August 15, 7533
“Together with the Word, let us now ascend the lofty mountain of the Transfiguration, casting off the material and dark garments of worldly life and clothing ourselves in those woven from above, shining with the rays of rational virtues,” calls St. Andrew of Crete to the faithful on this great feast day. “And it is…
By the Example of the Holy One Who Called You, Be Holy Yourselves (1 Peter 1:15). Are the lessons of this day meant for us? Be holy. Be transformed into the “image of Christ.” Change your sinful life to one modeled after the One who called us—Christ. Exchange the dirty, stained garments of the soul…
The name of this feast can be confusing for modern people, who might think it refers to the origin of the wooden pieces of the Cross on which Jesus Christ was crucified. Church interpreters of Scripture and theologians have long viewed a passage from the Book of Isaiah as a prophecy about the Lord’s Cross:…
This year, according to the civil calendar, marks 1,000 years since the martyric death of the holy passion-bearers Princes Boris and Gleb. A thousand years is an immense span of time that erases both the bad and the good from memory. However, there are enduring values over which time should have no power—at least, it…
HOW VLADIMIR WAS BAPTIZED, AND BAPTIZED HIS CHILDREN, AND THE WHOLE RUSSIAN LAND FROM END TO END, AND HOW BEFORE VLADIMIR, VLADIMIR’S GRANDMOTHER OLGA WAS BAPTIZED. WRITTEN BY JACOB THE MONK Father, bless! Paul, the holy apostle, teacher of the Church and light of the whole world, sending a letter to Timothy, said: “My child…
Venerable Father Afanasiy of Athos (Vigil). Holy Martyrs Anna and Kiryla.Finding of the Honorable Relics of the Venerable and God-bearing Father Sergiy, Wonderworker of Radonezh (Vigil). The relics of Venerable Sergiy (commemorated on September 25) were found 30 years after his repose, on July 5, 1422, during the time of Venerable Nikon, Abbot of Radonezh….
(To the Monk Olympius) This composition, though in form bearing the appearance of a letter according to its heading, exceeds the limits of a letter by its length and takes the shape of a long written narrative. Yet the subject about which you commanded me to write justifies this—being far broader than the scope allowed…
The great saint of God, Nikola, Archbishop of Myra in Lycia, has been glorified by mighty miracles and acts of kindness, which he performed during his earthly life and continues to perform after his repose. He heals the sick, drives out demons, frees captives, grants sight to the blind and hearing to the deaf, delivers…
The name of this venerable one, translated from the Greek, means “given by God.” And indeed, he proved to be a God-given shepherd for thousands of Christians who fled persecution beyond the borders of Russia into Polish territory, where a large settlement of Russian Old Orthodox believers arose in the town of Vetka. At the…
This ever-memorable sufferer came from the lands of Nizhny Novgorod and was a disciple and spiritual son of the holy archpriest Avvakum, who wrote of him in his Life: “Good was dear little Afonasyushko, my spiritual son, in monasticism Avraamy, whom the apostates in Moscow baked in fire, and he was offered like sweet bread unto…