By Fr. George Glinski
St.
Gregory of Nyssa once said that the goal of Christianity is to be like God,
become like God in the manifestations of our soul, how we look at our own
selves, in regards to God and to the world
that surrounds us. In his epistle to the Romans Paul the Apostle said
that righteousness that is not rooted in God can not be righteousness. Only God
can save mankind. And faith is the the response of a person to God’s calling.
In other words it means that we need to have absolute trust in God and fully
give ourselves into the hands of God’s providence.
The Lord
is the Lord of the Universe, everything is under His control, everything that
happens in this world including every process that takes place in this world.
Certains moments may seem overwhelming and impossible to overcome - we see that
when we simply rely on our human strength we can not often stop the war nor is
it possible to defeat certain illnesses without God’s help.
We need
to wholeheartedly turn to the needs of the people who surround us (and we know the words of St. Irenaeus of Lyons, who said that only the
son of God will enter the Kingdom of Heaven, keeping in mind each one of us, as
well as the church of God as a whole).We have to manage to live for others
instead of our own personal needs and not only care for those who love us back,
because, as the Lord says, it is natural for any person to reciprocate in love
and kindness. Even if this doesn't happen right away (because a true miracle
oftentimes requires time, and even more time when it comes to the
transformation of the human personality) when we become aware of this, come to
such an understanding and to such a life that will help us treat other people
the way we would like them to treat us, then we will see peace within the true
light. If a person transforms into someone who the Lord intended him to be,
then the relationship between people will become as it should be. According to
Apostle Paul, if we do as our Divine Savior has done, we will strive for peace
and brotherly love between us. Then we
will become closer both to each other and ultimately to the Kingdom of Heaven,
where the Lord will allow us all to be
with Him and rejoice in Him.
St.
Elisabeth Convent
July 24,
2018
CONVERSATION