A HOMILY FOR THE GREAT FEAST OF THE MEETING OF THE LORD
(Feb. 2/15)
About Our Meeting of the Lord
Brothers and sisters!
Today we celebrate one of the greatest feasts of the liturgical year, the Meeting of the Lord; but every day, at Vespers, the Holy Church reminds her children of this feast with the reading of the beloved prayer, Now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace, O Master. This prayer was first spoken by the righteous elder Symeon, when he sent up thanksgiving to God, expressing gratitude for deeming him worthy to behold the Saviour of the world. At the same time, by this prayer, Symeon besought God’s permission to repose in a state of spiritual serenity, and he reminded the faithful of every generation to examine their way of life, and to assess their concerns and interests. He urged them to reflect upon whether they are truly engaged in spiritual struggle, and thus whether they are fit to be released from this life in a state of tranquility of soul.
In Old Testament times – Saint Symeon’s times – the devout lived by faith in the coming Messiah. In New Testament times, we Orthodox Christians live by faith in the Messiah Who has come. We live by eating and drinking of the Lord’s Mystical Supper and by cleansing our souls through devout exertions undertaken for Christ’s sake.
The life of the Christian, dear brothers and sisters, is first and foremost one of struggle: battle against the world, which lies in evil; against the devil; against sin; and against oneself. We are called by Christ to enter the Kingdom of God, but the way to that kingdom is narrow, and few there be that find it.[1] Nevertheless, it is certainly possible to attain our destination, for if only we struggle a little, the Lord will send His grace to our assistance, cleansing us and enabling us to save our souls.
Sometimes, people ask: “Why is it that in church we hear and in soul-saving books we read mostly about temptations, trials, and devout struggles, and not so much about the joys of being a Christian? The reason for this is that the Christian life has two basic stages: the lower, praktike, which is characterized mainly by active practice of the virtues; and the higher, theoria, distinguished by direct spiritual experience and knowledge. Of course, the lower stage is not altogether devoid of spiritual experience and the joy that may accompany it, just as the higher is not exempt from exertion. But for us, who are beginners on the Christian path, what is primarily necessary is instruction and exhortation directly pertinent to the stage we are at; namely, teaching applicable to active practice of the virtues. It is by carrying out such instruction that we avail ourselves of saving grace, gradually attain illumination and joy, and are prepared to meet the Lord in eternity.
If we orient our lives to pious exertion, we will soon realize that the main point of it is to make us ready for life beyond the grave, cleansed of the stain of sin by repentance, born again spiritually, and transformed into a new man in Christ Jesus. Devout exertion is essential if we are to attain a state in which we will be able to say with sincerity and tranquility, Now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace, O Master. All the saints reached such a state, and they were people like us, except for the single difference that they seriously devoted themselves to cleansing of the soul. It is in this light that we should understand the question put to our venerable father Seraphim of Sarov: “Batushka, why cannot we save our souls?” and his simple reply: “Because you lack determination.”
And so, dear brothers and sisters, let us beg the Lord daily to strengthen our determination, that we may emulate the example of the saints, not least among whom is the righteous elder Symeon, who gained possession of his soul by patiently awaiting the Messiah for over three hundred years while leading a life of pious exertion. Let us remember the words of the holy Apostle Paul: Wherefore, seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith.[2] This way, when we are confronted by the inescapable hour of death, we will greet it with joy and gratitude to the Lord, signing ourselves with the Cross and tranquilly pronouncing the words, Now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace, O Master. Having attained the most important goals of human life – to achieve noetic vision of the Lord, to know Him experientially, to worship Him in spirit and truth, and to serve Him faithfully and unflaggingly – we shall be ready to meet Him in His Heavenly Kingdom.
May the Lord deem us worthy of this meeting, as He deemed righteous Symeon worthy of his! Amen.
[1] Matt. 7:14
[2] Heb. 12:1-2
