February 13, 2026

February 13, 2026

Read about some of our most beloved Saints and Martyrs.

Mother Tamara, hard at work in our Sewing Room
monastery musings

Antidoron Bags

From Saint Tabitha’s Studio: Antidoron Bags

St. John Maximovitch, Archbishop of Shanghai and San Francisco, encouraged Orthodox Christians to consume a small bit of antidoron and holy water every morning on days they would not be receiving the Eucharist. This way, he said, the first thing that goes into our body would be something blessed.

In the monasteries, we take the remnants of antidoron that is not consumed and while it is soft, cut it into small, quarter-inch pieces. Then it is air-dried on a baking sheet or foil for a few days, after which it is stored in a glass jar or antidoron bag.

            The Queen of All Skete’s Antidoron Bags are made for you to carry home the antidoron from your Church and after drying, for its storage. They are crafted of quality white linen. Each bag is an approximate 6″ square with a ribbon drawstring closure with

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Mother Tamara, hard at work in our Sewing Room
monastery musings

Antidoron Bags

From Saint Tabitha’s Studio: Antidoron Bags

St. John Maximovitch, Archbishop of Shanghai and San Francisco, encouraged Orthodox Christians to consume a small bit of antidoron and holy water every morning on days they would not be receiving the Eucharist. This way, he said, the first thing that goes into our body would be something blessed.

In the monasteries, we take the remnants of antidoron that is not consumed and while it is soft, cut it into small, quarter-inch pieces. Then it is air-dried on a baking sheet or foil for a few days, after which it is stored in a glass jar or antidoron bag.

            The Queen of All Skete’s Antidoron Bags are made for you to carry home the antidoron from your Church and after drying, for its storage. They are crafted of quality white linen. Each bag is an approximate 6″ square with a ribbon drawstring closure with

Read More
monastery musings

Sewing Room Update

Sewing Room Update

Border
St Cuthbert Stole
St Cuthbert Stole, Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons
Felbrigge Psalter
Felbrigge Psalter, Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons. English Embroidered Bookbindings by Cyril James Humphries Davenport, London, 1899

An example of early monastic needlework: the Felbrigge Psalter is possibly the earliest example of embroidered bookbinding that is still in existence. It is believed to have been made in the late 1300s by Anne de Felbrigge, a nun at the Minoresses Convent in Suffolk, England. The 7 3/4 by 5 3/4 book is worked with fine gold threads. This picture is a restoration of the original

For centuries, nuns have engaged in the sacred obedience of crafting fine textile arts such as embroidery, tapestry weaving, beading, and other needlework to produce items of beauty for bishops, churches, homes of the faithful, and even for royalty. Queens would commission tapestries or embroideries as gifts for their husband, the king, extolling his virtues and successful

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Mother Tamara, hard at work in our Sewing Room
monastery musings

Pascha Basket Covers and Tea Towels

Pascha Basket Covers and Tea Towels

Mother Tamara has been busy making Pascha Basket Covers so you will have them in time for the Feast of Feasts on April 12th of 2026. They are embroidered onto 100% cotton and are a 17-inch square to top off your basket. All Pascha Basket covers are $45, plus $10 shipping/handling.

The same designs may be embroidered onto tea towels, for a finished size of 27” by 18”. They are also 100% cotton. The design will go at one end of the towel. Cost is also $45, plus $10 shipping.

To personalize items with family name is an additional $15. Any additional personalization (such as date, occasion, etc.) is an additional $10 for a $25 total personalization cost.

Both Basket Covers and Tea Towels are perfect gifts for:

  • Pascha
  • Baptisms
  • Weddings
  • Birthdays
  • Hostess gifts
  • Christmas
  • Graduations
  • Housewarming gifts
  • Anniversaries

 

Orders must be received

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monastery musings

St. Spyridon’s Fish Meal

Saint Spyridon and the Miracle of the Fish

 
Translated into English for the Queen of All Skete by
Gerontissa Theonymphe, Παναγιοπουλα Μετοχι (Panagiopoula Μετochi), Corfu, Greece

Greetings from Corfu to all of you who follow the site of the blessed Queen of All Skete, evlogeite! I have translated for you, from Greek, an account of this miracle of our beloved Saint Spyridon. This story is recorded in the works of Saint Maximus the Greek, (Jan. 21/Feb. 3, 1556), who is known as the Spiritual Enlightener of Rus.
As most everyone knows, Corfu is blessed with the Holy Relics of Saint Spyridon the Wonderworker. These relics have been preserved for many ages in the center of town in an impressive Church called the ‘Ayio’, built in 1589. In order for the faithful to venerate the Saint’s holy relics, throughout the day clerics open the protective doors to the room which houses …

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Service of the Synaxis of all Holy Doctors book cover
monastery musings

Service of the Synaxis of All the Holy Doctors

Service of the Synaxis of All the Holy Doctors

 

by Metropolitan Kyrillos of Rhodes,

translated By Bishop Spyridon of Amastris.

 

In 2021, the Greek Orthodox Church established the Sunday following the Sunday of the Holy Fathers of the 7th Ecumenical Synod as the Sunday of the Synaxis of all the Holy Doctors. This date was chosen because it falls close to the Feast of the Synaxis of the Holy Unmercenary Physicians (Oct. 17/30) and that of the Feast of St. Luke the Evangelist (Oct. 18/31), who was a doctor.

On this day, the Greek Church honors medical doctors and all those in the healthcare industry for their essential contribution and ministry to mankind. The Feast and this Liturgical Service conveys the Church’s concern regarding the spiritual care for every sick and suffering person, and sheds light on the need for dialogue between the medical community and the …

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Photo of Monomakhs Cap
monastery musings

The Harmony of Monarchy and Russian Orthodox Christianity

The Harmony Of Monarchy
And Russian Orthodox Christianity

 

The world is intrigued this year with the crowning of Charles III of the United Kingdom. Yet let us never forget the glorious reign of another monarchy, the Romanov Dynasty. A little more than 100 years ago, just three days before the start of the Great Fast, Tsar-martyr Nicholas II abdicated the throne, on March 15, 1917, bringing to an end to more than 300 years of Romanov rule. After the light of Pascha shone on the world that year, within a few months the enemies of Christ led Russia into a dark phase of its history, with the regicide of the anointed ruler.

Archpriest Constantine Desrosiers, Ph.D., brilliantly asserts that we must not fix our eyes exclusively on earthly political events, but rather on the Mystery of the Holy Spirit working within human history.

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