Stephen Morris's Blog, page 18

“She Loosed Her Hair While Judas Bound Himself With Wrath”

This stained glass window depicts the sinful woman anointing Jesus’ feet in Simon’s house. The woman’s hair is long and hangs loose, an artistic way of indicating that she was thought to be especially self-indulgent and hedonistic. The winow was made in Germany in 1899.

The sinful woman who anoints the feet of Jesus is commemorated by many churches during Holy Week. She anoints Jesus’ feet with very expensive perfume, wipes them with her hair, but is criticized and rebuked for “wasting” the perfume rather than spending the many on assisting the poor. Christ defends her, pointing out that the poor will always be available to be assisted but that he will not always be so available. He promises that the woman and what she did will be remembered wherever the Gospel is preached.

In some versions of the Gospel story, everyone present criticizes the woman. In other versions, Judas is the loudest or only critic. In the liturgical hymnography of Holy Week, we sing that “she loosed her hair while Judas bound himself with wrath,” i.e. that although her hair was loose–an indication of wild self-indulgence and lack of self control–it was Judas who was the one who was the one who lacked any self-control. He was tied in knots by his wrath and jealousy while she found freedom in untying her hair to wipe the feet of Christ. Appearances can deceive. In this episode, a sinful woman kisses Christ’s feet as the disciple prepares to give a kiss of betrayal. His behavior is filled with the stench of wickedness while the stench of her past is transformed by repentance.

Kurt Vonnegut once suggested that Jesus’ response might better be translated as: “Judas, don’t worry about it. There will still be plenty of poor people left long after I’m gone.” Jesus is being sarcastic, pointing out the hypocrisy of Judas and the critics of the woman who are really more interested in the money than the poor. One blog suggests that Jesus “is reminding Judas about Deuteronomy 15 and challenging his own lack of generosity. Isn’t it ironic how we can be full of zeal for compassion to the poor in the abstract, and yet be so ungenerous to those specific individuals in need that God has placed before us?”

Medieval Greek and Syrian Christian poets explore this woman’s inner emotions and thoughts in liturgical hymns for Holy Week. She has heard the words of Christ, which fill the air with sweetness just as drops of perfume fill a room with fragrance. She longs for salvation, for contact with Christ in a complex tangle of love and remorse for her past deeds. She remembers the prostitute Rahab in the Old Testament because she showed “hospitality” to the Jewish spies preparing to attack Jericho; “hospitality” is a euphemism for both her sexual services to the spies and her political betrayal of her home town that enable the Jewish attackers led by Joshua to overcome the town’s defenses. The woman in the New Testament hopes that her demonstration of love for Christ will be accepted as Rahab’s hospitality was.

But the poets contrast their own unrepentant sinfulness with the repentant but anonymous woman. They do not repent even though they know the whole Gospel story, which was more than what the woman knew. The unrepentant poets stands in for the congregation who hear the poetry sung in church: they know the Gospel story as well and do not repent either. This self-accusation of both poet and congregation is the first step toward repentance and righteousness. Because the woman was forgiven, the poet and congregation can hope for forgiveness as well–especially during the celebration of the Holy Week services.

A contemporary Coptic icon of the sinful woman anointing Jesus’ feet at Simon’s house shows the now-empty jar of expensive perfume discarded as she wipes Jesus’ feet with her hair.

Want to know more about Eastern Christian thought about the sinful woman who anoints Jesus’ feet and wipes them with her hair? See a contemporary Coptic Christian blog here. You can read Scenting Salvation: Ancient Christianity and the Olfactory Imagination, a fascinating account of early Christian attitudes toward scents and fragrance by Susan Ashbrook Harvey. You can also read more about the woman who anointed Christ in Liturgical Subjects: Christian Ritual, Biblical Narrative, and the Formation of the Self in Byzantium by Derek Krueger.

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“Remember me, O Lord, in your kingdom!”

These two Russian icons from the 18th-19th centuries depict Dismas, the “Good” Thief, as he stands about to be the first to enter the newly-opened gates of Paradise. In the top image, he is carrying the cross on which Jesus was crucified which is his “passport” that proves to the angels guarding the gates that they should allow him to enter. (We also see the prophets Enoch and Elijah inside the walls of Paradise, as they are the two Old Testament figures who never died.)

In the gospel of St. Luke, one of the thieves crucified with Christ rebukes the other thief for mocking Christ: “We deserve the punishment we have received. He has done nothing to deserve this!” This penitent thief then begs Jesus, “Lord, remember me when you come in your kingdom!” Jesus responds by promising this “good” thief that they will be together in Paradise that very day. (This episode was understood by many early Christian preachers to reverse Adam’s expulsion from Paradise, which was also understood to have happened on a Friday afternoon after Adam had become a thief by stealing the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge. The good thief was also praised because he admitted his fault, unlike Adam, and took responsibility for his actions.)

The penitent thief was later assigned the name Dismas in the 4th century Gospel of Nicodemus; his name “Dismas” was adapted from a Greek word meaning “sunset” or “death.” The other thief’s name is Gestas. Dismas dies shortly after Christ himself. Christ is about to descend into Hell to liberate the captives there but first sends Dismas ahead of him to Paradise. (Dismas is called a pioneer in some sermons because he was the first to enter Paradise.)

Early Christian preachers and teachers saw Dismas as one of them, a Christian, who demonstrated Christian practices, beliefs, and virtues. Dismas was a repentant sinner. Indeed, the early preachers understood Christ’s promise –“Today you will be with me in Paradise!”–as a promise made to all repentant sinners, not just Dismas. Because this promise is made to all Christians, the plea of Dismas–“Remember me, O Lord, in your kingdom!”–became a common prayer among Christians. This cry became especially popular as a prayer before receiving Holy Communion, the celebration of the Kingdom of God already present among us.

Dismas is also seen as convert and martyr–an important role model in the time when most Christians were adult converts or faced the possibility or martyrdom for their faith. Dismas on his cross, like St. Paul on the road to Damascus, had a sudden flash of insight and understood who Christ was. Dismas, unlike St. Peter, confessed his faith in Christ when it would have been much easier to stay silent. Although he was executed for his crimes rather than his faith, Dismas was understood to be a martyr because he was a witness (martyr in Greek) for the truth of Christ’s identity who showed other Christians how to suffer under torture and die for the Truth.

Eastern Christians still use the cry of Dismas–“Remember me, O Lord, when you come in your kingdom!”–not only before Holy Communion but as a refrain when singing the Beatitudes at weekday services. Every encounter with God, whether in personal or liturgical prayer or when serving the poor/hungry/sick/needy, is a chance to experience the Kingdom of God here and now. Dismas shows us all how to recognize God in unlikely or unexpected places and to jump at the opportunity to repent, to turn our lives around, in order to be with Him.

Interested in reading more about Dismas? I heartily recommend As the Bandit Will I Confess You: Luke 23:39-43 in Eary Christian Interpretation by Mark Glen Bilby.

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David and Goliath and the Kiss of Peace

Illumination of David and Goliath in Antiquities of the Jews by Josephus. The manuscript was made in the Netherlands in AD 1332.

“I love you, O Lord my strength, O Lord my stronghold, my crag, and my haven. My God, my rock, in whom I put my trust.” (Psalm 18:1-2)

When David was a teen, before he was made king of Israel, he volunteered to fight the giant Goliath in single combat (read the Old Testament story in 1 Samuel 17). Goliath was approximately 10 feet tall, had 6 fingers on each hand, and was rumored to be descended from the giants (these details are reported in 1 Chronicles 20:6). Goliath also had bronze armor and a 19 pound iron spear, which was unusual at that time. He was a formidable opponent. But, as the well known story reports, David selected 5 stones from a riverbed and was able to kill Goliath with a stone from his slingshot. He then cut off Goliath’s head to prove his victory and sang Psalm 18 in celebration (see also the report in 2 Samuel 22).

At the Kiss of Peace during the celebration of the Divine Liturgy in the Orthodox Church, the priest quietly recites the first verses of this psalm. The exchange of the Kiss, reconciling the participants and celebrating their mutual forgiveness before singing the consecration prayers and receiving Holy Communion, is like the stone David let fly from his slingshot: it slays the enemy of the People of God. The division and animosity of anger and holding grudges are among the most powerful weapons of Evil and Death; the fury and refusal to accept fellowship with others is a foretaste of Death and mutual forgiveness anticipates the Resurrection in which we experience the re-establishment of harmony between God and humanity, between God and the entire creation, between each of us with each other and the creation as well. The early preachers and teachers of the Church understood the power of the Antichrist to be precisely this division, animosity, and chaos.

Goliath is a personification of all that opposes God and His creation. The stone from David’s slingshot anticipates the Cross, the weapon by which the Enemy is slain. The Kiss of Peace reveals the power of the Cross in the live of the community assembled to celebrate the Eucharist. We are able to embrace one another, call even those who hate us “Brother!” and forgive all by the power and joy of the Resurrection. The Kiss of Peace, the stone in our slingshot in our battle with the Enemy, is more than a simple gesture or chance to greet our friends. It is one of our most effective weapons against Death and the Devil (“the divider” and “the adversary”).

During this time when we may not be able to exchange the Kiss of Peace during the liturgical celebration, it is especially important that we continue to forgive and metaphorically embrace those we may harbor animosity against. Now, more than ever, we must celebrate the Resurrection in every manner available to us.

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Bible Study on Zoom

We were able to have our Wednesday morning Bible Study on Zoom today. It worked–without TOO many glitches! Huzzah! We meet every Wednesday 11 a.m. – noon (Eastern Daylight Savings Time). I was even able to record it. You can view it here; You might want to fast forward through the first part while people are joining and figuring out how to turn on their audio, etc. I plan to record each Wednesday meeting and post the link for people who might be interested but could not participate. Let me know if you would like the information to join the study group itself.

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Our Lady of Good Health

The icon of Salus Populi Romani is found in the Lady Chapel of the basilica known as St. Mary Major in Rome and has long been considered a wonderworking image, especially in times of plague or epidemics.

Pope Gregory the Great welcomed the image now known as Salus Populi Romani (“Salvation/Health of the Roman People”) in AD 593 and placed it in the basilica known as St. Mary Major. He had the icon carried throughout Rome and prayed for an end to the Black Plague. Pope Gregory XVI also venerated the image in 1837 to pray for the end of a cholera epidemic.

The Mother of God is shown with a ceremonial embroidered handkercheif in her right hand, an indication that she is the Queen of Heaven (another popular title for the image). For several centuries, both she and Christ also wore metal crowns which were attached to the icon but which have been removed and are now kept in the sacristy of St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican. The stars on the cloak of the Mother of God also indicate that she was a vrigin before-during-after the birth of her Son (the stars said to be the last glimmers of heavenly light that filled the cave in Bethlehem when Christ was born, seen in the folds of her cloak by the midwives when they finally arrived–too late).

The image of Salus Populi Romani is related to the church in Venice, Our Lady of Good Health, which was built in thanksgiving for the end of a plague there. You can read more about the church in Venice here.

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40 Martyrs of Sebaste

The feast of the Forty Martyrs falls on March 9. There is an intentional play on the number forty being both the number of martyrs and the days in the fast. Because the celebration of the 40 Martyrs falls during Great Lent, the endurance of the martyrs serves as an example to the faithful to persevere to the end (i.e. throughout the forty days of the fast) in order to attain heavenly reward (participation in the Resurrection).

The Forty Martyrs of Sebaste were a group of Roman soldiers in the Legio XII Fulminata (“Armed with Lightning”) whose martyrdom in AD 320 for the Christian faith is recounted in traditional collections of records of the martyrs.

They were killed near the city of Sebaste, in a region known as Lesser Armenia (the present-day Sivas region of Turkey), victims of the persecutions of Licinius, who after AD 316, persecuted the Christians of the Eastern half of the Roman Empire. The earliest account of their martyrdom is given by St. Basil the Great (AD 370–379) in a homily he delivered on their feast day (March 9). The celebration of the Forty Martyrs is thus older than Basil himself, who preached about them only fifty or sixty years after their deaths.

According to St. Basil, forty soldiers who had openly admitted that they were all Christians were condemned by the prefect and sentenced to be exposed naked upon a frozen lake near Sebaste on a bitterly cold night so that they would freeze to death unless they renounced their Christian faith; if they renounced their faith, they would be welcome to warm themselves in the hot baths on the lakeshore. One of the soldiers yielded and, leaving his companions, sought the warm baths near the lake which but one of the guards who was set to keep watch over the martyrs saw a brilliant light surrounding the naked soldiers on the lake and he stripped off his clothes and announced that he was now a Christian. He joined the remaining thirty-nine and so the number of forty remained complete. (The soldier who denied his faith was killed, however, by the shock of the warm water after being so cold out on the ice. The icon above shows the apostate soldier entering the bathhouse while the newly-converted guard strips off his clothes to join the other 39 soldiers out on the ice.)

At daybreak, the stiffened bodies of the confessors, which still showed signs of life, were burned and the ashes cast into a river. Christians, however, collected the precious remains, and the relics were distributed throughout many cities; in this way, veneration of the Forty Martyrs became widespread, and numerous churches were erected in their honor.

There is a pious custom of baking “skylarks” (pastries shaped like skylarks) on this day, because people believed that birds sing at this time to announce the arrival of spring

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Lent: Paradise Lost/Regained

The Expulsion of Adam and Eve, a detail from the reliquary of St. Isidore in Leon from AD 1063 or earlier.

Lent. Both Eastern and Western Christians read the opening chapters of Genesis and commemorate the expulsion of our first parents from the Garden in the opening days of Lent. The eating of the forbidden fruit and the expulsion from the Garden is the great disruption, the disintegration of harmony between God and humanity, humans and the world, as well as between humans and other humans. We turn on each other, bickering and arguing and blaming each other and external circumstances as we try to escape the consequences of our actions and turn our backs on taking responsibility for our choices.

Lent is all about the restoration of that harmony between people, between people and the world, between people and God. We stop killing to maintain our own existence by eating the fruits and vegetables that Adam and Eve were allowed to eat in Eden; we stop eating meat or other animal products to restore the harmony we enjoyed with them in Eden. In several liturgical hymns, Adam is said to have sat weeping outside the gates of Paradise to the trees inside the Garden, “Pray for me by the music of the rustling of your leaves!” This cry underscores the interdependence of humans and the rest of creation and that creation is a living, dynamic entity itself that suffers because of the sin of humanity.

Lent is also about the restoration of harmony between people. We forgive each other. We exchange the Kiss of Peace. We put all our differences and disagreements in perspective by remembering our common mortality. We embrace one another and call even those who hate us our brothers and sisters, forgiving everything in our anticipation of the resurrection (as another liturgical hymn proclaims).

By re-establishing harmony between people, this mutual forgiveness re-establishes harmony between God and humanity as well. We cannot hope to be forgiven if we do not forgive. By owning up to what we have done and who we are and by refusing to be angry and jealous with others–which leads to the death of relationships as well as the physical death of others, including the animals and physical world around us–we begin to experience now the joy we are promised will be ours in the Resurrection.

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Lent is Coming!

Incense smoke is said to be both a purification-exorcism and an act of veneration: it is a “silent absolution” that washes away sin and drives devils away–they cannot remain where incense burns because it reminds them of the fragrant air in Paradise, which they have lost access to–while honoring the image of God within each person.

Whether someone keeps Lent on the Western Christian or Eastern Christian calendar, Lent is like death: it is better for us to prepare for it but it is coming, whether we are ready for it or not. And like death, it is best to prepare for it by forgiving old grudges and re-establishing relationships neglected or forgotten. Lent is meant to be a re-establishment of the harmony of Paradise, in which people lived in harmony with each other as well as with all creation.

The traditional fasting practices of Lent are best summed up with the axiom: “Don’t kill.” We give up eating anything that has to be killed so that we do not preserve our lives through violence. We pray and give alms to repair our relationships with God and each other and with the poor and needy around us. We spend these weeks, a tithe of the year, living in harmony–or at least trying to live in harmony–with everything and everyone. Of course, we should try to live this way all year long. But we don’t. So we dedicate this tithe of the year to attempting to at least live this way for a brief few weeks. (The traditional fasting days each week during the rest of the year are weekly booster-shots for us to restore this harmony every week.)

Fasting is important but the point is not to embrace misery or difficulty. The prophets criticize and reproach those who fast with the wrong intentions or for the wrong reasons but they never say that we should not fast; they tell us to fast but with the right attitude.

I would like to borrow a few words about fasting from Nicholas Denysenko:

“… Ultimately, Lent is a chance to set aside distractions – whatever they are – and awaken to God, humankind, and the cosmos – and to love them….

“Three helpful guidelines for food during Lent.
1. Less is more. Stop eating when you’re full.
2. Keep it simple and inexpensive. An extravagant vegan dinner is not more “Lenten” than baked chicken.
3. Don’t boast, discuss, or inquire about others’ eating habits.

“Three final words about Lent – and they’re not “bright sadness” – they come from and are directed to God Almighty –
1. Gratitude
2. Joy
3. Liberty”

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St. Philothea, nun-martyr of Athens (1589)

St. Philothea’s childhood home is the oldest house in Athens and is now a museum dedicated to her and her charitable work.

St. Philothea was born in Athens on November 21, 1522 to an illustrious and wealthy family. They had no other children, but after fervent prayer her mother gave birth to a daughter whom they named Revoula. Against her will, she was married at the age of 14 to the nobleman who abused her. When he died in 1539, she was only 17, beautiful and wealthy and her parents insisted that she get remarried. Instead, she remained at home, spending much of her time in prayer. The family wealth gave her the opportunity for charitable work, and while still a young woman she had gained the respect and love of the community.

When her parents died in 1549, Revoula found herself the owner of extensive holdings. (Her house, now the oldest in Athens, is a museum dedicated to her and her work.) She embraced the monastic life and took the name Philothea; around 1551, she established a women’s monastery. There the young nuns taught other young women handiwork, weaving, housekeeping and cooking. In this way, she prepared young women who came to her for the domestic life.

Philothea is primarily remembered for her abundant philanthropy. The convent opened several charities in Athens and on the Aegean islands, including a second, more secluded monastery at Patesia. She also built hospices, homes for the elderly, and schools for the girls and boys of Athens. One of her more controversial activities was to buy the freedom of Greeks taken as slaves by the Ottoman Turks, especially women taken to the harems. She offered shelter to the young women, some pregnant. Despite being hunted by the Turks, she helped them escape secretly to Tzia, Andros, Aegina and Salamina, where they were safe. (We would describe her work as rescuing those trapped in human trafficking or sexual exploitation and slavery.) In a 22 February 1583 letter to the Venice, Philothea asked for donations to help pay off her debts from ransom money, duties, bribes, and taxes that she owed to the occupying Turks. Her monasteries were frequently plundered, and the farming and agricultural program, which were a basic source of sustaining her work, devastated.

Four women who had been enslaved by the Ottoman Turks in harems were able to escape and ran to her for refuge but the women were traced and Philothea was beaten and brought before the magistrate who put her in prison. Friends intervened and paid the district governor for her release. As her fame grew, so did the Turkish animosity against her. On 3 October 1588, four Ottoman mercenaries broke into the monastery at Patesia during the evening vigil service and beat her severely. She remained bedridden and died of her injuries on 19 February 1589.

Philothei is considered a martyr by the Orthodox Church. Just a few years after her death, she was canonized a saint. Her memory is venerated on February 19 and she is considered one of the patrons of Athens. Her relics are interred in the cathedral in Athens. The Filothei district of Athens is named after her.

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St. Hilary of Poitiers, patron of Spring Semesters

The Ordination of Saint Hilary, from a 14th-century manuscript

Born in Poitiers at the beginning of the fourth century and dying there as well (13 January AD 368), Hilary was raised as a pagan but converted to Christianity when he met the God of nature in the Scriptures. He was chosen, against his will, to be the bishop of Poitiers in France but took his position seriously and was soon taken up with battling what became the scourge of the fourth century: Arianism, which denied the divinity of Christ. (It was the practice in many places during this period for many clergy–both bishops and priests–to chosen and ordained not because they “felt called” to the ministry but because the people chose them, based on qualifications and abilities that the candidates themselves did not see or appreciate in themselves. St. Ambrose of Milan is another famous example of a candidate chosen to be bishop and ordained against his own will.)

The heresy spread rapidly. Saint Jerome said “The world groaned and marveled to find that it was Arian.” When Emperor Constantius ordered all the bishops of the West to sign a condemnation of Athanasius, the great defender of the faith in the East, Hilary refused and was banished from France to far off Phrygia. Eventually he was called the “Athanasius of the West.”

While writing in exile, he was invited by some semi-Arians (hoping for reconciliation) to a council the emperor called to counteract the Council of Nicea. But Hilary predictably defended the Church, and when he sought public debate with the heretical bishop who had exiled him, the Arians, dreading the meeting and its outcome, pleaded with the emperor to send this troublemaker back home. Hilary was welcomed by his people. He wrote and preached constantly, leaving us a wealth of books and sermons.

In the Western Christian calendar of saints, Hilary’s feast day is on 13 January, 14 January in the pre-1970 form of the calendar. The spring terms of the English and Irish Law Courts and Oxford and Dublin Universities are called the Hilary term since they begin on approximately this date. Some consider Saint Hilary of Poitiers the patron saint of lawyers.

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