Thy Nativity, O Christ our God,
Has shown to the world the Light of wisdom.
For by it, those who worshipped the stars,
Were taught by a star to adore Thee,
The Sun of Righteousness.
And to know Thee, the Orient from on high,
O Lord, Glory to Thee!
– Troparion for Christmas Day
by Fr. Daniel Daly –
Our Christmas tree is derived, not from the pagan yule tree, but from the paradise tree adorned with apples on December 24 in honor of Adam and Eve. The Christmas tree is completely biblical in origin.
Several years ago during the Christmas season, a religious program on television caught my attention. The program featured a discussion on the dangers of cults, especially to young people. I found myself agreeing with the panelists as they warned young people about the hazards of involvement in occult or “new age” spirituality.
During the interview, however, one participant made a statement that shocked me: “…and the Christmas tree is pagan too…,” he asserted. The Christmas Tree? Pagan? Could it be that something most of us enjoy so much might be actually pagan in origin? Despite its growing commercialization, the Christmas tree is still associated with the fondest memories of our early childhood. Who does not remember approaching the tree on Christmas morning? [Read more…]
by Fr. Thomas Hopko –
1. The belief that the truth of things can be known, and the desire to know the truth and to do it, wherever it leads, is most essential. Indeed it is everything. [Read more…]
by Paul E. Scates –
Truth is the foundation of a free society. Without universal acknowledgment and acceptance of truth, there is no way humans can live together peaceably. [Read more…]
St. Nectarios Educational Series –
Heresy and heretics have existed from the time of the Apostles and exist today whether as sects outside the Church or heretics in disguise within the Church (or so it appears). [Read more…]
Archbishop Elpidophoros has a long history of heretical and ungodly behavior. He supports legalizing abortion and gay marriage, and has infamously baptized surrogate children of “married” homosexuals. [Read more…]
by Fr. Peter Heers –
Charlie Kirk was speaking the days, the hours, the minutes leading up to his assassination, about the things that are blessed, things that are good in terms of the Gospel and Jesus Christ and moral life and all the rest. [Read more…]
by Metropolitan Tikhon (Shevkunov) –
What is especially admirable about Charlie Kirk is his willingness to go and speak about the Kingdom of Heaven, about traditional values, about conservative principles in the very places that seemed most unsuitable. [Read more…]
by James Fite –
Religion has been losing ground in American society for years, and there are many reasons for the decline. But one modern trend is driving believers away from their church homes – and right into the ancient arms of Eastern Orthodoxy. [Read more…]
by Braeden Sorbo –
We traded confession for catharsis—and now we process instead of repent, vent instead of change, and wonder why no one gets better. [Read more…]
by Fr. Pavel Gumerov –
It’s not without reason that the Holy Fathers compare the passion of anger, like lust, with fire, flames, a conflagration. “A spark will ignite a flame.” Beginning with a small flash, anger can engulf the soul in a matter of minutes and lead to irreparable consequences. [Read more…]
by Fr. Basil Ross Aden –
A primary mission of the Orthodox Church is to guard the true faith against false prophets, teachings, and practices. To be Orthodox is to be committed to the truth: the truth of the Gospel, the Holy Trinity, the scriptures, and the Holy Tradition. [Read more…]