February 23, 2017 122 0 Maslenitsa: The Cheesefare Week Maslenitsa, also known as Butter Week, Pancake week, or Cheesefare Week, the Russian religious and folk holiday. Perhaps the most cheerful holiday in…
February 19, 2017 71 0 Why Go to Church if I Have God in My Heart? Each one of us has some acquaintances, or even relatives, who regard our gathering in church with puzzlement. Profound lack of understanding is written…
February 13, 2017 2004 0 The Meaning of the Deaconate in the Orthodox Church The diaconate has been a little understood ministry, in fact, often a misunderstood ministry. Although it is one of three ordained orders, most lay…
February 8, 2017 417 1 How to Greet a Monk or Nun 1) In the Russian Church: Only tonsured nuns are addressed as “Mother”—the others are addressed as “Sister.” This is exactly the same as the…
January 28, 2017 1539 1 Why Orthodox Christians Stand During Divine Services In performing divine services will it matter like the saints, Whom the God-inspired prophets Isaiah, Micah Daniel and St. John the Theologian saw “standing in the…
January 19, 2017 14401 1 7 Miracles of Christ Involving Water The transformation of water into wine at the Wedding at Cana 1. And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee;…
January 3, 2017 2699 0 What Is the Meaning of Domes in Orthodox Architecture? Orthodox churches generally take one of several shapes that have a particular mystical significance. The most common shape is an oblong or rectangular shape,…
December 28, 2016 4260 0 The Liturgical Colors of Vestments in the Orthodox Church The Vestments The Orthodox clergy wear two kinds of robes, non-liturgical and liturgical. The non-liturgical robes are the ordinary daily clothing of the clergy,…
December 21, 2016 6020 5 The Orthodox Tradition of Long Hair and Beards Anyone looking at photographs and portraits of clergy in Greece, Russia, Rumania, and other Orthodox countries taken in the early twentieth century will notice…
November 30, 2016 289 1 When Are We to Fast: Midnight-to-Midnight, or Vespers-to-Vespers? I have been confused about the fasting regulations; I understand them with regard to what we can or cannot eat on certain days, but…