Homily on the 3rd Sunday after Pentecost
“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”
This morning my wife, our children and I went for our morning weekend walk and I couldn’t help but notice/appreciate the beauty of our Lord’s creation; from the trees to the lakes, to the birds in the sky and to the new born swans that have finally emerged from their nests – exploring their new world!
It is wonderful and heartwarming to see how many families go to admire these wonderful creatures; bringing them bits of bread and oats which they love to eat!
As I watched the baby swans follow their mothers every move it made me think, “We as Christians must be as these small swans with our Mother whom our Lord ever so Mercifully gave us at the foot of His All Glorious cross when He acclaimed- “Here is your Mother”Jn19:27 Furthermore, in the book of Exodus, when God gave the ten commandments to Moses for the people to live by; the fifth commandment clearly sates - “Honour thy Father (God) and thy Mother (Theotokos)” Ex 20:12
Sadly, there are many misconceptions regarding the Mother of God. Stupidity, ignorance and evil influence has led many to believe that we Orthodox Christians worship our Virgin Mother; placing Her on the same level as God! (Pagan Goddess) That could not be further away from the truth. Christ gave us His Mother as an advocate for humanity because He (Christ) knows that we as humans need that motherly tenderness which can only come from a woman! She is the one that is constantly interceding for humanity; asking Her Son to pardon, forgive and be patient with our shortcoming's!
Hence, throughout history there have been numerus accounts from orthodox Christians of the Holy Theotokos protecting them from plagues, wars and all sorts of infirmities! One that comes to mind is the recount of the Life-Giving spring!
One day a man named Leo who would later become Emperor Leo the Great, was travelling through dense bushland. On his journey he met a blind man who asked Leo to help him find some water to drink. As they traveled together unable to find any water Leo suddenly heard the voice of a woman cry out to him saying - “Emperor Leo, go into the deepest part of the wood’s and you will find water there. She then stated to Leo - “Take some cloudy water with your hands and give it to the blind man to drink and after so, place the clay from the waters upon his eyes. Then you shall know who I am!” Thus, Leo obeyed the commands of the woman whom he later knew to be the Mother of God (Theotokos) The blind man regained his sight and just as the Holy Mother prophesied, Leo became Emperor Leo! There is an Icon of this Miraculous occurrence; it is called the Icon of The Life-Giving Spring which the Church commemorates on the Friday Of Bright Week.
Therefore, small day to day natural beauties go un-noticed purely because we as humanity have unfortunately evolved into a population which is constantly on the go; being fueled by out-doing one another with materialistic possessions – I have the bigger house, I have the most expensive car, I have the designer clothing, I, I, I!!! (Self-Obsession)
We have excluded God from our lives, thus resulting in marriage breakdowns, children becoming feral ei, disregard for parents and authorities, drug and alcohol abuse, racism and so on...!
How many times have we perhaps thought of a solution to a problem that we believed would be the one that would mend the situation in need of immediate repair? How many times have we heard – it’s better or easier to be a married cleric because firstly they have the best of both worlds (Serving God and starting a family) and secondly, they have a better understanding of how to help the faithful with marital problems.
Yes! It is true that being a married cleric has its advantages in regards to marriage advice. However, at times being a married cleric can take a slight toll on family life. For example, each week when I have posted a homily, I have taken several hours out of the time that could have been spent with the wife and children in order to fulfil my obligation within my ministry.
Further, there have been several occasions when my wife and I could not attend family gatherings or decline outings due to the celebration of divine services. This is not an easy thing to have to go through because we all would like to have some kind of social life too. There have also been times when my wife would feel as if she was placed to the side and felt somewhat neglected; which was never the case. However, it is a reality that the married cleric is constantly dealing with trying to find a way to balance his work life, his family life and his life within Holy Mother Church!
In addition, I am sure there will most likely come a time when my daughters are older and they will want to go out with their friends to parties and events which I cannot permit or excuse them to attend due to celebrating feats days of the Church - ei Pascha, Nativity.... I then will have other challenges ahead of me. However, as St. Ioannikios, a monk from the 8th century prayed - "My hope is the Father, my refuge is the Son, my shelter is the Holy Spirit, O Holy Trinity, glory be to You. Amen
Therefore, for those who think that being a married cleric is easier than living a life of monasticism that conception is totally wrong! Nether one of these lives are meant to be easy. They have their own challenges; however, they are extremely and eternally rewarding!
In conclusion, just as it is written in today's gospel - “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?” so too must we all remember; if we live in God and God in us and we adhere to His divine commands, nothing evil will ever ruin our relationship with Him or with our families! It is only through Him that the family unit becomes whole and our lives are made whole for He is the Treasure of Blessings and Giver of Life!
Through the prayers and intercessions of the Theotokos, Lord Jesus Christ have Mercy on us!
Comentários