On April 12, 1961, Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin became the first man thrust into outer space. On returning, he said, “I didn’t see God out there”. The Soviet propaganda machine made much of this. But Gagarin was an Orthodox Christian, and he spoke truly. He didn’t see God out there, and he wouldn’t see God out there—because, as Christ says, “The Kingdom […]
We have received many requests during this Lenten season on how to create an Orthodox Prayer Rope. Dr. Christine Kerxhalli of the Orthodox Christian Devotionals YouTube channel provides a very helpful step-by-step instructional video on how to tie a wool or acrylic yarn Orthodox Christian Prayer Rope with yarn cross and tassel. Within the Orthodox […]
Time always comes up short. We haven’t enough to do all the things we want to do. Our days are numbered, and our number is bound to come up sooner or later. Andrew Marvell is right: “Time’s winged chariot” hurries near regardless. And yet we want to break outby any means. We try to prolong […]
The subject of Tollhouses is certainly not new. This idea has been around since the 2nd century in the writings of Tertullian, Ignatius, and Origen and certainly by the majority of the Holy Fathers of the 3rd – 5th centuries. It is told that the blessed Theodora of Constantinople in the 10th century when she […]
Abbess Thaisia (+1915) was a spiritual mother to Holy Russia and spiritual daughter of St. John Kronstadt (+1909). In the first of her Letters to a Beginner, she talks about “the first condition of our salvation”: Here is the word: Strive to love everyone! The commandment is not difficult but is proper to our very nature…If […]
His Beatitude Patriarch Teoctist of blessed memory would often tell this story about the efficacy of prayer: There was once a young monk who complained that his prayers were never answered. His abbot asked him to take a straw basket used in gardening to a nearby brook and return with water. The monk did as he was […]
The question of how to fast generates quite a bit of discussion and confusion, especially since there are so many different opinions from different priests on the rules of fasting. Life in today’s world can make keeping the fast difficult for many of us. To help clarify this, I offered 3 levels of fasting that hopefully will provide each of us with a way to use the Lenten period to prepare for the joyous Resurrection of our Lord and Savior.
