Principles – “A year passed and another comes” – 26/12/2015

   A new year is to begin in few days and we will say good bye to this year with its pain and joy and welcome a new one with a hope that it brings a new good start in life. We talked about preparations that we should make to achieve a great success and be good model to others. I talked about the importance of being ready to face problems and overcome them, how to be unique and stamp your personality on your work and actions, to be flexible and able to adapt with unstable and changeable incidents of life and be able to accept differences with others without losing your love for them. I will proceed talking about how to be ready for the New Year.

   One of the important principles of life is readiness to learn or “discipleship”. The Greek philosopher, Socrates, said that people think they know something and actually they know nothing as for him he knew one thing only that he know nothing at all. Be ready to learn and look at things from a human and elegant perspective. As they say, “There is nothing new in this world only old things waiting to be discovered“. We should discover them and if you consider yourself a learner, you will learn a new thing every day, build your awareness and knowledge. Unconsciously, this knowledge will be reflected on your words, interactions and prospects of life and as a result others will learn from you and consider you a role model or a guider. They will learn from your actions not your words and you can transfer your experience of real life and love to them. They will feel you are a reliable person; talk to you about their personal matters and seek for your advice.

   Another matter I’d like to tell you that you have to be ready to hold responsibility for actions and choices of your life. You have a role you should fulfill and a mission you should carryout and don’t try to blame others as you’re responsible for all your actions even if you decided to let others lead your life, it’s still your choice and only you who will handle its results.

   You should also know you have a commitment and a mission in life, whether young or old, you have to fulfill and not evade it. This commitment is toward yourself and others. You should know you will be rewarded for your actions not on earth but in heaven too before God, Glory be to His Name, who knows secrets of the heart. If you can give fake excuses to people, you can’t give excuses for what you have done whether it is the bad you do or the good you didn’t do yet you were able to do it. I remember a story of a good man who prayed to God saying “please, God, do something. Help those miserable people” At night when he was ready to sleep, a sound echoed in his heart saying, ” I did something, I created you”.

   In the New Year try to find out what you want to learn and put it as a target to achieve during the year with God’s help. Happy New Year, I hope it will be full of goodness, peace for all.  I ask God to bring peace and prosperity for Middle East and to be a prosperous year for Egypt.

Anba Ermiah,

General Bishop& President of the Coptic Orthodox Cultural Center