You have kept the good wine until now!

 

 On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there.  Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding.  And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, "They have no wine."  Jesus said to her, "Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me?  My hour has not yet come."  His mother said to the servants, "Whatever He says to you, do it."  

 

Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece.  Jesus said to them, "Fill the waterpots with water."  And they filled them up to the brim.  And He said to them, "Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast."  And they took it. 

 

When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom.  And he said to him, "Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior.  You have kept the good wine until now!"

 

This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.  After this He went down to Capernaum, He, His mother, His brothers, and His disciples; and they did not stay there many days. 

 

- John 2:1–12 

 

In yesterday's reading, we were given the fourth day of Christ's public ministry: The following day (after Andrew and Simon Peter became His disciples) Jesus wanted to go to Galilee, and He found Philip and said to him, "Follow Me."  Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter.  Philip found Nathanael and said to him, "We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wrote -- Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph."  And Nathanael said to him, "Can anything good come out of Nazareth?"  Philip said to him, "Come and see."  Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward Him, and said to him, "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!"  Nathanael said to Him, "How do You know me?"  Jesus answered and said to him, "Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you."  Nathanael answered and said to Him, "Rabbi, You are the Son of God!  You are the King of Israel!"  Jesus answered and said to him, "Because I said to you, 'I saw you under the fig tree,' do you believe?  You will see greater things than these."  And He said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, hereafter you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man."

 

  On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there.  Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding.  On the third day is an expression which my study Bible says means "two days later," as it includes the current day in its calculation.  Therefore this begins the sixth day of Christ's public ministry.  Paralleling the creation of man and woman in Genesis 1:26-31, the wedding in Cana of Galilee takes place, giving birth, so to speak, to Christ's ministry in Galilee.  My study Bible further explains that this setting is significant.  In the Old Testament, marriage feasts symbolized the union of God with His Bride, Israel.  Jesus intentionally begins His ministry at Galilee (see yesterday's reading, above) which had a large Gentile population; this was a sign of the spread of the gospel to all the world.  That the wedding took place on the third day gives a resurrectional tone to this event, showing that the marriage of God and God's Church will be fulfilled in the Resurrection of Christ.  There are other parallels to this marriage and the Resurrection account in John 20:1-18, which my study Bible names as that involve a woman named Mary who makes an appeal, and in both passages the disciples are invited to witness the event.  Moreover, the Resurrection account (John 20:11-18) has a striking similarity to Song of Solomon 3:1-5, again showing the unity between marriage and the Lord's Resurrection.   Additionally, by Christ's presence at the wedding He declares marriage to be holy and honorable (Hebrews 13:4), a sacrament of the Church.

 

 And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, "They have no wine."  Jesus said to her, "Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me?  My hour has not yet come."  His mother said to the servants, "Whatever He says to you, do it."  This is an example of Mary's gift of intercession.  Even now, my study Bible says, Mary continually speaks to her Son on our behalf and she is our preeminent intercessor before His Throne.  This is confirmed as Jesus grants her request in this passage.  Here, wine is symbolic of life; so, there are two levels of meaning in Mary's statement, "They have no wine."  First, a marriage is not complete without the presence of Christ; and second, the old covenant was not able to bestow life even on the most faithful people.  My study Bible moreover notes that, contrary to certain modern usages, Woman is a sacred title in Scripture, and it conveys deep respect and distinction (John 4:21; 8:10; 19:26; 20:13; compare to Genesis 2:23).  "What does your concern have to do with Me?" is translated more literally, "What is that to Me and to you?"  Most significantly, in the Greek, these are the same words used by the widow Zarephath in the Septuagint version of the Old Testament, when she questioned Elijah after the death of her only son following her help to the prophet (1 Kings 17:18).  In effect Jesus is using a kind of "shorthand" with His mother, asking if she is prepared for what is to follow once His signs (or miracles) begin.  Christ's hour is the time of his great glorification in the Cross at His Passion.  That Christ fulfills her request teaches several things, according to my study Bible:  First, that He is Lord over hours and seasons and is not subject to them.  Second, the wedding party needed to be aware of their lack of wine first so that they might learn that it is Christ who fulfills all needs.  Third, we need to have perseverance in our petitions before God (Matthew 15:21-28).  Finally, the intercessions of the righteous have great power (James 5:16).  

 

 Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece.  Jesus said to them, "Fill the waterpots with water."  And they filled them up to the brim.  And He said to them, "Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast."  And they took it.  Waterpots were made of stone because, according to rabbinical teaching, stone could not contract ritual impurity.  That there are six of them (one less than the perfect seven) indicates that the Law, illustrated by water reserved for Jewish purification, was incomplete, imperfect, and unable to bestow life.  My study Bible says that this water is changed into wine, symbolizing the old covenant being fulfilled in the new, which is capable of bestowing life.  The overabundant gallons of wine illustrate Christ's overflowing grace which is granted to all. 

 

 When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom.  And he said to him, "Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior.  You have kept the good wine until now!"  My study Bible comments that in patristic commentary this transformation is seen as prefiguring the transformation of bread and wine into the Body Blood of Christ in the Eucharist.

 

 This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.  After this He went down to Capernaum, He, His mother, His brothers, and His disciples; and they did not stay there many days.  Christ's glory, according to my study Bible, refers both to His divine power shown in His signs and wonders, and also to His humble service to humankind, shown most perfectly on the Cross (John 12:23-32; 13:31).  Through such manifestations of glory, Jesus reveals that He is the One sent from the Father.  This beginning of signs, the transformation of water to wine, is the first sign of seven in the Gospel of John.  According to my study Bible, John uses the term "signs" to show that these miraculous actions point beyond themselves to the truth that the Kingdom of God has come among us in the Person of Jesus Christ.  The following day ("after this He went down to Capernaum") marks the seventh day in this beginning of Christ's ministry, and it parallels the seventh day of rest in the creation story (Genesis 2:1-3).

 

Over the past two readings, we have taken note in commentary how Christ's ministry has unfolded on a very human scale.  The disciples have been called one by one, and they have personal connections to one another (two are brothers; a third comes from the brothers' same hometown; they are first introduced to Christ as the Lamb of God by John the Baptist as they were John's disciples earlier; Jesus personally calls Phillip by finding him and telling him, "Follow Me," Nathanael understands that Christ knows him in ways he finds impossible to explain).   But here, finally, on this sixth day given in John's Gospel, we have a striking example of the manifestation of Christ's glory, His miraculous first sign of turning water to wine.  My study Bible gives in its notes cited above many reasons for this setting and its meanings.  But perhaps in the context of our previous commentary we might note how Christ's Incarnation and its step by step, rather plodding growth of His ministry in the persons of the disciples who come to join Him is in stark contrast to this lightning-fast sign of water becoming wine.  This is impossible to understand except through divine help and power, where both time and space are seemingly suspended for what is a natural process to take place in a miraculous way.  One means to say that it is not impossible to turn water to wine through the addition of grapes and the process of fermentation, that this is a common human endeavor (and particularly so in Christ's time and place).  But in the case of Jesus, it is His divine will and power at work that creates this miracle, and it is a sign of God's presence with Him, a manifestation of God's grace and glory in the Person of Jesus Christ, the Son.  Perhaps it is, in fact, this deeply human story of the Incarnation that is itself the backdrop and contrast to Christ's miraculous power so that we truly understand the stupendous shock of the presence of God in our midst.  That very contrast teaches us about Christ and His identity and the transcendent reality of the Incarnation.  One also finds that this "secret" process of the water transforming within these large stone pots as a kind of parallel to the Incarnation itself.  This great transformation takes place hidden from human eyes, inside the darkness of the waterpots set aside for purification as holy vessels in some sense, and Christ Himself is also hidden in the plain sight of the fully human Jesus.  He is both fully human, and fully divine, but not all will understand His divinity, and it will remain hidden -- as it does today -- to many, despite His "signs."  Our faith, even until today, works in this same sense.  We can't see God's presence obviously among us and in our world, we don't perceive the kingdom of heaven ("The kingdom of heaven does not come with observation" - see Luke 17:20-21), but it is within us, it dwells among us; it lives in us through faith; it is present in our sacraments and liturgies, and Jesus Himself has taught that "where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them" (Matthew 18:20).  So the Incarnation of Christ, among its many attributes, also helps us to know by contrast the power that is in Him, His divinity, as well as to understand how in our every day world the hiddenness of the Kingdom is something we live with, and through faith we know its presence, and may participate in it, and moreover that Kingdom may even participate in us, for Christ has come not only to assume all the aspects of life as one of us, but to share with us even His divinity and grace as well, including all the gifts and fruit of the Spirit.  As St. John writes, "And of His fullness we have all received, and grace for grace. For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ" (John 1:16-17).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!

 

 Then all the tax collectors and the sinners drew near to Him to hear Him.  And the Pharisees and scribes complained, saying, "This Man receives sinners and eats with them."  

 

So He spoke this parable to them, saying:  "What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?  And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.  And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!'  I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance. 

"Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it?  And when she has found it, she calls her friends and neighbors together, saying, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found the piece which I lost!'  Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."

 

- Luke 15:1–10 

 

 Yesterday we read that, at this stage in Christ's ministry, great multitudes went with Him.  And He turned and said to them, "If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple.  And whoever does not bear his cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.  For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it -- lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, 'This man began to build and was not able to finish.'  Or what king, going to make war against another king, does not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand?  Or else, while the other is still a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks conditions of peace.  So likewise, whoever of you does not forsake all that he has cannot be My disciple.  Salt is good; but if the salt has lost its flavor, how shall it be seasoned?  It is neither fit for the land nor for the dunghill, but men throw it out.  He who has ears to hear, let him hear!" 

 Then all the tax collectors and the sinners drew near to Him to hear Him.  And the Pharisees and scribes complained, saying, "This Man receives sinners and eats with them."   Our reading begins with the criticism (or complaint) of the Pharisees and the scribes against Jesus, "This Man receives sinners and eats with them."   My study Bible comments that fellowship with sinners defiled pious Jews.  Jesus responds with three parables in this chapter as His answer to this complaint.  The parables that follow (two in today's reading; and another in tomorrow's, which is the parable of the Prodigal or Lost Son) are seen by St. Ambrose of Milan as representing Christ, the Church, and God the Father.  He comments, "Christ carries the sinner, the Church seeks and intercedes, and the Father receives."

 

 So He spoke this parable to them, saying:  "What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it?  And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing.  And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!'  I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance."  In the spiritual interpretation in patristic commentary, these hundred sheep represent all rational creation, says my study Bible.  In this perspective, the one sheep who goes astray is symbolic of human beings, and the ninety-nine represent the angelic realm.   In this understanding, Christ descended from heaven to pursue the one sheep -- humankind -- who had fallen into corruption on earth. 

"Or what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp, sweep the house, and search carefully until she finds it?  And when she has found it, she calls her friends and neighbors together, saying, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found the piece which I lost!'  Likewise, I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents."  My study Bible comments that ten silver coins comprise a single necklace worn by a married woman, a bride, which is an image of the Church (Ephesians 5:32).  The lost coin (in Greek δραχμή, a drachma) carried an image of the king.  Symbolizing humankind, who, although we bear the image of God, fell from grace.  Through the Church, my study Bible says, Christ enlightens the world, sweeps away sin, and finds His lost creation.  

The images Jesus gives in the parables we find in today's reading all speak to us of completion.  The necklace of the ten coins is simply not complete without the missing tenth coin.  Without that coin, it's not just a diminished necklace or even a broken one.  The implication is that it is no longer the bridal necklace for a married woman, it's not the necklace proper to who she is.  The same is true of the missing sheep.  Christ's implication is that without that missing sheep, and even having the ninety-nine, the flock is not full, it's not complete -- and God asks always for fullness, completeness, the fullness of God's creation and plan.  It's tells us that fullness is part of God's reality, God's identity.  If something is not full in the sense of completeness, it is not of the nature of God, our Creator.  The fullness of time, in this sense, is something else implied in these parables.  If Christ has come into the world to search for the lost sheep, to reclaim that which has been lost, He has come even as Physician, to heal those who are sick and in need, to create the fullness of the healing of humanity by calling sinners to repentance (see Luke 5:30-32).   All of this implies that the fullness of time is part of the necessary understanding of Christ's mission and what He is doing as the incarnate Jesus in the world.  This is a mission in which the central point is the culmination of the worldly ministry in the Cross and Resurrection, but the fullness of that mission is only seen through the fullness of creation.  What we might understand from this is that we need to understand our Lord as the One who seeks us with a need that is beyond what we can even understand, because if indeed we are so ultimately necessary that He would seek out the one stray and leave the ninety-nine, that the necklace is simply not complete without that missing coin, then each of us has a kind of belonging in God's love that is impossible for us to calculate.  This is because only God really knows what the fullness of God's creation is, and is supposed to be.  Only the Lord knows our purpose and calling in that ultimate fullness of what hope lies in creation, and particularly in the creation of human beings.  What these parables illustrate also is the heart of God, because it is God who seeks us, and who suggests to us that without every one of us, God feels this deep need to call us back, to come and seek and find us, to call us to repentance, to return God's love (for this is really the meaning of repentance).  In fact, perhaps the deepest form of unrequited love, beyond anything that you or I could understand through our own painful experiences, might be the love that God has for us -- so often have prophets been sent, and Christ Himself was sent, to call us back to God.  Here is a parallel mystery, that God loves us so much that God will not be content without our love which must be given freely, not coerced or compelled, for without freedom there is no love.  We have that freedom to stray because of God's love for us, for God wants us from our whole hearts, a returned love freely given.  If we want to understand Christ's suffering to come, let us understand the Cross in this light, "for God so loved the world" that the Son will suffer and die and undergo human death to call us back with His whole heart -- with a love so great it's beyond our knowing.  Jesus tells us that "there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance."  The joy of this completeness is rooted in God's love for each one of us.

 

Daughter, be of good cheer; your faith has made you well. Go in peace

 

 So it was, when Jesus returned, that the multitude welcomed Him, for they were all waiting for Him.  And behold, there came a man named Jairus, and he was a ruler of the synagogue.  And he fell down at Jesus' feet and begged Him to come to his house, for he had an only daughter about twelve years of age, and she was dying.  But as He went, the multitudes thronged Him. 

Now a woman, having a flow of blood for twelve years, who had spent all her livelihood on physicians and could not be healed by any, came from behind and touched the border of His garment.  And immediately her flow of blood stopped.  And Jesus said, "Who touched Me?"  When all denied it, Peter and those with him said, "Master, the multitudes throng and press You, and You say, 'Who touched Me?'"  But Jesus said, "Somebody touched Me, for I perceived power going out from Me."  Now when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling; and falling down before Him, she declared to Him in the presence of all the people the reason she had touched Him and how she was healed immediately.  And He said to her, "Daughter, be of good cheer; your faith has made you well.  Go in peace."  

 

While He was still speaking, someone came from the ruler of the synagogue's house, saying to him, "Your daughter is dead.  Do not trouble the Teacher."  But when Jesus heard it, He answered him, saying, "Do not be afraid; only believe, and she will be made well."  When He came into the house, He permitted no one to go in except Peter, James, and John, and the father and mother of the girl.  Now all wept and mourned for her; but He said, "Do not weep; she is not dead, but sleeping."  And they ridiculed Him, knowing that she was dead.  But He put them all outside, took her by the hand and called, saying, "Little girl, arise."  Then her spirit returned, and she arose immediately.  And He commanded that she be given something to eat.  And her parents were astonished, but He charged them to tell no one what had happened.

 

- Luke 8:40–56 

 

Yesterday we read that Jesus and the disciples sailed to the country of the Gadarenes, which is opposite Galilee.  And when He stepped out on the land, there met Him a certain man from the city who had demons for a long time.  And he wore no clothes, nor did he live in a house but in the tombs.  When he saw Jesus, he cried out, fell down before Him, and with a loud voice said, "What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?  I beg You, do not torment me!"  For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man.  For it had often seized him, and he was kept under guard, bound with chains and shackles; and he broke the bonds and was driven by the demon into the wilderness.  Jesus asked him, saying, "What is your name?"  And he said, "Legion," because many demons had entered him.  And they begged Him that He would not command them to go out into the abyss.  Now a herd of many swine was feeding there on the mountain.  So they begged Him that He would permit them to enter them.  And He permitted them.  Then the demons went out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the lake and drowned.  When those who fed them saw what had happened, they fled and told it in the city and in the country.  Then they went out to see what had happened, and came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind.  And they were afraid.  They also who had seen it told them by what means he who had been demon-possessed was healed.  Then the whole multitude of the surrounding region of the Gadarenes asked Him to depart from them, for they were seized with great fear.  And He got into the boat and returned.  Now the man from whom the demons had departed begged Him that he might be with Him.  But Jesus sent him away, saying, "Return to your own house, and tell what great things God has done for you."  And he went his way and proclaimed throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him.

 

 So it was, when Jesus returned, that the multitude welcomed Him, for they were all waiting for Him.  And behold, there came a man named Jairus, and he was a ruler of the synagogue.  And he fell down at Jesus' feet and begged Him to come to his house, for he had an only daughter about twelve years of age, and she was dying.  But as He went, the multitudes thronged Him.   Here Jesus returns to Capernaum, where He is well-known, and so they were all waiting for Him, including Jairus, a ruler of the synagogue.   

Now a woman, having a flow of blood for twelve years, who had spent all her livelihood on physicians and could not be healed by any, came from behind and touched the border of His garment.  And immediately her flow of blood stopped.   My study Bible explains that, for the Jews, contact with blood caused defilement and led to religious and social isolation (Leviticus 15:19-27).  This woman, therefore, displays bold faith by approaching both Christ and Jairus, a ruler of the synagogue in this crowd.  This potentially defiles all of them and would subject her to ridicule.  

And Jesus said, "Who touched Me?"  When all denied it, Peter and those with him said, "Master, the multitudes throng and press You, and You say, 'Who touched Me?'"  But Jesus said, "Somebody touched Me, for I perceived power going out from Me."   My study Bible says that Christ's question, "Who touched Me?" does not simply mean a physical touch, but instead, "Who touched me in faith?"  It explains that, just as "the temple sanctifies the gold" (Matthew 23:17), so also matter is sanctified by Christ's Incarnation, and the power of Christ works through even His garment.   To touch Christ's garment in faith is to touch Him.  In the Church, it says, we touch Christ through icons, oil, water, bread, wine, etc.  When this is done in faith, the power of Christ is received.  

Now when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling; and falling down before Him, she declared to Him in the presence of all the people the reason she had touched Him and how she was healed immediately.  And He said to her, "Daughter, be of good cheer; your faith has made you well.  Go in peace."   Here Christ calls the woman forward, to take away her fear and trembling, but also, my study Bible says, to strengthen Jairus for the forthcoming news about his daughter.

While He was still speaking, someone came from the ruler of the synagogue's house, saying to him, "Your daughter is dead.  Do not trouble the Teacher."  But when Jesus heard it, He answered him, saying, "Do not be afraid; only believe, and she will be made well."  When He came into the house, He permitted no one to go in except Peter, James, and John, and the father and mother of the girl.  Now all wept and mourned for her; but He said, "Do not weep; she is not dead, but sleeping."  And they ridiculed Him, knowing that she was dead.  But He put them all outside, took her by the hand and called, saying, "Little girl, arise."  Then her spirit returned, and she arose immediately.  And He commanded that she be given something to eat.  And her parents were astonished, but He charged them to tell no one what had happened.   My study Bible tells us that this is one of three resurrections which were performed by Christ as recorded in the Gospels.  See also this recent reading, and John 11:1-44.  Each confirms the promise given to the prophet Ezekiel that God will one day open the graves, and raise all the dead (Ezekiel 37:1-14).  Many people have exercised authority over the living, but only the Son of God has power over the living and the dead.  In the story of the raising of the son of the widow of Nain (Luke 7:11-17), Jesus touched his coffin; the raising of Lazarus from the dead happened through His word alone (John 11:43).   But here, Jesus raises the little girl as He took her by the hand, and gave her a command ("Little girl, arise").    These incidents in which He touches others show that His very body is life-giving.  Again, like the story of the widow of Nain and her son, this event of the healing of Jairus' daughter prefigures Christ's own Resurrection.  But in this case, it's a father, Jairus, rather than Christ's mother Mary, whose sadness is turned to joy.  Her parents are astonished.  

It's quite remarkable to think that this stupendous achievement of the healing of Jairus' daughter, who had died according to all in the household, is something about which Christ charged the parents to tell no one what had happened.   How is it possible, one wonders, for this news to be kept quiet?  But nonetheless her parents are told not to speak of it to anyone.  Note how this resurrection is done in secret.  Jesus put outside all of the scoffers, the ones who ridicule.  Moreover, He permitted no one to go in except Peter, James, and John, and the father and mother of the girl.   We note also that the rest of the disciples are not taken in, but only those closest to Jesus -- and the strongest in faith, Peter, James, and John.  We also contrast the hugely public event of the healing of the woman's flow of blood with Christ's emphatic instructions meant to keep the raising of Jairus' daughter as private as possible.  Not only did the woman touch Him in the middle of a thronging crowd, but Jesus also brought her forward, demanding to know, "Who touched Me?"  and added, "Somebody touched Me, for I perceived power going out from Me."   After Jesus had deliberately drawn her out with these questions, we're told that the woman fell down before Him, and declared to Him in the presence of all the people the reason she had touched Him and how she was healed immediately.  Then He praises her before all the crowd, and declares, "Daughter, be of good cheer; your faith has made you well.  Go in peace."    These are bold public expressions designed to focus great attention on what is happening, even in the midst of a crowd that could have been defiled (according to the Law) by her flow of blood.  So, why, we have to ask, is there such a great contrast -- in terms of public notice and declaration -- between one and the other?  There's an interesting further contrast in the status of the two subjects of these healings.  Both are female.  But one is a girl of twelve, under her father's protection, too young to be called a woman.  The other has, on the other hand, had a flow of blood for twelve years.  One presumes her affliction not only leaves her alone, but we're also told that she had spent all her livelihood on physicians and could not be healed by any.  So, in contrast to the young daughter of a ruler of the synagogue, she is likely destitute and desperate for help, and she puts her faith in Christ.  On the one hand, the girls' parents need their faith shored up very badly:  Jesus puts out the ones who ridicule, and makes certain the healing is a private affair with only His most faithful disciples present.  Moreover, He tells Jairus, "Do not be afraid; only believe, and she will be made well."   While the young girl's faith is not a part of the story, that of her parents and household most certainly is.  Perhaps the key to all of these differences, after all, is faith.  If the parents do not go into the world and tell all the story, there is no opportunity for the world to clamor that it is not so, cannot be so, she wasn't really passed, and all manner of doubt and the shaking of faith in Christ.  On the other hand, the woman's faith itself is exemplary.  Indeed,  Jesus Himself declares that it is, in fact, her faith that has made her well.  We can look closely at the dynamics of this story and note that Jesus asked, "Who touched Me?"  He makes it very clear how this happened, and what He experienced, because He said, "Somebody touched Me, for I perceived power going out from Me."   This would seem to teach us -- and quite publicly -- that Christ's power works by responding to faith.  He didn't feel her touch, but knew that someone had touched Him -- and needed to know who did so -- because He perceived power going out from Himself.  And so my study Bible comments that we may do the same, receive the power of Christ through the things by which we "touch" Him in Church.  Both stories are different, but both speak to us loudly of faith.  On the one hand was this desperate woman's exemplary faith in touching even the hem of Christ's garment.  On the other are Christ's rather extraordinary measures Himself to shore up the faith of the girl's parents.  Let us note that this teaches us, also, to take whatever measures we need to find support and strength for our faith -- for it is this in which Christ Himself engages and makes all effort.  Sometimes we may need to tell others of our faith.  Other times, we may need to keep things to ourselves.  In either case, we do what is needed for our faith in Him.

 

Your faith has saved you. Go in peace

 

 Then one of the Pharisees asked Him to eat with him.  And He went to the Pharisee's house, and sat down to eat.  And behold, a woman in the city who was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at the table in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster flask of fragrant oil, and stood at His feet behind Him weeping; and she began to wash His feet with her tears, and wiped them with the hair of her head; and she kissed His feet and anointed them with the fragrant oil.  Now when the Pharisee who had invited Him saw this, he spoke to himself, saying, "This Man, if He were a prophet, would know who and what manner of woman this is who is touching Him, for she is a sinner."  And Jesus answered and said to him, "Simon, I have something to say to you."  So he said, "Teacher, say it."  "There was a certain creditor who had two debtors.  One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.  And when they had nothing with which to repay, he freely forgave them both.  Tell Me, therefore, which of them will love him more?"    Simon answered and said, "I suppose the one whom he forgave more."  And He said to him, "You have rightly judged."  Then He turned to the woman and said to Simon, "Do you see this woman?  I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has washed My feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head.  You gave Me no kiss, but this woman has not ceased to kiss My feet since the time I came in.  You did not anoint My head with oil, but this woman has anointed My feet with fragrant oil.  Therefore I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much.  But to whom little is forgiven the same loves little."  Then He said to her, "Your sins are forgiven."  And those who sat at the table with Him began to say to themselves, "Who is this who even forgives sins?"  Then He said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you.  Go in peace."

 

- Luke 7:36–50 

 

Yesterday we read that the disciples of John reported to him concerning all these things that Jesus had preached and done.  And John, calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to Jesus, saying, "Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?"  When the men had come to Him, they said, "John the Baptist has sent us to You, saying, 'Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?'"  And that very hour He cured many of infirmities, afflictions, and evil spirits; and to many blind He gave sight.  Jesus answered and said to them, "Go and tell John the things you have seen and heard:  that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have the gospel preached to them.  And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me."  When the messengers of John had departed, He began to speak to the multitudes concerning John:  "What did you go out into the wilderness to see?  A reed shaken by the wind?  But what did you go out to see?  A man clothed in soft garments?  Indeed those who are gorgeously appareled and live in luxury are in kings' courts.  But what did you go out to see?  A prophet?  Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet.  This is he of whom it is written:  'Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, who will prepare Your way before You.'  For I say to you, among those born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he."  And when all the people heard Him, even the tax collectors justified God, having been baptized with the baptism of John.  But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the will of God for themselves, not having been baptized by him.  And the Lord said, "To what then shall I liken the men of this generation, and what are they like?  They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another, saying: 'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we mourned to you, and you did not weep.'  For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, 'He has a demon.'  The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, 'Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'  But wisdom is justified by all her children." 

 Then one of the Pharisees asked Him to eat with him.  And He went to the Pharisee's house, and sat down to eat.  And behold, a woman in the city who was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at the table in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster flask of fragrant oil, and stood at His feet behind Him weeping; and she began to wash His feet with her tears, and wiped them with the hair of her head; and she kissed His feet and anointed them with the fragrant oil.  Now when the Pharisee who had invited Him saw this, he spoke to himself, saying, "This Man, if He were a prophet, would know who and what manner of woman this is who is touching Him, for she is a sinner."  And Jesus answered and said to him, "Simon, I have something to say to you."  So he said, "Teacher, say it."  "There was a certain creditor who had two debtors.  One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.  And when they had nothing with which to repay, he freely forgave them both.  Tell Me, therefore, which of them will love him more?"    Simon answered and said, "I suppose the one whom he forgave more."  And He said to him, "You have rightly judged."  Then He turned to the woman and said to Simon, "Do you see this woman?  I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has washed My feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head.  You gave Me no kiss, but this woman has not ceased to kiss My feet since the time I came in.  You did not anoint My head with oil, but this woman has anointed My feet with fragrant oil.  Therefore I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much.  But to whom little is forgiven the same loves little."  Then He said to her, "Your sins are forgiven."   My study Bible comments that this Pharisee, who invited Jesus to his house to eat, was intrigued by Christ.  This is evidenced by his invitation, but clearly the man does not believe in Jesus, as shown by his reaction to the Lord's mercy, and by his lack even of common hospitality ("You gave Me no kiss . . . You did not anoint My head with oil").  My study Bible says that this encounter with the sinful woman is an icon of the grace which is found only in the Church.  It cites St. Ambrose of Milan, who writes that through her, "the Church is justified as being greater than the Law, for the Law does not know the forgiveness of sins, nor the mystery in which secret sins are cleansed; therefore, what is lacking in the Law is perfected in the Gospel."

And those who sat at the table with Him began to say to themselves, "Who is this who even forgives sins?"  Then He said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you.  Go in peace."  My study Bible explains here that it was beyond the bounds of the Law as the Pharisees understood it that man could forgive sins (see Luke 5:21).   But Christ is not a mere man; He is the very Lawgiver Himself.  St. Cyril of Alexandria asks, "Who could declare things that were above the Law, except the One who ordained the Law?"

I am intrigued by Christ's final statement in today's reading.  It's directed at the woman who anointed Him with oil.  He tells her, "Your faith has saved you.  Go in peace."   Since the text tells us clearly that this was a woman in the city who was a sinner, we can presume that in her expression of faith and gratitude toward Christ is included the aspect of repentance on her part.  Moreover, that she was weeping, and her tears were falling, are classic signs that accompany repentance.  They are associated with a kind of mourning over sin, especially our own sin.  When Jesus tells her, "Your faith has saved you," this is a complete statement of effect.  But also, in some sense, it implies something continuing into the future, for faith is not something that is a one-moment decision only.  Faith implies a continuing future of acting upon its premise.  That she has faith in, and trust in who Christ is and who He says He is, means that there is a future into which she proceeds from here that is rooted in that faith.  "Go in peace" would seem to indicate the same, for it indicates a future road or path, a way to go forward for her, in Christ's peace.  So it seems to me that the faith of this woman implies not simply salvation and a kind of healing through the forgiveness of Christ on a one-time basis, but rather acts as an ongoing foundation for her life, as implied in the text.  Faith can't simply be something we decide we have one day and then pack it away like something in a drawer we don't open again, or seldom take out.  Faith implies a basis for our lives as a lived foundation every day, and this is the way she can "go in peace."  There is more than one story in the Gospels of a woman who anoints Jesus with oil; in John's Gospel there is a story where she is clearly identified as Mary of Bethany, the sister of Lazarus (John 12:1-8).  In patristic commentaries, some identified these stories as belonging to more than one occasion and perhaps as two or possibly three different women.  But the identities we can assign to these women stem from women known to this early ministry of Jesus, such as Mary Magdalene and Mary of Bethany.  Again, we infer that this woman was not simply pronounced saved without an ongoing participation in the community of believers; Christ's salvation in some sense indicates a pretext for the future, an ongoing engagement in salvation and faith.  Jesus gives her a premise, a hope, a new future.  In any case, His "go in peace" implies a willingness to sin no more, as He tells the woman taken in adultery (see John 8:1-11).  In Christ's peace there is a hope for her future, for this is really what it is to be saved, to enter the kingdom of God, which is within us and among us.  It is a place in which we may dwell and live our lives, and Christ's peace is something we seek to live every day.  

Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst

 

 Therefore, when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John (though Jesus Himself did not baptize, but His disciples), He left Judea and departed again to Galilee.  But He needed to go through Samaria.  So He came to a city of Samaria which is called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. 

Now Jacob's well was there.  Jesus therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus by the well.  It was about the sixth hour.  A woman of Samaria came to draw water.  Jesus said to her, "Give Me a drink."  For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.  

 

Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, "How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?"  For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.  Jesus answered and said to her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, 'Give Me a drink,' you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep.  Where then do You get that living water?  Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock?"  Jesus answered and said to her, "Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst.  But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw."

Jesus said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come here."  The woman answered and said, "I have no husband."  Jesus said to her, "You have well said, 'I have no husband,' for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly."  the woman said to Him, "Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet.  Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship."  

 

Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father.  You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews.  But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.  God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."

The woman said to Him, "I know that Messiah is coming" (who is called Christ).  "When He comes, He will tell us all things."   Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am He."

- John 4:1–26 

 Yesterday we read that, after the Passover (the first of three Passover feasts mentioned in John's Gospel) Jesus and His disciples came into the land of Judea, and there He remained with them and baptized.  Now John also was baptizing in Aenon near Salim, because there was much water there.  And they came and were baptized.  For John had not yet been thrown into prison.  Then there arose a dispute between some of John's disciples and the Jews about purification.  And they came to John and said to him, "Rabbi, He who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have testified -- behold, He is baptizing, and all are coming to Him!"  John answered and said, "A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven.  You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, 'I am not the Christ,' but, 'I have been sent before Him.'  He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice.  Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled.  He must increase, but I must decrease.  He who comes from above is above all; he who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of the earth.  He who comes from heaven is above all.  And what He has seen and heard, that He testifies; and no one receives His testimony.  He who has received His testimony has certified that God is true.  For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God does not give the Spirit by measure.  The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into His hand.  He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him."

 

  Therefore, when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John (though Jesus Himself did not baptize, but His disciples), He left Judea and departed again to Galilee.  But He needed to go through Samaria.  So He came to a city of Samaria which is called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.  Samaria was the region that was north of Jerusalem, between Judea and Galilee.  Jesus is traveling to His "home" country in Galilee, from Judea.

Now Jacob's well was there.  Jesus therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus by the well.  It was about the sixth hour.  A woman of Samaria came to draw water.  Jesus said to her, "Give Me a drink."  For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.  My study Bible comments that while the Old Testament doesn't mention Jacob's well, it is known that Jacob dwelt in this area (Genesis 33:19).   It notes that wells were significant in this region because of their rarity and their value in desert life.  So, therefore, wells came to symbolize life itself  (Psalms 36:9-10, 46:4; Isaiah 55:1).  This well has been maintained as a shrine even in recent times, and pilgrims can drink from it.  Jesus is wearied from His journey, which shows us His complete humanity.  The sixth hour is noon.  In the tradition of the Orthodox Church, this woman is identified as St. Photini.  

Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, "How is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?"  For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.  The Samaritans were a mixed race, and they were also traditional enemies of the Jews.  My study Bible explains that although they worshiped the God of Israel, and also awaited the Messiah, they only accepted the first five books of the Old Testament (the Torah, or Pentateuch) as their Scriptures.  They had built their own temple on Mt. Gerizim, which was destroyed by the Jews in 128 BC.

Jesus answered and said to her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, 'Give Me a drink,' you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep.  Where then do You get that living water?  Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock?"  Jesus answered and said to her, "Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst.  But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life."  The woman said to Him, "Sir, give me this water, that I may not thirst, nor come here to draw."  In the ordinary sense of the term, living water means fresh, flowing water, from a stream or spring rather than a pond or a cistern.  But Jesus is using this phrase to describe the grace of the Holy Spirit, which leads to eternal life (John 7:37-39).  My study Bible comments that this gift not only remains in a person, but it is so abundant that it overflows to others.  It notes also that this woman misunderstands Jesus, and asks Him, "Are You greater than our father Jacob?"  In the Scriptures, it explains, Jacob is a "type" of Christ, as Jacob received the vision of the divine ladder (Genesis 28:12), of which Christ is fulfillment.  Moreover, just as Jacob gave this well for earthly life, Christ gives the well of the Holy Spirit for eternal life. 

 

 Jesus said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come here."  The woman answered and said, "I have no husband."  Jesus said to her, "You have well said, 'I have no husband,' for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly."  the woman said to Him, "Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet.  Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship."   Since Jesus has perceived that she was living with a man without being married, and He also knew of her string of husbands, this woman perceives He is a prophet.  As the Samaritans accepted no prophets after Moses, but only prophet they expected was the Messiah foretold by Moses (Deuteronomy 18:15-18).  My study Bible says that Christ's insight into people's hearts, which is reported many times in the Gospels (and remarked upon in this blog), emphasizes Christ's divine nature.  

Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father.  You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews.  But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him.  God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth."  If Christ was truly the expected Prophet (of whom Moses wrote), then He could settle the historical argument about where worship was to take place.   But Jesus avoids this question and instead elevates the discussion to the way in which people should worship.  More importantly, Christ turns her attention to the One whom we worship:  God.  The Father is worshiped in spirit -- that is, in the Holy Spirit, my study Bible says -- and in truth -- that is in Christ Himself (John 14:6) and according to Christ's revelation.  Jesus declares that God is Spirit:  this indicates that God cannot be confined to a particular location.  My study Bible says that those who receive the Holy Spirit and believe in Jesus Christ can worship God the Father with purity of heart.  Jesus also states that salvation is of the Jews:  in so stating, Christ affirms that true revelation comes out from Judaism.  My study Bible quotes St. Athanasius the Great:  "The commonwealth of Israel was the school of the knowledge of God for all the nations."  More importantly here, Jesus testifies that the Messiah, prophesied from among the Jews, has now risen from among the Jews.  The gift of salvation in Christ is to all the nations, but it has come from within Judaism.  The hour is a reference to the death and Resurrection of Christ, and also to the outpouring of the Holy Spirit of Pentecost, inaugurating the worship of the new covenant.  

The woman said to Him, "I know that Messiah is coming" (who is called Christ).  "When He comes, He will tell us all things."   Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am He."  My study Bible points out that "I who speak to you am He" is literally translated "I AM [Greek ego eimi], who speak to you."  This "I AM" is the divine Name of God.  It's use is an indication of what is called a theophany, or revelation of God Himself.  The use of this Name by a mere human being was considered to be blasphemy and was punishable by death (see John 8:58; Mark 14:62).  But as He Himself is divine, Christ's use of this Name is a revelation of His unity with the Father and the Holy Spirit; we are given to understand that He is God Incarnate.

The Holy Spirit is here invoked by Jesus through the image of living water.  Jesus gives us two further statements about this living water:  "Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst.  But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life."   It's a kind of water which in some sense is so satisfying that a person will never thirst.  And it is a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.  This living water doesn't just give life, it springs up into everlasting life.  It has an eternal quality, and it satisfies deep need for an eternity, for one will never thirst again.  Jesus uses this metaphor of thirst elsewhere when He speaks of the deepest desire within ourselves for the depth of a true spiritual life.  In the Beatitudes, He states, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled" (Matthew 5:6).  So whatever qualities there are of this living water, and whatever this living water really is, we can put His comments together and understand how it satisfies the very depth of need for a soul that knows its Master, and seeks what the Master has to offer it.  A soul, after all, is meant for life that is eternal, and Christ is here to give us what we need to feed that soul for such a life.  The Psalmist speaks of such a thirst for God:  "As the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You, O God" (Psalm 42:1).  So, we could ask, what is it that you hunger and thirst for?  What is it that is such a strong impulse within human beings that Jesus can speak of its sustenance by offering living water?  His very human thirst on this day at noon, in a hot desert place, and finding an ancient well gives the framework for a kind of thirst that is only satisfied with an eternally-giving spring, something that sustains with the quality of eternal life added to the earthly life we know.  And the great catalyst for this revelation is this sole moment when Christ is alone with a stranger, a Gentile woman, and He asks for a drink of water.  It's shocking to her because first of all, a Jewish Man alone with a Samaritan woman is not something that would normally be permissible in such a culture -- let alone this Man speaking to her and asking for a drink (hence, her response to Him).  But this is a microcosm in itself of this eternally giving water springing up into life, for from this one unusual moment, a great revelation is born, and it is a revelation that continues to give to us the words of Christ, the unforgettable image of this living water.  Jesus reveals even more than this to this unlikely woman; that He is the Messiah Himself.  But today let us ponder what is missing in her life, what she needs, and what quality of eternal life we need as we thirst for something more than our daily, earthly lives.  What is it that can satisfy a thirst eternally?  What is it that never stops giving?

 

Assuredly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her

 

 Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished all these sayings, that He said to His disciples, "You know that after two days is the Passover, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified."  Then the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders of the people assembled at the palace of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas, and plotted to take Jesus by trickery and kill Him.  But they said, "Not during the feast, lest there be an uproar among the people."  

And when Jesus was in Bethany at the house of Simon the leper, a woman came to Him having an alabaster flask of very costly fragrant oil, and she poured it on His head as He sat at the table.  But when His disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, "Why this waste?  For this fragrant oil might have been sold for much and given to the poor."  But when Jesus was aware of it, He said to them, "Why do you trouble the woman?  For she has done a good work for Me.  For you have the poor with you always, but Me you do not have always.  For in pouring this fragrant oil on My body, she did it for My burial.  Assuredly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her."  

Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, "What are you willing to give me if I deliver Him to you?"  And they counted out to him thirty pieces of silver.  So from that time he sought opportunity to betray Him.

 

- Matthew 26:1–16 

 

In our recent readings, Jesus has been explaining the "end times" to His disciples.  His discourse concluded with three parables.  Yesterday we read His final parable, that of the Sheep and the Goats, a parable of the judgment of Christ to come at His return at the end of the age:   "When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory.  All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats.  And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left.  Then the King will say to those on His right hand, 'Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world:  for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.'  Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink?  When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You?  Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?'  And the King will answer and say to them, 'Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.'  Then He will also say to those on the left hand, 'Depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels:  for I was hungry and you gave Me no food; I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink; I was a stranger and you did not take Me in, naked and you did not clothe Me, sick and in prison and you did not visit Me.'  Then they also will answer Him, saying, 'Lord, when did we see You hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to You?'  Then He will answer them, saying, 'Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to Me.'  And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous to eternal life."

 

  Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished all these sayings, that He said to His disciples, "You know that after two days is the Passover, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified."  Then the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders of the people assembled at the palace of the high priest, who was called Caiaphas, and plotted to take Jesus by trickery and kill Him.  But they said, "Not during the feast, lest there be an uproar among the people."   My study Bible notes here that Jesus is delivered up to His Passion by His accusers, but He goes willingly.  Unless this were so, His accusers could not have taken Him.  After Christ's Resurrection, many saints would imitate Christ by willingly going to martyrdom.  The willing martyrdom of Christian faithful in the face of pressure to renounce their faith continues today in countries around the world.

And when Jesus was in Bethany at the house of Simon the leper, a woman came to Him having an alabaster flask of very costly fragrant oil, and she poured it on His head as He sat at the table.  But when His disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, "Why this waste?  For this fragrant oil might have been sold for much and given to the poor."  But when Jesus was aware of it, He said to them, "Why do you trouble the woman?  For she has done a good work for Me.  For you have the poor with you always, but Me you do not have always.  For in pouring this fragrant oil on My body, she did it for My burial.  Assuredly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her."   My study Bible comments that Jesus accepts this honor from the woman in her newly found faith.  He explicitly accepts it as a sign of His coming burial.  However, my study Bible notes that according to St. John Chrysostom, the disciples were not wrong in principle; mercy shown to the poor is more fitting than outward signs shown even to God (Matthew 25:40; James 1:27).  But what the disciples don't understand is that once the gift is given, the greater mercy is to accept it with love.  My study Bible quotes St. Chrysostom:  "If anyone had asked Christ before the woman did this, He would not have approved it.  But after she had done it, He looks only to the gift itself.  For after the fragrant oil had been poured, what good was a rebuke?  Likewise, if you should see anyone providing a sacred vessel or ornament for the walls of the church, do not spoil his zeal.  But if beforehand he asks about it, command him to give instead to the poor."  Regarding Simon the leper, he must have been healed by Jesus earlier, as lepers were not allowed to live in community.  Additionally, my study Bible says that because of her fervent faith, Jesus promises perpetual public memory of this woman.  Among patristic commentary there is no consensus as to her identity in relation to similar events recounted in Mark 14:3-9; Luke 7:36-38; John 12:1-8.  Some say that there were three different women in these four accounts, others that there were just two.

Then one of the twelve, called Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests and said, "What are you willing to give me if I deliver Him to you?"  And they counted out to him thirty pieces of silver.  So from that time he sought opportunity to betray Him.  My study Bible says that Judas on his own initiative seeks to betray Jesus.  It notes that his motives have been debated, but the Fathers and the liturgical hymns declare that greed was his primary motivation.  In John 12:4-6, we read that Judas was particularly upset about the "waste" of myrrh by the woman who anointed Christ, because he was a thief (see also 1 Timothy 6:10).  The phrase one of the twelve is not used so much to identify Judas, my study Bible says, as he was already known by Matthew's hearers, but it does emphasize the depth of this betrayal -- it was done by one of Christ's closest followers.  

In the anointing of Christ, we find another incident which is so significant that it is reported in all four Gospels.  Regardless of who we think this woman was or may be, the circumstances of the anointing remain the same.  She is motivated not only by faith, but her faith includes the element of deep love.  While my study Bible quotes St. Chrysostom himself in generally favoring gifts of generosity to the poor, it seems that we cannot leave out what Christ has acknowledged here.  In this case, He is the One who is "the poor," if you will.  He is the one who is needy, a poor person who faces death at the hands of the state power and the religious establishment.  She has provided the fragrant oil for His burial.  So therefore, "wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her."  Effectively, her act is a prayerful one, deeply moving as it likely comes from the depth of her heart and soul and from her love of Christ.  Clearly the Gospel invites us to contrast the coldness of Judas with the deep love this woman shows for Jesus.  Additionally, it prompts us to think that we don't always know what is the proper gift to give, and prayerful giving is important.  We are to use discernment in our giving, and the love of God and our communion with Christ mean more than anonymous giving alone or works done without faith or this love.  It builds on the context of the parable of judgment, of the Sheep and the Goats, where acts of kindness and compassion are those that take priority, those that are motivated by responding to need.  Jesus' defense of this woman, and His praise, seems to teach us to remember that there are proper gifts in all circumstances; what is needful and proper at one time may be different at another. There are all kinds of ways to be poor.   Sometimes people need a kind word more than the money -- a word may give hope which is more valuable.  It's been reported that a simple respectful conversation with a homeless person does far more than a small sum of money.  It's important to bear in mind, also, that we don't know how many people our gift will benefit beyond immediate circumstances, especially in time.  It seems quite reasonable to assume that had this woman sold her ointment, and given to the poor as Judas suggests, the untold numbers of faithful would never have heard this story of gracious love for Christ, nor His defense of her gift.  It seems important to be guided by prayer in our giving, so that we do the best we can with what we have.  Let us remember that the love of Christ, and the compassion of the heart it builds in us, is always appropriate and needful.  For this is what we are asked to extend to the world, to neighbor -- and Christ in this story is the neighbor in need.

 

 

 

 

Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate

 

 Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these sayings, that He departed from Galilee and came to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan.  And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them there.  The Pharisees also came to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?"  And He answered and said to them, "Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,' and said, 'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh'?  So then, they are no longer two but one flesh.  Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate."  They said to Him, "Why then did Moses command to give a certificate of divorce, and to put her away?"  He said to them, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.  And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced commits adultery."  

 

His disciples said to Him, "If such is the case of the man with his wife, it is better not to marry."  But He said to them, "All cannot accept this saying, but only those to whom it has been given:  For there are eunuchs who were born thus from their mother's womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake.  He who is able to accept it, let him accept it."

 

- Matthew 19:1–12 

 

In yesterday's reading we read that, after Jesus' teaching on mutual correction in the Church, Peter came to Him and said, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him?  Up to seven times?"  Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.  Therefore the kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants.  And when he had begun to settle accounts, one was brought to him who owed him ten thousand talents.  But as he was not able to pay, his master commanded that he be sold, with his wife and children and all that he had, and that payment be made.  The servant therefore fell down before him, saying, 'Master, have patience with me, and I will pay you all.'  Then the master of that servant was moved with compassion, released him, and forgave him the debt.  But that servant went out and found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii; and he laid hands on him and took him by the throat, saying, 'Pay me what you owe!'  So his fellow servant fell down at his feet and begged him, saying, 'Have patience with me, and I will pay you all.'  And he would not, but went and threw him into prison till he should pay the debt.  So when his fellow servants saw what had been done, they were very grieved, and came and told their master all that had been done.  Then his master, after he had called him, said to him, 'You wicked servant!  I forgave you all that debt because you begged me.  Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, just as I had pity on you?'  And his master was angry, and delivered him to the torturers until he should pay all that was due to him.  So My heavenly Father also will do to you if each of you, from his heart, does not forgive his brother his trespasses."

 

 Now it came to pass, when Jesus had finished these sayings, that He departed from Galilee and came to the region of Judea beyond the Jordan.  And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them there.  The Pharisees also came to Him, testing Him, and saying to Him, "Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for just any reason?"  And He answered and said to them, "Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,' and said, 'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh'?  So then, they are no longer two but one flesh.  Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate."  They said to Him, "Why then did Moses command to give a certificate of divorce, and to put her away?"  He said to them, "Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.  And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another, commits adultery; and whoever marries her who is divorced commits adultery."  My study Bible informs us that the basis of the Pharisees' test in this question about divorce is Deuteronomy 24:1-4.  It notes that God's condescension, or allowance for human weakness, does not override the original principle of permanent monogamous marriage as revealed in Genesis 1; 2.  With authority, Christ twice adds His own clear prohibition against divorce here.  We note Christ's preaching on divorce in the Sermon on the Mount found at Matthew 5:31-32.  See also Malachi 2:13-16.  Regarding Christ's final statement here, my study Bible also notes that the possible reasons for divorce were expanded in the ancient Church to include threat to a spouse's or a child's life and desertion, in all cases acknowledging the spiritual tragedy of such a situation.

His disciples said to Him, "If such is the case of the man with his wife, it is better not to marry."  But He said to them, "All cannot accept this saying, but only those to whom it has been given:  For there are eunuchs who were born thus from their mother's womb, and there are eunuchs who were made eunuchs by men, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake.  He who is able to accept it, let him accept it."  Here my study Bible asks us to see that Christ steers the disciples toward understanding the holiness of virginity -- not as a rejection of marriage, but rather as a special calling for those to whom it has been given.  Eunuchs were men who had been castrated -- whether by birth, defect, disease, or mutilation -- and were often employed to guard women of nobility.  They played a powerful role in the ancient and historical kingdoms of the world.   But here, Jesus uses this term figuratively for those who freely choose lifelong celibacy for the kingdom of heaven.  My study Bible adds that this consecrated virginity is not to be confused with self-mutilation, which the Church condemned at the First Ecumenical Council (AD 325).  See also 1 Corinthians 7:7, 25-38.

The questions regarding divorce proposed to Jesus by the Pharisees were very hotly debated issues in their time.  The Pharisees spent time and energy on questions of the regulation of divorce, and differed from their opponents such as the Sadducees in the Council (the Pharisees were closer to Christ's position, favoring a more strict understanding of the practices of divorce).  Often such questions involved the issues of money and dowry, which included practices of remarriage after divorce to the same woman.  But for our purposes let us consider the emphasis in my study Bible on Jesus' pronouncement of the sacredness of marriage, and the bonds of such a union as a holy institution.  This is where marriage becomes more than a contract, even more than a social contract or personal relationship.  In Christ's view (and in the view of the passage from Malachi previously cited above), marriage in some sense involves three parties:  the two spouses and God who brings them together in the sacrament of marriage.  In the words of Malachi, God is witness in the marriage.  Therefore what Jesus emphasizes here (as well as Malachi) isn't simply the importance of the marriage bond, but rather God's role in sealing and growing that bond, the Spirit enforcing and helping its union.  This adds a different dimension to marriage that is meant to nurture something much deeper than simply what two people can bring to the table, so to speak, in their marriage.  It adds, if we may use this metaphor, the leaven of God to the union of the marriage, in which we can think of marriage not as a static bond, but rather as something which is dynamic.  That is, a relationship that grows and evolves.  In that sense, Jesus invites us to think of marriage as something that needs prayer and nurturing within the holiness God can help bring to it.  And there we may also pause to consider that this teaching comes immediately after Christ's teaching on mutual correction in the Church, as well as on forgiveness in the process of the same.  Essentially both involve the need to rely upon God, upon the communion God offers us within which our own relationships may dwell, and this becomes in some sense the "leaven" of the marriage.  Marriage may involve intense struggles and sacrifices, and can be a bedrock within which people suffer through tragedies and great difficulties that worldly life can offer to us.  A sick or disabled parent, the tragic illness of a spouse, possible afflictions of a child, and worldly events such as wars, natural disasters, and other upheavals, even social calamity, all become part of the experience of marriage when two people bound in holy matrimony must face and struggle with such issues together.  In the modern world, such struggle and sacrifice is all too frequently undermined and undervalued, but it is the very stuff of the bonds we understand of human relationships, and within which children also take their own security and form an awareness of how bonds between people can function,  Marriage also asks of us discipline in all the ways that Christ teaches us as His followers:  to watch our words, to know our own weaknesses and flaws, and to engage in the process of repentance and forgiveness.  For all of these reasons and more, the Orthodox Church has traditionally called marriage the layperson's way to holiness, the counterpart of monastic life for those others whom Jesus also discusses in today's reading.  Therefore, let us not undervalue marriage as an institution built as part of God's ideal for us, even a kind of effort of mutual giving and sacrifice that builds the bonds of love, tenacity, and a depth of the heart that we would otherwise not know.  These are primary values to hold in our world, which root goodness and depth in our lives, and which are a terrible shame to lose.  Young people who suffer from the loss of such as children often struggle to root their own lives in finding and bringing this depth of relationship and commitment to their own children, for they feel this loss keenly.  When we lose sight of this through easy divorce or lack of commitment to such values, we lose goodness in our lives.  Love always becomes the ultimate root of everything that Jesus teaches us, and importantly, this also includes the "eunuchs" about whom Jesus teaches as well, bringing a sacredness to the commitment of virginity in service to the Lord.  Therefore, no one is left out of this teaching, because there is none left out of God's love and communion in this structure of the Kingdom which Jesus tells us about here.  All are included in the bonds of love and communion and holiness, every one. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

But let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No.' For whatever is more than these is from the evil one

 

 "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.'  But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.  If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.  And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.

"Furthermore it has been said, 'Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.'  But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery.  

"Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.'  But I say to you, do not swear at all:  neither by heaven, for it is God's throne; nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.  Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black.  But let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No.'  For whatever is more than these is from the evil one."

 

- Matthew 5:27-37 

 

We are currently reading through the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5 - 7).   Yesterday we read that Jesus taught, "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.'  But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment.  And whoever says to his brother, 'Raca!' shall be in danger of the council.  But whoever says, 'You fool!' shall be in danger of hell fire.  Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way.  First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.  Agree with your adversary quickly, while you are on the way with him, lest your adversary deliver you to the judge, the judge hand you over to the officer, and you be thrown into prison.  Assuredly, I say to you, you will by no means get out of there till you have paid the last penny."

 

  "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.'  But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart."  My study Bible comments that the issue here is not the God-given mutual attraction of men and women, but rather the selfish promptings of lust.  It notes that sin does not come out of nature, but rather out of the distortion of nature for self-indulgence.  It's very essential to remember that thoughts that enter the mind involuntarily are not sins, but they are temptations.  They become sins only when they are held and entertained.  

"If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.  And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell."  This is not meant literally, but Christ rather refers to decisive action needed to save -- as in a necessary amputation because of spreading infection or disease.  Jesus is likening our need to take decisive action to avoid sin and continue in purity to such medical emergencies.

 "Furthermore it has been said, 'Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.'  But I say to you that whoever divorces his wife for any reason except sexual immorality causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a woman who is divorced commits adultery."  My study Bible notes that in contrast to the easy access to divorce under the Mosaic Law, and because of the misuse of divorce at that time, Jesus makes repeated condemnations of divorce (see also Matthew 19:8-9).  His emphasis is on the eternal nature of marriage.  My study Bible adds that the possibility of divorce on the grounds of sexual immorality shows that marriage can be destroyed by sin.  In the Orthodox Church, it explains, divorce is discouraged but allowed as well as second marriage which is seen as a concession to human weakness and a corrective measure of compassion when a marriage has been broken. 

 

 "Again you have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform your oaths to the Lord.'  But I say to you, do not swear at all:  neither by heaven, for it is God's throne; nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.  Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black.  But let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No.'  For whatever is more than these is from the evil one."  My study Bible comments that trust cannot be secured by swearing an oath by things that are not in the possession of human beings to begin with -- but only through simple integrity.

In a modern (perhaps Western) context, we often hear swearing but not necessarily in the serious context of an oath.  So frequently in expressions of this kind, words in a modern context seem almost to lose their meaning.  But here Jesus speaks even of the seriousness of taking an oath.  What that indicates to us, first of all, is the seriousness of the language that we use.  As remarked upon in yesterday's reading, Jesus gives us a sense of how powerful our words are, but not in the ways that we necessarily think so.  Most importantly, our words and our use of words reflect back upon us, and will be significant in the time of judgment.  Our words make an impact within and among our relationships, communities, families.  But perhaps even more significantly, our words also have an impact upon the state of our souls, where we sit with God, and who we are in the world.  My study Bible comments that for Christ, it is integrity that is of the highest value, a quality that is at once precious, and seemingly devalued in modern life.  Christ's teaching, "But let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No.'  For whatever is more than these is from the evil one" makes this explicitly clear to us.  Speaking about divorce can be also taken in this context, for marriage is a covenant, a kind of oath.  We give our word of faithfulness.  So let us first consider the importance of integrity in this context.  Marriage is not easy, and it demands mutual sacrifices of us.  It asks us to place the marriage itself in higher importance to oneself as an individual.  These things take commitment, flexibility, creativity, and an understanding of how exactly both sacrifice and even suffering are part of life.  The integrity which Christ describes He showed throughout His own life, and in so doing, teaches us how we need to meet our own suffering, responsibilities, and even the joys of life as well.