“Many people today look only at the ground and focus exclusively on themselves. This image calls us to lift our gaze upward, toward God and Heaven.

“the glory of God is revealed to a pure heart

“Seeing the grace of the secret mysteries of God made manifest and clearly fulfilled in the Virgin, I rejoice; and I know not how to understand the strange and secret manner whereby the Undefiled has been revealed AS ALONE CHOSEN ABOVE ALL CREATION, VISIBLE AND SPIRITUAL. Therefore, wishing to praise Her, I am struck dumb with amazement in both mind and speech. Yet still I dare to proclaim and magnify Her: She is indeed the Heavenly Tabernacle

“The Panagia thus reveals that the ultimate destiny of the human person is not merely moral improvement, but deification—the participation, by grace, in the life of God,

“a person who has come to know the joy of Divine glory receives the spiritual strength to remain unshaken amid sorrows and trials, and to walk with confidence along the path leading to salvation in Christ Jesus

“Greater in honor than the Cherubim, and in glory greater beyond compare than the Seraphim; you without corruption gave birth to God the Word, and are truly Theotokos. You do we magnify.

“the shining-forth of the glory of God the Father

“the Dormition is not simply a translation to heaven, but a passage from earthly, perishable life to an incorruptible existence

Patriarch Daniel ›

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