Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
The Great Lent, which began on Monday, March 14, 2016, is truly a period of meditation for the soul and body. It is the time for us to collect and to recall all our sinful deeds and to repent and ask forgiveness from God and to strengthen our ties with Him. Great Lent serves as a preparation for the drama and the true passion of the Holy Week which will soon be upon us.
There are many roads and avenues which lead to the spiritual edification of our souls with prayer, Bible reading, fasting, Holy Confession and Holy Communion. No matter which path we take, the Road of the Great Lent definitely plays a very essential role in the cultivation and growth of our religious life.
Fasting, Prayer and Repentance are essential elements for the salvation of our souls and during the Great Lent we have the opportunity to humble ourselves and ask forgiveness from our Lord for our sins.
Moses in the book of Exodus fasted for forty days as his preparation to receive the Ten Commandments from God. Daniel fasted for forty days awaiting God’s word. Our Lord, Jesus Christ, fasted for forty days without anything after his baptism by St. John the Baptist as he waited the ordeal of temptation by the devil.
Our Lord tells us many times in his teachings to fast. Man must fast in such manner making willingly and with all sincerity and not ostentatiously to impress others. “When you do fast, do not put on a sad face, as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces, so that they may see that they are fasting.” Jesus condemned “false fasting,” the wrong kind. He expected those who love God, to execute a wise and proper fast. We should and we must fast from certain foods, but equally we must fast from wrongdoings. “What are mouths take in, it is also important what comes out of our minds, and above all, out of our hearts.”
Our every thought should be such as to allow our souls to be filled with beauty, goodness, kindness, compassion, as God intended for us.
Christ wants us to make ourselves strong and able to resist every temptation by the devil, who works forever, seven days a week and nights of each week of our lives. Fasting keeps us from becoming slaves of habit. We need to take time from our daily lives and to prepare ourselves. Some of us develop cravings for certain foods, desires, needs, that instead of being a pleasure, they become a necessity. If one practices a wise and disciplined fasting, no pleasure would become a Cain and no habit would become “Our Master.”
Remember that the Lenten season continues until the resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ on Sunday, May 1st. Remember that fasting and the Lenten Season demands of us to consecrate our souls, our minds and our bodies to Jesus and His Church. The blessings that we receive from observing the Great Lent depends on us. Come forth and receive His Precious Body and His Precious Blood.
“Do I really have to fast for Great Lent?” You decide what is the best for your soul, for your heart, for your body, and above all, for your eternal salvation.
My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, I pray with my whole heart that our loving God will receive our repentance and forgive our sins and may His holy resurrection be a fountain of health and love for us.
I wish you a Happy Easter, Kalo Pascha, and when we say Christ is Risen, Xristos Anesti we mean it from the depth of our souls.
With love in Christ,
Fr. Anargyros.
Αγαπητοί μου Χριστιανοί,
Δυστυχώς σήμερα η νηστεία έχει πολύ παραμεριστεί . Ελάχιστοι μάλιστα δίδουν σημασία στήν κανονική νηστεία. Η αξία της όμως, όπως την τονίζει ο Μ. Βασίλειος, είναι πολύ μεγάλη: «Η νηστεία έχει ηλικία ίση μέ τήν ανθρωπότητα, διότι ενομοθετήθηκε στον Παράδεισο. Από τον καρπόν του δένδρου….δεν θά φάγετε είπεν ο Θεός στους Πρωτοπλάστους. Και επειδή δεν τηρήθηκε η νηστεία αυτή, εκδιωχθήκαμε από τον Παράδεισο… Ο Μωϋσής μετά από νηστεία έλαβε τις πλάκες του Νόμου στό Σινά. Ο Ησαύ γιά λίγο φαγητό επώλησε τα πρωτοτόκια στον Ιακώβ. Η νηστεία έκανε ακατανίκητο τον Σαμψών. Η νηστεία γεννά Προφήτες. Κάμνει ισχυρότερους τους ισχυρούς. Κάμνει σοφούς τους νομοθέτες. Η νηστεία αγιάζει τον αφιερωμένο στον Θεό και καθιστά τόν Ιερέα ικανό να προσφέρει θυσίαν.
Η νηστεία έσβησε τη δύναμη του πυρός, έφραξε στόματα λεόντων, αναβιβάζει την προσευχή στόν ουρανό. Η νησεία είναι πρόοδος των οίκων, μητέρα της υγείας, παιδαγωγώς των νέων, στολισμός των πρεσβυτέρων… Του νηστεύοντος οι οφθαλμοί είναι ήρεμοι, το βάδισμα σεμνό, το πρόσωπο σοβαρό, οι λόγοι του μετρημένοι, η καρδιά του καθαρά… Αν θέλεις να κάνεις ισχυρό το πνεύμα σου, χαλιναγώγησε με νηστεία την σάρκα σου. Μην νομίζεις ότι η νηστεία περιορίζεται στίς τροφές. Πραγματική νηστεία είναι η νηστεία των πέντε αισθήσεων. Τί το όφελος να νηστεύης απο τροφές και να ευρίσκεσαι σε φιλονικίες η διαμάχες με τους δικούς σου, να κατατρώγεις τόν αδελφό σου με τήν γλώσσα σου, να βλέπεις άσεμνα θεάματα, να ακούεις μουσική η πράγματα πού σε βλάπτουν και να μεθά η ψυχή σου όχι μόνο με οίνο, αλλά με θυμόν!”» Αυτή είναι η αξία της πραγματικής και αληθινής νηστείας. Νηστεία από τις τροφές, αλλά και από τα πάθη.
Καλή Μεγάλη Τεσσαρακοστή και Καλή Ανάσταση
π. Ανάργυρος.