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September 1: The Ecclesiastical New Year
September 1 is the beginning of the Orthodox ecclesiastical year. According to Tradition, it was on September 1 that our Lord and Saviour entered the synagogue in his hometown of Nazareth and was...
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Sorrow and Joy: A Homily for the Nativity of the Most Holy Mother of God
By St. John of Kronstadt Thy Nativity, O Theotokos Virgin, Has brought joy to all the inhabited earth: For from Thee has sprung forth the Son of Righteous, Christ our God. We solemnly celebrate,...
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DISCOURSE ON THE NATIVITY OF THE MOST HOLY MOTHER OF GOD
By St. Andrew, Archbisop of Crete The present feastday is for us the beginning of feastdays. Serving as boundary limit to the law and to foretypes, it at the same time serves as a doorway to grace and...
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SERMON ON THE NATIVITY OF THE MOTHER OF GOD
The birth of any person is a mysterious event. This is not just another event for the registrar; a new being is come into the world, filled with inextricable mystery. In fact: what will this newborn...
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THE PARABLE OF THE PRODIGAL SON
By Archbishop Stylianos of Australia Sisters and Brothers, In accordance with the order of Feast Days for the Ecclesiastical Year as designated by the Church Fathers (who decreed wisely on all...
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Development of the Lenten Fast
Fasting, in preparation for Pascha was universal in the Early Church, both in the East and in the West, as evidenced by various second and third century references to the practice. Eusebius, in his...
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A Homily on the Importance of Dogma according to the Three Hierarchs
Introduction. Moments ago, brothers and sisters, we heard the Holy Apostle Paul offer a hymn in praise of faith: “By faith Moses refused to be called a son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing...
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SUMMARY: ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN OBSERVANCE OF PASCHA
The Orthodox date for Pascha (or “Passover”) is based on a decree of the Council of Nicaea, Asia Minor, held in 325 A.D. According to this decree, Pascha must be celebrated on the Sunday following...
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THE FEAST OF MID-PENTECOST
For too many of us, perhaps, the weeks following the radiant Feast of the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ are a time of relaxation and even of indulgence; the rigors of the Fast being ended, the...
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THE FEAST OF MID-PENTECOST AND THE PENTECOSTARION
The fifty days following Pascha until the Feast of Pentecost are known as the period of the Pentecostarion in the Orthodox Church. At the mid-point between these great feasts of Pascha and Pentecost,...
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