IS THERE SOMETHING MISSING IN YOUR ORTHODOX LIFE?

The Lord focuses in on the critical place “the Word” and has this in His preaching and in the following of any who would be His disciples. He not only was referring to the Hebrew Torah in this passage, He was referring to His own words which, in the end, would become part of Sacred Scripture. These Words were the “New” proclamation, the kerygma that surpassed the Old law – in other words these were the triumph of love over vengeance, compassion over retribution, truth over self-serving falsehood.

Jesus’ point?  If you faithfully hear (read) God’s Word – you are of God. If you actually keep that Word, you will never see death! It could not be clearer. Yet, often we respond how we can’t understand Scripture’s language or meaning, how it seems so “unreal” in many ways.  St. Nikolai of Ochrid relates the following story: “A monk complained to the great St. Arsenius that while reading Holy Scripture he does not feel, neither the power of the words read nor gentleness in his heart.  To that the great saint l replied to him: “My child, just read! I heard that the sorcerers of serpents, when they cast a spell upon the serpents, the sorcerers are uttering the words, which they themselves do not understand, but the serpents, hearing the spoken words, sense their power and become tamed. And so, with us, when we continually hold in our mouths the words of Holy Scripture, but even though we do not feel the power of the words, evil spirits tremble and flee for they are unable to endure the words of the Holy Spirit.  My child, just read!”

The reading of Sacred Scripture by Orthodox Christians has, historically, been problematic. The daily reading has often been associated with the Protestant practice. Both Roman Catholics and Orthodox have of late struggled to integrate the daily study of Scripture into their spiritual practice, but are overcome by the number of translations available and “which one is the best?”  While the Sacred Scriptures are proclaimed at every Divine Liturgy and other offices of the Church, the daily reading and study of it, the use of it as a blueprint for one’s living, the perception of those pages as a gateway to God, His Christ, and the Holy Spirit – continues to be for many, if not most Orthodox, a challenge. When is the last time you spent 20 minutes or more steeped in the Word of God? Yet it was St. John Chrysostom who preached: “This is the cause of all evils, not knowing the Sacred Scriptures. We go into battle without weapons, and how are we to remain safe?” (Hom. IX, On Colossians))   St Jerome, Bishop and biblical translator, echoed St. John when he wrote: “Ignorance of Scripture is ignorance of Christ!”

You may ask: “Why read Sacred Scripture every day? Gosh, I find it hard to PRAY everyday!” True, the words of Scripture are not always self-explanatory. God speaks directly to the heart of each one of us as we read our Bible. Scripture reading is a personal dialogue between each one of us and Christ – but we also need guidance. We read the Bible personally, but not as isolated individuals. We read as the members of a family, the family of the Orthodox Church. When reading Scripture, we say not “I” but “We.”

Metropolitan Kallistos of Diocleia writes: “We read in communion with all the other members of the Body of Christ, in all parts of the world and in all generations of time. The decisive test and criterion for our understanding of what the Scripture means is the mind of the Churchfor the Bible is the book of the Church.”  The Sacred Scripture is, therefore, the ultimate tool in our spiritual toolbox. It is THE means of coming closer to God.  It is the norm for our daily behavior.  Upon it is everything Orthodox established – prayer, the Divine Liturgy, the writings of the Church Fathers and Mothers, the ascetic life, the works of mercy that we do, the Holy Sacraments – everything.

As St. Augustine was told by the voice of God before his conversion “Take up, and read!” That is what you and I are called to do.  St. John Chrysostom once gave a sermon during which he became seriously angry. He remarked how everyone could name the horsemen and competitive riders, how they even could give detailed characteristics of the horses who ran the races, and the strategies used by the trainers – but no one in that vast Cathedral could relate a passage from Scripture, or name the Books, or realize what it meant. (Hom. 3, On John)

I know that giving up an old habit is difficult. Starting the discipline of reading God’s Word everyday is likewise a challenge. It’s not easy. In fact, when you read the Bible as the Word of God, it lacerates you, it judges you, it depresses you sometimes. You get despondent: “How can I ever do this and how can I ever understand this?” Well, the fact of the matter is that ultimately it’s simple. We’re the ones who are complicated. We have the complexes, not the Scriptures. But do it. Do it with a pure heart. Do it with an open mind. Do it with the desire to understand. Do it with an attitude of seeking, even of calling upon the God that you may not believe in only weakly.

Remember the words of St. Hesychios of Jerusalem in the 4^th century: “The words of the Scriptures are written for us not simply to understand them but also to do them.” Sacred Scripture is a book for doing. We are meant to give it expression, form and shape. We are meant to live it, thereby not preaching primarily with our words but by our actions.  As St. John said in today’s Gospel, it we are of God, we will hear His Word.  If we hear His Word, we will never die. There is NO book, article, or pamphlet in Christendom that has the weight and power of Sacred Scripture. It is unquestionably the mystical source of God’s love for us.

If you don’t have a personal Bible, get one. Amazon has dozens and dozens. Choosing a translation that best communicates God’s Word in a way YOU find meaningful is important.  The Orthodox Bible, the Revised Standard or the New Revised Standard, the King James translation (more poetic and challenging) or the New King James  are just five excellent translations. Please avoid “paraphrased” translations as they “water down” not only the meaning of God’s Word, but its power for your life. In a society that increasingly is losing a sense of the power of language, this is very important.  Keep a notebook with your Bible to jot down questions you have as you read, verses that “jump out at you” for whatever reason, verses that inspire or touch you. Make it a living project and, with your prayer, a major priority of your day.

Along with prayer, worship, fasting, Mysterion (Sacrament) of Repentance and Confession, there is the great need for the study of the Holy Scripture. There can be no spiritual life for any Christian without knowledge of the Holy Scriptures. I encourage all of you to begin to make the reading of the Holy Scripture (i.e., New Testament) at least, a daily spiritual practice, and discipline. You will find inner peace, comfort, hope, healing, inspiration, guidance and yes, correction, in its pages.  Don’t be intimidated by your lack of knowledge of the Holy Scriptures. No one is expecting you to be a theologian or a Scriptural scholar. The Word of God is divinely inspired and it is there as spiritual nourishment for your soul. Remember, it is a working book – meant not only for the head and heart, but for your hands and arms in the doing of it. When approached with an open heart, with faith and humility, it becomes a personal dialogue between you and God, His Christ, and the Holy Spirit who is there to open your eyes and for you to understand the teachings of Our Lord and to translate what your learn into your life.

May the Holy Spirit of God, who inspires the Sacred Scripture, lead you to a deeper appreciation of God’s Word and may that Word change your life forever!

Christ is Risen!  Indeed. He is Risen!

Faithfully in the Risen Christ,
Fr. Dimitrios