On Lazarus Saturday, two brothers who were catechumens together were baptized into the Holy Orthodox faith at All Saints of North America Orthodox Church. Albert and Thomas Gonzales completed their catechumenate, and received baptism surrounded by friends, family, and fellow parishioners. Click on each photo for an enlarged version! … [Read more...]

The Holy Fire has descended in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, as seen on the Ukrainian channel Svidok. The Holy Light descended at about 2:55 PM (7:35 AM Eastern Standard time). It appeared in the edicule (the small chapel built over the burial place of Christ) after the Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem, Theophilos III, entered there at 2:50 PM (7:50 AM) to patiently pray and wait. After the Fire’s descent, the Patriarch passed the holy gift to the faithful who lit from it their bundles of 33 candles, per the age of Christ at the time of His Crucifixion and Resurrection. The descent of the Light was preceded by a complex ceremony: The doors of the Sepulchre were sealed … [Read more...]

  In the architectural tradition of the Eastern Orthodox Churches, the altar part is located on the eastern side of the church building. In view of this, parishioners and clergy pray facing east. According to the writings of the ancient Christian fathers, even outside the church, believers prayed facing east. Icons at home are oriented in the same direction as Orthodox altars. By the way, even the word “orientation” itself comes from the Latin oriēns, translated as “east”. Where does this tradition come from? St. Basil the Great writes in his essay On the Holy Spirit that the tradition of praying facing the east, as well as the custom of making the sign of the cross, was passed down … [Read more...]