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The Seven Holy Maccabee Martyrs   Tradition informs us that the seven Maccabee martyrs, Abim, Antonius, Gurias, Eleazar, Eusebonus, Alimus and Marcellus, their mother Solomonia and their teacher Eleazar, suffered in the year 167 BC under the impious Syrian King Antiochus. The King compelled the people to not live by the laws of God: “A man could neither keep the Sabbath, nor observe the feasts of his fathers, nor simply confess himself to be a Jew” (2 Mac 6:6). Eleazar, a Jewish scribe, was forced to open his mouth to eat swine’s flesh, however he spat out the flesh and [...]

Surviving the difficult years   Dimitri was a gentle man who would rarely speak about his early years. He had grown up in north western Greece, in a mountain village near the Albanian border in the 1920s. His father had died when he was a young teenager and being the oldest of four boys, he became the main breadwinner of the family. His mother, Maria, was a generous and compassionate woman, but the harsh conditions of the village life and the absence of a strong male presence took its toll on her. She was often short tempered and took out [...]

A Night in the Desert of the Holy Mountain by Metropolitan of Nafpaktos Hierotheos. Published by the Birth of the Theotokos Monastery, Greece, 2003 (2nd Edition)   A Night in the Desert of the Holy Mountain details a discussion between Metropolitan Heirotheos of Nafpaktos and a Holy Elder who lived in the solitary peaks of Mount Athos. The author, Metropolitan Hierotheos, at the request of the Elder with whom he speaks, purposefully maintains his anonymity. The book begins with a young Hierotheos traversing the peaks of Mount Athos searching for this unnamed Elder to satisfy his increasing thirst for God [...]

Gospel Reading, Sunday 19th August The Rich Young Ruler (Matthew 19:16-26)   A rich young ruler approaches Christ in earnest seeking to know how to obtain eternal life. He calls Christ ‘good teacher’. That is, he recognises Christ's authority as a teacher, as one who can discern between good and evil, between a godly life and a sinful life; but he approaches Christ merely as a teacher, and fails to recognise His divinity. Because of this, St John Chrysostom says that Christ chooses to communicate with him as a man and teacher. He responds by saying “no one is good [...]

What is meant by Christ’s words, “Heaven and earth will pass away” (Matt 24:35)?   In each of the synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke), we read about Jesus’ account of the Great Tribulation. The passage was set during Holy Week. According to the Scriptural accounts, the Disciples, walking through the Temple, were amazed by the grandeur of the Temple buildings. Jesus, however, was less impressed, remarking, “Truly I say to you, there will not be left here one stone upon another, that will not be thrown down” (Matt 24:2). He then warned them of the many signs that will [...]