(Feast Day – August 25) We have heard much lately about synod meetings and councils of the Church – those of the Holy Synod of Antioch meeting in Damascus, meetings of our local synod of North American bishops, meetings of SCOBA (the Synod of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in America), and the bishops of the “mother” […]
St. Helena
(Feast Day ~ August 18) Helena came on a pilgrimage to the holy places. For the Holy Ghost had inspired her to seek the wood of the Cross. Wherefore she came to Golgotha; and there she spake within herself on this wise: ‘Behold the battlefield! Where is the sign of victory? I seek the Standard […]
St. Maximus the Confessor
Feast Day ~ August 13 Emperor Constantine’s Edict of Milan in 313 made it possible for Christianity to exist as a legal religion in the Roman Empire and, although there continued to be sporadic outbursts of persecution in some places, the age of martyrdom was essentially ended. Thereafter, if martyrdom occurred, it was usually that […]
St. Laurence of Rome
(Feast Day ~ August 10) It is in times of persecution and hardship that the godliness of the saints is most clearly revealed. St. Laurence, 3rd century deacon of Rome, is an example from the early years of the Church of those qualities which make one a saint. Although history does not record details of […]
St. Oswald, King
Feast day ~ August 5 We are reminded many times in Holy Scripture and in the witness of the saints that the Christian way of life is for all people and that God makes no distinctions among his children. There is neither rich nor poor, high or low estate, “neither slave nor free, there […]
St. Germanus of Auxerre
(Feast Day ~ July 31) The early life of Germanus was the ordinary one expected of the son of prominent Romano-Gallican parents in the fifth century. He studied law, married, and was appointed governor of Amorica (Brittany), a border province of the Empire. But his life changed completely when, in 418, the Bishop of Auxerre […]
The Holy and Great Martyr St. Panteleimon
(Feast day ~ July 27) Being a Christian does not exempt one from the difficulties of life – illness, loss of fortune, betrayal by friends (a fact that seems to escape most televangelists and radio preachers!). What devotion to Christ and his Church does is provide comfort in adversity, hope for a better future (in […]
Ss. Joachim & Anna, Holy and Righteous Ancestors of God
(Feast Day ~ July 26) Genealogy buffs know the importance of family. They spend many hours using all the resources now available to trace lineages – from father to son, mother to daughter through generation after generation. The Church also celebrates family heritage. Holy Scripture gives many genealogies (such as 1 Chronicles 1:28, 29: “The […]
St. Jacob Netsvetov
(Feast Day ~ July 26) We are a country in which “firsts” are honored: the first woman to fly across the Atlantic; the first man on the moon; the first African-American Supreme Court Justice. It seems that being first in something is most important. Often these “firsts” are not only about the fact that no-one […]
St. John Cassian, Abbot
(Feast Day ~ July 23) St. John Cassian (or St. Cassian, as he is sometimes called) was born around 360 in Marseille. Having heard of the great desert monks in the Middle East, John and a friend, Germain, traveled to Bethlehem to join a monastery and learn the ascetic life. There, stories of the great […]