Our Christian faith is communal in nature, and requires us to be actively involved with others. We come together in worship, and the Divine Liturgy itself is a corporate act, one that necessitates interaction with others. We are not "saved" in a vacuum, but as part of the corporal life of the Church.
Your salvation must be as much a concern to me as is my own salvation, for my relationship with Christ is not about me, but about us. My sins are not just against God, but against you, for we are all part of the Body of Christ, which is the Church.
Our love of God cannot be salvific if we do not love others, for just as the Lord said, "If someone says, 'I love God,' and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen? (1 John 4:20)".
When we isolate ourselves from others, the essential nature of what it means to be human is lost. It is thus imperative that we guard against the temptation of spending too much time in front of the computer, and too little time with others. Mobile phones, text messaging, ipods, communication through email, and countless hours on facebook, leads to the furtherance of an isolation that is murdering the soul.
As humans, we are meant to be together, for it is in our lives together that we grow in mind and spirit. It is in community that we learn to love God. For friendships to be limited to on-line chat rooms is a tragedy of major proportions, one that will ultimately be the ruin of society.
With love in Christ,
Abbot Tryphon
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