Homily for the Sunday of Forgiveness in the Orthodox Church

 Romans 13:11-14:4; Matthew 6:14-21

 

            On this last day of preparation before we begin our Lenten journey, we must focus on doing what we presently have the strength to do in following Christ to His Cross and glorious resurrection. Whether today or during the coming weeks, we must not be distracted or discouraged about what our weaknesses or life circumstances may keep us from doing.  Instead, we must keep our eyes on the prize of taking the steps that we can take on our journey home from self-imposed exile to Paradise, which the Savior has opened to us through His Passion.

           

A few weeks ago, we read that Zacchaeus was restored as a son of Abraham when he did what he could do by giving more than justice required from his ill-gotten gains to the poor and those whom he had defrauded.  The publican returned to his spiritual home by praying from his heart as best he could, calling only for the Lord’s mercy.  The prodigal son had done his best to destroy his relationship with his father, but he was still able to take the long and difficult journey home after coming to his senses. Last Sunday we heard that the ultimate standard of judgment for returning to our true home is whether we have become living icons of the Savior’s merciful lovingkindness, which is shown by whether we do what we can to care for “the least of these” in whom we counter Him each day.  Today’s gospel reading reminds us to do what we have the strength to do in forgiving, fasting, and showing mercy in ways that direct us back to the Paradise from which Adam and Eve were cast out when they stripped themselves naked of the divine glory and entered an existence so tragically enslaved to the fear of death that their son Cain murdered his brother Abel.  We have all followed in their path of corruption, especially in our refusal to forgive those who have wronged us.     

 

As the Lord offered up Himself on the Cross, He said to the penitent thief, “Truly I tell you, you will be with me today in Paradise.” (Lk. 23:43) Hades and the grave could not contain the Savior Who entered fully into death, for He is not merely human but also God.  Our first parents refused to fulfill their calling to become like God in holiness and instead distorted themselves and the entire creation.  The Savior’s restoration of the human person in the divine image and likeness reveals that our calling is nothing less than to become perfect as our Father in Heaven is perfect. Even the strictest Lent observance will not enable us to achieve that goal, for God’s holiness is infinite.  So much of the corruption of the old Adam remains within us, for we typically prefer to live according to our passions in ways that keep us in the misery of exile.

 

            That is why we must all approach Lent with a deep awareness of how we far we are from sharing fully in the New Adam’s fulfillment of our vocation to become like God in holiness.  The only way to escape our self-imposed exile is to do what we can as we take intentional steps to share more fully in the life of the One Who calls us to Paradise.  As St. Paul taught, we must “put on the armor of light” and “make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.”  That means mindfully investing our energy, time, and attention in ways that will strengthen us spiritually.  It means refusing to invest our energy, time, and attention in whatever keeps us from sharing more fully in the life of Christ.  Lent calls us to give ourselves so fully to prayer, fasting, generosity, forgiveness, and other spiritual disciplines that we will have nothing left to fuel “the works of darkness” that bring only weakness and despair.

 

            A holy Lent is not about going through the motions to gain the praise of others or even of ourselves; such vain hypocrisy will never help us acquire the spiritual strength necessary to love and forgive our enemies. The same Lord Who said from the Cross, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do,” tells us that we must forgive others their offenses against us if we want the Father to forgive our sins.  (Lk. 23:34) Refusing even to begin the journey of forgiveness is a sign that we have become far too comfortable living in exile.  If the Savior’s merciful love is not becoming characteristic of us, then we are not on the path toward Paradise.  Forgiveness is often a difficult struggle that shows us how strong our inclinations are to remain separated from God and neighbor.  If we refuse even to take the first small step of wanting to gain the strength to forgive those who have wronged us, we will choose slavery to our passions over the hope of eternal joy.   

 

            Because it is so hard to forgive as we hope to be forgiven, we need spiritual disciplines like fasting, prayer, and almsgiving to strengthen us in pursuing the path that leads to Paradise.  Our first parents’ self-centered refusal to restrain their desire for food enslaved them to death and corruption.  Struggling to abstain from satisfying ourselves with rich food during Lent will help us see more clearly how addicted we are to gratifying our self-centered desires.  Doing so helps us grow in patience and humility, which fuel forgiveness.  Slavery to pride, however, makes forgiveness impossible because it blinds us to the truth about our souls. In Forgiveness Vespers, we ask for and extend forgiveness to one another personally. Since we are members together of the Body of Christ, we weaken each other whenever we refuse to do what we can to embrace the Lord’s healing. 

 

            Even as we stand on the threshold of the Lenten journey, we must be prepared for our passions to fight back mightily when we deny them.  Pursuing spiritual disciplines brings our weaknesses to the surface, often leading to anger as a way of distracting us from reckoning with our own sins.  As St. John Chrysostom asked, “What good is it if we abstain from birds and fishes, but bite and devour our brothers and sisters?”  We must mindfully struggle to keep our mouths shut when we are tempted to criticize or condemn each other this Lent.  Whenever we fall prey to our passions, we must ask forgiveness of those we have offended and then get back on the path to Paradise with renewed commitment.  No matter how many times we wander from the narrow way, we must return to it. We all have the strength to do that, no matter how many times we fall.

 

            Lent calls us to “put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.”  When we set out to pray, fast, give, and forgive with integrity, we will learn quickly how much we still share in the corruption of the old Adam.  That should help us see how ridiculous it is not to extend to others the same mercy that we ask for ourselves.  In preparation for the struggles of the coming weeks, let us humble ourselves and forgive one another so that we may acquire the spiritual strength to “cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light.”  Let us begin our Lenten journey with the joyful recognition that “now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.  The night is far spent, the day is at hand.”  It is time to wake up and focus on doing what we have the strength to do even as we refuse to judge what others are doing. The coming weeks are not about trying to impress God, our neighbors, or ourselves.  They are about taking the steps we can take at this point in our lives in the journey of repentance that alone can lead us out of exile and into our true home, the Paradise that our Lord has opened to us through His glorious resurrection on the third day.   

 

Great Lent Calls Us Back to Paradise : Homily for the Sunday of Forgiveness (Cheese Fare) in the Orthodox Church

 

Romans 13:11-14:4; Matthew 6:14-21

             The gospel readings from the last few Sundays have called us all to return home from our self-imposed exile.  Zacchaeus was restored as a son of Abraham when he gave more than justice required from his ill-gotten gains to the poor and those whom he had exploited.  The publican returned to his spiritual home by humbly calling for the Lord’s mercy, even as the Pharisee exiled himself by his pride.  The prodigal son took the long journey home after coming to his senses about the misery that stemmed from abandoning his father.  Last Sunday we heard that the ultimate standard of judgment for entering into our true home of eternal blessedness is whether we have become living icons of the Savior’s merciful lovingkindness.  Today’s gospel reading reminds us to embrace forgiveness, fasting, and almsgiving in ways that direct us back to the Paradise from which Adam and Eve were cast out when they stripped themselves naked of the divine glory and entered into an existence so tragically enslaved to the fear of death that their son Cain murdered his brother Abel.  Within a few generations, their descendant Lamech proclaimed that he would avenge anyone who wronged him seventy-seven fold. (Gen. 4: 24)   We do not have to look very closely at our world, our personal relationships, and our own hearts to see how we have followed  their path of corruption as we stubbornly persist in exiling ourselves from the eternal blessedness which God intends for us all.  

            The season of Lent calls us to take steps, no matter how small and faltering they may be, along the path back to Paradise.  As the Lord offered up Himself on the Cross, He said to the penitent thief, “Truly I tell you, you will be with me today in Paradise.” (Lk. 23:43) Hades and the grave could not contain the Savior Who entered fully into death, for He is not merely human but also God.  The icon of Christ’s resurrection portrays Him lifting up Adam and Eve from their tombs.  The joy of His empty tomb places all our wanderings and sorrows in light of hope for “the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come.” 

             Our first parents refused to fulfill their calling to become like God in holiness and instead distorted themselves and the entire creation.  We participate in the Savior’s restoration of the human person in the divine image and likeness when we receive the garment of light in baptism and rise up with Him into the new life of holiness for which He created us. Christ covers our nakedness and restores us to the dignity of beloved children of the Father who may know the joy of Paradise even now. Upon being baptized and then filled with the Holy Spirit in chrismation, we receive the Eucharist as participants in the Heavenly Banquet.  In every celebration of the Divine Liturgy, we return mystically to our true home. 

          Doing so reveals that our calling is nothing less than to become perfect as our Father in Heaven is perfect. Because He is infinitely holy, we must never think that we have reached that goal.  So much of the corruption of the old Adam remains within us, for we do not live daily as those clothed with a robe of light, but prefer the pain and weaknesses of choosing our own will over God’s.  We typically prefer to live according to our passions in ways that direct us back to the misery of exile, not to our true home of the blessedness of the Kingdom of Heaven.

           That is why we must all approach Lent with a deep awareness of how we far we are from sharing fully in the New Adam’s fulfillment of our vocation to become like God in holiness.  The only way to escape our self-imposed exile is to take intentional steps to share more fully in the life of the One Who has opened up Paradise through His glorious resurrection.  As St. Paul taught, we must “put on the armor of light” and “make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.”  That means mindfully investing our energy, time, and attention in ways that strengthen us spiritually as we conform our character more fully to Christ’s. It means refusing to invest our energy, time, and attention in whatever weakens us spiritually and makes us less like Him.  Lent calls us to give ourselves so fully to prayer, fasting, generosity, and other spiritual disciplines that we will have nothing left for “the works of darkness” that fuel our passions and bring only despair.

             A holy Lent is not about going through the motions of religion in order to gain the praise of others or even of ourselves; such vain hypocrisy will never help us gain the spiritual strength necessary to love and forgive our enemies. The same Lord Who said from the Cross, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do,” tells us that we must forgive others their offenses against us if we want the Father to forgive our sins.  (Lk. 23:34) Refusing to forgive others is a sign that we are not taking the journey home from exile.  If His merciful love is not becoming characteristic of us, then we are not orienting our lives toward Paradise.  Forgiveness is certainly a difficult struggle that will open our eyes to how strong our inclinations are to remain estranged from God and neighbor.  If we refuse even to take the first small step of wanting to gain the strength to forgive those who have wronged us, we will know only the misery of slavery to our own desires and separate ourselves from the eternal joy of the resurrection.   

             Precisely because it is so hard to forgive as we hope to be forgiven, we need spiritual disciplines like fasting, prayer, and almsgiving to direct us to our true fulfillment in God.  Our first parents’ self-centered refusal to restrain their desire for food enslaved them to death and corruption.  We have tragically reproduced their spiritual and personal brokenness from generation to generation.  Struggling to abstain from satisfying ourselves with rich food during Lent will help us see more clearly how far we are from Paradise due to our addiction to gratifying our self-centered desires.  It should also help us grow in patience and humility in relation to neighbors who have treated us according to their passions.  Humility fuels forgiveness, but pride makes forgiveness impossible by blinding us to the truth about our souls. In Forgiveness Vespers, we ask for and extend forgiveness to one another personally. Since we are members together of the Body of Christ, we weaken one another whenever we refuse to embrace the Lord’s healing.  We do not have to give obvious offense in order to do that, which is why we must all learn to see that pride invariably weakens our ability to share in a communion of love with our neighbors. It is precisely our pride that keeps us in exile from God and one another.   

              Even as we stand on the threshold of beginning the Lenten journey that leads us back to our true home, we must be prepared for our passions to fight back mightily when we wrestle with them.  Pursuing spiritual disciplines brings our weaknesses to the surface, often leading to anger at others as a way of distracting us from reckoning with our own sins.  As St. John Chrysostom asked, “What good is it if we abstain from birds and fishes, but bite and devour our brothers and sisters?”  We must mindfully struggle to keep our mouths shut whenever we are tempted to criticize or condemn one another this Lent.  Whenever we fall prey to our passions, we must ask forgiveness of those we have offended and get back on the path to Paradise with renewed commitment.  No matter how many times we wander from the narrow way, we must return to it.

             Lent calls us to “put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.”  We must do so in order to return to Paradise through His Passion.  When we set out to pray, fast, give, and forgive with integrity, we will learn quickly how much we still share in the corruption of the old Adam.  That should help us see how ridiculous it is not to extend to others the same mercy that we ask for ourselves.  If we refuse to do so, we risk shutting ourselves out of Paradise.  In preparation for the struggles of the coming weeks, let us humble ourselves and forgive one another so that we may acquire the spiritual strength to “cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light.”  Let us begin our Lenten journey with the joyful recognition that “now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.  The night is far spent, the day is at hand.”  May every step of our journey of repentance lead us further away from exile and closer to our true home, the Paradise that our Lord has opened to us through His glorious resurrection on the third day.