Dear Friends
For thousands of years humanity remained captive to demons and the devil. They wanted to wage war against the Lord—an impossibility against the omnipotent God—so had to satisfy themselves with war against those whom he loved, human beings. And they thought they were winning.
But God had another plan for us, one which would free us from the demons’ tyranny: God did what no demon had thought he would, he joined his beloved creatures and became one of us. From God’s perspective we are not the enemy but were trapped by the enemy through death. And God willed even to reveal to us the perfect symbol of love, death on the Cross. A free death, a voluntary death, a death without pretense nor compromise. God ascended the Cross in perfect freedom, out of love for his creatures, and died.
Death and Hades believed they had won, they dared to swallow up the Lord. And to those who unjustly held dominion over the dead, the Lord cried out,
Lift up your gates, O ye princes; and be ye lifted up, ye everlasting gates, and the King of Glory shall enter in.
Psalm 23 lxx
The Lord has come in a new Pascha (Passover) and he has brought judgment on Death and Hades as he brought judgment on the gods of Egypt—”For I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the Lord.” (Exodus 12:12)
And in a panic Death and Hades replied,
Who is the King of Glory?
For what else could they say? They could not resist the all-powerful God nor refuse his judgment. The Lord gave his reply as he destroyed the Gates of Hell, despoiled Hades and destroyed their power.
The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord, mighty in war.
The Lord of hosts, he is the King of Glory.
And Christ, by his death trampled down Death. The demons have lost. Any power or authority they have left, already dwindling, is temporary because, “all authority has been given to [Christ] in heaven and on earth.” (Matthew 28:18)
My dear brothers and sisters, friends, despite all this there are many in our world, our country, our borough, our town who are still suffering under the unjust tyranny of the devil. They have not come to know the saving death and resurrection of our Lord as a reality in their lives—not as a myth, fairy-tale nor fanciful thinking, but as an immediate reality for them. And this is not their fault. We all need to demonstrate in our own lives—I need to demonstrate in my life—that Christ is risen: in other words I need to become a saint.
And I might despair and think this beyond me: but so did the saints of the Church who have run the race before us. I, like they did, can still come close to the Lord through prayer and fasting, through the study of Scripture, through reading the lives of the saints and other works, through attending services, through serving others, through honouring all I meet, through doing my job to the best of my ability, through offering my talents to the Church, through giving, through all these things I have the possibility to become—slowly, and by the grace of God—the saint I was created to be.
My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, our world needs to hear the Gospel that the powers which hold them no longer have power and they are freed through knowledge of God the Father, through his Son in the Holy Spirit; our world needs our Church. Our world deserves that we, each one of us, transfigure into the saints we have the potential to become that all come to know God and his victory.
Services this week
Friday 22nd October
Discussion on the book of Genesis, 8 pm
Online only
Saturday 23rd October
Vespers, 6.30 pm
At St Francis’ Hall, Eastleigh
Sunday 24th October
Divine Liturgy, 9.30 am
At St Francis’ Hall, Eastleigh
Online session is via Google Meet: please get in contact for the details.
Please join us: all are welcome, come and see.
Attending Church
We will be meeting at St Francis’ Hall, Nightingale Avenue, Eastleigh, SO50 9JA. We ask you to wear a mask unless exempt. Come and See.
Can I help you?
I am here for you, you need only ask. Is there a way I can support your life of faith? Get in touch.
Can you help the mission?
Yes, absolutely. Offer yourselves to the Lord: pray! Make available to him all your talents and ask him how he would like you to use them — listen for his reply.
Your prayers!
With love in Christ
Fr Alexander
[email protected]