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?

The Ladder of Divine Ascent, 12th century.  St. Catherine's Monastery, Sinai Peninsula, Egypt

 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." 

- John 4:1-15

Yesterday we read that 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.  Now Jacob's well was there.  Jesus therefore, being wearied from His journey, sat thus by the well.  It was about the sixth hour.   Jesus is traveling northward toward Galilee, to get away from the scrutinizing eyes of the Pharisees who zealously guard their religious authority.  Samaria is the region north of Jerusalem, between Judea and Galilee.  My study bible points out that the Old Testament does not mention Jacob's well, but we do know that Jacob lived in the area (Genesis 33:19).  Wells were significant, my study bible says, both because of their rarity and also their value in desert life.  Therefore, wells were to symbolize life itself (Psalms 36:9-10, 46:4; Isaiah 55:1).  This well is maintained as a shrine to this day, and pilgrims can drink from it.  That Jesus is wearied from His journey shows us His full humanity.  This is desert country, and the period is at least late spring or perhaps early summer, after the Passover and Christ's time spent afterward in Judea; the sixth hour is noon. 

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.   In the tradition of the Church, this woman is known as St. Photini (more about her in the next readings).  My study bible explains that the Samaritans were a mixed race of both Jews and Gentiles, and traditional enemies of the Jews.  Although they worshiped the God of Israel and were also awaiting the Messiah, they accepted only the first five books of the Old Testament (the Pentateuch or Torah) as their Scriptures.  They had built their own temple on Mt. Gerizim, which the Jews destroyed in 128 BC.  (In tomorrow's reading, we will see her reference this dispute over the location of the temple.)  We may find Jesus' command strange, "Give Me a drink."  But in the customs of the time, what is unusual about it is simply that He, a Jewish man alone with this Samaritan woman, would speak to her at all.  His request for water is meant deliberately to draw her out.

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."  My study bible explains that living water in the ordinary sense of the term means fresh, flowing water.  That is, water from a stream or spring rather than a pond or a cistern.  Jesus uses this term to indicate the grace of the Holy Spirit which leads to eternal life (7:37-39).  My study bible says that this gift not only remains in a person, but it is so abundant that it overflows to others.  The woman misunderstands Him, and she asks, "Are You greater than our father Jacob?"  But this is a spiritual reflection that teaches us something about Christ, that Jacob, in His light, is a "type" of Christ, as Jacob received the vision of the divine ladder (Genesis 28:12), which is fulfilled in Christ -- in His Incarnation, He is the living ladder between heaven and earth.  Moreover, as Jacob gave this well for earthly life, my study bible says, now Christ gives the well of the Holy Spirit for eternal life.  We notice that through His words, Christ has drawn in this woman to great curiosity about the water He speaks about.  In the following readings, He will continue to explain His message.

Jacob's ladder was the vision given to Jacob in a dream, of a ladder between heaven and earth, upon which angels ascended and descended (see Genesis 28:10-22).  It is the story of the promised land, the holy place where God dwells.  In today's story, God has come to this well, not only blessing the place and the people who are looked down upon and cast away by the Jews, but more importantly, illuminating and enlightening the people, and casting away false belief.  The name of this woman, St. Photini, means "illumined" or "enlightened one."  We will read more about her tomorrow.  But what is important is that, through this visitation of Christ, Jacob's vision of the ladder is fulfilled, as well as his words that, "Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.” And he was afraid and said, "How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!" (Genesis 28:16-17).  The Lord is indeed in this place, and where He is there is the gate of heaven, which He will open to the people through this woman listening to Him at the well, as He teaches about the "living water" which He will give.  In that sense, Jesus is both the well and the ladder -- for it is He who has the gift of the living water to give to others.  The notion of the ladder as an image of spiritual journey toward God was an important one to the early Fathers of the Church, and later was developed into an understanding of monastic asceticism, particularly in the book of The Ladder of Divine Ascent, by St. John Climacus.  Jesus Himself refers to Jacob's ladder earlier in John's Gospel, when He tells Nathanael, "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" (John 1:51).  So everything in this story in today's reading can be approached with this understanding in mind, that Jesus comes as fulfillment of the promises and visions of the Old Testament, that He is the ladder dreamed of by Jacob, and that God is present here at this well, and promising an abundance of living water as gift for those who ask.  In tomorrow's reading, we will find that, like the "ladder" of monastic ascent in asceticism, there are truths required of us in receiving this water and this blessing, a kind of humility in which we are willing to go forward, to find instruction, an honesty about ourselves and where we need to go.  All of this remains for us to see, and even to experience for ourselves in our own journey with Christ.  For today, let us picture this scene in the hot desert climate, at noon, of the weary traveler (Jesus) who promises a gift of water that will become in those who receive it "a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life."  God remains with us and this water remains a gift for us.  He still reaches out to offer it to those who will receive the gift, and make the journey to the life He offers.

Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled. He must increase, but I must decrease

St. John the Baptist (with scenes from his life).  17th century, Crete

 After these things 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."

- John 3:22-36

Yesterday we read that Jesus taught Nicodemus:  "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.  He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.  And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.  For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.  But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God."

 After these things 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.  My study bible points here that it is not Jesus Himself who baptized, but rather His disciples.  (See 4:2.)

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."  Again, we note that it is not Jesus who is baptizing (per 4:2), but rather His disciples.  My study bible tells us that John the Baptist is called the friend (or "best man"), while Christ Himself is the true bridegroom.   The bride is the Church, or the people of God (therefore we can see the connection to Baptism, "birth again" from above).  John confesses his role here in the coming of the Messiah -- that he is witnessing the wedding of Christ and His people, and therefore rejoices in that celebration.  "He must increase, but I must decrease" is a statement of humility that remains a model for all believers, and is especially held in great significance by monastics.  My study bible says that he renounces an earthly glory and reputation for the sake of Christ.  As he allows Christ to increase in him, John himself finds true glory.  Moreover, my study bible says, this statement by John indicates the end of the old covenant, and is therefore highly significant.  As the law vanishes, it is the grace of Christ that abounds.  In the liturgical calendar, the Church recognizes and marks these significant events, as John's birth is celebrated at a time when the sun begins to decrease in the sky, and Christ's birth is celebrated when the sun begins to increase.

"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."  My study bible says here that John echoes the teaching of Christ Himself (see verse 18).  My study bible also points out the absence of the word "alone" in this statement of faith.  It quotes St. John Chrysostom:  "We do not from this assert that faith alone is sufficient for salvation; the directions for living that are given in many places in the Gospels show this."  See also James 2:14-24.

What does it means to point out that the word "alone" is not present in John the Baptist's statement of faith?  This is not a contradiction of the essence and importance of faith, but neither is it to say that our faith merely consists of good deeds and actions.  Rather it is pointing to a holistic quality to faith and the state of our being.  Being and doing are essentially inseparable from one another.  We are to live our faith.  Faith is not a merely intellectual problem, in which we decide something, or that we are going to ascribe to a particular belief system.  Rather, as the whole of the Gospels suggest, and particularly as this passage with its emphasis both on baptism and including John's statement, "He must increase, but I must decrease" tells us, to be "born again from above" is not a matter merely of learning new things or holding a particular idea as true.  Rather, it is a question also of the work of the Spirit, the soul's adoption of qualities and patterns which change who we are, how we look at things, and how we walk and move and have our being in the world.  Identity and faith are inseparable from choices and meaning in all aspects of our lives.  Baptism is a way to understand death and rebirth, but of a spiritual nature which in turn works throughout the whole of who we are.  Even continuing into very late in life, we may find the baptism we receive in childhood illuminating meanings and choices that change who we are, and continue to reveal new paths we need to travel, and choices we must make.  Our faith is something that doesn't just exist in one dimension of the self, but rather permeates the whole (like the leaven that changes the substance of the whole of the dough in Matthew 13:33).  John the Baptist's statement, "He must increase, but I must decrease" is akin to St. Paul's statement, "I die daily" (1 Corinthians 15:31).  The mystical impact of baptism is to effectively create adoption through the work of the Spirit in us, so that we come closer to our true identity, found in communion with Christ, with Creator.  And this, in fact, as St. Paul expresses, is the true nature of salvation.  It is an ongoing process, in which we accept this work of God within us, in our lives, and workings its way through "the whole lump" of ourselves.  It is one we bear with patience, humility, courage, and all the gifts that the Spirit can bestow -- even surprisingly to ourselves -- in our souls and character, bearing out in our choices.  Let us consider that we are on a road, Christ's "way."  The road awaits, teaches us patience, and calls us ahead.  John the Baptist surrenders completely to this work of God, completes his role, and enters into salvation history as the bridge between the old and the new.  John knows who he himself is, and he also knows who Christ is.  Let us endeavor to be like him, and to find the joy that he expresses here.  The icon above gives us a word-picture, the person of St. John the Baptist.  On the sides of the icon are scenes from his life.  His head on a platter, the story of his martyrdom, is in the lower left corner.  He wears wings, to denote that his identity as messenger for the Greek word for angel simply means "messenger."   He bears a scroll with his words, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near" (Matthew 3:2) -- which Christ Himself would repeat.  His right hand gestures in blessing.  He is called the Forerunner, the one who proclaimed the coming of the Lord to the world, and even to those in hades, as all await the Bridegroom. 

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life

Annunciation, by Lorenzo Veneziano, 1357.  Lion Polyptcyh (detail), Gallerie dell'Accademia, Venice, Italy

 "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.  He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.  And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.  For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.  But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God."

- John 3:16-21

Yesterday we read that when Jesus was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did.  But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men, and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man.  There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.  This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, "Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him."  Jesus answered and said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."  Nicodemus said to Him, "How can a man be born when he is old?  Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?"  Jesus answered, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.  That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.  Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again.'  The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes.  So is everyone who is born of the Spirit."  Nicodemus answered and said to Him, "How can these things be?"  Jesus answered and said to him, "Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not know these things?  Most assuredly, I say to you, We speak what We know and testify what We have seen, and you do not receive Our witness.  If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things?  No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven.  And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life."

 "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."   Looking back again at yesterday's reading (above), we recall that Jesus stated, "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life."   Here is the reason why He must be "lifted up."  Jesus declares God's great love not just for Israel, but for the world.  My study bible claims that this single verse expresses the whole of the message of John's Gospel, and even of salvation history.

"For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.  He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God."  Christ came in order to save and not to condemn.  But human beings also have a role; we have free will.  Therefore we are capable of rejecting what Christ brings into the world, the gift that He offers.  It is that rejection that renders us excluded and outside the therapeutic and salvific effects of the gift.

"And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.  For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.  But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God."  Once again, as in its Prologue, John's Gospel returns to themes of darkness and light, which will also be strongly emphasized in some of Jesus' most beautiful teachings.  As Jesus phrases it, salvation and its acceptance also rests with the heart, and our impulse for truth.  A relationship to God, and our depth of communion with God, rests within this impulse and the freedom with which we open ourselves to that light, even for correction and change.  Let us note that it is only God who truly knows all these depths of the heart, and who can judge them.  Additionally, evil is contrasted with truth.  It is a reminder that those who remain outside the Kingdom include "whoever loves and practices a lie" (Revelation 22:15).

In Christ's explanation of salvation and also the failure to find it, our own role as human beings also counts for something.  We have the power to accept or reject the gift Christ brings to us all.  Phrased in terms of darkness and light, we have the free will to "take in" this light and allow it to operate in ourselves, to bring to light all that is in the heart -- or to resist and reject it.  It reminds us of the role that human beings play in the story of the Incarnation, and especially, as we are in John's Gospel and have recently read the story of the first sign at the wedding at Cana, the role of Mary, the Mother of God.  Luke gives us her assent and interaction with the Archangel Gabriel, at the Annunciation (Luke 1:26-38).  Mary first questions what she is told, asking, "How can this be?"  But later, she gives a clear assent to the work of the Holy Spirit that will take place and the plan of God for her life:  "Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word."  We may feel, of course, that God can do anything -- which is quite true.  But God's grace also asks for our cooperation.  These words of Mary are not included in the Gospel for nothing; they have great significance for her own role in salvation history, and for the importance granted to human beings by a gracious and loving God.  We have recently been given the first sign in John's Gospel, that of turning water to wine at the wedding in Cana, and this, too, began with words from Mary -- a plea, a prayer, a simple statement to her Son.  These things, and Mary's role in salvation history, serve to enforce the importance of Christ's teaching to Nicodemus regarding the roles that human beings play themselves in salvation.   We don't determine the gift and its action.  But we do have the capacity to reject or accept.  We can be with Mary, stating, "Let it be to me according to your word."  Or we can refuse, in the clear words of Christ here in today's reading.  We may exclude ourselves, and thus guarantee that our hearts are not opened to the work of God the Holy Spirit, illuminating and enlightening what we need to do and guiding our lives according to Christ's commands to find our way into this kingdom.  Jesus contrasts those who love truth with those who do not, a theme which will also run through the Revelation and its images of Judgment.  Let us remember that in Matthew's Gospel, when Christ speaks of Judgment, He speaks of the actions of compassion, a righteousness that looks at the depth of the heart and the truth found there.  His light comes into the world to make us more like Him, to give us discernment, but all of this depends upon a love of and commitment to truth -- the truth of God and our spiritual calling.  Mary, the Mother of God, has throughout the history of the Church, and from its earliest years, been seen as a model for the saints, and one of whom we may ask prayers and intercession, just the same as if one would ask a fellow faithful parishioner for their prayers and intercession at a time of special need.  Let us consider the role she plays for us, the human character she no doubt contributed to the Incarnation of her Son, and her "yes" to God's word and God's grace, God's calling for her.  Among the names attributed to her in the Church, many frequently express her character of compassion.  Among so many other titles, she is called, "Joy of All Who Sorrow," "Lady of Perpetual Help," "The One Who Comes Quickly to Help,"  "The One who is Quick to Hear," and so many more.  St. Chrysostom called her "Mary Help of Christians," and in Luke's Gospel, the Archangel Gabriel greets her as one who is already "full of grace."   In the historical view of the Church, she is the human being who serves as the prime example of that to which the rest of us aspire, the greatest of the saints, whose assent was fully to the grace of God and God's gift of salvation.

Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit

Baptism of Christ/Theophany, Byzantine Museum, Athens, Greece

 Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did.  But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men, and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man.

There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.  This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, "Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him."  Jesus answered and said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."  Nicodemus said to Him, "How can a man be born when he is old?  Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?"  Jesus answered, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.  That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.  Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again.'  The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes.  So is everyone who is born of the Spirit."  Nicodemus answered and said to Him, "How can these things be?"  Jesus answered and said to him, "Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not know these things?  Most assuredly, I say to you, We speak what We know and testify what We have seen, and you do not receive Our witness.  If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things?  No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven.  And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life."

- John 2:23-3:15

On Saturday, we read that the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.  And He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers doing business.  When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers' money and overturned the tables.  And He said to those who sold doves, "Take these things away!  Do not make My Father's house a house of merchandise!"  Then His disciples remembered that it was written, "Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up."  So the Jews answered and said to Him, "What sign do You show to us, since You do these things?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up."  Then the Jews said, "It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?"  But He was speaking of the temple of His body.  Therefore, when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said.

 Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did.  But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men, and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man.  As we noted on Saturday, there are three Passover feasts reported in John's Gospel, between the Lord's Baptism and Passion (see also 6:5, 11:55).  By this we know that Christ's earthly ministry lasted three years.  Let us also make note that while there are seven signs reported in John's Gospel, they are given to us for their significance, to teach us something about Him and His ministry, but they are not inclusive of all signs He did.  John also makes note here of Christ as the knower of hearts, and of His discernment.  He is careful not to commit Himself to those whose faith is based solely on signs.  Contrast this with Christ's words about Nathanael in 1:47.

There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.  This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, "Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him."   Apparently in Jerusalem, the Pharisees have taken note of Jesus.  Nicodemus, one of their members, believed that Jesus was from God, but my study bible says that his faith at this point was still weak, as he was afraid of his peers and therefore came to Jesus by night.  After this conversation, Nicodemus' faith would grow to the point of defending Jesus in front of the Sanhedrin (7:50-51), and eventually making the bold public expression of faith in preparing and entombing Christ's body (19:39-42).  According to some early sources, my study bible notes, Nicodemus was baptized by Peter and consequently removed from the Sanhedrin and forced to flee Jerusalem.  It is worth noting that through John's Gospel, we are aware that even some among the leadership would become open followers of Christ.  Nicodemus himself is a Pharisee.  John 12:42 tells us that there were many among the rulers who believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees were afraid of being cast out of the synagogue.

Jesus answered and said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."  In the Greek, the word again has the literal meaning of "from above."  It clearly refers to the heavenly birth from God through faith in Christ (1:12-13).  My study bible says that this heavenly birth is baptism and our adoption by God as our Father (Galatians 4:4-7).  The new birth is the beginning of our spiritual life, and its goal is the entrance into the kingdom of God.

Nicodemus said to Him, "How can a man be born when he is old?  Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?"  Frequent misunderstandings happen in John's Gospel, illuminating the allegories with which Jesus speaks in order to express transcendent spiritual realities, in this case the rebirth -- being born again "from above" -- of baptism.  (For other examples of misunderstandings which lead to deeper explanation by Christ, see 2:19-21; 4:10-14, 30-34; 6:27; 7:37-39; 11:11-15).  My study bible says that Jesus uses these opportunities to elevate an idea from a superficial or earthly meaning to a heavenly and eternal meaning.

Jesus answered, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.  That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.  Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again.'  The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes.  So is everyone who is born of the Spirit."  The birth of water and the Spirit is a reference to Christian baptism and the gift of the Holy Spirit given at chrismation.  That which is born of the Spirit is given by grace, through faith, and in the Holy Spirit -- and forms a holistic part of the nature of human beings, one which we ignore to our own detriment.  The analogy to the wind is a play on words:  the Greek word pneuma/πνευμα means both wind and Spirit.  My study bible says that the working of the Holy Spirit in the new birth is as mysterious as the source and destination of the blowing wind.  Similarly, the Spirit moves where He wills and cannot be contained by human ideas or agendas.

Nicodemus answered and said to Him, "How can these things be?"  Jesus answered and said to him, "Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not know these things?  Most assuredly, I say to you, We speak what We know and testify what We have seen, and you do not receive Our witness.  If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things?  No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven."  My study bible cites the commentary of St. John Chrysostom here, in which it is noted that earthly things refer to grace and baptism given to man.  These are "earthly" in the sense that they occur on earth and are given to creations (not that they are "unspiritual").  The heavenly things, it says, involve the ungraspable mysteries of the eternal generation of the Son from the Father, and they pertain to the Son's eternal existence before all time, and to God's divine plan of salvation for the world.  My study bible says that a person must first grasp the ways in which God works among humankind before one can even start to understand anything pertaining to God exclusively.

"And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life."   Moses lifted up an image of a serpent in order to cure the Israelites from deadly bites of poisonous snakes (Numbers 21:4-9); Christ references this miracle-working image as a prefiguration of His being lifted up on the Cross.  In some sense, it is a "type" of the Cross.  My study bible comments that as believers behold the crucified Christ in faith, the power of sin and death is overthrown in them.  It notes that just as the image of a serpent was the weapon that destroyed the power of the serpents, so the instrument of Christ's death becomes the weapon that overthrows death itself.

Here John brings us to the powerful paradox of the Cross.  How does God's power work to use the things of this world -- even gruesome human death on a cross -- in order to turn back that power against itself and to destroy it?  Just as Moses was told to fashion an image of a fiery serpent on a pole, and to have those bitten look at the image, and they lived, so we look to the Cross when we are faced with death in any form.  The abolition of death is something that cannot be fathomed in human or worldly terms, but can only be understood through the spiritual counterpart that accompanies it:  that of sin and evil.  In other words, if God is life, then that which is "against God" is death, "not life."  In John's Prologue, we read about the Son or Logos, "In Him was life, and the life was the light of men" (1:4).  This light is contrasted with darkness, and the darkness also corresponds to death in some form.  When we refuse the light God would show us, to help illuminate our own lives and choices, we are in some particular sense choosing death, a kind of death of potentials and possibilities within us that grace offers as a gift.  Pain is also a component of that darkness or death; even the word for evil or "the evil one" has the meaning of pain.  But Christ's power works in a particular way regarding all of these elements of death:  He comes into the world to experience all that we do, and transforms the reality of this darkness and death.  We are no longer bound to it, but liberated through Christ to transcend, to be reborn into a greater abundance of life.  So it is through our journey with Christ even as we experience small "deaths" - whether that be of false dreams or hopes, disappointing outcomes, false beliefs.  The light is on the other side, through the experience, and with Christ.  He leads the way through any form of death to a greater gift of life -- just as He did on the Cross.   In this we must also see baptism -- for baptism is a form of death and rebirth.  We are submerged into water as a form of death, and reborn through the Spirit as we emerge.  At baptism we also renounce evil and its forms -- thus, as in the Paschal Hymn of the Orthodox, death is trampled by death.  That is, through the Incarnation and Christ's own experience of it, even death becomes an instrument of transformation into the life of God.  This paradoxical and complex reality is mirrored in the lifting up of the serpent by Moses as directed by God,  to destroy the effects of the serpents who bit the Israelites.  We note the realities of Christ which extend backward and forward in time:  the act of Moses which reflects the Crucifixion, and the discussion of baptism by Jesus with Nicodemus, which touches upon things to come at the Cross.  If all of this is dizzying, peculiar, and next to impossible to follow, consider that it is in the experience of our faith that we really come to know it, the living of the faith that gives us true wisdom and insight, and simply trust in Christ and in that journey of faith.  For today, consider the power of water as sacrament in the Incarnation of Christ, how His human experience sanctifies the waters for all the world, and our repeated reliving and commemoration renews this promise over and over again for us all. 

Then His disciples remembered that it was written, "Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up"

Creation of the heavenly lights - Mosaic, 1180s.  Monreale Cathedral, Palermo, Sicily

 

Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.  And He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers doing business.  When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers' money and overturned the tables.  And He said to those who sold doves, "Take these things away!  Do not make My Father's house a house of merchandise!"  Then His disciples remembered that it was written, "Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up."  So the Jews answered and said to Him, "What sign do You show to us, since You do these things?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up."  Then the Jews said, "It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?"  But He was speaking of the temple of His body.  Therefore, when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said.

- John 2:13-22

In our reading from yesterday, we read of the events of the sixth day (and the seventh) given of Christ's ministry:  the wedding at Cana, and the first sign of seven John includes in His Gospel.   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.

  Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.  And He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers doing business.  When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers' money and overturned the tables.  And He said to those who sold doves, "Take these things away!  Do not make My Father's house a house of merchandise!"  Then His disciples remembered that it was written, "Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up."  In the synoptic Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, this event occurs at the end of Jesus' ministry.  But John places it right at the beginning, just after His first sign performed at the wedding in Cana, of turning the water to wine (see yesterday's reading, above).  Some Church Fathers teach that Christ performed this act twice.  We make note that this is the first Passover festival given in John's Gospel.  Altogether, He will attend three, and it is from this that we deduce Christ's ministry lasted three years.  The disciples remember the verse from Psalm 69:9.  Those who sell animals in the temple are selling them to pilgrims who must purchase them for sacrifice.  The money changers exchanged Roman coins for Jewish temple coins, as coins with the image of Caesar were considered to be defiling.  Those who sold doves did so to the poor, who could afford only the smallest sacrifice.

So the Jews answered and said to Him, "What sign do You show to us, since You do these things?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up."  Then the Jews said, "It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?"  But He was speaking of the temple of His body.  Therefore, when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said.  My study bible comments that since Jesus is not a Levitical priest, His authority to cleanse the temple is challenged.  In John's Gospel, the term Jews most often refers specifically to the leaders; in this case, my study bible says, it refers to the chief priests and the elders (see Matthew 21:23).  Christ is careful not to reveal Himself to scoffers, and so He answers in a hidden way.  The ultimate sign given will be His death and Resurrection.

The psalm verse that the disciples remember is taken from Psalm 69, verse 9.  If we read it in context (verses 8 and 9 in full), it reads:  "I have become a stranger to my brothers, and an alien to my mother’s children;  because zeal for Your house has eaten me up, and the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me."  In the full sense of the psalm verses, we will read later on in John's Gospel of the antagonism from Jesus' brothers (that is, those who are most likely stepbrothers -- sons by a previous marriage of Joseph, or cousins).  And the zeal with which Jesus approaches the temple as a house of prayer results in the reproaches from those who fail to honor the Father by making it a house of merchandise.  Therefore, if we follow Christ, we should also understand that our faith is not a faith of "merchandise."  It is not a sense of material commodities to be bought and sold, and belonging to this person or that one.  We do not purchase our faith with nominal good deeds, and even our most hallowed and cherished of rituals do not retain their meaning for us without a prayerful understanding of what our life with God is all about.  Nobody "owns" the wisdom and holiness of the long tradition and history of God's covenant and promise, begun in the Old and fulfilled in the New.  We do not earn it, it is given to us as a gift of grace.  We can't purchase it; it's not for sale.  It must be cherished for what it is, it must be beloved to be truly valued properly.  John's Gospel immediately sets up for us two ways of seeing, which are in complete contrast.  This was introduced in the Prologue, which spoke of the Light that came into the world, and the darkness that can neither overcome it nor understand it.  This is what we see played out in today's reading.  Jesus has a way of seeing and being in the world, He is the Light that illumines for us the truth about God and God's love and communion with us.  We are either going to "get it" or fail to see it; either it is going to reach us somehow in our perceptions, or we dash it by the wayside, seeing everything as commodity, as merchandise.  And it is in fact in the way we see that things take on meaning and value.  Is a beautiful house the thing that gives our life worthiness?  Or is a tattered and old photo, filled with the meaning and presence of someone we love, something we cherish for that memory?  The smallest gift with love present remains a memory of something cherished, and the most expensive thing we can buy becomes worthless without meaning and with an empty and always-hungry heart.  Without the presence of that Light which illumines such depth of meanings and relatedness, life doesn't give us anything but merchandise.  And this is the root of the sacramental life that the entire Bible teaches us.  God gives us an abundance of life and all the good things God creates for us.  We have been reading John's first chapter and the first sign given, a full seven days of Jesus' ministry (up through yesterday's reading), paralleling the creation story in Genesis.  All of it tells us about the gifts of good things God gives us, the crowning of God's creation.  And our job as those who return that love is simply to return all the gifts to God so that they may be endowed with God's value, God's love, God's way for us to live and to grow in communion.  Without that, they are merchandise for which we toil.  With God, all of it become Eucharist, securing a deeper communion.  Let us consider Jesus' zeal, and His way that tells us that all of life and all of this world of creation and cosmos is more than just merchandise.  Help is always here to give us that light, and to lead the way out of what seems only meaningless.  Our own zeal may even at times bring reproach from those who cannot see the point, but we enter into a struggle into which we are invited, with Him.  The image above is a mosaic of the creation of the lights of the heavens, the stars and the planets.  Let us remember that He is the Light we need to find meaning in all of this creation, made for us.  None of it is merely "merchandise," it is filled with meaning, and a gift to us, for life.  Let us not be like spoiled children, but keep in mind that there is so much to learn about how we are to dwell in it, with His light.

Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come

Creation of the plants, 15-16th century fresco.  Sucevita Monastery, Romania

 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 events of the fourth day of Jesus' ministry, as the Gospel of John reports:   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 of him, "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom 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.   So far John's Gospel has given us a report of the first four days of Jesus' earthly ministry, after its Prologue (verses 1:1-18) which gives us the theological understanding of who Christ is as Logos and Son.  On the third day is an expression which means "two days later," as it includes the current day in the calculation.  Therefore, this is the sixth day given in the Gospel.  The setting of the wedding at Cana of Galilee parallels the creation of man and woman in Genesis 1:26-31, just as each day given so far has paralleled the creation story of Genesis.  This is the setting for the first of seven signs given in John's Gospel.  My study bible comments that "on the third day" gives a resurrectional tone to this event, which gives us another parallel linking both Old and New Testaments:  in the Old Testament, marriage feasts symbolized the union of God with God's Bride, Israel.  My study bible comments that Jesus deliberately begins His ministry here at Galilee, which had a large Gentile population; and that makes this a sign of the spread of the gospel to all the world.  The resurrectional tone of the "third day" shows that this marriage of God and God's Church will be fulfilled in the Resurrection.   My study bible links several other parallels to John's Resurrection account in 20:1-18.  Both 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 in 20:11-18 has a strong similarity to the verses in Song of Songs 3:1-5, which again echoes the ties between marriage and Christ's Resurrection.  My study bible comments further that by Christ's presence at this wedding, He declares marriage to be holy and honorable (Hebrews 13:4).  Therefore this passage is read at Orthodox weddings, and these images are incorporated into many prayers in the wedding service (which itself strongly parallels the Jewish wedding service).

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."  My study bible cites this passage as an example of Mary's gift of intercession.  It notes that even now, in the faith of the Church, Mary continually speaks to her Son on our behalf.  She is our preeminent intercessor before the Throne of Christ.  This is stated in the words of an Orthodox prayer:  "The intercessions of a mother have great effect to win the favor of the Master."  My study bible also notes that this is confirmed as Jesus grants her request.    Wine here is symbolic of life, and my study bible notes two levels of meaning in Mary's statement, "They have no wine."   First, that a marriage is not complete without the presence of Christ; and second, that the old covenant was unable to bestow life even on the most faithful people.  Concerning Jesus' address to His Mother, Woman is a sacred title in Scripture, an address which my study bible notes conveys a deep respect and distinction (4:21; 8:10; 1926; 20:13; compare to Genesis 2:23).   Jesus' question, What does your concern have to do with Me? is translated more literally, "What is that to Me and to you?"  It's not a refusal of Mary's intercession, but a statement that the time hasn't come for Him to be fully revealed.  That Christ fulfills Mary's request teaches several things which my study bible notes as follows:   (1)  Christ is Lord over hours and seasons and not subject to them.  (2)  The wedding party had to first be aware of their lack of wine before it could be understood that it's Christ who fulfills all needs.  (3)  We must have perseverance when we petition before God (Matthew 15:21-28).  (4)  The intercessions of those who are 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 as stone was considered to be unable to contract ritual purity, according to rabbinical teaching.  The number six is important.  My study bible explains that as it is one less than the perfect seven, it indicates that the Law -- illustrated by water being reserved for Jewish purification -- was incomplete, imperfect, and unable to bestow life.  When this water is changed into wine, it symbolizes the old covenant being fulfilled in the new, which is capable of bestowing life.  The overabundant gallons (filled ... up to the brim) of wine are an illustration of the overflowing grace granted to all by Christ.  It reminds us of the words in Psalm 23:  "My cup runs over."

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.   This transformation of water to wine is viewed by the Patristic Fathers as prefiguring the transformation of bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ in the Eucharist.  My study bible notes that John says that Christ manifested His glory.  It is a reference back to verse 1:14, in which John wrote that "we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth."  He is God and man in one Person, His divinity present in full human nature.

Man and woman together -- in marriage ceremony -- are symbolic of life, but then so is everything else in this story of the first sign or miracle in John's Gospel.  This parallel to the sixth day of creation in Genesis reminds us that God told the man and the woman, "Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it . . . ," teaching that they were to have dominion over the earth, and moreover that the entire earth would grow an abundance of food for all creatures on the earth "in which there is life," or a living soul.  So the feast is life, the transformation of water to wine is like God giving life to humankind, just as it is the Spirit who gives life (6:63).   With the water in the stone pots turned to wine, the Old is transformed into the New, like the new wine that needs new wineskins (Matthew 9:17, Mark 2:22, Luke 5:37-38).   The very act of change and transformation, of the enzymatic action of water turning to wine, suggests life itself, the process of ongoing change always present in what is living in this world.   In 7:28, Jesus will promise that "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water" -- and even that term, living water, means water that is moving and not still.  Let us note the movement also of labor; even this first sign happens not simply at Jesus' command and inception, but with a plea or prayer first by His mother, Mary, our chief intercessor.  It is she who first has total and unshakeable faith in her Son, as shown here -- and will carry it through His Crucifixion and forward from there.  Right from the beginning, we know Mary, the Mother of Christ, as an inspiration in the Church, from that time onward.   And on that note we can say that this first sign is also a product of a Man, and a woman.  We can think about the link between her assent to Gabriel's Annunciation ("Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word" - Luke 1:38),  and her statement to her Son, "They have no wine."  Both occur prior to God's gracious act of life-creation, and are coupled with it.  Let us consider, when we pray, our own part of participation with Creator.  The icon above is a fresco showing the Lord's creation of the plants, which filled the earth to give food even "to everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life."  It is a reminder to us that Christ comes into the world not simply to save human beings, but for the life of the world, for an entire cosmos of the created order, visible and invisible.

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

Icon of Job 38:7 (Septuagint): "When the stars were made, all my angels praised me with a loud voice."  Late 20th cent., fresco.  St John the Baptist Monastery, Makrinos, Greece

The following day 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 of him, "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom 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."

- John 1:43-51

Yesterday we read that on the second day given in John's Gospel,  John the Baptist saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, "Behold!  The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!  This is He of whom I said, 'After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was before me.'   I did not know Him; but that He should be revealed to Israel, therefore I came baptizing with water."  And John bore witness, saying, "I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him.  I did not know Him, but He who sent me to baptize with water said to me, 'Upon whom you see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.'  And I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God."  Again, the next day, John stood with two of his disciples.  And looking at Jesus as He walked, he said, "Behold the Lamb of God!"  The two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus.  Then Jesus turned, and seeing them following, said to them, "What do you seek?"  They said to Him, "Rabbi" (which is to say, when translated, Teacher), "where are You saying?"  He said to them, "Come and see."  They came and saw where He was staying, and remained with Him that day (now it was about the tenth hour).  One of the two who heard John speak, and followed Him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother.  He first found his own brother Simon, and said to him, "We have found teh Messiah" (which is translated, the Christ).  And he brought him to Jesus.  Now when Jesus looked at him, He said, "You are Simon the son of Jonah.  You shall be called Cephas" which is translated, A Stone).

The following day 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 of him, "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom 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."  In today's reading, John gives us the events of the fourth day as given in his Gospel of Christ's ministry (see the previous two readings, here and here, for the first through the third).  As my study bible explains, this first week of Christ's ministry, as given in John's Gospel, parallels the creation story of Genesis.  This is the fourth day, in which Jesus calls Philip and Nathanael.   They come to see Christ as the true Light, the One revealed in the Old Testament which itself was a lesser light.  My study bible suggests that this parallels the establishment of the lesser and greater lights governing the night and the day respectively on the fourth day in Genesis 1:14-19.  When Jesus remarks that Nathanael is an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit,  He means that Nathanael has both a pure heart and is also straightforward with others.   What precisely happened under the fig tree is not told to us.  St. John Chrysostom is cited by my study bible, as he comments that this was the meeting place of Philip and Nathanael, and that Jesus was praising Nathanael for being so diligent and careful in his search for the Messiah.  It is Christ's foreknowledge and ability to see into Nathanael's heart that stir him to make his confession of faith.   Let us also note that Nathanael uses the term Son of God.  But Jesus uses the term Son of Man, a somewhat mysterious messianic title.  My study bible says that "Son of Man" indicates a man of heavenly origin who would usher in the Kingdom of God (found in Daniel 7:13-14).   In an Old Testament prophecy, Jacob dreamed of a ladder which connected earth to heaven, upon which the angels of God were ascending and descending (Genesis 28:12-15).  Jesus is that "ladder," uniting earth and heaven, and therefore He is the Son of Man in Daniels prophecy.

Once again, Jesus demonstrates immediately His ability to know the hearts and character of others.  This clearly strikes home with Nathanael, one who is not given to falsehood or pretense about himself or others, and therefore one much more likely to respond directly to truth.  Perhaps this is the most important aspect of the praise that Christ gives to Nathanael.  Nathanael is one who loves truth:  he puts on no show about himself, he is direct in his expression, but at the same time his heart holds no guile, no deceit.  This is what it is to be pure in heart.  Like the rarest pearl made of pure nacre, the same pure consistency from inside to outside.   As Jesus reserve His greatest condemnation for the hypocrisy of the religious leadership, we understand that to be pure in heart is a kind of goal and qualification for good discipleship.  How can one value truth without at least a deep and true desire for it?  Oftentimes there are painful truths that none of us would like to face.  Perhaps we would like to hide the truth from those we love in order to protect them.  But a deep love or even passion for truth characterizes those who would go throughout the known world, enduring persecution and martyrdom to serve Christ as His first apostles, and Jesus knows what He sees in Nathanael.  Jesus preaches in the Sermon on the Mount, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God."  Perhaps it is that ongoing process of purity of heart that most characterizes what is called "theosis" or "deification" in the Eastern Christian tradition, that process whereby we participate mystically in the life of Christ, and grace works in us to refine and make obvious the things we need to cast away (Matthew 18:8-9), while helping us to grow in recognition of the spiritual gifts of true value such as is described by St. Paul in writing about love in 1 Corinthians 13.  Indeed, when Jesus sums up His Judgment and that which leads to eternal life, it is through our capacity for compassion He tells us this will happen (Matthew 25:31-46), a quality whose expression most assuredly depends not on false signaling and hypocrisy, but purity of heart.  In the icon above, we see a modern rendition of an icon meant to depict God's statement to Job, describing the creation of the heavenly lights: "When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?" (Job 38:7).  In the Greek Septuagint version, this reads in translation, "When the stars were made, all my angels praised me with a loud voice" (found here).  It is clearly Jesus as Son who brings the creation of all things into being, including the greater and lesser lights, His hand in a gesture of blessing.  He comes to us as One who blesses and links heaven and earth, bearing His light that we may share and grow in it to be "like Him."