WEBVTT 00:00:00.620 --> 00:00:02.940 But we should pray, St. Vladimir, through your 00:00:02.940 --> 00:00:06.120 intercession, please look upon your spiritual 00:00:06.120 --> 00:00:10.439 children today in the Ukraine and in Russia. 00:00:11.779 --> 00:00:17.320 St. Vladimir is also the patron of the seminary 00:00:17.320 --> 00:00:20.800 that I attended and that Father Lawrence attended. 00:00:21.160 --> 00:00:30.929 So, Strasnikum, Father, happy feast day. The 00:00:30.929 --> 00:00:34.750 first time at St. Vladimir's, when I heard that 00:00:34.750 --> 00:00:38.689 troparion to St. Vladimir, which we have just 00:00:38.689 --> 00:00:44.170 heard a few moments ago, referring to the merchant 00:00:44.170 --> 00:00:49.450 in search of fine pearls and finding Christ, 00:00:49.630 --> 00:00:55.210 St. Vladimir, you were like that merchant, you 00:00:55.210 --> 00:00:59.729 found Christ, the priceless pearl. I wrote down 00:00:59.729 --> 00:01:03.710 that topar in its fullness because nowadays I 00:01:03.710 --> 00:01:07.790 don't rely on my memory all the time. So here 00:01:07.790 --> 00:01:11.870 it is once again. O holy Prince Vladimir, you 00:01:11.870 --> 00:01:15.090 were like a merchant in search of fine pearls. 00:01:15.569 --> 00:01:20.409 By sending servants to Constantinople, you found 00:01:20.409 --> 00:01:24.870 Christ, the priceless pearl. He appointed you 00:01:24.870 --> 00:01:29.900 to be another Paul. washing away in baptism your 00:01:29.900 --> 00:01:34.299 physical and spiritual blindness. We celebrate 00:01:34.299 --> 00:01:41.140 your memory asking you to pray for Orthodox Christians 00:01:41.140 --> 00:01:46.599 in Russia and for all Orthodox Christians and 00:01:46.599 --> 00:01:50.579 for us, your spiritual children. That was especially 00:01:50.579 --> 00:01:54.890 moving because at St. Vladimir's We were, in 00:01:54.890 --> 00:01:58.209 a special way, in a seminary dedicated to him, 00:01:58.250 --> 00:02:02.709 his spiritual children. And actually, each and 00:02:02.709 --> 00:02:05.829 every one of us, you, all of you, and even I, 00:02:05.909 --> 00:02:09.310 I don't have an ounce of Russian or Slavic blood 00:02:09.310 --> 00:02:13.090 in me that I'm aware of. Never did my genealogy. 00:02:13.729 --> 00:02:19.729 But we're all inheritors of the Russian church 00:02:19.729 --> 00:02:23.960 because this parish, one way or another, of course, 00:02:23.979 --> 00:02:27.379 was the Russian Orthodox Church in the United 00:02:27.379 --> 00:02:32.180 States, which was planted here. So we are, all 00:02:32.180 --> 00:02:41.060 of us, spiritual children of St. Vladimir. I 00:02:41.060 --> 00:02:45.800 thought also to look at, I was curious about 00:02:45.800 --> 00:02:49.139 pearls, where they're mentioned in the Bible. 00:02:49.639 --> 00:02:52.300 The first time they're mentioned in the Bible, 00:02:52.810 --> 00:02:56.389 is in the book of Job, which I'll get to in a 00:02:56.389 --> 00:02:59.729 moment. And then the last time, this is one you're 00:02:59.729 --> 00:03:04.330 probably familiar with, the imagery in the last 00:03:04.330 --> 00:03:07.750 chapter of the book of Revelation, where the 00:03:07.750 --> 00:03:14.610 new Jerusalem, the heavenly Jerusalem, is St. 00:03:15.289 --> 00:03:18.189 John the author of the book of Revelation. He's 00:03:18.189 --> 00:03:23.259 trying to describe what is undescribable. and 00:03:23.259 --> 00:03:27.139 uses the imagery of precious stones and streets 00:03:27.139 --> 00:03:32.599 of glass, etc. But he refers to the gates of 00:03:32.599 --> 00:03:36.520 the kingdom as made of fine pearl. So that's 00:03:36.520 --> 00:03:39.639 where we get that expression. Open to me those 00:03:39.639 --> 00:03:45.120 pearly gates, Lord. So when we pass on, please, 00:03:45.180 --> 00:03:50.039 Lord, open to us those pearly gates. But the 00:03:50.039 --> 00:03:58.740 book of Job, In chapter 38 says, where shall 00:03:58.740 --> 00:04:03.020 wisdom, notice this, where shall wisdom be found? 00:04:03.599 --> 00:04:10.659 It cannot be gotten with gold or silver or precious 00:04:10.659 --> 00:04:17.519 onyx or sapphire. No mention can be made of coral 00:04:17.519 --> 00:04:24.120 or crystal. The price of wisdom is above pearls. 00:04:25.600 --> 00:04:29.600 And it's interesting that pearls, my matushka 00:04:29.600 --> 00:04:31.680 and I were talking about this just recently, 00:04:31.860 --> 00:04:36.379 well, preparation for my sermon, that she mentioned, 00:04:36.459 --> 00:04:40.279 yes, pearl is the only precious thing that comes 00:04:40.279 --> 00:04:44.800 from a living animal. The rest are stones or 00:04:44.800 --> 00:04:48.449 metals, but pearl, as you well know, It comes 00:04:48.449 --> 00:04:51.230 from oysters, so it comes from a living thing. 00:04:55.569 --> 00:05:01.410 This is in chapter 13 of Matthew's Gospel, and 00:05:01.410 --> 00:05:03.529 this is what we're reading now, as you probably 00:05:03.529 --> 00:05:07.329 noticed in the lectionary, the Gospels, during 00:05:07.329 --> 00:05:11.470 the sixth week after Pentecost. Jesus is speaking 00:05:11.470 --> 00:05:15.810 about the parables about the kingdom of heaven. 00:05:17.610 --> 00:05:21.129 The kingdom of heaven is like a sower who sowed 00:05:21.129 --> 00:05:25.550 good seed, like a grain of mustard seed, like 00:05:25.550 --> 00:05:31.329 a treasure hidden in a field, like a net cast 00:05:31.329 --> 00:05:35.649 into the sea and gathering every kind of fish. 00:05:36.009 --> 00:05:41.209 And then in verse 45, again, the kingdom of heaven 00:05:41.209 --> 00:05:45.569 is like a merchant in search of fine pearls. 00:05:46.490 --> 00:05:50.569 who finding one pearl of great price, went out, 00:05:50.689 --> 00:05:56.350 sold all that he had, and bought it. This pearl 00:05:56.350 --> 00:06:00.050 of great price, of course, is our Lord Jesus 00:06:00.050 --> 00:06:04.310 Christ and our faith in him in the Orthodox faith, 00:06:04.449 --> 00:06:08.750 Christ and our Orthodox faith. We did not have 00:06:08.750 --> 00:06:13.829 to go out and sell everything we have to acquire 00:06:13.829 --> 00:06:19.060 this. Jesus gave us this as a free gift, the 00:06:19.060 --> 00:06:23.339 gift of faith, faith in him and faith in his 00:06:23.339 --> 00:06:31.759 church. This faith is found in Christ and nourished 00:06:31.759 --> 00:06:37.120 in the church. Notice in conclusion when we are 00:06:37.120 --> 00:06:40.040 gathered at the divine liturgy, which is par 00:06:40.040 --> 00:06:43.819 excellence the church at prayer. the eucharistic 00:06:43.819 --> 00:06:47.019 service when we were gathered at the divine liturgy 00:06:47.019 --> 00:06:52.120 how does it begin blessed is the kingdom of the 00:06:52.120 --> 00:06:57.040 father southern holy spirit so the kingdom of 00:06:57.040 --> 00:07:00.500 heaven which is in the future is made present 00:07:00.500 --> 00:07:04.339 and inaugurated and the grace of this is given 00:07:04.339 --> 00:07:08.339 to us here and now every time we celebrate the 00:07:08.339 --> 00:07:14.120 divine liturgy and receive holy communion This 00:07:14.120 --> 00:07:19.639 pearl of great price, the Lord Jesus himself, 00:07:19.819 --> 00:07:25.100 our Orthodox Christian faith in him, is given 00:07:25.100 --> 00:07:29.639 to us and nourished. Let us ask the Lord, please 00:07:29.639 --> 00:07:34.639 thank him for this priceless gift and ask him 00:07:34.639 --> 00:07:39.180 to nourish that here and forever until we go 00:07:39.180 --> 00:07:43.040 through those pearly gates. and see the most 00:07:43.040 --> 00:07:47.879 blessed Trinity, to whom we ascribe glory, thanksgiving, 00:07:47.899 --> 00:07:51.379 and worship, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, now 00:07:51.379 --> 00:07:54.759 and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.