March 2023

In today’s Gospel Lesson, we hear the story of the man whose son, an epileptic, is possessed by a spirit which takes hold of him causing him to convulse, gnash his teeth and foam at the mouth, sometimes throwing him into the fire or water.

We have reached the Third Sunday of the Great Fast, The Sunday of the Veneration of the Holy Cross. In the mid point of Great Lent, the Church places before us the Cross of Christ, as a reminder for us to look ahead to our goal. The Cross is there for our refreshment and support, to encourage us to remain steadfast in our journey to the glorious Pascha of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

We have arrived at the Second Sunday of Great Lent, the Sunday of St. Gregory Palamas, the great 14th century scholar, monastic and Archbishop of Thessalonika, who by his example was a great inspiration to the people of his time.

Today is the first Sunday of Great Lent, known as the Sunday of Orthodoxy. This Sunday is a very important reminder of the centrality of Christ in the Orthodox Church. This is a very significant Feast in which we Orthodox Christians reaffirm our confession of faith, in the words of the Synadikon of the Vespers of the Triumph of Orthodoxy. It is a day at the beginning of Great Lent, when we lift up Christ in both praise and glorification. It is a Feast in which we are entreated and called upon to honor Christ.