My beloved brothers and sisters in Christ Our Only True Lord, God and Savior,
CHRIST IS BORN! GLORIFY HIM!
"How shall a small cave receive Thee, for Whom the world
cannot find room, O Thou Whom none can comprehend! O
Thou, Who with the Father art without beginning, how shalt
Thou appear as a small child?" (Saint Joseph the Hymnographer)
"The Great King comes in haste to enter a small cave, that He may make me great who had grown small. And, so that by His poverty without measure, He, the Transcended God, may enrich me who had grown poor" [2 Corinthians 8:9].
Saint Justin the Martyr, born in Sichem (Nablus) spoke of the "cave" near Bethlehem. He provides us with one of the earliest testimonies on the subject. "When Joseph could find no lodging place in the village, he went to a cave nearby, and there Mary gave birth to the Child and laid Him in a manger." In holy icons, the dark background in the cave can be explained by a homily attributed to Saint Gregory Nyssa, where he compares the birth of Christ in a cave and the spiritual Light shining forth in the shadow of death that encompasses mankind. Thus, the black mouth of the cave symbolically means the world, stricken with sin through man’s fault, in which the "Sun of Righteousness" shone forth.
Over 2,000 years later the world finds itself "in the shadow of death." Why? Because mankind resists and refuses to accept Christ Jesus, Who is the Light of the world and God incarnate. The Savior of the world. The Ode states: "God of peace and Father of mercies, Your Son You have sent unto us as Your Messenger, the Angel of Great Counsel Who is granting peace. Therefore having been guided to the Light of godly knowledge, waking from the night to dawn, we sing Your glory, O Lover of man." The world did not accept Him then and the world continues not to accept Him today. Why would anyone wonder why humanity finds itself in this darkness? Humanity rejects the Light and embraces darkness.
God’s message to us has not changed and will never change. Jesus says, "I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall NOT walk in darkness, but have the light of life" [John 8:12]. God is Light [1 John 1:5]. The followers and disciples of Christ are the light [Matthew 5:14]; and the believers shine as lights in the world [Phylippians 2:15]. Light is a symbol of God Who is the True, Uncreated Light . Light is necessary not only for clear vision but for life. Consequently, the life of faith relies on the Divine Light [Romans 13:12; Ephesians 1:18]. Speaking to His disciples Jesus says, "You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men" [Matthew 14:13]. Thus as the "salt" of the earth, Christians are PRESERVERS OF GOD’S COVENANT AND GIVE PROPER FLAVOR TO SOCIETY.
What is the cause for the salt to lose its flavor? Christians are to adhere and obey the commandments of God. They are to preserve His Teachings without innovations, without altering His message, without adultering His Gospel, without diluting His teachings, and without compromising the sanctity of His Church. The Christians must remain faithful to Him, serve and love Him unconditionally. Tragically, Christians today no longer speak the same language and do not speak with one voice. Instead, Christians are divided and therefore even their teachings are diversified. This very fact undermines the ability to transmit the Gospel message and creates confusion and prevents the spreading of Christianity to the rest of the world.
If the world is in such peril it is partially due to the fragmentation of Christians. This break-up among the Christians is responsible for the salt losing its flavor. According to Jesus when the salt loses its flavor, "It is good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot." Our Lord Jesus Christ is the Head of ONE Church. The Church is one The Church is one because God is one, and because Christ and the Holy Spirit are one. There can only be one Church and not thousands of fragments of Christianity. The Church is called catholic. Why? "Because she is not limited to any place, nor time, nor people, but CONTAINS TRUE BELIEVERS OF ALL PLACES, TIMES, AND PEOPLES." The Church is not limited by place. It embraces in itself ALL PEOPLE WHO BELIEVE IN THE Orthodox way, wherever they might live on the earth. The enemies of our Lord God Jesus Christ have made countless attempts to destroy His Church both from within and without but their attempt will never succeed because the Church is Christ Himself. The fact that Christians among themselves may be fragmented into thousands of pieces, however, the Church of Christ remains unaffected. Why? Jesus Himself explains: "the gates of Hades SHALL NOT PREVAIL AGAINST IT" [Matthew 16:18]. The True Rock and foundation of the Church, is of course, Christ Himself. The Church rests upon this Rock by her UNCHANGING FAITH,TRUTH AND CONFESSION. Evil powers are powerless against her. She is the BODY OF CHRIST, the Divine-human organism, and to her comes the call of Jesus for the whole of mankind to abide with Him and in Him" [Ephesians 1:23]. Those people who confess openly that they are followers of Jesus Christ but have abandoned His Church are no longer members of His body but have severed their communion with Him. The solution is to preach the same Gospel message, to speak with one voice, to proclaim the same Truth, and by the grace of the Holy Spirit to spread the love of God throughout the world. Only then will Christianity have the appropriate spiritual and moral impact among the people of the cosmos.
Heresy is a deadly virus which has been released deliberately to kill Christ’s message of salvation just as His enemies crucified and killed Him. However, after the Lord’s death on the Cross there followed the Resurrection; that by the Cross the world has been conquered; that if we die with the Lord we shall reign with Him, and shall rejoice and triumph in the manifestation of His glory [1 Peter 4:13]. Heresty renders the Christian faith obsolete and lifeless. Heresy is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, it is distortion of the truth, it is a cacophony of of the Christian message knowledge, it is lies and deception, it is antichrist, it is a tool of the evil one, and full of hatred for God and mankind, it is the enemy of peace, unity, and harmony, it is a deliberate betrayal of our Lord Jesus Christ. There is absolutely no place for heresy or heretics in the Church of Christ. Neither can heresy or heretics be tolerated, embraced, or excused by the Church. "…Christ loved the Church and gave Himself up for her, that He might sanctify her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present the Church to Himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that SHE MIGHT BE HOLY AND WITHOUT BLEMISH…THIS IS GREAT MYSTERY…CHRIST AND THE CHURCH" [Ephesians 1:21-23; 2:19-22; 5:25-32]. The Seven Ecumenical Councils defined the Orthodox Truth and condemned heresy and excommunicated all heretics. The contemporary heresies are the greatest scandal in the history of the Christian Church.
Timing is very important and therefore the time to act is now. There is no logical reason why the world should dwell in darkness and hopelessness.
Christ is born! Glorify Him! The only way to dispel the darkness of our souls is to allow the Light of Christ to shine and illuminate it from within. The ultimate purpose of man’s existence is to attain "the glory of God" [Romans 3:23]. In the Person of Christ we see the perfection of human nature. We are to strive for perfection by the grace of God and to emulate Him in everything. Participation in Christ and the Holy Spirit leads to fullness of life. Our God is the God of Agape! Genuine Agape and Truth are inseparable and neither one can exist without the other. Neither can true agape or divine truth be compromised by sinful human weakness or sin. Wherever there is authentic love and truth, there is divine and everlasting light and life.
Saint Joseph the Hymnographer marvels at how the Great God will enter a small cave as a small Child: "How shall a small cave receive Thee, for Whom the world cannot find rood, O Thou Whom none can comprehend! O Thou, Who with the Father art without beginning, how shalt Thou appear as a small child?" And, "The Great King comes in haste to enter a small cave, that He may make me great who had grown small. And, so that by His poverty without measure, He, the Transcendent God, may enrich me who had grown poor" [2 Corinthians 8:9].
Let us invite Him,our Creator, and Savior, to enter our darken hearts and bless us with the Light of Life and to sanctify, illuminate, and renew us. Let us not be afraid as the shepherds were, for the Lord is with us, and let us freely receive our Savior in our hearts that He may dwell in us forever and ever. Amen.
_________
"Glory Be To GOD
For
All Things!"
– Saint John Chrysostomos
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With sincere agape In His Divine and Glorious Diakonia (Ministry),
The sinner and unworthy servant of God
+ Father George
The Eastern Orthodox Christian Ethos 