Noah's Ark

The forty-day lenten fast existed to put our inner house in order; our house, meaning our hearts and lives in Christ, in all their details and intricacies. The fast, now concluded, was founded upon three things: asceticism, Word, and offerings. These are our provisions after the feast; rather, they are our "Noah's Ark" in this life. This world is a vast rough sea. Man will not survive it unless he takes a decisive stance on it. This is asceticism. Asceticism is to proclaim in the midst of this world, which seeks only to divert our attention from all that is our salvation, that Christ alone is my God. The Word and offerings are the strength of this life in the world and its unchangeable criterion. The Christian does not measure the world's thought based on his own intelligence, for example, or his societal customs, or his knowledge and expertise... but based on God Who has declared His love for us, once for all, with His mouth and blood. Following the feast, I have no words, for myself and for you, except to beware of leaving the ark. The final Pascha is still calling us to strive in our journey towards it!