On the Nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost, the Divine Liturgy was celebrated at the Church of Saint Prince Lazar — Lazarica, in Birmingham, presided over by the Very Reverend Protopresbyter-Stavrophor Nenad Popović, parish priest of Birmingham.
The Gospel reading on love for one’s enemies reminded the faithful of Christ’s call to do good, forgive and show mercy: “Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.”
These words of the Lord call us to express our love through our actions, even towards those from whom we expect nothing in return. Through prayer for those who hurt us and a willingness to forgive, we open our hearts to God’s grace and peace.
The Divine Liturgy offered the faithful, gathered in prayer, an opportunity to find strength to live according to the Gospel and to bear witness to the love of Christ in their families and in their daily encounters with others.
