Maria Tobolova
An educated man and a master of observation, Pierre Gilliard carefully studied the characters of the Sovereign and all members of his family.
All of creation is fallen and defiled by sin, thus all of creation requires cleansing, which requires repentance, the Ukrainian primate said in his homily on the eve of Theophany.
Archimandrite Kirill (Pavlov)
By his humility and zeal for the glory of God and the moral purity of his life St. John was vouchsafed to be the Forerunner and Baptist of the very Creator of Heaven and earth.
Hieromonk Pavel (Shcherbachev)
The Holy Trinity was revealed in the Jordan, in order to reveal to every person first of all God’s will for that person himself—how he must live in order to enter into close union with God, in order to acquire grace, which descended upon each of us in the Sacrament of Baptism.
Hiero-Confessor Nikolai (Mogilevsky)
Water acquires a special salvific power. What happens during Baptism? The sinner comes out of the font a saint.