Our Venerable Father Anthony of the Monastery of the Caves in Kiev (1073); Forty-Five Martyrs of Nicopolis in Armenia (321-3); Holy Brothers Francis, Mutius and Raphael and Those with Them, Martyred in Damascus (1860)
Read
Galatians 5:22-6:2; Luke 6:17-23
Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory forever!
Today is the feast of St. Anthony of the Kyivan Caves. We often read this selection of the Sermon on the Mount from Luke’s Gospel on such feasts because as these words point us to heaven, so does the life of the one whom we commemorate. As one priest wrote:
[While] we live in a world where “common sense” (which is becoming must less common) tells us that suffering is to be avoided at all costs, our Lord shows us that being hungry, mocked, excluded and hated can actually be a confirmation of following the correct path to Him, assuming this trouble comes our way from proclaiming the Gospel. When we are persecuted the way the prophets were persecuted, instead of turning back, we need to press on to the final destination!
We have to keep our eyes on the prize!
As we commemorate St. Anthony today, we learn from his living of the Gospel that in order to be full of the love of God, we have to dispossess ourselves of worldly enticements and order our lives toward heaven – keeping our eyes on the prize! To be enflamed by the love of God, we will need to forego the lavish compliments we seek from others, to despise the wisdom and glory of the world, and seek our true dignity found in the One who became like in all ways except sin – Jesus Christ – keeping our eyes on the prize! To enter into the heart and love of the Father, we will need to let go of the busyness of our daily lives and find some quiet to explore the depths of our own hearts – keeping our eyes on the prize!
Through the prayers of St. Anthony, Lord Jesus Christ (our prize), have mercy on us!