In general, two views emerge concerning the Mysterion (Sacrament) of Repentance/Confession and the Divine Eucharist. The first sees the Sacrament of Repentance/Confession as necessary before each participation in the Divine Eucharist. The second sees the Sacrament of Repentance/Confession as a periodic practice not required before every participation in the Divine Eucharist (Holy Communion).

The most important element in the spiritual renewal of the Orthodox Christian is the Sacrament of Holy Communion. It is the one sacrament that transcends all other sacraments. When we receive Holy Communion we receive Jesus Himself into us. So great is this Mystery that we are left without any possible response which would express what God has done. Therefore, we offer the only answer we can, 'Thank you.'

The Sunday of the Last Judgment (Gospel reading: Matthew 25:31-46). The two past Sundays spoke to us of God's patience and limitless compassion, of His readiness to accept every sinner who returns to Him. On this third Sunday, we are powerfully reminded of a complementary truth: no one is so patient and so merciful as God, but even He does not forgive those who do not repent. The God of Love (Agape) is also a God of righteousness, and when Christ comes again in glory, He will come as our judge. 'Behold the goodness and severity of God' (Romans 11:22). Such is the message of Lent to each of us: turn back while there is still time, repent before the End comes. In the words of the Great Canon:

The Triodion possesses an inner coherence and unity that are not at once apparent. Why, for example, should Saint Theodore the Recruit be commemorated on Saturday in the first week, the holy icons on the first Sunday, and Saint Gregory Palamas on the second? What special connection do these three observances have with the ascetic fast of Lent? Let us consider briefly the pattern which links into a single whole the different commemorations during the ten weeks of the Triodion. We shall not enter into details, but shall simply seek to indicate the place of each observance in the general structure of Lent.

As the thrice-blessed Photius, the great and most resplendent Father and teacher of the Church, the Confessor of the Faith and Equal to the holy Apostles, he lived during the years of the emperors Michael (the son of Theophilus), Basil the Macedonian, and Leo his son. He was the son of pious parents, Sergius and Irene, who suffered for the Faith under the Iconoclasts Emperor Theophilus; he was also a nephew of Saint Tarasius, Patriarch of Constantinople (see Feb. 25th). He was born in Constantinople, where he excelled in the foremost imperial ministries, while ever practicing a virtuous and godly life. An upright and honorable man of singular learning and erudition, he was raised to the Apostolic, ecumenical, and patriarchal throne of Constantinople in the year 857 A.D.

In the first place in the series of Mysteries (Sacraments) of the Holy Church stands the Mystery (Sacrament) of Baptism. It serves as the door leading into the Kingdom of Grace, or the Church, and it grants access to participation in the other Mysteries (Sacraments). Even before the establishment of the Mystery (Sacrament) of Baptism, the Lord Jesus Christ in His conversation with Nicodemus indicated the absolute necessity of it for salvation: "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the Kingdom of God. When Nicodemus expressed his perplexity, "How can a man be born when he is old? The Savior replied that the new birth would be accomplished by water and the Spirit: "Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh, is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit" (Saint John 3:3-6).