وجبـــــــة روحيـــــ(†)ــــــــــة يوميـــــــــة

[Mary Naeem]

By H.H. Pope Shenouda III

What does this mean? Does the kingdom of God fit only the foolish, the weak and the despised? No, for God had chosen before some learned men such as Moses the Prophet, St. Paul the Apostle & Arsanius.. He chose also some holy men who were philosophers like Athenagoras, Pentinus, and St. Augustine. God chose some of the Valiant such as Samson and St. Moses the powerful; He chose also some dignified persons like David the King and the princes Maximus and Domadius..

[Mary Naeem]

By H.H. Pope Shenouda III

How Can Both Matters Come Together?


What is meant is not that God chooses only the foolish, the weak and the despised but perhaps that God-blessed be His name-chooses such persons who, though they attain great knowledge, power or honour, stand before Him as if ignorant, weak and despised..

[Mary Naeem]

By H.H. Pope Shenouda III

Here is Moses, who was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, was not sent by God when he was self-confident, depending on his human power. But God called him only when he said, "Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and that I should bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?... I am not eloquent, neither before, nor since you have spoken to Your servant; but I am slow of speech, and slow of tongue." (Ex. 3:11,4:10)

[Mary Naeem]

By H.H. Pope Shenouda III

St. Paul also who studied the law and was brought up at the feet of Gamaliel, was not sent by God except when he could say, 'For it is written I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?... I was with you in weakness, in fear, and in much trembling and my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power." (1 Cor. 1:19,2:3,4)

[Mary Naeem]

By H.H. Pope Shenouda III

St. Arsanius was not made by God a father and a guide when he was teaching the princes Arcadius and Onorius in the palace of their father Theodosius the Emperor, but only when his soul was purified and could say, 'Arsanius the teacher of the Kings' sons, who studied the wisdom of the Greek and the Romans,' does not know the Alpha Veta (alphabet) which, an illiterate Egyptian knows'

[Mary Naeem]

By H.H. Pope Shenouda III

Do you think, my brother who worship God, that you will lay a foundation in the church with your knowledge and culture! Oh you are poor! Truly I say to you that if you are not freed from dependence on your own knowledge, you will not approach God. God will not also bless your ministry because if you do succeed in your ministry, people will ascribe this success to what the world granted you of certificates and scientific degrees.. Thus God's glory would be robbed and given to the world.

[Mary Naeem]

By H.H. Pope Shenouda III

My dear learned brother, God is able in this twentieth century to go again to the lake and call an uneducated fisherman to be an apostle and evangelist and this person will teach people better than you do. When God divided the Red Sea, He did not choose a rod of gold but just a plain rod which resembled millions of rods in the world.

[Mary Naeem]

By H.H. Pope Shenouda III

Let this be your feeling, for I have seen many people who read and write about deep spiritual matters but fall in the sins of the beginners... I tell you this fearing that out of confidence of your spiritual knowledge and experience, you would depend on your human power (arm) while the Holy Bible says, "Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength" (Jer. 1 7:5)

[Mary Naeem]

By H.H. Pope Shenouda III

Know, my beloved brother, that any spiritual or worldly knowledge that does not lead you to humiliation and to the feeling that you are ignorant, is a false deceitful knowledge. It is a blow from the devil to make you turn from asking, requiring and knocking at the door... Feel then, my brother, that you are ignorant as the Holy Bible says, "If anyone among you seems to be wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise" (1 Cor. 3:18)

[Mary Naeem]

By H.H. Pope Shenouda III

Before God, the wise and the fool are equal because both are ignorant and both are subject to the same death, and the same breath of air blows upon both of them.. Before God, the weak and the strong are equal also because both are weak for no one has any power in the presence of God.