May 2014

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ:

Christ is Risen!

Thrills come and go. Happiness does not. The Source of our joy has promised to be with us always. It is for us to begin to be mindful that it is we who forget God. God does not forget us.

And see how difficult it is to forget Him? He is everywhere. He fills all things. Hafiz, the marvelous Sufi poet, happened upon this same discovery and wrote about it.

Until now I had not known,
But henceforth will never forget,
The Beloved and each moment are one.
The Beloved and each moment are one.
Until Now I Had not Known.

Each breath we take and every beat of our hearts is the echo of God's omnipresence. So while we may not always be thrilled, we can always have the peace that passes understanding and the joy and happiness of knowing that He has already "endowed us with His kingdom which is to come." (The Divine Liturgy) That is the truth.

Christ is Risen!
+Fr. Antony Hughes