Nativity Encyclical 2025

The Serbian True Orthodox Church 

Nativity Encyclical 2025 

Hierarchical Council of the STOC 

Under the Chairmanship of His Grace Bishop Akakije of Uteshitelejvo 

To the Clergy, Monastics, and Faithful of Our God-fearing Orthodox Nation,  We greet you on this great and joyous Feast Day of the Nativity of Christ:  Christ is Born! Glorify Him! 

 

“Glory to God in the highest, and on the earth, peace, good will among men.” – Lk. 2:14 

God-loving brothers in Christ and faithful children of Orthodoxy! 

Glory to God and peace to all people! These two words reveal to us the great mystery of piety,  the mystery of the work of the redemption of the human race through the incarnation of God:  "God was manifested in the flesh" (1 Timothy 3:16). All divine perfections - power, wisdom, goodness, justice - are now revealed in the clearest light. Jesus Christ is born to reconcile the world with His Father, giving the glory to God that the devil, through sin, tried to steal from  Him. Christ is born to fight against sin and overcome it, to bind the devil, to subject the body to the spirit, and to unite human wills with each other and with the will of God. Therefore, the angels worthily and rightly sang this song of true joy: Glory to God! Peace among men! Glory to  God, who grants forgiveness! Peace to men who are obedient to the teaching and grace of the  Savior. 

Today, as in our thoughts we stand before the God-child in the manger of the Bethlehem cave,  the whole universe resounds with this angelic hymn that has fortified mankind for centuries:  “Glory to God in the highest, and on the earth, peace, goodwill among men!” This heavenly hymn proclaims the joy that the world lost in paradise when man, deceived by the old serpent who is called the devil and satan (Rev. 12:19), turned his back on his Creator, and in doing so,  drove away the peace of God. 

The birth of Him whom the Prophet Isaiah announced as the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6) truly brought to the earth an all-encompassing peace: peace of conscience, peace with God, and the calming of the destructive unrest of the human soul. The Lord tells us, however, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you” (John 14:27). With these words, the Savior makes a clear distinction between true, spiritual peace and the transient, deceptive tranquility of this world. In other words, in this temporary and tumultuous life, in material things, one should not seek peace, because it cannot be found in the things of this age.  Can the soul find true comfort in the false peace that the world offers? In fleeting wealth, in bodily pleasures, or in sinful desires? All of these things produce only discomfort and unrest. 

Only the Lord, with His grace, can truly calm the soul, giving it the peace that surpasses all understanding (Philippians 4:7): a peace so powerful that a Christian, even when suffering troubles from people and demons, considers them as nothing. This otherworldly peace is a gift that God gives to those who love Him with all their soul. Therefore, as the Lord once again tells us: “In Me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I  have overcome the world” (John 16:33). 

Never forget that the peace of God and worldly peace are not the same. God’s peace is based on truth and justice (Ps. 111:7-8), while worldly peace is based on lies. For as St. Gregory the  Theologian says, there is a salvific war and there is a damning peace. We should only love this good peace, which has a good purpose and unites us with God. When it comes to obvious opposition to God, it is better to endure fire and the sword, regardless of the demands of the times and authorities - not only the worldly authorities, but also the spiritual ones. It is better to endure everything rather than accept the evil leaven of heresy, godlessness, and contact with the infected. 

Although He comes to the earth as the Prince of Peace, the Savior emphasizes that He did not come to bring peace to the earth, but a sword (Matthew 10:34). This sword of Christ is the sword of faith, alive and effective, which cuts off every evil from good. For, as St. John Chrysostom says, only in this way can the peace of God be established: when that which is infected with disease is cut off, when that which is hostile is separated. Only in this way is it possible for heaven to unite with the earth, just as a physician saves the rest of the body by amputating an incurable limb. One must reject false peace that supports or tolerates evil to preserve spiritual health. 

The coming of Christ on earth brought the good war to shatter false peace. “Good war” does not automatically imply physical violence (though it is sometimes necessary to resist evil with force), but rather, a spiritual war, the separation of truth from lies, of righteousness from sin. The  main goal is to end the false peace, which is based on tolerance of injustice, indifference to evil,  and relativization of truth based on the false pretext of “preserving the peace.” Only when we fight with the sword of Christ against the devil and his servants can we be at peace with God.  This gospel teaching is visually represented in a fresco, unique in all the world, in the Serbian monastery Visoki Dechani, which shows Christ Pantocrator holding a sword in His right hand. 

This sword is our love for Christ, which, with His invincible power, separates us from those who would take away our piety. The Lord has sent this “good discord” to earth to end “evil  unity.” Christians must never agree with evil or make compromises with it for the sake of a false,  anti-christian peace. As the Apostle warns us: “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial?” (2 Corinthians 6:14-15). 

The Prophet Jeremiah warns about those who have “healed the hurt of the daughter of my people  slightly, saying, ‘Peace, peace,’ when there is no peace,” (Jeremiah 6:14). This self-deception is particularly present in our apocalyptic times. Day by day, we see those who despise the truth and care little for salvation constantly repeating, “Peace and safety!” (1 Thessalonians 5:3). Living only for this world, they reassure themselves that the foundations of their prosperity are secure. It is at the very moment, when the self-deceived are nurturing their worldly hopes, that disaster will strike – an all-consuming calamity from which there is no escape. The Holy Apostle Paul describes this moment as the revelation of the Lord from heaven in blazing fire with His powerful angels, bringing eternal punishment to those who do not obey the Gospel (2  Thessalonians 1:7-9), that is, to those who have not received the love of truth (2 Thessalonians  2:10). 

Brothers and sisters, the Lord’s Nativity calls us to holy zeal. We must not stand aside,  indifferent to the manifestations of evil in the world, especially concerning the glory of God, our holy faith, and the Church. In these matters, we must be completely resolute, not accepting any cunning compromises, formal reconciliations, or any other accommodation to evil. According to  Christ’s command, we must forgive all our personal enemies, but there can be no peace between us and the enemies of God! Let us not be deceived by false peace upon which the great modern  Babylonian tower of apostasy is built, where apostasy reigns, incurring the wrath of God. Let us  accept the Word of God, which is “sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the  dividing asunder of soul and spirit…and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart”  (Hebrews 4:12). Without hesitation, let us cut off with the sword of Christ’s love all friendly ties  and every contact with the servants of the coming antichrist, who has already attracted many in  the modern world with cunning slogans of “universal peace” and “prosperity.” 

May the Savior born of the Virgin teach us that true peace begins in the heart that has cut off darkness from itself and accepted the light of truth. May the Star of Bethlehem illuminate our paths and give us the strength to always stand on the side of Christ’s truth, fleeing from any agreement with the devil’s lies. 

Christ is Born! Glorify Him! 

Uteshiteljevo, Nativity 2025 

Your Intercessors before the Divine Child of Bethlehem, 

+ Akakije, Bishop of Uteshiteljevo 

+ Nektarije, Bishop of Shumadia