On Sunday 29th September 2024, we had the joy of welcoming back His Grace Bishop Raphael who celebrated the Divine Liturgy assisted by Fr Dionysios-James Higgs from the Church of the Holy Apostles in Layland and Fr Nikita Banev.
The chanting was led by Miss Liliana Banev with Mr Andreas Samoutis and Dr Maria Eugenicos, who together with her husband Dr Nikolaos Evgenicos were accompanying His Grace Bishop Raphael. Mr Irineos Livadiotes and reader Symeon Banev assisted in the altar.
The service marked the 25th anniversary of the visit of the late Archbishop Gregorios who opened our present chapel in September 1999.
The day concluded with a festive meal in the hall, lovingly prepared by members of our Community. Fr David Walker joined us for the meal.
Glory to God and Happy Anniversary to everyone!
Bishop Raphael's Sermon
"As you wish that men would do to you, do so to them" (Lk. 6:31).
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
The command which Christ gives in our reading from the Gospel today has often been referred to as the Golden Rule of Christian life (or in Greek, ὁ χρυσὸς κανών). It shows how practical our life should be.
Fr. John in Edinburgh used to tell us:
“Christianity is a practical business. It's not enough to believe correctly—you have to act correctly. Orthodoxia is not enough. Orthopraxia is also required—the right praxis, the right action. A Christian who believes in theory, in his mind or even in his heart, but does not translate this into acts—acts of love, acts of charity—is not a Christian.”
The philosophers of ancient Greece used to say something similar, and yet different: “Do not do to others what you do not want others to do to you.” This was a negative teaching—a teaching to avoid doing what you do not like for yourself.
But all this did not involve love. Yes, you can avoid doing something to others that would cause them hardship. And such behaviour is, of course, a good thing—but it is not enough. You can still remain within your egotistic environment.
In the end, one would say, “I will still be able to do what I want, what I like, whether it is righteous or sinful. I will simply try not to bother others.” This has become the rule in our own day: “Do what you like, do what pleases you.” No one teaches what is harmful, what is inappropriate, what causes spiritual harm. As long as you do not harm and do not bother others, it is all allowed.
Such teaching is, from a Christian point of view, not only insufficient—it could be very detrimental, even harmful. One might engage in a very sinful life. A sinful life basically means life without love. That’s what it means: no love for God and no love for others—as long as we don’t bother each other.
But the Lord goes further. The Lord demands all of our life. He demands all of our heart. He wants everything that we do to be perfect—or at least to aim to be perfect.
We are not perfect. None of us is. Only God is. But we should aim to reach perfection in God. We should be inspired by this thought. As the Gospel today says, to act with love: “Do to others what you would like others to do to you.”
Some people might object: “Wait a minute, wait a moment. I might want harmful things. Do I wish that others do to me what I desire? Maybe my desires are not right. Maybe my desires are corrupt. Is this really what the Lord is telling us—that we should do to others?”
No! Basically, I believe that every human being desires the best. That deep down in his or her soul, everyone desires purity. Deep down, everyone desires love—unconditional love. Deep down, under the surface and the dust and sinful life, everyone desires peace, eternal life. That everyone wants God, and everyone desires Christ.
There was an early Christian writer, Tertullian, who used to say that “the human soul is naturally Christian.” No matter where they are, what environment they have grown up in, human souls are by nature Christian.
This is why in today’s Gospel the Lord says: “As you desire—deep down in your heart—the purity of God, the purity of love, so do offer the same to others.” How wonderful this is!
We are called to learn to love other people. Some people say, “I don't know how to achieve it.” We will start with this: as you want the best for yourself, try to do the best for others.
And before that, even try to understand others. Try to get into their shoes. Try to even imagine a little bit what they go through. Sometimes it's not possible for us to understand this unless we have felt the pain—similar pain as the other feels. We don’t know what they go through, and we pass easy judgments.
That’s why the Lord permits pain to come into our lives—so that we become sympathetic and loving, and we know how to practise what He says.
When I was a layman, a very good spiritual father who lived outside of Athens surprised me when he told me:
“When you become a priest—not if, but when—I will give you one piece of advice. Before you give advice to other people, before you try to teach others, or what’s even more, before you attempt to correct them, try to get into their shoes first. Try somehow to examine, to find out how they feel, and try to share and sympathise with them. Then you might be able to give the right answer.”
If we start in this way, then we can proceed to the higher commandment, which again is non-negotiable—like everything that the Lord says: “Love your enemies.” He didn’t say, “Perhaps you might also have a go at it.” Love your enemies! This is a commandment. We have no option.
But how do we do that?
Again, Christianity is practical. Ask the Lord to help you, first of all. Second, if you find it difficult to love the other person—because it has not been granted to you, especially your enemies—you can do an act of love. Act as if you loved them.
That’s not hypocrisy. It’s a blessed hypocrisy. It’s a very blessed thing to do: act, and see if you love them.
And what is the supreme act of love? To pray for them.
I’ve said it many times in Edinburgh, and I will say it here again as well. I know someone who had fallen out with a friend of his and had reached the point of cursing (in Greek, κατάρα)—cursing the one who was harassing him terribly often. Yet no one should do that. St. Paul says: “Bless, do not curse.”
But the man told me he had cursed the person. I told him:
“What you did is against the Gospel. Confess it to God, confess it to your spiritual father. And tonight, as you stand to pray, take your prayer rope and say at least three Jesus prayers for the person that you cursed today.”
He said to me, “Impossible! I will have a heart attack. I will burst. I cannot even think of him, let alone utter his name, let alone pray for him!”
I said, “I will use a powerful weapon that the spiritual father has, which I use extremely rarely. It’s called obedience.”
The next day—or even the same night, I don’t remember—the man phoned me and said:
“Father, I had hardly said one Jesus prayer for this person and floods of tears started coming down, pouring down from my eyes. Tears of forgiveness for this person. Tears of blood.”
Here is a Christian revelation: not even one Jesus Prayer, and the Lord had already seen the willingness on his part—the movement and desire of his heart—and had granted him a wonderful gift: the grace to forgive and to love, even someone that he had once considered an enemy.
St. Nicholas Velimirovich says something very beautiful. Having examined his life and gone back through all his sufferings and pains—and he suffered a lot, especially when he was taken from Serbia to a concentration camp in Nazi Germany—he said:
“I realised that all my sufferings were actually blessings.”
And then he said: “I realised that the so-called enemies were not enemies. My enemies were not enemies.”
He said: “I’d rather call them cruel friends.”
And so, if you see that you have enemies—bless them. Go against your feelings. Some people say, “Follow your feelings.” In this case, go against your feelings and bless these enemies of yours, and pray for them.
You will please the Lord, and you will receive His blessing.
This is the way to put into action the command that He gives us in the Gospel of today: act with love, and love will be granted.
Amen.
