Holy Relics Archives - Saint Sophia

The Second Monday of Great Lent. The Sunday of Orthodoxy

03/10/2025

~ By Metropolitan Athanasios of Lemessos On the first Sunday of Lent [yesterday, Sunday], we celebrate[d] the Sunday of Orthodoxy, that is to say the feast of the restitution of the holy icons, as the Church once again, by the grace of God, vanquished the heresy of the iconoclasts and preserved with exactitude the faith and the tradition of the Holy Fathers of the Church, as it has been preserved throughout the ages. This faith

The Fifth Day of Christmas. 14,000 Infants (the Holy Innocents) slain by Herod at Bethlehem

12/29/2021

14,000 Holy Infants were killed by King Herod in Bethlehem. When the time came for the Incarnation of the Son of God and His Birth of the Most Holy Virgin Mary, Magi in the East beheld a new star in the heavens, foretelling the Nativity of the King of the Jews. They journeyed immediately to Jerusalem to worship the Child, and the star showed them the way. Having worshipped the divine Infant, they did not

Saint Thomas the Apostle

10/06/2021

Saint Thomas the Apostle is one of the twelve disciples of Jesus Christ. He came from a family of fishermen. He is especially honored by the Church on Sunday of St. Thomas, also known as Second Sunday or Antipascha. Thomas refused to believe that the resurrected Jesus had appeared to the ten other apostles because of his absence from the first appearance of the Risen Christ. Eight days later, in the presence of Jesus Christ

Venerable and God-bearing Father Anthony the Great

01/17/2020

Saint Anthony the Great is known as the Father of monasticism, and the long ascetical sermon in The Life of Saint Anthony by Saint Athanasius (Sections 16-34), could be called the first monastic Rule. He was born in Egypt in the village of Coma, near the desert of the Thebaid, in the year 251. His parents were pious Christians of illustrious lineage. Anthony was a serious child and was respectful and obedient to his parents.

The Myrrh-gushing Miracle of St. Demetrios in 1987: A Testimony

10/26/2018

It was October 26, 1987. The time was past 10:00 p.m. The city was celebrating the memory of the contest of its patron saint, St. Demetrios, and the freedom from the nearly five hundred years (1430-1912) occupation by the Ottomans. The Church of St. Demetrios with open doors received its nightly venerators, who were kneeling in front of the silver casket with the holy relics of the Myrrh-gusher. At that moment there must not have

The Third Wednesday of Pascha, Christos Anesti! Christ is Risen! Service of the Consecration of a Church (Part VII)

04/29/2015

ANOINTING OF THE ALTAR TABLE The Bishop sprinkles Rosewater on the Altar Table as he recites: THE BISHOP: Thou shalt sprinkle me with hyssop and I shall be clean: Thou shalt wash me and I shall be whiter than snow. Thou shalt make me hear of joy and gladness, that the bones which Thou hast broken may rejoice. Rosewater is a sweet smelling fragrance which was used to anoint the Body of Christ for burial.

The Third Monday of Pascha, Christos Anesti! Christ is Risen! Service of the Consecration of a Church (Part V)

04/27/2015

THE DIALOGUE FROM PSALM 24 – ENTRY INTO CHURCH The Bishop standing in front of the Doors of the Church, begins a short dialogue. The words of this conversation are taken from Psalm 24. This act represents Christ the King entering and taking over the Church building by defeating the power of the devil. The Bishop taps on the door with his staff and says: THE BISHOP: Open, Open the gates and let them remain

The Second Friday of Pascha, Christos Anesti! Christ is Risen! Service of the Consecration of a Church (Part IV)

04/24/2015

When the procession reaches the front doors of the Church, the Relics are again placed on the table, and readings from the Bible follow. SCRIPTURAL READINGS DEACON: Let us attend. READER: She shall be brought unto the King; the virgins that follow her shall be brought unto Thee. DEACON: Wisdom. READER: The Reading is from the Epistle of St. Paul to the Hebrews (9:1-7). DEACON: Let us attend. READER: Now even the first covenant had

Archive

The Second Monday of Great Lent. The Sunday of Orthodoxy

The Fifth Day of Christmas. 14,000 Infants (the Holy Innocents) slain by Herod at Bethlehem

Saint Thomas the Apostle

Venerable and God-bearing Father Anthony the Great

The Myrrh-gushing Miracle of St. Demetrios in 1987: A Testimony

The Third Wednesday of Pascha, Christos Anesti! Christ is Risen! Service of the Consecration of a Church (Part VII)

The Third Monday of Pascha, Christos Anesti! Christ is Risen! Service of the Consecration of a Church (Part V)

The Second Friday of Pascha, Christos Anesti! Christ is Risen! Service of the Consecration of a Church (Part IV)

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