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The Second Day of Christmas. Synaxis of the Holy Theotokos

ON [this day] the Church celebrates the [Synaxis of the Holy Theotokos], the Mother of God, meditating on Mary’s intimate connection with the Incarnation. The feast of the Mother of God is the oldest of the Christian church’s feasts honoring Mary. The placement of this feast within the Christmas season emphasizes its connection to the mystery of Christmas. Because this feast is about the motherhood of Mary, it helps us to grasp more deeply the

The Entrance of the Theotokos in the Temple

The Feast of the Entrance of the Virgin in the Temple is believed to be not among the most ancient festivals of the Church. However, indications that the Feast was observed in the first centuries of Christianity are found in the traditions of Palestinian Christians, which say that the holy Empress Helen (May 21) built a church in honor of the Entry of the Most Holy Theotokos into the Temple. St. Gregory of Nyssa, in

Feast of the Ascension of our Lord. He Ascended in Glory

So then the Lord Jesus, after He had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God. Mark 16:19 (From the Third Eothinon Gospel of the Sunday Orthros) “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and to the end of the earth.” And when He had said this,

Wednesday of the Sixth Week of Lent. Will We Be Seekers? Attendees? Masters?

Joseph of Arimathea, a respected member of the council, who was also himself looking for the kingdom of God, took courage and went to Pilate, and asked for the Body of Jesus. And Pilate wondered if He were already dead; and summoning the centurion, he asked him whether He was already dead. And when he learned from the centurion that He was dead, he granted the Body to Joseph. And he bought a linen shroud,

The Fourth Day of Christmas. We Have to Take the Same Journey

Now when the magi had departed, behold an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Rise, take the child and His mother and flee to Egypt, and remain there till I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy Him.” And he rose and took the child and his mother by night, and departed to Egypt, and remained there until the death of Herod. This

The Eighteenth Day of Christmas Advent. Is There Room in Your Inn?

And she gave birth to her first born Son and wrapped Him in swaddling clothes and laid Him in a manger because there was no place for them in the inn. -Luke 2:7 In the Mexican culture, there is a Christmas-time tradition called Las Posadas. In this tradition, a couple dressed up as Mary and Joseph go from home to home, asking if there is any room at “the inn.” Each home takes on the

The Ninth Day of Christmas Advent. Ordinary People, Extraordinary Faith

And her husband Joseph, being a just man and unwilling to put her to shame, resolved to divorce her quietly. But as he considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying ‘Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit; she will bear a son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for

The Seventh Day of Christmas Advent. It Was a Cave, Not a Barn!

And she gave birth to her first born Son and wrapped Him in swaddling clothes and laid Him in a manger because there was no place for them in the inn. -Luke2:7 Every Nativity play I have ever watched has a scene where Mary and Joseph go to an inn and are told that there are no rooms available. They are, however, told that there is a stable out back and are shown to a

The Third Day of Christmas Advent. St. Ephraim the Syrian: If he was not flesh (Part I).

St. Ephraim the Syrian: If he was not flesh . . . And if he was not God . . . The facts themselves bear witness and his divine acts of power teach those who doubt that he is true God, and his sufferings show that he is true man. And if those who are feeble in understanding are not fully assured, they will pay the penalty on his dread day. If he was not

The Great and Holy Monday: The Services of the Bridegroom (Part I)

Sunday through Monday Evening Introduction Beginning on the evening of Palm Sunday and continuing through the evening of Holy Tuesday, the Orthodox Church observes a special service known as the Service of the Bridegroom. Each evening service is the Matins or Orthros service of the following day (e.g. the service held on Sunday evening is the Orthros service for Holy Monday). The name of the service is from the figure of the Bridegroom in the