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Sanctification of phiale at the Bigorski monastery ( 14.12.2008 )

"My Lord, You have filled the holy spring as if with rain, Healer of our souls and bodies, today in the most reverent temple of Theotokos, You cover the diseased with Your blessing and take away their disease." 

Every man who has ever thought about eternal life and his only care is the salvation of his soul, tries hard that every fortune he is given, here on earth, is benefitial for his soul and pleasing to God, since human soul is more valuable than anything else, more precious than all the risches this world has to offer. Contemplating about God and His endless love, man constantly feels that his Heavenly Father, generously and with great mercy, bestowes upon him many gifts, filled with fatherly care towards his beloved child, with only one pupose – to cure his soul and help him attain salvation. "

Everything coming from the Heavenly Father is given to us for our salvation and that’s the attitude we should have towards all the matherial things we have in possession. We shouldn’t be like the inconsiderate wealthy man, mentioned in the Gospel of the 26-th week after the Pentacost. This person, looking upon his barns already overfilled with goods, due to the rich harvest, intends to build even bigger barns, selfishly gather the goods only for his own joy, thinking that in this way he would please his soul too. But are the material things without God and the love towards Him, enough to make the soul happy and pleased?

Contemplating on this toppic, in his sermon, after the Holy Liturgy, the Metroplitan Timothy addressed the faithful that attended the service with these words: "All of you that come more often to this holy Bigorski monastery, eager to feed yourselves at the spiritual feast that Christ, our Saviour, has richly prepaired for his faithful children, should have in mind something very important. While coming here and taking Holy Communion, you should also try hard, living a life according the will of God and his commandments, to attain not only the material benefits, but also the most important thing for every human being – the Heavenly Kingdom, salvation of your souls and the eternal bliss with Christ. The purpose and meaning of all our efforts and intentions should be the attaining of eternal life in the Hevenly Kingdom, truth, justice, love, mercy and the everliving communion with God, our Heavenly Father... "

It’s the thurst for these Divine gifts, salvation of the soul and eternal joy in the Heavenly Kingdom that had inspired numerous noble benefactors of the Bigorski monastery, to build and enrich this sanctuary, making it a worthy reflection of the glory of God. Today, this monastery has obtained one more magnificent decoration, a small element taken from the rich Byzantine architecture, typical for all the bigger monasteries – a phiale for blessing water, thus placing our noble and merciful sponsor, Mr. Ljupcho Slavkoski, in the group of the famous benefactors of Bigorski. Grateful to God for His generous gifts, the brothers of this holy monastery, together with the numerous faithful that came from all over the country, approached the richly decorated phiale, walking in a lithany and carrying the miraculous icon of St. John the Forerunner. There Mitropolitan Timothy performed the act of sanctification. Nourished with heavenly grace, the faithful were also invited to a mutual lunch with the brothers.