Wednesday, January 2(15), 2025
1Pet. 3:10-22; Mk. 12:18-27
“Hallow the Lord in your hearts” [1Pet. 3:15]. Hallowing the Lord in one’s heart is nothing but the spirit of that “hidden man of the heart” mentioned by St. Peter earlier in his epistle [1Pet. 3:4]. Just as the Lord, having created Adam’s body out of dust, breathed into him the breath of life and made him fully human, ─ so also the hidden man of the heart, which is created in us out of many virtues, will not become a true spiritual being until that heart hallows the Lord our God, as we read in the Lord’s Prayer: “Hallowed be Thy name” [Mt. 6:9]. If this does not happen, the hidden man of the heart, molded out of those virtues, will be a still-born child, with no spirit of life. Let it be known to those who presume they do not need God as long as they possess some virtues!
What does it mean to hallow the Lord in one’s heart? It means to develop awe and reverence before Him, always keeping in mind that He is present everywhere, striving ceaselessly to please Him at any instance, being extremely careful not to displease Him in any way, and most of all ─ to commit your whole life, both temporary and eternal, to His fatherly care and to accept every incident in your life with humility, submission and gratitude, as coming right from His hands.