Simple but Profound Miracles of our Living Orthodox Faith (part 1)

1. Did you know that the flowers and basil from the Holy Cross that we get from the priest on the feast of the Exultation of the Holy Cross can catch yeast, and because it makes the dough rise wonderfully, we can make bread [prosforo] for the Divine Liturgy?

2. Did you know that holy water that is blessed in church by the Orthodox priest for the Holy Feast of Theophany or any other feast, as long as you keep it, will not spoil?

3. Did you know that in Jerusalem at the All-Holy Tomb of Christ, every year on Holy Saturday a Holy Fire miraculously comes only to the Orthodox Patriarch? A pilgrimage will convince you.

4. Did you know that every year on Mount Tabor in Jerusalem on Aug. 6, the Day of the Transfiguration of our Savior, a light-bearing Cloud appears, which covers the site of the monastery and illuminates the perimeter all night?

Elder Paisios said…

“God will never work a miracle in order to demonstrate His power, and thus acquire more believers.  He works miracles to cover up human weaknesses. …”

-Elder Paisios

About miracles

God, if He wishes to, can make with one of His miracles everybody instantly believe. However He does not do so, because He does not wish to exercise force on man’s free will; man will then end up believing in God, not out of gratefulness or due to God’s excessive kindness, but due to His supernatural power.

-Elder Paisios

Question about Eucharistic Miracles

Hello, I am Orthodox. I have a question concerning the so-called RC eucharistic miracles, miracles in which the Catholics claim that there are instances the eucharistic bread and wine have been visibly transformed into bread flesh and blood. If true, can that be compatible with Orthodox theolgy, which claims that there is no grace in the sacraments of the hrertics?

ANSWER:

Such miracles - Eucharistic transformations, lights or crosses in the sky - cannot and should not be used for theological or theological validation, be it within Orthodoxy or in regards to Roman Catholicism. Also, we should not make definite statements as to what God, who is the Sovereign Lord, can or cannot do. This attitude is severely condemned in Amos 9 and Malachi 1. Finally, must be very careful as to the issue of schism and heresy. The early Synods and Councils were willing to reunite the Novatianists and even Arians without ever denying the reality of their sacraments since they even received their clergy. There are several factors that will determine whether a Church (i.e. the local Church) is in fact a Church, as can be noted in Revelation 1-3; (1) the historic presence and apostolic continuity of that community (2) the orthodoxy (which may occasionally fluctuate) of the community (3) the morality of the people and clergy. There have been times when not just local Churches but entire Patriarchates (for example Constantinople during the years of iconoclasm) where in heresy and yet no one denied - after the fact - that the mysteries were still the mysteries of the Church. Or what about the Church at Alexandria when it was ruled several times by the Arians? At the same, time, there are clearly thresholds where a particular (local) Church is so estranged on the 3 points listed above that there is almost no assurance that the Church is indeed being manifested in that Eucharistic gathering.

A question about Holy Snakes

Hey, I am currently studying this festival at school for my Religious Education class, could you shed some light on this for me? & also why in the story the nuns were turned into snakes when in religion the snake can be seen to represent evil.Thanks!

Hello lancerboy !

Sure, I’ll tell you more about the Holy Snakes of Theotokos.

Snakes venerate the Theotokos the 15th of August

The phenomenon of the Holy Snakes of the Virgin Maryhas been occurring for centuries during the festivities to the Theotokos between August 5 and August 15 in the village of Markopoulo on the island of Kefalonia, Greece. 

The small black snakes appear at the church of Panagia of Langouvarda on the site of a monastery, established as a nunnery and dedicated to Our Lady of Langouvarda.
The myth about these snakes is attached to the year the monastery was attacked by pirates in 1705. The nuns prayed fervently to the Virgin Mary for protection and were subsequently transformed into the snakes to avoid being taken as prisoners.

The snakes have a small cross on their head and their tongues are also in the shape of a cross. They are known to belong to the Telescopus fallax species, also known as the European Cat Snake, and they appear in and around the courtyard of the church, on the walls and on the bell tower. The snakes show no fear while the services are held and are harmless during the festivities. As soon as the Liturgy concludes on the 15th of August, they become hostile and aggressive and disappear back into the wilderness of the area. The snakes cannot be found until the following year.

The inhabitants of the villages consider them to be holy, collecting them and setting them on the silver icon of the Virgin of the Snakes (Panagia Fidoussa). It has been documented by the locals that during World War II and the year of the island’s destructive 1953 earthquake in August, the snakes failed to appear. The locals now use this as a sign that if the snakes do not show just before the 15th of August that something bad is imminent.

(alsoo see Greek web-page: http://orthodox-world.pblogs.gr/2008/07/h-panagia-h-fidiwtissa-sthn-kefalonia-to-thayma-me-ta-fidakia.html)*

* you can translate this with Google Translator

About the myth, there are two versions: 1) The nuns are transformed in snakes, 2) Theotokos send snakes and they surround the monastery in order to prevent the nuns. But, to me, the myth doesn’t matter as much as the fact that the snakes continue to appear since then.

As far as your question about evil and snakes, yes, snakes are a symbol for evil, but not nesesserily in this case.

Anyway, I hope that I helped, and I promise that I’ll search more about your questions and answer you as soon as possible. It would be nice if you activate your ask box :)

Kefalonia (Greece) - Holy Snakes of Virgin Mary

An interesting photo. Is this a miracle?

This happened when an old lady died. In this photo you can see a light like cross. There is not a window thereby. As the blogger of diefxontonagion.blogspot has written, none of the people who were there saw the light.

What’s your opinion? Is this a miracle?

Love is enough

Love alone is enough to make a miracle happen. Neither Prayer nor the Komboskini (Prayer rope) have such power.

From the book:  ”Mother Gabriel, The Ascetic of Love”, by Sister Gabriel.

Saint Nektarios said about miracles

During the periods before Nativity and Pascha we often see programs and stories explaining how the miraculous events depicted in the Bible couldn’t have happened.

But St. Nektarios of Aegina explains miracles like this:

Miracles are not impossible from a logical standpoint, and right reason does not deny them. Natural laws do not have the claim to be the only ones, nor are they threatened with being overturned by the appearance of other laws, supernatural ones, which also are conducive to the development and furtherance of creation…Miracles are a consequence of the Creator’s love for His creatures.

Colton Burpo: The Little Boy Who Has Been In Heaven

The Holy Snakes of Virgin Mary

An icon of Virgin Mary wipes (Jerusalem 2002)

A miracle of Saint Irene Chrysovalantou (28 July)

St. Irene prays in mid-air and cypress trees bow before her

One night a sister of the nunnery noticed St. Irene praying in the outer yard of the convent. Our venerable mother’s feet were not touching the ground but rather she was standing in the air about two yards above the ground! Near her there were two extremely tall cypress trees. So long as our glorious saint was praying the two cypress trees bowed down to the ground and waiting for our venerable mother to finish her prayer. When finished with her prayer St Irene touched the treetops and blessed them in the sign of the cross as they returned to their original position! The nun saw this amazing site and became frightened. She watched this strange event for three hours. She went so far as to check the cell of her abbess in order to make sure that she was not dreaming. It was not a dream. So was the nun terrified that she did not mention the event to the others. Several days later the nuns noticed two handkerchiefs tied to the tops of the two cypress trees. Our venerable mother had tied those two handkerchiefs there for the glory of God because many times the trees venerate her. Awed by this strange sight, one sister began to ask another, by whom, and how, and when might these handkerchiefs been hung on the tops of such tall and slender trees. Then the sister who had seen the above stated miracle explained to the other nuns how the cypress trees bowed when their abbess prayed. On hearing this, the other nuns were filled with joy and began to cry and even scolded the sister because she did not wake them so that they also might see the miracle. When St. Irene learned that this nun had made known this great sign she became scandalized. She called the nun before her and asked her, “If you saw me, as a human being that I am, fall into sin would you tell everyone what sin I had committed?” Then our venerable mother warned this nun along with all the others, that if they ever reported another miracle as long as she lived that they would receive a very strict penance. The sisters saw countless other miraculous signs during our holy mother’s life, but for fear of being chastised, they did not make them known to anyone.

The incorrupt body of Orthodox Saint John Jacob from Hozeva, between Jerusalem and Jericho.