If the truth be known, all of us are sinners…each of us is a sinner and we are very good actors…for what others see is, for the most part, very different from the reality that we know to be our lives.
Because it is easier for us, most of us view sin as a global affair. That is to say, we view our sinfulness in the context of others. How often I have heard, “Father, we are all sinners, we all make mistakes.” Yes, we are all sinners and we all make mistakes, but rarely do I hear anyone admit his or her sinfulness other than in confession. Yes, we all make mistakes. But how often do we hear someone say, “I made a mistake, or I cheated on my taxes, or I have committed adultery, or I have shoplifted, or I have told untruths about others,” among others?
It is also very easy for us to condemn one person for a wrongdoing and not connect it to the human frailty which we all experience. It is as though other people do wrong because they are different than us. The ease with which we condemn others falls short when we submit ourselves to self-evaluation. In a world that looks for and demands perfection, truth, and righteousness, none of us wishes to be found lacking, and so it is that the other guy makes the mistakes, commits the crimes and is in general imperfect.
The month of August is a time we remember the great love of our Lord and the dedicated and sacrificial life of His Mother the Theotokos, the Ever-Virgin Mary. Both with the Transfiguration of our Lord celebrated on August 6th and the Koimisis or Falling Asleep of the Theotokos celebrated on August 15th, we find an additional opportunity to be honest with ourselves before God. The question I pose is, “will we be honest?”
The importance of being honest before God is not only admitting our wrongdoing and imperfections to Him; He is well aware of our sinfulness. Honesty before God is the recognition of our sin, and, most importantly, the admission that we cannot change without His help. Our submission to His will and the transformation that will follow our confession reveals the honesty of our intent.
As a community and as individuals who make up the community, I pray that we are up to the task. We all seek God’s forgiveness of our sins, yet we must first forgive one another of the trespasses we commit against each other. Our discussions must focus on how we can better serve one another and our community, which is the Church. We must let go of our egotistic pride, and act upon the admonition of Saint John Chrysostom “to embrace one another.” Love, honesty, and compassion are virtues we all admire and seek. To become expressed actions in our daily existence, which should be our goal, we must understand what love is, what honesty is, and what compassion is, knowing that we all fall short and are in need of the indwelling of the authentic love and compassion of our Lord Jesus Christ.
May the strength of our Lord’s love for us be the power by which we forgive one another and experience the transformation that gives witness to our Lord’s Transfiguration, putting aside our petty differences and destructive criticisms and allowing the humble but confident example of the Theotokos, who is the “champion of Christians” guide our every action. Let our supplications to her, who intercedes on our behalf to her Son Our Lord Jesus Christ, be reflected in our actions and collectively reflect our unity of faith, thereby thwarting the attempts of the evil one to gain a foothold in our lives.