ΜΑΚΑΡΙΟΣ
ἐλέῳ Θεοῦ Ἀρχιεπίσκοπος τῆς Ἁγιωτάτης Ἀρχιεπισκοπῆς Αὐστραλίας, ὑπέρτιμος καὶ Ἐξαρχος πάσης Ὠκεανίας, τοῖς Θεοφιλεστάτοις Ἐπισκόποις, τῷ εὐαγεῖ κλήρῳ, ταῖς μοναστικαῖς ἀδελφότησι, καὶ παντὶ τῷ χριστεπωνύμῳ πληρώματι τῆς ἐν Αὐστραλίᾳ Ὀρθοδόξου Ἐκκλησίας, χάρις εἴη καὶ εἰρήνη παρὰ τοῦ Σωτῆρος Χριστοῦ, παρ᾽ ἡμῶν δὲ εὐχή, εὐλογία καὶ συγχώρησις.
Θεοφιλέστατοι Ἐπίσκοποι καί ἀγαπητά μου παιδιά,
Εἰσερχόμαστε, μὲ τὴ Χάρη τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἀπὸ αὔριο στὸ στάδιο τῆς Μ. Τεσσαρακοστῆς, ὅπου μέσα ἀπὸ τὰ πνευματικὰ ὅπλα τῆς νηστείας, τῆς προσευχῆς, τῆς ἐλεημοσύνης καὶ τῶν πλουσίων λατρευτικῶν εὐκαιριῶν ἡ ἁγία μας Ἐκκλησία μᾶς προτρέπει νὰ βιώσουμε τὴν κατάσταση τῆς μετανοίας.
Μετανοῶ σημαίνει ἀλλάζω νοῦ, ἀλλὰ αὐτὸ δὲν ὑπονοεῖ ὅτι ἁπλῶς ἀλλάζω τὸν τρόπο ποὺ σκέπτομαι καὶ υἱοθετῶ ἕνα διαφορετικὸ τρόπο σκέψεως ἤ μία σύγχρονη κοσμοθεωρία. Οἱ θεοφόροι Πατέρες μᾶς διδάσκουν ὅτι ὁ νοῦς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου εἶναι κάτι πολὺ βαθύτερο, εἶναι ἡ καρδία του, δηλαδὴ τὸ κέντρο τῆς ὑπάρξεώς του, γι᾽ αὐτὸ ἄλλωστε ὁ ἴδιος ὁ Κύριος λέγει «ἔσωθεν γὰρ ἐκ τῆς καρδίας τῶν ἀνθρώπων οἱ διαλογισμοὶ οἱ κακοὶ ἐκπορεύονται» (Μκ. 7, 21). Μετάνοια, σημαίνει τὴν ἀλλαγὴ τοῦ πυρῆνα τῆς ὑπάρξεώς μας καὶ τὴ μεταστροφή τοῦ νοῦ μας, ὥστε νὰ γίνει, ὅπως λέγει ὁ Ἀπόστολος Παῦλος, «νοῦς Χριστοῦ» (πρβλ. Α’ Κορ. 2, 16). Αὐτὸ συνιστᾷ τὸ γεγονὸς τῆς μετανοίας καὶ ὄχι μιὰ ἁπλὴ ἐξωτερικὴ μεταβολή ἤ ἕνα στιγμιαῖο ἐπεισόδιο ἀλλαγῆς μιᾶς σκέψης ἢ μιᾶς συγκεκριμένης νοοτροπίας. Ἡ μετάνοια εἶναι ἕνας παρατεινόμενος τρόπος ζωῆς.
Ἡ κλήση τῆς Ἐκκλησίας μας λοιπόν, γιὰ τὴ Μ. Τεσσαρακοστή, εἶναι ἡ μετάνοια, ποὺ παραπέμπει σὲ μιὰ διαρκὴ πορεία, σὲ ἕνα σταθερὸ προσανατολισμὸ τῆς ὑπάρξεώς μας πρὸς τὸν Χριστό. Καὶ ὅταν ὑπάρχει αὐτὸς ὁ προσανατολισμὸς, τότε βιώνουμε τὴν ἀληθινὴ μετάνοια ποὺ δὲν ὁδηγεῖ σὲ μιὰ συναισθηματικὴ καὶ ἠθικιστικὴ ἀλλαγή. Βιώνουμε τὴν κατάσταση τῆς μετανοίας ποὺ δὲν εἶναι ἐπιφανειακή, ἐπίπολαιη καὶ ποὺ δὲν κυριαρχεῖται ἀπὸ τύψεις καὶ ἐνοχικὰ σύνδρομα, ἀλλὰ λυτρώνει καὶ ἐλευθερώνει τὸν ἄνθρωπο καὶ, ἐν τέλει, ἀλλάζει τὴ ζωὴ του.
Μὲ αὐτὲς τὶς ἁπλὲς ἀλλὰ καρδιακὲς σκέψεις, εὔχομαι πατρικῶς νὰ βιώσουμε ὅλοι μας αὐτὴν τὴν Μ. Τεσσαρακοστὴ τὸ γεγονὸς τῆς μετανοίας καὶ νὰ ἀξιωθοῦμε νὰ ἑορτάσουμε τὴν λαμπροφόρο ἡμέρα τῆς Ἐγέρσεως τοῦ Κυρίου.
Ἐν Σύδνεϋ, τῇ Ἁγίᾳ καὶ Μεγάλη Τεσσαρακοστῇ, ἔτει 2025ῳ,
Ὁ Ἀρχιεπίσκοπος
† Ὁ Αὐστραλίας Μακάριος
Ὑπέρτιμος καί Ἔξαρχος πάσης Ὠκεανίας
MAKARIOS
by the mercy of God, Archbishop of the Most Holy Archdiocese of Australia, Primate and Exarch of All Oceania, to the God-loving Bishops, the gracious clergy, the monastic communities and to all the Christ-loving plenitude of the Orthodox Church in Australia, grace and peace from our Saviour Jesus; prayers, blessings, and forgiveness.
God-loving Bishops and my beloved children,
By the Grace of God, we enter tomorrow into the arena of Great Lent, where, through the spiritual weapons of fasting, prayer, almsgiving, and the abundant opportunities for worship, our holy Church urges us to experience the state of repentance.
To repent means to change one’s mind; but this does not simply imply altering the way we think or adopting a different mindset or a modern worldview. The God-bearing Fathers teach us that the mind of a person is something much deeper—it is the heart, the very centre of our existence. This is why the Lord Himself says, “For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come” (Mark 7:21). Repentance, therefore, signifies the transformation of the very core of our existence and the reorientation of our mind so that, as the Apostle Paul says, it may become the “mind of Christ” (cf. 1 Corinthians 2:16). This constitutes the true essence of repentance—not merely an external change or a transient moment of altered thought or of a concrete mindset. Repentance is an ongoing way of life.
The call of our Church, then, for Great Lent is repentance, which points to a continual journey, a steady reorientation of our existence toward Christ. And when this reorientation exists, we then experience true repentance, which does not lead to a mere sentimental or moralistic change. We experience the state of repentance that is neither superficial nor shallow, nor is it dominated by guilt and remorse. Rather, it redeems and liberates the human person, ultimately transforming their life.
With these simple yet heartfelt thoughts, I offer my paternal prayer that we may all experience this Great Lent as an event of repentance, and be found worthy to celebrate the radiant day of our Lord’s Resurrection.
In Sydney, on Holy and Great Lent, in 2025
Prayerfully Yours,
† Archbishop Makarios of AustraliaPrimate and Exarch of All Oceania
