Oriental Orthodoxy

Across the world today, the faithful gather in reverence to celebrate both Hellenism and Christianity. We commemorate the Dormition of the Virgin Mary, who has peacefully fallen asleep and ascended to heaven.

Following a decision by Turkish authorities, permission for the Divine Liturgy at Panagia Soumela was granted this year for Friday, August 23, on the feast day of the Nine Days of the Virgin Mary, rather than on August 15, the Feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos, as had been the case in recent years.

Today is Lazarus Day (Lazarovden/Лазаровден), the first of three major holidays associated with the miracle of the resurrection along with Palm Sunday (Tsvetnitsa/Цветница) and Easter (Velikden/Великден). Name day is celebrated by Lazar, Lazarin and Lazarinka.

The name has ancient Jewish origins and means "God's help".

Ecumenical Patriarch Vartholomeos derided the Patriarchate of Moscow over its decision to cut off communion with the Church of Constantinople, which is the first ranking church in Eastern Orthodoxy.

The United States expressed its support on Wednesday for a recent decision by Ecumenical Patriarch Vartholomaios to grant autocephaly to the Ukrainian Orthodox Church.

Ecumenical Patriarch Vartholomaios made it clear on Sunday that he would not change his stance as regards supporting autocephaly for the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, stressing that the Istanbul-based seat of the patriarchate will neither issue threats nor respond to them.

The Ecumenical Patriarchate has begun preparations to grant independence to the Orthodox Church of Ukraine from Russia, it said Friday.

In a statement, the patriarchate named two representatives who will be dispatched to discuss the process of autocephaly of Kiev from Moscow.

As the battle hots up over whether a number of countries in the region should get their own Orthodox Churches, Serbian Patriarch Irinej has written to Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople warning him about the danger of introducing the principle of giving ecclesiastical independence, or autocephaly, to new states or nations.

Believers light candles at the Byzantine Church of Aghia Triada in Nafplio, southern Greece, ahead of Wednesday's celebration of the Dormition (or the Assumption) of the Virgin Mary (in Greek: Koimisis tis Theotokou). The holiday commemorates the "falling asleep" or death of the Theotokos (Mary, translated as "God-bearer").

The Greek Foreign Ministry on Saturday condemned Friday's attack by a gunman on a Coptic Christian church and a Christian-owned shop near Cairo in Egypt that left 11 people dead.