(ANALYSIS) Andriy Kostin, the prosecutor general of Ukraine, explained that his team is looking into the abductions of Ukrainian children to Russia, but also the destruction of Ukrainian cultural heritage linked to Ukrainian identity, among others. He also indicated that his team is investigating mass killings, such as those in Bucha, as a crime of genocide.
Read MoreIf you fly up to high altitude to study the past 50 years of American religious life, here is what you will see.
Read MoreSerbian judo star Nemanja Majdov was slapped with a five-month ban for making the sign of the cross before he competed at the recent Paris Olympics. He was accused by the International Judo Federation of violating its code of conduct for “having shown a clear religious sign when entering the field of play” and barred from participating in tournaments and other events.
Read More(EXPLAINER) The Serbian Orthodox Church celebrates on Friday the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul (known as Petrovdan in Serbian) in honor of their martyrdom in Rome. The Feast of Saints Peter and Paul is an important religious holiday for Orthodox Serbs. It marks the end of the Apostles’ Fast, which begins a week after Pentecost.
Read MoreKosovo is a region in the heart of Europe that offers visitors an amazing journey through nature, history and religion. Despite its rich history and beautiful views, tourists had avoided Kosovo for years because of the ethnic conflict between Albanians and Serbs.
Read More(EXPLAINER) The Serbian Orthodox Church celebrates on Friday the Feast of St. Vitus (in Serbian Vidovdan), commemorating the Battle of Kosovo against the Ottoman Turks, which took place in 1389. St. Vitus Day is a Serbian national and religious holiday. Here’s everything you need to know about the feast day.
Read More(ANALYSIS) After the 1966 fire, St. Michael's was rebuilt with concrete, steel and other fire-resistant materials, using 1961 drawings from the Historic American Buildings Survey for reference. Today, there are leaks along joints in the church's domes, and the wooden floors squeak from water damage.
Read More(ANALYSIS) The Congress of the XXV World Russian People’s Council, headed by Patriarch Kirill, the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church, issued a document on March 27 entitled: “The Present and Future of the Russian World.” In the document, the leadership of the XXV World Russian People’s Council describes the conflict in Ukraine as a “Holy War.”
Read More(ANALYSIS) Close observers of Eastern Orthodox Christianity were not surprised when the recent World Russian People’s Council bluntly rejected “abortion propaganda,” efforts to promote LGBTQ rights and this age of “sexual licentiousness and debauchery.” It wasn’t surprising when that Moscow conference urged the defense of traditional families, “strong with many children,” during an era where birth rates are falling.
Read More(REVIEW) This film is not just a historical overview of the growth of Orthodox Christianity in America’s northernmost state among Native Alaskans; it also captures the fusion of Native Alaskan culture and Orthodox spirituality. The film shows what we can learn from Alaskan Orthodoxy. Becoming fully human, caring for the land and the animals are main themes discussed in this documentary. These lessons are not just important for Orthodox Christians, but for all human beings.
Read More“Sacred Alaska” is an award-winning, visually stunning documentary with compelling storytelling. The film explores the profound influence of Orthodoxy, brought by St. Herman and Russian monks in the late 18th century, on Native Alaskan society. It also highlights the unique fusion of Native Alaskan indigenous beliefs with Orthodox traditions.
Read MoreIn 2021, Navalny expressed hope that the Orthodox church in Russia could act as a mediator between the people and the state. He recognized this was unlikely; but if his demise tells us anything, it’s that moral courage in Russia’s mother church isn’t totally dead. On the contrary, we might see a resurrection yet.
Read MoreFor many years, Sotiris Skoufis operated his own business of wholesale fabrics in his native Athens. In 2015, he grew physically ill from back pain. At the same time, he went financially broke by the economic crisis in his homeland. Mentally exhausted, he traveled to Prague in the Czech Republic and his life would be forever changed.
Read MoreMetropolitan Job of Pisidia is an Orthodox bishop of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. He is the Permanent Representative of the Ecumenical Patriarchate to the World Council of Churches and co-President of the Joint International Commission for Theological Dialogue between the Catholic church and the Orthodox church. These significant posts make him a top diplomat of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople.
Read MoreOrthodox Awareness Month aims to serve as a reminder of the long and rich history of Orthodoxy in America and the contributions Orthodox Christians made to American culture, history and public life. Here are five books to read for insight into the history and theology of the Orthodox Church, the lives of saints and the evolution of the Orthodox faith in America’s northernmost state.
Read MoreFrom the beginning of their journey into the Orthodox faith, Meghan and Michael Jones were metaphysically connected to Alaska. But their sense of calling to spread the gospel, expand the church and launch socially redemptive initiatives eventually led the couple and their four children to Fiji.
Read MoreOrthodox Christians in North America and around the world already are venerating the Alaskan matriarch for her care and concern for abused women.
Read MoreAfter an Israeli Supreme Court ruling, a right-wing Jewish group may proceed through the courts to evict the Palestinian Arabs who are protected tenants at two historic hotels in Jerusalem’s Christian Quarter. The Greek Orthodox Church leasing the properties is opposing the transfer of leases by arguing the agreement made by a former church finance director is void and illegal.
Read MoreOrthodox churches around the world are all preparing for Easter, a celebration of Christ defeating death, by reflecting on Judgment Day. Despite this relative unity in worship, the Orthodox schism between Moscow and Constantinople that broke open in 2019 is cracking further. What is good and what is evil in the war in Ukraine is far from agreed upon.
Read MorePatriarch Irinej contracted COVID-19 after presiding over a funeral of a bishop in Montenegro, where thousands of attendees did not wear masks or socially distance. He was known for his pro-Russian stance in Orthodoxy, his close relationship to the Serbian government and president, and for overseeing completion of one of the world’s largest Orthodox churches, St. Sava Cathedral.
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