| Information released on scope of damage to the Japanese Orthodox Church March 16, 2011 Information on the scope of the damage to the Japanese Orthodox Church as a result of the recent earthquake and tsunami have been provided by the Eastern Japan Diocese . The following website post was updated on March 16, 2011: As you have read, the magnitude 9 earthquake hit the northeastern part of Japan, and a 30-foot tsunami swept through the east coastal areas in Iwate, Miyagi and Fukushima Prefecture. Serious trouble also arose in the nuclear station in Fukushima. We have received many emails with love and prayers and inquiries from brothers and sisters throughout the world. For the time being, the websites of the Orthodox Church in Japan and the Eastern Japan Diocese are still having difficulty uploading new information. On behalf of them, the Western Japan Diocese website provides the current available news. Mar.15, 2011 Eastern Japan Diocese Thanks to God, Bishop Seraphim, Fr. Clement Kodama, Fr. Vasilii Kato are fine. The Holy Annunciation Cathedral in Sendai and Diocese office buildings were not seriously damaged. The Holy Ascention Church in Ichinoseki and the Elevation of Cross Church in Morioka are also safe, although minor damage was found. We have made contact with Fr. Michail in Morioka and Fr.Mark in Ichinoseki. However, the churches located on the Sanriku coast are supposed destroyed: the Annunciation Church in Yamada , Holy Resurrection Church in Kesennuma , Holy Protection Church in Joghe-dzutusmi and St. John the Theologian church in Ishinomaki . The Diocese has not yet made contact with the parishioners of those churches. 300 members are registered in the coastal area. In addition to them, there is no information from three churches and parishes located further from the coast: Holy Transfiguration Chapel in Sanuma , Transfiguration Church in Takashimizu and Prophet Isaiah Church in Wakuya; in total, 80 members are registered. Communication and electric sytems are seriously destroyed. Telephone, cell phone and internet are still in limited use. Roads and railways were cut off, and gas stations do not work. There are very few ways to make contact with parishioners. |
| In Church and at Home: Liturgical Resources for Great Lent Source: Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America Subdn. Peter Samore 04 March 2021 “O Lord of hosts, be with us, for we have none other help in times of sorrow but Thee. O Lord of hosts, have mercy on us.” – from Great Compline Great Lent begins on Monday, March 15. Orthodox Christians worldwide use this time for self-reflection, fasting, almsgiving, repentance and purification in anticipation of the celebration of the Resurrection of our Lord, God and Savior Jesus Christ. Blessed by His Eminence Metropolitan Joseph, the Online Liturgical Guide has provided a wealth of resources to guide clergy and laity through prayer and worship during this sacred time of year. Governmental restrictions on gatherings still widely vary across North America in hopes of stopping the spread of the Coronavirus. That’s why the OLG publishes guides for Readers Services for the faithful to use at home without the presence of a priest. Scroll to “Seasonal Liturgical Resources” to find instructions for readers versions of Great Compline for Mondays-Thursdays of Great Lent, as well as for Little Compline with the Akathist Hymn for Fridays in Great Lent, which are especially helpful in times of great affliction. For weekends and the great feast of the Annunciation, the OLG offers instructions for readers vespers, orthros and typika under “Permanent Liturgical Resources.” Thus, the faithful can stand in front of their icons at home and still participate in the life of the Church during this difficult time. Even if we cannot sing the words, we can certainly read them plainly and reverently. On weekdays of Great Lent, the Orthodox Church does not celebrate a festive Divine Liturgy (except for the Annunciation). However, so as not to deprive the clergy and faithful of Holy Communion, parishes offer the Presanctified Divine Liturgy of St. Gregory the Dialogist on Wednesday nights, using a Eucharist that was consecrated the previous Sunday. Parishes can offer this same Liturgy on Fridays in Great Lent before Little Compline with the Akathist Hymn. On Saturdays, parishes can celebrate the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom. On the first Saturday, we commemorate the miracle of the boiled wheat (kolyva) wrought by St. Theodore the Soldier. (Read about the miracle in the Synaxarion .) |
| Serbian Patriarch Irinej in Eiterfeld Source: Serbian Orthodox Church Natalya Mihailova 26 June 2014 During the canonical and working visit to the Diocese of Middle Europe, His Holiness Irinej, Serbian Patriarch visited the Serbian Orthodox monastery in Eiterfeld, on Saturday, June 21st. The monastery is dedicated to the feast of Annunciation and Venerable Justin of Celije. The Serbian Patriarch was welcomed by the head of the monastery hiero-schi monk Justin (Raurer) with the faithful. A three-day convention of the Orthodox philosophers on bioethics from America and Europe was being held. Along with the head of the monastery, the Patriarch visited works on the construction of the new church. The works began in December, when His Holiness consecrated the land and blessed the beginning of the construction.. Tweet Donate Share Code for blog Serbian Patriarch Irinej in Eiterfeld Natalya Mihailova The monastery is dedicated to the feast of Annunciation and Venerable Justin of Celije. The Serbian Patriarch was welcomed by the head of the monastery hiero-schi monk Justin (Raurer) with the faithful. A three-day convention of the Orthodox philosophers on bioethics from America and Europe was ... 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. |
| Tweet Нравится Is the Burning Bush Still Burning? Sr. Joanna Ascent to Holy Mount Sinai After the passage of fifteen centuries, does the Sinai brotherhood still feel the presence of Saint John Climacus , author of the renowned Ladder of Divine Ascent ? “As though he were here yesterday!” says Saint Catherine’s Geronta Pavlos, adding that the saint’s words continue to guide the monastery in modern times as of old. Hundreds attended John’s enthronement as abbot—not least, Prophet Moses, who appeared once more tending God’s people in Sinai, directing servers in the monastery refectory. And amidst the Arab conquests which roiled the region, pilgrims continued to arrive in large numbers to remove their shoes before kneeling on the holy ground where Moses met God at the Burning Bush. It was very early in the Byzantine age that its great theologians understood the Bush as a “type” of the Mother of God. Like the Bush which contained the non-consuming fire of the Pre-incarnate Logos, the Holy Virgin held the fire of divinity in her womb without being consumed by it. Thus, it was in honor of the Annunciation to the Theotokos that Sinai monks dedicated their first altar in the fourth century, on the roots of the Burning Bush, to the Mother of God. Priestmonk Arsenios, successor to long-time monastery “Dikaios” Geronta Pavlos as the spiritual father in charge of the monastery’s spiritual life, notes that Saint Catherine’s long history of unbroken peace doesn’t mean that the monastery was never under threat. Until today, many are the challenges it has faced through times of great upheaval, whose repercussions continue to be felt throughout the wider region. What then gives the words of Saint John their immunity to the passage of fifteen centuries? What inspires pilgrims to point their footsteps once more to the Holy Mountain in spite of a frustratingly slow resolution to the problems of the surrounding regions? What sustains a small brotherhood in its struggle to meet the economic needs of a monastery whose legacy of peace plays on the world stage before a global audience, yet has no steady means of support? |
| Hellenic Orthodox Church plans expansion to Lancaster/Православие.Ru Hellenic Orthodox Church plans expansion to Lancaster BY: Jay Tokasz As they celebrate 100 years in Western New York, members of the area " s Greek Orthodox community also are undertaking a new initiative to ensure their beloved church will be around at least 100 more years. The Hellenic Orthodox Church of the Annunciation is moving ahead with plans to build a Family Life Center on 30 acres of church property in Lancaster. The church invited Archbishop Demetrios Trakatellis, archbishop of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, to visit the site on Genesee Street on Friday and bless the land, as part of a three-day centennial celebration that also included a gala at Statler City on Saturday and a special liturgy featuring 13 clergy members today. The new building doesn " t mean the congregation will leave its longtime location at West Utica Street and Delaware Avenue, which many Western New Yorkers know as the home of the annual Greek Festival. " This is a second site for us, " said the Rev. Christos B. Christakis, presiding priest of the Hellenic Orthodox Church of the Annunciation. " Eventually, this will become another location for us, but in many phases. " The congregation, which has a membership of about 800 families, envisions using the new center for social, recreational and education activities during the week while maintaining the landmark church in Buffalo for worship on weekends. Work on the foundation of the million parish center is likely to begin within a few weeks or months and be completed by 2015. Other developments likely will follow, including a chapel and classrooms, said Christakis. The first Greeks arrived in Buffalo in 1871, according to church historical records. In 1912, the area " s first Greek Orthodox Church opened at 361 Oak St. in downtown Buffalo. The current home of the Hellenic Orthodox church was purchased in 1952 from North Presbyterian Church, a congregation now located in Amherst. |
| Tweet Нравится Georgian Church canonizes two kings, two abbesses, and a Catholicos who ruled 1932-1955 Source: Blagovest December 23, 2016 Catholics-Patriarch Kallistrat The Holy Synod of the Georgian Orthodox Church, at a December 21 meeting, has numbered among the ranks of the saints two kings—Bargrat III and Solomon I, two abbesses—Nina (Amilakhvari) and Tamar (Mardzhanishvili), and Catholics-Patriarch Kallistrat (Tsintsadze) who lead the Church in the difficult years of 30s-50s of the previous century, reports Interpressnews . Bagrat III (960-1014) was glorified as a king-unifier. He managed to unite under his authority almost all of Georgia, except Tbilisi which remained under the authority of the Arabs. Solomon I (1753-1784) was the king of Imereti (western Georgia) in the second half of the eighteenth century. He successfully battled the Turks, including in an alliance with the Russians, writes Wikipedia . Catholicos-Patriarch Kallistrat was born in 1866 into a priest’s family in an Imereti village. According to Wikipedia , he graduated from Tiflis Seminary and the Kievan Spiritual Academy. He was ordained as a priest in 1892. In 1925 he became a bishop, and in 1932 was chosen Catholicos. Coming into control of the Church, he strove to halt the process of closure, destruction and looting of churches and monasteries, while maintaining a loyal attitude towards the Soviet authorities. Abbess Nina (Nino) Amilakhvari lived in the second half of the nineteenth century. She labored to revive monastic life in the Monastery of St. Nina in Samtavro (Mtskheta). Schema-igumena Tamar Schema-igumena Tamar (Tamara Alexandrovna Mardzhanishvili, 1869-1936) accepted monasticism in the Bodve Monastery, where the holy Equal-to-the-Apostles Nina ended her life’s journey. In 1902 she became the abbess of the monastery. In 1905, after an attempt on her life during the revolution, she was transferred to Moscow where she guided the Pokrov community, writes the site of the Church of the Annunciation in Taininskoe. Later she founded the Seraphimo-Znamenskii Skete near Moscow. After the Bolsheviks closed the skete she lived in suburban Perkhushkove, and in 1931 was arrested and exiled to Siberia. Three years later Mother Tamar, already terminally ill, was allowed to return to the Moscow area, where she reposed in 1936. |
| An Interfaith Paschal Marathon Has Begun in Moscow Source: Pravmir.ru April 7, 2014. PRAVMIR. On the eve of the Annunciation, the interfaith Paschal Marathon “Holiday Traditions, Holiday Tastes, Holiday Music” opened in the memorial synagogue on Poklonnaya Gora in Moscow. Natalya Mihailova 09 April 2014 Throughout the marathon, lectures will take place on the traditions and customs of Pascha, master classes on holiday cooking will be held, as will concerts, exhibitions, and tours, the official website of the Diocesan Commission for Missionary Council in Moscow states. During the opening, a gala concert was presented, during which the festive choir of the Krutitsa Patriarchal Monastery sang. The exhibition “Multinational Moscow” was also organized, as was an exhibit of children’s drawings. The opening was attended by Hieromonk Dmitry (Pershin), adviser to the chairman of the Diocesan Commission for Missionary Council Moscow, who spoke to the audience about the Orthodox understanding of Pascha. The Paschal Marathon is a cultural and educational project aimed at developing mutual understanding, cooperation, and cultural exchange among representatives of traditional religions. Tweet Donate Share Code for blog An Interfaith Paschal Marathon Has Begun in Moscow Natalya Mihailova April 7, 2014. PRAVMIR. On the eve of the Annunciation, the interfaith Paschal Marathon “Holiday Traditions, Holiday Tastes, Holiday Music” opened in the memorial synagogue on Poklonnaya Gora in Moscow 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. |
| Athens’ Cathedral Ready By October Maria Korologou 12 April 2013 April 11, 2013 The Metropolitan Cathedral of the Annunciation, popularly known as the Metropolis, is the cathedral church of the Archbishop of Athens and all Greece and Athenians and others will be able to celebrate Christmas there this year as restoration work 51-year-old building is expected to be finished in October. The earthquakes of 1981 and 1999 in Athens caused significant damage to the building. The reconstruction of the building started in 2010 under the Public Investment Program, but the rehabilitation works stopped due to the economic crisis in Greece. As the National Strategic Reference Framework (NSRF) has ensured the necessary funds, there will be a call for competition for the undertaking of the hagiographies restoration. Until the works of restoration be completed, the Cathedral of Dionysius the Areopagite in Kolonaki will serve as Metropolitan Cathedral. Source: GreekReporter Tweet Donate Share Code for blog Athens’ Cathedral Ready By October Maria Korologou April 11, 2013 The Metropolitan Cathedral of the Annunciation, popularly known as the Metropolis, is the cathedral church of the Archbishop of Athens and all Greece and Athenians and others will be able to celebrate Christmas there this year as restoration work 51-year-old building is expected to ... 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. |
| Orthodox Christianity – an “FAQ” Fr Steven Platt of the Russian Orthodox parish of Annunciation in Oxford answers questions that often come up in discussions about Orthodoxy Orthodox Christianity on a practical day-to-day level differs from even perhaps other kinds of Christianity in one essential way. In the Roman Catholic Church and to some extent in other Christian traditions the contemplative life is a life which people expect to be lived by the monks and the priests, the people who have dedicated the whole of their lives to God in an explicit way. Orthodoxy expects all of its people to live a contemplative life. For Orthodox the whole of life has to have an approach, which is centered on Christ. admin 02 December 2008 Source: An Orthodox Christian Journal for Doubting Thomases Why is it so common for people to refer to orthodox Christianity (with a small ‘o’) and to Orthodoxy meaning two different things? Do people often get confused? Yes. Small ‘o’ orthodoxy, when it refers to Christianity, refers to any Christianity, which is theologically orthodox, that is Christianity, which defends and proclaims traditionally orthodox non-heretical viewpoints. In this context, orthodox Christianity with a small ‘o’ would not be restricted simply to one confession, the Orthodox church, but would refer to all Christians who proclaims the central doctrines such as the Trinity, the Incarnation, the two natures of Christ, that is that Christ is both God and human being, and uphold the doctrines like the virgin birth and the bodily resurrection, the necessity of the Church, the sacraments and the Scriptures, this sort of things. So, in fact, it would be quite possible to be an evangelical, who is an orthodox Christian, or an angelical, a Roman Catholic, or whatever. There are Christians within all these confessions, who could safely be said to reflect an orthodox Christian viewpoint. However, Orthodox Christianity, when ‘Orthodox’ has capital ‘O’ refers to what people in the West would call Eastern Orthodox Christianity, that is the tradition within Christianity held by the Orthodox churches, and that’s a totally different thing. |
| A Delegation of the Russian Church Abroad Brings the Kursk-Root Icon of the Mother of God to the Land of the Rising Sun admin 08 November 2013 On Thursday, November 7, 2013 , a delegation of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, headed by His Eminence Archbishop Kyrill of San Francisco and Western America brought the Kursk-Root Icon of the Mother of God “of the Sign” to the land of St Nicholas of Japan, Equal-to-the-Apostles. Greeted at Narita Airport by Protopriest Nikolai Katsyuban and the parishioners of the representative office of the Russian Orthodox Church, the delegation headed for the Monastery of St Sophia, where an akathist devoted to the Mother of God was performed. The delegation then headed for the ancient capital of Kyoto. Here the miracle-working icon will visit Annunciation Cathedral, where Divine Liturgy will be celebrated, after which the delegation will visit the homes of local Orthodox Christians. Source: ROCOR Tweet Donate Share Code for blog A Delegation of the Russian Church Abroad Brings the Kursk-Root Icon of the Mother of God to the Land of the Rising Sun admin On Thursday, November 7, 2013 , a delegation of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia, headed by His Eminence Archbishop Kyrill of San Francisco and Western America brought the Kursk-Root Icon of the Mother of God " of the Sign " to the land of St Nicholas of Japan, ... 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. |
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