Post of the Week Archives - Page 4 of 5 - St Michael and St Bishoy Church

The fourth Sunday of the Holy fifty

Posted on Jun 1, 2020 in HomePage, Post of the Week |

Today is the forth Sunday of the Holy Fifty days, in general they are seven weeks resembling a journey from the Earth to the Heavens. In a summary, the beginning of the journey needs faith and belief since no one starts a journey if he is not convinced with it, so the First week is the week of Faith, in it we read the Gospel talking about St Tomas and we call this Sunday St Tomas’s Sunday. The Second Sunday talks to us about the Bread of Life. Every journey needs food and the bread we take with us for this journey is not earthly bread but heavenly Bread which is the Holy Communion. The Third Sunday (last Sunday) talks to us about the Woman from Samaria and about that whoever drinks from water of life shall never go thirsty again. So; the things we need for the journey are Faith, Bread and Water, those are the first three Sundays. Read more…

The Woman from Samaria

Posted on Jun 1, 2020 in HomePage, Post of the Week |

Today we are in the third week of the Holy Fifty days and the Gospel for Holy Liturgy is about the woman from Samaria. The Samaritan woman is a loved character in the Coptic Orthodox Church and thus this part about her is read three times throughout the year. We read it in the middle of the Holy Lent, in the middle of the Holy Fifty days and again in the Fiftieth days (the Feast of the Pentecost), so within 100 days we read this part of the Holy Bible 3 times and this shows how much the church loves this part. The woman of Samaria chapter is suitable for the Holt Lent because she resembles the stubborn sole that was living in sin and then repented and pulled with her most of the people in the city of Samaria for the belief in the LORD JESUS, although there was a great enmity between the Jews and the Samarians (we will know about this later on). Read more…

The Bread of Life

Posted on Jun 1, 2020 in HomePage, Post of the Week |

The period of the Holy Fifty days is a period for living and the Church presents to us the LORD JESUS as the Living CHRIST who has risen from the dead, and so the Gospels during the Holy Fifty days presents to us the Bread of Life….the Water of Life… the Path for Life…and all what is liked and related to Life because this period is a period of Life. Today is the second Sunday of the Holy Fifty days and the Gospel for the Holy Liturgy is from the Gospel of St John chapter 6, the Church presents to us the Living CHRIST, the bread of Life necessary for our journey towards the Eternal Life and to enter the Kingdom of Heavens. The LORD had performed the miracle of feeding of the multitude by using 5 loves and two fish, after that the multitude started looking for HIM to make HIM a king, but the LORD JESUS said to them (John 6:26 26) “you are looking for me because you ate the bread and were filled had all you wanted, not because you believe” Read more…

The Palm Sunday 2020

Posted on Apr 12, 2020 in Post of the Week |

The Church celebrates today the Palm Sunday which is the entrance of the LORD JESUS to Jerusalem; this was HIS last entrance to Jerusalem after which HE was crucified.
Truly when we talk about Jerusalem, it resembles the human soul; Let us go through together and see what has happened when the LORD has entered into Jerusalem, but I will take off the word Jerusalem and replace it by the word I or the human soul or my heart.
When the LORD JESUS enters my heart (Jerusalem) HE does 3 things Purifies, changes and makes it joyful. How is that?
The first thing the LORD JESUS did after HE has entered Jerusalem was that HE went into the Temple and cast out the buyers and sellers and overthrew the tables of the money-changers and said “Mat 21:13 “My house shall be called the house of prayer”; but you have made it a den of thieves.” So the first thing the LORD JESUS did was to purify the Temple. The first thing the LORD JESUS does when HE comes into my soul is to purify the heart.
For example, St Mary Magdalene met with the LORD JESUS her temple was purified, HE cast out 7 devils from her, the same act of purification. In Jerusalem, HE cast out the buyers and sellers and purified the Temple and when HE entered St Mary Magdalena’s heart HE cast out the devils and purified her.
The second thing is the changing:
It is not possible that anyone comes to know the LORD JESUS and he does not get changed, let us take an example Zacchaeus the tax collector. Zacchaeus loved his money and wealth very much and he was a very unfair man in his job as a tax collector and used to report anyone evading the taxes so that he gets jailed. The LORD JESUS came into his house and sat with him, Zacchaeus said to the LORD “Luke 19:8 Behold, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor. And in anything I accused anyone falsely, I restore it fourfold.” This means that when the LORD came into Zacchaeus house Zacchaeus was a rich man and when the LORD left the house Zacchaeus was almost broke, for someone to change from a money lover to someone giving up all his wealth to the poor and compensating those he treated unfairly, such changing cannot happen except by the LORD JESUS when HE comes into this sole.
So the first thing the LORD JESUS does when entering Jerusalem (my heart) is????Purification.
The second thing is????Changing.
The third thing is rejoicing: when the LORD JESUS enters someone’s heart, this person will find himself very happy no matter the troubles he is having. St Paul when he was in prison and chained across the ankles he said “Philippians 4:4 Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I say, rejoice!” how can he rejoice and he is in prison and might be killed? That is exactly what the LORD has said (John 16:22) “And therefore you now have sorrow. But I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.”
The most important thing today is that the LORD enters my Jerusalem and I hope that during this week we get only concerned by the LORD JESUS who Purifies, Changes and gives us happiness. Good News

The Fifth Sunday of the Lent

Posted on Mar 29, 2020 in Post of the Week |

We have reached the fifth Sunday of the Great Lent. The story of today is a known story in the Gospel of St John; it is the healing of the crippled paralyzed man who was there by the lake of Bethesda for 38 years. The story tells us that there was a Lake called Bethesda which in Hebrew means the house of mercy. There were a lot of sick people, they were all waiting for the Angel who comes down and stirs the water, the first of them who gets into the water was healed, but only the first one but not the second.
Among the sick people was a paralyzed man for 38 years by the lake of Bethesda, the LORD JESUS came and said to him “Rise, take up your bed and walk.” And so the man took his bed and walked away.
If we go back to the book of Deuteronomy chapter 2, it tells us that the LORD GOD said to the Israelites “You have gone around this mountain long enough. Turn northward.” (Duet 2:3). This happened after they have spent 38 years lost in the wilderness, and after 38 years the LORD GOD said to them move in this direction, they started walking in the directions given towards the Promised Land for 2 years thus making the time being lost in the wilderness 40 years.

The place where the LORD JESUS healed the man was the Lake of Bethesda which had 5 branches. What do the lake, water and the branches symbolises?
The Lake of Bethesda symbolises the Israelites and their situation before the LORD JESUS came to them (sick, crippled…….). This lake had 5 branches. This Lake had 5 branches which symbolises the 5 books of St Moses which is the Law the Jews had. The crippled paralyzed man was there for 38 years symbolising the Jews being lost in the wilderness.

The chapter starts with a very beautiful phrase: (John 5: 1-2) “After this there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. Now there is a pool at the Sheep Gate at Jerusalem, which is called in Hebrew Bethesda, having five porches.”
Jerusalem was a great city and had 4 gates:
When the LORD JESUS came into Jerusalem HE entered from Eastern Gate, the sheep gate, through which they entered the sheep for the sacrifices on the Altar. There near the Sheep Gate, there was a lake named the Lake of Bethesda, the Lake of Mercy, there in this lake they were used to clean the sheep before taking them to the Temple, so the sheep are lead through the Sheep gate then cleaned in the Lake of Mercy and then sacrificed. Saint John the Baptist said about the LORD JESUS” Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29 )

The LORD JESUS came in through the Sheep gate and to the Lake where HE stood by a paralyzed man for 38 years, as if HE was pointing to the lost mankind, and asked him a question:” Do you desire to be made whole?” a wearied question, do you desire to be made whole, of course, otherwise I wouldn’t have stayed by the lake for 38 years, as if HE is talking to the human spirit who had the will to be made whole, but the will here was towards the water and the lake, thus this spirit willed to be whole again through the Laws. An Angel used to come down and stir the water and the first one who gets into the water was healed from all his sicknesses, the bodily sicknesses, but the LORD JESUS wanted this will to be directed towards the Grace.

The paralyzed man answered, “Sir, when the water is troubled, I have no one to put me into the pool.” ( John 5:7) . The ONE the whole of humanity has been waiting for. This HUMAN, the SON OF MAN, came and said to the paralyzed man “Rise, take up your bed and walk.” HE came to rise him from the death of sin, just as what St Paul has said: “and has raised us up together”. ( Eph 2:6) . The man got up and carried his bed, at first the bed was carrying him but now he is carrying the bed therefore now he is bearing the responsibility. He bared the responsibility and went round telling others how much God has done with him.

I was expecting that after the LORD JESUS has healed the paralyzed man that all the other sick people around would have asked HIM to cure them also, but the Holy Bible does not say that, but they did not even notice the LORD JESUS and stayed there watching the lake and the water. John answered them, saying, I baptize with water, but One stands among you whom you do not know.” (John 1:26)
We are seeking too many things and forgetting about the LORD JESUS, we are seeking a man and forgetting about the SON OF MAN, we are seeking an Angel that will stir the water and forget about the one who came to say to us get up and walk. Good News.

The Wismen

Posted on Jan 13, 2020 in Post of the Week |

The Gospel for the first Sunday after the Nativity feast is from the gospel according to St Mathew chapter 2; it talks about the wise men who also worshiped the Child JESUS and offered their offerings. And it was made clear to them by God in a dream that they were not to go back to Herod; so they went into their country by another way.
And when they had gone, an angel of the Lord came to Joseph in a dream, saying, Get up and take the young child and his mother, and go into Egypt, and do not go from there till I give you word; for Herod will be searching for the young child to put him to death.
After the visit of the wise men, St Mary the virgin lady, and St Joseph the carpenter were happy, joyful and calm, but mind you that the situation is not always like that, meaning that living with the LORD JESUS some days you will be happy and joyful and in others you will be in pain, some days you will be in glory but in some other days you will be in hardship. Some days the wise men shall come and kneel down for you and give you presents and the bright star come over the cave where you are borne and all the people know that a great one is borne, all this is great, joyful and glorious events, but there are times when there will be weakness and pain and you will be told take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt. Living with the LORD JESUS is a mixture between pain and joy, hardship and glory, you should know this very well.
We notice that St Joseph the carpenter was not greatly worrier nor he discussed the matter any further with the Angel, for example he could have said to the Angel how these can be a while ago you told me that the Child shall be the saviour of the world, okay then, the saviour of the world cannot get rid of Herod, who is stronger then? Is it the LORD JESUS or Herod, is it Herod who is the stronger and that is why we should flee? No…..you can kill Herod and not to ask me to flee! My beloved brothers; St Joseph the carpenter did not go through this dialogue with the Angel, but it is we who say that because of our week faith and believe, but not St Joseph, but he immediately took the Child and HIS mother and fled to Egypt without even asking the Angel about when will he come back, one should have obedience…endurance accepting all that what comes on to him.
Saint John the Chrysostom tells us not to ask for wonders from our LORD JESUS……why is that? Because HE has HIS own ways which you will not understand now but later on you will. Saint John the Chrysostom says (if since HIS child hood HE showed many wonders then the people would not have taken HIM as a human but a God). We know that HE is the LORD GOD, but HE wants to tell us that I am also a full human just like you; I live all your hardships and pains. For this HE subjected HIMSELF to the fleeing to Egypt to give us a method to follow in our lives, and this method or way is Do not resist evil, but escape from evil. There are situations when we need to flee. The LORD JESUS grants us HIS protection and protects us all Amen. Good News

When we pray

Posted on Dec 17, 2019 in Post of the Week |

نحن حينما نصلى نأحذ من الله ، وحينما نصوم نأخذ من الله، وحينما نعطى نأخذ من الله هو دائماص المعطى بسخاء . ‏

When we pray , we receive from God . When we fast , we receive from God. When we give , we receive from God. So our merciful God is always the source of ‏generous giving.Good News

First Sunday of Koiahk

Posted on Dec 17, 2019 in Post of the Week |

The Gospel for the first Sunday of Koiahk talks to us about the good news by the Angel to Zacharias the priest about the birth of St John the Baptist.
Zacharias and Elisabeth, the Holy Bible tells us that they were both righteous before the LORD GOD and both of them were asking GOD for one thing only and that was to bless them with a son, they wanted a son. The months and years passed by and the LORD did not answer their prayers, Zacharias grew old and Elisabeth was branded as a barren. Despite the blameless and righteous life, they were leading the LORD GOD did not answer their prayer. Sometimes we put our prayers and requests in front of the LORD GOD and the months and years passes by without any answer from GOD, so we start thinking, why the LORD is not listening to my prayers, am I a sinner and because of this HE is not listening to me, is HE not pleased by me?
Be patient….check yourself…you are okay…put your request in front of the LORD GOD and wait, the Psalm says “Psalm 40:1 I waited patiently for the LORD;”
We ask for something and want it to be fulfilled immediately….and if the response is delayed for few days then we start reacting not nicely towards the LORD, we start blaming HIM and our relation with HIM becomes Half-hearted relationship. We go to the priest and tell him, you have asked me to pray and put the matter on the Alter, so I did, I prayed, fasted, prayed, put forward my vows and placed the matter on the Alter, the days, months and even years has passed by and the LORD GOD did not answer my prayers.
Wait, be patient. In the parable of the farmer, the LORD JESUS tells us “Luke 8:15 bear fruit with patience.” “Luke 21:19 by your patience endurance you will gain your souls.” Wait and be patient.
The Angel appeared to Zacharias, we all know the story, and says to him “Luke 1:13 But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard;” Ooh, since when? From the first day.
Does this mean that the LORD was thinking about the matter all this time, shall HE offer him a son or not? No, from day one your prayer has been heard. This means that from the first day when Zacharias and Elisabeth were married and they asked for a son the LORD GOD said Amen and I shall give you a son, “thy prayer is heard;”
Daniel prayed and after 21 days the Arch Angel came and said to him “Dan 9:23 At the beginning of your supplications the command was issued” this means that from the first day and as you are just putting up your hands in supplication the “commandment was given.”
Okay then, why is this waiting period, what is it for? This period teaches me to have faith and HE never forgets the prayers put in front of HIM, this is impossible.
Let me tell you something: you can forget, you might ask the LORD for something and then after a while, you forget that…..HE never forgets, HE shall answer and fulfill your prayer in the proper time, as if HE is saying to you do you remember when you have asked for this….I never forget. The Arch Angel came to Zacharias and said “thy prayer is heard;” the prayer you asked a long time ago is heard. Then what do name this waiting period? We call it the fullness of time, and who decides this fullness of time? It is HIM, not you.
Two things you should not ask about; neither the way nor when HE answers. HE knows better when and how.
All that Zacharias and Elisabeth asked for was to have a son. HE gave them in the fullness of time a son, and not a normal son but a very unique son. This is what the Holy Bible tells us in the letter to the Ephesians “Eph 3:20 Now unto him, that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think.” I want to tell you something; when the response delays, rest assured that the response shall be greater than what you has initially asked for, look to Abraham and Sarah they had no son and the response delayed and in the fullness of time HE gave them Isaac, every time you see delaying in HIS response be assured that the response shall be with great glory. This is exactly what has happened, look and see who St John the Baptist is. The Arch Angel says to Zacharias “Luke 1:13 Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John.” This was all what Zacharias was asking for, but there is more “Luke 1:14 And thou shalt have joy and gladness, and many shall rejoice at his birth.” What is this special thing? More yet to come “Luke 1:15 For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother’s womb.”
This was never heard before that a child “shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother’s womb” to prepare a nation well prepared for the LORD GOD. So if you wait you shall be given something spectacular, of cores because GOD never forgets, just be faithful in your prayer and believe that the LORD has heard it and HE shall response in the proper time.
The LORD GOD always wants to give HIS sons and makes them happy; HE never wants to sadden HIS sons because HE always wants to give HIS sons what is best for them.
Today, take this for you “thy prayer is heard” when, where and how? Leave this for HIM; HE shall give you something spectacular.

The first Sunday of the month of Tout

Posted on Sep 18, 2019 in Post of the Week |

We are in the first week of the New Martyr’s (Coptic) year 1736, and today’s Gospel talks to us about St John the Baptist since he is the martyr between the two Old and New Testaments.
In the beginning of the new Coptic year for the martyrs we would like to talk about those Martyrs.
The first Church was actually like a race towards martyrdom and who will be fast enough to be sacrificed first for the sake of the LORD JESUS. Saint Paul says (Philippians 3:13) “brothers and sisters one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead”
What is ahead you St. Paul? (Rom 8: 36) “As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”
A very unique race that the first Church lived, everyone is running to win this crown, the crown of martyrdom.
The historians tells us about those Martyrs that they faced death with coolness, placidity, joy and peace, they were thrown to hungry lions and they were very calm, filled by internal peace and joy.
They used to light up the streets of Rome by the bodies of the Christians, they rape them in oil soaked cloth and then hang them up on poles and set them in fire, and so the Christian Martyr keeps burning all the night long lighting up the streets of Rome.
I will try to answer the question about what was it that kept those people calm, in peace and joyful?
If we do a field study and meet up with those Martyrs in the dungeons and prisons and ask them why are you not afraid of death? Why are you so peaceful and tranquil? Their answer will be because of 3 reasons:
The First reason: the life we are living is a limited life. How long will we live for, a 100 years? Then it is a timely limited world in comparison to Eternity. Any one of us who undergoes a surgical operation, especially in the old days, this was done with no anaesthesia and with very limited primitive sedatives, this person suffers a lot of pain and agony, but this person is been given a new life, the same thing is martyrdom in Christianity. We know that we will suffer for a while and we might be burned alive, of cores this is not easy and we will die, but after death there is an eternal life awaiting us, so whatever happens to us in this world we are happy with because will reach an endless eternal life.
Okay, then what is the second reason that keeps you in tranquillity peaceful and joyful? They will answer that we are strangers.
Saint Paul says (2Co 5:6”) (that while we are in the body we are away from the Lord, 8 We are without fear, desiring to be free from the body, and to be with the Lord.)
I have a firm believe that as long as I am living in this flesh then I am absent from the LORD JESUS. Okay then when will you be not absent from the LORD JESUS? When you are absent from your flesh or body, and how can you absent from your body, through death. So the best thing about death is that it is a bridge which we cross to meet with the LORD JESUS. So death is not fearful even if it is preceded by some of the suffering.
So those Martyrs are:
1- Feeling that this world is a timely world.
2- Feeling that they are estranged and they long for the LORD JESUS.
3- Their love for the LORD JESUS was very clear and obvious.
When someone come to the priest and asks to be baptized, the priest tells him (my son to be honest with you, your chance in life before baptism is 100% but after baptism is 50% or even less, because after baptism those who are not Christians might capture you and if you insist on your Christianity you might suffer this and this and that), but the man insist on being baptized.
Why is that? Because of my great love for the LORD JESUS, I am ready to endure everything even death itself for my love to HIM.
So the 3 things which make the Christians not afraid of death and they are in tranquility and racing for martyrdom are:
1- Their feeling that this world is timely.
2- That they are estranged from Heaven and want to reach it.
3- They truly love the LORD JESUS to the extent that they want their life to end so that they reach HIM and live with HIM for eternity.
Did we understand the story?
Good News

The Second Coming

Posted on Sep 2, 2019 in Post of the Week |

The readings of the Church these days are all about the end of the World and the second coming for the LORD JESUS CHRIST that is because we are towards the end of the Coptic year. The Gospel for today is from St Mark chapter 13.
The Disciples and the LORD JESUS were coming out from the Temple, the Disciples were feeling proud by the majesty and beauty of the building, the LORD JESUS said to them:
Do you see these great buildings? There shall not be one stone left on another that shall not be thrown down.”
When they have reached the Mount of Olives the Disciples asked HIM to tell them when this will be and what the sings before it happening are. The LORD JESUS started telling them about the destruction of the Jerusalem and the Temple and gave them some of the signs that will happen and then the LORD started telling them about the end of the World and HIS second coming and the sings preceding them, towards the end of HIS talk HE said to them (Mar 13:35-37) “Then you watch, for you do not know when the lord of the house is coming, at evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrowing, or early; lest he come suddenly and find you sleeping. And what I say to you, I say to all. Watch.”
What does it mean to be on the watch and why?
To be on the watch does not mean that we don’t sleep, but it means that the one should be aware about his spiritual life and all his daily acts.
Why should we be on the watch?
1/ Because our enemy does not sleep.
If you were told that a dangerous burglar has escaped from the prison and he is in the area where you live and at any moment you might be the next victim, will you be able to sleep or you will be on the watch with your weapon in hand to protect yourself and your family? This is the situation of my spiritual life when I come to know that my adversary the Devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking someone he may devour;” Then I will be awake so that this lion will not fine me asleep and devour me.
2/ Because I don’t know neither the day nor the hour: The biggest trick the devil uses to cheat us with is that every one of us has a plane for himself, one has a plane for five years to come and the other for ten years, and so on……. Do you remember the parable of the fool rich man which was said by the LORD JESUS “Luke 12:20 But God said to him, Fool! This night your soul shall be required of you”
We must all be vigilant and on the watch all the time knowing that death can be at any moment and any day. Therefore, be on the watch: because my enemy never sleeps and I don’t know the hour.
Be on the watch for what?
Be on the watch for the salvation of your soul: (Mat 16:26) “For what is a man profited if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul?” be on the watch for the salvation of your soul meaning that you should judge yourself daily about where are you from the LORD’S commandment, because if you don’t judge yourself your soul will be lost and you will lose your crown and eternity.
The message of the Gospel of today while we are going toward the end of the year is to be vigilant and on the watch.
May the LORD give us the life of vigilance and spiritual watch over so that we protect our crowns and eternity. Good News