Sermons & Homilies

The Apostle and Evangelist Matthew, like the Evangelist John, was one of the twelve Apostles, whereas the Evangelists Mark and Luke were of the Seventy.

Today we have the opportunity to celebrate a feast which is unique in our Church calendar, the feast of the Angels. All of the other saints which we celebrate, like St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, St. Herman of Alaska, St. Seraphim of Sarov, and so many others, were human beings, flesh and blood just like us. But today we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Archangel Michael and all the nine ranks of the holy, heavenly, bodiless hosts – including our own Guardian Angels. Because they are spiritual and bodiless, we relate to them in spiritual ways. Because we are earthly and weighed down with worldly cares and passions, this feast presents a great challenge for us.

The parable in today’s Gospel of the Rich Man and Lazarus, on the surface seems very clear to us, the rich man had every thing that this world could give him, he was clothed in the finest purple and linen, he ate the best gourmet food every day, he had great wealth, a good name and status among his fellow-citizens. He had all he wanted because … all he wanted was what this world could give him. He believed that material wealth, respect and admiration from those around him and obedience from those under him was all he really needed. And so he lived his life this way and felt satisfied, oblivious to the needs of those around him.


When the pious Empress Helena discovered the Precious and Life-giving Cross of the Lord, she had it brought to the Temple of the Resurrection, where the Patriarch Macarius exalted it in the sight of all. Seeing the Cross of the Lord, all the faithful rejoiced and bowed down reverently before it, offering worship to Him Who was crucified thereon. And even today, when Orthodox Christians behold the elevation of the Precious Cross, we rejoice and cry out to the Cross as if it were alive, saying, “Rejoice, precious Cross. Help us, O life-giving Cross.”