‘Let us become the hands of God’s merciful love,’ is the advice that characterizes the 69 years of life, but especially the almost 13 years of patriarchal ministry of His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel. Under the stewardship of His Beatitude, the Romanian Orthodox Church has become the greatest philanthropist as regards the contribution to social work,…

On Monday morning, July 20, Hieromonk Jacob (Savin) of Sihăstria Monastery reposed in the Lord. His funeral was served the following morning. Fr. Jacob is renowned as a wise hieromonk who served as the last confessor of the great Elder Cleopas (Ilie) who is venerated throughout the Orthodox world. His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel sent a…

Moscow, July 23, Interfax – Russian President Vladimir Putin and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis had a telephone conversation on Wednesday to discuss the change to the status of Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia Cathedral. “The sides had a meaningful discussion on the situation surrounding the changing status of the Hagia Sophia Cathedral in Istanbul. They emphasized…

Meeting under the chairmanship of His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel at the Patriarchal Palace in Bucharest yesterday, July 21, the Holy Synod of the Romanian Orthodox Church made a number of decisions, including new additions to the Church’s liturgical calendar. According to the communique published by the Patriarchate’s Basilica News Agency, the Synod “resolved to include…

  Archaeologists recently unearthed the foundations of a 12th-century church in the Veliky Novgorod Kremlin. The remains are in excellent condition, the Institute of Archaeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences told Interfax-Religion yesterday. “We were excavating an area of about 385 square feet this year, and, fortunately, a significant fragment of the foundation of…

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His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros Homily for the Vespers of Saint Markella Saint Markella Greek Orthodox Church Wantagh, New York My Beloved Christians, I am so very pleased to be with you tonight for the Vespers and celebration of your Matronal Saint, the Holy Markella of Chios. She is more than a martyr to purity and…

Feverish preparations continue ahead of the first Muslim prayer, in decades, at the Hagia Sophia, set for Friday, two weeks after a shocking and impudent decision by authoritarian Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to convert the UNESCO World Heritage site into a mosque. The now Islamist Turkish leader is scheduled to head a top Turkish…

A new round of Church-state dialogue begins in Greece in the coming period, with the relevant education and religious minister, Niki Kerameos, issuing invitations. Topics up for discussion, according to reports, include religious studies in the public education sector, commercially exploiting Church properties, and the legal status of cemeteries, among others.