Minor Catastrophe

St. Chrysostomos of Smyrna and Those With Him
(Feast Day - Sunday Before the Exaltation of the Honorable Cross)

Verses

Chrysostomos surrendered his soul with his fellow initiates,

Offering himself to the people and soldiers as a sacrifice.

Protomartyr Chrysostomos was wickedly sacrificed,

Followed by the evil death of the multitude of fellow contestants.

According to encyclical number 2556/5-7-1993 of the Sacred Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, this feast of Saint Chrysostomos of Smyrna, Saint Ambrose of Moschonisia, Saint Prokopios of Iconium, Saint Gregory of Kydonia, Saint Euthymios of Zilon, and the Holy Clergy and Laity Massacred During the Asia Minor Catastrophe, will be celebrated every year on the Sunday before the Exaltation of the Honorable and Life-Giving Cross.

Saint Eupsychios as a Model for our Lives

Holy Martyr Eupsychios (Feast Day - September 7)

By Protopresbyter Fr. George Papavarnavas

Saint Eupsychios lived between the first and second centuries in Caesarea of Cappadocia during the reign of Hadrian. At a young age he was catechized in the Orthodox faith, baptized and became a living member of the Church. He came from a wealthy family, but, following the example of the saints, he distributed his possessions to the poor and lived in voluntary poverty and simplicity.

The Myrrh-Bearing Island of Chios

All Saints of Chios (Feast Day - First Sunday of September)

By Monk Moses the Athonite

The beautiful island of Chios was named "the myrrh-bearing island" for its fragrant mastic, its great variety of flower-bearing trees, and its multicolored flowers. Its history is ancient, with a rich tradition of cultural accomplishments and a great offering upon the altar of freedom. Personally, I believe that this island is truly myrrh-bearing because it has offered a special fragrance to our country and the world through the beautiful sacred personalities of heroes and saints who reflected a noble spirit and a way of life that our world always needs. Today we know by name at least fifty such saints, and the story of each of their lives exudes a spiritual fragrance.

The First Church Dedicated to the Newly Canonized St. Porphyrios in Kenya

On August 29, 2014 the consecration of the first Orthodox Church dedicated to the newly canonized Saint Porphyrios of Kavsokalyva took place in Kenya by His Eminence Metropolitan Makarios of Kenya, with the blessing of the Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and All Africa Theodoros II. It took place in a remote area for the tribe of Nadi amid huge rocks, mountains and lush tropical vegetation, and in the background is the famous Lake Victoria.

The Miraculous Holy Water and Holy Fish of the Archangel Michael in Sebastea, Turkey

By Nikos Chiladakis

In central Asia Minor in the region of Sebastea which was called Divrigi there was a large a population of Christians that settled around the great religious center and majestic Church of the Archangel Michael, famous and known for its therapeutic holy water.

Saint Athanasius of Brest (+ 1648)

St. Athanasius of Brest (or Bretsk) (Feast Day - September 5 and July 20)

Life

The hieromartyr Athanasius was born in the province of Minsk about the year 1597 into a pious Belorussian family named Philippovich. His secular name is not known, as well as the social status of his family. He received a serious upbringing and was educated at a school run by the Orthodox Brotherhood. He came to know well the theological and historical literature, as evidenced in his diary that has been preserved. Later, he graduated from a Jesuit College in Vilnius. He was fluent in four languages, Polish, Latin, Greek, and the local Slavic dialect.

Commemoration of the Appearance of the Apostle Peter to Emperor Justinian in Athyra

Commemoration of the Appearance of Apostle Peter to Emperor Justinian (Feast Day - September 5)

When St. Eutychios (April 6), the future Patriarch of Constantinople, was a child, he predicted his future election as Patriarch while playing a childhood game and writing his name with the title "Patriarch".

Later, when the Fifth Ecumenical Synod prepared to assemble during the reign of the holy emperor Justinian (527-565), the Metropolitan of Amasea was ill and he sent St. Eutychios in his place. At Constantinople the aged Patriarch St. Menas (August 25) saw St. Eutychios and predicted that he would be the next Patriarch.

Saint Nektarios and the Roman Catholic Church (2 of 2)

...continued from part one.

He then proceeds to the institution of Synods as an expression of the unity of the Church and the Churches, which is very important. The Saint records what we see in contemporary Orthodox theology and ecclesiology. The Churches that were all complete and catholic in themselves, allowed themselves out of deliberate love to subject themselves to the institution of the Synods. He very much celebrates the Synods and refers to texts like Polycrates of Ephesus and the Epistle of the Synod of Carthage in 418 to Celestine of Rome, where it is stressed that "God did not give only one community [a church] or one person the grace of the Holy Spirit, but to all who believe and are united in the name of Christ and are gathered at the Synod."

Hieromartyr Kosmas the Aitolos (+ 1779) [2 of 2]

...continued from part one.

In 1760 while in Constantinople he met with his brother according to the flesh Chrysanthos the Aitolos († 1785), from whom he learned the art of rhetoric. His missionary work in continental and insular Greece was ambitious, wondrous, successful and important.

Saint Nektarios and the Roman Catholic Church (1 of 2)

By Metropolitan Atanasije Jevtic

formerly of Zahumlje and Herzegovina

Saint Nektarios was the bishop who rightly divided and preached the word of truth, as the Apostle Paul says. So we have every reason to analyze his life and imitate his Orthodox faith, because only then will we also rightly divide the words of theology and walk with him together with all the saints.

[...]

In 1903 a Photo of the Virgin Mary Was Taken in Mount Athos

By John Sanidopoulos

The first-ever photo studio on Mount Athos appeared at the Russian Saint Panteleimon Monastery in the early 1870's. With the blessing of the elders, all events in the life of the monks were recorded on film. The photo history of the Russian Monastery lasted till the 1930's, but it gradually fell into decay due to lack of money. The Monastery’s pride is the negative of the photo above showing the giving of bread to poor monks, among whom they consider to be the Mother of God herself dressed as an abbess of the Holy Mountain.

The Church and Liturgical Time: The Kingdom of God on Earth

By Stylianos Gerasimos
(Theologian - Musician)

The Church is not subject to time. As the body of Christ it enters the world of the Kingdom of God. This synthesis of the world and the Kingdom of God creates the eschatological period of the Church, which is connected with liturgical time in the context of the Divine Eucharist. Within liturgical time the Church with its feasts, moveable and immoveable, sanctifies the daily life of man, because the center of liturgical time is the Divine Liturgy. Everything is included within it. This is because the feasts of the Church are not simply events, but an opportunity for communion with the Church. With annual feasts and the weekly festal cycle, the believer lives the Kingdom of God on earth.

Saints and Feasts of September

The Month of September in the Orthodox Church

A Fresco Depicting Feasts from September 1-9

First Sunday of September - Saints and Feasts of the First Sunday of September

1 - Saints and Feasts of September 1

2 - Saints and Feasts of September 2