Pascha - AOI Observer

May 21, 2013

Christ is Risen! Truly He is Risen!

April 24, 2011 8:37 AM

Albanian: Krishti Ungjall! Vertete Ungjall! Arabic: Al Maseeh Qam! Haqqan Qam! Armenian: Christos harjav i merelotz! Orhniale harutjun Christosi! Byelorussian: Khristos Uvoskros! Zaprowdu Uvoskros! Chinese: Helisituosi fuhuole! Queshi fuhuole! Coptic: Pikhirstof aftonf! Khen o methni aftonf! Czech: Kristus vstal zmrtvy’ch! Skutec ne vstal! Danish: Kristus er opstanden! Ja, sandelig opstanden! Dutch: Christus is opgestaan! Hij is waarlijk opgestaan! English: Christ is Risen! Indeed, He is Risen! Estonian: Kristus on surnuist ülestõusnud! Tõesti ülestõusnud! Finnish: Kristus nousi Kuolleista! Totisesti Nousi! French: Christ est Ressuscité! En Vérité, Il est Ressuscité! Gaelic: Erid Krist! G’deya! n erid she! Irish Gaelic: Tá Críosd ar éirigh! Go deimhin, tá e ar éirigh! Scots’ Gaelic: Tha Crìosd air èiridh! Gu dearbh, tha e air èiridh! Georgian: Kriste aghsdga! Cheshmaritad aghsdga! Greek: Christos Anesti! Alithos Anesti! Hebrew: Ha … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Observer Tagged With: Orthodox Church, Pascha

The Miracle of the Holy Fire in Jerusalem [VIDEO]

April 23, 2011 3:13 PM

Source: OrthodoxyToday.org On Holy Saturday believers gather in great crowds in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. For on this day fire comes down from Heaven and puts fire on lamps in the Church. "The Miracle of the Holy Fire" by Christians from the Orthodox Churches is known as "The greatest of all Christian miracles". It takes place every single year, on the same time, in the same manner, and on the same spot. No other miracle is known to occur so regularly and for such an extensive period of time; one can read about it in sources as old as from the eighth Century AD. The miracle happens in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, to millions of believers the holiest place on earth. The Church of the Holy Sepulchre itself is an enigmatic place. Theologians, historians and archaeologists consider the church to contain both Golgatha, the little hill on which Jesus Christ was crucified, as well as the "new tomb" close to Golgatha that received his dead body, as one reads in … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Observer Tagged With: Easter, Holy Fire, Jerusalem, Orthodox Church, Pascha, Paschal Fire, Passover

Abp. Demetrios: Paschal Message 2011 [VIDEO]

April 23, 2011 7:05 AM

Source: Greek Orthodox Archdiocese Website Protocol 46/11 April 24, 2011 Holy Pascha The Feast of Feasts Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. (Romans 6:4) To the Most Reverend Hierarchs, the Reverend Priests and Deacons, the Monks and Nuns, the Presidents and Members of the Parish Councils of the Greek Orthodox Communities, the Distinguished Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, the Day, Afternoon, and Church Schools, the Philoptochos Sisterhoods, the Youth, the Hellenic Organizations, and the entire Greek Orthodox Family in America Beloved Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Christ is Risen! Χριστός Ἀνέστη! On this great and glorious feast of the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, our hearts are filled with unspeakable joy, our minds embrace the light of truth, and our souls are … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Observer Tagged With: Abp. Demetrios, Orthodox Church, Pascha

A Common Date for Pascha?

May 28, 2009 11:30 AM

The Associated Press has a story out of the World Council of Churches about deliberations toward a common date for Pascha/Easter. The story was based, in part, on this release from the WCC. From the AP: Under the plan the unified Easter usually falls as it would under the Gregorian calendar used by Catholics and Protestants, said Dagmar Heller, an ecumenical professor in Switzerland heading the council's faith and order commission. In the next 15 years, the only time Western churches would have to change Easter is in 2019 from April 21 to March 24. The bigger adjustment would be for the Orthodox Church, which has experienced several schisms in its history over the question of dates. "There are of course some fundamentalist Orthodox who say 'The Julian calendar is our tradition and it was used in Jesus' lifetime so we cannot change,'" Heller said, adding that some Eastern theologians might fear more breaks in their church as a result of a date change. "And, of course, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Observer Tagged With: Aleppo, Antoine Arjakovsky, Easter date, Ecumenical, History, News, Old Calendarists, Orthodox Church, Pascha, Religious Information Service of Ukraine, Theology, World Council of Churches

Christos Anesti! — Greek chant

April 20, 2009 8:10 AM

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ZSyTUsdpu0[/youtube] Christ, the central figure of the icon, is robed in white to show His divinity. The aureole (elongated halo) around Him also symbolizes this brilliant Light. At His feet are the demolished gates of Hades (in some icons these gates are the coffin lids of Adam and Eve and are depicted as a Cross on which Christ stands), with their broken keys and locks. Christ holds the hands of Adam (Heb: man) and Eve (Heb. Life), depicted to his right and left, as he pulls them from their tombs. Adam is in old man, recalled to his primordial innocence; Eve is also depicted as elderly, and is set free from her sin in Eden by the Incarnation. Behind Christ are aligned the Righteous of the Old Testament (to the left, including Solomon and David) and the New Testament (to the right, including John the Baptist and Joseph the Guardian). … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Observer Tagged With: Adam and Eve, Easter, Orthodox, Orthodox Church, Pascha, resurrection icon, Theology

Christ is Risen! Truly He is Risen!

April 19, 2009 4:15 PM

Icon of Christ opening the gates of Dachau

Every Pascha, I repost two stories on OrthodoxyToday.org. that tell how Orthodox prisoners in Dachau held the Paschal Liturgy during their liberation. The first, "The Souls of All are Aflame" provides historical background and detail. The second, "Pascha in Dachau" recounts the story of a prisoner who was there. Dachua was liberated during Holy Week. The Orthodox believers experienced Christ's triumph over the forces of darkness to a depth that is difficult to understand. It is hard to fathom the depravity the evil ideologies fostered in their persecutors short of any direct experience, but anyone who has confronted lesser evils knows that such great evil can exist. The resurrection of Christ is the final confrontation to the horrors unleashed when the embrace of Nazism and Communism opened the jaws of a deep hell. We see it in our own day too, especially the embrace of the nihilistic fantasies that fuel the arguments that devalue human life. It began with that faceless figure, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Observer Tagged With: Communism, Dachau, Doug Cramer, History, Jacobse, Marxism, Nazism, Orthodox Church, orthodoxy, Pascha, Rahr, religious freedom, sanctity of life, solzhenitsyn

Patriarch Pavle: Paschal Encyclical 2009

April 17, 2009 9:15 PM

Patriarchal Paschal Encyclical 2009 The Serbian Orthodox Church to her spiritual children at Pascha, 2009 P A V L E By the grace of God, Orthodox Archbishop of Pec, Metropolitan of Belgrade-Karlovci and Serbian Patriarch, with the all the Hierarchs of the Serbian Orthodox Church – to all the clergy, monastics, and all the sons and daughters of our Holy Church: grace, mercy and peace from God the Father, and our Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit, with the joyous Paschal greeting: CHRIST IS RISEN! INDEED HE IS RISEN! “Let us call ‘Brothers’ even those who hate us’ and forgive all by the resurrection.” (Paschal hymn) … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Observer Tagged With: Easter, Orthodox Church, Pascha, Patriarch Pavle, serbian orthodox, Theology

Patriarch Kirill: Easter greetings to Churches

April 17, 2009 8:31 PM

Patriarch Kirill addresses his flock with a Paschal message Moscow, April 19, Interfax - On the eve of the Resurrection of Christ, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia turned to his flock with his first Paschal message. "Christ's resurrection is the foundation of a life that has conquered death, sin and corruption. We are called to relive Easter as the triumph of life not only on this day: every Sunday reveals to us the majesty of the Saviour's feat, liberating us from death and destroying the fetters of sin which separate man from God," Patriarch Kirill reminded. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Observer Tagged With: Easter, News, Orthodox Church, Pascha, Patriarch Kirill, Russian Orthodox, Theology

Bishop Artemije of Raška-Prizren: Easter Message

April 17, 2009 8:24 PM

Spiritual leader of Kosovo Serbs urges his flock to follow the Savior’s way of the Cross Belgrade, April 17, Interfax – Ruling hierarch of Kosovo Bishop Artemije of Raška-Prizren in his Easter message urged residents of this Serbian region not to abandon their native land. “Let’s stay in Kosovo and Metohija near our shrines, near tombs of our glorious and holy fathers! It is our way of the Cross to the Resurrection, the only way leading to eternal life,” the Bishop’s message reads. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Observer Tagged With: Bishop Artemije of Raška-Prizren, Easter, kosovo, News, Orthodox Church, Pascha, Theology

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew: Patriarchal Proclamation Pascha 2009

April 17, 2009 3:38 PM

Patriarchal Proclamation Pascha 2009, Apr 16, 2009, Prot. No. 407 + B A R T H O L O M E W By the Grace of God, Archbishop of Constantinople, New Rome and Ecumenical Patriarch To the Plenitude of the Church Grace, Peace and Mercy By the Savior Christ Risen in Glory *** Dearly beloved brothers and children in the Lord, Christ is Risen! In sullenness, one day in the 19th century, humankind heard from the lips of the tragic philosopher: “God is dead! We killed him! All of us are his murderers … God will remain dead! What else are the churches but tombs and graves of God?”[1] And only a few decades later, we heard from the lips of his younger colleague: “Gentlemen, I declare to you the death of God!”[2] … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Observer Tagged With: Easter, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, Greek Orthodox, Orthodox Church, Pascha, Theology

Bishop Irinej: Archpastoral Paschal Message

April 17, 2009 3:28 PM

14. April 2009 - 15:01 IRINEJ BY THE GRACE OF GOD THE SERBIAN ORTHODOX BISHOP OF AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND Addressing you: beloved monastics, clergy, all sons and daughters, the faithful spiritual children of our Holy Church, with a heart resounding and overflowing with joy in the victory of the inextinguishable light over the death-bearing darkness of sin, the great and victory-bearing Feast of Feasts - The Resurrection of Christ, We wholeheartedly greet all of you with the salvific Christian greeting: CHRIST IS RISEN! Shine, shine - let us all sing - O New Jerusalem, for the glory of the Lord has risen upon you! Exalt now and be glad, o Zion; and rejoice, O Pure Theotokos in the Resurrection of your Son! … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Observer Tagged With: Bishop Irinej, Bishop Irinej of Australia and New Zealand, Easter, Orthodox Church, Pascha, serbian orthodox, Theology

Metropolitan Philip: Paschal Greetings

April 17, 2009 3:18 PM

Paschal Greetings of Metropolitan PHILIP “He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities, the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, every one to His own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” (Isaiah 53:5-6) “O Christ Saviour, we were but yesterday buried with Thee, and we shall rise with Thee in Thy Resurrection. We were but yesterday crucified with Thee: glorify us with Thee in Thy kingdom.” (Verse from the Third Ode of the Paschal Canon) Beloved Hierarchs, Clergy, Trustees, Parish Council Members, and All Faithful of our God-Protected Archdiocese: Christ is Risen! … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Observer Tagged With: antiochian orthodox christian archdiocese, Easter, Metropolitan Philip, Orthodox Church, Pascha, Theology