Set the Target on the Future

About Bishop St. Theophane the Recluse

About "old" and "new" calendar

August 17 (30)

2Cor. 1:12-20; Mt. 22:23-33

Speaking of the future life the Lord said that “in the resurrection they neither marry, nor are given in marriage, but are as the angels of God in heaven” [Mt. 22:30] — that is, our earthly relations and institutions will cease to exist. Arts, sciences, governments — everything will be gone. And what will be? God will be all in all [ICor. 15:28]. And since God is Spirit, has affinity with spirit and affects the spirit, the whole future life will be a continual flow of spiritual phenomena.

And because the future life is our ultimate goal, and present life is just a preparation to it, hence follows the conclusion: spending our earthly life exclusively on the earthly matters which are useless in the future life is contrary to human destiny. Moreover, such attitude means preparing for ourselves a very bitter lot in the age to come.

It does not mean that we ought to just drop every earthly concern; no, but we have to, while working as necessary for the present, set our target on getting ready for the future, striving, as much as possible, to use even the lowliest earthly cares as the means to the same end.

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