Introduction
As the opening quotation from the Gospel of the day makes clear, this Instruction was intended for the first day of the new ecclesiastical year, the beginning of the Indiction on 1 September. The beginning of the second paragraph contains a quotation from the Anaphora of St John Chrysostom.
Catechesis 24
Of the surpassing gift of God, of love for him and hatred of the devil, and of humility. It was spoken at the beginning of the year.
Brethren and fathers, the beginning of the year has already come, on which the Good Tidings are read in these words,The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me, he has sent me to bring good tidings to the poor, to heal the broken hearted, to proclaim forgiveness to captives and sight to the blind, to send the oppressed away with forgiveness, to announce a year acceptable to the Lord [Luke 4:18-19; Isa. 61:1-2, 58:6]. Since then the only-begotten Son of God has been sent from the Father as propitiation for the world, may we, the blind, see again, we captives be freed, we oppressed be forgiven. Who is blind? One short-sighted through attachment to the passions. Who is captive? One led away by unseemly thoughts. Who is oppressed? One broken by sins. The Lord heals them; for he is a physician of souls as well as bodies. And he was not only present in bodily form to those at that time, but he is also present now, invisibly, with the same good tidings, taking away the sin of the world, and healing every disease and every weakness [John 1:29; Matt. 9:35]. Let no one then remain unenlightened and unhealed, but let them draw near with faith and they will receive blessing from the Lord, and mercy from God their Saviour [Ps. 23:5].
Oh, what ineffable love for humankind! He brought us from non-existence into existence; when we had fallen, he raised us up again; he has granted us a third grace: monastic completeness; and though we are still sinning, he does not therefore turn away, but he draws near and consoles us when we are afflicted, encourages us when we are sorrowing, massages us when we are running, strengthens us when enfeebled and heals us when wounded; and when we are about to fall into pit of Hell itself, he goes ahead and snatches us from dangers in his love for humankind; so that it would be appropriate for each of us to say, If the Lord had not helped me, my soul had almost dwelt in Hell [Ps. 93:17]. And I was thrust down and overthrown so as to fall, and the Lord came to my assistance [Ps. 117:13]. And each one knows the temptations into which they have fallen, and how they have at once found the good God to be their helper in their afflictions.
In addition he who is supremely good nourishes us when we hunger, with regard to our bodies with the fruits that the earth bears year by year; with regard to the soul with the most pure Mysteries, as he longs for us more than a mother or a nurse and embraces us with affection. For a mother nourishes her child with milk for a time, while he our true master and father gives his own body and blood as food and drink, and this permanently. Oh, what unfathomable goodness! And oh, what an incomparable gift! How then can we fail to love him? How fail to cherish him? How fail to cling to him unceasingly? So that if we were not so disposed, heaven would instantly cry out against us, earth would groan, the very stones would condemn our utter insensibility.
So that this may not happen, let us hold fast to love of him, hating and rightly turning away from the devil. For as our benefactor is loved and cherished in proportion to his benefactions, so the wicked one should be hated and rejected for his ways in equal proportion. For he is the destroyer of our life. In the words of the Master, he is a murderer from the beginning [John 8:44]. He is the one who has divided our race into ten thousand opinions, wounding it with many darts of sin and seeking to swallow down the inhabited world. If we do not hate him, there will be no escaping the punishment that will be meted out to us, because we joined to our foe and murderer. But, my brothers, let us fly from him! Let us fly most certainly. What is flight? The avoidance of wicked actions and thoughts, and also affinity with God, the assumption of good works.
And so let us chose the good with all humility and meekness and modesty serving the Lord, knowing that every achievement that is not guarded by humility is worthless. So let those of us whose ideas are puffed up humble ourselves beneath the mighty hand of God [1 Peter 5:6], lest we run in vain; but let all of us, doing well, press forward, pursue, run on, that we may attain, that we may inherit the kingdom of heaven, in Christ Jesus, our Lord, to whom be glory and might, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and to the ages of ages. Amen.
Introduction and notes by Fr Ephrem Lash.