His Beatitude explains how humility differs from weakness

His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry. Photo: a screenshot from a UOC video

His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry celebrated a Divine service at the church of St. Agapitus of the Caves at the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra on the feast day of St. Theodosius and delivered a sermon about the spiritual feat of the Abbot of the Caves, reports the  UOC Information and Educational Department.

The Primate recalled that St. Theodosius was one of the first disciples of St. Anthony of the Caves and became a model of monastic life. According to His Beatitude, the saint was distinguished by a particular humility, which he manifested not only in prayer but also in everyday labors. "He was so humble that he was not only the superior of the brethren, but also an example of various virtues. He was the first to go to obedience — to the garden, to the kitchen, to the prosphora bakery, and he cared for the sick," said Metropolitan Onuphry.

The Primate emphasized that the personal example of St. Theodosius was the most powerful means of the spiritual formation of the brethren, and that true humility is not weakness. "Humility is not weakness; it is the ability to bring one's human weakness under the mighty protection of God's power. And a person who has come under the protection of Divine power becomes invincible," His Beatitude noted. He added that humility helps a person to know the will of God and courageously to submit his life to it: "The Divine will is a will in which there is life."

At the conclusion of the sermon, Metropolitan Onuphry called on the faithful not to postpone their spiritual life. "There is no need to wait until I feel like praying. No need to wait until I feel like fasting. No need to wait until I am able to forgive my neighbor. One must act today and now: pray, fast, forgive, and strive," the Primate emphasized. He expressed the wish that, through the prayers of St. Theodosius of the Caves, the Lord would help Christians to pass through earthly life in humility, prayer, and love for God.

As the UOJ previously reported, His Beatitude explained how to attain spiritual steadfastness.

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