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19 Грудня, 2010

+ СІХ!

Дорогі радіо слухачі!

Сьогодні в нас празничний обід з нагоди патрона нашої парохії св. Отця Миколая, архиєпископа мирликійського чудотворця.

Велике вшанування цього святого протягом багатьох століть є свідченням його надзвичайної святості та небесної слави. В нашому народі Миколай Чудотворець особливо почитаний. Немає церкви чи каплиці, де б не було його ікони. Його прославляють на морі і на суші, призивають у небезпеках.

Про його життя не знаємо багато. Він народився в місті Патарі. Побожні батьки дбайливо виховали свого сина в християнському дусі, а дядько, який був єпископом, дбав про його освіту. Після передчасної смерті батьків Миколай вирішив передати успадкований маєток на справи християнської любові. Саме тоді один патарський громадянин, втративши всі свої гроші, хотів пустити своїх дочок на злу дорогу. Щоби допомогти цій родині, Миколай підкинув потай до їхньої хати мішечок золота. Так він робив тричі. Дівчата скористали з тієї допомоги, і всі троє чесно вийшли заміж. Коли Миколай підкидав дарунок третій раз, батько дівчат побачив свого доброчинця, і так милосердне серце Миколая стало всім відоме .

Його вибрано на єпископа у Мирах (провінція Лікія) в Малій Азії. Він постійно ревно працював над спасінням своїх вірних, а також з любов’ю допомагав їм у всіх потребах, часто навіть чудесним способом.

На наші українські землі культ святого Миколая приходить разом із християнською вірою. У другій половині XI сторіччя в Києві, на могилі Аскольда, було збудовано церкву святого Миколая. У Києві під покровом святого Миколая був жіночий монастир, якого фондувала жінка князя Ізяслава Святославича (+ 1078). У цьому монастирі прийняла чернечий постриг мати святого Теодосія Печерського. На рідних землях в нас було багато церков на честь святого Миколая. До найдавніших з них належить церква святого Миколая у Львові, що походить з кінця XIII ст. Енциклопедія Українознавства про почитання святого Миколая в нашому народі так пише: "У численних народних переказах Миколай боронить людей від стихійного лиха; найбільше він опікується тими, хто перебуває у плаванні, тому чорноморські рибалки, виходячи на промисел, брали з собою образ Миколая... У давнину — святий Миколай також заступник перед небезпеками із степів. Пісні про святого Миколая належать до найдавніших зразків української поезії, серед них такі популярні, як "О хто, хто Миколая любить" (Т. 4, с. 1533).

З його ім’ям пов’язана давня традиція: дарувати дітям подарунки в навечір’я свята Миколая Чудотворця. Шкода лише, що цей гарний і повний глибокого значення звичай перетворився на карикатуру святого Миколая у вигляді відомого Санта Клауса. У теперішньому світі панує вже не закон безкорисного милосердя, а дух бізнесу, реклами, заробітку навіть на святих речах. Нам слід пояснювати своїм дітям, ким був цей святий, та звідки походить звичай дарувати подарунки в його день.

Святий Миколай у інших бачив самого Ісуса Христа, тому так швидко й жертвенно в кожній потребі поспішав на допомогу. У євангелії від Матея Христос говорить: (Мт 25, 40). “Істинно кажу вам: усе, що ви зробили одному з моїх найменших братів – ви мені зробили” Нехай для нас, так, як і для святого Миколая, ці слова будуть заохоченням, щоби постійно старатися творити добро.

Святий Миколай досконалий представник святої людини, яка слухає слово Боже і спішать сповняти його, і своїм прикладом притягнути інших і навчити як слід жити по Христу, не величаючи себе а радше щоб Христова любов поширилася на усіх. Церква посвятила святому Миколаю Мирликійському чудотворцеві крім сьогоднішнього дня ще й усі четверги продовж цілого року, разом зі святими апостолами.

Усім нам слід задуматися: що кожний і кожна з нас робить для свого ближнього? До якої міри ми стараємося наслідувати святого Миколая, і не тільки з нагоди його празника. Може ми більш подібні до багача що журився тільки собою і не думаючи, що і нам може бути сказано так як і йому: "Ще сьогодні душу твою зажадають від тебе, а те, що ти назбирав, кому буде."

Є багато тих, які потребують нашої допомоги. Багато бідних, хворих, осамітнених. Підійдім до них, подаймо руку на допомогу, скажім якесь тепле слове, що загріє холодне серце, затамує біль, принесе радість і волю до життя. Позвольмо Христові, щоб через нас прийшов іншим на допомогу, то і ми одержемо це, що і нам конче потрібне. Амінь.

+ Амінь. С.І.Х!

 (пісня)

My Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ!

During this time of Advent, we celebrate the feasts of Saints whose services to the Church are outstanding.  For example, the apostle St. Andrew, or St. John of Damascus, the great Syrian doctor, or St. Ambrose, Bishop of Milan.  But one could say that none of the saints of Advent hold as high a place in popular devotion as does St. Nicholas.  Even today, St. Nicholas Ukrainian Catholic Parish here in Buffalo joyously celebrates its feast day.  For among the various feasts of the Saints whose memory we commemorate during the Church Year, St. Nicholas merits special consideration.  The Church itself surrounds his feast with a special solemnity.  And meanwhile, we know almost nothing about him.  The incidents of his life for which he is best known do not belong to history but rather to legend.  The legends attached to the name of Nicholas always represent him as engaged in bringing help to some urgent case of human distress.  This ‘saintly life’ which cannot pretend to be historical expresses an ideal of charity.  However, this legend, this veneration, this figure for children and adults alike, has great spiritual meaning as well.  A large number of miracles are attributed to St. Nicholas as well as striking acts of charity.  He is credited with many miraculous legends and wondrous stories. 

St. Nicholas is a living symbol of our Saviors love and mercy toward mankind.  From the earliest times our Holy Father, St. Nicholas, enjoyed great veneration and universal respect among our people.  Not a single home in our native land of Ukraine was without an icon of St. Nicholas, and his icon is almost always seen among the icons on the iconostases of our Churches.  Our people venerate him as though he were a native Saint.  Although many centuries have passed since his death, because of his works of charity and merciful generosity, he continues to live on in the hearts of millions of people.  Every year on his feast day, his love of neighbor continues to live symbolically throughout the world, as thousands upon thousands of children receive gifts in his name.  In the hymn of praise on his feast day we sing: “We praise you, O bishop of Christ, Nicholas, and we venerate your memory, for you pray for us to Christ our God”. The secret of his great and continuous following, among all the Christian nations, lies in the fact that he has become a symbol of sacrificial love, compassion, and mercy.  This is attested by the history of his popular devotion, our Church services, and the fervent veneration of his icons.

We do not know much about the life of St. Nicholas, and what we do know is somewhat embellished with various legends.  We know for certain that St. Nicholas was a bishop for many years in Myra, a city in Asia Minor.  That he took part in the first Ecumenical Council in 325 AD, and that he died around the year 345 AD.  His whole life was dedicated to works of mercy, both corporal and spiritual.  Even during his life, he was called the father of orphans, widows, and the poor.  After his death, the Lord glorified him with the gift of working miracles, for which he received the title “great wonder-worker”.  His celebrated miracles were the chief reason for the rapid spread of devoted followers and faithful.  The legend of St. Nicholas came to our native Ukraine along with the Christian faith.  In the second half of the eleventh century, a Church was built in Kiev in honor of St. Nicholas.  The Church of St. Nicholas in Lviv, which dates back to the thirteenth century, is one of the oldest.  In a great number of traditions, St. Nicholas protects people from disasters caused by the elements; mostly he protects those who sail on the sea.  Hence, the Black Sea fishermen, when going out to fish, take the icon of St. Nicholas with them.  And songs about St. Nicholas are among the earliest examples of Ukrainian poetry.

Тhere are a great number of legends telling us about the life of this pious man who noticed whenever a human being was in distress and tried to help wherever he could.  He was a special friend of children and young people.  In the Cathedral Church of St. Sophia in Kiev, there is an icon of St. Nicholas, so called, “the Wet”.  This icon became famous in the eleventh century because of a special miracle.  A man with his wife and small son were returning from a feast day celebration, and were on their way to Kiev, traveling along the Dnipro River by boat.  Suddenly a storm broke out and the boy fell out of the boat into the Dnipro.  Several days later, they found him alive and healthy, but only wet, at the foot of this icon of St. Nicholas.  The icon received its name from this incident.  There are several other legends about St. Nicholas.  He once gave back to an elderly woman the full use of her crippled arm.  St. Nicholas once saved three generals who had unjustly been thrown into prison and were awaiting execution.  There is also a legend that the bishop of Myra helped a family with three daughters.  They were so poor that their father was about to sell them to a landlord to save them from starving to death.  Nicholas heard of their need and decided to help them.  He took three bags filled with gold and threw them through a window into their living room.

A rich and greedy merchant once traded in his heart to Satan for even more riches.  He received a heart of stone. But soon the merchant felt very lonely and abandoned.  Nicholas noticed the loneliness and desolation of the merchant and advised him to share his riches with the poor. The man followed this advice and eventually the heart of stone melted and became a living heart again.  There is also a legend that a pious couple used to celebrate the anniversary of St. Nicholas with special food and drinks.  They had become old and poor.  All they had left was a beautiful carpet.  But in the end the husband was to sell the carpet to provide for the meal.  Soon he found a buyer and so he went to get everything that was needed for the celebration.  When he got home he nearly fainted – for the beautiful and much loved carpet was back in its old place.  The buyer had taken it back to the wife.  Suddenly the couple recognized the buyer of the carpet – Bishop Nicholas.  One of the most beloved legends of St. Nicholas occurred when the town of Myra was in the grip of a cruel famine.  When a boat full of wheat that was headed for Rome entered the harbor of Myra the holy bishop asked the captain for grain. But the captain refused to hand it out.  St. Nicholas promised that not a single bit of wheat would be missing when the boat reached Rome.  The captain finally relented and the crew carried the wheat into the town of Myra to feed the starving people.  When the grain was later weighed in Rome, miraculously it was found that the correct amount of wheat had indeed reached the city.  The grain saved Myra and everybody was full of praise for St. Nicholas.

Our Holy Father, Nicholas, gives us beautiful examples of a living, active, and sacrificial love of God and neighbor.  His love for neighbor is universal, all embracing, and full of mercy - ready to assist in every necessity of body and soul.  St. Nicholas saw Christ in his neighbor and that is why he quickly responded and generously hastened to help him in every need.  The Holy Gospel says that at the Last Judgment the Lord will judge us by our works of love and mercy.  Christ assures us of this when He says: “Amen, I say to you, as long as you did for one of these, the least of my brethren, you did it for me” (Matthew 25:40).  Today, our Church joyously celebrated its feast day of St. Nicholas, the deanery choir sang the Divine Liturgy at noon, and then we all shared in a feast day celebration meal.  What a truly joyful preparation for Christmas as today’s feast brings with it a message of ‘practical Christianity’ and of hope in Divine goodness.  This holy season gives us the ideal opportunity to keep the spirit of St. Nicholas alive in our own hearts.  The birth of our Lord and Savior reminds us of all that we have to be thankful for, and St. Nicholas gives us the example we can surely follow of loving God and neighbor during these final days leading up to Christmas.  Christmas is about coming to the Church and being part of a wondrous celebration that has been remembered for over 2000 years.  It is about our salvation in the making, about a single star that steered the wise men, about a carpenter who took a wife that was filled with the Holy Spirit.  About a virgin birth, that would one day lead to a crucifixion - and all because the Lord was willing to humble Himself for you and for me.

My brothers and sisters, we need to give kindly to those in need; we need to be merciful to the sick and lonely, generous to the poor and lame, and forgiving of all our brothers and sisters.  For only then can we say that we have kept the spirit of St. Nicholas alive and the birth of the Christ child in our hearts, as we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!

A-me-N

(пісня)