This is an encouraging message from His Eminence Paul (Yazigi) of Aleppo, the martyr bishop who was kidnapped in Syria in 2013 and since then no one heard anything about him: “God will ask us: ‘how did you serve the church?’ While we think to ourselves that the church should serve us…” He also talks about vocations to the priesthood and education of children.
English translation by Waad Rabahie
Video recording: Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Aleppo, Alexandretta & Dependencies: https://www.facebook.com/Greek-Orthodox-Archdiocese-of-Aleppo-Alexandretta-Dependencies-195276964666652/
Full transcript: https://otelders.org/theology-and-spirituality/how-did-you-serve-the-church-kidnapped-bishop-paul-of-aleppo-syria/
These video has English subtitles. Use the button to switch them on or off. Watch this quick-guide on how to turn on captions on your device: https://youtu.be/if7eELuaYtI
Bp. Paul of Aleppo:
The church is not the stone building… The church is you and your children.
If we want a strong and organized church in which everything is beautiful, there should be many of our children who love to be in it and serve it.
Like this beautiful choir and those fathers for which serving their families and serving the life of God is their life. In our life we have many people that serve us: teachers serving our education, employees serving our food and drink… etc.
And there is the church which serves God’s life in our life. And this is the most important and difficult service.
The church is the place that we come into to live with God. And we come out of it and God still accompanies us, promising Him that He will stay beside us and we shall stay beside Him.
This is the service in which everyone in the church participates: priests, deacons, the choir and all people who serve the most important thing in our life, which is for God to be with us. And they teach us to live with God.
My beloved ones, today I want to think with you how someone decides to be a priest.
Some people would say this matter is a calling from God which comes to someone and not to the other. The truth is, as saint John Chrysostom says: (he was a bishop here in this city more than 1000 years ago) the calling is for everyone. God can’t call a person and not call the other, God calls everyone, but one feels the calling while the other neglects it.
We all are His children and we all are called to serve Him. No one is better than the other. Then how does a person feel that he has a calling? God won’t come and stand before him and say: “you shouldn’t go right or left, just become a priest!” God doesn’t act like this. The calling is when a person feels that his church needs help, when a person feels that his church needs help, this is a calling from God.
God doesn’t force anyone. God doesn’t force people and keeps talking to them. God calls the person who understands from the first word.
…
All of us – beloved ones – are not only called, but also God is expecting from us. One day… on the day of judgment, He will ask us: “how did you serve the church?” While we think to ourselves that the church should serve us.
God will ask us, “you have lived in this world and God has given you a lot, how did you serve the church?”
I hope that all of us have served it somehow or will serve it more. But let’s always keep this question before our eyes.
I hope each one of us will be able to say to God: “I have given YOU all that I have. I have offered YOU all that I have. Nothing precious… but it’s all that I have.”
This how we should answer. And that’s what happened with Apostle Peter who said: “Lord, we have left everything, and followed you”. [Matthew 19:27] Saint John Chrysostom says: “What did Peter leave behind? He was a fisherman, he didn’t leave anything. He wasn’t a rich man nor a president or a minister, he was a simple fisherman. But he did offer everything. He said ‘we left everything and followed YOU’, ‘we offered ourselves'”.
So beloved ones… let’s not wait for God to stand before us and say: come and become a priest… or come and serve the church or come to pray or come and commune. God won’t stand before us. He who doesn’t feel God in an invisible way… God can’t call him. God wants that every day as we stand in prayer, morning and night, raising our hands asking for people, for our families
and for the whole world, to say to Him: “Lord, today, yesterday, and tomorrow we offer all that we can.” This is the calling of God for all of us.
We pray: “God, may YOU multiply the people who listen to YOUR calling and come to serve YOU and serve us among our children.”
Raise your children like this. This is the most honorable and greatest service for us and for God in our life.
Glory to Patriach of Syria, the Martyr for Christ.
Glory to God for this exceptional servant of our Lord, who lived what he preached and gave it ALL for Christ! Including his very life! What an honor to have met and kissed his hand! May the Lord place upon his holy head a radiant crown! Amen.🙏
Amen Amen Amen
These video has English subtitles. Use the button to switch them on or off. Watch this quick-guide on how to turn on captions on your device: https://youtu.be/if7eELuaYtI
I love him a lot
Dobri pastir…
❤❤❤🙏
Postradao za Hrista!
clearly he was real and truly loved Christ. they're not gonna kidnap a sellout bishop who is making freemason money and protected by turkish police force
Such powerful words. So inspired and inspiring.
❤☦
Kidnapped by US sponsored "Moderate Opposition"
God bless the Suffering Orthodox Church in Syria
He’s not yet a martyr! We pray for Metropolitan Boulos in every Great Ektenia, along with the Syrian Orthodox Archbishop Youhanna, and believe them to be alive!
Amin! Amin! Amin! și Hristos a Înviat!
HRISTOS A INVIAT !
Multumim frumos.Hristos a Înviat! Sfinte bucurii si sanatate.mantuire.iertati.ma.xenia cu fam.
Glory to Lord Jesus. Amen!
Pray For us Martyr of Christ May God Save us and Rest our Souls Amin
Jesus our Lord our God is with us ….we all will with him in his lap…..Amen
Doamne ajută !🙏
Amen Amen Amen
The true religion of peace
MAICA DOMNULUI SA VA SPRIJINEASCA ACOLO UNDE SINTETI…!
Nu visam importantza mortului de la cimitir dar asta sint.
In religie exista o moneda care nu este evreiasca. SE NUMESTE IUDAICA SAU ARGINT. Si frumoasa..
Nu stiu daca evrei este vreo natziune in teatrul cu tilhari. TILharii fara argint in religie se numesc profesionisti doctori..vrajile hipocratice.
Orice tziganca falsa romanca cersetoare actorie la biserica vampirilor stie acest lucru: ce moneda injura ea de atita timp la shcoala religie cimitir PENAL cu saracii tilharii.
" VREAU MONEDA TA CA SA TE IUBESC SARACA..zice tilharul sarac catolic indian ce inchipuie si efort contabilitate a Monedei inversa de 7.8 procente de la Moneda la piele straina).
Doctorii nu se cred nici pe ei. De ce nu si.au inchipuit lor tinitus ci doar monedei de la care vor si aceleasi 7.8 procente tot timpul?
S.a inventat substantiv electronic. E profesionist sau aceeasi vraja: mortul electronic tilharul electronic cafea materie electronica si pina la castel de lux electronic. DAR saracia ce limbaj penal de constiintza lipsa ca bogatu si executatul cu pahar pishatul?
Justitia ( iudaica religioasa laica sau financiara) vrea adevar nu vrea cacat de la vrajitori care sparg adresa cu gluma: va asiguram doamna justitia ca exista tilhari care fura in avans cu mileniile..nu cerem procente dar vrem iar si iar moneda dvs intr.un raport inflationist azi de xxx..cam cit sa fie daca 1 covrig la chelner ce pare civil cerea 10000 lei o spargere de BANCA NATIONALA? Curat terorism contra stat.
S.a furat deci bugetul justitiei printre legile gratierii tilharilor care este nu legi ci fapte penale ilegale..
Avocat Angelescu Daniela- vatamata financiar intre tilharii gratiati ilegal
Sa ii ghiceasca completele pe tilharii la locul ce mi.a ocupat ilegal imaginatia: inchisoare. Ca sa nu ma intilnesc pe strada cu tilharii gratiati.
Edenul este al Monedei..hipocratii nu au acest drept..
Beautifull sermon Reverend Father! Amen!✝️🙏💒
You claim to work for the father and you say you have given everything .surly i say I have seen your Acts hidden in the dark I will now bring into the light you work for the father.
yet your dress in those whom crucified the Holy one you work for the father yet you give load to others that you your self would not carry …you work for the father then see these words come not from man but the spirit of Truth
Lord have mercy on us
Very inspiring and he is very rite. I pray for you all I know God is Great and I can only hope that one day we all may know and have peace. I'm just worried as Orthodox we have difficult times ahead of us but for the Glory of God I will always stand with my fellow brothers and sisters in God. May God bless us all.