Sermon 5^th Sunday after Pentecost: St. Olga <<Divinly wise>>

In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Dear brothers and sisters.

At the end of the Sermon on the Mount (Math. 5,1-7,29) Jesus Christ told the parable (7,21-29) on which todays sermon is based. One wise person built his house on a rock, while the unwise person built his on sand. Both houses stood well during good weather. But when a storm, with strong winds came, the house built on sand collapsed. This parable tells us that we must build our lives on the strong foundation of God’s Commandments. Then, whatever happens we will endure.

The equal to the apostes Grand Princess Olga of Kiev

An example of such a wise builder of her life, on the strong foundation of christian faith and righteousness is holy equal to the apostles Olga, whose memory our Church celebrates today. Before even becoming a christian, from her youth St. Olga was able to practice one of the most important christian virtues: Chastity! The soul of each one of us, our internal spiritual home is the dwelling place of God’s image and the temple of the Holy Trinity. This is why, higher wisdom tells us to protect ourselves, to keep our soul and body whole and perfect, and uncorrupted by passions. Chastity – is a gift from God, but unfortunately today only a few people keep it and expand on it.

Olga becomes a princess thanks to her refusing, her future husband Igor, unlawful sexual closeness on their first encounter before marriage. She put him to shame. He was not used to being refused, but here, he had to let go. Had she accepted lewdness, he would have forgotten her, like most often those simple minded people who seek for bidden pleasure. She refused him with honour, and he was unable to forget their encounter and fell in love with her.

The young Olga was able to conquer prince Igor’s hardened heart, not by her beauty but by her ‘chastity’. Sin was unable to overcome her. She defeated the prince with womanly bashfullness and the strength of her soul. For this pureness and wisdom of her life, God made Olga a grand and venerated princess, a just ruler of Russ, one of the first christians in the palace, a kind grandmother to prince Vladimir the baptiser of Russ and all its people.

Later, Igor met her again, married her legally, and made her a princess. After his death, Olga remained loyal to him. Having adopted the christian faith she never remarried. Princess Olga did not remain loyal to Igor only. She remained loyal, in all things, to the Holy Church and to the ‘eternal groom’ of her soul Jesus Christ! Princess Olga accepted Orthodoxy as though only for herself. When she returned from Constantinople, she did not force her new faith on relatives and friends. She simply was a christian. Despite the fact that her son Oleg paid no attention to the lifestyle changes of his mother, she was able to accomplish much. Her authority, as a christian, was great among all the people that surrounded her. Her faith and small effort as a grandmother, in a family circle, bore good and great fruit to Russia. Her grandson prince Vladimir became a christian and through him many millions of people came to Christ, even though in the early stages it seemed unreal.

Our Church calls St. Olga <<divinly wise>>. Who among the early eastern saints is simillar to her? Saint Great Martyr Barbara — the Protectress of our Cathedral. Currently our Church celebrates the transfer of the relics of St. Barbara from Greece to Kiev. Locked up in a high tower, the young Barbara was amazed at the beauty of the world, the shining stars, and the change from day to night. She came to believe in God through learning about nature.

The church singing of the ‘troparion’ in honour of St. Olga tells us that, <<giving her mind wings of divine understanding, she soared above visible creation seeking God the Creator of all>>. Posessing a sharp mind and a sensitive heart, she seeked God, and found Him. Apostle Paul, calls all people to do the same, when he says: <<so that they should seek the Lord, in the hope that they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us>> (Acts 17:27). Wise Olga seeked God in her heart and found Him in the world that He created.

May the example of the equal to the apostes Grand Princess Olga of Kiev, inspire us to serve God and the Church, and by doing so, make us all successful and happy builders of our lives on a strong foundation of сhastity, faith in Christ, and God’s commandments! Amen.

July 24, 2016. Edmonton