Born to pious parents after long years of childless marriage, his parents heard in a vision a voice saying “be of good cheer! God will grant you a son, who will bring joy to the church.” Thus, the child was named Euthymius (good cheer). And because of his ascetic life and firm confession of the Orthodox Faith, he’s called ‘the Great’. Devoted to church since a young age, St. Euthymius was eventually entrusted with the
Saint Macarius the Great of Egypt was born around 331 in the village of Ptinapor in Egypt. At the wish of his parents he entered into marriage, but was soon widowed. After he buried his wife, Macarius told himself, “Take heed, Macarius, and have care for your soul. It is fitting that you forsake worldly life.” The Lord rewarded the saint with a long life, but from that time the memory of death was constantly
Saint Athanasius was born in Alexandria between 293 and 298 AD into a wealthy, Greek family that was able to provide him with a rigorous secular education as he grew. Not only did Saint Athanasius have a very knowledgeable command of the Greek language but he was also fluent in the Coptic language spoken in Alexandria. The monk and historian Tyrannius Rufinus wrote a famous story of Saint Athanasius’s childhood. One day the then Bishop
Anthony was born in central Egypt around 215, the son of Christian peasant farmers. After their death, around 269, he paid attention when the Gospel was read in church and applied to himself literally the words, ‘Go, sell all that you have and give to the poor.’ He disposed all his property and undertook a life of solitude and discipline under the guidance of another recluse near his village. Some years later, having put his
By Fr. Stephen Freeman, February 5, 2017 Many who read the New Testament see it as advocating for and supporting the oppressive structures of its time. They argue that it is patriarchal and pro-slavery. St. Paul’s instructions for slaves to obey their masters is thus seen as an endorsement of slavery as an institution. His admonition, though, belongs to a category of teachings known as the haustafeln (household rules). An example is found in Colossians: Wives, submit
By Fr. Stephen Freeman, January 27, 2017 The modern project holds that the world can be improved and made better. It also holds that human beings can be improved and made better. And finally, it holds that the means of that improvement and betterment are political. Modernity began only partly as a philosophical assertion. It found its voice first, and foremost, in the political experiments of the 18th century. During the 19th and 20th centuries, the rapid
Sermon preached by Fr. Antony Hughes on Sunday, December 12, 2021 We know that Jesus used parables in his teaching. It is important to remember what a parable is. Parables are extended metaphors that use concrete examples to form a brief, coherent story. Parables are not history and their meaning is not immediately accessible. They are meant to draw us in and provoke us to “subvert conventional ways of seeing and living and to invite hearers
Published by Pemptousia Partnership on February 1, 2022 Protopresbyter Georgios Dorbarakis ‘Wretched and pitiful are those who have no patience, because it is against them that the ‘Woe’ in Holy Scripture is directed. It says woe to those who have lost patience. So really, woe betide those who have no patience, because such people are tossed hither and thither like a leaf in the wind. They can’t abide being challenged, and they’re faint-hearted in sorrows. They’re quick to
Sermon preached by Fr. Antony Hughes on Sunday, January 23, 2022 I love the image we see of God at the beginning of the Genesis story of the creation. Let’s read Genesis 1:2. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. (Genesis 1:2) An interesting point that demonstrates the metaphorical nature of the story is that God is said
By Fr. Stephen Freeman, January 20, 2017 It is very interesting that we use the word “relationship” to describe everything from God to our lifestyle. More interesting still, is that, used in this manner, the word dates back to only around the mid-20th century. There are older examples, but the psycho-social meaning that it carries today does not appear until around 1940. This also means that no one, prior to that time, spoke about having a
© 2020 Saint Sophia Greek Orthodox Cathedral
