STAND FIRM IN THE FAITH!

It is rightly believed by many that our post modern, post Christian society is rapidly descending into the mire of depravity, unbridled greed, senseless violence, and deception.  Western civilization has largely forsaken God and we have all but lost that moral compass that served to guide us--however imperfectly--in the past.  Our children are taught in our secularized schools that there is no absolute truth, all values are essentially relative, gender identity is fluid, life in the womb is not inherently sacred--and marriage means whatever our courts declare it to mean.

Yet St. Paul confesses boldly, "Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and forever.  Be not carried about with diverse and strange doctrines.  For it is a good thing that the heart be established by grace...."  Therefore it is imperative that we--as faithful Orthodox Christians--should stand firm in the Faith once delivered to the Apostles and sealed by the blood of the martyrs.  "For here we have no continuing city, but we seek one to come."

Truth be told, we are but pilgrims upon this earth, called to be in the world, but not of  it.  As the Holy Apostle beseeches (inspired by the Holy Prophet Jeremiah), "Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, and touch not the unclean thing."  And so we are commanded to "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."

Of course, it is more likely nowadays that our witness will provoke hostility and hatred rather than invoke a desire for repentance and salvation.  But so what?  We are indeed surrounded by "a great cloud of witnesses"--the multitude of holy martyrs of all ages who gladly exchanged their blood for the incomparable glory of God's eternal Kingdom.  Strengthened by the grace if God, we are called to conform our lives not to a world sunk in sin and held in bondage to the Evil One, but rather to our Lord, God and Savior Jesus Christ--through Whom alone we may hope to be delivered from the darkness of nihilistic hopelessness and despair into the Kingdom of Light.

GLORY TO THEE WHO HAST SHOWN US THE LIGHT!

As the Holy Prophet Isaiah foretold, "the people that sat in darkness saw great light; and to them that sat in the region and shadow of death, light is sprung up."  Likewise, the Holy Apostle Paul proclaims, "For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ."

Now the theme of light runs like a luminous thread throughout the pages of Holy Scripture--in both Testaments, Old and New.  Our Lord Himself affirms that He is the light of the world, and truly it is by the light of His revelation that He dispels the darkness of ignorance and deception that overshadowed the world before His coming. 

In the Mystery of Baptism, our souls and bodies are illumined by the light of grace and our spiritual eyes our opened that we might behold "the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ."  Moreover, we are--as faithful Orthodox Christians--called to bear witness to this light in our daily lives and relationships, in the midst of a world that is being increasingly submerged in the dark sea of deception, ignorance and unbelief.  Christ Himself warns us that we not hide this light under a bushel, but that we should let it shine forth at all times and in all places.

But alas!  All too often we all but extinguish this light by indulging in sinful passions and--in general--living a worldly and self-centered life.  Our baptism robes are soiled and we find ourselves drifting further and further away from our divinely appointed destiny.  It is, of course, true that "we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power may be of God, and not of us."  But it is, nevertheless, our solemn duty to guard this treasure faithfully, to preserve it against every assault of the Evil One. 

This means, however, that we must be willing to strive and struggle to live a life of purity and sacrificial love, casting aside every work of darkness and enduring all things whatsoever for the sake of Christ.  And if this podvig should seem to be beyond our power--it certainly is.  Yet even so, we must remember always that by the grace of God, all things are possible.

THE HOLY INNOCENTS

"Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the Wise Men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, from two years old and younger."  Thus was fulfilled the prophecy of Jeremiah, "In Ramah there was a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning, Rachel weeping for her children, and would not be comforted, because they are not."  The slaughter of the Holy Innocents was a tragedy that defies an easy explanation: how could a loving God allow such a thing to happen?  After all, these tender young infants could not have done anything to deserve such an untimely death.  Unlike the Holy Martyrs down through the ages, these tender infants did not voluntarily choose to accept torture and death in order to bear witness to Christ.

And yet....  Was not our Lord Himself as an innocent lamb led to the slaughter?  He ascended the Cross and suffered, shedding His precious blood for the sake of the salvation of the human race.  As for you and I: for what purpose have we been born into this vale of tears?  Is it that we might attain to happiness and a carefree life?  God forbid!  It is, rather, only through sacrificial suffering in union with Christ that we may hope to be deemed worthy of salvation in God's eternal Kingdom.

Indeed, our very life in this fallen world is interwoven with tragedy... and death itself is the greatest tragedy of they all.  The slaughter of the Holy Innocents was, after all, a one time event... and through the eyes of faith, the believer behold those martyrs interceding on our behalf before the Throne of God!  What, then, shall we say concerning the ongoing murder of infants still in the womb--cut off before they have even seen the light of day?  This is a tragedy of immense proportions--yet so many in our "enlightened" culture consider the evil of abortion to be of no consequence.As Orthodox Christians, however, we are obligated to speak out against this abomination--thought we may be no more than a voice crying out in the wildness: "Prepare ye the way of the Lord."

According to the testimony of Scripture and the Holy Father, every soul--born or unborn--exists before the ages in the eternal memory of God.  Even those souls which have yet to be conceived are precious in the Lord's sight and have been given a name that shall not be fully revealed until the end of time.  Moreover, for each and every one of us He has prepared--according to His providential wisdom--a unique destiny that belongs to no other.  All that is required is that we voluntarily take up  our cross of sacrificial suffering--and follow Him.

THE GREAT SUPPER

"When Christ, Who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with Him in glory."  Thus does the faithful Orthodox Christian await in joyous expectation the full revelation of God's heavenly Kingdom at the end of time.  Setting aside all earthbound thoughts and desires, he mortifies (puts to death) his "members which are upon earth," that his heart--burning with the love of God--might receive "the King of all, Who comes invisibly upborne upon the angelic host."

This is that Great Supper prepared by "a certain man" in today's Gospel.  Rightly understood, this Supper is the ultimate fulfillment of every conceivable hope and desire of the human race.  How is it possible, then, that those guests who were invited to the Great Supper should so easily spurn God's gracious invitation?  One man must inspect the piece of ground he had just bought; another must test five yoke of oxen; while yet another... Well!... he has married a wife.  So it is that these men--like unto Esau--willingly sell their God-given birthright for a pot of porridge!

It is business as usual, then.  As our Lord proclaims elsewhere: when the Son of Man returns to earth, it shall be as in the days of Noah, when the people were buying and selling and giving in marriage--all the while oblivious to the wrath of God that was upon  to descend upon them.

Jesus Christ and the holy Forerunner and Baptist John declared from the beginning that the Kingdom of God is at hand--yet life in this world just seems to go on as ever it did.  I know I've got to get more serious about repentance and my spiritual life, but right now I've got to get to the mall before it closes (some last minute Christmas shopping, you know!)--and then I've got to post those picture on Facebook.  Plus, my car needs to be washed and I've got to check to see how my stock market investments are doing.  Oh, there's church tonight?--I'm really going to try to make it.  So you get the idea--excuses are a dime a dozen, but in the game of eternal life... we're playing for keeps.

Tomorrow may well be another day--but today is the day of salvation.  We are given but one life to live, and so it behooves us that we use our time wisely--careful lest we fritter it away in vain and frivolous pursuits.

BE YE THANKFUL

St. Paul counsels the Colossians, "And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful."  In today's Gospel, ten lepers stand afar off (as lepers, they are outcasts of society and dare not approach too closely) beseeching Christ's mercy. "Go show yourselves to the priests," our Lord instructs them (that is, they need to be examined by the religious authorities and declared clean).  And so it came to pass that "as they went, they were cleansed."

Now while all ten lepers were healed, only one (a Samaritan--an outcast among the outcasts) turned back to give thanks.  The other nine were no doubt thankful to be healed--but it never did seem to occur to them to thank the One Who had healed them. 

It is easy for the likes of us  to accuse the nine of being ungrateful, but think: how often do you and I take for granted the multitude of blessings God has so graciously bestowed upon us?  We are quick to grumble and complain when things aren't going our way--but seldom do we fall down upon our knees before Him to praise Him, thanking Him from the bottom of our hearts for the innumerable good gifts he grants to us--unworthy sinners though we are.

Do we think to thank God when we awaken in the morning for the mere fact that we are still alive and have been given another day to love and to serve Him, and to sincerely repent for transgressing again and again His holy commandments?  Do we thank Him for the sun, moon and stars--for the very air we breathe?  The angels in heaven sing ceaseless praises to God, while we cast the blame on other people or circumstances for our own misfortunes and fail to see how every moment of every day we are sustained by God's providential care.

All ten lepers were cleansed, but only to the one who returned to give thanks did our Lord say, "Arise, go on your way: your faith has made you whole."  Surely God makes his sun to shine on both the righteous and the unrighteous, the just and the unjust: but only to those who are truly thankful does He bestow His greatest blessing--true and eternal life as sons and daughters of God in His heavenly Kingdom.

THERE WAS NOT WHEN HE WAS NOT

St. Paul writes to the Colossians, "For by Him [Christ] all things were created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible....  All things were created by Him and for Him: and He is before all things, and by Him all things consist [have their being]."  That is: Jesus Christ is not a mere creature--no matter how exalted.  He is "supernatural" according to the proper meaning of this word: uncreated.  As the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, He is God, and therefore--contrary to what the arch heretic Arius taught--there was not [a time] when He was not.  (Notice the brackets: what Arius actually taught was that Christ was created before the creation of time).

This claim cannot be made concerning the founder of any other world religion.  Even the Koran, it seems, considers Jesus to be the Word of God, Who will come again to judge the word--whereas Mohammed is a mere mortal who has long since returned to the dust of the earth.  But the hearts of the Jewish leaders were darkened, their spiritual eyes blinded: and so they dared in their presumption to pass judgment upon the Godman--He who had taken flesh from the pure blood of a Virgin, willingly suffering a brutal death upon the Cross that those who believe in Him might be granted the gift of eternal life in His heavenly Kingdom.

The Jewish leaders knew not (or perhaps refused to acknowledge) that Jesus was in truth the pre-existent Christ, the very One Who had revealed the Law to Moses on Mt. Sinai.  Nor did they understand that the real purpose of this Law was to guide the Jews into a higher understanding of the truth, drawing them into a closer relationship with the living God: not to bind them to the earth through a slavish obedience to a legalistic set of rules and regulations.

Christ came to earth not to enslave us, but rather to save and enlighten the fallen human race.  "Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free," as He assures us.  And so it was that He--as the Lord of the Sabbath--deigned on the Sabbath to set free the woman who had been bound for eighteen years by a spirit of infirmity.  And while the leaders--consumed by jealousy--gnashed their teeth and sought to destroy Him, "all the people rejoiced for all the glorious things that were done by Him."

Indeed, it is by the grace of God that we are saved, and not by the works of the Law.  While we must ever strive to fulfill the pious precepts as set forth in the Canons of the Church (not as an end in itself, but rather for the sake of our salvation), we must never forget that it is only through communion with the living  and compassionate God of love that we can hope to be delivered from the power of darkness and translated into the Kingdom of light.

ON EARTHLY TREASURES

There's a widespread belief nowadays that "things" are getting worse.  Fading away is the optimism of the past--based in a blind faith in "progress"--that every day in every way things are getting better and better.  But exactly what are these things that have seemingly taken a nosedive into an apparently irreversible downward spiral? 

Many of us (myself included) bemoan the spiritual decline and moral bankruptcy of this nation (and the world in general), which have especially accelerated during the past few decades--and this is certainly a valid concern that should prompt every committed Christian to "put on the whole armor of God, that we may be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked." 

On the more mundane level, however, there is an inevitable likelihood that sooner or later (and probably sooner) our entire economy will collapse into the dust.  Yes indeed--it does seem like difficult economic times are on the way, and I would say that it is this scenario that concerns most people more so than our continuing moral decline (though the rampant greed and selfishness of contemporary society that have contributed to our financial woes is in itself a moral issue).

But not to worry!  I am frequently receiving in the mail offers for financial newsletters and "free" reports that will explain to me not only how I might survive the coming hard times--but even to profit from them!  If only I follow this advice, I can--at the very least--live my retirement in comfort, but at best--I might even become filthy rich!

The problem is--I'm already 65.  My body aches, my energy level is depleted  and I no longer find a great deal of pleasure in the ordinary things of this life.  It may be I'll live another 20 years... but so what?  Like my elderly female parishioners back in Pennsylvania used to tell me, "Oh father... don't ever get old!"  Stupid me: I never listened to their advice.  Threescore and seven, as the Good Book says.  Anything more is likely to be toil and tribulation.

Now don't get me wrong: building up a nest egg for retirement is both sensible and responsible.  But has it ever occurred to you how much time and energy we expend in this life in order to assure for ourselves a comfortable and pleasant life in this world?  But yet this life we live is merely a pilgrimage, a preparation for our ultimate destination in eternity.  Would you, for example, order cheerful drapes and a plush carpet for a one week stay in a motel? 

The man in today's Gospel has been blessed with an abundance of provisions, and he has no room to store it all.  Whatever shall he do?  Well... he could open up his barns to the poor and destitute, or perhaps sell a portion of his goods and contribute to worthy charities.    By this means he would show himself to be merciful, even as his heavenly Father is merciful.  After all, it was surely God Who blessed him with such an abundance.  But no--his solution is to tear down his barns and to build bigger and better ones in order to provide for his own future--that he might eat, drink and be merry.  But the joke's on him... this very night God will demand his soul!

And even if he were to live for many years more, what profit does he gain ultimately from all of this eating, drinking and merriment?  For truly whatever temporal enjoyment we may achieve in this world, it will soon enough wither and pass away--like grass in the midday sun.  And so it is when we lay up for ourselves treasures on earth--and are not rich toward God.