New book for Orthodox parents
Raising Orthodox Christians
So many things are competing for your family’s time and attention like school, sports, friendships, technology and work. And many of those things are good. But when everything feels important, it can be hard to remember what matters most.
Raising Orthodox Christians helps you keep the right summit in view—Christ and His Church—and gives you a practical Orthodox framework for navigating everyday parenting.
Preorder by Jan. 25, 2027, and receive $250+ in bonus resources for free.
You will find lived wisdom in this book. These pious parents speak from experience—from successes and failures, joys and sorrows, victories and defeats. They are candid. They are funny. They are real. And what they offer is pure Orthodoxy. I will be putting this book into every parent’s hands!
Fr. George Dokos, Holy Apostles Greek Orthodox Church
Everything’s Competing for Your Children
Focus on What Matters Most
Most of the things competing for your family’s attention are not bad. They’re often good. The question is whether those good things have started taking up more space than they should.
Raising Orthodox Christians helps you step back, look at where your family is headed and then bring the time-tested wisdom of the Orthodox Church into the decisions you’re making every day.
Whether you’re chasing toddlers, raising teenagers or sending your kids off to college, this is a guide you’ll return to at every stage.
Preorder Today to Get $250+ in Free Bonuses
Preorder your copy of Raising Orthodox Christians by Jan. 25, 2027, and receive these limited-time bonus resources. All bonuses will be emailed to you on release day: Jan. 26, 2027.
Four Months of The Encounter Premium
Our Orthodox prayer app helps you stay connected to Christ throughout your week.
$16 value
Orthodox Christian Parenting Group Starter Kit
This four-video series and workbook equips you to bring other parents together for meaningful conversations.
$200 value
Live Q&A with Cindy and Paul Karos
Join Cindy and Paul live on February 8, 2027 to ask your parenting questions.
$25 value
Audiobook of Raising Orthodox Christians
Listen to the book in the car, on a walk or wherever your day takes you.
$20 value
Plus, each book comes with a digital copy of the Raising Orthodox Christians Workbook to help you put what you read into practice and keep your family turning toward Christ.
Share the book with friends, family or your parenting group and save 20% with a 10-book bundle. Shop the Bundle.
This Is Not Another List of Parenting Rules
The Plan for Every Season of Parenting
Your children are different from anyone else’s. Your family is different. The decision that is right in one season may not be right in another.
This book offers you a way to think through your decisions with the bigger picture in view.
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Know Where You’re Going
Look honestly at what your family’s time, attention, energy, and worry are actually building toward. For Orthodox Christians, the summit is Christ.
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Learn To Read the Road
School, sports, success, friendships, technology, money and opportunities can all be good. Learn to notice when a good thing has started becoming the destination.
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Make the Ascent
Bring prayer, worship, fasting, repentance, service, forgiveness, Scripture and community into the ordinary life that is already happening in your home.
Practical Application for Everyday Family Living
Answering the Big Questions Parents Ask
School + Achievement
How do you encourage your child to work hard without making achievement the measure of a good life?
Sports + Activities
How do you make room for the activities your children love without letting the schedule run the family?
Friendships
How do you help your children choose good friends, navigate hurt and learn how to be faithful friends themselves?
Technology
How do you prepare your children to live wisely in a world where screens, content and social media are nearly impossible to avoid?
Money + Success
What are your children learning from the way your family talks about money, work, possessions and what it means to “do well” in life?
Dating + Relationships
How do you help your children understand love, relationships and marriage through an Orthodox Christian lens?
Prayer + Worship
How do the practices of the Church become part of family life rather than one more thing parents have to force?
Fasting + Repentance
How do ordinary Orthodox practices form your children over time—even when family life is imperfect?
Community
Who is helping your family grow toward Christ? And are your children surrounded by people who show them what a life in the Church can look like?
What Others Are Saying
Michelle Moujaes
Executive Director of Faithtree Resources
“Cindy and Paul understand the real decisions parents are making every day because they’ve lived them. This book is practical, deeply Orthodox and full of the Church’s timeless wisdom. It helps parents step back from the pressure of getting every decision right and remember what their family is ultimately climbing toward.”
Dr. Philip Mamalakis
Author of Parenting Toward the Kingdom
“Raising Orthodox Christians offers a heartfelt, honest roadmap for parents learning how to navigate modern cultural pressures while keeping their family focused on Christ. Blending timeless patristic wisdom with relatable personal stories, Cindy and Paul Karos beautifully illustrate how ordinary family life can become a powerful arena for lifelong transformation.”
Dr. Nicole Abraham
Orthodox mom of four
“In a world overflowing with parenting advice, this book is a welcome breath of fresh air. It gently brings us back to the timeless wisdom of the Church and offers a practical path toward the peace every parent longs for.”
Read Chapter 1 for Free
In Chapter 1, Cindy and Paul begin with a question almost every parent has asked at some point: Am I doing any of this right?
Then they introduce the bigger idea that shapes the rest of the book: Every Orthodox Christian family is climbing toward something, and when Christ and His Church are the summit, parents can weigh everyday choices against that goal.
Meet Cindy and Paul Karos
For four decades, Cindy and Paul have worked with families through ministries across the Antiochian and Greek Orthodox archdioceses. Cindy has served as vice chair of the Midwest Diocesan Council and has led multiple family ministries, including 20 years directing a pan-Orthodox family camp that continues today. Paul holds a master’s degree in applied Orthodox theology, leads men’s retreats and serves as a marriage counselor. Together they have led ministries focused on strengthening marriages, families and life in the Church.
Today their three children are adults who remain active in the Church and love Christ deeply.
Raising Orthodox Christians brings together the wisdom of the Church, the lessons Cindy and Paul learned raising their own family and the insight they gained serving others—so today’s parents have a practical way to keep Christ and His Church at the center of the decisions they make every day.
It's Time to Put Perfection Aside
The goal for every Christian parent is Christlikeness. But none of us will achieve it in this lifetime, and chasing perfection will only trip us up.
The daily, messy, two-steps-forward-one-step-back struggle to help ourselves and our children grow closer to Christ is the path to salvation. It’s not about arriving, performing or getting it right every time. It’s about turning back when we wander off and saying, “Forgive me, Lord. I’ll try again.”
Cindy and Paul know this tension well. They didn’t get every decision right while raising their children. They changed course, learned a lot, apologized and kept going.
You can too. You don’t have to overhaul your entire family. Just begin with the next decision in front of you.
Bring this to your parish. Interested in starting a parent group or stocking Raising Orthodox Christians in your parish bookstore? Discover exclusive bulk discounts and free resources to help the families in your parish keep their children close to Christ and His Church. Learn about parish orders.