Hyacinth of Caesarea Hyacinth was born in Caesarea in Cappadocia, between 88 and 96 A.D. He was raised Christian. And at some point he became a member of the Emperor’s household. The Emperor at this time, Trajan, persecuted Christians. Emperor Trajan led Rome’s military effectively, and greatly expanded the Roman Empire. History even calls Trajan …
The Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul We have officially arrived at one of the key feasts in the post Pentecost Liturgical year for Eastern Christians. June 29th is the Feast of the All-holy and Praiseworthy Apostles Peter and Paul, our fathers among the saints. Since the Monday after the Eastern feast of All Saints, …
The Holy Apostles Bartholomew and Barnabas On June 11th we commemorate the Holy Apostles Bartholomew and Barnabas. So to help us celebrate, let’s go through what we know about these two saints, and their prayers and tropars. Bartholomew Bartholomew is one of the 12 Apostles. There is a strong possibility that he is the same …
Mnohaya lita! Mnohaya lita! Vo zdraviye, vo spasenniye! Na mnohaya lita! Pentecost is one of my favourite feasts of the church year. Even more so now that I’ve been exposed to the Byzantine celebration of Holy and Glorious Pentecost. I love green, so the fact that the liturgical colour in the East for this day …
St. John the Theologian John the Theologian is my favourite apostle, and Gospel writer! We celebrate his main feast day on May 8th. We also celebrate John during the Synaxis of the 12 Apostles, and on his dormition: September 26th. He is one of the sons of Zebedee (together with St. James). Tradition holds that …
On April 25th we celebrate the Holy, Glorious, Apostle and Evangelist Mark. (Otherwise known as John Mark, the cousin of Barnabas). He is symbolized by a lion with wings. The lion represents the power and glory of the resurrection. Also, when you read the beginning of Mark’s gospel, it fits with the image of a …
Khrystos Voskres! Christ is Risen! Today we are discussing Bright Week, the “one joyous day” that begins Easter Morning and ends on Saturday. If you are looking to read about Easter Sunday (including what to put in your Easter Basket), check out our previous years’ article here. Bright Week is one joyous day in our …
St. Benedict is on of my favourite saints, so this year I am doing an article for his feast day. We celebrate Benedict of Nursia on his death-day, the 21st of March (547 AD). Although Ukrainian Catholics on the new calendar celebrate him on the 14th. He was a monk in the 6th century, and …
On the 9th of March we celebrate the feast of the 40 Martyrs of Sebaste. And who are these Martyrs? Good question… because the truth is, I don’t know! Or, at least, I didn’t until it came time to write this week’s article. So here we go! Some true research from the depths. When the …
In the East, we celebrate Gregory the Theologian, also called Gregory of Nazianzus on January 25th. (He died on the 25th of January in 390 A.D.). Born in Cappadocia around 329 A.D., his Christian family educated the saint in both Christian and classical knowledge. Also, Gregory followed the footsteps of his father and became a …