May this feast be the feast of the power of God, who is an ally of man in the face of sickness, suffering and death. May God be an ally of young men who want to change this world for the better. This was stated today by His Beatitude Sviatoslav, Father and Head of the UGCC, during a sermon to the faithful on Palm Sunday at the Patriarchal Cathedral of the Resurrection of Christ.
As the preacher explained, today the Church celebrates one of the biggest Christian holidays of the year – the feast of the Lord’s solemn entrance into Jerusalem. An event that begins and opens to us the path of Holy Week and brings us into the mystery of our Savior’s suffering, death, and resurrection.
“Today we hear of a historical event in which Jesus Christ, after resurrecting Lazarus, now enters Jerusalem, sitting on a donkey. The city in the person of Jesus Christ has come to know its God, who is coming and re-entering his people’s lives The youth of Jerusalem see in Jesus Christ the one through whom the extraordinary power of God works. After the resurrection of Lazarus, they see God, who, in the face of illness and death, is an ally of man. They understand that God saves and releases even when a person is powerless. The power of God is an ally of man in the face of sickness, suffering and death,” emphasized the preacher.
“Europe’s history shows that every time deadly diseases like plague and cholera passed through this continent, they triggered a new era. Just as the buds on the trees show that there will be a change of the season, so today we see that the time of a new life is coming,” said the Head of the UGCC.
“So today, as we stand on the threshold of a ‘new age,’ we sing ‘Hosanna’ to our Savior, who enters Jerusalem and through that event enters a new time and makes us a new humanity,” he said.
In his view, we can only become better when, in the circumstances of this deadly disease, we rethink the value of human life, stop investing in death, and start investing in life. “In Your hands, our Savior, we give our life and our future. We believe that You will help us to make them new and better,” summed up the spiritual leader of the Ukrainians.
The UGCC Department for Information