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by St. Luke, Archbishop of Crimea Doctor of Medicine, Professor, and State Prize winner, since 1944 St. Luke was the Archbishop of Tambov and Michurinsk, and later of Simferopol and the Crimea. While he was serving the church as an Archbishop, he was also practicing as a surgeon and taught and published many books and articles on regional anesthesia and surgery. He is now known to be a world-famous pioneering surgeon. Sermon given on the … [Read more...]
by St. Peter of Damascus Even if you are not what you should be, you should not despair. It is bad enough that you have sinned; why in addition do you wrong God by regarding Him in your ignorance as powerless? Is He, who for your sake created the great universe that you behold, incapable of saving your soul? And if you say that this fact, as well as His incarnation, only makes your condemnation worse, then repent; and He will receive your … [Read more...]
by St. Cyril of Alexandria I hear one of the holy prophets trying to win unto repentance those who are far from God, and saying, "Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God: for you have become weak in your iniquity. Take with you words, and return to the Lord our God." What sort of words then did he, under the influence of the Spirit, command them to take with them? Or were they not such as become those who wish to repent; such namely, as would … [Read more...]
by Metropolitan Hilarion Alfeyev This sermon was apparently given at St. Vladimir Seminary sometime in the recent past, and is an excellent homily on why the three are commemorated, and their importance to the Church, students, and the clergy. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ! There is much in common among the three hierarchs and great ecumenical teachers whom we commemorate today: Saints Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian and … [Read more...]
by St. John Maximovitch Soon after the teaching of Christ began to spread among the Gentiles, those who came to believe in Christ and became His followers began in Antioch to be called Christians (Acts 11:26). The word “Christian” indicated that the bearer of that name had given himself to Christ, with all his heart he belonged to Him, and he followed His teaching. The name “Christian” - which defines well the essence of the followers … [Read more...]
Sermon by Benjamin T. Peck given at the 2011 Festival of Young Preachers. The Gift of “No” In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Glory to Jesus Christ! For He is the one who has given us a gift that cannot be matched by anyone on this Earth, or anything in Heaven. Through His death and resurrection, Christ has given us the power to say the word “no”. We have all been called here today to speak on … [Read more...]
Sermon given by Raymond Krajci at the Festival of Young Preachers On my way to Columbus, I pass a pair of massive billboards alongside the highway. They hold the Ten Commandments in large white letters against a pitch black background. Every instance of the word “not” occurs in a vibrant red evocative of the scarlet letter or fire. At the very bottom, in even larger red letters, the sign proclaims too all who pass by “Hell is real”. … [Read more...]
by St. Seraphim of Virits This was sent to me from my friend, Fr. John Stavropoulos. "This was from me" is a famous letter written by St. Seraphim of Viritsa that he sent to his spiritual child, a bishop who was in a Soviet prison at that time; this homily "This was from me" is written as a consolation and counsel to the bishop to let him know that God the Creator addresses to the soul of man. "Have you ever thought that everything that … [Read more...]
Good news, everyone! This Theophany, young Orthodox preachers will be participating in the Festival of Young Preachers, an annual festival held by Dwight Moody’s Academy of Preachers. The Academy is a national partner of the Preachers Institute. This is an annual opportunity for young Christian preachers, aged 16-28, to come together, flex their intellects, share and sharpen skills in proclaiming Christ crucified and risen. Last year, which … [Read more...]
by St. Irenaeus of Lyons Against Heresies, Book 4, Chapters 7, 10, 11, 23 Therefore Abraham also, knowing the Father through the Word, who made heaven and earth, confessed Him to be God; and having learned, by an announcement [made to him], that the Son of God would be a man among men, by whose advent his seed should be as the stars of heaven, he desired to see that day, so that he might himself also embrace Christ; and, seeing it through … [Read more...]
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