Free Republic

Andrey Sadovoy, the mayor of Lviv in western Ukraine, announced on April 6 that the two Ukrainian Orthodox Churches in his city were no more -- the Church of St. Vladimir was demolished by backhoe and the Church of St. George was made part of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, backed by the Zelensky government, reported RT, the website Orthodox Christianity, and The Kyiv Independent. The Church of St. Vladimir was under the jurisdiction of the Russian Orthodox Church, as was the Church of St. George. Under President Volodomyr Zelensky, some churches formerly attached to the Russian Orthodox Church have,...

Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia believes that increasing number of Orthodox churches in Russia is testimony that the mission of the Russian Orthodox Church is something the people want. "Over the last six years our Church increased by 5,000 churches and 10,000 clergymen, which means that people need the Church’s mission. There could not be such growth in the Church if there were no demand. That is why we feel so special when we place the foundations of new churches," the patriarch said at the ceremony of laying the first stone in the foundation of the Assumption Cathedral...

CBS/AP May 2, 2016, 9:07 AM Fires around Orthodox Easter torch 3 churches in 3 cities Investigators in three cities are looking into large fires at Orthodox churches that occurred around the religion's Easter celebrations and caused widespread damage. The blazes in New York City, as well as Melbourne and Sydney in Australia, caused only minor injuries, according to multiple reports.

The historic Manhattan cathedral that was gutted in a massive fire was one of four Christian Orthodox churches to go up in flames on Orthodox Easter Sunday — sparking fears of a coordinated attack on the religion. While FDNY officials said the blaze at the Serbian Orthodox Cathedral of St. Sava on West 25th Street does not appear suspicious, members of the Orthodox community have doubts. They are worried that the blaze — along with church fires in Australia and Russia — were set in retaliation for the religion’s role in blocking the canonization of Croatian Nazi supporter Cardinal Aloysius...

Within 24 hours of the Orthodox Church celebrating Easter, three of its buildings around the world have gone up in flames. Orthodox churches in Sydney, Melbourne and New York all caught fire, although there appears to be no link between the blazes. In Sydney, the Macedonian Orthodox Church of the Resurrection was gutted following a fire that broke out about 10pm on Sunday. Less than 12 hours after the end of the Easter service, the Rockdale church, parts of which have been standing since the 1890s, was destroyed. ...

SAINT IGNATIUS OF ANTIOCH BISHOP, MARTYR C. 117 Feast Day:October 17 Ignatius of Antioch, surnamed Theophorus, which in Greek means "God-Bearer," was probably a convert and disciple of St. John the Evangelist. We know nothing of his early life. The fourth-century Church historian, Eusebius, says that the Apostles Peter and Paul, who planted the faith in Antioch, left directions that Ignatius should succeed Evodius as bishop of that city; he states further that Ignatius retained the office for forty years, proving himself in every way an exemplary pastor. During the persecution of the emperor Domitian, whose reign covered the...