What is in store for me after death? Either eternal life or eternal damnation. This is a serious thing. The Word of God says: “It is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment.” (Heb 9:27)

If someone is summoned to appear before a judge in court, one trembles with fear. We all shall stand before the judgment seat of God, but we fail to cover evil done by us. What would a person carrying drugs do if he knew that he will be shot to death if the drugs are discovered? He would quickly get rid of them, throw them away.

+ Elijah
Patriarch of the Byzantine Catholic Patriarchate

Life is really very short and then comes eternity! The devil, the world and the old self try to keep us in dullness, sleep and pointless efforts lest we should pray, humble ourselves, encourage one another or earnestly seek the kingdom of God first. And therefore, let us deny ourselves and give the first place to Jesus and His will every day!

+ Elijah
Patriarch of the Byzantine Catholic Patriarchate

7 December 2015

To President and Government

of the Russian Federation

The current political system of USA has a spirit of neofascism. Its agenda is reduction of mankind to a “golden billion”. Unless Russia builds a political system on the foundation of uncompromisingly opposing principles, it will be globalized.

The contemporary Orthodox hierarchy secretly promotes the NWO globalization ideology through interreligious ecumenism. Therefore, the political system in Russia must set an essential condition for the Orthodox Church and demand that Patriarch Kirill should break with the globalization line of the West even at the cost of resigning from office. Only then can the Orthodox Church become, just like in the past centuries of Russian history, a unifying ideological force in the ongoing spiritual and national struggle.

+ Elijah
Patriarch of the Byzantine Catholic Patriarchate

“If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you;

for it is better for you that one of your members perish,

than for your whole body to be cast into hell.”

Jesus speaks here about temptations and about the way of fighting them. The major battlefield is our mind. The devil attacks our mind through temptations more than anything else. This fight is relentless and does not stop as long as we are alive. You cannot allow thoughts to cross your mind as they like. We are accountable to God for every thought that crosses our mind, so we need to stop it and carefully check if this thought is obedient to Christ. We learn from the Scripture as well as from the experience of the saints that whatever communication between human and demonic powers takes place in the human mind. Every demonic temptation which seduces man is targeted on the human mind. The enemy also exploits the human body in order to win man over to his side and to win his approval. Therefore, at every moment of his tempting the enemy develops a certain thought, e.g. he arouses envy, anger or hatred.

None of us will be here after one hundred years. We all will be in a cemetery, a pile of bones and dust. However, our soul is immortal, and it will be either in hell or in heaven. Purgatory is only a temporary state. The forces which try to drag us to hell are: 1) our pride and disordered passions, 2) the world and its system of lies, and 3) the spirit of lies – a liar and murderer. The three of them have one task: to get us to hell. So we must radically and uncompromisingly stand in the light, expose these three enemies and their destructive plan and declare war on them. We cannot serve two masters. We will either love the one and hate the other, or vice versa. We cannot serve both God and a demon (mammon or other idols). We must say a definite “yes” to God and a definite “no” to the enemy. Eternal life, and not only ours, is at stake. The eternity of people around us depends on us.

+ Elijah
Patriarch of the Byzantine Catholic Patriarchate

We should live in the presence of God so that we may do the will of God, decide, speak and act not on our own

but in dependence on God. The condition for us to abide and walk in God is our practical faith. We should really walk in faith like Abraham and revive our faith again and again in all trials. Therefore, no expression of a living faith is in vain or without response.

+ Elijah
Patriarch of the Byzantine Catholic Patriarchate

+ Elijah
Patriarch of the Byzantine Catholic Patriarchate

“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’

But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman lustfully

has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”

Original sin, which consists in revolt against God and His commandments, has deeply wounded all spheres of human life. In terms of carnality, this wounded nature becomes manifest in sinful lusts which affected Adam and Eve immediately after the fall (Gen 3:7). Therefore, God laid down the sixth and ninth commandments to prevent the infection of the sin of impurity.

In these words spoken in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus points out the root of adultery. He says that one can commit adultery not only physically but in one’s heart too if one unites oneself to a lustful thought. In such case, the instrument of sin is an impure look and the place of sin is the human heart – a lustful, impure mind.

Why do scientists reject belief in God? A certain scientist said: “If you are a believer and you are really a good scientist, science will bring you to even greater knowledge of God.” If someone is an atheist, it is because he refuses to acknowledge an intelligent and wise Being higher than himself to Whom he ought to give an account of his life. In other words, it is intellectual pride, which is, in fact, demonic pride. Similarly, the angels who became demons had refused to submit to the authority of God who created them. They wanted to be as God: “I am God and acknowledge no higher authority than myself.” Only hardened people refuse to know God, to bow before Him, to turn to Him and to give Him the first place in their lives, because they do not want to be dependent on Him.