Before the Just Judge

“Behold, I am about to stand before the Just Judge, terrified and trembling because of the multitude of my sins, for the lifetime spent in leisures deserves condemnation. Repent, therefore, O my soul…” are the opening words of the Compline Prayer in the Coptic Orthodox Church.

In the first homily of this book, His Holiness Pope Shenouda III, 117^th Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of Saint Mark, meditates on these words that bring to remembrance the Day of Judgement. He explains that God who is Love is also the Just Judge. You will also find within a homily on ‘The Virtue of Self-Reproach’, and ‘Do Not Despair’, answers to the questions often asked by the soul in despair of her salvation.