In this morning's epistle we hear a very poignant, yet extremely charged quote that each of us should commit to memory: "For the message of the Cross is foolishness to those perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God." (1st Corinthians 1:18)
During WWII, the Nazi's brutally killed over six million Jews. We refer to this sad event as the Holocaust, stemming from the Greek word, holokostous, meaning a "burnt offering or sacrifice." What most people the world over fail to realize is that during the seventy years of Bolshevik terror in Russia, twice that number – over twelve million Christians – were slaughtered by the Communists. Of those who died, well over 300,000 were priests (not counting bishops, deacons, monks, and nuns).
It is said that every priest who went before a Soviet tribunal was given a choice to renounce their faith and profession, but they each instead chose death – proving that what one is willing to die for reveals what is most valuable, important, and vital to that person. Therefore each sacrificed themselves' for Christ – the "Priceless Pearl" they believed in and labored for in their Priesthood.
At one [mock] trial, a priest is quoted as saying, "Let it be as it will be… Let them shoot me, I am not afraid. If I suffer at the hands of the Soviet authorities I will receive a reward from God: Paradise!"
This is why the Church is said to be built upon the blood and bones of the martyrs…for it is through such conviction of faith that proves to every new generation just how important and real God is. Therefore, each of those who perished, are not victims, but rather a sacrificial offering well-pleasing to God...saved by the power of the Cross.
Fr. John
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