In today's Epistle to the Hebrews, St Paul recounts the sufferings endured by those who attempted to remain faithful to the All-Holy Trinity in the Old Testament. From his words, we read that many would endure suffering and death rather than give up their faith in the Lord. If you like, this could be seen as the prototype of martyrdom that the Holy Saints of the new Covenant would be called to endure. If one looks at our Church Calendar, one will find the names of many brave men and women who lost their lives for the sake of Christ's Kingdom the Church.
It must be remembered that we are the Body of Christ, and as such, we must always not be afraid to stand up for Him to confess Him to all. For Christ warns in today's Gospel that if we deny Him, He will deny us to His Father in Heaven (Matthew 10: 32). We live in an age where many seek to make being a Christian difficult. Everywhere in our society, we see people rejecting the faith in Christ that built our Civilisation. It is everywhere; one only has to turn on the television or go online to see ideologies and creeds that are foreign to Christianity being pushed as if they are somehow right and good. Unfortunately, many have adopted ideologies that seek to destroy rather than build – to destroy being the work of the evil one. Unfortunately, the Church has always been reviled and persecuted. Indeed, Saint Stephen was the first Christian to die for his faith. His own people killed Saint Stephen for the crime of confessing that Christ is the Son of God and, as such, the fulfillment of the Old Covenant – the long-awaited Messiah (Acts 7)!
We as Christians must be proud of the heritage afforded us by the many great fathers and mothers of our faith. Let us learn for the pages of history from the heroic deeds of these great saints. Remember, these men and women were not afraid to openly declare that they belong to Christ. To them, Christ is their rock, and no matter what the enemies of Christ tried in their day, they knew that this rock would be a firm rampart to which they could cling to for spiritual safety. In other words, no matter what the enemies of Christ did to their bodies, there was one thing that they could not harm – the souls of the Saints! The Church was forged through the sufferings of the saints. These Holy Saints offered their trials and sufferings to the Lord out of love so that others may come to have faith in Him, who is the only truth! This is why we honour the Saints and pray to them because they are now standing before Christ's throne, and Christ listens to their prayers! This is the grace of belonging to the Church, the Body of Christ, for the Communion of Saints is one big spiritual family who prays for each other. Just like a family looks after every member, so too does the Communion of Saints! Never despair, for we are not alone on this journey towards our Heavenly home! I encourage you to find a saint that you admire and start to pray to them that they may be able to guide you and pray for your intentions to our Lord and Saviour!
The Church has been persecuted since time immemorial, and we the Church look to the ultimate Victim to draw our strength for though Christ's contemporaries rejected Him and had Him put to death - He rose again and trampled down death by His death in the flesh (Paschal Troparion). We must not be like the Sergianist Moscow Patriarchate who have become synonymous with the state – so much so that Patriarch Kirill has built a holiday villa next to the leader of the Russian Federation's villa. If there is not a more explicit example of how the state has bought out the Moscow Patriachate, then I do not know what could be. How did a supposed Hieromonk (priest-monk) amass a fortune worth millions? A fortune built on tobacco and oil! Might I remind you the Orthodox Church does not condone smoking as it harms the body which is made in the Lord's image and likeness!
Unfortunately, the Moscow Patriarchate has forgotten the death of the thousands of New Martyrs who fought the good fight to keep the Orthodox faith alive in the Catacomb Church of Russia! Whilst they may commemorate these men and women on certain feast days, how disrespectful to their memory for the Church to be in bed with Cesar! Moreover, how dare they intervene in the affairs of another Church! They are not the owners of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, for it is uncanonical for them to meddle in the affairs of another jurisdiction! To do so is to try and become another Pope and do as the Pope's in Rome have done for centuries – meddle in the affairs of others for the sake of prestige!
The Catacomb Church was where the true Orthodox Church of Russia worked in secret to preserve the Orthodox faith. These brave bishops, priests, deacons, monks, nuns, and laypeople fought to keep the Orthodox faith alive in Russia. These people refused to become aligned with the Moscow Patriarchate, who under Metropolitan Sergius Stragorodsky (Installed 08/09/1943) swore the loyalty of the Moscow Patriarchate to the evil God-hating Communist party. Some may feel that this condemnation is harsh, but the Church cannot and must not be aligned to the state as She is not of this world.
Moreover, these same Communists were the same political party that had murdered thousands of Orthodox Christians. Sergius took the coward's way out, and like the early Christian apostates who offered food at pagan idol's feet to save their lives, Patriarch Sergius offered the loyalty of the Church to Stalin (one of the original Bolsheviks responsible for the death of millions in Russia)!
This is unprecedented in the Church's history, which rightly prays that the nation it is in is governed justly. That is all we are to do pray, for those who govern our lands and pray that they do so justly! We are not called to serve the government and its needs. This is why it is imperative that we pray to all the New Martyrs of Russia that through their prayers, the Church may continue to do the work She has been charged with to bring mankind to the All-Holy Trinity. We are not called to intervene in the affairs of the state. If the state does wrong, we are to make it clear to them that they have erred, but that is all! We are not an extension of the government; we are the workers in Christ's Vineyard working for an abundant harvest that is the salvation of mankind! Therefore, if we live law-abiding lives and live by the principles of the Gospel, seeking the salvation of all then we are doing the will of the All-Holy Trinity!
Finally, I ask each and every one of you to pray to the All-Holy Trinity that this dreadful plague of the Corona Virus may go away. Pray that the All-Holy Trinity may look down upon us and listen to our cries that we may be able to get back to normality. Moreover, as many in the community are suffering from the effects of the lockdowns, please seek to help those who may need help. If we as a Church community can show the love of Christ to these people, then they will have the opportunity to be touched by the hand of Christ that beckons them to the Eucharistic feast, which is the Mystical life-giving fountain out of which flows all good gifts from above.
In peace, let us pray to the Lord that He may bring all to Him who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life of all who believe.
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