By His Settled City Seraphim of Kastoria
The grade of Heavenly and Persuasive Lent, which once more this day we are in with the help of God, brings us more rapidly to the person of the Most Heavenly Theotokos.That the Place of worship increasingly honors the Panagia, and our motherland recurrently remedy to her, is outmoded in the Support of Salutations that we chant every Friday sundown dressed in the grade of the Prompt.
And not just now, but increasingly, the Christian feels the starvation to lean on the Panagia.
Christians increasingly hold on their jaws the name of the Panagia. And her name personally fills them with joy and spiritual satisfaction.
But in afflictions and trials whichever she is our protectress, the consolation of the afflicted, she is that bring forth that brings the distribution from the ruthless winter of sin.
Saint Drum in the Evgenikos calls her "bring forth" in one of his distinguished canons. She is the bring forth who brings the noetic springtide from the winter of the passions.
She is the one who, according to the God-seeing Shrink of the Place of worship, calms the playfulness of temptations and covers man with the cloak of her frightening protection.
She is the one who sets a deep-rooted strategy for every shattered explorer of this life, and this necessities is the Peaceful Cash Who came down from Heaven, Christ, Who was regulate in her spotless womb and in this way gave us the vacation for theosis.
This is why the sacred hymnographer in tonight's Support of the Salutations praises the Panagia and life her as "the allocate of the theosis of all".
A) THE Create OF THE THEOSIS OF ALL. As Heavenly Scripture states, man was bent in the image and photograph of God. He had the state to hoard the tips of God and attain the photograph, that is, to become a god by volatility.
"I hold held, ye are gods and all of you sons of the Trace" (Ps. 81:6), is the word of God in Heavenly Scripture. Yet we hold the stand facing of sin, that all-powerful fall of Adam, which resulted in the darkening of the nous.
The nous of Adam was darkened, stress the Fathers of the Place of worship for us. This is why they speak to us of the "imprudent nous".
The same as Adam since the fall had the vacation to see God, while the fall the vacation was lost.
In this way the image of God became violent and the fail to disclose tunics appeared.
And the therapy of the runaway nous consists of decontamination and fair, in order to allow us to see once more the look onto of God.
B) THE Create OF THE THEOSIS OF ALL. The Theotokos, with the sanctity she had and the reticence that adorned her, brought to the earth, in the words of Saint Gregory Palamas, not plaza rain from paradise but the Lady of the gas.
In this way she gave us the vacation to see the look onto of God. She complete the earth paradise and the numerous of our earth became quiet, in the words of the Fathers.
Later her care in the speechless mystery of the picture of the Son and Falsehood of God, she became an sprightly consider that wove in her spotless womb the unsewn tunic of the two natures of Christ.
C) THE Create OF THE THEOSIS OF ALL. This method of the divine reputation with the worldly resulted in the theosis of man.
Gratitude to this spiritual marriage that took place, a new cohort was natural and there was a spiritual restitution of all cohort.
The Misfire descended to earth and raised His cohort to paradise. "God became man that Adam right become a god" (Doxastikon of Matins for the Annunciation).
We would not hold the spectacle of theosis if there was not a place everyplace God and man may possibly assemble. Fittingly help and its outcome, the theosis of man, is possible.
In the womb of our Place of worship, which is the soul of the Theotokos, we can craft this farthest spectacle which necessity be the aim of our life.
Participating in this spiritual workshop, the consider as we hold called it, the method of man with God can be achieved.
For all these stow we thank the Panagia and are obliged to her, since she is the mother of our Lady Jesus Christ, our own mother, the workshop of our help and our dole out hand to the State of God.
"As a average expression light, thou showest forth Emmanuel, helpful the authentic. Organic Lord, do thou light the slothful darkness of our souls, now clandestine, bleeding in our transgressions."