Source: Eastern American Diocese (ROCOR) His Holiness Kyrill, Patriarch of Moscow & All Russia, released an epistle to the entirety of the Russian Orthodox Church in connection with recent events in Ukraine. With the blessing of the First Hierarch of the Russian Church Abroad, His Eminence, Metropolitan Hilarion, the attached special petitions and prayerare to be read at all divine services for Meatfare Soul Saturday and Sunday in the parishes and monasteries of the Eastern American Diocese. Reverend archpastors and pastors, dear brothers and sisters – children of the Church! It is with dismay, pain, and alarm that I have followed…
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Source: BosNewsLife Listen to this BosNewsLife News report via Vatican Radio: http://www.bosnewslife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/warnow.mp3 By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife KYIV, UKRAINE (BosNewsLife)– The influential Ukrainian Orthodox Church (Kyiv Patriarchate) says it has removed prayers for the government from its liturgy, after as many as 100 people died when a truce broke down between security forces and anti-government protesters.Thursday’s clashes came while European Union ministers attempted to talk with the embattled president Viktor Yanukovich. Central Kyiv turned into a war zone. Demonstrators were running for cover as snipers and other security forces attacked them. Protesters, some of them wearing helmets, rushed…
Source: Orthodox Church in America YONKERS, NY [SVOTS/Deborah (Malacky) Belonick] – In a recent presentation delivered at Saint Vladimir’s Seminary here, Archimandrite Zacharias, a monk of the Monastery of Saint John the Baptist, Tolleshunt Knights by Maldon, Essex, England, inspired an audience of more than 100 people with what he termed “domestic theology”—that is, “simple things” in Church life that bear profound consequences. A podcast of his presentation is now available on Ancient Faith Radio. Father Zacharias, a disciple of Father Sophrony (of blessed memory], who was a disciple of Saint Silouan of Mount Athos, emphasized the importance of each Christian becoming…
Source: World Magazine by Raymond Ibrahim In a new video of the 12 Christian nuns kidnapped by rebels in Syria (see below), the nuns sit in a room while being questioned by an unseen man, presumably one of the captors. He asks them how they are, if they’ve been mistreated, etc. They respond that they are being treated fine, that they very much look forward to returning to their convent, that they heartily thank the world for its concern, and that they continually pray that God grant peace to all nations. Their words say one thing, their expressions and demeanor another. Put…
Source: The Salt Lake Tribune The conflict between the parish council and clergy at the Salt Lake Valley’s two Greek Orthodox churches has reached that faith’s highest authority: Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew. The patriarch, who lives in Turkey, instructed Archbishop Demetrios, who oversees the American Greek church, “to solve the problem immediately,” according to a recent article in The National Herald, a weekly Greek-American publication in New York. At issue in the four-year-long battle is the plan to divide the valley’s parish into two, a move that was pushed by the Denver-based Metropolitan Isaiah and two priests — the Rev. Michael Kouremetis…
Source: The National Herald By Theodore Kalmoukos NEW YORK – Santiago Catralava, the prominent architect selected to design the New St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church at Ground Zero, has a record replete with problematic projects and designs and legal problems, TNH has learned. De Zeen Magazine’s January 2 article, “Newer Story Older Story, Valencia to sue Calatrava over Falling Masonry at City of Arts and Sciences,” stated among other things that “Calatrava is facing legal action from his home city of Valencia [Spain] because parts of the opera house roof at his City of Arts and Sciences complex are falling…
Dear Member, Supporter and Friend of Orthodox Christian Laity, Your support and commitment to OCL is more important now as we begin to move into a new era in the United States. This new era is about regularizing the un-canonical organization of the Orthodox Church in the United States. The Patriarchs have asked the bishops to create a new blueprint for a unified Church in the United States. We need to support our Assembly of Bishops to become our Synod of Bishops. We are asking you to consider becoming an OCL board member if you have a passion for our…
Source: Order of St Andrew the Apostle – Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate Istanbul, Turkey ICOMOS Turkey, the International Council of Monuments and Sites, National Committee of Turkey, recently issued a report (below) regarding two issues of concern have recently emerged regarding Hagia Sophia Museum, the first of those being the plans for the reconstruction of the now extinct building of Hagia Sophia Madrasa, and the second, the public debate surrounding the refunctioning of Hagia Sophia Museum. Read this article on ICOMOS » Read Annex: A Brief Historical Investigation of Haghia Sophia (Fatih) Madrasa » Hagia Sophia Museum, one of…
On Sunday February 9, 2014, a group of Southeast Florida Orthodox Christian laity and clergy met in the Singer Island home of Demetra Galazoudis who hosted the event. George Matsoukas and Marlene Devo Buettner organized the gathering. Protodeacon Peter Danilchick, who is a member of the Secretariat of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in North and Central America and serves as Senior Consultant to the Assembly Coordinator for Committees and as Facilitator/ Liaison for the Committees for Canonical Regional Planning, Financial Affairs, and Theological Education was the featured presenter. Deacon Peter cited scripture, telling us that it is God’s will…
Source: International Orthodox Christian Charities Baltimore, MD (IOCC) — Syrian civilians evacuated from the embattled city of Homs under a UN-negotiated cease-fire are being aided by International Orthodox Christian Charities (IOCC) as they flee to safety. IOCC and its church partner in Syria, The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East (GOPA), are in Homs assisting in the evacuation that began this weekend and are providing emergency relief to the Syrian people fleeing the city. Among the evacuees were ten youths who were immediately taken to the nearest medical facility for needed vaccines and medical attention. IOCC/GOPA also assisted…
Source: Hurriyet Daily News It is once again an honor to address the Eurasian Economic Summit, which is organized each year by the esteemed Marmara Group and is today considering the topic of “Culture and Ecological Dialogue.” Centuries ago, a Christian mystic declared: “Acquire inward peace, and thousands around you will find their peace.” In some ways, then, the dialogue for peace begins within. This in turn embraces a religious dimension, which can never be separated from genuine peace, whether locally or globally. As faith communities and religious leaders, we are obliged constantly to remind people about the obligation and…
Source: Global Post Agence France-Presse When Pope Francis visits Bethlehem in May he will see scaffolding covering the roof of the Church of the Nativity. It may be an eyesore, but it symbolises a rare show of unity among rival Christian faiths that are working together to restore the ancient basilica. Built in the fourth century by the Roman Emperor Constantine and restored by Justinian after a fire in the sixth century, the shrine over the cave where Jesus is believed to have been born is undergoing a major renovation. The project, which will see the entire church restored, began…