Sister Natalya: "The Sisterhood Gave Me the Strength of Spirit"

Natalya Silantyeva, a sister of charity, discusses her coming to the sisterhood, her role in our ministries and her ascent in the faith and learning to find out and follow the will of God.

The word of FR Andrey (Lemeshonok), confessor of St Elisabeth Convent

Let us ask that St. Nicholas does not abandon his heavenly intercessions and that he corrects what we are doing wrong. Let us ask him to instruct us to do every good deed, so that by his prayers we dare to do the works of God

Serve God, Love Your Neighbour: Insights from Sister Natalya

How do people like you and me with many weaknesses and vulnerabilities become soldiers of God's army who enlighten the lives of others? Sister Natalya Kurgasova shares her insights.

Of our spiritual growth and inner transformation in Christ

At some point, we will all face up to eternity. But to have eternal life, we must already learn to live a full life in love and faith. Christ is in our midst, and He will never abandon us.

Seeing Crises as a Touch of God's Grace - Advice from Sister Tatyana

Sister of Mercy Tatyana Schastnaya has worked behind the church stalls of Saint Elisabeth Convent for almost fifteen years. We talk to Sister Tatyana about overcoming difficulties and dealing with sorrows.

Finding beauty and a meaning to life in monasticism

We bring in the limelight our monastic sisters in black. What brought them to monasticism? What circumstances of their lives influenced their decision? Nun Nadezhda (Korzhina) shares her story.

Christmas Symbols in Creations of Our Master Craftsmen

Each of our monastery’s workshops has prepared its own wonderful gift this Christmas Season. Our artists have been painting on glass and ceramics, embroidering serviettes, carving small wooden Nativity scenes, making toys and painting Christmas…

May God and our guardian angel always be with us

Last Sunday, we celebrated the feast of Archangel Michael and his army of angels. It is composed of his loyal warriors, and our guardian angels are among them. They accompany all our lives from baptism, interceding for us before our Lord.

Sister Natalya Orlovskaya: Finding Joy in Our Lord

Natalya Orlovskaya, a sister of mercy, has the talent of comforting the desperate and grieving. According to Natalya, this talent is a gift from God. We talked to Sister Natalya about discovering God and how it can bring happiness to our lives.

Finding Joy and Keeping Strong - Advice from Sister Elena

At Saint Elisabeth Convent, Elena Dubovik is a sister of mercy. We asked sister Elena to tell us more about her obediences in the mental and tuberculosis clinic. We asked her how her service gives inspiration and hope to the patients and helps…

"Simon, son of John, do you love me?"

Monastics are people who fend for themselves. They go it alone and ascetise out of everybody's view.

Finding God and returning to life: Brother Alexander’s story

Brother Alexander is the man in charge of the monastic horse stable. We interviewed him about his coming to the farmstead. What difference did it make in his life? And how does he see his tomorrow?

The healing power of our faith in Christ

Would we not say that our present world has many similarities with the land of Gerasenes? Is it not a world that believes only in the unlimited power of modern medicine but cares too little about spiritual health and salvation in the faith?

The protection of our Mother in Heaven brings us hope in our sorrows

Today, we commemorate the Icon of the Holy Theotokos "Joy of All Who Sorrow". It sends us a powerful message: joys and sorrows are two sides of the same coin.

The Fire in our Hearts and our Treasure in Heaven

Priest Alexander Naseko is the head of the Synodal Division of Missionary Work of the Belarusian Orthodox Church and a special guest at our Convent's festival "Joy of the Protection of the Mother of God" that closed this October. He spoke to…

Looking to the Lord to Find Comfort in our Sorrows

Our pleasures in this world are finite, shallow and illusory. They can bring us the sensation of momentary happiness, but to agree to spend the whole eternity in this state of self-deception would be sheer madness.

Tenderness Fish Cakes

There is no doubt that healthy nutrition plays a very important role in human life. And the Holy Fathers say that healthy nutrition is when a person eats with gratitude, prayer and spiritual sobriety.

Artisans from St Elisabeth Convent lay mosaics in a Romanian monastery

Artisans from the mosaic workshop of Saint Elisabeth Convent were commissioned in 2021 to decorate the Church of St. Panteleimon of Oasa Monastery in Romania. We asked Brothers Maxim and Mikhail to tell us about their work in Oasa.

Four musings from Nun Elisabeth

On the anniversary of the birthday of our Convent's patron saint Elisabeth Romanov, nun Elisabeth (Shukovich) shares with us some highlights of her spiritual life and describes how her prayerful connection with Saint Elisabeth shaped their outcomes.

Overcoming doubts and doing the right thing

We still hope to find our way to in heaven. But the kingdom of heaven lives by a different set of laws: love your neighbour as yourself, forgive your enemies, and give your blessing even to those who are piling abuse on us. In heaven, we live…