Sermons & Homilies

In the life of a martyr, the greatest of all virtues is seen – love - love for Jesus Christ. “Greater love has no man than this, than to lay down his life for his friends” (cf. John 15:13-14). And who is our supreme friend if not Christ? As He himself says, we are His friends, and not His servants, if we keep His commandments.
It is only through the lens of love that we can see that all things work together for good to those who love God, who are called according to His purpose. For God’s love and His purposes are less apparent to us in a life of pleasure and ease than they are in a life of hardship and suffering.
Where does this love begin? When we come to ourselves.

Let us come to ourselves like the prodigal; let us, like him, speak firm words of resolve to our own souls: “I will arise and go to my Father”; and the Gracious God will perfect our small intention.
He knows that we do not know the way to Him, or the manner in which to traverse it; but, hearing us say: “Ready is my heart, O God, ready is my heart”, and seeing us begin our journey towards Him, He will then rush out to us, falling on us, and kissing our neck: He will send His All-Accomplishing Holy Spirit upon us, and guide us into all truth, not only in our understanding, but in all our deeds, all our life.

Brethren! All our attention must be centered on the parable of the Prodigal Son. We all see ourselves in it as in a mirror. In a few words the Lord, the knower of hearts, has shown in the person of one man how the deceptive sweetness of sin separates us from the truly sweet life according to God. He knows how the burden of sin on the soul and body, experienced by us, impels us by the action of divine grace to return, and how it actually does turn many again to God, to a virtuous life. We will repeat it and discuss how necessary and easy it is for a sinner to return to God.