SS. Peter and Paul 2020 Fr. Lawrence Margitich

In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the

Holy Spirit. Amen. I greet with the joy of the

feast of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul. Not

to give you a sermon, a homily, but a greeting.

Just a few words about our common joy and our

common fast that we've just gone through and

our common festival today with the whole Church.

We are completing the Apostles' Fast. Whenever

we come to the end of a course of a fast, we

remember it's a course. A course, like a class

is a course that we take. And we count up the

blessings at the end. We see that it was an opportunity

for us to deny ourselves, so we become... followers

of the apostles, followers of Christ, because

isn't that what the Lord said to them? Deny yourself,

take up the cross, follow me. It's a simple way.

It's just food. It's just time, which is all

we have is time, really. And some effort from

our heart, and some resistance that we meet,

because if you recall, when the Lord said to

the apostle Peter, about the Son of Man is going

to be arrested and crucified. What did Peter

say? This great man that we exalt today with

his partner, which they weren't always on good

terms. What did Peter say? Oh, Lord, this can't

happen. So the resistance to the cross is something

we encounter right away when we... Enter into

the fast. But now we complete the fast, and we

see that as we move forward, God's blessings

were given to us, and we were changed, little

by little. Christian life, people always say,

and it's true, it's not a sprint, it's a marathon.

Every little bit helps. Every little opening

to our heart to let the light shine in, the light

of the face of Christ shining from God. We changed.

So we ended the fast, and now we should rejoice

in that. We should thank God for whatever gifts

he has given to us, which we may not understand

yet, but will be revealed in our everyday manner

of life, as the King James says in our conversation.

It doesn't mean our speech. It means the manner

of life. And we completed this fast in order

so that we could celebrate this feast day. It

has a special solemnity, a special joy, a special

brightness to it. That's why there's a fast before

Christmas. Christmas is magnificent in its message.

A fast before Pascha, a fast before Dormition,

etc. The brightness of this day is these two

luminaries, Peter and Paul. Paul is depicted

here. Peter is depicted here. The first thing

we have to think about them, for me, is that

they are our heroes and the saints. They're not

going to let us down. You're not going to hear

bad things about them that they didn't already

repent of and make known. Peter, how many times

was he clueless with Christ? No, you can't go

to the cross. And then when Jesus is talking

about avoid the leaven of the Pharisees, that

is the teaching that is corrupting people, Peter

thinks he's talking about bread, even though

Jesus had just fed 4 ,000 people a couple days

before. Peter steps out onto the water. He gets

brave in the sea there of Galilee in a storm,

and he loses his focus. And he sinks. Peter comes

against Paul. And Paul calls him on it. And tells

him he's a hypocrite. Paul, what can we say?

His faults are well known too, aren't they? A

Pharisee among the Pharisees. And he said, everything

I knew, I consider that refuse and dumb. Because

the righteousness he thought he was pursuing

was leading to doing evil acts, killing Christians,

rounding them up. And he was on the road to Damascus

to collect those Jewish Christians when he encountered

the Lord. And we heard this epistle today from

Corinthians to tell us what incredible labors

it is. That the apostles went through. Sounds

like, not just boot camp, but sounds like a training

for special forces. Shipwrecks. It turns out

he said three, but there was one after that.

Four. Beatings. 39 lashes each time. Being jailed.

Being betrayed. Hungry. Perils in the wilderness,

perils in the city. All of these difficulties

he did for what? For some cause? No. The word

apostle means sent. The one who is sent. The

one who is sent by God to give the good news

of the resurrection and the forgiveness of sins.

Whatever sins you forgive on earth, they are

forgiven. This is the best of news because we

are corrupted and weighed down and confused by

our sins and the apostles go to any length to

tell the good news of the resurrection and the

remission of sins. St. Paul teaches us, and we

heard it yesterday, that when we trust in God,

no matter what happens to us, the Lord... in

his love, will care for us. He will not abandon

us. What does he say? We heard this in Romans

yesterday. I glory in my tribulations. The difficulties.

Because tribulation produces character. And you

know the rest of that quote. Perseverance, faith,

and God will be proved constant and faithful

to us. And then today we hear him speak about

all these troubles he goes through and that he

is weak. He has a thorn in his flesh. God does

not take it away. You see the Christian life,

although it's complete trust in God, it's not.

Everything's wonderful. And my life has no problems.

It's that God is in the midst of our life throughout

all our difficulties. Think of what we have.

Brothers and sisters, think of this great gift

of peace and mercy. And St. Paul says over and

over and over again, glory. The glory that we

share. We come into this church, we share in

the glory of all the saints. We share in the

glory of the kingdom of heaven. We share in the

glory of receiving the body and blood of Christ.

And we leave with peace planted in our heart.

Not peace as an idea. Not peace as the lack of

conflict, but peace as Jesus Christ. This is

what we are given. St. Paul tells us over and

over again. And St. Peter, this man who was illiterate.

Don't confuse illiteracy with stupidity. He was

brilliant, and the Lord illumined him after he

came to repentance. I didn't even mention. His

betrayal. After he came to repentance and the

Lord said, feed my sheep. This is what he writes

to the Christians. You are a chosen generation.

A royal priesthood. A holy nation. He didn't

make that up. He got that from Exodus. He sees

Christ as the fulfillment of all of that. We

are his own special people. We've got anything.

But that we have been transformed in baptism

and changed. New creation. We are his own special

people that you may proclaim, proclaim, proclaim

the praises of him who called you out of darkness

into his marvelous light. That's our inheritance.

That light. We were once not a people. But now,

the people of God, who had not obtained mercy,

but now have obtained mercy. And he tells us

to be ready. It doesn't matter how long the Lord

takes. The end of all things is at hand. Believe

it. Therefore, be serious and watchful in your

prayers. And above all things, have fervent love

for one another. You can have all kinds of ideas,

all kinds of political, social, religious opinions,

but if you don't have love, you don't have God.

Above all things, above all things have favorite

love for one another, for love will cover a multitude

of sins. Be hospitable to one another without

grumbling. See, that was in Martha and Mary,

that was Mary's problem. She grumbled. As each

one has received a gift, minister it to one another

as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.

If anyone speaks, let him speak as the oracles

of God. If anyone ministers, let him do it with

the ability which God supplies, that in all things

God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to

whom belong the glory and the dominion forever

and ever. The Lord has given us such wonderful

gifts. Let us be like the apostles. Let the word

which God sent dwell in our hearts. Let that

word transform us. We change. We go from earthbound

beings to eternal beings. We go from those troubled

and weighed down by this world to those who carry

that trouble as a cross and are transformed by

it because God's grace is present. We have the

apostles as our models, but we also have them

as our heavenly intercessors. To the Lord, who

makes apostles and disciples of all who come

to him, be glory and honor now and ever and for

ages of ages. Amen.