My beloved brothers and sisters in Christ Our Lord, God, and Savior,
CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND EVER SHALL BE.
HOMILY TWENTY-FOUR ON PENTECOST
By Saint Gregory Palamas
Midnight Office
Idiomela of the
Lity. Idiomelon, Mode 2.
In the Prophets Thou announced to us the way of salvation; and
now the grace of Thy Spirit has shined in Thy Apostles, our Savior.
Thou are God, the first and the last; and to the ages, Thou are
our God.
In Thine courts, O Lord, we the faithful bend the knee of soul
and body, and we extol Thee, the unoriginate Father, and the
Son Who is also without beginning, and the Co-Eternal and
All-Holy Spirit, which illumines and sanctifies our souls.
Idiomelon. Mode pl. 4.
LORD, when Thou sent down Thy Spirit to the Apostles as they
were sitting, the descendants of the Hebrews who witnessed it were
bewildered and amazed; for they heard them speaking in other
tongues and foreign languages, as the Spirit gave them utterance.
Previously simple men, they were made wise; and with captivating
speech, they told the mighty works of God, as they captured the
Gentiles alive for the Faith. And we, for our part, now sing to Thee,
"O Lord, Thou appeared on earth and Thou saved us from
delusion. Glory to Thee!
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Those miracles accomplished by the Lord in the flesh, which bore witness that He was God’s Only-begotten Son in His Own Person, UNITED WITH US IN THE LAST DAYS, CAME TO AN END. On the other hand, those Wonders (Miracles) began which proclaimed the Holy Spirit as a Divine Person in His Own right, THAT WE MIGHT COME TO KNOW AND CONTEMPLATE THE GREAT AND VENERABLE MYSTERY OF THE HOLY TRINITY. The Holy Spirit had been active BEFORE: IT WAS He Who spoke through the Prophets and proclaimed things to come. Later He worked through the Disciples to drive out demons and heal diseases. But now He was manifested to all in His Own Person THROUGH THE TONGUES OF FIRE, AND BY SITTING ENTHRONED AS LORD UPON EACH OF CHRIST’S DISCIPLES, HE MADE THEM INSTRUMENTS OF HIS POWER.
Why did He appear in the form of tongues? It was to demonstrate that He shared the same nature as the Logos/Word of God, for there is no relationship closer than that between word and tongue. It was also because of teaching since teaching Christ’s gospel needs A TONGUE (LANGUAGE) FULL OF GRACE. But why fiery tongues? Not just because the Spirit IS CONSUBSTANTIAL WITH THE FATHER AND THE SON — AND OUR GOD IS FIRE (cf. Hebrews 12:29), A FIRE CONSUMING WICKEDNESS — BUT ALSO BECAUSE OF THE TWOFOLD ENERGY OF THE APOSTLE’S PREACHING, WHICH CAN BRING BOTH BENEFIT AND PUNISHMENT. As it is the property of fire to illuminate and burn, SO CHRIST’S TEACHING ENLIGHTENS THOSE WHO OBEY BUT FINALLY HANDS OVER THE DISOBEDIENT TO ETERNAL FIRE AND PUNISHMENT. The text says, "TONGUES LIKE FIRE" not "tongues of fire", that no one might imagine it was ordinary physical fire, but THAT WE MIGHT UNDERSTAND THE MANIFESTATION OF THE SPIRIT USING FIRE AS AN EXAMPLE. Why did the tongues appear to be divided among them? Because the Spirit IS GIVEN BY MEASURE BY THE FATHER TO ALL EXCEPT CHRIST (John 3:34), Who Himself came from above. He, even in the flesh, POSSESSED THE FULLNESS OF DIVINE POWER AND ENERGY WHEREAS THE GRACE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT WAS ONLY PARTIALLY, NOT FULLY CONTAINED WITHIN ANYONE ELSE. Each one obtained different gifts, lest anyone should suppose the grace given to the saints by the Holy Spirit was theirs by nature.
The fact that the Divine Spirit sat upon them IS PROOF NOT JUST OF HIS LORDLY DIGNITY, BUT OF HIS UNITY. He sat, it says, "UPON EACH OF THEM. AND THEY WERE ALL FILLED WITH THE HOLY SPIRIT" (Acts 2:3-4). For although divided in His various powers and energies, IN EACH OF HIS WORKS THE HOLY SPIRIT IS WHOLLY PRESENT AND ACTIVE, UNDIVIDEDLY DIVIDED, PARTAKEN OF WHILE REMAINING COMPLETE, LIKE THE SUN’S RAY. They spoke with other tongues, other languages, TO PEOPLE FROM EVERY NATION, AS THE SPIRIT GAVE THEM UTTERANCE. They became INSTRUMENTS OF THE Divine Spirit, INSPIRED AND MOTIVATED ACCORDING TO His WILL and POWER. Anything taken hold of by somebody outside itself sharing in the energy but not the essence of the one acting through it, IS HIS INSTRUMENT. As David declared through the Holy Spirit, "My tongue is the pen of a ready writer" (Psalm 45:1). The pen is the writer’s instrument, sharing energy, though obviously NOT THE ESSENCE, of the writer, and inscribing whatever he wishes and is able to write…
"…The promise WAS NOW FULFILLED and the Holy Spirit, given and sent BY BOTH THE Father and the Son, DESCENDED. He shone round about the holy Disciples and with Divine power KINDLED THEM ALL LIKE LAMPS OR, RATHER, HE REVEALED THEM AS HEAVENLY LIGHTS SET ABOVE THE WHOLE WORLD, WHO HAD THE WORD OF ETERNAL LIFE, AND THROUGH THEM HE ILLUMINED ALL THE EARTH. If from a burning lamp, someone lights another, then another from that one, and on in succession, he has light continuously. In the same way through the Apostles ordaining their successors, and these successors ordaining others, and so on, THE GRACE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT IS HANDED DOWN THROUGH ALL GENERATIONS AND ENLIGHTENS ALL WHO OBEY THEIR SPIRITUAL SHEPHERDS AND TEACHERS.
"Christ had Ascended bodily into heaven, so if He had not sent His Holy Spirit to accompany and strengthen His Disciples and their successors in following generations who taught the gospel of grace, He would not have been preached TO ALL NATIONS, nor WOULD THE PROCLAMATION HAVE BEEN PASSED DOWN TO US. That is why the Lord, in His All-surpassing love for mankind, showed at Pentecost that His Disciples WERE PARTAKERS, FATHERS AND MIMNISTERS OF EVERLASTING LIGHT AND LIFE, WHO BRING US TO NEW BIRTH FOR ETERNAL LIFE AND MAKE THOSE WHO ARE WORTHY CHILDREN OF THE LIGHT AND FATHERS OF ENLIGHTENMENT… The Holy Spirit ALWAYS EXISTED AND WAS WITH THE SON in the Father. How could the Father and Divine Mind be without beginning if the Son and Logos/Word were not also without beginning? How could there be a Pre-Eternal Spirit? Thus the Holy Spirit ever was and is and will be, Co-Creator with the Father and the Son, together with them renewing that which has suffered corruption, and sustaining the things that endure. He is everywhere present and fills, directs and oversees everything. "Whither shall I go from thy spirit", says the Psalmist to God, "Or whither shall I flee from thy presence?" (Psalm 139:7).
(/To be continued)
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"Glory Be To GOD
For
All Things!"
– Saint John Chrysostomos
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With sincere agape in His Divine Diakonia,
The sinner and unworthy servant of God
The Eastern Orthodox Christian Ethos 