The Assumption fast is coming to its end. As we know, this fast is comparable in severity to the Great One, but the time for keeping this fast is in some sense more difficult. There are secular holidays, and the atmosphere of summer holidays, sometimes, isquite frivolous.

What do people usually think about at the end of summer? Oh, I would have time to visit the sea, I would have time to confect more home preservation for the winter, I would have time to get the children ready for school…

All these in theirself are not something bad. But how many Christians think about how did we keep the Assumption fast?

During household routines, the most important thing is forgotten. No, we are not talking about some high spiritual deeds or about assembling virtues. In our problematic days, we should ask ourselves, how many people have we helped, even if not materially — with a good word, moral support, consolation and good advice? Haven’t you forgotten about your neighbor during everyday worries? And fine, there are also everyday worries. How much time we spend at endless scrolling of news feeds in smartphones or at watching stupid and empty videos, or atwatching political squabbling on sofa.

Of course, we are not recluses, and we cannot live in an information gap, but digital noise tends to block the most important thing in life from us — the communication with God and helping our neighbor.

What are the main commandments given to us? "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments" (Matthew 22:37-40). We hide ourselves viaa digital curtain from the fulfillment of these commandments. Somebody even think that they are busy with important things on the web: they post icons and quotes of the holy fathers, write angry comments about opponents of the Church and schismatics. But if there is no love for the Lord and love for our neighbor, all these will not be able to compensate for the main thing and turn into a fuss with a spiritual color.

And now, when there are only a few days left until the end of the fast, let's try to shake ourselves up, sober up, switch off from endless "important" things and try to bring at least a small amount of good to this busy world.

Recorded by Natalia Goroshkova