SERMON AGAINST THE POGROMS
By Metropolitan Anthony Khrapovitsky
(Delivered in the Cathedral of Zhitomir on 20 April,
1903)
The joyous feast of reconciliation, the Resurrection
of Christ, continues. We have completed the commemoration
of the Thomas, who was the first to confess that the
risen Jesus is our true God, and we are now singing of the
deeds of the myrrhbearers. We commemorate those women who
did not grow weak in their faithfulness to Christ even during
the terrible days when He was betrayed and put to death,
and who were accounted worthy to announce His resurrection
to the apostles. The apostles would enlighten the world
by proclaiming the resurrection, but these holy women had
first enlightened the apostles with it.
In extolling their faith, the Church calls all of us
to imitate this struggle and to participate in the
preaching of the resurrection. We are called upon to become so
penetrated by joy in Him that we not only forget about
the evil done against us by enemies, but to forgive from
our hearts their hatred toward us and not only forgive
them, but even love our enemies. We must now strive to
embrace with love all mankind, inviting them to share with us
the spiritual ecstacy of that new life revealed so clearly
to us, that everlasting life filled with blessed
communion with God. Now is fulfilled that prophecy of Isaiah;
"And everlasting joy ... illness, sorrow and sighing have,
fled away" (Is 35:10).
The grace of Christ's resurrection shines brightly
even in our corrupt age, and it shines not only on the pious
but even on those who are unconcerned. During these sacred
days, those who did not pray earlier now turn to
prayer; even those whose hearts were hardened. We greet one
another with the kiss of peace, and even the unmerciful and
miserly find pleasure in showing love toward their neighbour.
"Christ is risen and life springs forth" as the God-fearing
voice of Chrysostom proclaims. But amidst such comforting
circumstances in our Christian life, sorrowful, shameful
news reaches us that in the city of Kishenev, on the very
day of Christ's resurrection, on the day of forgiveness and
reconciliation, there occurred the cruel inhuman massacre
of unfortunate Jews.
At the very time when in the holy temples there was
being sung, "Let us embrace one another and say 'brother'
even to those who hate us..." yes at that very time, outside
the church walls, a drunken, beastly mob broke into Jewish
homes, robbing the peaceful inhabitants and tearing human
beings into pieces. They threw their bodies from windows
into the streets and looted Jewish stores. A second crazed,
greed filled mob rushed in to steal the clothing and jewelry
from the bloodied corpses, seizing everything they could lay
hand on. Like Judas, these robbers enriched themselves with silver
drenched in blood - the blood of these hapless human sacrifices!
O God! How did Thy goodness endure such an insult and
offence to the day of Thy saving passion and glorious
resurrection! Thou didst endure Thy terrible struggle
so that we would be dead to sin and live in Thee
(Rm.6:11), but here they cruelly and in a most beastly manner
slaughtered those who are Thy relatives according to
the flesh, who, though they did not recognise Thee are
still dear to Thy heart as Thou Thyself didst say not long
before Thou didst suffer in the flesh, "O Jerusalem,
Jerusalem, thou who killest the prophets and stone those who are
sent to thee; how often have I longed to gather your
children as a hen gathers its chicks under its wing, and you
desired it not" (Matt. 23:37).
O brethren, I wish to make you understand this so that
you would comprehend that even today the Jewish tribe is
dear to God's heart, and realise that God is angered by
anyone who would offend that people. Lest anyone suppose that
we are selecting words from the sacred scripture with
partiality, let me cite for you the words of that man
whom the Jews hated above all men. This is the man whom a
company of the Jews vowed neither to eat nor drink
until they had killed him (Acts 23:12) - Apostle Paul.
Hearken to the words of God's spirit speaking through
him: "I say the truth in Christ, I lie not, my conscience
also bearing my witness in the Holy Spirit, that I have
great heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart. For I
could wish that I myself were accursed from Christ for my
brethren, my kinsmen according to the flesh: Who are
Israelites; to whom pertaineth the adoption, and the
glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the
service of God, and the promises; Whose are the
fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who
is over all, God blessed for ever. Amen" (Rm. 9:1-5).
Startling and frightening word! Did you truly write
them, Paul, you who came to love Christ, who began to live
in Christ as Christ lived in you? For whose sake did you
consent to be separated from Christ? Was it not you,
Paul, who wrote the lines preceding this verse "For I am
persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels,
nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor
things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other
creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God,
which is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Rm.8:38-39). Even the
angels could not have done that which you would voluntarily
have done for the sake of the salvation of the Jews - those
who were your enemies, your betrayers, they who beat you
with whip, chained you in prison, exiled you and condemned
you to death.
Behold, brethren and marvel: these words of Apostle
Paul are spoken concerning the Jews, even though they were
opposed to Christ's faith. Lest your perplexity i
continue, that same apostle and martyr explaining in the
following chapter, the reason for his love of the house of
Israel! "Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for
Israel is, that they might be saved. For I bear them record
that they have a zeal of God, but not according to
knowledge. For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and
going about to establish their own righteousness, have not
submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God"
(10:1-2)
The words are confirmed in our own day by the life of
the Jews. Observe for yourselves their dedication to their
law, their preservation of the Sabbath, their faithfulness
to their spouses, their love of work and their love
toward their children, whom they encourage toward obedience.
There was a time not so long ago when Christians excelled
them in all these things, but in our present corrupt and
degenerate age, we must look with regret upon all these qualities
of the way of life of pious Jews. In our cities, the
majority of Christians no longer distinguish between the
ordinary day, feastdays and fasts, but have fallen into
negligence and a loose life.
It is true that there are also some like this among
the Jews, but from whom did they learn such a disorderly
path? Alas, from those whose forefathers confess Christ,
from European and Russian nihilists who, like toads, swarm
over our land, whose books and newspapers poison the air
around us like the plague and cholera.
The Karaim and Talmud Jews must be respected, but woe
to both those nihilists from among the Jews and from
among us, who are corrupting both family and society, who sow
the seed of their contagion among Russian and Polish
youth, and who are the main cause of the hatred toward the
descendants of the holy forefathers and prophets beloved by the
Lord. I am not speaking about respect for these nihilists
among the Jews.
Listen as the blessed apostle further explains the
reason for his warm, self-denying love toward this people;
hear how he explains their unbelief and obduracy toward
Christ "I say then, Have they stumbled that they should fall?
God forbid: but rather through their fall salvation is
come unto the Gentiles, for to provoke them to jealousy"
(11:11). If the Jews had all accepted Christ's faith,
then the heathens who despised the Jews would have rejected
it. If the Jews had all believed, then we, brethren, would
not have become Christians, but would still be worshipping
Jupiter and Venus or Perun and Volass as our pagan
ancestors did. Be cautious, therefore, about
slandering the unbelief of the Jews; rather grieve over it and pray
that the Lord may be revealed to them. Do not be at enmity
with them, but respect the apostolic word about the
Israelite root and the branches that broke from it "Because of
unbelief they were broken off, and thou standest by
faith. Be not highminded, but fear: For if God spared not the
natural branches, take heed lest he also spare not
thee. "
(11:20-21)
O Christians, fear to offend the sacred, even though
rejected, tribe. God's recompense will fall upon those
evil people who have shed blood which is of the same race
as the Theanthropos, his most pure mother, apostles and
prophets. Do not suppose that this blood was sacred only in the
past, but understand that even in the future reconciliation
to the divine nature awaits them (2Pt.1:4), as Christ's
chosen vessel further testifies, "For I would not, brethren,
that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should
be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is
happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles
be come in. And so all Israel shall be saved: as it is
written. There shall come out of Sion the Deliverer,
and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob: For this is my
covenant unto them, when I shall take away their sins"
(11:25-27).
Let the savage know that they have slain future
Christians who were yet in the loins of the present day Jews; let
them know that they have shown themselves to be bankrupt
opponents of God's providence, persecutors of a people
beloved by God, even after its rejection (11:28).
How sinful is enmity against Jews, based on an
ignorance of God's law, and how shall it be forgiven when it arises
from abominable and disgraceful impulses. The robbers of
the Jews did not do so as revenge for opposition to
Christianity, rather they lusted for the property and
possessions of others. Under the thin guise of zeal
for the faith, they served the demon of covetousness. They
resembled Judas who betrayed Christ with a kiss while
blinded with the sickness of greed, but these
murderers, hiding themselves behind Christ's name, killed His
kinsmen according to the flesh in order to rob them.
When have we beheld such fanaticism? In Western Europe
during the middle ages, heretics and Jews were
shamefully executed, but not by mobs intent on robbing them.*
How can one begin to teach people who stifle their own
conscience and mercy, who snuff out all fear of God
and, departing from the holy temple even on the bright day
of Christ's Resurrection, a day dedicated to forgiveness
and love, but which they i rededicate to robbery and
murder?
O believers in God and His Christ! Fear the Lord's
judgment in behalf of His people. Fear to offend the inheritors
of the promise, even though they have been renounced. We
are not empowered to judge them for their unbelief; the
Lord and not we will judge. We, looking upon their zeal
even though it is "not according to knowledge" (Rm.10:2)
would do better to contemplate their fathers: the righteous
Abraham, Isaak, Jakob, Joseph and Moses, David and
Samuel and Elijah, who rose to heaven still in the flesh.
Look upon Isaiah who accepted voluntary death for the
faith, Daniel who stopped the mouths of beasts in a lions'
den, and the Maccabbee martyrs who died with joy for the
hope of resurrections. Let us not beat, slay and rob people,
but soften their hardness toward Christ and Christians by
means of our own fulfilment of the law of God. Let us
multiply our prayer, love, fasting and alms and our concern for
those who are suffering, let us be zealous about the
true essence of the faith; let our light so shine before
people that they may glorify our heavenly father and Christ.
Let us overcome unbelief and impiousness among Christians
first, and then concern ourselves with the Jews, "And
he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached
unto you: Whom the heavens must receive until the times of
restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by
the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began."
(Acts 3:20-21).
Metropolitan Antony Khrapovitsky not only preached
against the
pogroms, and attempted to influence the government to
intervene, but on at least one occasion, he placed
himself
in the breach. While he was bishop in Volyn, a mob of
pogromists was marching on the local synagogue.
Metropolitan Antony drove his carriage into the path
of the
surging march, placing himself between the mob and the
synagogue, and censured the crowd for their intended
crime.
build these bases.