Tuesday, May 18, 2004
Christ is Risen!
Stephen the New, Patriarch of Constantinople
1st of Vespers of Ascension: Isaiah 2:2-3 Apostle: Acts 17:19-28 Gospel: St. John 12:19-36
Isaiah 2:1-3, especially vs. 3: "....for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and
the word of the Lord out of Jerusalem." When the Lord ascended to the heavens He did not divest His humanity, but
"didst raise the likeness of Adam, cast into the vaults of hades, lifting it with [His] Ascension to the heavens and making it
equal in rank to Thy Father's throne." The raising of human nature by the Lord Jesus to the right hand of the Father,
assures the Faithful that theosis is now open to any who will earnestly seek the restoration of their humanity. This
elevation of human nature gives to every person of every nation on earth the necessary motivation "to go up to the
mountain of the Lord, and to the house of the God of Jacob, [where God] will tell [all who come] His way [that they may
walk] in it" (vs. 3).
Let us understand that the Prophet's allusions to the "mountain of the Lord" or the "house of the God of Jacob" (vs. 3) refer
to none other than Christ's Church. As St. Nikolai of Zica teaches: "The mountain or heights of the Lord's house is indeed
established....in the heights of heaven - for the Church of Christ is primarily not of the earth but of heaven, and one part of
the members of the Church (and that now the greater part) is in heaven, while the others are here on earth." Further, the
Church of Christ is "exalted above the hills," that is, above all earthly and human dimensions. The great philosophies and
art of the world's cultures, all the "earthly heights," are only foothills below the distant mountains of the Church of Christ;
"for the Church would have no difficulty in creating these 'earthly heights,' while not one of them....would be able to create
the Church."
When we understand that Isaiah is speaking of the Church in this passage, it becomes obvious that the voices he mentions,
those who call to us from a multitude of nations, are, as St. Athanasios discerned, the Saints, the Holy Fathers and Mothers
of the Church who invite us: "Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, and to the house of the God of Jacob"
(vs. 3). They discovered the riches of God's truth, for the Lord revealed to them "the way wherein [they] should walk;" for
unto the Lord they lifted up their souls (Ps. 142:10 LXX).
However, the way which the Holy Ones reveal is not, as St. Athanasios knew, "for the impure...nor is the ascent thereto for
sinners; but it is for the virtuous and diligent, and for those who love according to the aim of the Saints." Of course this
Divine task is possible because our humanity has been borne into the heavenly places, carried there by the Incarnate Lord
Himself. Now, through our union with Christ Jesus, Who is both God and man, His Deity can penetrate our humanity and
restore it to that "pristine beauty" which is ours from creation. What began in the purifying Mystery of Baptism can now be
fully realized in us by Holy Spirit.
Let us understand what the Prophet means when he proclaims that "the word of the Lord [shall go forth] out of Jerusalem"
(Is. 2:3). Concerning the language of this verse, Theodoret notes that Isaiah "calls 'word' not God the Word, but the
teaching of the divine word. For God the Word did not come out of Zion, but it was in Zion that He taught the truth." Let
us understand two points: first, that the Lord literally taught in the Temple on the Holy Mountain in Jerusalem, crying out
to all, "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water" (Jn. 7:38).
Second, "the word of the Lord [is going forth] from Zion," the Church (Is. 2:3). Many who heard the Lord in the ancient
Temple heard only the old Law, but failed to discern in Christ the New Law with its promises and fulfillment.
O Christ our God, enable those whom Thou hast illumined with the fire-breathing Spirit to attain purification, that our
hearts may be enlightened and revealed as afire with Thy grace.
