The Church of Christ invites us to rejoice. And we do rejoice, even though all of humanity, in its greater and lesser thinkers, has recognized that man has been organically and deeply harmed by some incurable sickness. At the dawn of human thought, philosophers of profound antiquity, such as Socrates, Buddha and others, understood this tragedy of mankind. And modern teachers of the people, philosophers and politicians, have proposed their own systems, their own teaching, as to how better to arrange that our life be the best possible. Yet none of them has been able to help man achieve this greatest of goals -- spiritual rebirth.
 
Only our Lord Jesus Christ has left us His Holy Gospel, His glad tidings, a teaching which was unheard of before Him, and which at the same time, through His Holy Church, imparts to us the power to implement this holy teaching. No one at any time throughout the world's existence has ever given us such a twofold gift  the all-perfect teaching of the Holy Gospel and the help needed to make this teaching alive. All other teachings are impoverished, a useless waste of the precious time of a life which is all too short. They have forgotten man: he is injured, he is corrupt and needs to be healed. And we rejoice because finally, after long centuries of waiting, our Saviour has appeared, our true Healer, the only genuine, incorruptible, holy and righteous One; there was no one like Him before His time, nor will their ever be after Him.
 
It remains for us only to entreat our Saviour earnestly and unceasingly, that He enlighten our minds with His teaching and help us to make this wondrous teaching real in our life as far as possible.

I can wish you no greater gift, simply because there is none greater to seek.
 
+  Metropolitan Vitaly