ORTHODOX CHRISTIANITY Orthodox Calendar
Orthodox Calendar 2018
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Святитель Порфирий, архиепископ Газский Мученик Христодул
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February 26
Sunday
New Style
March 11
Third Sunday of Great Lent. Adoration of the Holy Cross. Tone 7.
Great Lent.
Wine and oil allowed.

Cовершается служба, не отмеченная в Типиконе никаким знакомSt. Porphyrius, bishop of Gaza (420).

Sts. Photina, the Samaritan woman, and her sisters Phota, Photis, Parasceva, and Cyriaca; her sons Victor [or Photinus] and Joses; Sebastian the Duke, the officer Anatolius, and Theoclitus, the former sorcerer—all martyred under Nero (ca. 66) St. Sebastian, founder of Sokhotsk Monastery (Yaroslavl) (ca. 1500).

New Hieromartyr John (Pashin), bishop of Rylsk (1938).

Mezhetsk Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos.

New Martyr John the Cabinetmaker, at Constantinople (1575).

Thoughts for Each Day of the Year
According to the Daily Church Readings from the Word of God
By St. Theophan the Recluse

St. Theophan the Recluse

Third Sunday of Lent. [Heb. 4:14–5:6; Mark 8:34–9:1]

Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me (Mark 8:34). It is impossible to follow the Lord as a crossbearer without a cross, and everyone who follows Him, unfailingly goes with a cross. What is this cross? It is all sorts of inconveniences, burdens and sorrows—weighing heavily both internally and externally—along the path of conscientious fulfilment of the commandments of the Lord, in a life according to the spirit of His instructions and demands. Such a cross is so much a part of a Christian that wherever there is a Christian, there is this cross, and where there is no such cross, there is no Christian. Abundant privileges and a life of pleasure do not suit a true Christian. His task is to cleanse and reform himself. He is like a sick person, who needs cauterization, or amputation; how can this be without pain? He wants to tear himself away from the captivity of a strong enemy; but how can this be without struggle and wounds? He must walk counter to all practices surrounding him; but how can he sustain this without inconvenience and constraint? Rejoice as you feel the cross upon yourself, for it is a sign that you are following the Lord on the path of salvation which leads to heaven. Endure a bit. The end is just around the corner, as well as the crowns!

Articles

St. Porphyrius the Bishop of Gaza

Having the inclination for monastic life, he left his native region at twenty-five years of age and set off for Egypt, where he lived in the Nitrian desert under the guidance of Saint Macarius the Great (January 19).

St Photini, The Samaritan Woman

A significant figure in the Johannine community, the Samaritan Woman, like many other women, contributed to the spread of Christianity. She therefore occupies a place of honour among the apostles. In Greek sermons from the fourth to the fourteenth centuries she is called "apostle" and "evangelist."

Martyr Photina (Svetlana), the Samaritan Woman, and Her Sons

During the time of the emperor Nero (54-68), who displayed excessive cruelty against Christians, Saint Photina lived in Carthage with her younger son Joses and fearlessly preached the Gospel there.

The Holy Martyrs Sebastian and Christodoulus

The Holy Martyrs Sebastian and Christodoulus died by the sword under Nero (54-68).

Venerable Sebastian of Poshekhonye

Saint Sebastian of Sokhota, Poshekhonye, founded a monastery in honor of the Transfiguration of the Lord, located at the River Sokhota, 90 versts from the city of Romanov (now Tutaev) in the Yaroslav district.

New Martyr John Kalphes, the Apprentice

Once, encountering his former teacher and benefactor, he asked Saint John what it says in the Christian books about their “prophet” Mohammed. Saint John did not want to answer his question, but because of the persistent demands of the youth, he declared that Mohammed was a mere mortal, an uneducated man who did not perform a single miracle during his lifetime.

Homily on the Third Sunday of Great Lent. On Carrying Your Cross

St. Ignatius (Brianchaninov)

The thief in the Gospels who ascended this ladder ascended from out of terrible crimes into most radiant heavenly habitations. From his cross he pronounced words filled with humility of wisdom; in humility of wisdom he entered into the knowledge of God, and through the knowledge of God, he acquired heaven. We receive the due reward of our deeds, he said. Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom

Sunday of the Cross

Archbishop Dmitri (Royster)

The Cross is our badge and emblem as Christians. Remove the Cross from our lives and we have nothing. Without the Cross, both in Christ’s life and in ours, there is no genuine Christianity and consequently, no reason to observe Lent or any other sacred season. This fact may seem self-evident. Yet ours is a time in which words like sin, repentance, sacrifice, the Cross and crucifixion, are misunderstood, being viewed even by some Christians with suspicion, as "negative" terms, at least when applied to our own lives.

The Third Sunday of Great Lent. The Veneration of the Cross

Archpriest Alexander Shargunov

The human soul is more precious than anything in the world. It must be saved at any price, even if this price seems too high in many people’s opinions. We belong to the Church of martyrs and confessors. The holy martyrs are witnesses: giving your life for Christ means gaining it and accomplishing it to the fullest.

Homily on the Sunday of the Veneration of the Cross

Archimandrite Tikhon (Shevkunov)

“The Cross is the guardian of the whole world; the Cross is the beauty of the Church, the Cross is the might of kings; the Cross is the confirmation of the faithful, the Cross is the glory of angels and the wounding of demons.” The Church’s beauty lies in fulfilling the commandments and in being faithful to God.

The Tree Heals the Tree

Fr. Stephen Freeman

In the feast of the Holy Cross, the hymnography at one point makes the statment, “The Tree heals the Tree.” It is one of the marvelous commentaries on the life of grace and its relationship to the human predicament. It refers to the relationship between the Cross of Christ and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.

The Third Sunday of Great Lent: Sunday of the Veneration of the Holy Cross

The Cross reminds us of the Passion of our Lord, and by presenting to us His example, it encourages us to follow Him in struggle and sacrifice, being refreshed, assured, and comforted.

Sermon: Third Sunday of Great Lent (Veneration of the Precious and Life-Giving Cross)

Fr. Milan Medakovic

The Church gives us the cross at this point, the halfway point, of the fast to inspire us. The cross is given to show us the direction in which we are headed; that we are headed to the crucifixion of our Lord and His Holy Resurrection. This should be where we are headed with our own lives; the crucifixion of our self-will that allows us to perform God’s will, which allows our lives to be resurrected to the life that God intended for us.

Third Sunday of Great Lent: The Cross

Today's Gospel summarizes how we are to live, and why. It tells us about real reality. Not what the world tells us is real, but about how a Christian should live, how a Christian should think, how he should be. Our Lord said, " Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me."

Third Sunday of Lent: Veneration of the Holy Cross

See that Christ does not compel a man to die on a cross against his own will. Instead He said, Whosoever desireth. The Lord is saying: "I compel no one. I invite him to something good, not to something bad to which he must be forced. Whoever does not want these things is not worthy of them."

Third Sunday: Veneration of the Cross

Archbishop Andrei (Rymarenko)

Right now, as we approach and kiss the Cross, let us say with the wise thief, "Lord, remember me in Thy kingdom!" We may not have another minute. So let us use this minute which the Lord gives us: "Thy Cross, O Lord, we venerate and Thy Holy Resurrection we glorify."
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