His Beatitude speaks of spiritual dangers of attachment to earthly goods
His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry. Photo: UOC
His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry in his sermon recalled the Gospel story where the Lord healed a bent woman and explained the spiritual meaning of this event. This was reported by the Information and Education Department of the UOC.
According to the archpastor, the devil sometimes binds a person physically – through illnesses and passions, but the true cause of such states lies in the fact that a person's mind "leans towards the earth," forgetting about God. "When a person clings only to earthly interests, the enemy begins to torment and exhaust him," said the bishop.
Instead, it is right for a person to distract their mind from such interests and remember eternity. Realizing the inevitability of parting with the earthly, one should raise their intelligent eyes to Heaven, to God.
The Primate added that when a person does so and asks God for forgiveness and salvation, the Lord heals them, as He healed the bent woman.
Metropolitan Onuphr also spoke about the life of Saint Catherine, who with her education and wisdom testified about Christ even before her tormentors.
Metropolitan Onuphry wished that through the prayers of the saint, the Lord would strengthen everyone who seeks not earthly, but heavenly blessings. "A person should arrange the earthly, but the main thing for them should be Heaven, God," noted the archpastor.
As reported by the UOJ, the Primate of the UOC explained what helps a Christian endure hardships.
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