UOC Primate: God transformed an instrument of death into a source of life
His Beatitude reminded the faithful that all the sorrows, hardships, and illnesses God permits us to endure constitute a spiritual cross that each person is called to bear with dignity.
On the Feast of the Exaltation of the Precious and Life-Giving Cross of the Lord, His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry of Kyiv and All Ukraine delivered a sermon reminding the faithful of the saving power of Christ’s Cross and calling on them to bear their own spiritual crosses with humility.
The hierarch recalled that before Christ’s Crucifixion, the cross was an instrument of shameful execution reserved for the most serious criminals.
“Before the Savior’s Crucifixion, the cross was an instrument of shameful death, on which the worst robbers and murderers were crucified. And the Lord, taking upon Himself our sins, our murders, and our crimes, was crucified as the lowest of sinners. From that moment on, the Cross was transformed from an instrument of death into an instrument of life.”
The Primate explained that the Life-Giving Cross received from the Savior a great grace-filled power that heals and strengthens people. He also spoke about the significance of the personal cross in every Christian’s life, urging believers to endure life’s trials with patience and humility.
“All the sorrows, hardships, and illnesses that the Lord permits us to endure, taken together, constitute each person’s spiritual cross. And we must bear this cross worthily so that it may become a means of salvation. Just as the Savior took up His Cross and humbly carried it to Golgotha, so must we carry our own cross to Golgotha – that is, to the place where we are crucified to the world.”
According to the Primate, being crucified to the world means becoming entirely unresponsive to the sinful passions and vices raging in society.
“It means becoming unresponsive to the passions and vices that exist and rage in the world, drawing people into their grasp. We must remain unresponsive to them and direct all our feelings, thoughts, and desires toward God in humble, repentant prayer.”
Concluding his sermon, His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry invoked God’s blessing upon all the faithful, prayerfully asking that the Lord preserve everyone through the power of the Precious Cross and bless the land with peace.
The UOJ previously reported that His Beatitude spoke about the newly glorified nun of the St. Florus Monastery.
