On July 25, the feast of the Icon of the Mother of God “Three-Handed,” Metropolitan Paul of Manila and Hanoi, Administrator of the Diocese of the Philippines and Vietnam, celebrated the Divine Liturgy at the Church of the Iveron Icon of the Mother of God in Manila, capital of the Republic of the Philippines.
His Eminence was assisted by Hieromonk Cornelius (Molev), Secretary of the Diocese of the Philippines and Vietnam; Archimandrite Philemon (Castro); and Hieromonk John (Gondayao), rector of the church. The deacon’s rank was led by Protodeacon Daniil Matveyev, a cleric of the Resurrection Cathedral in Khanty-Mansiysk.
In his address to those gathered, Bishop Paul noted:
“Dear fathers, brothers, and sisters, allow me to thank everyone from the bottom of my heart for your shared prayers.” And, of course, for another meeting, which is accompanied by the Divine Liturgy, the most important service of the Orthodox Church.
All services are important. But the Divine Liturgy is the culmination of all services. And why? Because the Lord Himself descends to us. As many holy fathers say: Heaven and Earth unite. But we unite with the Lord. The Body and Blood of Christ are transformed, and we unite with God here on Earth. Indeed, the Lord descends to us from heaven; the heavenly Lord unites us, earthly ones, with Himself. Therefore, each of us, uniting with God, first and foremost asks the Lord for forgiveness, that the Lord would forgive our sins and bless us for the work we do in our lives.
Sometimes we say: the Lord has appointed me to obedience to the Church. The same applies to any position, even a secular one, for without God’s will nothing happens to a person. Therefore, may God grant us to continue to fulfill our obedience on Earth, so that the Lord may grant us heaven.
I am very glad to share the joy of today’s meeting, and I hope that the Lord will grant it, and that it will not be the last.
And, of course, I would like to offer a special congratulation to Father John—today we are appointing him rector of this church; he will be a full-fledged rector of this parish. He speaks Russian perfectly, knows his native language, and English, and is worthy of leading the rectorship here in the capital. And I have great hopes for Father John that the community here will develop, strengthen, and grow, and, of course, further expand with the building and the church structure. We hope that by God’s grace we will build a church here—not just a prayer house where we hold services, but a truly architectural church.
And, of course, I would like to conclude my remarks with today’s epistle, which speaks of loving one another as we love ourselves. This is the foundation of the Christian life. “Love the Lord your God with all your soul, with all your being, and your neighbor as yourself.”
This is difficult and not always successful, because each of us loves ourselves more than anyone else, and this is how humans are physically structured, but we must still strive. We have living examples of the holy saints who dedicated their lives to others, not themselves, serving only their neighbors. Let us follow their example and strive, for the Lord says: “I will not reject anyone who comes to Me and touches Me.”
Let us strive to ensure that the Lord does not reject each of us from His abode. Once again, I thank everyone for your common prayers. I am glad to meet today and share the joy of the liturgical service!”
