Address by His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia on the occasion of Sobriety Daytranslated

Beloved in the Lord, Your Eminence Archpastors! All-honorable fathers, dear brothers and sisters! Now the Holy Church remembers the event of the Beheading of the Baptist of the Lord John. For his fidelity to the truth of God, the great prophet suffered martyrdom from the cruel king. Under the influence of an intoxicating drink, Herod, who already did not lead a pious life, became insensible, gave in to debauchery (Eph. 4:19) and aggravated the sin of adultery by killing a righteous man. As a reminder of the need to watch and pray so as not to fall into temptation (Matthew 26:41), the Church established the Day of Sobriety on this holiday, so that, having heeded the Gospel reading heard today, everyone would take the path of fighting their weaknesses and vices. For those who are condescending and frivolous about the sin of drinking wine, let the words of St. Tikhon of Zadonsk be a warning, who warned that the devil loves nothing more than luxury and drunkenness, since no one fulfills his evil will like a drunkard (On true Christianity).

Sobriety concerns not only the use of intoxicating drinks, but also any addiction: a person who is unable to tear himself away from a smartphone or a computer game also...