| For example, 5 euros a month is it a lot or little? A cup of coffee? It is not that much for a family budget, but it is a significant amount for Pravmir. If everyone reading Pravmir could donate 5 euros a month, they would contribute greatly to our ability to spread the word of Christ, Orthodoxy, life " s purpose, family and society. Donate Related articles “The Church Prospers When She Is… Archpriest Antony Hughes It is easy to get distracted these days. The world is changing before our eyes.… Descending the Mount of Olives: On… Archbishop Andrei (Rymarenko, 1893-1978) Today, we Orthodox Christians are still on the Mount of Olives. The after-feast of the Ascension… Between Ascension and Pentecost Archpriest Thaddaeus Hardenbrook We Orthodox do not find salvation by figuring out, mastering, dissecting, or analyzing Christian life. Study… Also by this author Back to the Catacombs Fr. Lawrence R. Farley Our long kick at the Byzantine can is over, and we now live in a militantly post-Christian culture.… Liturgical Traditions: Questions Asked by Catechumens about Orthodox Worship (Part II) Fr. Lawrence R. Farley One should make an examination of conscience every day, before going to bed, confessing one’s sins to God… Liturgical Traditions: Questions Asked by Catechumens about Orthodox Worship (Part I) Fr. Lawrence R. Farley What is the proper way to use church rules and liturgical traditions? First of all, by recognizing that… More Today " s Articles “Le monde entier reste silencieux au… pravmir_com_team Depuis le 12 décembre 2022, la région de l " Artsakh, où vivent 120… “The whole world is silent about… Natalia Nekhlebova Since December 12, 2022 the region of Artsakh, where 120,000 Armenians live,… The Importance of Patiently Letting Down… Priest Philip LeMasters If there is any virtue that seems completely foreign to our culture… Most viewed articles Functionality is temporarily unavailable. Most popular authors Functionality is temporarily unavailable. RSS About Contact Us Donate Pravmir.ru © 2008-2024 Pravmir.com Developed by Hamburg Church Studio |
| About Pages Проекты «Правмира» Raising Orthodox Children to Orthodox Adulthood The Daily Website on How to be an Orthodox Christian Today Twitter Telegram Parler RSS Donate Navigation The Two Demoniacs: A Terrible Picture For Us Source: The One Thing Needful: Sermons of Archbishop Andrei (Rymarenko, 1893-1978) Archbishop Andrei (Rymarenko, 1893-1978) 09 July 2017 Archbishop Andrei (Rymarenko, 1893-1978) And when He was come to the other side into the country of the Gergesenes, there met Him two possessed with devils, coming out of the tombs, exceeding fierce, so that no man might pass by that way. And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with Thee, Jesus, Thou Son of God? art Thou come hither to torment us before the time? And there was a good way off from them an herd of many swine feeding. So the devils besought Him, saying, If Thou cast us out, suffer us to go away into the herd of swine. And He said unto them, Go. And then they were come out, they went into the herd of swine: and, behold, the whole herd of swine ran violently down a steep place into the sea, and perished in the waters. And they that kept them fled, and went their ways into the city, and told every thing, and what was befallen to the possessed of the devils. And, behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus: and when they saw Him, they besought Him that He would depart out of their coasts. And He entered into a ship, and passed over, and came into His own city (Matthew 8:28-9:1). The Gospel reading for last Sunday taught us a lesson on the deep humility of the Roman Centurion, who came to ask Christ for the healing of his servant. But today’s Gospel does not give us a lesson of what we should do, but rather shows us what we should avoid, what we should not do. This shows us the striking reality of the existence of the power of evil. In our time such a reality doesn’t even require proof. Every day, every newspaper tells about a whole list of crimes which simply cannot be explained without recognizing that the person is possessed by an external, evil power. |
| And let us also rejoice, because our Lord forgives us enormous things, and all that we can forgive is so small and insignificant. Let us rejoice every time when we say in the Lord’s Prayer: “and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors.” Tweet Donate Share Code for blog Forgiveness of Debts Archbishop Andrei (Rymarenko, 1893-1978) To be in the Church of Christ is possible only by keeping His main commandment, that commandment which has become the foundation of His entire Church, which is the fragrance of Christ — and this commandment is LOVE! Since you are here… …we do have a small request. More and more people visit Orthodoxy and the World website. However, resources for editorial are scarce. In comparison to some mass media, we do not make paid subscription. It is our deepest belief that preaching Christ for money is wrong. Having said that, Pravmir provides daily articles from an autonomous news service, weekly wall newspaper for churches, lectorium, photos, videos, hosting and servers. Editors and translators work together towards one goal: to make our four websites possible - Pravmir.ru, Neinvalid.ru, Matrony.ru and Pravmir.com. Therefore our request for help is understandable. For example, 5 euros a month is it a lot or little? A cup of coffee? It is not that much for a family budget, but it is a significant amount for Pravmir. If everyone reading Pravmir could donate 5 euros a month, they would contribute greatly to our ability to spread the word of Christ, Orthodoxy, life " s purpose, family and society. Donate Related articles Are We the Ones Who Are… Priest Milovan Katanic At that time, Jesus entered into a ship, and passed over, and came into His own… How to Love Our Enemies Steven Christoforou As Christians, we know that forgiveness and love are incredibly important. Yet it’s often far from… On the Merciless Lender: Mercy Instead… Archpriest Pavel Velikanov Gospel of St. Matthew, Chapter 18, Verses 23-35 23 Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a… Also by this author " The Two Demoniacs: A Terrible Picture For Us Archbishop Andrei (Rymarenko, 1893-1978) And when He was come to the other side into the country of the Gergesenes, there met Him… " The Roman Centurion, an Example of the Most Profound Humility Archbishop Andrei (Rymarenko, 1893-1978) " Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness " (Mt. |
| About Pages Проекты «Правмира» Raising Orthodox Children to Orthodox Adulthood The Daily Website on How to be an Orthodox Christian Today Twitter Telegram Parler RSS Donate Are You a True Christian? Navigation Opening a New Era of Faith: On Thomas’s Sunday Source: Holy Trinity Orthodox Schoool Thomas knew the commandments of Christ, and he knew where to draw the strength to fulfill them. Archbishop Andrei (Rymarenko, 1893-1978) 27 April 2014 “But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I see in His hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into His side, I will not believe (Jn. 20:24-25). What does this mean, his “I will not believe”? Is it possible he could not believe the other eleven Apostles, his brothers? Is it possible they could lie to him? The whole evangelical life of Christ, all His miracles, Golgotha, the death on the Cross, they had experienced together. And now this joy which they all had experienced they wanted to share with him. No, this was not a lie. But He, Whom they had seen, was He really the same Christ? Was this not a vision or some other Christ? Was this not a mistake? And Thomas was afraid to lose what he had. And what did he have? This is what: during the years of fellowship with Christ, he had absorbed His teaching, the entire makeup of His life; and by now he was incapable of living any other way. It was painful for him not to have personal fellowship anymore with Christ; but by this time he understood that Christ came to earth in order to teach us the main commandment of God: love for God and neighbor, to perform it Himself, and to give us the strength to fulfill it. In Paradise the first man fulfilled the commandment of God. The strength to fulfill this commandment of God he drew from eating the fruits of the Tree of Life. But then came the Fall. Paradise was lost, the Tree of Life was lost, and together with it, the strength for a godly life. And Christ came in order to give us the New Testament Tree of Life — His Body and Blood. “This do in remembrance of Me,” He said at the Last Supper (Lk. 22:19). |
| About Pages Проекты «Правмира» Raising Orthodox Children to Orthodox Adulthood The Daily Website on How to be an Orthodox Christian Today Twitter Telegram Parler RSS Donate Navigation Forgiveness of Debts Source: Holy Trinity Orthodox School To be in the Church of Christ is possible only by keeping His main commandment, that commandment which has become the foundation of His entire Church, which is the fragrance of Christ — and this commandment is LOVE! Archbishop Andrei (Rymarenko, 1893-1978) 16 August 2015 A terrible picture is drawn for us by this Sunday’s Gospel. It begins with the folio wing words: “Therefore the Kingdom of Heaven is likened unto a certain king, which would take account of his servants” (Mt. 18:23). Among those servants was one who was indebted to the lord for a great amount. This amount was so great that in spite of his desire, he could never repay it. There was only one way out: the lord could sell him, his wife, his children, and everything he had. “The servant therefore fell down, and worshipped him, saying, Lord, have patience with me and I will pay thee all. Then the lord of that servant was moved with compassion, and loosed him, and forgave him the debt” (Mt. 18:26-27). Listen, he did not postpone payment of the debt, he did not reduce the amount, but he forgave everything, completely, forever. It was as if nothing had happened, everything remained as before. A new, quiet life as before began. And even better: now this servant knew his master. He saw in him a loving father, and to work for such a father is bliss. Suddenly something terrible happened: that servant walked out and met one of his fellow servants who owed him an utterly insignificant amount; and grabbing him, started to choke him, saying, Give back everything you owe me. Learning of this, his lord was angry and gave him over to the torturers until he had paid the whole debt. And so it is with us. We have received everything from the Lord but have proved to be unpaid debtors. And we have asked for forgiveness and have received it. |
| About Pages Проекты «Правмира» Raising Orthodox Children to Orthodox Adulthood The Daily Website on How to be an Orthodox Christian Today Twitter Telegram Parler RSS Donate Navigation Pussy Willows bear the sign of Eternal Life: On Palm Sunday Source: Holy Trinity Orthodox School Now we worry about a piece of bread, about a roof over our heads, about our social conditions. And it seems to us that the meaning of life consists of this. But the Church says, Look at the pussy willows: leaves will sprout and later flowers and fruit. So it is even in a Christian soul. Archbishop Andrei (Rymarenko, 1893-1978) 13 April 2014 Brothers and sisters! So the Holy Church indicates for us spiritual spring. Winter is over. Ended is the state in which our heart was like ice, as if dead in languor, thirsting for Grace. And now, during the past six weeks the sun has been warming us more and more, and nature has gradually started to come back to life. And so our heart too should have come back to life. Last night during the evening service, we sang, “Children were bearing the sign of Victory…” What sign? Pussy willows, branches which had already budded, indicating that spring was coming, as if saying to us: Look here, joy is already beginning, happiness. So through the pussy willows, the Church has been saying to us: This is the beginning for you too; just be Christians, and think it over, and you will begin to see a sign. A sign of what? – that Christ is Risen. And we, brothers and sisters, we close our eyes like an ostrich who puts his head under his wing. We don’t want to think that a limit will come, just as it comes to old people: hands stop working, eyes stop seeing, ears stop hearing — a limit. The end will come. And it seems that in these moments, when we begin to recognize the approach of old age, we involuntarily compare it with winter, with snow. Yes, but after winter comes spring. And in a spiritual understanding: after our eyes close, then comes Eternal Life, the joy of Life with Christ. This is what last night’s pussy willows were telling us about, “bearing the sign.” Abide not in grief; turn to joy. And now comes the moment when the Lord, by a special mystery, through Passion Week which we are approaching, will give us the feeling of this joy of Eternal Life. |
| About Pages Проекты «Правмира» Raising Orthodox Children to Orthodox Adulthood The Daily Website on How to be an Orthodox Christian Today Twitter Telegram Parler RSS Donate Navigation The Roman Centurion, an Example of the Most Profound Humility Source: Excerpts from " The One Thing Needful " Archbishop Andrei (Rymarenko, 1893-1978) 02 July 2017 “Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness” (Mt. 6:33). This is what last Sunday’s Gospel left with us. On the day of Pentecost the Lord sent down upon His Church the Holy Spirit. Just as all of nature which, after it had been warmed up by the sun, began to grow flowers, plants, and fruits — so the Holy Church, upon receiving the Holy Spirit, the Giver of Life, began to grow spiritual flowers — her wonderful Saints. All the Gospel readings since the coming down of the Holy Spirit have been telling us what we must do to obtain the Kingdom of Heaven; what all the Saints did, how they sought and how they found “the Kingdom of God and His righteousness.” We were given the commandments of the Lord. But today we are not given commandments, or a teaching. No, but rather life itself, a living example. And as an example for us, the Gospel reading gives us a Roman centurion, a pagan. This is an example of the most profound humility. This example shows us how a master, out of love for his neighbor, becomes a slave. After all, according to his civic position, this Centurion was master not only over the hundred soldiers which he commanded, but also over all Jews, which meant even over Christ; because the Jews were enslaved by the Romans. This Centurion had a servant. And this servant fell sick and was suffering terribly. And here the Centurion was told that among the Jews who were subject to him there was a remarkable man who had the supernatural power of healing. Now the Centurion was a pagan. He did not know Holy Scripture, he knew nothing about the Messianic expectations of the Jews. For him Christ was without doubt a great man, but nevertheless just a man, and subject to him besides. He could have sent for Him, summoned Him. But humility blots out all boundaries. His servant was in danger, and this man could help him. |
| But what kind of wishes should our prayers express? If they are the wishes which people experience in sitting rooms, theaters, worldly amusements — then of course, brothers, the Lord desires something else for us, because all of this will remain here. This senselessness, this commotion, this quarreling, this adversity, this rage, all this will remain here. And only joy will depart with us. This is joy: if you wish for meekness, humility, prosperity, brotherly love, Christian living, quiet — then pray! The Lord will be with you. Rejoice! The Holy Day is approaching. Tomorrow there will come great moments when the Sacrament is being performed. And so in our hearts will be revealed this joy: Christ is Risen! May this joy abide with us in a joyous feeling of Eternal Life. Tweet Donate Share Code for blog Pussy Willows bear the sign of Eternal Life: On Palm Sunday Archbishop Andrei (Rymarenko, 1893-1978) Now we worry about a piece of bread, about a roof over our heads, about our social conditions. And it seems to us that the meaning of life consists of this. But the Church says, Look at the pussy willows: leaves will sprout and later flowers and fruit. So it is even in a Christian soul Since you are here… …we do have a small request. More and more people visit Orthodoxy and the World website. However, resources for editorial are scarce. In comparison to some mass media, we do not make paid subscription. It is our deepest belief that preaching Christ for money is wrong. Having said that, Pravmir provides daily articles from an autonomous news service, weekly wall newspaper for churches, lectorium, photos, videos, hosting and servers. Editors and translators work together towards one goal: to make our four websites possible - Pravmir.ru, Neinvalid.ru, Matrony.ru and Pravmir.com. Therefore our request for help is understandable. For example, 5 euros a month is it a lot or little? A cup of coffee? It is not that much for a family budget, but it is a significant amount for Pravmir. |
| Since you are here… …we do have a small request. More and more people visit Orthodoxy and the World website. However, resources for editorial are scarce. In comparison to some mass media, we do not make paid subscription. It is our deepest belief that preaching Christ for money is wrong. Having said that, Pravmir provides daily articles from an autonomous news service, weekly wall newspaper for churches, lectorium, photos, videos, hosting and servers. Editors and translators work together towards one goal: to make our four websites possible - Pravmir.ru, Neinvalid.ru, Matrony.ru and Pravmir.com. Therefore our request for help is understandable. For example, 5 euros a month is it a lot or little? A cup of coffee? It is not that much for a family budget, but it is a significant amount for Pravmir. If everyone reading Pravmir could donate 5 euros a month, they would contribute greatly to our ability to spread the word of Christ, Orthodoxy, life " s purpose, family and society. Donate Related articles “The Church Prospers When She Is… Archpriest Antony Hughes It is easy to get distracted these days. The world is changing before our eyes.… The Fathers of Nicea: Why Should… Fr. Lawrence R. Farley Those for whom ancient history is irrelevant and who equate “old” with “out-dated” (or better yet,… Descending the Mount of Olives: On… Archbishop Andrei (Rymarenko, 1893-1978) Today, we Orthodox Christians are still on the Mount of Olives. The after-feast of the Ascension… Also by this author " Be Bearers of Light Metropolitan George (Khodr) of Mount Lebanon " If your eye is simple, then your whole body will be full of light and if your eye… " The Power of Prayer Metropolitan George (Khodr) of Mount Lebanon The Holy Spirit who dwells within us is the one who prays, since we say at the beginning… " “Why Are You Sad? Have You Forgotten That Christ Is Risen?” Metropolitan George (Khodr) of Mount Lebanon Once when I was a theology student in Paris I went to my spiritual father and complained to… |
| The Centurion himself went to Christ. He went and asked: not for his wife, not for his son, not for his daughter, father or mother, but for a servant. And he asked a Jew, enslaved by Rome; a Roman citizen asked for mercy, as a slave would ask his master. And he said: “Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented” (Mt. 8:6). He said nothing more. In these words trembled all his sorrow. And he brought his sorrow to Christ. Now he stood humbly and with bowed head waited for an answer. “I will come and heal him” (Mt. 8:7), Christ quickly answered. How very simple. But look what happened here, to what incredible height the Centurion’s faith and humility rose. He stopped Christ: “Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof (Mt. 8:8). Listen… “I am not worthy.” Now this is repentance. This is the same as if he had said: I am a sinner and you are a righteous man. “But speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed” (Mt. 8:8). Only a word. Even the Lord was surprised at such faith. “I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel” (Mt. 8:10). And indeed the Centurion’s faith was so simple, so very humble. “I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me; and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth, and to another, Come, and he cometh” (Mt. 8:9). What do these words express? This is what: Thou art Lord over sickness and health, over life and death. Only say the word! One word! And Christ said this word: “Go thy way, and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour” (Mt. 8:13). What a reward for humility! This is what humility can do! May the Lord grant us this humility of the Centurion. Tweet Donate Share Code for blog The Roman Centurion, an Example of the Most Profound Humility Archbishop Andrei (Rymarenko, 1893-1978) " Seek ye first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness " (Mt. 6:33). This is what last Sunday’s Gospel left with us. On the day of Pentecost the Lord sent down upon His Church the Holy Spirit. Just as all of nature which, after it had been warmed up by the sun, began to grow flowers, ... |
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