REJOICE, THE SEXUALLY IMMORAL PENITENTS 

Archpriest Andrei Tkachev

Venerable Mary of Egypt

     Characteristics of the "world" in the mouth of Jesus Christ capacious and brief. "Whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in thisadulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of ..." (Mark 8:38)

     Two words: "adulterous and sinful." Although adultery is a sin, you can not, obviously, just say "sinful." Have yet to identify adultery in a separate category because it is - sin ruling. And the Lord did not say, "In this generation, furtively, hypocritical, self-serving, sanctimonious, ill," and so on and so forth. All of this list is not necessary, but the adultery - it is necessary. "In this adulterous and sinful."

     On the Lot and Sodom said that he was "living among them (Sodom), daily vexed his righteous soul, seeing and hearing their lawless deeds" (2 Pet. 2:8) While still called the "righteous" who after fleeing the sinking of the father of his own grandchildren because of drunk slept with his daughters. It is said that the Lord "righteous Lot, distressed by the people wicked:" (2 Pet. 2:7)

     So, if a person is not quite the holy suffering, living between amateurs all iniquity, how you had to suffer the Lord Jesus, living among the people!It is our painful eye current state of humanity is something familiar and natural. Clean eyes Godman same spectacle presents perhaps something like a leper colony.

     It becomes clear bitter cry of Jesus, "O faithless and perverse generation, How long shall I be with you? how long shall I suffer you? "(Matthew 17:17) Again, two words:" unbelieving and perverse generation. " Infidelity means and inclination to change and variability in the good and the blending of falsehood into truth. And corruption is self-explanatory. "Unbelieving and perverse generation," "adulterous and sinful", this is our world, according to the brief characteristics of Christ. And, then, so are we in it, because it can not be one of the threads of the carpet to say that "in the carpet all the strings sinful than me." No. If we still live by the rules and customs of this world (customs is always stronger than the laws), all the characteristics of the world belong to us directly.

     Need to get out of the inner man usual circle of dead ideas, go out to the Jews - from Egypt. Then shall the words of Christ in His last prayer: "I pray not that You should take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world "(John 17:15-16)

     Blessed are those who understand what it was about, and not only understand, but also makes. He is adopted by God, according to what has been said: "Come out from among them and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing and I will receive you. And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters "(2 Cor. 6:17-18)

     World of dislikes. "There are," it those who live "here", but not "in these parts." Those who believe in sin happiness, they "think it is strange that you run not with them to the same excess of riot, speaking evil of you" (1 Pet. 4:4). First, just marvel and scathingly reviled. Then ...

     But someone will say, "I am all defiled, all soiled. What should I do? How sanctified? ". What do you do that and all Christians. And the one who is holy from the cradle, and the one who is a sinner to gray hairs, and fervent in spirit to serve the Lord. The Gospel was preached to sinners. You only have to catch the ears of the heart and the voice of the Good Shepherd, do not pretend you did not hear anything. "For we have spent enough of our past time doing the will of the Gentiles, when uncleanness, sexual appetite (lasciviousness, lusts, excess), drunkenness, revelries and abominable idolatry" (1 Pet. 4:3)

     Here's a word to anyone drawn to salvation and lieth with a beast, and homosexuals, and drunks, and idolaters. And as the conscience of all the torments and tortures, and as examples of best console, then there is a special joy for all the people whose memory as the archive is full of memories of the evidence against the person. This joy - the life of Mary of Egypt.

     Have fun, tortured conscience adulterers and prostitutes! Rejoice, the sexually immoral, the heart tired of debauchery! Dirty dog, come out to the light of God and cease to fear the light of day! All that is unclean mind and flesh dishonor, rtsyte God: "Glory to Thy mercy!". Ripe memory of a great man, who managed to turn from sin to the Lord than 45 degrees, and not a half-turn, like most, and completely. In this degree - 180.

     And the flesh raged, and Satan was angry, and the world from afar snapping teeth extraction to run away (read the Life). And she knew one occupation - weeping, and one Advocate - Mother of the Crucified and Risen One. Now the companion angels, patroness Our Lady, the holy has the power to help sinners. That is the law of the Spirit: "He Himself has suffered, being tempted, he is able to help tempted" (Hebrews 2:18)

     This law as the only begotten of the Incarnate, and for those who love Him.

O Mary, deeply missing and then reached great heights, pray for us who live in the world, the flesh and the winners receiving a time after time, "the fiery darts of the evil one" (cf. Eph. 6:16).

     Sad and scary to think about, to what depths you fell. But the divine joy breathes your fix. Reading and listening for you, we all have to understand that your holiness - not just your holiness. And your sins, it is not only your sins.

     Common sin in thee affected worldwide and became visible. And the general salvation manifested to you, and this we can not know.

     Your job now - glad ours - to work and to repent. To help us, please. To help, Mary. And not only on the day of your memory.

Archpriest Andrei Tkachev