From 'The Prologue' for 11May

 REFLECTION:

In the Saracen encampment they asked St. Cyril, "How can Christians wage war and at the same time keep Christ's commandment to pray to God for their enemies?"

To this, St. Cyril replied, "If two commandments were written in one law and given to men for fulfilling, which man would be a better follower of the law, the one who fulfilled one commandment, or the one who fulfilled both?"

The Saracens replied, "Undoubtedly, he who fulfills both commandments."

St. Cyril continued, "Christ our God commands us to pray to God for those who persecute us and even to do good to them.  But He also said to us, "Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends (John 15:13)."  That is why we bear the insults that our enemies cast at us individually and why we pray to God for them.  However, as a society, we defend one another and lay down our lives, so that you would not enslave our brethren, would not enslave their souls with their bodies, and would not destroy them in both body and soul."

A Homily for Mother's Day

 

Paralysis

 pə-răl′ĭ-sĭs—noun; 1) loss or impairment of the ability to move a body part, usually as a result of damage to its nerve supply; 2) loss of sensation over a region of the body; 3) inability to move or function, total stoppage or severe impairment of activity

Well, at least what the American Heritage Dictionary says about the word.

We find this kind of paralysis in today’s Gospel’s description of the paralytic that our Lord finds at the pool by the Sheep’s Gate.

The pool was near to the Temple.  Faithful Jews would bring their offering of sheep for sacrifice in the Temple and bathe them in this pool to remove the filth that living in the world attached to them.  Then they would take their clean animals into the Temple as an offering for their sins.

The man whom we know only as “the paralytic” is found by our Lord sitting near this pool.  Why?  Because at a certain time an angel came and stirred the water granting a healing blessing to the first to enter.  Being paralyzed, the man sought this healing.  When our Lord asks Do you want to be made well, the man who suffered this malady for 38 years simply replied, Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred.  Now, this poor unfortunate has the God-man, the Son of Man, and the water is superfluous.  For our Lord heals the man, not by touch, not by using the water, but by His word alone.  Rise, take up your bed and walk.

St. John records that immediately the man was made well, not in hours, not after going to another location, but as soon as our Lord spoke the word, he could stand.  He could move!

Many may respond, “That’s great, father.  I’m not paralyzed.  What does it mean to me?”

You (and I) may not be paralyzed according to the opening definition.  But I submit to you an alternate definition of paralysis:  4) inability to function, or total stoppage or severe impairment to move spiritually.

Now, let’s reconsider our divorcing ourselves from today’s miracle, for I think I must conclude for myself that I indeed DO suffer from such spiritual paralysis.  How so?

The first manifestation is “excuses”.  When it’s time to pray, I’m too busy, too tired, unprepared.  In short, there are “things” that prevent me from taking the action called for.  I SHOULD MOVE, BUT I DON’T. 

Another manifestation is “judgmentalism”.  There are those my Lord would describe as my neighbor, but I don’t do for them what He has shown me as my example with the Good Samaritan.  I set my own value on them by ascribing to myself the greater importance.  I covet my time, my resources, my ability to be a help, and hold them to myself.  The blessings God has given me, I do not share with those in need.  I SHOULD MOVE, BUT I DON’T. 

Can I yet hear my Lord asking ME, Do you want to be made well?  You see, there is a certain measure of comfort in my spiritual paralysis, isn’t there?

And so I look and see myself sitting by my own Sheep’s Pool and asking, “Is there anyone who will put me in?” 

You see, I DO want to change!

Christ is Risen!

Things Will Never Be The Same

 Having experienced our Lord’s glorious Resurrection, having shouted joyously just two weeks ago, “Christ is Risen!”, we find ourselves now “settling in” to what we might couch as a more normal pattern.  The intensity of services every day (often multiple services) has passed.  Even the memory of how we wept hearing the Gospel readings of Holy Week, and how the words He gave up His spirit tore at our hearts, those have been properly supplanted by the joyous recognition of Christ’s victory over death and Hades.

But ‘normal’ is not a place to live out our lives!  While knowing the Lord’s victory is real, we also live still in this fallen world, and we recognize our need to change the way we interact with His world, with His people, with those He pointed us toward as the least of His brethren.

In short, we must live as though we carry the Resurrection within us, its joyous message for all of humankind filling us.  It would be the greatest thing to have people around us notice this about us, and have them ask us, “Why are you always so happy?”, just so that we could respond simply, directly, “Because Christ is Risen, and nothing will ever be the same!”

From that “eighth day” when our Lord came to His Apostles through closed doors, the Resurrection was made forever real to this world.  From that day forward, every Sunday is “a little Pascha”, a day of Resurrection.

Within the prayers of the Divine Liturgy, as the clergy enter the altar as part of the Great Entrance with the Holy Gifts, the priest prays these words:  In the tomb with the Body, in hell with the Soul, in Paradise with the thief, and on the throne with the Father and the Spirit are You, O boundless Christ, filling all things. 

This image of “filling all things” belongs to God in Trinity.  We prayed it in the words above.  When we pray the prayer to the Holy Spirit, we say, Who is everywhere present and fills all things.” We confess in both that all of creation is bound together by God and His divine love for us, His creation. 

He intended for us to be with Him for all time—in Paradise– from the point of creation.  When we separated ourselves from Him by our sin, He did not abandon us to eternal separation from Him.  Instead, He came, put on our flesh.  And when He by His own power raised Himself from the dead, He carried all of humanity (those who choose to be His servants) to return to that Paradise He made for us from the beginning.

Before the Resurrection, there was no path that we as humans could define to bring ourselves to God.  Through the Resurrection, all of creation has been renewed, restored.  Jesus told His Apostles before going to the Cross, Where I go you know, and the way you know. (John 14:4)  He has blazed the path, and called us to follow.

The end to the prayer offered from St. John’s Liturgy before ends with these words:  Bearing life and more fruitful than Paradise, brighter than any royal chamber, Your tomb, O Christ, is the fountain of our Resurrection.

Let us as one carry with us wherever we go the knowledge that He has won that final, eternal victory, and we must rejoice.

Christ is Risen!