"Behold we count them happy which endure..." (James 5:11)

In the Apostolic Church, all the remains of the "friends of God," the righteous strugglers (1 Corinthians 9:25), were referred to as relics (lipsana) bones, heads, hair, hands, feet, and sometimes entire bodies, if there were preserved, through which the Lord God is glorified by mysterious wonders (miracles). The Protestant Lutherans and all sectarians reject the veneration of the holy remains of Christian strugglers, and, like the heretics of times past, laugh at this pious custom and scoff at Orthodox Christians who call upon the friends of God in their prayers to Him.

Q. Orthodox pilgrimage routes often point out various holy springs. What is significant about them? What kind of water is in them? How should we use it?

Q. Andrei, are there many wonderworking (miracle-working) icons in the Church? Is such a designation appropriate? And how can we explain it?

Apolytikion (Dismissal) Hymn. First Tone

Save, O Lord, Thy people and bless Thine inheritance; grant Thou unto the faithful victory over adversaries. And by the power of Thy Cross do Thou preserve Thy commonwealth.

In a third war fought by Constantine the Great with the Scythians along the River Danube, the weapon of salvation appeared in the heavens (sky), bringing victory as it had before. Thus, he became convinced of the power of Christ, Who was crucified upon the Cross. Believing in Him as the Only True God, he was baptized together with his praiseworthy mother Helen, who was full of love for God. It was Helen whom he sent to Jerusalem with great riches to search for the Precious and Holy Cross.

On the holy Feast-Day of the Exaltation of the Cross, September 14th, we call to mind as Orthodox Christians Christ's Life-Giving death on the Cross, which He underwent for the salvation of each one of us.