Center for Family Care
May 21, 2018
IT’S SUMMER! We bask in this wonderful time for family, friends, relaxing, and fun. It's a time for vacations from work and school. But there is one vacation we shouldn’t consider this summer—and that is from Church. Church should be the center of our lives throughout the year, and summer is no exception! So join us this summer as we #soakuptheSON. Read More
Center for Family Care
January 29, 2018
Each day there are a myriad of ways that our children (and we, as parents) can experience falls. We want our children to recognize that when they have done something wrong, it is also necessary to accept responsibility and move toward restoration. Read More
Center for Family Care
August 30, 2017
On September 1, we celebrate the Ecclesiastical (Church) New Year. This day has also been set aside by the Ecumenical Patriarch as a special day of Protection for the Environment. During prayers this week, read Psalm 103 (104), which is read at the beginning of Vespers. Read More
Center for Family Care
August 21, 2017
The word prosphoron (in the plural, prosphora) is translated from its Greek origin as “offering” and, as such, is a fitting name for the bread we bring to church for the Divine Liturgy. The making of prosphora in our homes is an opportunity for families to gather and participate in the life of the Church in a meaningful way. Read More
Center for Family Care
August 21, 2017
The significance of an Orthodox Christian’s regular participation in the sacrament of Holy Communion cannot be overstated. Having received the Body and Blood of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, we are mystically united to Him and one another. It is only God Who makes us worthy of such a wondrous gift. In His great mercy, we approach the chalice with fear, faith, and love—fully committed to lead holy, transfigured lives. Read More
Center for Family Care
August 7, 2017
Today we celebrate the Feast of the Transfiguration. As a family, at home read the epistle and gospel for the feast at dinnertime. This feast has an afterfeast period of seven days. During these seven days, pray the festal hymns during your family prayer time. If you like, you can even learn how to chant them by listening online. Read More
Center for Family Care
August 2, 2017
As the month of July expires, our attention turns to the two-week fasting period (August 1–14) preceding the final great feast day of the ecclesiastical year, the Dormition of the Theotokos (August 15). At this time, it is customary for Orthodox Christian communities to gather and alternately pray the small and great Paraklesis (supplication) services to the Theotokos on most evenings during the fast. Read More
Center for Family Care
July 24, 2017
This week we would like you to pray for your parents every day during your family or individual prayer time. You can pray with words from your heart, or you can use the following prayer. Read More
Center for Family Care
July 18, 2017
Over the centuries, much has been said and written about the Jesus Prayer. And with good reason! In a concise manner, praying “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner” (or one of its variations) helps us to follow the Apostle Paul’s exhortation to “pray without ceasing” Read More
Center for Family Care
July 11, 2017
Make an effort to attend either an upcoming Vespers or Orthros before Divine Liturgy on Sunday. Encourage your family to pay attention to how we use our five senses to worship during church services. Read More
Center for Family Care
July 7, 2017
As we prepare to celebrate our nation’s Independence Day, let’s remember to include our government officials—local, state, and national—and the members of our armed forces in our prayers. Regardless of our political affiliations and philosophies, we should ask God to work in the lives of those who govern and serve our country. Happy Fourth of July! Read More
Department of Religious Education (DRE)
July 5, 2017
What the early Christian community came to believe about childhood in the light of Christ’s life changed the world for children. In ancient pagan Roman society, before the introduction of Christianity, children were not considered to be people with the same worth as adults. Read More
Center for Family Care
June 28, 2017
IT’S SUMMER! We bask in this wonderful time for family, friends, relaxing, and fun. It's a time for vacations from work and school. But there is one vacation we shouldn’t consider this summer—and that is from Church. Church should be the center of our lives throughout the year, and summer is no exception! So join us this summer as we #soakuptheSON. Read More
Center for Family Care
June 19, 2017
We offer back to God the gifts he gave us. Everything we have is a gift from God—our money, our family, our homes, our talents, etc. We are called to be good stewards of these gifts and offer them back to God for the good of all of His children. Read More
Center for Family Care
June 13, 2017
On June 11, the Orthodox Church commemorates the Sunday of All Saints, which honors the eternal memory of every man, woman, and child, throughout the ages, that “finished the race” having “fought the good fight” and received “the crown of righteousness” (2 Timothy 4:7–8). The list of saints includes names both known and unknown, a reminder of the high calling to holiness for each of us by our baptism and chrismation. Read More
Department of Religious Education (DRE)
June 13, 2017
Many things in life come in stages, and fatherhood is one of them. My life as a father began in 1996 with the birth of our first child, Tatiana. The day she came into the world was one of the most glorious days of my life. I experienced a feeling that I never had before, and I gained a perspective that had been absent from my life until that point. I had read about the love of God the Father for His children, but now I was experiencing it firsthand. Read More
Center for Family Care
June 5, 2017
On Sunday, June 4, we celebrate Pentecost. Take time to learn to chant the apolytikion/troparion to sing during the feast and through the Apodosis (Leave-Taking) of Pentecost on Saturday, June 10. Read More
Orthodox Observer
March 26, 2017
The spiritual focus of departments within the Church can take different forms in order to enhance the spiritual dimension of its overall mission. That certainly applies to the Archdiocese Departments of Information Technology and Internet Ministries, both under the supervision of Theo Nicolakis, the chief information officer for the Archdiocese, As a Holy Cross School of Theology graduate, he also has the ability to connect with people on both a practical and spiritual level. Read More
Center for Family Care
January 1, 2017
“Please help me,” plead the 32-year old Christian woman, frantic after finding her 50 year old mother suffering a brain hemorrhage due to an aneurism. Secretly, her mother has been addicted to opiates; legal prescription pain medication prescribed by her physician, and illegal narcotics including heroin. This secret probably would have remained under wraps much longer if her bleeding brain didn’t send off a distress signal indicating that something was terribly wrong. Read More
Center for Family Care
November 4, 2016
Developing a loving relationship between your family and God should be a daily goal. Relationships can’t be maintained, and certainly can’t grow, with sporadic interactions. Here are some simple suggestions for weaving church life into your daily life at home Read More
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