by Fr. James Coles We do not build churches merely because we need more room. We build them because man needs a place where his heart can be gathered into the presence of God. A church is a place where heaven touches the earth, where we stand together before Christ, where our children learn to pray, where the departed are remembered, and where the Holy Mysteries sanctify our whole life. When a parish grows and we build, we are not simply constructing a larger building; we are preparing a larger dwelling place for prayer, for communion, and for the generations who will come after us. We build with gratitude for those who came before us, with love for those who stand beside us today, and with … [Read more...]

When Christians weigh liturgical worship versus contemporary services, they are often asking deeper questions: What is worship for? Who is the Church? How does a person actually grow in communion with God? These questions deserve more than a debate about hymn preferences, instruments, or clothing. A church service is never merely a matter of style. Orthodox Christianity answers from the life of the Church received from the apostles. Worship is not a weekly religious event designed around personal taste. It is the gathered people of God entering, by grace, the worship of heaven. The Divine Liturgy forms us because it places Christ at the center and asks us to bring our whole selves before … [Read more...]

On September 14, the men's group of ASONA - St. Theodore's Recruits - held their 2026 Camping in the Pines adventure. Led by Deacon Joseph Peck, the camping event took place in Lakeside, AZ, on the land of one of the founders of St. Herman's Mission, Adam Hague, and not far from the St. Herman of Alaska Mission run by parish friend, Fr. Michael Vallecillo. Several members of St. Herman's parish also participated in the adventure. And an adventure it was. The campers all had the chance to see the grounds where St. Herman's mission originally celebrated Divine Liturgy "under the pines" (starting in 2018). It rained a bit every day in the White Mountains that week, but mostly it was a cool, … [Read more...]

Why Orthodox Christianity Requires Icons Orthodox Christianity does not regard icons as optional religious decoration. Their necessity arises from the Church’s confession of Jesus Christ: the eternal Word of God truly became flesh, entered history, possessed a visible human face, and remains forever the God-man. The defense of icons is therefore not fundamentally an argument about art. It is an argument about the Incarnation, the nature of Christian worship, the sanctification of matter, and the difference between objective revelation and the private constructions of the imagination. The Seventh Ecumenical Council at Nicaea in AD 787 defended the making and veneration of holy icons while … [Read more...]

Is mental imagery good or bad in spiritual life? Fr. Sergei answers the question for Orthodox Christians, and anyone else who needs to know, once and for all. By Fr. Sergei Sveshnikov Just as there can be a properly trained voice, there can be a properly trained soul. —Fr. Alexander Elchaninov This presentation is based on the research that I undertook for a book titled Imagine That… : Mental Imagery in Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Private Devotion, published in paperback in February of 2009 with the blessing of His Eminence Archbishop Kyrill of San Francisco. The work is an analytical comparison of Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox attitudes toward mental imagery. In this … [Read more...]

by Abbot Tryphon Orthodox worship is unchanging, and grounded in tradition. A visitor to the monastery recently shared his preference of contemporary worship with drums, guitar, etc. He insisted that God doesn't really care how we worship, as long as we offer Him our praise. Knowing this man to be a serious Christian, and an upfront disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ, made it clear to me that I could not judge him, or be critical of his views. However, it did leave me with a grateful heart, knowing that I am not convinced that he is correct. Believing, as he does, that God does not care how we worship Him, reminded me of a question I asked my Baptist grandmother, as a boy of twelve. Why … [Read more...]

The Venerable Vigil Valuable , Versatile , Vexatious November 18-21, 2026 $300 in person/$200 via livestream CLICK HERE TO REGISTER The schedule and hotel information will be available shortly. Watch this space! This year’s Liturgical Practicum promises to be a dazzler. Location: All Saints of North America Church 18700 N. 107th Avenue Unit 5 Sun City, AZ This will be a veritable and vital venue for viewing, verifying, and valuing venerable vesperal, and vigil verities. Veteran vicars will vividly verbalize valuable liturgical variations, vocabulary, viewpoints and visions. Vigilant participation will prevent virtual viewers and vested clergy from being left vulnerable, … [Read more...]

Originally published November 17, 2012 by Fr. John A. Peck How Dogmatic Iconography defends the doctrine of the Incarnation against ancient Gnosticism. Harold Bloom, in his book, The American Religion, rightly comes to the startling conclusion that America is a nation of Gnostics, believers in a pre-Christian tradition of individual divinity. The American propensity to be religious iconoclasts on the one hand, and cultural idolaters on the other is a stark and broken contrast with Incarnational Christianity. Despite protestations to the contrary, it is not the icon which is so offensive to Gnostics and iconoclasts, it is the message which the icon represents which cannot be … [Read more...]