(Luke 16: 19-31)
The most difficult thing is for someone to bear seeing himself
In today’s Gospel, our Lord presents in the person of the rich man those who lose their souls, while in the person of the beggar Lazarus, those who are saved as servants of God.
Each person in this world if he wants to be saved, will suffer many things. The reason for this is because deep within the soul there exists sin, sin which, if God does not cure it, remains unhealed. And yet, many souls will leave this world without having been prepared for the eternal life, despite the struggles they happened to undertake and despite the difficult situations through which they have passed.
The impoverished man of the parable sits there and he observes his entire situation; he lives it and is patient. He does not protest, does not resist, neither does he play the victim. He endures, he plays his part. In just such a way, each soul must pin itself down and endure whatever God permits if she wants to possess the spirit of those people who are saved, as the Lord’s parable describes.
The most difficult of all, the most painful, and that which no one wants to endure, is to see himself, to see himself as he truly is. Precisely at the moment that we accept these things simply and humbly, the light of God will descend upon our soul and we will see our complete poverty. It is difficult for a person to endure this. The secret is for us to want to accept our poverty without grumbling, resisting, or complaining. We do not see a trace of bitterness or complaint from the beggar Lazarus.
How much will God wish for each of us to feel and to say at this moment: “The time has also come for me. All of this irresponsibility that I have is finished. I submit to God, I surrender to God, I trust in God, whatever I might happen to suffer.”
Holy Hesychasterion “The Nativity of Theotokos” Publications.
Archimandrite Symeon Kragiopoulos
