Reflection on the Fourteenth Sunday of Matthew (St. Theophan the Recluse)

 Fourteenth Sunday of Matthew

Matthew 22:2-14

By St. Theophan the Recluse  

 

A king arranges a wedding for his son, he sends once for those who were bidden, sends twice, but because of earthly cares they do not come—one was busy at home, another with business. A new invitation was made in other spheres, and the wedding chamber was furnished with guests. Among them was found one not dressed for a wedding, who was therefore cast out. The meaning of this parable is clear: The wedding is the Kingdom of Heaven, the invitation is the preaching of the Gospels, those who refused are those who did not believe at all, and the one who was not dressed for a wedding believed, but did not live according to faith. 

 

Each of us must figure out for ourselves which category we belong to. That we are bidden is clear, but are we believers? Indeed it is possible to even be among believers, under their common name, and completely lack faith. One does not think at all about faith, as if it did not exist; another knows something or other about it and from it, and is satisfied; another interprets the faith in a distorted way; another relates to it with complete animosity. All are reckoned to be among the Christians, although they have absolutely nothing which is Christian. 

 

Homily for the Commemoration of Saint Theophan the Recluse (Fr. Daniel Sysoev)

Homily for the Commemoration of Saint Theophan the Recluse

By Fr. Daniel Sysoev

In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit!

Happy commemoration day of Saint Theophan the Recluse! Saint Theophan the Recluse lived in Russia in the 19th century and was a champion of ancient Orthodox traditions and teachings, which he translated into Russian. Renowned as a great interpreter of Holy Scripture, Theophan went into seclusion to study, live, and learn from God's teachings. His works are a priceless gift to us all. Priests often recommend reading Saint Theophan and Saint Ignatius Brianchaninov to those entering the Church. Saint Theophan possessed a special gift, enabling him to reveal the mysteries of faith with simplicity and depth. In his writings, he answers any question, even the most complex, such as those about extraterrestrials. Theophan was not afraid of questions and could provide exhaustive answers, drawing on Holy Scripture.

Nowadays, many people say that the dignity of a Christian is not to think and to be stupid. This is the exact opposite of what the Lord Himself taught and what the apostles said. Stupidity is the sign of an atheist, who is, by definition, stupid. And he is stupid because logic does not work for him, the thought process does not work, and he often simply tries to shut up his opponent. A Christian must be wise; he must develop his mind. Developing it can be done in different ways. There is the method of "piggy bank," which is very popular now: we throw absolutely everything into our minds. We can read a book or watch a movie, because everyone reads a book or everyone watches a movie. But simply accumulating information does not develop the mind. There was the great pagan philosopher Heraclitus, one of the founders of Ionian philosophy in Ancient Greece. He said this: "Much knowledge does not teach intelligence, and if it did, it would have taught Pythagoras." He despised Pythagoras extremely, since Pythagoras believed in the transmigration of souls, and Heraclitus did not consider him worthy of the title of man.

Reflection on the Saturday Before Theophany (St. Theophan the Recluse)

 

Reflection on the Saturday Before Theophany

(1 Tim. 3:14–4:5; Matt. 3:1–11)

By St. Theophan the Recluse

“The house of God, which is the Church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth” (1 Tim. 3:15).

Therefore, we have no need to cast our eyes here and there, trying to see whether there might be truth somewhere else. It is near. Be in the Church, hold fast to everything that she holds, and you will be in the truth; you will possess the truth and live according to it and in it, and as a result you will be filled with life by the truth.

Reflection on the Sunday Before Theophany (St. Theophan the Recluse)

Reflection on the Sunday Before Theophany

(2 Tim. 4:5–8; Mark 1:1–8)

By St. Theophan the Recluse

Before the Lord appeared to the people and entered into the work of accomplishing the economy of our salvation, Saint John the Baptist was sent to prepare the people to receive Him. The preparation consisted of calling them to repentance. And repentance from that time became the path to the Lord Savior and the threshold of faith in Him. The Savior Himself began His preaching with the words: "Repent and believe in the gospel" (Mark 1:15).

Escaping the Judgment of the Fig Tree (St. Theophan the Recluse)

 By St. Theophan the Recluse

(Mark 11:11–23)

The Lord took away His blessing from the fig tree which was rich with leaves but had no fruit, and it dried up. This is a lesson in action. The fig tree represents people who in appearance are proper, but in essence are not worthy of approval. Who are these people? They are those who eloquently discourse about the faith, but do not have that faith—they hold the objects of faith in the intellect only. They are those whose outward behavior is proper but their feelings and dispositions are very improper, and they manifest proper works only to hide their impropriety from people; whenever possible, they do not do these works. For example, such a person gives alms when someone asks of him in front of people, but ask him in private and he will berate you. He goes to church to pray to God, prays in sight of everyone, and prays at home as well, so as to not bring shame upon himself before his household. But as soon as he is alone, he does not even make the sign of the cross over his brow. He does not have any idea about turning to God with the mind and heart. Let us pray that God will not allow us to be as these. For then we will not escape the judgement pronounced over the fig tree.

- Thoughts for Each Day of the Year, January 19/February 1 

Reflection for the Monday of Meatfare Week (St. Theophan the Recluse)

Monday of Meatfare Week

(1 John 2:18–3:10; Mark 11:1–11)

By St. Theophan the Recluse

Yesterday the parable about the prodigal son invited us to return from dissipation to the good path. Now the holy Apostle John inspires us for this, giving assurance that if we do this, when the Lord appears, we will be like Him. What can compare with such a dignity?! I should think that upon hearing this, you would be filled with a desire to attain this for yourself. It is a good and most importantly needful thing! Do not delay undertaking that through which it is attained.

Reflection on the Twelfth Sunday of Luke (St. Theophan the Recluse)

 

 

Twelfth Sunday of Luke

Luke 17:12-19

By St. Theophan the Recluse

 

Ten lepers were healed, but only one came to thank the Lord. Isn’t there generally a similar proportion of people who are grateful after receiving benefactions from the Lord? Who has not received good things; or, rather, what do we have in us, or what ever happens to us that is not good for us? Even so, is everyone grateful to God, and does everyone give thanks for everything? There are even those who permit themselves to ask, “Why did God give us existence? It would be better for us not to exist.” God gave you existence so that you would be in eternal blessedness; He gave you existence as a gift, as a gift He has furnished you with every means for attaining eternal blessedness.
 

Reflection on the Fourteenth Sunday of Luke (St. Theophan the Recluse)

Reflection on the Fourteenth Sunday of Luke

Luke 18:35-43,  Mark 10:46-52

 

By St. Theophan the Recluse 

The blind man of Jericho raised up his voice when he learned that the Lord was walking past. His wail reached the Lord; nothing surrounding the Lord could interfere with His hearing it, and the Lord called the blind man over and returned his sight. At every time and in every place the Lord does not just walk by, but is there; He governs the whole world. As human thinking would have it, this means that He has many cares; furthermore, multitudes of angels surround Him with doxologies. But if you are able to raise up your voice like the blind man of Jericho, nothing will stop your wail from reaching the Lord; He will hear and fulfill your petition. It does not depend on the Lord; He Himself is near, and all that is necessary for you is already prepared in Him; now all that is wanting is you.

Features of Monastic Life in the Life of the Holy Great Martyr Katherine (St. Theophan the Recluse)

Features of Monastic Life in the Life of the Holy Great Martyr Katherine

By St. Theophan the Recluse

(A Homily Delivered in a Convent of Tambov on November 24, 1861)

For those celebrating in honor of Saint Katherine, it is best to engage in the features of the life of the Great Martyr. For you and me, sisters, this is all the more fitting since the life of Saint Katherine is, in its main features, a complete depiction of monastic life. I do not make any stretch in this application. See for yourself. Here is the icon of Saint Katherine in front of you! She kneels before the Mother of God, holding in her arms the Infant Savior, who gives Saint Katherine a wedding ring. This is the most important moment of her life - becoming a bride of the Lord. But, as you know, it was preceded by a desire and search for something better, and followed by martyrdom. The desire for the best led the great martyr to the Lord. Having united with the Lord, she was led into the feat of martyrdom and crowned with His crown. These are the main features in the life of Saint Katherine. The same main moments are in your life, if you go through it as you should.

Reflection on the Beheading of Saint John the Baptist (St. Theophan the Recluse)

 

By St. Theophan the Recluse

A rumor about the works of the Lord reached Herod; he immediately concluded: it was John who had risen. You never know what you could think of! And yet he thought of no one but John. Who gave this direction to his thoughts? Conscience. You cannot hide unscrupulous deeds from her, nothing can correct her judgment. By beheading John, Herod arrogated to himself the right to do so, and others did not deny such a right, but conscience spoke its own, and he could not drown out its speeches with anything. So he sees John.

Reflection on the Fifth Sunday of Matthew (St. Theophan the Recluse)

 Fifth Sunday of Matthew

Matthew 8:28-34; 9:1

By St. Theophan the Recluse

The Gadarenes saw the Lord’s wondrous miracle, when He cast out a legion of devils, and yet, the whole city came out and besought the Lord that He would depart from their coast. We do not observe them being hostile to the Lord, but neither do we observe any faith in them. They are seized with a sort of indeterminate fearfulness, making them to desire only that the Lord pass them by, wherever He wishes, “only do not touch us.”

Post-Pentecost Reflection of St. Theophan the Recluse

 

 By St. Theophan the Recluse

After the Baptism of the Lord, when the Spirit descended upon Him in the form of a dove, He descended into the wilderness to be tempted. This is the common path for all. St. Isaac the Syrian remarks in one place that as soon as you taste grace-filled consolation or receive some gift from the Lord, wait for temptation. Temptations conceal the brightness of grace from one’s own eyes which usually consume every good with self-conceit and self-exaltation.

These temptations are also external - sorrow, humiliation; and internal - passionate thoughts that purposely are released, like beasts unchained. Therefore, we must heed ourselves and strictly analyze what occurs with us and in us, to see why it is happening, and what obligations it brings.