Day after day we judge: 'Look how she dresses! Look how he talks! But did you see how she crossed herself? But did you see how he looked?' And just like that, we gather stumbling blocks on the path to salvation.
Last night I received a lesson. By phone, Father Silouan, so dear to us, called and told us:
'Brothers, let me tell you about a miracle! A wonderful thing! I'm on duty at the Venerable's. The room where I'm staying overlooks the Faculty of Theology, a rather quiet area. But last night I don't know what happened. From around 10 PM I heard screams and yells, both from women and men. I stayed like that, with the window open, as it was quite warm, but no prayer, no quiet... Around midnight, I said: I'm closing it, I can't take it anymore! I've never heard such screams in my life. I thought: these people are demonized! I judged, and it was not good.'
Around 3 AM, I hear it again. Around 5 AM, the same. At one point, I knelt down and said: 'Lord, have mercy on Your creation and turn them to repentance!'
And what do you know, brothers! At 6 AM, I went to the Cathedral, opened the reliquary, and because there weren't many people yet, I started saying the prayers. It didn't take five minutes, and two long-haired boys entered through the door. One with a white t-shirt and one with a black t-shirt, both around 2 meters tall. They approached the reliquary. I could smell alcohol on the one with the white t-shirt; he was a bit dizzy. He rested his head on the reliquary and prayed. Then he came to the table where I was and knelt down. He took a piece of paper and, as best he could, wrote: 'Lord, forgive!'
I was stunned. My first thought was: this boy was surely in that place!
The other boy also crossed himself, but didn't approach me to be anointed. He went further to venerate the Mother of God. The boy in the white t-shirt went after him, called him, but he didn't want to come. He turned back, extended his hands for me to anoint him, and I said to him: 'May the Lord help you do His will!' And his answer was: 'May He help you too!'
Brothers! What it means to judge a person! What a prayer said with humility and regret means! I am sure these boys were coming from there. And I judged them!
Brothers, all people are good! All of them! But the devil makes his way into their souls and mocks them, but we must not judge them. We judge the sin, not the sinner! Let's pray for everyone, for God has no one to lose!
You know that parable about the Saint who prayed for all creation, and the devil told God to give him the souls of sinners. And God said to him: 'I would give them to you, but I cannot! There are people who pray for them!'
So let us do the same, brothers! Let us pray and love every person!'
...Now, I lay my head on the pillow and say: Lord, forgive!
Alexandrina
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