For the Lord to grant forgiveness, intense prayer is needed, and fasting began in Paradise.
There is such an amazing holiday in Orthodoxy - Forgiveness Sunday, the day on which believers ask each other for forgiveness. In this way, they prepare for Great Lent in order to cleanse both body and soul. It would seem that it is easier than asking for forgiveness? But seemingly simple things in real life turn out to be difficult to achieve. How often do we ask for forgiveness, do we need to say "I'm sorry" out loud, and in general - how to understand that you have forgiven? With all these questions, we turned to the governor of the Kiev-Pechersk Lavra, Vladyka Paul.
ROOTS OF TRADITION
- Vladyka, how to properly spend the forgiveness Sunday?
- Forgiveness Sunday refers to the time when the Lord accepted the will of God - he was baptized in Jordan and, coming out of the water, went into the wilderness. He fasted and prayed for 40 days. Then the enemy of the human race, the devil, came to Him, demanding that Christ the Savior of the world worship him, and he would give all the blessings of the world to Him. But the Lord rejected the temptation of the devil: "Get away from Me, Satan, for it is written: worship the Lord your God and serve Him alone." In remembrance of these evangelical events, the church established that believers before Lent and Easter days should talk, grieve, cry about their sins, forgive each other, and not only these days, but always, and start Lent, and then the celebration Easter.
- What is forgiveness?
- An eternal question. You can say “I'm sorry” in words, but what remains in your heart? If you just said, but the resentment remained in your heart, and you did nothing to atone for it, then forgiveness did not happen. For this to happen, you need to rethink the word “forgive” and say it with all your heart, you need to humble your pride, forgive and pray for your offenders, as the Scriptures say: “Bear one another's burdens,” then the Lord will be with you. We can say that Fasting began in the Garden of Eden, back in Paradise. When the Lord told Adam and Eve that it was allowed to eat the fruit from all trees except one, but not because it was despicable. I think the Lord wanted to test the free will of man: whether you love the Lord or not, keep His covenant, or just listened, but did it in his own way. So during Lent we make a vow to God that we limit ourselves,and we will fulfill it with prayer, not being seduced by temptations, the essence of which is to break our vow and thereby cause suffering on us. On the way of a person who has taken a vow of fasting, there will be all sorts of exhortations, the essence of which is the same serpent that promised Eve: "Taste, you will be like gods." After disobedience, sin enters and distorts a person, his body, soul and spirit. And then we blame God, or do we say "why did God let it go"? But the Lord created man beautiful, kind and free. He does not punish anyone, but prepares for each person the abode of the Kingdom of Heaven, and gives them free of charge. Our task is to live a life as pure and holy as possible. The more churches, the fewer prisons. The more crosses on the planet, the more life is pacified, because on the cross the Lord nailed sin and all its consequences. The Lord Himself gives us the first example of forgiveness and repentance. That is why forgiveness, repentance, confession are so important … A person who has come to confession should not condemn anyone, he should not think about what to say to him or not. He should not involve other people in his iniquities. When you stand before the cross and the Gospel, God does not need your sins - He himself knows what you have done. You need to realize your unworthiness and weakness and, seeing your weakness, you need to realize that without the will of God, a person is powerless. You need to realize your unworthiness and weakness and, seeing your weakness, you need to realize that without the will of God, a person is powerless. You need to realize your unworthiness and weakness and, seeing your weakness, you need to realize that without the will of God, a person is powerless.
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EXAMPLE OF FORGIVENESS
- Simultaneously with Christ, who had no sin, two robbers were crucified. One of them even said on the cross: "If you are God - come down from the cross." At the same time, another answered: "Remember me, Lord, in Thy Kingdom!" He does not say what he sinned, but from the heart, realizing his unworthiness, seeing the unrighteous human judgment before him, turned to God. And for this I heard from the Savior: "This day (today) you will be with Me in Paradise." Likewise, a person who wants salvation, having come to confession, should not talk about anything else, but about his spoiled nature, about our lack, with which we ourselves drown out our lives. You must before God, realizing your sins, ask: “Lord, I know that I will not improve, I know that I cannot do without Your mercy. Help! " We must realize that we are clay for the potter who makes a beautiful pot,then, forgiving sins, the priest says: “I am unworthy (a bishop or priest) by the authority given to me, I forgive and permit from all your sins” - that is, those that you have realized. After that, the sacrament of the sacrament will be a saving and life-giving force for you. A real miracle that the Lord gives to man: "Take, eat, this is My Body."
- Vladyka, where did the Forgiveness Sunday tradition come from?
- This tradition begins in the days of the Apostles. It was established before fasting to ask for forgiveness for a lifetime. Therefore, this is the sacrament of confession, repentance, forgiveness from the first times.
- In addition, in order to go to confession, to prepare for it, do you need to ask for forgiveness from all your relatives at home?
- Definitely. Before we see Christ, we will see each other. It has been said that if you have something against someone, even when you come to the temple, leave your gift in front of the altar and return, ask the one whom you have offended for forgiveness, and only then come to the temple. Because we see a person, we do not see God. How can we love what we cannot see? How can a blind man rejoice in the beauty of the God-given world? How can a deaf person hear beautiful singing?
- Can you put an equal sign between forgiveness and repentance?
- No. I apologize for everything. We can ask for forgiveness without a priest from every person who has been offended. And repentance is only in the temple. If the patient is on his deathbed, he repents at home. Your personal conversation with God is repentance.
WHAT TO DO IF FORGIVEN, BUT YOU CANNOT COMMUNICATE WITH THE ABUSE
“Once I heard the thought: in order to forgive, you don't have to believe in God, only if God is not with you, He is not in your heart, you will not be able to understand what you have offended,” says Vladyka Paul. - God is our conscience, which gives us the opportunity to see whom we have offended, and to realize that it is time to ask for forgiveness and repent so that we will not sin further. If you have not forgotten, then you have not forgiven. Because a person who has forgiven forgets about the pain caused, and the Lord closes this wound with his mercy and grace, which is found in prayer.
You can also often hear the phrase: I can forgive, but I cannot forget. It is not true. You have all the leverage to forget. If you don't want to date that person anymore, that's another matter. On this occasion, I recall the following story. Two friends met:
- Tell me, have you forgiven me?
- Forgiven.
- Forgot?
- I forgot.
- Hug me, friend!
- I can’t hug, because you broke my hands, and I can no longer raise them to hug you.
There is a lot of wisdom in this. There are situations after which it is extremely difficult to see the person who offended you with something, even though you have already forgiven him. Therefore, in order not to fall back into the sin of resentment and unforgiveness, you can distance yourself, limit communication with those whom you are unable to "embrace with broken hands." The devil is extremely cunning, he captures our souls, infecting them with pride, unforgiveness and guilt. Avoid these feelings. If you feel that you cannot communicate yet, move aside. Great things are seen from a distance, and in silence and silence the gold of truth is born."
