The head of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, Metropolitan Epifaniy, has called on people to take good care of the health of their souls more than they do about the health of their bodies.
“Recently, caring for the body has become a fashionable trend. Ukrainians pay more attention to their diet, play sports, undergo medical examinations and get vaccinated. In general, it is a good and right thing to do. After all, according to Scriptures, our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who dwells in us (1 Cor. 6:19), and health is one of the gifts of the Lord, so we must take care of our proper physical condition. But we must remember that man is a wholesome creation of God. Just as the harm done to the body can affect the soul, so the diseases of the soul, that is, sins, are reflected on the body. Just as the smoke in a room blackens the walls, so can the soul full of sin blacken the ‘walls’ of its ‘temple,’” says Metropolitan Epifaniy.
The head of the OCU remarked that the healing of diseases by Christ followed the healing of the soul from sin, and the Savior said, “Behold, you have become well. Sin no more, that something worse should not happen to you.”(John 5:14).
As St. John Chrysostomos explained, the healing of the soul cannot be seen, while the healing of the body is obvious. “Then I add to the previous the latter, which, albeit lower, is more obvious, so that with the help of that other thing to believe in the higher thing, the invisible.”
“Likewise, many saints healed people with the word of God and the name of Christ, converted them to the true faith, and thus helped them save their souls. We need to take care of the health of our bodies, and no less, even more, we need to take care of the health of our souls because God created us wholesome. We pray to the Almighty for healing us from sins and for a blessing, so that we may know the grace of God and be with Him in eternity!” stressed Metropolitan Epifaniy of Kyiv and All Ukraine.
