“Let us keep the Fast not only by refraining from food, but by becoming strangers to all the bodily passions; that we who are enslaved to the tyranny of the flesh may become worthy to partake of the Lamb, the Son of God, slain of His own will for the sake of the world, and spiritually may celebrate the feast of the Savior’s Resurrection from the dead. So shall we be raised high in the glory of the virtues, and through our righteous actions we shall give joy to the Lord who loves humankind.” ... [Read more]
Neal’s Journey to Orthodoxy
In the beginning, a very well known phrase, I was born into a totally Jewish family in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. I did all the things a normal kid would do, and a lot I shouldn’t have. We really didn’t go to the Synagogue a lot. Back then you had to be a member and pay dues, and for the High Holy Days, you had to buy tickets at an additional cost to the membership dues. I questioned this and all my father would say is that I was too young to understand. As was the custom, I had my ... [Read more]
Brigid’s Journey to Orthodoxy
My journey to Orthodoxy began as a very small child, at the unknowing conditioning of my mother. You see, my parents raised me in the Episcopal Church because, 1) my Presbyterian-raised father wanted “Catholic values without the guilt” and 2) my Roman Catholic-raised mother wanted to marry a man who was going to be an Episcopal priest. Dad never did become a priest. In fact, he wasn’t really involved in my religious or spiritual upbringing. My mom was the head of the household when it came to ... [Read more]
Naomi’s Journey to Orthodoxy
My journey to Orthodoxy began before I was born. It began before my parents were married; before they had even met. My journey to Orthodoxy began with a man in Anchorage, Alaska named Harold Dunaway. In 1971, Mr. Dunaway was able to buy a large piece of property, a former Catholic Monastery in the growing town of Eagle River, Alaska. Mr. Dunaway was only able to purchase the property because of a very generous and unexpected donation. He fondly remembers that this was “how we found our home.” ... [Read more]
James’ Journey to Orthodoxy
It all began late one evening in the spring of 1967. I was sitting alone in our family room watching the movie King of Kings on our first-ever color TV. It was a movie about the life of Jesus, and it held me in rapt attention. At the end of the movie, I started to cry. After I turned off the TV, wave after wave of tears of repentance flooded over me. That night Jesus started me on my journey. The next weeks were the best of my life up to that point. I knew I had a new purpose: to serve my Savior ... [Read more]
Movement in the Church
Corporate worship in the Orthodox Church is full of orderly movement; our services are liturgical, and have a natural progression of movements to them. Liturgical worship is led by the Clergy, who are given specific guidelines (rubrics) about how and when to do what. From the exhaustive list of detailed rubrics contained in the clergy service books, it is clear that movement plays a central role in our corporate praise and supplications before God. As important as the rubrics and physical ... [Read more]
Chris’ Journey to Orthodoxy
I feel blessed to have been born Greek. What a wonderful culture we have with the strong family traditions, the delicious foods, the great stories of how our pappous and yiayias came to this country and made a home for themselves and their family. The celebrations we have for name days, baptisms and weddings truly point to an appreciation for life. What wonderful parties I experienced growing up in a Greek family. The Church was the gathering place for Greeks that were spread throughout ... [Read more]
Patricia’s Journey to Orthodoxy
I was born into an Orthodox family and was baptized at a very young age, thereby making me a “cradle” Orthodox. In looking back on my formative years, I now realize how green the grass was in my own backyard, but at that stage in my life, I did not take full advantage of it. Being a native Oregonian, the bulk of my years, minus a handful during which we lived in California when I was very young, were spent attending Holy Trinity here in Portland. As a child and through my teenage years my ... [Read more]
What Do We Believe About Cremation?
With the recent passing of one of our beloved parishioners and her subsequent cremation, it is timely that we all be reminded of our Orthodox Church’s position on cremation. In many cases involving families that are not all Orthodox, it is especially important to put in writing our request to be buried with a full Orthodox Funeral rather than being cremated. The following comes right from the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese, and can be found in both the annually published Yearbook and the ... [Read more]
Patrick’s Journey to Orthodoxy
I was raised in a loving but nominally Christian home. I remember irregular attendance at various Lutheran and Presbyterian churches before the age of twelve. By that time I think my parents had stopped going to church. As a result, my teen years had little to do with Christ. I was just an average kid who (generally) stayed out of trouble, and who was blissfully ignorant of any need for God. One sadly amusing memory from those days was throwing my morning paper route with my cassette player ... [Read more]
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