At 10 PM (MT) on September 7, 2019 Elder Ephraim (Moraitis) reposed at the age of 92. Born Ioannis Moraitis in Volos, Greece on the Day of the Nativity of St John the Baptist in 1927, he was raised in worldly poverty and spiritual wealth, and from the age of fourteen experienced the calling to monastic life. On September 26, 1947, Ioannis arrived at Mt. Athos at St. Anna's … [Read more...] about Memory Eternal: Elder Ephraim of Philotheou and Arizona
The Wider World
How to Pray in the Event of Civil War: The Unusual Story of the Prayer of Patriarch Hermogenes
“How have we arrived,” asks Stanford University historian Victor David Hanson, “at the brink of a veritable civil war?” And a recent "Washington Post" headline reads: “In America, talk turns to something not spoken of for 150 years: Civil War.” Surely the political and cultural polarization of America has now reached levels comparable to that … [Read more...] about How to Pray in the Event of Civil War: The Unusual Story of the Prayer of Patriarch Hermogenes
The Bishop — A Short Story by Fr. Stephen Siniari
We tried to get his old shoes and coat ta’ throw ‘em in the trash. Carol said not even the rummage sale at Front and Girard would take his worn-down shoes and screen-thin overcoat. He stuffed ‘em in his paper shopping-bag suitcase he carted all his bishop stuff around in and said he knew somebody who needed ‘em. He never varied from living the life of a … [Read more...] about The Bishop — A Short Story by Fr. Stephen Siniari
Hidden Fire: Orthodox Perspectives on Yoga
The practice of yoga is becoming normalized in our society as a religiously-neutral, “holistic” exercise program that will promote mental and physical health. But this article, written by an Orthodox author who had once pursued yogic practices extensively in India, shows how yoga is inseparable not only from Hindu and Buddhist doctrines, but from dark and demonic … [Read more...] about Hidden Fire: Orthodox Perspectives on Yoga
Literature, Culture and the Western Soul
In his his splendid biography of Fr Seraphim Rose, Fr Damascene Christensen tells the story of a young monastic aspirant seeking the esoteric spirituality of Orthodox Christianity on Mt Athos. But once he finally arrives at his destination, the Abbot hands him a copy of Dickens’ novel, “David Copperfield” to read. When the young man protests in dismay that … [Read more...] about Literature, Culture and the Western Soul
