THE TRIODION Great Lent is the 40-day season of spiritual preparation that comes before the most important Feast of the Christian year, Holy Pascha (which means “Passover” and is commonly called “Easter”,). It is the central part of a larger time of preparation called the Triodion season. The Triodion begins ten weeks before Easter and […]

Father Andrew Damick Around this time of year, many people start thinking about ways they can change for the better. While New Year’s resolutions are not particularly a feature of the Orthodox faith, change certainly is, and resolving to change based on times and seasons is certainly part of our liturgical tradition. So adapting the […]

Ron & Judy Alsop (Barnabas & Judith) “Culture shock” probably best describes our first visit to St. Andrew Orthodox Church in Riverside, CA. In August, 2006, our “kids,” Kentigern & Theodosia Sammons (Kent & Jayna to us) invited us to attend Divine Liturgy at St. Andrew. Fr. Josiah Trenham, the priest at this parish and […]

The Lord said, “As you wish that men would do to you, do so to them.” We are more accustomed to the version, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” a maxim dubbed The Golden Rule since at least the mid-16th century. It is said that this rule can be found […]

By Christina Pessemier Life gets busy and we don’t step back enough to see what we might be doing as parents to hurt our children’s spiritual growth. Being an intentional Orthodox Christian parent is hard work…but it’s worth it. We have a legacy of faith, wisdom and experience we can pass on to our kids […]

By Judith Alsop A dear friend and mentor of mine quotes a poignant poem in his book, “Don’t Waste Your Sorrows.”  It goes like this: I walked a mile with pleasure; She chattered all the way, But left me none the wiser For all she had to say. I walked a mile with sorrow; And […]

By Tomas Rocha Set back on quiet College Hill in Providence, Rhode Island, sits a dignified, four story, 19th-century house that belongs to Dr. Willoughby Britton. Inside, it is warm, spacious, and organized. The shelves are stocked with organic foods. A solid wood dining room table seats up to 12. Plants are ubiquitous. Comfortable pillows […]

By Ben Cabe When I was 13-years-old my dad challenged me to do 40 situps every day for two weeks. I informed him after the two weeks that I successfully completed his challenge and planned to continue the exercise. And I did. I kept it up for quite some time. When I began to see […]

By Gabe Martini Properly speaking, there is no such thing as “the Orthodox Church.” This is used by convention to refer to a body of fourteen autonomous, local churches, united by a common faith, worship, and Eucharistic fellowship. Each of these local churches together comprise the one holy, catholic, and apostolic Church of Jesus Christ. […]