Uncovering of the Holy Relics of Our Righteous Father Sergius of Radonezh
Our righteous Father Sergius was born in Rostov, north of Moscow, about the year 1314. Named Bartholomew in Baptism, he was brought up in Radonezh, and at the death of his parents he withdrew to the wilderness to become a monk. It is notable that without having been trained in a monastery, he was of such a spiritual stature as to be able to take up the perilous eremitical life from the beginning, without falling into delusion or despondency. When he had endured with courage the deprivations of the solitary life, other monks began to come to him, for whom he was made abbot against his will. On the counsel of Philotheus, Patriarch of Constantinople, he organized his monks according to the cenobitic life, appointing duties to each. While Anthony and Theodosius of Kiev, and the other righteous Fathers before Sergius, had established their monasteries near to cities, Sergius was the leader and light of those who went far into the wilderness, and after his example the untrodden forests of northern Russia were settled with monks. When Grand Duke Demetrius Donskoy was about to go to battle against the invading Tartars, he first sought the blessing of Saint Sergius, through whose prayers he was triumphant. Saint Sergius was adorned with the highest virtues of Christ-like humility and burning love for God and neighbour, and received the gift of working wonders, of casting out demons, and of discretion for leading souls to salvation. When he served the Divine Liturgy, an Angel served with him visibly; he was also vouchsafed the visitation of the most holy Theotokos with the Apostles Peter and John. He was gathered to his Fathers on September 25, 1392. At the recovery of his holy relics on July 5, 1422, his body and garments were found fragrant and incorrupt. His life was written by the monks of Epiphanius, who knew him.
The Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America Department of Education is pleased to announce the launch of StaEllinika, a Greek Language learning platform, available to schools and language programs of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America. The Program is developed in collaboration with the Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs of Greece and the SNF Centre for Hellenic Studies at Simon Fraser University (SFU) and is supported by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation.
In the season finale of "Be the Bee," Steve is joined by Anna Karos to explore how we can figure out what God wants for us. They draw inspiration from the lessons taught during the CrossRoad Summer Institute, a program designed to help high school juniors and seniors discover their vocation.
On June 29, 2020 His Eminence Archbishop Elpidophoros of America convened the Spring Meeting of the Archdiocese Council. Due to the COVID 19 pandemic, travel and meeting restrictions, and public health concerns, the meeting was held virtually via video conferencing in two separate sessions.