In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and
of the Holy Spirit, glory to Jesus Christ. Just
as we turn. Our pockets inside out from time
to time to find what remains hidden and forgotten.
Peanuts, fishy crackers, old Prospero. So God
sometimes turns our hearts inside out in order
to reveal that ugliness within our soul. So much
of what we cannot see in ourself contradicts
the Lord's original intention. in creating us,
and has no place in our ultimate purpose, which
is to love God and to be like him in all things.
Those are words from Archimandrite Zacharias
in this wonderful book, Remember Thy First Love.
It's apropos to the lesson we heard because Jesus
does reveal exactly what this man has hidden
in his heart. Last week, we heard wonderful gospel.
It was given to us so we could examine how and
if and when we forgive and when we decide not
to forgive. How we grant mercy to those that
may have deeply hurt us, offended us, used us,
and sinned against us. I'm not talking about
politicians on television. I'm talking about
people that you know, that you encounter. You
recall the parable about the unmerciful debtor
and our Bishop Vasili's profound words. He said
that we cannot repay God for everything that
he has done for us. What he requires of us is
our heart, our spirit, our broken spirit, the
sacrifice of thanksgiving. sacrifice of praise,
glorification, and repentance. He showed his
love for us by dying for our sinners to grant
us reconciliation, freedom, salvation, forgiveness.
If we are truly disciples of Christ, said the
bishop, we are called to forgive one another.
We need his divine grace to give us the ability
to forgive, to enable us to forgive, for we cannot
do this with our own strength. That was last
week's examination that the gospel, like a light
shining in our soul. And this week, we're asked
to consider, to examine our relationship with
possessions, not just rich people. Not just rich
people. This is actually to consider the first
commandment. The Lord listed those commandments
dealing with relations with other people. You
heard that in the gospel. What he was leading
this man to was the first commandment. I hope
you know where the Ten Commandments come from.
Old Testament. In one place, Exodus 20. You shall
have no other gods before me. You shall have
no other gods before me. Before I get to that
and to say something about this encounter, I
want to say a word about the commemoration today
that we have in the church. Not of the saints,
but that of the sash, the belt of the Theotokos.
We sang two hymns about that. Now you may say,
that's odd. That's weird. We have this, like,
item, this belt of the Theotokos, and we're singing
hymns about it. We have a commemoration about
it. This belt, this sash, was saved, it's an
interesting story, which I won't go into now,
by pious people after the death of the Virgin
Mary, and it was passed down generation by generation,
eventually ended up in Constantinople, and then
now is in at least two places, the monastery
of Vatapedi, and in... Georgia, I believe, and
maybe there's in Trier in Germany. It was split
up. Is it really so odd and weird to have this
in our calendar? There's a room at the Smithsonian
Museum with Dorothy's shoes in it. And people
would spend huge amounts of money to have that.
You've seen sports shows at the championship.
What do the players that win do? They pick up
that trophy and they kiss it. They embrace it
as if it was real and living. Of course, it represents
all they've gone through. I know widows and widowers
who keep some of the clothing of their late wife
or husband. It's not so weird. Anyway, how much
more should we treasure that which has come down
to us in the church? Something that was worn
by the Theotokos herself, sanctified by her.
Remember the handkerchiefs in the Book of Acts
that were healing? the sick people, handkerchiefs
that belonged to the apostles. I was honored,
more like astonished and awestruck to be given
to hold as I was serving at the monastery of
Vatopedi, to hold during the great entrance at
the liturgy a box. A monk came up to me. During
the singing of the cherubic hymn, let us lay
aside all earthly cares. And instead of carrying
the spears or the cross, a monk came up and was
passing out relics. And he gave me a box. And
he opened the lid. And it was the belt of the
Theotokos, which caused me great consternation
and fear. That belt has healed countless people.
by the prayers of the Theotokos. In any case,
about today's gospel, very briefly. The man,
the rich young man, an important man, no doubt,
knew he lacked something. He said that. That
something was not right in his heart. That there
was a burden, a spiritual obstacle, a problem
he could not see. Christ offered the man, A remarkable
thing. A way to mature, to be truly rich. It's
not everyone that Jesus encounters in the scriptures
that Jesus invites and says, follow me. In fact,
he says some people, stay here and tell what
wonderful things God has done for you. Very rarely,
only the apostles. So this man. Must have had
some incredible qualities and abilities. And
the discussion continues. The man asks what good
thing he must do to have eternal life. And the
Lord answers, if you will be perfect. He knows
the heart. He knows the intention. He knows the
thoughts of a person. Out of his love, he knows
what this man really needs. Because he has created
him. And it's like I read there. The pocket was
empty. Jesus offers the remedy. St. Basil says,
if a physician had said to you that he could
fully cure you of some physical disfigurement
you had by nature or disease, wouldn't you have
listened to him gladly? But when the great physician
of souls desires to make you whole of your deficiencies
and things that matter most, the soul, the heart,
your faith. You don't accept the favor, but mourn
and put on a gloomy face and walk away sad. I've
done it many times. Although probably not sad.
This man was pious. I can't say and claim that
for myself. I would walk away from doing what
I need to do, whether it's just the simple things,
praying, or extending myself, or doing whatever
commandment the Lord is asking, and that's clear
to me right then and there. But without any sorrow,
but instead with justification. Isn't that what
we do? We justify how we will not follow Christ
because there's some obstacle and we just can't,
we don't want to. We want to keep it. We don't
want to get rid of it. The young man, and like
us, the cost was too high for him because he
had security in what he possessed. For us, it's
security in who knows what. And the young man's
priorities were set, and they were not going
to be changed. He may have looked, and he was
pious, just like we might look faithful and religious.
Some of you might remember Ray Kroc, the man
who built up McDonald's to this mega corporation.
He was asked once by somebody what he believed
in. He said, I believe in God, I believe in my
family, and I believe in McDonald's. And then
he added, when I get to the office, I reverse
the order. That's what we do. We put what we
think is first before God. Christ invited the
man to be perfect and how to achieve not some
assurance of salvation in eternity by keeping
some rules and some moral things, but he invited
him to join him to be in paradise, joy, the kingdom
of heaven. He offered to him. He offers to us
to be with the spirits of the righteous made
perfect as we sing at the Panaquita. That is
the saints who are with the Lord. That is why
we were given life. All the commandments exist
for us to learn a personal relationship in the
church with our brothers and sisters, with God
and man, to learn divine love. Eternal life,
to be perfect, is that life that Jesus Christ,
our God, lives. It is to love selflessly. It
is, of course, to deny ourself. What the man
could not do. I imagine that man heard Jesus
speaking and ministering. and embracing the children.
Just a few verses before Matthew 19, this is
where we find Jesus and the apostles. Jesus is
speaking with the children, and the apostles
are like, get away, kids, get away. And Jesus
says, let the children come to me, for such is
the kingdom of God. I imagine this man was standing
there, and he heard that, and he saw Jesus ministering,
but he could not be like a child. He had to make
sure he had his security. And Jesus says, it's
easier for a camel to go through the eye of a
needle than for a rich man to be saved. The apostles
are astonished. Why? Because they figure a rich
man, he's blessed. He's got everything, and God
has blessed him. So let's recognize that the
words of the Lord address not merely, not just
that which stands between us and entering fully
and completely into discipleship, into carrying
our cross with Christ. Let's recognize this is
about how money, how money and possessions, not
bad in themselves, mind you, no, but how they
offer. False security. False happiness. How many
of us think today, if I were rich, that would
be great. I could give away so much to the church
and to the poor. Well, why don't we do that now
with what we have? That's enough. God will multiply
that. And if we were rich and not working, we
would find ourselves... In all kinds of sinfulness,
getting into all kinds of trouble. Tomorrow's
Labor Day. Let's think how we labor for the Lord.
If we were rich, we would not do that. Let's
not imagine, brothers and sisters, that we are
immune to all this. Don't be like the rich young
man. Maybe I can summarize this whole thing.
Maybe that's just what I should have done at
the beginning instead of speaking so long. with
two brief sayings, one frequently repeated by
Father Michael of blessed memory, which he would
say to people, it's been reported to me, in confession,
with tears. Don't let anything come between you
and God. And the second, the words of the Savior,
where your treasure is, that's where your heart
is also. To our Savior. Be glory and honor. Now
endeavor to ages of ages.