March 24, 2026 St John of the Ladder and the Order of the Heart What the Fourth Sunday of Great Lent Reveals to Us On the fourth Sunday of Great Lent, the Orthodox Church commemorates Saint John of…
February 24, 2026 The Trap of Perfection. St. Nectarios on Pride Disguised as Repentance We often mistake repentance for self-punishment. St Nectarios of Aegina shows why despair over our sins can be a sign not of humility, but…
October 7, 2025 Saint Sergius of Radonezh: Architect of Russian Spirituality On 8 October (25 September), the Church commemorates the repose of Saint Sergius, Abbot of Radonezh, wonderworker of all Rus’. His veneration reaches back…
May 20, 2025 A Vessel of Grace: Elder Charalampbos of Mount Athos What is the most powerful way to teach others a life pleasing to God? By example. This is how the spirit of eldership has…
June 10, 2022 Why Do Monastics Receive New Names in Tonsure, and Who Gets to Choose Them? In the Orthodox Church, taking monastic tonsure means changing one’s name. For example, Saint Seraphim of Sarov bore the name Bartholomew before he became…
December 26, 2021 The History of Monastic Vows The basic principles of monastic life were formed in the early New Testament era, but monasticism as an institution did not appear until the…
October 29, 2021 The Beginnings of Monasticism As you know, the early Christians were in constant expectation of the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus Christ, which defined their spirit to…
April 26, 2021 Monastic Tonsure: Second Baptism, or the Marriage of the Soul to Christ Speaking of the holy sacraments, I want to say something about the sacrament of tonsure. Is monastic tonsure a sacrament? Of course it’s a…
February 24, 2021 The Future Elder Simeon of Kafsokalivia Instantly Quit Smoking and Drinking as He Stepped into a Kaliva on Mount Athos The elder Simeon of Kafsokalivia was from the city of Larissa. His worldly occupation was a gendarme. When he came to the Holy Mountain…
November 5, 2020 Communication Technologies — Some Thoughts for Monastics Mobile phones and gadgets should not be used at church to avoid bringing others into temptation I have come to the conclusion that mobile…
November 28, 2019 Benedictine Monastery on Mount Athos? Each Orthodox person has heard about the Holy Mount Athos and about its famous monasteries, which never cease to bring the fruits of holiness…
September 10, 2019 Career and Unrequited Love. Top 5 Dumbest Reasons to Go to Monastery The higher you climb, the worse the fall. Monasticism is not one of the Church Sacraments technically, but in essence it is: when one…
