Christ is risen, and no one lies in the tomb.-Holy Light

 May the Holy Light we have received, its flame, not remain only in the candle, but first and foremost warm the flame of our soul....

May it soften and sweeten our hearts, so that the "ice" surrounding them may melt and we may forgive any transgressions of our fellow human beings....

May the Resurrection of our Lord show us the right path to joy, spiritual awakening, and spiritual gladness.

Let us offer a smile, a sign of love to our fellow human beings, in whatever way we can and without expecting anything in return… Love, a feeling so powerful, the highest form of sacrifice taught to us by the Lord—a smile, even to a stranger passing by on the street, can make someone happy!

It can save and redeem souls.... It is in our hands to make our world a more beautiful place!

I wholeheartedly wish that the Resurrection of the Lord may enlighten all our souls and bring blessings to every step of our life’s journey, so that we may be worthy of the heavenly Kingdom....

Christ is risen, and no one lies in the tomb!!!!

Take heart and pray......

I am the Resurrection and the Life

Saint Justin Popovich

If there is one truth in which all the truths of the Gospel could be summarized, that truth would be the resurrection of Christ. And furthermore, if there is a reality in which all the New Testament realities could be summarized, that reality would be the resurrection of Christ. Only in the Resurrection of Christ are all His miracles, all His truths, all His words, and all the events of the New Testament explained.

Until His resurrection, the Lord taught about eternal life, but with His resurrection He showed that He Himself is indeed eternal life. Until His resurrection, He taught about the resurrection of the dead, but with His resurrection He showed that He Himself is indeed the resurrection of the dead. Until His resurrection, He taught that faith in Him brings one from death to life, but with His resurrection He showed that He Himself had conquered death and thus secured for those who have died the passage from death to resurrection.

Through sin, man became mortal and finite; through the resurrection of the God-man, he becomes immortal and eternal. And this is precisely where the power, the authority, and the omnipotence of Christ’s resurrection lie. And for this reason, without the resurrection of Christ, there would not even be Christianity. Among the miracles, the Lord’s Resurrection is the greatest miracle. All other miracles stem from it and are summed up in it. From it spring faith and love and hope and prayer and piety. This is what no other religion possesses; this is what elevates the Lord above all people and gods. This is what, in a unique and indisputable way, shows and proves that Jesus Christ is the only true God and Lord in all the visible and invisible worlds.

That a person truly believes in the Risen Lord is demonstrated by their struggle against sin and passions, and if he does struggle, he must know that he is struggling for immortality and eternal life. But if he does not struggle, then his faith is in vain! For if a person’s faith is not a struggle for immortality and eternity, then what is it? If faith in Christ does not lead one to immortality and victory over death, then what is the point of our faith? If Christ did not rise from the dead, this means that sin and death have not been conquered. And if these two have not been conquered, then why should anyone believe in Christ? But he who, through faith in the Risen Christ, struggles against every sin of his own, gradually strengthens within himself the sense that the Lord has truly risen, has blunted the sting of death, has conquered death on all fronts of the battle.

Without the Resurrection, there is nothing in heaven or under heaven more absurd than this world, nor greater despair than this life than this one, without immortality. In all the worlds, there is no existence more miserable than that of a human being who does not believe in the resurrection of the dead. That is why, for human existence, the Risen Lord is “all in all” in all worlds: that which is Beautiful, the Good, the True, the Lovable, the Joyful, the Divine, the Wise, the Eternal. This is all our Love, all our Truth, all our Joy, all our Goodness, all our Life, Eternal Life in all eternities and infinities.

The Gospel says: “Be on good terms with your adversary while you are on the road with him.” Matthew 5:25

 

The Gospel says: “Be on good terms with your adversary while you are on the road with him.” Matthew 5:25  That is: “Maintain good relations with your adversary while you are still on the road with him, lest he hand you over to the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, and you be thrown into prison; Truly I tell you, you will not get out of there until you have paid the last penny.”

- What does this saying of our Lord mean?

Be careful, He says, while you are on the road with your adversary, to maintain a good relationship with him, lest he hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the officers, and they throw you into prison. Truly I tell you, you will not get out of there until you have paid the last penny of your debt.

Here the translator has a footnote explaining how St. Athanasius interprets this passage. A path, a road—that is this vain life, our temporary existence. How many years… ten, twenty, a hundred—whatever we may live. This vain and deceptive life, which deceives us, misleads us. We think we will be here forever, while we are so very temporary. We are like a drop of water, like a ray of light that passes and disappears. Such is our life here on earth. “For if the soul is separated from the body and departs from this life and this path, it can no longer do good,” says St. Athanasius, if the union of soul and body is severed. This is death. Death is not disappearance; it is simply that this union of soul and body ceases to exist. These two are separated. So when this happens and we leave this vain life and this path, we can no longer work toward the good, toward repentance. In Hades, there is no repentance. After death, you cannot change. So be careful, while you are here with your adversary—that is, with your conscience—for he is the adversary, says Christ—to maintain a good relationship. Listen to your conscience. Do not trample on it, because otherwise this conscience will hand you over to the judge, to the court, and you will go to prison, to eternal hell. And you will not be able to leave unless you pay back every last penny of your debt, and the very last coin. “A ‘kodrantis’ is called,” explains St. Athanasius, “and this is the remnant of memory”—that is, the slightest memory that remains within us. “Conscience is also called an adversary. For it examines us in the secret of our hearts and restrains us from evil.” It is our conscience that secretly examines us in our hearts and tells us, “Do not do this,” and it stops evil if we listen to it.

- And if we don’t listen to it?

In the end, it delivers us to God’s Judgment, and we will give an account; we will be held accountable for the great sins, but also for the small ones and the slightest ones.

There is no such thing as a mortal sin and a non-mortal sin, as some say—that one is grave and mortal, the other is minor. It may be minor, but if you don’t repent even for this small one, and say, “It doesn’t matter,” I’ll just do it… then even the small sin becomes mortal. Therefore, all sins are deadly, and when we repent, they cease to kill us, to be deadly. And so even the smallest sins must be eradicated. That is why repentance is necessary, confession for everything.

What Became of the High Priests Annas and Caiaphas and Pontius Pilate

The following text recounts one of the various traditions regarding the fates of Pilate and the High Priests Annas and Caiaphas after the unjust killing of Christ. It originates from a manuscript of the Holy Monastery of Iviron, a copy of which is kept in the cell of Saint Gobdela the Persian of that same monastery, which was transcribed and published by the Mount Athos monk (+) Hieromonk Averkios in 1895 and 1896 in Varna.

After the Ascension of the Lord, Pontius Pilate, the governor of Judea, wrote a report as required to the Roman Emperor Tiberius regarding the events that occurred concerning our Lord Jesus Christ.

Tiberius, having been informed of the Lord’s many miracles, His Resurrection from the dead, and that many believed Him to be God, reported these matters to the Roman Senate and threatened the accusers of the Christians with death.

Tiberius’s response to Pilate came in a letter criticizing his unjust decision to condemn Christ, but also dispatching his Commissioner Rahab along with 2,000 men to arrest him and bring him to Rome, along with the High Priests Caiaphas and Annas.

The delegation from Rome arrested Pilate and the High Priests, whom they bound in chains. In chains, they sailed for Rome.

Caiaphas died in Crete. The ship stopped, and they buried the high priest’s putrid body, which was expelled from the grave, since even the earth would not accept him. They buried him seven times, but “the earth cast him out, unburied and black as Cain, for the great evil we committed, which condemned Christ.” A great crowd then gathered and, cursing him, buried him under a huge pile of stones.

This was the end of Caiaphas. His tomb in a village near Heraklion survived until the end of the 19th century.

This tradition is very old and is mentioned by several travelers (though it is not historically confirmed).

The ship continued its journey and arrived in Rome. Tiberius did not wish to examine them. He gave an order, and the High Priest Annas was wrapped naked in oxhide and left in the summer sun. From the heat, the skin dried out and tightened around his body, causing it to burst and his internal organs to spill out, thus bringing about a gruesome death.

As for Pilate, he ordered that he be locked up in a tower in chains, with the intention of killing him himself. One day, Tiberius had gone out hunting near the tower where Pilate was being held captive.

Pilate was informed of this by the guard and rushed to a hole in the wall to see Caesar. Then a roe deer approached the tower wall, roughly at the height of the hole from which Pilate was watching.

Caesar Tiberius, fearing he would lose his prey, quickly took aim with his bow, and the arrow entered through the hole in the tower wall, piercing Pilate’s eyes and killing him.

According to Eusebius of Caesarea (Church History, vol. II, VII), Pilate was exiled to Vienne in France, where he committed suicide. According to another tradition, he was thrown into the Tiber River, and his corpse caused floods and destruction.

Yet another tradition holds that he fell from a mountain that still bears his name today on Lake Lucerne in Switzerland. While another states that he was beheaded during the reign of Tiberius.

Metropolitan Meletios of Athens, in his Ecclesiastical History, states the following: After the Ascension of the Lord, Pontius Pilate, the governor of Judea, wrote a report as required to the Roman Emperor Tiberius regarding the events that occurred concerning our Lord Jesus Christ.

Tiberius, having been informed of the Lord’s many miracles, His Resurrection from the dead, and that many believed Him to be God, reported these matters to the Roman Senate and threatened the accusers of the Christians with death. After the election of the seven deacons, persecution broke out against the Church in Jerusalem. Then, Mary Magdalene, along with Martha, Lazarus, and Joseph of Arimathea, visited Tiberius in Rome (according to Baronius, in Marseille, France), to whom she recounted the events and the injustices committed by the Jews against Christ and protested his unjust execution. Tiberius was enraged and ordered the high priests (Caiaphas and Annas) and Pilate to be put to death.

As soon as Vitellius assumed control of the province of Syria, he replaced Pilate with Marcellus and sent him to Rome to answer to Tiberius. It took him two years to reach Rome, and in the meantime Tiberius had died; the new emperor, Gaius Caligula, exiled him to Vienna, where he suffered great misfortunes and, in despair, committed suicide.

Vittellius maintains that Caiaphas met the same fate, having committed suicide. Clement of Rome agrees with this. Caiaphas’s father-in-law, Annas, also met a terrible death—a divine judgment. (See Meletios, Metropolitan of Athens, Ecclesiastical History, Volume 1, Vienna, Austria, 1794, pp. 119–126). It is worth mentioning, in closing this note, that Pilate’s wife, Procula, after his terrible death, repented, was baptized a Christian, lived a life of faith and piety, and passed away peacefully. Our Church honors her memory on October 27.

Source: Averkius, a monk of Mount Athos, A Precise History of the Events Occurring at the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, Originally written by a certain Jew named Aeneas, a contemporary of the Savior, and translated into Latin by Nicodemus, a Roman, it is preserved in a manuscript on Mount Athos, Varna 1896, pp. 60–63.

© 2021 dogma.gr

Christ became my life.

 I loved Him and I cannot imagine anyone else who can compare with Him. He is for me the only Lord and God.

I almost constantly carry pain in my heart, fearing that I may lose His mercy because of the multitude of my resistances.

However, despite the struggle with Him, despite the numerous attempts to deviate from His cross, I embrace the cross of Christ, and in a way I lift up the cross that was given to me, my cross (see Matt. 19:24).

And I now bless my God who has pleased me to be reborn through the flame of repentance.

(Archimandrite Sophrony (Sakharov) Let Us See God as He Is, Holy Monastery of the Holy Forerunner, Essex, England, 2010, pp. 64-5)

Cross of Love!

 

Cross of Patience!

Cross of Forgiveness!

Cross of Pain!

Cross of Repentance!

Cross that is in our Life from the time we are born until the time of our departure from this world!

Every minute and hour we carry it… sometimes light and sometimes heavy!

Sometimes good Simon helps us and sometimes our Christ himself!

Sometimes it is made with labors with sacrifices with sorrows with worries with illnesses and sometimes with beautiful moments and happy ones!

In the course of our Life, a milestone of Victory and Resurrection!

 

I wonder what our life would be like without the Cross??; A storm, a tempest, a disaster!

 

It was the symbol of death and became a symbol of Life!

It was the cursed wood and it became the Life-Giver!

It was hell and it became Paradise!

It was the wood that our Lord stretched out His immaculate body and on it we were reborn and became His children!

We became the children of His Crucified Love!

A Love that gave Hope, Forgiveness and Life!

 

May our Life be Crucified and Blessed!

Let us not fear anything because we are under His shadow…

a shadow that refreshes us with His Blessing and power!!!

 

“Cross of Christ, save us by your power…”

As for the red eggs eaten at the Resurrection

 

As for the red eggs eaten at the Resurrection, many say many things without reason; but the wise man Paisios of Gaza, resolving certain issues with the Tsar of Russia, says that when the Jews said (Matthew 27:25) “His blood be on us and on our children,” they immediately dyed all the things they had in their homes red, and then the eggs as well. Hence, in remembrance of the miracle, we also dye our eggs red at the Resurrection; and this miracle, he says, is from an ancient tradition.

Footnote of the Pedal (89 canon of the Sixth Ecumenical Council. Page 298).

I saw a mother

 I saw a mother

I saw a mother looking at her child who walked for the first time.

Her face shone, her eyes filled with tears, her arms were filled with gratitude.

I admired her love, I admired her bond with her child…

I saw a mother looking at her child being crucified without being guilty of anything.

His body full of wounds being nailed to a cross. Some cursing him, others mocking him, others gambling on his clothes…

And the face of this mother remained unmoved, her eyes filled with tears, but her mouth did not open, no cry or complaint was heard… her heart was filled with forgiveness when she received her dead child in her arms.

I admired this mother, not because she didn't scream in pain, but because she turned her pain into love... and from mother of the God-Man she became mother of us all...

You were not commanded to blame the lazy

 You were not commanded to blame the lazy, nor to control wickedness, nor to reproach laziness, but to relieve poverty, to heal calamity, to stretch out your hand and lift up those who have fallen.

Saint John Chrysostom

On prayer

Learn to pray to God not only at prayer times, but every hour and every moment, since He is everywhere. From the constant remembrance of God, an inexpressible peace will flood your heart.

Saint Theophanes the Recluse

 

When we ask someone to pray for us and we become complacent and fall asleep, that is, we become lazy, then does he eat so that we can be satisfied? Is that possible? He has the fruit of love, since he prays for us, but we remain hungry. If he begs God to give us bread, that is, His gifts, and we do not stretch out our hand to receive them, his prayer is useless and fruitless for us. Do not deceive yourself.

But if someone well-intentioned asks for your prayer, do not refuse it (evasively?) with the excuse (or pretext?) of your unworthiness; “for the faith of him who asked [for prayer] has often saved the one praying with a broken heart” (Climax 28. 40). When we are asked to pray for the correction of a negligent person, we are ashamed and we are corrected ourselves.

Hieromonk Justin 

Dreams are deceptive

– Elder, I am troubled by some bad dreams...

– When you see a bad dream, never examine what you saw, how you saw it, if you are guilty, how much you are to blame. The evil one, because he could not tempt you during the day, comes at night. Sometimes God also allows us to tempt us in sleep, so that we may see that the old man has not yet died. Other times, the enemy approaches a person in his sleep and presents him with various dreams, so that he may be distressed when he wakes up. Therefore, do not pay any attention to it; make your cross, cross your pillow, put the cross and a couple of icons on the pillow and say the prayer until you fall asleep. The more you pay attention, the more the enemy will come to bother you!!!

Saint Paisios of Mount Athos

I have not met a person without a cross.

Some with a large cross and some with a small cross.

Some with a heavy cross and some with a lighter one…

Some carry it without complaint.

Some cry in secret.

Some sometimes get tired on the road and rest.

Others carry it on their shoulders.

Others on their backs.

And others hug it. Tightly.

Almost romantically…

And some others drag their cross…

However, everyone carries something.

Everyone has something.

The point is not to give up.

The point is not to throw down your cross.

May the end find you, the passage, and your hands still hold the cross.

The cross that has been given to you.

That is the point.

And if sometimes you reach the “amen”, raise your eyes high.

Great cross, great Resurrection

Humility Dispels the Devil

 

“Humility has great power and drives the devil away. It is the most powerful blow to the devil. Where there is humility, there is no place for the devil. And where there is no devil, there can be no temptations. Once, an ascetic urged a little monk to say “Holy God…” The little monk said, “Holy God, holy and mighty, holy and immortal,” but he wouldn’t say, “have mercy on us.” Say: “have mercy on us”! Nothing! If he had said it, he would have become an Angel. The little monk says everything, but he doesn’t say “have mercy on me,” because humility is required. “Have mercy on me” involves humility, and the soul receives the great mercy of God that it seeks.

Whatever we do, humility, love, and nobility are needed. Things are simple. We make them difficult. As much as we can, let us do what is difficult for the devil and easy for man. Love and humility are difficult for the devil and easy for man. And a sick person who cannot exercise can defeat the devil through humility. In a single moment, a person can become an angel or a little devil. How? Through humility or pride. What, did it take hours for Lucifer to go from being an angel to the devil? It happened in seconds. The easiest way to be saved is through love and humility. That is why we should start with love and humility and then move on to the rest.

May we always bring joy to Christ and sorrow to the devil, since he loves hell and does not want to repent.”

Excerpts from the book “With Pain and Love for Modern Man”

Tonight a thief becomes a Saint.

 

Tonight a thief becomes a Saint. He steals Paradise out of nowhere, while everyone had written him off.

Tonight a “saint”, betrays and commits suicide. He goes and hangs himself. And even though he was with Christ for three years. And even though he performed a bunch of miracles. And even though he saw things and wonders happening next to him.

Tonight another disciple is ashamed. He is ashamed by a little child. By a little girl... “I know you”, that’s all the little girl told him. And he, a grown man, hides, is afraid. He denies his God. And he hears a rooster crow. And he goes outside. And he cries. He cries for his betrayal. And he changes. He repents. And he is the one on whom an entire Church is built…

Tonight a Mother stands next to the Cross. Mute. Silently. And her heart is torn apart by a “double-edged sword.” Now she understands…

Tonight a God is crucified. And from His Cross He forgives. He forgives those who crucify Him…

The court of our Lord

 

Archimandrite Vasiliou Bakoyannis | Romfea.gr

The Romans, having Palestine under their control, gave its High Priests the right to judge the people.

They could also impose the death penalty, by stoning, as they did to the protomartyr Stephen (Acts 5:17-42), but they could not impose death by cross (John 18:31-32), because they had to get permission from the conqueror, something they detested, which is why they rarely made such decisions, however, for Christ they made such a decision! That is where their envy for Christ led them! (Mt. 27:18).

As soon as they arrested Him, they led Him for preliminary interrogation to High Priest Annas. The preliminary interrogation did not bring anything against Jesus.

And instead of releasing Him, High Priest Annas sent Him bound (!) to the Sanhedrin, with High Priest Caiaphas as president (Jn. 18:15-25).

First they arrested Him, and then they sought to find an accusation against Him! Who, after all, would control them?

They had the sword, they had the melon too! “Woe to the weak who is right...!”

Of course, Jesus saw all this and tolerated it, because He came down from heaven for one and only reason: To be crucified for our salvation, and for this He was led to the slaughter “like a mute lamb.”

Caiaphas, in order to condemn Him, called many false witnesses to the Great Court (Mt.26:60).

However, many of them, seeing the good Christ bound in chains, did not have the heart to testify against Him, and they disagreed with the false witnesses! (Mk. 14:55-59).

And so the Court could not make the decision it wanted! According to the law, the accusation had to be based on at least two witnesses (Deut. 19:15).

They could not even try Jesus with false witnesses, but they had to try Him. And the time was passing, because they had to have Him executed by Friday afternoon.

The anxious Caiaphas asked Jesus, “Are you the Son of God?” “Yes, I am” (Mt. 66:63-64), He answered. “Blasphemy,” exclaimed Caiaphas, meaning, if possible, that the chained Jesus was the Son of God! “What need have we then of witnesses?!” (Mt. 26:65).

They tried him at night, in violation of the divine law, which said that trials should be held during the day (Jer. 21:12). After they had made the decision they wanted at night (Mt. 26:66), they held a formal trial in the morning (Mt. 27:1), so that their decision would be valid!

Blasphemy against God was punishable by stoning (Lev. 24:16). However, the High Priest Caiaphas, wanting to completely humiliate Jesus, disregarded the divine law and decided to crucify Jesus!

It was the worst punishment that could be imposed on a convict! They crucified only the most extreme and dangerous criminals!

On Good Friday morning (Jn.18:28) they took Jesus bound to Pilate, to get his signature.

Judas saw this scene, and he could not bear it, because he did not expect the High Priests to make such a humiliating decision, and he killed himself! (Mt.27:1-5).

The High Priests, seeing Pilate tending towards the acquittal of Jesus, made the people shout, demanding His crucifixion! The High Priests were also shouting! They were shouting so loudly that they “covered” the voices of the people! (Lk.23:23).

And while they had decided to crucify Jesus, on the charge of blasphemy, now they decided to crucify Him on the charge of being the King of the Jews! (Jn.19:13-17). It was enough that He was crucified!

By crucifying Him, they put Him in the middle, among the robbers, not because of honor, but to show that He was the leader of the robbers, the leader...!

The most scandalous thing here is that Christ was not condemned by the underworld, by robbers, by criminals, but by the religious leaders of the people, led by the High Priest Caiaphas, because Jesus “stole” their glory!

Power corrupted them. If they did not have power, they might not have gotten into this mess!

Their preoccupation with the Scriptures, with the Temple, with preaching, did not “manage” to save them...!

We, as Priests, can preach about love and injustice, read the Scriptures, and attend church, but if we do not guard ourselves against vanity, envy, and resentment, we will surely become “Caiaphas,” if we have not already become one!

“Caiaphas” did not die!

"O sun tremble, O earth groan and o shaking one cry out...

 Holy Thursday evening...

"O sun tremble, O earth groan and o shaking one cry out...

Unshakable Lord, glory to you!"

There is no man without a cross!

Some with a large cross and some with a small cross...

Some with a heavy cross and some with a lighter one...

Some carry it without a care...

Some secretly weep!!!

Some sometimes get tired on the road and rest...

Some carry it on their shoulders...

Some on their backs...

And others hug it...Tightly!!!

Almost romantically...

And some others drag their cross...

Anyway, everyone carries something!

Everyone has something!

The point is not to give up!!!

The point is not to throw down your cross!

May the end find you, the "passing" and your hands still hold the cross, The cross that has been given to you...

That's the point!

And if sometimes you reach the "amen", raise your eyes high...

Great Cross, Great Resurrection of our Inexhaustible Lord!

"Today we will not only remember, but we will be present at the Passion of Christ.

We will be part of the crowd that will surround Christ, the Disciples and the Theotokos.

As we listen to the readings, as we follow the Prayers of the Church, as the images of the Passion follow one another before our eyes, let us ask ourselves the question:

Among this crowd, where am I, who am I?

A Pharisee?

A scribe?

A traitor?

A coward?

Who?"

Metropolitan of Sourozh Anthony Bloom.

 

When you want to pray, get up at night, on an empty stomach.

 When you want to pray, get up at night, on an empty stomach. Then, but then there is nothing better and more beautiful. When the people are sleeping, God hears you... Cry out to God, with all your strength, from the depths of your heart.

Especially pray at night, when the enemy is watching. After 12 o'clock at night, until 3.30, then the devil finds an opportunity to act, when people are sleeping. That is why the shepherd must be vigilant for the flock...

...We should not waste the whole night sleeping, because then Satan does whatever he wants to us. Since I was a little child, I loved to pray. I would go to a quiet place and cry out to God. My heart thirsted for Him. I had also learned the greetings by heart and said them. What joy, exultation and peace I had in my heart! Whatever I asked of our good Virgin Mary, she gave it to me...

Saint Demetrios Gagastathis + 29/ 1

A great monk of Mount Athos, threw off his robe and went out into the world, to live his life.

 Elder Ephraim of the Skete of Saint Andrew

~ A great monk of Mount Athos, threw off his robe and went out into the world, to live his life.

He lived a prodigal life with many carnal sins and finally got married. He had 2 boys and one day went with his family to swim in the sea.

 On the beach, as he was lying under the umbrella, his little boy said to him:

– Dad, what is this cross on your chest? And the red letters on it, what do they say?

The father was shocked by his son’s revelation. He asked them to return to their home and there he locked himself in his room and cried all night…

The next day he confessed and the spiritual father told him:

– Christ, even though you have denied Him repeatedly and consciously, still loves you undiminished! As infinitely as He loved you when you were a monk, He loves you even more now!

These words struck him in the heart. That is why he revealed the whole truth to his wife and they agreed to divorce by mutual consent. He returned to the monastery, while his wife later became a nun, provided she first settled their children.

After 17 years, the son of the monk who had seen the letters on his father’s chest visits Mount Athos and specifically the monastery where his father was a monk, without knowing it.

He goes to the abbot of the monastery and asks to confess. After the confession, he asks the abbot:

– Father, I am looking for my father. He became a monk and for so many years, I do not know where he is. Can you help me?

The abbot understood whose son this child was and tried diligently to hide his tears of emotion and said to him:

– My child, sit here today and I will inform you and I will tell you tomorrow.

The abbot went to the monk – the father of the son, to inform him and said to him:

– My child, your little son came to the monastery and is looking for you. Would you like to see him?

He, obviously moved and at the same time troubled, said to him:

– Elder, I saw my guardian angel and he revealed to me that in 3 days I am leaving for the other world!

Tell my child that he will see me in 3 days! And when I sleep, then you will reveal to him that I was his father! Because I want to set a rule for myself, for all that I did in my life…

The monk’s act is an act of perfect repentance and his refusal not to see his child is supreme love!

The abbot went to the child, convinced him to stay another 3 days in the monastery. At the funeral that took place in 3 days, the son attended and confessed to the abbot:

– Elder, this is the first time I have seen such a funeral! This monk is a holy relic! He is a monk!

And when they buried him, the abbot made the great revelation to his son:

– My child, this monk… was your father!!!

 

 

 

Death was terrified,

 “Death was terrified, seeing a dead man, who did not resemble the other dead at all, who had descended into Hades and was not bound with the chains with which those who were there were bound. “Why did you, gatekeepers of Hades, tremble with fear at the sight of him?” (Cf. Job 38:17). What unusual fear is this that has seized you? Death fled and in its flight was ashamed of its cowardice. The Holy Prophets ran to the Lord…”

(Saint Cyril of Jerusalem)