Joy – Page 9 – Blisswood

The Feast of Life

Monastery Gardens – Meteora, Greece 2006

Christ is Risen!

Memory Eternal Faith!

Beautiful Beatitudes!

Thou broughtest me into this life as if into a wonderful garden. I see the sky deep and blue, the birds as they chirp in flight; I listen to the soothing rustle of trees and the sonorous sound of waters; my mouth is enjoying fragrant and succulent fruits. How wonderful it is in Thy world and how joyous it is to be Thy guest! ~ Ikos 2; Akathist of Thanksgiving

Glory to Thee for the feast of life! Glory to Thee for the scents of lilies of the valley and roses. Glory to Thee for the abundance and multiplicity of earthly fruits. Glory to Thee for the glistening of morning dew. Glory to Thee for the joyous smile of dawn with which Thou dost waken me. Glory to Thee for eternal life and the kingdom of heaven. Glory to Thee, O God of the ages! ~ The Akathist of Thanksgiving by Metropolitan Tryphon of Turkestan; discovered in the personal effects of Hieromartyr Grigori Petroff (+1942)

Truly He is Risen!

Joy is Thankfulness

Christ is Risen!

Joy is thankfulness, and when we are joyful, that is the best expression of thanks we can offer the Lord, Who delivers us from sorrow and sin. ~ Elder Thaddeus of Vitovnica

O give thanks unto the Lord; for he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever. ~ 1 Chronicles 16:34

Sing unto the Lord, O ye saints of his, and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness. ~ Psalm 30:4

Make a joyful noise unto the Lord, all ye lands. ~ Psalm 100:1

Truly He is Risen!

Happiness Is a Pure Heart

A bouquet of flowers, from a dear friend.

Christ is Risen!

Happiness is found within ourselves, and blessed is the man who has understood this. Happiness is a pure heart, for such a heart becomes the throne of God. Thus says Christ of those who have pure hearts: “I will visit them, and will walk in them, and I will be a God to them, and they will be my people.” (II Cor. 6:16) What can be lacking to them? Nothing, nothing at all! For they have the greatest good in their hearts: God Himself! ~ St. Nektarios of Aegina

The Church has always open arms for us. Hurry in them rather, all we, whose consciences are burdened. Hurry – and the Church will lift the weight of our burdens, give us confidence towards God, and fill our hearts with happiness and bliss. ~ St. Nektarios of Aegina

A Christian must be courteous to all. His words and deeds should breathe with the grace of the Holy Spirit, which abides in his soul, so that in this way he might glorify the name of God. He who regulates all of his speech also regulates all of his actions. He who keeps watch over the words he is about say also keeps watch over the deeds he intends to do, and he never goes out of the bounds good and benevolent conduct. The graceful speech of a Christian is characterized by delicateness and politeness. This fact, born of love, produces peace and joy. On the other hand, boorishness gives birth to hatred, enmity, affliction, competitiveness, disorder and wars. ~ St. Nektarios of Aegina

Love should never be sacrificed for the sake of some dogmatic difference. ~ St. Nektarios of Aegina

Do not think that you have a right to complain when your prayers are not answered. God fulfills your desires in a manner that you do not know. ~ St. Nektarios of Aegina

Truly He is Risen!

Wellspring of Wisdom

Hawaiian stream flowing to ocean – 2014

Christ is Risen!

My soul thirsts for God, for the living God; When shall I come and appear before God? ~ Psalm 42:2

Therefore you will joyously draw water from the springs of salvation. ~ Isaiah 12:3

Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, And whose hope is the Lord. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river, And will not fear when heat comes; But its leaf will be green, And will not be anxious in the year of drought, Nor will cease from yielding fruit. ~ Jeremiah 17:7-8

Jesus answered and said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again; but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life. ~ St. John 4:13-14

Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. ~ St. John 7:37

Truly He is Risen!

Sunday of the Holy Myrrhbearers

Memory Eternal, Joanna.

Christ is Risen!

…The myrrh bearing women at the break of dawn, drew near to the tomb of the Giver of Life. There they found an angel seated upon the stone, and he greeted them with these words: “Why do ye seek the Living among the dead? Why mourn ye the Incorrupt amid corruption? Go: proclaim the glad tidings to His disciples.” This is the day which the Lord hath made! Let us rejoice and be glad therein. Pascha of beauty! The Pascha of the Lord! A Pascha worthy of all honour hath dawned for us. Pascha! Pascha, ransom from affliction! For today, as from a bridal chamber, Christ hath shone forth from the tomb, and filled the women with joy, saying “Proclaim the glad tidings to the apostles.” ~ Excerpt from the Aposticha Paschal Stichera; Let God Arise

The third Sunday of Holy Pascha is designated as the Sunday of the Holy Myrrhbearers. These courageous and steadfast women disciples of the Lord followed Jesus Christ throughout His ministry… providing and caring for Him and His followers (St. Mark 15:41). They remained faithful to Him during the dangerous times of His arrest, crucifixion, and burial. On account of the preparation for the Sabbath, the initial burial preparations were incomplete and brief. As soon as the Sabbath passed, the women speedily returned, bringing precious myrrh and ointment to anoint His body. It was still dark and very early in the morning, when they arrived at the tomb. Christ’s Resurrection was revealed by an angel, and they were given the honour to announce the glad tidings to the apostles. Because of this, the Myrrhbearing Women, especially St. Mary Magdalene, are sometimes referred to as Equal to the Apostles.

The Holy Myrrhbearers represent all that is good in our Christian faith. They are the spiritual-embodiment of Faith, Hope and Love.

Truly He is Risen!

Radonitsa

Christ is Risen!

The Tuesday of St. Thomas week is called Radonitsa, and known as the Day of Rejoicing.

On this day, and with Paschal Joy, we remember all who have reposed in the faith. Orthodox graves are blessed by priests and visited by the faithful.

It is hard for most parishes to gather at the graves on weekdays. So, the graves are blessed instead on St. Thomas Sunday, after the Divine Liturgy. When possible, this is followed by a traditional, joyous, communal picnic at the cemetery.

In any case, is important, to visit the graves of loved ones at any time during the 40 days of Pascha-tide; and to greet them saying or singing Christ is Risen…

For he is not a God of the dead, but of the living: for all live unto him.

Truly He is Risen!

Thomas Sunday & Happy Mothers’ Day

Icon of the Holy Apostle Thomas probing Christ’s wounds

Christ is Risen!

The Apostle Thomas believed, because he was invited by the Risen Christ, to touch Him.

When we seek God, we touch Him, and we are touched by Him.

He passes through the closed doors of our hearts and minds, and directs us towards the light of faith and understanding.

Jesus saith … blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed. – St. John 20:29

Happy Mothers’ Day!

With greetings to all mothers, grandmothers, godmothers, and matushki! Whether our own mothers are still with us, or have already passed on… there is the joyous consolation that of our Holy Lady Theotokos is always close by!

God loves us more than father, mother, friend, or any else could love, and even more than we are able to love ourselves. ~ St. John Chrysostom

The Most Holy Mother of God prays for us ceaselessly. She is always visiting us. Whenever we turn to her in our heart, she is there. After the Lord, she is the greatest protection of mankind. ~ Elder Thaddeus of Vitnovica

Truly He is Risen!

Great and Holy Pascha

Thy Resurrection, O Christ our Saviour, the angels in heaven sing, enable us on earth, to glorify Thee, in purity of heart!

For our Orthodox Pascha is not just a festival, but the Festival of all festivals, an event for exceeding all the events of this world. Pascha shakes the whole cosmos: the sun, by our faith, dances and becomes iridescent with every colour of the rainbow, and all of creation rejoices. Some observe a magnificent silence, lacking the strength to express the inexpressible feeling of Paschal joy which fills their souls. Others hasten to share their feeling of the Paschal triumph. All people and all things begin to move, the tedious vanities of this world are cast aside, and all are transfigured. Pascha is, first of all, in us ourselves, in our hearts. God’s gift of the feeling of love penetrates our whole being, and we love each person and all things. This relates not just to the animal kingdom, but to the whole of creation, extending to the smallest blade of grass and the smallest flower. Nothing escapes our loving attention. May the Lord help us all to keep ourselves like this, for as such did the Lord create us… ~Paschal Epistle excerpt of Metropolitan Vitaly – May, 2000; The Two Thousandth Pascha of Christ.

The Pascha of the Lord is here!

Voices of Faith Hope and Love: St. Sophia Orthodox Church Virtual Youth Choir sing *Son Rise* in 2021. This song is a Paschal Poem, written by an 8 year old youth choir student, many years ago.

Christ is Risen! Truly He is Risen!

Parish Youth Choir Sing Paschal Tropar

Paschal Sermon ~ St. John Chrysostom (347 – 407 AD)

Greeting you all with love and joy… Christ is Risen! Truly He is Risen!

Have a Radiant and Blessed Bright Week!

Palm Sunday Greetings

Basket of Palm Sunday Blessed Willow Branches in Old Chapel of St. Sophia, Canada

Today is Palm Sunday, the Feast Day commemorating the Entrance of our Lord into Jerusalem. Following His glorious miracle of raising Lazarus from the dead, the people went out to meet the Lord with palms and branches. They welcomed Him with honour and shouts of praise. Today is also a bittersweet joy, for we know of the sad events to come during Holy Week.

On this day, we too, wherever we are, (particularly during pandemic isolation) may still bend the knees of our hearts and souls, to worship Christ as King and Lord.

…Let the events themselves – and not just memories break us in body and soul. Then, when we forget ourselves and think rather of Christ, about what is really taking place during these days, we will reach also that Great Saturday when Christ is laid to rest in the tomb – and we also will find rest. When at night we hear the announcement of the Resurrection, we too will be able to suddenly come alive from that terrible numbness, from that terrible death of Christ, from Christ’s dying, of which we shall partake at least a little during these days of the Passion. ~ Metropolitan Anthony Bloom

Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey. ~ Zechariah 9:9

God is the Lord, and hath appeared unto us; make ye a feast, and with gladness, come, let us magnify Christ with palms and branches, with hymns crying aloud: blessed is He that cometh in the name of the Lord our Saviour. ~ Ode 9 of the Feast

Rejoice Always

Man seeks joy and happiness in heaven. He seeks what is eternal far from everyone and everything. He seeks to find joy in God. God is a mystery. He is silence. He is infinite. He is everything. Everyone possesses this inclination of the soul for heaven. All people seek something heavenly. All beings turn toward Him, albeit unconsciously. Turn your mind towards Him continually. Learn to love prayer, familiar converse with the Lord… Become worthy of Christ’s love… Turn on the switch of prayer so that divine love may flood your soul. Christ will appear in the depths of your being. There, in the deepest and most inward part, is the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God is within you (St. Luke 17:21). ~St. Porphyrios “Wounded by Love”