Only after you believe God can help you can you begin the journey of renewal, Bishop Iachint says

“Only after you believe that God can help you can you take the first step on the path of renewal and salvation,” His Grace Iachint of the Pacific, Assistant Bishop of the Romanian Orthodox Diocese of Australia and New Zealand, said on Sunday at St Mary Romanian Orthodox Parish in Wellington, New Zealand.

Reflecting on the Gospel reading for the Tenth Sunday after Pentecost, the bishop highlighted the relationship among faith, prayer, and fasting, explaining that they are the means by which Christians can struggle against their passions and renew their lives.

“The moment we desire to grow spiritually before God, when our goal is to renounce the evils, passions and vices that constantly consume us, demanding to be satisfied and with which we continually struggle.”

Referring to Christ’s words, “This kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting,” the bishop explained that authentic fasting aims at transforming the inner person.

“Christians have at their disposal three pillars, three means, three virtues that give them the divine strength to be transformed.”

“The Lord Christ came into the world to teach us what we must do in order to be saved, but also to save us…