Finding the Deep Heart during Great Lent
Archimandrite Zacharias Zacharou The grace of God has gathered us together today at the heart of Great Lent in order to express to the Lord our longing for His salvation, for the acquisition of the spirit of wisdom and for understanding of His commandments. Holy Scripture, however, warns us:...
‘My soul, my soul’, Kontakion in the Great Canon (Gr. Daravanoglou)
With the vocal resonance which is his hallmark, Archon Maestro of the Great Church of Christ, Grigorios Daravanoglou sings ‘My soul, my soul’ the famous kontakion of Great Lent and the Great Canon. It is one of the most moving troparia of the time of Great Lent, a period of...
The Crucified Jesus: A Book Review
Holy Week is the prime time for our spiritual life. It is when we spend more time at Church, increase our privet prayers and, for many people–especially those who do not often read–we usually pick up a spiritual book to peruse. The following is a quick review of a book...
The Memory of the Blessed Mary the Egyptian
Nektarios Thanos “… her many sins have been remitted, because she loved greatly” Luke 7, 47. On the Fifth Sunday of Lent, the Church honours the memory of a “street-walker”, a woman who led such a dissolute life that the word “prostitute” is more of a euphemism rather than...
Saint John of the Ladder
Archimandrite Georgios Alendas Great Lent is a period of repentance, during which our stony hearts must become, through God’s grace, softened in the flesh, and move from being callous to being sensitive, from cold and hard to warm and open to others, particularly God Himself. Great Lent is a...
‘Do not turn away your face’ (sung by Matthaios Tsamkiranis)
In Great Lent, the Orthodox Church, through its long, penitential services, seeks the mystical experience and approach of the Passion and the Resurrection. With this in mind, the hymns of this period are of an appropriate content, and present the events of our salvation to us the faithful. The joyful...
The Epistle Reading for the 4th Sunday in Lent
In today’s Epistle, Saint Paul calls hope ‘a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul’. A ship without an anchor runs the risk of being dashed against the rocks along a coast. When people without hope are faced with the adversities of life, they’ve got nothing to lean on. What...
Finding and Asking for Forgiveness
My first Forgiveness Sunday in 2000 left me feeling sore but satisfied, even though at the time I did think it was a bit redundant. After all, I was a Christian, so of course I was going to forgive everyone. But over the years, I realized words are easy; actions—not...
What To Do If I Can’t Find My Faith: LIVE Q & A with Fr. Gregory
Every person asks questions. Here at Orthodox Christian Network we encourage it. Fr. Gregory Joyce blesses our OCN Community. Every other week Fr. Gregory goes LIVE on OCN Facebook and has a worldwide audience of questions and answers with viewers and supporters like you. We thank you to those that...
‘Hail, life-bearing Cross’
Rafael Ch. Misiaoulis The Church boasts of the Precious Cross and experiences its message at every point of its worship. At every service, throughout the whole of the Church’s life, the presence of the Tree of Life is palpable. The Precious Cross is highlighted as a source of power...
