THE CROSS OF CHRIST IS THE LIFE-GIVING TREE

"Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me" (St. Matthew 16:24).

"Μεθ' ημών ο Θεός... ("God is with us...")

There is nothing that anyone can say that is more reassuring and comforting to one who is experiencing this most profound human grief than to be reminded that truly God is with us at all times and in all places.

As your priest, I am here to tell you we shall overcome. We are God's children who He loves. Wherever we are and wherever we go, God is there. There is no place where God is not.

In the year 33 A.D., on the 14th day of the month Nissan, on Friday about noon at a rocky place as Golgotha outside of the City of Jerusalem, Jesus Christ was crucified by nailing of His Hands on the horizontal bar of a cross and His Feet on the vertical one. The verdict of such a sentence was pronounced by Pontius Pilate, the Roman Procurator of the vicinity, but the moral culprit was a mob of Jewish people whose high priest, Annas, but still a very influential person.

Feasts and Fasts are significant religious events and observations that awaken the spirit and faith of man. The center of all festivals and celebrations of the Christian Church is the Christian Pascha. Its heritage is recorded in the Old Testament as the main observation of the Jewish religion; its Christian incidents occupy the Golden Pages of history; its meaning is the cornerstone of the Holy Scripture and becomes the main objective of faith, devotion, and inspiration for the Christian. The Christian Pascha is the treasure of the Church which has adopted it as the great ineffable monument.

Prayer of Parents for their Children And for Relatives and Friends

O God, our heavenly Father, Who loves mankind, and are most Merciful and compassionate, have mercy upon Thy servants (Names of those whom you wish to remember) for whom I humbly pray Thee, and commend to Thy glorious care and protection. Be Thou, O God, their guide and guardian in all their endeavors, lead them in the path of Thy Truth, and draw them nearer to Thee, that they may lead a godly and righteous life in Thy love and fear; doing Thy will in all things. Give them grace that they may be temperate, industrious, diligent, devout and charitable. Defend them against the assaults of the enemy, and grant them wisdom and strength, to resist all temptations and corruption of this life; and direct them in the way of salvation, for the merits of Thy Son, our Savior Jesus Christ, and the intercessions of His Holy Mother and Thy blessed Saints. Amen.

When another year had passed, he (elder Zosimas) again went into the desert. He reached the same spot but could see no sign of anyone. So, raising his eyes to heaven as before, he prayed: "Show me, O Lord, Thy pure treasure, which Thou hast concealed in the desert. Show me, I pray Thee, Thine angel in the flesh, of which the world is not worthy." Then on the opposite bank of the river, her face turned toward the rising sun, he saw the Saint lying dead. Her hands were crossed according to custom and her face was turned to the East. Running up, he shed tears over the Saint's feet and kissed them, not daring to touch anything else. For a long time, he wept. Then, reciting the appointed psalms, he said the burial prayers and thought to himself: "Must I bury the body of a Saint? Or will this be contrary to her wishes?" And then he saw words traced on the ground by her head: "Abba (Father) Zosimas, bury on this spot the body of humble Mary. Return to dust what is dust and pray to the Lord for me, who departed in the month of Fermoutin of Egypt, called April by the Romans, on the first day, on the very night of our Lord's Passion, after having partaken of the Divine Mysteries" (Sacraments) (522 A.D.).