The Triodion as a Guide to Psychosomatic Purification

 

The Triodion as a Guide to Psychosomatic Purification

By Heracles Rerakis, 
Professor at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki

The Triodion constitutes a spiritual period that grounds us in our truth. It reminds us of the purpose of our life and of its limits. It shows us the vanity of our aims, pursuits, and priorities. It brings us back to our existential reality. It leads us onto the path that we may have lost.

It is a period that we experience every year in order to remind us of the role of time in our lives, as well as of a crucial issue that we usually forget: the way of returning to the starting point from which we set out.

The Triodion of the Church teaches and forms us once again, through Worship, Prayer, Fasting, Self-control, Purification, Love, and all the Virtues, in the manner of our life and of our saving communion with God and with our fellow human being.

The Fourth Century as the “Golden” Age of the Church (Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos)

The Fourth Century as the “Golden” Age of the Church 

By Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos and Agiou Vlasiou

(Lecture to the Educators of the city of Nafpaktos on January 30, 2013,
and to the Assembly of Clergy of the Sacred Metropolis of Kifisia on February 14, 2013)

I thank you for responding to my invitation to attend this event today, which I established here many years ago, from the very first year of my arrival in Nafpaktos. Each year I develop various topics related to the life, teaching, and work of the Three Hierarchs, and I attempt to touch upon aspects that go somewhat beyond what is commonplace and customary. The subject of today’s lecture is: “The fourth century (in which the Three Hierarchs lived) as the ‘golden’ age of the Church.”

The fourth century has been characterized by many theologians and students of Church history as the “golden age of the Church.” This is due to many factors.

First, the organization of ecclesiastical life after the end of the persecutions and the issuance of the Edict of Milan.

Second, the encounter between major theological and religious currents — namely Jewish thought, Christian revelation, Gnostic teaching, and Greek philosophy.

Third, the formulation of dogmas and ecclesiastical life because of the many heresies and schismatic situations observed during that period.

Fourth, the appearance of great Fathers in the Church, among whom were the Three Hierarchs.

All of these will be examined in greater detail below, so that we may better understand the great treasure that has been handed down to us and our duty to preserve it for future generations.

Miracles 13-17 of Saint Arsenios of Paros

By Archimandrite Philotheos Zervakos

Miracle 13

A certain Greek compatriot had come to Paros and visited the Monastery of the Transfiguration, not out of piety, but out of curiosity. Upon arriving in the monastery courtyard, he saw above the entrance door, at a window, a young nun, comely in appearance, watering basil. Being irreverent and driven by passion, he was immediately wounded by desire. At first he sought out the abbess of the monastery, who referred him to Father Arsenios. Presenting himself in a most arrogant manner, he demanded that they give him that nun; otherwise, he threatened to cause great harm to the monastery.

The Saint admonished him with gentleness and meekness, in the sweetest and most courteous manner. But the young man became enraged and angrily threatened both the Saint and, as he departed like one beside himself, declared that he would return to take the nun by force. Then the Saint said calmly: “Cease, my child, your threats and repent, otherwise you will remain immobile and deranged.”

Indeed, after three days he became paralyzed and insane, and, being carried by four men, he was taken to the asylum for the incurable, where the wretched man died miserably. The Saint then advised the nuns henceforth not to place flowers at the windows and not to lean out of them whenever strangers were present.

Holy Unmercenaries Cyrus and John in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

The Holy Martyrs Cyrus and John lived in the time of Diocletian the emperor. Cyrus was from Alexandria, while John was from Edessa. Because of the persecution that prevailed at that time and was destroying the Christians, Cyrus went to Arabia, to a coastal place, became a monk, and lived there. John, who arrived in Jerusalem, heard about the miracles of Saint Cyrus (for he healed every disease and illness). He went to Alexandria and, from there, according to what was rumored about the Saint concerning his place of residence, he reached the place where he was living and dwelt with him.

When a certain woman named Athanasia, together with her three daughters — Theodote, Theoktiste, and Eudoxia — was arrested for their faith in Christ and was about to be brought before the tribunal, Saints Cyrus and John feared that something might happen which is natural to occur, especially to women, namely that they might be frightened by the magnitude of the tortures of martyrdom. For this reason they went to the place where they were being held, encouraged them, and prepared them for the martyrdoms. Since they themselves were also arrested and confessed our Lord Jesus Christ as the true God, they were subjected to many punishments, and in the end their heads were cut off, together with the women we have mentioned.

Prologue in Sermons: January 31

On Compassion for the Unfortunate

January 31

(A Discourse of Saint Antiochus on Suffering for a Friend)

By Archpriest Victor Guryev

We all know that we ought to have compassion for the unfortunate and help them; but, unfortunately, not all of us know what true compassion consists in, or how we should act toward those in distress, so that from our compassion toward them there may arise both real benefit for them, glory to God, and the salvation of our own souls. In what, then, should true compassion for the unfortunate consist, and in what manner should our help to them be manifested? Let us learn this from one of the Holy Fathers, who gives all of us in this matter a good and saving lesson.

The World War 2 Miracle That Made Saint Gregory the Theologian the Patron Saint of Delvinaki in Ioannina

It was dawning on January 25, 1944, during the period of the German occupation. The village was asleep, though not without anxiety. The occupiers, enraged by the Resistance which they saw constantly growing stronger, were roaming towns and villages, carrying out searches and arrests of suspects, and spreading death without mercy. Delvinaki too was awaiting its turn… And it was that morning, at daybreak on January 25, when the news arrived that set the village on alert:

“Germans! The Germans are coming!”

Within a few minutes all the villagers gathered in the central square. There, near the large plane tree of the village opposite the community office, was a café where the resistance groups had brought munitions — arms, hand grenades, and whatever else they had in order to strike the enemy. They had intended to hide them in a safer place, but they did not have time. And now? Now that the Germans would soon arrive there? What were they to do?

The Holy Three Hierarchs in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

Saint John of Euchaita is not only the one who received, by the grace of God, the appearance of the Holy Three Hierarchs in order to resolve the disagreement among the scholars of Constantinople about which of the three was the greatest, but also the one who was inspired to write “canons and troparia and encomia,” according to the Synaxarion. Indeed, today’s hymnography is, first of all, an encomium by the Saint of Euchaita praising the spiritual stature of all three Hierarchs, who were, among other things, “other angels in the flesh,” “gods by participation, because within them lived and spoke the only true God by nature,” “correctors of morals and stewards of souls, the common saviors of all, those who showed us models both of deeds and of words, the educators of life,” as well as “the great luminaries, the unshakable towers of the Church,” “those who received wisdom from God, like three other apostles of Christ.” There is no form of praise that the Holy Hymnographer does not employ in order to express, first, what he experienced visionarily and theoptically — namely, the presence of the Saints in his life — and second, their immense theological contribution to the life of the Church.

January: Day 30: Teaching 2: Commemoration of the Holy Three Hierarchs: Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian and John Chrysostom

January: Day 30: Teaching 2:
Commemoration of the Holy Three Hierarchs: 
Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian and John Chrysostom
 
(On Mutual Love and Unanimity in Faith)

By Archpriest Grigory Dyachenko

I. “In the eleventh century, during the reign of the Christ-loving Emperor Alexios Komnenos, there arose a great dispute in Constantinople among the most learned lovers of wisdom,” writes Saint Dimitri of Rostov in his Lives of the Saints, in the account of the Synaxis of the Three Hierarchs, whose memory is celebrated today. Some exalted Saint Basil the Great as a teacher lofty in speech, firm in character, and strict toward those who sinned. Others, however, placed above him Saint John Chrysostom, who, with his extraordinary eloquence, was distinguished by gentleness of heart toward sinners. And finally, others considered Gregory the Theologian higher than both, as the most eloquent in word and one who deeply understood the dogmas of the faith.

Indeed, it was difficult to decide which of these three great hierarchs should be considered greater than the others: each of them was great in his own way. The disputes among those arguing about the greatness of the three hierarchs were heated and eventually led many of them to division: some were called Basilites, others Gregorians, and still others Johannites, and they regarded one another as bitter enemies. This quarrel among the faithful over these very hierarchs was offensive to the memory of the Saints and grievous to their holy souls.

Prologue in Sermons: January 30

Against Lies and Slander

January 30

(The Sermon of Saint John Chrysostom on Lies and Slander)

By Archpriest Victor Guryev

 

We all know that lying and slander are evil; but, unfortunately, we know little of the fact that the worst thing about this evil is that we pay little or no attention to lying and slander. “What is so serious about it,” we say, “if I lied? Nowadays almost everyone lies; what harm is there in it?” Thus we speak, but we should not speak so; for to lie and to slander truly is a calamity, and a great calamity.

“I beseech you, brethren,” says the universal teacher, “cease lying and slandering. Lying is the first sin and the craft of the devil, for he was the first to lie to Adam and led the whole human race into destruction. Let others make nothing of lying, neither repent of it nor abandon it. They will not escape punishment, for the Prophet says: 'You shall destroy all them that speak lies' (Ps. 5:7). And it will be even worse for those who join lying with slander. Slander destroys great households; one person slandered, and because of him others also weep and wail — his children, his neighbors, his friends. But slanderers themselves also come to a bad end for this. The Lord neither accepts their prayers, nor receives their offerings; their lamps are extinguished, and the wrath of God rests upon them, as David also says: 'The Lord shall cut off all flattering lips, the tongue that speaks proud things.' Slanderers,” concludes Saint John Chrysostom, “are worse than thieves and robbers.”

Synaxarion of our Venerable and God-Bearing Father Demetrios Gagastathis

Synaxarion

By Haralambos Bousias

On the 29th of the same month [January], the commemoration of our Venerable and God-bearing Father Demetrios, surnamed Gagastathis, the newly-manifested radiant good Levite of Platanos in Trikala.

Verses

The simple and gentle presbyter Demetrios,
Christ has deemed worthy to rejoice with the angels.

The sanctified liturgist of the Most High, our father Demetrios, surnamed Gagastathis, a zealous emulator of the angels, has newly shone forth as a many-radiant star of holiness in Platanos of Trikala (1902–1975).

Coming from a married state and, beyond wife and children — having been deemed worthy to become the guardian of nine daughters — loving the Lord, he served Him in venerably in the priesthood, a poor former shepherd of irrational sheep. Becoming an inexhaustible vessel of myrrh of divine graces, as he liturgized he filled the church with an ineffable fragrance.

Translation of the Sacred Relic of Saint Ignatius the God-Bearer in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

 

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

Saint Ignatius was a successor of the Holy Apostles and served as Bishop of Antioch. Together with Saint Polycarp, the president of the Church of the Smyrnaeans, he was a disciple of the Evangelist John the Theologian. He was therefore brought before Emperor Trajan, and after enduring every kind of torture without yielding, he was sent to Rome to be thrown to the beasts. When this took place, certain Christian men gathered his holy relics and brought them from Rome to Antioch, offering them to the Antiochene brethren who desired them with great longing. They then placed them beneath the earth with all honor and reverence. For this reason the Church celebrates a joyful feast.

We encountered Saint Ignatius the God-bearer — indeed, in considerable detail — on the day of his commemoration, the 20th of December. At that time, we had the opportunity to emphasize, on the one hand, the theological stature of the letters he left us — a truly significant contribution to overcoming ecclesiastical distortions — and, on the other hand, his deep love and fervor for the Lord Jesus Christ. It is precisely this love that the hymns of our Church also highlight today, on the occasion of the translation of his honorable relics. Indeed, it is impossible to speak of Saint Ignatius on any occasion without being moved by the furnace of his heart, which burned for the sake of Christ.

Prologue in Sermons: January 29

The Benefit to the Souls of the Departed from Commemoration at the Liturgy

January 29

(The account of Saint Gregory the Dialogist concerning a monk who died under penance and was forgiven after thirty days of commemoration.)

By Archpriest Victor Guryev

For the souls of those who have died in faith, but did not have time to bring forth fruits worthy of repentance, the prayers offered for them are salvific—prayers performed with faith in remembrance of their benefaction, and especially the offering for them of the bloodless sacrifice of the Body and Blood of Christ. Concerning the special propitiatory power of the bloodless sacrifice for the departed, Saint Cyril of Jerusalem says: “Very great benefit will accrue to the souls for whom supplication is made, when the holy and awesome sacrifice is set forth” (Mystagogical Catechesis, V, 9). Saint John Chrysostom teaches the same: “Let us not grow weary,” he says, “in helping those who have departed and in offering prayers for them, for there lies before us a common purifying sacrifice for the whole world… And without doubt it is possible to obtain for them forgiveness through the gifts offered for them and through being named together with them” (Homily 41 on 1 Corinthians). Finally, examples also confirm this teaching. Here is one of them.

Saint Athanasios the Great and Our Times (Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos)

 

Saint Athanasios the Great and Our Times 

By Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos and Agiou Vlasiou

(Transcribed sermon delivered at the Sacred Metropolitan Church of Saint Athanasios in Ioannina, 18 January 2017)

Your Eminence Metropolitan of Ioannina, dear brother Maximos, and my beloved brothers,

Today we celebrate two great Fathers of our Church, and indeed in this very Metropolitan Church of Ioannina which bears the name of one of these two great Fathers and Ecumenical Teachers of our Church, namely Saint Athanasios. Of course, we also celebrate the memory of Saint Cyril. Both were Patriarchs of Alexandria — great Fathers of our Church and great confessors of the faith, great theologians and at the same time great Fathers. For we know that in the Orthodox Church theology is very closely bound to pastoral care and the patristic tradition. That is, one who is a theologian, in the patristic sense, is also a spiritual father, meaning that he guides his spiritual children on the path of salvation. And one who is a spiritual father, in order to guide his spiritual children, must also be a theologian. Thus theology is inseparably linked with spiritual fatherhood.

Yesterday your Eminence, Metropolitan of Ioannina Maximos, analyzed in an excellent manner the historical and dogmatic context in which these two great luminaries and Fathers of our Church, Saint Athanasios the Great and Saint Cyril, both Archbishops and Patriarchs of Alexandria, lived and worked.

Saint Ephraim the Syrian in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

Venerable Ephraim was from the East, Syrian by origin. He learned piety and faith in Christ from his forefathers and lived in the time of Theodosius the Great. From his childhood he embraced the monastic life, and it is said that grace was poured out upon him by God. Through this grace, having written a great many compunctionate works, he guided many toward virtue and became an example of ascetic excellence for later generations. 

Venerable Ephraim the Syrian is among the most well-known Venerables and Fathers of our Church, in the sense that he is known even by those who do not know him. What do we mean by this? One may not be aware that the quintessential prayer of Great Lent — "Lord and Master of my life” — is his prayer, yet one has certainly heard it, has perhaps whispered it himself, and may even have incorporated it into his own prayers. And this means that he has been challenged — and is challenged each time by this prayer — to live repentance as a struggle against evil passions: idleness, curiosity, love of power, idle talk, and to acquire the virtues of chastity, humility, patience, and love, through which one lives in the presence of God.

January: Day 28: Teaching 2: Venerable James the Faster

January: Day 28: Teaching 2:*
Venerable James the Faster
 
(The Benefit of Bodily Fasting)

By Archpriest Grigory Dyachenko

Venerable James, an ascetic of the sixth century, lived for fifteen years in a single cave in Phoenicia. For his God-pleasing life he received from God the gift of working miracles, so that not only believers but also pagans came to him seeking healing from illnesses, and through this many pagans of that region were converted to Christianity. 

One of the Venerable one’s miracles is especially noteworthy. Once a severe drought came upon all Phoenicia, and famine began to threaten the inhabitants. Together with their bishop, the people fervently prayed to God to grant rain. Then, in a vision, the bishop was commanded to go to the cave where Venerable James was struggling in ascetic labor and to ask him to pray for rain. The bishop, gathering the clergy and accompanied by the people, went with supplicatory chanting to James, asking his intercession before God. At first James, considering himself unworthy of God’s mercy, refused them; but after persistent entreaties he began to pray, and during the prayer rain fell.

Materials for a Sermon on the Feast Day of Venerable Theodosius of Totma (Righteous Alexei Mechev)

 

Materials for a Sermon on the Feast Day of Venerable Theodosius of Totma*

By Righteous Alexei Mechev

“Rejoice, for as a faithful servant you walked piously before the Lord all the days of your life.” (From the Akathist to Venerable Theodosius of Totma)**

At the glorification of a saint, they are invisibly present with us and instruct us. The Venerable one (Theodosius) seems, as it were, to say to all of us:

“You, dear ones, have gathered to honor my memory, and I have come to you. See, I was the same kind of man as you, yet throughout my earthly life I strove to seek the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things were added to me. I also command all of you: seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”

Prologue in Sermons: January 28

 

Our Erroneous Opinions About High-Ranking People

January 28

(The Tale of Saints Ephraim the Syrian and Basil the Great)

By Archpriest Victor Guryev

We often have completely false notions about people of high rank, crowned with glory and honor. We say: “How could they inherit the Kingdom of Heaven, when they live in honor and luxury, have rich tables, wear almost royal garments, and keep a great number of servants, and so on?” Such an opinion of ours about people of high position is often very mistaken, as can be demonstrated by facts themselves.

Once Saint Ephraim the Syrian, who lived in the desert, began to ask God to reveal to him how far Saint Basil the Great had advanced in spiritual labors. His prayer was heard, and he beheld a pillar of fire stretching from earth to heaven. And a voice was heard saying: “Ephraim, Ephraim! As great as the pillar of fire you saw, so great is Basil.”

Then Ephraim, taking with him an interpreter who knew the Greek language, went with him to Caesarea, where Basil the Great was archbishop. They arrived in Caesarea on the very feast of the Theophany of the Lord, and Ephraim immediately went to the church where Basil was serving. When he saw Basil in great glory and honor, surrounded by a multitude of clergy, Ephraim exclaimed to his companion: “In vain have we labored, brother! Is this how I expected to see him? Can he be great before the Lord when he stands in such rank and honors? Truly, we have borne the burden of the day and the heat in vain! And I marvel again how such a man can be likened to a pillar of fire.”

Meanwhile, Basil the Great sent the archdeacon to summon Ephraim into the sanctuary. When the archdeacon conveyed the invitation of the hierarch, Ephraim said: “The hierarch must be mistaken; we are strangers, and he does not know us,” and he remained in his place.

Then the sermon began. And what happened? Throughout it, to his own terror, Saint Ephraim saw, as it were, a tongue of fire proceeding from the mouth of Saint Basil. After the sermon, the archbishop said to the archdeacon: “Go and say to the visitor to whom I sent you: ‘Master Ephraim, enter the holy sanctuary.’” The archdeacon delivered the message. Then Ephraim cried out: “Truly, Basil is great! The Holy Spirit Himself speaks through his mouth!”

When, after the Divine Liturgy, he met the archbishop, the latter said to him: “I rejoice to see you, who have multiplied the disciples of Christ in the desert and cast out demons in the name of Christ. But why have you come to see me? For I am a sinful man.” Ephraim was astonished. Then, having partaken of the Holy Mysteries from the hands of Saint Basil, he turned to him with a request that he might obtain for him understanding of the Greek language. By his prayer the archbishop obtained this for him, and afterward ordained him first as a deacon and then as a presbyter.

See then: what did Saint Ephraim say of Saint Basil when he first saw him? He said to his companion: “In vain have we labored in coming here to see him. Can he be great before the Lord when he stands in such rank and honors?” Yet was Ephraim right? No. For first, he saw as it were a tongue of fire issuing from the mouth of Saint Basil; second, Saint Basil showed himself to be clairvoyant before him; and third, he worked a miracle upon him by obtaining for him understanding of a language foreign to him.

Therefore, brethren, “judge nothing before the time” (1 Corinthians 4:5), and do not forget that not only the poor are saved, but also those clothed in purple, those honored with the great dignity of the episcopal office, the rich, nobles, and other people of high rank. Thus David lived amid royal splendor and received the crown. Abraham had a wife and children, three hundred and eighteen servants, much gold and silver; yet this did not prevent him from acquiring the name “friend of God.” Yes, we repeat: judge nothing before the time. Amen.

Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.

 

Saint James the Ascetic Resource Page

Venerable James the Ascetic (Feast Day - Gr. January 28, Slav. March 4)

Verses

 

As from a snare James left the flesh behind,

For by the flesh's snares he was not caught. 

 

St. James the Ascetic, Who Murdered Yet Did Not Despair 

 

Saint James the Ascetic, also known as the Faster

 

Saint James the Ascetic, Who Was a Rapist and Murderer

 

Venerable James the Ascetic

 

January: Day 28: Teaching 2: Venerable James the Faster 

 

Prologue in Sermons: October 10

 

Metropolitan of Derkoi Says Russia’s Attack on Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew is “Unbrotherly, Irreverent, and Indecent”

Metropolitan Geron Apostolos of Derkoi characterizes Russia’s attack on Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew as “unbrotherly, irreverent, and indecent.”

Commenting on the abusive accusations directed against the Patriarch, the Metropolitan of Derkoi notes at the outset: “This is not the first time that Moscow, acting through the deep state and the secret service SVR, has attacked — unbrotherly, irreverently, and indecently — the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew. This time, the SVR, instigated by the official state and tightly embraced by it, the Russian Church, unleashed a remotely guided bomb. Not like the one with which they struck an apartment building and a playground in Kharkiv, Ukraine, killing six people and wounding at least fifty-five. Among the dead was a fourteen-year-old girl. Nor like the bomb with which they struck a maternity hospital in Mariupol, Ukraine, and, among others, fatally wounded an unfortunate pregnant woman along with the child she was carrying.” He adds: “This time, the SVR, remotely guided by Russia’s deep state, deployed a bomb of another technology — ancient and time-tested. Its components are a political–religious mixture of irrational and arrogant claims, all manner of blackmail, and fratricidal slanders.”

Translation of the Sacred Relic of Saint John Chrysostom in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

One cannot fail to emphasize, when speaking of the Great Father and Ecumenical Teacher, Saint John Chrysostom, his preaching on repentance, which constitutes one of his most beloved themes – we recall that he wrote nine major homilies on this subject, without even mentioning others in which he also addresses it – so that he is called, among other things, the “preacher of repentance.” The Holy Hymnographers of his Service, Theophanes and Joseph, repeatedly refer to it, as does the liturgical office of the Saint on November 13, the day of his glorious memory, during which we again spoke of the repentance he preached, of his similarity to the Prophets of the Old Testament, and of his connection with Saint John the Forerunner, the first preacher of repentance on the soil of the New Testament. For this reason, we are obliged to consider it even briefly, given that, as we said, the hymnographers Theophanes and Joseph often refer to it. Indeed, the verse of the kontakion reminds us of repentance in a twofold way, since the poet both asks the Saint to guide him on the path of repentance, because he, deficient in virtue, dared to stand before the Saint’s relics, and also because the Saint is eminently qualified to become his guide in this, since this was primarily what he preached.

Prologue in Sermons: January 27

What Should We Do When our Enemies Arm Themselves Against Us?

January 27

(The Translation of the Relics of our Father among the Saints, John Chrysostom, Archbishop of Constantinople, and his Epistle to Bishop Kyriakos.)

By Archpriest Victor Guryev

When our enemies do evil to us, persecute and pursue us, then instead of acting according to the commandment of God — "love your enemies" (Luke 6:36) — and arming ourselves with patience, we begin to grieve and lose heart, to grow angry against our adversaries and revile them, and in doing so our heart is often torn apart. Such behavior, brethren, ought not to be, for one does not put out fire with oil. But what, you will say, remains for us to do? Are we to praise our enemies after all the evils they have done to us? Are we to rejoice in the sufferings they have caused us? Are we to find peace? What shall we answer you? Leaving aside for the moment your first two questions, to the third we will give the following reply.

Venerable Xenophon and His Family in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

The Venerable Xenophon lived in Constantinople, possessing great material wealth, but also great piety according to God. He therefore sent his two sons to the city of Beirut, one of the cities of Phoenicia, to study and learn law. But because the ship that was carrying them was wrecked, he himself went out together with his wife in search of them. Indeed, he found his children in Jerusalem, but he found them clothed in the monastic habit; and so he himself, together with his wife, was moved to follow the monastic life as well. And Xenophon, his wife, and their children progressed so greatly in virtue that they were deemed worthy even to work miracles. They pleased God until the end of their lives and departed to Him.

Just yesterday, on the occasion of the commemoration of the Great Father of the Church, Saint Gregory the Theologian, we referred to his phrase, which constitutes a principle of Christian life: “praxis is the ascent to theoria” — that is, praxis, the ascetical practice of the commandments of Christ, leads to theoria as the vision of God and participation in Him. This is precisely what we see being applied, we might say in an absolute way, in today’s Saints: the Venerable Xenophon, his wife Maria, and their children Arcadius and John. They struggled to keep the commandments of the Lord, and thus they gained the Kingdom of God — a truth that our Church emphasizes many times today through the pen of the Holy Hymnographer Theophanes.

Venerable Abba Ammonas, Instructor of Moderation

 

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

"Having completed the full thread of your life Ammonas,
You found life that could never come to an end." 

(Verses from the Synaxarion)

We do not have many historical details even about this great venerable father of the Gerontikon (Sayings of the Desert Fathers). The only thing that is certain, on the basis of the sayings and incidents concerning him that have been preserved — eleven in number — in the Apophthegmata of the Fathers (other spiritual writings and letters of his are also mentioned, though outside the book of the Apophthegmata), is that he lived in the time of Saint Anthony the Great (251–356), was his disciple and perhaps his successor in the monastic skete, and later became a bishop, manifesting a life free from every passion and malice.

We shall next see what Saint Nikodemos the Hagiorite records about him in his Synaxaristes, and at the end we shall choose a small chapter from the Gerontikon to comment on briefly. We should say from the outset that Saint Nikodemos, when considering whether this refers to Bishop Ammonas — the one connected, as we have said, with Saint Anthony — or to the priest mentioned in the Lausiac History who “saw” an angel of the Lord recording those present at the Divine Liturgy and striking out the absent, clearly chooses the first view: this Ammonas is the bishop. What, then, does he note about him?

Prologue in Sermons: January 26

 

Where Did the Custom of Holding Religious Processions in Times of Public Calamity Come From?

January 26

(The Commemoration of the Great Earthquake)

By Archpriest Victor Guryev

When public calamities befall us — for example, drought, or unseasonable weather, or when hail by God’s permission devastates the fields, or fires occur, or floods, or some other misfortune — then we usually take up the holy icons from the church, carry out the honorable crosses and banners, and with them perform processions around our villages, fields, and gardens, and we beseech the Lord for mercy. Do you know, brethren, where this custom of performing such processions in times of calamity came from, and who handed it down to us? If you do not know, I will tell you.

The custom of performing processions came to us from Greece, from where we received the Orthodox Christian faith. This can be proven by the fact that there, processions during public calamities were performed already in very ancient times. Thus, in Constantinople, at the death of Emperor Theodosius the Younger, on one of the Sundays there occurred an earthquake that continued, with interruptions, for three months. During this time the walls of the city collapsed, many houses were destroyed, and many national monuments also perished. In those days of calamity the emperor, together with the people, performed processions and continually cried out with tears: “Deliver us, O Lord, from Your righteous wrath for our sins, through repentance. For You have moved the earth and troubled it with shaking because of our lawlessness, that we may glorify You, the only good and loving God” (Prologue, Jan. 26).

Discourse on Zacchaeus (St. Amphilochios of Iconium)

Discourse on Zacchaeus 

 

By St. Amphilochios of Iconium

Nothing moves the soul so much toward joy as the fear of God and abstinence from evil, the path of repentance and the manner of confession. Therefore today David calls blessed those whose sins have been forgiven, revealing the philanthropy of Christ and at the same time preparing sinners to hasten to repentance. “Blessed,” he says, “are they whose iniquities are forgiven and whose sins are covered.” Whoever, then, can feel like the harlot and the tax collector, let him run to the inexhaustible springs of Christ’s salvation. Without repentance it is impossible for anyone to receive release from evils or to attain blessedness, even if he be a Prophet or an Apostle or even an Evangelist. For in truth all have drawn from the same source. Among the Prophets is David himself, who even after adultery remained a Prophet, by the grace of Him who forgave him.

Among the Apostles are Peter and Paul: the one received “the keys of the kingdom” after his denial, and the other became the Apostle of the nations after his persecution, transforming Jewish zeal into an evangelical way. And within the Gospels I have known a tax collector who was saved — not only Matthew, but together with him two others. One of these, praying and striking his breast where the treasure of evils lay, and not daring to stand in the temple with uplifted hands and eyes, was not only justified but also crowned, in contrast to the Pharisee. And today’s Zacchaeus, after climbing the tree — where many times he had stood to spy lest some merchant escape him and remain untaxed — now took care lest the Merchant of heaven and earth pass by unnoticed, He who bore within Himself the inviolable treasure of the Kingdom of Heaven.

Zacchaeus (Archimandrite Joel Yiannakopoulos)

Zacchaeus

Luke 19:1-10

By Archimandrite Joel Yiannakopoulos

The Lord, as He was walking toward Jerusalem, as we saw previously, arrived at Jericho. “Then Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. Now behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax collector.” Tax collectors were those who collected tolls and taxes. Jericho was a center for the export of balsam, which was sold throughout the whole world, and a hub of communication between Judea, Perea, and Egypt. This Zacchaeus was a chief tax collector because he was the supervisor of those collectors. “And he was rich and sought to see who Jesus was, but could not because of the crowd.” Because of the great press of people, walking along with the crowd for some time, Zacchaeus was unable to see Christ, “because he was small in stature.” He was short. “And running ahead,” that is, running forward, “he climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him, for He was about to pass that way.” The sycamore was a tree with low branches extending parallel to the ground, having leaves like a mulberry and fruit like a fig. Therefore, it was easy to climb. He runs and climbs it, because Christ was going to pass near it.

January: Day 25: Teaching 2: Saint Gregory the Theologian

January: Day 25: Teaching 2:
Saint Gregory the Theologian
 
(Children Are the Support of Their Parents)

By Archpriest Grigory Dyachenko

I. In the life of Saint Gregory the Theologian, so called for his writings about God the Word, the Savior of the world, and about the Holy Spirit, whose memory we celebrate today, there is one trait of his noble character that is especially instructive for us: his filial love and devotion to his parents. It is this that we recall on this day.

The Lord endowed the great hierarch Saint Gregory with great natural gifts: the gift of eloquence in him was extraordinary. Because of this gift, when Gregory was only twenty-one years old, he was left as an instructor of rhetoric in the very city of Athens where he had received his final education. A great and glorious future lay before Gregory, both in the secular sphere and in the spiritual one; he was invited everywhere to occupy one chair or another. But his love for his aged parents was so great that he once and for all refused all flattering offers, once and for all he resolved to live in Nazianzus until the death of his parents and to help his father there in his episcopal and household labors.

Prologue in Sermons: January 25

To the Terminally Ill

January 25

(A Discourse of Saint Gregory the Theologian on the Death of the Righteous)

By Archpriest Victor Guryev

There are many in the world who are incurably ill, for whom the help of physicians is almost useless; they themselves realize this and expect death from day to day. How are such unfortunate people to be comforted? What instruction should be given them? What should be said to them? Let us say to them first of all this.

Saint Gregory, in his discourse on the death of the righteous, says:

Professor John Fountoulis (+ January 24, 2007)

Prof. Fountoulis at a clerical conference

Dr. Georgios D. Panagopoulos,
Professor of Orthodox Dogmatics at the University Ecclesiastical Academy of Athens 

A few days ago, an elect soul, a man of God, Professor Ioannis (John) Fountoulis, departed from this vain world.

Ioannis Fountoulis was born in 1927 in Mesagros of Lesvos to parents from Asia Minor. He studied Theology at the University of Athens, from which he graduated with highest honors. He then pursued excellent postgraduate studies in Belgium, Germany, and France. He was awarded a doctorate by the Faculty of Theology of the University of Thessaloniki. He worked extensively and produced studies and books on liturgical manuscripts in libraries and museums both in Greece and abroad. He contributed articles to a multitude of journals within and outside Greece. He continued to work tirelessly even after his retirement. He participated in many conferences, at which he left an indelible personal mark. He labored creatively for the Church of Greece and the Ecumenical Patriarchate. The local Church of his birthplace owes him much, since he contributed greatly to the discovery and promotion of the Saints of Lesvos. He was spiritually and by family ties connected with the late Metropolitan of Mytilene, His Eminence Iakovos II. He was married and the father of three children.

Venerable Xenia of Rome in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

This blessed and ever-memorable Xenia was from the glorious city of Rome, of an honorable lineage and zealous for the faith. When her parents wished to marry her and all preparations for the wedding had been made, the Saint arose and departed from the bridal chamber together with two other women, two handmaids. After boarding a ship and coming to know other lands, she finally arrived at the city of Mylasa. She was likely guided to that city by the divinely inspired monk Paul (who appeared to her from God in Alexandria and became her guide toward higher things). There she built a small oratory in the name of the Holy Protomartyr Stephen, and together with her two handmaids, as well as with some others who joined her, she lived patiently in great asceticism, abstaining from all sensual pleasures and following the path that leads to the heavenly city.

Thus she passed her life in the will of God, and after her holy and blessed repose she received testimony from God Himself. For at midday, when the sun was illuminating the earth, a cross appeared formed of stars. This cross was encircled and held at its center by another choir of stars, so that it appeared as a crown for the blessed Xenia, given to her by God for her fasting, her vigil, and her purity. And this became evident, for when her relic was laid beneath the earth, the choir and the circle of stars ceased to appear. The details concerning the Saint became known when one of her handmaids, at the time she was about to depart this life, recounted the homeland of the blessed one, her noble lineage, and the name she had received from her parents — for she was called Eusebia — which she changed to Xenia, because she strove to live in concealment.

Homily for the Commemoration of Saint Xenia of Petersburg (Fr. Daniel Sysoev)

 

Homily for the Commemoration of Saint Xenia of Petersburgh 

By Fr. Daniel Sysoev

In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit!

I congratulate you all on the feast in honor of our beloved Saint Xenia of Petersburg! Even in Soviet times it was completely impossible to stop the stream of pilgrims to the grave of Blessed Xenia. The very phenomenon of Saint Xenia is remarkable: it is, of course, an example of how a person can serve God when it seems that life itself is entirely unfavorable to this. She lived in the eighteenth century, in the terrible post-Petrine era of widespread apostasy from God; in this respect even the nineteenth century was more pious. The eighteenth century was an age of debauchery and the degradation of Russian society (especially the upper classes), when such things were not only concealed but even flaunted.

It was in this time that the family of Andrei Fyodorovich and his wife Xenia lived. They were quite young: Andrei Fyodorovich was thirty years old, Xenia twenty-six. He held the rank of lieutenant colonel and was also a singer, singing with a magnificent tenor in the choir of the palace church (in the Winter Palace). Everything seemed to be going piously enough, but during one ball organized by Empress Elizabeth Petrovna, Andrei Fyodorovich was made very drunk; he went off to a female singer, and when he was walking away from her along the street, he was struck by a carriage.

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew Responds to Russian Propaganda and Updates on the Re-Opening of Halki

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew in TA NEA Weekend: “As if I would fear Russian propaganda.”

The primate of Orthodoxy speaks to TA NEA Weekend about the war in Ukraine and the attack he has faced from Russia.

By Maria Mourelatou
TA NEA Weekend
January 24, 2026

On the occasion of his visit to Thessaloniki next Thursday, and against the backdrop of the tectonic changes in the postwar geopolitical order, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew speaks to Ta Nea Weekend, addressing messages in all directions.

Regarding the situation in Ukraine, the primate of Orthodoxy—who, as he notes, has from the outset stood by “the Ukrainian people, who are being severely tested by the Russian invasion”—makes it clear that this is not a “holy war,” but an expansionist war, “absolutely satanic,” which is “the result of vain people addicted to the opium of power.”

Rejecting the unprovoked attack he recently received from the press office of Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service, the Ecumenical Patriarch declares himself fearless in the face of the fire directed at both him and the Patriarchate by “dirty attacks” and by “Russian internet trolls,” speaking of “Stalinist propaganda tactics.” “I am not afraid of them,” he responds, while at the same time emphasizing, with regard to the global balance of terror, that “every war is a defeat for humanity.”

Prologue in Sermons: January 24

 

Against Complaining

January 24

(A Homily on Job and Love for the Poor.)

By Archpriest Victor Guryev

Some Christians, when some misfortune befalls them, instead of bowing before the inscrutable ways of God’s Providence, remembering their sins and repenting of them, and placing all their hope in God, usually begin to complain and say: “Why is God punishing me? Does He really not see my sufferings? It seems to me that I did good to everyone — so-and-so and so-and-so, at such-and-such a time and such-and-such a time,” and so on without end. This, brethren, is not good. Such complaining reveals in a person a lack of love for God, little faith, self-love, and perhaps pride. In misfortunes one should not act this way. How then, you may ask, should one act? In this way, we reply: as the Holy Fathers teach. And how do they teach?

Holy Hieromartyr Clement of Ancyra in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

The note in the Synaxarion of Saint Clement, that his entire life was a single path of martyrdom, is also the central point emphasized by the Holy Hymnographer Theophanes, the poet of the Saint’s Canon.

“You traversed extended struggles upon the earth, O venerable one, and were thus deemed worthy to receive the crown of the Kingdom of Heaven.” 

“You endured, O most wise one, the wounds of tortures, long-lasting and drawn out over many years; therefore you were shown to be greatly victorious.” 

Indeed, one cannot but marvel at the multitude and the length of the tortures the Saint endured, with steadfast resolve, always fixing his gaze upon the Lord Jesus Christ. He did not collapse under the first blows. His executioners were methodical and cruel toward him: they knew how to torture him without delivering the decisive blow. Yet, of course, they remained on the surface of their torments. They did not know — and could not see — that these blows, transformed by the Saint’s faith and by the grace of God, became for him, and for the whole world, “achievements and a festival.”

Saint Clement of Ancyra Resource Page

St. Clement of Ancyra (Feast Day - January 23)

 Verses

The blood of Agathangelos and Clement,
Approached the mouth of the sword thirsty for blood.
On the twenty-third Agathangelos and Clement were beheaded.

 

Holy Hieromartyr Clement of Ancyra and His Disciple Agathangelos the Martyr

 

Saints Clement of Ancyra and His Disciple Agathangelos as Models for our Lives

 

January: Day 23: Teaching 1: Holy Hieromartyr Clement of Ancyra

 

January: Day 23: Teaching 2: Holy Hieromartyr Clement of Ancyra

 

Holy Hieromartyr Clement of Ancyra in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church 

 

Children Should Be Raised To Be Faithful To the End No Matter What: The Example of the Mother of St. Clement of Ancyra

 

The Last Legacy of the Byzantine Period in the Turkish Capital: The Church of Saint Clement of Ancyra

 

January: Day 23: Teaching 2: Holy Hieromartyr Clement of Ancyra

January: Day 23: Teaching 2:
Holy Hieromartyr Clement of Ancyra
 
(Edifying Lessons From the Life of the Holy Martyr Clement: 
a. Mothers Should Take Care of the Upbringing of Children; 
b. Children Should Obey Their Parents; 
c. We All Should Be Faithful to Jesus Christ)

By Archpriest Grigory Dyachenko

I. On this day the Holy Church celebrates the memory of one of the great and holy men of the ancient Church of Christ — Clement, Bishop of Ancyra. He was one of those great martyrs with whom the first centuries of Christianity are so richly adorned. For our age of weak faith and moral laxity, it is extremely beneficial to recall the feats of the true followers of Christ, who sealed their faith with the crown of martyrdom. Let us therefore, brethren, honor the memory of the martyr Clement with reverent remembrance of him.

Saint Clement was the son of a pious Christian woman and was himself raised in the rules of the Christian faith. The upbringing of her son in the faith of Christ was the sole task of the mother of Saint Clement. Saint Dimitri of Rostov thus describes the deathbed speech of this Christian mother of the third century to her twelve-year-old son:

Prologue in Sermons: January 23

The Crown of Love for One’s Neighbors

January 23

(Commemoration of Paulinus the Bishop, who gave away all his possessions in alms, and afterward even gave himself to be sold to the pagans.)

By Archpriest Victor Guryev

The crown of love for one’s neighbors is to lay down one’s life for them. “Greater love than this,” says the Savior, “no one has, than to lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13). But what does it mean to lay down one’s life for one’s friends? It means that, in time of need, one must be ready for every kind of feat of self-denial. If life is required—give your life; freedom—give your freedom; property—be deprived of your property. In a word, be ready to sacrifice everything, not excluding even yourself.

Does this amaze you, brethren? Do not be amazed. True, perhaps such people are not found today, but in former times they did exist. And behold how far their love for their neighbors sometimes extended.

Saint Paulinus, Bishop of Nola, in order to ransom his fellow countrymen from captivity by the Vandals, distributed all his possessions and was left with absolutely nothing. At that time a widow came to him and asked that he give her money to ransom her son from captivity. The servant of God searched all the corners of his cell, hoping to find something, but found nothing. Coming out to the petitioner, he said: “Believe me, I have nothing with which to ransom your son except myself. Therefore, if you wish, sell me as a slave in exchange for your son, and let him return.”

Incidents from the Life of Saint Bessarion of Agathonos

The life of Saint Bessarion is filled with incidents that reveal his profound humility and his absolute love for humanity. He was often called “the Saint of the poor” or “the Merciful One,” since whatever came into his hands he immediately distributed to others.

Below are some of the most striking true accounts:

Holy Apostle Timothy in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

Saint Timothy was from the city of Lystra. His father was a pagan, and his mother was a Jewess named Eunice. He became a disciple of the Apostle Paul and became his co-worker and a preacher of the divine gospel. He also went with Saint John, the especially beloved disciple of the Lord, and was appointed by the Apostle Paul himself as Bishop of Ephesus.

When Saint John was cast ashore by the sea (as Irenaeus, Bishop of Lyons, also recounts in his writings) and returned to Ephesus, and later was led by Emperor Domitian into exile on the island of Patmos, the blessed Timothy took his place in the episcopacy of the Ephesians.

Now at one time, when the pagans, during a certain ancestral festival of theirs called the “Katagogion,” in the city of the Ephesians, were holding idols in their hands, placing some of them upon themselves as masks, singing with them, and attacking men and women in a robber-like manner and committing murders, the blessed Timothy could not bear to witness the impropriety of their actions. Instead, he rebuked their vain delusion and exhorted them to abandon their shameful deeds. As a result, they killed him, attacking him with clubs. Afterward, his holy relic was transferred to Constantinople and placed in the Church of the Holy Apostles, where his Synaxis was celebrated.

Saint Joseph Samakos and the Liturgical Offering Bread

 

Saint Joseph Samakos, also known as Saint Joseph the Sanctified, was a revered 16th-century Orthodox hieromonk from Crete, celebrated for his sanctity. He was a monk in the Monastery of the Holy Apostle and Evangelist John the Theologian or Dermatanos, as many called it, which was located in a seaside location in Heraklion, Crete. He reposed around 1511, and his relics, found incorrupt and fragrant, led to his veneration, with churches built in his honor in Crete and Zakynthos. He is celebrated annually on January 22nd.

It happened at one time on the feast of Saint John the Theologian that the Christians offered candles and incense and many other things in the temple, but no offering bread (or prosphoron) for the Divine Eucharist; therefore, when the time for the Divine Liturgy arrived, the appointed servant, seeing that they had no offering bread with which to perform the Divine Mystagogy, went to Saint Joseph Samakos and said to him:

“Honorable Father, the time for the service has arrived and there is no offering; therefore, order me what I should do.”

Prologue in Sermons: January 22

On Love for God

January 22

(Commemoration of the Venerable Martyr Anastasios the Persian)

By Archpriest Victor Guryev

Strong, fervent, and wondrous was the love for God among the true servants of God. Thus the Apostle Paul desires to depart and be with Christ. The Venerable Martyr Anastasios the Persian, having passed through every path that leads to virtue, was finally inflamed with such love for God that he asked Him to help him end his life in blood and in sufferings. And of all the saints one may say, as if in their own words: "Who shall separate us from the love of God: tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written: For Your sake we are killed all the day long" (Rom. 8:35–36).

Such was the love for God among God’s saints, and by it they left us a beautiful example for imitation. For we too must love God as they did. We too must strive toward Him with all our heart, and with all our soul, and with all our mind. Therefore we must all learn from the saints how we ought to love God and in what true love for Him consists.

In what, then, should it consist?

A Significant Doctoral Dissertation on “The Interpretive Framework of the Christology of Saint Maximus the Confessor”

By Metropolitan Hierotheos of Nafpaktos and Agiou Vlasiou

On June 25, 2013, I attended, in the Conference Hall of the Theological School of Thessaloniki, the defense of the dissertation of Mr. Georgios Siskos, which was submitted to the Department of Pastoral and Social Theology, on the topic “The Interpretive Framework of the Christology of Saint Maximus the Confessor,” following a request by the doctoral candidate.

The truth is that I myself also showed interest in this dissertation, because I had discussed it with its author during the course of its preparation and had discerned its exceptional importance for the Church, theology, and our time.

The seven-member committee consisted of Professors Despo Lialiou, Demetrios Tselengidis, Konstantinos Christou, His Eminence Metropolitan Elpidophoros of Prousa, Vasilios Tsigos, Symeon Paschalidis, and Fr. Christos Filiotis-Vlachavas. During the defense of the dissertation, statements and questions were posed by the professors, and the candidate under evaluation responded thoroughly, as an excellent connoisseur of the subject — both from the perspective of the teaching of Saint Maximus in relation to Chalcedonian and anti-Chalcedonian Christology, and from the perspective of contemporary theological bibliography on this topic.