While in some Christian denominations, this religious holiday slides by with relatively little fanfare, in Orthodox Greece Pentecost is vigorously celebrated. For the more secularly-minded traveler in Greece, it can even be thought of as a kind of "second Easter" if you've unfortunately missed the first.
Archimandrite Justin (Parvu)
Rating: 7,2|Votes: 9
On June 16, 2013, at 10:40 p.m., after several weeks of suffering in terrible pain, which became particularly acute during his final hours of life, Archimandrite Justin (Pârvu) departed this temporary life to the habitations of heaven, to the holy martyrs and confessors he so loved, and with whom he so longed to be united.
Gabe Martini
The Council of Nicaea is often the victim of ridicule and historical revisionism. From the grammatical nightmares of Dan Brown novels to the revisionist and anti-ecclesial speculations of Protestant or non-Christian historians, it has certainly become a whipping boy of early Christian history. The problem with many of the critiques of this council is that they are based upon both faithless skepticism and a de-incarnational ecclesiology. Skepticism regarding both the promises of Christ and the work of the Holy Spirit, as well as a vision of the Church that would have both Arius and Athanasius be equally “fathers” of our one, true faith.
Igumen Zacchaeus (Wood)
We must leave the things "of this world", those things that interfere with our path towards sanctity, no matter what they are, if we are to inherit eternal life. Christ does not tell us not to love the things that are good, but rather He instructs us not to love them "more than" we love Him. This teaching could be applied to many things.
The Ascension icon shows Christ, with angels, being escorted back to His heavenly home. His Mother Mary stands with angels and the faithful disciples. This icon is usually displayed for veneration, in the center on the church, on the feast of Ascension.
