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DO YOU FAST?
Do you fast? Give me proof of it by your works.
If you see a poor man, take pity on him.
If you see a friend being honored, do not envy him.
Do not let only your mouth fast, but also the eye and the ear and the feet and the hands and all the members of our bodies.
Let the hands fast, by being free of avarice.
Let the feet fast, by ceasing to run after sin.
Let the eyes fast, by disciplining them not to glare at that which is sinful.
Let the ear fast, by not listening to evil talk and gossip.
Let the mouth fast from foul words and unjust criticism.
For what good is it if we abstain from birds and fishes, but bite and devour our brothers and sisters?
May He who came to the world to save sinners strengthen us to complete the fast with humility, have mercy on us and save us.
St. John Chrysostom
THE EVIL SPEAKER
“The evil speaker eats the flesh of his brother and bites the body of his neighbor. Because of this Paul utters the fearful saying, “If you bite and devour one another, take heed that you are not consumed by one another (Gal 5:15). You have not fixed your teeth in his flesh, but you have harmed in a thousand ways yourself and him and many others, for in slandering your neighbor, you have made him who listens to the slander worse…Besides this, you have struck at the common welfare of the Chruch herself, for all those who hear you will not only accuse the supposed sinner, but the entire Christian community….”
St John Chrysostom
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On Feb. 28, Metropolitan Jonah, the head of the Orthodox Church in America, posted the following message:
Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!
To the Very Reverend and Reverend Clergy, Monastics
and Faithful of the Orthodox Church in America
Dearly Beloved in the Lord:
Christ is in our midst!
Our Church has gone through a tragic and bitter episode in her history. Many souls suffered shipwreck, demoralized by the sins of a few. That is over. But the lingering bitterness and mistrust, resentment and desire for retribution, hang over us. We must heal this, both on an individual as well as corporate level. The only way to do this is repentance, using this season of repentance to make changes in our lives, cleanse our hearts and minds, and embrace the hope that can only be grasped by forgiveness. Unless we forgive others from our hearts, we cannot accept God’s forgiveness for our own sins.
Every time we criticize, judge, condemn or despise another person, no matter how gravely he or she may have sinned, we sin equally ourselves. All our self-righteous indignation is all hypocrisy that blinds us to our own sins. The resentment we allow to fester in our hearts gives us over to corruption and evil. We allow ourselves to gossip, and talk about other people, and forget that we condemn ourselves by doing so. It does not matter what another person has done; that is his or her sin. Why do I need to make his sin my own, by my judgment and criticism, and destroy my own life by resentment of someone else? Continue reading →
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