Rejoice, O Tamar,Woman full of faith,Our Lord has made you chaste.You sat at the gateAnd you stole life,So you were not afraid.Blessed Foremother of the Lord!Blessed desire for the savior you bore!Rejoice, O full of faith!
Thursday, December 31, 2020
Righteous Tamar
Wednesday, November 4, 2020
New Book: Darkness is As Light
If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me,and the light about me be night,”even the darkness is not dark to you;the night is bright as the day,for darkness is as light with you.- Psalm 139.11-12
Darkness is as Light is available anywhere books are sold. You can support the small press by ordering directly from their book shop. Sneak peeks below!
Saturday, October 10, 2020
Koliva
Tomorrow we will have a 5 year memorial for my dear friend's husband, and I'm grateful to offer this along with my prayers for his soul and his family.
I treasure being asked to make koliva for memorials. I am unendingly grateful to the friend who taught me how to make it, and I'm humbled and honored by the friends who have asked me to make it in their grief. This task takes time and draws my hands into beautiful symbols of color and smell. It is a gift that reminds us of our hope in the life of God, the sweetness of death.
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Wash and boil the wheat about 1.5 hours. |
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Meanwhile, prepare the other ingredients: deseed pomegranate, chop fresh parsley, toast almonds, measure spices, process graham cracker crumbs |
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when the wheat is cooked, I lay it out on a towels covered with a clean white table cloth. I was taught to pour it out in the form of a cross, and I never skip this step! |
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Spread the wheat out to dry, overnight if possible. This will take many hours. |
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When the wheat is ready, put it in a bowl with the mix-in ingredients. Be sure to set some aside for decorations. |
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Sometimes it is made on a platter, which is very pretty when making a large amount. Smaller quantities are pretty in a glass bowl through which you can still see the wheat. |
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Even though the wheat dried a long time, it still contains some moisture. A layer of graham cracker crumbs separates the sugar from the moisture. |
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Next comes the powdered sugar covering. I was taught to smooth it perfectly with wax paper. |
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First the cross with Jordan Almonds. Someone from our parish got these beautiful silver ones (and some accompanying decorative candy shapes) from Greece. |
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Next the initials of the departed beloved one. I used the white almonds to make the border. |
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May his memory be eternal! |
Sunday, September 20, 2020
Wisdom! Church School Videos
Hey friends, I'm making some short videos for use in virtual church schools (or families to use at home in lieu of church school). I'm preparing two videos per month through May. September and October's videos are already up. Each video presents a lesson briefly based on Scripture readings through the church year, which families or teachers can share with kids. Each lesson comes with a variety of class ideas, including discussion questions, icons and hymns, activities and crafts. Feel free to use and share.
Wisdom!
Resource Guide
Videos
Saturday, May 2, 2020
Pascha in Pandemic
A few years ago I made a painting of Pascha at St. John, which is a big, beautiful church in Memphis, TN. So, anyway, I'm coping and painting now. This is Pascha this year, in a small, beautiful church in our house. (Also featuring our small St. Nicholas Orthodox Church in Jackson, TN on the laptop screen.)
You can order prints of Pascha in Pandemic here, or Pascha at St. John here. See photos from our Holy Week at home here.
Saturday, April 25, 2020
Paschal Stichera
Today, a sacred Pascha is revealed to us,
A new and holy Pascha,
A mystical Pascha,
A Pascha worthy of veneration,
A Pascha which is Christ the Redeemer,
A blameless Pascha,
A great Pascha,
A Pascha of the faithful,
A Pascha which has opened for us the gates of Paradise,
A Pascha which sanctifies all the faithful.
As smoke vanishes so let them vanish. As wax melts before the fire.
Come from that scene, 0 women, bearers of glad tidings,
And say to Zion:
Receive from us the glad tidings of joy, of Christ's resurrection.
Exult and be glad,
And rejoice, 0 Jerusalem,
Seeing Christ the King,
Who comes forth from the tomb like a bridegroom in procession.
So the sinners will perish before the face of God. But let the righteous be glad.
The myrrhbearing women,
At the break of dawn,
Drew near to the tomb of the Life-giver.
There they found an angel sitting upon the stone.
He greeted them with these words:
Why do you seek the living among the dead?
Why do you mourn the incorrupt amid corruption?
Go, proclaim the glad tidings to His disciples.
This is the day which the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it.
Pascha of beauty,
The Pascha of the Lord,
A Pascha worthy of all honor has dawned for us,
Pascha!
Let us embrace each other joyously. O Pascha, ransom from affliction! For today as from a bridal chamber Christ has shown forth from the tomb and filled the women with joy saying:
Proclaim the glad tidings to the apostles.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.
This is the day of resurrection. Let us be illumined by the feast. Let us embrace each other. Let us call "brothers" even those that hate us, and forgive all by the resurrection, and so let us cry:
Christ is risen from the dead,
Trampling down death by death,
And upon those in the tombs bestowing life!
Thursday, April 23, 2020
Holy Week at Home
It was hard to stand in our living room next to the couch. Still, the children were able to ask about the scriptures and hymns and icons throughout the service, and actually get answers in real time. My older kids haven't colored in church in many years, but this year they carefully and attentively colored a different icon each day.
Many services felt weird and anti-climactic without the sacraments. Yet, my girls led the processions, lit the 12 candles, read the scriptures, chanted the hymns, and blessed the baskets - things they usually watch others do. So there was a different kind of participation.
We missed our picnics, singing, and meals with friends. But the children took active part in making sure we had a cross for Holy Thursday, they hunted flowers and insisted on making a bier, and they helped prepare our Paschal feast.
Someone commented on one of my pictures that my home looked cozy. I saw my re-arranged living room and, before I realized what I was saying, I laughingly replied, "it has transformed into a little church this week." It's true in the way I meant it - we moved chairs to make the prayer corner larger, and had stacks of bibles, service books, and music ready; oil and candles on stand by; a space made for our antidoron-like-bread and holy water; and an analogion set up for the festal icons. But it was also true in the accidental way that caught my breath when I saw it. We prayed together, liturgized together, suffered and served together in our home this week. My children received more of my attention this week than most regular Holy Weeks. We mourned the crucifixion and celebrated the resurrection in faith as a family.
This quarantined Holy Week revealed how much communion is part of the church, how much we need it, we need each other. But it also revealed God is with us in our most difficult moments, he is glorified in our must humble offerings. Christ is risen from the dead, and all we have to do is show up and celebrate it.
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Lazarus Saturday/Palm Sunday Door Decorations |
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Lazarus Saturday festivities |
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Laza-dog |
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Palm Sunday Liturgy with Fern-Palms |
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Palm Sunday Liturgy, with a lucky find of a Lazarus Saturday paper icon and last year's crosses |
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Bridegroom Icon with ferm-palms and daffodil-crosses |
The transformation of our living room, amid zoom ballet class and services |
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coloring icons for the Mystical Supper during the morning Liturgy |
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dyeing eggs and making butter lambs on Holy Thursday afternoon |
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Coloring the crucifixion as we listen to the Gospels and light the candles. Some of us were more still than others... |
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Reading the Gospels |
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Cardboard bier ready |
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flowers gathered |
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Epitaphios colored during Royal Hours |
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Holy Friday procession |
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entering under the bier |
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Myrrh the children sprinkled |
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Every generation to thy grace comes bringing, dear Christ, its dirge of praise. |
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Parish vigil at the tomb on Zoom |
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Dogwood leaves and petals of victory for Holy Saturday |
we had a little more fun with the leaves than usual |
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Come receive the light |
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processing outside the door (with the window open so we can still hear the livestream) |
knocking on the door |
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Christ is risen! |
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the dog is confused why we're shouting? |
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Giddy children settle on the couch for the Liturgy |
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the little one is already asleep |
the Paschal Homily of St. John Chrysostom |
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Blessing the baskets with the priest |
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the analogion |
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the midnight feast, not everyone is awake. |
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long awaited ice cream |
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beautiful cards from missed church friends adorn our festal table |
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it doesn't stay pretty for long |
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Egg hunt later in the sun |