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    “Crown them with glory and honor.” Marriage in the Orthodox Church

    April 15, 2021

    One of the sacraments of the Orthodox Church, the Marriage Service is rich with biblical imagery, prayer, and symbol. Because the ceremony is attended by Orthodox and non-Orthodox who may not be aware of the significance of the actions, this text has been prepared. It can be used as the basis for a program booklet distributed at the ceremony. There are a few spots for customization, such as including the names of the bride and the groom. The text can be edited easily to fit the program. Other possible additions to a program include the names of the bridal party, the family members, the clergy celebrating the ceremony, locations of receptions, and a personal note from the couple.

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    Liturgical Colors in the Church

    December 11, 2019

    The Orthodox Church traditionally uses different colors to mark the seasons of the liturgical year, certain feast days and other observances. The colors of clergy vestments, altar coverings and cloths on icon stands (proskynetaria) will often change to offer a visual clue of the season or the feast day.

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    2017 Byzantine Christmas Concert in Honor of Archbishop Demetrios

    December 12, 2017

    A Byzantine Christmas Concert Honoring Archbishop Demetrios, Geron of America, Celebrating his 50 Years as a Bishop at Merkin Concert Hall, NYC on December 2, 2017. Performers included the Archdiocesan Women's Byzantine Choir of St. Kassiani, the Archdiocesan Youth Choir, and the Archdiocesan Byzantine Choir.

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    We Offer These Gifts: The Proskomide Service

    May 1, 2017

    In this video, viewers will watch the Proskomide (Prothesis) service, when a priest prepares the bread (prosphoro) and wine for a Divine Liturgy. Each action will be seen, its significance and history briefly discussed, and the prayers the clergy recite with each action will be shown.

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    Draw Near: Understanding Orthodox Worship - Exploring the Feasts of the Orthodox Christian Church

    April 7, 2017

    In this video, we see an introduction to the Orthodox worship and way of life. We explore some of the different aspects of our worship, including liturgical services, hymns, iconography, and the universal priestly calling of all people.

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    2016 St. John Chrysostom Oratorical Festival Senior Division Winning Speech

    September 1, 2016

    How do you respond to people who question your belief in God and participation in the life of the Church?

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    A Rational and Logical Mind?

    March 1, 2016

    How would you respond to some well-meaning Christians who said they did not want to lose their rational and logical minds by joining an “organized religion”? Over the years of being a prison chaplain, I encountered many, many men who had embraced that very thinking. They felt that submitting to the authority of the Church was something they could never do because it meant giving up their minds.

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    Byzantine Music and the Orthodox Family

    January 13, 2016

    Byzantine music recordings from Great Lent, Great and Holy Pascha, and Pentecost along with PDF versions of the music.

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    Iconography of Hagia Sophia

    September 8, 2015

    When Rome fell in the West, the Roman Empire survived for more than a thousand years in the East. The greatest monument of that civilization still stands, Hagia Sophia. Learn about the art and architecture of Hagia Sophia, and the Eastern Roman Empire, more commonly known as the Byzantine Empire.

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    Christ Our Ison: Byzantine Music and the Orthodox Family

    June 23, 2015

    Chanting Christ is Risen! brought the enduring, indestructible joy of the glorious Resurrection of our Lord into our home. It made the words of the hymn—Christ is Risen from the dead by death trampling down upon death and to those in the tombs He has granted LIFE!—common knowledge and a kind of family creed.

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    From "Me" to "We"

    April 23, 2015

    Liturgy is the work of the people: our work. It brings us from a bunch of "me's" to a single "we" in Christ. Every episode is a great reminder of this, since Be the Bee comes from the love and work of so many people, including you!

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    Is Church Boring?

    January 15, 2015

    Sometimes, the Church can seem...boring. Is that because of the Church, or the way we see and present it?

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    Archdiocesan Byzantine Choir Presents "Blessed are the Peacemakers" - November 30, 2013

    November 30, 2013

    With the blessing of His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios of America, 37 members of the Archdiocesan Byzantine Choir of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America traveled to Constantinople for the Thronal Feast of the Ecumenical Patriarchate on November 27 - December 2. Ten members of the choir were from Hellenic College Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology in Brookline, MA.

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    Bridegroom Service (Palm Sunday Evening)

    November 30, 2012

    The three days that open this "Great Week" are called "Holy" or "Great" Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday; and they are "Great" precisely because each of them symbolically teaches us something of ourselves, and of God in our life. Most people know what happens on Holy Thursday, Friday and Saturday, but the first three are the least known days--I mean it's already hard enough going to Church three days in a row. Yet they are theologically significant.

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    Archdiocesan Byzantine Choir Concert: "We have seen the Light" - June 16, 2012

    June 16, 2012

    The Archdiocese School of Byzantine Music of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America presents, "We have seen the Light." Chanted by the Archdiocesan Byzantine Choir and a select number of the students from the Archdiocesan School of Byzantine Music. The concert was held at the Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity. New York, NY on Saturday, June 16, 2012.

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    Archdiocesan Byzantine Choir - October 26, 2011

    October 26, 2011

    On October 26, the Archdiocesan Youth Choir and the Archdiocesan Byzantine Choir celebrated Archbishop Demetrios' nameday with a concert at the Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity in New York, NY.

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    Archdiocese School of Byzantine Music - Arise O Lord

    May 8, 2011

    The Archdiocese School of Byzantine Music of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America presents Arise O Lord, from the Archdiocesan Cathedral of the Holy Trinity. Sunday, May 8, 2011.

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    Hymns From The Vespers Service.

    December 9, 2008

    Hymns of the Vespers service of the Orthodox Christian Church. Sung in the byzantine chant by various byzantine choirs.

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    Papal Voyage to the Ecumenical Patriarchate

    November 29, 2006

    Pope Benedict XVI is received at the Ecumenical Patriarchate by His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew on November 29, 2006.

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    The Liturgical Cycle of the Great Lenten Period

    August 17, 2005

    An exploration and explanation of the cycle of events and services related to Great Lent

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    Orthodox Byzantine Music

    August 12, 2005

    Byzantine music is the medieval sacred chant of Christian Churches following the Orthodox rite. This tradition, encompassing the Greek-speaking world, developed in Byzantium from the establishment of its capital, Constantinople, in 330 until its fall in 1453.

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    The Return of the Holy Relics of St. Gregory the Theologian and St. John Chrysostom

    December 7, 2004

    In 2004, responding to the request of His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, and recognizing the importance of St. John Chrysostom and St. Gregory the Theologian to Orthodox Christians around the world, Pope John Paul II agreed to return the relics of these two great Fathers of the Church and Ecumenical Teachers to their original resting place in the Ecumenical Patriarchate. This program highlights the moving Ecumenical Service at the Vatican and the Service at the Ecumenical Patriarchate while informing the viewer of the historical significance of these saints.

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    Holy Communion: The Gift of Eternal Life

    October 22, 2004

    “The Eucharist cannot be abandoned,” said the martyrs, because “a Christian cannot exist without the Eucharist, or the Eucharist be celebrated without a Christian.”

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    Other Services Of The Church

    December 9, 2003

    Audio recordings of various services of the Orthodox Christian Church, including the Paraklesis Service in the Greek Language. Hymns are sung in the byzantine chant by various byzantine choirs.

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    The Complete Divine Liturgy and Related Hymns

    December 9, 2003

    Audio recordings of the entire Divine Liturgy of the Orthodox Christian Church in the English and Greek languages and related hymns. Also includes apolytikia (troparia) for Sundays, Feast Days, Great Lent and Pascha as well as various trisagion, koinonika (communion) and megalynaria (hymns to the Theotokos) hymns. The hymns are rendered in the byzantine chant style by various choirs.

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    Hymns From The Orthros Service.

    December 9, 2003

    Liturgical hymns from the Orthros (Matins) Service of Orthodox Christian Church. Includes the Sunday Resurrectional, Lenten Triodion and Paschal Apolytikia and various festal canon katavasia. The hymns are rendered in the byzantine chant style by various choirs.

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    How Often Should We Receive Holy Communion?

    August 12, 2002

    To receive Communion the usual two or three times a year is good and helpful, but to receive Communion more frequently is far better. Remember, the nearer a person comes to the light, the more light he gets. The closer he draws to the fire, the warmer he is. The nearer he approaches sanctity, the more saintly he becomes.

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    Holy Week

    November 30, 2001

    Holy Week, in its yearly and faithful enactment, teaches us that Christ' love for us could not be crushed. The message which He shared could not be stilled. The large stone could not contain Him in the terrible darkness of that tomb. Jesus Christ also rose from the dead. And together with Him, there arose every hope that we have for mercy, strength, perseverance, and everlasting life.

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    The Liturgical Year as Parish Curriculum

    April 3, 2001

    The Internet School of Orthodox Studies Spring 2001 semester is intended to serve as an introduction to the three major liturgical cycles of Orthodox Worship with special emphasis given to the catechetical emphasis of each cycle. This series is presented by Rev. Dr. Frank Marangos.

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    The Sanctification of the Holy Chrism

    August 17, 2000

    In the Orthodox Church, the Holy Chrism is sanctified for use in the celebration of the sacrament of Chrismation.† It is a visible sign of the transmission of gifts of the Holy Spirit to those who are baptized. During the early years of Christianity, the transmission of the gifts of the Holy Spirit to the baptized were given by the Apostles through the "laying of hands."

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    The Calendar of the Orthodox Church

    August 12, 2000

    The ecclesiastical year, which according to Byzantine practice begins on the first of September, is divided between movable and immovable or fixed holy days. The movable holy days are determined by the date of Easter, the most important of all feast days, which is in a class by itself. The determination of the date of Easter was definitively regulated by the decision of the First Ecumenical Synod, held in Nicaea (325). Next in importance to Easter are the "twelve great feasts," of which three are movable. Eight of these feasts are devoted to Christ and four to the Virgin Mary. There are also a number of feast days of varying importance, most of which commemorate the more popular saints.

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    Sing Praises to God: An Examination of the Eight Tones

    December 17, 1999

    The Internet School of Orthodox Studies Fall 1999 series of 90 minute educational classes are intended to assist Orthodox Christians to more fully prepare themselves for each week’s respective Sunday Orthros and Liturgy. This series is presented by Rev. Fr. Frank Marangos, Rev. Fr. Michael Bird, Rev. Fr. Christopher Makiej, Rev. Dr. Constantine Newman, Rev. Fr. Andrew George, Rev. Fr. Nicholas Kastanas, Rev. Dr. Nick Krommydas, and Rev. Fr. Theodore Barbas.

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    The Funeral Service of the Orthodox Church

    August 17, 1999

    God’s mercy is infinite and His goodness is beyond measure. This is what our Holy Church has always maintained, and thus believes and hopes that the loving Lord will be merciful even to the deceased. For this reason the hymnographers of the Orthodox Church have composed a most moving Funeral Service that is virtually a treasure-house of profound spiritual thoughts

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    The Origins of Pascha and Great Week - Part II

    October 2, 1998

    The divine services of Great Week are an expanded version of the series of services of the daily cycle of worship.[19] As we shall see below, the services from Great Monday to Great Thursday are ordered in accordance with the Lenten form of the weekday services. From Great Friday to Pascha they are structured basically according to the festal form of these services.

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    The Sacramental Life of the Orthodox Church

    September 3, 1998

    The life and character of an Orthodox Christian is in large measure shaped, nourished, and enriched by the liturgy or worship of the Church. Replete with biblical readings, imagery, and expressions, the texts of the liturgy set forth in doxological form the Church's authentic and living tradition.

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    Patriarchal Divine Liturgy

    December 7, 1997

    Patriarchal Divine Liturgy with His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew at Madison Square Garden during his visit to the United States of America in 1997.

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    Good Friday: A Call From Christ To Die With Him

    May 10, 1996

    Holy Week, however, demands more from us than a spectator's vicarious interest. Rather, Holy Week is a call from Christ to die with Him sacramentally and mystically on the Cross. It is an invitation to be more demonstrative in the expression of our faith. We have to remove the Cross from Golgotha and plant it in our hearts.

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    The Sacrament of Baptism and Chrismation

    November 30, 1995

    Learn about the sacraments of Holy Baptism and Holy Chrismation, two separate and distinct yet intimately-related sacraments that have been celebrated together since the very early years of Christianity.

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    Holy and Great Tuesday Evening

    November 30, 1994

    The members of the Church prayerfully and with psalmody, repentance, almsgiving, contrition, love, fasting, humility, unity, and in the Spirit of God desire to behold and concretely experience their Bridegroom's complete and perfect bodily resurrection from the dead (exanastasin). Who is this Bridegroom? He is Christ the Savior, Lord and Redeemer, the Master of the Universe, the Son of Man, and the Only-Begotten of the Father of All.

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    Sunday of Orthodoxy at the Phanar (in Greek)

    May 22, 1994

    Patriarchal Divine Liturgy with His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew celebrating the Sunday of Orthodoxy and victory of icons at the Phanar in 1994.

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    The Sacrament of Penance

    December 7, 1991

    The Sacrament of Penance (Confession) is, for Orthodox Christians, how those who have repented their sins, come before God and the Church to seek reconciliation and ask for divine forgiveness. The faithful make their confession and receive absolution from God. This video provides a presentation of the sacrament, as well as an incisive examination on issues of sin, repentance, preparation for confession and the role of the priest in the sacrament.

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    The Sacrament of Holy Matrimony

    December 7, 1991

    A specific rite of marriage appeared as early as the 4th century, but it wasn't until the 14th century that the sacramental rite of Holy Matrimony was formalized with a blessing, and the marital union sealed during the liturgy in joint communion with the Holy Eucharist. This video presents the ritual, step by step, and explains every symbolic act such as the union of hands, exchange of rings and crowns, the common cup and the "Dance of Isaiah."

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    Death, the Threshold to Eternal Life

    September 3, 1990

    Death constitutes the last chapter of the history of our human life. In many cases the understanding of death penetrates the whole life and is the red thread throughout the activities and volition of human beings.

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    The Office of Oblation (Proskomide)

    August 17, 1990

    Since the early Church, the Office of Oblation (Proskomide) has been a service of offering gifts to God in preparation for the Sacrament of Holy Eucharist or Holy Communion in the Divine Liturgy. The Office of Oblation is thus a prerequisite for the Divine Liturgy.

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    Good Friday Pascha -- From Death to Life

    November 30, 1986

    O death, where is your sting? O hell, where is your victory? Christ is risen, and you are annihilated. Christ is risen, and the evil ones are cast down. Christ is risen, and life is liberated. Christ is risen, and the tomb is emptied of the dead.

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    The Holy Eucharist

    September 3, 1985

    In the latter part of the tenth century, Vladimir the Prince of Kiev sent envoys to various Christian centers to study their form of worship. These are the words the envoys uttered when they reported their presence at the celebration of the Eucharist in the Great Church of Holy Wisdom in Constantinople. The profound experience expressed by the Russian envoys has been one shared by many throughout the centuries who have witnessed for the first time the beautiful and inspiring Divine Liturgy of the Orthodox Church.

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    Orthodox Art and Architecture

    August 21, 1985

    Anyone who witnesses an Orthodox liturgy for the first time will be struck by its frank appeal to the senses. The central actions of the Liturgy are, to be sure, the consecration and distribution of the bread and wine that constitute the Lord's Body and Blood. But the chanting and choral singing, the incense, the vestments and ritual movements of the priest and acolytes, and the images everywhere around are not mere embellishments. They are integral aspects of the whole liturgical "event". They reveal and celebrate its meaning.

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    Orthodox Worship

    August 13, 1985

    The Orthodox Christians inhabit and measure time by a calendar itself touched by the Incarnate Word of God. The recurring rhythms of the year, the months, the weeks, and the days alternating with nights mean much more than the simple passage of time.

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    Introduction to the Divine Liturgy

    August 13, 1985

    The Divine Liturgy is considered the most significant ancient Christian service, not so much for its phrasing and words as for its meaning. In fact, the Divine Liturgy was in practice right after the descent of the Holy Spirit on the Disciples of Christ on the 50th day after His Resurrection, as the sacred writer of the Acts of the Apostles records (Acts 2:46 ff). The Divine Liturgy in its swaddlings at the beginning of the Christian era consisted of free hymns and prayers for the officiating of a certain framework of faith.

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