Saturday, November 20, 2004 Fish, Wine, and Oil
Gregory of Decapolis
2nd Vesp Pres Theotokos: 1 Kings 7:51; 8:1, 3-7, 9-11 Epistle: Gal 1:1-10
Gospel: St. Luke 9:37-43
1 Kings 7:51; 8:1, 3-7, 9-11, especially vs. 6: "Then the priests brought
the ark of the covenant of the Lord to its place, in the inner sanctuary of the house, in the most
holy place, underneath the wings of the cherubim." Like the first reading for the Feast, from
Exodus, this second reading returns our vision to the resting place of the ark of the covenant, to
the "inner sanctuary," the "most holy place" in the Temple of the Lord. The imagery in these
passages leads our hearts and minds to a glorious reverence before the Lord our God Who chose
our Lady, the most holy Theotokos and ever Virgin Mary, as His resting place among us.
The present reading firmly reminds us that Mary, the virgin mother of the Lord, was every bit a
human being like any one of our race. This was necessary, so that when "the power of the
Highest" overshadowed her (Lk. 1:35), He might draw from her body and blood a full, complete,
human nature, exactly like ours in every respect - except without sin (Heb. 4:15).
What was this Temple, which today we recognize as a type of the Virgin? It was the best men
could construct, yet, in every respect, still a fabrication of mortal, fallible men. Hence, it was the
best which the ancient People of God could fashion from their accumulated treasures. The
essential design of it had been given to the Prophet Moses by God on the Holy Mountain of Sinai
(see Ex. 40), Israel's greatest Kings provided for it (1 Kngs. 7:51), and the finest craftsmen
constructed it, sparing nothing. As the best of humanity could produce went into the building, so
God selected from among human women the very best, the most pure, to be His mother.
Notice that "when all the work...on the house of the Lord was finished" (vs. 7:51), the ark of the
Lord was brought to its rightful place, "in the inner sanctuary of the house, in the most holy
place" (vs. 8:6). Recall that under the Old Covenant, the ark of the Lord contained nothing but
"the two tables of stone which Moses put there at Horeb" (vs. 8:9). The ark was the unique,
tangible symbol of the Lord's bond with His People, that they were His People and that He was
their God forever.
Of course, under the New Covenant, the Lord Jesus Christ, the son of Mary, is the eternal bond
between God and His People. All of us who "were baptized into Christ have put on Christ" (Gal.
3:27), therefore without hesitation we may rejoice and say, "Christ is in our midst: He is and ever
shall be." Understand: by taking up residence "in the inner sanctuary" of her body, the Lord
Jesus, the eternal Word of God, transformed Mary's womb into a "most holy place," a throne for
Himself. We have in Him an indestructible meeting place between our fallen race and the Holy
God upon Whom no one, angels or men, may gaze. However, we may look upon Christ Jesus
and behold for ourselves the Godhead precisely as He said to Philip (Jn. 14:8,9).
For this reason, the Church, through centuries of liturgical, theological, and historical
development, defended, as especially appropriate to Mary, the title, "Theotokos": - "Theos", that
is, "God," and "tokos," meaning, "a bringing forth" or "a birth-giver" - in very simple terms,
"the Birth Giver of God." The "ark" that God made of her womb differed radically from the ark
that was placed in the Temple of Solomon, for in Mary, God was Incarnate: The Man for all men.
This passage, celebrating Mary's entrance into the former Temple, reminds us that, as the priests
of old "could not stand to minister because of the cloud; for the glory of the Lord filled the house
of the Lord" (1 Kngs. 8:11), so we too ought to fall down before Him Who set aside His glory to
be born of the Virgin maid and to magnify her who contained the Uncontainable.
More honorable than the Cherubim, and more glorious beyond compare than the Seraphim, thou
who without stain bearest God the Word, and art truly Theotokos, we magnify thee.