On the day before Meatfare Sunday, on which we remember the Last Judgment, the Orthodox Church prays for those of its members who may have died unexpectedly because of wars, plagues, starvation, or any other sort of death while they were in a foreign country, or while they were traveling by sea, by…
Synaxis of the Three Hierarchs: Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian and John Chrysostom: During the eleventh century, disputes raged in Constantinople about which of the three hierarchs was the greatest. Some preferred Saint Basil (January 1), others honored Saint Gregory the Theologian…
The Hieromartyr Hippolytus, and the Martyrs Censorinus, Sabinus, Chryse the Virgin and 20 others suffered during the third century. When Saint Hippolytus, Bishop of Rome, learned of the suffering of the martyrs, he appeared before the governor despite his advanced years and rebuked the torturers…
Saint Zeno the Faster and Lover of Labor of the Far Caves of Kiev lived in the fourteenth century. In the Third Ode of the Canon to the Monks of the Far Caves, he is described as “resplendent in fasting.” His memory is also celebrated on August 28 and the second Sunday of Great Lent.
Saint Zeno, the disciple of Saint Basil the Great, was born in the city of Pontus into a rich family. He served at the court of the emperor Valens (364-378), among the soldiers who were sent out to deliver the imperial edicts. After the death of Valens, Saint Zeno left the world and settled in a…
The Holy Martyr Theophilus the New was born and raised in Constantinople. He was a commander of the Greek armies and a senator. During a time of war with enemies of the Byzantine Empire, Saint Theophilus was taken captive. The Arabs demanded he renounce Christ, but he remained faithful to…
Saint Peter, King of Bulgaria, was the son of the militant Bulgarian prince Simeon. Saint Peter was distinguished for his Christian piety, and he often turned to Saint John of Rila (August 18, October 19), asking his prayers, spiritual guidance and advice. King Peter concluded peace with Byzantium…
This highly-venerated icon of the Annunciation was discovered in the ruins of the ancient church of Saint John the Baptist on January 30, 1823. An elderly man, Michael Polyzoes, had a dream shortly before the Feast of the Annunciation in 1821, in which the Mother of God appeared to him in shining…
The Holy New Martyr Demetrius was born on October 9, 1818 in Sliven, Bulgaria. His parents had no children for the first eight years of their marriage. Their prayers to God were answered, and their sons Stephen and Demetrius were born. Demetrius was the younger son, and was brought up in a pious…
The Holy New Martyr Theodore was born in the city of Mytilene, where he married and raised children in Orthodox piety. He renounced Christ and accepted the Moslem religion, but soon repented of his sin, left his family and went to Mt. Athos. But even in the monastery Saint Theodore was deeply…