On Monday October 25/November 7, His Eminence celebrated the vigil service in honor of the Holy and Glorious Great Martyr Demetrius, together with clergy of the Metropolis, monastics, and faithful. The compassionate service was made brilliant by the grace of the prizewinner, according to the monastic tradition. Many faithful came from different parts of the country to honor the saint, and to support our Archpastor, His Eminence Demetrius.
In the morning of the next day, a festive Hierarchical Liturgy was served by His Eminence, together with His Grace Bishop Christodoulos, and clergy of the Metropolis and Monastery. A festive meal was celebrated thereafter. After the meal, the traditional “Panagia” service was held in the trapeza. From there, the faithful processed back to the main Church of the Monastery, to complete the services of the day with the canon to St. Demetrius and the “polychronio” to His Eminence, according to the tradition of the Holy Mountain of Athos.
We wish His Eminence many blessed years, and through the prayers of Saint Demetrius, may he continue to guide us along the path of salvation.
Please click here for a photo gallery from Vigil and the Divine Liturgy (note: link will take you off of our site).
In the early 20th century, the idea of promoting the union of Churches (Orthodox and heterodox) began to gain ground among circles in the Eastern Orthodox Church by establishing a "Communion of Churches" modeled on the League of Nations.
The Patriarchal Encyclical of 1920 foresaw a series of steps toward the “union of the Churches,” of which the first was the change of the calendar for the simultaneous celebration of feast days by all the “Churches.” The content of the encyclical was kept secret from the faithful and only after a few years became known. Read more...
St. John of Kronstadt Orthodox Church began as a mission parish in the year 2000, in a home chapel in Palm Coast, FL – a small town on Florida’s northeast coast located between St. Augustine and Daytona Beach. After two years, it became necessary to have services in area community centers, rented for Sundays and other Holy Days. Read more...
2025 Youth Conference
Please join us for the 2025 youth conference in Toronto, Ontario, Canada! To learn more, visit the conference website.
Q. There seems to be a lot of variation in how people observe fasting, but my confessor told me to fast from oil on Wednesday and Friday. Oil is a pretty vague category, though, and I was wondering if I could get a more explicit description of what kinds of food and drink are excluded on strict fast days. Read more...