The Second Sunday of Great Lent

The main theme in all the readings

This Sunday proclaims the victory of the Son of God, the Incarnate Logos, against the devil as He was carrying us in His own Body, just like St. Athanasius the Apostolic explained in his words ‘the victory was, and became for us, in Him.” Thus together with St. Paul, we can say “We are more than conquerors through Him who loved us” (Rom. 8:37) as victory was given by Lord to the church i.e. Christ’s Body. The church becomes or is victorious as long as she lives according to her Head, the Leader and the High Priest, which is Christ Jesus: “Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ … in every place.” (2 Cor 2:14) 

Hence the theme of today’s readings is victory: victory of the Son of God, the victory of the holy church and the victory of every Christian living in communion with the Trinity. As such the readings of the psalms (in Matins, Vespers and the Liturgy), demonstrate the connection between victory on the one hand and on the other hand, repentance, forgiveness of sins, being free from its power, the continuous need for repentance, taking shelter in the Son, being enlightened by the light of His face, holding onto the shadow of His wings – which is the cross – so as to be free from sin and to rejoice in and to live the salvation. Furthermore, the readings of the Pauline Epistle, the Catholic Epistle and the Praxis demonstrate the relationship between victory and the church. The unity of the church is the secret of her victory, not because of the unity in itself but because the unity of the church in Christ is the main door to the revelation of the Trinity in her (the church) and the main entrance for complete victory. The three epistles clarify the importance of one mind, edifying all members, bearing one another and protecting each other’s weaknesses, as is seen in the Pauline Epistle. The Catholic Epistle talks about the pure love for all, the absence of partiality, and the richness of the members in faith rather than in gold or silver. The Praxis illustrates the thought of one mind and the danger of specific opinions or thoughts in the church that are not in line with the opinions of the (church) fathers.

The gospels show us the man of the New Testament, that is the Lord Jesus Christ – to whom be all glory –  and the path which He has illustrated for mankind, by His life i.e. through His fast, His passion, His cross and His resurrection. In the Vespers Gospel, we find the man’s gift in the New Testament in Christ while in the Matins Gospel, we see man’s responsibility in the New Testament. In the Liturgy Gospel, we discover man’s victory over the devil which is the path, the curriculum and the gift that Christ – to whom be all glory – has given to us for free, to everyone who abides in Him. Therefore, the victory, which today’s readings reveal, is in Christ Himself, the Son of Man and the Head of the church. Every member lives in victory by continuous repentance and the church lives in victory through its unity in one essence.

Vespers & Matins

In the Vespers Psalm, the soul feels the weight of her sins and asks God to turn His face from her sins: “Hide Your face from my sins, And blot out all my iniquities.” (Ps. 51:9) However, it is remarkable that in the Liturgy Psalm, the soul in fact desires the face of God and seeks to see Him: “My heart said to You, ‘Your face, Lord, I will seek.’ Do not hide Your face from me.” (Ps. 27:8-9) The Matins Psalm reveals the mystery of change from fearing to see His face in the Vespers Psalm, to earnestly seeking to see His face in the Liturgy Psalm; namely the act of the spirit entering into the power and the mystery of the cross of Christ – to whom be all glory – which completely changes how mankind thinks towards God: “For my soul trusts in You; And in the shadow of Your wings I will make my refuge, Until these calamities have passed by.” (Ps. 57:1) The “wings” here in the Psalm is the cross and it is the cross that has declared the richness and wholeness of the divine love for mankind who is weak and fallen. It is the cross that has made man able to see God as a Father, as love, as forgiveness, as glory, as freedom and as tender mercies.

If we go back to the Vespers Gospel, we will see the gifts of His victory for us, as well as its power against the worldly ‘beasts’ and their might. We also see the contribution of the heavenly and the preaching of kingdom: “And He was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered to Him. Now after John was put in prison, Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God.” (Mark 1: 13-14) The gospel of Matins depicts for us the path and the means of victory in Christ which are, being filled with the Holy Spirit, fasting and living by His holy word, the latter being the ‘breath of God’. “Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan … And in those days He ate nothing … But Jesus answered him, saying, ‘It is written …’ … And Jesus answered and said to him, ‘… For it is written’” (Luke 4: 1, 2, 4, 8)

The Epistles

The Pauline Epistle reveals the victorious church in Christ; the church of peace and of one mind that edifies all members, bearing the weaknesses of the frail, accepting each other as members and avoiding being stumbling blocks to each other: “Therefore let us pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another. … We then who are strong ought to bear with the scruples of the weak, and not to please ourselves. For even Christ did not please Himself. Now may the God of patience and comfort grant you to be like-minded toward one another, according to Christ Jesus, that you may with one mind and one mouth glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Rom. 14:19, Rom. 15:1,3,5-6)  

Conversely the Catholic Epistle warns against the obstacles of the victory of the church, and the reason for her weakness. These are, the absence of mercy, a weak love and the spreading of partiality towards the rich: “My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality … and you pay attention to the one wearing the fine clothes and say to him, ‘You sit here in a good place,’ and say to the poor man, ‘You stand there,’ or, ‘Sit here at my footstool,’ … If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” … For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy.” (James 2: 1, 3, 8, 13) The reading also shows that those in church who are triumphant may be the poorest members of the church and that those who are persecuted may be the richest of the children of the church: “Has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him? … Do not the rich oppress you and drag you into the courts? Do they not blaspheme that noble name by which you are called?” (James 2: 5, 6)

       As for the Praxis, it proclaims the glory of His victory in His church and His faithful servants in the continuous testimony for Christ in all times and in all conditions, despite all obstacles and persecutions. The reading also show the danger of the believers being far from the thought of God (i.e. the true Christian dogma) and being far from the succession of tradition by the saints and (church) fathers: “And when he had said this, a dissension arose between the Pharisees and the Sadducees … Now when there arose a great dissension, the commander, fearing lest Paul might be pulled to pieces by them, commanded the soldiers to go down and take him by force from among them, and bring him into the barracks. But the following night the Lord stood by him and said, “Be of good cheer, Paul; for as you have testified for Me in Jerusalem, so you must also bear witness at Rome.” (Acts 23: 7, 10-11)

The Liturgy Gospel

The liturgy gospel ends with speaking about the three temptations to which man can be exposed by the devil.

1. The first temptation is that of the gluttony: “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread. But He answered and said, ‘It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone.’’” (Matt. 4:3,4)
   This temptation was touched upon in today’s readings in the Pauline Epistle, regarding our relationship with the others: “Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. … It is good neither to eat meat nor drink wine nor do anything by which your brother stumbles.” (Rom. 14: 20, 21)
2. The second temptation is that of vanity (or spiritual pride): “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: ‘He shall give His angels charge over you,’ and, ‘In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.’” (Matt. 4:5)
   This temptation was observed in the Praxis during the dispute between the Sadducees and Pharisees and when high priest was angry with St. Paul, and envious and jealous of him: “’Men and brethren, I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day.’ And the high priest Ananias commanded those who stood by him to strike him on the mouth.” (Acts 23: 1,2)
3. The third temptation is that of avarice (or the miserly desire to gain wealth and a glorified living): “Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.” (Matt. 4:8)
   This temptation was mentioned in Catholic Epistle, in the way the church members look at those who are ornamented with gold and silver and are glorified by the world thinking highly of themselves compared to the poor: “For if there should come into your assembly a man with gold rings, in fine apparel, and there should also come in a poor man in filthy clothes, and you pay attention to the one wearing the fine clothes and say to him, ‘You sit here in a good place,’ and say to the poor man, ‘You stand there,’ or, ‘Sit here at my footstool,’” (James 2:2-3)

Hence, these three temptations, in the gospels of Matins and the Liturgy, to which man is exposed were also mentioned in Pauline Epistle, Catholic Epistle and Praxis, regarding our relationship with the others as members of one body.

Finally, the Son of God in the three temptations is:

1. The one who satisfies our desires and is our support for our needs. “Man shall not live by bread alone.”  (Matt 4:4)
2. The icon of our humility and the one who washes our feet. “Then he set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, ‘If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down.’” (Matt 4:5)
3. Our inner heaven and sealed paradise. “… And showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to Him, ‘All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.’” (Matt. 4:8)