Spirituality

Putna Monastery’s Abbot: Our holy ancestors speak to us this year and urge for a national resurrection

On Easter night, the V. Rev. Archimandrite Melchisedec Velnic spoke about the ancestors’ call for a national resurrection. But “a resurrection of the people cannot be achieved without God’s people,” said Mihai Eminescu. It will be possible only if we put Christ and His name in everything. This will enlighten each of us, and the…

May 5, 2021Aurelian Iftimiu

Bishop Ieronim of Sinaia: The construction of the National Cathedral is a call and a still breeze of resurrection for our nation

The patriarchal auxiliary bishop Ieronim of Sinaia said on Bright Monday that “the wonderful work” carried out at the National Cathedral “is a call and a still breeze of resurrection for our nation.” During his homily at the Chapel of the National Cathedral, Bishop Ieronim referred to God’s “still breeze of resurrection” in the hearts…

May 5, 2021Aurelian Iftimiu

#FearNot, put on the armour of St Stephen: the Cross and the fast

The Church has set a feast of the Holy Cross in the middle of Lent so that, looking to the sign of our Lord Jesus Christ’s victory over death, Christians may have courage in the face of any challenge. #FearNot is also the message that Basilica.ro insists on during this Lent. Looking at the Romanian…

Apr 7, 2021Aurelian Iftimiu

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew: Great Lent is also a quarantine

‘Some of you may wonder why the Church, in the midst of the current pandemic, would add to the already existing health restrictions yet another “quarantine,” namely Great Lent.’ “Indeed, Great Lent is also a quarantine, a period that lasts forty days,” wrote Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew in his catechetical message at the beginning of Great…

Mar 16, 2021Aurelian Iftimiu

We begin the Great Lent with hope and courage: #FearNot

#FearNot is the meditation-exhortation we propose to you for the Lenten season. Why? Because these are the first words that resounded after the Resurrection: the angel said these words to the myrrh-bearing women at the tomb, and the Saviour addressed them directly to His disciples. The encouragement Christ gave centuries ago is timelier than ever,…

Mar 15, 2021Aurelian Iftimiu

Warsaw Metropolitan at beginning of Lent: Union with Christ through repentance is the path of the modern Orthodox in the fight against evil

“For Orthodox Christians in our complex, difficult times, full of spiritual disappointments, temptations and limitations of all kinds, Lent is of great spiritual importance,” His Beatitude Metropolitan Sawa of Poland begins his Lenten epistle. Lent is a time for increased prayer and the struggle for purification, which give us renewed strength to struggle with the temptations…

Mar 11, 2021Aurelian Iftimiu

Watch: Trailer for Man of God film on St. Nektarios released (video)

The official trailer for the long-awaited film Man of God, about St. Nektarios of Aegina, was released March 9. Watch the trailer below: Production company Simeon Entertainment describes the film: “Exiled unjustly, convicted without a trial, slandered without cause, yet his love for God and his fellow men conquered all. Man of God depicts the…

Mar 11, 2021Aurelian Iftimiu

“Let us strive to be like God by sharing in the humility of Christ,” Putna’s Abbot urges

Humility is the first lesson presented to us in the period of the Triodion, leading up to Great Lent and Holy Pascha. Humility must be the foundation of our spiritual life, for virtues can be acquired only if we “strive to be like God by sharing in the humility of Christ,” Archimandrite Melchisedec, the abbot…

Feb 25, 2021Aurelian Iftimiu

The ladder that is difficult to climb: Triodion calls us to humility, Bp Timotei says

His Grace Assistant Bishop Timotei of Prahova celebrated the Divine Liturgy on Saturday at Radu Vodă Monastery in Bucharest. In his homily, he spoke about the spiritual significance of the Triodion. It calls us “to humility, which can exalt man to God,” he said. This path is like a ladder that is difficult to climb.…

Feb 22, 2021Aurelian Iftimiu

Dialogue between a deafblind girl and a priest: Ask Christ to help me for at least five minutes

Deafblindness is a severe multisensory deficiency that often generates significant communication difficulties, impairs access to information, orientation and mobility. A dialogue between Father Mirel Ilie, the coordinator of the hearing-impaired community in Bucharest, and a little girl suffering from this condition highlights how complex and sensitive the mission of the priest is: “We were at…

Feb 17, 2021Aurelian Iftimiu

St John the New’s relics tour Suceava County to ward off coronavirus

The holy relics of Saint John the New of Suceava toured the Archdiocese of Suceava and Rădăuți at the beginning of this week ‘to bring again the belief that we are not alone and that the saints protect us and intercede with God on our behalf,’ assistant bishop Damaschin of Dorna noted in a message…

Nov 26, 2020Aurelian Iftimiu