Preliminaries: Sunday of Orthodoxy.  Victory of Truth and Light over Lies and Darkness.  Defense of the Icons.

Come and See

Encounter #1: Nathanael saw and believed
Did you hear how Nathanael met the God-man Christ?  He was intrigued upon hearing, but had his doubts.  But his encounter changed him.  He spent his life in Asia, India & Armenia; inviting others to “Come and See”.

Encounter #2: King Volodymyr saw and believed
Did you hear how King Volodomyr met the God-man Christ?  He was intrigued, but was not sure if Orthodoxy was the solution.  After all, can anything good come out of Constantinople?  An earthly kingdom with earthly foibles?  But he saw it, and he believed.  And he spent his life getting all of his people to “Come and See.”

Encounter #3: All of us saw and believed
We are a part of this tradition, of Christ gathering people to himself.  From the apostles to Constantine to Volodymyr to us.  We have became part of Christ.  A part of the body that has seen both suffering (St. Paul) and glory (Sunday of Orthodoxy).  The Cloud of Witnesses surrounds us, written in icons on our walls, as memories within our minds, and their prayers support and strengthen us.  But this is not the end of the story.

Encounter #4:
The ministry of Christ continues.  He is the True Light, the source of all Goodness and Love.  But much of the world remains in darkness and pain.  It is His desire that all would come to know Him as we know Him.  That all receive His comfort and strength as we receive His comfort and strength.  Many of those living in the shadows have heard of the Christ, but just as Nathaniel had his doubts, wondering “Can anything good come out of Nazareth”, they have their doubts.  They wonder if anything good can come out of a human institution, if anything can come out of religion, maybe even if anything good can come out of Woonsocket.

But we know that something Good did come out of Nazareth and that this “something” is found here, in the Holy Orthodox Church.  It is the Truth of Love and salvation through Christ.  And the Truth is something that demands to be celebrated; and Love is something that demands to be shared.