"Let us welcome the dawn that is sweet inside us. Let us live in the light of Christ! Light full of love and mercy for all creations! Light without a trace of reproach for anyone! Light very clear and crystal clear, full of humility and sincerity! Let's become, Well, shareholders in this event of the resurrection, βεβαιώνοντας ότι ”Χριστός ανέστη εκ νεκρών, θανάτω θάνατον πατήσας, και τοις εν τοις μνήμασι, ζωήν χαρισάμενος”», emphasizes in the archdiocesan circular for the great feast of Easter, the Archbishop of America, Ελπιδοφόρος………..
In more detail, his message is as follows:
To the most respected and most theophile archpriests, the most revered priests and deacons, the monks and nuns, the presidents and members of the Community Councils, the most honorable rulers of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, the members of their leadership 100, day and afternoon schools, the poor fraternities, the youth, the Greek Orthodox organizations and the entire crew of the Holy Archdiocese of America.
Beloved brothers and sisters in the Lord,
Ιδού σκοτία και πρωί … (Eothinon VII, Heavy sound.)
How distant they seem to be true, those dark days of last year's Easter holidays, when even the light of the Resurrection we transmitted digitally! Nevertheless, as always after the darkness of night sweetens the light of dawn, so even after the darkness of the pandemic its end fades, with the hope and certainty of a better future for all of us. This year, we will celebrate Easter with fewer measures and more freedom in our festive gatherings, διατηρώντας παρ’ όλα αυτά την υπευθυνότητα και την προσοχή μας για τους άλλους αδελφούς που ίσως να είναι ακόμη ευάλωτοι.
Imitating Saint Symeon the New Theologian, who became known as the "amorphous sun" shining within him, let the Sun of righteousness shine in our hearts. "Of the passing night, the day was approaching, and the light of the world shone ". When the bright sun rises, every other star loses its luster. In the same way the almighty God expels darkness from our souls. The night may seem endless, full of concern, grief and death, but, as the psalmist says, "In the evening there is a weeping and in the morning rejoicing" (Psalm. 29:6). This morning of "one of the Saturdays", all our worries and all our fears are dissolved in front of the glory of the new creation.
The resurrection of our Lord is the triumph of light over darkness, of the good versus the wicked, of love against hatred and life against death. It is the dawn of the New Creation and the possibility of every human being to become a god by grace, as Saint Athanasios declares: "It simply came to our notice then, fiber we are deified ". The Lord did not rise from the dead for himself, but to bring us together in this life and in the next.
So, my dears, let us welcome the dawn that is sweet inside us. Let us live in the light of Christ! Light full of love and mercy for all creations! Light without a trace of reproach for anyone! Light very clear and crystal clear, full of humility and sincerity! Let's become, Well, shareholders in this event of the resurrection, affirming that “Christ is risen from the dead, θανάτω θάνατον πατήσας, και τοις εν τοις μνήμασι, given life ".
Christ is Risen! Truly risen!
