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It seems to me that every sinner, listening to what I have said so far about how easy it is to heal the passion and the forgiveness of his sin, has had boldness and a strong hope in the great mercy of God. And if it were not so, then I am amazed, even more – I am afraid, trembling and terrified. Am I right – listen. Here I am sick — and close to death; sinful — and close to torment. God, in His infinite mercy, showed me the easiest healing of my illness — the forgiveness of my sins. And I reject. If, for the sake of forgiveness, God had demanded that I make a long journey, shed blood in martyrdom, or spend a life in asceticism (all things are difficult things), and I did not do this, I would have an excuse and an excuse.

But God only wants me to go to my spiritual father, tell him my sins and receive forgiveness at one word from my spiritual father – and I do not do this... Am I not an ungrateful person after this? Am I not a criminal, unworthy of defense? Do I not deserve double flour? For, in the first place, he sinned, and in the second place, he did not desire to receive the forgiveness of sins, which was so easily attained. And after this, should I not fear the wrath of God the more, the greater I see God's mercy upon me? Yes, says the divine Chrysostom, for God's long-suffering punishes the impenitent doubly. "Just as long-suffering is a source of salvation for those who make good use of it, so it is a cause of greater punishment for those who neglect it." Think about it better, I beg you. God wanted to show a special favor to the ungrateful people of Jerusalem. In the font near the Sheep's Gate, He performed a great miracle every year: once a year an angel descended from heaven and disturbed the water of that font; and whoever plunged into it at that time received healing from any illness — "you were healthy, but you were afflicted with sickness" (John 5:4): whether it was leprosy, paralysis, blindness, or any other serious illness.

Let us imagine that this blessed day came, an angel descended and disturbed the water. Here is a convenient time – let everyone receive healing from their sufferings. At the edge of the font stands a sick man, ready to give up his spirit, who can die any minute; He knows that as soon as he sinks into the water, he will be healed immediately, and yet he stands, does not move, does not throw himself into the water to be healed. His suffering is so severe, the treatment offered is so easy, and he does not want to. I ask you, what will happen to him? This saving water will dry up for him, then he will want it, and he will not find it. The foolish will die, and no one will have pity on him. Incomparably greater than in the font of Jerusalem, God has shown us mercy in the spiritual font of repentance. There the miracle was performed in one place, only in Jerusalem, at one time, only once a year. Here it is performed in every city and village, in every Christian church, daily and hourly, it is enough to wish. There is no angel here, no pure spirit, who would see our passions — all are impure; Here are priests, people, like us, sinners, but having all the power and strength to forgive every sin: whether it be pride, backbiting, abuse, covetousness, adultery, murder, or any other possible sin for a person. Sick sinner! Do you have one foot in the coffin, the other in agony, and are you still firm in evil? Are you still not resorting to repentance in order to receive forgiveness and salvation? Your illness is so heavy, and healing is so easy, and you don't want to? What will happen to you? Healing will be removed from you, you will want it someday, but you will not find it anymore. You will be justly subjected to torture, and God has decreed that your friends should not feel sorry for you, that your relatives should not mourn for you, that the Church should not commemorate you. He has loved, says God, a curse, let him receive it; if he does not want a blessing, let him not find it — "love the oath, and it will come to him; and you will not desire a blessing, and he will depart from him" (Psalm 108:17). Foolish and ungrateful! God is so good, and therefore you despise His goodness? Paul justly rebukes you: "Or do you neglect the riches of His goodness and meekness and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?" (Romans 2:4). Ponder these words of the Apostle. The goodness of God, he says, draws you to repentance; it is like a kind of cord, one end of which God holds in His hand, and the other is tied to your heart. God holds it, for He desires, as far as possible, that you do not run away from Him, does not want to lose you, waits for your conversion and salvation — "I live... I do not desire the death of the sinner, but to be converted... and I will live for him" (Ezek. 33:11). By sinning, you distance yourself from God, He unravels the rope and gives you freedom. Today you are very far away, tomorrow more, and God leaves you to your will, He is long-suffering. You depart and wander like a lost sheep on the depraved path of perdition: far from the Church, from the most pure Mysteries, far from yourself and even farther from God. And God still holds the rope and draws you to Himself from time to time. Is not your heart sometimes terrified, does not your conscience ever torment you? It is the hand of God that draws the rope and leads you to repentance.

The goodness of God leads you to repentance. You are called, you do not go, you are drawn, you do not convert, you do not repent. You are nailed to the arms of a harlot, chained by the chains of covetousness, rooted in evil. Do you know what can happen? God is angry, abandons you, and you fall, miserable, into complete impenitence, and from there into eternal torment. Who is to blame for this? You. Who will feel sorry for you? No one.

But in the name of the Living God, I adjure you, brother Christian, do not let the rope break! When the goodness of God leads you to repentance, go and turn to God. God has an open embrace to receive you with the sweetest words: "Child, your sins are forgiven you."

Homily for the Third Week of Lent. About the soul

"What... Is it profitable for a man if he gains the whole world, and forsakes his soul? or what will a man give treason to his soul?" (Mark 8:36-37)

The world and the soul are two things which men cannot know, because human judgment is false. Their whole mind seems to be concentrated in their eyes: people value only what they see, and what they do not see, they do not value. They see the world, and value it more than they should; do not see the soul, and do not value it at all, as it should be. Therefore, they are wrong, false in their judgments about the world and the soul – "Lie to the sons of mankind by measure" (Psalm 61:10). The world and the soul — the living do not know how to judge these two things, only the dead know how to judge.

Kings of the earth, rulers of cities, princes of men, rich men of the world! You enjoy earthly glory, beauty, wealth. What have you finally gained? What did you take with you to the grave? You are dead, and the world is dead to you. But having lost your soul for the sake of the world, you have lost everything: heaven, paradise, eternal life, God. And so, what does it profit a man if he gains the world, which ends for him with life, and destroys his soul, which is immortal? No benefit, on the contrary, a great loss. Oh, if only the living would learn from the dead what the world is, what the soul is! But how? Don't we know what the world is? We know this very well, for we see with our own eyes the impermanence of the world. We see how his blessings are difficult to achieve, bitter in pleasure, and close to the end. We see how many worries, fears, envy, and ruin shake, weaken, make bitter, or even destroy all worldly well-being. We see how much suffering and sickness, how many wars and insidious intentions shake the life and tranquility of the world. We see that the waters of rivers do not flow so quickly, the flowers of the field do not wither so easily, the lightnings of heaven do not dissipate as quickly as they do, wither easily, and instantly destroy all the sweetness, delight, and joy of the world. We know well what the world is, for we see it. But verily we do not know what the soul is, for we see neither the beauty nor the nature of the soul. Therefore, today I want to talk about the first thing that the soul is; second, that it is the only one, and that by losing it we lose everything; and thirdly, that it is immortal and that if we destroy it once, we will lose it forever.

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