Dear Friends
Christ is risen!
We have arrived at this day, this last day of the Feast. Today, Wednesday 28th, is the 39th day of Pascha: for a little over a month we have been particularly celebrating the Feast of feasts and Festival of festivals and living in a changed world, a transfigured world, a world full of light and possibilities. You and I have been freed from bondage to death, sin and idolatry, we have been offered immortality as the Resurrection of Christ is the first-fruits, the assurance, the promise, of our own Resurrection—and we cry out to our Saviour as did the Apostles on the Mount,
Lord, it is good for us to be here.
— Matthew 17:4; cf. Mark 9:4, Luke 9:33
For it is glorious for us to be here, a joy for us to be here. But we must descend Mount Tabor, we cannot make tents, remain here and abandon the world, but we must ourselves be willing to journey to Mount Zion which is crowned by the Holy City of Jerusalem, we must be willing to ascend Golgotha carrying our own cross, we must be willing to die with Christ that we might rise with Him.
The Apostle Peter, the chief witness on the Mount of Transfiguration, starts his second epistle with this duality—that we live in assurance of the Resurrection and we must also struggle for the sake of the Gospel.
Simon Peter, a bondservant and apostle of Jesus Christ,
To those who have obtained like precious faith with us by the righteousness of our God and Saviour Jesus Christ:
Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord,
as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue,
by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.
— Second Peter 1:1–4
And so far we see the promises we have received, the power and the strength. But he immediately goes on,
But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge,
to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness,
to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love.
For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins.
Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble;
for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting Kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
— verses 5–11
My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, we cannot remain here on the Mount of Transfiguration: we must return to the world that we may sanctify the world by our own work and sacrifice. And by taking up our crosses we join ourselves to Christ and His Victory: by ourselves we will fail and fail miserably, but with Christ our Victory is assured; whether we outwardly succeed or fail we are victors in Christ.
But the Lord will not leave us abandoned: even as He ascends into the Heavens to take humanity to the right hand of the Father, He promises the Comforter Who will lead us in all Truth, so that,
Where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.
— Matthew 18:20
Let us, therefore, bear within us the hope and certainty of the Resurrection of Christ as we journey on, keeping the commandments of the Lord as we enter our own trials that we may be joined to Him and rise with Him. And as we go, let us keep in our hearts the joy, the certainty, the promise,
Christ is risen from the dead
Trampling down death by death
And upon those in the tombs
Bestowing Life!
The Lord is risen indeed!
Come and see!
There has come an opportunity to establish a new mission community in Chichester. Once running, we hope to serve a Liturgy there on certain Saturdays. Our Father in Christ, Metropolitan Silouan, has blessed this outreach and has entrusted it to the heavenly patronage of the Holy Great Virgin-Martyr and Vanquisher of Demons Margaret of Antioch (feast day 17th July).
If you are interested in supporting our parish’s mission, please let me know, and I will update you as we make progress.
Holy Mother Margaret, pray to God for us!
We serve a meal following the Liturgy on Sundays. All are welcome.
Do you, or someone you know, want to join our mailing list and receive our weekly email? Then let me know.
Sermon
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, one God, Amen.
Christ is risen!
We are here in these last days of Pascha: joyous days, celebratory days, days of wonder. We remember particularly the physical and bodily presence of the risen Christ among His disciples, you and me, before His triumphant Ascension into the heavens. And we are entreating Him, “Give us a Word, our God and Saviour, give us a Word for our spiritual benefit, give us a Word of comfort and strength, give us a Word to prove us right and all others wrong: Give us a Word.” Since we want to be spiritually uplifted, brought into mystical wonder, transcend our earthly existence. We want to cry out with the crowd, “This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world.” (John 6:14)
We seek a mystical experience, for our spirits to be drawn up into the cloud with Christ and all which is suffering, earthly, mortal and subject to death to be left behind. And Christ spits into the dust of the earth, makes clay and rubs it into the man’s eye sockets—a dirty experience, a disgusting experience, an experience about which I am repulsed; yet when I am seeking a Word on spirituality, or on high theology, this is precisely what I need: our spirituality is physical, our theology is incarnate. The Christian Life is not to seek an escape from this world, rather we are to bring the Kingdom of God into this world, make it manifest in this world. Our Christianity is not an escape but a fulfilment, not mere spirituality but body, soul and spirit fully alive.
And I squirm and I writhe: I want a spiritual message for a Sunday—food for thought—before I return to the difficulties and challenges of work and family life. And I complain when this message is brought before me,
This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath.
Yet if this is true, if this is real, if this is the totality of the revelation of God to humanity, then I cannot stay the same. I was blind, I was content in my own misery, I had never even glimpsed the beauty before me—now I have received my sight and I can never go back to be as I was. I am as a butterfly who wants to return to his cocoon rather than soar aloft. And I complain alongside the Pharisees rather than give God the glory, I hide with the parents too afraid to put my own head above the parapets.
…
Read this Sermon, Give us a Word.
Archive of Past Sermons.
Services this week
Friday 30th May
Discussion on the Prophecy of Isaiah, 8 pm
Online only
Saturday 31st May
Great Vespers, 6.30 pm
At 3rd URC Scout Hall, Chandlers Ford
Sunday 1st June
Matins & Divine Liturgy, 9 am
At 3rd URC Scout Hall, Chandlers Ford
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 meet at 3rd URC Scout HQ, Kings Rd, Chandlers Ford SO53 2EY. The Scout hall is behind and to the left of the URC Church. 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 parish?
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 the risen Christ
Fr Alexander
webenquiry@orthodoxeastleigh.uk