Εβρ 4:14-16, 5:1-6

Ἀδελφοί, ἔχοντες Ἀρχιερέα μέγαν διεληλυθότα τοὺς οὐρανούς, Ἰησοῦν τὸν Υἱὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ, κρατῶμεν τῆς ὁμολογίας. Οὐ γὰρ ἔχομεν ἀρχιερέα μὴ δυνάμενον συμπαθῆσαι ταῖς ἀσθενείαις ἡμῶν, πεπειρασμένον δὲ κατὰ πάντα καθ' ὁμοιότητα χωρὶς ἁμαρτίας. Προσερχώμεθα οὖν μετὰ παῤῥησίας τῷ θρόνῳ τῆς χάριτος, ἵνα λάβωμεν ἔλεον καὶ χάριν εὕρωμεν εἰς εὔκαιρον βοήθειαν. Πᾶς γὰρ Ἀρχιερεὺς ἐξ ἀνθρώπων λαμβανόμενος ὑπὲρ ἀνθρώπων καθίσταται τὰ πρὸς τὸν Θεόν, ἵνα προσφέρῃ δῶρά τε καὶ θυσίας ὑπὲρ ἁμαρτιῶν· μετριοπαθεῖν δυνάμενος τοῖς ἀγνοοῦσι καὶ πλανωμένοις, ἐπεὶ καὶ αὐτὸς περίκειται ἀσθένειαν· καὶ διὰ ταύτην ὀφείλει, καθὼς περὶ τοῦ λαοῦ, οὕτω καὶ περὶ ἑαυτοῦ προσφέρειν ὑπὲρ ἁμαρτιῶν. Καὶ οὐχ ἑαυτῷ τις λαμβάνει τὴν τιμήν, ἀλλὰ καλούμενος ὑπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ, καθάπερ καὶ ὁ Ἀαρών. Οὔτω καὶ ὁ Χριστὸς οὐχ ἑαυτὸν ἐδόξασε γενηθῆναι ἀρχιερέα, ἀλλ' ὁ λαλήσας πρὸς αὐτόν· Υἱός μου εἶ σύ, ἐγὼ σήμερον γεγέννηκά σε· καθὼς καὶ ἐν ἑτέρῳ λέγει· σὺ ἱερεὺς εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα κατὰ τὴν τάξιν Μελχισεδέκ.

 Μαρ ηʹ 34 – θʹ 1

Εἶπεν ὁ Κύριος· Ὅστις θέλει ὀπίσω μου ἀκολουθεῖν, ἀπαρνησάσθω ἑαυτὸν καὶ ἀράτω τὸν σταυρὸν αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἀκολουθείτω μοι. ὃς γὰρ ἂν θέλῃ τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ σῶσαι, ἀπολέσει αὐτήν· ὃς δ' ἂν ἀπολέσῃ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ ψυχὴν ἕνεκεν ἐμοῦ καὶ τοῦ εὐαγγελίου, οὗτος σώσει αὐτήν. τί γὰρ ὠφελήσει ἄνθρωπον ἐὰν κερδήσῃ τὸν κόσμον ὅλον, καὶ ζημιωθῇ τὴν ψυχὴν αὐτοῦ; ἢ τί δώσει ἄνθρωπος ἀντάλλαγμα τῆς ψυχῆς αὐτοῦ; ὃς γὰρ ἐὰν ἐπαισχυνθῇ με καὶ τοὺς ἐμοὺς λόγους ἐν τῇ γενεᾷ ταύτῃ τῇ μοιχαλίδι καὶ ἁμαρτωλῷ, καὶ ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐπαισχυνθήσεται αὐτὸν ὅταν ἔλθῃ ἐν τῇ δόξῃ τοῦ πατρὸς αὐτοῦ μετὰ τῶν ἀγγέλων τῶν ἁγίων. Καὶ ἔλεγεν αὐτοῖς· Ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν ὅτι εἰσί τινες ὧδε τῶν ἑστηκότων, οἵτινες οὐ μὴ γεύσωνται θανάτου ἕως ἂν ἴδωσι τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐληλυθυῖαν ἐν δυνάμει

Sunday of the Holy Cross

 My beloved friends in the Lord:

              This Sunday of the Adoration of the Holy and Life-Giving Cross, the mid-point of the spiritual journey of Great Lent and a turning point in our Lenten effort. From this point on we begin to look intently to the Crucifixion of our Lord and embrace its power in our own lives as we continue to make our way to the Empty Tomb. Before this we were getting accustomed to the disciplines of Lent, settling in to a new rhythm of life. It takes time to adjust to fasting and intensification of prayer and Church services.

            Taking up the Cross and following the Lord is often identified with obedience to the commandments. Indeed we are commanded to follow them by the Lord, by Holy Scripture and by the Holy Fathers. But we are mistaken if we see the commandments as only those moral and ethical proscriptions written in Holy Scripture. Those are the overarching themes for sure, but His commandments are much more personal and intimate than that.

             God’s commandments are revealed to us moment by moment! That is why it is essential that we practice watchfulness (mindfulness). Only those who are watchful and mindful are able to discern, to see, to hear these commandments whispered in the depths of our hearts. This is one of the benefits of consciousness in the Christian life. It is the road to enlightenment which is above all a gift of the Holy Spirit given at the right moment, the moment when the believer is ready. When we come to see that each moment is an incomparable, unrepeatable, and invaluable gift as well, then we know we have begun to awaken.

             The Cross shows us the great divide between a life lived selfishly and life lived authentically in accordance with the original intent of the Creator. Sin, death, and the Adversary were defeated by Christ on the Cross by His supreme self-giving sacrifice, but their shadow resides in our hearts, infecting us and deluding us to the truth of life. We see the shadow (the concerns, desires, and cares of the world) and believe it to be the Sun itself. The truth is that these empty concerns, as the funeral service tells us, are “only a shadow and a dream.” To leave behind the shadow and turn toward the Light each and every moment as it is revealed is what it means to take up the Cross deny ourselves. Life in Christ unrolls like a red carpet before each step is taken one precious moment at a time

             It is of no value to view the commandments as impersonal laws that we are supposed to apply to our lives. It is far more valuable to see them as coming from the Lord Himself who dwells within and who guides us with His still, small voice in every intimate moment of life. Otherwise, the Christian life becomes only an intellectual exercise and not an intimate journey. Each “little” obedience in each “little” moment weakens the “old man” allowing space for the “new man” to grow.

             St. Maximos makes a fascinating distinction as he interiorizes the First and Second Comings of Christ. The first coming, he writes, corresponds to the newly baptized soul receiving Christ and the Holy Spirit within. He writes that the Lord hides Himself in the inner temple of the heart. Gradually, as the believer awakens to His presence and begins the work of purification reaching at last the perfection of virtues the indwelling Christ reveals Himself in His glory – a type of the Second Coming. Those who experience this interior “second coming” will no way be surprised when the Lord returns “on the clouds.” They will recognize that the event has already taken place in their hearts.

              Christ, the Lord of both the First and Second Coming, is hidden in each personal, moment-by-moment Logos and commandment of God. As we become more and more awake and aware of this interior work all of life, interior and exterior, is transformed, and we gradually become more and more like Him. This is the work of the Cross as it relates to us and our daily lives: to wake up, pay attention, be still and listen, and then to let go of the shadow more and more so that we come to not only hear, but obey.

              When Jesus says, “Truly I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God has come with power,” he is not only referring to those three apostles who saw Him transfigured in His glory on Mount Tabor, but to those of us who come to see Him transfigured in glory in our own hearts.

              Praying that we faithfully traverse the journey of the Great Lent so that it may lead us to a greater level of spiritual awareness and closeness with our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, I humbly remain,

  With paternal love and blessings in Christ,

 +Protopresbyter Panagiotis 

The following services will be celebrated in April and for Holy Week

* Friday, April 2nd – 7:00pm 3rd Salutations to the Holy Theotokos