In Exodus 33:18 Moses asks God: “Please, show me Your glory”! But the vision of God as presented in the Holy Scriptures may sometimes appear contradictory. Some passages characterise such a vision as impossible whereas others state the opposite. From the Old Testament, we read: “the Lord spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend”. At the same time a few verses later God tells Moses: “You cannot see My face, for no man can see My face and live” (Exodus 33:11,20). Likewise, in the New Testament Christ teaches: “blessed are the pure in heart [...]

On 30 June each year, the Church honours the Synaxis (a celebratory gathering) of the Twelve Holy Apostles. The commemoration of a Synaxis is commonly observed on the day following a major feast day. It recognises the participation of a Saint or a group of Saints in the major feast preceding the Synaxis. For example, the Church holds a Synaxis in honour of St John the Baptist on the day after the Theophany. The feast of the Synaxis of the Twelve Holy Apostles follows the feast of the pre-eminent apostles Peter and Paul (29 June). Each of the Twelve is [...]

Newly-Canonised St Paisios of Mount Athos (Celebrated July 12) On 13 January 2015, the Holy and Sacred Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate “unanimously accepted the proposal of the Canonical Committee to incorporate the monk Paisios of Mt. Athos into the registry of the Saints of the Orthodox Church.”[i] St Paisios’ humble and Grace-filled life and practical and pastoral teachings, known through the famous biography written by Hieromonk Isaac[ii], the five volume set of St Paisios’ Spiritual Counsels[iii] and those who personally met him, continue to touch the lives of many thousands of Orthodox faithful around the world. Fr. Peter Alban [...]

It is said that icons are a pictorial representation of Scripture, where iconographers utilise not only geometry and colour, but also symbolism, theology and perspective. This is true for the icon of the Nativity of Christ where the mystery of the Incarnation, which was hidden from before time, is now revealed to all through its contemplation. Isaiah states that “the ox knows its owner and the donkey its master’s crib; but Israel does not know, my people do not consider” (Isaiah 1:3). Here the least intelligent of domesticated animals show wise instinct to recognise the Saviour, whereas Israel did not [...]

In 1944, the Head of the International Red Cross in Greece, the Swede Sture Linner, wrote the following account in his book “My Odyssey”[1]. On June 14, Emil Santrom, chair of the Greek Committee, showed me a telegram he had just received: The Germans had been slaughtering for three days the people of Distomo, near Delphi, and then they burned the village down. If there were any survivors, they would be in need of immediate assistance. Distomo was within the region of my responsibility for the supply of food and medicines.  ... It was dawn by the time we finally [...]