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3rd Sunday in Lent.
Veneration of the Holy Cross Today, the 3rd Sunday in
Lent, we pay special homage to the Holy Cross. This day is known as the Sunday
of "Stavroproskenesis", or, Veneration of the Holy Cross. The Church,
very wisely placed this The 40 Day Lenten period of
fasting, prayer, sacrifice and good works, which serves as the introduction to
the Holy Passion and culminates with the Glorious Resurrection of our Lord, was
indeed a long stretch so to speak. In order that the
Christians would not weaken, as runners in the spiritual race, and to
further bolster us in our Faith, the Holy Cross is brought sharply into greater
focus. The Cross, which is the unique Symbol of salvation, and serves as a
constant reminder of the supreme sacrifice of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
He sacrificed Himself for you and for me, so that all of us would have the
opportunity to be saved. As the Symbol of our Faith,
the Cross is an inexhaustible source of spiritual power and regeneration. Having
then finished the first half of the Lenten Period, we receive today renewed
strength and spiritual vigor to proceed steadily on the road to complete our
Lenten journey. The Procession and Litany
which we just witnessed has the power to bring a special blessing to us. The
Priest elevated the Holy Cross and chanted: "O Lord, save Thy people and
bless Thine inheritance; grant victory to the Faithful over all adversaries, and
protect Thy commonwealth through the Power of Thy Cross." Subsequently the
Priest and the Choir chanted: "Thy Cross O Master we reverence, and Thy
Holy Resurrection we glorify!" After
the brief Service, a flower is always given to each of the Faithful from the
flower tray, in which the Cross was placed. The Faithful are blessed by kissing
the Cross after having received their flower. The flower is given to the
Faithful as a veritable symbol, so that with the blessings and Grace of our
Crucified Lord and Saviour, the Christian virtues will blossom and flower within
our hearts. But,--
to all these, we must give substance and meaning, through our conscious and
wholehearted participation. Concisely, this is the meaning of the special
Service of the Day; Today, our theme will center on the Gospel Lesson, which is
one of the shortest of the Ecclesiastical Year; --- short, --- but without a
doubt it is a lesson, which presents to us a very profound teaching. It
pinpoints, but also emphasizes the true value of the soul, and gives the soul
supreme importance, as opposed to so many humans, who for one reason or another,
have sold their soul, as the saying goes, or have rendered it valueless, because
of their reckless living. Let us
concentrate on a couple of Bible verses we heard today. As we know, all objects
in life, whether we possess few or many, have a specific value. This value, is
estimated, either objectively, or by the owner himself. And the oddity is this:
Certain objects, which really do have
value, are disposed of for practically nothing;
and other objects, which truly may be worthless to others, constitute our
very priceless possessions. In what
man so often
has chosen to make so unimportant, the Lord attaches the greatest importance,
without any reservation. Our soul is the most priceless possession in this
world, even though so many fail to realize this, -- and as a result, are willing
to give it in exchange for some part of this world, --- be it money, glory,
power, position or the like. It is no
wonder then, that the Lord Jesus stated: "For what shall it
profit a man if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul?" and
the Lord continues to ask: "And what shall man give in exchange for his own
soul?" If we
pause to seriously think for a moment, we most assuredly will agree, that the
whole world cannot be equal to the worth of a single soul; --- whether it is
housed in a strong healthy body, or in a frail, weak body, lying and suffering
on a hospital bed! Nothing
then, is more important than our soul,-- because the soul lives on into
Eternity, whereas all worldly possessions are sheer vanity and of course
temporary. The soul is all important, because it is the very breath of life,
breathed into us by God. It is precisely this soul, which sets us apart and
above all other creatures and creations, and has made us masters over all things
in this world! "What
shall a man give in exchange for his own soul?" asks the Lord. Nothing,
positively nothing; not even the whole world is the firm reply of the true
Christian. This was proven countless times with the thousands of Christian
martyrs, and all the Christ-centered people to this very day. Conversely,
to the same question: "What shall a man give in exchange for his own
soul?" And what is the worth of the soul? The materialist replies,
"very little worth-- almost nothing". "If we were to liquidate
the human body, the chemical value would be less than one dollar." That
precisely is the price, and the worth of a human being when we discount the
value of the existence of the soul, which is priceless. For
example we have the masterpieces of the ages always on pedestals
for display. The sculpture or painting may be priceless, whereas the pedestal
may have no real value. That is the situation with the soul. A body without a
soul is practically worthless. Most
unfortunately though, --the reality of today's modern civilization, is, that it
presents human beings as pedestals and frames only -- but these are practically
worthless, because they do not display the masterpieces of the soul. Again, and
unfortunately, human life has become one of life's cheapest commodities, in
spite of the Lord's words: "What shall a man give in exchange for his own
soul?" Thus,
man is caught between two diametrically opposed forces. Christianity, as against
Materialism. When the question is posed, "what is the worth of a human
being?" Christianity replies "infinite"- priceless!"
Materialism replies: "practically nothing, or simply nothing!" This
was surely proven during the wars of this century and surely by the sheer
materialists and the merchants of the flesh. Christianity
believes that one soul is more important than the whole world. Materialism
preaches that countless numbers of humans are worthless in the face of various
forces within the world. Christianity,
through its Founder, the Lord Jesus, proved the worth of the salvation of the
individual soul, by His supreme Sacrifice on the Cross. Atheistic materialism
proved the value it attaches to human lives through so many barbaric incidents,
and most vividly by the soap factories in the concentration camps in World War
II. What a
pity that man, does not take time to acknowledge how supremely Christianity has
elevated man; and how man, of his own has chosen to debase himself. It is no
wonder then, that the Lord asks: "What
shall man give in exchange for his own soul." And of course, to this
question each Christian must supply the answer. It is no wonder
then, why the Fathers of our Lent is
indeed a grand opportunity for all of us to polish up our soul) and
truly make it sparkle by our personality as a whole. To spread cheer, good will,
trust, kindness, benevolence, comfort, solace and the like to our brothers and
sisters. Only then can we be in spiritual harmony with the Lord, who taught us
how to be balanced and positive people in this life. |
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