“Learn from Christ” was the central message of His Eminence Archbishop Makarios of Australia to the 400 Orthodox young men and women from New South Wales, who participated in the Youth Conference organised at the headquarters of the State and Holy Archdiocese of Australia, in Sydney, on Saturday, 21 September 2024.
The proceedings of the conference were hosted at the Church of Saint Euphemia in Bankstown, while, in addition to the Archbishop of Australia, who delivered the keynote address, His Grace Bishop Christodoulos of Magnesia, the Chancellor of the Holy Archdiocese Archimandrite of the Ecumenical Throne Christophoros Krikelis, clergymen of the city of Sydney, the Sub-Dean of Saint Andrew’s Theological College Associate Professor Philip Kariatlis and others also participated in the proceedings of the conference.
During his address, His Eminence presented the Gospel passage: “Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” [Matt. 11:29] and urged the youth to put Christ in their hearts and thoughts, and to be taught by the gentleness and humility of the Lord. This will offer them, as he pointed out, a deep feeling of rest which we discern in people of faith, like our pious grandparents, but which is so absent from the lives of people in contemporary societies.
“No matter how many vacations we go on or how much money we have or how high we reach in our career,” noted the Archbishop, “nothing offers us true rest, except to have Christ and a meek and humble heart.” “How do we achieve this?”, he asked himself, to immediately answer: “Christ told us: “learn from me”. He did not say, learn to be meek and humble by reading about it, nor by going to relaxation classes, but “learn from me.” This is our answer. Think of a person we love, our best friend. We feel comfortable knowing that he or she is with us, that they are by our side. We rest in their presence, which fills us with joy. This is what Christ offers us. He wants us to find rest in Him. And we achieve this by putting Him in everything we do.”
At another point in his speech, Archbishop Makarios focused on the fruits of the Holy Spirit, as defined by the Apostle Paul in his letter to the Galatians: Love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, self-control. In them, the Archbishop pointed out, one can find the answer to whether he has formed a personal relationship with Christ. He concluded by underlining that “when we look for answers outside of God, a void remains deep within us. When we turn to worldly pleasures, our hearts are not comforted. There remains the void, which cannot be filled.”
Concluding his address, His Eminence referred to the historical milestone of the centenary of the Holy Archdiocese of Australia. He paternally implored the young men and women to remain close to the Church and work with unity, during the new centenary, for the spreading of the eternal truth that is Christ and for the salvation of as many souls as possible in Australia. He also urged the young audience to participate wholeheartedly and with a warm heart in the upcoming reception of His All-Holiness our Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, and in the events that will be held in his honour, so that they may receive the blessing of His All-Holiness and valuable spiritual support for the challenges that follow, on a personal and collective level.
