Tag Archives: God

‘’My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9) To keep St Paul from being too elated by the abundance of revelations, a thorn was given to him in the flesh, a messenger of Satan, to harass him, to keep him from being too elated. Three times he besought the Lord about …

In this gospel, Jesus teaches us that the only way we can overcome the evil in this world, is through prayer and fasting. The incident in today’s Gospel took place immediately after the Transfiguration. At the Transfiguration three of our Lord’s disciples, Peter, James and John saw our Lord Jesus Christ as He truly is, shining with the glory of …

By Bishop Theophilos of Campania[1] Translated and annotated from the original Greek[2] By Fr GEORGE DION DRAGAS PhD, DD Protopresbyter *1. The Mystery of the Incarnation. God who is All-Powerful could have liberated the human race from the hands of the Devil by a single command. Had he done that, however, we would have known only his All-Powerfulness, which we …

Hymn 1 This is the day that gladdened them, the Prophets, Kings, and Priests, for in it were their words fulfilled, and thus were the whole of them indeed performed! For the Virgin this day brought forth Immanuel in Bethlehem. The voice that of old Isaiah spoke,[1] today became reality. He was born there who in writing should tell the Gentiles’ number! The Psalm that David once sang, by its fulfilment came today! The word that Micah once spoke,[2]  today had …

By St. Nikolai Velimirovich Prologue From Ochrid, December 25 The Nativity of Our Lord, God and Savior Jesus Christ “But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son” (Galatians 4:4) to save the human race. And when nine months were fulfilled from the Annunciation, when the Archangel Gabriel had appeared to the Most-holy Virgin in …

I behold a new and wondrous mystery! My ears resound to the Shepherd’s song, piping no soft melody, but chanting full forth a heavenly hymn. The Angels sing! The Archangels blend their voices in harmony! The Cherubim hymn their joyful praise! The Seraphim exalt His glory! All join to praise this holy feast, beholding the Godhead here on earth, and …

Saint Gregory Thaumaturgos, who lived from about 213 AD until about 270 AD, was the Bishop of Neo-Caesarea. We behold now a great and wondrous mystery. Shepherds with cries of joy come forth as messengers to the sons of mankind, not on their hilly pastures with their flocks conversing and not in the field with their sheep frolicking, but rather …

THE WORD BECAME FLESH A Sermon by St John of Kronstadt on the Nativity of Christ The Word became flesh; that is, the Son of God, co-eternal with God the Father and with the Holy Spirit, became human – having become incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary. O, wondrous, awesome and salvific mystery! The One Who had …

By Monk Moses the Athonite *1. When he would Liturgize he would become another man. Those attending church would hear various sounds from the Holy Altar from his heavenly visitors. They would kneel and chant “Lord have mercy”. *2. One day the Saint said to his chanter: “I had so many saints today that I didn’t have enough room to …

How can we acquire the grace of God in our hearts? St Isaac the Syrian said: ‘truly pure in heart are those who regard everyone as clean and who consider no one who exists as unrighteous or corrupt. They see everyone as a saint and all-holy, and they do not discern the righteous    from the sinner’. Therefore, if we …