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An introduction to the Orthodox Christian faith and the Romanian Orthodox tradition from Saint Michael and Gabriel, a Romanian Orthodox parish in Palm Springs, California.
What We Believe
Orthodox Christians believe in one God in three Persons — the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit — and in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who became man, was crucified, rose from the dead and ascended into heaven for our salvation.
The faith of the Orthodox Church is summed up in the Nicene–Constantinopolitan Creed, which is said or sung at every Divine Liturgy.
I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible.
And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Only-begotten, begotten of the Father before all ages; Light of Light, true God of true God, begotten, not made, of one essence with the Father, by whom all things were made;
who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven, and was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary, and became man;
and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate, and suffered, and was buried;
and rose again on the third day, according to the Scriptures;
and ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of the Father;
and He shall come again with glory to judge the living and the dead, whose kingdom shall have no end.
And in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the Giver of Life, who proceeds from the Father, who with the Father and the Son together is worshipped and glorified, who spoke by the prophets.
In one Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church.
I confess one baptism for the remission of sins.
I look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the age to come. Amen.
Orthodox Christians receive this faith through Holy Scripture and Holy Tradition, worship God in the sacraments, honor the Virgin Mary as the Theotokos (Mother of God), and ask the prayers of the saints, whose icons fill our churches.
Orthodox Faith
The Orthodox Church traces its life without interruption to Christ and the Apostles. For its first thousand years, Christianity in East and West shared one faith, defined by the seven Ecumenical Councils, and the Orthodox Church continues to hold that faith today.
Orthodoxy is a family of self-governing local Churches — among them the Churches of Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem, Russia, Serbia, Romania, Bulgaria and Greece — united in faith, sacraments and worship rather than by a single central administration.
Worship stands at the heart of Orthodox life. Through the Divine Liturgy, prayer, fasting and the yearly cycle of feasts, Orthodox Christians seek to grow in communion with God — what the Church Fathers call theosis.
Sermons & Teachings
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Catechism
Catechism is the Church’s instruction in the faith. Adults who wish to become Orthodox — and anyone who wants to understand the faith more deeply — are welcome to learn with Fr. Florin.
Entry into the Orthodox Church usually comes through Baptism and Chrismation, or through Chrismation for some who are already baptized, after a period of preparation called the catechumenate.
[Content coming soon — to be provided by the parish]