Basil Krivoshein
Archbishop of Brussels and Belgium

A report given at the Liturgical Conference at the St. Sergius Theological Institute, Paris, on July 2, 1975

The aim of this report is not to examine in detail the historical evolution of the forms of Divine services, the origin of specific differences between Greeks and Russians, the significance of the different Typikons in this process, nor their mutual influences, etc. I am not a liturgist and will no...

“It is most absurd and improper to depict in icons God the Father with a grey beard and the Only-Begotten Son in His bosom with a dove between them, because no-one has seen the Father according to His Divinity, and the Father has no flesh […] and the Holy Spirit is not in essence a dove, but in essence God.” (Great Synod of Moscow, 1667)

For the Russian Orthodox Church, depicting the Holy Trinity in art has been an issue of controversy for the past thousand years. Even though t...

An Icon is an image (usually two dimensional) of Christ, the Saints, Angels, important Biblical events, parables, or events in the history of the Church.

St. Gregory the Dialogist (Pope of Rome ca. 590-604), spoke of Icons as being Scripture to the illiterate:

"For what writing presents to readers, this a picture presents to the unlearned who behold, since in it even the ignorant see what they ought to follow; in it the illiterate read" (

INTRODUCTION

Your Eminence, Your Grace, Reverend Fathers and Brothers!

First I must apologize. In the presence of our brother-monastics and senior clergy, clearly, I should be learning from those with much more experience and knowledge in the subject of fasting, instead of pretending that I have something to say as I will attempt to do next.

A curious phenomenon can be observed in the interactions between pastors and their parishioners at the beginning of each ma...

The symbolism of the "complete" Cross (much of which is contained in the Old Rite Russian prosphora seal and on metal and wood icons) is quite complex. Since the OId Rite tradition of the Russian Orthodox Church is much richer than the New Rite Church in its use of symbolism to teach the faithful, this article should be of benefit to those unfamiliar with this tradition.

Through the Cross came our Salvation. We are constantly reminded that Christ died for us when we see the Image of...

Latyntsev V. Rev. Herman of Alaska blesses the Court of the Russian-American Company   

Orthodoxy came to America in four waves. The first wave was by missionary activity in Alaska, a land that belonged to Russia at the time. Russians began trading with natives for fur in the 18th century, and a very successful fur trading company was established on Kodiak Island—the Russian-American Company—along with a school for the indigenous people. Over time, under influence of the...

And one of the fundamental flash points in this debate is the practice of the early church.  What form of government did the earliest Christians have?  Of course, early Ch...

In a time when churches of every description are faced with Vanishing Male Syndrome, men are showing up at Eastern Orthodox churches in numbers that, if not numerically impressive, are proportionately intriguing. This may be the only church which attracts and holds men in numbers equal to women. As Leon Podles wrote in his 1999 book, “The Church Impotent: The Feminization of Christianity,”

“The Orthodox are the only Christians who write basso profundo church musi...

THE PAST AND PRESENT OF THE RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH CONTAIN SOME VALUABLE LESSONS FOR ROMAN CATHOLIC IN THE PAPACY OF POPE FRANCIS

Atheism and Orthodoxy in Modern Russia

By Metropolitan Hilarion Alfeyev

In this talk I propose to outline the history of atheism in Russia during the last hundred years. I will start by considering the kind of atheism present in Russia before the Revolution. Then I will ...

Who were the Magi?

The Gospel of Matthew mentions the Magi who came from the East to worship the newborn Christ child (cf. Matthew 2:1-12). Exactly who the magi were though remains somewhat of a mystery.

Oftentimes, the English translations of the Bible use the word astrologers for magi. In Greek, the original language of the Gospel' the word magos (magoi, plural) has four meanings: (1) a member of the priestly class of ancient Persia, where astrology and as...

ISTANBUL, Turkey — Sometimes what a pope doesn’t say can be just as important as what he does, and such was the case in Turkey on Sunday as Pope Francis laid out his vision for unity between Catholics and Orthodox Christianity.

Francis offered several motives for pursuing closer ties, yet conspicuously absent was the imperative most often cited by more conservative Catholics and Orthodox: Making a common stand against secularism, especially permissive sexual morality.

In effect, the...

Istanbul (AsiaNews) - On his return from Jerusalem , where he met with Pope Francis at the Holy Sepulc...

One of the first requests made by the disciples to Jesus was, "Lord, teach us to pray..." (Luke 11:1). The Jewish people of Jerusalem were above all a praying people, and this tradition of prayer was continued by the earliest Christians.

What is prayer? Bishop Theophan, a famous Orthodox spiritual writer of the last century, tells us:" In prayer man converses with God, he enters through grace into communion with Him, and lives in God...Prayer is the raising of the mind and heart to God in pr...

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Glory to You, our God, Glory to You!

O heavenly King, the Comforter; the Spirit of Truth, Who are in all places and fill all things; Treasurer of blessings and Giver of life, come and dwell within us and cleanse us form every blemish  and save our souls, O blessed One.

(If it is during the Paschal Season O Heavenly King is replaced by: Christ is Risen from the dead, trampling down death by death and to those in the tomb...

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Glory to You, our God, Glory to You!

O Heavenly King, the Comforter; the Spirit of Truth, Who are in all places and fill all things; Treasurer of blessings and Giver of life, come and dwell within us and cleanse us from every blemish and save our souls, O blessed One.

(If it is during the Paschal Season  O Heavenly King is replaced by: Christ is Risen from the dead, trampling down death by death and to those in the tomb...

Daily prayer is essential to a healthy Christian life. It is not an option. Why do we pray, How do we pray, When do we pray and Where do we pray are questions we address below.

 Why do we Pray?
• Christ asks us to pray. He tells us in the Gospel of Luke, How much more will
   the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him (Luke 11:13).
   We pray ...

Why Should I Care about the Philokalia?

First: It contains advice from so...

CHESAPEAKE, VA (Catholic Online) - First, I want to share my heart with my readers.  I long for the full communion of the Orthodox and Catholic Church.  I pray daily for the full communion of the Orthodox and Catholic Churches. I do so because I believe it is the will of God that "All May be One" (John 17: 21). 

I am also persuaded that the healing of the division between the two sister churches would unleash a profound renewal of the entire Church at the dawn of this new missionary ag...

Mary the Theotokos is very close to my heart, and, I am certain, close to the hearts of all who love her Son, Jesus. I can hardly think of her name without tears. When God, in the fullness of time, because of His great love for His creation, sent His Only-Begotten Son to save us sinners, He chose to do so in a way that is at once simple and tender, and profound, beyond our comprehension. He came to find a bride.

And God the Father, who is above all and in all and over all, chose to unit...

The Jesus Prayer brings concentration to the mind and helps detach it from its attraction to and domination by all the surrounding objects of the physical world gained through the senses. It brings us back to a unity with God that existed at the time of our creation when we were created in “Gods image.” It is about liberating the soul from the passions of the body so the mind can act out of God’s will to carry out His commandments of love.

We must recognize, howeve...

Prayers for Suggested Prayer Rule

In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Glory to You our God, Glory to You.

Prayer to Holy Spirit
Heavenly King, Comforter, the Spirit of Truth, present in all places and filling all things, Treasury of Goodness and Giver of life: come and abide in us. Cleanse us from every stain of sin and save our souls, O Graci...

What is a “Byzantine” Catholic?

Byzantine Catholics are followers of Jesus Christ, Who came into the world and assumed our human nature by becoming a man so that He could save us from our sins by His passion, death, resurrection and ascension to Heaven. We are the witnesses to God’s saving action in human history, and the bearers of the Good News of Christ to the end...

Simplicity, Satiety, and a Litmus Question

Dear _________, 

You ask about guidelines for fasting and whether all the rules you have read about amount to legalism. I will try to answer you as best as I can.

One quickly finds in Orthodoxy today that, when it comes to the more minor or secondary rules for practicing any given fast, there are a lot of different opinions as to what is proper practice. This can be quite confusing for the zealous convert. As in all things Orthodox, one must endeav...

LOS ANGELES,CA. (Catholic Online) - Orthodox Christians are thankful and grateful for the vocal and passionate public stance of Catholic Bishops and Catholic leaders who categorically oppose Obama's HHS healthcare mandate.  Your courage in defending our constitutionally protected religious liberty is making us stronger.  Your public and uncompromising witness to Christian principles and your passionate advocacy in protecting the life of the unborn is giving us hope. 

We embrace and sup...

Byzantine Catholics (also known as "Greek Catholics") are canonically organized into eparchies (dioceses) and exarchates (mission dioceses). Historically, such jurisdictions had been defined geographically and this is still the norm and the goal. However, as Eastern Catholics emigrated to the Americas from the countries of their spiritual and cultural ancestors, it became apparent that there was a pastoral need for such jurisdictions to be established along ethnic lines.

Ethnically and ...

Byzantine Catholics are followers of Jesus Christ

Jesus asked his disciples: "Who do people say that the Son of man is?" They replied, "Some say John the Baptizer, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets." "And you," he said to them, "who do you say that I am?" "You are the Messiah," Simon Peter answered, "the Son of the living God!" (Mathew 16:13-16)

Byzantine Catholics are followers of Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of the Living God, who in His great me...