Lenten Reflections & Exhortations

The Church Fathers have much to say about how we should approach Great Lent and Holy Week in all its aspects – fasting, prayer, our actions. They recognise that simply going through the motions of abstaining from certain kinds of foods while not paying attention to how we live our lives amounts to following the letter of the law, not …

A SPIRITUAL CHECKLIST Orthodox Christians recite a prayer during Great Lent that is described by Fr. Alexander Schmemann as a “check list” for our spiritual lives. This prayer, given by St. Ephraim the Syrian in the fourth century, is commonly called the “Lenten Prayer:” O Lord and Master of my life! Take from me the spirit of sloth, faint-heartedness, lust …

When a man leaves on a journey, he must know where he is going. Thus with Lent. Above all, Lent is a spiritual journey and its destination is Easter, “the Feast of Feasts.” It is the preparation for the “fulfillment of Pascha, the true Revelation.” We must begin, therefore, by trying to understand this connection between Lent and Easter, for …

Fr.George Dion. Dragas We have entered the period of Great Lent, and our Church calls us to observe the traditional fast and prayer. Several people will raise again the questions why should we fast, or how much should we fast, etc. The following thoughts provide some answers to the general questions which are raised at this time both inside and …

By Monk Moses the Athonite The main elements of Great Lent are prayer and fasting. Prayer presupposes faith. Without prayer one is helpless, insecure, blind and alone. Tied to the earth, to matter, one is not aware that they can fly high, to shine in the heavens, to have needed heavenly assistance. They are magnetized, tied, attached to the perishable …