Christmas: A Mystery Unfolding

Icon of the Nativity of Christ by the hand of Constantine Youssis.  This icon can be purchased here from Come and See Icons.

We find ourselves today celebrating the third day of the Feast of the Nativity.  It is a fast free week for Orthodox Christians in America and the feasting continues until Saturday when we celebrate another day, The Lord's Circumcision.  And then, 5 days later, we find ourselves celebrating AGAIN when we remember the Lord's baptism in the Jordan.   Orthodox Christians fast and pray like no others, but then they also celebrate like no others. 

However, even as we are in this time of feasting, it is also a time for continued reflection on what has just occurred. And what has occurred is a mystery.  I'm not just talking about a virgin giving birth, or an angel greeting the shepherds, or three wise astronomers acting in faith by following a star to the sight of a newborn baby in a manger.  These are wonders for sure, but the greater mystery is this:  Why?  Why would God, who doesn't "need" anything from anyone, especially from his created beings, do such a thing?  Why does God, who has always been, enter into human history, and while remaining God, take on human flesh? Why does Jesus Christ, Emmanuel (which translated means God-With-Us), the Divine Logos, the long awaited Messiah prophesied of again and again and again in the Old Covenant, [Isaiah 7:14 is just one example] the only begotten son, the second person of the Holy Trinity, deign to be born in a cave, amongst animals and lay in their food trough? 

The answer:  The Mystery of Love. 

It is this mystery that Christ's mother pondered [it] in her heart. [Luke 2:19].  I must say again, as I have said in another post, that I cannot even begin to imagine what the Virgin Mary, the Theotokos as we call her in our Church, must have been pondering, wondering, hoping.   To know all these tremendous things about the child you just bore and that it is your responsibility to raise Him!  It is for good reason that the Orthodox Church in every generation of its 2000 years has called her blessed. [Luke 1:48] 

And so dear readers, while we are still celebrating in these days, let us not forget the mystery that now rapidly begins to unfold before us, the mystery of the Incarnation of God.   As I heard one Orthodox Christian priest once say,  an Incarnate God is truly the only acceptable God.  A God that takes on our humanity, lives among us, is a suffering servant and ultimately dies a humiliating death, is the only God that can possibly make sense.  Otherwise, God is an uncaring, seemingly capricious tyrant.  I agree.

    “ Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”

[Luke 2:14, read in context Luke 2:1-20]



  

November Wrap-Up and December's Topic

Apologies are in order for sure.  I had such high hopes for this month and yet I could only muster up enough time to highlight three women who rock.  I had so many others in mind.  Truth be told, when you are a mother, your time is rarely your own and other matters had to take precedent over blogging. 

So with December knocking on the door in a few hours, it is time to release the much anticipated topic for the month (I know! It's been keeping you up at night!) and it is...Peace.

With just a mere 25 days until we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, I hope to be able to post quotes and ideas from people much more spiritually mature than myself that might just help us arrive to that silent and holy night with souls infused with peace, ready to take in the mystery of the incarnation of the Savior.

Below is a short 1 minute commercial that is shown during the holiday season here in America.  Perhaps to attain to the serenity of these sleeping babes in the video below is far-fetched, for we all know too much at this point, but nonetheless, it would be a wonderful thing to have.  Enjoy and see you in December.

40 days to a new you!

Georgian Icon of St. David the King and Psalmist. This icon is by the hand of Ilya & Michael Balavadze and can be purchased here at Come & See Icons.  The great King David's psalms testify to his intimate dealings with sin, repentance and ultimately the joy of God's love. 

An interruption of "Women Who Rock" to bring you this important announcement...

Today marks the beginning of the Nativity Fast for Orthodox Christians in America. Not only is it 40 days of keeping a primarily vegan diet, and but also a time of increased prayer, self-reflection leading to repentance, almsgiving and especially an increase in Bible reading apart from the normal daily readings we read together as a Church.  We use the 40 days to prepare ourselves for one of the biggest feasts in the Orthodox Christian Church, the Birth of our Savior Jesus Christ, the very incarnation of God's Divine Word ( John 1:1-5 ).

Although to most people, the food element of the fast seems like it would be the hardest, but for me it is the easiest.  The much more difficult part is taking a long honest look at myself and routing out all the junk that resides in my heart and making time for increased prayer. (I have heard that fasting without prayer is called a demon's fast, because demons neither eat nor do they pray. That's scary and not something you want to do!)  It's the pulling myself away from life's daily distractions, like the Internet and TV, and making the time for God that I struggle with the most.   I have to force myself to chose God and the kingdom of heaven and not the world's ephemeral delights.  The Scriptures speak to this very idea here: 

^{12 And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force (Matt 11:12)}

From my own personal experience I KNOW that this 40 day time period is absolutely essential to my spiritual health.  I have found a spiritual lightness and true joy (Godly joy is not happiness or some sort of emotional "Golly I feel good" rush by the way, it is something completely other) that I have not been able to attain by any other means.  This divine joy is truly inexplicable.  To quote the Psalmist David the King who exhorts (Psalm 34:8-9):

          8 Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him!

9 Oh, fear the LORD, you His saints! There is no want to those who fear Him

Taste and See!  I can't taste and see for you, it's something you have to do for yourself.  I teach my children this very thing about Christ and His Church.  I can tell them about my own experiences but at some point they must let go of my hand and taste and see and trust in Him for themselves.  It's a deeply personal experience that transcends words.  Again, it's not emotional or happy, it's something else, and it stays with you for as long as you allow it.  The world is transfigured, life is somehow different in an awesome way.

I realize that many of my Christian readers are not Orthodox, but that shouldn't stop you from treating these 40 days prior to Christmas a little differently this year.  Perhaps increase the time you spend in prayer, spend more time with your Bible, be a little more merciful with others and maybe even try to take an honest look at the things that separate you from God and make an effort to eradicate at least one of those things.  Participating in these sorts of spiritual exercises is never a bad idea for anyone! Of course, if you are Orthodox, then I'm preaching to the choir for you know that our church "has no want for those who fear Him". (see psalm 34 above) The healing sacraments of confession and communion and our beautiful worship services leave no one in want if one truly desires it.

Oh, and there just one more thing to remember, and it's kinda important.  The most essential part of fasting and all that goes along with it is that it is must be done in love and for love.  Love for God, love for humanity and even love for yourself.  It is not something one does to "get favor" with God, that's something for the Big Bully Deity believers.  God doesn't need your fasting to love you.  He desires your fasting because it will be during this time that you turn to Him and seek Him more diligently.  Remember the Apostle Paul's words to the Corinthians:
 

1 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. 2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing. (1 Corinthians 13:1-3)

That is "the catch" you could say.  All of this will profit you ZERO, NADA, NOTHING if not done in love.  I guess I should have disclaimed that at the beginning of the post.

And so my friends, my desire for you is that your days preceding the celebration of the Birth of Jesus Christ be ones filled with Godly endeavours and once you have arrived to this marvelous feast day that you truly understand the Lord's words (John 15:11)

11 “These things I have spoken to you, that My joy may remain in you, and that your joy may   be full."

Oh that joy, that joy!  If everyone would chose this joy and remain in it!

The Tree of Jesse





This beautiful icon was painted by the hand of Nicholas Papas and can be purchased  from Come & See Icons found  here.

Family trees, we all got 'em.  Even Jesus has a family tree.  The following is from the Come & See Icon website and describes the above icon which is entitled "The Tree of Jesse" which, with  paint and wood, describes what the Scriptures have to say about the coming of The Christ.

This icon depicts the many prophecies of the Virgin birth of Christ.  There are twelve Old Testament prophets, shown holding things that reveal their identity and the prophecy they foretold of the Theotokos and the virgin birth of Christ.  In the top row, from left to right: St. Daniel, whose scroll reads: "The stone was cut out of the Mountain without hands" (Daniel 2:45); St. Moses holding the bush that was burning, yet not consumed (Exodus 3:2-4); St. David, whose scroll reads: "Arise O Lord into thy rest: Thou and the ark of thy strength." (Psalm 132:8); St. Isaiah holding tongs with live coals (Isaiah 6:6); St. Jeremiah, whose scroll reads: "He was seen upon earth and conversed with men." (Baruch 3:37); St. Samuel holding a throne referring to St. Nathan's prophecy to King David whom St. Samuel had anointed (2 Samuel 7:13-16).  In the bottom row, from left to right:  St. Habakkuk holding the overshadowed Mountain that is the Virgin (Habakkuk 3:3); St. Micah, whose scroll reads: "He is come unto the gate of my people." (Micah 1:9); St. Gideon holding a fleece: "As dew upon the fleece hast Thou descended into the womb of the Virgin, O Christ" (Judges 6:37-38); St. Ezekiel, whose scroll reads: "This gate shall be shut, It shall not be opened." (Ezekiel 44:2); St. Amos holding an ark referring to the Virgin serving as the Tabernacle of Christ (Amos 9:11); Prophet Balaam, whose scroll reads: "There shall come a star out of Jacob and a sceptre shall arise" (Numbers 24:17).  Enthroned in the center of the tree sits the Holy Virgin Mary.  At the foot of the tree lays St. Jesse asleep.  Jesse is portrayed asleep, to tell us in a way that we know his righteous character not so much by the works done in his own lifetime, so much as by the righteous line that proceded from him. That line which started with David and culminated with the Virgin Mary and Jesus Christ our Savior.  We don't know much about Jesse, other than that he was the father of King David, who was "a man after God's own heart." But the Scripture honors him calling Jesus Christ the "root of Jesse". Romans 15:12



This root of Jesse, Jesus' family tree can be found in two places in the New Testament, Luke 3:23-38 here and Matthew 1:1-16 here. 

The Matthew passage is read in the Orthodox Church on the Sunday before Christmas, which is called the Sunday of the Holy Fathers.  This particular passage is quite fascinating in that it mentions women.  The Orthodox Study Bible notes this: "The mention of women (Tamar, Rahab, Ruth and Bathsheba) is unusual.  Each one was either a Gentile or a sinner.  The inclusion of these three women declares God's graciousness and prefigures the calling of the Gentiles into the Church.  It also underscores the role of women in God's plan of salvation and anticipates the special place of the Virgin Mary in that plan." (pg. 1266 footnote)

Personally, I like the fact that Jesus' family tree is really no different than my own, it contains saints and sinners alike,  and all of whom are equally important in making me who I am today.