Test 1

Before we begin tonight’s lecture, I would like us all to remember that on this very day, our departed father, the late Patriarch, His Holiness Pope Cyril VI, reposed in the Lord. We pray for the repose of his righteous soul in the dwelling places of the saints, and we remember his noble works during his blessed papacy, which lasted for about twelve years.
We remember his labor in this Cathedral, whose foundation and construction he laid, and into whose fruits we have entered. We also remember his labor in the Monastery of Saint Mina the Miracle-Worker, the Monastery of Saint Anba Samuel, and his solitude in the Church of Saint Mina in Old Cairo and Jabal Tura.
We remember his fatherhood toward all of us, his sufferings in his final illness, how he continued his pastoral care despite his sickness, and his continuous prayers and liturgies. During more than thirty years of monastic life, nothing prevented him from celebrating them except illness.
We remember his simplicity, many virtues, and asceticism. We remember also that he was the first in our generation to ordain general bishops, even though the idea of general bishops is ancient—for Peter El-Gawli had also been a general bishop.
We remember his care for the Theological Seminary, for during his papacy all these buildings and the printing press were established.
We remember his long service to the Church, his love for people and their love for him. They would attend most occasions to receive his blessing and prayers.
We remember him with all goodness—as our father and high priest in this generation in which we lived. We ask for his repose among the saints and pray that God may comfort the entire Church—his children, lovers, and all who remember his virtues.
Today, several liturgies were celebrated in his memory in many churches: in the Monastery of Saint Mina in Mariut, where His Grace Bishop Maximus was delegated to celebrate; in Saint Mina’s Church in Old Cairo, where His Grace Bishop Domadios was delegated; and in other churches as well—in memory of our departed father, His Holiness Pope Cyril VI. We all pray for him, asking that he prays for us, and that God remembers all his labors, for God never forgets the labor of love.

The subject I want to speak to you about today, in the context of the Holy Forty Days, is the period of testing. The devil tempted our Lord Jesus Christ during these forty days to see what kind of nature He had—would He yield or resist? Of course, He resisted and triumphed.
In these Holy Forty Days, we remember testing, and that our entire life is a period of testing. We are tested in many ways—our purity, our prayers, our perseverance, and our love for God. And according to how we succeed in this testing, we shall be crowned in heaven and rewarded in the life to come.
It is nothing but a period of testing—no more, no less.

Everyone has gone through this period: the angels, the saints, even our Lord Jesus Christ Himself, the apostles, and the prophets. The commandment given to Adam and Eve—what was its meaning? To eat or not to eat from the tree? It was not about the tree itself, but about testing obedience and love of the human creature. Adam was tested and fell; Eve was tested and fell. The commandment was neither hard nor easy—that was not the point. The important thing was the test. God tests man—will he obey or disobey? As the Lord said reproachfully: “You have been weighed in the balances and found wanting.”
God sets before us a test to prove our love for Him. The test is like fire that tries many materials: gold, silver, and copper endure the fire, but wood and straw are burned. Is man like gold, purified through the fire of testing, or like wood, quickly burned into ashes?

This period of testing may be long or short—it does not matter. Some have a short earthly life; others live long. Some saints died young but were tested and succeeded. So, what matters is not the length of the test but the success within it. Through testing, God’s justice appears, for every person is given a chance to show his nature—whether pure or lost.

God tests people on different levels and in different ways. As Scripture says: “If you have run with footmen and they have wearied you, then how can you contend with horses?” So, if a man fails the test of the footmen, God will not put him in the test of the horsemen. In other words, the immature are not tested with the trials of the mature.
In the lives of the saints, the devil did not appear to them until they had succeeded in many earlier trials—just as a person cannot pursue a doctorate without first obtaining the master’s and bachelor’s degrees.

God tests people through many means—trials, sickness, death. Some remain steadfast in trials; others murmur, grow weary, doubt God’s love, and thus fail. Others face trials with patience, acceptance, or even joy. Some saints, after much success, even longed for trials! People, therefore, are on different levels.
Look at the righteous Job—how God tested him with the loss of wealth and children, and he endured: “The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.” And Abraham, the father of fathers, was tested when commanded to offer his son Isaac. He rose early, took the wood and knife, and obeyed without complaint or argument. He accepted everything in peace and obedience.

Difficult commands are a kind of test, even in spiritual fatherhood. Some are tested in their obedience—some obey only when convinced, so they argue much. Others obey their confessor completely, giving up their own will—that is true obedience, which includes self-denial.

God gives each person trials according to his ability, for He does not test beyond one’s strength. Trials reveal whether you accept what God allows or murmur against it. If you accept with peace, the trial passes gently; if you murmur, it becomes heavy.

Murmuring or contentment is very important before God. People want life to go their way, and if it does not, they complain—against parents, priests, or even God Himself. Some even oppose God, like atheists, who reject Him because He does not agree with their desires. Modern atheism, therefore, often stems from personal motives, not philosophy—they deny God because He does not flatter them or serve their whims.

The hardest test a person faces is being tested in his own will—whether he follows his desires or submits to God’s will. Our Lord said, “If anyone desires to follow Me, let him deny himself.” The first step of self-denial is to deny one’s own will and desires, accepting God’s will instead.
Let us test ourselves during this holy fast—do we follow our desires, or fight and resist them?

What does education mean, brothers? When a father raises his children, or a teacher his students, or God His people, it means He disciplines their desires—approving some, rejecting others. True education is correcting wrong paths, confronting wrong thoughts or desires. If everyone followed their own will, we would have a spoiled, weak generation.

God tests people through their desires and the freedom He gave them—a freedom not given to the stars or nature, which follow fixed laws. Humans, however, are free, and God tests their freedom—whether it leads to good or evil. If a person leans toward evil, will he accept correction or reject it?

If God does not test our desires, let us test them ourselves. The strange thing is that everyone sees his own will as beautiful, trusting his mind and feelings. Scripture says, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.” Therefore, God gave us spiritual guides and fathers to help us watch over our wills and desires and lead us toward good.

Wretched is the person who follows only his own will and refuses guidance. Even worse is the one who resists those who correct him. Scripture says, “Where there is no counselor, the people fall like leaves.” The spiritual person makes God’s will his own and prays: “Let my will be Yours, O Lord, and Yours be mine. I wish to desire what You desire, to love what You love, and to do what You want, not what I want.”

God gives freedom and tests how we use it—do we turn it into a weapon against Him, or do we walk in it according to His will, even when it goes against our desires?
God tests through trials, freedom, and sin—not by creating sin, but by allowing temptation.

Many succeed in trials yet fail in temptation. Sin has cast down many mighty ones. God tests whether people love Him or sin. A person might overcome some sins but fail in another—his weak point. God tests him there. Like a cup of clear water stained by a single drop of ink, one weakness can spoil all virtues.

Another kind of test is blessings and gifts. Many sadly fail this one. God grants intelligence, but some use it against Him—creating new forms of evil. Many criminals, deceivers, atheists, and heretics use their intelligence wrongly. Scientists use their talents to invent weapons of destruction—failing the test of intellect.
Those with rich imagination could become great contemplatives, but if they use it for sin, they lose their souls. Poets, artists, and talented people often misuse their gifts—turning them into stumbling blocks.

Yes, blessings and talents are a kind of test. Will we succeed or fail?
People are tested by Satan, by others, by circumstances—but the important thing is to succeed in the test. When God finds a person faithful in this short life, He entrusts him with eternal life. When He finds him faithful in small things, He entrusts him with the age that never ends.

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1. Article by His Holiness Pope Shenouda III, published in Watani newspaper on 11 March 1973.

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