Homilies from the Menaion for Every Day of the Year: October 31

 

The Month of October

Day 31

62. Work and Prayer

(From the Life of Venerable Spyridon, the Prosphora Maker at the Kiev Caves Monastery)

It is well known that almost all the saints combined bodily labor with prayer. Thus, of the Venerable Spyridon, the Prosphora Maker at the Kiev Caves Monastery, whom the Church commemorates today, it is said that while serving in the prosphora bakery, he continually sang the Psalms of David. Whether he was chopping wood, kneading dough, or doing some other task, he always offered up to God, alongside his work, a sacrifice of praise. In this way, the saints knew how to work and pray at the same time. But what do you think, brethren? Was there any benefit to them in doing so, or not? We do not know what you will say in answer to this, but for our part, we believe that there was indeed a benefit, and a great one. What was it? We shall answer you now.

Homilies from the Menaion for Every Day of the Year: October 30

The Month of October

Day 30

61. What Blessings Does Almsgiving Bring Us?

(From the Life of the Hieromartyr Zenobios and His Sister Zenobia)

The Lord teaches us to give alms. “Sell,” He says, “what you have and give alms” (Luke 12:33). And we give alms according to the Lord’s word. But here a question inevitably arises of its own accord: why, then, do we give alms? Is there any benefit to us ourselves from our almsgiving? Do we gain anything for ourselves through it? Does it bring us any blessings as well? Know, brethren, that almsgiving is of great benefit to us ourselves, that through it we acquire much for ourselves, and that it brings us great blessings. What are these blessings? And what, in general, does almsgiving bring us?

Synaxarion of the Venerables Abramius and Maria

Synaxarion

By St. Nikodemos the Hagiorite

On this same day, the commemoration of our Venerable Father Abramius and Maria, His Niece.

Verses For Abramius

Having mortified every member of his body, Abramius,
At his death, dwells with the bodiless Angels.

Verses For Maria

Having abandoned the lovers of the flesh, Maria,
You mystically embrace the Lover of souls.

This Saint Abramius was the son of Christian parents. Having taken a wife in marriage against his will, he abandoned everything of the world out of longing for Christ and withdrew into the desert. He shut himself inside a small hut and practiced every form of hardship and ascetic discipline.

After spending fifty years in asceticism, he was ordained a priest and afterward became a bishop and shepherd, against his will, of a village called Tainia, which lies in Lampsacus on the Hellespont, that is, by the Sea of Marmara. For the salvation of the people of Tainia, the blessed man endured many hardships and temptations on numerous occasions, for the inhabitants there were sunk in the delusion of idolatry.

October: Day 29: Teaching 3: Holy Martyr Anastasia the Roman

 

October: Day 29: Teaching 3:
Holy Martyr Anastasia the Roman
 
(How Can We Learn to Be Grateful to God?)

By Archpriest Grigory Dyachenko

I. On the feast of Saint Anastasia of Rome, who, amid her torments, sang praises and offered thanksgiving to God in the words of the Psalms of the Prophet-King, it is fitting, brethren, to speak about how we too may learn to be grateful to God, we who, having received thousands of blessings from Him, have failed to value them and have not thanked Him for them.

II. Someone may ask me: Can one really learn to be grateful? Yes, brethren, one can. Everything can be learned in the school of the gospel. Put this to the test.

Homilies from the Menaion for Every Day of the Year: October 29

The Month of October

Day 29

60. Mercy Is the Best Means of Turning a Sinner to the Path of Truth

(From the Life of Venerable Abramius the Recluse)

Just as physicians treating the body, when they consider it necessary to remove an infected limb from a sick person, first endeavor to encourage and calm the sufferer and only then proceed with the operation, so also those among you, brethren, who may wish to become physicians of the soul and undertake the great task of turning sinners from the path of sin to the path of truth should first approach them, not with harsh words of reproach, but in the spirit of evangelical meekness. They should not aggravate the wounds of sinners’ souls, but pour the balm of mercy upon them. If spiritual physicians act toward sinners in this way, following our advice, they will see good results from their efforts on behalf of sinners, and the sinners themselves will indeed return to the right path.

Holy Great Martyr Paraskevi of Iconium

St. Paraskevi of Iconium (Feast Day - October 28)

The Holy Great Martyr Paraskevi lived in the third century in Iconium, a city in Asia Minor. She was born into a wealthy and pious Christian family. Her parents held Friday in special reverence because it was the day on which our Lord Jesus Christ suffered on the Cross. For this reason, they named their daughter Paraskevi, a Greek name meaning “Friday.”

Paraskevi was devoted from an early age to the Christian faith. After her parents died, she dedicated herself entirely to the service of God. When she reached adulthood, she took a vow of virginity, choosing to devote her life to Christ rather than enter into marriage. She also devoted herself to proclaiming the Christian faith among the pagans, seeking to bring them to the knowledge of the true God.

Saint Athanasius Sakharov the Confessor and Bishop of Kovrov (+ 1962)

Saint Athanasius Sakharov (Feast Day - October 28)

The future Bishop Athanasius (Sergei Grigoryevich Sakharov) was born on July 2, 1887 (Old Style), on the feast of the Placing of the Honorable Robe of the Most Holy Theotokos at Blachernae. Sergei’s parents, Gregory and Matrona, lived in Vladimir. His father, a native of Suzdal, was a court councillor, while his mother came from a peasant family. Their goodness and piety provided fertile ground in which the spiritual gifts of their only son could grow. Named in honor of the Venerable Sergius of Radonezh, the intercessor for the Russian land, the future hierarch deeply embraced the selfless love for the Church and the Fatherland that so distinguished the Venerable Sergius.

Encomium to our Venerable and God-bearing Father Symeon the New Theologian (St. Nikodemos the Hagiorite) - 5 of 5

...continued from part four.

37. But what are we to do, brothers, we Christians and monks of this evil age—or, rather, we who are the refuse of Christians and monks? What are we to do, or what means are we to employ, in order to please God and be saved? Let us imitate the example of the God-pleasing life and conduct of our Venerable and God-bearing Father Symeon. For this is why we have gathered today to celebrate his venerable memory: not so much to honor him, because the transcendent honor and glory that he enjoys in the heavens are sufficient for him, and he does not need any further addition of honor and glory from us; rather, we celebrate the memory of the sacred Symeon so that we ourselves may benefit by imitating his life according to God. For thus Basil the Great instructs us:

“His memory, therefore, is sufficient for continual benefit. For those men have no need of an addition to their good repute; rather, remembrance is necessary for us who are in this life, for the sake of imitation. For just as giving light follows fire spontaneously, and fragrance follows perfume, so benefit necessarily follows good deeds.”³⁴

Homilies from the Menaion for Every Day of the Year: October 28

The Month of October

The 28th Day

59. How Children Who Are Left Without Parents and Receive Large Inheritances from Them Should Conduct Themselves

(From the Life of Holy Great Martyr Paraskevi)

Unfortunately, especially in recent times, we often see children who have been left without parents and have received large estates from them behaving very badly. Again and again, we see such wealthy children, as soon as they reach adulthood, and sometimes even before they attain it, forgetting God, associating with bad people, beginning to indulge in every kind of vice, squandering the wealth their parents may have gathered through hard labor, and ultimately meeting their ruin amid great commotion. What, then, remains for us to do? We can at least turn other children, who have not yet perished, away from a sinful life and toward virtue. But how can we do this? It seems to us that the best way is to show our wealthy orphans how other wealthy orphans of ancient times, who were saints, conducted themselves, and how they used and managed the wealth their parents had left them. Let our own heirs, therefore, hear about such children and learn from them.

Miracles of Venerable Demetrios the New of Basarabov

 

Venerable Demetrios the New came from the village of Basarabov, in present-day Bulgaria, a few kilometers from the border with present-day Romania. He lived in the thirteenth century, during the reign of Peter and John Asen.

He was very poor and for a long time herded the villagers’ cattle in Basarabov. On Sundays and great feast days, he attended church together with the other villagers in the village church. He later decided to dedicate his life to Christ, abandoned the world, and took up the ascetic life in a cave that he dug into a rock near the Lom River, close to a male skete. He became a monk and practiced asceticism through continual fasting, prayer, and remembrance of God.

When he foresaw the end of his life, he hid himself between two large stone slabs, as if in a coffin, on the banks of the Lom River, where he fell asleep in the Lord. Later, following floods, this piece of land broke away, and his holy body fell into the Lom River, where it remained incorrupt for hundreds of years.

The Passion of the Holy Martyrs Vincent, Sabina and Cristeta

 

Introduction 

The text translated below represents the absolute foundation and oldest surviving prose narrative for the martyrdom of Saints Vincent, Sabina, and Cristeta. Every modern encyclopedia entry, regional festival, and historical study regarding these three sibling-martyrs of Ávila ultimately derives from this specific text. To understand its nature, however, one must distinguish between the physical age of the book it is found in and the older layers of history and legend preserved within its pages.

The translation presented here is transcribed from the Pasionario Hispánico—a comprehensive liturgical compilation of Iberian saint stories. The physical book itself is a 10th-century manuscript (specifically Codex British Museum Additional 25600, copied at the monastery of San Pedro de Cárdena). However, the text it preserves is actually a mid-8th-century literary compilation that wove together traditions, theological battles, and templates stretching back several centuries.

Homilies from the Menaion for Every Day of the Year: October 27

The Month of October 

The 27th Day

58. How a Warrior Should Conduct Himself Before Going into Battle

(From the Life of the Martyr Nestor)

Your lot, God-loving warriors, is such that today you live in peace and tranquility, while tomorrow war may break out, and very soon you may find yourselves face to face with death. What should you do then? What is the best way to go out against your enemies? How can you best defeat them? Go forth not only with weapons of war, but also with spiritual weapons. Place your firm hope in God’s help; turn to God with fervent prayer; ask others to pray for you; when entering battle, invoke the invincible power of the Cross of Christ; reverently protect yourselves with the sign of the Cross, and only then enter the fight. Then you will undoubtedly receive God’s help and defeat your enemies. The event itself will convince you of the truth of what we are telling you now.

Saint Demetrios the Myrrhgusher — Patron Saint of Thessaloniki

By Evripidis Antoniou,  

Vice-President Emeritus of the Areios Pagos

Demetrios was born in Thessaloniki in the year 280, into a distinguished Macedonian family, and received a thorough education and Christian upbringing. He is one of the most popular figures in the hagiology of the Greek Church and of Orthodoxy as a whole. He enlisted in the Roman army and, while still young, rose to the highest military and political offices. Maximian (245–310), Augustus and co-ruler of Diocletian, who had made Constantine the Great his son-in-law by giving him his daughter Fausta in marriage, recognized Demetrios’s qualifications and appointed him first senator of Thessaloniki and later proconsul. The new Roman consul apparently governed Macedonia, which began on the shores of the Adriatic and extended as far as the Evros River and Thessaly.

Holy Great Martyr Demetrios of Thessaloniki in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

Wonder, amazement, awe, doxology, fullness of divine eros! These are the first impressions one receives upon coming into contact with the hymns of our Church for the Great Martyr, Myrrhgushing and Wonderworking Saint Demetrios. The spiritual wealth of the Saint is so great that the hymnographer Theophanes, with his Canon, was not sufficient to hymn the whole life of Demetrios; Saint Philotheos, Patriarch of Constantinople, was also called upon, and with a second Canon he focuses our attention primarily on the saint’s myrrhgushing. “The second canon has as its subject both encomia and supplication concerning his holy myrrh,” according to the explanatory note accompanying this Canon. Thus, faced with the wondrous person of Saint Demetrios, our Church, through its hymnographers, feels the inadequacy of precisely praising his struggles and the honors the Saint enjoys in heaven. “The mind and human speech are not sufficient, O Martyr, to recount the supernatural honors and glories that you have received.”

 

Homilies from the Menaion for Every Day of the Year: October 26

The Month of October

The 26th Day

57. The Saints Continue to Pray for Their Homeland After Departing to the Heavenly Realm

(From the Life of the Great Martyr Demetrios of Thessaloniki)

There is no doubt that all the holy saints of God loved their respective homelands and helped them during their lives in whatever ways they could; and, of course, they prayed and interceded for them before God. To prove this truth, it seems to us that it is enough to consider even our own fatherland. Who, for example, does not know the services rendered to their homeland and the prayers offered for it by the Venerable Sergius, the Holy Hierarchs of Moscow, and other Saints glorified in the Russian land? Thus, it is an indisputable truth that all the saints, during their lives, were intercessors who prayed for their respective homelands. But here is the question: did they remain the same toward their homelands after death? Did they preserve their love for them in the world after death? Do they also pray and help them there? What answer can we give to this? We shall say the following.

Homily One on the Sixth Sunday of Luke (St. John of Kronstadt)

Homily One on the Sixth Sunday of Luke 

23rd Sunday after Pentecost

By St. John of Kronstadt

And when He (Jesus Christ) had come forth onto the land, there met Him a certain man from the city, who had been possessed by demons for many years, and who wore no clothes, and did not live in a house, but in the tombs. (Luke 8:27)

Have you heard, beloved brethren, the Gospel account read today about the demoniac in the country of the Gadarenes and his healing by Jesus Christ? You have heard how the demons tormented this unfortunate man and how miserably he dragged out his wretched life. Have you seen the divine authority of Jesus Christ over the demons, over an entire legion of them, that is, several thousand, who had entered the unfortunate man? You have seen the sudden destruction of a multitude of animals, the so-called unclean animals, into which the demons entered with the Savior’s permission (Luke 8:26–39).

Homily for the Sixth Sunday of Luke (St. Innocent of Kherson)

Homily for the Sixth Sunday of Luke

23rd Sunday after Pentecost

By St. Innocent of Kherson

If there is any Gospel reading that may give rise to many objections among superficial minds, it is the one appointed for today. “How,” asks a person unaccustomed to thinking deeply, “is it possible for someone to become the dwelling place of evil spirits while still alive? Is this possible? Where, then, would the personhood of a human being be? His dignity? The very nature of a rational being? And is it not a reproach to creative Providence that it should permit such a terrible invasion of our world by evil spirits? That it should deliver such a creature as man over to their ferocity? To what purpose could this serve in the governance of the world? What would be its purpose with regard to man? With regard to the evil spirit itself? The moral existence of a human being would cease in such a case; he would lose the time necessary for his perfection and suffer torments. Is it possible that all this could exist in a world governed by the All-Wise and All-Good?”

Holy Martyrs Markianos and Martyrios in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

 

1. Saints Markianos and Martyrios lived when Saint Paul the Confessor was Patriarch of Constantinople, after the repose of Saint Alexander, during the reign of Constantius, who was Arian-minded. The holy Patriarch was exiled to Armenia and met his blessed end at the hands of the Arians, who drowned him. At that time, Saints Markianos and Martyrios were also killed by the sword on account of their Orthodox faith and were buried at the Melandisia Gate, in the district of Deuteros, within Constantinople. Later, our Holy Father John Chrysostom rebuilt the church of these Saints from its foundations.

Homilies from the Menaion for Every Day of the Year: October 25

 

The Month of October

Day 25

56. To Parishioners Living Among Schismatics

(From the Life of the Martyrs Markianos and Martyrios)

It is known that schismatics entice Orthodox Christians into schism not only through blasphemies against the Church and threats of eternal torments. No, very often their wealthy members also entice poor Orthodox Christians into schism through their wealth. A wealthy schismatic sees a poor man and says, “Come over to our faith, and you will become rich.” Or he entices him in another way. He singles out a poor Orthodox Christian and begins, by every means at his disposal, to oppress him, persecute him, take away what little he has left, and drive him to the utmost extremity. But what do you think, Orthodox Christians? In either case, should you enter into schism or not? God forbid! Know that it is better to die than to change your faith, and a hundred times better to endure every kind of deprivation than to abandon it. The saints will convince you that we speak the truth. Consider how they acted when they were enticed into schism either by promises of wealth or through deprivation.

The Relics of the Holy New Martyr Chryse: Their Discovery in 2009, Scientific Examination, and Translation in October 2026

Introduction

In October 2026, the relics identified by the Holy Metropolis of Edessa, Pella, and Almopia as those of Saint Chryse, the New Martyr of Almopia, were received at the church dedicated to her in the village of Chryse, in the regional unit of Pella, northern Greece. The event followed a process that had begun seventeen years earlier, when human remains were discovered near the ruins of an old church within the Byzantine castle area of the village.

According to the Metropolis, the remains underwent medical and forensic examinations, including examinations by the Forensic Medicine Service of Thessaloniki and two specialized laboratories in Germany. The findings were reported as consistent with the remains belonging to a young woman approximately seventeen years old who died in 1795, the traditional date of Saint Chryse’s martyrdom. The ecclesiastical account also draws attention to signs of severe injury, particularly around the ribs and skull, which it associates with the tortures described in the Saint’s Life.

The discovery and translation of the relics have drawn considerable interest among the faithful in Greece and abroad. They also renewed attention to the life of the young Orthodox Christian woman whose steadfastness in the faith has been preserved in the Orthodox Church’s hagiographical tradition.

Metropolitan Seraphim of Piraeus Recounts an Life Changing Incident With Saint Porphyrios of Kavsokalyva

On Monday, October 19, 2026, His Eminence Metropolitan Seraphim of Piraeus celebrated the Blessing of the Waters for the opening of the Chapel of Saint Porphyrios at the “Saint Porphyrios” Meeting Hall–Youth Center of the Metropolitan Sacred Church of Saints Constantine and Helen of Piraeus. The center is located in the heart of Piraeus, at the intersection of Tsamadou and Zosimadon Streets, at No. 52 (6th floor), and houses numerous activities.

In the brief greeting he addressed to those present, His Eminence spoke, among other things, from his personal experiences about the person of Venerable Porphyrios of Kavsokalyva, as well as the significance of the Church’s spiritual offering in the modern age.

“We came into the world in order to acquire this ethos and become partakers of the divine nature, and, through the gifts of being created ‘in the image,’ to attain ‘the likeness’ by freely cooperating with God,” His Eminence emphasized at the outset, underscoring that the purpose of the Christian life is for the human being, as a created being, to acquire the ethos of God.

Homily Two on the Day of the Feast of the Icon of the Mother of God "Joy of All Who Sorrow" (Archimandrite Kirill Pavlov)

Homily Two on the Day of the Feast of the Icon of the Mother of God "Joy of All Who Sorrow" 

On the Heavenly Help of the Mother of God

By Archimandrite Kirill Pavlov

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

Dear brothers and sisters, today the Church commemorates the icon of the Mother of God called “Joy of All Who Sorrow.” Orthodox Russian people have a firm and deep faith in the heavenly intercession of the Mother of God, and they often turn to Her in their needs, sorrows, and afflictions with warm and fervent prayer. And the Mother of God does not leave this faith unrewarded, but grants speedy help to everyone who asks according to the fervor of his prayer. Therefore, our people love to call the Mother of God by special names: She Who Is Quick to Hear, Searcher for the Lost, Consolation in Sorrows and Afflictions, Deliverance from Misfortunes for Those Who Suffer, Joy of All Who Sorrow…

Homilies from the Menaion for Every Day of the Year: October 24

The Month of October

Day 24

55. How We Should Conduct Ourselves When We Suddenly Lose Our Possessions

(From the Life of Venerable Arethas of the Kiev Caves)

It happens, brethren, that some of us, by God’s permission, are deprived, sometimes suddenly, of all our possessions. Some, for example, are robbed by thieves; others lose everything in a fire; others frequently suffer unforeseen losses in trade; for others, the sea swallows up their possessions; etc. Indeed, one could never enumerate all those who, because of one misfortune or another, lose everything and go from being rich to being poor. What, then, remains for such people to do, brethren? How can they console themselves? How can they take courage? What should they say? How can they strengthen themselves in patience? To whom should they turn for help? Since the solution to these questions will not be without benefit for the people mentioned above, who have suddenly become impoverished, and perhaps equally for all of us, since we too are not protected from misfortune, we therefore present the following example for everyone’s consideration as a solution to these questions.

Saint James the Brother of God in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church (2 of 2)

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

1. Saint James, the Brother of God, became the first bishop of Jerusalem. He was also the first to write the Divine Liturgy, as he had learned it from the Lord Himself. Saint Basil the Great subsequently shortened this liturgy, and after him the divine Chrysostom did likewise, because of human weakness. Since James shepherded the Church of Jerusalem and, through his teaching, brought many of the Jews and Gentiles to believe in the Lord, he provoked the anger of the Jews. They therefore seized him and threw him from the pinnacle of the Temple, thereby killing him. 

The following account comes from Tradition concerning why he is called the Brother of God. When Joseph, who was betrothed to the Virgin, was distributing among the children of his first wife the land he possessed, he wished to give a portion also to the Son and God born of the Holy Virgin. The others who were regarded as His brothers refused to accept Him, but James took Him as a co-heir to his own portion. For this reason, he was called not only the Brother of God, but also the Just.

Homilies from the Menaion for Every Day of the Year: October 23

The Month of October

Day 23

54. We Must Pray for Our Enemies, Too

(From the Life of the Apostle James, the Brother of the Lord according to the Flesh)

What duties do we have toward our enemies? First, we must love them, as the Lord said: “Love your enemies” (Matthew 5:44). Second, we must do good to them, as the Apostle says: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him a drink” (Romans 12:20). Third, we must not take revenge on our enemies, as the word of God teaches: “Do not avenge yourselves, beloved, but give place to the wrath of God” (Romans 12:19). And fourth and finally, we must pray for our enemies. But how do we know that this last duty is required of us? How is it revealed that we must pray even for our enemies?

Holy Equal the the Apostles and Wonderworker Abercius in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

1. Saint Abercius became bishop of Hierapolis in Phrygia during the reign of Marcus Antoninus, and he performed many miracles and healings. For example, when wine, oil, and yet another substance were placed together in a vessel, through his prayer he caused this mixture to remain unmixed, that is, each substance to remain what it was. On another occasion, he commanded a demon to transport an enormous stone from Rome to Phrygia. He placed this stone as a pillar over his tomb. Again, he prayed, and hot waters emerged from the depths of the earth. Having lived the remainder of his life in holiness and righteousness, he departed to the Lord.

Kazan Icon of the Mother of God Resource Page

The original Kazan Icon of the Mother of God (1579), photographed in the late nineteenth century; shown beneath its jeweled covering. It was stolen in 1904, and remains missing to this day.

Synaxis of the Kaplunovka Icon of the 

Kazan Mother of God

 

Commemorated on September 11

Synaxis of the Kaplunovka Icon of the Kazan Mother of God

 

 

Commemoration of the Miraculous Deliverance 
of Moscow and Russia from the Poles in 1612

and the Celebration of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God 

Commemorated on October 22

 

Commemoration of the Miraculous Deliverance of Moscow and Russia from the Poles in 1612

 

Homilies from the Menaion for Every Day of the Year: October 22 

 

October: Day 22: Teaching 1: Celebration in Honor of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God 

 

October: Day 22: Teaching 2: Celebration in Honor of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God 

 

October: Day 22: Teaching 3: Celebration in Honor of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God 

 

Homily One for the Feast of the Kazan Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos (St. Innocent of Kherson) 

 

Homily One on the Feast of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God (St. John of Kronstadt) 

 

Homily Two on the Feast of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God (St. John of Kronstadt) 

 

Homily One for the Feast of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God (Archimandrite Kirill Pavlov) 

 

 

The Appearance of the Icon of the Mother of God 

in the City of Kazan

 

Commemorated on July 8 

 

The Appearance of the Icon of the Mother of God in the City of Kazan (1579)

 

Homily One on the Feast of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God (St. Luke of Simferopol)

 

Homily Two on the Feast of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God (St. Luke of Simferopol)

 

Homily Three on the Feast of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God (St. Luke of Simferopol)

 

Miraculous Kazan Icon Taken by Nazi to Germany in World War 2 is Returned to Russia 

 

 

Synaxis of the Kazan-Yaroslavl Icon 

of the Mother of God

 

Commemorated on July 8  

Synaxis of the Kazan-Yaroslavl Icon of the Mother of God 

 

 

Homily Two on the Feast of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God (St. John of Kronstadt)

 

Homily Two on the Feast of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God 

By St. John of Kronstadt

"O fervent Protectress, Mother of the Lord Most High! You pray to Your Son, Christ our God, for all, and You bring salvation to all who flee to Your mighty protection." (Troparion of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God)

Hear, brothers and sisters, what the Holy Church sings concerning our Most Holy Lady, the Queen and Mother of God. She sings: “O fervent Protectress, You pray to Your Son, Christ our God, for all, and You bring salvation to all who flee to Your mighty protection.” These words of the Holy Church concerning the Most Holy Mother of God are the purest truth. They describe what continually takes place, for the Most Holy Theotokos, in Her maternal love for us, intercedes for us before the throne of God day and night. “Day and night You pray for us,” the Holy Church says to Her in the midnight service, and “the scepters of kingdoms are established through Your prayers.”

Homily One for the Feast of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God (Archimandrite Kirill Pavlov)

Homily One for the Feast of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God

By Archimandrite Kirill Pavlov 

 

(Delivered on October 22, 1960)

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

Beloved brothers and sisters, today we solemnly commemorate in prayer and glorify the manifestation of the Mother of God's mercy toward Orthodox Russia, which was expressed in the miraculous deliverance of our beloved fatherland from the invasion of foreign forces in 1612.

Our ancestors, the Russian people, loved the Mother of God and possessed a special, profound faith in Her heavenly intercession for the Christian race. In their sorrows and calamities, they always turned to Her with fervent prayer. Although entire countries regarded the Most Holy Virgin as their Protectress and venerated Her, in our fatherland the name of the Mother of God was surrounded by a special veneration—immeasurably greater than anywhere else. The Mother of God poured forth Her grace and mercy upon no other land as abundantly as She did upon the Russian land. In practically every Russian city there is a source of the Mother of God's grace: Her wonderworking icons, through which She has willed to give people a heavenly pledge of Her love and to serve as a Consolation to suffering humanity. Our people loved to call the Mother of God by special names befitting Her heavenly protection and mercy, and the Mother of God did not allow their faith to be in vain, but granted swift help to everyone who asked, as well as to our fatherland as a whole.

Homily One for the Feast of the Kazan Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos (St. Innocent of Kherson)

Homily One for the Feast of the Kazan Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos 

By St. Innocent of Kherson

Three weeks ago, we celebrated the feast of the Protection of the Most Holy Theotokos. The event commemorated by that feast is joyful in itself, but in some respects it may seem somewhat remote to us Russians, since it took place in Greece a full thousand years before our own day. As we celebrated the feast of the Protection of the Invincible Commander over Byzantium, it was quite natural to wonder: Is the Most Holy Virgin as merciful toward us as She was toward the Byzantines, who shared our faith? Can we point to any event in the history of our fatherland comparable to the Protection of Constantinople by the Most Holy Theotokos? Today, brethren, provides the answer—and the most joyful answer it is. For today we celebrate an event that most clearly demonstrates that the protection of the Mother of God extends over our fatherland as well. To the glory of the Most Holy Virgin, and to increase our spiritual joy in this, allow me, brethren, to recount this event to you, at least in its principal details.

October: Day 22: Teaching 3: Celebration in Honor of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God

October: Day 22: Teaching 3:
Celebration in Honor of the Kazan Icon of the Mother of God
 
(What Event Was the Feast Established to Commemorate?)

By Archpriest Grigory Dyachenko

I. The present feast in honor of the wonderworking Kazan Icon of the Mother of God was established in memory of the deliverance of the Russian state in 1612, through the intercession of the Queen of Heaven, from the power and dominion of the Poles.

Taking advantage of the fact that the royal dynasty had all but died out and that complete anarchy had ensued, with all its terrible consequences, the Poles conceived the plan of seizing the Russian kingdom and came very close to succeeding. Moscow, along with nearly half the kingdom, was already in their hands. Fortunately for the Russian people, the cities of Nizhny Novgorod, Kazan, and others were still free from the hardships and disorders of that time. Guided by Minin and Pozharsky, whose names are forever remembered in history, they did not delay in coming to the aid of their perishing fatherland.

Homilies from the Menaion for Every Day of the Year: October 22

 

The Month of October

Day 22

53. On the Mercies of the Queen of Heaven Toward Our Fatherland

(The Kazan Icon of the Mother of God)

Today, brethren, we intend to set before you the truth that the mercies of the Queen of Heaven toward our fatherland are innumerable.

Behold, today we recall how, in 1612, under Prince Pozharsky, a small handful of exhausted soldiers, encouraged by the sole hope of the intercession of the Mother of God, was inspired with steadfast courage, advanced to destroy the enemy, and defeated them. Thus, the Orthodox faith of our Church remained intact, the succession to the throne remained secure, and the people's possessions were wrested from the greedy hands of the Poles and Russian traitors. Moreover, the former lost all hope of ruling, while the latter lost the ability to wreak havoc in Russia.

And all this took place after the true sons of Russia had entrusted themselves and their homeland entirely to the protection of the Sovereign Lady. Thus, today we recall Her benefaction, especially memorable because She bestowed it upon us at that disastrous time when our fatherland seemed to stand quite literally on the brink of utter destruction.

Venerable Hilarion the Great in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

 

1. Venerable Hilarion lived during the reign of Constantine the Great. He was born and raised in the city of Gaza by pagan parents. Out of his great love for learning, he went to Alexandria, where he received an education and also embraced the Christian faith. He became a zealous follower of Anthony the Great, whom he followed and with whom he lived for a considerable time. At some point, he returned to his homeland, and when his parents died, he distributed all the property they had left him among the poor. He then withdrew into the desert and undertook the greatest ascetic struggles, as a result of which the Lord endowed him with the gift of working miracles, through which he healed many people suffering from illnesses of the body and the soul. Later, he went out into the world, and after passing through many cities, places, and countries, he completed his life at the age of eighty.

October: Day 21: Teaching 3: The Day of the Accession to the Throne of His Majesty Emperor Nicholas Alexandrovich

October: Day 21: Teaching 3:
The Day of the Accession to the Throne of His Majesty Emperor Nicholas Alexandrovich
 
(On Children’s Reverence for Their Parents and Their Honor for the Imperial Authority)

By Archpriest Grigory Dyachenko

I. On this most solemn and glorious day, the accession to the ancestral throne of our Most Pious Sovereign, Emperor Nicholas Alexandrovich, the true Father of the Fatherland, whom all his loyal subjects, as obedient and loving children, ought to honor and to whom they ought in all things to render submission, as required by the word of God, the Holy Church, conscience, sound reason, each person’s own welfare, and the good of the state, it will be fitting, my brethren, to speak together about children’s reverence for their parents.

If children learn to honor their parents, they will become not only true citizens of the earthly kingdom but also worthy citizens of the heavenly kingdom.

Homilies from the Menaion for Every Day of the Year: October 21

The Month of October

Day 21

52. Those Who Are Generous See Their Earthly Goods Increase, While the Miserly See Theirs Diminish

(From the Life of Venerable Hilarion the Great)

In his Second Epistle to the Corinthians, chapter 9, verse 6, the Apostle Paul writes: “He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.” How are we to understand these words? There is more than one way to interpret them. We may understand them to mean that whoever gives little to the poor will receive a small reward from God, while whoever gives much will receive a greater reward. But we may also understand them to mean that whoever sows sparingly, that is, gives little or nothing at all to the poor, will himself suffer want and lose even what he already possesses. Whoever gives bountifully, that is, with love and generosity, will also reap bountifully, so that he himself will have an abundance of everything. Whether we are right in saying this, let the events themselves show.

Miracles of Saint Artemios the Great Martyr (15 - 19)

In the seventh century an Anonymous author compiled a number of miracles of Saint Artemios, whose healing activities were predominantly centered in the Church of Saint John the Forerunner in Constantinople and who "specialized" in healing hernias and diseases affecting the genitals of mostly male patients. Below are five examples of the forty-five listed:

Miracle 15: Narses’ blasphemy

There was a certain man in voluntary service who was attending one of the men of prominence and who was devoted to the all-night vigil of the Forerunner every Saturday. Another young man named Narses, who was also in the same official’s service, with allusion to the saint frequently chided the one devoted to the all-night vigil, mocking both the singing of hymns and those involved in it. Not only that, but he even uttered blasphemous words, saying ironically: “Yes, and perhaps does St. Artemios heal hernia patients?”

Saint Gerasimos of Kefallonia in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

The ecclesiastical Hymnographer, in his effort to extol the holiness of Saint Gerasimos, makes a bold and potentially contentious judgment: Saint Gerasimos is the greatest of all the Church’s more recent saints! In the Hymnographer’s own words: “No other newly manifested saint, Gerasimos, has ever proved your equal” (Ode 1). Why? For what reason? Is it because of the multitude of his miracles, which are indeed exceedingly numerous, and to which a large part of the hymns in his liturgical service refers? Is it because of his wise and profound theology? Is it because of some extraordinary gift not found in other saints, even those of more recent times? Certainly not. The Hymnographer knows what he is saying when he speaks hyperbolically, because he understands the spiritual life and the spiritual path of the Church: a saint is great and stands first on the ladder of holiness when he is foremost in humbling himself, that is, when he strives to maintain an awareness and a sense of his own lowliness and sinfulness. The truly great person is the one who stands first in humility.

Homilies from the Menaion for Every Day of the Year: October 20

The Month of October

Day 20

51. On Patience

(From the Life of Holy Great Martyr Artemios)

The Lord teaches us to endure with patience the sorrows and sufferings we encounter in life. “By your endurance you will save your souls,” He says (Luke 21:19). “But he who endures to the end will be saved” (Matthew 10:22). In a word, the Lord teaches us patience. But the question is: how are we to learn it? From where are we to draw it? Where can we find it amid our sorrows? Brothers and sisters, the answer to these questions is simple: when you compare your sorrows and sufferings with those of the Savior, and when you also turn to that same Savior, imploring Him to grant you patience, then patience will undoubtedly be given to you, and you will endure your sorrows and sufferings with a cheerful heart.

A Shared Feast: The Lasting Bond Between Saints John of Rila and John of Kronstadt

Today, on October 19, Orthodox Christians celebrate a profound spiritual intersection across centuries and borders. This date marks the shared feast day of two of Eastern Christendom's greatest luminaries: Saint John of Rila, the 10th-century desert dweller and patron saint of Bulgaria, and Saint John of Kronstadt, the charismatic 19th-century archpriest who sparked a massive eucharistic and charitable revival in imperial Russia. 

The connection between the two men began in a moment of fragile urgency. On this very day in 1829, a sickly infant was born to a poor village clerk in Russia’s remote Arkhangelsk region. Fearing the newborn would not survive the night, his parents rushed him to an immediate baptism. Following the tradition of the Church, they named him after the saint commemorated on that exact date: Saint John of Rila. The frail child not only survived but grew up to become a towering beacon of holiness, carrying his heavenly patron’s name and intercession with him for the next eighty years.

Homily for the Day of the Glorious Commemoration of Our Venerable Father John of Rila (St. John of Kronstadt)

 

The following homily was delivered on October 19th 1905, immediately after Tsar Nicholas II was forced to sign the October Manifesto amidst massive national strikes and riots. It is a fiery, prophetic warning. He compares the complete obedience and humility of Saint John of Rila, who was Saint John of Kronstadt's patron saint, to the total rebellion of his contemporaries. He sharply notes that children had ceased obeying parents, students rejected teachers, and society had abandoned faith, predicting a demonic collapse if the nation did not repent.

Homily for the Day of the Glorious Commemoration of Our Venerable Father John of Rila 

The Fruits of Faith and Unbelief

By St. John of Kronstadt

“The foundation of repentance, the model of compunction, the pattern of consolation, and the means of spiritual perfection was your life, equal to that of the Angels, O Venerable Father. Abiding in prayers and fastings, and in tears, O Father John, pray to Christ God for our souls.” (Troparion of the Venerable Father)

Today the Eastern Orthodox Church celebrates the glorious commemoration of our Venerable Father John of Rila, an earthly angel and a heavenly man. From his early youth, he began to labor with his mind and heart and with all the strength of his will to accomplish the Christian’s principal task in life: to put off the old man with his destructive deeds and “to put on the new man, created according to the image of God, in holiness and righteousness” (Ephesians 4:24). Through his firm and unwavering resolve, and by the grace of God, which is always ready to come to the aid of those who earnestly strive, he accomplished this task triumphantly and gloriously, attaining the glorious crown of incorruptible life.

Holy Prophet Joel in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

 

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

1. The name of the Prophet Joel is interpreted to mean "the love of the Lord," "beginning," or "firstfruits of God." The Prophet belonged to the tribe of Reuben and prophesied about a famine that would occur, the cessation of sacrificial offerings, and the Passion of the righteous Prophet, Jesus Christ. Through this Passion, the whole earth is renewed and saved. After completing his prophetic ministry, the prophet died and was buried in his homeland.

2. The Prophet Joel is known for his “visions” concerning the Spirit of God, who would be poured out upon humanity after the coming of the Messiah. Above all, he foretold the Day of Pentecost, as the Lord’s own Apostles emphasize, especially the Apostle Peter: “What you see, O men of Judea [that is, the descent of the Holy Spirit] is what God spoke through the Prophet Joel: This will take place in the last days, says God: I will pour out My Spirit abundantly upon all men; thus, your sons and daughters will proclaim the truth, your young men will see visions, and your old men will dream divine dreams” (Acts 2:16–17).

Holy Martyr Varus in the Hymnography of the Orthodox Church

By Fr. George Dorbarakis

1. Saint Varus lived during the reign of Maximian and was a soldier in Egypt. He came from a distinguished, illustrious, and pious family. When seven saints were imprisoned for a long time because of their faith in Christ, Saint Varus cared for them daily. It happened that one of the seven fell asleep in the Lord, and Saint Varus took his place, provoking the ruler’s opposition. The ruler brought them all before him and ordered that Varus be the first to be beaten with clubs and that his sides be scraped for a prolonged period. After the tortures had continued for five hours, he surrendered his soul to the Lord.

2. Saint Varus brings to mind other martyrs who were led to martyrdom by the example of those who had gone before them. In other words, they admired the struggles of earlier martyrs and were thus moved to enter the contest of martyrdom of their own free will. The hymns of our Church, of course, never cease to emphasize the Saint’s great love for God, a love reaching the point of the sweetest longing. This love led him to deny himself and endure the tortures with great courage and strength:

“Seized by divine love, O all-blessed one, and by the sweetest longing, you denied yourself and steadfastly endured every torment of the flesh, contending with resolute courage.”

Homilies from the Menaion for Every Day of the Year: October 19

 

The Month of October

Day 19

50. Instruction to Mothers Who Have Lost Their Children: Third Discourse

(From the account of Holy Martyr Varus, Blessed Cleopatra, and her son John)

To you, mothers whom the Lord has ordained to lose one or another of your children, we address these words. What does it mean that whenever we have seen you at the graves of your children, we have always encountered a heart-rending sight, seeing on your faces inconsolable grief or boundless despair? What makes you give yourselves over to such sorrow? Intense love? But love must be guided by sound judgment. A lack of faith in God? But this is very dangerous.

Yes, mothers, if you are Christians, you should not behave like those who have no hope. If you believe that God exists, that the soul is immortal, and that there is a future life, why then behave as though there were no future life, as though nothing had existed, nothing existed now, and nothing would ever exist, and as though your children had vanished forever? This is unworthy of Christians. God exists; therefore, as the common Father of all, He has taken your children to Himself and will surely preserve and raise them better than you could. There is a future life; therefore, you will see your children again. There is recompense after death; therefore, there is no need to worry about your children’s fate in the life after death if you raised them in the Orthodox faith and in piety, or you can always obtain mercy for them at God’s judgment through fervent prayer. Therefore, grieve, but not without reason. Believe, hope, pray, and the Lord will comfort you.

Commemorating the Apostle Luke When His Feast Falls on a Sunday

By Fr. George Dorbarakis 

 

Our Church today sets aside the appointed sequence of readings, both the Gospel and the Apostolic reading, in order to turn its attention to Saint Luke the Evangelist, the Apostle and physician, a companion especially of the Apostle Paul, and, according to Tradition, the painter of the first icons of the Most Holy Theotokos. It does so by presenting texts associated with him. His personality and his contribution to the evangelization of mankind, both through preaching and through writing, are so great and significant that the Church does not wish to pass him by with only a few hymns. Saint Luke was not only an Apostle but also the author of the Gospel bearing his name in the New Testament, as well as the Acts of the Apostles. The Apostle Paul's reference to Luke as his beloved helper in the Apostolic reading emphatically confirms this.