Protopresbyter Themistoklis Mourtzanos
One of the most common charges leveled against the faith is that it isn’t interested in people’s material needs. This is why those who speak publicly about the Church urge it to give to the poor, to perform social work and to hand over its remaining wealth to the needy. Others deem that monasteries serve no useful purpose and that, instead of praying, the monks and nuns should return to the outside world and become battalions of social workers and volunteers. Yet others, who are less categorical, think that the Church needs to show understanding to those who are struggling to make ends meet, should be lenient towards those who don’t go to church and shouldn’t burden them with excessive fasts and moral demands, but should let them enjoy life a little.
At the divine liturgy, at the time of the cherubic hymn, we sing: ‘Let us now lay aside every care of this life’. In other words, the Church urges us to leave to one side every…
