Leave behind all darkness and hold on to the light
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- Опубліковано 10 лип 2024
- This year has been a Cross for many of us. It has cost us suffering, the loss of people we love, the separation from them while they suffered - this year WAS a Cross. But, like all Crosses accepted with love and humility, this one will lead us to the Resurrection. We have learnt to see each other and the world in a new light. We have seen light and darkness more clearly than ever before. This year has put a light over the world and all that was hidden in it (and in us) - the light, as well as the darkness - have been made visible by this light. Let us leave behind the darkness of this year and hold on to the light of the Resurrection which is ahead of us.
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The video 'GOOD BYE, 2020! LEAVING BEHIND A PAINFUL, BUT BLESSED YEAR.' was recorded by Fr Seraphim Aldea, at Mull Monastery (The Orthodox Monastery of All Celtic Saints), on the Isle of Mull.
The MullMonastry is a blessing for the entire world.May our good Lord has His gracious providence and His presence always with it.
Thank you Father Seraphim for graciously coming into our homes this evening. You bring the light of God into
hearts of our poverty, loneliness, humility, faith and love, your reflection of Jesus birth on earth🙏🎄✨🌠
May God bless and keep you and your Mull Monastery Amen🇺🇸🌟🐫🇭🇺🎄
This year has been heavy. I’m still feeling the heaviness of it. One of the positive effects however is the connection I felt with God. I currently live in Palestine, 20 kilometers from Jerusalem so I have felt the Holy Spirit, and that alone is a blessing. Prayers to you all brothers and sisters. May we step into 2021 with miracles from our Lord ❤️🙏🏼✝️
I wish I could hear your story. ☺️
🙏❤️
Everything about you father is real ! Sending my love to Mull Monastery and our brothers and sisters in Christ.
From Buenos Aires Argentina. Sorry my english is not good. For me your messages has been very important for my spiritual life. God bless you!
This year has been horrible yet still a huge blessing because much darkness has been exposed in every sense and form. Also, many, MANY have come to Christ Jesus in a very real way including myself who had no idea how blind and lost i was. Anything that brings us closer to God is a blessing. I will always see this year as a blessing and thank the Lord for refining me in particular. Blessings and love in Christ Jesus to you all Amen
I feel the same. So true. God bless you. Amen.
Thank you for staying at our side, much love from Argentina!
Amen...
Every time you bestow your blessing upon us, it moves me to tears! God Bless YOU - and may your 2021 be blessed beyond all your wishes and dreams!
God bless you Father. Thank you. The end of 2020 felt glorious because God held us through it all. Feel grateful for the Lord’s mercy & appreciate the suffering too as it led to turning to God at every turn. The Lord created the peace, our wellness and protection during a harrowing year for my family. There were nights it felt as if it could all break...but his light never stopped shining. Praise be Jesus Christ, who is Lord.
Father you literally are the only face I trust in this world. I pray for you. I can't be the only lost soul out here who feels this way.
When someone talks out of love and experience then words aim directly to the heart. And that is the reason why I thank you and wish God gives you the humility and strength to continue.
So true!
Each dear soul is precious to Lord Jesus's Kingdom. I am seriously thankful to you Father Seraphim for these weekly chats. My Cat Arthur stays nearby and is attentive too! He sits often during Holy Mass. I am sad you lost the Bishop this year and I hope we remember him in our prayers. May you be blessed and healed from all pain as we look up to you as a source of holy guidance and brotherly graciousness.
I have not been to church this year since March, but you have helped to keep and nurture my faith. I have prayed more and read my Bible. This has given me strength and has brought me nearer to God, the Father of us all. Bless you and all of us who are following your wisdom through the Holy Spirit.
God bless you, too, Father. I have been with you from the beginning of this COVID era. I hope to hear your messages the coming year. Yes, “waste in the name of love,” as you said. I hope I can be a “silly child” and not that selfish one who has not learned to share. I hope to see that tree in the background burst into life next year.
I always enjoy your comments, Matthew.
I was searching for the Truth in a place of darkness and sorrow.
What devastating Beauty!
An empty tomb.
♥️
Thank you. For being a man of God and sharing your faith with us. It means more then I can say in words.
Bless you.
Thank you Father for being here this year. Your videos would cheer me up and help me collect myself and keep going in very low points. This year l found my soulmate even though lockdowns kept us separated and we both decided to start our journey towards becoming Orthodox Christians despite our families being against it. I learn a lot from you. Pray for us, although l know you already do. I will pray for you too. I would love to visit one day.
Prayers for your journey into orthodoxy! 🙏
Thank you Father Seraphim for your teachings, love and encouragement. You have become such an important part of my spiritual life, and I am so grateful. Love to all of the brothers and sisters who have found a home in the Mull Monestary. I will pray for all of you.
Jeannie
Happy new year, Father. I am grateful to have begun my life in Orthodoxy on earnest this year. It has been a great comfort in the midst of so much chaos and uncertainty. I pray God continues to bless you and your mission.
God is Love - Lord Jesus is Alive ... Praying for us all today as yesterday ... Love one-another through the same heartfelt truths - God have mercy
Lord, graciously hear us! Thank you, brother!
Thank you again Father for a wonderful message. These talks have been a great experience for me and I am so thankful for having been brought to your channel. That I have received more in spiritual guidance and support from over 3000 miles away and on the internet than I have locally is beyond me but I am grateful for all you do here on this channel and the spiritual growth you have brought. God Bless you.
THANK YOU dear father for ending the year with us!! I look back and can only say that it is the Lord who has brought us all together. A year ago at this time I had never heard of Mull Monastery. So grateful and praying for you always. I am a student studying medicine but look to visit you all once I graduate!
Your last video spoke so much to my heart, I have been STRUGGLING with my medical classes, i've never been a particular good student, I don't know why I decided to take on medicine. I struggle and at times I fail, I am one of the lowest ranking in my classes, BUT I keep going, like you said, at the end, it won't matter what everyone else was doing. I’m nearly there only another 4 months and I get my white coat, please keep me in your prayers, I hope to work with the poor when I finish, we will see where God send me!
GOD Bless & great luck on your life's journey. Keep going forward & do amazing good in the world with helping to heal & ease pain. God never gives up on you & neither did you give up on yourself. I don't know you, but I'm proud of you for sticking to your studies, regardless of the difficulties. Bravo, you're going to help alot of folks & God is always there to help you. :)
Like Azzad said, I am proud of you too. What an incredible undertaking. My prayer is with you.
I tell my wife you are the monastic of love. May God bless you and your family keep up the good work. 👉✝
What an amazing way to be known.
Thank you Father!
It gives peace to our souls and our bodies to hear you speak, and to be part of your prayers.
I found this channel 3 days ago but it's already my new favourite. Learned a lot from your videos. Thank you for making them and have a great new year!
Welcome!
Praise be Jesus, now and forever! It's so good to see you again Fr Seraphim!
That tree is waiting for the warm weather to sprout it's buds...May all who read this have so much patience.
Thank you, Father, and thank you to the brothers and sisters as well, for your prayers for all of us. These videos have been a very bright companion in these unique times.
Since finding you here, I want to be part of this way of being. Thank you so much for everything you are doing. Blessings from Greece.
Wishing all of your brothers and sisters at the Mull Monastery a very healthy and happy New Year ahead. I love your wonderful videos. 2020 has provided me with some difficulties, however, I have returned to Jesus and feel so blessed. God bless you all who frequent this channel. There are so many amazing people who have made some beautiful comments on your channel. It feels like a real community. God bless you all.
Christ is Born! Glorify Him! Thank you for sharing this year. Father your wisdom and humbleness is very warming to my heart. May God bless you and our brothers and sisters in Christ at Mull and around the world. Please God 2021 will be a better year.
Thank you Father God bless you always
You are so right Father, speaking for myself and I'm sure others too, their is a real closeness and connection between us. I can't wait till i see that your videos are posted. Your teachings have been a genuine blessing for me this year. I like many have faced difficult challenges this yea,r but with the help of my Faith i know all will be fine. I am 61 and have been a pilgrim searching for answers my entire adult life. So happy to say that I have found my home in the Orthodox Church. I pray for you and your Brothers and Sisters and everyone around this world that Peace, Love, Compassion, Understanding and Forgiveness will fill our hearts. God Bless. Christ is born
I am grateful ,in a certain way, for this year 2020 , so suffered ,so sad for all those persons whom are not here anymore. So suffered for me ... psicospiritually . This year had teach me a lot...has been as a terrible as a precious lesson .
Despite all I and You all ,we are here ! We are alive ,and I put my attention at this reality. It is the will of God ,the love of his will. And I think that all have a sense in my life and in this world.
With this big light ,this hope, that arrive from the heart of Jesus and his Father and through the Holy Spirit , I wish you an unforgettable , beautiful, peaceful year of joy in your hearts . God bless you dear Padre Seraphim and all monastery. And all of who read ...❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️🙏
Thank you brother.
Amen! Amen! Amen! Thank you once again! And thank you for everything you have given us this year! Praise be to God!
Thank you father for guiding me through the right path. You are very wonderful and may God bless you and the world. To those reading this comment may God bless you and your family. ❤🙏
May God bless you too, Peter ☺️
@@rainastor4789 thank you so much.
ΚΥΡΙΕ ΙΗΣΟΎ ΧΡΙΣΤΕ
Ο ΘΕΟΣ ΕΛΈΗΣΟΝ ΗΜΆΣ
ΑΜΗΝ
May God Bless You all..
Thank You
By the grace of God this beautiful, dear soul came into my life today. I nearly didn't listen. I nearly turned away. I'm so glad I didn't. What a blessed gifting. Thank you Fr. Seraphim 🙏
Another wonderful message, Fr Seraphim. 2020 has been a difficult year, but it has brought me closer to God and deepened my relationship with Him. May you & your monastery be abundantly blessed.
Thank you 🙏🏼 for your beautiful message. God bless 😇🙏🏼😇
Beloved Father Seraphim. Happy Name day. I love you very much and wish Gods blessings and love to you in everyday of your life, through the intercession of your Saint Fr Sephraim of Sarov.
Thank you, Father Seraphim, for your beautiful words today. I especially need your words about “giving away the gifts God has given me”.
This has been my favorite year. Like what a time to be alive. I'm grateful to God for His faith in me to handle this suffering. My faith has certainly been tested and increased.
Thank you Father for your time in these podcasts. Since I can't visit monastaries right now it has been a blessing to at least visit your podcasts. Sharing your struggles as a monk has been the most helpful thing for me because it makes me not feel alone in my struggles in the world.
Thank you, Father, for the nurture and engaging with UA-cam as a tool to reach us in our homes around the world. Your words moved me to tears many times this year or expressed things my heart was still struggling to articulate, by the mercy of the Holy Spirit. Thanks to the monastery community for the daily prayers and being a bastion. It is good, especially in this year, to know there are places where the world does not interfere with the work of worshipping and thanking God and engaging the spiritual life/warfare, then sharing that wealth with us. May your prayers for us and the world lead to joy, healing, and salvation.
“There are parts of us which have died with those we have lost”.... what an eloquent way to describe the depth of the sorrow this year, and yet there is hope and joy, as you pointed out. When my heart feels like it can’t breathe I often come here to pray for people who have left comments. For myself, it seems that to be among Christians is the loneliest place on earth, because they simply don’t perceive outsiders as being real or relevant or necessary. As a perpetual outsider in Christian places the only way I know how to cope is to pray for the people here and not let them be an outsider to me. Between God and I we hold them. So like so many have said, this year is a strange year of crosses and loss and death and growth and a golden joy that threads through it all because HE is so near and so felt and I am His. And you are His and we are His.
🙏❤️🌟
Dear Fr.Seraphim, what I see is a beautiful nature beside you with tranquility & peace. I enjoyed your video watching this background & it gives hope. God is beautiful & the people he created including you 😊. Happy 2021 🥰❤️🥂
Gracias. Habla usted desde el corazón, desde la experiencia, y se ve que ama a la Humanidad. Siga rezando por todas las personas. También para usted y su monasterio llegue y permanezca la Paz y el Bien, la sencillez y el corazón ardiente.
I have no words to express my love and appreciation for you. We hope to visit you one day, as God wills. ♥️☦️
Jesus Christ is born. Glorify Him.
Thank you for these messages.
May you be blessed, richly, during the coming year.
Amen Amen
Thank you so much Fr Seraphim. You and your community are in my heart.
Glorify HIM!!!
As tough as this year 2020 has been, on the other hand I have learned to appreciate the blessings of Almighty God
that much more, and I will always thank Almighty God for all of His benefits and all of His blessings past, present,
and future, especially for the gift of eternal life, made possible through the worthiness and finished work of His Son
our Lord Jesus Christ!!
Thank you for all your words, father Seraphim, but most of all for your faith. You did help me in my darkest moments to find the strength to go ahead with life. I wish you all the best for 2021, I wish you and everybody here watching this video hope, love, faith, health, happiness and most of all, a never-ending sense of humour :) Take care everyone, Happy New Year to all of you and stay healthy!
What a beautiful blessing you give us all! Amen.
@@rainastor4789 Amen, my friend 🙏🏻 take care!
Holding on to the light gives me comfort, joy and new beginnings.
I ♥️ the light it's when I'm my best.
Darkness is hopeless and empty and is not for anyone to be feeling.
Thank you and God bless you ☦️☦️☦️
Thank you Brother. The open door next to you that frames the view of headstones of the departed, naked trees stripped bare, but still very much alive, the eternity of nature & God , the impermanence of the body, & the keys hanging from the lock. The keys are your words & earnest intentions. The keys of humility, empathy, kindness,love, respect, & the warmth of a simple smile unlock hearts & encourage folks to be better to themselves & to others. I wish you and everyone else would not have had to experience covid, but I'm really Thankful that you survived & feel truly sorry for those who didn't & thier Families. Your gift for simplicity is grand,it's a reminder to reflect & avoid unnecessarily complex self absorbed lives. Thank you again Brother. Blessings & great health to you & to all those on the Isle. :) Hope to see you next year Brother. ÷)
You have such a way with words.
U must be artist 👩🎨
@@rainastor4789
Wow, Thank you Friend. Brother Seraphim is inspirational. I hope you & your Family have a Blessed & Safe New Year full of endless laughter & no worries. :)
God Bless you for your encouragement 🌟🙏🌟
Thank you for all your insights, as how to live our lives in virtue and righteousness
Thankful for Father's video's and the COMFORT they give us ALL. AMEN, AMEN, AMEN
Amen, Amen, Amen Good Bye and Hello again. We will need you dearly for this time ahead. If I could write a THANK YOU , as BIG as THE SKY , I would.
Never mind all that I could pour out, if I had words, for what you have done for me since the LORD let me find you and this beautiful channel that you, Father, and the precious saints with you there have given to us.
The LORD is magnified, Blessed be the Name of the LORD forever and forever. May you all be filled with all the fulness of God forever and forever.
Lord increase my love and all of us, just as you told us, For Christ's sake, Mrs. Hutchinson, (andrea)
Thank you for the encouragement of love and hope. Fr.
Thank you for your words of year-end encouragements. You have given hope to so many of us through this tumultuous year. Our prayers are with you. Christ is with US!
Thanks be to God. All Blessing you have given abundantly return! God has revealed Himself to us .
❤️❤️ and yet we are still here. Christ with us always.
I thank God for these videos. You have educated me, confirmed what I believe and after watching these videos I feel great. Please keep posting the videos. God bless you.
Thank you so much,I appreciate your webcast so far...I love you so much,I love all your brothers and all who pray for us and the world... Keep helping us understand God.God bless you.
I just discovered your channel and it’s what I’ve needed. “Simply and plainly!” yes!
Amen! Thank you for your words of encouragement.
🙏
Thank you.
Dear Father Seraphim- I am a bit shy and usually never write comments but I wanted to tell you how Important your messages have been to me. I live in rural Japan. I’m not Japanese- my spouse is. I have Jewish ancestry and I became a believer 30 years ago. Since then I’ve felt like I e been wandering around looking for the path of truth. I know Christ is who he said he was but the modern day church has been so disappointing to me. I have lived in several countries before we retired to my spouse’s hometown in Japan. Recently, with the terrible year we’ve had and everything seemed so dark on this planet, I’ve been feeling like I wanted to give up. Within this year I’ve also had a devastating experience with a Japanese church and that seemed to be the final blow. But.. a friend of mine who I met years ago thru blogging suddenly started sharing the Orthodox Church with me. She’s been orthodox for years. She lives in America. I started studying....she also sent me your channel. She supports you financially. Your messages here, together with my new studies, have been a life saver and I mean that in a literal sense. The Orthodox Church is in Japan but so far away from where we live that it’s not possible for me to attend. Your messages are really important!! I wanted you to know that you are even reaching into the poor farm country of rural Japan. Thank you so much. God bless you.
Father, I have found your videos a source of strength through this year when much of the time I was only able to see a few people and been unable to get to church (the last time I was in church was the Sunday of Orthodoxy). I have not lost the hope that next year will be better and possibly that the Church of the Twelve Apostles may find somewhere to meet so we can start having liturgies together.
I know well what you mean about pain which is denied by others being worse than pain which is recognised as I have an unusual medial condition which took nearly two years to be diagnosed and due to the pandemic I am still waiting for the definitive treatment (while constantly worrying if the drugs I am currently on will stop working leaving me unable to function). A little more love and compassion would go a long way all of the time.
Amen Father Seraphim....Christ in us the hope of Glory now and forevermore
Thanks for sharing your wisdom with us this year, it has been very helpful. I am grateful to God that I've found your channel.
La Multi Ani and Happy New Year! Everything you pray for us dear Father Seraphim, may God grant you and the brothers and sisters at the monastery in abundance! 💗
Thank you for your blessings. God bless you too.
Thank you very much. This year was so bad for me. I am still ill because of Corona...that after 9 months.... Your words, Father, gave me strength...i would love to visit the Monastery...I wish you a happy healthy New year!
Thanks for your wonderful talks ,lead by the holy spirit.
Father, thank you so much for your words of encouragement and reminder. Religion can really make us believe that we live the rightful and righteous life but in reality in cold and isolated bubbles if we are not open to one another. It is not the "holiness above the head" saves the world, but the "lowliness and humility" from a open and loving heart can really work wonders. As I am pursuing God, I am also striving to learn to love and open myself without fear. I realized that the love of God has been restoring my true identity. Thank God for this difficult year to prepare everyone to further receive His word of love. May God continue to bless and guide each one of us. It is time to reach out more and share the gospel!
These are powerful words. Thank you for speaking them out into the air.
@@rainastor4789 Thank you for the encouragement. May we all be blessed and His love continues to grow in us abundantly in the coming year!
Gods blessings to you all in Mull monistary. May the blessings flow into the New Year as well. Amen.
Love your message brother. Thanks for your encouragement.
Thank you for giving us answers that some of us were seeking of..
Amen. Me too.
Thank you for this channel. And blessings to all at the monastery.
Thank you for another inspiring message, dear Father Seraphim, and may God bless the monastery abundantly for the coming year! ☦🙏
Thank you dear Brother for your work and blessings. I receive them in Jesus Name! I wish you abundance in new 2021! Strong health and steadfast enduring spirit In our Lord Jesus! Amen
Thank you, dear Father, for encouraging us to keep the Faith! God bless you, your comunity and the entire world! 🙏🙏🙏
For so many this has been a very hard, in fact, the last, year. But this year has also been such a blessing. Yes a blessing in disguise, a great blessing. To sift the heart of men.
The confusion amongst Christians and our other neighbours who fall prey to conspiracy theories has disturbed my life more than the disease, fortunately. I am also fortunate to have some education in the relevant fields so I can see perhaps a bit more clearly but as a fairly new Christian searching for a scattered flock, inclined toward Orthodoxy I was disappointed to see that fear-based conjecture corrupt the faith of some voices I had otherwise found refreshingly sensible.
I pray that God will allow these veils to be lifted completely so that people can make the only true and loving choice to serve God alone and not be enslaved to the world, the satan or to their own flesh.
I have known a good many who are the kind to invent and conjecture conspiracy and very few of them use what they think they know to empower. Rather, they share how disempowered they feel and use it as an excuse not to try. Better to try and never succeed than this. I still examine every conspiracy about COVID that bothers my friends but all of them so far have required lies to support them. And if I'm kind, several of these lies come from ignorance alone but some are certainly invented on purpose because they manipulate or create the source of information.
The reality is that God ordained even bad leaders to uphold a certain level of order and while we can see some handling this crisis better or worse, they're just doing their jobs and if we're not in their position then we really are better off mentally and physically and spiritually focusing on sharing our talents with our own local communities rather than weighing ourselves down with things beyond our control anyway. That would remain true even if there were some great conspiracy, as you can be assured that there is. Those at the top have just as complicated a life as any of us and they are pitted against others with as much power so you will find that no plan goes unthwarted.
Anyone who believes that anyone, good or evil, can break or fix our mess at will is foolish. As a young ecologist I pointed fingers but in struggling to help fix the world I struggled against everything sick in the world within myself. Thankfully in seeking truth, God spoke back to me and eventually led me to Christ as the only source of salvation. I can continue my struggle now regardless of who else does what or even regardless if I fail to ever do anything but I am not inclined to paralyse myself with fear anymore and I urge anyone who is Christian not to share or spread fearful things that you have not come to a genuine understanding of - those feelings you might have when you act on a hunch that others are evil when they may simply be as lazy, ignorant, selfish, confused as we all are when we fail to attain perfection are exactly what the satan has always appealed to in order to get the first person in a domino effect of division to act.
Listen to Father Aldea. Read 1 Corinthians 13 and listen to Father Aldea because that is the difference between him and some others who carefully adhere to worldly group think in some of the cultures where Christians can speak loudly and twist Christianity to suit their political comfort zones rather than live Christianity and rise above the devil's battleground of Godless philosophies and blame games.
This was such a thoughtful comment. I’ll go try Father Aldea too.
Thank you for this message! This is my first time watching your channel:) Thank you for saying “ this is real”! So many Orthodox people are saying this is just a flu, this is a hoax! I have my second case of Covid currently. I had it in Feb. of this year, now my husband and I have it. I appreciate your encouraging message!! I lost a friend to Covid, a friend of mine is still struggling with symptoms 8 months after having Covid.
I'm destitute in my only like this it will not despise the prayer of the testitude I'm empty because of my sinfulness I don't know what to believe right now but I don't feel connected to Jesus anymore this is my great grief pray for me Brothers
Thank you 🙏🏼
I hope you don't tire of me leaving comment after comment, but your videos feed me spiritually and I can't just 'like' the video, I love the videos. I watch you speak and know it is inspired and I think to myself how can I do more of that in my work. And I too have been reflecting on the last year and surprisingly I did see good that came out of it as well, even though emotionally this has been a tough year for me (and of course everyone). I am grateful to being led to your channel (that was inspiration). Thank you to you, the monastery, and to God.
I, for one, never tire of your comments.... plus my understanding of you tube is rather weak, but it does seem to be important that there is interaction on the channel. The more that people interact, the more the videos are recommended by UA-cam to others, and It builds a sense of community as well. I gradually get used to the names that regularly show up. I pray for you when I see you.
Thank you, father! May God help and bless you all at the monastery! Please keep recording for us! Can you speak more on being true to yourself, being honest in front of God and pulling down the walls of self-deceit? I have heard you speak about this issue before and I feel I need to hear it again... Thank you!
God Bless you, Father.
Dear Father, may the blessings of the Holy Trinity be upon you in this new year. Thank you for making a difference in my life. I am hoping to see you this spring. Happy New Year to you, your love ones, and the Monastery.
Amen. Love to you all. Tim.