My beloved brothers and sisters in Christ Our Only True Lord, God and Savior,
CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND EVER SHALL BE.
The blessed hunger of every Orthodox Christian ia
a hunger for God.
It is natural for human beings to become hungry in the absencfe or lack of food. This applies to every living thing without exception. We all need to be fed and nourished for without it we die. The Son of God Jesus Christ "when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He WAS HUNGRY" [Matthew 4:2]. "Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, ‘If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread. But He answered and said, ‘It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’" [Matthew 4:3-4]. By rejecting the first temptation, Jesus rejects a kingdom based on materialism, earthly well-being, the "bread which perishes" [John 6:1-40].
The Israelites who were freed from a 400 year captivity were led by Moses through the desert and for forty years traversing through the desert were seeking the Promised Land. While they wandered in the desert they ran out of water and food and turned to Moses and Moses turned to God. "Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ‘I have heard the complaints of the children of Israel. Speak to them, saying, ‘At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the morning you shall be filled with bread. Then you shall know I am the Lord your God" [Exodus 16:9-12]. The Lord "rained bread out of heaven" for them, it was a type of Christ, "the bread of life" (John 6:48-51). In the Church, He gives Himself and His life to the Church in the Holy Eucharist (John 6:53-58).
The Orthodox Christian believer hungers not for the "earthly bread which perishes" but for the "Bread of Life", Christ Our Lord and Savior. "Then Jesus said to them (His disciples), "Most assuredly I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the True bread from heaven. For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." Then they said to Him, ‘Lord, give us this bread always.’ And Jesus said to them, "I AM THE BREAD OF LIFE. HE WHO COMES TO ME SHALL NEVER HUNGER, AND HE WHO BELIEVES IN ME SHALL NEVER THIRST" [John 6:32-35].
It is during the fasting periods that we begin to experience hunger. Naively, however, many think only of all the good foods that they miss and not think spiritually. There are many spiritual lessons to be learned during these holy days that will hopefully bring us closer to God. Our Holy Orthodox Church attempts to guide and teach all the faithful to abandon our earthly thinking and as Christians to begin to think more spiritually. The goals during the various fasting seasons are always spiritual: to pray unceasingly, to live a more virtuous life, to stay in communion with God, to worship more often, to participate and receive Holy Communion frequently, to forgive our enemies, to be more compassionate to our fellow man, to be obedient to God’s commandments, to repent of our sins, to participate in the Mystery of Repentance and Confession, to be kind, to study the Holy Scripture, to adhere to the teachings of the word of God, to be humble, to establish a true relationship with God, and to grow spiritually striving to attain theosis (deification). To be more and more like Christ our God and Savior in all things. These major holy days and fasting seasons were not created to complicate anyone’s life but to enrich it and to make life more meaningful and fruitful.
These holy periods are not just customs and traditions which are outdated and forced upon us. It is, however, important that in order for them to have the desired spiritual impact upon our lives, that we understand why they are taught to us and their purpose. There is absolutely no good reason why there is this mystery about them. No one is expected to follow them blindly and obediently without the proper explanation. All the wonderful things taught to us by our Holy Orthodox Church are supported by the Holy Scripture and Holy Tradition. The aim is clear for all to understand is to strengthen our communion and relationship with our Creator and Heavenly Father. Everyone has the ability and the opportunity to take the initiative to improve one’s knowledge of the Faith. There is no reason for educated adults, in this day and age, to want to be spoon-fed by their priest.
No other Christian body has the spiritual wealth that our Holy Orthodox Church has. Our Holy Tradition is vast and it takes many lifetimes to learn all that it has to offer. Thousands of years of knowledge, of theology, of spiritual ascesis, of martyrdom, of persecution, of history, of miracles, of Ecumenical Synods, of combating heresies and heretics, of lives of the Saints and Desert Fathers, of missionary work, and of glorifying God. The Orthodox Christian does not follow man made laws and regulations but God’s law. Our Leader and Head of our Church is Jesus Christ and He is the only one that we follow and are obedient to. Everything that we do is for His glory. There is no confusion what the Orthodox Christian believes because the faith never changes but remains the same no matter who the Patriarch is, or the Archbishop or the local Metropolitan. The loyalty of the Orthodox Christian is not to any person or earthly authority but to our Lord Christ alone.
Let us listen to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ Himself. "Then Jesus said to them (the Jews), ‘Most assuredly I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood you have no life in you. Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood HAS ETERNAL LIFE, AND I WILL RAISE HIM UP AT THE LAST DAY. For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. He WHO EATS MY FLESH AND DRINK MY BLOOD ABIDES IN ME AND I IN HIM. As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me. This is the BREAD WHICH CAME DOWN FROM HEAVEN–NOT AS YOUR FATHERS ATE THE MANNA, AND ARE DEAD. HE WHO EATS THIS BREAD WILL LIVE FOREVER" [John 6:53-58].
As Orthodox Christians we believe that when we receive Holy Communion, we TRULY EAT His FLESH and DRINK HIS BLOOD, and this grants us ETERNAL LIFE with Christ abiding in us and us in Him. There is no room for any doubt about the reality of His flesh and blood, because we have both the witness of His words and our own faith. Thus when we eat and drink these elements, WE ARE IN CHRIST AND CHRIST IS IN US".
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"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 