Thursday, July 1, 2004
Cosmas and Damian, Unmercenaries, Martyrs at Rome
Kellia: Job 38:31-41 Epistle: Romans 15:17-29 Gospel: St. Matthew 12:46-13:3
Job 38:31-41, especially vs. 35Q: "And will you send lightnings, and will they go? And will
they say to you, What is your pleasure?" The Orthodox Christian will readily recognize similarities between this passage
in Job and the Vesperal Psalm (103 LXX), both of which declare: "How magnified are Thy works, O Lord! In wisdom hast
Thou made them all; the earth is filled with Thy creation" (Ps.103:26 LXX). Both are reflections on the array of the
heavens stretched out across the sky "as it were a curtain," moving in precision with the seasons on earth (Ps.103:3,21; Job
38:31-33). Both speak of the mantle of clouds that water and satisfy all life on earth (Ps.103:7-14; Job 38:34-35,37).
Likewise, both mention that the Lord, in His good governance, looks after even the wild beasts that "fear in their lairs" (Job
38:39-41) or seek "their food from God" (Ps.103:23). Even the gifts of creativity which God has given to mankind receive
mention in both passages (Ps.103:15-17; Job 38:36).
The finely tuned details of the created order which God establishes and controls manifest His governance of the entire
universe. Whether one gazes day and night into the changing skies as the ancients did to mark off the progression of days
and seasons, or one peers through great telescopes as do our scientific astronomers on mountain tops and via satellites in
space, the order of the universe remains a matter of awe and wonder for mankind. A major role of Holy Scripture is to
announce the Governor Who directs the whole, and to teach each and every person to say, "Bless the Lord, O my soul, Who
establisheth the earth in the sureness thereof" (Ps.103:1,6).
Looking closely at what the Lord calls to Job's and our attention in these present verses, we read first about the
constellations of the night sky. Ancient men wondered at the seven stars of the Pleiades (Job 38:31), and spun stories to
explain the cluster. To the Greeks, they were seven maidens, although one is virtually invisible to the naked eye and was
said to hide her light because of her shame for marrying a mortal. On the other hand, the Greek seamen would only set sail
when the Pleiades were visible, for they knew that otherwise they would be liable to great storms; and ancient farmers
knew that the appearance of the Pleiades marked the planting season. The constellation Orion played a similar role,
announcing the season of storms, and each of the Mazzuroth or constellations "in his season" (vs. 32) provided guidance
for the various activities of man in maintaining life. Through the centuries, astronomers have mapped and identified many
of the stars, but that accumulative work continues to this day, so that mankind still has not learned all "the changes of
heaven, or the events which take place together under heaven" (vs. 33). We certainly cannot call the clouds or make them
obey us "with a violent shower of much rain, and send...lightnings" (vss. 34,35). Forecasts are the best we can do.
God is the Governor of earth and sky and of all that is in the vast reaches of space. Yet, He it is Who has "given to women
skill in weaving or the knowledge of embroidery" (vs. 36), as He gives artistic ability to every person as He chooses.
"Mark it," says St. John Chrysostom, "He is also speaking of the practical. He mingles the small with the grand.....But
would the works of this craft be as remarkable if they were not a gift?" God is, as St. Gregory the Great has said, "the
Cause of causes, and as He is the Life of the living, so is He the Reason of reasonable creatures." He provides for the
whole earth, this tiny jewel spinning around the sun, and without fail governs what He has made, bringing the seasons for
growth and rest, planting and harvest. Let us be faithful witnesses to His government over this ineffable world He gives us.
For healthful seasons, for the abundance of the fruits of earth and for peaceful times, and for our deliverance from all
dangers and necessities, receive our humble thanks, O Lord.
