Steve and Bill finish the mini-series on the liturgical prayer life of the Church. For all the teaching and talk about fasting on the program, the Church's liturgical calendar really focuses on the 12 Great Feasts and fasting is our preparation for the Feasts of the Church. In the third segment of the program, Steve and Bill tag team wrestle a glossary of liturgical terms and show once again that two lightweights are no match for the 2000 year old Tradition. They deftly handle the Troparion, they almost pin down the Kontakion, but the Canons and Exapostilarion finally throw them. The Church's liturgical terms win by a unanimous decision. A rematch may be scheduled in the future.

With the reading of the Gospel and the homily that often follows it, the Liturgy of the Catechumens is concluded, and we transition to the Liturgy of the Faithful - The Communion Service. The Eucharist has always been the central focus of the life and worship of the Church from the beginning. Here we try to convey, by way of the Cherubic Hymn and the priestly prayers, the meaning of the Great Entrance - the journey of the gifts from the Prothesis table to the Altar. This is the life-journey of Christ in the world on his way to His Life-Giving Death, and the faithful are eyewitnesses to this - as the lines between heaven and earth are blurred in the mysterious and sacred space of the Kingdom.

Touching upon all the gifts that the season of Great Lent offers for spiritual growth, Fr. John Behr, Dean of St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary, delivers four reflections on the emergence of life through suffering, brokenness, and death. With astute attention to the teachings of Scripture and the Fathers, Fr. John centers on the necessity of dying for true life in Christ—life eternal—to emerge.

Touching upon all the gifts that the season of Great Lent offers for spiritual growth, Fr. John Behr, Dean of St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary, delivers four reflections on the emergence of life through suffering, brokenness, and death. With astute attention to the teachings of Scripture and the Fathers, Fr. John centers on the necessity of dying for true life in Christ—life eternal—to emerge.

Touching upon all the gifts that the season of Great Lent offers for spiritual growth, Fr. John Behr, Dean of St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary, delivers four reflections on the emergence of life through suffering, brokenness, and death. With astute attention to the teachings of Scripture and the Fathers, Fr. John centers on the necessity of dying for true life in Christ—life eternal—to emerge.

Touching upon all the gifts that the season of Great Lent offers for spiritual growth, Fr. John Behr, Dean of St. Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary, delivers four reflections on the emergence of life through suffering, brokenness, and death. With astute attention to the teachings of Scripture and the Fathers, Fr. John centers on the necessity of dying for true life in Christ—life eternal—to emerge.

Well-known theologian, composer, and author Metropolitan Hilarion Alfeyev, Chairman of the Department of External Relations for the Moscow Patriarchate, delivered an academic address at St. Vlad's on November 8, 2014, on the topic of primacy in preparation for the 2016 Great and Holy Council. He was also given an honorary Doctor of Divinity Degree.

Bishop Anba Suriel of the Coptic Diocese of Melbourne, Australia, speaks at the annual Lenten retreat at St. Vladimir's Seminary.

Bishop Anba Suriel of the Coptic Diocese of Melbourne, Australia, speaks at the annual Lenten retreat at St. Vladimir's Seminary.

Bishop Anba Suriel of the Coptic Diocese of Melbourne, Australia, speaks at the annual Lenten retreat at St. Vladimir's Seminary.

Bishop Anba Suriel of the Coptic Diocese of Melbourne, Australia, speaks at the annual Lenten retreat at St. Vladimir's Seminary.

Saint Vladimir's Seminary entered into its annual, two-day Lenten Retreat on Clean Monday and Tuesday, March 15 and 16, 2021. Four talks delivered over the two days followed the theme of "Ora et Labora: The Foundations of Spirituality According to the Rule of St Benedict of Nursia." Seminary President Fr Chad Hatfield, in this first reflection, offers thoughts on "Praying Alone."

Saint Vladimir's Seminary entered into its annual, two-day Lenten Retreat on Clean Monday and Tuesday, March 15 and 16, 2021. Four talks delivered over the two days followed the theme of "Ora et Labora: The Foundations of Spirituality According to the Rule of St Benedict of Nursia." In this reflection, Dr Vitaly Permiakov, the Seminary's assistant professor of liturgical theology, leads a meditation on "Praying Together."

Saint Vladimir's Seminary entered into its annual, two-day Lenten Retreat on Clean Monday and Tuesday, March 15 and 16, 2021. Four talks delivered over the two days followed the theme of "Ora et Labora: The Foundations of Spirituality According to the Rule of St Benedict of Nursia." Saint Vladimir’s Director of Music Harrison Russin reflects on “Working Alone” in this third of the retreat meditations.

Saint Vladimir's Seminary entered into its annual, two-day Lenten Retreat on Clean Monday and Tuesday, March 15 and 16, 2021. Four talks delivered over the two days followed the theme of "Ora et Labora: The Foundations of Spirituality According to the Rule of St Benedict of Nursia." In this final meditation, Fr Nicholas Roth, the Seminary’s Spiritual Formation Director and Ecclesiarch, speaks of “Working Together.”

Sponsored by the St. Ambrose Society, a student interest group at St. Vladimir's Seminary, this is a lecture by Dr. Ryan Sampson Nash, the Director of the Ohio State University Center for Bioethics.

Dn. Michael begins a new series based on Fr. Alexander Schmemann's book Great Lent: Journey to Pascha.

Dn. Michael discusses the five Sundays that precede the start of Great Lent.

Dn. Michael continues his discussion of the five Sundays that precede the start of Great Lent.

Dn. Michael considers four aspects of Lenten worship: atmosphere, prayer, Scripture, and hymns.

Dn. Michael begins discussing the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts.

Dn. Michael reminds us that it is only by knowing the way that we make it to Pascha.

Dn. Michael asks the question, "How can we apply Fr. Alexander's teachings on Great Lent to our lives?"

In the final episode in the study of Fr. Alexander Schmemann's book Great Lent: Journey to Pascha, Dn. Michael discusses the Appendix where Fr. Alexander talks about the importance of frequent communion.

Dn. Michael continues his series," In But Not Of," and discusses chapter one of On the Incarnation.

Sometimes we ask, "If I die young, how many great things might I have done?" Perhaps we should ask, "If I live long, will I die a human being?"

Steve discusses his death at birth, his life-long desire to be old, his "death wish," and what it means to "live is Christ and to die is gain."

Dn. Mark presents the Orthodox Christian perspective on death.

Dn. Mark explains that everything the world teaches is the exact opposite of what the Church teaches, particularly when it come to death. Only Orthodox Christianity resolves the problem of death.

Dn. Mark discusses what happens physically when a loved one approaches a natural death.

Only those who suffer and speak the universal language of the heart can help others who suffer.

Fr. Nicolaie shares about the interest in St. Anthony the Great expressed by a man at the mission.

Listen to excerpts from this past Sunday's bulletin at St. John the Compassionate Mission, serving the most vulnerable in Toronto.

Reflections about hospitality, written by Fr. Nicolaie.

Both Hector and Mohamed share their wisdom, encouraging each person to use their God-given creativity and humbly open their hearts, in order to build community and open the door to holiness.

In today's generation, we do better to remain poor and in need of healing, but together in Christ; than to be healed alone and segregated through disunity. The community is learning this while walking with people like Judy.

Fr. Lawrence asks if we should be trying to convert those of other faiths or not faith to Christianity.

Fr. Lawrence offers commentary on the Divine Liturgy with a focus today on the Great Litany.

Recently I heard a very dark and serious song about the judgment of God and His wrath against sinners. It was the folk song “Great God Almighty’s Gonna Cut You Down” (accessed here). I was not aware of the song before; apparently it is an American folk song. The oracular Wikipedia informs me that it was first recorded by the Golden Gate Quartet in 1946 and issued in 1947 by the Jubalairies, and since then has been covered by a variety of singers in country, folk, electronic, and black metal genres, including such singers as Johnny Cash, Tom Jones, and Elvis Presley. It takes some imagination to contemplate someone singing both about blue suede shoes and the wrath of God, but that’s America for you.

Now that Great Lent is upon us, the question sometimes arises about where we should put our spiritual focus. There are two places we should certainly not put our focus—and only one place where we should.

Fr. Apostolos talks about the ascetic tradition of the Orthodox faith in light of St. Anthony the Great's feast day.

Fr. Apostolos Hill reviews the life of St. Haralambos and the threat his faith, as a 113 year-old man, represented to an Empire.

Fr. Apostolos Hill delivers a homily about the 1st Ecumenical Council and how only the God-man Jesus Christ is the Bridge that unites Heaven and Earth.

Throughout the scriptures the imagery of the supper is used to depict the hospitality of God toward us. Fr Tom reminds us to respond well to the invitation to be united to Christ. (Twenty-ninth Sunday after Pentecost. Sermon given in Florida.)

On the day before the beginning of Great Lent, the Church teaches us that our journey of repentance begins with offering forgiveness. Fr Tom reminds us that forgiveness is the essential action to grow in the likeness of God, because it is what He freely offers to us. (Forty-first Sunday after Pentecost - Forgiveness Sunday)