Christ is Risen!

The liturgical life of the Orthodox Christian has its own special ebb and flow.  It is marked by feasts and fasts as well as the times in between.  Through the course of the year we commemorate those moments and events in the life of the Lord that are significant because they are the story of our salvation.  Of course, the greatest moment in salvation history and the most significant of our commemorations is that of the Lord’s victory over death in the glories of His Resurrection.  We recently celebrated this on Pascha, we continue to celebrate it now during the forty days of the Paschal Season (until the Eve of the Ascension), and we commemorate it every Sunday throughout the year.

In the next few weeks, however, our focus will change as we celebrate the Great Feast of the Lord’s Ascension into Heaven (May 24th this year).  Then, having celebrated the Lord’s return in glory to His Father’s right hand, we  spend ten prayerful days in anticipation of the Feast of Pentecost and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the Lord’s apostles and disciples.  The days between these two feasts are quiet, simple, still days of prayer.  There are no specially-appointed Divine Services.  During these days nothing out of the ordinary takes place in the liturgical life of the Church.  

For some, these inter-festal days might be seen as somewhat boring. But, then, there are a lot of people who do not know how to live without excitement, without the sense that something “special” is happening. Whether it comes from the pleasures of life, leisure, or from crisis, there are those who simply thrive on activity, on doing things, on solving problems, on getting things done, on adrenalin.

In the Book of the Acts of the Apostles we’re told that, after the Lord’s Ascension, the disciples found themselves in this kind of situation, in a period of quiet waiting - now they found themselves having to face a period in which they would simply have to wait for Christ's promise to them to come true.

The Lord had taught them, he encouraged them, he commissioned them to do a job, and then - on the day of his ascension into heaven, when they were anxiously asking him when his kingdom would be established, when the next phase of the divine plan would take place, he tells them that it is not for them to know the times or periods established by God - but that they should go back to Jerusalem - and wait, wait for the coming of the Holy Spirit - wait for the power they would need to witness to him there, and in Judea and all of Samaria, and ultimately in all the world.

Living between times, living between occasions in which all of our minds and hearts and energy are absorbed can, in fact, be quite wonderful. It can be for us  a “pause that refreshes,”  a time in which we gain strength, a time in which we quietly grow and are prepared for that which will come next. God knows that we too need periods of rest - periods of waiting - periods in which we can be changed, refreshed, and renewed.

During these days as we transition from Pascha to the Lord’s Ascension, to Pentecost (June 3), and beyond; as we prepare for the coming summer months with their own special focus of rest and respite, let’s attempt to quiet down a bit, to enter more deeply into the spirit of hopeful prayer and waiting for the Lord’s promises to us to be fulfilled. Let us “wait upon the Lord.” After the Lord’s Ascension, the apostles and disciples stayed together and they prayed - and in so doing, they prepared themselves for the job Jesus had told them they would do when the Holy Spirit came upon them as He had promised it would.

As Jesus told the disciples, the Lord also tells us:  “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you - and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria - and to the ends of the world.”  May these days be prayerful days of reflection and preparation as we prepare to celebrate the Great Feast of Pentecost and as we prepare ourselves anew for the mission the Lord has entrusted to us.

Indeed He is Risen!

With love in the Risen Lord,

Father David

Archpriest

David Brum, Rector

Protodeacon

Alexis Washington

Saints Peter and Paul Orthodox Church

1614 E Monte Vista Road

Phoenix, Arizona 85006

602-253-9515

Regular Services

Saturday:  

   5:00 PM  Great Vespers

Sunday:

    9:00 AM  Divine Liturgy

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The Catechetical Sermon of St. John Chrysostom is read during Matins of Pascha.

If any man be devout and love God, let him enjoy this fair and radiant triumphal feast. If any man be a wise servant, let him rejoicing enter into the joy of his Lord. If any have labored long in fasting, let him now receive his recompense. If any have wrought from the first hour, let him today receive his just reward. If any have come at the third hour, let him with thankfulness keep the feast. If any have arrived at the sixth hour, let him have no misgivings; because he shall in nowise be deprived therefor. If any have delayed until the ninth hour, let him draw near, fearing nothing. If any have tarried even until the eleventh hour, let him, also, be not alarmed at his tardiness; for the Lord, who is jealous of his honor, will accept the last even as the first; he gives rest unto him who comes at the eleventh hour, even as unto him who has wrought from the first hour.

And he shows mercy upon the last, and cares for the first; and to the one he gives, and upon the other he bestows gifts. And he both accepts the deeds, and welcomes the intention, and honors the acts and praises the offering. Wherefore, enter you all into the joy of your Lord; and receive your reward, both the first, and likewise the second. You rich and poor together, hold high festival. You sober and you heedless, honor the day. Rejoice today, both you who have fasted and you who have disregarded the fast. The table is full-laden; feast ye all sumptuously. The calf is fatted; let no one go hungry away.

Enjoy ye all the feast of faith: Receive ye all the riches of loving-kindness. let no one bewail his poverty, for the universal kingdom has been revealed. Let no one weep for his iniquities, for pardon has shown forth from the grave. Let no one fear death, for the Savior's death has set us free. He that was held prisoner of it has annihilated it. By descending into Hell, He made Hell captive. He embittered it when it tasted of His flesh. And Isaiah, foretelling this, did cry: Hell, said he, was embittered, when it encountered Thee in the lower regions. It was embittered, for it was abolished. It was embittered, for it was mocked. It was embittered, for it was slain. It was embittered, for it was overthrown. It was embittered, for it was fettered in chains. It took a body, and met God face to face. It took earth, and encountered Heaven. It took that which was seen, and fell upon the unseen.

O Death, where is your sting? O Hell, where is your victory? Christ is risen, and you are overthrown. Christ is risen, and the demons are fallen. Christ is risen, and the angels rejoice. Christ is risen, and life reigns. Christ is risen, and not one dead remains in the grave. For Christ, being risen from the dead, is become the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep. To Him be glory and dominion unto ages of ages. Amen.

About St. John Chrysostom:
St. John Chrysostom ("The Golden Tongue") was born at Antioch in about the year 347 into the family of a military-commander, spent his early years studying under the finest philosophers and rhetoricians and was ordained a deacon in the year 381 by the bishop of Antioch Saint Meletios. In 386 St. John was ordained a priest by the bishop of Antioch, Flavian.

Over time, his fame as a holy preacher grew, and in the year 397 with the demise of Archbishop Nektarios of Constantinople - successor to Sainted Gregory the Theologian - Saint John Chrysostom was summoned from Antioch for to be the new Archbishop of Constantinople.

Exiled in 404 and after a long illness because of the exile, he was transferred to Pitius in Abkhazia where he received the Holy Eucharist, and said, "Glory to God for everything!", falling asleep in the Lord on 14 September 407.

The Paschal Sermon of St. John Chrysostom