sade065

Most Orthodox Christians are unaware that Adam & Eve were created and lived in virginity. Yes. That's right. "Be fruitful and multiply" was a command that was enacted upon after the fall. (Ch 4 of Genesis, St John Chrysostom teaches that Adam "knew" Eve after) There was no marriage in Paradise. There was no hetero-sex, nor homo-sex . They lived as angels. It can be shocking, but this is the teaching of St Chrysostom, St Gregory of Nyssa even though he was married, Saint Maximos, and St Gregory the Theologian to list a few. If we understood our own sexuality correctly, we could see the distortions today based on purely earthly indulgences. Saint Maximos teaches that God never intended for us to live as the animals, in passionate physical rage, uniting in a beastly way flesh to flesh. Flesh itself, was given after the Fall. Granted, God foresaw the fall of Adam & Eve and hence blessed the marriage bed between one woman and one man, however, this too has pe...

Lately, we have needed quick, on-the-go Orthodox fun. Below is what we've come up with that has brought much joy to us all with very limited supplies! Give these ideas a try: "I'm thinking of an Orthodox Saint...." - One person starts by offering a few clues about a certain Saint in mind. Possibly if they are a soldier, or queen along with a detail of two from their life or martyrdom, relics or miracle stories. The person who guesses correctly, young or old, gets to go next! This is a fun game for car rides or while waiting in line! "Name that Saint" - This game is also great for a group. Call two children/adults up front, to stand side by side. The moderator begins by flashing these Orthodox cards to both at the same time and slightly cover the name.  The person wins the card by shouting out the correct Saint first. Keep count of which two people in the group have won the most correctly, for a final showdown. Winning is not as important as of course, br...

 "Children of all ages are invited to enter into the feast day of the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ in this second book offered by the Sisters of All Saints Greek Orthodox monastery. Here you will find the rich and poetic words of Orthodox hymnography and illustrations based on traditional byzantine iconography. This humble offering will inspire every reader to worship and bow down to our Creator who became incarnate for our salvation." ORDER NOW the second book of this series as a Christmas gift for your families. Contact the Sisters at hagionpanton@gmail.com All Saints Greek Orthodox Monastery Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, Direct Archdiocesan District P.O. Box 802 1676 Middle Rd. Calverton, NY 11933

"When we teach our children to be good, to be gentle, and to be forgiving- all attributes of God; to be generous, to love their neighbor, to regard this present age as nothing, we instill virtue in their souls, and reveal the image of God within them. This then is our task: to educate both ourselves and our children in godliness; otherwise what answer will we have before Christ's judgment seat?... Let us be greatly concerned for our wives and our children and for ourselves as well. The good God Himself will bring this work to perfection, so that all of us may be counted worthy of the blessings He has promised." - St John Chrysostom  (Whose feast is celebrated today, Nov 13)

If you haven't created your very own "Family Icon" consider doing so with your children or Sunday school classes.  First we printed out the tree design and colored it, then we trimmed and added our icons of the Patron Saints for each member of the family. We cut the icons out of old catalogs and calendars we had. An icon of Christ was centered in the trunk of the tree, as we added the words of Christ in Greek - "I am the true vine + Ye are the branches " below. We had a little too much fun with the glue and glitter, then mounted it on construction paper, with two holes and string at the top. It hangs as a sort of a tapestry in our home. If you'd like, you could also write at the top " God bless the _______ Family." For us, it has been a joy for our children to learn who they are named after. We have the habit of asking our kids, "Who has the name from Agios Vasilios? Who has the name from Panagia? From Saint Helen, and Saint Stefanos" ...

"The common thing that brings all of us together, is our love for _______, and our desire to offer her/him the best beginning. Think about all the things we do for the newest member of our family...we make a safe home, with a safe bed and a safe car seat for her/him. We take her/him to the doctor for vaccinations and care for her/him to the best of our abilities, without her/him ever asking for it, but just because we love her/him. This is exactly the reason why we bring her/him to the Church today. Today, we offer ______ the beginning of a life grounded in the principles of faith,  kindness to others, and love for herself/himself as God's most important creation. She/he will be able to grow up with the best medicines for her/his mind, body and soul because she/he will begin receiving the holy Sacraments. Today, she/he was sealed with the chrism of the Holy Spirit, her/his hair was cut as her/his first offering to God, and she/he was clothed in the armor of new baptismal cloth...

Imagine someone walking into the art museum to do this to the Mona Lisa! They'd be arrested for graffiti, at a minimal I'm sure! Imagine the state of shock that Leonardo di Vinci would be in at such altercations to his masterpiece...., as if the way he created her is just not good enough!  Yet everyday around the world, millions of young girls, college students, middle aged moms, and aging grandmoms apply lipstick, paint their nails, apply haircolor, enhance their body with implants, pierce their ears and endure the pain of getting a tatoo all to look more "beautiful" or just a bit younger. A little "blush" here and there....no harm done right? Besides, isn't it fun to be "girly?" Where's the harm in aiming to look 20 years younger? Hasn't anyone ever said....you're already perfect...just the way you are! In fact, God likes you BEST without all that stuff! -You are perfect in His eyes! If He wanted our toenails purple, He would...

Introducing the first book, "Our Hymn to the Mother of God" as part of a full-color hard bound Orthodox children's series now available for purchase by the Sisters of All Saints Greek Orthodox Monastery in Calverton, Long Island, New York. It has been a joy to work with them to publish this special project, as their idea of using the hymnology of the Church to retell the story to children just couldn't be more appropriate! The spiritual poetry on each page is matched with wonderful original illustrations by Sister Theonymphi in the style of Byzantine iconography, which means you won't find anything theologically wrong like a cartoon image of Christ! The heavenly scenes will inspire all children to contemplate our Almighty God. Here are a few sneak peaks, and the information for ordering: The sisters hope to soon make their copies available through Amazon online, as well as parish bookstores, etc.   ISBN Number: 978-0-9835602-0-3 All Saints Greek Orthodox Monas...