Met Avgoustinos Kantiotes-A Homily on the Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus.

 

 Homily on the Fifth Sunday of Luke (The Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus - Luke 16: 19-31), by Metropolitan Avgoustinos Kantiotes of Florina (+2010)

 

"Life beyond the Tomb"
Many things, my beloved, make man afraid. But that which frightens him more than anything is death. Even the word “death” alone brings trembling. Death is a great mystery!

Everyone, more or less, has the question: what happens after death? Is there anything beyond the tomb, or does life end there, and man is extinguished?

The question is an important one. If we believed that life ends in the tomb, then man would be free to do whatever he wishes: to sin, to fornicate, to commit adultery, to break the greatest rules, as long as he evades the eyes of the police and justice. If, however, there is life beyond the tomb, then man must count how he lives in this life, according to the voice of his conscience and the will of God.

To the question as to what is there after death, the answer is given us by today’s Gospel, the beautiful Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus, which you just heard. What does it tell us?

There was a rich man, who had all of the good things from God. But all of these (houses, fields, everything else), he used for himself alone. He was a selfish self-seeker, and a worshipper of the flesh. He had the best clothes, wore expensive outfits, which only kings would wear, and ate the best food and drank the best wine, and spend his days in his great home. There were people playing music every night there, and sinful women danced unethical dances. Thus he spent his life, “rejoicing radiantly every day” (Luke 16:19). He did not give meaning to anything else.

At his door lay Lazarus, a poor and sick man, alone and abandoned, whom no one gave even the shelter of a roof, or medicine, or any other human help. The rich man never opened his door to show him hospitality, and he tried to survive on the crumbs that fell from the table of the rich man. He was full of wounds, and the dogs licked his wounds. Thus he lived.

Metropolitan Avgoustinos Kantiotes On St. Luke the Evangelist (Homily)

 

The Beloved Physician

“Embrace Luke, the beloved physician” (Col. 4:14)

Today, my beloved, is a feast and celebration. St. Luke celebrates, one of the stars which enlightens the heaven of our holy Church.
  

Who was St. Luke? It is not sufficient to hear the name and to celebrate the memory of a Saint. We must know his life, and above all, imitate his virtues. As the holy Chrysostom said: “To celebrate a Saint is to imitate the Saint.” Because of this, let us say a few words about this Saint.
 

Luke! And his name alone reveals something, it has meaning. The word “Luke”, as philologists say, comes from the Latin root (lux) which means “light”. From this are derived other words as well. For example, “Lyceum” [corresponding to high school in modern Greece], meaning the school that enlightens, and woe if this school does not enlighten but darkens. Lyceum=the school that enlightens, and Luke=enlightened, radiant. He, of course, was not enlightened from the start, for initially he was an idolater. He was born when everyone worshiped idols and made them gods. He was a Greek by lineage. His homeland was Antioch, that great center of Hellenism in the East. That was his life before Christ, until he believed.
  

His calling was to be a physician (there was at that time a great medical school in Tyre). Furthermore, according to tradition, he had the talent of drawing pictures. Studying medicine, he found himself in Thebes of Viotia, and heard the Apostle Paul, came to know him, believed in Christ, was baptized a Christian, and therefore named Luke—enlightened.
  

From then on he followed the Apostle Paul. The life of Paul, however, was not like the life of today's priests and bishops, as we partake of silence and general comfort. It was a hard life, with poverty, trials, persecutions, shipwrecks, martyrdom, the cross. How many times was he not cast out, seized, flogged, imprisoned, and stoned (by Judeans and idolaters and Roman emperors)? And ultimately he was beheaded in Rome.
 

Throughout all of these situations, Luke did not abandon Paul. He remained near him, near him through these events, near him through his afflictions, near him through all the trials, until the end of his life. Among the fellow workers of Paul, Luke takes the greatest place, of whom he writes: “Luke, the beloved physician” (Col. 4:14). He names him “physician”, because he must have been useful to him many times, when the Apostle Paul was sick and had need of medical care.
  

Luke did not see Christ with his eyes, but he heard of the Lord from those who were “witnesses and servants” of the apostolic preaching (Luke 1:2), and especially from the Apostle Paul. This made a great impression on him, such that he could give a faithful representation of the Lord, and of the apostles and the life of the first Church. He believed deeply, and that which he believed, he preached. And as the Apostle Paul completed his path, Luke fled from Rome. He began to travel and to preach the Gospel of Christ. He circled throughout all of Greece, and finally, he returned to Thebes, where, according to a tradition, he became bishop, and there peacefully gave up his holy soul at the age of 80.
  

He preached with his tongue, he preached with his life and his example, he preached with his miracles. He will forever preach, however, with his God-inspired writings, and especially his Gospel. Whoever reads the Gospel according to Luke, thinks that he is watching the life of Jesus Christ like a movie. The Gospel of Luke is the sweetest Gospel. It is characterized as the Gospel of love, of forgiveness, of mercy, the Gospel of the compassion of God. One of these is the following:

In the Gospel of Luke is found the story of a sinful woman. She had worked orgies. She knew many men and was corrupted. The supposedly holy people in Israel, the Scribes and Pharisees, cut off communion with her, did not approach her, nor even told her a good morning. This woman one day went to Christ. He did not cast her out. He let her be, and she approached Him, knelt, sprinkled His feet with her tears and with her myrrh, and using her hair has a towel, wiped the spotless feet of the Lord. But because Christ accepted her actions, the others were scandalized. “Oh my, what is she doing?!” they said, “If he were a prophet, he would know who is touching him...” And then Christ said a great saying, which is impossible to measure, and which strikes me so deeply. Listen to what He says: “Her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much.” (Luke 7:47) In other words, the Scribes and Pharisees did not love Him, the “Learned” of that age did not love Him, the Romans did not love Him. This wretched woman loved Him, and she shed bitter tears of repentance. She sensed the redemption which Christ grants.
  

The Gospel of Luke is the Gospel of Joy. It begins from the Annunciation of the Theotokos, with the greeting of Gabriel: “Rejoice, O Full-of-Grace...” (Luke 1:28), and proceeds with the Nativity of Christ, and the joyous angelic message: “Behold, I bring you tidings of great joy...” (Luke 2:10), and ends again with the joy of the Apostles when they saw Christ ascending to the heavens: “And they, having worshiped Him, returned to Jerusalem with great joy” (Luke 24:52). The Gospel is joy. There is no other true joy anywhere. Joy is Christ. Whoever is tried, approaches, and believes like Luke did, he will see that his sorrow becomes joy, and his darkness, light.
  

All of us, beloved, are sick—not as much bodily as spiritually—and all of us have need of healing. Because of this, Christ founded His Church, for it to be a hospital for all men. He Himself is “The Physician of our Souls and Bodies” (Divine Liturgy), and He offers healing, medicine and therapy. His fellow workers in this healing work are the chosen men that He called, the Holy Apostles, the Holy Fathers, and the Clergy of today.
  

Luke was a physician of bodies, who placed his scientific knowledge towards the service of every sick person in pain. However, he himself had need of a physician, the Physician of the Soul. And he found the Physician. He found him in the person of the Apostle Paul, who led him to the hospital of the Church. But the Apostle Paul, before he could offer spiritual healing to Luke, he himself had needed this, which he received walking on the road to Damascus, from our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, Who is the Physician of physicians. In other words, the Apostle Paul and the Evangelist Luke, in the Church of Christ, approached as sick men, and having been healed, with the grace of the Lord, became physicians of the others.
  

On the feast of the holy physician Luke, I now direct this  towards those who share his art.

My beloved physicians, nurses, and all those who serve the sick in any way! No one dishonors the worth of your sacrifice. Everyone knows this and confesses this. But I want to remind you that man is not only a body, he is also a soul. And when you offer healing and therapy to others' bodies, know that you also need healing of your souls. You have a soul that is immortal and beyond all worth; take care of it. You behold the reality daily that this life ends. Work towards your eternal healing. Imitate in this way your protector, St. Luke. Approach with faith the Physician of physicians, and the healer of the whole human existence.
  

I pray that our Lord Jesus Christ, through the intercessions of the Evangelist Luke, may always be with you. Amen.
  

+Bishop Avgoustinos (Metropolitan Augustine Kantiotes of Florina, of blessed memory)
  

Recorded homily which took place in the Church of the Evangelist Luke in the Hospital of Florina (10/18/1985). (amateur translation of text from source)

 

Source- full-of-grace-and-truth.blogspot.ca

Bishop Augoustinos N. Kantiotes-OnThe House of God

For this holy house . . ., let us pray to the Lord.
The third petition of the great supplication, addressed by the priest to God at the beginning of the Divine Liturgy, asks two things of God: first, that He bless His holy house, and second, that He bless those who attend services in it. Let us concentrate for now on the first of the two requests.
For this holy house. We have mentioned in the past that God as Spirit is everywhere. Whether man climbs the highest mountains or descends into the deepest seas, or even if he flies to the moon and, beyond that, to the stars, God is there, seeing and hearing everything. For this reason the Psalmist says: In every place of His dominion, bless the Lord, O my soul (Ps. 102:21). Even in prison, a man can communicate with God through the secret transmitter called prayer. Anyone who has read the lives of the martyrs knows that those Christians who were arrested for their beliefs and sentenced to death by idolaters, while in prison, awaiting their execution, prayed more fervently, more sincerely, more beautifully than ever before in their lives.
Man's body, as well as the entire universe, is, we are taught by Apostle Paul, the temple of God (1 Cor. 3:16). The soul which abides in this temple, which believes in and reveres God, can pray at every moment. It can pray silently, without being heard by anyone. Its prayer ascends into heaven as if it had angelic wings.
Perhaps someone listening will say to himself: If I can pray to God anywhere and everywhere, then why do I have to go to church? Its sad that so many people have been so strongly influenced by groups like Jehovahs Witnesses. These people never go to church, and don't even cross themselves when passing by a church or chapel.
Our response to them is: Christ, during His ministry on earth, did not preach the abolishment of houses of prayer. Indeed, He did teach us to pray at all times and all places, but He also taught, besides private prayer, the public prayer of many people congregated in one place. He Himself, when He was twelve years old, went to the temple in Jerusalem; He so loved that temple that He stayed there for three days, praying and discussing Mosaic Law with priests and rabbis, eliciting awe and admiration from all who heard Him speak. When His holy Mother, who had lost Him and sought Him for three days, finally discovered Him in the temple, He told her: Didn't you know that I had to be in My Father s house? (Luke 2:49).

Metropolitan Augoustinos (Kantiotes) of Florina-On New Heresies

New Heresies by +Metropolitan Augoustinos (Kantiotes) of Florina[1]

“We will not deny you, beloved Orthodoxy” – Joseph Vryennios (St. Mark of Ephesus’ spiritual father)

Of late, certain theologians, under the influence of contemporary, world-wide currents, have begun to savour the words “ecumenicity”, “ecumenical spirit”, and “ecumenical movement”, as if they were hard-candy.  Ecumenicity; what a beautiful word!  And yet, behind these words, lay hidden a most fearful danger for Orthodoxy.  What is this danger?  We will show you by means of an example.

Imagine a woman, a woman faithful to her husband, a woman who will allow no third party to enter into their relationship, ever mindful of the promises which she had made before God and before men.  She is a woman of exceptional beauty, drawing the eye of many a man.  On account of her uprightness, however, anyone who dares to touch, or to proposition her, immediately meets with her anger.  Should such a one persist, this honourable woman will deliver a strong slap to his face in order bring him to his senses.

Those men who are learned in this vile business, however, will try another method.  These will try to uncover what it is that this woman likes; does she perhaps love poetry, or philosophy, or art?  By means of these things the secret admirer will trap her.  With great deftness he will begin having innocent conversations with her on those subjects that are beloved to her.  “What a wonderful poem!”; “What a beautiful painting!”; “What a wonderful play!”; “How sweet a piece of music!”  And thus begins the dialogue.  Gradually the unsuspecting woman is lured into longer conversations with the deceiver who, while his tongue speaks of philosophy and art, his heart leaps at the hope of taking the woman for himself.  Finally, after an air of great familiarity and mutual understanding has been achieved through these conversations, the door is opened to the foul deed, the shameful union.  Just as the most-evil serpent succeeded in beguiling Eve by means of a simple conversation, in like manner the seed of shameful union was sown.

Did you catch what we are trying to say, beloved?  We have spoken in a parable.

The woman concerning which we have spoken is our Orthodox Church.  She is this beauty.  She is the woman who, according to the Book of Revelation is “clothed in the Sun”, who wears “upon her head a crown of twelve stars”, and who has “the moon under her feet”.[2]  It is the Orthodox Church which has remained faithful to the Lord, to the eternal bridegroom.  It is she who has kept pure the tradition of the Lord and of the Apostles – both written and unwritten – in accordance with the God-inspired call to, “stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.”[3]  It is she, the Orthodox Church, which for nineteen centuries has fought the hard and bloody battle against various deceptions, against the various heresies which have sought to pollute and corrupt her holiness.  One of the worst of these heresies is Papism, which, on account of its delusions, its authoritarian spirit, and its atrocities, caused the rise of Protestantism and the fracturing of all of Christendom.  Yes, the Papists are heretics.  The enemies of the Orthodox Church, including Papism to be sure, know well that she has persevered in the faith of her Fathers.  Yet, having been persuaded through many examples that they cannot conquer that fortress which is Orthodoxy by means of a frontal attack, these enemies have recently begun trying by other means.  They have begun a new war, a war of peace, a war worse than the Crusades.  Do you not hear the voice of the serpent, seeking to corrupt the minds of Orthodoxy, leading us away from our simplicity?[4]

Here is what the serpent says:  O, Orthodox Church!  Why do you keep your distance?  Why are you afraid of me?  I am no dragon; I am a sweet angel bearing the message of love.  I am not going to hurt you.  Keep your dogmas and your traditions. Leave these things to the theologians…I invite you into my room to discuss other matters.  Let us make a common stand against hunger, against poverty, against atheism, against communism, against war.  Do these matters not move you?  Does this proposition not excite you?  Come then, let us begin our conversation on high, on the level of ecumenicity, on the level of mutual understanding.  You will see just how beautiful our coming together can be!

O, Orthodox Church!  Our suffering mother!  Will you accept this proposition?  Will you enter into dialogue with Papism?  Can you not see the danger inherent in this proposition?  That those who ineptly and unworthily represent you are creating conditions favorable to your enemies to such a fearful degree that you, without even taking notice, will fall into the arms of Papism.  And what will follow then?  A union, a pseudo-union, spiritual adultery, a most vile act; something which ought never to have occurred, and which will require centuries of repentance from those Orthodox who played the role of pimp for the Orthodox Church.  The hour will come when these will sigh and say:  “Let the language which we spouted concerning ‘ecumenicity’ and ‘mutual understanding’ cease; let these feet which ran to bring together Orthodoxy and wolves in sheep’s clothing become leprous; let these hands which signed ecumenical epistles and documents fall off!”

This, my beloved, is the famous ‘theory of ecumenicity’ which our leaders savour!

 

We repeat: the Ecumenical Movement, under whose umbrella gather all manner of heresies, represents a danger to the Orthodox Church.  It deprecates the importance of the dogmas which, having been miraculously articulated in the brief definitions of the Ecumenical Councils, and which are the skeleton, the backbone without which the body becomes a limp and formless lump.  It deprecates the Holy Canons, which the ecumenists call obsolete, rusty weapons.  To put it concisely, the ecumenists deprecate the Orthodox Church as a whole, saying that it is self-centered, that it is a blasphemy for us to consider her to be the one true Church, possessing the genuine truth of Divine Revelation.  Within this context the dogmas and the moral life, inseparably joined in the Orthodox Church, tend to evaporate, leaving behind nothing but a fraudulent version of love.  The theory of ecumenicity, the theory which calls all different peoples to live together in the name of some tenuous peace, a theory supported within worldly and political circles in our century and which has already been applied to the spiritual sphere where compromise is unacceptable, will ultimately lead to conflict and turmoil, truly, to Babel.

Leaven, if it becomes contaminated, loses its ability to make things rise; Orthodoxy, the most excellent leaven, the leaven of truth, is capable of leavening the whole lump, but only so long as it remains unpolluted by foreign ingredients, so long as it remains pure.  For this reason the followers of this theory of ecumenicity are the enemies of Orthodoxy.  For this reason we do not hesitate to call this movement – the Ecumenical movement – a new heresy, from which the Orthodox Church must be protected.

In conclusion, during these critical moments when the Orthodox Church stands in danger, we call out to the faithful from our own watchtower:  “Orthodox faithful!  Remember that Church, of which you are children.  Remember the rivers of blood our Fathers spilt to keep our Faith unadulterated; not one iota did they permit to be subtracted or added to our Faith.  Remember the rallying cry of the heroes of the Revolution of 1821.  These men – may their memory be eternal – struggled first for the faith, and then for their homeland.  All of these heroes and martyrs – known and unknown – call to us from their graves:  “Stand firm upon the bulwark of Orthodoxy!”

________________________________________

[1]      This article may be found under the title, “Νέα Άιρεσις” in the book, “Πνευματικά Σαλπίσματα Ορθοδόξου Ζωής και  Ομολογίας” (Thessalonki:  2008), 109-114.
[2]      Revelation 12:1-2.
[3]      2 Thessalonians 2:15.
[4]     See 2 Corinthians 11:3.  “But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.”

While There Is Time... -By Met.Augustinos Kantiotis of Florina

"In an acceptable time I have heard thee..." —Isaiah 49:8, 2 Cor 6:2

I ask, dear friends, that you pay close attention to these words. We will spend some time in interpreting them; they are a prophecy by Isaiah and those of you who will comprehend them will become the "lottery's grand prize winners." Otherwise I am left with no alternative and I wash my hands...
What is the meaning of these words? I will start my interpretation from a little further away.
When a person intends to travel internationally, he prepares his passport and arranges for a visa from the intended destination country's embassy accordingly. Generally speaking, all travelers inquire about the departure time of the bus, train, ship or airplane and make every reasonable effort to ensure that they are on time, with their ticket in hand. Similarly, a young man who plans to study at a university ensures that he prepares and submits the necessary application forms, as required by the educational institution of his choice. It is likewise for the businessman who has borrowed fluids for his business and is obliged to submit monthly payments; he makes every effort to be on time and to not cause any issues with his lender. What I am trying to say is that as we always make the necessary time to ensure that we obtain our passport, purchase our ticket, pay our loan, and attend to all of our other duties related to employment, marriage and family, similarly there is adequate time for a different obligation, more important than any which life presents us.
What is this obligation? Well, God did not create us for travel and business, for degrees and titles, for dowries and weddings. These things have nothing to do with our main purpose. What is our true purpose? The above verse says it clearly. As there is always time for all worldly matters, there is likewise plenty of time for this most important matter. However, which one of us truly understands this? One may say that it is necessary for an angel to descend from Heaven and inject within our heart some of the faith and love that our saints possess; only then might it be possible for us to truly feel and comprehend the Apostle's words.
"In an acceptable time I have heard Thee." In other words the time which we spend in this world is truly priceless; it is time for the purpose of salvation. Our life may last 20, 40, 60 or 80 years; what can we do during this time? Why do we ask? Why do we not open the holy scriptures, the synaxarion, or even visit a cemetery where the bodies of many lie buried? Why do we not look in the stars in the sky and then, searching within our heart, ask ourselves: "Why did we come to this world?" What is it that we ought to accomplish within the span of our earthly life? Well, I am about to tell you, just make sure you are paying attention:
You my young lady, that spends so much time in front of the mirror or stay up during all hours of the night entertaining yourself, draw near and listen to me. And you, my young man, who spends your day running around in your car or motorcycle, draw near and listen to me as well. And you, my dear housewife, who spends hours window shopping in the malls, come near me as well. All of you, why are you wasting so much of your time? I do not ask for much; I only ask that you set aside some of your time each day for prayer, to kneel and speak with God.
I am also talking to you, the husband, who spends hours upon hours studying those papers with the fine print. I see you on the train or bus or at home either in front of the TV or staring at magazines and newspapers. What is it that you find in them? Please forgive my language, but have you ever seen a man use a stick to dig up or disturb cow droppings? Not really; because such an act would bring forth offensive odors and stench. Draw near my fellow Christian and if you are a baptized Orthodox man, than open up your Bible each day and spend some time reading it with your wife and children so that all of your eyes may open.
What else? Take a pen and paper and start counting the hours. One entire week comprised of 168 hours. From all these hours, what does God ask of you? Simply just one or two hours to attend the weekly Sunday Liturgy*; to be in church from the moment you hear "Blessed is the Kingdom of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit" all the way to "Through the prayers of the Holy Fathers, Lord Jesus Christ have mercy on us and save us, Amen." If the priest asks us to attend an all-night vigil who goes? If, however, the devil calls us to join him in the dark entertainment centers of the evening, then many run to be with him through midnight and beyond. While in church, though, they all ask "How much longer until it's over?"
In the end my fellow Christians, every new year God grants you a new cycle of 365 days. Every year is like a long komboloi (worry beads) with 365 beads. Every day is represented by a golden bead. Yes, my fellow Orthodox Christian, it is truly made of gold since we all know too well that "time is money;" From all these 365 days dedicate at least one day and approach the spiritual clinic through the sacrament of Holy Confession. When you lose your physical health, I see you running to doctors and hospitals. For your soul, however, do you do anything? Thus my child, from all these 365 days, pick a day or two and seek a confessor, go and kneel in front of him and confess your offenses.
So you see my child, it is unfortunate but true. There is such great unwillingness to dedicate five minutes for prayer, a few minutes to study the Holy Bible, an hour or two to attend the weekly Liturgy a day or two for confession. What can we then expect from God?
My brethren, as you can see, I have taken a hold of the valuable coin on which is inscribed "In an acceptable time I have heard Thee..." and I peeled it apart so all of us can comprehend these words. Now that this deed is completed, which one of you will take the time to establish his or her timetable and itinerary. Which one of you will rise in the morning and instead of standing in front of the bathroom mirror will take the time to seek the spiritual mirror contained within our Holy Bible and read it? Which one of you will kneel at home to pray? Which one of you will make it a point to start coming to church every Sunday? Which one of you will make it a point to seek and find a spiritual father for confession?
It is within the time afforded to us by God in this life of ours that these deeds must be completed. You must also take note that time is of the essence, even though it appears that we have plenty of time. Our church reminds us of this every day; "That we complete the remaining time of our lives in peace and repentance, let us ask of the Lord." What is the duration of our life going to be? How much longer will we live? Is it perhaps possible that this current year is the last one of our earthly life? What am I saying? Could this current month be our last one? Perhaps even this next week or next day may end up being our last one... Do you doubt me? Well, just open the newspaper and read the obituary section...
There was a mayor of Athens once who organized a large party to celebrate his birthday, inviting politicians, ministers and many others. They all gathered in happiness. The table was set with the finest foods; flowers were everywhere; the music was playing. In his pocket he even had the papers ready with the speech he would deliver. He was standing by the door having his picture taken as he greeted each of his guests. But before he made it to the table, his call arrived. He could have never expected it to come at that time, but it did come, as lightening from a clear sky! What type of lightening? A heart attack... He fell down, never to get up again; they lifted him and carried him away with their hands... He was truly gone. As far as his guests, none of them sat around to enjoy the meal. They were all beside themselves. Those of you who were raised in small villages may have seen the following, several chickens grazing in the meadow when suddenly a hawk appears out of nowhere and plunges among them, snatches one of them and quickly disappears. The remaining chickens become greatly agitated. This is exactly; my brethren, how death appears—like a hawk that snatches lives away. He snatches you in the store, in the street, in the town square, during a wedding, during a baptism, during elections, wherever he finds you! He snatches the elderly as well as babies from their cribs.
My brethren, how much longer shall we remain senseless? How much longer shall we refuse to consider eternity?
"In an acceptable time, I have heard thee..." In a very old book, I read that there was a king a long time ago who had the following custom. Throughout his entire kingdom and whenever he came near a city with his army, he carried two flags; a white one and a black one. When he approached the city; he raised the white flag which meant that as long as that flag was raised, a soldier did not have permission to disturb anything, not even the hair on a person's head! All of the city's inhabitants had also the ability to request favors from the king, whatever they desired. This, however, was for a short duration only and it had a very definitive time limit. As soon as time was up, the black flag was raised and then mothers would weep for their children; in homes and in fields, to people and to animals alike, fire, murder, blood everywhere...
Do you comprehend what I am telling you? Christ, our good King, raises His white flag over this world through His Holy Cross. Let all the sinful come, all people, all nations, while there is time ("In an acceptable time...")! The time will soon come that the white flag of love and mercy will be lowered and then all gates will be shut. The day will come that you will arrive only to find the Church door closed. You will keep knocking but not even the chanter will be there to answer. The stars and the sun will be extinguished and the rivers will dry up. The moment of judgment and justice will be upon us all!
My brethren, as long as we remain in this vain world, let us repent, let us weep, and let us all beg fee God's mercy; May God deem us worthy to spend the rest of our life "in peace and repentance," through the intercessions of our Holy Theotokos and all the Saints. Amen.

* Webmaster note: His Grace, Bishop Augoustinos, is almost certainly condescending to the weakness of his worldly listeners in saying this. Pious Orthodox Christians would not be satisfied with merely attending the Divine Liturgy, but would also make every effort regularly to attend Vespers and Orthros (Matins), especially if they were communing. It's reasonable to conclude that His Grace deemed it pastorally unwise to lay such a "burden" on those who were rarely even attending services or confessing.

From Orthodox Heritage (Vol. 3, Issue 7),