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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Hill Country Homilies. Weekly homilies from Holy Nunciation

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<v Speaker 1>Orthodox Church in Liberty Hill, Texas. Holy Annunciation is an

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<v Speaker 1>old calendar Orthodox church sharing the faith of the Apostles

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<v Speaker 1>and the love of Christ with all who seek His truth. Now,

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<v Speaker 1>let's listen to this week's homily, the.

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<v Speaker 2>Name of the Father and Son of the Holy Spirit

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<v Speaker 2>Lord to Jesus Christ. I see if you wish, beloved

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<v Speaker 2>brothers and sisters in Christ. On this second Sunday of

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<v Speaker 2>great Land, we gather to honor the memory of Saint Gregory. Paulamas,

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<v Speaker 2>the Archbishop of Thessalaminki Thessalonica, probably heard defender of the

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<v Speaker 2>Holy Hesi Chasm and illuminate her of the Orthodox faith.

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<v Speaker 2>The teachings of Saint Gregory pierced through the centuries, much

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<v Speaker 2>like the uncreated light of Mount Tabar, and guide us

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<v Speaker 2>through and toward the true knowledge of God and the

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<v Speaker 2>path of salvation that has been prepared for us. Saint

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<v Speaker 2>Gregory lived in a very troubled time when the very

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<v Speaker 2>heart of the Orthodox spiritual life came under attack. A

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<v Speaker 2>Latin monk named Varlam had journeyed to the Holy Mountain

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<v Speaker 2>of Athos and had witnessed the monastics engaged in their

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<v Speaker 2>ancient practice of inner prayer, of seeking stillness, experiencing God

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<v Speaker 2>interceding for the world. Yet instead of marveling at their holiness,

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<v Speaker 2>Barlam launched an attack on their very way of life.

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<v Speaker 2>And what was his complaint? What did Varlom grasp on

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<v Speaker 2>to attack these holy monks? While the monks had told

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<v Speaker 2>him that in their prayer, some of them have been

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<v Speaker 2>blessed to behold the uncreated light of Tabor, the same

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<v Speaker 2>divine radiance that shone at the time of Christ's crucifixion,

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<v Speaker 2>and Varlang denounced this as a heresy, declaring that no

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<v Speaker 2>one can know the essence of God. And in his arrogance,

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<v Speaker 2>he proclaimed that if these monks wished to truly know God,

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<v Speaker 2>they should abandon their life of prayer and instead seek

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<v Speaker 2>a formal education where they would study about God rather

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<v Speaker 2>than encounter Him in their prayer. Now, this type of

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<v Speaker 2>an approach, even though it took place early in the

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<v Speaker 2>second millennium, sounds very much like the way people think

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<v Speaker 2>about the faith today. The same temptation exists the world,

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<v Speaker 2>and sadly, even some of those that call themselves Christian

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<v Speaker 2>insists that knowledge of God comes through books, through degrees,

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<v Speaker 2>through intellectual debate, internet apologies, rather than through purification of

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<v Speaker 2>heart and communion with the living God. Saint Gregory rose

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<v Speaker 2>up against the attacks of Barlan to defend the experential

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<v Speaker 2>knowledge of God. He articulated with clarity the Orthodox teaching

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<v Speaker 2>on God's essence and his energies, a distinction that said,

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<v Speaker 2>the very foundation of the mystical theology of our faith.

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<v Speaker 2>And listen carefully, because this is not mere philosophical speculation,

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<v Speaker 2>but it is the key to understanding our relationship with

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<v Speaker 2>divine God is unknowable in his essence, The actuality, the substance,

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<v Speaker 2>what is God remains forever beyond our human comprehension. It

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<v Speaker 2>is too great for our feeble minds to grasp. But

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<v Speaker 2>in his infant love and mercy for his creation, God

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<v Speaker 2>reveals himself to us through his energies. And these energies

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<v Speaker 2>they are distinct from his essence. They are nonetheless God himself,

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<v Speaker 2>not created, not separate, but the divine activity by which

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<v Speaker 2>God makes himself present in his creation. Saint Gregory confirmed

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<v Speaker 2>and expressed this mystery. Beautifully, God, inaccessible in his essence,

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<v Speaker 2>is present in his energies he wrote, as in a mirror,

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<v Speaker 2>remain invisible in what he is. In the same way

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<v Speaker 2>that we're able to see our faces, they are themselves

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<v Speaker 2>invisible to us. We can't see our own face, but

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<v Speaker 2>it becomes seen through the glass, and that's how God

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<v Speaker 2>reflects his own greatness and grace and energy back to us.

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<v Speaker 2>These divine energies are the way in which we encounter

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<v Speaker 2>the living God without violating the transcendence of his essence.

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<v Speaker 2>Saint Gregory not only defended the theology in the very

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<v Speaker 2>way of life that Barron attacked, the practice of inner stillness,

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<v Speaker 2>of hesichastic prayer of purification over worldly learning. His reasoning

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<v Speaker 2>strikes at the heart of what it means to be

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<v Speaker 2>human and how we are saved. We were created in

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<v Speaker 2>the image of God and called to grow into His likeness.

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<v Speaker 2>But in the fall we lost our direction towards that likeness,

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<v Speaker 2>and the divine image, though still present within us, became darkened.

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<v Speaker 2>Became darkened. How then, do we restore this image? Can

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<v Speaker 2>we study our way to purity? Can we read our

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<v Speaker 2>way into holiness? No, because the image was darkened by sin.

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<v Speaker 2>It is restored through the removal of that sin, through

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<v Speaker 2>repentance through inner prayer, through the actual experience of God's

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<v Speaker 2>grace transforming our hearts. And when we attain this inner prayer,

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<v Speaker 2>cleanse from passion and united to God, then we truly

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<v Speaker 2>again reflect back the image of God which was created

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<v Speaker 2>within us. Saint Gregory pointed to the greatest example of

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<v Speaker 2>this in Saint John, the Forerunner, he who was greater

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<v Speaker 2>than all the poets from his youth. John lived in

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<v Speaker 2>the desert where there were no schools, no libraries, no

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<v Speaker 2>teachers of worldly wisdom, none of what Varlam called a

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<v Speaker 2>saving philosophy. Yet this man, unschooled by worldly standards, became

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<v Speaker 2>the very beacon pointing all humanity to God. You might ask,

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<v Speaker 2>why does this ancient theological dispute from seven centuries back

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<v Speaker 2>matter to us, simple non believers, theologians, just trying to

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<v Speaker 2>live our life faithfully day by day in the modern world.

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<v Speaker 2>Let me offer three compelling reasons why this was important. First,

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<v Speaker 2>it was important so that we are not misled, because today,

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<v Speaker 2>especially here in the West, there persists a dangerous belief

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<v Speaker 2>that knowing God comes primarily through study. You read enough books,

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<v Speaker 2>enough study Bibles, read all the footnotes, highlight all the

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<v Speaker 2>things that are on the power points. Earn enough degrees

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<v Speaker 2>and then you'll know God. It's whispering temptation to us.

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<v Speaker 2>And this appeals to our culture's values, where we've been

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<v Speaker 2>told that the education, the degree, the college is the

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<v Speaker 2>most important thing. That where we've replaced, we've replaced exponential

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<v Speaker 2>learning with formal training in every area of our life.

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<v Speaker 2>Once the tradesmen learned through apprenticeship, now we have technical colleges.

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<v Speaker 2>Once lawyers studied for the bar under practicing attorneys. Now

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<v Speaker 2>they spend seven years in colleges in law schools. Once

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<v Speaker 2>priests learned in the parishes and the monasteries. And today

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<v Speaker 2>many jurisdictions demand a seminary education as a basis as

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<v Speaker 2>an admission ticket to the priesthood. But did Christ share

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<v Speaker 2>in these values. When the rich young ruler asked him

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<v Speaker 2>what he had to do to inherit eternal life, Christ

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<v Speaker 2>didn't send him off to study. He told him, sell

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<v Speaker 2>your possessions, give to the poor, and follow me. Did

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<v Speaker 2>our Lord choose the educated pharisees or the learned temple

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<v Speaker 2>priests as apostles? Now he chose the common, the unschooled fisherman. Yes,

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<v Speaker 2>Christ urged us to search the scriptures. But knowing Christ,

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<v Speaker 2>knowing the Father, these are exponential realities, are not academic achievements.

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<v Speaker 2>Remember the parable the Last Judgment that we read just

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<v Speaker 2>a few weeks ago. When did we see Christ? When

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<v Speaker 2>did we feed the hungry, clothing naked, visit the sick

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<v Speaker 2>and the imprison It wasn't in the classroom. It was

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<v Speaker 2>in the streets, in ministering to the least of our

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<v Speaker 2>brothers and sisters. This is where we encounter Christ himself.

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<v Speaker 2>Second reason that it's important to understand the exponential basis

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<v Speaker 2>of our faith so that we understand what it means

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<v Speaker 2>to be partakers of the divine nature. The Second Epistle

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<v Speaker 2>of Peter offers us an astounding whereby are given unto

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<v Speaker 2>us exceeding great and precious promises that by these ye

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<v Speaker 2>may be partakers of the Divine nature, having escaped the

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<v Speaker 2>corruption that is in the world. What does this mean? Well,

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<v Speaker 2>Saint Gregory's teaching illuminates this mystery. Our union with God

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<v Speaker 2>is neither hypostatic like Christ's human nature unites to his divinity,

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<v Speaker 2>nor is it substantial like the union of three persons

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<v Speaker 2>in the Holy Trinity. Rather, it is this union of

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<v Speaker 2>us with God in his energies, a union by grace

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<v Speaker 2>that makes us able to participate into the divine nature

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<v Speaker 2>without our essence becoming the essence of God. In deification,

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<v Speaker 2>we become by grace that which God is by nature.

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<v Speaker 2>Except for the identity of the nature itself. We remain

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<v Speaker 2>creatures even while becoming gods by grace, just as Christ

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<v Speaker 2>remain God while become a man in the incarnation. This

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<v Speaker 2>is the stunning reality of our calling. That divine nature

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<v Speaker 2>has been promised to us, we experience it in the

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<v Speaker 2>grace of God. Finally, this distincish is importance so that

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<v Speaker 2>we recognize God when he reveals himself to us. Understanding

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<v Speaker 2>the essence and the energies distinction helps us recognize our

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<v Speaker 2>daily encounters with God. We know God in his creation

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<v Speaker 2>the sun, the wind, the clouds, and the stars. These

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<v Speaker 2>things are not God's essence, but they are the energies

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<v Speaker 2>of God. There means by which God has revealed himself

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<v Speaker 2>to us. We encounter God in love. When we love

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<v Speaker 2>one another, we experience the love of God himself. For

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<v Speaker 2>God is the author and the creator of love. Love

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<v Speaker 2>isn't tangible or analyzable. You can't put it in a laboratory.

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<v Speaker 2>But when you encounter true love, you encounter the uncreated

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<v Speaker 2>God and foremost grace itself is an energy of God.

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<v Speaker 2>We receive it in countless ways, and the forgiveness granted,

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<v Speaker 2>and confession absolution in our prayers and our reconciliation with

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<v Speaker 2>one another. Certainly, when we partake of the Holy communion,

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<v Speaker 2>after the gifts of bread and wine have been transformed

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<v Speaker 2>into the body and the bood of Christ through the

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<v Speaker 2>grace of the Holy Spirit, we partake of the divine nature. Indeed,

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<v Speaker 2>this is the energy of God communicating his grace to us.

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<v Speaker 2>Through the holy mysteries, we encounter God and his energies

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<v Speaker 2>far more than we realize, And in each encounter with

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<v Speaker 2>these energies, we are encountering God himself. Brothers and sisters,

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<v Speaker 2>as we continue our Lenten journey, let us embrace the

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<v Speaker 2>wisdom of Saint Gregory Paul Mass. Let us not be

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<v Speaker 2>deceived into thinking that knowing about God is the same

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<v Speaker 2>as knowing God. Let us commit ourselves to the hard

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<v Speaker 2>work of purification, fasting, prayer, almsgiving, forgiveness, love for a brother,

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<v Speaker 2>love for enemy. Let us approach the divine services not

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<v Speaker 2>as spectators or students, but as participants in the divine

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<v Speaker 2>energies that are poured out through these sacred mysteries. Let

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<v Speaker 2>us not seek merely information or transformation. Let us strive

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<v Speaker 2>not for academic mastery, but for purity of heart. For

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<v Speaker 2>blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

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<v Speaker 2>And now, as we depart from this divine lidergy, let

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<v Speaker 2>us give thanks to God for having revealed himself to us,

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<v Speaker 2>and his energies for showering us with his grace. May

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<v Speaker 2>we be ever mindful of our encounters with Him who

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<v Speaker 2>created all, and may we buy his grace, And, through

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<v Speaker 2>the intercessions of Saint Gregory Paulmouth, progress from the image

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<v Speaker 2>the likeness of God, becoming true partakers a divine nature.

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<v Speaker 2>For the prayers Holy Fathers Gregory Palmas, Our special Essuathi,

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<v Speaker 2>Old Lord Jesus Christ, Our God, have mercy in us

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<v Speaker 2>and save us. Amen.

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<v Speaker 1>Thanks for listening to Hill Country Homilies. For more information,

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<v Speaker 1>visit Holy Annunciation Orthodox Church at www dot Denunciation, Tx

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<v Speaker 1>dot com and please join us again next week