DYNAMIS!
A publication of St. George Orthodox Christian Cathedral
Wichita, KS
Saint Luke 10:38-42; 11:27-28 (11/21-12/4) The Entrance of the
Theotokos into Temple
Getting Down to Cases: Saint Luke 10:38-42; 11:27-28,
especially vs. 38: “Now it
happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman
named Martha received Him into her house.” These
verses are especially familiar to Orthodox Christians, being used at the Feasts
of the Theotokos, including her Nativity, Protection,
Presentation, and Dormition. The first line brings the reader into
the home of Martha of Bethany to hear her complaint about her sister and to
hear the Lord’s observation that Mary “...has chosen the good
part...” (vss. 41,42).
This particular passage opens with the phrase, “Now
it happened...” in which Saint Luke refers to Bethany as a “certain
village,” and the “certain woman” is identified as Martha
(vs. 38). These linguistic devices
push us to get down to the specifics of people, times, and places, for God is
concerned with all of life’s details. Moments, places, people, and events are
tangible vehicles through which God reveals Himself. The Entrance of the Virgin into the
Temple as a child calls attention to the specifics of the God-Man getting down
to actual cases.
As with all Feasts of the Holy Theotokos,
God reveals that nothing is accidental.
Our Faith rejects the fallacy that some events in creation and history
are happenstance or random probabilities.
Still, even if an event is deemed accidental, it is not outside the
plan, the economy, of God, beyond His capacity to act outside His laws to save
us. From the viewpoint of Faith,
events are accidental only by standing in a subordinate relationship to
“...the mystery of Christ...as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to
His holy apostles and prophets...” (Eph. 3:4,5).
The winners of world athletic competitions, of national
elections, or even of wars, are connected to God’s redemption of this
world as actors in a history totally managed by God. At a certain time, in a certain place, a
particular girl child was brought to a particular Temple. That event must be counted as highly
significant and not at all accidental.
That young girl and that Temple were specific links in a chain of events
leading up to the Incarnation of God the Word as a man. When Mary was presented in the Temple,
God, in a most precise manner, was preparing the key event of all history. The truth is always in the details.
Every event within creation, from the tiniest cell division
to some major shift in the continental plates, tsunamis, and earthquakes must
be judged in relationship to God’s design. Physical events may seem less important
than are historical actions. Yet,
when a Virgin woman conceived and brought forth a son, that physical event
turned out to be ‘the’ significant event of the entire natural
order and human history. We learn
from Christ’s virgin birth that “All creation is merely a story about
Him,” as Saint Nikolai of Zhicha says. God superseded the natural order that He
might send “...forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to
redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as
sons” (Gal. 4:4,5).
The Faith urges us to revise our vision both of nature and
history. In history, we confront
the factor of human freedom within the plan of God, wherein the Lord of all
uses even men’s most violent opposition to fulfill His plan. So, the Herods
repeatedly opposed the work of God; but, in the end, they and their actions
contributed to the truth of
“...Jesus Christ our Lord...born of the seed of David according to
the flesh, and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit
of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead” (Rom. 1:3,4). God triumphs in the details. The Devil would like to manage the
details; but he is merely a creature of God, fallen as we are ourselves. Our hope in Christ is not wishful
longing, but rock certainty.
“Let every breath praise the
Lord. Praise Him for His mighty
acts, praise Him according to the multitude of His greatness”(Ps.
150:6,2). To Thee, O God, is due
our song.
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