CHRISTMAS FAST (Advent)
OUR JOURNEY TO BETHLEHEM
“But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion. So he went to him, bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him” (Luke 10:33-34).
This year, on the first Sunday of Advent, Orthodox Christians from all over the world heard the Gospel reading about the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37). It is one of the most beautiful and spiritually uplifting parables told by our Lord and Savior. It speaks of God’s providence, tender mercy, compassion and infinite love for man(kind), who never abandoned or gave up on the masterpiece of His creation, Man. The Good Samaritan, who is none other than our Lord Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Word of God, comes willingly into the world to accomplish the eternal and redeeming plan of God the Father, assumes our human nature, stoops down with divine compassion over man(kind) (who was lying by the roadside, stripped of the spiritual gifts, wounded by the evil forces and barely clinging to life), bounds up his wounds, lifts him up, carries and entrusts him to an inn (His Church) with the command to “take care of him” (Luke 10:35).
It makes perfect sense to have this parable read at the beginning of our spiritual journey to the Feast of our Lord’s Nativity. This gives us the much needed hope, reassurance of the value we have in the eyes of God and the important place we have in the divine Providence and, as we recover from our spiritual wounds and are restored to spiritual and physical health, we are charged to “go and do likewise” (Luke 10:37).
If mankind was ever in need of hope, reassurance of self-worth, divine mercy and compassion, that time is now. This year, our Savior Jesus Christ, the Good Samaritan, finds mankind in the most desperate and uncertain situation, lost and unsure of its future (lying by the roadside), grievously wounded by the visible and the invisible enemies, devoid of moral and spiritual values, divided more than ever on the social, political and religious fronts, scared and faced with the most serious pandemic in the last century, which affected almost the entire planet.
In the midst of all this multifaceted vortex, on the following two Sundays of Advent, the Orthodox Church reminds her faithful not to attach themselves to the riches of this world to the point of losing their discernment, but rather to reassess their priorities, simplify their lives, in other words, to keep their sanity. The rich man, whose land had brought forth plentifully (Luke 12:16-21) and who failed to take advantage of this God-given opportunity to enrich himself toward God, stands as a testimony of the great danger that awaits those who, in their foolishness, lose their capacity to discern between the material and spiritual values.
This obsession with material wealth can be destructive even for those who have extensive knowledge of the commandments and observed them to some extent, as we learn, on the third Sunday of Advent, from the example of the ruler who wanted to inherit eternal life (Luke 18:18-27). When reminded of the commandments (requirements to inherit eternal life), the very rich man, in his sick and confused mind, thought that he was already in full compliance: “All these I have observed from my youth” (18:21). In fact, he was in violation of the basic commandments dealing with worshiping the only and true God. His attachment to the material possessions was so grievous and obsessive that he substituted the true God with his wealth, committing idolatry and spiritual adultery.
Just as in the case of the Good Samaritan, the Gospel readings of these two Sundays invite us to acquire the good deeds of Christian love towards our fellow human beings who contend with more serious problems than us, pouring upon their wounds the soothing oil and wine of our love and compassion, fulfilling, thus, our mandate of being ourselves the good Samaritans.
On the fourth Sunday of Advent, the Gospel reading tells us about the healing, on a Sabbath, of the woman who, for 18 years had been bound by Satan with a spirit of infirmity, altering her stature from a straight and vertical position to a bent over posture (Luke 13:10-17). Just as in the case of the man who had fallen among robbers, the bent over woman represents the whole of mankind, bent over under the multitude of transgressions and unable to regain its original vertical stature. The purpose of the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ was specifically this: to liberate mankind from the bondage of the evil spirits, restoring the crown jewel of His creation to the original physical and spiritual verticalness, able once again to admire God’s magnificent handiwork and to lift his eyes, in praise and thanksgiving, to the Giver of all good things.
Moving one step closer to the Lord’s Nativity, on the fifth Sunday, our Lord and Savior invites us to the great Supper, prepared for all those who responded to His invitation and did not waste their lives making up excuses and justifying their refusal to be in communion with their Master (Luke 14:16-24). The heavenly Supper was made possible only through the coming into the world of the Son of God, His voluntary Passion, third-day Resurrection and Ascension into heaven with our deified human nature. As Orthodox Christians we believe that if we take our lives seriously, follow the precepts of the Gospel, do our best to acquire the good deeds necessary for salvation and participate in the Sacraments of the Church, we can pre-taste, to a certain extent, of the heavenly Supper even here on earth. The Eucharistic celebration is as close as we can come, as human beings, to this pre-tasting of the Lord’s Supper.
On the Sunday before Christmas, the Orthodox Church presents us the genealogy of our Savior, as confirmation and assurance of the reality of His Incarnation, and then announces in detail the mystery-filled event of awesome divine humility and revelation: The Nativity of our Savior.
A few days later, at the conclusion of our spiritual journey, on the backdrop of the angelic choirs, in the company of the awe-inspired shepherds and the Magi of two thousand years ago, we come to behold the Incarnate Son of God and offer Him gifts of humility, spiritual transformation and goodwill.
The Savior of the world, the Good Samaritan comes again with divine compassion to bind our wounds, entrust us to His Church, teach us how to become rich toward God, liberate us from the bondage of the evil one, restore our communion with God the Father and prepare a place for us at the heavenly Supper.
May our Good and Loving God render us worthy of partaking again in this cosmic celebration with good health, peace and spiritual joy and with warm and welcoming hearts to receive the incarnate Messiah, Christ our Lord and Savior!
Rev. Fr. George Bazgan
