Some people might think that because the Church concerns itself with the heavenly realm, this focus means that it wants nothing to do with this planet and this life. However, our mission as Christians, as Christ Himself indicated, is to be “in this world, but not of it.” That is, our goal is not to escape the material world but to transfigure it in the image of God. Our Western culture encourages us to acquire wealth and material possessions; we are told that families “need”

Not eating is a way of glorifying God just as much as feasting can be. This also provides an interesting symmetry where the Fall, caused by eating, is reversed through fasting. Fasting is necessary for feasting to have meaning; if we feast every day, then feasting no longer celebrates the Lord. There are two types of fasts in our Church. The first type of fast is a total fast, where we abstain from food and drink entirely. This type of fast is most familiar to us on Sundays,

Because we are constantly in the presence of God, in the domestic church we try to open our entire lives to an awareness of this presence. We recognize God as the provider of our food and source of life, especially at meal times. The following foods are instrumental in our Church: Bread: there are several occasions in which bread is blessed and distributed. One such occasion would be as part of Vespers on major feasts in the form of artoklasia. Additionally, those loaves not