Brotherhood of Saint John the Wonderworker

https://youtu.be/ROR8thb6n-g?si=in04gLXIFWuQ9XXG

St. Cyril of Jerusalem Choir Releases New Album of Orthodox Hymns THE WOODLANDS, TX — The Orthodox Church in America's (OCA) Diocese of the South has announced that the choir of St. Cyril of Jerusalem Orthodox Church has released a new album, “Treasury of Blessings,” featuring 23 sacred hymns drawn from the liturgical tradition of the Orthodox Church. The recording brings together hymns from throughout the liturgical year, including settings of the Troparion of the Transfiguration, Troparion of the Cross, Nativity and Theophany hymns, Paschal hymns, the Cherubic Hymn, and hymns honoring the Theotokos and St. Cyril of Jerusalem. Subscribe for Orthodox News & Analysis Donate to Support Pan-Orthodox Journalism

(It is Truly Meet, chanted at the Church of the Dormition of the Mother of God on Imvros)

https://youtu.be/aSZct9F75b0?si=xS4DDVo6NiR_jsgH

Queen of heaven pray for us." Then an iron band was placed around his forehead which was tightened and inflicted excruciating pain on Demetrios. With each twist they called upon him to name his fellow conspirators. Demetrios remained silent, and was thrown into a prison cell. Later the tortures resumed. First he was hanged upside down with a fire placed under his head. This was done in order to burn his scalp and to be tortured by the smoke of the flame. Having failed at this fruitless attempt and not wanting to kill him, the torturers then decided to lay Demetrios down and place weighted boards on him, on which the torturers even jumped in order to break his bones. Finally they enclosed Demetrios within a wall of stones with only his head showing. His head was free in order for him to breathe and eat, wanting to keep him alive until he confessed. Demetrios however remained steadfast in his Orthodox Christian faith. After ten days of the torture of being enclosed by this wall, Demetrios gave up his spirit to the Lord. His last words were those of St. Babylas of Antioch: "Soul, return to your rest, for the Lord will bless you." St. Demetrios, the monk from Samarina, offered his life in the city of Ioannina for the love of Jesus Christ on August 17, in the year 1808. Concluding Remarks Pouqueville goes on to describe that the martyrdom of St. Demetrios inspired a Muslim to abandon Islam and embrace Orthodox Christianity. He was baptized and received the name of George. In Agrinio he was arrested by men of Ali Pasha, and received such a frightening death that Pouqueville refused to describe it. In 1984 the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece authorized the Service of Praise in honor of the Saint, which was written by the eminent hymnographer Monk Gerasimos Mikragiannanitis. Aristotle Valaoritis, one of Greece's foremost modern poets, also wrote a poem in honor of St. Demetrios and Papa-Vlahava, titled "The Memorials". It should be noted that the Metropolis of Grevena has Saint Demetrios commemorated on August 18th, while the Great Euchologion and Otto Meinardus say his commemoration is August 17th.

New Martyr Demetrius of Samarina in Epirus The Author of the Life of St. Demetrios of Samarina François Pouqueville (1770-1838) was a French diplomat, writer, explorer, physician and historian, who became a prominent architect of the Philhellenism movement throughout Europe, and contributed eminently to the liberation of the Greeks, and to the rebirth of the Greek Nation. First as the Turkish Sultan's hostage, then as Napoleon Bonaparte's general consul at the court of Ali Pasha of Ioannina, he travelled extensively throughout Ottoman occupied Greece from 1798 to 1820. He applied himself especially in denouncing the state of oppression crushing the Greeks under Turkish domination, and more specifically stood as witness of "the crimes and abominations perpetrated by Ali Pasha and his bands of assassins with the complicity of the Turkish Sultan and his allies." All along, he described the daily life, the usages and customs, and the traditions of the Greeks of the Peloponnese surviving under their appalling economic and political conditions. In his book Histoire de la régénération de la Grèce (Paris, 1824, 4 vol.), Pouqueville describes his meeting with a monk named Demetrios, a disciple of St. Kosmas Aitolos, and Papa-Euthymios Vlahavas who inspired an insurrection in the Pindos region in 1808. He further describes the capture, trial and eventual martyrdom of St. Demetrios, all of which he was an eye-witness. The Life and Martyrdom of St. Demetrios Demetrios was from the Vlach village of Samarina in the Pindos region of Greece, and was born towards the end of the 18th century. At a young age he entered the nearby Monastery of Saint Paraskevi where he was tonsured a monk. After the outbreak of the insurrection inspired by Papa-Euthymios Vlahavas in 1808, which was ruthlessly suppressed by Ali Pasha, the ruler of the area, Monk Demetrios left his monastery and toured the neighboring villages with the purpose of quieting and comforting his fellow Orthodox Christians and giving them some hope in their troubles. This drew the attention of some Muslims however, who accused Demetrios of preaching rebellion. Demetrios was arrested and brought before Ali Pasha in chains. Demetrios explained that his purpose was to strengthen the faith of his fellow Christians in Jesus Christ, and that his preaching was based on love and obedience to the law. Ali Pasha was not satisfied with these answers, and the following dialogue is recorded between him and Demetrios: Ali Pasha: "You announced the kingdom of Jesus Christ and consequently the fall of our leader [the Sultan]." Demetrios: "My God reigns eternally and for eternity and I respect the teaching He gave us." Ali Pasha: "What do you have on your chest?" Demetrios: "The venerable icon of His Mother." Ali Pasha: "I want to see it." Demetrios: "It cannot be dishonored. Order one of my arms cut off and then I will present it to you." Ali Pasha: "Is this the way you stir up trouble? Are we therefore desecrators? I recognize in your words the leader of the bishops who are inviting the Russians to subjugate us. Name your fellow conspirators." Demetrios: "My fellow conspirators are my conscience and my duty, which oblige me to comfort the Orthodox Christians and to help them be obedient to your laws." Ali Pasha: "You mean to your laws." Demetrios: "This name glorifies me." Ali Pasha: "Do you carry the icon of the Virgin which is said to carry great charms?" Demetrios: "Say miracles. The Mother of our Savior is our intercessor before her eternal Son and God. The Theotokos performs her miracles daily among us and we call upon her daily." Ali Pasha: "Let us see if she will protect you. Executioners, torture him." The executioners immediately set upon Demetrios, spit on his face, forcibly removed the icon from his hands, and placed bamboo sticks under his finger and toe nails. With nails they pierced his arms and legs. During all this Pouqueville records the following words heard from the tortured lips of Demetrios: "Lord, have mercy on Your servant.

Woman Receives Healing After Praying Before Hawaiian Iveron Icon LOVECH, BULGARIA — A woman received healing from a severely damaged meniscus after praying before the miraculous Hawaiian Myrrh-Flowing Iveron Icon of the Most Holy Theotokos during its recent visit to Bulgaria, according to Metr. Gabriel of Lovech. The woman was hospitalized with the serious knee injury when she came before the icon during its visit to Sofia. She prayed to the Mother of God, asking for healing and assistance. The following day, she returned to the icon — not to ask for help, but to give thanks after experiencing an unexpected improvement in her condition. Subscribe for Orthodox News & Analysis Donate to Support Pan-Orthodox Journalism

(“O Theotokos and Virgin” chanted by Stanitsas)

https://youtu.be/nUjylCjvHXA?si=NZePjeLSoBWjQx_Z

Prophet Micah The Prophet Micah, the sixth of the Twelve Minor Prophets, was descended from the Tribe of Judah and was a native of the city of Moresheth, to the south of Jerusalem. His prophetic service began around the year 778 before Christ and continued for almost 50 years under the kings of Judah: Jotham, Ahaz, and Righteous Hezekiah (721-691 B.C., August 28). He was a contemporary of the Prophet Isaiah. His denunciations and predictions were in regard to the separate kingdoms of Judah and Israel. He foresaw the misfortunes threatening the kingdom of Israel before its destruction, and the sufferings of Judah during the incursions under the Assyrian emperor Sennacherib. To him belongs a prophecy about the birth of the Savior of the world: “And thou, Bethlehem, house of Ephratha, art too few in number to be reckoned with the thousands of Judah; yet out of thee shall come forth to Me, one who is to be a ruler in Israel, and His goings forth were from the beginning, even from eternity” (Mic. 5: 2). From the words of the Prophet Jeremiah (Jer. 26: 18-19), the Jews evidently were afraid to kill the Prophet Micah. His relics were discovered in the fourth century after the Birth of Christ at Baraphsatia, through a revelation to the Bishop of Eleutheropolis, Zeuinos.

Dearest in Christ An appeal from our dear Fr. Felipe in the Philippines: ———————————— Prayers and blessings! We have been hit with a different challenge and have been trying to help ourselves but our resources are limited because we have lost almost everything. Fire has destroyed the condominium units of my sister Nina and Priest Lawrence and his family. We are humbly requesting for financial assistance so we can pay for the rent of the place where we can stay as well as to buy new furniture for the house. Thank you for helping us in this very difficult situation. Please send your support through Zelle at priestmonkfilipp@gmail.com or through PayPal at Felipe.balingit@hts.edu

Saint Dositheos the Submissive, Disciple of Abba Dorotheos Dositheus was a disciple of Dorotheus and himself considered a Saint. The story is that as a young man Dositheus, an army page, lead a wild and dissolute life. He became curious, however, after hearing numerous stories about the city of Jerusalem and made a journey there about 520-525 AD. It was at Golgotha that an unknown woman who turned out to be Virgin Mary struck up a conversation with him about eternal torments in hell,which led to his converting from paganism to Christianity. He became a monk at Gaza under the supervision of Dorotheus, who had a long and steady struggle to teach Dositheus discipline. Dorotheus was criticized by many of the monastery for his lax disciple. Dositheus was noted, however, for his humility, self-denial and gentle and supportive ways with the sick and he worked in the infirmary. It was probably here that he contracted tuberculosis or a similar condition. He died about 530AD, five years after becoming a monk As he lay dying Dositheus begged Dorotheus to "pray for an early release from his sufferings". Dorotheus answered, "Have a little patience. God's mercy is near." Soon after he said to him, "Depart in peace and appear in joy before the blessed Trinity, and pray for us". After his death, Dorotheus declared that Dositheus had surpassed the rest (of his disciples) in virtue without the practice of any extraordinary austerity. He is the patron saint of respiratory diseases.

Is Orthodoxy Too Foreign? https://fatherjohn.blogspot.com/2026/08/is-orthodoxy-too-foreign.html

Tesla’s “Silent Agreement” with Saint Nicholas https://orthochristian.com/179457.html Rev. Dr. Oliver Subotic In November 1940, the wealthy Serbian-American Mihailo Ducic sent him financial assistance. The ingenious inventor thanked him in a telegram, stating, among other things: “Saint Nicholas and you are my best friends.”

Hawaiian icon blesses hospital patients in Bulgaria https://orthochristian.com/179425.html Patients at Sofia’s N. I. Pirogov University Hospital received a blessing this week from the myrrh-streaming Hawaiian Iveron Icon of the Mother of God, which was brought through the hospital’s clinics and wards on August 3.