Homily 48 #

On Thursday of the Fifth Week of Lent, on the Revelation to the Holy Apostle Paul concerning the Departure of the Soul from the Body

Sons of men, bless the Lord God without ceasing—every day, every night, and every hour.

As the day passes and the sun sets, all the angels assigned to mankind—both men and women—ascend into heaven, worship before God, and present the deeds of each person that were done that day, from morning until evening: whether someone did good, or whether someone did evil. The angel who bears the good deeds goes to God rejoicing and exulting; but the one who brings evil and sinful deeds approaches God weeping and lamenting.

And when all the angels ascend into heaven, they each give an account of the deeds of men. And a voice comes forth from God, saying to them: “From where have you come, My angels, bearing the burdens of good works and prayers?” And the angels answer, saying: “We have come from those who have renounced the world and all worldly pleasures for the sake of Thy holy name, who say: ‘Our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven…’”

They come from those who wander, who are cast out and reviled, beaten and spat upon, who weep and grieve at every hour, passing from city to city, hungering and thirsting for the sake of Thy holy name. These have girded their loins and devoted themselves to fasting and prayer, day and night, holding alms in their hands. And we angels marvel at their endurance.

Then a voice is heard saying to them: “Know this, My angels who stand here: My grace and mercy are with them—for My beloved Son stands before them and never departs from them.” And again the angels go forth to minister to them.

And then other angels arrive, standing before God weeping and lamenting. And a voice comes from God, saying to them: “From where have you come, My angels, bearing such heavy burdens?”

And the angels reply: “We have come from those who call upon Thy most holy name, yet always serve the desires of the flesh, adding sin upon sin, never once offering a prayer from a pure heart. Why should we continue ministering to such sinners?”

And the Lord replies to them: “Go and continue to serve them without ceasing, until they turn and repent. But if they do not repent, I will judge them on the last day.”

Do you see, sons of men, how all our deeds—whether good or evil—are brought up to heaven before God by the angels? Knowing this, brothers, let us cease from every evil and instead do good works, blessing the Lord unceasingly.

And I, Paul, was caught up to the third heaven, and the angel of the Lord said to me, “Follow me, Paul, and I will show you the places of the righteous and the sinners.” And he showed me the places of the saints, where the souls of the righteous are taken after death. And again we descended to a place of darkness and the abyss, and there he showed me the souls of the sinners, where they are sent, weeping.

Then we came beneath the firmament of the earth, and there I saw Satan and his angels, and the elder rulers of his dominion. There were the spirits of wickedness: spirits of strife and division, envy, slander, lust, senseless wrath—entering into the hearts of men and sowing all kinds of evil within them.

And the angel of the Lord said to me, “These are the rulers of the earth and the princes of this world. These are the ones sent for the souls of unbelieving men at the hour of death—those who had no faith in God and no hope in His salvation.”

And looking up to heaven, I saw other angels, whose faces shone like the sun. They were girded with golden belts, and upon them was written the name of God. They were full of goodness, gentleness, and mercy. And I asked the angel, “Who are these?” And he said, “These are the angels who are sent for the souls of the righteous and faithful people.”

And again I asked, “Do all the righteous and the sinners recognize what is happening when they die?” And the angel said to me, “Look down to the earth.” And I looked, and I saw the entire earthly realm—it appeared as nothing before me. And I said to the angel, “Is this the greatness of mankind, stirring itself up in vain?” And the angel answered me, “These are those who sin from morning until evening.”

Then I saw a cloud stretching over the whole world, and it appeared to be blood-red. And I asked, “Lord, what is this?” And He said to me, “This is lawlessness, mingled with the prayers of sinful men.” And I wept over this, and I said to the angel, “I want to see how the souls of the righteous and the sinners depart from this world—what form that takes.”

And the angel replied, “Look down.” And I looked and saw a man passing from this life. And the angel said to me, “This is a righteous man.” And I saw his deeds—everything he had done in his life—appear before him at that very hour. And he found rest and boldness.

Good angels stood by him, and evil ones as well; but the evil ones found no place in him. The good angels took his soul, saying to it: “O soul, recognize the body from which you have come—for you are worthy to return to it again on the day of resurrection, when you will inherit, along with all the righteous, that which has been prepared.”

And when they had received the soul, the angels kissed it as one whom they knew, and said to it: “Rejoice, O soul, for you have done the will of God while living on earth.”

Then the angel who had guarded that soul each day came forward and said: “I rejoice in you, because you fulfilled the will of God while you lived on earth. I brought your works before God each day.”

Then a voice came from God, saying: “O soul, do not be afraid or troubled. Come to the place which you have never before seen, and I will be your helper—for I too found rest in you while you were still in the body.”

And the angels of God ascended with that soul into heaven. Then a wicked and envious satanic spirit came forth and said to her, “Where are you going, O soul, and how dare you presume to ascend into heaven? Wait, let us see whether there is anything among you that is from our works.” But finding nothing, he was put to shame.

Then the soul rose into the heavens, carried by angels to the throne of Almighty God.

After this, I looked down again and saw another man dying. And the angel said to me, “This is a sinner who is dying—one who lived on the earth without fear of God and without keeping His commandments.” And I saw all his deeds—everything he had done in his life on earth—present themselves before him at that hour.

Then demons appeared and took his soul and carried it off, shutting it into the darkness and shadow of death, where all the souls of sinners weep from age to age, awaiting the final resurrection and the judgment into everlasting torments, which they have prepared for themselves through their evil deeds while living on the earth.

The Lord did not wish to have mercy on him, but the wrath of God was kindled in jealousy against that man, because he did not obey the voice of the Lord, and sinned against his own soul.

Who shall be justified in the assembly of sinners? Fire, hail, famine, and death were made for the punishment of the wicked and the vengeance of the ungodly. Fire, worms, hatred, the sword, and wounds—all these were created for the lawless.

The children of sinners are abominable. He who does sin is of the devil, for from the beginning Satan has sinned. Truly, he is called ungodly who is a sinner before God.

As a shadow follows the body, so too do sins follow the soul—forming the likeness of its deeds. Futile is the blindness of one who cannot see the sun; just as futile is the soul of a sinner, deprived of the true light.

O how you will mourn, O man, and how greatly you will tremble when you see the glory of the righteous in the shining splendor of their heavenly reward, while the gloom and deep lamentation of the sinners shall be in great darkness!

Then you shall say in your heart: “Woe is me, that I did not reject the time of sin! Now I could have rejoiced with the angels. Now I could have been filled with the good things of heaven. But behold, because of the evil and deceitful and short-lived pleasure of sin, I am tormented without end. Because of fleshly pleasures, I am given over to the fire.”

Truly, the judgment of God is righteous. I was called, and I did not listen. I was instructed, and I paid no attention. The Scriptures bore witness to me, but I mocked them.

Because of my sinful deeds, a fiery inheritance and bitter sorrow await me. I was not justified in this life, but became vile and unclean, drinking the wine of unrighteousness.

Just as foul breath harms the teeth, and smoke the eyes, so too for those who live in lawlessness: destruction and evil dwell in them, and they are unclean before God.

O wretched me! I did not remember that God preserves the mind and that the soul perceives His voice. Instead, I devised sin within myself, saying: “God is merciful—He will forgive me soon.” But I did not consider how God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment.

Who can boast that his heart is pure? Or who can say he is free from sin? There is none righteous on earth. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. For none is without sin, save God alone.

Forgive your neighbor his offenses, and then when you pray, your own sins will be scattered like dust. A man’s salvation is his true wealth.

As water extinguishes a blazing fire, so does almsgiving cleanse sin.

O woe to those who await the day of the Lord! Why should that day be to you, O sinners? The mercy of the Lord shall not shine upon you.

For the day of the Lord is great and very glorious; and who shall be able to abide it? Only those whose hearts and minds are righteous before God.

There will be no interpreters there, no arguments of words, no bribing of judgment or twisting of truth. There will be no advocates, no possessions, no noble rank to follow you. There, one is left without friends, without helpers, utterly alone, exposed and ashamed. Each hangs his head in sorrow, alone and without boldness. And if someone should lift up his eyes, he will plainly see the likeness of his own deeds.

Just as a shadow follows the body, so do sins follow the soul, clearly reflecting our works. Therefore, no one will be able there to deny his deeds—for the mouths of sinners will be shut. The souls themselves will testify, not by speaking words, but by showing everything that was done by us—unless it has been erased here through repentance, fasting, and almsgiving.

Understand this, brothers: where are our fathers and grandfathers now? Where are the apostles and prophets? Do they live here forever?

All human glory is like the flower of the grass: it withers like hay and falls like a flower. So too is our life.

Therefore, let us care for our souls while we are still alive, and let us give alms according to our strength, that we may be saved.

To our God be glory, now and ever, and unto the ages of ages.