St. Herman Calendar 2017.

          

“The wealth of the Orthodox Calendar, with its inspiring commemorations, is so great that on any day one can begin the holy task which St. Herman gave to us as a testament to Orthodoxy on this continent—‘From this day, from this hour, from this minute let us strive to love God above all.’ May every day be for us such a beginning!”

-Hieromonk Seraphim Rose

The Orthodox Faith, which St. Herman brought from Holy Russia to the American continent, is one that cannot simply be taken for granted. It must be lived and kept ever fresh by drawing continually from the living sources of Orthodoxy. The Church’s Calendar, as the record of these sources, indicates the daily commemorations and Scripture readings which nourish the genuine Christian life.

Every day there are commemorations of the God-pleasers who have preceded us—prophets, apostles, martyrs—so that their name and example will give us courage and fervency in our Orthodox confession and life. Readings are appointed from Holy Scripture to prepare one daily with instruction from God’s word. Likewise, the regular cycles of feast and fast are presented so that the individual Christian can integrate his life with the whole plan which the Church sets before us.

Each annual issue of THE ST. HERMAN CALENDAR features a unique theme of sanctity offered as an inspiration to Christians struggling in the modern world. Themes in the past have included: Saints of America—Bicentennial of Orthodoxy in America, Newly Canonized Romanian Saints, Orthodox Women Writers, and The Acquisition of the Holy Spirit. Each feature includes brief biographies, rare photographs and inspiring iconography.

THE ST. HERMAN CALENDAR features dates according to the Orthodox (Julian or "Old") Calendar, with corresponding civil dates. It is a complete Calendar of Orthodox saints, Scripture readings, and fasting guidelines for every day of the year, together with a listing of uncanonized righteous ones of recent centuries.

THE 2017 ST. HERMAN CALENDAR is dedicated to the Orthodox Saints of the Iberian Peninsula, composed of present-day Spain and Portugal. It includes a feature article on the Orthodox history of the region, covering its early evangelization by the Apostles Paul and James, the son of Zebedee, the martyrdoms of the first through the fourth centuries, the Visigothic period between 589 and 711, the monastic history of the area, and the second age of martyrdom that began after the Islamic conquest in the early eighth century. Also included are brief biographies and iconographic portraits of twelve of the saints who have shone forth on the Iberian Peninsula.