4th Sunday of Lent 4-4-1965 Athens
Speech in full, by Fr. Augoustinos Kantiotes,
translated into English by I.M. Agiou Augoustinou Florina

• Introduction: This is an English translation of a prophetic speech, in full, given in Greek by Fr. Augoustinos Kantiotes in Athens 4-4-1965 when he was a priest-preacher (ἱεροκήρυκας). The abridged version of the speech in Greek can be found in the “Kyriaki” pamphlet no. 1940 and the speech can also be heard on the “Foni Voöntos” CD series, in Greek, CD no. 114. Although Fr. Augoustinos was speaking to Greeks and had the Greek nation in mind, it can easily be adapted and applicable to every country. (Note that in Greece army duty is compulsory.) We see in our days that his prophecy has been fulfilled.

The responsibility of raising children
“from childhood” (Mark 9:21)

My beloved Christians, did you hear the Gospel reading? Today, Mark the Evangelist narrates a miracle to us. One of the innumerable miracles that our Lord Jesus Christ did, does and will do until the end of the ages.
The Evangelist narrates how the Lord healed a youth, a youth who had suffered —may God protect us— a terrible illness. He suffered from a demon, he was possessed. The Gospel says that this youth was in a miserable state, because he had ears, but Satan had blocked his ears so he couldn’t hear any conversations. He had a tongue, but the devil had tied it in a knot and he couldn’t utter a word. And when he had one of his crisis’ he fell sometimes into the fire and sometimes into the water, he foamed at the mouth, gnashing his teeth, and writhed like a fish out of water. So therefore this youth was in a miserable state. But his father was even more miserable. And where nobody could heal this youth, Christ healed him.
I am not going to take this Gospel reading word by word to analyze it and present all its rich teachings, my beloved. But if you will allow me, I will give a short homily and I plead with you to pay attention to only one point. What is this point? It is a question that our Lord Jesus Christ directed to the father, and the answer that the father gave Christ. The question is, Christ asks the father: How long has this been going on? When did this start? When did the youth get sick? Read more »

(12 ἀπομαγνητοφωνημένες ὁμιλίες τοῦ Μητροπολίτου Φλωρίνης π. Αὐγουστίνου Καντιώτου σὲ pdf, μεταφρασμένες στὰ Ἀγγλικα)

I.M. Agiou Augoustinou
Florina 531 00
GREECE

Dear Fathers and Friends,
Gerondissa Synglitiki is pleased to send you these homilies of Fr. Augoustinos which have been translated into English.
Most of them have been translated by Rev. Dr. John Palmer of Canada.
We hope you enjoy them and receive much spiritual benefit.
Please feel free to pass them on to anyone you think may be interested.

1. The withered fig tree.pdf

2. Are we Ready

3. Christ Lives and Reigns

4. Christ Noetic Sun

5. Creator of All-1

6. Death and Ressurection

7. Death equals Birth

8. Eternity

9. New Heresies

10. Saint Kosmas the Aetolian as a Missionary

11. The History of the Cross

12. The Salvation of our souls

Are We Ready for Christmas?

(Εἴμαστε ἕτοιμοι γιὰ τὰ Χριστούγεννα;)

Metropolitan Avgoustinos (Kantiotes) of Florina

Beloved in Christ, I would like to ask you a question; I ask it of myself and I ask it of you. Are we prepared to celebrate the great feast of Christmas?

There are two kinds of preparation; material and spiritual. Our material preparation is more or less finished. Housewives have cleaned their houses, husbands have finished – or have almost finished – their shopping, and children await their presents. Everyone has written their Christmas cards, signing them with the customary, ‘Merry Christmas’ and ‘Happy New Year’. This is worldly preparation; I am not interested in this. What I am interested in is spiritual preparation, the kind of preparation which makes us ready to celebrate the great event of the Incarnation of the Divine Word as is proper. Only a small number have properly prepared themselves. Of one thousand Christians, I doubt if even one celebrates Christmas truly. Does my estimate seem exaggerated? Let us see.

How is Christmas celebrated today? A portion of Christians will celebrate it ‘typically’, let us say. Hearing the bells on Christmas Eve, they will go and take part in the service out of habit. This is certainly better than being absent altogether; it is something at least. Read more »

A SHORT ANTHOLOGY

 OF NICHOLAS J. SOTEROPOULOS

(IN ENGLISH TRANSLATION)

CONTENTS TABLE

1. Do You Want To Be Saved?………………………………………………….. 1
2. I Ask for Forgiveness!……………………………………………….. 21
3. Elder Porphyrios Special Interview with Nicholas J. Soteropoulos….……..28
4. The Few…………………………………………………………………………. 34
5. Three Qualities of the All-holy Mary………………………………………….45
6. God Does Not Punish?……………………………..52
7. How Scripture Speaks Concerning Heretics………………………………….55
8. Critical Commentaries (Nafpactou)……………………………………………58
9. Wrong Perceptions Concerining Orthodoxy………………………………….59
10. The Humbling Mystery……………………………………………………….66
11. Proofs of God’s Existence …………………………………………………….68

DO YOU WANT TO BE SAVED?

Read more »

The all Holy Virgin

«And was incarnated by the Holy Spirit and of

the Virgin Mary and became man»

http://www.orthodoxpath.org

Dear friends, humanity is the summit of earthly creation, and if God created nothing else, mankind would be enough to testify that there is a God, an all-wise God, omnipotent and benevolent. What an excellent creation man is! We see a beautiful statue and admire it, and no one dares to say the statue created itself without the sculptor. But, when compared to a human, what is a statue, even the most perfect one kept in a museum and considered a treasure of infinitive value? The statue is dead, inanimate, idle. It has eyes but does not see, ears but does not hear, feet but cannot walk. Man, however, is alive, with soul, and active and creative statue, which when studied more and more gains more and more admiration. Common sense says that, just as every statue was made by an artist, man was created by God.

Man is a marvelous creation of God, a little bit less than the angels, and is divided into man and woman. Man and woman are equal. They have the basic characteristics of human personality, reason, conscience, will and the rest. They do possess differences, but the differences between man and woman does not reduce, but rather enhance the admiration due to humanity. They add beauty and charm, making human life a pleasant thing. Since the first man until now, billions of people have been born. Of these billions of people, men and women, there have been some who have tried to destroy the grandeur of humanity by their criminal acts, they tried to degrade the human personality and put the human race to shame. Mankind fell from the lofty height of honor and dignity into the slime of dishonorable passions, and became like the wild beasts. Reading history and seeing contemporary reality, one shudders and is ashamed of mankind’s horrible crimes and shameful acts. Among billions of people, however, there are still some who, by their acts and virtues, have honored and continue to honor humanity, demonstrating that we were created for a higher purpose, making us aspire for heaven, for the blessed life which man lived in Paradise before the Fall. Read more »

– New Heresies – ΝΕΑ ΑΙΡΕΣΗ

By +Metropolitan Augoustinos (Kantiotes) of Florina

«We will not deny you, Beloved Orthodoxy» – Joseph Vryennios

ΟΥΚ ΑΡΝΗΣΟΜΕΘΑ ΣΕ ΦΙΛΗ ΟΡΘΟΔΟΞΙΑ…Ιωσήφ Βρυέννιου    

Of late, certain theologians, under the influence of contemporary, world-wide currents, have begun to savour the words «ecumenicity», «ecumenical spirit», and «ecumenical movement», as if they were hard-candy.  Ecumenicity; what a beautiful word!  And yet, behind these words, lay hidden a most fearful danger for Orthodoxy.  What is this danger?  We will show you by means of an example.  
     Imagine a woman, a woman faithful to her husband, a woman who will allow no third party to enter into their relationship, ever mindful of the promises which she had made before God and before men.  She is a woman of exceptional beauty, drawing the eye of many a man.  On account of her uprightness, however, anyone who dares to touch, or to proposition her, immediately meets with her anger.  Should such a one persist, this honourable woman will deliver a strong slap to his face in order bring him to his senses.  
     Those men who are learned in this vile business, however, will try another method.  These will try to uncover what it is that this woman likes; does she perhaps love poetry, or philosophy, or art?  By means of these things the secret admirer will trap her.  With great deftness he will begin having innocent conversations with her on those subjects that are beloved to her.  «What a wonderful poem!»; «What a beautiful painting!»; «What a wonderful play!»; «How sweet a piece of music!»  And thus begins the dialogue.  Gradually the unsuspecting woman is lured into longer conversations with the deceiver who, while his tongue speaks of philosophy and art, his heart leaps at the hope of taking the woman for himself.  Finally, after an air of great familiarity and mutual understanding has been achieved through these conversations, the door is opened to the foul deed, the shameful union.  Just as the most-evil serpent succeeded in beguiling Eve by means of a simple conversation, in like manner the seed of shameful union was sown. Read more »

BISHOP AUGUSTINE N. KATIOTES

FORMER METROPOLITAN OF FLORINA

Anti-papal Discourses

“The piety, or godliness, handed down to us by out fathers we shall not deny…In this we were born, in this we were baptized, in this we associated, in this we live and in this shall we fall asleep (die): and if the occasion invites us, we shall die a thousand times in its behalf and no one shall be able to separate us from this true confession. Do not move eternal bounds, nor transpose ancient legislations…Until the end, brothers in Christ, let us remain firm in Orthodoxy, let us keep godliness/piety unbroken, unshaken, and let us keep the faith sure, let us reverence the fathers, let us venerate the saints, let us fear the Lord, and let us not betray our salvation. No one compels us, nor is forced obviously, if we ourselves do not apostasize (fall away) from the good membership of the Church. Let us, then, be manly and no one shall be able turn us over.

JOSEPH VRYENNIOS

(See, “THE SURVIVING WORKS”, “TA EVRETHENTA”,Vol. I, pp. 147,148, Leipsia, 1768)

Dedicated to the faithful children of the Orthodox Church struggling against papism, especially in the Hellenism abroad.

PROLOGUE

Since the time the patriarch of Constantinople Athenagoras without the canonical decision of the Orthodox Church lifted the Anathema against the heretical papists and with frequent declarations and other activities hastened very quickly to the pope, to the orthodox world, and indeed to archbishoprics and metropolises which are dependent upon the Ecumenical Patriarchate, there was created a philo-papal and a philo-unionist climate, which reminds one of the climate prior to the fall of Constantinople. The philo-unionists then, hoping in the pope’s help for the saving of Constantinople, hastened to Ferrara and Florence and signed the false-union with the papists, being heavily pressured religiously, but also being played nationally, since essential help on the part of the pope for the saving of the Byzantine Empire was not given.

After Read more »

In Honour of the Holy Apostles

by matushka constantina

Βιβλίο Μητροπολίτου Φλωρίνης π. Αυγουστίνου Καντιώτου

( he Blessed Bishop Fr. Augustine +

ORTHODOXY BEFORE ECUMENISM

CONTENTS………………………………………………………….1
Dedication…………………………………………………………….
Prologue………………………………………………………………
Instead of an introduction (1971)……………………………………

I. On the occasion of the convening of conventions……Evanston (1954)
In Rhodos (1959)………………………………………………
New Arguments (1969)…………………………………………

II. To the ecumenical patriarchs……………………………………..
Open letter to ecumenical patriarch lord Athenagoras (1962)….
Upon the enthronement of ecumenical patriarch
lord Demetrios (1972)……………………………………
Open letter to ecumenical patriarch lord Demetrios (1985)……
III. Ecclesiastical Affairs in Austrailia……………………………….
Australia (1986)………………………………………………….
Our radical difference (1986)………………………………Done
Dialogue and its consequences (1987)……………………..Done
Are we prohibited from speaking about Christ? (1987)……Done+
Charge against the archbishop of Australia lord Stylianos (1989).
IV. Appendix…………………………………………………………….
Crisis of conscience (1988)………………………………………

Year 42 – Athens – July – August 1986 – Issue No. 447

A timely article from the Greek religious periodical

“CHRISTIAN SPARK”

Editor-Publisher

AUGUSTINE N. KANTIOTES Bishop of Florina

Response to the archbishop of Australia Mr. Stylianos

OUR RADICAL DIFFERENCE

Yet again, my beloved readers, yet again the word is concerning Australia.

We are not disposed to be occupied with the internal problems of the Church of Australia, whose Archbishop is the most reverend Stylianos. As the he himself admits, there is nothing personal between us. Neither have I seen his face nor he mine. There exists however, a collision of ideas, and indeed at the most sensitive point, which is the Orthodox Faith. And in this case according to the spirit of patristic teaching it is permitted to each bishop – and bishop only? – wherever on earth he may dwell, that he raise his voice of protest, so that heresy and error might not prevail not only in his region, but in whichever other place on the planet, because all, clergy and laity, are – we must be – guardians, to whose ears the constant admonition must resound: GUARDIANS, BE VIGILANT! Error, even the incorrect dealing with the issues of the faith, which scandalously shows good will to error and heresy, engender the greatest danger, because the evil as a spark is spread from one end to the other, as the history of heresies testifies.

For this reason this writer also, Read more »

”Kyriaki” , Period 4 – Year 19 – Page No. 910 – Nov. 3, 2002

 What is Hell?

Tι είναι κόλαση

“…So that they too do not come to this place of torture” (Luke 16:28)

“Ινα μη και αυτοι έλθωσιν εις τον τόπον τούτον της βασάνου” (Λουκ. 16,18)

Does another world exist? Behold, my beloved, the huge question that the sacred gospel sets forth today.

I once went to a village, and there they asked me: Who came from the other world? Maybe someone was resurrected, to tell us what’s going on there?…But what do you understand, these people who ask to see a dead man resurrected, if he is resurrected, will they believe? I doubt it. I won’t deny that to see a dead man resurrected is no small testimony. But there is yet a more powerful testimony. Even if a thousand dead people rise up from their tomb, they aren’t silencing testimonies. Because they are people. I have an invincible witness; him whom today’s gospel says, and is more than every other proof and evidence and document. And he is holy Scripture.

Holy Scripture never said a lie; no mistake was ever found in its pages. It contains the words of God. Christ said it: “The heaven and the earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away” (Matt. 24:35). I then, my brethren, am not waiting for a dead person to be resurrected from the tomb. Nor for my faith to be verified by an x or y scientist. It suffices for me, and I bless the holy Trinity for this, who gave us this small book, the Gospel, so we can have it as guide in our life, a lighthouse in the darkness of the soul.

For this reason unfortunate is the person who doesn’t read the Gospel, and more unfortunate is whoever reads but doesn’t try to practice it. I recommend, therefore, and entreat you: No home without a Gospel! Saint John Chrysostom says: “Wherever the Gospel is, there the devil doesn’t wedge in.”

***

The immortal Gospel assures us also that another world exists. The Old but especially the New Testament preaches it. Hell exists, paradise exists. It preaches it everywhere, and today’s parable of the rich man and Lazarus says it.

Should we narrate it? It is known. What does it say? Read more »

Kyriaki – Sunday Sermonette Issue no. 988

Demoniacs then and Now

(Δαιμονισμένοι τότε και τώρα)

My beloved, you heard the sacred and holy gospel. A small book the Gospel, but it is the most beautiful, most powerful, most superb, incomparable book of the world. Happy, then, is the one who not only reads it, but also tries to enforce it to a “T”;  “blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it” (Luke 11:28).

The gospel today narrates one of the many miracles which our Lord Jesus Christ performed. This miracle is of interest to all, but particularly to young people. For, there were two youngsters that Christ cured here.

***

Where did they live? In the city of the Gadarenes, at the Western shore of the lake of Gennesaret. They were peaceful people, the joy of the city. But suddenly what happened to them? Did they fall ill? Would that they had fallen ill. For, there is something worse than even the most fearful illness, even cancer, too. A crisis took hold of them with fearful symptoms and seen for the first time. They began to tremble like the leaves. Their face grew wild, there eyes emitted flames, their mouth foamed. They fell down and rolled around; at one moment they fell into fire and in another instance into water. They tore their clothes, they stripped nude completely. They left from their homes, went far abroad, into the tombs, and there they slept. They had become the fear and terror of the whole region; no man dared to pass. At some point they would catch them and bound them with chains; but, well, they had such strength inside them, that they broke the chains like threads and frenzily ran into the deserts. What were they? One word: “Demoniacs” (Matt. 8:28).

Someone will say: Fairy tales; the devil, demons, and demoniacs don’t exist.

I too, my beloved, would like for the devil not to exist. Yet, he exists. He isn’t a phantasm, a ghost; he’s a reality, a being, and an entity. That the devil exists is proved by many crimes, which are not explained any other manner. Great psychologists, in regard to people who committed great crimes, find one explanation; that they remain under the influence of an invisible evil-dealing power. In the tongue of Scripture these are called “demoniacs.” That there exists the devil and demons Christ verifies it still more, Who came into the world “in order to loose the works of the devil” (1 John 3:8). Finally, if someone continues to doubt that the devil exists, let him go to St. Gerasimos of Cephalonia. There the demoniacs gather; but when the priest appears with the cross that the saint held, they shout trembling: “You burned us, “Kapsali” (“Burner”, “Kapsali” is what they call saint Gerasimos). There exists then the devil. But there’s no need for us to go to Cephalonia to see it (i.e., the fact that he exists). Throw a glance into your heart, particularly the youth, and you will see there the influence of Satan. You’ll see similarities, the same symptoms with the youth of the gospel. I remind you of some.

• First similarity. Read more »

ΡΑΣΟ ΚΑΙ ΦΟΥΣΤΑΝΕΛΛΑ

Οι αγωνιστές

    Από τέτοιους κληρικούς, όπως ο Παλαιών Πατρών Γερμανός, από τέτοιους δασκάλους, όπως ο Γεώργιος Γεννάδιος, από τέτοιες προπαντός μητέρες, όπως ήταν οι ηρωίδες του Ζαλόγγου και της Νάουσας, γεννήθηκαν οι αγωνιστές, οι γίγαντες του 1821. Έκλειναν στην καρδιά τους το Χριστό και την Ελλάδα, και γι’ αυτό έψαλλαν με όλη την ψυχή τους το πολεμικό άσμα του 1821·

    «Για του Χριστού την Πίστη την αγία
    •και της Πατρίδος την ελευθερία,
    •γι’ αυτά τα δύο πολεμώ.
    •Κι αν δεν τ’ αποκτήσω,
    •τι μ’ ωφελεί να ζήσω;».

    Δείτε τις σημαίες των αγωνιστών. Δείτε τα ιερά τους σύμβολα και συνθήματα. Όλα εκπέμπουν πίστη ακράδαντη. Οι Χειμαρριώτες είχαν σημαία, στην οποία είχαν ζωγραφισμένους τους αρχαγγέλους Μιχαήλ και Γαβριήλ με τις πύρινες ρομφαίες. Οι αρματολοί και οι κλέφτες είχαν σημαία, στη μια πλευρά της οποίας ζωγραφιζόταν ο Σταυρός, ενώ στην άλλη η Αρχιστράτηγος, η Υπεραγία Θεοτόκος. Ο Λάμπρος Κατσώνης είχε σημαία με την εικόνα των αγίων Κωνσταντίνου και Ελένης. Ο Μάρκος Μπότσαρης λευκή σημαία με την εικόνα του αγίου Γεωργίου. Ο Παπαφλέσσας ένωσε λωρίδες ράσου και φουστανέλας και έκανε τη σημαία των στρατευμάτων του. Ο Πλαπούτας έ-γραψε στη σημαία τα αρχικά Ι. Χ. Ν. (Ιησούς Χριστός Νικά). Και ο Αθανάσι-ος Διάκος κάτω από το Σταυρό το σύνθημα· ελευθερία ή θάνατος…

    Οι Φιλέλληνες

    Στην αρχή του ιερού αγώνα όλη η Ευρώπη ήταν δυσμενώς διατεθειμένη εναντίον των Ελλήνων. Αλλά η αυταπάρνηση ανδρών, γυναικών και παιδιών, η οποία ιδίως αποκορυφώθηκε στην πτώση του Μεσολογγίου, έκανε τα έθνη να στρέψουν βλέμματα θαυμασμού προς την μικρή αλλά ένδοξη αυτή Πατρίδα. Και τότε άρχισαν να συρρέουν από όλα τα έθνη άνδρες, οι οποίοι πρόσφεραν ό,τι είχαν, τα χρήματά τους, τις γνώσεις τους, και τέλος θυσίασαν και τη ζωή τους υπέρ της επιτυχίας του αγώνα. Αυτοί είναι οι Φιλέλληνες.

    Κορυφαίος μεταξύ των Φιλελλήνων θεωρείται ο λόρδος Βύρων, ο οποίος ήλθε στο Μεσολόγγι και σε ηλικία 36 ετών πέθανε στην αγκαλιά της Ελλάδας, την οποία αγάπησε ως δική του πατρίδα. Οι τελευταίες του λέξεις ήταν·

    «Ελλάδα! Σε σένα έδωσα ό,τι μπορεί να δώσει άνθρωπος·
    την περιουσία μου, το χρόνο μου, την υγεία μου, τώρα μάλιστα και
    την ίδια τη ζωή μου. Είθε η θυσία μου να αποβεί προς ωφέλειά σου».

    …Μπροστά μας σήμερα στέκονται η ζωή και ο θάνατος. Η ζωή με το Χριστό· ο θάνατος μακριά από το Χριστό. Ας επιλέξουμε τη ζωή την αθάνατη. Ας γευθούμε την αθάνατη ζωή με λόγια, με έργα και με τα Μυστήρια. Ο Χριστός ας βασιλεύει στην καρδιά μας. Αυτός ας ρυθμίζει την ατομική, την οικογενειακή και εθνική μας ζωή. Αυτός και μόνο ας είναι ο Θεός μας· το όνομά του επικαλούμαστε· εκτός από Αυτόν δεν αναγνωρίζουμε κανέναν άλλο. Εάν προσπέσουμε ενώπιόν του με μετάνοια νινευιτική, εκζητώντας το άπειρο έλεός του, τότε υπάρχει ελπίδα που δεν καταισχύνει ότι η αγαπητή μας Πατρίδα θα εξέλθει από το σκοτάδι σε νέο φως, θα δει καλύτερες ημέρες, και σαν πρωινό αστέρι θα λάμπει και πάλι ανάμεσα στου λαούς Ανατολής και Δύσης!

    Apospasma bibliou “ΕΘΝΙΚΑΙ ΕΠΕΤΕΙΟΙ”  tou Mitropolitou Avgoustinou Kantioti (Mitropolitοu Florinis)

–

    RASO AND FOUSTANELA

                         The Agonistes – «The Fighters For Greek Independence»

Translated by Constantine George Mourtos, (LTC, US Army, Retired)  Nafpaktos, Greece, 30 March 2010  

Of such clerics, as Palaion Patron Germanos, of such teachers, as George Gannadios, and, of, particularly such mothers, as the heroines of Zalogou and Naousa, were born the Fighters for Greek independence, the Giants of 1821.  Having accepted Christ and Greece in their heart, enabled them to sing with their entire soul the battle hymn of 1821:

«For Christ’s Faith, the Holy,
and our Country’s Freedom,
For these, two, I will Fight,
And, should I not secure them,
What use is to go on living?»

Oh, Say, look at the Battle Banners of the Independence Fighters!  See their Holy Symbols and Battle Cries!  All, breathe unequivocal Faith!  The Himarians had a flag upon which was drawn the Archangels Michael and Gabriel with the fiery furnace (πυρινεs ρομφαιεs?).   The Armatoli and Klefts had a flag on whose one side was drawn the image of the  Holy Cross, while on the other was drawn the image of the Supreme Commander, the Holiest Theotokos.  Lambros Katsonis had a flag on which was drawn the  Icon of  Saints Constantine and Helen.  Markos Botsaris, had a white flag upon which was drawn the image of Saint George.  Pappaflesas, joined together strips of the priestly garment «raso», with strips of a foustanela, thusly, creating the battle banner of his army! Plapoutas, wrote on his flag the initial «I.X.N.» ( Jesus Christ Nika – Jesus Christ Conquers).   Lastly,  Athanasios Diakos, carried a banner with the Holy Cross upon it, and right below was the written the Battle Cry: Liberty or Death!

           The Philhellenes

At the beginning of the Holy Fight for Independence, Europe, in its entirety, was disposed against the Greeks.  However, the willingness to self-sacrifice exhibited by the Greek men, women, and children, climaxing with their Martyrdom at the  fall of Messolonghi, compelled the European Nations to take notice with admiration of this small, but glorious, country.  Thus, men from all Nations stepped forth, offering whatever they had; their wealth, their knowledge, and at the end, the very sacrifice of their lives, to insure the success of the struggle.  These men, are known as the Philhellenes.

Foremost among the Philhellenes was Lord Byron, who came to Messolonghi to join the Greek Cause, dying at the age of 36; embraced by Greece, whom he loved as his own country.  His last words before he died were:

«Greece!  To you I gave whatever mankind can give;
my fortune, my time, my health, and now, even my life.
May my sacrifice be proven to be to your benefit».

….Today, we are also presented with a choice of Life or Death.  Either Life, with Christ, or, Death, far from Christ.  Let us chose Life Eternal.  Let us savour Life Eternal through our Words, our Deeds, and through the Mysteries.  Let Christ Reign in our hearts.  Let Him regulate our individual, family, and national life.  Let Him be our Only God-Whose Name we are drawn to-Except for Him we recognize none other.  If we kneel before Him, with true repentance, asking for His Boundless Mercy, then there is unrelenting hope that our beloved Country will emerge from the darkness to new light, will realize better days, and, like the Morning star, will, again, shine between the peoples of the East and West!

Excerpt from Metropolitan Augustine Kantioti (Mitropolitan Florinis)

Translated by Constantine George Mourtos, (LTC, US Army, Retired)  Nafpaktos, Greece, 30 March 2010

Speech given by Fr. Augoustinos on 7/4/1963 i.e. before he became a bishop
on Holy Sunday evening
Holy Church of St. George in New Ionia, Greece

I have not translated all the introduction, but translated the “point” of the speech. Very prophetic.

The withered fig tree

… on the road to Bethany, the Bible says characteristically that the Lord was hungry. But isn’t that strange for the Bible to say that Christ hungered? Christ, who who made the plants, the trees that bend from the weight of the multitude of juicy fruits, hungered? Christ, who rained manna in the desert and fed hundreds of thousands of people, hungered? Christ, who opens his hands and bestows countless benefits to the world, hungered? Christ, who blessed the five loaves of bread and fed 5,000 men, not including women and children, hungered? Christ was hungry? Yes, my beloved, He hungered as a man, because He hungered —but in this situation, my beloved, Christ’s hunger— exactly like when He was on the Cross and thirsted, where He said “I thirst”… Today we hear “I hunger,” but in a few days, on Good Friday we will hear Him say “I thirst.” He who created the oceans and lakes and waters, says “I thirst?” He both hungers and thirsts? But beyond this hunger and thirst, my brethren, we must see another hunger and another thirst – because Christ truly hungers and truly thirsts. He hungers for our salvation, He thirsts for the salvation of all the world... Read more »