The Mutually Exclusive Goals of Pope Francis and Patriarch Bartholomew

By John Sanidopoulos

This past weekend, for the feast of the Apostle Andrew, founder of the Church of Constantinople, Pope Francis of Rome made a historic visit to the Phanar as a sign of mutual love and cooperation in ecumenical dialogue. It was widely covered by the media, while Pope and Patriarch made mutual statements, mutual prayers and mutually signed documents. They even shared a mutual embrace. It is easy for the pious and simple Orthodox faithful to be scandalized by such actions, but we must remember that the Pope and the Patriarch still have mutually exclusive goals that prevent their relationship from ever consummating. That is, their terms of union are mutually exclusive.

Apostle Andrew Resource Page

 

 

About    

 

Synaxarion of the Holy Apostle Andrew the First-Called

 

Holy Apostle Andrew the First-Called: Epistle and Gospel Reading

 

Homily of St. John Chrysostom on the Holy Apostle Andrew  

 

Encomium to Saint Andrew the Apostle (St. Proclus of Constantinople)

 

St. Andrew the First-Called Apostle, the First to Find Christ (St. Proclus of Constantinople)  

 

Gospel Commentary for the Second Sunday after Pentecost (St. Theophylact of Ochrid)  

 

Sermon on the Feast of the Holy Apostle Andrew the First-Called (St. John of Kronstadt)

  

On Andrew, the Apostle of Christ (Archimandrite George Kapsanis) 

 

Homily on Saint Andrew the Apostle (Metr. Hierotheos of Nafpaktos) 

 

We Ought to Shout Every Moment of our Lives: "We Have Found the Messiah!" However...

 

The Messiah in the Old and New Testaments 

 

Greek Folk Customs for the Feast of Saint Andrew

Greek Customs and the Feast of Saint Andrew

 

How Saint Andrew Became the Patron of Scotland 

 

The Feast of Saint Andrew in Romania - Night of the Vampires 

 

The Witches' Days of Winter in Slovakia - November 25 to December 1

 

November 29-30 is Romania's Halloween

 

Shrines and Relics 

 

Placement of the Relics and Garments of the Apostles Luke, Andrew and Thomas, the Prophet Elisha, and Martyr Lazarus in the Church of the Holy Apostles in Constantinople 

 

The Translation of the Honorable Skull of the First-Called Apostle Andrew 

 

The Return of the Skull of the Apostle Andrew to Patras in 1964 as Reported in the New York Times 

 

The Return of the Skull of the Apostle Andrew to Patras as a Fruit of the Dialogue With the Roman Catholic Church

The Priest Who Tried To Investigate the Skull of the Apostle Andrew 

 

The Cathedral of the Holy Apostle Andrew in Patras 

 

The History of the Cross of the Apostle Andrew 

 

The Cross of the Apostle Andrew in Russia (photos + video) 

 

A Copy of the Cross of Constantine the Great Containing the True Cross Has Been Gifted to the City of Patras from Vatopaidi Monastery

The Martyrdom of Contemporary Christians (Metr. Hierotheos of Nafpaktos) 

 

The "Footprints" of the Apostle Andrew in Leontio of Achaea 

 

The Skete of Saint Andrew in Karyes, Mount Athos 

 

The Sacred Convent of the Apostle Andrew in Kefallonia and the Relic of his Sole 

 

The Sole of the Right Foot of the Apostle Andrew in Kefallonia

 

The Incorrupt Right Foot of the Apostle Andrew in th Cathédral Saint-Sauveur in Aix-en-Provence

  

The Sandal of the Apostle Andrew in Trier 

 

Monastery of Saint Andrew in Mirabello, Crete 

 

The Cave of the Apostle Andrew in Romania 

 

The Skull of the Apostle Andrew in Romania 

 

Pope To Give Relic of Apostle Andrew To Kazakhstan Orthodox 

 

Apostle Andrew Relics Settle in Kazakhstan 

 

Cypriot Greeks and Turks Honor the Apostle Andrew 

 

On the Restoration of the Monastery of St. Andrew in Cyprus 

 

Monastery of the Apostle Andrew in Cyprus Will Be Restored 

 

The Church Where Saint John of Kronstadt Served for 53 Years

 

Miracles 

 

An Annual Miracle at the Tomb of the Apostle Andrew from the Sixth Century 

 

Miracles of the Apostle Andrew from the Sixth Century 

 

The Miracle of Saint Andrew at Spetses in 1898

 

A Great Miracle of the Apostle Andrew in Cyprus in 1912

  

Elder Paisios, the Apostle Andrew and the Earthquake That Shook Patras

The Sacred Convent of the Apostle Andrew in Kefallonia and the Relic of his Sole

THE CONVENT OF ST. ANDREW THE APOSTLE OF MILAPIDIA

& THE ECCLESIASTICAL MUSEUM

AT PERATATA

This Convent was founded during the Byzantine era. Since 1264, in the proceedings of the Latin Diocese of Kefallonia, it is referred to as a Monastery. In the following centuries the Monastery was deserted and it was reestablished in 1579, when three spiritual sisters Benedictine, Leondia and Magdalene, originating from the first capital of Kefallonia - the Middle Age Municipality of Kastro - bought the land where the ruined chapel  of the Apostle Andrew preexisted, aiming to lead a monastic life.

Soon after it became a Convent and in 1639 the Greek Romanian Princess Roxane, renamed nun Romilia, daughter of the Protospathario leader of Moldovlachia Zotos Tsigaras and grandaughter of the sovereign of Moldovlachia Peter Voevodas, started her monastic life.

Homily of St. John of Kronstadt on the Holy Apostle Andrew

By St. John of Kronstadt

The holy Apostle of Christ, Andrew the first-called, was originally a disciple of St. John the Baptist who prepared the people to receive the Messiah. When the Saviour came out of the wilderness, the Forerunner told the people: “Behold, the Lamb of God” (John 1:36). Immediately Andrew followed after Him. Turning round and seeing him together with St. John’s other disciples, the Lord asked them: “What do ye seek?” They answered: “Master, where dost Thou dwell?” He said to them: “Come and see.”

The disciples saw where He lived and spent the day there with Him. Soon after this the Lord called Andrew and his brother Peter to follow after Him and told them that they were to become fishers of men unto the salvation of many. From that time forth, they remained with Christ; they were faithful to Him to the end and gave their very lives out of love for Him.

The Translation and Washing of the Relics of an Unknown Hieromartyr (video + photos)

In the village of Chiliodendro of the Holy Metropolis of Kastoria within the solemn atmosphere of Vespers, there took place the translation of the relics of an unknown martyr, the Priest Vasilios Karapalikis, who in 1902 was martyred by Muslims with a bullet and an axe to the head.

He was a pious man, respected even by the Turks. However, envy for his holy life in general, initiated the fury of the conquerors.

In the 112 years that have passed since then and with the continuous miraculous interventions, appearances and protection to persons of his village and his family, he has been established as a martyr of the Church.

A Wonderful Family

This story was narrated by the mother of a Nun and it concerned her own family. She said:

"During the German occupation we suffered a lot. The day arrived when there was nothing in the house except water!

Then my father took us by the hand and we climbed up the mountain, which towered above our village, and we gathered lupins. My poor mother boiled them a thousand times over, but the bitterness did not lessen. With these we fooled our hunger, but our eyes burned from the bitterness. And one could only imagine that my oldest sister was seriously ill. But what would my brothers eat who were working and still developing?

A Jewish Woman Who Survived the Holocaust With the Help of a Greek Priest

Before the Holocaust, Thessaloniki was home to 80,000 Jews. In 1943 under Nazi occupation some 60,000 Jews were deported to Treblinka and Auschwitz, approximately 90% of whom were murdered. A number of Thessaloniki Jews were involved in resistance acts both in the Warsaw uprising and the October 1944 attack and bombing in Auschwitz. Over 300 Greek Gentiles have been recognized by Yad Vashem as Righteous Among The Nations for risking and giving their lives to help the Jewish people during this time.

The 14th Century Church of Saints Alypios and Stylianos in Kastoria

Following the recent completion of the restoration of the 14th century Church of Saints Alypios and Stylianos in Tsouka of Kastoria by the 16th Ephorate of Byzantine and Post-Byzantine Antiquities in Kastoria, Metropolitan Seraphim of Kastoria performed the Ceremony of the Opening of the Doors, followed by a Hierarchical Divine Liturgy on November 26, 2014, which is the feast of the two Saints who were both from Paphlagonia.

The Miracle of Saint Katherine at the Ecclesiastical School of Lamia in 1992

The following miracle is published on the official website of the Ecclesiastical School of Lamia, whose patron saints are Saint Katherine and Saint Stylianos.

On the 8th of the month of April on a Wednesday between 9:00PM and 9:15PM, at the time when the Ninth Ode of the Great Canon was being chanted, the icon of Saint Katherine began to move at a very slow pace, right and left. At that time all of us children were in the church, at the chanter's stand and in the seats, the sanctuary and other places.

The Cave Churches of Saint Katherine in Kythera

Five chapels in Kythera are dedicated to Saint Katherine, who is a much loved Saint throughout Greece and is celebrated on November 25th.

The Column On Which St. Katherine Was Beheaded in Alexandria

Saint Katherine's Marble Column of Beheading at the Monastery of Saint Savvas in Alexandria

The Monastery of Saint Savvas the Sanctified in Alexandria and specifically the central church, before it became a Christian house of prayer, was dedicated to the god Mithra or, according to other witness, to the god Apollo. It was established as a Christian church, dedicated to the Apostle and Evangelist Mark around 318-320, when 40 Christian churches were established in Egypt by Imperial permission of Constantine the Great.

During the next few years cells began being built and the settlement of monks around the church began too. Following the break away of the copts from the Alexandrian Church and the creation of the Coptic Church, the Monastery became the Seat of the Orthodox Patriarch of Alexandria (circa 536). Around the mid 7th century, the Monastery was destroyed by an earthquake and was rebuilt by sponsorship from a wealthy Alexandrian Christian named Savvas in honor of St Savva, because the saint lived in Alexandria before he requested the quiet of the monastery he established in Jerusalem.

A Synoptic View of the Orthodox Ascetical Tradition of Mount Sinai

By Archimandrite Isaias Simonopetritis

As we approach the beginning of the third Millenium of the Christian era, we would do well to orientate ourselves meditatively, spiritually, to that sacred place, where many centuries before the Incarnation of the Second Person of God the Holy Trinity, He Who is above and beyond time and space and all created things, He Who is ever God and everywhere present, the Creator and the Icon of the Invisible Father (Col. 1:15), made His appearance to His prophet Moses, in the form of a burning bush, burning but not consumed by fire (Exodus 3:2-6).

This was the historic moment, when the Mountain of Sinai was consecrated to the unceasing worship of the Living God, the "God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob", the God of our fathers. This was also the beginning of a meta-historic experience, whereby man approached God, so as to know himself better, and ascending in stages, reached the summit of perfection, of which the craggy peak of Sinai was, and is, such an eminent and inspiring symbol.

But, theologically also, the appearance of the Incomprehensible Divinity in a bush, burning but not consumed, was an important symbol of the visit from on high of the pre-eternal Son of God, born of a Virgin, whose womb remained intact as before.

Sinai's mystical consecration as the Mountain on which God walked and talked with his chosen servants, is contrasted with an episode of a very different kind, also in the Book of Exodus.

The West and Jihadism

By His Eminence Metropolitan Hierotheos

of Nafpaktos and Agiou Vlasiou

Many analysts of global jihadism, as it is manifested today, and scientists are engaged in the question as to why the young people who were born and raised in the West choose to become jihadists and go to Syria and Iraq and fight the war of the Islamic Movement. The question is: "How can you stem the flow of foreign jihadis making their way to Syria and Iraq?"

New Scientist hosts an article by Michael Bond that analyzes this issue ("Why Westerners are Driven to Join the Jihadist Fight", 10 September 2014).

Irrevocable Oblivion or Eternal Memory? (About the Burial or Cremation of the Dead)

Below is a response to a new legislation on cremation in Greece:

By His Eminence Metropolitan Amphilochios

of Kissamos and Selino

Finally in this country, in this place which for centuries has been watered and nourished with the spouts of blood of the martyrs and saints of our Faith and Nation, it seems that some people have set about, authoritatively, to undertake the role of "catastrophizer", by desacrilizing and dechristianizing our people.

Behold, therefore, what they thought of and legislated regarding cremation.

An Exhortation on Attending Church

By St. John Chrysostom

Churches Are Spiritual Ports

Churches resemble ports in the ocean, which God has placed in cities — spiritual ports, wherein whoever of us takes refuge finds indescribable calmness of soul, made dizzy from worldly business. And precisely as a calm and waveless port offers safety to the boats docked there, so also the Church saves from the storm of earthly cares whoever hastens to it, and grants the believers to stand securely and listen to the word of God with great calmness.

The Church is the foundation of virtue and the school of spiritual life. Just cross its threshold at any time, and immediately you forget daily cares. Pass inside, and a spiritual ray will surround your soul. This stillness causes awe and teaches the Christian life. It raises up your train of thought and doesn’t allow you to remember present things. It transports you from earth to Heaven. And if the gain is so great when a worship service is not even taking place, just think, when the Liturgy is performed — and the prophets teach, the Apostles preach the Gospel, Christ is among the believers, God the Father accepts the performed sacrifice, and the Holy Spirit grants His own rejoicing — what great benefit floods those who have attended church as they leave the church.

The joy of anyone who rejoices is preserved in the Church. The gladness of the embittered, the rejoicing of the saddened, the refreshment of the tortured, the comfort of the tired, all are found in the Church. Because Christ says, “Come to me, all who are tired and heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matt. 11:28). What is more longed for than [to hear] this Voice? What sweeter than this invitation? The Lord is calling you to a Banquet when He invites you to church. He urges you to be comforted from toils and He transports you to a place of comfort from pain, because He lightens you from the burden of sins. He heals distress with spiritual enjoyment, and sadness with joy.

Let Us Guard Our Faith As The Greatest Treasure

By St. Luke, Archbishop of Simferopol and Crimea

Do not be scandalized when you hear what is said against the Faith, since they who say those things do not understand its essence... You should always remember the basic principle that the early Christians knew very well. They considered unfortunate the man who knew all the sciences, but did not know God. Conversely they considered the one who knew God to be blessed, even if they completely lacked human knowledge.

"Guardians of the Avaton" at the Athonite Monastery of Docheiariou

By George-Fivos Sargentis

With the blessing of my much-beloved Elder Gregory, abbot of the Sacred Monastery of Docheiariou at Mount Athos, for the last eight months I have been making two Archangels for the Monastery.

I feel this project to be the "Guardians of the Avaton".*

The Metropolis of Sweden Acquires the Monastery Established by Elder Eusebios Vittis

On Sunday 16 November 2014 a ceremony took place in the Cathedral of Saint George in Stockholm transferring the Hesychasterion* of Saint Nicholas in Rattvik to the Holy Metropolis of Sweden and all Scandinavia.

In his homily, His Eminence Metropolitan Cleopas of Sweden said: "Our earnest desire and goal was to establish a monastery to attract both Christians and non to a spiritual center of prayer, asceticism and spiritual reflection for our Orthodox brethren in the five countries that make up the Metropolis of Sweden. The soul of the blessed founder of the Hesychasterion, Archimandrite Eusebios Vittis, must be rejoicing and resting after the memorial service we conducted for him today. The transfer of the Hesychasterion to the Holy Metropolis was his innermost desire."

A First-Fruit Offering to the Temple of the Lord

By His Grace Bishop Epiphanios of Ledra,

the Most Reverend Abbot of the Monastery of Machaira

Entering the blessed period of the holy forty days of Christmas we are revived by the fast, and we are revived by the feast that has arisen and are gladdened by the protagonist of the celebration.

We are revived by the fast through the rich dishes that come with it, especially by the fish. We are revived by the celebration of the Entrance of the Mother of God that has arisen, and through the festival of the celebration schedules are compiled, and work is organized and conducted, in order to adorn the holiday. Apart from the above, the greatest, most primary, most joy creating, and especially most graceful, is the protagonist of the festival, the heart of our sweet love, the Most Holy Theotokos.

Customs for the Entrance of the Theotokos in Rural Greece

Many religious traditions, as pointed out by George Megas, are rural, with ancient roots in the expectation of a good harvest.

Because even the weather conditions throughout Greece are not the same, the beginning of agricultural work, especially the seeding, does not take place at the same time, and so basically the same custom takes place on different days shortly between each other.

Homily One for the Entrance of the Theotokos (St. John of Kronstadt)

 

By St. John of Kronstadt

Let us faithfully praise the Virgin Mary,

for she is brought into the Holy of Holies,

to be raised in the Lord.

Oikos from Matins

On this day, my brethren, the holy Church celebrates the solemn Entry into the temple in Jerusalem of the three-year-old child, Mary—the blessed daughter of righteous parents, Joachim and Anna—to be in instructed in the Lord. Zacharias—the elder and high priest—meets her with priestly splendor; and as he was instructed to do by the Spirit of God, he brings her, accompanied by young maidens, into the most interior part of the temple, the Holy of Holies, where the high priest himself enters but once a year, and where the Holy of Holies, the Lord Himself dwelt—for she was to become the Mother of His flesh.

A Feast That Celebrates the Multidimensional Purity of the Theotokos

By His Eminence Metropolitan Nicholas

of Mesogaia and Lavreotiki

At the start of the Christmas fast, when the forty days of Advent begin, we are presented with the feast of the Entrance of the Theotokos which foreshadows the event of the coming of the Lord and the Divine Economy. It is an event that does not appear in Holy Scripture, but the Church derives its information from the so-called apocryphal Gospels. It is one of the few exceptions it does this.

The Theotokos is presented as being offered to the Temple at the age of three. What does such an event have to say to us and why is it so important in the mind of the Fathers, who in their writings offer their own words about it as food for the faithful and the Church? Is it a simple little story or is it a theological event that has a particular importance for each of us?

Entrance of the Theotokos Resource Page

On November 21st the Church Celebrates 
the Feast of the Entrance of our Most Holy Lady 
the Theotokos into the Temple.

Verses

Within the temple, Gabriel feeds you, O Daughter,

And shortly he shall come and shall say to you: Rejoice.

On the twenty-first Mary entered the sacred temenos. 

 

ABOUT THE FEAST 

 

Forefeast of the Entrance Into the Temple of the Most Holy Theotokos 

 

Synaxarion for the Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple 

 

Entrance of the Most Holy Theotokos Into the Temple: Epistle and Gospel Reading 

 

On the Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple (St. Gregory of Nyssa) 

 

First Homily on the Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple (St. Germanos of Constantinople) 

 

Second Homily on the Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple (St. Germanos of Constantinople)  

 

Panegyric for the Entrance of our Most Holy Theotokos (St. Tarasios of Constantinople) 

 

Homily on the Entrance of the Theotokos Into the Temple (St. Theophylact of Ochrid) 

 

Homily on the Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple (St. Gregory Palamas) 

 

Homily on the Entry of the Most Holy Theotokos Into the Temple (St. Philaret of Moscow)

 

Homily One on the Entry into the Temple of the Most Holy Theotokos (Archpriest Rodion Putyatin)

 

Homily Two on the Entry into the Temple of the Most Holy Theotokos (Archpriest Rodion Putyatin)

 

Reflection for the Feast of the Entry of the Mother of God (St. Theophan the Recluse)

November: Day 21: Teaching 1: Entrance of the Most Holy Theotokos Into the Temple

 

Homily One for the Entrance of the Theotokos (St. John of Kronstadt)

 

Homily Two for the Entrance of the Theotokos (St. John of Kronstadt) 

 

Homily on the Entrance of the Most Holy Theotokos in the Temple (St. Nektarios of Aegina)

Homily One on the Entrance of the Most Holy Theotokos (St. Luke of Simferopol)

 

Homily Two on the Entrance of the Most Holy Theotokos (St. Luke of Simferopol)

Homily Three on the Entrance of the Most Holy Theotokos (St. Luke of Simferopol)

 

Homily Four on the Entrance of the Most Holy Theotokos (St. Luke of Simferopol)

The Entry Into the Temple of the Most Holy Theotokos (St. Nikolai Velimirovich) 

 

A Homily on the Consolation of the Mother of God: On the Beneficial Effect of the Temple of God on the Soul of Man (Archimandrite Kirill Pavlov)

 

The Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple (Sergei V. Bulgakov)

 

The Entrance of the Most Holy Theotokos Into the Temple and Sacred Nepsis (Archimandrite George Kapsanis)

  

The Entrance of the Theotokos as a Time of Preparation (Archimandrite Placide Deseille) 

 

The Theotokos as a Model for our Life (Metr. Hierotheos of Nafpaktos)

History of the Feast of the Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple  

  

How the West Came to Celebrate the Feast of the Presentation of the Virgin Mary 

  

Customs for the Entrance of the Theotokos in Rural Greece

 

 

THEOLOGY OF THE FEAST 

 

The New Testament Apocrypha and Agrapha in the Orthodox Church 

 

A First-Fruit Offering to the Temple of the Lord 

 

A Feast That Celebrates the Multidimensional Purity of the Theotokos 

 

The Place of the Theotokos in the Orthodox Church (1 of 2) 

 

The Place of the Theotokos in the Orthodox Church (2 of 2) 

 

The Silence of the Panagia 

 

The Monasticism of the Panagia 

 

The Theotokos as a Teacher of Asceticism and Noetic Prayer 

 

The Love for Mankind of the All-Holy Theotokos   

 

The Panagia: the Joy of All Christians

 

 

SHRINES DEDICATED TO THE FEAST 

 

A Church Beyond Compare - The Nea Church, or the Basilica of Saint Mary the New in Jerusalem (543-614) 

 

Iconography of the Entrance of the Theotokos at Hilandari Monastery 

 

The Monastery of Panagia Hozoviotissa in Amorgos 

 

Panagia Malteza of Santorini 

 

Panagia Odigitria of Kimolos 

 

The Monastery of Panagia Kounistria (Eikonistria) in Skiathos 

 

Synaxis of Panagia Katapoliani in Tinos 

 

The 11th Century Church of Panagia Kapnikarea in Athens 

 

The Church of the Panagia of Vlassarou in Athens 

 

The Monastery of Panagia of Machairas in Cyprus 

 

Saints Neophytos, Ignatios, Prokopios and Neilos, Founders of Machairas Monastery

Elder Iakovos Tsalikes, the Long-Range Star of Evia

By Dr. Haralambos M. Bousias,

Great Hymnographer of the Church of Alexandria

The venerable Elder Iakovos Tsalikes, the admirable Abbot of the Monastery of the Venerable David in Evia, was a long-range star who shined in our days with the rays of his simplicity, his goodness, his equal-to-the-angels state and his numerous wonders.

Elder Iakavos was the personification of love, a living embodiment of "the new life in Christ", a projector of virtue and a mirror of humility and temperance.

The Ecclesiastical Ethos

By His Eminence Metropolitan Nicholas of Fthiotidos

It is the sought after type of being, even within the Church. It is what should distinguish the faithul and especially those clergy devoted to the ministry of the Church, yet it is so distorted and abused, that it is used as a promotional image for the creation of impressions and to achieve goals.

The ethos of the Church is the ethos and character of Christ. It is the ethos of the saints.

The Athonite Who First Proposed the Canonization of Saint Nektarios

By Bishop Chrysostomos of Rodostolou

I had the joy to meet the perennial and virtuous hesychast Abimelech and to receive his prayers and admonitions. He was a beloved bosom friend of Saint Nektarios, the Metropolitan of Pentapolis, and maintained correspondence with him, while he himself was invited to visit Aegina to come and give admonitions to the nuns of the Monastery that Saint Nektarios established there. He responded with hesitation and humility: "You the enlightened and knowledgeable teacher and hierarch urge me the miscreant to urge and admonish the nuns?" Saint Nektarios responded with equal humility: "I speak and teach based on studies and theories, while you have Athonite experience and praxis."

Holy Prophet Obadiah as a Model for our Lives

Prophet Obadiah (Feast Day - November 19)

By Protopresbyter Fr. George Papavarnavas

The Prophet Obadiah or Abdia, whose name means "servant of the Lord", came from Shechem and lived in the second half of the 6th century B.C. He is one of the Twelve Minor Prophets, whose book is the smallest in the Old Testament containing only 21 verses.

Little Demetri With the Gift of Foresight

In September of some year in the oncology department of the University Hospital of Rio, there was a great disruption. Little Demetri was urgently asking for the priest of the hospital. He wanted to surely receive Communion.

He was 13 years old. For about a year and a half he was in this clinic. A small headache led him there. The doctors diagnosed him with brain cancer. His origins were from Fier in Albania. The parents were not baptized. For many years they were living in Patras. Shortly before entering the hospital, he wanted to be baptized. He would hear about Christ and wanted to be His "child". He was baptized "in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit", after catechism of course.

The Simple Villagers Were God-Seers

By Protopresbyter Fr. Nicholas Loudovikos

Once, when I was a young presbyter, it happened that while I was serving in certain villages outside of Thessaloniki, at the same time I was helping a very great theologian at the theological school.

What I experienced there, at the same time as I was writing my doctoral thesis at the theological school, was a terrible contrast. On the one hand, at the theological school I had contact with the great and paradoxical and obscure and deep matters of theology, and on the other hand I was a priest of ten villages to which I was assigned by my bishop then, with three or four villages in which I would go and preach. This is what I did then. I felt terrible loneliness, because no one understood me, or I thought they didn't understand me.

The Value of Contemporary Elders

By Archimandrite Paul Englezakis

Where is the value in our contemporary Elders, such as Fr. Sophrony, Fr. Porphyrios, Fr. Paisios and others?

These are people who prove that Christianity is the truth and that it can be experienced.

A Historic Divine Liturgy in Selybria Where St. Nektarios Was Born

After many years, at the birthplace of St. Nektarios in Selybria, where he lived until he was 14 years old and then left for studies in Constantinople, the feast of this newly-appeared Wonderworker Nektarios Kephalas of Aegina was celebrated on November 9, 2014 by Metropolitan Maximos of Selybria and Exarch of Europe, at the Byzantine aqueduct (Kilise Sarnici) beneath the ruins of the historic Byzantine Church of St. John the Theologian, now the Fatih Camii, built by Grand Duke Alexios Apokaukos.

The Immediate Response of Matthew to the Call of Jesus

By Professor John Karavidopoulos

Today our Church celebrates the memory of Matthew the Evangelist, the author of the first Gospel in the series of books of the New Testament. This same Evangelist himself narrates his invitation by Jesus to follow Him:

As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man named Matthew sitting at the tax collector’s booth. “Follow me,” He told him, and Matthew got up and followed Him. While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with Him and His disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they asked His disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” On hearing this, Jesus said, “It is not the healthy who need a physician, but the sick. But go and learn what this means: ‘I want mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Matt. 9:9-13)

The Honorable Skull of Matthew the Evangelist in Cairo

One of the most precious spiritual treasures of Orthodoxy, a fragment of the honorable skull of the Apostle and Evangelist Matthew, whom our Church commemorates on November 16th, is kept by the Patriarchate of Alexandria in its second headquarters in Cairo. It was displayed in 2012 for the first time in recent memory, and each year since then on the feast of the Holy Apostle.

The Journey Towards Bethlehem: An Introduction to the Nativity Fast

By Fr. Anthony Christos

The Feast of the Nativity in the Flesh of our Lord Jesus Christ, or Christmas, is one of the biggest days of Christendom. It is among the Despotic Feasts, which relate to the events in the life of Christ the Despot. Along with Pascha it is the biggest celebration in the Orthodox Church.

On this day we celebrate the Incarnation of God the Word, when the Second Person of the Holy Trinity descended into the world. God became man that man may become a god by grace. Christ comes down from heaven to earth, to raise man from earth to heaven. Christ came among us to save the human race, to rebuild once again the ruined bridge of our communication with God, to restore man to his true glory, to reveal to us the will of God. Christ deeply humbled Himself to elevate us, He was born in time so we could overcome time, and He took human nature in order to deify it. This is why we feast, rejoice and celebrate.

Saint Gregory Palamas Resource Page

St. Gregory Palamas (Feast Day - November 15 & 2nd Sunday of Great Lent)

Life

Synaxarion of Saint Gregory Palamas, Archbishop of Thessaloniki

Saint Gregory Palamas as a Model for our Lives

Synaxis of the Holy Family of Saint Gregory Palamas (Dec. 18)

The Call and Mission of Saint Gregory Palamas

Cave of Saint Gregory Palamas in Beroea

Saint Gregory Palamas at the Hesychasterion of Saint Savvas

The Significance of Gregory Palamas for Orthodoxy

Saint Gregory Palamas and the Black Death

Saint Gregory Palamas and the Heavenly Synod

Saint Gregory the Athonite, Instructor of Saint Gregory Palamas (+ 1308)

Saint Nikodemos of Vatopaidi, Teacher of Saint Gregory Palamas (+ 1322)


Second Sunday of Great Lent  

  

Synaxarion For the Second Sunday of Great Lent 

 

St. Gregory Palamas and the Second Sunday of Great Lent 

 

The Second Sunday of Great Lent Before the Fourteenth Century 

 

Homily on the Second Sunday of Lent (St. Gregory Palamas)

 

St. Gregory Palamas: The Wonder of Noetic Prayer 

 

"If Palamas Is A Saint, Then Let Him Drown Us"   

 

St. Gregory Palamas Celebrated in Thessaloniki (photos) 

 

A Second Triumph of Orthodoxy Over Heresy (George Mantzarides)

Ninth Ecumenical Synod

The Myth of Only Seven Ecumenical Councils

What are the Criteria for an Ecumenical Synod?

Homilies on the Ecumenical Synods - The Ninth Ecumenical Synod (Metr. Hierotheos of Nafpaktos)

Saint Gregory Palamas, Father of the Ninth Ecumenical Synod (1 of 3)

Saint Gregory Palamas, Father of the Ninth Ecumenical Synod (2 of 3)

Saint Gregory Palamas, Father of the Ninth Ecumenical Synod (3 of 3)

An Official Recognition of the 8th and 9th Ecumenical Synods

Serbian Church Proposes for the Recognition of the 8th and 9th Ecumenical Synods


Studies and Teachings 

Saint Gregory Palamas, the Fourth Hierarch and the Fourth Theologian

A Few Heavenly Thoughts on Eternal Truths as Taught by Saint Gregory Palamas

An Interview with Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos on the Relevance of Saint Gregory Palamas Today

Gregory Palamas in Eastern and Western Theological Thought: A Summary

St. Gregory Palamas and the Tradition of the Fathers

The Significance of the Teachings of Saint Gregory Palamas

The Message of the Teachings of Saint Gregory Palamas for our Times

Gregory Palamas: Two Parallel Eras (Metr. Hierotheos of Nafpaktos)

Gregory Palamas and the True Nature of the Hesychastic Dispute

The "Hagiorite Tome" of Saint Gregory Palamas

The Way of Purification, Illumination and Theosis

The Experience of Uncreated Light

All Christians Are Called To Pray Without Ceasing

Our Education in God

The Simplicity of God According to Saint Gregory Palamas

The Heart in the Hesychastic Treatises of St Gregory Palamas

St. Gregory Palamas and the Essence of Hesychasm

Mysticism and Rationalism in the Middle Ages: The Views of St. Gregory Palamas

An Orthodox Evaluation of Certain Teachings in the Writings of John Scotus Eriugena in Light of the Theology of St Gregory Palamas

What Does It Mean To Worship God "In Spirit And Truth"?

Double Knowledge According to Gregory Palamas

The Heart in the Hesychastic Treatises of St Gregory Palamas

From the Post-Modern Persona to the Person

The Grace of God in Creation: Palamas, Cabasilas and Sacramental Theology

St. Gregory Palamas on Augustine of Hippo and Pastoral Theology

Fundamentalism and Tradition

The Fathers of the Church and Islam (4 of 5)

The Transfiguration and Post-Patristic Theology

The Dangers of Parisian Theology

Barlaamism in Contemporary Theology (1 of 3)

Barlaamism in Contemporary Theology (2 of 3)

Barlaamism in Contemporary Theology (3 of 3)

The Search For Perfection In Orthodoxy and Culture

 

Writings 

 

"On Peace With One Another": A Timeless and Always Relevant Homily of Saint Gregory Palamas  

 

Confession of the Orthodox Faith (St. Gregory Palamas) 

 

The Purpose of Life and the Proof Pointing us to God According to St. Gregory Palamas 

 

The Mystery of the Sabbath and of the Lord’s Day (St. Gregory Palamas) 

 

The Meaning of Christ Eating Baked Fish and Honeycomb Before His Ascension (St. Gregory Palamas) 

 

Old Testament Types of the Holy Apostles (St. Gregory Palamas) 

 

A Clarification on the Ascension of Enoch and Elijah by St. Gregory Palamas 

 

St. Gregory Palamas: On the Translocation of the Prophet Elijah 

 

Saint Demetrios of Thessaloniki as a Monastic 

 

Saint Demetrios of Thessaloniki, Greater than Righteous Job (St. Gregory Palamas)    

 

 

Festal Homilies 

 

On the Annunciation of our Exceedingly Pure Lady, Mother of God and Ever-Virgin Mary (St. Gregory Palamas) 

 

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

 

Homily on the Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple (St. Gregory Palamas) 

 

Homily on the Sunday of the Holy Forefathers (St. Gregory Palamas) 

 

Homily on the Genealogy of Christ (St. Gregory Palamas) 

 

Homily on the Holy and Dread Mysteries of Christ (St. Gregory Palamas - Delivered Four Days Before Christmas)

Homily on the Nativity of Christ (St. Gregory Palamas)

 

Homily on Baptism and Repentance for the Eve of Theophany (St. Gregory Palamas) 

 

Homily on the Reception of our Lord (St. Gregory Palamas) 

 

Homily for the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul (St. Gregory Palamas) 

 

The Relationship Between Saint Gregory Palamas and the Theotokos Together With a Sermon on Her Dormition 

 

Homily on Christ's Highly Revered Prophet, Forerunner and Baptist John (St. Gregory Palamas) 

 

Homily on the Holy Apostle and Evangelist John the Theologian (St. Gregory Palamas) 

 

 

Gospel Homilies 

 

Homily on the Gospel for the Second Sunday of Luke (St. Gregory Palamas)

Great Lent and the Pentecostarion Homilies

Homily on the Publican and the Pharisee (St. Gregory Palamas)

Homily on the Parable of the Prodigal Son (St. Gregory Palamas)

Homily on Christ's Second Coming (St. Gregory Palamas)

Homily on Fasting and the Origin of the World (St. Gregory Palamas)

Homily to Encourage Fasting (St. Gregory Palamas)

Homily on Faith for the Sunday of Orthodoxy (St. Gregory Palamas)

Homily on the Second Sunday of Lent by St. Gregory Palamas

Homily on the Third Sunday of Lent by St. Gregory Palamas

Homily on the Fourth Sunday of Lent by St. Gregory Palamas

Homily on the Fifth Sunday of Lent by St. Gregory Palamas

Homily for Palm Sunday (St. Gregory Palamas)

Homily for the Sunday of the Myrrhbearing Women (St. Gregory Palamas)

Homily on the Gospel About the Samaritan Woman (St. Gregory Palamas)

First Homily on the Ascension of our Lord and God and Savior Jesus Christ (St. Gregory Palamas)

On Pentecost by St. Gregory Palamas

Homily for the Sunday of All Saints (St. Gregory Palamas)


Miracles and Shrines

Metropolitan Church of Saint Gregory Palamas in Thessaloniki

Cave of Saint Gregory Palamas in Beroea

Saint Gregory Palamas at the Hesychasterion of Saint Savvas

The Veneration of Saint Gregory Palamas in Kastoria

St. Gregory Palamas and the Healing of the Hieromonk with Head Pains

St. Gregory Palamas and the Chanter with a Withered Hand

"If Palamas Is A Saint, Then Let Him Drown Us"