This video highlights Holy Week and Pascha celebrations from Orthodox churches across the United States. I appreciate it because it demonstrates the unity of the Orthodox faith, which remains the same in every parish. It is the faith that has been shared by Orthodox Christians everywhere and throughout the ages.
Author: Milton McDonald
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From Crisis to Conversion: Tim & Abigail Rask’s Journey to Orthodoxy | The Long Road Home – Ep. 01
In this video, Tim and Abigail Rask share their journey into the Orthodox Church. Their testimony hits close to home because they wrestled with many of the same difficulties our family faced, including the pain of leaving a church family that meant so much to them. At one point, they describe it as a kind of death, and I understand exactly what they mean. That part of their story resonated deeply with me.
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The Monk who saw the Apocalypse
For years in my studies I was satisfied with being above all traditions, but somehow faithful to them. When I visited an Orthodox Church for the first time, something happened to me that I had not experienced in any Buddhist or Eastern temple. Something in my heart said that I was home, that my search was over. I didn’t really know what this meant. With my exposure to Orthodoxy and to Orthodox people, a new idea began to enter into my awareness: that truth was not just an abstract idea, sought and known by the mind, but was something personal, even a person, sought and loved by the heart. And that is how I met Christ.
Father Seraphim Rose -
Divine Energy: The Orthodox Path to Christian Victory
Divine Energy: The Orthodox Path to Christian Victory by Fr. Jon Braun introduces readers to the Orthodox understanding of the Christian life as participation in the life and power of God. Written especially with Protestant readers in mind, the book explores foundational Orthodox teachings such as the Trinity, the Incarnation, baptism, prayer, fasting, and spiritual growth, showing how these doctrines relate to the believer’s ongoing struggle against sin. Fr. Braun argues that Christianity is not merely about forgiveness, but about receiving divine grace and actively cooperating with it in the pursuit of holiness and transformation.
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This was the first Orthodox book I ever purchased, and from the opening chapters I felt as though it was speaking directly to me. It put words to frustrations I had carried for years, especially the cycle of spiritual failure, rededication, and renewed failure that characterized much of my Christian experience. Fr. Braun addressed many of the solutions I had been offered over the years, whether “read your Bible and pray more,” “let go and let God,” or seek a deeper experience of the Holy Spirit, and explained why they so often failed to produce lasting transformation. More importantly, he presented a vision of the Christian life centered on authentic union with Christ and participation in God’s grace. For the first time, I felt I was encountering a coherent explanation for how spiritual growth actually takes place.
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Ek Nekron
Ek Nekron (“from the dead”) is an Orthodox Christian podcast produced in conjunction with St. Timothy Orthodox Church in Lompoc, California and closely associated with the Death to the World movement. Through lectures, article readings, and discussions, it explores Orthodox spirituality, repentance, church history, cultural issues, and the challenge of living faithfully in the modern world. The podcast is particularly known for its serious, ascetical approach to Christianity and its engagement with topics such as spiritual warfare, discernment, the Church Fathers, and the writings of Fr. Seraphim Rose.
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I discovered Ek Nekron early in my journey toward Orthodoxy, and it played a significant role in my eventual conversion. In particular, the episodes on Unseen Warfare profoundly shaped my understanding of the spiritual life, temptation, repentance, and the Christian struggle against the passions. Few resources influenced my thinking more during that time.
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SUNDAY OF ORTHODOXY – The Lord is With You
This stunning video showcases the beauty of the Orthodox Divine Liturgy on the Sunday of Orthodoxy, when the Church commemorates the restoration of the holy icons and the triumph of Orthodox teaching over Iconoclasm. My family and I had the privilege of visiting the church featured in this video, St. Nicholas Orthodox Church in McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania. There is also a full playlist of similar videos available on the Ancient Faith Kids YouTube channel.
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Man of God
Man of God (2021) is a biographical drama about St. Nektarios of Aegina, one of the most beloved saints of modern Orthodoxy. The film follows his life as he endures slander, jealousy, exile, and unjust treatment from fellow church leaders while remaining faithful to Christ and steadfast in humility. Rather than focusing on worldly success or vindication, the story highlights the Christian virtues of patience, forgiveness, perseverance, and love for one’s enemies.
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Through its portrayal of St. Nektarios’ suffering and holiness, the film offers a powerful introduction to Orthodox spirituality and the lives of the saints. It is both an inspiring historical drama and a reflection on what it means to follow Christ faithfully in the face of misunderstanding, injustice, and personal hardship.
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Holy Monastery of St. Tikhon of Zadonsk in Pennsylvania, USA – First Orthodox Monastery in the USA
The beauty of the Orthodox faith shines forth in the life of St. Tikhon’s Monastery in South Canaan, Pennsylvania. As the first monastery I ever visited, it helped confirm what my heart had been seeking for many years. There I encountered a deeper sense of peace, reverence, and love for Christ and His Church. Every visit is a blessing, and I look forward to many more pilgrimages in the future.
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How Deep the Father’s Love
A simple yet moving recording of New Order Amish youth singing the beloved hymn How Deep the Father’s Love for Us. Performed without instrumental accompaniment, the video highlights the beauty of congregational singing and the hymn’s meditation on Christ’s sacrifice, God’s love, and the believer’s response of gratitude and humility.
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On Spiritual Deception
St. Ignatius Brianchaninov’s essay on spiritual deception (prelest) is a sobering exploration of how fallen human beings can mistake falsehood for truth, especially in their spiritual lives. He argues that pride, self-reliance, imagination in prayer, and the pursuit of spiritual experiences can open the door to self-delusion. Instead, he emphasizes humility, repentance, obedience, and careful discernment as the foundation of authentic Christian spirituality.
Personal Note…
This essay resonated deeply with me because it addressed concerns I had already begun to feel during my final years in evangelicalism. I saw a growing fascination with spiritual experiences through deliverance ministries, retreats and conferences focused on hearing from God and receiving spiritual gifts, practices such as speaking in tongues, and the increasing influence of Roman Catholic monks and mystics. My concern was not the desire for a deeper spiritual life, but what often seemed to be a lack of discernment surrounding these practices. St. Ignatius gave voice to concerns I had never been able to articulate, reminding me that sincerity and powerful experiences are not, by themselves, evidence of truth. His insistence that humility, repentance, and spiritual sobriety must come before extraordinary experiences struck me as both biblical and profoundly needed.