I HOPE AND PRAY THAT ALL OF YOU HAD A BLESSED, JOYOUS, AND HEALTHY NEW YEAR!
IF YOU HAVE NOT AS OF YET SENT IN YOUR 2017 STEWARDSHIP PLEASE DO THAT TODAY!
I HAVE BEEN ASKED BY HIS EMINENCE ARCHBISHOP DEMETRIOS TO REACH OUT TO OUR PARISHIONERS IN HOPES OF RAISING AN OFFERING FOR THE REBUILDING OF ST. NICHOLAS. PLEASE BE AS GENEROUS AS YOU CAN IN YOUR OFFERING FOR THIS VERY IMPORTANT REBUILDING EFFORT OF OUR GREEK ORTHODOX ARCHDIOCESE AND OUR FAITH.
WE HAVE SENT OUT THE 2017 CALENDARS, AND HOPE THAT YOU CAN BE AS GENEROUS AS ALWAYS DURING THIS CHRISTMAS AN DNEW YEAR'S SEASON IN ORDER TO HELP OUR EFFORTS TO KEEP ST. JOHN'S A THRIVING COMMUNITY. I THANK YOU FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART.
JUDGING YOUR NEIGHBOR!
These are words most of us have heard since our youth, but first and foremost they are rooted in the Holy Bible. This gives them authority and power, but do we truly and completely understood its prohibition against judging others? The following is taken from Matthews Gospel 7:1-6, but I will only us a small part of the pericope in this message.
“Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and the measure you give will be the measure you get.”
This is pretty clear and cannot be misunderstood. It goes along the lines of “Do to others as you would have them do to you.” The way you want to be treated is the way you treat others around you. So it becomes something reciprocal like a boomeranged. You throw it and shortly it returns to you. It was the Beatles in 1969 on their album “Abbey Road,” who took this idea and created a song around it, and I think all of us can remember, "In the end the love you take is equal to the love you make." There is a kind of correlation here, what you give you get, a very simple principle that one can use as a rule to live by. As a result, are we never to judge?
This question has been pondered by many a theologian and philosopher. Does this mean we can never pass judgment on anyone or anything that offends us? I think not! The criteria set forth by Jesus in this Bible passage is very clear, but there is a caveat that speaks to when one can judge in this pericope, and it continues. “Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is a log in your own eye? You hypocrites, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.” Here then is the qualifier, “first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.”
Furthermore, there is a story I learned when I was at Mount Sinai, Egypt about a young monk called Father Seraphim who had been going through many trails and temptations since his entry into the monastic life. One day his spiritual guide Father Daniel, an old and experienced monk, had to leave the monastery for business and would return in a few days. Before leaving Father Daniel told Father Seraphim if he had any troubles or temptations that could not wait for his return he should go his protégé father Moses for confession.
After a few days Father Seraphim was tempted so severely that he decided to go see Father Moses for confession. His confession was so upsetting that Father Moses told him to leave the monastery and return to the world as a civilian because he was not cut out to be a monk. Father Seraphim was obedient, and packed up his small possession and left the monastery. On the way to the city he saw his spiritual father on his way back to the monastery. Bewildered, he asked Father Seraphim his spiritual son why he was leaving the monastery? Father Seraphim replied that Father Moses told him he was not fit to be a monk with these continuous temptations after such a long period of time. Father Daniel said; let’s return to the monastery and pickup where we left off.
Father Seraphim agreed and by nightfall they entered the monastery proper. Then Father Seraphim was told to go back to the cell he occupied for so many years. At this point Father Daniel went directly to the cell of Father Moses who told the Father Seraphim to leave the monastery. He knocked on the door and Father Moses opened the door and greeted his superior. Loving words were exchanged about Father Seraphim and Father Moses stated that he thought that Father Seraphim was not fit to be a monk. With no rebuke the two said goodbye and the door of Father Moses’ cell closed.
However, Father Daniel did not leave, but stayed close to the door of Father Moses’ cell and prayed. “Dear Lord, please give Father Moses the temptations and troubles that my young monk Father Seraphim has been plagued with for so many years.” At that instant there came screems and thrashing around from Father Moses’ cell. It went on for sometime and then the door of his cell opened. Father Moses was traumatized and very distraught at what had happened to him. Then Father Daniel prayed again to remove the temptations from Father Moses and they subsided instantly.
At this point Father Daniel asked Father Moses what happened, and he replied, since I came to the monastery years ago I never had such an attack as this, and it was driving me out of my mind. With this Father Daniel replies, this is what the young monk Father Seraphim has been plagued with since his arrival in the monastery, and you could not withstand it for even five seconds. Moreover, you told him to leave the monastery since he was not fit to be a monk!
Finally, this is a perfect example of how judging can go wrong. No one knows the troubles one faces, until they walk in their shoes. Be very aware of judging others until you search your own soul and you remove the log that is blocking your vision, and then you can remove the small splinter in another one’s eye. Amen!
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