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We worship Thy Nativity, O Christ, Show us also Thy divine Theophany Nativity of Jesus Christ, Eve of Nativity. Text/Audio.

Friday, January 6th, 2012

We worship Thy Nativity, O Christ, Show us also Thy divine Theophany

Nativity of Jesus Christ, Eve of Nativity

December 24, 2011

In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Today, brothers and sisters, on this pre‑feast of Nativity, we hear so much about the humility and the lowliness of Christ. Many things that are not befitting of a king are happening. He is poor. He is born of a woman that is not even married; this is a scandal to society. He is born in a cave, in a manger, a cold manger because it was winter. And kings come to Him, later on, not on the day of His birth, a little bit later when they were in the house, to worship Him. They worshipped a poor Man in a poor little house. Usually when a king's son is born, it is heralded over the entire country. And only a few shepherds heard.

So many things that are contradictions about the way the world treats its kings, happened to our Lord. I think that's all for our purpose. That is to show us the way to live. Of course, our Lord gave us an example how to live, and He fulfilled that example. That was an essential purpose of the Incarnation. We can't say it was only to forgive sin. It was also, and more importantly, so that we could obliterate sin so that sin could be cast out from us. The way for that to happen is for us to be told the way and shown it, by example, and for us to be given the ability to follow the way. And that is what we celebrate in the Incarnation, in the Nativity of the Lord.

Now, we just read from St. Luke's account about the Nativity that Mary kept all these things conjecturing them in her heart. We should follow that example. That's very, very important.

That is what the services really do. All of our services are this conjecturing in our heart, this thinking about holy things and rephrasing the dogmas of our faith in ways that touch us. If you listen to the services carefully, you will see things or hear things every day that are striking to you, that are amazing to you, that cut you to the core. And you should conjecture on them in your heart.

One cannot think too much about the Incarnation or about the Resurrection or about the humility of our Lord or about the coming of the Holy Spirit or about any dogma or any truth or any teaching that is in all of the Scriptures, whether it be in the Gospel or the epistles or anywhere else.

I know a story of a monk that had left and gone out into the wilderness because he heard the first portion of the first Psalm, and he meditated upon that and tried to live according to that for his entire life. And that's enough if we conjecture even such a small part of a Psalm in our heart.

Now, today in the ninth hour there is this solemn troparion that is sung. It's sung three times in the middle of the church. It is very beautiful, very profound, and you do prostrations afterwards. And its meaning is something that you should conjecture in your heart because it ends in this very solemn and profound way:

"We worship Thy Nativity, O, Christ. We worship Thy Nativity, O Christ. Show us also Thy divine Theophany."

Now, Nativity and Theophany have always been connected historically. There was a time when they were a single feast. Now they are disconnected by twelve days, but they are still connected in our liturgy. They are still connected in our hymnology. So this is certainly a reference to the Theophany about to occur. We have another name for it, Epiphany or the Baptism of Christ. Theophany and Epiphany basically mean about the same thing. They are a manifestation of God to man.

And there have been many Theophanies such as when the holy children saw the Angel of the Lord in the furnace; that is none other than the pre‑incarnate Jesus Christ. Abraham gave hospitality to three Angels; one of them was the Angel of the Lord, the pre‑incarnate Jesus Christ.

Moses was in the mountain and he said, "I want to see Thy face." The Lord says, "You can't see My face. No one can see My face and live." But He said, "I will show you My back parts. I will put you in the cleft of the rock." And when the glory of the Lord passed by, Moses was in the cleft of the rock. That was a Theophany of the pre‑incarnate Lord Jesus Christ.

But now we don't have to have Theophanies of the pre‑incarnate Lord Jesus Christ because He has been born of the woman and He is now a Man, a perfected Man, as we should become.

So when we are singing this, deeply in your heart, you should feel what the purpose of the Incarnation is for. It is so that we could see the divine Theophany. We're not talking about the feast coming up twelve days after Christmas. We're talking about the manifestation of God in the Psalm, because our purpose is to know God and know Him intimately.

So this is why the Lord was born. This is why the Lord taught. This is why the Lord assembled twelve apostles and why He died on the Cross for us and why He resurrected and why He ascended into the Heavens and then sent the Holy Spirit to us. All of these things are for one purpose and one purpose only: So that we would know Him.

We cannot know Him without becoming purified. So when we say, "We worship Thy Nativity, O Christ; show us also Thy divine Theophany," we are begging the Lord for help. We're being aware that the Lord has come so that we could be purified so that we could know Him.

"To the pure all things are pure," the Scripture says. And also, "Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God." We cannot see God and know Him without becoming purified. But if you look in your own life, you will see there are a lot of things that are not pure and not good.

The Lord came so that those things would become purified; the darkness would become light, and the coldness would become warmth. And the blindness would become all eye, all seeing, so that we would see the Lord as He is and not be afraid.

This is what we are praying for: That the Lord would indwell in us, cleanse us of all sin, so that we would be in a perfected state; so that we could see Him and know Him as He is ‑‑ not as a pre‑incarnate Angel of the Lord, but as the God‑Man Jesus Christ, the eternal One, the Only Begotten of the Father, the Lord of Heaven and the earth ‑‑ and be in His presence and not be ashamed but be glad.

This is what we are asking for. If you read this hymn or sing it ‑‑ it's better to sing it, of course, if you can, because it's much more beautiful; it's in the sixth tone ‑‑ it begins speaking about the contradictions. And as I said in the beginning, this is important because the things that the Lord did were all for example: The prophecies that were given, those that are His progenitors, their lives: Are examples. Everything about Him is an example about how we should live.

The King of all, the Creator of the universe, humbled Himself to become a poor Man. So we should humble ourselves. It doesn't matter if we are poor in terms of monetary wealth or not, but we must be poor in spirit or else we can't know God.

So here is what this hymn says.

"Today He Who in essence is God intangible and holdeth all creation in His hand is born of the Virgin and wrapped as a mortal in swaddling bands. He lieth in a manger, Who established the Heavens by His Word in the beginning. He is fed at the breast with milk, Who rained down manna upon the people in the wilderness. The Bridegroom of the Church summoneth the magi; the Son of the Virgin receiveth their gifts. We worship Thy Nativity, O Christ. We worship Thy Nativity, O Christ. We worship Thy Nativity, O Christ. Show us also Thy divine Theophany."

So let it be for us. Let us become as the God‑Man. So that we can have His Theophany shown to us, in us. Amen.

Priest Seraphim Holland 2011

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Parable of the Harvest of the Rich Man. Two kinds of men, of ground, of rooms, of ways to talk to the soul, of goods, or treasure, of wealth.

Monday, December 5th, 2011

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Synopsis: The Parable of the Harvest of the Rich man has many pairs of things which are contrasted: 2 kinds of men, of ground, of rooms, of ways to talk to the soul, of goods, or treasure, of wealth. We look at all of them.

Luke 12:16-21 16 And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully: 17 And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? 18 And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. 20 But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided? 21 So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.

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The Gadarene Demoniac. The various temptations of the demons. Without the help of God we would not survive them, and without this cardinal virtue we will never be victorious over them.

Monday, November 14th, 2011

The Exorcism of the Demoniacs of the Gergesenes LISTEN NOW

Synopsis: The demons can tempt man in many ways, and the exorcism of the Gadarene demoniac shows three aspects of their warfare against man. We are shown that without God, we would be annihilated by the demons, and that their most deadly attacks are invisible to most people. If we want to be rid of the demons and their influence, there is one thing that we must do.

Luke 8:26-39 26 And they arrived at the country of the Gadarenes, which is over against Galilee. 27 And when he went forth to land, there met him out of the city a certain man, which had devils long time, and ware no clothes, neither abode in any house, but in the tombs. 28 When he saw Jesus, he cried out, and fell down before him, and with a loud voice said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God most high? I beseech thee, torment me not. 29 (For he had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For oftentimes it had caught him: and he was kept bound with chains and in fetters; and he brake the bands, and was driven of the devil into the wilderness.) 30 And Jesus asked him, saying, What is thy name? And he said, Legion: because many devils were entered into him. 31 And they besought him that he would not command them to go out into the deep. 32 And there was there an herd of many swine feeding on the mountain: and they besought him that he would suffer them to enter into them. And he suffered them. 33 Then went the devils out of the man, and entered into the swine: and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the lake, and were choked. 34 When they that fed them saw what was done, they fled, and went and told it in the city and in the country. 35 Then they went out to see what was done; and came to Jesus, and found the man, out of whom the devils were departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed, and in his right mind: and they were afraid. 36 They also which saw it told them by what means he that was possessed of the devils was healed. 37 Then the whole multitude of the country of the Gadarenes round about besought him to depart from them; for they were taken with great fear: and he went up into the ship, and returned back again. 38 Now the man out of whom the devils were departed besought him that he might be with him: but Jesus sent him away, saying, 39 Return to thine own house, and shew how great things God hath done unto thee. And he went his way, and published throughout the whole city how great things Jesus had done unto him.

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Homilies about Demoniacs.

The Gergesenes Demoniac, from Matthew 8:28-9:1, is read on the 5^th Sunday after Pentecost.

The Gadarene Demonic from Luke 8:26-39 is read on the 23^rd Sunday after Pentecost, or in churches that observe the Lukan Jump, on the 6^th Sunday of Luke.

The exorcism of the Lunatic Son, from Matthew 17:14-23, is read on the 10th Sunday after Pentecost

The Gergesenes Demoniac

The Healing of the Gergesenes demoniacs – Every occurence in our life is a meeting with Christ. (Matthew 8:28-9:1) 2008 AUDIO

The Gergesenes Demoniacs. We all must answer the question: 'What have we to do with Thee, Jesus, thou Son of God?' Matthew 8:28-9:1 (2009) HTML)

Also in Format: Word DOC or mp3

The Gergesenes Demoniacs and the killing of the conscience (Matthew 8:28-9:1) 2010 AUDIO

SYNOPSIS:The reaction of the people of the Gergesenes to their encounter with Christ is a textbook example of how to kill the conscience. We would do well to recognize everything about this great tragedy, and be honest enough within ourselves to see how we often act like the people of the Gergesenes. Various ways to root out the passions shown by these people, which are common in our own lives, are discussed.

The Gadarene Demoniac

The Gadarene Demoniac. (Luke 8-26-39) 1996 HTML

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The Gadarene Demoniac. 23rd Sunday after Pentecost (Luke 8-26-39) 2002 AUDIO

The Gadarene Demoniac. 23rd Sunday after Pentecost (Luke 8-26-39) 2004

The Gadarene Demoniac 23rd Sunday after Pentecost (Ephesians 2:4-10, Luke 8:26-39) 2007 AUDIO

The Gadarene Demoniac. Do not miss any opportunity! A very common question and the 2 ways to understand the answer. 23rd Sunday after Pentecost (Ephesians 2:4-10, Luke 8:26-39) 2008 AUDIO

The Exorcism of the Lunatic Son

The Exorcism of the Demoniac boy. "According to your faith, be it unto you" (Matthew 9:27-35, Romans 15:1-7) 2008 AUDIO

SYNOPSIS:The faith of the two blind man Jesus healed and of the men who brought the mute demoniac for healing demonstrate two aspects of faith. The demoniac's muteness shows lack of faith; we cannot proclaim that which we do not know and experience, and the Holy Spirit will not reside where Evil is. We are a composite of all of these examples. How do we gain faith, so that the Lord will say to us "According to your faith, be it unto you"? The answer is contained in the Epistle for today: "We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves."

The Healing of the Demoniac Boy. The "Golden Chain" connecting faith and prayer and fasting. 10th Sunday after Pentecost (Matthew 17:14-23) 2000 HTML

Also in Format: Adobe PDF or Word DOC or mp3 You can watch this sermon on the following video platforms: YouTube, Yahoo, MySpace, Metacafe, Google, Revver, AOL Video, DailyMotion, Blip.tv and Veoh

SYNOPSIS:The story of the healing of the demoniac boy illustrates two kinds of belief (faith) and two kinds of unbelief. If we want to have true and saving belief we must recognize the relationship between faith and prayer and fasting (and also understand that "fasting" involves much more than just abstaining from certain kinds of food).

The Exorcism Of The Lunatic Son. Why fast? 10^th Sunday after Pentecost Matthew 17:14-23 2009 HTML

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The Exorcism Of The Lunatic Son. Why could we not cast him out? 10th Sunday after Pentecost (Galations 5:22-26 Matthew 17:14-23 John 17:1-13) 2010 HTML

Also in Format: Word DOC or mp3

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The Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus. Everything in life is a trade. How do we always make good trades?

Monday, November 7th, 2011

Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus LISTEN NOW

Synopsis: The Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus is quickly explained, then we talk about the important and frightening words: "Remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented." Our Lord is giving us an immutable principle, which we can use as a sort of mnemonic device to judge everything we do. This is difficult without much change, and the Apostle Paul offers the way to accomplish this massive task of proper trading: "I am crucified with Christ: neverthless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God"

More homilies on the Sunday Gospels of St Luke are HERE

SCRIPTURETEXT

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The longer explanation of the Parable of the Sower, the purpose of life and how to be good ground – Take heed therefore how ye hear!

Monday, October 31st, 2011

Christ the Sower LISTEN NOW

Synopsis: The parable of the sower is a rare parable, in that it is explained by the Lord Himself. This explanation is actually longer than most people think and we discuss what His other words, which are not part of the traditional reading, mean. These include "No man, when he hath lighted a candle, covereth it with a vessel" and "Take heed therefore how ye hear: for whosoever hath, to him shall be given; and whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken even that which he seemeth to have." Together with the parable, the explanation teaches us the basic purpose of life and how to be "good ground".

More homilies on the Sundays of the Gospel of Luke are HERE

Luk 8:5-18 A sower went out to sow his seed: and as he sowed, some fell by the way side; and it was trodden down, and the fowls of the air devoured it. (6) And some fell upon a rock; and as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away, because it lacked moisture. (7) And some fell among thorns; and the thorns sprang up with it, and choked it. (8) And other fell on good ground, and sprang up, and bare fruit an hundredfold. And when he had said these things, he cried, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. (9) And his disciples asked him, saying, What might this parable be? (10) And he said, Unto you it is given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God: but to others in parables; that seeing they might not see, and hearing they might not understand. (11) Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God. (12) Those by the way side are they that hear; then cometh the devil, and taketh away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved. (13) They on the rock are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away. (14) And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection. (15) But that on the good ground are they, which in an honest and good heart, having heard the word, keep it, and bring forth fruit with patience. (16) No man, when he hath lighted a candle, covereth it with a vessel, or putteth it under a bed; but setteth it on a candlestick, that they which enter in may see the light. (17) For nothing is secret, that shall not be made manifest; neither any thing hid, that shall not be known and come abroad. (18) Take heed therefore how ye hear: for whosoever hath, to him shall be given; and whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken even that which he seemeth to have.

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And the Lord … said unto her, Weep not. And he came and touched the bier: and they that bare him stood still." – The mystical and very practical meaning of these words. 3rd Sunday of Luke

Monday, October 24th, 2011

The raising of the Son of the Widow of nain LISTEN NOW

Synopsis: Only the Lord has the authority to tell us to "weep not". There is an epidemic of dysfunctional sadness in the world today; it is being treated by many partial solutions that often increase the despair and emptiness: medications, entertainments, passions. After His command to the Widow of Nain, the Lord mystically gives us the path we must travel in order to fulfill His command to "weep not" – "And he came and touched the bier: and they that bare him stood still." There is no other path that leads to true happiness. We explore the mystical meaning of these words, also incorporating an epistle read today: "And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts." and "Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.", and offer many practical suggestions on what we must do to live according to these words. the only key to happiness is here. The World does not have it; only Christ does, and through the healing of the Widow of Nain and the exhortation of St Paul to the Galatians, the path to it is clearly explained.

More homilies on the Sunday Gospel of Luke are HERE

Luke 7:11-16 11 And it came to pass the day after, that he went into a city called Nain; and many of his disciples went with him, and much people. 12 Now when he came nigh to the gate of the city, behold, there was a dead man carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow: and much people of the city was with her. 13 And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her, and said unto her, Weep not. 14 And he came and touched the bier: and they that bare him stood still. And he said, Young man, I say unto thee, Arise. 15 And he that was dead sat up, and began to speak. And he delivered him to his mother. 16 And there came a fear on all: and they glorified God, saying, That a great prophet is risen up among us; and, That God hath visited his people.

Galatians 5:22-6:2 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, (23) Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. (24) And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. (25) If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. (26) Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another. (6:1) Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted. (2) Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.

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That the whole evening may be perfect, holy, peaceful and sinless, let us ask of the Lord.” Why do we pray this prayer, when past experience tells us that it will not be fulfilled today?

Saturday, October 22nd, 2011

A deacon intoning a litanty, by Andrie Ryabushkin LISTEN NOW

Synopsis: In the last litany of Vespers and Matins we pray "That the whole evening may be perfect, holy, peaceful and sinless, let us ask of the Lord." Why do we pray this prayer, when past experience tells us that it will not be fulfilled today? Do we mean what we say, or are these just words? We look into the meaning and intent of this prayer and why it is so important. We should understand what we pray, why we pray and what we must do to indicate to the Lord that we mean what we pray.

More commentary on Orthodox Service Texts are HERE

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A Spiritual reflection regarding Prayer of an Orthodox Christian priest in front of a late term abortion clinic during the Dallas 40 days for life campaign.

Friday, October 21st, 2011

The Lament of Rachel.

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Synopsis: The personal experience of an Orthodox Christian and priest praying in front of a late term abortion clinic during the 40 days for life campaign, Wednesday, Oct 19, 2011. This is difficult and heavy prayer because outside, on the street, things look normal, but inside some lives are terminated, and many other lives are perhaps irrevocably damaged in terrible ways. A spiritual reflection, including whether we should pray for "them" or "us", and that a Christian must feel responsible for all sin and act upon his inner impulses from the heart, and about praying "one hour", and personalizing the "Akathist for a Woman Who Has Aborted a Child"

The reason for the golden rule: “Ye shall be the children of the highest for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil”. Second Sunday of St Luke; Luke 6:31-36

Monday, October 17th, 2011

LISTEN NOW

Synopsis: Everybody knows the Golden Rule, but few understand is essence. Many feel it is a command based upon common sense, and others even believe it is a way of changing the behavior of others. The reason for it is given plainly by the words of our Lord: "Your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil." We explore the great privilege we have as Christians to become Children of the Highest, and why the fulfillment if the Golden Rule is indispensable for this to happen

Luke 6:31-36 31 And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise. 32 For if ye love them which love you, what thank have ye? for sinners also love those that love them. 33 And if ye do good to them which do good to you, what thank have ye? for sinners also do even the same. 34 And if ye lend to them of whom ye hope to receive, what thank have ye? for sinners also lend to sinners, to receive as much again. 35 But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil. 36 Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.

More homilies on Luke 6:31-36, about the “Golden Rule”

"As ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise." – Audio

The Golden Rule – Ye Shall Be The Children Of The Highest
SYNOPSIS:The "Golden Rule" is explained, including a mention of how the world twists this rule into a sort of magical "law of attraction". The REASON for the golden rule and everything we do is because we are "children of the highest".

Saint John Of Kronstadt, and The Purpose Of The Incarnation, "Ye shall be children of the Highest" Luke 6:31-36
SYNOPSIS:On this Sunday before Nativity, St John of Kronstadt is also commemorated, and the Gospel for him and his life perfectly describes the purpose of the Incarnation. This Gospel contains our Lord's admonishments to love, using concrete examples, and concludes with the promise "And ye shall be children of the highest". This is the purpose of the incarnation, and examining this Gospel along with St John's life, which struggled to fulfill it illuminates this purpose for us, therefore, on this Sunday when we read the "Begats", it is appropriate to delve into what is means to be children of the highest, and how and why we can attain this high calling. We also suggest another way to describe the "Golden Rule" and what should be our inner motivation for loving our fellow man, and doing anything that is good in this life.

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Sanctity Of Life Sunday. Christians Must Not Accept Abortion and Sexual Immorality Being Redefined 2011

Monday, October 10th, 2011

“The Lament of Rachel”

From Zoe for Life

May God bless you. A word about the Moleben that we just served.

Just recently was the 38^th anniversary of the Roe versus Wade decision, that dark day in our country when the idea that murdering a child is a right given to us by the Constitution and is a right that is part of our right of privacy.

Now the idea has come about, and had been nurtured now for 38 years, to rewrite language to talk about being “pro-choice”. There have been fifty million children aborted since the Roe versus Wade decision.

Ironically, the person involved in Roe versus Wade, had lied about her pregnancy, she had said she had been raped; she had not. The pregnancy was from fornication. And she had had the baby, and the baby was already two years old when the decision came down. She has since repented and become a Christian and is very much pro-life, Of course, that is not something that is well known, I think.

Fifty million children!

I want to tell you that as a Christian, you must not allow the times to influence you. Right now we are in the midst of the rewriting of language; even “God” means something different now than it did only a few years ago, and “Christian” means something different.

Now, there are those that say that:

You can be a Christian and be pro choice;

You can be a Christian and abort your child;

You can be a Christian and be a practicing unrepentant homosexual.

These things are not possible, brothers and sisters.

You can be a Christian and be guilty of any sin and repent from it. You can be a Christian and be weak in some area of your life, maybe even for a long period of time, and struggle against this weakness. But you cannot be a Christian and give in wholly to the way of the times and believe: That one can be pro-choice and that it is correct for a woman to take that which is in her womb, a human being created in the image and likeness of God, and kill it.

Now, in any room of people that I may not know well, it is always possible that there are sins that you haven’t even remembered or perhaps that you are ashamed of that I don’t know about. Any sin that you commit, whether it be abortion or any other sin, you can repent from it and God will cleanse you completely. And God will give you healing, but only if you recognize what is right and what is wrong.

Our country does not want to do that anymore. They cloak things in high-sounding language like being pro-choice or having a right to privacy, when actually they are covering up the stench of sin.

Another word used nowadays is “homophobia” as if to believe that what the Gospel teaches, what the Bible teaches about homosexual relations, somehow makes a person a bigot and a phobic person. We’re not afraid of anybody. We just know what is right and what is wrong, that is, what ultimately leads to eternal life or eternal death.

And I want to make it clear to you that these sins, these sexual sins which are inundating our country,- (and abortion is really a sexually-related sin), are part and parcel of people wanting to have whatever pleasure they wish without any consequences, without any responsibility for what they do. These sins are polluting our country and polluting us. We must stand against them.

Now, even if we struggle against these sins, perhaps not always successfully, if we recognize that they are wrong, fundamentally wrong, then God will help us.

On this day I believe – Is there a march in Washington, D.C., today? Isn’t that right? It’s tomorrow. This march, if you’re careful, you’ll see that this march will be vastly underreported in mainstream media. They will say that there are fifty thousand, a hundred thousand people, when there may be well over a million, because the world does not want to admit what is right and what is wrong. This happens year after year, that this event is underreported, or that they find one kind of crazy person on the fringes of the crowd and says crazy things and try to make that to be what all people who believe in the sanctity of life are like. Don’t believe these things, brothers and sisters.

Believe the truth. Believe that God made life in the womb and that any fetus is made in the image of God.

And if any of you ever had any struggles with this, believed opposite to this, believed what the world says about it, the lie that the world tells, or have submitted and had an abortion; I beg you to speak to me.

This is a terrible tragedy for a woman as well as the child because there are two victims in an abortion. The greater victim, the one that is harmed the most is the woman, because our world tells them: It is your choice, it is your right, it is even sometimes your responsibility, and it is a good thing, but the heart tells something different, and so there’s this conflict that occurs.

God wants your heart to be right with what you do, what you are. So may God help us and help everyone to find the truth about abortion in the world. So that’s why we served this small Moleben. I can’t go to the march, but at least we can raise up our voices.

And I want to make it clear to you, absolutely positively, killing a child in the womb is abortion or willful abortion and is a sin, and it is something that is very serious; it marks the soul until there is repentance. With repentance, everything can be erased; everything can be made new. Without repentance, it marks a person and makes it very difficult for them to live.

So my heart really goes out on this day for the millions of aborted women. That’s actually the medical term, women who have had an abortion are “aborted women.” This always sounded funny to me, but that is the medical terminology.

So women who had abortions, all of those women who have been told one thing; and their hearts, perhaps quietly, perhaps loudly, is telling them another; my prayer for them is that they would realize that they sinned and repent so that they would be cleansed and their life would begin anew.

Priest Seraphim Holland 2011

Transcribed by the hand of Helen. May God save her and her loved ones.

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This homily is at:

http://www.orthodox.net/catechism/orthopraxis_2011-01-23+sanctity-of-life-sunday+christians-must-not-accept-abortion-and-sexual-immorality-being-redefined.html

http://www.orthodox.net/catechism/orthopraxis_2011-01-23+sanctity-of-life-sunday+christians-must-not-accept-abortion-and-sexual-immorality-being-redefined.doc

Audio: http://www.orthodox.net/catechism/orthopraxis_2011-01-23+sanctity-of-life-sunday+christians-must-not-accept-abortion-and-sexual-immorality-being-redefined.mp3

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