About His Beatitude

His Beatitude Onuphry. Photo: Facebook page of Bishop Victor (Kotsaba)

On the St. Patron's Feast of His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry a line from the Scripture comes to mind: " Such a high priest truly meets our need—one who is holy, blameless, pure, set apart from sinners, exalted above the heavens" (Hebrew 7, 26).” We often read and often tell people in sermons that the priest, especially the bishop is the image of God, a man who should reveal Christ to people, his flock. Reveal in oneself. But it does not often happen to see it personally. 

In Beatitide Onuphry, we see this. He is a true shepherd, a true worker in the cause of Christ. Besides, he is a true monk, and any praise for a monk must sound with great caution. But “out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks ", therefore, we say that God through him revealed great mercy to us, sinners, to all faithful children of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, because in our difficult times He gave us a wise shepherd, a humble man of prayer, a father and mentor. 

The life of St. Anthony the Great tells us a moral story, when the elders-hermits gathered before him and began to argue which virtue best leads to perfection. And after a long talk, all agreed with the Monk Anthony that this virtue is spiritual judgment. 

Let's remember what the Church has gone through in recent years. It is a bloody confrontation in the East of our country; it is a temptation to yield to the powers that be and join a divisive, so-called autocephaly; it is arson and seizure of temples; it is slander on the Church launched in the media. Today, the situation with the coronavirus and various quarantine requirements have also added to this. And in all these challenges, His Beatitude Metropolitan Onuphry revealed the true spiritual judgment that St. Anthony the Great spoke about. 

He inclined neither to the right nor to the left but led the Ukrainian Orthodox Church entrusted to him by God along His path. He revealed both spiritual steadfastness and comprehensive love. He revealed both wisdom and mercy. He revealed both pastoral care and true humbleness. In all his words and deeds, His Beatitude Onuphry is guided by the Spirit of God's Wisdom alone rather than worldly wisdom or worldly calculations. We can say that he applies a heavenly measure to worldly things. He does not seek his own will, but the will of God. And if the man can stand firm in this spirit, in this trust in God, he will be able to overcome all earthly difficulties and misfortunes. "If God is for us, who can be against us?"

On the namesake day of His Beatitude Onuphry, we would like to offer a prayer of gratitude to God, for He did not leave this lamp in a hidden place but put it " put it on its stand, so that those who come in may see the light" (Luke 11, 33). May God give our Primate many years of life for health and salvation. "Acquire the Spirit of Peace and a thousand souls around you will be saved," said St. Seraphim of Sarov. Let us save ourselves under the omophorion of our Beatitude Primate and render him sonly obedience. Let us learn from him humility and humbleness, wisdom and unshakable faith, steadfastness and love. "May God grant you many years, Most Holy Master!"

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