His Grace Bishop Ioan Casian: "It is the Christian faith

that transforms our lives, and this must happen with us today too"

On the second Sunday after Pentecost, of the Romanian Saints, His Grace Bishop Ioan Casian was present among the faithful of St. Stephen the Great and St. Nektarios Parish in Oshawa, Ontario, fulfilling the series of events organized by this parish and dedicated to the feast of St. Stephen the Great.

The priests present were: Fr. Petre Busuioc, parish priest and administrative vicar of the Diocese, Hieromonk Ștefan Nuțesc, abbot of the Annunciation Hermitage - Lacu in Mount Athos, Protos. Cosma Giosanu, abbot of St. Neagoe Basarab Hermitage (Argeș) and Hieromonk David Gălbează from the Annunciation Hermitage - Lacu.

In the sermon delivered at the end of the Holy Liturgy, HG Bishop Ioan Casian emphasized some of the important aspects contained in the evangelical pericope read:

"The Gospel we heard today depicts Christ the Savior in His mission in the Holy Land on the shores of the Sea of ​​Galilee where He sees four fishermen - Peter, Andrew, Jacob and John - who were taking care of their nets. The Savior invites them to follow Him to make them fishermen of people, thus catching in the nets of faith those who hear and obey the word of God.

It is the faith that Christ gave us and speaks about what transforms everything. Through it, man sees his personal life and the world around him from a different perspective. It is faith that makes us see these things from the perspective of God, that is, of the Creator.

When we have faith, we know that the bread and wine we bring to Church are changed, during the Holy Liturgy, into the Body and Blood of Christ in which have participation to eternal life. When there is no faith, we cannot access the deep meaning of everything that happens in the Church, especially in the Holy Liturgy, which makes the Kingdom of Heaven felt here on earth and which, at the same time, anticipates its fullness which will be at the end of the ages.

It is the Christian faith that transforms our lives, and this must also happen with us today. A man of faith understands very well that the bread and wine (along with the commemoration list on which we write all those we carry in our hearts and want to be remembered before God) that are brought as a gift to the Holy Altar, are not only material means to satisfy the body, but they are gifts that are given back to us in the form of Holy Communion. The material elements through the grace of God, our prayer and faith acquire a spiritual, mystical, mysterious dimension."

Referring to some of the Holy Fathers who interpreted this pericope, the hierarch noted:

"St. John Chrysostom says, regarding this pericope, that we must follow the faith and obedience of the fishermen. Without faith in the divinity of Christ the Savior and in the truth of His words, the Apostles would not have seen in Him the Messiah, the Son of God, One of the Holy Trinity, a divine person who accomplish everything for our salvation.

St. Jerome says that the Apostles did not hesitate for a moment to give up their occupations, which represented the only source of income for their families, to follow Him. The Apostles saw in Christ the Savior more than a simple man. It is a free choice that the Apostles made - to follow the Savior Christ.

St. Nicholas Velimirovici wonders if it would not have been easier for the Savior to choose his Apostles from among the mighty of the world and order them to change the empire into a Christian empire. Sure, He would have had the power to do that, but he wonders if the results would have been the same. His answer is no, because the call of Christ the Savior is a free call, whose response must be free, to come from the conviction of the heart. Surely the whole work of Christianity would have disappeared as quickly as it came because it was not by conviction, but by an earthly effort or will, having a worldly authority.

Christ begins to preach to the simple people so that His entire work of evangelization happens from the root of humanity, of society, from the simple to the rich and learned."

Speaking about the current situation of Christians and the problems plaguing contemporary society, the hierarch stated:

"The Christian faith is what transforms our lives, and that must happen with us today as well. If today we say we are living difficult time, we must think of those who lived in the first 300 years of the Christian epoch, when Christians had no rights. Many of the privileges we have today, we Christians, we owe to those who lived 1700 years ago: Sunday as feast day (as a day of rest from worldly concerns, 321 AD) was a decision of the Emperor Constantine, and the way of calculating the date of Holy Easter were established at the first Ecumenical Council (325 AD). This means a truly Christian attitude that helped and continues to help the generations that followed.

If we look at the major conflicts of our time, but not only, what is our Christian attitude towards the many innocent victims (children and women) of them? This is a question we must answer. The early Christians and all the saints answered these questions with the means of their generation and times. If God allowed us to be born in these times, it means that we have a potential answer to this question or an attitude that we must assume to further help the generations after us. That's why we have in the calendars so many saints. They are people who set different examples: some sanctified themselves by silence, others by composing hymns and songs, others by being unmercenary doctors and healers, etc. Each of them can inspire us to become the saints of our day. We may not be the greatest preachers or healers, but we can be benefactors, donors, compassionate, merciful in listening to the suffering of the helpless, the lonely, distressed and in need. It is a small effort on our part, but a great act of mercy. This is truly a Christian attitude.

Prayer must also be accompanied by good deeds. Faith is also seen in what we do. A person does not have to talk about himself and his faith, but it is enough for us to look at what is happening around him and with himself to know very well who he is. The facts and things that happen around us speak about us and our identity. We must come out of ourselves and turn to others. The invitation ‘Let us depart in peace!’ at the end of the Holy Liturgy is addressed to each of you in the church and to us as clergy, to go out into society, beyond the doors of the Church, and talk about what we have experienced and felt here as a mystery of God and let's try to do there the good deeds to which the Gospel exhorts us."

At the end of the religious service, HG Bishop Ioan Casian granted Rev. Administrative Vicar Petre Busuioc the rank of Iconom Stavrofor, in recognition of his work and effort in the Romanian Orthodox Church in Canada, being the founder of several parishes of the Diocese: All Saints - Toronto, St. Dimitrios the Myrrh-Bearing - Richmond Hill, St. Andrew the Apostle - Mississauga, Exaltation of the Holy Cross and St. Ephrem the New Monastery - Mono, St. Stephen the Great and St. Nektarios - Oshawa as well as the initiator of several projects within the Diocese (harmonization of priests' salaries, priests' health insurance, pension plan for priests).

Next, HG Bishop Ioan Casian awarded the Diploma of Merit and the Honorary Medal of the Diocese to Presbytera Alina Ioana Busuioc for her sacrificial activity within the parish projects. This was followed by the awarding of several diplomas of merit and honorary medals to some of the people actively involved in the life of the parish, including the youngest members, who are present in the Church every Sunday, singing and saying prayers.

At the end, Fr. Petre Busuioc thanked everyone present for all the help given over time to support the Church and illustrated, in a few words, the beauty of monastic life and the joy of serving together with the monastics.

The day ended with a fraternal agape organized with care and dedication by Prezbytera Alina Busuioc together with the Ladies' Committee of the parish, agape in which all those present participated.

(notes by Nun Ana)