But I say to you, the Lord says, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, pray for those who persecute you. Why did He command these things? So that He might free you from hatred, sadness, anger and grudges, and might grant you the greatest possession of all, perfect love, which is impossible to possess except by the one who loves all equally in imitation of God.
- St. Maximos the Confessor
Hello dear,
We’ll all definitelly pray for Russia and Japan. Our brothers and sisters there need our prayers, so let’s send them a wave of prayers!
Thanks for informing us, Christ is Risen!
An Englishwoman found herself poised to reject both prayer and God because, burdened as she was by so much torment in asking the question “How can I discover prayer?”, she had received formulaic answers from others. Hearing that Fr. Sophrony had come to France, she sought him out and asked him the same question.
Fr. Sophrony replied to her, “With God there’s no need to play the politician. Turn to the Lord, who is in your heart, just as you are.” And she found such potent prayer, that as Fr Sophrony said of her, she would pray for hours together with her head touching the floor. That is no small thing for a Westerner. That lady was baptised Orthodox many years ago now.
- Told by Fr. Rafail Noica. Translation from Greek. Source.
MOST holy Theotokos, save us.
O VIRGIN, who hast such beauty, in whom God’s light shineth, make me bright, make me beautiful in all manner of good things, that I might cry out: Praise the Lord and exalt him to all the ages.
Gate of light, open unto me the shining gate of repentance, revealing to me every straight path of righteousness which leadeth unto the doors of the divine will.
Most holy, pure lady, thou didst bear beyond telling the holy Word who sanctifieth the faithful; beseech him, that he make my lowly soul all holy now, for it is stained with evil.
A clear running river, a spring of incorruption, came forth from thee, holy lady; therefore I cry to thee: dry up the running streams of my evils, O pure lady, by the rains of thy intercessions.
- From the Matins on Wednesdays. (this icon is the Orthodox icon of our Lady the Rose Unfaded or “το Ρόδον το Αμάραντον” as we call it in greek)
If it concerns itself with things divine, the soul becomes a light to others, it inspires them to glorify God.
- St. Nikitas Stithatos
Hello my dear friend! Christ is Risen!
Thanks for your kind comments..! I always feel great when someone says that the blog’s content has an impact in his/her soul :) That’s it’s purpose, that’s why I am still here!
God bless you always!
It is absolutely scandalous to say “I don’t feel like praying.” Such a thing is an offense to God, a true blasphemy. That we pray must be absolute, unchanging rule inour lives. We must pray no matter what the cost because it really is a matter of life and death. We don’t decide to breath because of our good will, we don’t think about whether it’s really necessary to breath, we never ask why. We know that is we stop breathing we will die. We must treat prayer with the same attitude, that it is absolutely essential to even staying alive and that there is no question that we need to do it at all times. We should say to ourselves “That’s how it is, period!”. We must stick to a rule of prayer and keep it at all costs.
- Elder Sergei of Vanves
If you knew you own illness, you wouldn’t know the illness of others. I am not saying you shouldn’t be concerned with their pain and suffering, but you mustn’t preoccupy yourself with other’s faults. If a person is not concerned with his self, the tempter devil will lead him to be concerned with other’s faults. If we work on ourselves, then we know ourselves and come to know others as well. Otherwise, we judge others by the wrong assumptions we make about ourselves.
- Elder Paisios
At every hour we must weigh our daily affairs attentively, and as much as we are able, without fail lighten their burden through repentance, if we want to overcome the passions with the help of Jesus. It is also necessary to examine whether we carry out all our outward actions through God’s will, before God and for God Alone, so that the feelings (passionate) do not deceive us like foolish people.
- Saint Hesychius
Do not try to conceal yourself, covering your nakedness with a fig leaf and hiding in the bushes from the Lord, who comes to you in the conscience and exposes you. Blame yourself completely, and ask forgiveness without placing blame on anyone else.
- Saint Theophan the Recluse
Saint Helena also known as Saint Helen, Helena Augusta or Helena of Constantinople (ca. 246/50 – 18 August 330) was the consort of EmperorConstantius, and the mother of Emperor Constantine the Great. She is traditionally credited with finding the relics of the True Cross, with which she is often represented in Christian iconography.
Helena’s birthplace is not known with certainty. The 6th-century historian Procopius is the earliest authority for the statement that Helena was a native of Drepanum, in the province of Bithynia in Asia Minor. Her son Constantine renamed the city “Helenopolis” after her death in 330, which supports the belief that the city was her birthplace.
She is considered by the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Eastern and Roman Catholic churches, as well as by the Anglican Communion and Lutheran Churches as a saint, famed for her piety. Her feast day as a saint of the Orthodox Christian Church is celebrated with her son on 21 May, the “Feast of the Holy Great Sovereigns Constantine and Helen, Equal to the Apostles.”
Saint Constantine the Great defeated the emperors Maxentius and Licinius during civil wars. He also fought successfully against the Franks, Alamanni, Visigoths, and Sarmatians during his reign — even resettling parts of Dacia which had been abandoned during the previous century. Constantine built a new imperial residence at Byzantium, naming it New Rome. However, in Constantine’s honor, people called it Constantinopole, which would later be the capital of what is now known as the Byzantine Empire for over one thousand years. Because of this, he is thought of as the founder of the Byzantine Empire.
Constantine is perhaps best known for being the first Roman Emperor to endorse Christianity, traditionally presented as a result of an omen — a chi-rho in the sky, with the inscription “By this sign shalt thou conquer” — before his victory in the Battle of Milvian Bridge in 312, when Constantine is said to have instituted the new standard to be carried into battle, called the labarum.
Christian historians ever since Lactantius have adhered to the view that Constantine “adopted” Christianity as a kind of replacement for the official Roman paganism. Though the document called the “Donation of Constantine” was proved a forgery (though not until the 15th century, when the stories of Constantine’s conversion were long-established “facts”) it was attributed as documenting the conversion of the Roman Empire to Christianity for centuries. Even Christian skeptics have accepted this formulation, though seeing Constantine’s policy as a political rather than spiritual move.
Saints Constantine and Helen, Equal to the Apostles (commemorated by the Orthodox Church on May 21 - New Calendar)
Troparion (Tone 8)
Having seen the figure of the Cross in the heavens,
And like Paul not having received his call from men,
O Lord, Your apostle among rulers, the Emperor Constantine,
Has been set by Your hand as ruler over the Imperial City
That he preserved in peace for many years,
Through the prayers of the Theotokos, O only lover of mankind.
Kontakion (Tone 3)
Today Constantine and his mother Helen
Reveal the precious Cross,
The weapon of the faithful against their enemies.
For our sakes, it has been shown to be a great sign, and fearsome in battle.
