The Shepherd, December 2009
HOMILY ON THE NATIVITY
OF CHRIST
Preached in 1906 by the Blessed & Ever-Memorable
Metropolitan Antony (Khrapovitsky)
FOR THE LIFE was manifested, and we have seen It, and bear witness, and show unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us (1 Jn 1:2).
This new life is our Lord Jesus Christ, Who is now born in Bethlehem, as He Himself said during the last days of His earthly life: I am the way, and the truth, and the life (Jn 14:6).
What is this new life, brothers, and why do people long for it? Because, before Christ, people were dissatisfied with their former life, and even now all those who separate themselves from Christ are dissatisfied. They are dissatisfied because earthly life does not fulfil their desires. They want to be healthy and full, but life burdens them with sicknesses and hunger. They want riches and high rank, but poverty and dishonour beset them. And if they do not suffer these disasters, they still remain dissatisfied with what they have, and desire more good things.
Yet, not all people have sought outward prosperity. There have always been those who were weighed down by their own lawless life - indeed both by their own and that of the whole world; who were oppressed by not knowing what would happen to them after death; who lamented the defeat or destruction of their homeland; who lamented that there was no righteousness on earth, but rather deception and violence. For such people life was yet more burdensome than for lovers of self. The latter sought a consolation for their woes, albeit temporary, in drunkenness, debauchery, fighting and robbery, but the better people could not see a ray of light anywhere; their soul was oppressed by their own and others’ sins and then, after repentance, their evil will drew them again into sin. Little by little sacred hope and good desires were eaten away from their souls, and at last sinful passions gradually enslaved them, but still did not give them full satisfaction, because even all these aspirations cannot rejoice an elevated soul, but only increase its inner torment. These people were filled with a grief of a similar kind when they studied the people’s way of life; they saw that there is never any human justice on earth, as the wise Solomon said: I turned again, and saw that under the sun the race is not to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, nor bread to the wise, nor riches to men of understanding, nor favour to the skillful; but time and chance happen to them all (Eccl. 9:11). And it is usually the sly, flatterers, cheats and robbers who take advantage of this chance.
One could bring forward many more images from life to show how little life without Christ corresponds to our desires, be they good or bad. Because of this you find ordinary life oppressive, especially when you know the evil in man and have understood how impossible it is for people to hope for a more reasonable, just life. Laws against evildoers have been thought up to punish them, but they have contrived to have the innocent punished, deceiving the judges or else buying them with bribes or threats. People were punished for theft, so instead of theft they started making each other drunk, so that the victim of their malice would make himself surrender his goods to them, and his soul would also perish in wine. People tried to teach each other reason through philosophy, but the subtle malice of deceivers penetrated even here, and, under the name of philosophy, taught the young the foulest concepts, convincing them that there is no good or evil on earth, but only advantage and disadvantage. This is how people were languishing, - like a bird with his leg tied. It flaps its wings, wants to fly, but falls down again because of the string.
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