Bless my enemies, O Lord.
Even I bless
them and do not curse them.
Enemies have driven me into Thy embrace more than
friends have. Friends have bound me to earth, enemies have loosed me
from earth and have demolished all my aspirations in the world.
Enemies have made me a stranger in worldly realms
and an extraneous inhabitant of the world. Just as a hunted animal
finds safer shelter than an unhunted animal does, so have I, persecuted
by enemies, found the safest sanctuary, having ensconced myself beneath
Thy tabernacle, where neither friends nor enemies can slay my soul.
Bless my
enemies, O Lord. Even I bless them and do not curse them.
They, rather than I, have confessed my sins before
the world.
They have punished me, whenever I have hesitated
to punish myself.
They have tormented me, whenever I have tried to
flee torments.
They have scolded me, whenever I have flattered
myself.
They have spat upon me, whenever I have filled
myself with arrogance.
Bless my
enemies, O Lord. Even I bless them and do not curse them
Whenever I have made myself wise, they have called
me foolish.
Whenever I have made myself mighty they have
mocked me as though I were a dwarf.
Whenever I have wanted to lead people, they have
shoved me into the background.
Whenever I have rushed to enrich myself, they have
prevented me with an iron hand.
Whenever I thought that I would sleep peacefully
they have wakened me from sleep.
Whenever I have tried to build a home for a long
and tranquil life, they have demolished it and driven me out.
Truly, enemies have cut me loose from the world
and have stretched out my hands to the hem of Thy garment.
Bless my
enemies, O Lord. Even I bless them and do not curse them.
Bless them and multiply them; multiply them and
make them even more bitterly against me:
Enemies have taught me to know what hardly anyone knows, that a person
has no enemies in the world except himself.
One
hates his enemies only when he fails to realize that they are not
enemies, but cruel friends.
It
is truly difficult for me to say who has done me more good and who has
done me more evil in the world: friends or enemies.
Therefore bless, O Lord, both my friends and my enemies.
A
slave curses enemies, for he does not understand. But a son blesses
them, for he understands.
For
a son knows that his enemies cannot touch his life. Therefore he freely
steps among them and prays to God for them.
Bless my enemies, O Lord. Even I bless them and
do not curse them.
Bishop
Nicholai (Velimirovic) was the best-known
bishop in the Serbian Orthodox Church during the last century. Born
in 1880 in the village of Lelic in western Serbia, he traveled and
studied widely in the West as a young man, being in Britain during
the First World War. Later, having returned to his native land, he
brought his wide experience to his pastoral duties as bishop of
Ochrid and in Zhicha.
During the Second World War, he was imprisoned
by the Nazis firstly in local monasteries in Serbia and later in the
Dachau death camp. After the war and the beginning of Communist
rule in his native land, he could not return to his beloved
homeland.
Bishop Nicholai settled in America, where he
lived out the rest of his life in teaching and pastoral work. He
died in 1956 at St. Tikhon's Orthodox Seminary and Monastery in
South Canaan, Pennsylvania, where he was rector of the seminary.
His body was buried in the monastery of Saint Sava in Libertyville,
Illinois. His earthly body was only returned to his native land and
buried in his home village of Lelic in May 1991.
This particular prayer was written some 20
years before the Saint's imprisonment in Dacha.
Our small parish in Billings, MT is the first
church world-wide to have the honor of having St. Nicholai as its
patron and protector. Holy Bishop Nicholai, pray for us that we be
worthy of this honor! 19 Mar 06
