Byzantine, Texas

A photo from the OCMC mission project in Tanzania and daily prayer for future missionaries. Christ our God, the source of wisdom and Bridegroom of the Church, You called the Apostles to follow You and to become fishers of men, giving them authority to cast out unclean spirits and to heal every disease and infirmity. You commissioned them to make disciples of all nations and to feed your sheep. On the day of Pentecost, You sent the Holy Spirit to fortify them, enabling them to fill people?s lives with Your saving love. Continue to act today, loving Savior, for the good of Your Holy Church. Send Your Holy Spirit upon dedicated men and women; inspire them to respond to Your Great Commission and to serve You as missionaries, for the building up of Your Body, the Church. Through the prayers of all the holy missionary saints, strengthen all who are preparing to serve Your Holy Church in humility and love. For You are a loving and merciful God, and unto You we give glory, togeth...

To settle some possible confusion, Arch. Grigorios is named for Gregory Palamas. In a rather fortuitous turn of events he received the titular see of Nyssa. JOHNSTOWN, PA ( ACROD ) – The Holy and Sacred Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople on Thursday, August 30, 2012, elected unanimously the Very Reverend Archimandrite Grigorios Tatsis to be the Diocesan Bishop of the American Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Diocese of the USA with the title of Bishop of Nyssa. His name was submitted to the Holy and Sacred Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate by His Eminence, Archbishop Demetrios of America, Locum Tenens of the American Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Diocese of the USA, following the submission of his candidacy by the diocesan priests at a Special Assembly convened on July 14, 2012 at Christ the Saviour Cathedral. The newly elected bishop will travel to Constantinople for the official ceremonies of announcement and acceptance, known as Mikro and Mega Minima, which will t...

I had seen the earlier blog commentary on this before the official announcement, but felt it more responsible to wait until conjecture turned into a certainty. That said, accusation is not guilt. ( OCA-DMW ) - Dear Clergy and Faithful of the Diocese of the Midwest, Christ is in our midst! It is with regret that I inform you that a formal complaint was made against me last Friday, August 24, 2012. The allegations are that I made unwelcome written and spoken comments to a woman that she regarded as an inappropriate crossing of personal boundaries and an abuse of my pastoral authority. I deny these allegations and I plan to respond in due course. According to the OCA's policies, I am on paid administrative leave until the investigation is completed. Fr. John Zdinak, the Chancellor of the Diocese, will be the temporary administrator in my absence. Please pray for all of us who are involved in this matter. Your Shepherd in Christ, +MATTHIAS Bishop of Chicago and the ...

These sorts of stories turn my stomach. I feel empathy for the whole Church, for the parishioners and faithful of the diocese and at the same time I feel such pity for what the burglar has done to himself. ( Moscow Times ) - Relics of several prominent Russian Orthodox saints were stolen from a St. Petersburg cathedral along with gold and silver jewelry, regional police said Wednesday. The relics were stolen Tuesday night from the Church of St. Catherine the Great Martyr along with a communion chalice and five neck crosses, the police said in a statement. The relics were of Prince Alexander Nevsky, Saint Nicholas the miracleworker, and Pyotr and Fevronia, Interfax reported, citing the police. The robber climbed through a window and broke into the cabinet of the church's chief priest, taking the chalice and the crosses, the police statement said. The relics had been kept in the reliquary icon, which was wrenched apart, it said. Police opened a criminal investigation on...

If you are familiar with your OCA calendar-related history of conflicts, jurisdictional battles, and acrimony, the idea of an Old Calendar mission parish is an interesting one to be sure. That it is in the Diocese of the South adds even more flavor to the story. Jacksonville, FL ( OCA ) - The increase in the number of immigrants from central and eastern Europe during the past two decades has witnessed the planting of a growing number of new communities across North America. The most recent mission plant—Annunciation Church in Jacksonville, FL, a mission effort of the city’s Saint Justin Martyr Church—will celebrate its first Divine liturgy on Sunday, September 2, 2012. In the words of Archpriest Ted Pisarchuk, rector of Saint Justin’s, Annunciation is “the first ever exclusively Russian speaking parish of the Diocese of the South. Hieromonk Arkady [Migunov], the priest-in-charge, will celebrate services in Slavonic following the Old Calendar.” Annunciation Church’s background...

An article so good I plan to reread it tonight to my children. Last night we went over the events themselves related to her falling asleep (as an aside, I recommend On the Dormition of Mary which I enjoyed reading a few years ago) so this should be a wonderful follow up. It also answers and important question for all faithful: "Why is the Death of the Theotokos a Feast Day?" ( pravmir.com ) by Archpriest Andrei Tkachev - It is possible to love Christ the way a loyalist, although he lives very far away, loves his king. He hasn’t seen the king’s face or looked into his eyes, but he loves him in his heart. He cuts out pictures from newspapers and hangs them on his wall. He refrains from work on royal holidays. But to love the king’s mother is possible only once one has entered into the royal chambers and drawn near to what is hidden from extraneous eyes: the life not only of the king himself, but of the royal family. It is necessary to be one of the king’s own in order...

H/T: Charming the Birds from the Trees This is the first in a seven part series on icons. It's quite professionally done and looks to be related to these people and is suitable for enthusiasts and catechumens alike. Enjoy!

At your departing, O Virgin Theotokos, to Him Who was ineffably born of you, James, the first bishop and brother of the Lord, was there, and so was Peter, the most honored pinnacle of the theologians, and the whole sacred choir of the Apostles. In words of theology that showed forth heavenly things they sang the praises of the divine and amazing mystery of the dispensation of Christ, and they rejoiced, O all-praised Virgin, as they buried your body, the source of Life, which had received God. On high, the all-holy and most venerable angelic Powers, in amazement at the wonder, bowed and said to one another: “Lift up your gates, and receive her who bore the Creator of heaven and earth!” So we too celebrate your memory and cry out to you, all-praised Lady: “Raise up the horn of Christians, and save our souls!”

( SVOTS ) - Whenever someone speaks of “American Orthodoxy,” there is usually an unspoken understanding that the term refers to North American Orthodoxy: the United States, Canada, and sometimes Mexico. This way of speaking is indeed convenient, considering that the majority of Orthodox parishes in the Western Hemisphere are still located in North America. However, in the past few years a great change has occurred in Latin America that makes it increasingly inaccurate to focus on North America as the western outpost of Orthodoxy. Just two years ago, in 2010, the Orthodox Church received a large group of Guatemalan converts numbering in the hundreds of thousands. Now Guatemala, and possibly all of Latin America, holds tremendous promise of becoming fertile ground for the Orthodox Christian Church. The seed of Orthodoxy in Guatemala was planted by the nuns of the Hogar Rafael Ayau, an Orthodox orphanage in Guatemala City. Many people are familiar with the incredible work of Moth...

My wife is a big supporter of this event. She greatly enjoyed last year's get-together . You can fly into Pittsburgh (PIT) or even Johnstown airport (JST) if you are not within driving distance. Ligonier, PA ( OCA ) - The fourth annual Clergy Wives Weekend will be held at Antiochian Village here November 9-11, 2012. The pan-Orthodox gathering of spiritual refreshment and fellowship, conducted in memory of Khouria Joanne Abdalah, is open to clergy wives of all jurisdictions. It offers a weekend away from parish and family responsibilities, focusing on worship, recollection, and presentations. Speakers include Mother Magdalena of Holy Transfiguration Monastery, Ellwood City, PA, who will speak on “The Peace that Passes Understanding: The ABCs of Aquiring a Peaceful Heart.” Khouria Janet Shadid, a licensed social worker and counselor, will deliver a presentation titled “Bullying: Love Thy Neighbor as Thyself.” The weekend’s coordinating committee includes Laila Ellias, Mira...

( express.co.uk ) - A SUGGESTED sermon produced by the Church of England for clerics attempting to tackle the stigma of mental health pulls no punches. Written by the Rev Eva McIntyre on behalf of the Church’s Archbishops’ Council and the Time to Change mental health campaign, it suggests John the Baptist, St Paul, St Francis and other figures from the Bible may all have been mentally ill. It even asks followers to consider accusations made in the New Testament that Jesus "had lost his mind". It reads: "Many of the people we read about in Bible stories might today be considered as having mental health issues. "For example, ‘Would Jesus’ family maybe on occasion have said, ‘Cousin John is a bit odd, bless him!’ when John the Baptist took to his eccentric style of life? "It has long been thought that King Saul, in the books of Samuel, was displaying mood swings that suggest he had bi-polar disorder and some think that St Paul’s Damascus Road experience ...

In the Internet service world from whence I came there was an axiom that goes along the lines of, "The only perfect network is one without users on it." A similar thing could be said, tongue-in-cheek, about the perfect parish. MADRID ( NY Times ) — A case of suspected vandalism in a church in a northeastern village in Spain has turned out to be probably the worst art restoration project of all time. An elderly woman stepped forward this week to claim responsibility for disfiguring a century-old “ecce homo” fresco of Jesus crowned with thorns, in Santuario de la Misericordia, a Roman Catholic church in Borja, near the city of Zaragoza. Ecce homo, or behold the man, refers to an artistic motif that depicts Jesus, usually bound and with a crown of thorns, right before his crucifixion. The woman, Cecilia Giménez, who is in her 80s, said on Spanish national television that she had tried to restore the fresco, which she called her favorite local representation of Jesus, b...

Beirut, Lebanon ( OCP ) - The Syrian Orthodox Church of Antioch and All East may shift their headquarters to Beirut, Lebanon as the Church administration has been deeply affected by the political crisis in Damascus and the rest of Syria. Holy Synod of the Church will begin on 11th of September at Beirut and several important decisions are expected to be made. The Church headquarters have been functioning at Beirut since the development of the internal crisis in Syria. Patriarch Ignatius Zakka Iwas will not return to Damascus after the treatment in Germany. The Ancient Syrian Orthodox Church where the belt of Holy Theotokos rests has been destroyed in bombing. The holy belt has been saved since it was moved from the Church in advance. The Aleppo Diocesan headquarters of the Church has suffered . More then 400 houses of Syrian Orthodox Christians have been destroyed and robbed. Most of the faithful have already migrated to Europe and USA. There are only a handful of Monks remaining...

( OCA ) - Holy Trinity Church, Parma, OH, will be the site of the 17th All-American Council of the Orthodox Church in America, a one-day gathering on Tuesday, November 13, 2012—the Feast of Saint John Chrysostom—at which a new Primate of the Orthodox Church in America will be elected. “The Holy Synod of Bishops met in Detroit on August 13, 2012 and decided that they needed to hold the special Council as soon as possible so the work of the Church could move forward,” said Archpriest Eric G. Tosi, OCA Secretary. “It will be called the 17th All-American Council because it meets the statutory requirements as a special Council and due to the precedence of the 12th All American Sobor in 1965.” [Prior to 1970, such Councils were referred to as “Sobors.” Visit here for additional information.] “The bishops expressed their desire to hold a low key and penitential gathering, keeping costs as low as possible for parishes, dioceses, and the OCA inasmuch as it constitutes an unbudgeted expense...

( Newsmax ) - Archbishop Demetrios will deliver benediction on the third night of the Republican National Convention Wednesday, August 29. The archbishop of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America will anchor a night of speeches and other events that includes an address by GOP vice presidential nominee Rep. Paul Ryan along with 2008 standard bearer Sen. John McCain. Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus said in a statement that "we will devote Wednesday night to showing the country that Mitt Romney's 'Plan for a Stronger Middle Class' will restore our country as the best place in the world to find a job, start a business, or hire a worker." Archbishop Demetrios is no stranger to the political stage. He delivered invocations at the Democratic National Convention and the Republican National Convention in 2008 (pictured above) .

From the blog On Coptic Nationalism , a post on the Coptic practice of cruciform branding that survived into the 13 th century. Instead of tattooing a cross on their right wrist as many Copts do today to distinguish themselves as Christians, the Copts of the 13th century used to brand crosses on the forehead, temples, arms and knees of their children using hot iron. It was a sign of defiance as tattooing is today. Before I leave Jacques de Vitry (or James of Vitry), the Crusader and Bishop of Acre at the time of the Fifth Crusade (1213 – 1221 AD), I uses a passage in his Historia Orientalis, which he wrote in 1220, to highlight a Coptic tradition which is now extinct and been replaced by something new. As we have seen in two previous articles, de Vitry saw the Copts as heretics, and regarded some of their practices as repugnant and un-Christian. He was particularly critical of three Coptic practices of the times, which he called errors... Complete article here .

( ROCOR-EAD ) - On Monday, August 13, the First Hierarch of the Russian Church Abroad, His Eminence Hilarion, Metropolitan of Eastern America & New York, released a statement regarding the Entrance of the Theotokos Monastery in Maryland. Dear in the Lord Reverend Fathers, Beloved brothers and sisters, As of July 17/30, according to Directive № 07.113.12 , the Monastery of the Entrance of the Theotokos, a women’s community located in Union Bridge, Maryland, is no longer a monastic institution of the Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia. Certain spiritual practices and references to spiritual authority contained within the charter of the monastery are at variance with the norms and traditions of ROCOR. We have released the convent to seek canonical reception into the ecclesiastical jurisdiction whence they originally came, a diocese of the Church of Greece. +HILARION First Hierarch of the Russian Orthodox Church Abroad Metropolitan of Eastern America and New York

( NCR ) - There was a time in the history of the Church in America that Eastern-rite Catholics were regarded with some suspicion by the dominant Latin-rite Catholic Church. They were forbidden to continue their tradition of allowing married men to be ordained to the priesthood, and Eastern-rite churches were expected to follow certain liturgical norms, including the installation of kneelers. (Traditionally, Eastern-rite Catholics stand during a good part of the liturgy, even during the consecration). The demands led many Eastern Catholics in the United States to leave for the Orthodox Church. But one of the documents of the Second Vatican Council, Orientalium Ecclesiarum, called upon Eastern Catholics to rediscover their authentic traditions, and Eastern Catholic Churches, though still relatively small, are thriving in the United States and elsewhere. Now, an Eastern Catholic priest, Father Mark Morozowich, has been appointed head of one of the United States’ premiere Catholi...

The blessing of new honey is a wonderful tradition. It is done traditionally on the first day of the Dormition Fast (specifically: on the Feast of the Procession of the Precious and Life-giving Cross) along with the blessing of water. I've posted on the event a few times in the past and, while it is not done by all the Orthodox Churches, it is catching on in many parishes across the US. More photos available here .

The question remains: When will the average layperson see a noticeable change? So far, beyond a handy "canonical parish finder" application, the Orthodox experience in America has not changed one iota. ( AOB ) - The 2012 Annual Meeting of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of North and Central America will be convened Monday through Wednesday, September 10 through 12 at the O’Hare Airport Hilton Hotel in Chicago, Illinois. This is the third Annual Meeting of the Assembly which consists of the sixty-six active hierarchs serving the Church in this geographic region: eleven residing in Canada, five in Mexico and fifty in the USA. The first annual meeting was convened in New York City in 2010 and the second in Chicago in 2011. Provided below is the schedule for the Meeting, a proposed agenda for the several business sessions and a Timeline synopsis of the Assembly’s activities from its inception up to the present. The prayers of all clergy, monastics and laity are ...

Helsinki, August 15 ( Interfax ) - A number of prominent public and culture figures and human rights activists in Finland have filed suit with the Helsinki police against Teivo Teivainen, a professor of the University of Helsinki, for an attempt to replay a stunt of the Russian feminist punk band Pussy Riot near the Orthodox Assumption Cathedral in Helsinki. "A criminal case has been initiated under two Finnish Criminal Code articles concerning the violation of religious tolerance rules," Johan Backman, a prominent Finnish human rights activist and an adjunct professor of the University of Helsinki, told Interfax on Wednesday. "The Finnish Criminal Code bans even an attempt to obstruct a religious service (Article 17-11) and any kind of humiliation of another person's faith in writing or in other forms (17-10). Wearing a mask at a public place and unsanctioned rallies are also prohibited. It is necessary to notify police beforehand in Finland," Backman s...

( British Orthodox ) - His Holiness Abune Paulos, Patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, appears to have suffered a heart attack yesterday and was admitted to Balcha Hospital in Addis Ababa, where he is reported to have died this morning (16 August), aged 76. He had served as Patriarch since 1992. Abune Paulos was in Cairo in March for the funeral of His Holiness Pope Shenouda III, where he delivered a dignified eulogy. Only recently, on 16 July, he met with President Mohamed Mursi during the African Union (AU) leaders’ meeting in Addis Ababa. Abba Seraphim announced that he had sent condolences to His Eminence Archbishop Antonios, the head of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church in Great Britain, assuring him of the prayers of the British Orthodox clergy and faithful in their loss.

Constantina R. Palmer is a Canadian currently living in Greece with her husband who serves as a deacon in the OCA. Aside from her experience in Byzantine chant and iconography, she holds a Master’s degree in Theology from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. Her new book, The Scent of Holiness , will be available in September from Conciliar Press. I have been a follower of her blog Lessons from a Monastery for some months and was delighted to hear that she had a book coming out. She has generously answered a few questions about her book in the following interview. What prompted you to write this book? A couple years ago a few monasteries caught on fire. They were separate incidents but all happened around the same time. I saw videos on the internet of one of the fires at a monastery my husband and I had visited and the images of the poor monastics crying and praying and making the sign of the cross while watching their monastery burn was what prompted me to write the b...

TORONTO, ONTARIO ( ACROD ) - The new school year of the Lived Theology School will commence on September 1st 2012 with the intake of the new full-time interns. Further applications are welcome for full-time interns for September and throughout the year for those who wish to live the LTS experience for the whole year or for shorter periods of time. All are welcome. Inquiries may be sent to the Prefect of LTS (Dn Pawel) at livedtheologyschool@yahoo.ca. The St. Maria of Paris Lived Theology School , an apostolate of the American Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Diocese, is an intern/live-in volunteer program that teaches and trains interns in both the theological and practical understanding of Orthodox mission. The program includes a balance between academic study, spiritual/liturgical life and practical work lived in community. "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach de...

More available here .

Met. Elpidophoros, not too subtly mentioned as a front-runner for the next Ecumenical Patriarch, was interviewed on modern Turkey. Enjoy. ( On Being ) - The second show from our recent trip to Istanbul. We meet a Dominican friar whose Christianity is inspired by the mystical tradition of Islam. And, an Eastern Orthodox bishop is creating what he calls a “dialogue of life” as a religious minority in this crucible of the ancient church.

Detrioit, MI ( OCA ) - The Holy Synod of Bishops of the Orthodox Church in America will hold a one-day meeting at Saint Andrew’s House here on Monday, August 13, 2012. In addition to His Eminence, Archbishop Nathaniel of Detroit and the Romanian Episcopate, Locum Tenens of the Metropolitan See, and the other hierarchs, Archpriest John Jillions, Chancellor; Archpriest Eric G. Tosi, Secretary; and Archpriest Leonid Kishkovsky, Director of External Affairs, will also be in attendance. Fathers John and Eric will offer updates on work in their respective areas, while Father Leonid will report on a variety of matters, including the recent visit he and His Grace, Bishop Alexander of Toledo and the Bulgarian Archdiocese, made to Kyiv, Ukraine in conjunction with the 20th anniversary of the election and enthronement of His Beatitude, Metropolitan Volodymyr of Kyiv and All Ukraine. High on the agenda will be a discussion concerning the date, place, and parameters of the special 17th elect...

I find the little details in this story most interesting. It's heartening to see such ancient customs live on. LARNACA, Cyprus ( Boston.com ) — Donning laurel and olive wreaths on his head like Olympic champions of antiquity, Cyprus’s first-ever Olympic medalist returned home a hero on Thursday with fans chanting his name. Holding banners reading ‘‘Immortal’’ and ‘‘You’ve made us all proud,’’ dozens of flag-waving Cypriots turned out at the island’s main airport, in the coastal town of Larnaca, to welcome Pavlos Kontides. Kontides won a sailing silver medal Monday in the Laser class, giving him the first medal won by Cyprus since the island nation began taking part in the games in 1980. His achievement is a welcome distraction for Cypriots as their island suffers a deep recession and seeks financial aid from European institutions. Celebrations started even before Kontides, 22, stepped off the plane. Fire engines formed an arc of water on the airport apron for the taxii...

( Orthodoxy, Then and Now ) - Russian gymnast Kseniia Afanaseva holds a portrait of an Orthodox Saint after her performance during the artistic gymnastics women's floor exercise final at the 2012 Summer Olympics, Tuesday Aug. 7, 2012, in London. Afanaseva placed the portrait near the mat prior to her performance. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

On August 12, the Feast Day of the Assumption of the Holy Mother of God, Divine Liturgy will be celebrated in the Mother Cathedral of Holy Etchmiadzin. Services will start at 10:30 a.m. Immediately following the conclusion of the Divine Liturgy, the Blessing of the Grapes service will be offered at the Saint Trdat open air altar.

( ROCOR ) - On 29 July 2012, Protopriest Alexander Lebedev, rector of Los Angelos's Holy Transfiguration Cathedral and secretary for inter-Orthodox relations at the Synod of Bishops of the Russian Church Abroad, performed the rite of consecration over a "Zenith-3SL" rocket. It is proposed that in mid-August, withn the context of the "Sea Launch" Program, it will place a communications satellite in orbit over the equator. The undertaking that is readying the rocket is the Russian cosmic rocket corporation "Energy". The basic portion of the rocket, the "Zenith-3SL", was prepared at the "YUZHMASH" factory in Dnepropetrovsk. On 24 June 2010, during His Holiness, Patriarch Kyrill's primatial visit to the Ukraine, that hierarch visited this company and laid the cornerstone for a new church. The launch-pad was prepared in Russia by RKK "Energy", whilethe main fairing was manufactured byBoeing, an American firm. Th...

From the blog The Sounding, a post entitled " Challenge to Orthodox Parents: Start Reading the Bible with your Kids " is reposted below. This story is not a surprise to me at all. I've been involved with Sunday School teaching for years now and the blank stares I get when I have asked even the most basic question have been cause for much wailing and gnashing of teeth. At our house we've made a game of it. I read a few chapters and then ask questions about what I've read. They get points for correct answers. What was Abraham called before he was called Abraham? What sign did God give Noah of the new covenant with mankind? How was Eve made? The children don't seem to care if the points turn into anything material, they just like the competition of it all. Commit to reading just a story a week to your kids. If the idea of explaining stories to your children seems daunting, start by listening to the Let Us Attend podcast on the way to church or on the way...

Diaconal instruction has always been problematic in this country. The primary impediment has been one of distance. Many of the programs I am familiar with require some residency at a seminary (often a few days a month or many days semi-annually). The cost of this for people not in the metro-area can be prohibitive. The second impediment plaguing many diaconate programs is poor administration. If you talk to people involved in these programs, paperwork is often a nightmare and getting prompt responses from administrators is nearly impossible. Thirdly, most diaconal programs offer courses that cannot be counted for seminary credit. Sometimes this is because the classes are thought to not be as demanding as those offered in seminaries and other times because no effort has been made to certify diaconal courses within the seminary program. Regardless, it seems to me to be built-in needless redundancy that benefits neither the candidates nor the seminaries of our country. ( OCA ) -...

Bishop Paul of Tanta ( Daily News Egypt ) - Coptic Christian Bishop Paul of Tanta will tell Copts to leave Egypt if the Church is not guaranteed religious jurisdiction. Bishop Paul, a representative of the Coptic Orthodox Church in the Constituent Assembly, is also threatening to leave the Assembly if Article II is not modified to his liking. Bishop Paul wants the contentious Article II of the constitution, which deals with the nature of the state as it relates to religious authority and principles, to include text guaranteeing that the Church will be given the mantel of authority for issues concerning Copts . “If this text is not added, I will tell the Copts: There is no longer a place for you in the land of Egypt, because it is not the right of the judiciary to rule on the clergy,” the Bishop told Al-Shorouk newspaper. The Bishop’s threat to leave Egypt taps into worries within the Coptic community and the country at large that Copts will leave if Egypt becomes more Islami...

( patriarchia.ru ) - Day of August 1, 2012 during the primatial visit to Nizhny Novgorod archdiocese, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill arrives in Nizhny Novgorod. On the square in front of the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral Holiness performed the rite of consecration of the 64-ton bell, "Cathedral" - the third largest in Russia. At the service sang choir of the Cathedral (choir - Kira Moleva). The first sound of made ​​Metropolitan Nizhny Novgorod and Arzamas Georgy and the governor of the Nizhny Novgorod Region VP Shantsev. His Holiness visited the cathedral, followed by the steps of the church turned to the crowd in the square: "It gives me great pleasure on the way from Moscow to visit the Diveevo in Nizhny Novgorod, visit this sacred place close to my heart, and sanctify the third largest bell of Holy Russia. You heard the powerful voice of this bell. What we, the Russian Orthodox people associate with that sound? On the one hand, this sound brin...

Crucession in Yaroslavl by Alexey Bogolyubov, 1863. As You were voluntarily crucified for our sake, Grant mercy to those who are called by Your name; Make all Orthodox Christians glad by Your power, Granting them victories over their adversaries, By bestowing on them the invincible trophy, Your weapon of peace! ( Orthodox Wiki ) - The Procession of the Precious Wood of the Life-giving Cross of the Lord is commemorated by the Church on August 1. It is the first of the three "Feasts of the Savior" in August. (The second is the great feastday of the Transfiguration, and the third is the Translation of the Image Not-Made-by-Hands on August 16.) It became a tradition to carry the wood of the Venerable Cross through the streets of Constantinople for the sanctification of the city starting in the beginning of August. This was done because illnesses were more common in August at that time. On the eve of the feast, it was taken out of the imperial treasury, and laid upon the alt...