St. Mary Orthodox Church

Sermon preached by Dn. James Wilcox on Sunday, November 17, 2024

Luke 12:16-22; Gal. 6:16-20

“No amount of thought will ever result in any greater formulation than the three words, 'Love one another,' so long as it is love to the end and without exceptions.”^[i] So writes Mother Maria Skobtsova, otherwise known to us today as Saint Maria of Paris. Mother Maria is described by the author Michael Plekon, as a woman who was “married twice, and saw both marriages disintegrate” “was almost executed by both the Bolsheviks and the White Army”^[ii] and ultimately became a monastic who rejected traditional forms of monasticism.

Saint Maria, following the death of her daughter Nastia in the hard winter of 1926, discovered a divine indwelling unfolding deep within her heart. The tragic loss of her daughter miraculously lead her to a form of spiritual enlightenment. And It is from this revelation that Mother Maria thereafter chose to devote herself entirely to caring for the poor and the outcasts in and around her Parisian home. In her own words, she had found a “new meaning in life, to be a mother for all, for all who need maternal care, assistance, or protection.”^[iii]

“The world became her monastery,” writes Michael Plekon. “She ran hostels for the elderly, the unemployed, the homeless and despairing in Paris. She begged food as well as prepared it… [Later] Turned in by a resident for hiding Jews from the Nazi sweep of occupied Paris, she endured almost three years in Ravensbrück concentration camp, going to the gas chamber only days before the camp’s liberation [on Holy Friday no less], taking the place of another assigned to death there.”^[iv] St Maria gave her life on behalf of another individual with the rightful understanding that all human beings are created in the image of God. “Man ought to treat the body of his fellow human being with more carethan he treats his own,” Maria declares. "We should give them our last shirt and our last piece of bread.”^[v]

In today’s Gospel passage we are shown an example of the exact opposite. We are given the image of a rich man whose central aim is the very antithesis of St Maria’s life. If St Maria gave up everything, that she might love all people without exception, the rich man pursued everything that he might love only himself — and for the benefit of no one buthimself! Where Maria’s life characterized the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Rich Man’s actions exemplify the empty promises of rugged individualism, which mirrors the false gospel that undergirds the American ethos. For the rich man’s land “brought forth plentifully;” as the text tells us. And then the rich man said, 'What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?' And he said, 'I will do this: I will pull down my barns, and build larger ones; and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, 'Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; take your ease, eat, drink, be merry.”

This description is a rough outline of the so-called American Dream. In theory, each person has the freedom and opportunity to succeed and attain a better life for themselves, but the natural outworking of this practice only leads each person to take more for themselves than they need, and with little regard for their neighbor. Thus, the empty promise of America is that we will somehow be OK if only we take care of ourselves. And if we can manage this, and of course believe in God, then we will somehow still be saved. Christ’s retort to the rich man, however, is, “You Fool! This night your soul is required of you; and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?' In other words, “Look at all this garbage you’ve acquired and you’ve stored up for only yourself. And now you’re dead and there’s no one to whom you can give these.” And so it is with “he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God."

So, what DOES happen when our souls are actually required of us, as shown in the Gospel text? How exactly do we become rich toward God and store up genuine treasure in heaven? St Maria of Paris puts it very succinctly: “At the Last Judgment I shall not be asked whether I was successful in my ascetic exercises, nor how many bows and prostrations I made. Instead I shall be asked did I feed the hungry, clothe the naked, visit the sick and the prisoners. That is all I shall be asked.”^[vi]

As Orthodox Christians living in a time when faithfulness to the Gospel and faithfulness to America are commonly seen as synonymous, I want to state this plainly: it is imperative we hold to the Church’s teaching on caring for others in need, as Christ asks of us. Do not forget the second greatest commandment, which is to love our neighbor inasmuch as we love ourselves. If we pay attention to the Saints of our church they describe the necessity of a deep and abiding love for all people, which leads us naturally to the experience of the greatest commandment, which is loving God with all of our heart, soul, and mind. The way to God is through the love of your neighbor.

Sadly, our nation, which often describes itself as “Christian,” has emphasized the plight of the rich man in today’s parable and brought a new heightened sense of fear and self-centeredness to the fore. Racism, misogyny, xenophobia, and the discrimination and denigration of marginalized people have all been brought to the surface of our public dialogue, and in most cases it’s used to generate fear. But as subdeacon JD reminded us last week citing Dorothy Day, “We really only love God as much as we love the person we love the least.”

If you can’t see the image of God in that person you love the least — and this includes your enemies! — then we risk becoming the rich man in today’s parable. And what will your answer be when you stand before God, like the rich man, when your soul is required of you. Do not forget that what you do to your bodies — the mindset you inhabit in your body — also affects your soul!

Friends… as I look out among you today, I see such beautiful people. All of you come from diverse backgrounds and you bring such unique gifts to our parish. You are wonderfully made God’s image! And for this reason, you are worthy of love — you are worthy of being loved! And you always have a place here at St Mary’s.

In the days ahead, each of us needs to do the hard work of examining our hearts. Resist the urge be “American.” Take up your calling to be Christians! Follow the way of Jesus with all your heart, soul and mind, and above all remember that “No amount of thought will ever result in any greater formulation than the three words," given to us from Christ Himself: 'Love one another,' so long as it is love to the end and without exceptions.”^[vii]