On Holy Saturday, Christ completed his descent, going all the way down to the depths of hell; today, he completes his ascent, passing into the heavens with his body and bodily taking his seat at the Father’s right hand. Christ is “our life,” as St. Paul says in his epistle to the Colossians; “his life is mine,” as St. Sophrony of Essex wrote. Hence, this pattern of descent and ascent exemplified in the life of our Lord is a perennial and necessary pattern for all followers of Christ. We must descend with Christ to hell: descending through self-knowledge, through recognition of the depth of our sins; descending through humility, through eager acceptance of all hardships; descending through unstinting love of our neighbor and our enemy, no matter how unlovable they may seem, no matter how they may test our love. The holy apostle says that if we die with our Lord in a death like his, we will certainly rise with him in a resurrection like his. Likewise, if we descend with him into the very depths of hell and do not despair, then we certainly ascend with him beyond the stars, beyond the veil of heavenly mysteries, going up with him to participate in the everlasting life of God himself, one in Trinity.
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