Great and Holy Friday — 'A Messianic Reading of Psalm 22'

 

 

Great and Holy Friday

About the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” that is to say, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” (Mt 27.46, cf. Mk 15.34) 

Into thy hand I commit my Spirit, thou hast redeemed me, Yahweh, faithful God” (Ps 31.5, cf. Lk 23.46) 

While agonizing in his last moments on the Cross, [Christ] experienced just what any one of us might experience, from a moment of despair and seeming solitude, to trust and joy that led him to praise Yahweh. The fullness and depth of his humanity, as revealed in his experience of the Cross, ought to serve as an example to us, leading us all to the same humility and perseverance. Just like the psalmist [King David], Jesus, the Messiah, did not die in solitude, abandoned by God, but rather he went to his death awash in a jumble of feelings, which were ultimately overshadowed by his trust that the God of his fathers had redeemed him: “From between the horns of the rams thou didst answer me!” (Ps 22.21, cf. Ps 31.5). 

—Archpriest Eugen J. Pentiuc, “A Crucifying Silence: A Messianic Reading of Psalm 22,” in Holy Week: A Series of Meditations

 

Holy Week: 'The events we commemorate were not celebrations but absolute tragedy...'

 

Dear Parish Faithful,

Holy Week Meditation - Wednesday

I am doing something a bit different today. Here is a short letter that I read yesterday evening following the Bridegroom Matins. It is from a letter that my former professor from St. Vladimir's seminary wrote to us after our very first Pascha (1982) in my new parish assignment (Granite City, IL). Prof. Verkhovskoy was a representative of pre-revolutionary Russian Orthodoxy at its best. We were very close friends with him at the seminary and visited his home often. He was a sober and serious type and his letter reflects his personality. It is a good reminder of what Holy Week is really about - and what it is not about. As I have said elsewhere: Holy Week is not the Orthodox version of a Passion Play. Neither is it a pageant or a performance. It is our communal experience of worshiping God "in spirit and in truth" as we re-present and actualize the saving events of the Death and Resurrection of Christ - the "Savior of the world."

_____

Dear Fr. Steven and Presvytera Deborah,

I think about you all these days. I hope you are satisfied with the celebration of this week in your parish. But the power and meaning of the events of these days does not depend on their human and even personal celebration. After the Entrance of the Lord into Jerusalem all the events which we commemorate were not celebrations but absolute tragedy. Death was vanquished by death and death on the Cross was not a sacramental ceremony, but the greatest possible horror of sufferings of Jesus Christ abandoned by everybody, even by His Father. We are saved by an absolute sacrifice which opened to us the doors of life. Now crowds come to glorify the crucifixion, but when Jesus Christ was really crucified all left except those who mocked him.

Pascha is the triumph of Life, but only for those who will now be spiritually risen from the dead, i.e. reborn as new creatures. Nevertheless, it is still good to enjoy the celebrations and to be emotionally impressed by them. Better something than nothing. But let us not be easily satisfied by our superficial piety. I apologize to express once more my fear of superficial piety which often leads to pharisaism. I do not suspect you to be in danger of pharisaism, but the temptation to give priority to our complicated and beautiful forms of piety is great, especially for clergy and for those who pretend to be perfect members of the Church ("in good standing!"). 

I myself spent too much time and energy on secondary things. I still think that I did not "straighten out" my life and still hope to do this, i.e. to make my life more effective.

I hope that you are happy and resting after Holy Week. Pray for me - a sinner. 

Truly yours,

S. Verkhovskoy

Encountering Christ through the depths of Holy Week

 

Dear Parish Faithful,

HOLY WEEK

Christ, the Bridegroom

We have reached the saving passion of Christ our God.
Let us, the faithful, glorify His ineffable forbearance,
that in His compassion He may raise us up who were dead in sin,
for He is good and loves mankind.
(Matins of Holy Monday)

As Orthodox, we "live" for Holy Week and realize that it is the key week of our liturgical year, as it will culminate in the Lord's Death and Resurrection - the great paschal mystery. As Fr. Sergius Bulgakov once wrote:

"Holy Week sweeps the Orthodox believer along as if on a mystic torrent."

Our problem may just be observing Holy Week with focused attention and prayerful participation, as other demands of life impinge upon us in a never-ending flow of responsibilities - and distractions.

Therefore, I would simply like to provide a few pastoral suggestions that everyone can think about and perhaps incorporate into your daily lives as Holy Week unfolds:

• One must first make a commitment to Holy Week and make it the priority for your respective households, regardless of how often you actually make it to the services. This is a week of strict fasting, and no other activities should impinge upon that. Your commitment to making Holy Week the center of your lives is synonymous with your commitment to Christ.
  

• Try and arrange your schedules so that you are able to attend the services as well as possible. However, if you are not able to attend the services, it must not be because of something of "entertainment value;" or some other distraction that can wait for a more appropriate time. Be especially aware of Great and Holy Friday and Saturday. These are the days of the Lord's Death and Sabbath rest in the tomb. These are days of fasting, silence and sobriety. Respect that fact that you are participating in a great mystery - the mystery of redemption and salvation.
  

• Parents, you may think of taking your children out of school on Holy Friday and attending the Vespers service in the afternoon. Other children have their "holy days" on which they may miss school; and we, as Orthodox Christians, have our own.
  

• Reduce or eliminate TV and other viewings for the week. Keep off the internet except for essential matters. Struggle against smart phone distraction/app obsessions.
  

• Be regular in your prayers.
  

• Try not to gossip or speak poorly of other persons.
  

• Choose at least one of the Passion Narratives from the four Gospels — MK. 14-15; MATT. 26-27; LK. 22-23; JN. 18-19 — and read it carefully through the week. There is also other good literature about Holy Week and Pascha that could be read. Actually, this is an incredibly rich resource page from our own parish website that offers extensive and intensive insights into the meaning of Holy Week.
  

• If you have access to any of the Holy Week service booklets, read and study the services carefully before coming to church. This will deepen your understanding of that particular service's emphasis as Holy Week unfolds.
  

• If you come to the midnight Paschal Liturgy, do your best to stay for the entire service, prepared to receive the Eucharist. It does not make a great deal of sense to leave the Liturgy before Holy Communion.

 

Our goal, I believe, is to make of Holy Week and Pascha something a great deal more than a colorful/cultural event that is fleeting in nature and quickly forgotten. To encounter this "more" requires our own human effort working together with the grace of God so that the heart is enlarged with the presence of the crucified and risen Christ.

__________

At the last of our Presanctified Liturgies for this year, we heard the following hymn:

I am rich in passions, I am wrapped in the false robe of hypocrisy. Lacking self-restraint I delight in self-indulgence. I show a boundless lack of love. I see my mind cast down before the gates of repentance, starved of true goodness and sick with inattention. But make me like Lazarus, who was poor in sin, lest I receive no answer when I pray, no finger dipped in water to relieve my burning tongue; and make me dwell in Abraham's bosom in Your love for mankind.

 

Does this possibly sound familiar to anyone? Do you know of anyone that this hymn may be describing? Is this person well-known to you? If so, you may want to keep this person in your prayers so that he or she may one day - by the grace of God - be freed of these spiritually-harmful traits.

But our primary aim is to focus on the beauty and depth of Holy Week; a beauty and depth that flows naturally from Jesus Christ our Savior.

Our Commitment to Holy Week

Dear Parish Faithful,

 

We have reached the saving passion of Christ our God. / Let us, the faithful, glorify His ineffable forbearance, / that in His compassion He may raise us up who were dead in sin, / for He is good and loves mankind. 

(Matins of Holy Monday)

As Orthodox, we "live" for Holy Week and realize that it is the key week of our liturgical year, as it will culminate in the Lord's Death and Resurrection - the great paschal mystery. As Fr. Sergius Bulgakov once wrote: 

"Holy Week sweeps the Orthodox believer along as if on a mystic torrent."

 

Therefore, I would simply like to provide a few pastoral suggestions that everyone can think about and perhaps incorporate into your daily lives as Holy Week unfolds:

 

• One must first make a commitment to Holy Week and make it the priority for your    respective households, regardless of how often you actually make it to the services. This is a week of strict fasting, and no other activities should impinge upon that. Your commitment to making Holy Week the center of your lives is synonymous with your commitment to Christ.

• Try and arrange your schedules so that you are able to attend the services as well as possible. However, if you are not able to attend the services, it must not be because of something of "entertainment value;" or some other distraction that can wait for a more appropriate time. Be especially aware of Great and Holy Friday and Saturday. These are the days of the Lord's Death and Sabbath rest in the tomb. These are days of fasting, silence and sobriety. Respect that fact that you are participating in a great mystery - the mystery of redemption and salvation.

• Parents, you may think of taking your children out of school on Holy Friday and attending the Vespers service in the afternoon. Other children have their "holy days" on which they may miss school; and we, as Orthodox Christians, have our own.

• Reduce or eliminate TV and other viewings for the week. Keep off the internet except for essential matters. Struggle against smart phone distraction/app obsessions.

• Be regular in your prayers.

• Try not to gossip or speak poorly of other persons.

• Choose at least one of the Passion Narratives from the four Gospels - MK. 14-15; MATT. 26-27; LK. 22-23; JN. 18-19 - and read it carefully through the week.There is also other good literature about Holy Week and Pascha that could be read. Turn to Fr. Alexander Schmemann's "Explanation of Holy Week" that I sent out last week. Actually, this is an incredibly rich resource page from our own parish website that offers extensive and intensive insights into the meaning of Holy Week.

• If you have access to any of the Holy Week service booklets, read and study the services carefully before coming to church. This will deepen your understanding of that particular service's emphasis as Holy Week unfolds.

• If you come to the midnight Paschal Liturgy, do your best to stay for the entire service, prepared to receive the Eucharist. It does not make a great deal of sense to leave the Liturgy before Holy Communion. 

 

Our goal, I believe, is to make of Holy Week and Pascha something a great deal more than a colorful/cultural event that is fleeting in nature and quickly forgotten. To encounter this "more" requires our own human effort working together with the grace of God so that the heart is enlarged with the presence of the crucified and risen Christ.

The Place and Necessity of the Cross

Dear Parish Faithful & Friends in Christ,

 

 

 

Tomorrow, of course, is Great and Holy Friday, a day of solemnity as we immerse ourselves in the saving Passion of Christ. Even though unable to gather in church, we need to be mindful of this day in our homes - our "little churches." We can chant through the services on our own, or join the service in church through facebook or zoom. Either way, we need to make the effort to keep this day in such a way that we acknowledge and respect its profound nature of the Son of God giving His life so that we may live. It is not a day for entertainment, but a day of sober reflection and fasting. In our current trying circumstances, let us stay loyal to Christ.

There may still persist the misunderstanding that the Orthodox Church downplays the significance of the Cross because it so intensely concentrates on the Resurrection, or on other such themes as transfiguration, deification, mystical encounter with God, and so forth. This is an implicit criticism that there is some deficiency in the Orthodox Christian presentation of the place of the Cross in the divine dispensation “for us and for our salvation.” 

 

Such criticism may not hold up under further reflection and inspection, for the Orthodox would say that based upon the divine economy of our salvation, resurrection – and any “mystical encounter” with God – is only possible through the Cross. As this was “the purpose of his will” and “the mystery of his will” (EPH. 1:5,9), our salvation could not have been accomplished in any other way. The “Lord of Glory” was crucified (I COR. 2:8) and then raised from the dead. Elsewhere, the Apostle Paul writes that “Jesus our Lord” was “put to death for our trespasses and raised for our justification.” (ROM. 4:25) The author of the Epistle to the Hebrews writes of “Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” (HEB. 12:2) A text such as this could be behind the hymn we sing at every liturgy after receiving the Eucharist: “For through the Cross, joy has come into the world.” Jesus himself said “that the Son of Man must suffer many things … and be killed and after three days rise again.” (MK. 8:31) Of the Gk. word translated as “must” from these words of Christ, Archbishop Demitrios Trakatellis wrote:

This expresses the necessity (dei) of the Messiah’s terrible affliction. Judging from the meaning of the verb (dei) in Mark, this necessity touches upon God’s great plan for the salvation of the world. (Authority and Passion, p. 51-52)

Many such texts can be multiplied, but the point is clear: The Cross and the empty tomb – redemption and resurrection – are inseparably united in the one paschal mystery that is nothing less than “Good News.” Like Mary Magdalene before us, one must first stand by the Cross in sober vigilance before gazing with wonder into the empty tomb and then encountering the Risen Lord. (JN. 20:11-18)

As something of an aside, part of this misunderstanding of the Orthodox Church’s supposed neglect of the Cross in the drama of human redemption could stem from a one-sided emphasis on the Cross in other churches at the expense of the Resurrection. The redemptive significance of the Cross somehow overwhelms the Resurrection so that it is strangely reduced to something of a glorified appendix to the salvific meaning of the Cross. As Vladimir Lossky wrote: “This redemptionist theology, placing all the emphasis on the passion, seems to take no interest in the triumph of Christ over death.” Since the “triumph of Christ over death” is so integral to the very existence of the Church; and since it is the ultimate paschal proclamation, as in “Christ is risen from the dead, trampling down death by death!;” then the Orthodox Church will never concentrate on a “theology of the Cross” at the expense of the Resurrection. Rather, the one paschal mystery will always embrace both Cross and Resurrection in a balanced manner. Within the Church during certain commemorations that focus on the Cross, we sing and prostrate ourselves before the Cross while chanting this hymn:

Before Thy Cross, we bow down in worship, O Master, and Thy holy Resurrection we glorify!

In addition, and perhaps more tellingly, the growth, development and continuing existence of certain theories of atonement that have proven to be problematic today, but not shared by the Orthodox Church, have had an impact on evaluating the Orthodox Church’s understanding of the Cross on the whole. These theories of atonement will portray God as being primarily characterized by a wrath that demands appeasement, or “propitiation,” something only the death of His Son on the Cross can “satisfy.” These theories would stress the “juridical” and “penal” side of redemption in a one-sided manner. They may also bind God to act within certain “laws” of eternal necessity that would impose such categories as (vindictive?) justice on God in a way that may obscure God’s overwhelming mercy and love. Not sharing such theories of atonement as developed in the “West,” the Orthodox Church may face criticism for lacking a fully-developed “theology of the Cross.” However, such “satisfaction” theories of atonement are proving to be quite unsatisfactory in much of contemporary theological assessments of the meaning and significance of the Cross in relation to our salvation “in Christ.” The Orthodox can make a huge contribution toward a more holistic and integrated understanding of the role of both Cross and Resurrection, so that the full integrity of the paschal mystery is joyfully proclaimed to the world. From the patristic tradition of the Church, the voice of St. Athanasius the Great can speak to us today of this holistic approach (using some “juridical” language!):

Here, then is the … reason why the Word dwelt among us, namely that having proved His Godhead by His works, He might offer the sacrifice on behalf of all, surrendering His own temple to death in place of all, to settle man’s account with death and free him from the primal transgression. In the same act also He showed Himself mightier than death, displaying His own body incorruptible as the first-fruits of the resurrection. (On the Incarnation, 20)

In soberly assessing too great of a dependency on juridical language when speaking of redemption, and anticipating some later theories that would narrowly focus on the language of “payment” and “ransom” in relation to the sacrifice of Christ; St. Gregory the Theologian argued that a “price” or “ransom” was not “paid” to the Father or to Satan, as if either would demand, need or expect such a price as the “precious and glorious blood of God.” St. Gregory says, rather, the following:

Is it not evident that the Father accepts the sacrifice not because He demanded it or had any need for it but by His dispensation? It was necessary that man should be sanctified by the humanity of God; it was necessary that He Himself should free us, triumphing over the tyrant by His own strength, and that He should recall us to Himself by His Son who is the Mediator, who does all for the honor of the Father, to whom he is obedient in all things … Let the rest of the mystery be venerated silently. (Oration 45, 22)

However, getting it right in terms of a sound doctrine of atonement is one thing – essential as it is – but assimilating the necessity of the Cross in and to our personal understanding and the conditions of our life is another. In fact, it is quite a struggle and our resistance can be fierce! If this is difficult to understand, assimilate and then live by, the initial disciples of the Lord suffered through the same profound lack of comprehension. Their (mis)understanding of Jesus as the Messiah was one-sidedly fixated on images of glory, both for Israel and for themselves. A crucified Messiah was simply too much for the disciples to grasp, even though Jesus spoke of this in words that were not that enigmatic. When Peter refused to accept his Master’s words of His impending passion and death in Jerusalem, after just confessing His messianic stature and being blessed for it; he is forced to receive what is perhaps the most stinging rebuke found in the Gospels when Jesus turns to him and says: “Get behind me Satan! For you are not on the side of God, but of men.” (MK. 8:33) It was Satan who did not want Jesus to fulfill His vocation by voluntarily dying on the Cross, so Peter’s refusal to accept Christ’s words was his way of aligning himself with Satan.

The disciples were not enlightened until after the resurrection of their Lord and Master. We are raised in the Church so that we already know of Christ’s triumph over death through the Cross. Our resistance is not based on a lack of knowledge, but of a real human dread of pain and suffering. It may be difficult for us to “see” the joy that comes through the Cross until we find ourselves “on the other side.” “For now we see in a glass darkly, but then face to face.” (I COR. 13:12) It is our hope and the “certainty” of our faith that Christ has indeed triumphed over death, “even death on a Cross.” (PHIL. 2:8) God has blessed us with yet another Great Lent and upcoming Holy Week and Pascha in order to share in that experience of His glorious triumph that begins with the life-giving wood of the Tree of the Cross.

The Passion Narrative in Mark, Part 2 - 'Those who stood by...'

Dear Parish Faithful,

 

 

In yesterday's meditation I said that I would share a few insights from the Commentary on St. Mark's Gospel written by Frances Mahoney. I am specifically concerned with the Passion Narrative; and more specifically on the thoroughly inadequate response of the disciples to the events that swirled around them, ultimately frightened them, and thus led them to abandon Christ to face His crucifixion alone and without human support. It is not a pretty picture. But it is unrelievedly honest, very human, and a sober reminder of the cost of loyalty and true discipleship. As Mahoney points out, it is the very disciples "whom he has called (1:16-20), chosen (3:14-19), formed (8:22-10:52) and uniquely associated with himself (5:37; 9:2-8; 13:3; 14:33)," that collapse in the end (p. 295).

In a paradoxical manner, it is rather "good news" to those of us who equally fail to be true disciples of Christ. We now realize that our own failures are never the end of the story, but a call to humble repentance before the Lord who forgives us "seventy times seven." The image of Christ that emerges from this bleak atmosphere of relentless hostility from his persecutors, and what must have been great sorrow from the betrayal of His chosen disciples, is that of a majestic figure towering above everyone, bringing finality to His messianic destiny, even amidst great suffering and seeming defeat. And this all "more real" than the failure of the disciples. In the end, the (Gentile) centurion who stood by the Cross, could only exclaim: "Truly, this man was the Son of God" (Mk. 15:39).

I would like to share some of Mahoney's insights taken from the scene of Christ praying in Gethsemane. What we call His "agony" (Gk. agonia). Yet, before that powerful scene, St. Mark narrated the Last Supper between Jesus and the Twelve before His betrayal and crucifixion. I will simply share a kind of summary passage from Mahoney that neatly gathers together several themes brought to light in the upper room:

Mark has given us an account of Jesus' gift of himself unto death so that he could set up a new and lasting kingdom with the very people who frame the narrative of the meal.

 

The meal that Jesus shared was not a meal for the worthy ones (vv. 22-25). It was a meal for those people who were closest to Jesus but who, faced with the challenge to love him even unto death, betrayed and abandoned their Lord. (p. 287)

The structure of the prayer of Jesus in Gethsemane reveals St. Mark's careful construction of the scene with alternating passages between Jesus praying and then speaking with the disciples about their failure to watch.

[A] Introduction: Jesus and the disciples in Gethsemane (14:32)

      [B] Jesus, Peter, James and John (14:33-34)

            [C] The prayer of Jesus to the Father (14:35-36)

                   [D] Jesus, Peter, James and John

            [C'] The prayer of Jesus to the Father

     [B'] Jesus, Peter, James and John

[A'] Conclusion: "The hour has come" to leave Gethsemane (14:41-42)

Perhaps the key to the disciples failure to "watch" when Jesus was praying to His Father is found in the earlier "apocalyptic" discourse that filled ch. 13 of the Gospel. As Jesus was teaching the disciples about both the destruction of Jerusalem and the end of the world, He solemnly warns His disciples that they need to "watch (Gk. grigoreite)." The word chosen here means a deep concentration and vigilant attitude that must be conscious and deliberate. Jesus understood that it takes this kind of "watching" to be able to read the signs sent by God and to "see" God's activity in the midst of terrifying events that most commonly only evoke fear. In Gethsemane, Jesus directed the disciples to "watch," but instead they "sleep" and utterly fail to follow the words of the Master. In fact this happens three times after Jesus separated from them in order to enter into intimate prayer with His heavenly Father. An inability to watch at this time when expressly asked to do so by Jesus is only an ominous sign that when the authorities come to arrest Jesus, the disciples will only continue their forlorn descent into abject betrayal. And this from Peter who only hours earlier at the final supper swore his allegiance to Christ even unto death! As Mahoney comments:

Jesus tells his disciples that the model of discipleship that he taught them in 8:34-38 is about to be totally abandoned as they fall away, flee and deny him. They will not take up the cross and follow him (8:34). It is not only Peter who says that he will not fall away (see 14:29) or deny Jesus (v. 31b). All the disciples said the same thing (v. 31c). The disciples with whom Jesus shared a meal (vv. 22-25), telling them that he is drawing them into the saving and liberating experience of his broken body and spilt blood, will betray him (vv. 17-21), fall away and deny him (vv. 26-31). (p. 289)

And yet, with Christ there is always hope:

In the midst of his predictions of their failure, flight, and denials, Jesus has sounded a note of hope ... What is about to happen is not the result of uncontrolled fate. The theme of Jesus' unfailing presence  to ever-failing disciples dominates 14:17-31, the centerpiece of 14:1-72, a long section composed of passages focusing alternately upon Jesus and his disciples. (pp. 289-290)

After His lonely and unbearably intense prayer in which Jesus obediently submitted to the will of the Father that He ascend the Cross, Jesus is eventually arrested in Gethsemane following the treacherous kiss of Judas, who is accompanied by the emissaries of the chief priests, scribes and elders. In a devastatingly telling detail, we read that once Jesus has been arrested - "They laid hands on him and seized him" (Mk. 14:46); that "one of those who stood by" draws his sword and cuts off the ear of the high priest (v. 47). Who are these mysterious figures that somehow appear out of nowhere and take part in the chaotic events? How could other figures be present precisely at that time in the Garden of Gethsemane? They are the disciples who are no longer being called oi mathetoi ("disciples") " ... for they are no longer regarded as "disciples." Their failure to learn from the way and word of Jesus relegates them to the position of "those who stood by." The expression oi mathetoi does not return to the story until the young man at the empty tomb promises the women that Jesus is going ahead of Peter and the disciples to Galilee." (pp. 297-298) For the remainder of the Passion Narrative, there is no mention of the disciples. They have removed themselves from the story because they have removed themselves from Christ! And yet we know that "the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak," and therefore no one - including us today - can possibly judge them harshly.


Of course, Peter does appear again, but not as a "disciple." We will read/hear of him when he has joined the Roman soldiers in the courtyard apart from Jesus warming himself by a fire, and it is as he stands with the opponents of Jesus that he will deny Christ three times as it was prophecised by Jesus. So when certain members of the Sanhedrin begin to vent their rage on Jesus and spit on him and slap him, demanding that he prophesy who hit him when a cover is placed over his head, Jesus is truly a prophet at that very moment, because Peter is simultaneously out in the courtyard denying Jesus exactly as it was prophecised of him! Aware of this, Peter could only break down and weep. It is a pitiful end for the chief disciple who swore that he would die with Christ. And to this day, we can only feel pity for him, recognizing our own weakness in him.

 

 

 

The Passion Narrative in the Gospel According to St. Mark

Dear Parish Faithful,

 

Oh, the inexpressible condescension of the Word of God!  

- Matins Canon of Holy Monday

 

 

 

This Great Lent I chose to concentrate on St. Mark's narrative of the Lord's Passion. In the process I have read - or have not quite finished - a rather massive and remarkable book: The Gospel of Mark - A Commentary by Frances J. Mahoney. At four hundred pages it may not be exhaustive, but it is a very thorough and detailed commentary on the earliest and shortest of the four canonical Gospels. The insights that escape us on a normal reading are endless.The Passion Narrative commentary itself (Mk. 14 & 15) takes up sixty-six pages, so it too is thorough and detailed. 

 

My purpose is simply to select just a few key episodes from these two powerful chapters of the Gospel and share some of the insights that I just mentioned. I am hoping these little glimpses will further enlighten your reading of the culminating chapters - together with the account of the resurrection in Mk. 16 - of St. Mark's Gospel as presented by a seasoned scholar and Christian believer. 

 

I would like to add here that another remarkable commentary on St. Mark's Gospel was written by the former archbishop of the Greek Orthodox Church in America, Dimitrios Trakatellis, entitled Authority and Passion. I have learned a great deal from the book over the years after many readings of it, and would highly recommend it. 

I am going to focus on the failure of the disciples to remain loyal to Christ, and choose some of the passages in which this is made painfully clear. This does have a pastoral dimension to it, as we also fail often enough in our vocation as disciples of Christ. And as they were restored to fellowship, so can we also be restored to that same fellowship with Christ through repentance. Mahoney presents a convincing case throughout his commentary that the failure of the disciples is indeed a key theme of St. Mark's Gospel and how in the end Jesus is essentially abandoned by them and alone when facing the fierce hostility of the religious authorities and the might of the Roman Empire. Yet, though alone and abandoned, Christ remains obedient to the will of His heavenly Father and fulfills His mission as the suffering Servant of God. As we proclaim in Holy Week, the Lord is going to His "voluntary passion." Even though God is apparently silent when Christ prays to Him in  both the Garden of Gethsemane and on the Cross, Jesus trusts God to the very end. His resurrection on the third day reveals that God "heard" Him and vindicated Him. The failure of the disciples unfolds with acute and somewhat shocking clarity as Jesus draws closer to the Cross. The ignorance of the disciples found throughout the Gospel descends into total abandonment by the time Jesus is arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane. No one would create a text that would discredit and thereby undermine the main proponents of the Gospel to the world! These were the "facts"  and St. Mark the Evangelist records them in his telling of the Good News.

Anticipating this pastoral dimension, Mahoney first writes of the failure of the disciples - and here he includes the women disciples in that failure, though that may be questioned - as follows:

 

"Throughout the Gospel of Mark it has been the disciples who, in a "this-worldly" way of judging events, had the good sense to oppose Jesus' suicidal journey to Jerusalem and to death (see especially 8:32-33) ...  Even their flight (14:50), Peter's denials (14:66-72), and the flight of the women from the empty tomb (16:8) are sensible approaches to very uncomfortable and unpromising situations. Yet Mark writes "good news" (1:1, 15; 8:35): the death and resurrection of Jesus reverse the common sense of this world. The Suffering Son of Man has been vindicated. The crucified Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, while the sensible approaches of the disciples and the women lead to failure, fear, and flight. The Markan resurrection story proclaims that the way of Jesus is the way to victory, while the way of the worldly-wise leads into terror and flight (see 14:50 and 16:8)." (p. 23)

The Passion Narrative begins with Ch. 14 of St. Mark's Gospel. At the opening of this chapter, we have these intercalated passages (the Gk. word is pericope) that introduce us to the theme of betrayal, but also of steadfast loyalty. These passages can be outlined as follows:

• The Jewish leaders plot to kill Jesus - (14:1-2)
• Jesus is anointed at Bethany (14:3-9)
• Judas, one of the twelve, joins the plot of the Jewish leaders (14:10-11)
• Jesus prepares for the Passover Meal (14:12-16)

As Mahoney comments: "Within the broader structure outlined above, 14:1-16 forms an impressive sandwich construction in its own right: conspiracy - unconditional love - betrayal." (p. 282) This effects points to the simultaneity of the recorded events. Thus, intercalated - or "sandwiched" - in between two passages of betrayal we encounter the beautiful passage of an unnamed woman who perceives who Jesus really is and who therefore anoints Him in preparation for His burial as if He were a a king. In St. John's Gospel the woman is identified as Mary of Bethany, sister of Martha and Lazarus. Her deed will always be remembered and proclaimed "wherever the Gospel is preached in the whole world." (14:9) While others plot against Jesus, she treats Him with royal dignity, for the "nard" that she used to anoint Jesus was very costly, and she shattered the jar in order to do so - an act which is itself a sign of unconditional devotion to Christ. Mahoney summarizes this whole passage nicely:

" ... The woman recognizes that Jesus is on his way to death, and the anointing of his body is a proleptic honoring of the body of Jesus for its burial (v. 8). Jesus' speaking of his oncoming burial links this episode with the literary frame of the plot (v. 1-2) and Judas's joining the chief priests and the scribes (v. 10-11). Readers ... learn from Jesus' own lips that the efforts of the authorities to kill him will be successful ... This episode announces at the beginning of the passion narrative, that Jesus is king, and that his crucifixion, death, and burial will point to that truth." (p. 282-283)

As to Judas, I would like to include the following comments from Mahoney:

"Judas's handing over of Jesus is a betrayal of what it means to be a disciple (i.e. to be with Jesus), as his betrayal means a willing, violent and physical separation from him who appointed him to the Twelve. There is also a paradoxical connection between Judas' act and God's design; the passion predictions have already said that Jesus must  (Gk. dei, Mk. 8:31) be handed over. The chief priests and scribes , who earlier where perplexed concerning when they might trap Jesus, are now delighted to have the complicity of an intimate follower of Jesus, and the promise of money links Judas with the shame of a plot that began in stealth (v. 1). Judas now joins Jesus' enemies, seeking an opportunity to betray him." (p. 282)

I have always found it exceedingly difficult indeed to work out the connection of the betrayal of Judas - of which he is morally responsible - and the unfolding of the eternal design of God that it must happen the way that it did. Perhaps one of the supreme examples throughout the Scriptures of the futility of trying to dissect the intersection between divine design and human culpability with logical precision. 

So, just a very slight "taste" of what a thoughtful, careful and perhaps prayerful commentary on the part of a responsible and believing scholar on the richness of the passion narratives can yield. This can lead to our own enrichment of the saving Passion of Christ our God.

 

 

 

'I am Lazarus'

Dear Parish Faithful,

To stay with Lazarus Saturday for a moment, I wanted to share some excellent comments by a contemporary biblical scholar, Brendan Byrne, as he offers an in-depth exegesis (interpretation) of the incomparable narrative of Jesus raising Lazarus to life.  His comments are so effective because of how convincingly he relates the entire episode to our lives today as Christians facing the exact same dilemmas and challenges - beginning with the challenge to faith that the reality of death raises.

Be that as it may, Byrne writes the following:

Lazarus is a character with whom anyone who reads the Gospel can identify. "I" am Lazarus - in the sense that Jesus left his "safe country" to enter this world, placing his life in mortal danger in order to save me from death, to communicate, at the cost of his own life, eternal life to me. 

I am the "friend" of Jesus - he or she whom he loved. For me Jesus has wept. Before my tomb, so to speak, he has wrestled with the cost of life-giving love. It is to call me forth into life, to strip from me the bands of death that Jesus has come into the world and given his life. So I am to read the  forthcoming account of the passion and death of Jesus with intimate personal involvement, knowing that Jesus is undergoing all this insult and suffering for love of me and to give life to me."

The story of Lazarus, with its full acceptance of human death and grieving, with its realism about the cost of giving life, with its invitation to enter upon a deeper journey of faith, speaks as powerfully to the present as it did to the past. 

God is neither indifferent to the distress death brings nor unsympathetic to our struggles of faith. More than anything else in the gospel, Jesus' demeanor in John 11 expresses divine involvement in human grief and suffering. In the person of the Son, God becomes vulnerable physically and psychologically, to death. At its deepest level the story of Lazarus invites us to believe in God as the One who gives life in death and out of death. 

To every believer, confronted like Martha with mortality, Jesus addresses his words: "Did I not tell you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?" (11:40)  Each of us has a perfect right, indeed an invitation, to write ourselves and our world into the script - to be, each one of us, Lazarus, whom Jesus loved and for whom he gave his life.

When Christ goes to the Cross, He does so on behalf of all humanity, but each person can say: He is dying so that I can have abundant life. 

In the expressive icon presented here, we are given a real sense of the power of Jesus over death, as He authoritatively gestures toward the tomb to bring the bound Lazarus out. In the Gospel, we read that Jesus "cried with a loud voice, 'Lazarus, come out'." The word of the Word is life-creating and life-giving, so dramatically revealed in this event. Martha and Mary are at the feet of Christ imploring His mercy as the startled crowd of both disciples and fellow-mourners look on with amazement. This was the final "sign" in the first half of the Gospel that will now move toward an even more ultimate "sign" of Jesus offering His life "for the life of the world." 

'This very night, you will deny Me...'

Dear Parish Faithful,

GREAT AND HOLY TUESDAY

"O faithless generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you?" (MK. 9:19)

 When reading the Gospels carefully, it is difficult not to be bewildered by the (spiritual) blindness - if not sheer obtuseness - of the disciples of Christ. It is in St. Mark's Gospel that this blindness is presented in its most stark and unrelieved manner. (In the other two Synoptic Gospels of Sts. Matthew and Luke, you can find a certain "softening" of this effect). 

This is more than a problem of the disciples simply "not getting it." We can be certain that we are on solid historical ground here, because it is incomprehensible that this embarrassing characteristic of the key followers of Jesus would be some sort of literary convention/invention. For what purpose would be fulfilled in casting the very men charged with proclaiming the Gospel in such an unattractive light? These are the closest followers of Christ and their words are meant to convey certainty and trust in the Gospel message that they are bringing to others. We can only imagine to what extent the disciples-turned-apostles may have agonized over this even after having been reconciled to Christ following His Resurrection. Thus, we have to accept the unresponsiveness of the disciples - an unresponsiveness that devolves into open betrayal in the end - as a troubling feature of the Gospels.

Yet, perhaps it should not be so baffling after all when we realize what their Master was teaching them to accept as the very will of God. Instead of a glorious and victorious Messiah who would restore the glory of Israel by banishing the hated Roman occupiers from the sacred soil of the Promised Land, they were hearing words of a humble and suffering Messiah who would have to die an ignominious death for Israel - and through Israel for the whole world/cosmos - to be redeemed: 

"Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem; and the Son of Man will be delivered to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death, and deliver him to the Gentiles; and they will mock him, and spit upon him, and scourge him, and kill him; and after three days he will rise." (Mk. 10:33-34) 

Jesus openly told the twelve disciples that, "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me" (MK. 8:34). Following the Last Supper, the agony of Gethsemane, and the arrest of Jesus, that is precisely what the disciples did not do! They did not deny themselves, and they did not take up their respective crosses in order to follow Christ to the end. They scattered in fear of their lives and essentially betrayed their Lord, after swearing that that is what they would never do! 

The chief of the apostles, Peter, "vehemently" told Jesus: "Even though they all fall away, I will not; and "If I must die with you, I will not deny you." (MK. 14:29, 31) Peter was incapable of fulfilling these bold protestations of undying loyalty. Rather, the prophetic words of Jesus: "Truly, I say to you, this very night, before the cock crows twice, you will deny me three times" (MK. 14:30) were awaiting their fulfillment. Little wonder, indeed, that when these words were actually fulfilled just a few hours later, Peter "broke down and wept." (MK. 14:72)

We can go back further into the ministry of Jesus, to already see the "seeds" of this betrayal in the parable of the Sower. One of the negative reactions to the Gospel message would be of those "who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with joy and they have no root in themselves, but endure for a while; then, when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the word, immediately they fall away." (MK. 4:16-17) This was a devastatingly accurate portrait of the disciples actions once "tribulation" and "persecution" arose before their vision as deadly realities. When the possibility of the Cross started to dawn on them, and that they may also be implicated with Jesus and actually have to co-suffer with Him, then they instinctively reacted in the way Christ warned about in the parable. (Mk. 10:37)  

On the way to Jerusalem there was the incident, almost "comic" on one level, of the disciples James and John, sons of Zebedee, requesting of Jesus "Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory." (MK. 10:37) Who would want to miss out on an opportunity that would promise eschatological glorification? This is why Jesus had to answer: "You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the chalice that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized? (MK. 10:38). The "chalice" offered by Christ is filled with suffering before the glory. And the "baptism" referred to here by Christ will include shed blood. In due time, these disciples will have to rethink their bold affirmation that they would gladly drink from such a chalice; or be baptized with such a baptism. 

Further, it is also ironic that Jesus heals blind Bartimaeus by the roadside (MK. 10:46-52) on the way to Jerusalem and the Cross, accompanied by the words, "Go your way; your faith has made you well;" (MK. 10:52) when in contrast to blind Bartimaeus, who now "sees," the disciples who are following Jesus up to Jerusalem have a crisis of faith, conveyed as a certain spiritual blindness when everything that Jesus prepared them for comes to pass.

Even though they were Galilean fishermen, peasants or artisans, we all share the identical temptations to this day.  

The disciples were men of flesh and blood, as we all are. They were sinful people in need of salvation. This implies weakness, wavering and wandering away from that which is challenging, let alone from that which threatens our very lives. Jesus acknowledged this during His agony in Gethsemane, a time of the most intense emotional distress on His part: "Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak" (MK. 14:38). 

This insight of Christ's is one reason among others that we, too, betray Christ far too often - if not on a daily basis. The rather mundane and "everyday" nature of our betrayal lacks drama, and may thus escape our notice as we seemingly "sail" through the days of our lives. It may take a very special moment when we can honestly confess before to Lord with the very words of the Apostle Peter: "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord" (LK. 5:8). And yet, the very weakness of the disciples is a consolation and comfort for us. 

Thus, we can "feel their pain," and deeply sympathize with their all-too human failings. We now know, however, through the example of the disciples, that we too can repent and be restored to fellowship with Christ. That will depend to a great extent on just how committed we are to the Apostle Peter's confession of faith (one of his better moments!): "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God!" (MATT. 16:16).

Holy Week: A Mystic Torrent

Dear Parish Faithful,

Holy Week began with the Bridegroom Matins of Holy Monday sung and chanted in anticipation on Sunday evening.

The festal atmosphere of Lazarus Saturday and Palm Sunday will yield to the solemnity, sobriety and sadness of Holy Week as the Lord moves toward His voluntary and life-giving Passion. The Son of God came into the world "to bear witness to the truth" (JN. 18:37) and "to give his life as a ransom for many." (MK. 10:45)

It is our privilege and responsibility to accompany Christ to Golgotha to the extent that our lives make that possible. Certainly, to receive palms on Palm Sunday and to then next return for an easter egg on Pascha, would only be fitting for an "Easter Orthodox Christian - but not for an Eastern Orthodox Christian!" Be mindful of the intervening Holy Week and the services that will guide us to Golgatha and beyond to the empty tomb.

As Fr. Sergius Bulgakov wrote: "The beauty, the richness and the power of these services take possession of the soul and sweep it along as upon a mystic torrent." (The Orthodox Church, p. 131) Therefore, let us "lay aside all earthly care" during Holy Week and focus on our Lord Jesus Christ whether we are at a particular service or not. This is a week when there is work, school, church and any other necessary responsibilities. There is no room or time for worldly entertainment. Not when the Lamb of God will be slain for the sins of the world.

At the services of Holy Week, we enter into the "today" of the events being reactualized so that the event and all of its salvific power is made present to the gathered community. Thus, we are not simply commemorating a past event for its dramatic impact, or presenting something of an Orthodox "passion play." Rather, we re-present the event of the Crucifixion so that we participate in it within the liturgical time of the Church's worship.

As Bishop Ilarion Alfeyev writes:

 "Each one of us receives Christ as our personal Savior, and so we each make our own all the events of Christ's life through personal experience, to whatever extent we can. The feast day is a realization here and now of an event that occurred once in time but is always happening outside time." 

And he adds, speaking of the great saints and their faith in the Resurrection of Christ: 

"They lived ... by their experience of eternity and knew that Easter was not a single day of the year, but an eternal reality in which they participated daily." (The Mystery of Faith, p. 119)

That means that our presence at one of the Holy Week services confronts us with a series of choices and decisions, as it did the original participants: to be with Christ or to be with any of those who chose to crucify Him. Will our lives reveal us as imitators of the sinful but repentant woman, or as imitators of Judas the betrayer? Do we show signs of repentance or do we betray Christ in the small events of daily living? Or, perhaps like those for whom a moment of decision was at hand, we remain "guiltless" but apathetic bystanders whose very indecisiveness keeps us distant from the company of Christ.

This is essential to bear in mind precisely because we are referring to actual, concrete historical events that occurred at a particular place in time among a particular people - the Jews to whom Christ belonged, and the Roman authorities that controlled much of Palestine. In our piety we can inadvertently stand aloof of the actual  dramatis personae caught up in the divine-human drama of our Lord's Passion and harshly judge all of the "wrongdoers" from the safe distance of our Christian faith.

However, if this blinds us to our own moral failings and weaknesses, then we undermine and subvert that very piety that we bring to the services. And we misunderstand the nature of the hymnography, which is meant to challenge us today as well as recall the events of the past that have shaped our faith in Christ.

I believe this to be especially true in our pluralistic society when it comes to the harshness with which "the Jews" are treated in some of our Holy Week hymnography. I believe that at least a few of the hymns stray into a dangerous area that today would be labeled "anti-Semitic." (I believe that this phrase is tossed about carelessly at times, but it also calls for our vigilance as Christians never to embrace the reality expressed therein).

If the Orthodox Church was known better, some of this hymnography would be brought to our attention in a challenging and critical manner. Certain of the Jews contemporary to Christ - notably the Sanhedrin or "religious authorities" - condemned the Lord as a false Messiah, and with the connivance of Roman power, had Him crucified. This is historically true. However, the Sanhedrin represents "institutional religion" in its more unattractive guise: self-defensive and self-protective. Putting the institution before the Truth. Guarding the status quo when challenged from without by an authentic voice that comes from God.

We witness this today in all forms of institutional religion within the various Christian Churches, including our own Orthodox Church. As we contemplate the harsh realities of a fallen and sinful world that is even capable of putting Christ to death(!), we need to mourn human corruption as it even tempts us within our institutions and within our hearts today. Would any one of us have stepped forward to defend Christ when unjustly condemned; or would our own passivity and fear have left Him just as alone and isolated today as during the end of His earthly ministry?

Yet, God was "working" throughout this unbearable human drama to fulfill His will for our eternal salvation. Christ was the not the victim of an unjust verdict, but the Victor who was fulfilling His vocation as the Suffering Servant who would be vindicated by His Father following His crucifixion and death. As St. Peter was forgiven his weakness and restored to fellowship with his Lord, so are we today by the grace of God so abundantly poured out on us through Christ Jesus our Lord.