Orthodox Calendar April 14 Great and Holy Monday Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday – these three days, which the Church calls Great and Holy have within the liturgical development of the Holy Week a very definite purpose.…
Orthodox Calendar, February 22 Uncovering of the relics of the Holy Martyrs at the Gate of Eugenius at Constantinople During the persecutions against Christians the relics of the holy martyrs were usually buried by believers…
Orthodox Calendar January 5 Holy Martyrs Theopemptus and Theonas They suffered in Nicomedia in the year 303. Saint Theopemptus was bishop in Nicomedia in the time of Diocletian (284-305). Speaking out against idolatry, he defended…
Beginning of Church Year (of the Indiction) The first day of the Church New Year is also called the beginning of the Indiction. The term Indiction comes from a Latin word meaning, “to impose.” It…
Orthodox Calendar, July 22 The Holy Myrrh-Bearer Equal of the Apostles Mary Magdalene On the banks of Lake Genesareth (Galilee), between the cities of Capharnum and Tiberias, was the small city of Magdala, the remains…
Orthodox Calendar July 16 Hieromartyr Athenogenes and his Ten Disciples Hieromartyr Athenogenes and his Ten Disciples suffered for Christ during the persecution of Christians in the city of Sebastea in Cappadocia. The governor Philomachos arranged…
Orthodox Calendar, June 18 Holy Martyrs Leontius, Hypatius, and Theodulus They were Roman soldiers. Holy Martyr Leontius, a Greek by origin, served as a military-chief in the imperial army in the Phoenician city of Tripoli…
Orthodox Calendar, June 11 Holy Apostle Bartholomew He was born at Cana of Galilee and was one of the Twelve Apostles of Christ. After the Descent of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost,…
Orthodox Calendar May 5 Enjoy ye all the feast of faith; receive ye all the riches of loving-kindness. (Sermon of Saint John Chrysostom, read at Paschal Matins) The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…
Orthodox Calendar, April 30 Holy Week: A Liturgical Explanation for the Days of Holy Week MONDAY, TUESDAY, WEDNESDAY: THE END These three days, which the Church calls Great and Holy have within the liturgical development…