"The Church of Cyprus, at last, must give importance to support the youth[/B] of our country and, above all, in addition to spiritual cultivation and a spirit of philanthropy and respect for our traditions, to serve in finding work and quality employment and entertainment," Metropolitan of Tamassos and Orini, Isaias, said, among other things, in his statements today.
The Metropolitan also indicated that "with modern methods and without phobic syndromes, we must approach every young person, who has goals and dreams, and offer them, yes, the light and peace of Christ, but also practical solutions to achieve their goals, even if they are not religious and not related to the Church."
This is the speech of the Metropolitan of Tamasos and Mountains, Isaiah:
A man, Your Eminence, Metropolitan of Cyclades and Tilliria and Venerable Elder Nikephoros, Fathers and Brothers, according to the Gospel narrative, draws near to Christ. He is not a celebrity. He is an official person, since he happens to be a ruler of the Synagogue of the Jews.[BR] His motives, as the whole passage shows, are sincere. He is concerned with the question of the state and life after death.
Thus he puts to Christ the crucial and principal question: "Good Master, what hast Thou made me to inherit eternal life?"
And the Lord answers him, in principle, correcting him, that, according to the Mosaic Law, only God is good, unless he considers Christ, calling Him good, to be God. Yet the Lord does not dwell on this.
He proceeds and extends his word to the God-given provisions of the Decalogue. He enumerates the Commandments, "Thou shalt not commit adultery, thou shalt not murder, thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not bear false witness, thou shalt honor thy father and thy mother."
Thus, with relief and satisfaction, the prince sees his life's agreement with the divine law confirmed and ratified. And, of course, he expects from Christ the answer that he is now and rightfully heir to eternal life.
But this euphoria of his momentary self-justification is to be banished and amused by Christ's answer, or, rather, by his implicit questioning. And what is it? The Evangelist quotes it, as follows: "As much as thou hast sold, give to the poor, and lay up treasure in heaven, and let ten follow me."
A thunderbolt, we might say, for the rich man, this suggestion and, at the same time, this challenge of Christ. It was, apparently, his first, but also his last encounter with the divine Master. But Christ, as "he that seeth the heart and kidneys" (Ps. g. 10), knew very well the things of the person and the whole experience of this man. Thus, while he discerned his good intentions, at the same time, he discerned the state of his great weakness.
And what was that? The lord of the synagogue succeeded in combining two, unfortunately, irreconcilable magnitudes: the one, the capital of divine things, and the other, the state of worldly matters. And he believed that both could work together. And with this immaculate mixture, he rested his life, and could, as he thought, claim the goods of the eternal kingdom.[BR] Therefore, in order that Christ might bring him to his senses and show him the incompatibility of divine life and wealth, and that, moreover, man "cannot work for God and mammon" (Matt. f24), presents him with this, at first sight, challenge and qualification. So, being in this poverty, he could then become a disciple of Christ and follow him.
And this was well understood by the ruler of the synagogue and a rich man of great wealth. But how could he proceed to this action, and how could he, from being rich, be changed, from one moment to another, into a pauper?
From before him, at that moment, paraded the immensity of his wealth and property. The possessor of much, to be made as having nothing. This was impossible for him to accept, but also to fulfil.
Hence, with his discontent evident, and yet without saying anything, the Evangelist notes, "He was made poor; for he was rich exceedingly rich."Thus he abandons Christ and rejects, without doubt, his invitation.
And it is precisely on this point that we wish to dwell and deepen. And, first of all, we ask the question: Was this word of Christ excessive? And which of us, being like the rich ruler, would take this action? For undoubtedly, those of us who believe in the reality of the afterlife are interested in the inheritance of the Kingdom of God. That is, should we, too, sell off the small or large fortune we have in order to gain eternal life? And, if we do not do this, then have we failed?"[BR] In approaching these sacramental words, the Fathers of our Church, in interpreting them, say that in no way is divine teaching meant in this way. It is a metacommunicative word of Christ, to use a modern pedagogical terminology.
And it is meant and admonished here by Christ, to examine ourselves, as to what is our relation and our engagement with the things of this world. What are our choices and priorities.
More simply, to ask ourselves the question, what is the real treasure of our heart and where our heart is given.
The rich lord saw and connected his life more with the scheme of this world, and left some room, as he thought, for a tolerable religious life, an artificial one, which, however, was not to hinder and disturb him in the acquisition and increase of worldly treasures.
According to Basil the Great, for the rich man, "The divine word is good, but gold is better than that."[BR][BR] Thus, the denominator of his life was God, and the numerator was wealth.[BR]
But for the present, Christ's proposition, however exaggerated it may seem, as an exchange of earthly wealth for heaven, is incomparably great both in magnitude and duration. Yea, who doubts the temporality of human things, and, indeed, of wealth? "Produce (pass away) the form of this world" (1 Cor. g. 31). At some point every rich man, like the ruler of today's Gospel passage, upon his departure from this world, loses both his treasures and his power.
"Naked I came forth from my mother's womb, naked I went forth to the earth" (Job 1:21), the long-suffering but philanthropic Job will proclaim.
What, therefore, would the rich man lose if he followed Christ? He would gain in every way. Christ offered him a place of honor among his circle of disciples. He made a similar offer to his Disciples at one time, as he did to Matthew the tax collector. They too left everything and followed him. In the end, did they lose or did they win? From being nameless, they turned out, over time, to be famous; from being nameless, they became famous; and from being earthly, they were exalted and became heavenly. And not only so, but, according to the unmistakable mouth of the Lord, at his regeneration, "a hundredfold they are received" (Matt. i. 28-29)
Yea, my brethren, "Eye hath not seen, nor eye heard, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, these things hath God prepared for them that love him" (1 Cor. b. 9). The glory and riches of eternal life await the genuine disciples of Christ. Those who do not exchange discipleship in Christ for the temporal treasures of this world.
This is the message which our Lord and God proclaims to each of us. We are, according to St. Chrysostom, not citizens of this world, but of the world to come. It is an omnipresent world. So it is to above, our permanent home, that we must look up. "For we have no longer a present city, but we seek that which is to come" (Heb. m. 14).
To this, then, to this desolate homeland, Your All-Holy Father and Saviour, we hope and aspire and work, and may we all inherit it when we leave this world.
The Church of Jesus, as a God-human institution, this path, which leads to the Kingdom of God, has a responsibility and responsibility to prepare for people, which is why it uses the ever-renewing and modern words of the Lord to inspire and guide the world. "HIMSELF IS CHRIST FOREVER AND FOREVER."
Always timeless and contemporary, he expects the Church of every age to provide the pastoral platform, that is, the framework, of our time, to communicate, also through his Church, in the language of his people.
Unfortunately, however, these timeless words and the way of life that Jesus taught are today infused by outdated practices and habits, as well as outdated translations, which either distort the message of Christ or make it indistinguishable in modern times.
It is therefore necessary for the Church to modernize, with new pastoral methods, the inculcation of Christian values in the man of today and, at last, to shake off the dust that has settled on the authentic Christological message of the Gospel.
This must be done both with speeches and with actions, but above all, with experiential ways, appetite, vitality and a method which can penetrate even the last religious or non-religious man of our Cyprus. In addition to its spiritual work, which it must strengthen, the Church must re-engage the people, having first met and communicated with them in their everyday life.
This implies the use of the tools of culture, sport, art, music, theatre, social welfare and material support for our people. The Fund, the Korban of the Church, should not be reduced to financial investments alone, which are certainly needed, but should supervise and support specific programmes which concern all the inhabitants of our Island, without discrimination.
Within all the aforementioned infrastructures and programmes, which must be immediately, with study and boldness, initiated, the Church has the responsibility to become a conduit of the Divine Light and, thus, to relay it to all our fellow human beings who communicate with it.
The Church of Cyprus, at last, must pay attention to supporting the young people of our land and, above all, in addition to spiritual cultivation and a spirit of philanthropy and respect for our traditions, to serve in finding work and quality employment and entertainment.[WITH MODERN METHODS AND WITHOUT PHOBIC SYNDROMES, WE MUST APPROACH EVERY YOUNG PERSON WHO HAS GOALS AND DREAMS AND OFFER THEM, YES, THE LIGHT AND PEACE OF CHRIST, BUT ALSO PRACTICAL SOLUTIONS TO ACHIEVE THEIR GOALS, EVEN IF THEY ARE NOT RELIGIOUS AND HAVE NO CONNECTION WITH THE CHURCH. FOR ALL THOSE OUTSIDE THE CHURCH, CHRIST HAS COME TO EARTH, AND IT IS TIME FOR US TO COME DOWN FROM THE CHARIOT OF THE PURE AND PURE RIGHTEOUS AND GO DOWN TO WHERE THE MUD OF THE PEOPLE'S PROBLEMS ARE, TO EXPERIENCE THEIR PAIN, TO HURT WITH THEM, AND TO HELP THEM BOTH TO HEAL THEIR SOULS AND TO REBUILD THEIR LIVES.
This is what is at stake in the upcoming Archbishop's Elections and that is why all the people, both churchgoers and non-churchgoers, should go out to vote, to give new hope and perspective to our society again, through a Church with a modern pastoral care, which understands and translates correctly the needs and problems of the modern world and especially of our young people. A Church, which, without judging people, but attitudes, loves them, sanctifies them and is essentially close to and beside them in every step of their lives.
I also publicly thank my Elder Nikephoros of Kykkos, who believes in young people, supports us and enables us, with knowledge and wisdom, but above all, with an appetite and passion for the love of Christ and people, to upgrade the role of the Church in the lives of our people.
I publicly thank my Elder Nikephoros of Kykkos, who believes in young people, supports us and enables us, with knowledge and wisdom, but above all, with an appetite and passion for the love of Christ and people, to upgrade the role of the Church in the lives of our people.
God help us.
Amen.
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