The Royal Service

A Sermon for the Day of the Accession to the Ancestral All-Russian Throne of His Most Pious Sovereign Emperor Nicholas Alexandrovich

I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, says the Lord, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty… I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last (Apok 1:8,10)

Whenever talk turns to the dominion of reigning monarchs on our earthly planet, one is naturally led to think of the One All-Sovereign, who by His almighty hand upholds in constant, unbroken, beautiful order all the countless worlds, before which our earth is but a single point.

Today is the festive celebration of the Russian Realm; today Russia and the Russian Church celebrate the accession to the throne of the Crowned Head of the state—and the Tsar, together with his countless subjects, gives thanks and glory to the One All-Sovereign, God the King and Master, who makes the tsars of the earth partakers of His dominion. To you has been given dominion from the Lord, and power from the Most High[1], says the wise Solomon.

The Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end of all that is visible, of all the elements, of all that passes away—and, as much as of all the kingdoms and tsars of the earth, of every single person—the First and the Last, who is one day to put an end to all the kingdoms of the earth and Himself alone to receive the kingdom and be all in all—is the Lord All-Sovereign, who now is, and who was, and who is to come, the pre-eternal God.

Celebrating the accession to the all-Russian, ancestral throne of the Sovereign who by now has reigned prosperously for seven years, we cannot help thinking of the immense importance and difficulty of the Tsar’s service, of the heavy burden that the tsars of the earth lift upon their shoulders—above all the Tsar of all boundless Russia. How many peoples the Lord has entrusted to one reigning Person, subjecting them to a single dominion! How many different faiths, ways of life, customs, and needs there are within one state; how many branches of administration, of needs of the most various kinds—of the calamities of every sort inevitable on this earth: diseases, crop failures, famines, fires, or floods, disorders, upheavals, the deep-rooted tribal hatred between tribes and nationalities! His heart aches over all these calamities and disorders.

How many chosen and faithful helpers He needs, who would care sincerely, tirelessly, and selflessly for the good of all His subjects.

How much care there is for the dignity, the security, and the defense of the fatherland from enemies external, and sometimes internal as well; for maintaining, commensurate with the size and extent of Russia, the height of military learning and the valor of the army; for the exact administration of justice; for the proper course of life of all the estates of the State; for the education of the people; for the development of the means of communication, of the arts, of industry, and of trade, on which the common well-being and contentment depend; for the relief and protection of widows and orphans; and for peace and for the most just possible satisfaction of the subjects of all the tribes that make up the great body of the State.

And how much care there is for maintaining good relations with all the neighboring States; for peace with all of them wherever possible, or for defending one’s own rights when they are violated to the harm of the fatherland, as happened in the recent war with China.

So heavy is the sovereign rule of the Tsar, and there is no greater accountability before God than the Tsar’s: Is all well in the State? Is due attention paid to everything—to all the tribes and peoples, to all the branches of governance? Is what is due rendered to all? Is due, or at least possible, satisfaction given to all? Does any region, or people, or estate suffer hardship from injustice, or from the harmful effects of the elements, or from anything else?

The Tsar has care for all and for everything, as the common father and guardian of all. And so His subjects are bound to love Him sincerely, to obey Him and the authorities appointed by Him willingly, to pray for Him, and each—in his own place and station—to increase the talents given him by God and to labor for his own good and the common good. All, while under the sovereign rule of the earthly Tsar, must stand in awe of the sovereign rule of the Lord Almighty, who sets earthly tsars over the nations for their good and flourishing, and must increase and strengthen faith in God, love and thanksgiving to Him, mutual love, truth and mercy toward their neighbors, and must attain to everlasting citizenship in the heavens, where all the chosen will rejoice and triumph forever under the one sovereign rule of the One God and King. Amen.