This evening, His Holiness Pope Tawadros II delivered his weekly sermon at Wednesday’s sermon from the Church of St Virgin Mary and Saint Bishoy at the Papal Residence, Abbaseya. The sermon was broadcast on Christian channels and the C.O.C channel of the Church’s media center on the Internet.
The meeting resumed after six weeks due to church holidays, as announced by His Holiness in his last Wednesday sermon before the meeting stopped, on the 28th of last December.

Today, the meeting hosted the first day of the week of prayer for the unity of Christians, which is organized by the Council of Churches of Egypt with the slogan, “Learn to do good; Seek justice”. (Isaiah 1:17).
It is the verse that His Holiness made a subject of contemplation, as His Holiness linked it with prayer, fasting and charity, which are the basics of the great lent that begins in the Coptic Church next Monday.
Where His Holiness spoke about “The Basics of Spiritual Life,” also addressing part of the sixth chapter of the Gospel of our teacher Matthew, verses 1-18, which speaks about the basics spiritual life which are: charity, prayers and fasting.

1- Charity:
It is the offering of love in all its forms, as the example of the good Samaritan who offered love and goodness, and the condition of charity is that it be for the sake of God. “that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.” (Matthew 6:4).
These are the words and promises of the Lord Jesus Christ. We must offer effort, money, or whatever we offer for the sake of God, and we must search for the needy and the hidden and do good with them.

2- Prayer:
Before Jesus spoke about prayer, He spoke about two important things:
“go into your room” (Matthew 6:6), meaning that we enter the heart, and not get preoccupied with the affairs of the world, because we will face God with the heart only.
“and when you have shut your door” (Matthew 6:6), meaning closing the heart and mouth from caring about the world, and reducing food. The condition of prayer is that it is for God’s sake.
“pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly”. (Matthew 6:6). Prayer also gives energy to do good, and makes us feel the other.

3- Fasting:
It is a means of spiritual strengthening, and it makes a person think of the most in Heaven, and it has several conditions, which are:
To be joyful and longing.
To be repentant and pure.
To be for God’s sake, “your Father who sees in secret will see reward you openly.” (Matthew 6:18)
Fasting should be for the sake of doing mercy and goodness, “Blessed are the merciful to the poor.”
We must remember the blessings and good deeds that God did with us during fasting and every morning.

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