I wanted to offer some encouragement today to our newest warriors for Christ, Photini and Marina, and the Holy Church offered so many options today on this second Sunday of Great Lent!
I could have offered the example of the friends of the paralytic in the Gospel, who had to fight through the crowds…fight through the craziness in order to come to Christ.
I could have spoken about the value of friendship, as the paralytic was saved because of friends who were filled with faith. They put aside their own interests to put the paralytic above themselves.
I could (and still might) offer a word about St. Gregory of Palamas and his writings.
But perhaps the biggest and best encouragement I could provide comes from the feast that we celebrated this past Monday in the Church. We celebrated Annunciation, when 9 months before the feast of Christmas, the Angel Gabriel came to Mary to tell her that she was the chosen vessel which God would come into the world. If you really think about it, this entire scene is really mind blowing! No amount of science or logical can explain or comprehend how an uncontainable God…the same that created both the heavens and the earth…comes to be in the womb of a Virgin!
I am always struck by the Matins service of Annunciation. There is a part of that service called the “canon”, which holds within it a lot of “meat and potatoes” about the feast. It contains a lot of poetry and explanations that really dig into the depth and meaning of what is being celebrated. If Holy Scripture provides the outline of a particular event, the canon and other hymns provide some color to radiate the Gospel’s meaning. (Like a coloring book)!
The canon for the feast of annunciation is somewhat unique, because all of the hymns contained in it are set up as a dialogue between the Angel and Mary. We get the actual words that were said from Holy Scripture, but this canon really digs into the depth of what was really happening on that day.
So let’s set the scene of what we get form the Gospel. A young but very faithful virgin is sitting and sewing a curtain for the temple (as depicted in the icon). And this bright angel appears and tells her:
“Rejoice highly favored one…the Lord is with you! Blessed are you among women! Don’t be afraid, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call his name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Highest, and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David…and He will reign over a house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there will be no end!”
(Now from the Verses of the Canon)
Theotokos: “There is no more a prince from Judah’s line, but the time is at hand in which Christ, the hope of the Gentiles, shall appear. But can you make it plain to me how I, being a virgin, shall bear him?”
Angel Gabriel: “O virgin, you seek to know from me the manner of your conceiving, but this is beyond all interpretation. The Holy Spirit shall overshadow you in His creative power and shall make this come to pass!”
Theotokos: “My mother Eve, accepting the suggestion of the serpent, was banished from divine delight: and therefore I fear your strange salutation, for I take heed lest I slip!”
Angel: “I am sent as the envoy of God to disclose to thee the divine will. Why are you, O undefiled, afraid of me, who rather am afraid of you? Why, o Lady, do you stand in awe of me, who stand in reverent awe of you?”
The Church beautifully adds to this incredible scene, showing that even the Angel Gabriel was in awe at what was happening! God coming down and taking His abode in the womb of a simple teenager!
Now lies the encouragement I offer to our new warriors, and to all of us who are walking the narrow path of salvation: Despite all of these things that were beyond the comprehension of even the angels…what was Mary’s response?
“Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to be according to Your Word!”
Simple…and PERFECT faith.
I often wonder what would have been our response? An angel appears to us and says: “You will be the vessel in which God will enter into the world!”
With a confused look on our face, perhaps we would have offered a whole litany of reasons to be skeptical!
“How do I know you are really an angel? How will I avoid ridicule and judgment from my friends and family, which will no doubt rain upon me who am a virgin? Will He be born before January first and can I still claim the Child Tax Credit at the end of the year?!”
All manner of responses tied up in trying to wrap our brains around the miracle…trying to use logic to dictate our response to God. Yet our Lord in the beatitudes does not say: “Blessed are the smart…or blessed are the logical…”He says rather: “Blessed are the pure in heart…for they shall see God.”
Photini and Marina…when you came to the Church, you did so with your mind. You made a decision to visit, to learn about the faith, and to embrace something greater than you had ever known previously. Now as your journey begins, while the mind will still no doubt play a role, your attention must now turn to the transformation of your heart, which goes beyond logic.
What better example than the perfect Christian, the Theotokos, to emulate? She lived in the same doubting world that we are a part of and was able to counter the poking and prodding of the devil, who temps us day after day to give up on that gift that you have received today. My advice to you dearest sisters in Christ, is to live everyday of your life by escaping your heads, and learning to live with God in your hearts.
This was the message of St. Gregory Palamas, who’s most famous writings centered around the experience of God through the Church, through the Holy Mysteries, and through constant prayer of the heart.
This is what the Theotokos did throughout her own life. She learned how to defy logic and live in her heart…and that is why we look upon her not as “an example”, but rather THE example of how to respond to God in our own life. May our Lord give you, and all of us the strength to do the same in our own lives!