Death No Longer Terrifying

Now that the Savior rose His body, 

death is no longer terrifying, 

for all who believe in Christ are trampling death like nothing, 

and prefer to die than to deny their faith in Christ.

Pope Athanasius of Alexandria

The Price of Christian Faith

Our Condolences to our sister Church the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and most of all to the families of the 30 Ethiopian Orthodox brethren who were brutally shot and slaughtered at the hands of the Islamic terrorist group "IS" in Libya because they refused to convert to Islam. Heaven is celebrating the arrival of those martyrs and receiving them in great honour with the rank of heavenly saints. 

Ethiopian and Coptic Orthodox Churches are sisters in every way through the Orthodox faith, and now they are bound by the shared blood of theirs sons, the 30 Ethiopian Orthodox and the 21 Coptic Orthodox martyrs who preceded them not so long ago. 

Let us lift up our hearts in prayers for their families for the loss of their sons, may the Lord repose the souls of the martyrs and comfort their families and grant them peace. 

The Resurrection

After the resurrection, when our bodies will be reunited to our souls, they will be incorruptible; and the carnal passions which disturb us now will not be present in those bodies; we shall enjoy a peaceful equilibrium in which the prudence of the flesh will not make war upon the soul; and there will no longer be that internal warfare wherein sinful passions fight against the law of the mind, conquering the soul and taking it captive by sin. 

Our nature then will be purified of all these tendencies, and one spirit will be in both, I mean in the flesh and in the spirit, and every corporeal affection will be banished from our nature. 

St. Gregory of Nyssa

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The Power of Christ

Now they all feared the attacks of the Jews, but Thomas above the rest; wherefore also he said, ‘Let us go, that we also may die with Him’ [John 11:16]. Some say that he desired himself to die; but it is not so; the expression is rather one of cowardice. Yet he was not rebuked, for Christ as yet supported his weakness, but afterwards he became stronger than all, and invincible.
For the wonderful thing is this; that we see one who was so weak before the Crucifixion, become after the Crucifixion, and after having believed in the Resurrection, more zealous than any. So great was the power of Christ.

The very man who dared not go in company with Christ to Bethany, the same while not seeing Christ ran well nigh through the inhabited world, and dwelt in the midst of nations that were full of murder, and desirous to kill him.

St. John Chrysostom 
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Bearing The Cross‬

A cross of rough - hewn timber,
For our salvation planned,
Is laid down at the feet of
The sinless Son of God. 

Beneath a cross our Maker
Lies humbled in the dust,
The One upon whose shoulders
Rests all the universe. 

A cross against the sky outlined
Now bears the Holy One.
He takes away our sin and guilt,
And we receive a crown. 

The Last Supper

How many of you say: I should like to see His face, 

His garments, His shoes. 

You do see Him, 

you touch Him, you eat Him. 

He gives Himself to you, not only that you may see Him, 

but also to be your food and nourishment. 

St. John Chrysostom  

His Love And Sacrifice

Christ held Himself in His hands 

when He gave His Body to His disciples saying: 

'This is My Body.' No one partakes 

of this Flesh before he has adored it. 

St. Augustine 

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Palm Sunday

Orthodox Christians celebrate Palm Sunday, when Christ was received in Jerusalem with olive branches and palm tree leaves.

On that day Jesus entered into Jerusalem, and his fame as a teacher has astonished many people, as well as his miracles and healing of the sick, resuscitating the dead and casting out devils, doing what no one has done before. 

Moreover, being known as a huge public leader had gathered around him many hearts with love and admiration.


H. H. Pope Shenouda III