Слово в субботу недели 2-й Великого поста, по причащении Святых Таин

With what to greet you, beloved? With the end, or with the beginning of a good deed? You can also greet with an ending; but it seems better from the beginning. For (referring to yourself), can you say that the work of your salvation is over? No, it will end not today, not tomorrow, but, if the Lord willing, along with our lives!.. What's over now? The ordinary and visible, so-called fasting has ended; the lesson of going to church for divine services ended; preparation for the Sacrament of Confession and Holy Communion has ended; but the work of salvation, this great and holy work, ah, it is not over yet, not over!.. If only it would begin now in everyone, as it should! And the beginning of salvation is no small matter, greater than all the so-called great things in the world. For what do they expect? It is assumed that the soul, which had hitherto slept the sleep of death, having been the prey of the enemy of God, rose up, awakened, came to its senses and began to live and act according to the laws of truth and righteousness; it is assumed that the bonds of sin are broken, the captivity of passions is over, the idols of the flesh are crushed, the banner of faith and pure love is raised, the path from Egypt to Canaan has begun. Oh, there is something to greet the one in whom this beginning was made! Do you have it in you? We believe that there is; for, didn’t you yesterday confess your sins, vow not to return to previous iniquities and henceforth wage a courageous battle against the vice and temptations of the age? Where could this confession and these holy vows come from, if not out of disgust for sin and lawlessness? Didn't you, as a result of your confession, yesterday accept the remission of your sins and enter into peace with God and your conscience? What is this if not the return to your primitive state of innocence, the granting of freedom of spirit and conscience, a new birth for a new life in God, for a new way of thinking, feeling and acting? Haven't you finally partaken of the Divine Body and Blood of the Savior? But what could serve better than this, both for strengthening in spiritual life, and in the fight against passions, and as a guarantee of eternal promises? So, in you now there is everything that makes up the beginning of our salvation: the desire to be good, and the strength to do good, and the determination to fight vices, and freedom from them, and the desire for eternal life, and the very guarantee and betrothal of it. With this good beginning we now greet you; We welcome and ask you to preserve and continue what you started, to take advantage of the new state of grace, to rush along the path of truth that is close to you and open to you, to use the grace of pardon and sanctification, and for this, immediately think about how you should behave from here on, what to leave, what to start, and what to continue. For why did the fruits of previous congregations, confessions and communions perish? Precisely because the necessary measures were not taken to protect them; because with the end of the fast, they thought, the very work of salvation ended; because, having left the church after receiving communion, they immediately indulged in their previous way of thinking and acting. These precious fruits will perish now if we act in the same way as we did before; they will perish now if we do not hasten to move away from everything that seduced and destroyed us; They will perish if we do not watch over ourselves, guard our heart and conscience, and constantly protect ourselves with the fear of God and secret prayer. Stand still, beloved, be sober, be vigilant, take courage, be strengthened, grow, be perfected! Having taught us yesterday the remission of sins, and now the Body and Blood of the Lord, we can do nothing more for you except continue our prayers for your salvation and be ready to guide you on the path to heaven. But you must go to work and do your work until the evening of your life. May the all-merciful Lord, who gave you the spirit of repentance and prayer, grant you the spirit of constancy and patience in your work, and may he protect you from a disastrous return! Amen. You might be interested in: