The 29th of every Coptic month is a commemoration of the Anunciation. The feast day of the Anunciation falls on Baramhat 29 (usually sometime in April), but it is such an important event that it is remembered monthly. This Sunday, Paona 29 we find the readings for the Anunciation, but we also remember the martyrdom of St. Theodora and her son St. Hour. The pure faith of St. Theodora is recounted in the Synaxarium (The Biographies of the Saints) and we contemplate the depth of her love for the Lord. She rejoiced while her son was tortured, sang hymns out loud as she herself was afflicted and thanked God to be worthy to suffer for His Names sake. We see the same virtues at work through the gifts of the Holy Spirit in both St. Mary, the Mother of God, and St. Theodora. For what is that blessed response of the Theotokos to the Angel Gabriel, Behold, the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word (Luke 1:38). St. Mary is front and center in the readings, but we do hear about some others as well. The passage from Acts is from St. Stephens testimony preceding his own martyrdom, during which he reminds us about the life of the Moses and the burning bush. We know this is a foreshadowing of the Incarnation of the Lord Jesus Christ and the burning bush is a symbol of the Theotokos who carried the fire of Divinity without being injured or consumed by it. We also hear in the Vespers Gospel passage about the woman with the alabaster flask from Luke 7. Though all of them had different functions in the will and plan of the Father, the quality of the Holy Spirit manifested in their virtuous conduct was the same. From Moses to St. Stephen, from St. Mary to St. Theodora, we see lives of obedience. Not just obedience, but obedience motivated by love. The verses from the psalms reveal lessons we can take from the Anunciation. From the Vespers, rescue me and deliver me. Indeed, what did the Lord Jesus Christ accomplish in His life, but to rescue and deliver us. And God told Moses as much when He spoke to him through the burning bush, I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt, and heard their cry... So I have come down to deliver them. (Exodus 3:7). From the Matins, In His days the righteous will flourish. As the Israelites received a land flowing with milk and honey, we also will flourish with the presence of the Holy Spirit. And from the Liturgy, The King will greatly desire your beauty. This is a prophetic verse about St. Mary, but it is also true of any faithful servant whose eyes are attentive to the hands of their King. From the Matins Gospel, a woman calls out to the Lord Jesus, Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts which nursed You! Undoubtedly, true. Every child is a blessing, how much more so the Holy One of God. Amazing that the last blessing is greater than the first- the Lord answers, More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it! From the Pauline Epistle discussing the controversy over circumsion, we can take away the practical application that we establish the law and are obedient to it through faith. We believe the authority of the Logos of the Father, who delivered the new covenant to us and our belief leads us to the faith to keep it. It is fitting we hear this story as we approach the celebration for the martyrdom of Sts. Peter and Paul. Though the political landscape has changed since the persecution under the Roman Empire, the love and obedience required of us who are alive in Christ has not. Some of us are called to be martyrs and confessors, like St. Theodora and her sons. It is a special grace to endure torture for the Lords sake, but we should remember we are equally filled with the Holy Spirit, even if we have a different function as a member of His body. The passion, love, faith and obedience of the saints is something after which we too should strive. Full of love and full of the Holy Spirit, we offer ourselves for the Lord Jesus Christ who is the propitiation of our sins and cleanses us with His Holy Blood. All glory to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, One God. Amen.
Posted on: Sat, 05 Jul 2014 02:19:14 +0000
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