The Three Holy and Great Hierarchs: Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian and John Chrysostom; and the Holy Priest-Martyr Hippolytus (235).
All-Night Vigil Feast. A day when the faithful are highly encouraged to participate in the Divine Liturgy.
Hebrews 13:7-16; Matthew 5:14-19.
Read Hebrews 13:7-16
Christ is born! Glorify Him!
Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God…Do not be led away by diverse and strange teachings.
Brothers and sisters, our current age is filled with diverse and strange teachings especially regarding who we are as human beings and about what is true. For us, as Christians, the truth, or better yet the Way, the Truth, and the Life is a person: Jesus Christ. He shows us what it means to be God through His Resurrection. He shows us what we are called to as humans through His incarnation. Look into your heart. Look deep into your conscience. He is there. He is calling us to the deepest possible relationship we can imagine: life in the Holy Trinity.
Our present secular age denies both God and denies humanity, but while we are called to reject these lies we are not to turn our back on this world which Our Lord has redeemed. We must proclaim His gospel and lead others to Christ. We must do this as Christians in our lives through our actions, our words, and our willingness to speak the truth. We are not called to speak ‘a’ truth, or ‘my’ truth, no we must speak the Truth.
How do I do this? Firstly, we must pray for courage, patience, and fortitude. Secondly, we must educate ourselves so as to better know and understand our Catholic faith so that we can bring it to others. Thirdly, we must look to the saints who have gone before us marked with the sign of faith and model ourselves after them who modelled themselves on Christ. The three great fathers we commemorate today: St. John Chrysostom, St. Basil the Great, and St. Gregory the Theologian are truly great models. Read their homilies, orations, and prayers. Read about their lives of holiness and do likewise with God’s help. Their words and lives can inspire us and reveal to us what is false and what is true, that is if we open ourselves to the working of the Holy Spirit in our lives. After all, He is the Spirit of truth.