7 December 2012. A Joyful Place… Photography by Vladimir Yeshtokin

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5 December 2012. A Joyful Place… Photography by Vladimir Yeshtokin

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27 November 2012. A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words… THIS is What Orthodoxy’s All About

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This is a Belarusian soldier lighting a candle at liturgy. That’s what Orthodox people do… we DON’T badger others, we DON’T preach at them, and we DON’T make absolute pests of ourselves with Nosey Parker meddling in other’s lives. We pray for them and give them genuine good will. We save our own souls, knowing that God will lead others as He sees fit… not as we think that He should. There’s a difference! Those who want to ape Evangelicals and their “Have you heard the Word of the Lord Today” rubbish are all wet. It’s good enough to pray for others and to be decent to all, believers and unbelievers alike. I’m not God… I don’t have omniscience… I doubt that you’re any different. Keep it focused… our first duty is to save our souls… not the souls of others. “Save your own soul and thousands will be saved about you”… St Serafim Sarovsky said that, and it’s as true today as when he said it in the 19th century. That’s why I don’t preach at others… and the older that I get, the more irritating such jumped-up frauds get for me. “Love God… and do as you will”. Think on that…

Let’s keep to our traditions… what’s ours is ours, and what’s theirs is theirs, and I think that everyone can say “Amen” to that…

BMD

23 November 2012. Only in Russia… If You Can’t Come to Church, the Church Will Come to You

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This is an Orthodox chapel in a railway wagon. Now, that’s interesting… if a place is too small to support a priest, well, the train will take him there, and, then, he’ll go to the next small town in the same fix. Now, that’s using your head for something other than a hat-rack…

BMD