We are all responsible for the walls that shield us from the forces of evil and through protection of which we obtain salvation.
“When attacks against the Church occur, its protection is not the concern of some individuals, but of every believer.” This was said by His Holiness Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia in a sermon on July 12, 2019, on the Feast of the Apostles Peter and Paul. “The Church is called the Apostolic, precisely because it fully carries the apostolic ministry within itself. And this is not only the ministry of bishops and priests – this is the ministry of all God’s people. My dear brothers and sisters, this is your ministry”, – Patriarch said.
“Perhaps the greatest misfortune that has taken root in the life of the Church and in the consciousness of the laity is the idea that only bishops, priests, and the clergy in general are responsible for the Church. And my task is just to come to church, at best, once a week, buy a candle, pray, partake, if possible, of the Holy Christ’s Mysteries and leave until the next time. But the Church of God was not created for this. It was not created just so that people from time to time would come to church to perform worship services”, – The most Holy Vladyka noted.
“The church was created so that we all could live in this fortress; but in order to live in a fortress, you need to protect its walls. And when attacks on the Church occur – and now such attacks become extra sophisticated – the protection of the Church becomes a task not of some certain people, including church officials, but of every believer. We are all responsible for the walls that shield us from the forces of evil and through protection of which we obtain salvation. This is the Church’s apostleship”, – Patriarch stressed.
“Apostles’ deeds are an integral part of the Church’s life. That is why we call the Church the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic – the apostles’ acts live in the Church. The tradition of the apostles lives in the Church. The church establishment that proceeds from the apostles also exists in our troublesome and restless 21st century firmly, without any distortions or deviations from the truth”, – Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church said.
“May the memory of the holy apostles help us to actualize the great feat, that they accomplished, in our minds. This can be done through the realization of our responsibility for the Church and our participation in the great apostolic ministry, to which everyone of us is called from the baptismal font”, – His Holiness Patriarch Kirill concluded.
Translated by The Catalog of Good Deeds
