Dear in Christ Brothers and Sisters,

Congratulations with the feasts of the Resurrection of the Lord and of St. John of the Ladder, as well as with the completion of the fourth week of Great Lent!

Today we heard the words of the Holy Apostle Paul, which he wrote to the Christians of Jewish background. At first glance, these words are difficult to understand; it’s difficult to catch the message that Paul wished to pass on. It’s not immediately clear why these words are read today. But in fact there isn’t anything too complicated here and the message is simple enough. Let’s paraphrase what we heard, and perhaps everything will become clearer. And so, Paul said the following: You Jews know that God promised Abraham that he would become the father of a whole nation. God not only promised, but confirmed that this would be with an oath. Abraham, like a true servant of the Lord, did not doubt that this would happen, even though he had no son. He patiently waited and finally a son was born to him. The promise was fulfilled. We, the spiritual heirs of that ancient promise, i. e. those who believe in Christ, the sons and daughters not of Abraham but of God, the members of the body of Jesus Christ, the members of His Church, must be consoled by the story of Abraham, for we see that when the Lord promises something, and swears an oath, it is impossible for Him not to keep His word. For us, He, Jesus Christ, opened the road to the Heavenly Kingdom. He Himself first entered like a forerunner before us. Therefore we need to remember God’s promise that the path to heaven is open to us, hold fast to hope as if it’s an anchor, and set out towards the Kingdom of Heaven.

Sometimes, finding ourselves in difficult situations, whether they be physical, emotional, or spiritual, we forget how much God has already given us, but also how much He has promised to give us in the future life. Since God has made us a promise, nothing remains for us to do but to endure patiently, like Abraham, and to steadfastly hold on to the anchor of hope. These words are also very appropriate for the present Lenten season. From the very beginning of Lent we have heard liturgical texts make reference to Pascha and the Resurrection of Christ. You could say that we are hearing a promise that the Feast will come, and that Lent, with its struggles and frequent, long church services will come to an end. We understand this, but sometimes we just want to give up, to relax, to eat. It is as if today’s Epistle excerpt is saying: don’t do this; take the patient endurance of Abraham as an example, hold on to the steady anchor of fasting, prayer, and good deeds and you will surely greet the feast of Pascha with spiritual joy.

priest Alexis