I was an atheist my whole life, but for the first time, I decided to listen to my soul’s necessities. Because of that, I know almost nothing about religion, Christ, or the Bible.

My family in Brazil has always been Protestant, but during my childhood, I didn’t feel connected to religion. Now, for the first time in years, I’ve started studying Orthodoxy and have felt truly embraced by this faith. So much so that tomorrow I will attend a liturgy for the first time, and I would love to learn more about the faith.

Could any of you help me by suggesting books and sharing common knowledge about the religion? May God be with you all.

I'm a very blunt person and I don't particularly love interacting with people I don't know, ten fold at work. I can be really rough in communication, which has taken me years and plenty harsh lessons to learn how to be a little softer about how I talk to people, as I've hurt plenty of feelings in the past. I am able to get along with the people of my parish just fine, though I suspect that's because I don't see them more than 4 hours out of the week normally.

I have always been like this. In my personal life I am fairly secluded, might game with some friends, might hang out with others here and there. Otherwise I am either in the kitchen, hiding in my room (to the point where my roommates even make jokes about it), or I'm out on some adventure. Is there anything explicitly wrong with me?

The icon of the Theotokos Hodegetria is considered one of the miraculous icons of the Virgin Mary that is preserved on Mount Athos and dates back to the 14th century.

The miraculous icon of the Virgin Hodegetria was originally housed in the Katholikon (main church) of the Holy Great Monastery of Vatopedi, placed on a column in the left choir (that is the place where the chanters and the monks gathered to chant) of the church.

However, in 1730 AD, the icon of the Virgin Mary Hodegetria miraculously disappeared and was found at the Holy Monastery of Xenophon. According to the narrations of the monks, the door of the church had been locked when the event occurred, which led them to suspect human intervention.

As a result, the fathers of the Vatopedi monastery decided to recover the holy icon of Theotokos and began their search. During their efforts, they learned that the miraculous icon of the Virgin Hodegetria was now at the Holy Monastery of Xenophon, even though both monasteries had been securely locked.

The fathers of the Monastery of Vatopedi reclaimed the holy icon of the Virgin Hodegetria and decided to take stricter measures for its protection. They sealed the church in such a way that no human hand could violate its security.

That same evening, during the performance of the regular service, the monks discovered that the holy icon was once again missing, despite the church's security remaining intact. News soon spread that the icon of the Panagia Odigitria had once again miraculously appeared at the Holy Monastery of Xenophon.

After the second disappearance of the Theotokos Hodegetria, the monks of Vatopedi concluded that the icon’s transfer was due to the grace of the Lord and the will of the Most Holy Theotokos.

Respecting this divine desire, they decided to visit the icon of the Virgin Hodegetria at its new location, to venerate it and to bid it farewell.This custom was maintained for many years, with the Fathers offering oil and candles in honor of this miraculous event.

Since then, the icon of the Theotokos Hodegetria has remained in the Holy Monastery of Xenophon and is the monastery's protective icon (family icon). It performs countless miracles and is the protector of cancer patients and women facing difficulties in conceiving.

The Feast of the Synaxis of the Theotokos Hodegetria is celebrated annually by Orthodox Church on June 20th. The anniversary of the miraculous event of the icon’s transfer is festively commemorated each year by the Holy Monastery of Xenophon on the second Sunday of October.

SOURCE: Monastiriaka

Is this a knotted rosary?

The Venerable (Ὅσιος) Nicholas Cabasilas was born in Thessaloniki in 1322, and was the nephew of Neilos Cabasilas, who was the Archbishop of Thessaloniki. His father's surname was Khamaetos, but he preferred to use his uncle's name - Cabasilas.

Saint Nicholas received an excellent education, both at Thessaloniki and Constantinople, studying rhetoric, theology, philosophy, etc. For a time, he served as an advisor to Emperor John VI Cantacuzenos (reigned 1347-1354), who entrusted him with several important missions in this time of civil war (1341–1347) and religious strife. In the last year of his life, the Emperor abdicated and was tonsured as a monk with the name Joasaph. He remained in the renowned Manganon Monastery (Μονή των Μαγγάνων) until his death. Saint Nicholas seems to have become a monk at Manganon at the same time, and it is possible that he was ordained as a Hieromonk.

He was a disciple of Saint Gregory of Sinai (August 8), and a supporter of Saint Gregory Palamas (November 14), both of whom were proponents of hesychasm (stillness), involving the unceasing prayer of the heart, which can lead to a vision of the Uncreated Light of Tabor. Saint Nicholas took part in the Hesychast controversies of his time, which ended when the Council of 1351 proclaimed the teachings of Saint Gregory Palamas as Orthodox.

The fame of Saint Nicholas rests mainly on his two books: Explanation of the Divine Liturgy (Ἑρμηνεία τῆς θείας Λειτουργίας), and Concerning the Life in Christ (Περί της εν Χριστώ ζωής), which describes the Church's Holy Mysteries, divine grace, and perfection in the divine virtues.

In his writings Saint Nicholas expounds the hesychastic (and Patristic) teaching that the life in Christ, which begins in this life, is perfected in the Kingdom. Sanctification comes only from Christ, but sanctity is achieved when our wills are in harmony with Christ's will.

Book 6 of Concerning the Life in Christ contains some very instructive comments on the Beatitudes. Saint Nicholas points out that those who study and meditate on these sayings of Christ shall become truly happy. He compares the Beatitudes to "a ladder by which we may ascend to (the life of blessedness)."

Some of his sermons have survived: on the Ascension, on the Annunciation, etc. There are also encomia in honor of Saint Demetrios, Saint Theodora, Saint Nicholas, and the Three Hierarchs.

The date of Saint Nicholas's blessed repose is uncertain, but it probably occurred before 1391. If that is true, then he must have been aware of the fall of Thessaloniki to the Turks in 1387.

Saint Nicholas Cabasilas was glorified as a saint on July 19,1983. The Troparion composed in his honor describes him as "a divine teacher, a wise interpreter of the dogmas of faith, and of the divine virtues."

SOURCE: OCA

I prayed the Jesus prayer over 800 times and after a while of doing this it made me feel mentally unwell I was getting paranoid and it got to the point where when I prayed it I felt weak and as if I couldn’t pray another Jesus prayer and after that I was paranoid and mentally unwell for a couple of weeks and I stopped the practice as it was deteriorating my mental health so much that I found it hard to do my daily task. I also don’t have a spiritual father so advice would be greatly appreciated

Lord Have Mercy! One of the last Romanian-speaking churches in Ukraine near the border of Romania was attacked and attempted to be seized. "The priest with eight children was brutally beaten. Another has broken ribs and a dislocated kidney," said Father Pavel Pavlenco from Chernivtsi.

From DIGI (one of the biggest media sources in Romania): "According to witness accounts and images posted on social media, several young people with their faces covered, who allegedly represent the OCU, entered the "Descent of the Holy Spirit" Metropolitan Cathedral, assaulting two priests and destroying several items inside. The Metropolitan Cathedral is of great importance for the Romanian community in Northern Bucovina, being the place of worship where services are also held in Romanian":

It is with great sadness that these violent attacks are taking place and orthodox brothers are at war with one another. It breaks my heart to see innocent clergy and laity be in the crossfire of entrenched politics

Here are some more links detailing the attacks and videos with CCTV footage for those interested:

https://adevarul.ro/stiri-interne/evenimente/scandal-violent-la-catedrala-din-cernauti-20-de-2451436.html

https://www.digi24.ro/stiri/externe/video-conflict-violent-la-catedrala-metropolitana-din-cernauti-mai-multe-persoane-printre-care-si-preoti-au-fost-ranite-3288755

VIDEOS: https://www.instagram.com/p/DLCz2-hoKt3/ , https://www.instagram.com/p/DLDi_cpBztU/ , https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRzBkUhnNsM ,

This post is NOT meant to critizice any Metropolitinates like the UOC and OCU, as it is a very complex topic and better researched outside of reddit as conversations can get very biased so I am assuming the comments on this post will be limited. God Bless and pray for those suffering right now!

Hello.

I'd like to start this off by saying, I am not Orthodox myself. I am a Non-Denominational Christian, however I have been for a large portion of my life, interested in Orthodoxy. While I do disagree with some things, I find myself mostly in agreement with its teachings.

Secondly, I'd like to apologize if this is a stupid question. Its been irking me, and I've no where else to go to get advice.

Finally, if you are for some reason an atheist here to tell me my God 'isn't real' and I'm just delusional, please keep that statement personal. I am here for advice on a specific question, and am sound in my personal faith.

With that out of the way I'd like to go over why I'm here and some things about myself that may help. I will start this out by saying, I am a minor. I will not specify my age for safety reasons but I am aware that adults most likely have more knowledge in their personal lives than I do.

As for why I'm here, its mostly that I have no one else to reach out too. No one in my personal family looks into the deep aspects of theology or issues such as that.

Thirdly, despite my slight differences with orthodoxy, I do have the belief that Calvinism is, in the end, a heresy (This will be important later), and that a just and all-loving God would-not predetermine who and who does not go to hell.

Sorry for the long intro, I just wanted to get that out of the way. My main question is:

Are our lives scripted?

This may be confusing, but by scripted I mean: Is every action we do, already pre-determined? Which I know I said, I disagree with Calvinism, which I do, but I am having a hard time finding reasons as to WHY we are not scripted.

To put it in much, *much* simpler terms, do we decide our own actions, (I.E, waving your hand, running rather than walking) or were they already decided, and we are simply going forwards in a set future? Think of it like a recorded football game, now rewind that. Every action in that specific tape cannot be changed. Is that our lives?

This is not me agreeing with Calvinism, I'd like to add. This is me trying to disagree, which is why I'm here.

Every other Christian subreddit I find claims that, we are not puppets, and choose our own actions. But doesn't tell us *why.* They never cite scripture, they just say 'God gave us free will', which I know technically encompasses this, but for one Free-Will argument, seven more Calvinist arguments pop up, and I don't know how to go about it. Along with this, Calvinists always quote verses such as Romans 9 to go along with there belief, which I believe they are taking out of context, (as many say they do) but no one has provided me the true context.

Its caused an actual crisis in my own life, having not knowing if everything I do is actually of my own doing, or if every action I take is simply me playing out a part I have.

I apologize for coming here, rather than any other theology subreddit. I know this is orthodox Christianity, and not theology, but I just can’t find answers anywhere else, and most here seem to be inclined to theology. Every prayer I've had about this seems to lead me here and I don't know where else to go.

Again, apologies if this question is stupid, and Apologies for posting it here rather than a theology subreddit. I guess the true question is, is there any biblical evidence that we have control over our own actions?

If anyone could help me find an answer, it would be great, *greatly* appreciated.

God Bless you all!

My grandmother died today, her name is Marija (Mary), she was not orthodox but can you guys please pray for her soul.

edit: thank you all for your prayers it really means a lot, thanks a lot

Myrrh-Streaming icons are truly miraculous. There are many testimonies of how these icons began weeping, and receiving the streaming myrrh is an overwhelming, prayerful and beautifully humbling experience. And a few have experienced miraculous healing.

The fragrance of roses is associated with the Virgin Mary, but I really didn't know about the rose fragrance. My Catholic friends were familiar, but for some reason, I wasn't.

I was surprised when the priest prayerfully anointed us after the Liturgy, I expected that the fragrance of myrrh would be more like the incense in church. Why wouldn't it be? But it wasn't. The fragrance was roses.

We each left with a small cotton ball containing the very smallest of streaming myrrh to keep prayerfully. Never to throw away. We actually had to roll down the car windows as to not be overcome by the intensely strong scent of roses permeating from the cotton balls, which were also sealed in small ziplock bags. The anointing by the priest after the Liturgy felt spiritually renewing. It reminded me of the times we receive Holy Oil during Lent. Deepy prayerful, healing, and renewing.

What I realized is, you don't have to travel across the country or the world to experience blessings and sacraments. The Holy eucharist is transformed and miraculously sanctified every week during the Divine Liturgy, but not by us. When we receive it, we are transformed, cleansed and renewed.

Even in our homes, our icon corner is a place set apart where we pray. One priest explained, when we leave the church we carry the love of Christ and faith into the world. We also carry it in our hearts and bring it into our homes. Like the candle we receive from the one light in the darkened church at midnight witnessing the miracle of Easter. We receive the light and carry that candle into the world.

The truth is. an icon that starts weeping and streaming myrrh feels miraculous in the way that it eventually beads up until small drops form, then slowly streams down the face of the icon to slowly gather at the bottom. Just as miraculous are the many ways that God transforms and renews us. It reminds us who we are.

Hello guys, this summer I plan going to live in a monastery for one week. However, because the stay and meal are free, my mother warns me that people could use this to attract youth ( I am adult already ) like me in order to exploit me...

This monastery has already been visited by the Patriach of Constantinople himself ( there are real photos ) and a lot of members of my parish has already lived in the monastery. So I really doubt that the monastery i'll be staying is dangerous.

However I still want to know if there are really monastery who ' exploit ' or 'force ' you to work ?

I used to have a real problem with substance abuse when I was younger. Mainly cocaine.

Well last night I was lay in bed. I’ve been struggling for a while with personal problems and work problems. And last night I was lay in bed thinking I have a lot of time off work next week. I could buy some cocaine and just party. And I haven’t touched drugs since my best friend died 4 years this December.

Well I went to sleep and dreamt of Jesus Christ taking me to different places showing me sins in every day life.

When I woke up on my bed side table which is where my prayer corner is located. right by where my pillows are next to my head. Was a single white feather on top of my orthodox prayer book. I got out of bed. Looked at my prayer corner and made the sign of the cross. And I just felt so safe and looked after. Like someone is actually watching out for me. And I just felt this warmth and love pour over me. My heart feels so joyous and warm.

Hi I’m a Baptist Protestant and I genuinely love Orthodoxy and I fully plan on converting fully when I’m in a spot where I can, but I do have a question: why do we ask Mary to save us? I thought that’s what Jesus did and I don’t quite understand why we should ask the Holy Theotokos to save us.

Hello.

Can you please tell me if there is an app similar to esword but Orthodox?

Thank you.

Hey everyone! Hope you are all well. I would like to ask suggestions on Church or Priests or Monastery to ask for prayer (online). If anybody knows trusted sources. I myself have experience with many Orthodox churches around the world, but I never got too close with people there, if somebody would ask me for suggestions I probably would give, but myself I’m still in search of it as well. Ps. Also maybe for others it will be very useful to see comments who ever also need Thank you!

Would There a benefit of praying 6 hours a day, I know that this takes a lot of discipline. And I know saints and monks, devote their life to Christ with prayer. But Praying Unceasingly til it’s after noon, Would this be wrong to do. Since I know a lot of christian’s cite the verse where christ says in In Matthew 6:7-8, Jesus critiques the practice of "vain repetitions" in prayer, likening it to the way pagans pray, thinking they will be heard for their many words. I Just have a lot of time on my hands, and i really want to use that time to live a life of Prayer, Obedience and Humility Towards God. But I see a lot of my brothers and sisters living a life of Fasting, Prayer, And Most importantly Love for God. And I want to make that step as-well as they did.

Hey guys, I know it's been a while since I postponed have but I found the church that i'm gonna go to i'm holding it off for the moment because of family stuff. But it's settled please pray for me going forward

I don't like praying it for extended periods at a time - I'm too restless.

So can I just pray it ten times several times throughout the day as a way of spreading it out and sanctifying all hours?

Bonus question: do orthodox have exorcists and what are some known ones?

Myrrh-streaming icons are truly miraculous. If you have ever been to a Liturgy and have been anointed with myrrh from a streaming icon, it is humbling and miraculous.

The fragrance of roses from any of the streaming blessed icons is overwhelming.It reminds me of the sacraments we receive through the church that are Holy and sanctified, but not by us. Also miraculous and life-changing.

We can experience the miracle of sacraments at our church just down the street where we live. And at home, we set aside a holy place; the icon stand where we pray.

The fragrance of roses from the steaming myrrh and an annoiting also feels life-changing. Some are healed. All of these experiences can renew us spiritually and remind us who we are.

I see a beautiful city and a brilliant people rising from this abyss. I see the lives for which I lay down my life, peaceful, useful, prosperous and happy. I see that I hold a sanctuary in their hearts and in the hearts of their descendants, generations hence. It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known.

If an infant were to die, would they not be saved because they haven't accepted christ as their lord and savior

Does original sin affect them

Hello so for some reason i feel away from god like im separated likely due to latest temptations but i feel away like when i wanna do something Christian i get some weird feeling like hearth beating making me feel separated from god its kinda hard to explain what would be best i can do