My beloved brothers and sisters in Christ Our Lord, God, and Savior,
CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND EVER SHALL BE.
THE NATIVITY OF THE HONORABLE AND GLORIOUS PROPHET AND BAPTIST,
JOHN THE FORERUNNER.
Jesus speaking to crowds commending John, saying,
"Verily I say to you, there hath not arisen among those
born of women, a greater than John the Baptist" [Matthew 11:11].
"There arose in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest,,
by name Zacharias, of the course of Abia. And his wife was of the 735
daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth" (Luke 1:5).
Saint Bede the Venerable (673-735 A.D.): "David divided those descending from the stock of Eleazar and those from the stock of Ithamar into twenty-four sections, choosing individuals from each section as high priests… David set up these sections in such a way that the individual high priests, along with the priests, along with the priests who were under them, should minister for eight successive days, that is, from sabbath to sabbath…In the distribution of the lots as to be order among these sections, it fell that Abia, from whose priestly division and generation Zacharias sprang, occupied the eighth place. It was fitting that the herald of the New Covenant, in which the glory of the Resurrection was declared to the world, was born in the place of the eighth lot, both because our Lord rose from the dead on the day after the sabbath, and because we are promised at the end of time AN EIGHTH AGE OF EVERLASTING RESURRECTION."
Blessed Theophylact (1107 A.D.): "When Solomon finished building the Temple, he also established the division or courses (εφημερίας) for the service of the Temple, that is, who should serve for any given week. For instance: one week there was appointed, perhaps, the sons of Kore, and for the next week, the sons of Asaph, and the next week, the sons of Abia…Therefore, ‘Zacharias, of the course of Abia,’ ought to be interpreted thus: that he wa of the week of service assigned to Abia. Zacharias did not perform his priestly service after the week Abia served."
"And they were both righteous before the face of God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless" (Luke 1:6).
Saint Ephraim the Syrian (306-373 A.D.): "That they were blameless is stated lest it be said that it was because of their wrongdoing that they had not had any children."
"And they had no child, inasmuch as Elizabeth was barren, and they both were now advanced in their days" (Luke 1:7).
"And it came to pass, as he was serving as priest in the Presence of God in the order of his course" (Luke 1:8), "according to the custom of the priestly service, he obtained the lot to burn incense after he entered into the temple of the Lord" (Luke 1:9).
"And the whole multitude of the people was praying outside at the hour of incense" (Luke 1:10).
"And an Angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right of the altar of the incense" (Luke 1:11)
Saint Bede: "Gabriel stood beside the altar of incense to teach that he had come as the herald of a New Covenant. There were two altars in the Temple, which expressed the two covenants in the Church. The first, the altar of burn offerings, which was plated with bronze and was situated in front of the doors of the Temple, was for the offering up of victims and sacrifices; it signified the fleshly-minded worshippers of the Old Covenant. And then there was the altar of incense which was covered with gold and set near the entrance of the Holy of Holies where fragrant gums were burnt. This signified the interior and more perfect GRACE OF THE NEW COVENANT. The Angel stood on the right to point out that he was promising earthly and lowly things, but the joys of heavenly and everlasting happiness."
"And after Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him" (Luke 1:12).
"But the Angel said to him, ‘Cease being afraid, Zacharias, because thine entreaty was heard; and
thy wife Elisabeth shall bear a son to thee, and thou shalt call his name John" (Luke 1:13).
Saint Athanasios the Great (296-373 A.D.) "Whenever the soul continues to be fearful, it is the enemy who is present. The evil spirits do not dispel the fear of their presence, as the Great Archangel Gabriel did for Mary and Zacharias.
Saint Bede: "The high priest did not pray for his own private concerns, asking for children, when he had completely abandoned hope of begetting any. But he was entreating for the salvation of his people. Thus, there would be born to him a son who would be a Prophet, who would turn this people to the way of truth. Soon after there would follow the Savior Himself. Now, "whenever in the Scriptures a name is imposed or changed…by God, it is indicative of great praise and virtue. It as good that our Redeemer’s Forerunner was ordered to be called John. The name John means ‘THE GRACE OF THE LORD" or "IN WHOM THERE IS GRACE." He received a special grace beyond other Saints, that of being Christ’s precursor. He came to proclaim a previously unheard of grace to the world: that of entry into heaven. Therefore, he who was full of grace himself and who brought the Good News of God’s grace to the rest of mankind expressed even by his name a proclamation of grace. It was rightly foretold that there was to be cause for exultation for many persons at his birth, since it was through him that the Author of their regeneration was manifested to the world."
"And he shall be joy and exultation to thee, and many shall be glad over his birth" (Luke 1:14).
"For he shall be great before the face of the Lord, and in no wise shall drink wine and strong
drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb" (Luke 1:15).
Saint Ambrose: "He here announced greatness, not of body but of soul. Greatness of soul before the Lord of virtue… Thus John would be great–not through bodily virtue but through magnanimity. He did not enlarge the boundaries of an empire. He did not prefer military triumphs and honors. Rather, what is more, he disparaged human pleasures and lewdness of body, preaching in the desert with great virtue of spirit. He was a child in worldliness, but great in spirit. He was not captivated by the allurements of life, nor did he change his steadfastness of purpose through a desire to live."
"And many of the sons of Israel shall he turn around und to the Lord their God" (Luke 1:16).
Saint Ambrose: "We do not lack evidence that Saint John converted the hearts of very many. On this point, the Prophetic and Gospel writings support us– "The voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; be making His path straight" (Isaiah 40:3; Matthew 3:3)" –and frequent baptisms of candidates declare to the nations that progress was made by no small a throng of converts. Indeed, when they believe John, they believe Christ. For the messenger of Christ preached not of himself, but of the Lord." (Source: The Great Synaxaristes of the Orthodox Church)
[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 and Glorious Diakonia (Ministry),
The sinner and unworthy servant of God
The Eastern Orthodox Christian Ethos 