Esteem of heaven: more desirable than that of humans
It is true that in order to earn heaven’s esteem we must often renounce recognition on earth. But why is this recognition so important? How long do the praise and the honours last? Even if you are admired, praised and celebrated by millions of people, they will soon leave the earth, and you with them.
Human beings are willing to make such great efforts and sacrifices to gain favours or the good opinion of others. And even if they succeed for a time, some event often occurs to turn things upside down, and all is lost. If they made the same efforts, the same sacrifices for a divine idea, not only would they lose nothing but each day they would gain something precious. For, what is an idea? It is the representative of all the spirits of light in the universe. When you serve a divine idea, you are also serving all these spirits. And through this idea, they in turn are there to support you.
His Holiness Great Sultan Patriarch Elijah of Jerusalem