And what I say to you, I say to all: Watch!

 

 "Now learn this parable from the fig tree:  When its branch has already become tender, and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near.  So you also, when you see these things happening, know that it is near -- at the doors!  Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pas away till all these things take place.  Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.  

 

"But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.  Take heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time is.  It is like a man going to a far country, who left his house and gave authority to his servants, and to each his work, and commanded the doorkeeper to watch.  Watch therefore, for you do not know when the master of the house is coming -- in the evening, at midnight, at the crowing of the rooster, or in the morning -- lest, coming suddenly, he finds you sleeping.  And what I say to you, I say to all:  Watch!"

 

- Mark 13:28–37 

 

In our recent readings, Jesus is in Jerusalem.  The setting is the final week of Christ's earthly life, which is called Holy Week.  Jesus has been teaching the disciples about end times.  Yesterday we read that He taught them, "So when you see the 'abomination of desolation,' spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not" (let the reader understand), "then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.  Let him who is on the housetop not go down into the house, nor enter to take anything out of his house.  And let him who is in the field not go back to get his clothes.  But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days!  And pray that your flight may not be in winter.  For in those days there will be tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the creation which God created until this time, nor ever shall be.  And unless the Lord had shortened those days, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect's sake, whom He chose, He shortened the days.  Then if anyone says to you, 'Look, here is the Christ!' or, 'Look, He is there!' do not believe it.  For false christs and false prophets will rise and show signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.  But take heed; see, I have told you all things beforehand.  But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars of heaven will fall, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.  Then they will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds with great power and glory.  And then He will send His angels, and gather together His elect from the four winds, from the farthest part of the earth to the farthest part of heaven." 

 

"Now learn this parable from the fig tree:  When its branch has already become tender, and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near.  So you also, when you see these things happening, know that it is near -- at the doors!  Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pas away till all these things take place.  Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away."  My study Bible comments that this generation refers to all believers at all times (in other words, the generation of the Church), and not simply those alive at the time of Christ.  Christ's prophecy is that the Church will continue to thrive until His return, regardless of how desperate things may sometimes appear. 

  

"But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.  Take heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time is.  It is like a man going to a far country, who left his house and gave authority to his servants, and to each his work, and commanded the doorkeeper to watch.  Watch therefore, for you do not know when the master of the house is coming -- in the evening, at midnight, at the crowing of the rooster, or in the morning -- lest, coming suddenly, he finds you sleeping.  And what I say to you, I say to all:  Watch!"  My study Bible notes that although the Son does not know the day of His own return, St. John Chrysostom teaches that this is not to be understood literally, but as a figure of speech.  The meaning is that Christ won't reveal the exact day to anyone, and that believers should not be so brazen as to inquire of Him.  

 

 What does it mean that there will be an end to the period of time in which we exist?  According to the Scriptures and our faith, this age began with the mission of Christ into the world as the incarnate Jesus, and so the whole of the era since then is considered "end times."  But Jesus clearly indicates there is a finishing point to this age, a moment in which all that was meant to be fulfilled in His mission is fulfilled, and then He will return.  At His Second Coming, unlike His first, He will come spectacularly, with great power and glory.  This time will be accompanied by signs preceding it, such as that the powers in the heavens are shaken, the moon and sun appearing dim or darkened, the stars falling.  This fulfillment of the age means that regardless of what we see and think we know of the world, it is in an ever-moving transition of some sort.  There are potentials being fulfilled, working themselves out somehow.  The notion of fulfillment in Greek is the real gist of what it means to "end" -- things end at their fullest point, when all possibilities and purposes have been exhausted and there is no more left to do.  Thus, at Christ's return, judgment occurs, and a new period begins (Isaiah 65:17, 2 Peter 3:13, Revelation 21:1).  In the Christian era, through the coming of the Church, the mission of Jesus Christ, and the gift of the Holy Spirit, such things as the "new creation" are partially fulfilled, for this is the process begun for us.  But its fullness is in the new.  Why is all of this important, and why should Jesus forewarn us about these things which are to come at the end of the age?  It's not so that we make timetables, for there would be little sense in that in and of itself.  But Jesus' byword for us throughout these prophecies He gives of end times is to teach us to endure in our faith, to be watchful and aware of the purpose for which He came into the world and the ongoing mission He has left us with and our role in it.  Christ's final word here is, "And what I say to you, I say to all:  Watch!"  We are to be prepared for that end, by living out our faith, being persistent in it, and enduring to the end through all the things He prophesies for us.  Clearly, His intention here is deliberate.  He wants us to be aware of all of these things, and the process that will unfold, especially at the time He will return, so that we are aware and prepared, and ready for this struggle for faith that is so all-important.  Let us consider the depth and power of His words, for they convey to us the purpose for our age, and frame our lives in that struggle for the faith He gives us, the life in which we also participate in the preparation for that new age He will bring, and in the fulfillment of these end times.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You give them something to eat

 

 Then the apostles gathered to Jesus and told Him all things, both what they had done and what they had taught.  And He said to them, "Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while."  For there were many coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat.  So they departed to a deserted place in the boat by themselves.  

 

But the multitudes saw them departing, and many knew Him and ran there on foot from all the cities.  They arrived before them and came together to Him.  And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd.  So He began to teach them many things.  

 

When the day was now far spent, His disciples came to Him and said, "This is a deserted place, and already the hour is late.  Send them away, that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy themselves bread; for they have nothing to eat."  But He answered and said to them, "You give them something  to eat."  And they said to Him, "Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give them something to eat?"  But He said to them, "How many loaves do you have?  Go and see."  And when they found out they said, "Five, and two fish."  Then He commanded them to make them all sit down in groups on the green grass.  So they sat down in ranks, in hundreds and in fifties.  And when He had taken the five loaves and the two fish, He looked up to heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and the two fish He divided among them all.  So they ate and were filled.  And they took up twelve baskets full of fragments and of the fish.  Now those who had eaten the loaves were about five thousand men.

 

Immediately He made His disciples get into the boat and go  before Him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while He sent the multitude away.  And when He had sent them away, He departed to the mountain to pray.  

 

- Mark 6:30-46 

 

Yesterday we read that King Herod heard of Jesus, for His name had become well known.  And he said, "John the Baptist is risen from the dead, and therefore these powers are at work in him."  Others said, "It is Elijah."  And others said, "It is the Prophet, or like one of the prophets."  But when Herod heard, he said, "This is John, whom I beheaded; he has been raised from the dead!"  For Herod himself had sent and laid hold of John, and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife; for he had married her.  Because John had said to Herod, "It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife."  Therefore Herodias held it against him and wanted to kill him, but she could not; for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a just and holy man, and he protected him.  And when he heard him, he did many things, and heard him gladly.  Then an opportune day came when Herod on his birthday gave a feast for his nobles, the high officers, and the chief men of Galilee.  And when Herodias' daughter herself came in and danced, and pleased Herod and those who sat with him, the king said to the girl, "Ask me whatever you want, and I will give it to you."  He also swore to her, "Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half my kingdom."  So she went out and said to her mother, "What shall I ask?"  And she said, "The head of John the Baptist!"  Immediately she came in with haste to the king and asked, saying, "I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter."  And the king was exceedingly sorry; yet, because of the oaths and because of those who sat with him, he did not want to refuse her.  Immediately the king sent an executioner and commanded his head to be brought.  And he went and beheaded him in prison, brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl; and the girl gave it to her mother.  When his disciples heard of it, they came and took away his corpse and laid it in a tomb.

 

  Then the apostles gathered to Jesus and told Him all things, both what they had done and what they had taught.  And He said to them, "Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while."  For there were many coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat.  So they departed to a deserted place in the boat by themselves.  Continuing on from yesterday's reading, our first verse today resumes "present time" in the narrative, whereas the story of the beheading of St. John the Baptist was given as a kind of "flashback" so that we understand Herod Antipas' fear of Jesus, that He is John returned from the dead.  My study Bible comments on this passage that Christ gives rest to His disciples to show those engaged in preaching and teaching that they must not labor continuously, but must also take rest.  So important is His time spent with them, that they departed to a deserted place in the boat by themselves.  

 

 But the multitudes saw them departing, and many knew Him and ran there on foot from all the cities.  They arrived before them and came together to Him.  And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd.  So He began to teach them many things.   Although Jesus quite deliberately set out with the disciples for a deserted place so that they could rest together, the multitudes will not leave them alone, and follow Him even on foot.  Here, Jesus' compassion plays a part, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd.  And what do lost sheep without a shepherd need?  Learning and teaching; so He began to teach them many things. This is discipleship.

 

 When the day was now far spent, His disciples came to Him and said, "This is a deserted place, and already the hour is late.  Send them away, that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy themselves bread; for they have nothing to eat."  But He answered and said to them, "You give them something  to eat."  And they said to Him, "Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give them something to eat?"  But He said to them, "How many loaves do you have?  Go and see."  And when they found out they said, "Five, and two fish."  Then He commanded them to make them all sit down in groups on the green grass.  So they sat down in ranks, in hundreds and in fifties.  And when He had taken the five loaves and the two fish, He looked up to heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and the two fish He divided among them all.  So they ate and were filled.  And they took up twelve baskets full of fragments and of the fish.  Now those who had eaten the loaves were about five thousand men.  This miracle is reported by all four evangelists; it shows Jesus feeding a great multitude of His people as He fed the Israelites in the desert (Exodus 16).  My study Bible reports that the Church Fathers see in this feeding miracle an image of the Eucharist.  This sense is made quite clear in St. John's Gospel (see John 6).  Here, Jesus shows that we should never eat without first giving thanks to God.  According to my study Bible, the terminology (He blessed and broke the loaves) points to the Last Supper (Matthew 26:26), leading to a eucharistic interpretation of this miracle.  Just as the disciples distribute the bread to the people, my study Bible notes, so also Christ feeds the Eucharist to His flock through the hands of His bishops and presbyters.  There is a spiritual interpretation to this miracle which my study Bible cites. In that interpretation, the five loaves indicate the five books of the law (Genesis through Deuteronomy), which are broken open in Christ and so therefore feed the universe, all of creation.  The two fish represent the Gospel Book and the Epistle Book, the teaching of the fishermen.  The gathering of the leftovers by the apostles (twelve baskets full of fragments and of the fish) shows that the teachings which the faithful cannot grasp are nonetheless held in the consciousness of the Church.  

 

 Immediately He made His disciples get into the boat and go  before Him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while He sent the multitude away.  And when He had sent them away, He departed to the mountain to pray.  This feeding miracle, and its prefiguring of the Eucharist, forms another type of turning point in Christ's ministry.  Note that He departed to the mountain to pray by Himself, after sending the disciples on their way once more across the sea.

 

 Today's reading asks us to open up to questions about consumption.  That is, to think about what we feed ourselves.  What really nourishes us?  With what do we want to be nourished?  We live in an overwhelmingly consumerist-oriented society, at least in a modern, developed world.  We consume entertainments, food, and other things.  But the question of what we seek to consume, and what we seek in order to nurture and feed ourselves for good spiritual health becomes a kind of discernment we might not always think about as clearly as we should.  Clearly the people who follow Christ in the beginning of today's reading perceive in themselves some great need for what they seek from Him.  It's likely that they pursue Him because of the miraculous healings that He is by now so famous for.  But what Jesus will offer to nurture people is what they truly need for their best welfare.  Moreover this welfare involves body, soul, heart, mind, and spirit.  So, although perhaps the people chase after Jesus from all points in order to pursue Him for His famous healings (including the casting out of unclean spirits), Jesus' way of giving them what they need -- of truly nurturing them -- is to teach them.  For the problem He perceives is that they are like sheep not having a shepherd.  Christ's compassion is to provide the people who seek Him with what they truly need.  But then later, another, different need arises.  They have spent the day listening to Him, and they are in a deserted place.  They will need something to eat, so the disciples approach Jesus to send the people away so they find food.  But He has another plan; He wants the disciples to give the people something to eat.  The disciples ask about purchasing two hundred denarii worth of bread (a denarius was about one day's wage for a laborer), which still would not be enough for this large crowd.  Perhaps this is all the ministry could afford.  But Jesus tells the disciples, "You give them something to eat."  It would seem that this is another way of giving people what they need:  the disciples will learn what is possible for them, while Christ will expand the nature of His ministry to include preparation for the Eucharist to come.  A holy meal, indeed, based on faith and the miraculous power of Christ to multiply the little we have to start with -- a kind of display in real time of the nature of the Kingdom as illustrated in the parable of the mustard seed, an active manifestation of the principle named in that same reading, "For whoever has, to him more will be given; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him."  With what little they have, Christ's holy power multiplies what's there to feed the crowds who've stayed with Him as He taught them late into the day.  The Shepherd gives the sheep what they need, and in so doing, the beginnings of the chief sacrament of Christ's Church are begun.  In that sacrament, it is Christ Himself who becomes our food.  Later, after Christ has sent the disciples back across the sea, He departed to the mountain alone to pray.  For even our Lord has need of food which we do not know.  Let us follow His example!

 

 

 

Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done

 

 Coming out, He went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed, and His disciples also followed Him.  When He came to the place, He said to them, "Pray that you may not enter into temptation."  And He was withdrawn from them about a stone's throw, and He knelt down and prayed, saying, "Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done."  Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him.  And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly.  Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.  When He rose up from prayer, and had come to His disciples, He found them sleeping from sorrow.  Then He said to them, "Why do you sleep?  Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation."

 

And while He was still speaking, behold, a multitude; and he who was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before  them and drew near to Jesus to kiss Him.  But Jesus said to him, "Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?"  When those around Him saw what was going to happen, they said to Him, "Lord, shall we strike with the sword?"  And one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear.  But Jesus answered and said, "Permit even this."  And He touched his ear and healed him.

 

- Luke 22:39–51 

 

Yesterday we read the Lord said, "Simon, Simon!  Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat.  But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."  But he said to Him, "Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death."  Then He said, "I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me."  And He said to them, "When I sent you without money bag, knapsack, and sandals, did you lack anything?"  So they said, "Nothing."  Then He said to them, "But now, he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one.  For I say to you that this which is written much still be accomplished in Me:  'And He was numbered with the transgressors.'  For the things concerning Me have an end."  So they said, "Lord, look, here are two swords."  And He said to them, "It is enough."

 

 Coming out, He went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed, and His disciples also followed Him.  When He came to the place, He said to them, "Pray that you may not enter into temptation."  And He was withdrawn from them about a stone's throw, and He knelt down and prayed, saying, "Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done."  Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him.  And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly.  Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.  When He rose up from prayer, and had come to His disciples, He found them sleeping from sorrow.  Then He said to them, "Why do you sleep?  Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation."  My study Bible comments that Christ's agony was the product of His human nature.  In asking that the cup be taken away, it notes, Jesus reveals His human will.  But by submitting His human will to the Father, Christ reveals His divine will to be one with the Father's, and moreover shows that every person must submit one's own will to God's will (Luke 11:2).  My study Bible quotes St. Gregory the Great, in affirming that Christ willingly takes in Himself the voice of weak humanity, thereby conquering weakness:  "The words of weakness are sometimes adopted by the strong in order that the hearts of the weak may be strengthened."

 

 And while He was still speaking, behold, a multitude; and he who was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before  them and drew near to Jesus to kiss Him.  But Jesus said to him, "Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?"  When those around Him saw what was going to happen, they said to Him, "Lord, shall we strike with the sword?"  And one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear.  But Jesus answered and said, "Permit even this."  And He touched his ear and healed him.  My study Bible tells us that this healing is recorded only by St. Luke the physician.  It indicates how we are to treat our enemies, it says.  There is a spiritual meaning in patristic commentary, in which it is Christ who gives people the ability to hear the truth and thereby come to salvation (Luke 8:8; 14:35).  

 

 Jesus goes as He has prophesied, despite His very human resistance to the prospect of death and what lies before Him.  To die on the Cross isn't just an agonizing procedure reserved for the worst criminals and punishment met out by the Roman Empire.  It is a whole host of disparaging, and humiliating, and grinding aspects of cruelty and spectacle.  To be crucified was to be cast before the society as worthless and degraded.  To die slowly, and naked on the Cross before all, is a humiliating and utterly depraved destiny for a religious Jew.  Jesus has been careful, at the Last Supper, to fulfill all righteousness, and He has continued to do so by overriding His human impulses in order to follow the Father's will for Him in faith.  These moments He faces give us a picture of what evil is and does, and they make it clear that we can never discount the words of St. Paul, "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places" (Ephesians 6:12).  Who but one who hated God and opposed Christ and God's plan for the future of humanity could possibly desire such a horribly cruel outcome for Him?  Yet, Christ expresses clearly for us that His opponents are not merely flesh and blood, as St. Paul says, but He seeks the defeat of the devil on our behalf.  This is made clear when He heals the ear of the servant of the high priest.  Jesus is not going after the religious leadership, nor the people who take part in this railroading of Him as an innocent man (Matthew 27:24).  St. Matthew also reports Jesus saying to the one who drew his sword on Christ's behalf, "Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword. Or do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me with more than twelve legions of angels? How then could the Scriptures be fulfilled, that it must happen thus?" (Matthew 26:52-54).  Jesus will face the worst the world can give Him, but it is an act of spiritual warfare in condemnation of the devil and his power, as will be confirmed in the Resurrection and Ascension of Christ.  In so doing, He claims all the world, and all of creation for Himself, and all authority given to Him by the Father including that of judgment (Matthew 28:18), which He in turn will share with His followers (see Thursday's reading).  He goes to the Cross for us, and to give us the most powerful sign of all, that which takes on the evil and defeats it; for this is the victory of the Cross and its power on our behalf.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly

 

 "Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them.  Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven.  Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men.  Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.  But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.  

"And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites.  For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men.  Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.  But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.  And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do.  For they think that they will be heard for their many words.  Therefore do not be like them.  For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.  

"In this manner, therefore, pray:

Our Father in heaven,

Hallowed be Your name.

Your kingdom come.

Your will be done

On earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread. 

And forgive us our debts,

As we forgive our debtors.

And do not lead us into temptation,

But deliver us from the evil one.

For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. 

Amen. 

"For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.  

"Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance.  For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting.  Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward."

 

- Matthew 6:1-16 

 

This week we have been reading through the Sermon on the Mount, in preparation for Lent, which begins next week.  Yesterday we read that Jesus taught, "You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.'  But I tell you not to resist an evil person.  But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also.  If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let hi have your cloak also.  And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two.  Give to him who asks you, and from him who wants to borrow from you do not turn away.  You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'  But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.  For if you love those who love you, what reward have you?  Do not even the tax collectors do the same?  And if you greet your brethren only what do you do more than others?  Do not even the tax collectors do so?  Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect."

 

"Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them.  Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven.  Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory from men.  Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward."  Today we begin chapter 6 of St. Matthew's Gospel.  In this section of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus presents what my study Bible says are the three most basic aspects of spiritual living:  charitable giving; prayer; and fasting.  These three disciples relate directly to God's righteousness, the righteousness of the Kingdom.  The original meaning of "hypocrite" was "actor" (meaning "below the mask," as in the masks worn by actors in the ancient plays).  Hypocrites, my study Bible comments, are play-actors practicing piety for show; those who wish to please other people rather than God.  These are people who wear masks of compassion, but are inwardly heartless.  Their reward is the applause of other people and nothing more.  

"But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly."  My study Bible says that God is not impressed with what others think of us, nor by what we think of ourselves.  God will reward good deeds when they're based upon pure motives of the heart.  

"And when you pray, you shall not be like the hypocrites.  For they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men.  Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward.  But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.  And when you pray, do not use vain repetitions as the heathen do.  For they think that they will be heard for their many words.  Therefore do not be like them.  For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him."   The hypocrites miss the spirit of prayer, my study Bible says, which is an intimate and personal communion with God that leads to the vision of God's glory (1 Corinthians 2:9).  Hypocrisy blocks out this communion and this vision.  Vain repetitions don't establish such communion, as God doesn't need "babble."  To participate in this communion, both silence and words are necessary.  So, therefore we pray always (Luke 18:1), and without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17).  Christ isn't condemning the use of many words per se, my study Bible says, but rather is teaching that words must express the desire for communion with God.  In today's reading, He gives us specific words to repeat (the Lord's Prayer, or the Our Father).  It's not repetition itself that is condemned, but rather vain repetition.  Many psalms, prayers, and hymns of the Church have been repeated for countless generations in the worship of God "in spirit and truth" (John 4:23).   True prayer, then, is not telling God what God already knows, and then telling God what to do about it.  Nor is it all about appearing pious before other people.  True prayer is first of all, humble (go into your room).  It is personal (pray to your Father), and also sincere (do not use vain repetitions).

 

 "In this manner, therefore, pray:  Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name.  Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven."  My study Bible explains that the Father-Son relationships within the Holy Trinity reveals our own potential relationship with God.  Christ, who is the Son of God, grants us this privilege of calling God Our Father by the grace of adoption (Galatians 4:4-7).  As a "son of God" (regardless of human gender) a Christian is called to love, trust, and serve God as Christ does the Father.  We should also take note that God is not our Father just because we were created by God.  This Fatherhood is for those who are in a saving and personal relationship with God, which is a communion that only comes by the grace of adoption (see John 1:13; Romans 8:14-16).  

"Give us this day our daily bread."  My study Bible explains to us that daily is a misleading translation of a Greek word ἐπιούσιος/epiousios which means literally "above the essence," or "supersubstantial."  The expression daily bread is therefore something that's not just a request for bread for the present day, for earthly nourishment.  This is a plea regarding the bread for the eternal day of the Kingdom of God, for the nourishment of our immortal soul.  This living, supersubstantial bread is nothing less than Christ Himself. 

"And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors."  The request to be forgiven here is plural; it is therefore directing us to pray always for the forgiveness of others.  Debts refers to spiritual debts.

"And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one."  God does not tempt anyone to sin (James 1:13); rather, temptations are from the evil one. That is, from the devil.  My study Bible describes temptations as that which are aimed at the soul's giving in to the sinful passions of the flesh (Romans 7:5).  No one lives without encountering temptations, it notes, but we pray that great temptations -- that is, tests which are beyond what we can bear (1 Corinthians 10:13) -- should not come to us.  

"For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses."  Christ here insists on mutual forgiveness between people as a precondition of God's forgiveness, my study Bible comments.  Those who do not forgive are not forgiven.  This is a teaching which Jesus repeats in the parable of the unforgiving servant (Matthew 18:21-35), which Jesus concludes with the same teaching. 

"Moreover, when you fast, do not be like the hypocrites, with a sad countenance.  For they disfigure their faces that they may appear to men to be fasting.  Assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward."  To keep a sad countenance as a show of one's fasting is a kind of external display, but one which Jesus rejects as hypocrisy.  My study Bible comments that, for the one who fasts, the compassion of God outshines the physical discomfort.  Fasting, it says, is for spiritual growth and the glory of God, not done in order to be seen by others around us.  Also, we must keep in mind that fasting is not just about abstinence from food, but it's all about self-denial in any area of life in order to escape being controlled by our passions.  An Orthodox hymn sung on the eve of Great Lent declares, "Let us abstain from passions as we abstain from food."   St. John Chrysostom has written, "What good is it if we abstain from eating birds and fish, but bite and devour our brothers?"

 

There are several aspects of self-denial we might want to focus on as we enter into the Lenten period.  For the Orthodox family of Churches, Lent begins on Monday.  For Western Churches, it begins on Wednesday.   Lent has historically been a period of abstinence and resisting temptation, echoed and patterned after Christ's forty days in the wilderness fasting and resisting the temptations of the devil (see Matthew 4:1-11).  Traditionally Lent was a time of abstinence and withdrawal.  In a sense, fasting is a period in which we refrain from ostentatious meals and time spent in pursuit of ingredients and preparation.  We're given to a kind of period of rest in which we refrain from some normal activities in order to focus more fully on our relationship to God. Thus, we develop the practice of almsgiving at this time, and of more time in prayer and study of our faith.  We both abstain and withdraw.  It's a way to practice the discipline of saying "No" to temptations, and at the same time to become more contemplative in pursuit of our faith and participation in that personal relationship with God that prayer is all about, as my study Bible commented.  We might consider refraining from social media for a time, or even the use of our cell phones, in a modern example of how we might decide to make forms of self-denial for Lent that open up more room for God, clear a space in our lives to focus on faith.  Historical practices of fasting in the Church focus essentially on a vegan diet; that is, one that does not consume animal products.  As Lent in some way reflects our earliest ancestor's expulsion from the Garden of Eden, so this is a time in which we seek to draw closer to God, to pursue restoration of our communion with God, and to make a concerted effort against our own sin, resisting our own passions, for of such consisted our separation from God in the first place.  These practices of discipleship are all meant to help to restore communion with God, and they are given to us by Jesus Christ who is Himself "the author and finisher of our faith" (Hebrews 12:2), who made possible our communion with God and adoption as sons (read "heirs") of God.  To understand abstinence in this sense of shoring up faith, seeking to restore communion, and to do the true spiritual battle of resisting our own temptations, is to stand in good stead with Christ's teachings in today's reading.  All of these things are meant to draw us into closer communion with God, more true reliance upon Christ, and to illuminate the ways God would ask us to change, even the temptations we aren't quite aware of in ourselves.  For as disciples we are called to grow, and blessed with the grace of Christ and the Holy Spirit to help us to know that path to a deeper communion -- even union -- with God.  Let us put His teachings into practice, and see where and how, and even the surprising places, they lead us.   Let us also consider the "hidden" nature of the practices Jesus advises, that this is a period where we withdraw from showing off our faith.  He tells us to do our praying, almsgiving and fasting in secret, and seek the reward our Father who is in the secret place, and who sees in secret gives us.  For this, too, is an essential part of growing in that communion, and resisting temptation. 

 

 

 

 

 

Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation

 

 Coming out, He went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed, and His disciples also followed Him.  When He came to the place, He said to them, He said to them, "Pray that you may not enter into temptation."  And He was withdrawn from them about a stone's throw, and He knelt down and prayed, saying, "Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not My will, but Yours, be done."  Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him.  And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly.  Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.  When He rose up from prayer, and had come to His disciples, He found them sleeping from sorrow.  Then He said to them, "Why do you sleep?  Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation."

And while He was still speaking, behold, a multitude; and he who was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them and drew near to Jesus to kiss Him.  But Jesus said to him, "Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?"  When those around Him saw what was going to happen, they said to Him, "Lord, shall we strike with the sword?"  And one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear.  But Jesus answered and said, "Permit even this."  And He touched his ear and healed him. 

 

Then Jesus said to the chief priests, captains of the temple, and the elders who had come to Him, "Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs?  When I was with you daily in the temple, you did not try to seize Me.  But this is your hour, and the power of darkness." 

 

- Luke 22:39–53 

 

On Saturday we read that the Lord said, "Simon, Simon!  Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat.  But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren."  But he said to Him, "Lord, I am ready to go with You, both to prison and to death."  Then He said, "I tell you, Peter, the rooster shall not crow this day before you will deny three times that you know Me."  And He said to them, "When I sent you without money bag, knapsack, and sandals, did you lack anything?"  So they said, "Nothing."  Then He said to them, "But now, he who has a money bag, let him take it, and likewise a knapsack; and he who has no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one.  For I say to you that this which is written must still be accomplished in Me:  'And He was numbered with the transgressors.'  For the things concerning Me have an end."  So they said, "Lord, look, here are two swords."  And He said to them, "It is enough."

 

  Coming out, He went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed, and His disciples also followed Him.  When He came to the place, He said to them, He said to them, "Pray that you may not enter into temptation."  And He was withdrawn from them about a stone's throw, and He knelt down and prayed, saying, "Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not My will, but Yours, be done."  Then an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him.  And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly.  Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.  When He rose up from prayer, and had come to His disciples, He found them sleeping from sorrow.  Then He said to them, "Why do you sleep?  Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation."  My study Bible comments that Christ's agony was the product of His human nature.  In asking that the cup be taken away, Christ reveals His human will.  By submitting His human will to that of God the Father, my study Bible explains, He reveals His divine will is one with the Father's.  Moreover, it teaches us that this is the goal of each person in our own crossroads and choices (Luke 11:2).  Christ willingly takes in Himself the voice of weak humanity, and thereby conquers weakness.  My study Bible quotes from Pope St. Gregory the Great:  "The words of weakness are sometimes adopted by the strong in order that the hearts of the weak may be strengthened."

And while He was still speaking, behold, a multitude; and he who was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them and drew near to Jesus to kiss Him.  But Jesus said to him, "Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?"  When those around Him saw what was going to happen, they said to Him, "Lord, shall we strike with the sword?"  And one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear.  But Jesus answered and said, "Permit even this."  And He touched his ear and healed him.  My study Bible tells us that this healing is recorded only by St. Luke the physician.  It's an indication of the way in which we're to treat our enemies.  In patristic commentary, it's understood to have a spiritual meaning, in that it is Christ who gives all of us the capacity to hear the truth, and thereby come to salvation (see Luke 8:8, 14:35). 

Then Jesus said to the chief priests, captains of the temple, and the elders who had come to Him, "Have you come out, as against a robber, with swords and clubs?  When I was with you daily in the temple, you did not try to seize Me.  But this is your hour, and the power of darkness."  Regarding darkness, see John 3:19-21, 13:30.

Hidden in today's text, there are hints of meaning in the loss of human capacity for perceiving the things of God.  First, there is the healing of the ear of the servant of the high priest.  As my study Bible notes, in patristic sources this is given a spiritual significance, in that it is Christ who enables our true spiritual hearing, our capacity to hear the truth as given by God.  It is not coincidence that, opening today's reading, we receive the passage that teaches us about Christ's agony in the garden of Gethsemane, in which He prayed His very human desire that this cup be passed from Him.  That is, the cup of the Crucifixion to come, as He knows He will be betrayed and arrested this night by those who will hand Him to the Gentiles to be killed.  Let's observe this great conflict between Christ's naturally human will to avoid death, and His desire to follow the divine will of God the Father.  He has prophesied several times what will happen to Him, and so He knows that "the Son of Man goes as it has been determined" (Luke 22:22), but we can see clearly His human response to what is before Him.  With this, Jesus puts everything before God the Father, "Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not My will, but Yours, be done."  Perhaps this is a good model for all of us, for the times when we are tried with a sorely difficult choice, and we, too, have struggles that are difficult in seeing our way through them.  Christ's impulse is to "hear" God the Father, but He also knows that He is heard, and puts everything before God in so doing.  This is a powerful scene about truth as it is heard and known, for He speaks the truth of His human desire, and hears the truth of the Father's will and lives it.  Then something significant for all of us happens:  an angel appeared to Him from heaven, strengthening Him.  Again, it is an assurance of a process that happens also for us, for the angels are present to us to help to strengthen our own capacities for hearing, knowing, doing, for faith.  Jesus' response is to do what is most helpful at such a time:  And being in agony, He prayed more earnestly.  Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.  His physical human response described here teaches us about the depth of His agony and the fervor of His prayer.  Next we're given the response of the disciples to their great sorrow:  they sleep.  Sleep is a time when we neither hear nor see what is happening around us, symbolic of cutting ourselves off from spiritual sight and hearing of the truth.  Jesus tells them, "Why do you sleep?  Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation," giving us to understand prayer as the way to rekindle our capacity for hearing and seeing, being awake and alert to the things God has in mind for us, wants us to apprehend.  Finally, Jesus puts His finger on the inability to see and hear spiritually, perhaps our unwillingness to do so, either in the face of challenges such as facing terrible difficulties, or deep sorrow, or other temptations.  He also describes the betrayal of Judas and the hypocrisy of these religious leaders who now arrest Him and plot to have Him killed.  All of this He sums up in His description of their hour:  the power of darkness.  Darkness, of course, obscures the light, and in particular, our sight.  So spiritual seeing and hearing -- and the lack of them both -- becomes a powerful component hidden in the scenes of today's reading, and something we have to consider at all times.  For Christ's time of agony is not an isolated event, but one that might come to each one of us, especially as we struggle with our faith.  The world can present us with alternatives we'd rather not face, hostility from those whom we love, even betrayal.  It can impose a kind of response of sorrow from friends who seem to abandon us and sleep when we need them.  Fortunately, Jesus gives us the true sword with which to meet such times of evil and the power of darkness, and that is the power of prayer and its fullness.  We see His fervent and deep prayers, letting God know all, and accepting God's word to Him in His great struggle.  He tells the disciples, "Why do you sleep?  Rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation."  Sleeping is something we try to do in darkness, and it is the power of darkness at work in the arrest of Jesus by those who have shut out spiritual light and sound so as to follow their own desires only, under cover of night, even violating their own laws in the night trial of Jesus that will follow.  When life seems dark, take up the sword of Christ's truth, and the power of the prayers He so deeply prays.  Don't sleep, but follow His teaching to rise and pray, lest you enter into temptation. 

 

 

And when they were fully awake, they saw His glory and the two men who stood with Him

 

 Now it came to pass, about eight days after these sayings, that He took Peter, John, and James and went up on the mountain to pray.  As He prayed, the appearance of His face was altered, and His robe became white and glistening.  And behold, two men talked with Him, who were Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory and spoke of His decease which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.  But Peter and those with him were heavy with sleep; and when they were fully awake, they saw His glory and the two men who stood with Him.  Then it happened, as they were parting from Him, that Peter said to Jesus, "Master, it is good for us to be here; and let us make three tabernacles:  one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah" -- not knowing what he said.  While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were fearful as they entered the cloud.  And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is My beloved Son.  Hear Him!"  When the voice had ceased, Jesus was found alone.  But they kept quiet, and told no one in those days any of the things they had seen. 

 

- Luke 9:28-36 

 

Yesterday we read that it happened, as He was alone praying, that His disciples joined Him, and He asked them, saying, "Who do the crowds say that I am?"  So they answered and said, "John the Baptist, but some say Elijah; and others say that one of the old prophets has risen again."  He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"  Peter answered and said, "The Christ of God."  And He strictly warned and commanded them to tell this to no one, saying, "The Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day."  Then He said to them all, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.  For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it.  For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost?  For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His own glory, and in His Father's, and of the holy angels.  But I tell you truly, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the kingdom of God."

 

 Now it came to pass, about eight days after these sayings, that He took Peter, John, and James and went up on the mountain to pray.  As He prayed, the appearance of His face was altered, and His robe became white and glistening.   The event described in today's reading is called the Transfiguration, as Christ's appearance is altered.  My study Bible calls this occasion a theophany -- meaning a manifestation of God, especially of the divinity of Christ, through a display of His uncreated, divine energy.  The light reflected in all aspects of the visual display to the disciples is seen as a heavenly light, rather than light of an "earthly," created origin.   Jesus' face takes on a different appearance (just as it did in His post-Resurrection appearances to His followers; such as in John 20:14), and His robe became white and glistening.  As God is light (1 John 1:5), my study Bible says, so the light reflected here expresses that Jesus is God. 

 

And behold, two men talked with Him, who were Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory and spoke of His decease which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.   My study Bible notes that Christ's decease (Greek εξοδος/exodus; literally meaning "departure") is a reference to His death.  It says that Christ's death is intimately connected to the glory of the Transfiguration, as Christ is glorified through His death (John 12:23).  In the liturgical cycle of the Orthodox Church, the Feast of the Transfiguration is August 6th, coming forty days before the feast of the Holy Cross (September 14), showing the connection between Christ's glory and His Cross.  This term exodus used here reveals that Christ's Passion is a fulfillment of the Old Testament Passover; it is the true exodus from enslavement into salvation, liberation.  Moreover, my study Bible adds that this revelation of divine power confirms that Christ's coming death was not imposed on Him, but is a voluntary offering of love.  No arresting soldier could have withstood such glory if Christ had not consented (Matthew 26:53).   Additionally, there is the presence of the kingdom of God here.  My study Bible remarks that Moses represents the law and all those who have died.  Elijah represents the prophets and -- since he did not experience death -- all those who are alive in Christ.  Their presence declares that the law and the prophets, the living and the dead, all bear witness to Jesus as the Messiah, the fulfillment of the whole Old Testament.  This also manifests the communion of saints (Hebrews 12:1).  Both men are immediately known by the disciples, and they speak with the Lord.  Now the disciples will be able to understand Christ's word that "Elijah has come already" (Matthew 17:12) as referring to John the Baptist.  They will understand that Malachi's prophecy (Malachi 4:5-6) refers to one who comes "in the spirit and power of Elijah" (Luke 1:17) rather than to Elijah himself.  

But Peter and those with him were heavy with sleep; and when they were fully awake, they saw His glory and the two men who stood with Him.  Then it happened, as they were parting from Him, that Peter said to Jesus, "Master, it is good for us to be here; and let us make three tabernacles:  one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah" -- not knowing what he said.  Peter sees Christ's glory, and the appearance of Moses and Elijah (whom he recognizes) as a sign that Christ's Kingdom has come.  He knows that the Feast of Tabernacles is the feast of the coming Kingdom, and so asks to make three tabernacles, as at that feast, as symbols of God's dwelling among the just in the Kingdom.  

While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were fearful as they entered the cloud.  And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is My beloved Son.  Hear Him!"  When the voice had ceased, Jesus was found alone.  But they kept quiet, and told no one in those days any of the things they had seen. The cloud recalls temple worship and the cloud that went before the Israelites in the wilderness, the visible sign of God being extraordinarily present, my study Bible says.  It notes that the dazzling light surrounding Christ gives us the presence of the Holy Spirit, coupled with the Father's voice bearing witness to Christ as God's beloved Son, makes an appearance of the Holy Trinity.  My study Bible asks us to observe that the Father doesn't say, "This has become My beloved Son," but rather "This is My beloved Son," which indicates that Christ's glory is His by nature.  From eternity past and infinitely before Christ's Baptism and Transfiguration, He is God's Son.  He fully shares in the essence of the Father.  Thus the Creed declares Jesus is "Light of Light, true God of true God."

What is glory?  Let us think about this word.  The disciples, when they became fully awake, saw His glory.  Certainly Christ's glory shows in the divine light completely surrounding His entire person, reflected in His white and glistening robe.  The text says that Moses and Elijah also appeared in glory, and so this glory indicates a heavenly origin, a sign of holy presence.  If we look at the word "glory," we see it connected not so much with an appearance such as radiance but rather with a reality surrounding a person in a different sense.  In its core definition, the Greek word (δοξα/doxa) means opinion (in a good, positive sense); Strong's also gives the definitions of praise and honor.  So Christ's glory appears evident, manifesting as something visibly real -- most certainly in the glistening light that seems to have surrounded this whole mountain, including Moses and Elijah and the cloud that overshadows the disciples like the one that led the Israelites through the wilderness (Exodus 13:21-22).  Perhaps this is a glimpse of what it is to be in the presence of the Kingdom, to dwell that much "closer" to God -- we would be able to perceive glory, those things that are praise and honor in some sort of visible sign, perhaps of light.  Certainly the halos we see in depictions of Christ and the saints and angels teach us something about that.  Perhaps there are those with a sort of "heavenly" sight who view these things about certain people, and we may think, easily, that Christ and our angels who watch over us can see all these things about us.  The notion of the Kingdom being so much more visibly present, almost palpable in the ways that the disciples grasp without being told that they're in the presence of Moses and Elijah, hearing the voice of God and seeing the cloud, all tell us about the reality that dwells within the Kingdom which is not always so visibly close to us, but remains with us and within us nevertheless (see Luke 17:20-21).  Perhaps to be closer to the Kingdom, or even to dwell in that Kingdom, means that we will see what is unseen and usually invisible to us.  Like Abraham and his wife who "entertained angels unawares" (Hebrews 13:2), we may be living and interacting with those who have a glory we can't see or perceive, honor and praise from the only God, who truly sees (Genesis 16:13).  Let us consider all the things that may truly be present to us, of which we are yet unaware, and the glory that shone around Christ, which He shares with His saints and those who carry the Kingdom within and among them.

 

 

Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you

 

 "But I say to you who hear:  Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you.  To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also.  And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic either.  Give to everyone who asks of you.  And from him who takes away your goods do not ask them back.  And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise.  But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you?  For even sinners love those who love them.  And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you?  For even sinners do the same.  And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive back, what credit is that to you?  For even sinners lend to sinners to receive as much back.  But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High.  For He is kind to the unthankful and evil.  Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.

"Judge not, and you shall not be judged.  Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned.  Forgive, and you will be forgiven.  Give, and it will be given to you:  good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom.  For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you."

 

- Luke 6:27–38 

 

Yesterday we read that it came to pass in those days that He went out to the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.  And when it was day, He called His disciples to Himself; and from them He chose twelve whom He also named apostles:  Simon, whom He also named Peter, and Andrew his brother; James and John; Philip and Bartholomew; Matthew and Thomas; James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called the Zealot; Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot who also became a traitor.  And He came down with them and stood on a level place with a crowd of His disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea and Jerusalem, and from the seacoast of Tyre and Sidon, who came to hear Him and be healed of their diseases, as well as those who were tormented with unclean spirits.  And they were healed.  And the whole multitude sought to touch Him, for power went out from Him and healed them all.  Then He lifted up His eyes toward His disciples, and said:  "Blessed are you poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are you who hunger now, for you shall be filled. Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh. Blessed are you when men hate you, and when they exclude you,and revile you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of Man's sake. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy! For indeed your reward is great in heaven, for in like manner their fathers did to the prophets.  But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation. Woe to you who are full, for you shall hunger. Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep.  Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for so did their fathers to the false prophets."

 

  "But I say to you who hear:  Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you.  To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also.  And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic either.  Give to everyone who asks of you.  And from him who takes away your goods do not ask them back.  And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise.  But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you?  For even sinners love those who love them.  And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you?  For even sinners do the same.  And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive back, what credit is that to you?  For even sinners lend to sinners to receive as much back.  But love your enemies, do good, and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High.  For He is kind to the unthankful and evil.  Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful."  In the middle of this passage, Jesus gives what is called the Golden Rule:  "And just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise."   The rest of the teachings here, both before and after, stem from this "rule."  My study Bible calls this Golden Rule a minimum of Christian virtue, as it places humankind's desire for goodness (what St. Cyril of Alexandria calls, "the natural law of self-love") as a basic standard of how to treat others.  It notes that this is simply the first step on the path to the perfection of virtue.  The perfection is found in the final verse in this section:  "Therefore be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful."  Here it is God's mercy, rather than the desire of human beings, which is the standard.  

"Judge not, and you shall not be judged.  Condemn not, and you shall not be condemned.  Forgive, and you will be forgiven.  Give, and it will be given to you:  good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom.  For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you."  My study Bible comments that mercy precludes human judgment.  It says that good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over are descriptions of how an honest and general merchant would measure bulk goods.  Flour pressed down, for example, would yield a more generous amount than flour that is fluffed up.  The blessings which God desires to put into our hearts are more generous than we could contain, however this also depends on the spirit in which we ourselves will give and forgive.  

Forgiveness is not an easy subject.  Certainly we all understand the concept of mercy, for all of us desire mercy on some level in our lives.  We would all desire that others are merciful with us, would not hold our sins and mistakes against us.  Sometimes we speak out of turn, we say the wrong thing, we unintentionally offend, or perhaps we're shorter with others, more abrupt than we intended, but speak out of frustration.  At those times we desire mercy indeed; we'd all like others to overlook our infractions and understand where we're coming from, and listen to what we wished we'd said rather than the poor way it came out.  We all have these experiences, for to be a human being is to be imperfect -- and we do indeed live in an imperfect world, with all kinds of circumstances that make it all the more difficult to maintain equilibrium.  But this is the world into which we're born; even the best of us seem to have bad days.  But what is forgiveness, and how does it work?   Frequently we will hear forgiveness used to mean complete reconciliation, but in my perspective, reconciliation is another step beyond.  In this context in today's reading, of Luke 6:37, there's a different word used for "forgive" than in Matthew 6:12 or Luke 11:4 (in the text of the Lord's Prayer).  But in both cases, the word means to "let go" or to "release."  In this case, it is a word even used in the context of divorce, severing a relationship.  But we're clearly told by Jesus to let go of our grudges, and leave the judgment to God; we're not to seek vengeance.  This does not mean we'll seek to be close to abusers, or even that trust is restored without mutual work.  But it does mean that we let go to God, and we seek God's way to negotiate our world and navigate our way through imperfect relationships, hurts, and even deliberate harms.  We're to positively seek to establish a different kind of relatedness with others in which we put God first, and seek God's way to do so, and that requires of us knowing and understanding God's mercy -- even the mercy we would like extended to us.  There are times in life when we will be called upon to be merciful to those who perhaps have not been merciful to us.  Parents -- even imperfect parents -- become old and infirm, sometimes people who've hurt us will have no one else willing to help when they need it.  At that time we have a choice.  We can find in our hearts the mercy God places there even when there is no rational "justice" involved, for that is a question between ourselves and the Lord, and how God asks us to live as faithful in the Kingdom.  Life changes, and so do we -- and even a kind word may be something God asks us to give to someone who once upon a time didn't have one for us.  It may feel like a sacrifice, we may gain nothing worldly, but we become rich in the Lord.

 

 

Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away

 

 Then He spoke to them a parable:  "Look at the fig tree, and all the trees.  When they are already budding, you see and know for yourselves that summer is now near.  So you also, when you see these things happening, know that the kingdom of God is near.  Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all things take place.  Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.

"But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly.  For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth.  Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man." 

 

- Luke 21:29–36 

 

On Saturday, we read that Jesus taught:  "But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near.  Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those who are in the midst of her depart, and let not those who are in the country enter her.  For these are the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled.  But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days!  For there will be great distress in the land and wrath upon this people.  And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away by captive into all nations.  And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.  And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; men's hearts filing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.  Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.  Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near." 

 

 Then He spoke to them a parable:  "Look at the fig tree, and all the trees.  When they are already budding, you see and know for yourselves that summer is now near.  So you also, when you see these things happening, know that the kingdom of God is near.  Assuredly, I say to you, this generation will by no means pass away till all things take place.  Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away."  My study Bible comments that this generation refers to all believers at all times, the generation of the Church -- and not only to those alive at the time of Christ.  

 

"But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly.  For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth.  Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man."  Here in Luke's Gospel, the emphasis is on preparedness for this time.  We're not given any information that would lead us to make a timetable or predict exactly when this will occur.  Let us note that Jesus emphasizes the surprising nature of this prophesy, that the Day of His return will come as a snare on all those who dwell upon the face of the whole earth.  The emphasis is on preparedness, with the admonition to watch and to pray always, keeping in mind His words and this teaching, that we may be counted worthy to stand before the Son of Man in judgment.

Jesus says, "But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly."  These words echo an element in the parable of the Sower.  When Jesus explains to the disciples the meaning of the parable, He says the following interpretation regarding the seeds that fell among thorns:  "Now the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity" (Luke 8:4).  This is especially emphasized here as those things that lead to heedlessness of the reality of Christ's promise to return, and the judgment of that Day.  It speaks of how easily we are distracted from the spiritual reality of our lives, our own easy capacity for forgetfulness in the midst of life.  We won't be given obvious reminders; we have already been given Christ, the prophets, the saints, the Scriptures, and all the ongoing work of the Church.  But these warnings found twice in the Gospels emphasize how easily our attention is led astray, how simple it is for us to be diverted from this reality and His teachings through the cares, riches, and pleasures of life.  These pursuits and distractions, in Jesus' word, weigh our hearts down, seeming to imply that we don't have the energy to "look up" or that their effect is to deprive us of the capacity to think beyond a purely earthly life.  These words also suggest to us the importance of time, and that we consider the preciousness of the time of our lives.  Repeatedly Christ's parables will suggest this to us, such as in the parable of the Lost Son.  When the prodigal realizes the horrible state in which he finds himself, Jesus says that "he came to himself" (Luke 15:17).  In other words, his straying from the home of his father has taken him away from who he truly is, his true place -- such is the power of the distractions we have in life, when our hearts are weighed down with the cares, riches, and pleasures of life.  There is a pernicious suggestion that returns over and over again in modern life, that the only way to "find ourselves" is by getting lost in what some might enviously think are the privileges of others, where the grass seems to be greener.  In a classical political and social context, the phrase "bread and circuses" might also apply here.  That is, the things afforded by wealth (even great wealth), including all the cares and pleasures that come with riches, or a life of pure indulgence in whatever takes our fancies, or seems to promise to take away pain rather than dealing with it more effectively.  Today we have many ways to be "drunken," we have many sources for "carousing," and an infinite number of cares that seem to plague life in pursuit of such.  Let us understand our own nature and take it seriously that Christ has said that "the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak" (Mark 14:38).  For our lives, as He has said, are more than this, we're meant for what is better and higher for us -- and while we might be distracted with amusements, or the pursuit of what we think is good, this is not the whole of life.  We are meant for meaning, and the wholeness of life includes our spiritual nature, not separate from our earthly bodies but a part of us.  Our well-being depends upon it.  Let us understand why it is necessary that we watch and pray, and we remember God in the ways that we can.  Jesus says, "But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you" (Matthew 6:33).  So much depends upon where our attention is, how we use our time, and what comes first.  Finally, let us consider the weight of these words:  "Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away."  What He promises and teaches here is that His words will supersede all things.  Whatever we put our faith into, and time, and effort, in His word we will find even a new heaven and a new earth.  Let us stand and remember what He teaches.

 

 

I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted

 

 Also He spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:  "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.  The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, 'God, I thank You that I am not like other men -- extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector.  I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.'  And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me a sinner!'  I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

 

- Luke 18:9–14 

 

Yesterday we read that Jesus He a parable to His disciples (following a discussion of the time of His Second Coming), that men always ought to pray and not lose heart, saying:  "There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor regard man.  Now there was a widow in that city; and she came to him, saying, 'Get justice for me from my adversary.'  And he would not for a while; but afterward he said within himself, 'Though I do not fear God nor regard man, yet because this widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.'"  Then the Lord said, "Hear what the unjust judge said.  And shall God not avenge His wn elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them?  I tell you that He will avenge them speedily.  Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?"

 

Also He spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:  "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector."  My study Bible explains that the Pharisee is a highly respected and careful observer of the details of the Law, while the tax collector is despised as a sinner who collaborates with the occupying Roman forces, betraying and cheating his own people.

"The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, 'God, I thank You that I am not like other men -- extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector.  I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.'"  The practices that the Pharisee names are all worthy examples to follow, my study Bible notes.  His good deeds, such as fasting and giving tithes, are the primary weapons against the passions of lust and greed (adultery and extortion).  But without a humble and repentant heart, such practices remain worthless, and they lead to pride and judgment of others.  We note that the text tells us he prays with himself.  My study Bible comments that God is absent where there is boasting.  

"And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me a sinner!'"  The tax collector shows by his posture an awareness of the state of his soul, my study Bible says, as he stands far from the altar of sacrifice and with his eyes cast downward.  His prayer (God, be merciful to me a sinner) is the foundation of the Jesus Prayer (about which we wrote in connection with yesterday's reading, and Christ's teaching to pray always and not lose heart -- see yesterday's reading, above), as well as the refrain "Lord have mercy" that permeates worship and personal prayer.  See also St. Paul's teaching (another inspiration for the Jesus Prayer practice) on continual prayer at 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18.

"I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."  To be justified is to be forgiven and set right with God.  My study Bible comments that this is because inward humility is blessed while pride in outward deeds is condemned.  

My study Bible emphasizes the difference between the inner life and the outer life, and twice comments that God in some sense does not approve of an emphasis on the latter.  It notes first on the text that "God is absent where there is boasting," and secondly that "inward humility is blessed while pride in outward deeds is condemned."  How can we reconcile our faith with this emphasis on the inner life, and a seeming disparaging of the outward?  What seems to be difficult to reconcile may find its answer in Christ's teachings we've encountered recently.  First of all, in Thursday's reading, the Pharisees questioned Jesus as to when the kingdom of God would come.  Jesus replied to them,  "The kingdom of God does not come with observation; nor will they say, 'See here!' or 'See there!'  For indeed, the kingdom of God is within you." This emphasis on the inner life seems to be because that is where we participate in the kingdom of God.  That is where we meet God, and where our prayers are said and met.  It is the place where everything that we are may meet God in encounter, or so it seems that Christ is indicating here.  The other place where we might find an answer to this seeming contradiction of the inner and the outer life is in Jesus' command regarding our own anxieties and worries about the outward, material things we need:  "But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you" (Luke 12:31; see in context).  In the parable that Jesus teaches us in today's reading, the praise for the tax collector is not so much in his honesty as it seems to be in his awareness of himself -- and especially in the place where he is aware that he is meeting God, and that all that he is inside is meeting God.  There is no appearance that can fool God or deceive God by outward display.  We might say that, in contrast to the Pharisee who "prayed with himself," the tax collector is truly praying with God.  He is meeting God in the Kingdom where he knows he's coming up short, and asks for God's mercy.  Let's also understand that to ask for God's mercy is to acknowledge it in the first place.  I would wonder how we would ask for mercy if we were not at least a little secure in knowing that we were praying to One who is merciful in the first place.  It takes trust to do that; and trust in God is, essentially, faith in God.  It is possibly the Pharisee who is, in fact, more afraid of the judgment of God -- since he first of all seemingly avoids God by praying "with himself" only, and relies upon all the outward images to impress God, without truly revealing himself and seeking where God might lead him forward into new things he has not yet addressed in his life, a way to deepen his faith and love of God.  These things are seemingly complex, because the inward life is a complex place, but our encounter with God is one that teaches us love and growing depth of the heart, a place where knowing means this reconciliation to God.  There are all kinds of places in Scripture where we're taught that God doesn't look at the outside, doesn't see the way that we see, such as when Samuel the prophet was summoned to anoint a king of Israel.  Before him was a splendid looking son of Jesse of Bethlehem, to whom he was sent by God.  But Samuel was told, "Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7).  In the book of the prophet Isaiah, we read, "'My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,' says the Lord" (Isaiah 55:8).  We must consider these examples, and think hard about the tax collector and the Pharisee.  For the Pharisee would be seen in public as a great example of piety, while the tax collector would appear a notorious sinner to those to whom Jesus was preaching.  Let us once again consider the state of our own hearts, how open we are to God and God's mercy, and where we encounter the place of the Kingdom and our prayers to the Lord, "for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."  It is the Lord who sees and measures, and whose judgment we need to seek.