Orthodox Christianity

Saturday, May 31/June 13, 2026. 2nd Week after Pentecost. Fast of the Holy Apostles.

Fish, wine and oil allowed.

Apostle Hermes of the Seventy (1st c.). Martyr Hermias, at Comana (2nd c.).

Martyr Philosophus, at Alexandria (3rd c.). First translation of the relics of Hieromartyr Philip, metropolitan of Moscow and all Russia, to Solovki (1591).

New Hieromartyr Archpriest Philosophus Ornatsky, with his sons Martyrs Nicholas and Boris, in St. Petersburg (1918). New Hieromartyrs Hierotheus (Afonin), bishop of Nikolsk (1928), and Hieroschemamonk Seraphim (Nikolsky) (1923).

Martyr Marus the Magician, converted on witnessing the martyrdom of St. Hermias (160). St. Eustathius, patriarch of Constantinople (1025). St. Philotheus, metropolitan of Tobolsk (1727). Finding of the relics of New Martyr Nicholas the Deacon, of Mytilene (1960).

Repose of Archimandrite Macarius of Peshnosha Monastery (1811).

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Ukrainian Church Crisis

Minsk A stroll through the Belorussian capital Minsk A stroll through the Belorussian capital Dmitry Kiryukhin Walking around Minsk, I visited churches and cathedrals with unusual architecture.

A Short Guide to Confession. Part 4

A Short Guide to Confession. Part 4 Rev. Dr. Oliver Subotic A Short Guide to Confession. Part 4 Proper and Improper Confession Rev. Dr. Oliver Subotic It makes no difference whether a man carries in his bag a single stone weighing one hundred kilograms, or a thousand pebbles weighing one hundred grams each: on his back he will be carrying the same weight.

“There Are Many Cases of Miraculous Help from Our Heavenly Patron”

“There Are Many Cases of Miraculous Help from Our Heavenly Patron” From the life of the parish of St. Luke of Crimea in Ulyanovsk “There Are Many Cases of Miraculous Help from Our Heavenly Patron” From the life of the parish of St. Luke of Crimea in Ulyanovsk We always ask the saint to remain prayerfully in our church and help us comfort the sick.

Apostles fast

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Publications

A Short Guide to Confession. Part 3

Preparation for Confession

Rev. Dr. Oliver Subotic

Homilies and Spiritual Instruction

A Short Guide to Confession. Part 3

Preparation for Confession

Rev. Dr. Oliver Subotic

Here the analogy with medicine is almost complete, with the priest being only a servant of the True Physician of soul and body—the Lord Jesus Christ. It is therefore very important to find a priest who is spiritually experienced, so that he may adequately treat the wounds of our soul.

A Short Guide to Confession. Part 2

Repentance as the Need for Purification and a Change of Life

Rev. Dr. Oliver Subotic

Homilies and Spiritual Instruction

A Short Guide to Confession. Part 2

Repentance as the Need for Purification and a Change of Life

Rev. Dr. Oliver Subotic

Repentance is not merely a matter of feeling sorry for having committed a sin. True repentance is precisely what the original word signifies—a change of mind—meaning the acquisition of an entirely new way of thinking and acting.

The Apostles’ Fast. A Call to All for Sanctity

Priest Tarasiy Borozenets

Homilies and Spiritual Instruction

The Apostles’ Fast. A Call to All for Sanctity

Priest Tarasiy Borozenets

The saints’ victory does not consist in never having fallen, but in steadfastly pressing toward the goal set before them—the Kingdom of Heaven—and remaining faithful to God until the end.

Anger in Children: How to Help Your Child Not to Lose Himself

Ekaterina Silinskaya

Homilies and Spiritual Instruction

Anger in Children: How to Help Your Child Not to Lose Himself

Ekaterina Silinskaya

From an Orthodox point of view, it’s important to see that behind these external outbursts, there’s almost always internal disorder in the soul.

A Short Guide to Confession. Part 1

On the Need for Spiritual Health

Rev. Dr. Oliver Subotic

Homilies and Spiritual Instruction

A Short Guide to Confession. Part 1

On the Need for Spiritual Health

Rev. Dr. Oliver Subotic

The key issue is our encounter with God in eternity—those whose souls are healthy will experience that encounter as eternal light, while those whose souls are sick will experience it as eternal darkness.

An Expression Full of Suffering. The Venerable Martyr Tavrion (Tolokontsev)

Commemorated: May 25/June 7

Natalia Vashchina

Saints. Asceties of Piety. Church Holy Days

An Expression Full of Suffering. The Venerable Martyr Tavrion (Tolokontsev)

Commemorated: May 25/June 7

Natalia Vashchina

As always, the testimony given during the interrogation was twisted around and presented in an absolutely different light. It sounded as if it was not the Bolsheviks who had robbed the Valaam Monastery, but the monks, who “conducted anti-Soviet activities in an illegal apartment monastery and spread various provocative rumors.”

Be Holy

Fr. James Guirguis

Saints. Asceties of Piety. Church Holy Days

Be Holy

Fr. James Guirguis

The beauty of our faith is that God gives each one of us exactly what we need to grow and become saintly.

Sermon on the Sunday of All Saints

Hieromonk Nikon

Saints. Asceties of Piety. Church Holy Days

Sermon on the Sunday of All Saints

Hieromonk Nikon

Saints are people who lived and still live close to us, but unlike many of us, they are guided neither by the spirit of the modern world, nor by changing public opinion, nor by popular views or customs, but solely by the Spirit of Christ, the Spirit of the Gospel, and the Word of God.

Holy Blessed Mother Xenia, Pray to God for Us!

Saints. Asceties of Piety. Church Holy Days

Holy Blessed Mother Xenia, Pray to God for Us!

I believed in God in my own way, but I didn’t understand why I should be baptized. “Well, I’ll get baptized and have to follow all the rules; but why should I do that?” I thought then. Nevertheless, I often prayed in front of a small icon of Blessed Xenia of St. Petersburg—the only saint whose Life I knew and whose help I had clearly felt.

To the Hesitant

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Homilies and Spiritual Instruction

To the Hesitant

I went down into the water dead in my sins, putrid and rotten. I arose alive and resurrected, iniquity in remission, by the power of the Holy Cross of our Lord and God Jesus Christ.

“The Most Important Thing Is To Become a Saint.”

A talk with Priest Aleksandar Sekulic

Priest Aleksandar Sekulic

Homilies and Spiritual Instruction

“The Most Important Thing Is To Become a Saint.”

A talk with Priest Aleksandar Sekulic

Priest Aleksandar Sekulic

Priest Aleksandar Sekulic is a cleric of St. Alexander Nevsky Cathedral in Belgrade. He answers some questions and talks about the great Serbian archpastors he has seen in his life.

A Pocket God and Blind Shepherds

Metropolitan Luke (Kovalenko)

Homilies and Spiritual Instruction

A Pocket God and Blind Shepherds

Metropolitan Luke (Kovalenko)

Our measure is Christ. Truth is known through faith. Reason is a great gift from God, but it must be the servant of faith, and not its judge.

The Martian Chronicles As a Death Sentence to Godless Humanity

Priest Tarasiy Borozenets

Orthodoxy Around the World

The Martian Chronicles As a Death Sentence to Godless Humanity

Priest Tarasiy Borozenets

The modern “Westerner,” Bradbury’s main character, is convinced that changing planets will solve the problem of his suffering on Earth. Changing the scenery does not solve the problem of a corrupted heart.

The Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God with Saints Depicted in the Margins

Zhanna Kurbatova

Saints. Asceties of Piety. Church Holy Days

The Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God with Saints Depicted in the Margins

Zhanna Kurbatova

The intercession of the Most Pure Virgin and the saints is the central theme of the Vladimir Icon of the Mother of God with saints in the borders.

Archpriest Stefan Pruzhinsky (Prešov, Slovakia): “The practice of frequent Confession is very beneficial“

Archpriest Stefan Pruzhinsky

Orthodoxy Today

Archpriest Stefan Pruzhinsky (Prešov, Slovakia): “The practice of frequent Confession is very beneficial“

Archpriest Stefan Pruzhinsky

I don't think anything will help us now, except for leading a normal Christian life, believing, confessing, praying, and working well for the benefit of society.

The fate of Fairholme: living in The City

Fr. Lawrence Farley

Homilies and Spiritual Instruction

The fate of Fairholme: living in The City

Fr. Lawrence Farley

In Christ we are not simply isolated individuals, cogs in the secular machine relentlessly grinding out “progress”, but members one of another, valued and called to truly authentic human existence.

Faith As a Path: on the Maturation of the Soul and Faithfulness to Christ

Priest Maxim Yanyshevsky

Homilies and Spiritual Instruction

Faith As a Path: on the Maturation of the Soul and Faithfulness to Christ

Priest Maxim Yanyshevsky

Having inner integrity is also essential in ordinary life, when you are not afraid to stand out and express your opinions, trying to maintain peace and dialogue with others. This is an indicator of inner maturity and self-sufficiency.

To Be Members of the Church of Christ

Sermon on the feast of the Holy Trinity

Hieromonk Athanasius (Deryugin)

Saints. Asceties of Piety. Church Holy Days

To Be Members of the Church of Christ

Sermon on the feast of the Holy Trinity

Hieromonk Athanasius (Deryugin)

Through the Holy Eucharist, through Communion, we affirm our unity with Christ, we affirm that we, the Church, are the Body of Christ.

Pentecost. The Day of the Holy Trinity

Hieromonk Seraphim (Panich)

Saints. Asceties of Piety. Church Holy Days

Pentecost. The Day of the Holy Trinity

Hieromonk Seraphim (Panich)

If you want to understand what the love of God is, then you cannot do without the Trinity. And the mystery of the Holy Trinity is comprehended—only partially—in the experience of spiritual life with ascetic labors.

Come and Abide in Us

Fr. James Guirguis

Homilies and Spiritual Instruction

Come and Abide in Us

Fr. James Guirguis

St. Gregory speaks of welcoming the Holy Spirit of God into your hearts as you would welcome your beloved friend or an esteemed guest into your own home.

A Second Saint John of Kronstadt, Priest Jonah Atamansky of Odessa

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Saints. Asceties of Piety. Church Holy Days

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A Second Saint John of Kronstadt, Priest Jonah Atamansky of Odessa

Saint John of Kronstadt often said to those from the south: "Why have you bothered to come all this way to see me when you have a man of prayer in Father Jonah?"

Blessed Are They Which Are Persecuted For Righteousness’ Sake

Priest Tarasiy Borozenets

Homilies and Spiritual Instruction

Blessed Are They Which Are Persecuted For Righteousness’ Sake

Priest Tarasiy Borozenets

The world seems to have thrown the persecuted one overboard. But it is there, overboard, that he suddenly finds himself very close to the Lord, in His Kingdom.

A Talk on the Ascension of the Lord. Part 4

St. Cleopa (Ilie)

Saints. Asceties of Piety. Church Holy Days

A Talk on the Ascension of the Lord. Part 4

St. Cleopa (Ilie)

He who fears God is above all the sages of this age. Blessed and thrice blessed is he who prepares for the heavenly journey.

A Talk on the Ascension of the Lord. Part 3

St. Cleopa (Ilie)

Homilies and Spiritual Instruction

A Talk on the Ascension of the Lord. Part 3

St. Cleopa (Ilie)

The disciples did not know their Master, they did not know Christ—the Savior of the world Who performed so many miracles. Who revealed to them the mystery of God’s coming to earth and the incarnation of God the Word? The Holy Spirit.

Hecklers, or Measures of Our Christianity

Aleksei Tereschenko

Homilies and Spiritual Instruction

Hecklers, or Measures of Our Christianity

Aleksei Tereschenko

It’s easy to think ourselves humble when we’re standing in church surrounded by the fragrance of incense and our brothers and sisters in Christ smile at us. But what is the value of this humility if it falls to pieces when a single stranger yells at us somewhere outside?