Saint Cyril, Archbishop of Alexandria, a distinguished champion of Orthodoxy and a great teacher of the Church, came from an illustrious and pious Christian family. He studied the secular sciences, including philosophy, but most of all he strove to acquire knowledge of the Holy Scriptures and the truths of the Christian Faith. In his youth Cyril entered the monastery of Macarius in the Nitreia hills, where he stayed for six years. Theophilus (385-412), the Patriarch of Alexandria, ordained him as a deacon, numbered him among the clergy and entrusted him to preach.
Upon the death of Patriarch Theophilus, Cyril was unanimously chosen to the patriarchal throne of the Alexandrian Church. He led the struggle against the spread of the Novatian heresy in Alexandria, which taught that any Christian who had fallen away from the Church during a time of persecution, could not be received back into it.
Cyril, seeing the futility of admonishing the heretics, sought their expulsion from Alexandria. The Jews appeared a greater danger for the Church, repeatedly causing riots, accompanied by the brutal killing of Christians. The saint long contended with them. In order to wipe out the remnants of paganism, the saint cast out devils from an ancient pagan temple and built a church on the spot, and the relics of the Holy Unmercenaries Cyrus and John were transferred into it. A more difficult struggle awaited the saint with the emergence of the Nestorian heresy.
Nestorius, a presbyter of the Antiochian Church, was chosen in 428 to the see of Constantinople and there he was able to spread his heretical teaching against the dogma about the uncommingled union of two natures in the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ. Nestorius called the Mother of God not the Theotokos, but rather Christotokos or “Birth-giver of Christ,” implying that she gave birth not to God, but only to the man Christ. The holy Patriarch Cyril repeatedly wrote to Nestorius and pointed out his error, but Nestorius continued to persevere in it. Then the saint sent out epistles against Nestorianism to the clergy of Constantinople and to the holy emperor Theodosius the Younger (408-450), denouncing the heresy. Cyril wrote also to other Churches, to Pope Celestine and to the other Patriarchs, and even to monks of several monasteries, warning of the emergence of a dangerous heresy.
Nestorius started an open persecution against the Orthodox. In his presence one of his partisans, Bishop Dorotheus, pronounced an anathema against anyone who would call the Most Holy Virgin Mary the Theotokos.
Nestorius hated Cyril and brought out against him every kind of slander and fabrication, calling him a heretic. The saint continued to defend Orthodoxy with all his powers. The situation became so aggravated, that it became necessary to call an Ecumenical Council, which convened in the city of Ephesus in the year 431. At the Council 200 bishops arrived from all the Christian Churches. Nestorius, awaiting the arrival of Bishop John of Antioch and other Syrian bishops, did not agree to the opening of the Council. But the Fathers of the Council began the sessions with Cyril presiding. Having examined the teaching of Nestorius, the Council condemned him as a heretic. Nestorius did not submit to the Council, and Bishop John opened a “robber council”, which decreed Cyril a heretic. The unrest increased. By order of the emperor, Patriarch Cyril of Alexandria and Archbishop Memnon of Ephesus were locked in prison, and Nestorius was deposed.
Soon Saints Cyril and Memnon were freed, and the sessions of the Council continued. Nestorius, not submitting himself to the determinations of the Council, was deprived of priestly rank. By order of the emperor he was sent to the faraway place Sasim in the Libyan wilderness, where he died in grievous torments. His tongue, having blasphemed the Mother of God, was overtaken by punishment -- in it there developed worms. Even Bishop John of Antioch and the remaining Syrian bishops signed the decrees of the Council of Ephesus.
Cyril guided the Alexandrian Church for 32 years, and towards the end of his life the flock was cleansed of heretics. Gently and cautiously Cyril approached anyone, who by their own simpleness and lack of knowledge, fell into false wisdom. There was a certain Elder, an ascetic of profound life, who incorrectly considered the Old Testament Priest Melchizedek to be the Son of God. Cyril prayed for the Lord to reveal to the Elder the correct way to view the righteous one. After three days the Elder came to Cyril and said that the Lord had revealed to him that Melchizedek was a mere man.
Cyril died in the year 444, leaving behind many works. In particular, the following ought to be mentioned: commentaries On the Gospel of Luke, On the Gospel of John, On the Epistles of the Apostle Paul to the Corinthians and to the Hebrews; also an Apologia in Defense of Christianity against the Emperor Julian the Apostate (361-363). Of vast significance are his Five Books against Nestorius; a work on the Most Holy Trinity under the title Thesaurus, written against Arius and Eunomios. Also two dogmatic compositions on the Most Holy Trinity, distinguished by a precise exposition of the Orthodox teaching on the Procession of the Holy Spirit. Cyril wrote Against Anthropomorphism for several Egyptians, who through ignorance depicted God in human form. Among Cyril’s works are also the Discussions, among which is the moving and edifying Discourse on the Exodus of the Soul, inserted in the Slavonic “Following Psalter”.
Today we commemorate the repose of this great Father of the Church. He is also remembered on January 18, the date of his flight from Alexandria.
BREAD OF LIFE DEVOTIONAL
AS CHRISTIANS WE MUST DISCERN GOOD FROM EVIL
“For there are many insubordinate, both idle talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision, whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole households, teaching things which they ought not, for the sake of dishonest gain.” (Titus1:10-11).
As Christians we often have a hard time discerning between an evil heart and an ordinary sinner, who isn’t perfect, and full of weakness and sin. We as believers do not see evil people because we find it so difficult to believe that evil people actually exist even inside the church. We can’t imagine someone deceiving us intentionally, hurting others with no regret, spreading out outrageous fabrications to ruin someone’s reputation, or pretending he or she is spiritually committed yet has no fear of God before his or her eyes. The Gospel clearly tells us that among God’s people there are wolves that wear sheep’s clothing. Part of our maturity as spiritual Christians is that we have been trained to discern between good and evil. Why is that so important? It’s important because evil usually pretends to be good, and without discernment we can be easily fooled .Most sinners do not happily indulge evil urges, nor do they feel good about having them. Sinners feel ashamed and guilty while evil people do not. The problem is that we all miss God's mark of moral perfection, and we forget that the Holy Sprit in us should be having fruits in our lives and our behaviors inside the church and outside. Remember, Satan masquerades as an angel of light. He knows more true doctrine than you or I will ever know, but his heart is wicked. Why? Because although he knows the truth, he does not believe it or live it. Many are the attributes of evil people. Evil hearts are experts at creating confusion and contention. They twist the facts, mislead, lie, avoid taking responsibility, deny reality, make up stories, and withhold information. Evil hearts are experts at fooling others with their smooth speech and flattering words. But if you look at the fruit of their lives or the follow through of their words, you will find no real evidence of godly growth or change. It’s all smoke. Evil hearts crave demand and control, and their highest authority is their own self-reverence. They reject feedback, real accountability, and make up their own rules to live by. They use Scripture to their own advantage but ignore and reject passages that might require self-correction and repentance. Evil hearts play on the sympathies of good-willed people, often trumping the grace card. They demand mercy but give none themselves. They demand warmth, forgiveness, and intimacy from those they have harmed with no empathy for the pain they have caused and no real intention of making amends or working hard to rebuild broken trust. If you are working with someone who exhibits these characteristics, it’s important that you confront them head on. You must name evil for what it is. The longer you try to reason with them or show mercy towards them, the more you, as a Christian believer, will become a pawn in his or her game. “But when grace is shown to the wicked, they do not learn righteousness; even in a land of uprightness they go on doing evil and do not regard the majesty of the Lord" (Isaiah 26:10).
But every Lord’s day do you gather yourselves together, and break bread, and give thanksgiving after having confessed your transgressions, that your sacrifice may be pure. (Didache Chapter XIV.11 —Christian Assembly on the Lord’s Day. 14 [A.D. 70]).
It means that I choose by my free will to put off all the old ways of my life, reject all the worldly and tempting thoughts that may sadden and quench the presence of the Holy Spirit in me.
Pray and ask for the strength in the Holy Spirit to be able to resist all the evil powers and abide by Jesus and obey His words. So, I have a role in this procedure of my purification.
First, to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against my soul “Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul” (1 peter 2:11).
Second, to accept and choose by my free will to live a new life and renew my mind and thoughts “Brothers and sisters, we have a duty. Our duty is not to live under the power of sin. If you live under the power of sin, you will die. But by the Spirit’s power you can put to death the sins you commit. Then you will live.” (Romans 8: 12-13).
Third, I must be away from anything that would weaken my decision and be always in the places and around people that would help me to be united with my Lord in the Holy Spirit and abide in Him all the time “Because of what Christ Jesus has done, you are free. You are now controlled by the law of the Holy Spirit who gives you life. The law of the spirit frees you from the law of sin that brings death.” (Roman 8:2).
When the work of the Holy Spirit succeeds in me, I become the great conqueror over all the evil powers, “No! In all these things we are more than winners! We owed it all to Christ, who has loved us. I am absolutely sure that not even death or life can separate us from God’s love.” (Romans 8: 37).
We must come to this point that nothing can tempt us to sin, and we lose our purity which separates us from Jesus’ life and love.
Remarkably, the Book of Genesis tells us about the creation of nature and all beings that they were issued by the word of command from God (Let it be) "Then God said, “Let there be light……., Let the earth bring forth grass…..“ (Genesis 1:24-26). But when He talked about man's creation it wasn't the case, but He said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” (Genesis 1:26-28). So man’s creation was not like the rest of all beings in any way, but it was the seal of the image of the free, wise, creative, righteous, and holy God, In man. For God, man is the most dignified of all creatures. He did not only create humans like other irrational beings on earth, but He created them in His image and gave them fellowship in the power of the Word, i.e., His Son Jesus Christ. God created humankind in His image and gave them some of the shadows of His Son Jesus Christ, and they became rational and communed with Him to become happy and have a real life.
Thus, we can realize the mystery of reason and wisdom and how they became man in his creation. The secret is that man is distinguished from other creatures by having a human spirit. The human spirit is the center of wisdom and will in man that animals do not have. Animals have a soul, the center of feelings, instincts, and reactions, but they cannot think, create, make decisions, and change. This is all the power emanating from the human spirit, which is a mirror to the Spirit of God. Moreover, the Book of Genesis, chapter two, verse seven, tells us that God breathed into the nostrils of man the breath of life “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.” According to the teachings of the Early Fathers of the Church, this breath of life is the Holy Spirit, who was united by the spirit of man. Thus, the spirit of man became highly powerful and had authority, being first a rational spirit. Secondly, united by the Holy Spirit, who nourishes and develops man to gradually ascend towards Who is perfect, that is, to the only begotten uncreated Son. That is, the Holy Spirit was inhabiting the first man in the way that later became the man of the New Testament.
Thus, we can understand why modern man has been so easily convinced of the theory of evolution. If he lacked the wisdom of the Holy Spirit and his mind became immersed in worldly lusts, he did not find much difference between him and the animals, so he believed that his origin was a monkey. And if the light of the human soul is extinguished and man becomes unable to see God and unite in His life and communicate with Him, then the closest reality to him is that there is no God. As it is written in Psalms fourteen, verse one, “The fool has said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt. They have done abominable works. There is none who does good.” Man has become unable to see God, feel Him, or interact with Him in any way, and this is ultimately the definition of the fall of man.
Thanks to God for giving us in Christ the possibility of recovering human nature to its divine image, in which we can love others and feel peace of mind, the comfort of the soul, and the joy of the spirit. And thus be able to triumph over the evil temptations of sin and its deadly and destructive effects.
Man has actually become unable to see God, nor feel Him, nor interact with Him in any way, and this is ultimately the definition of the state of man's fall.
And this is Christ’s gift to man in the New Testament through the Holy Spirit, which is the possibility of recovering the human nature to its divine image, in which he can love others, feel the peace of mind, the comfort of the soul and the joy of the spirit.
And thus be able to triumph over the evil temptations of sin and its deadly and destructive effects.
Prayer for Peace of Mind – Origen (184-253 AD)
Let us pray that Jesus may reign over us and that our land may be at peace -i.e., that our bodies may be free from the assaults of fleshly desires. When these have ceased, we shall be able to rest in God’s peace and love. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit will shelter us as we rest, our peace of mind and body once recovered.
Glory to God the eternal, age after age. Amen.
We can perceive the word of God.
only with the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit working in us.
Glory to the Father, Son & the Holy Spirit
JAMES 1:5-8
“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.”
St. James is telling us what to do if lacking anything?
WHO gives to all of us LIBERALLY & WITHOUT REPROACH
BUT
Let in order for that request be effective answered, let it be asked in
1- FAITH
2- WITH NO DOUBTING
WHY?
WHY?
Because he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
