WEBVTT 00:00:00.650 --> 00:00:09.470 Glory to Jesus Christ. Glory forever. Perhaps 00:00:09.470 --> 00:00:13.349 you recall last week that I said that the gospel 00:00:13.349 --> 00:00:19.030 readings that were given each week are not only 00:00:19.030 --> 00:00:22.370 didactic, week by week by week, they're teaching 00:00:22.370 --> 00:00:28.570 us to grow more in faith, to be more mature as 00:00:28.570 --> 00:00:31.960 Christians. But they're also our encounter with 00:00:31.960 --> 00:00:36.640 the living Christ, the Lord. And when we hear 00:00:36.640 --> 00:00:39.719 those words, he's speaking to us, he's speaking 00:00:39.719 --> 00:00:44.200 to me, he's speaking to you. His hand is upon 00:00:44.200 --> 00:00:49.840 you. And what transpired there is important for 00:00:49.840 --> 00:00:56.179 us to know. We were talking about faith this 00:00:56.179 --> 00:01:03.159 whole last period. this whole month, and we're 00:01:03.159 --> 00:01:06.260 talking about faith. The gospel's teaching us 00:01:06.260 --> 00:01:11.980 about faith. A few weeks ago, it's faith that 00:01:11.980 --> 00:01:15.939 is given to us so we can see with our hearts. 00:01:16.719 --> 00:01:19.420 Because it's the blind men who actually know 00:01:19.420 --> 00:01:22.379 it's the Lord. So we need that kind of vision 00:01:22.379 --> 00:01:28.319 with our heart. And Christ heals his sight. And 00:01:28.319 --> 00:01:31.739 then there was Christ coming to the midst of 00:01:31.739 --> 00:01:35.540 the people in their hunger, like the fresco right 00:01:35.540 --> 00:01:40.859 over there shows. Yes, feeding them with food, 00:01:40.920 --> 00:01:44.719 multiplying the five loaves and the two fish. 00:01:45.140 --> 00:01:48.920 I imagine it was like five pieces of pita bread 00:01:48.920 --> 00:01:54.459 and some sardines. But that was enough for the 00:01:54.459 --> 00:02:00.200 Lord to multiply. But he feeds us today here 00:02:00.200 --> 00:02:06.599 upon his throne where he prepares himself for 00:02:06.599 --> 00:02:10.699 our lives in the Eucharist. And last week it 00:02:10.699 --> 00:02:15.280 was Christ in the storm teaching Peter, why did 00:02:15.280 --> 00:02:18.520 you doubt a view of little faith? Yes, this is 00:02:18.520 --> 00:02:21.699 the kind, sweet Jesus giving a stern word of 00:02:21.699 --> 00:02:25.639 rebuke. But the Lord in the storm, he is there 00:02:25.639 --> 00:02:30.409 with us. And today, it's an unusual scene, which 00:02:30.409 --> 00:02:34.250 Matthew describes, but Mark describes even more 00:02:34.250 --> 00:02:37.710 detail. His account is twice as long. He says, 00:02:37.789 --> 00:02:40.990 this is Jesus coming down with Peter, James, 00:02:41.009 --> 00:02:43.469 and John from the Mount of Tabor, where they 00:02:43.469 --> 00:02:46.469 have just, the disciples have seen the glory 00:02:46.469 --> 00:02:51.469 of God on the earth. This teaches us, brothers 00:02:51.469 --> 00:02:55.300 and sisters, that's what we will see. and the 00:02:55.300 --> 00:02:59.219 life of the age to come. Christ in his glory. 00:02:59.379 --> 00:03:02.639 And more than that, we will participate in that 00:03:02.639 --> 00:03:11.439 and be like him. This is salvation. They've just 00:03:11.439 --> 00:03:14.960 come from that. And St. Mark, along with St. 00:03:15.099 --> 00:03:18.340 Luke and St. Matthew, describe a scene. The scribes 00:03:18.340 --> 00:03:22.300 are questioning the disciples. They're casting 00:03:22.300 --> 00:03:27.590 doubt. upon Jesus' ministry because his disciples 00:03:27.590 --> 00:03:31.750 have failed to do what Jesus himself had given 00:03:31.750 --> 00:03:37.509 them to do some chapters earlier. And what do 00:03:37.509 --> 00:03:41.129 they see? This crowd of people comes up and they 00:03:41.129 --> 00:03:44.449 see a man with his young boy and he's flailing 00:03:44.449 --> 00:03:50.550 around. There's confusion. There's allegations. 00:03:52.199 --> 00:03:55.460 There's desperation, there's fear, there's sorrow, 00:03:55.620 --> 00:03:58.900 there's fatherly love, there's demonic oppression. 00:04:02.340 --> 00:04:07.639 The man says, my son, he's a lunatic. What he 00:04:07.639 --> 00:04:12.620 means is moon crazy. Of course, he was wrong. 00:04:12.939 --> 00:04:19.519 The boy had a demon. Here's a scene of God's 00:04:19.519 --> 00:04:26.620 good creation. gone terribly wrong. So I want 00:04:26.620 --> 00:04:30.879 to have a little catechism here today. I promise, 00:04:31.100 --> 00:04:35.560 well, no, I won't promise. Briefly, I ask your 00:04:35.560 --> 00:04:41.259 attention for the words of the Holy Fathers about 00:04:41.259 --> 00:04:45.439 this creation. Gregory Palamas says this, God 00:04:45.439 --> 00:04:50.879 created neither death nor illness. nor infirmities. 00:04:50.899 --> 00:04:55.660 Now I'm asked about this frequently. God created 00:04:55.660 --> 00:04:59.240 neither death, nor illness, nor infirmities. 00:04:59.600 --> 00:05:03.060 Do you have that in your mind? Is that clear? 00:05:04.699 --> 00:05:07.759 God created neither the death of the soul, nor 00:05:07.759 --> 00:05:11.399 the death of the body. Are you following me? 00:05:11.939 --> 00:05:15.199 Or rather, St. Gregory, this death of the body 00:05:15.199 --> 00:05:20.310 was not given by God. He neither made it, nor 00:05:20.310 --> 00:05:24.670 did he ordain that it should be. Nor is God the 00:05:24.670 --> 00:05:29.290 author of bodily illnesses. The author of the 00:05:29.290 --> 00:05:32.230 book of Wisdom had already affirmed that God, 00:05:32.310 --> 00:05:35.550 quote, did not make death, and he does not delight 00:05:35.550 --> 00:05:38.329 in the death of the living, for he created all 00:05:38.329 --> 00:05:41.149 things that they might exist, and the creatures 00:05:41.149 --> 00:05:45.149 of the world are wholesome, and there is no destructive 00:05:45.149 --> 00:05:49.870 poison in them. It's wisdom. First chapter, verse 00:05:49.870 --> 00:05:57.310 13. God created the world good. But it's man's 00:05:57.310 --> 00:06:00.689 responsibility, say the saints, to preserve it 00:06:00.689 --> 00:06:11.269 that way. Do you? Do I preserve it? God created 00:06:11.269 --> 00:06:17.839 man as a microcosm. within the macrocosm, so 00:06:17.839 --> 00:06:23.519 that man might in himself bring paradise to the 00:06:23.519 --> 00:06:27.620 whole creation. God established man as king of 00:06:27.620 --> 00:06:30.620 the creation, granting him the power over all 00:06:30.620 --> 00:06:34.779 things within it. He made him mediator, to stand 00:06:34.779 --> 00:06:41.519 between himself and his creatures, giving man 00:06:41.519 --> 00:06:44.550 the task. of leading created beings to their 00:06:44.550 --> 00:06:49.410 perfection. This is high. This is lofty. Stay 00:06:49.410 --> 00:06:53.730 with me. This is truth. By uniting them with 00:06:53.730 --> 00:06:56.149 God through participation in the grace which 00:06:56.149 --> 00:07:00.509 he received from the Spirit. And St. Maximus 00:07:00.509 --> 00:07:06.029 says our primary mission was to unite paradise 00:07:06.029 --> 00:07:11.889 with the rest of the earth and to enable every, 00:07:12.410 --> 00:07:17.389 other creature to participate in the life of 00:07:17.389 --> 00:07:23.250 paradise. Adam was to enable all other creatures 00:07:23.250 --> 00:07:27.009 to participate in the order, the harmony, the 00:07:27.009 --> 00:07:30.490 beauty of which his own nature benefited because 00:07:30.490 --> 00:07:36.050 of its union with God. But once Adam turned away 00:07:36.050 --> 00:07:42.180 from God, now don't blame Adam. Look at yourself. 00:07:43.959 --> 00:07:47.379 Once Adam turned away from God, nature was no 00:07:47.379 --> 00:07:52.379 longer subject to him. Think of St. Herman stopping 00:07:52.379 --> 00:07:57.920 the tidal wave, stopping the forest fire. Think 00:07:57.920 --> 00:08:02.240 of St. Seraphim with his friends, the bear and 00:08:02.240 --> 00:08:05.800 other animals. Think of St. Paisios on Mount 00:08:05.800 --> 00:08:08.860 Athos with his friend, the snake. that he just 00:08:08.860 --> 00:08:10.860 said, go away, go away, our visitors, and it 00:08:10.860 --> 00:08:14.959 would go away. They had paradise within them. 00:08:15.660 --> 00:08:18.500 Following Adam's sin, and then especially with 00:08:18.500 --> 00:08:22.600 Cain, disorder establishes itself between all 00:08:22.600 --> 00:08:26.439 creation and within ourself. Cursed is the ground 00:08:26.439 --> 00:08:31.899 because of you, God declares to man, thus announcing, 00:08:32.179 --> 00:08:37.399 not condemning, but announcing what happened. 00:08:37.950 --> 00:08:42.509 the cosmic catastrophe which Adam's sin had provoked, 00:08:42.549 --> 00:08:46.730 the separation that happened, deprived of the 00:08:46.730 --> 00:08:50.710 grace of God, and evil spread through the devil 00:08:50.710 --> 00:08:54.330 and through the acceptance of the devil's temptation. 00:08:57.389 --> 00:09:01.629 Man was no longer king of creation, but the devil 00:09:01.629 --> 00:09:05.120 was, the prince of this world. and illness multiply, 00:09:05.539 --> 00:09:12.000 grew, spread, reinforced itself. These are the 00:09:12.000 --> 00:09:18.000 words of the Holy Fathers about that scene. But 00:09:18.000 --> 00:09:22.340 Christ comes, and what does he say? He says, 00:09:22.500 --> 00:09:32.200 how long do I have to bear with you? And he rebukes. 00:09:32.460 --> 00:09:35.539 The people, not just the disciples, not just 00:09:35.539 --> 00:09:40.179 the man, not just the scribes, but us too. Because 00:09:40.179 --> 00:09:45.299 we don't follow God's way. The Lord says, what 00:09:45.299 --> 00:09:48.360 is the beginning of the path towards the restoration 00:09:48.360 --> 00:09:51.519 of that kind of paradise that's in the beginning 00:09:51.519 --> 00:09:54.840 with Adam and Eve and garden? What's the first 00:09:54.840 --> 00:09:57.500 steps he gives us? It's so simple, we just miss 00:09:57.500 --> 00:10:00.960 it. And we think we have to grasp on to some 00:10:00.960 --> 00:10:04.830 kind of... deep and profound truths and doctrines 00:10:04.830 --> 00:10:07.289 of the faith, which are true and the teachings 00:10:07.289 --> 00:10:10.870 of the church, but this is about faith, not about 00:10:10.870 --> 00:10:15.190 dogma. And the faith is in the one who cures 00:10:15.190 --> 00:10:20.389 the blind, feeds the hungry, pulls those who 00:10:20.389 --> 00:10:26.549 are drowning out of disaster, and cures demonic 00:10:26.549 --> 00:10:31.559 oppression and reestablishes true life. What 00:10:31.559 --> 00:10:37.000 does he say? Simple. Prayer and fasting. That's 00:10:37.000 --> 00:10:40.840 what we start with. It's the beginning of the 00:10:40.840 --> 00:10:46.179 restoration of his life in us. Because our problem 00:10:46.179 --> 00:10:50.159 is not political parties. Now, if you watch the 00:10:50.159 --> 00:10:52.179 news all day, that's what you're going to think. 00:10:53.720 --> 00:10:57.259 Our problem is not enemies of the state, people 00:10:57.259 --> 00:10:59.460 we don't like, people that are different from 00:10:59.460 --> 00:11:04.899 us. No, that's just hatred. Our problem is against 00:11:04.899 --> 00:11:08.159 principalities, against powers, against the rulers 00:11:08.159 --> 00:11:10.639 of the darkness of this age, against spiritual 00:11:10.639 --> 00:11:14.879 hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Those 00:11:14.879 --> 00:11:17.980 of you that don't read the Bible, I didn't make 00:11:17.980 --> 00:11:22.620 up those words. That's from St. Paul. There's 00:11:22.620 --> 00:11:25.509 another way of saying what St. Paul just... I 00:11:25.509 --> 00:11:28.690 just quoted, that Christ came to destroy him 00:11:28.690 --> 00:11:31.809 that held the power of death, that is the devil, 00:11:31.889 --> 00:11:37.230 and deliver them who through fear of death were 00:11:37.230 --> 00:11:42.549 all their lifetime subject to bondage. Christ 00:11:42.549 --> 00:11:45.730 promises, and see, this is about faith in Christ. 00:11:45.830 --> 00:11:50.710 This is about reliance in him, not on our strength 00:11:50.710 --> 00:11:54.360 to believe doctrines. And teachings which are 00:11:54.360 --> 00:11:57.279 important and essential, but we only come to 00:11:57.279 --> 00:12:01.600 them when we know Jesus Christ. And once we know 00:12:01.600 --> 00:12:05.919 him, then we share in his victory over all that 00:12:05.919 --> 00:12:10.860 corruption and evil and sin and suffering. Because 00:12:10.860 --> 00:12:13.779 Christ has given us baptism in which we become 00:12:13.779 --> 00:12:16.139 children of the Father. We've been given the 00:12:16.139 --> 00:12:18.899 seal of the Holy Spirit in which we become like 00:12:18.899 --> 00:12:25.620 Christ himself, having the Spirit of God. And 00:12:25.620 --> 00:12:29.580 we have the whole armor of God that we may be 00:12:29.580 --> 00:12:33.440 able to withstand in the evil day. And having 00:12:33.440 --> 00:12:37.879 done all, to stand. And here we are today. The 00:12:37.879 --> 00:12:43.460 liturgy is the celebration of that victory. And 00:12:43.460 --> 00:12:47.440 we receive Christ the King within ourself in 00:12:47.440 --> 00:12:51.059 holy communion. Our faith is not moralistic, 00:12:51.220 --> 00:12:56.289 it's therapeutic. It's about becoming holy, not 00:12:56.289 --> 00:13:03.129 just good. It's about acquiring divine love to 00:13:03.129 --> 00:13:07.830 elevate our human love. Fasting teaches us, I'll 00:13:07.830 --> 00:13:11.870 be brief, body and soul to oppose temptation, 00:13:12.350 --> 00:13:17.830 to oppose egotism, hypocrisy, addiction, self 00:13:17.830 --> 00:13:21.070 -will, sinful impulses and compulsions. It teaches 00:13:21.070 --> 00:13:25.259 us gratitude. Fasting will remind us that we 00:13:25.259 --> 00:13:30.320 are dust and ashes. And out of that, we learn 00:13:30.320 --> 00:13:35.299 compassion for those who are in need. The Lord 00:13:35.299 --> 00:13:39.299 mentioned prayer too. Prayer brings us to the 00:13:39.299 --> 00:13:42.799 Holy Trinity, the Theotokos, and the saints, 00:13:43.000 --> 00:13:47.059 and teaches us again that without it being dust 00:13:47.059 --> 00:13:50.240 and ashes, we have no existence without God. 00:13:51.629 --> 00:13:55.330 So in prayer, we enter in not just a supplication, 00:13:55.370 --> 00:13:59.210 Lord, I need this, I need that, please help me 00:13:59.210 --> 00:14:01.529 with this, please help her with that. No, we 00:14:01.529 --> 00:14:05.889 enter into gratitude and joy for giving us life, 00:14:06.090 --> 00:14:10.409 and after that, we can supplicate. We start with 00:14:10.409 --> 00:14:14.889 prayer and fasting in order to gain faith, which 00:14:14.889 --> 00:14:18.740 is a gift from God. He tells the apostles, your 00:14:18.740 --> 00:14:22.240 faith isn't even as big as a mustard seed. No 00:14:22.240 --> 00:14:27.039 wonder you couldn't do anything. If you have 00:14:27.039 --> 00:14:29.440 faith that big, it's enough to move a mountain. 00:14:29.580 --> 00:14:35.179 Now, we don't need to move any mountain. Not 00:14:35.179 --> 00:14:38.320 a physical mountain. But with the widow's two 00:14:38.320 --> 00:14:42.940 mites, you know that story. Faith is not about 00:14:42.940 --> 00:14:50.200 quantity. It's about quality. That's what's important. 00:14:51.519 --> 00:14:56.379 What I mean by that is it's simple. It's pure. 00:14:56.940 --> 00:15:01.740 It's sincere. It's childlike. It depends on one 00:15:01.740 --> 00:15:05.820 who is stronger than us. It's like this. Jesus 00:15:05.820 --> 00:15:09.419 says, I thank thee, Father, that thou hast hid 00:15:09.419 --> 00:15:12.320 these things from the wise and the prudent and 00:15:12.320 --> 00:15:16.549 the mighty and hast revealed them. unto babes 00:15:16.549 --> 00:15:21.309 let us be children of the father walk the road 00:15:21.309 --> 00:15:26.710 that jesus has for us and have faith in him and 00:15:26.710 --> 00:15:29.929 not in ourself and we shall restore a little 00:15:29.929 --> 00:15:34.570 bit of paradise in the heart and around us let's 00:15:34.570 --> 00:15:36.669 be joyful brothers and sisters because here we 00:15:36.669 --> 00:15:39.710 are in this church and we see these icons and 00:15:39.710 --> 00:15:41.889 their reflection their manifestation of that 00:15:41.889 --> 00:15:47.120 paradise at life Let's rise up to that with the 00:15:47.120 --> 00:15:50.039 help of the Holy Spirit and rejoice with each 00:15:50.039 --> 00:15:50.840 other. Amen.