Judgment Sunday (Meatfare Sunday)

The Reading is from Matthew 25:31-46

The Lord said, "When the Son of man comes in his glory and all the holy angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate them one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will place the sheep at his right hand, but the goats at the left. Then the king will say to those at his right hand, 'Come, O blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.' Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?' And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.' Then he will say to those at his left hand, 'Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.' Then they also will answer, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?' Then he will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it not to one of the least of these, you did it not to me.' And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life."

Beloved, this Gospel excerpt chronicles the time when our Lord informed us of His Glorious Coming-Again. At that time, we all have an appointment to see Him as He sits on His Glorious Throne. Will we be numbered among the sheep or the goats? How can we know? The answer is that we must follow His two Commands: 1. Give agape to God, and 2. Give agape to our brothers and sisters (neighbors). There was once a Monastery in which resided three monks, who were asked what they would be doing on the day the Lord Returned, if He should be be returning at Noon. The First monk said, "I would be found studying the word, and how I could be a better monk.". The second monk said, "If I knew my Lord was coming at Noon, I would be found in the Monastery Chapel performing a Liturgy to the Lord". The third monk said, "My brothers! I would not be found in either of those two places. I would be found in the kitchen peeling potatoes and preparing the Noon-time meal where in accordance to my duties, we should be found at that hour of the day". Which of these three monks do you believe would be numbered among the sheep? If we learn nothing more from this lesson than this truth: May the Lord find us busy with the work He assigned us at His Glorious Second Coming. Bear this in mind, at a time when you least expect it to happen, there will the Son of Man be coming in like manner as He left. Study the Holy Gospel to answer how the Lord Jesus shall return.

Genuine "Easter", properly termed, Holy Pascha of the Lord Jesus Christ is on Sunday, April 27, 2008. The R.C. Date for Holy Pascha (March 23, 2008) is incorrect because it comes before the Jewish Passover (Evening, Saturday April 19, 2008), and does not follow the formula set forth by the Ecclesiastical Councils.