The Akathyst of the Holy Martyr Menas the Wonderworker

The shrine of St. Menas used to be for the Ancient Eastern Orthodox world what Lourdes is for Roman Catholics, a place where thousands of pilgrims would bring their prayers in distress and receive the grace of God in return, through the intercessions of the Holy Martyr.
Though the Shrine of Saint Menas was one of the most popular pilgrimage sites of the early Middle Ages, it fell into oblivion over the centuries with the Muslim occupation and was even believed by many scholars to be a myth. Following its discovery in 1905, the ruins of the fabled city of St. Menas were placed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1979 as one of the five most historically important… Continue reading

Questions and Answers about the Divine Liturgy #3– Liturgy of the Catechumens

gospel_book_11. What are the catechumens?

The catechumens are those that are preparing to become Christians.

2. Why during the first centuries the catechumens could not participate in the whole liturgy?

St. Cyril of Jerusalem explains the situations of the catechumens: „the divine words echoed outside of him; […] he was a listener of the Christian teachings but they were not penetrating Continue reading