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Sunday of the Fathers of the Fourth Ecumenical Council (Titus 3:8-15) This is the Epistle Reading of the Sunday of the Fathers of the Fourth Ecumenical Council (14 July), and it was at this Council in 453 that the Church denounced Monophysitism as a heresy. The reading starts with St Paul telling Titus, his disciple, to affirm to his flock that they should continue living virtuous lives filled with good works. It continues with St Paul contrasting the good in the virtuous life with the folly of “foolish questionings, genealogies, strife and disputes about the law” (Titus 3:9). St John [...]

Mother Maria (Skobtsova) of Paris (1891-1945) Born in Latvia in 1891 to faithful Christian parents, Elizaveta Pilenko was led to atheism at the tender age of fourteen, after the unjust and devastating death of her father. Shortly after, her widowed mother moved the family to St Petersburg where ‘Liza’ was attracted to the political scene, saying “My spirit longed … to combat the injustice of the world.” Slowly her earlier attraction to Christ revived as she contemplated His sacrifice and love on the Cross, saying “He also died. He sweated blood. They struck His face.” Eventually, it dawned on her [...]

The Ascension of the Prophet Elijah (2 Kings 2:11-14) At the conclusion of his earthly ministry Prophet Elijah is accompanied by his disciple Elisha when he is suddenly taken up to heaven alive in a whirlwind by a chariot with horses of fire. On his way to Heaven, Elijah throws down his mantle to Elisha, who describes Elijah as “father.” We learn many things from this blessed event. St Irenaeus of Lyons states that this event is proof of the possibility of the Resurrection. It shows that nothing stands in the way of the assumption of the body into heaven [...]

Orthodox Saints of the World Part II - Spreading the Way The followers of the Way, as described in the first chapters of the Acts, were Jews centered around Jerusalem. While the Faith entered Roman society under the veil of Judaism, quite soon it became separated. In the time of the Apostles’ preaching, the Way spread from Jerusalem to Antioch, where St Peter preached and baptised and where the followers of the Way were first called Christians (Acts 11:19-26). It spread to many other cities and areas of the Middle East and surrounding areas including: Greece (where the greatest of [...]

The Mountain of Silence Kyriakos C. Markides Published by Doubleday, 2001 The Mountain of Silence explores the conversations of Kyriacos C. Markides and Father Maximos concerning the relevance that Athonite spirituality holds for those living in the world today. It centres around the spiritual knowledge acquired by Father Maximos during his time spent on Mount Athos as the spiritual child of Saint Paisios, which he passes on to Kyriacos through a series of discussions throughout the book. The book begins with Kyriacos’ quest to find a mystical spiritual tradition, which leads him to explore various forms of yoga and meditation. [...]