Abbot Iscu the Martyr The following is an edited excerpt from the book, Tortured for Christ, by Richard Wurmbrand, a Lutheran pastor, about his experience in a Romanian prison: When I was in jail I fell very, very ill… I was near to death. At my right hand was a priest by the name of Iscu. He was abbot of a monastery. This man, perhaps in his forties, had been so tortured he was near to death. But his face was serene... He radiated joy. On my left side was the Communist torturer who had tortured this priest almost to [...]

Gospel Reading April 12th (John 11: 1-45) Lazarus Saturday This Gospel passage narrates the circumstances in which Christ raised Lazarus from the dead. Coming only two days before Holy Week, Lazarus Saturday is a powerful reminder to Orthodox faithful of one of the key purposes of Christ’s approaching Passion and suffering – that we might learn that He has complete power over death. It is the ‘tremor’ which precedes the coming ‘earthquake’ of the Resurrection. St John Chrysostom’s homily on this passage focuses our attention on why Christ, despite being informed of Lazarus’s illness, nevertheless lets him die. He could [...]

St Athanasios – On the Incarnation The fifth chapter of St Athanasios' On the Incarnation is titled 'The Resurrection'. For St Athanasios, the Resurrection of Christ is the ultimate purpose of Christ's incarnation (God becoming man). Without the Resurrection, Christ's coming would have been meaningless. The plan of salvation could not have been realised if Christ had died without later raising Himself from that death. The Resurrection crucially puts an end to death. And we can all exclaim "O Death, where is your victory? O Grave, where is your sting? (1 Cor 15:55). It is because Christ made death ineffective [...]

Elder Paisios and the Paralysed Man A paralysed man named Constantine visited Mount Athos in 1981. He had been suffering from a chronic neurological syndrome for 30 years which confined him to a wheelchair. At the Monastery of Grigoriou, he met a rich businessman who offered to pay for him to be operated on in America. Constantine became very excited at the idea of being healed but he went to ask Elder Paisios for his opinion. He met the Elder at Karyes and spoke to him about this situation. The Elder crossed his head with the relics of St Arsenios [...]

St Epiphanius, Bishop of Salamina Commemorated on May 12th St Epiphanius was born around AD 315 in Palestine, to Jewish parents. He received a good education, which developed his zeal for studying the Holy Scriptures. One day he passed by a Christian monk who had taken off his garment to give to a poor man. A brilliant white light from heaven covered the monk, at which Epiphanius fell to his knees begging the monk to baptise him. Epiphanius became a Christian, left the world behind him and became a disciple of the holy ascetic St Hilarion.  He began a life [...]