O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you were not willing!

 

 On that very day some Pharisees came, saying to Him, "Get out and depart from here, for Herod wants to kill You."  And He said to them, "Go, tell that fox, 'Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.'  Nevertheless I must journey today, tomorrow, and the day following; for it cannot be that a prophet should perish outside of Jerusalem. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her!  How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you were not willing!  See!  Your house is left to you desolate; and assuredly, I say to you, you shall not see Me until the time comes when you say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!'"

 

- Luke 13:31–35 

 

Yesterday we read that Jesus taught, "What is the kingdom of God like?  And to what shall I compare it?  It is like a mustard seed, which a man took and put in his garden; and it grew and became a large tree, and the birds of the air nested in its branches." And again He said, "To what shall I liken the kingdom of God?  It is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal till it was all leavened."  And He went through the cities and villages, teaching, and journeying toward Jerusalem.  Then one said to Him, "Lord, are there few who are saved?"  And He said to them, "Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I say to you, will seek to enter and will not be able.  When once the Master of the house has risen up and shut the door, and you begin to stand outside and knock at the door, saying, 'Lord, Lord, open for us,' and He will answer and say to you, 'I do not know you, where you are from,' then you will begin to say, 'We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets.'  But He will say, 'I tell you I do not know you, where you are from.  Depart from Me, all you workers of iniquity.'  There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and yourselves thrust out.  They will come from the east and the west, from the north and the south, and sit down in the kingdom of God.  And indeed there are last who will be first, and there are first who will be last."   

 On that very day some Pharisees came, saying to Him, "Get out and depart from here, for Herod wants to kill You."  And He said to them, "Go, tell that fox, 'Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I shall be perfected.'  Nevertheless I must journey today, tomorrow, and the day following; for it cannot be that a prophet should perish outside of Jerusalem.  O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her!  How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, but you were not willing!  See!  Your house is left to you desolate; and assuredly, I say to you, you shall not see Me until the time comes when you say, 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the LORD!'"  My study Bible comments here that today's passage shows first, Christ voluntarily going to His Passion.  Secondly, it displays His great love for Jerusalem in spite of its continual state of rebellion.  Finally, He reveals His foreknowledge of how He will be received on the first Palm Sunday.  

 

Let us note that Jesus' cry, "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem" is a lament made with love and sadness, and Jesus also shows His commitment to the mission entrusted in Him, remaining in Jerusalem, "for it cannot be that a prophet should perish outside of Jerusalem."  It's quite interesting to think of this image that Jesus has given, of Himself as a would-be mother hen gathering her brood under her wings.  This is a striking maternal image of Jesus that He gives to us directly.  We might take a close look at some historical architecture of Churches to see how it reflects Christ's image here.  Looking at the beautiful and majestic dome of Hagia Sophia (Holy Wisdom) Church, built in what was then Constantinople (532-537), and minus the minarets added later, we see a very rounded maternal image which reflects Christ's desire to embrace His children as a hen would under her wings.  (See this architectural drawing of the structure.)   This Church was the largest cathedral built in the world for nearly a thousand years, but nonetheless its shape manages to convey the sheltering in the wings of a mother hen, a rounded image with a brilliantly illumined dome that seemed to float above the people.  Interestingly the name Hagia Sophia, "Holy Wisdom," is also feminine in its Greek form, although it refers to Christ Himself.  Why is it important that Christ gives us this picture?  Because it teaches us how our faith works in so many balanced and powerful ways.  Those who would suggest that our faith is merely one of patriarchy would be entirely mistaken, because in Christ's language and practice during His ministry the feminine plays a great role as well.  His love for Jerusalem -- the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! -- is clearly stated here in maternal terms.  It is little wonder that for the Orthodox world, perhaps the greatest image of protector is that of the Virgin Mary, the Theotokos, or "Mother of God."  She is, additionally, considered to be the greatest of the saints, and exalted as the one who exemplifies our faith among human beings.  She bore possible shame and humiliation in her acceptance of her role given by God, protected and sheltered our Lord, and in humility bore the pain that would come as well.  Of course, the whole of the Church and all the faithful is necessary to the faith, and no one is left out. But Christ gives us one of the greatest images we have of what it is to love and care for one's lost children in this image of the mother hen and her brood, and the great desire to protect.  In chapter 15, Luke will also give us the parable of the Prodigal Son, with its image of the father who runs to the returning prodigal.  But let us for today be grateful for Christ's portrayal of His love as that of a hen who longs to protect her lost children, and who will nonetheless stay for the sacrifice He must make at their hands, although they will leave their home desolate.