NEBAB #58 Holy Thursday

 NEBAB #58

The Orthodox Tewahedo Magazine

THE GREAT FAST (LENT)

WEEK 8: HOLY THURSDAY 

The Spiritual Education Unit

Ethiopian Orthodox Church

Archdiocese of the Caribbean and Latin America

In this issue:

    1. Unless I Wash You, You Have No Part In Me

    2. The Greatest Servant

    3. Faith and works

    4. “Ask Abba/Kes”

    5. Miracle of the Virgin Mary

    6. Children’s corner

    7.ይበል ግዕዝ 

    8. Orthodox Q&A

 

Unless I Wash You, You Have No Part In Me

Our fathers tell us that it was on Thursday night, in the washing of the disciples' feet, that the 12 received their baptism. This interpretation is supported by our Lord's response to Peter's zealous declaration that he would not let the Lord wash his feet:

"Unless I wash you, you have no part in Me."

The principle is simple - you cannot take part in Jesus Christ unless He washes you. The many implications are worth examining.

First- the necessity of washing. It is not an accident that the act of washing was chosen for entry into the church.

Washing uses the element of water, whose nature is to flow from above to below (unlike wind, that blows where it wishes, fire, that burns from below and sends heat and smoke above, and earth, which under normal circumstances stays where it is put). As water flows from the sky to the ground, washes the ground, then flows under the earth, the gift of God is given to us from heaven to help us, and goes below us to destroy what destroys us. Remember the Lord's baptism in Jordan River, in which He destroyed a contract we had with satan, and again His descent into Hades, or Sheol, where He destroyed its second copy.

Water is known as the universal solvent- it can, given enough time, dissolve anything soluble. There is no sin that cannot be remitted in the water of baptism, nor is there a punishment from which the grace of God cannot free us. It doesn't destroy the way fire does, by spreading and consuming what it burns, but it flows according to the shape of its container and dissolves anything that enters the water. Bring your sins and troubles to the God who solves our problems universally, and let Him do His work, no matter how long it takes. 

Second, our Lord said "Unless I wash you". He is the One who washes us in baptism. Let us not think of baptism or the other sacraments as things that we do to merit salvation. Baptism is something our God does to us, and by it, makes us part of Him. We have a part to play as well, like Peter, who at first wanted to deny the Lord access. Our God does not force Himself on us, and He allows us to deny Him access, washing us only when we accept Him with eagerness! Through the hand of the priest our Lord washes us as He washed the apostles, and we can take part in Him.

May our Lord wash our feet, our hands and our heads, and not take away our part in Him. Glorify Him!

The Greatest Servant

The Lord Jesus Christ- to Whom is due the best honour and glory- said to His disciples, "Whoever would be the greatest among you, let him be a servant." In the kingdom of heaven, we measure greatness not by control, as a great king controls much land or many subjects, nor by power, as a great fighter defeat many and powerful opponents, nor by recognition, as a great singer is known worldwide and respected for the quality of her performances. In the kingdom of heaven greatness is in service to God, which means service to one another. After all, "if you do not love your brother whom you have seen, how can you love God Whom you have not seen?"

Church hierarchy is not, then, as the accusation is often made, about having power or controlling people, and it is unacceptable before God to use it for political advantage or securing worldly comfort. The higher-archy of the church is truly a lower-archy, where taking a step up the proverbial mountain means lowering yourself to serve those who are lower down the mountain. All Christians are servants, not just those with a rank or office or title or recognition from other people, and any Christian who does not call himself or herself a servant is not spiritually mature. 

Readers, how is it that the priests wash our feet every year and some of us have never knelt down and washed another's feet? If you want to be called great in the kingdom of heaven, be a servant!

Ask Abba/Kes

What is the natural state of the soul? 

What is the state contrary to nature?

and What is the state above nature?

The natural state of the soul is understanding of God's creatures both sensory and noetic. The supernatural state of the soul is her movement into divine vision of the super substantial deity. The contranatural state of the soul is her being moved by the passions and this is exactly what the divine and great Basil has said "When the soul is found in accord of her nature, her life is on high, when she is found outside her nature, she is below upon the earth. When she is on high, she is set free from the passions but as soon as her nature descends from its own state, the passions are found in her, it is evident therefore that the so called passions of the soul are not the soul's by nature

BIBLE QUIZ!

"He who is clean does to need to wash, except for his feet." This sentence refers to which fact about which sacrament? (PICK 1 NUMBER AND 1 LETTER)

1. Baptism 2. Penance 3. Unction of the Sick

a) is only done once b) is a secret c) is cleansing

A Miracle of the Holy Virgin Mary

A miracle performed by Our Lady Mary Mariham, the Twofold Holy Virgin, may her prayer and her blessing be with us, amen.

In the city of Sebkahad in the land of Egypt there was a church dedicated to Our Lady Mary Mariham, the Twofold Holy Virgin. One day thieves came [to the church] at night. They broke the windows of the church and took the treasures. Carrying the treasure, they left the city. 

The thieves reached the outskirts of the city to cross the Nile. While they were crossing the river, the floodwaters rose up against them because this was the rainy season and the Nile was not full, rather it was dry. When the waters rose up against them, the thieves were terrified. They discussed the situation. They wanted to cross the river from the island before midnight, but their hearts faltered. Then [instead] they wanted to take another route. So they went to see the judge in his house, carrying the church treasures. The judge tricked them. He asked them: “What is this that you are carrying?”

When he interrogated the thieves, they confessed [to their deed]: “We have stolen from the church of some city.”

Then the judge took all the treasures from them. But he wanted to keep the treasures for himself. 

One of the thieves had been separated from the rest. He walked around carrying his portion of the church treasures. While he was walking, Our Lady Mary Mariham, the Twofold Holy Virgin, led him to the church that he had robbed earlier. He was carrying a silver platter and a chalice. He entered the church without noticing it. When he realized [what had happened], he wanted to flee. At once, Our Lady Mary Mariham, the Twofold Holy Virgin, grabbed him and hung him upside down from the palm trees in the church courtyard. She hung the platter and the chalice by the thief’s neck. He shouted loudly. 

Then the people of the city heard his shouts. The Muslims and the Christians gathered together. They all saw him hanging upside down, with the platter and chalice dangling from his neck. As soon as they saw them, they recognized them as the church treasures. The priests and deacons entered the church with haste. They found the windows broken and the church treasures gone. 

When the Muslims saw what had happened, they were amazed and said: “Truly, the lady of this church is in this house.”

Once morning came, the people lowered that thief and brought him to the judge who had previously arrested his fellow thieves. The judge took the [remaining] church treasures from him. The people said to the judge: “ Interrogate him for us to see what remains of the church treasures.”

The judge took the thief from them, saying: “ I will interrogate him. As for you, take the platter and the chalice, and go. Don’t be upset.”

The people went in peace, unaware of the judge’s deceit, because it was him who had taken the treasures the thieves stole from the church and he had appropriated things from others as well. The judge left all of this out. The people left, but the Christians among them stayed. Turning back to the judge, they said: “Interrogate this thief for us and make him return the church treasures.”

But the judge retorted: “I will certainly question him thoroughly.”

Though he spoke to them like this, the affair lingered. 

Then, one night Our Lady Mary Mariham, the Twofold Holy Virgin appeared to that judge and poked in his right side. She said to him: “I am Mary, the Lady of the church from which the thieves stole the treasures. The people brought the thieves to you to condemn them for me and to return my treasures. Also previously you have glorified yourself. So now return my treasures to their place and make the thieves describe everything that happened to them. If you do not do what I have told you then I will bring terrible punishment upon you and the people of your house.”

When the judge heard her, he was terrified and trembled, saying: “My dear Lady Mary Mariham, the Twofold Holy Virgin, I will do everything you have commanded me.”

After she had spoken to him, she disappeared. That judge [stayed awake and] waited until morning. When morning came, the judge and his children got up, took all the treasures and went to the church. They also took the thieves with them. They entered the church and summoned the Christians and Muslims. The judge told them everything that had happened to him about taking the previously confiscated church treasures. 

Then he told the thieves: “Tell everything that has happened to you.”

And the thieves described everything that had happened to them, from beginning to end. After the Muslims heard this, they were astonished and amazed. They said: “Truly you are the Mother of Light, just as the Christians say.”

As for the judge, he had [previously] sold the church treasures, but [now] he surrendered them to the Christians. They entered the church rejoicing and celebrating. They were praising, signing, and prostrating in front of the icon Our Lady Mary Mariham, the Twofold Holy Virgin, Mother of God. They praised her a great deal. 

The Muslims also stayed to venerate that church. They found rest in it.

May the prayer and blessing of Our Lady Mary Mariham, the Twofold Holy Virgin, be with us forever and ever amen.

O Holy Virgin Mary, pray for us!

LIJOCH! The Children's Corner

In this icon, who do you think is Peter and who do you think is Judas Iscariot? Why?

ይበል:ግዕዝ (yibel Ge’ez)

Let's reclaim our forefathers’ language

In the West, this day is known as "Maundy" Thursday. This word "maundy" is derived from the Latin "mandatum" (as in English 'mandate' or 'mandatory') meaning "command". The "mandatum" of "Maundy" Thursday refers to this verse:

ፍቅር እስከ አንዱ ለእለ አንዱ

fiqir iske andu le-ile andu

 ፍቅር fiqir - Love

 እስከ iske - As, even as

አንዱ ለእለ አንዱ andu le-ile andu - a phrase describing a back-and-forth relationship, in this case 'one another' or 'each other'

It translates to "love one another as I have loved you,"- the reciprocal and imitative love commanded by our Lord.

ORTHODOX Q&A

Is there a role for the Virgin Mary in salvation?

We have said previously that God, in His profound love, came down to man in order to save him. This matter needed the gradual preparation of humanity over the span of the Old Testament, until in the person of the Virgin Mary, the fullness of faith, humility and obedience to God were fulfilled. So, she was made worthy of being the lab of the union between God and man, and that is why she is referred to as "the Mother of God - Theotokos" (Luke 1:41-43)

By this, she surpasses the angels, for she was made worthy to bear the Incarnate Son of God, becoming a living sanctuary for Him Who took flesh from her for our salvation.

With this all, she was in need of salvation like any other human being, and this is evident in her Magnificat, which is recorded in Luke 1:46-55

Send us your questions at: seu.eotccarla@gmail.com

Short message on behalf the Spiritual Education Unit:

His Grace Abune Thaddaeus, Head Administrator Archimandrite Abba Gebreyesus, and all clergy and faithful- thank you for the opportunity to share this labour of love with you. Thanks also to the team of the Spiritual Education Unit for their hard work.

-Liqe Teghuan Tekle Mariam Greene

References

Miracle of Mary:  pemm.princeton.edu/en-us/stories/429

Commentary by St. Markos Church, Egypt and Fr. Malaty

Homily Three of St. Isaac the Syrian

Coptic Orthodox Church My Faith

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