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Daily Meditations

Bright Friday: Theotokos of the “Life-Giving Spring”

04/17/2026

ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ ΑΝΕΣΤΗ! CHRIST IS RISEN! The feast of the Life-giving Spring has its origins in the fifth century. It commemorates the consecration of the Church built next to it outside of Constantinople. The very large and beautiful church named in honor of the Theotokos of the Life-giving Spring was built by the Emperor Leo the Great (457-474) in Valouki, west of Constantinople (now Balıklı, Istanbul). Emperor Leo (January 20), before his ascension to the throne, had encountered a blind

Bright Thursday. On Bright Week

04/16/2026

ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ ΑΝΕΣΤΗ! CHRIST IS RISEN! ~By Archimandrite John Krestiankin, +2006 Now all things are filled with light; heaven and earth, and the nethermost parts of the earth… Christ is Risen! Children of God! From a fullness of unearthly joy, I greet you with words full of Divine power: “Christ is Risen!” The holy fire of this salvific tiding has burst anew with bright flames over the Lord’s Tomb, and has spread throughout the world. The

Bright Wednesday. May ‘The Phos’ Be with You!

04/15/2026

ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ ΑΝΕΣΤΗ! CHRIST IS RISEN! ~ By Andrew Estocin Popular culture is going crazy for Star Wars! Count me among the millions…. How does an Orthodox Christian respond to Star Wars? That is an easy answer. One of the most progressive beliefs that the Orthodox Church holds is that we can learn from the wisdom of the world even when it is not specifically Orthodox. St. Basil the Great reminds us that we can engage

Bright Tuesday. New Martyrs Raphael, Nicholas, and Irene of Lesbos

04/14/2026

ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ ΑΝΕΣΤΗ! CHRIST IS RISEN! Newly-Appeared Martyrs of Lesbos, Saints Raphael, Nicholas and Irene were martyred by the Turks on Bright Tuesday (April 9, 1463) ten years after the Fall of Constantinople. For nearly 500 years, they were forgotten by the people of Lesbos, but “the righteous Judge… opened the things that were hid” (2 Macc. 12:41). For centuries the people of Lesbos would go on Bright Tuesday to the ruins of a monastery near

Bright Monday. I am the Resurrection and the Life

04/13/2026

ΧΡΙΣΤΟΣ ΑΝΕΣΤΗ! CHRIST IS RISEN! ~ By Saint Justin Popovich If there’s one truth that sums up all the Gospel truths, it’s Christ’s resurrection. Moreover, if there’s one reality that summarizes all the realities in the New Testament, it’s Christ’s resurrection. All his miracles, all his truths, all his words, all the events of the New Testament can be explained only in terms of Christ’s resurrection. Until his resurrection, the Lord taught about eternal life,

All Things New in the Resurrection

04/12/2026

Published 4/11/04 ~Father Stanley S. Harakas The Resurrection of Christ is the one of the most important and central aspects of our Orthodox Christian faith. In three of the Gospels, an event is described in which Jesus Himself was challenged by the leading Sadducees, who rejected belief in the resurrection. Jesus countered their denials with an affirmation of resurrection (Mark 12:18-27); Matthew 22:23-33; Luke 20:27-40), saying “You are quite wrong!” (Mark 12:27). In John 5:29

The Great and Holy Saturday

04/11/2026

Introduction On Great and Holy Saturday, the Orthodox Church commemorates the burial of Christ and His descent into Hades. It is the day between the Crucifixion of our Lord and His Glorious Resurrection. The Matins of Holy Saturday is conducted on Friday evening, and while many elements of the service represent mourning at the death and burial of Christ, the service itself is one of watchful expectation. Commemoration of Holy Saturday On Great and Holy

The Great and Holy Friday

04/10/2026

Introduction On Great and Holy Friday, the Orthodox Church commemorates the death of Christ on the Cross. This is the culmination of the observance of His Passion by which our Lord suffered and died for our sins. This commemoration begins on Thursday evening with the Matins of Holy Friday and concludes with a Vespers on Friday afternoon that observes the unnailing of Christ from the Cross and the placement of His body in the tomb.

The Great and Holy Thursday

04/09/2026

Introduction On Thursday of Holy Week four events are commemorated: the washing of the disciples’ feet, the institution of the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist at the Last Supper, the agony in the garden of Gethsemane, and the betrayal of Christ by Judas. Commemorations of Holy Thursday The Institution of the Eucharist At the Mystical Supper in the Upper Room Jesus gave a radically new meaning to the food and drink of the sacred meal.

The Great and Holy Wednesday

04/08/2026

On Holy Wednesday [Matins celebrated by anticipation on Holy Tuesday evening] the Church invites the faithful to focus their attention on two figures: the sinful woman who anointed the head of Jesus shortly before the passion (Matthew 26:6-13), and Judas, the disciple who betrayed the Lord. The former acknowledged Jesus as Lord, while the latter severed himself from the Master. The one was set free, while the other became a slave. The one inherited the

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