The first written prayer, dedicated to our Virgin Mary

The first written prayer, dedicated to our Virgin Mary, dates back to the 3rd century AD, specifically around 250 AD, written in Greek, with the intention of being used in the Divine Liturgy. It is entitled “Under Your Mercy”!

The prayer in question was found among fragments of papyrus, which were acquired by the John Rylands Library in Manchester in 1917. At first the prayer was not discernible, but when the papyrus was preserved the text of the prayer was revealed in all its grandeur and precision.

"Beneath thy compassion, we take refuge, O Theotokos: do not despise our petitions in time of trouble, but rescue us from dangers, only pure one, only blessed one."

Archimandrite John (Krestyankin)

Nowadays, we are increasingly afraid of the mark of the Antichrist, which will come at a time we do not know whether we will live to see. But few people even think about the mark of our personal sin. Yet it is precisely this mark that gives a person over to the power of the Antichrist's elements and deeds and is the true prototype of the mark that we should really fear!

And nothing divine will pass through this terrible seal of sin, with which we stamp our minds and hearts every day.

The Lord, knowing our weakness, gave us repentance—deliverance from sin. But this purification of the soul, mind, and heart is accomplished only in the Church, only in the Sacraments. - Archimandrite John (Krestyankin)

"Unjust death makes our hearts bleed. But God justifies unjust death."

 

Nothing should be done for show to people, but everything should be done from a pure heart. - St. Ephraim the Syrian

 

In the Divine Liturgy, before...

In the Divine Liturgy, before the Gospel is read, the Apolytikia of the Saints are read! Why is that? Because the Saints became Saints with the Gospel! Therefore, with the Gospel we too will acquire the necessary holiness and win the Kingdom of God!" - Fr. Charalambos Vassilopoulos.

On reading the Word of God

 

A monk came to his spiritual father and said: “Father! I will stop reading the word of God.” “Why is that?” asked the elder. “I don’t understand what is written,” answered the monk. “Child,” the elder then said to him, “when sheep find a fertile pasture, they greedily grab the grass and swallow it without chewing, trying only to grab as much as possible, then, having eaten their fill, they chew it. So you, while you have time and opportunity, read the divine books as much as possible without laziness, and the dark will become light for you. For thanks to habit you will understand the incomprehensible, or you will learn from the fathers and teachers of the Church, or finally, if there is no one to explain it to you, the Lord Himself will enlighten you.”

Archpriest V. Guryev

One can sing without a voice, when the soul inside produces sounds, because we sing not for people, but for God, Who can hear hearts and penetrate into the innermost depths of our soul.. - St. John Chrysostom

The Sign of the Cross

Experience, confirmed by centuries, shows that the sign of the cross has great power over all human actions throughout his entire life. Therefore, it is necessary to take care to instill in children the custom of often protecting themselves with the sign of the cross, and especially before eating and drinking, going to bed and getting up, before leaving, before going out and before entering somewhere, and so that children make the sign of the cross not carelessly or in a fashionable way, but with precision, starting from the forehead to the chest and on both shoulders, so that the cross comes out correctly... Protecting oneself with the sign of the cross has saved many from great troubles and dangers. - St. Ambrose of Optina

We are what we think, what we do, what we promise, what we show outwardly, what we feel, what we give. Listen to your thoughts and you will understand who you really are! - Abbot Tadei from Vitovnița Monastery

 

Broken Pot

 

If you happen to break a clay pot in the market, the potter will get angry and demand compensation for the damage. In truth, man is also made of the same cheap material as the pot, but what is hidden in him is priceless. It is the soul that creates man from within, and the Spirit of God that gives life to the soul.

If a pot is broken at the market, it is not the pot that is hurt, but the potter who molded it. In the same way, if a person is killed, it is not the person killed who feels the pain, but the Lord God, who created man, raised him up, and breathed His Spirit into him.

So if the one who broke the pot must compensate the potter, then all the more must the murderer compensate God for the life he took. Even if people do not demand compensation, God will. Murderer, do not deceive yourself: even if people forget your crime, God cannot forget. Look, there are things that even God cannot forget. For example, He cannot forget your crime. Remember this always, remember it in your anger, before you grab a knife or a gun.

On the other hand, we cannot kill life. To kill life completely would be to kill God, for life belongs to God. Who can kill God? You can break a pot, but you cannot destroy the clay from which it was made. Likewise, you can crush a person's body, but you cannot break, burn, scatter, or spill his soul and his spirit.

Saint Nicholai Velimirovic . Explanation of the Ten Commandments, Commandment 6

On that terrible and dreadful day....

On that terrible and dreadful day [at Your Second Coming] You will say, O Lord, to us sinners: “You all know well what I have suffered for your sake. I, God, took on flesh for your sake; I, the Invisible, visibly dwelt on earth for your sake,for your sake I hungered, I thirsted, I labored, for your sake I was persecuted, I was stoned; I, the Innocent, for your sake was slapped and spat upon; I, the Sinless, for your sake suffered a shameful death, for your sake I was pierced in the side with a spear, for your sake I was given vinegar mixed with gall to drink. All this I suffered for your sake, that I might make you holy and heavenly; I have given you the Kingdom of Heaven, I have called you all brothers, I have sent down upon you the Holy Spirit. What have you suffered for my sake, men? - St. Ephraim the Syrian

A Mount Athos monk used to say, "when the devil throws stones at you, take them and build a church,.

 

“‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ (Matth. 22:37

 

The Lord will hold the book of life....

 

The Lord will hold the book of life, the Gospel, and we will automatically go right or left by ourselves,

because we will know whether we are for Heaven or not..

That is why in the Despotiko, where the Despot sits, in the image of Christ the book is open and there is no lamp on it..

It states that there is no mercy in the Second Coming..

While in the iconostasis the book that Christ holds is closed and there is a lamp, because we still have mercy..

Elder Ambrose Lazarus

Said an elder: "Your saints keep you company in solitude and make death a paradise."

 

About Prayer

 

One day, a good friend of mine called me - a doctor who had helped me more than once in some of my troubles related to poor health. And then she herself fell ill, seriously, and asked me to serve a prayer service for her health. I calmed her down as best I could and was about to go serve, but I stayed for a while... I felt something was wrong with me, and at night I almost couldn't sleep, and my thoughts were confused from fatigue. Well, what good, I thought, would my prayer do now! I can’t even pray! But I felt ashamed, and decided: I’ll go and serve simply because I promised, so as not to deceive.

I went, served, barely understanding what I was reading and what I was singing. I returned home, and immediately the phone rang - that same friend, the doctor. She suddenly felt better - both physically and, what’s more important, mentally. The fear that tormented her retreated.

Of course, this is not the only example of this kind of “coincidences” that we constantly notice in our lives while we pray, and which, as the late Bishop Vasily (Rodzianko) once said, do not happen when we stop praying. But for some reason, this one was especially memorable to me. Perhaps because this time it was especially difficult to call the prayer a prayer.

This is exactly how it is: when we stand hesitating before the icons and ponder whether to pick up a prayer book, open it, begin – at least read it, then much is decided at that moment: both in the lives of our loved ones and in our own.

Sometimes it is our prayer, so feeble, so scattered, that becomes for the Lord, in the words of Saint Theophan, a reason for mercy – so necessary. And sometimes it is precisely this that is lacking. And sometimes all this becomes completely, distinctly clear, is witnessed by life itself and the feeling of the heart. Sometimes (more often, of course) it remains hidden from us, to be revealed later – when everything is revealed at all.

Hegumen Nektariy (Morozov)

Aunt of blessed Father Epiphanios

 

When Fr.Epiphanios was 16 years old, he went to High School in Kalamata and lived with his aunt Alexandra.

At that time, he wanted to buy books of the Fathers to study them. But, then, the aunt had fallen ill and the doctor who was attending to her, drew their attention. The aunt had pre-tuberculosis and had to watch her diet. Good and vitamin-rich food, as is usually recommended in such cases. Milk, eggs, meat, quite expensive for those hard times. On the other hand, the aunt did not want to spoil the favor of her nephew.

So she decided to buy the books of the Fathers!

The deep and unshakable faith of the aunt and nephew dictated to them the following treatment: This consisted of regular Holy Communion and every morning the aunt would eat an antidoron and God would help her to be cured!

That's how it happened!

And the Fathers were bought and aunt Alexandra was cured!!!

Source: "Old lady Alexandra Theodoropoulou. Aunt of blessed Father Epiphanios (1904-1983). A life full of self-denial and self-sacrifice". Athens, February 2008.

Human life would be unbearable if the faithful did not have the Virgin Mary to converse with. She is our Mediator and true comforter. - St. John of Damascus

 

Many people asked to become disciples of a wise elder. But it is impossible to accept all of them, because the gift of reasoning matures best in silence.

Many people asked to become disciples of a wise elder. But it is impossible to accept all of them, because the gift of reasoning matures best in silence.
But it is impossible to refuse them all, for Isaiah says: "Carry water to meet the thirsty." What should we do?
One came to ask to become a disciple and heard the elder's question:
- Tell me, what will you do if you find a purse with money - will you return it to its owner?
- No, I won't. If it was God's will that the purse should go to me, so be it.
The elder looked at the applicant in amazement and said:
- You have come to me to seek cunning, not wisdom. But I cannot teach you that.
Another applicant came and was met with the same question:
- Will you return the found purse to its owner?
The one was surprised at such a simple test and, without hesitation, answered:
- If I knew who the owner was, I would return the money immediately.
- I can't help you either," the elder said. - You are one of those who can only teach, but not learn.
Finally, the third of those who wanted to become the elder's disciple came in. In response to the same question, he answered without much confidence:
- I do not know, Abba, what I will do if I find the purse. Self-interest is the greatest temptation, and it has crushed strongholds like mine. But I trust that the Lord will not forsake me at this moment.
- Stay," said the wise elder, embracing his guest, "and let us learn from each other.

You are capable of more than you think. Arise, strengthen your heart and trust the Lord!.