When you come to venerate the cross after the Divine Liturgy, I always greet you by saying, “Christ is in our midst!” and you respond with, “He is and ever shall be!” For many Orthodox Christians this greeting is as common as saying, “Hello. How are you?” It is one way for us to remember and celebrate the presence of God in our lives. For those of you who are learning the greeting for the first time or teaching it to your children, I offer the following thoughts:

Nothing is more important to us than God’s presence in our lives. We would not even exist if it weren’t for God. Not only is He the very source of life, He is the source of all goodness. “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights...” (James 1:17). Therefore we can do nothing without Him (John 15:5). On the other hand, “if God is for us, who can be against us.” (Rom. 8:31)  One person who understood this was the prophet and God-seer* Moses. When Moses faced the daunting challenge of leading God’s people into the Promised Land, he recognized that he could not be successful without God’s presence. “If your presence will not go with me, do not bring us up from here.” (Ex 33:15).

God’s presence with His people is a central theme in the gospels. God loves us so much He became like us in the incarnation of our Lord Jesus Christ. He has not left us to suffer alone in this sin-stained world, but he has identified with us in every way, even unto death. But death did not separate us from our Lord. Through His resurrection and the power of the Holy Spirit, He is present with us today. “Behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20). His presence is experienced most powerfully when we partake of Him in the holy Eucharist. When you come forward to venerate the cross after the Divine Liturgy, you have the divine, life-giving presence of God flowing through you. What greeting could be more appropriate than this one? “Christ is in our midst! He is and ever shall be!”

-Fr Daniel


* read Exodus 33 to find out why the Orthodox refer to him as “God-seer”