On September 28, 2014, the day after the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, Metropolitan Hilarion of Volokolamsk, head of the Moscow Patriarchate’s department for external church relations and rector of the Ss Cyril and Methodius Institute of Post-Graduate Studies, celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the church of Our Lady the Joy to All the Afflicted-in-Bolshaya Ordynka in Moscow. He was assisted by the church’s clergy and administrators and students of the Ss Cyril and Methodius Institute in holy orders.
After the Ardent Supplication, Metropolitan Hilarion led the congregation in a prayer for peace in Ukraine.
In his homily after the prayer, His Eminence spoke about the Lord’s Parable of the Talents read during the celebrations of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. If originally ‘a talent’ was understood as a unit of money, in our broad interpretation we describe as talent all that we have received from the Lord including the abilities that God has given us for some purpose, he said.
“The Lord has given each his or her a fair share of talent. There are no untalented people. People begin their life journey being in various life situations. Their backgrounds are different but much depends on what purpose one sets oneself. If one says: I am ready to use all my talents and abilities to bring the fruit that the Lord expects from me, then one’s talents will miraculously multiply. Then one will be able to do even that which one did not expect from oneself, which surpasses one’s human resources, because the Lord Himself will help one in this, blessing one’s efforts and one’s whole life journey’, His Eminence said.
We should remember, he said, that all that we have received from the Lord is His gift to us. We should return it to God through our good works and Christian way of life. “Every day we should ask ourselves: what can I do today to come at least a step nearer to what the Lord expects from me? Each of us knows that we have tasks before our neighbours, family and people around us and that we have a duty before God”, he said.
“Let us ask the Lord to give us a clear awareness of what is necessary to do to follow the path of salvation. Let us ask Him to give us strength to reject all evil, impure and sinful things, which are present in each of us, and to cultivate and warm up in ourselves all the best things”, Metropolitan Hilarion said in conclusion.
