Metropolitan Hilarion (Alfeyev), Bishop of Volokolamsk and chairman of the Moscow Patriarchate Department for External Church Relations of the Russian Orthodox Church, is a prolific writer and also a composer. One might ask where he finds that time to compose music given his busy schedule. Met. Hilarion responds that much of his writing occurs during layovers in airports … [Read more...] about The Christmas Oratorio Finale by Metropolitan Hilarion Alfeyev
Articles
Grace Flows into the Valleys
Source: Orthodox Christian By St. Philaret of Moscow (Given by Archimandrite Philaret in the St. Alexander Nevsky Lavra) The New Adam comes forth from virgin earth. Woman, the source of the curse, bears the dew of blessing. The true Noah has appeared, Who shall comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands, because of the ground which the Lord hath cursed (Gen. … [Read more...] about Grace Flows into the Valleys
The New South Wales Christmas Bush: Indigenizing Orthodoxy to Australia
It belongs to the inner genius of the Orthodox faith, corresponding to the Incarnational entry of God Himself into a particular time and place on earth, to embrace the particularities of the places in which it is practiced. A fine example of this is the use of pussy willow branches on Palm Sunday in Slavic lands where palms are not traditionally available. And as Orthodoxy … [Read more...] about The New South Wales Christmas Bush: Indigenizing Orthodoxy to Australia
Reverent Wonder: Two Poems on the Nativity of Christ
It is no accident that most of the language used in the Orthodox services is poetic. Good poetry has the ability to take us into the depths of things much more powerfully than prose. These two Nativity poems by Mary Lowell reveal a mother's reverent wonder at the birth of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. [one-third-first] Mother Let Us See Him Mother, let us see … [Read more...] about Reverent Wonder: Two Poems on the Nativity of Christ
Loud Storms Surround Me, But My Heart is Tranquil: Selected Sayings of the Hieroconfessor Roman Medved
Sometimes the trials and irritations of everyday life seem almost impossible to bear gracefully, and at such times we may wonder how it would be possible to endure a far more harsh and hostile environment, such as a Soviet Gulag. Here, in excerpts from letters written from a labor camp where he was imprisoned from 1931 to 1935, Hieroconfessor Roman Medved gives us glimpses … [Read more...] about Loud Storms Surround Me, But My Heart is Tranquil: Selected Sayings of the Hieroconfessor Roman Medved