A Variety of Topics: Saints, Seasons, Society, the Moral Life, plus Travels mostly to Greece, and more, by Father Bill Olnhausen
Who goes to Greece in January? We do! But before we leave, a recommendation: When you travel take along a small prayer book, a small New Testament and a copy of the daily Bible Readings. Or if you’ll have easy access to the internet the best site I know, beautifully laid out, is the American […]
Read More »In Greece tomorrow morning the churches will be filled to overflowing, as also I presume in other traditional Orthodox countries. A Lutheran pastor tells me that on the Epiphany in Germany, schools and libraries are closed (he’s a scholar who tried to get in), though he says few go to church. But in America… well, […]
Read More »But first, let’s get Christmas out of the way. Sorry, folks, it’s all over. Western Christians get a full 12 days of Christmas, but we Orthodox get only 7. In our liturgical calendar December 31 is the “Leavetaking (last day) of Christmas”. No fair? Or is it over? Our fast-free period lasts for 12 days […]
Read More »Saint Nicholas’ Last Days in the East For many centuries Nicholas’ burial place at Myra was a pilgrimage center. However, as time went on, the eastern Mediterranean became a Muslim sea with many pirates, unsafe for travelers. Fewer and fewer came to visit. Then an earthquake devastated Myra leaving the shrine in ruins, his vault […]
Read More »Santa Claus was Greek. That’s the first thing we need to get straight. Santa Claus was an Orthodox Bishop. Santa Claus came from Asia Minor, not the North Pole. And his real name is Saint Nicholas. What follows is the true story of Saint Nicholas, concluding with the bizarre tale of how the modern world […]
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