The Struggle with Pride

False humility is almost wholly the product of self-righteous hypocrisy

Struggling with our pride, we must focus on bringing our own will into conformity with the will of God. We must strive for a standard of humility that takes seriously the tradition of the Church, and making it our own.

Recognizing that false humility is almost wholly the product of self-righteous hypocrisy, we Christians must dedicate ourselves to a truth which is absolute, and which transcends our personal opinion. It is precisely this humility which Saint Paul reveals to us when, boasting of his sufferings and exploits, he tells us that they have meaning only in Jesus Christ.

We must fight off the temptation of making our faith a form of ideology, for we know the knowledge of Jesus Christ, when transformed into an ideological and moralistic knowledge, closes the door to others, and turns Christianity into a list of requirements, denuding the message of the Church into yet another worldly political force.

We must refuse to let our Christian faith distance us from others, because we must not a withdraw, but embrace all humanity, through our intimate relationship with Christ, through Whom all are united.

It is only through our immersion in a life of prayer, that faith becomes something other than an ideology. Through our uniting of ourselves in the prayer of the Church, we becoming one with Christ, and with all Christians. Our quest for humility will come through our having united ourselves to the humility of Christ, Who condescended to take on our flesh, in order to unite His divinity, with our humanity.

With love in Christ,
Abbot Tryphon

Photos: My abbot’s study.

Thursday June 27, 2019 / June 14, 2019
2nd Week after Pentecost. Tone eight.
Apostles’ (Peter & Paul) Fast. Food with Oil
Prophet Elisha (10th c. B.C.).
St. Methodius, patriarch of Constantinople (847).
Finding of the relics (1992) of New Hieromartyr Vladimir, Metropolitan of Kiev.
New Hieromartyr Joseph priest (1918).
New Hieromartyrs Nicholas, Alexander, Paul priests and Nicholas deacon (1938).
St. Mstislav-George, prince of Novgorod (1180).
Venerable Methodius, abbot of Peshnosha (1392).
Venerable Elisha, monk, of Suma (Solovki) (15th- 16th c.).
Synaxis of All Saints of Diveevo.
Venerable Niphon, monk of Kapsokalyvia, Mt. Athos (1330).
Venerable Julitta (Julia) of Tabenna in Egypt.
St. John (Mavropos), metropolitan of Euchaita (1100).
St. Joseph, bishop of Thessalonica, brother of St. Theodore of the Studion (830).
St. Sabbas the Fool-for-Christ of Vatopedi, Mt. Athos (1349).
St. Dogmael, monk of Pembrokeshire..
St. Cyril of Gortyne.

The Scripture Readings

Romans 5:10-16

10 For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. 11 And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.

Death in Adam, Life in Christ

12 Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned— 13 (For until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. 14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned according to the likeness of the transgression of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come. 15 But the free gift is not like the offense. For if by the one man’s offense many died, much more the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abounded to many. 16 And the gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned. For the judgment which came from one offense resulted in condemnation, but the free gift which came from many offenses resulted in justification.

Matthew 8:23-27

Wind and Wave Obey Jesus

23 Now when He got into a boat, His disciples followed Him. 24 And suddenly a great tempest arose on the sea, so that the boat was covered with the waves. But He was asleep. 25 Then His disciples came to Him and awoke Him, saying, “Lord, save us! We are perishing!”

26 But He said to them, “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?” Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. 27 So the men marveled, saying, “Who can this be, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?”