Liturgy & Evangelisation
by Archimandrite Job (Getcha) Evangelisation is the proclamation of the good news of salvation. It is not merely teaching a system of beliefs or transmitting a moral code. In this article Professor Archimandrite Job Getcha highlights the connection between evangelisation and our encounter with the living God in the Orthodox Liturgy. Introduction Evangelisation is the proclamation of the good news of salvation. It is not merely teaching a system of beliefs or transmitting a moral code. Therefore, evangelisation should always be linked with [Read more...]
Orthodox Church for the Deaf & Blind
This is a classic, Orthodox approach to a real problem with a beautiful result! A conventional Orthodox service can leave blind and deaf people feeling lost. But one church in Moscow has changed all that by catering for its congregation’s special needs. Most of the congregation at the Tikhvin Icon of Our Lady Temple are deaf or blind, and it is only thanks to the pioneering efforts of the church that they are able to come and express their faith. The church was [Read more...]
Show Up For Great Lent
No one can attend all of the services in Great Lent. But with a little plan everyone one of us can attend some of services. There is simply no excuse for not making Lent first of all the time for increased attendance of and participation in the liturgy of the Church. Fr. Alexander Schmemann Given that everyone and every family has different schedules and responsibilities we must all make our game plan in order to give sufficient spiritual care and attention to our [Read more...]
Coming To Trust The Liturgy
From the author of the First Lights Blog A couple of weeks ago I was having a conversation with an old friend about my spiritual journey. We had attended church together at a contemporary evangelical charismatic Protestant church as college students. At the time, I ardently defended contemporary worship. The songs stayed in my head for a great length of time, generally they reinforced the themes of what was being talked about in church, they were fun to listen to, and I could [Read more...]
Patriarch Celebrates Historic Liturgy in Ancient Monastery
Orthodox Christians held the first Divine Liturgy in almost 90 years at an ancient monastery on the side of a Turkish mountain Sunday, after the government allowed worship there in a gesture toward religious minorities. At least 1,500 pilgrims, including from Greece and Russia, traveled to the Byzantine-era monastery of Sumela for the service led by Patriarch Bartholomew I, the spiritual leader of the world’s Orthodox Christians. The Islamic-oriented government, which is aiming to expand freedoms as part of its bid to join [Read more...]
Liturgy at Hagia Sophia on Sept. 17, 2010
By Kleo Mavridis Members of the “International Congregation of Agia Sophia” will make a pilgrimage to Agia Sofia in Istanbul in order to conduct divine liturgy on September 17, the day the Orthodox Church celebrates the holy feast day of Sophia, Faith, Hope and Love. During a press conference in Thessaloniki, the President of the International Congregation, Chris Spirou, said that the Prime Minister of Turkey, Tayyip Erdoğan, has already been informed in writing. “The purpose of our Congregation’s visit is to conduct [Read more...]
Our Brains Wired For Liturgy?
The following article, which first appeared in the online version of The National Catholic Reporter, was sent to me by a brother priest. I found it fascinating and thought you might also. It was written by NCR staff writer Rich Heffern. With their scientific research into the biology and anthropology of religious behavior, Andrew Newberg and the late Eugene d’Aquili, both physicians at the hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, have shed light on the origins of ritual and liturgy in the human [Read more...]
