Abp TIKHON (RTOC) of Omsk: Paschal Epistle

His Eminence Tikhon, Archbishop of Omsk and Siberia
President of the Synod of Bishops, Russian True Orthodox Church

Dear brethren in the Lord, hierarchs, fathers, brothers and sisters!

Christ is Risen!

As Lent begins, almost every Christian is a feeling that this post – a long, hard, that before the Passover even infinitely far away. Indeed, Lent – the largest on the extent of any church posts.

However, the days and weeks pass, and the services of Good Friday and Saturday we are a completely different feeling this post surprisingly short, and we experience joy predoschuschenie upcoming Festival – the Resurrection of Christ.

And human life: at the very beginning it seems to come – years and years, and there is no need to hurry up, still have time to do it. But the years flash by, before you know how life came to an end. What awaits us at the end of life?

Long Lent ends with Holy Week, sad, sad, are likely to pose itself, however, the joy of Easter predoschuscheniya. So our life often ends sorrows, disease and fear of Judgment Day. But through the fear Christians feel hope and joy , because for the Christian, death is a transition to another, happy and eternal life. Thus, our death can turn to us at Easter, the joy of the Resurrection, because at one time, two thousand years ago, died on the cross, and after the resurrected Christ.

After going down to hell, he went out not one, but raised with him the righteous, for ever stayed in hell. The joy of the Old Testament saints had the greatest joy mira – many centuries they have been waiting for this moment, languished and groan about the Lord, and behold – they see him, infinitely radiant love for them and raise them to heaven. For many centuries, Adam and Eve grieved for a loved one, and the sweet face of his Maker, had seen them once in Paradise, and now they see the Son, and He elevates them to the Father, to the vision of the Divine Countenance endlessly, endlessly to communicate with him. And there is no longer a reproach him for the sins of old – but the immense love for mankind.

The joy of the just rising out of hell was so great that John of Damascus in the Paschal canon wrote about this: ‘Thy measureless content blagoutrobie hell ties zryasche, idyahu to light, Christ, happy feet, praising an eternal Passover. ” Translated into modern Russian it sounds like this: ‘Those that were in the bonds of hell, see Thy boundless blagoutrobie, Christ, and came to light, funny feet. ” Michael Skaballanovich known expert in pre-revolutionary liturgical theology, interpreting the Easter service, explains that ‘funny feet’ – meaning, dancing, dancing for joy. King David, prophesying about the Resurrection of Christ, played and danced before the ark, portraying him this joy coming out of the hell the righteous. But not only predicted the joy of my exultation King David – he predicted, and the joy of every one of us, one that we will experience after death, when he saw the face of Christ, and welcome hearing from him words of eternal life and eternal Easter.

Today, we are given predoschutit this joy, and we enjoy it, despite all our worldly grief and care, the disorder of our lives, the injustice of this mira. Nothing overshadows us today Paschal rejoicing, because it is – comes from heaven is above all human afflictions, it is – not temporarily, but forever.

The reflection of visible jubilation on Easter night and during the entire Bright Week in shining eyes of the believers, in their joyous and gracious attitude towards other people in their thanksgiving to God. Let it be so, brothers and sisters! Let this consolation, given to us by the Lord on Easter night, the lights in our hearts to people, seeing our good works, glorify our Father in heaven. This is especially important these days. We see that now people are seeing the truth of the Moscow Patriarchate, its bishops selfishness, their lies and dishonesty, turn away from God and the Church. Patriarchy does an evil deed, pushing people away from faith. But the man who thinks can always make a choice, the seeker – always find the True Church. Now it is our mission – to help people understand where the true faith, and where – in the theatrical game of Orthodoxy. It is important these days, our preaching Orthodoxy.

After the sermon – a complex and important matter, because you can not just preach to draw people to faith, but also shy away from it. Because we are extremely careful about themselves, their words and deeds. Let not our preaching would be unfounded and obsessive pereubezhdenii and exposure of patriarchy, but that was talking about Jesus at the Last Supper with His disciples.

He told them that we will learn that the people that we are His disciples if we love one another. Love and unity of Christ, then commanded his followers. Such love wherewith the Father loved the Son, and such unity, which is inextricably linked person of the Trinity.

Today we feel this love and this unity. Because we are kissing each other on Easter, and therefore are going on that night all together, put aside worldly care, and therefore with joy to us that today we are at least slightly, to partake of the reserve we love and eternal joy of Easter. Despite the fact that we live in a time of apocalypse, it does not overshadow our joy of the Resurrection of Christ, and so it will continue until His second and glorious coming.

Let this love, this joy, this unity in Christ shine in us, as a lamp, and point the way to seeking God, for

CHRIST IS RISEN INDEED!