All the above canons in a sense sum up the instruction of St. Philaret, Metropolitan of Moscow, who, when asked how to know the will of God, says the following: "Cry out with the word of Paul: Lord! What wilt thou command me to do? Is it pleasing to Thee, O Lord, that which I have foreseen? If you will, bless; if it is not pleasing, do not suffer me to do that which is not pleasing to Thee. And then listen to what the Lord will say to you – in His word, in your mind, in your conscience, in the counsel of wise and godly people, and in outward signs and indications."

Thus, brothers and sisters, we must, using all the enumerated means, learn the great science of knowing and fulfilling the will of God at all times, in every place, and in every deed. Because if we do not do the will of God, then we do either our own will or the will of demons, and both of them do not lead us to salvation, but, on the contrary, lead us to destruction. The only good, saving and perfect will is the will of the Lord God, our Creator. Only He knows how to save each of us. Only His will is our sanctification and salvation. It is His perfect will that we must in every possible way seek, recognize and fulfill all the days of our life, according to the words of our main prayer: "Thy will be done, as it is in heaven and on earth." Amen.

All Saints' Sunday

The saints of God are very different. Their way of life, their character, their exploits, as well as the times and countries in which they lived, are very different. The Holy Apostle Paul compares the saints to the stars in the sky. The stars in the sky are all different: some are brighter and some are less bright. Stars also differ in color: they can be white, red, blue or yellow. But although the stars are different, although they differ in color and brightness, they are all established in the same sky. In the same way, the saints, although very different, all dwell in the one heaven of the Godhead.

The Apostle Paul says that the stars of heaven differ in their glory. The same is true of the saints: some of them are more glorified by God, and others to a lesser degree. "There are greater and lesser gifts of God," says St. Isaac of Syria, "although they are all high and wondrous, but one surpasses the other, and the degree is higher." Great glory in the Kingdom of Heaven is enjoyed by those who loved God more here, during their earthly life.

Or we can make another comparison: the saints are like flowers in a beautiful garden. After all, flowers are also very different: in size, and in appearance, and in color, and in aroma. In the same way, the saints: they are all different, but they all dwell in one and the same heavenly garden of God.

When we speak of the saints, we must first of all remember that all of us, Christians, are called to come to the same place where they came, that is, to the Kingdom of God. Each of us in due time must become one of the heavenly stars or one of the flowers in the heavenly Garden of Eden. After all, this is what it means to be saved and please God.

How can we come to the Kingdom of God? And how did the saints come there? Although the saints are very different, they all have one thing in common: they loved Christ and dedicated their lives to fulfilling His commandments. So we must devote our lives to this, brothers and sisters, and we must try to fulfill the commandments of Christ in our lives. And we must learn to fulfill these commandments from none other than the saints themselves. To do this, we need to get to know them better, to establish communication with them. After all, according to St. Ignatius Brianchaninov, conversation and the company of neighbors have a strong effect on a person. Conversation and acquaintance with a scientist gives a lot of information, with a poet – a lot of lofty thoughts and feelings, with a traveler – a lot of knowledge about countries, about the manners and customs of the people. Obviously, conversation and acquaintance with the saints impart holiness.