Having entered the Christmas season, we ask those who find the work of the Mystagogy Resource Center beneficial to them to help us continue our work with a generous financial gift as you are able. As an incentive, we are offering the following booklet.

In 1909 the German philosopher Arthur Drews wrote a book called "The Myth of Christ", which New Testament scholar Bart D. Ehrman has called "arguably the most influential mythicist book ever produced," arguing that Jesus Christ never existed and was simply a myth influenced by more ancient myths. The reason this book was so influential was because Vladimir Lenin read it and was convinced that Jesus never existed, thus justifying his actions in promoting atheism and suppressing the Orthodox Church in the Soviet Union. Moreover, the ideologues of the Third Reich would go on to implement the views of Drews to create a new "Aryan religion," viewing Jesus as an Aryan figure fighting against Jewish materialism. 

Due to the tremendous influence of this book in his time, George Florovsky viewed the arguments presented therein as very weak and easily refutable, which led him to write a refutation of this text which was published in Russian by the YMCA Press in Paris in 1929. This apologetic brochure titled "Did Christ Live? Historical Evidence of Christ" was one of the first texts of his published to promote his Neopatristic Synthesis, bringing the patristic heritage to modern historical and cultural conditions. With the revival of these views among some in our time, this text is as relevant today as it was when it was written. 

Never before published in English, it is now available for anyone who donates at least $20 to the Mystagogy Resource Center upon request (please specify in your donation that you want the book). Thank you.



November 29, 2022

Saint Philoumenos Visits an Ailing Woman in the Hospital


In the spring of 2006, Mrs. Maria L. visited the Monastery of Saint Nicholas in Orounta, Cyprus. She entered the temple and began to reverently venerate the icons of the iconostasis.

But when she arrived in front of the icon of Saint Philoumenos, she stopped, looked at it with emotion and began to sob. After a while she told one of the sisters who was in the temple at that time the following:

"Not long ago I had a great adventure with my health. I entered the hospital for some treatments, but the doctors didn't give us any hope for me to live. While I was in this very difficult situation, I saw in a vision a priest, who was wearing an epanokalimavkion, as seen here in the icon.

The priest stood next to me, 'passed' over my body a black cloth he was wearing, which looked like a cloak, and left. The next morning I was completely healthy and even the doctors were puzzled as to what had happened. So, without being able to give any explanation for my miraculous recovery, they gave me permission to return home. A few days later I was at the house of some of my acquaintances and there I saw a small icon of Saint Philoumenos. Then I was shocked to find that the priest who had visited me in the hospital was the Saint of the icon!

My acquaintances informed me about the life of the Saint and that I could venerate his icon and holy relic in the Monastery of Saint Nicholas, located in Orounta, and that is why I came here today." 
 
Source: From the book Holy Hieromartyr Philoumenos the Cypriot, published by the Holy Monastery of Agios Nikolaos, Orunda Cyprus. Translated by John Sanidopoulos.
 
 
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