George (Karslidis) Of Drama
George of Drama ( el, Ὁ Όσιος Γεώργιος της Δράμας, ka, დრამის წმინდა გიორგი, January 1, 1901 – November 4, 1959) was a Greek elder known for his gifts of spiritual discernment and clairvoyance. He is considered by Eastern Orthodox as a confessor and venerable. George Karslidis was born in 1901 in Chadik, Tsalka, Georgia. His grandparents were refugees who had come from Gümüşhane, Ottoman Empire, following the Crimean War. At a young age, he was orphaned, losing both his father and his mother on the same day. Wounded by the abusive treatment given to him by his older brother, he escaped, alone, to the mountains, where he was saved by Turkish villagers, who took him with them back to Pontos. He is known to have been in Georgia, Armenia, and Russia before spending most of his life in the village of Taxiarches (''Sipsa''), in Drama, Northern Greece. He founded the Monastery of the Ascension of Christ in ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Tsalka
Tsalka ( ka, წალკა, tr , , or , az, Barmaqsiz) is a town and municipality center in southern Georgia's Kvemo Kartli region. Population The district had a population of 2,326. According to the 2014 census, 47% of its population is Georgian, 38% Armenian, 7% Caucasus Greeks , and 7% Azerbaijanis. Up until the 1990s, Russian served as the language of inter-ethnic communication and was the language of education in most of the schools in the Tsalka district. It was the only area in the USSR where the Greek language was taught in schools. The population in Tsalka district before 1990 was 55,000 people, and more than 90% Greeks (about 50,000). Before 1990, it was the only city in the USSR with such a high Greek population. There were 49 villages in the district, and 44 were Greek villages. In the past, Greeks used to be the majority of Tsalka, but now their numbers have considerably decreased due to emigration to Greece. Several thousand ethnic Georgians who had suffered fro ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Saints And Levitation
The levitation of saints is the ability attributed to a saint to fly or to levitate. Most of these "flying saints" are mentioned as such in literature and sources associated with them. Christianity The ability to levitate was attributed to figures in Early Christianity. The apocryphal Acts of Peter gives a legendary tale of Simon Magus' death. Simon is performing magic in the Roman Forum, and in order to prove himself to be a god, he flies up into the air. The apostle Peter prays to God to stop his flying, and he stops mid-air and falls, breaking his legs, whereupon the crowd, previously non-hostile, stones him to death. The church of Santa Francesca Romana claims to have been built on the spot in question (thus accepting the claim that Simon Magus could indeed fly), claims that Saint Paul was also present, and that a dented slab of marble that it contains bears the imprints of the knees of Peter and Paul during their prayer. Saint Francis of Assisi is recorded as having been ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Ordination
Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorization, authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform various religious Ritual, rites and ceremonies. The process and ceremonies of ordination vary by religion and Religious denomination, denomination. One who is in preparation for, or who is undergoing the process of ordination is sometimes called an ordinand. The liturgy used at an ordination is sometimes referred to as an ordination. Christianity Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Lutheran and Anglican churches In Roman Catholicism and Orthodoxy, ordination is one of the seven sacraments, variously called holy orders or ''Christian laying on of hands, cheirotonia'' ("Laying on of Hands"). Apostolic succession is considered an essential and necessary concept for ordination in the Catholic, Orthodo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Tonsure
Tonsure () is the practice of cutting or shaving some or all of the hair on the scalp as a sign of religious devotion or humility. The term originates from the Latin word ' (meaning "clipping" or "shearing") and referred to a specific practice in medieval Roman Catholic Church, Catholicism, abandoned by papal order in 1972. Tonsure can also refer to the secular practice of shaving all or part of the scalp to show support or sympathy, or to designate mourning. Current usage more generally refers to cutting or shaving for monks, devotees, or mystics of any religion as a symbol of their renunciation of worldly fashion and esteem. Tonsure is still a traditional practice in Catholicism by specific religious orders (with papal permission). It is also commonly used in the Eastern Orthodox Church for newly baptised members and is frequently used for Buddhism, Buddhist novices, Bhikkhu, monks, and Bhikkhunī, nuns. The complete shaving of one's head bald, or just shortening the hair, exists ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Degrees Of Eastern Orthodox Monasticism
The degrees of Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic monasticism are the stages an Eastern Orthodox monk or nun passes through in their religious vocation. In the Eastern Orthodox Church, the process of becoming a monk or nun is intentionally slow, as the monastic vows taken are considered to entail a lifelong commitment to God, and are not to be entered into lightly. After a person completes the novitiate, three degrees or steps must be completed in the process of preparation before one may gain the monastic habit. Orthodox monasticism Unlike in Western Christianity, where different religious orders and societies arose, each with its own profession rites, the Eastern Orthodox Church has only one type of monasticism. The profession of monastics is known as tonsure (referring to the ritual cutting of the monastic's hair which takes place during the service) and was, at one time, considered to be a Sacred Mystery (sacrament). The Rite of Tonsure is printed in the ''Euchologion'' (C ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Soumela Monastery
Sumela Monastery ( el, Μονή Παναγίας Σουμελά, ''Moní Panagías Soumelá''; tr, Sümela Manastırı, lzz, სუმელა) is a Greek Orthodox monastery dedicated to the Theotokos located at ''Karadağ'' (Greek: ''Sou Melá'', meaning "Black Mountain") within the Pontic Mountains, in the Maçka district of Trabzon Province in modern Turkey. Nestled in a steep cliff at an altitude of about facing the Altındere valley, it is a site of great historical and cultural significance, as well as a major tourist attraction within Altındere National Park. Due to an increase in rock falls, on 22 September 2015 the monastery was closed to the public for safety reasons for the duration of one year to resolve the problem; this was later extended to three years. It reopened to tourists 25 May 2019. The monastery is one of the most important historic and touristic venues in Trabzon. Etymology Soumela comes from the Greek 'Sou Melá', meaning "of black (mountain)" ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Panagia
Panagia ( el, Παναγία, fem. of , + , the ''All-Holy'', or the ''Most Holy''; pronounced ) (also transliterated Panaghia or Panajia), in Medieval and Modern Greek, is one of the titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, used especially in Eastern Catholicism and Orthodox Christianity. Most Greek churches dedicated to the Virgin Mary are called ''Panagia''; the standard western Christian designation of "St. Mary" is rarely used in the Orthodox East, as Mary is considered the holiest of all created beings and therefore of higher status than the Saints. Iconography ''Panagia'' is also the term for a particular type of icon of the Theotokos, wherein she is facing the viewer directly, usually depicted full length with her hands in the ''orans'' position, and with a medallion showing the image of Christ as a child in front of her chest. This medallion symbolically represents Jesus within the womb of the Virgin Mary at the moment of the Incarnation. This type of icon is also called t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Christian Pilgrimage
Christianity has a strong tradition of pilgrimages, both to sites relevant to the New Testament narrative (especially in the Holy Land) and to sites associated with later saints or miracles. History Christian pilgrimages were first made to sites connected with the birth, life, crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. Aside from the early example of Origen in the third century, surviving descriptions of Christian pilgrimages to the Holy Land date from the 4th century, when pilgrimage was encouraged by church fathers including Saint Jerome, and established by Saint Helena, the mother of Constantine the Great. The purpose of Christian pilgrimage was summarized by Pope Benedict XVI this way: Pilgrimages are made to Rome and other sites associated with the apostles, saints and Christian martyrs, as well as to places where there have been apparitions of the Virgin Mary. A popular pilgrimage journey is along the Way of St. James to the Santiago de Compostela Cathedral, in Galic ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Holy Synod Of The Russian Orthodox Church
The Holy Synod of the Russian Orthodox Church ( rus, Священный синод Русской православной церкви, Svyashchennyy sinod Russkoy pravoslavnoy tserkvi) serves by Church statute as the supreme administrative governing body of the Russian Orthodox Church in the periods between Bishops' Councils. Members * Kirill – Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, chairman Permanent members ; by the cathedra * Paul (Ponomaryov) – Metropolitan of Krutitsy and Kolomna * Barsanophius (Sudakov) – Metropolitan of St. Petersburg and Ladoga * – Metropolitan of Minsk and Slutsk, Patriarchal Exarch of All Belarus * Vladimir (Cantarean) – Metropolitan of Chișinău and All Moldova * Alexander (Mogilyov) – Metropolitan of Astana and Kazakhstan * Vincent (Morar) – Metropolitan of Central Asia ; ex officio * Anthony (Sevryuk) – Metropolitan of Volokolamsk, chairman of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate The Depa ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Feast Day
The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word "feast" in this context does not mean "a large meal, typically a celebratory one", but instead "an annual religious celebration, a day dedicated to a particular saint". The system arose from the early Christian custom of commemorating each martyr annually on the date of their death, or birth into heaven, a date therefore referred to in Latin as the martyr's ''dies natalis'' ('day of birth'). In the Eastern Orthodox Church, a calendar of saints is called a ''Menologion''. "Menologion" may also mean a set of icons on which saints are depicted in the order of the dates of their feasts, often made in two panels. History As the number of recognized saints increased during Late Antiquity and the first half of the Middle Ages, eventually every day of the year had ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Church Of Greece
The Church of Greece ( el, Ἐκκλησία τῆς Ἑλλάδος, Ekklēsía tē̂s Helládos, ), part of the wider Greek Orthodox Church, is one of the autocephalous churches which make up the communion of Eastern Orthodox Christianity. Its canonical territory is confined to the borders of Greece prior to the Balkan Wars of 1912–1913 ("Old Greece"), with the rest of Greece (the "New Lands", Crete, and the Dodecanese) being subject to the jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. However, most of the dioceses of the Metropolises of the New Lands are ''de facto'' administered as part of the Church of Greece for practical reasons, under an agreement between the churches of Athens and Constantinople. The primate of the Church of Greece is the archbishop of Athens and All Greece. Prevailing religion of Greece Adherence to the Eastern Orthodox Church was established as a definitive hallmark of Greek ethnic identity in the first modern Greek constitution, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Patriarch Bartholomew I Of Constantinople
Bartholomew I ( el, Βαρθολομαῖος Αʹ, , tr, I. Bartholomeos; born 29 February 1940) is the 270th archbishop of Constantinople and Ecumenical Patriarch, since 2 November 1991. In accordance with his title, he is regarded as the '' primus inter pares'' (first among equals) in the Eastern Orthodox Church, and as the spiritual leader of the Eastern Orthodox Christians worldwide. Bartholomew I was born as Dimitrios Arhondonis ( el, Δημήτριος Αρχοντώνης, Dimítrios Archontónis), in the village of Agios Theodoros on the island of Imbros (later renamed Gökçeada by Turkey). After his graduation, he held a position at the Patriarchal Theological Seminary of Halki, where he was ordained a priest. Later, he served as metropolitan of Philadelphia and Chalcedon and he became a member of the Holy Synod as well as other committees, prior to his enthronement as ecumenical patriarch. Bartholomew's tenure has been characterized by intra-Orthodox cooperation, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |