WRITTEN BY: Catechist Branislav Ilić, editor of the Kinonija portal
On Sunday, September 15, 2024, in all Serbian Orthodox churches, the Moleban for the beginning of the school year will be held, or the Service of the Invocation of the Holy Spirit, to mark the start of the new school year. We invoke God’s help and blessings at the start of every holy and God-pleasing work, especially at the beginning of each new school year, for acquiring knowledge and true education is a great and sacred task, both for the educators and for the students entrusted to them.
To educate and raise another human being as well as oneself is impossible without a deep understanding of the mystery of sacred education, which implies becoming Christ-like. The venerable father Justin of Ćelije taught his spiritual children that true education-enlightenment is that which directs a person on the right path so that, by living this life on earth, they may acquire eternal life. To educate and nurture means to overcome every sin within oneself, every passion, through the Christian virtues of faith, love, fasting, and prayer, so that we may make our souls a dwelling place for the Holy Spirit.
In the prayers and petitions we offer during the Moleban at the beginning of the school year, we pray that the Holy Spirit, by His Divine grace, kindles the hearts of students in schools and all educational institutions, and opens the minds of all to the recognition of every good deed and the acquisition of wisdom that builds us up for the glory of the Triune God, for our personal and collective salvation!
We fervently pray to the Lord God, glorified in the Trinity- the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit-that the beginning of the new school year will be blessed through the prayers of Saint Sava, our guide on the path that leads to eternal life, so that our education and upbringing may bear true fruit, culminating in the eternal communion with God and all his saints!
