St Peters Orthodox Church

We say as a foundational point of the Christian faith, "God became man and dwelled among us." But do take moments to consider the realities of what it truly means that God became man. At ever point of His life, from His conception to His death, He entered into every suffering of fallen mankind. He willed Himself to suffer our entire existence that He might relieve us of our sufferings from the fall of man. Tonight, at the First Mass of Christmas, we ask God to reveal to us just how far He lowered Himself so that we may be raised up.

From our Introit in the Mass this day, "Let the earth open and bring forth a Savior. O Lord, raise up, we pray Thee Thy power, and with great might succor us." That word succor means this, "Lord, come with your strength to aid we who are so weak and in need. Come and help us." The Prophet Isaiah in chapter 40 says that this help and strength comes to those who wait upon the Lord. But what does it mean to wait upon the Lord? It does not mean that, in time, we wait for a God who is distant from our moments to come from afar to us to help us. It means, that He has already joined Himself to us and His strength is ever-present.

The Mass for the Third Sunday of Advent is given the title rejoice. It is a day to remember the great works of Christ our God on our behalf. And, as we do, it is a day for our souls to be lightened and lifted as we offer thanksgiving to our God. Praise, thanksgiving to God, is most certainly a spiritual discipline; one through which Christ our God reveals Himself to us and lets us know just how close He is to us at all times. Today we consider how the discipline of rejoicing in God is a path for our soul to open and encounter Him. Every encounter with God, ever Divine revelation of Himself to us is indeed a path to experience true joy.

Saints Joachim & Anna lived their entire adult life bearing the shame of barrenness as they could not conceive a child. Daily they asked God to grant them mercy by providing them a child. God gave them beyond what they could ever ask or imagine. He not only gave them a child, but their child would be the Mother of Christ our God. They were given mercy beyond all hope as St. Anna became pregnant at such an old age. We are all given mercy and being granted salvation beyond all hope.

We often think that our greatest problem is that we are filled with sin which is the source of our addictions, idolatries, and disorders. While sin is a problem that creates a great deal of suffering in our lives, it is not the problem. The problem is that our lives are not filled with Christ. Today we go back to the basics of salvation. We need mercy and healing. Jesus has come to grant both and is the only One Who can do so. If we would only live a life that allows Christ to fill it. All things, then, would be made new.

Today is the Sunday Next Before Advent, the one week we prepare to enter into this blessed season. In Advent, we prepare for the coming of Christ both at His birth and at His second and final coming where every soul will be brought before Him. It seems appropriate that we consider the nature of the One Who comes to delivers us. What is the heart of our Savior toward all of us who are oppressed by the results of the fall of mankind? If we saw clearly Christ's disposition toward us, we would run to Him for our healing, renewal, and relief.

Advent is a season of preparation. But what is Christian preparation? Today we see the truth that everything our Lord has called us to do in order to prepare ourselves for His coming is truly the preparation of the soul to open itself to the Divine experience of Christ our God.

How distracted we get by the non-eternal things of this world when joys beyond compare are there to be had by all in Christ our God and His Kingdom now manifest to us in the earth. The contentment to our discontent lies only in one place; making our dwelling place under His wings where we find our refuge. Today we are reminded that when we take our eyes off of Christ, we descend into the madness of the world and manifest our own brokenness therein. But when we pursue Christ and make Him that dwelling place, we ascend by His Divine grace where to see Him and come to know Him. And as we do, we manifest Christ and His Kingdom in the world around us.

In the Gospel of St. John 5, our Lord comes to the Pool of Bethesda. Many who were blind, lame, or paralyzed came to this pool to be healed; for every so often the waters would be stirred and the first one to enter the waters would be healed. Jesus comes up to a man paralyzed for 38 years and asks him a most interesting question, "Do you want to be healed?" What an important question He asks the man. It is a question our Lord poses to us every day of our lives.

In our Gospel reading from St. Matthew 2, Jesus gives the summary of the Law which is to "love God and love mankind." God is love and our salvation is the healing work He does deep within our soul, restoring us and redeeming us. The result is our becoming like our God. Today's message is a message of simplicity. We cannot become what we do not experience. Unless we allow Christ to love us and show us mercy all throughout our lives, we simply cannot respond to God with love nor love all of those around us with His love.

Today we celebrate All Saints. On this Feast Day we are given a wondrous picture of eternity with Christ for all those who are in Him. At the same time, we are given the teaching of Christ our God from St. Matthew 5. He led them up the mountain and taught them the Beatitudes which reveal to us what we were always created to be; for the Beatitudes show forth the very virtues of Christ our God. How do we become Saints? We allow Christ to transform us from within, healing us and redeeming us. For out of the transformed soul flows the virtues of God.

As we gather together as the Kingdom of Priests, today we pray for all souls. We pray for mercy, forgiveness, and the blessedness of paradise. And as we lift up each name, we visit those who have gone before us like the monastics visit their brother monastics who have gone before them. This remembrance places the gift of our mortality right before us. And mortality is a gift that thrusts us into the saving power of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Today we open our eyes to have Jesus Christ as the King of Kings & Lord of Lords revealed to us. On this day, we look at three aspects of His Kingship: What is it that elevated Jesus Christ to the dignity of King of Kings & Lord of Lords? In this present age, this King has set Himself to be our deliverer. And, how will this King appear when He returns again on the last day?

In St. Luke 7, a multitude following Jesus comes to the gate of the city of Nain. At the same time, a funeral procession of a multitude of people for the burial of the dead son of a widow comes to the gate of Nain from within the city. There the procession of death is met with the procession of life, and life always wins. Our Lord is constantly the gate of our soul. Will we both come to the gate and let Him in so that He may raise us from our fallenness?

When the ten lepers came to Jesus crying out for mercy, our Lord sent them to show themselves to the priests. This is precisely what God in Leviticus 14 commanded lepers who had been healed of their leprosy to do. Today we look at the sacrifice to be done on behalf of the healed leper. We find that it is a "type" that is wonderfully fulfilled by the finished work of all. While the nine lepers who did not return had a "thankless forgetfulness" according to the Church Fathers, the one healed leper who returned had a "memory of Christ's mercy." Every liturgy done in the Church is the journey to Christ for the healing of the leprosy of our soul. We experience His healing again and again; and we keep returning to Christ living in the memory of His mercy.

Today is the Feast Day of the Dedication of St. Michael the Archangel and all Angels. Today we have revealed to us that the vastness of the Kingdom of God on earth contains both the seen and the unseen. The prayers Christ has given His Church to pray reveal truths to us; truths about God's Nature and truths about His Kingdom. Today we look at the prayers of the Church as well as Holy Scripture to see in part the angelic ministries God has ordained to assist us in our salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ.

A deaf and mute man is brought to Christ our God. Jesus, with fingers that can be touched, touches the man's ears so that he could hear. Christ spat on the ground and touched his tongue so that it could speak the praises of the One Who had healed him. Our faith, our healing, our salvation only comes by encountering Christ with our whole being and not just with our intellect. Today we consider how the physical touch of Christ continues through bread and wine, His body and blood; so that we may encounter the Divine and be made like unto Him.

At the Feast of the Seven Sorrows of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we encounter the fullness of the sufferings she endured as the chosen Mother of Christ our God. Today puts the reality of human suffering right before us; something we will all endure in this life. And today we have great hope that because Christ joined Himself to our suffering, suffering (which our Lord never desired for us) becomes a means for us to encounter Him and know Him in ways we never could before.

In our Gospel reading from St. John 12, looking ahead to His Crucifixion our Lord says these words, "Now is the judgment of this world, now the ruler of this world will be cast out." What judgment of the world and its ruler is our Lord speaking about? The judgment of Satan who deceived and wronged every soul. Tonight we hear the Church Fathers speak about Christ on the Cross being both prosecuting attorney against Satan and for us. And we hear them speak also of Christ as the judge who condemns our enemy and grants us acquittal that we may be freed.

From the barrenness of Sts. Joachim & Anna came the conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary by the mercy God; prefiguring shame and sorrow being taken away by the Son she would bear and deliver into this world, our Lord Jesus Christ. Today, as always, as we gaze upon our Lord's Mother we see Christ and His salvation of us all. Our Lord came to us to remove our shame and grant us great joy.