Baltimore, MD (IOCC) — With financial support from an emergency grant of $25,000 from the National Greek Orthodox Ladies Philoptochos Society and contributions by private donors, International Orthodox Christian Charities (IOCC) will provide humanitarian assistance such as medicines, food and other essential items to communities in the earthquake and tsunami-damaged Pacific

MOSCOW, Interfax - Head of the Synodal Department for External Church Relations Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk is concerned with position of Orthodox believers in China. "Today China's Orthodox believers suffer from lack of priests and regular services. The Russian Orthodox Church as the Mother-Church is interested in restoring the Chinese Autonomous Church. At this stage our

— by Dan Wandera of The Monitor The Eastern Orthodox Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria and all Africa, Theodoros II, has ordained two deacons to serve the Orthodox Church in Uganda and Southern Sudan. Speaking during the ordination at Monde Orthodox Church in Luweero District on Sunday, Patriarch Theodoros II emphasised preaching the message of hope to

— by Tatyana Karpekina of The Voice of Russia The 14th of March is Orthodox Book Day in Russia. It was established at the initiative of Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia in 2009 in memory of an important historical event. On this day in 1564 the first printed book “The Apostle” came out

MOSCOW, Interfax — It is wrong for a Christian Church to be a political power, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia. "The Church must have no political means of exercising an influence on those in authority," Patriarch Kirill said in answering letters from televiewers in the Pastor's World program on Pervyi Canal TV. The Church

MOSCOW, Interfax - The ceremony of consecration of the Holy Assumption Monastery and its civil opening was held in the Ratchaburi province, Thailand. The monastery and its church were consecrated by the Russian Orthodox Church representative in Thailand Archimandrite Oleg (Cherepanin). In attendance were Orthodox priests, the officials of the Russian embassy, Thai authorities, Protestant

The New York Times reports: MOSCOW — Despite criticism that it will revisit yet more thorny tangles from Russia’s past, Parliament has passed a law to restore to religious organizations property seized by the state in Soviet times. To leaders of the Russian Orthodox Church, the State Duma’s passage of the law last Friday was a

By Steve Hayes in Johannesberg, South Africa The enthronement of His Eminence Damaskinos, the new Archbishop of Johannesburg and Pretoria took place in the Cathedral of St Constantine and St Helen in Johannesburg this morning. Most of the Orthodox Churches in Johannesburg were closed, and so there was a large congregation, with a couple of

The last patriarch? Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew is the 270th patriarch of Constantinople and is the leader of the Greek Orthodox Church, but with Turkey's once-flourishing Greek

The word passionate takes on a different meaning when listening to Fr Themis. Listen to him explain about poverty and the money economy and you wonder what he would have been if he hadn't chosen to become a missionary. Listen to him talk about Africa and you realise that, for Fr Themi, injustice is the