From today's Gospel (John 11:1-45):
"Lord, he whom you love is ill." ... Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazaros. So when He heard that he was ill, He stayed two days longer in the place where He was. ...
Now Jesus had not yet come to the village, but was still in the place where Martha had met Him. When the Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary rise quickly and go out, they followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to weep there. Then Mary, when she came where Jesus was and saw Him, fell at His feet, saying to Him, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, He was deeply moved in spirit and troubled; and He said, "Where have you laid him?" They said to Him, "Lord, come and see." Jesus wept. So the Jews said, "See how He loved him!" But some of them said, "Could not He who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?"
Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb; ...
Today we remember Lazarus, the friend of Jesus, for whom He wept. I love today's Gospel because it shows us Christ's compassion for His fellow man--for His friends. In a hymn chanted this morning we are reminded of Christ's human nature shown alongside His divine nature in that He wept and mourned for the loss of His friend, and at seeing His friends grieve over their brother. Later in the same Gospel Christ manifests His divine power in raising Lazarus from the dead! It is a beautiful passage because it shows, I think, so much of who Christ is. We see how much He truly loves people, and I think it's especially interesting to see His love for specific individuals.
Today I also celebrate an imaginary feast for the Apostle Thomas, called the Twin--whom we commonly refer to as Doubting Thomas. I have had a very strong affinity for St. Thomas ever since I was preparing for my short-term mission trip to India. You see, St. Thomas traveled to India after the Great Commission and established the Church there. There still exist church communities in India who are called St. Thomas Christians, which are members of the Oriental Orthodox Church. Many recall the fact that St. Thomas would not believe that Christ was risen until he saw Him wit his own eyes, or that he was the only disciple not present for the funeral of the Theotokos. However, because of his doubt, our faith in the resurrection is affirmed, and because he desired to venerate Mary, it was discovered that her physical body did not remain, as she had been translated to life by her Holy Son. What St. Thomas is rarely remembered for is his fearless dedication to Christ:
Then after this He said to the disciples, "Let us go into Judea again." The disciples said to him, "Rabbi, the Jews were but now seeking to stone you, and are you going there again?" ... and then He said to them, "Our friend Lazaros has fallen asleep, but I go to awake him out of sleep." ...Thomas, called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, "Let us also go, that we may die with him."
Thomas was willing to die alongside Christ, to Whom he would later cry out, "My Lord and my God!" I think it is in fact because Thomas is so readily remembered for his (minimal) faults that I am drawn to him because, seeing his faith in this passage, and knowing of his desire for Truth and his willingness to preach Christ to the ends of the earth, I know what a saint he truly is. So, when this passage is read, I inwardly celebrate and thank God for St. Thomas.
Additionally, on Lazarus Saturday, we have finally reached the end of Great Lent, and begin the transition into Holy Week. After 40 long days of spiritual struggle, Lazarus Saturday is a feast of such joy! We see the resurrection of a man, Lazarus, after the 4th day. The resurrection of the faithful is confirmed, as well as Jesus Christ's divinity. Bearing witness to the omnipotence of Christ gives us so much joy and hope for the trials yet to come, especially those we will face in the coming Holy Week. No matter how difficult the Lent (can I get a witness?!) or strenuous the journey through Holy Week, we absolutely KNOW that Christ has the power to and WILL be risen! The resurrection of Lazarus is a foretaste of the Lord's own death-crushing Holy Resurrection. (Yay!)
Finally, I am overjoyed every year on Lazarus Saturday because on this day my parish, St. Barnabas Antiochian Orthodox Church, welcomes its newest members into communion through Holy Baptism and Chrismation. I am overwhelmed when, in the beginning of the service, the whole church recites in unison the Nicene Creed. It gives me chills when we affirm our faith together, in one voice, as one body. The baptism and chrismation of the newly-illumined excites me ever-so! I cannot fully describe how exciting it is--it must be similar to a family welcoming a new baby. Needless to say, the experience of sharing in the joy of the newly-illumineds' chrismation is truly awesome, and something I carry with me through Holy Week, and into Pascha!
One week until Pascha! One week until we may exclaim "Christ is risen!" Simply knowing that the fruit of our labors is so close at hand makes the struggle of the coming week so much easier to face. May we all find strength in the joy of the promised resurrection!
