On what's lacking
From Fr. Stephen's blog post, where he wrote about attending the consecration of Archimandrite Jonah Paffhausen as Bishop of Ft. Worth and Auxillary Bishop to Archbishop Dmitri of the OCA's Diocese of the South:Yet again, yesterday, I heard three times this phrase describing the Holy Spirit who “completes that which is lacking.” It is part of the words used in every ordination in the Orthodox Church. There is a recognition that as St. Paul said, “We have these treasures in earthen vessels, that the excellency might be of Christ.”
The joy of ordination is watching a candidate present himself, in all humility, realizing that he cannot be sufficient and that God alone can do this work in him. I recall the day that I was ordained deacon in the Orthodox Church in which I prayed quietly, “I hope that this day I am the dumbest deacon in Orthodoxy,” mostly because given the poverty of my knowledge, I could only hope no one else was as lacking. But the Holy Spirit completes that which is lacking - and does it in His own way.
While the teaching is nothing new, what I really appreciated in his post was this sentiment: "I hope that this day I am the dumbest deacon in Orthodoxy." I think he is not alone, and that this is, in fact, an integral part of the Christian experience. For to be honest, we must all eventually reach that place that St. Paul wrote of and say, "I am the chief of all sinners." We are all totally dependent on the Holy Spirit to complete that which is lacking in us. There is no salvation otherwise.
And, rather than leading us to despair, the Fathers of the Church tell us that this brings to us an ever-deeper appreciation for the intimate love of Christ Jesus, who while we were yet sinners died for us. This is how we do as St. Silouan admonished when he said "keep your mind in hell, and despair not."
The joy of ordination is watching a candidate present himself, in all humility, realizing that he cannot be sufficient and that God alone can do this work in him. I recall the day that I was ordained deacon in the Orthodox Church in which I prayed quietly, “I hope that this day I am the dumbest deacon in Orthodoxy,” mostly because given the poverty of my knowledge, I could only hope no one else was as lacking. But the Holy Spirit completes that which is lacking - and does it in His own way.
While the teaching is nothing new, what I really appreciated in his post was this sentiment: "I hope that this day I am the dumbest deacon in Orthodoxy." I think he is not alone, and that this is, in fact, an integral part of the Christian experience. For to be honest, we must all eventually reach that place that St. Paul wrote of and say, "I am the chief of all sinners." We are all totally dependent on the Holy Spirit to complete that which is lacking in us. There is no salvation otherwise.
And, rather than leading us to despair, the Fathers of the Church tell us that this brings to us an ever-deeper appreciation for the intimate love of Christ Jesus, who while we were yet sinners died for us. This is how we do as St. Silouan admonished when he said "keep your mind in hell, and despair not."