A Vigil Light Upon the Hill

Follow Your Spiritual Father’s Guidance
If you are unable to keep the full fast due to illness, weakness, or medical needs, consult your priest or spiritual father. The Church does not expect the sick to fast in a way that worsens their condition.

Modify the Fast According to Necessity
Those with chronic illnesses (such as diabetes, heart disease, or gastrointestinal disorders) may need to consume dairy, eggs, or even meat.

Those on medications that require food should eat as necessary.

The elderly or weak may be permitted a less strict fast.

Spiritual Fasting Still Applies
If you are unable to fast from food, you should still observe the Fast in other ways:

Avoid indulgence in unnecessary entertainment.

Increase prayer, reading of Scripture, and attending services.

Give alms and perform acts of mercy.

Abstain from sin and unnecessary pleasures.

Avoid Self-Indulgence
While the sick and weak are excused from the full rigor of fasting, they should still avoid gluttony and excess. The purpose of fasting remains self-discipline and repentance. Even if one must eat, one should do so with gratitude and moderation.

Church Teaching on This Matter
The Canons of the Church and the writings of the Fathers make it clear that fasting is not meant to harm the body. St. John Chrysostom says: “If you cannot go without eating all day because of an ailment of the body, beloved one, no logical man will be able to criticize you for that. Besides, we have a Lord who is meek and loving and who does not ask for anything beyond our power.” (See the abridged edition of Homily On Fasting)

Fasting must be done according to one’s ability. The sick should not feel guilt if they cannot observe the full fast, but they should still participate in the spiritual aspects of the Fast. Always seek guidance from a priest to determine what is appropriate for your condition.

The veneration of icons is not an option in Orthodox Christianity. It is essential. It is not a cultural embellishment or devotional tool for the simple-minded, but an active and visible confession of the Incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ. Icons are not tolerated—they are required. Those who oppose icons do not merely misunderstand Orthodox worship; they misunderstand the very Gospel itself.

The Incarnation is the Theological Foundation of Iconography

The centre of the Christian faith is not an idea, not a principle, not a philosophy, but a Person: the Incarnate Word of God. “And the Word became flesh and lived among us.” (John 1:14) This verse is not symbolic. It is literal. It declares that the eternal Son of God, who is consubstantial with the Father, took on human nature—entire and uncorrupted—and entered into His own creation. He was not content to speak through prophets, visions, or dreams. He came in person. The eternal Logos, through whom all things were made, became visible. God, who “dwells in unapproachable light, whom no one has ever seen or can see” (1 Tim. 6:16), chose to make Himself known in the face of Jesus Christ. “No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known.” (John 1:18) This is the theological ground upon which all Orthodox iconography stands. The invisible God has become visible—not as an apparition or symbol, but as a man.
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Fasting, Prayer, and Confession in the War Against the Passions

The Orthodox Church has never promised comfort. She promises salvation—and salvation is acquired by violence against the old man, by struggle against the passions, by war against the flesh. It is not won through vague spirituality or passive attendance in the temple. It is won by crucifying the body and taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. “The kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.” (Matt. 11:12) If a man would be freed from lust, pride, anger, gluttony, and sloth, he must live the ascetic life. There is no other road. The Church provides the path—not as a suggestion, but as a divine prescription. That path is fasting, prayer, and confession. Without these, no man will be purified. No man will be saved.
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The spiritual life is warfare. It is not a sentimental experience or a hobby of the pious. It is the daily crucifixion of the flesh, the relentless struggle against the passions that seek to drag the soul into damnation. Among the most destructive of these passions in our age is lust—fed, glorified, and weaponised through pornography.

The Apostle does not speak lightly on this subject. He declares war on it. “Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.” (Col. 3:5) Fornication—πορνεία in the Greek—is not a weakness to be coddled. It is to be put to death. That is the language of the Apostle. Not excused. Not rationalised. Killed. Pornography is not simply a private indulgence. It is spiritual suicide. It enslaves the eyes, poisons the mind, corrupts the imagination, and hardens the heart. It is not only a sin against the body; it is a sin against the very image of God in man. “Whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” (Matt. 5:28)
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