Muslim Albania has become Europe’s main marijuana supplier

 

Every morning, thousands of women, men and children climb a steep road towards an Albanian village almost veiled in white smoke, hoping to get seasonal work in the surrounding fields.
Young and old, from all over the country, they meet shortly after sunrise at the entrance to this mountain-side village, its thick air filled with a stuffy pungent smell.

BULGARIA: Metropolitan Bishop of Plovdiv Nikolay ready to resign if necessary

Plovdiv -- Metropolitan Bishop of the second biggest Bulgarian city Plovdiv is ready to resign immediately if the Holy Synod of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church demands it. Bishop Nikolay made the remark addressing parishioners in Plovdiv today
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Georgian patriarch against local government reform

BILISI, -- The Georgian parliament has postponed the adoption of a landmark bill that will drastically change local government, after the draft Self-Governance Code was harshly criticized by the influential head of the Georgian Church.

Greek priest dressed as a woman - TV (English subtitles)

ISRAEL: Son of Greek Orthodox priest who supports IDF enlistment attacked in Nazareth

Motive of attack still not certain; Father Nadaf has been subject to death threats in the past. 
  

A 21-year-old Nazareth man is suspected in the attack of the son of a Greek Orthodox priest who supports enlistment of Christian youth in the IDF. 

FOOD: Spaghetti with Squid in Tomato Wine Sauce

 

 Inexpensive and easy to prepare, squid deserves a place in your weeknight repertoire. Here, it's gently simmered in a garlicky red-wine tomato sauce and then tossed with pasta for a meal that's quick to put together.

A Greek’s Shocking Letter from Brazil: “Base Salary is 234 euros”

 

A Greek man who lives and works in Belo Horizonte in Brazil–the host country of the upcoming World Cup–wrote a letter about the real life of the country that has nothing to do with what the majority of people have in mind. His letter was published in hellasbrazil.blogspot.com, an online portal for the Greeks who live in Latin America.

Missing Syrian nuns taken by rebels appear in video

BEIRUT — A group of Syrian Greek Orthodox nuns reportedly seized by rebels from a convent near Damascus denied in a video broadcast Friday that they had been kidnapped and said they were being held in a safe place.

Law being prepared in Greece declaring offensive certain "expressions" from the Gospel

  

Metropolitan Nicholas of Fthiotida, one of leading Hierarchs of the Church of Greece, has spoken about a new bill of the Greek government banning the reading of certain "offensive" stories from the Gospel, introducing responsibility for patriotism, and legalizing same-sex "marriages".

Father of large family personally funds public advertising posters

  

A father of many children, active resident of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk Alexei Tyurin, is calling upon town residents through public advertising posters to be responsible parents. Tyurin is paying for the ads with his own money.

UK: Hundreds flock to Holy Church of Saint Panteleimon and Saint Paraskevi in Kenton to catch glimpse of True Cross

 

Hundreds of worshippers flocked to a Kenton church to catch a glimpse of a rare Christian artefact many believe was part of the very cross on which Jesus was crucified.

Free the Nuns of St. Thekla! Pope, Orthodox Leaders Urge Prayer for Kidnapped Nuns in Syria VIDEO

Christians preceded Muslims in calling Syria their home. They must not be forced to leave this ancient and holy land.

Turkey: A Wonder of the World is in Middle of Religious Controversy

 

 A tourist takes a photo in September 2008 in Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia of a fresco depicting the Virgin Mary with child. Initially built as a church, the cathedral was converted into a mosque when Constantinople fell to the Ottomans in 1453 and turned into a museum in 1935.

A senior Turkish minister’s call to turn Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia from a museum back into a mosque is stoking a dispute between Turkey’s Islamist-rooted government and the country’s Orthodox Christian community.

Maaloula, SYRIA: Syrian Islamists attack historic Christian village where residents still speak language Jesus - Documentary VIDEO

 

 In a remote village nestled in Syrias picturesque Oalamoun mountains, resides a small Aramaic community. It is one of the last and it is devoted to preserving Aramaic: the language that Jesus spoke.

Vatican rebuffs United Nations sex abuse inquiries

The Holy See insists it is "separate and distinct" from the Roman Catholic Church 

      

The Vatican has refused to provide information requested by the United Nations on the alleged sexual abuse of children by priests, nuns or monks.

Lesvos Island - Agiasos - "The Virgin Mary Festival" - Documentary VIDEO

   

In the Greek Orthodox Religion, no saint is more celebrated than the Virgin Mary. Home to a precious icon and religious relics, the village of Agiassos welcomes thousands of pilgrims from all over the island of Lesvos and the rest of Greece to celebrate the Assumption of the Virgin Mary.

Elder Ephraim of Arizona - Death and Hell

      

The older I grow, the more I perceive the instability, the vanity of earthly things. Oh, why do we trouble ourselves in vain? Our life is short—dust, ashes, a dream—and in a little while, we shall taste corruption. 

The Karamazov Brothers (1958) - FREE Movie Online

The story follows Fyodor, the patriarch of the Karamazov family and his sons.

Saints Barbara & John of Damascus

       

This is about as much as we know with any certainty about Saint Barbara. There is, however, an encomium written to her which is almost unreadable today. It begins: “At the time when the impious Maximianus was emperor and Marcianus was governing, there was a local official called Dioskoros, who was exceptionally rich and was also fanatical regarding idol worship.

' Maaloula sisters in Yabrud - Syrian nuns used as human shields'

 Yabrud - Syria

Syrian rebels want to use nuns "kidnapped" from their Maalula convent north of Damascus as "human shields," pro-regime daily Al-Watan said on Wednesday.