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.
BELIEVING IN GOD’S MIRACLES
One of the Greatest Miracles is the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, our Lord, God, and Savior. Saint Paul writes to the Corinthian Christians, "Now if Christ is preached that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there IS NO RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen. And if Christ is not risen, then OUR PREACHING IS EMPTY AND YOUR FAITH IS ALSO EMPTY. Yesm and we are found false witnesses of God, because we have testified of God that He raised up Christ, Whom He did not raise up–if in fact the dead do not rise. For if the dead do not rise, then Christ is not risen. And if Christ is not risen, YOUR FAITH IS FUTILE; YOU ARE STILL IN YOUR SINS! Then also those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable" [1 Corinthians 15:12-19}.
Another Great Miracle is the Miracle of the Birth of Christ. "Now in the sixth month the Angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary. And having come in, the Angel said to her, 'Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you, blessed are you among women!' "…Then the Angel said to her, 'Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest, and the Lord God, will give Him the throne of His father David. And he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His Kingdom there will be no end.' Then Mary said to the Angel, 'How can this be, since I do not know a man?' And the Angel answered and said to her, 'The Holy Spirit WILL COME UPON YOU, AND THE POWER OF THE HIGHEST WILL OVERSHADOW YOU; THEREFORE, ALSO, THAT HOLY ONE WHO IS TO BE BORN WILL BE CALLED THE SON OF GOD" [Luke 1:26-35].
Another miracle revealed by the Angel to the Theotokos. "Now, indeed, Elizabeth, your relative has ALSO CONCEIVED A SON IN HER OLD AGE, and this is now the sixth month, FOR HER WHO WAS CALLED BARREN. FOR WITH GOD NOTHING WILL BE IMPOSSIBLE" [Luke 1:36-37].
The Christians, the followers of Christ, the faithful, are known AS THE BELIEVERS! (πιστοί). The Ever-virgin’s faithful response makes her the highest model OF OBEDIENCE. The INCARNATION of the Son of God is not only the work of the Holy Trinity, but also the work of the will and THE FAITH OF THE VIRGIN. The key to believing is FAITH. "Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, ‘Why could we not cast it out?’ So Jesus to them (Disciples), "Because OF YOUR UNBELIEF; FOR ASSUREDLY, I SAY TO YOU, IF YOU HAVE FAITH AS A MUSTARD SEED, YOU WILL SAY TO THIS MOUNTAIN, ‘MOVE FROM HERE TO THERE,’ AND IT WILL MOVE, AND NOTHING WILL BE IMPOSSIBLE FOR YOU" [Matthew 17:19-20].
One may understand why the unbelievers do not believe in miracles but there is no room for a person professing to be Christian TO DOUBT or/and NOT BELIEVE IN THE MIRACLES OF GOD unless he or she is an imposter. Christians are constantly challenged on their beliefs by non-believers, however, a Christian must not become frustrated or flustered attempting to convince him or her of the truth. Christians ought to be patient with non believers and pray for God to enlighten and open their hearts to understand His mysteries. God’s actions are indeed mysterious because man’s mind can never conceive God’s ways. In our Holy Tradition the Sacraments are referred as MYSTERIA OR MYSTERIES by which the Holy Spirit bestows His grace to the faithful. We, Christians, understand only those things revealed to us by Christ Himself and the power of the Holy Spirit. "And the disciples came and said to Him, ‘Why do You speak to them in parables?’ He answered and said to them, ‘Because it has been given to you to KNOW THE MYSTERIES OF THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN, BUT TO THEM IT HAS NOT BEEN GIVEN" (Matthew 13:10-11).
"The mysteries of the Kingdom" are not mere esoteric concepts or a body of religious truth only for the elite. Nor is true understanding of the Parable simply an intellectual apprehension. Even the Disciples find His message hard to understand. Jesus preached and taught the same message TO ALL, but it is the "babes," THE SIMPLE, PURE OF HEART, AND INNOCENT, WHO ARE OPEN TO THE GOSPEL AND HAVE THE FAITH TO RECEIVE THIS MYSTERY, WHICH IS THE REALITY OF THE KINGDOM. Jesus said, "Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and BECOME AS LITTLE CHILDREN, YOU WILL BY NO MEANS ENTER THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN. Therefore whoever HUMBLES HIMSELF AS THIS LITTLE CHILD IS THE GREATEST IN THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN" [Matthew 18:2-4). For "little children" have the spiritual attitudes required to "enter the Kingdom" such as HUMILITY, PURITY, INNOCENCE, DEPENDENCE, LOWLINESS AND SIMPLICITY. Humility, without which there is no virtue at all, is the acknowledgment of Divine grace and mercy, and hte constant denial of man's achievement.
When we think of miracles, we think of the power of God. "If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes" [Mark 9:23], because of God’s power released through faith. Jesus seeks to elicit faith from the child’s father who had said to Him, "If you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us" [Mark 9:22]. "Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, ‘Lord, I believe, help my unbelief!" [Mark 9:24-5]. The presence of doubt does not imply the absence of faith. Christ honors whatever faith we have and will increase and strengthen our faith when we sincerely desire Him.
If a Christian were to truly examine his/her life carefully, objectively, and thoughtfully, he/she will see a number of God’s miracles that have taken place throughout his/her life. If we have failed to acknowledge them it is only due to our human reasoning. If a person’s attitude is to simply explain everything that happens to him/her in a practical and rational way then he or she will do it intellectually and not spiritually. For that kind of a person all that takes place in life, is coincidental, accidental or an unexplained occurrence. However, for the sincere believer all good things come from above. The Orthodox Christian gives glory to God for all things and says, "whatever God wills" is a blessing. The believers trust in God and see God’s hand in everything good and offer thanks to the All-Merciful One.
As an Orthodox layman, and as a Greek Orthodox priest, I have been blessed to experience personally and be a witness to many of God’s miracles over decades. One major miracle in my life took place in Greece, in the town of Zaharo in Peloponnesos in 1948 when our house with all of us in it was bombed, but, by the grace of God none of us, a family of seven, were hurt or killed. Since then God has protected me a number of times from death. As a priest of 54 years I have seen one miracle after another bestowed upon my parishioners. In one case the man was being operated on but the physicians stopped the surgery because they saw that the cancer had spread throughout his body and sewing him up sent him home to die. Upon receiving the Sacraments the man was cured and lived many more years. In my last parish, a young man, suffering from alcoholism, had a very bad accident, fell on his head from a great height. He was immediately taken to the local hospital where he was placed in the ICU. I was called to offer the blessings of the Church, and if possible to anoint him with the sacrament of holy oil (untion). The physicians at the local hospital observed him for a few days to see if there was any sign of improvement. However, and sadly enough, they felt he was brain dead. The coroner was called to officially concur his death and then to sign the death certificate which he did. His parents were asked by the hospital officials if they were willing to give their permission to offer some of their son’s organs to others who needed them and they did. Much to everyone’s surprise the next morning when the nurse entered his room to remove some of the tubes from his nose and mouth saw him very much alive. He was immediately taken to surgery. It was determined that there was no brain injury at all. When the parents turned to the doctors to thank them for saving their son’s life, the Christian doctors pointed to an icon of Christ in his room and said it was not us, pointed to Christ, and said, it was He who saved him. Christopher, that was his name, soon after came the church of Saint Andrew, and served in the Altar as an Acolyte. These are just very few of the miracles that I witnessed over many many years.
Miracles are a testimony of God’s abundant agape for us all. God is with us! "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies. Test all things, hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil, and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ" [1 Thessalonians 5:16-23]. CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST AND EVER SHALL BE!
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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 