WEBVTT 00:00:00.560 --> 00:00:03.799 Our favorite, everyone loves this, before that 00:00:03.799 --> 00:00:08.000 cross we bow down and some of the prayers have 00:00:08.000 --> 00:00:12.320 to communion, let me say a few words. The week 00:00:12.320 --> 00:00:16.579 of the cross also is the week, not coincidentally, 00:00:16.760 --> 00:00:20.820 in which the extra litany's petitions are done 00:00:20.820 --> 00:00:25.440 for the catechumens who are to be baptized. They're 00:00:25.440 --> 00:00:28.960 called those who are preparing for holy illumination, 00:00:29.160 --> 00:00:33.380 photosomany in Greek. And there's extra prayers 00:00:33.380 --> 00:00:37.740 for them. You might say the Orthodox Church is, 00:00:37.799 --> 00:00:43.060 in many ways, not seeker -friendly. We make the 00:00:43.060 --> 00:00:46.299 catechumens wait. We even send them away, and 00:00:46.299 --> 00:00:49.140 some of them are standing outside for the whole 00:00:49.140 --> 00:00:55.240 service. They know the message of the cross. 00:00:55.840 --> 00:00:59.500 And if there's anything that's not seeker -friendly, 00:00:59.700 --> 00:01:03.100 it's the invitation by the Lord when it's misunderstood. 00:01:03.979 --> 00:01:07.000 When it's understood, of course, it is the only 00:01:07.000 --> 00:01:10.140 thing that we have, the only thing we can hold 00:01:10.140 --> 00:01:13.340 on to, that invitation that we heard on Sunday. 00:01:13.420 --> 00:01:17.560 You remember, right? If you want to follow me, 00:01:17.680 --> 00:01:21.459 so this is an invitation. It's not a threat. 00:01:23.180 --> 00:01:27.980 Anyone is free to choose or reject. If you want 00:01:27.980 --> 00:01:30.599 to follow me, and what could be better than to 00:01:30.599 --> 00:01:35.200 follow our creator, his immeasurable love for 00:01:35.200 --> 00:01:40.980 us, his understanding, his healing, his glory, 00:01:41.099 --> 00:01:44.439 his holiness, his peace, the way, the truth, 00:01:44.459 --> 00:01:46.799 and the life. What could be better than that? 00:01:47.340 --> 00:01:52.769 But he has a condition for the believer. Deny 00:01:52.769 --> 00:01:58.010 yourself. And so catechumens learn how to do 00:01:58.010 --> 00:02:01.549 that. And I hope they can learn by watching in 00:02:01.549 --> 00:02:04.450 some way, not in an ostentatious way for us, 00:02:04.489 --> 00:02:08.229 but in some way, a humble way, our own fasting, 00:02:08.430 --> 00:02:12.689 our own self -denial, to strut about and to say 00:02:12.689 --> 00:02:14.930 things we shouldn't and to talk when we should 00:02:14.930 --> 00:02:17.930 be quiet, to say a kind word but we don't say 00:02:17.930 --> 00:02:20.789 the kind word when we should because we don't 00:02:20.789 --> 00:02:24.780 have discernment. And the other thing that the 00:02:24.780 --> 00:02:28.900 Lord said, the foundational requirement for being 00:02:28.900 --> 00:02:33.580 a disciple, deny yourself and pick up your cross. 00:02:35.120 --> 00:02:37.840 Now, we all have all kinds of crosses. That's 00:02:37.840 --> 00:02:40.280 true. Father James was right about that on Sunday. 00:02:42.840 --> 00:02:48.340 Difficulties, hardships, illness, people in your 00:02:48.340 --> 00:02:52.180 life. But when Jesus was speaking to those people 00:02:52.180 --> 00:02:56.860 there, And the disciples said, anyone who wants 00:02:56.860 --> 00:02:59.759 to follow me, deny yourself, pick up your cross. 00:03:00.539 --> 00:03:03.659 Nobody thought that the cross was some kind of 00:03:03.659 --> 00:03:08.379 inconvenience. Everyone knew that it meant the 00:03:08.379 --> 00:03:12.340 Romans pounding your hands and feet into the 00:03:12.340 --> 00:03:15.520 wood, blood and death. That's what they knew. 00:03:16.919 --> 00:03:20.300 So what Jesus is telling us is that he's going 00:03:20.300 --> 00:03:23.810 that way. That's what he's going to do because 00:03:23.810 --> 00:03:27.150 there's no other way to defeat him that held 00:03:27.150 --> 00:03:30.289 the power of death, that is the devil, than to 00:03:30.289 --> 00:03:34.189 die and to let the realm of death, Hades itself, 00:03:34.270 --> 00:03:37.909 be filled with the glory, peace, kindness, and 00:03:37.909 --> 00:03:41.349 goodness of God in the obedience to the Heavenly 00:03:41.349 --> 00:03:45.110 Father. And he's inviting us in our own life 00:03:45.110 --> 00:03:49.409 to follow that same path. And it's going to take 00:03:49.409 --> 00:03:53.889 a different form for each of us. whatever station 00:03:53.889 --> 00:03:58.150 we have in life. But it certainly will be a painful 00:03:58.150 --> 00:04:02.530 self -denial. Because if we don't do that, we 00:04:02.530 --> 00:04:05.509 hold on and we protect what we think is our ego, 00:04:05.650 --> 00:04:09.449 what is something so special, so unique, when 00:04:09.449 --> 00:04:13.030 in fact God has made what is unique, but it's 00:04:13.030 --> 00:04:16.050 covered with sin. God has made something special 00:04:16.050 --> 00:04:20.050 and glorious in each one of you, in each creation 00:04:20.050 --> 00:04:24.550 that he has made. It's covered and disfigured. 00:04:24.790 --> 00:04:30.970 The denial and the cross is our way of cleansing 00:04:30.970 --> 00:04:36.449 that with God's grace. We look finally for worldly 00:04:36.449 --> 00:04:39.589 success and we blame God when things don't go 00:04:39.589 --> 00:04:42.610 right in the world. This happens continually, 00:04:42.689 --> 00:04:45.930 I know, and I do it myself. But the way of the 00:04:45.930 --> 00:04:49.970 cross doesn't look like success to those standing 00:04:49.970 --> 00:04:53.529 there. The invitation seems a little frightening 00:04:53.529 --> 00:04:56.990 to those who heard it. But we are on the other 00:04:56.990 --> 00:05:00.449 side of his crucifixion and his resurrection 00:05:00.449 --> 00:05:06.810 and ascension and glorious Pentecost, his gift 00:05:06.810 --> 00:05:10.069 to us. We're on the other side of that. So we 00:05:10.069 --> 00:05:13.290 know, brothers and sisters, what awaits us. We 00:05:13.290 --> 00:05:16.209 know how good God is and the immeasurable love 00:05:16.209 --> 00:05:19.550 that he has for us because the cross is that. 00:05:20.800 --> 00:05:24.600 When all week long we are singing victory hymns 00:05:24.600 --> 00:05:27.300 of the cross, on Holy Friday we will meditate 00:05:27.300 --> 00:05:30.420 on the darkness of that day. But this week we 00:05:30.420 --> 00:05:33.300 speak about the victory, the power of the cross 00:05:33.300 --> 00:05:37.019 in our life, the way we defeat the evil and the 00:05:37.019 --> 00:05:41.660 sin and death, the way we find joy. For through 00:05:41.660 --> 00:05:47.089 the cross, joy has come into all the world. The 00:05:47.089 --> 00:05:50.310 blessing of the Lord and his mercy be upon you 00:05:50.310 --> 00:05:53.389 through his divine grace and love for man. Always 00:05:53.389 --> 00:05:56.389 now and ever and unto ages of ages.