LAZARUS THE FRIEND OF CHRIST

My beloved brothers and sisters in Christ Our Only True Lord, God and Savior,

CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND EVER SHALL BE.

LAZARUS THE FRIEND OF CHRIST

"Now a certain man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the town
of Mary and her sister Martha. It was that Mary who anointed
the Lord with fragrant oil and wiped HIs feet with her hair,
whose brother Lazarus was sick. Therefore the sisters, sent
to HIm, saying, ‘Lord, behold, he whom You love is sick.’
When Jesus heard that, He said, ‘This sickness is not unto
death, but for the glory of God, that the Son of God may be
glorified through it.’ Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister
and Lazarus. So, when He heard that he was sick, He stayed
two more days in the place where He was. Then after this
He said to the disciples, ‘Let us go to Judea again.’
… These things He said, and after that He said to them, ‘Our
friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go that I may wake him up.’ Then
His disciples said, ‘Lord, if he sleeps he will get well.’
However, Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought that He
was speaking about taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus said to
them plainly ‘Lazarus is dead. And I am glad for your sakes
that I was not there, that you may believe. Nevertheless let
us go to him… So when Jesus came, He found that he had
already been in the tomb four days…
Now Martha said to Jesus, ‘Lord, if You had been here, my
brother would not have died. But even now I know that
whatever You ask of God, God will give You.’ Jesus said to
her, ‘Your brother will rise again.’ Martha said to Him, I know
that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.’ Jesus
said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life, He who believes
in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and
believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?’ She said
to Him, ‘Yes, Lord, I believe that You are the Christ, the Son of
God, Whois to come into the world.’ …Therefore, when Jesus
saw her (Mary) weeping and the Jews who came with her weeping.
He groaned in the spirit and was troubled. And He said, ‘Where
have you laid him?’ They said to Him, ‘Lord, come and see.’
Jesus wept. Then the Jews said, ‘See how He loved him!’
…Then Jesus, again groaning in Himself, came to the tomb. It was
a cave, and a stone lay against it. Jesus said, ‘Take away the stone.’
Martha, the sister of him who was dead, said to Him, ‘Lord, by this
time there is a stench, for he has been dead four days.’ Jesus
said to her, ‘Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would
see the glory of God?’ Then they took away the stone from the place
where the dead man was lying. And Jesus lifted up His eyes and said,
‘Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. And I know that You
always hear Mes, but because of the people who are standing by I said
this, that they may believe that You sent Me.’ Now when He had said
these things, He cried with a loud voice, ‘Lazarus, come forth.’
And he who had died came out bound hand and foot with graveclothes,
and his face was wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, ‘Loose
him, and let him go.’ (John 11:1-45).

The Saturday before Palm Sunday is referred to in the Orthodox Tradition as the Saturday of Lazarus. This day, along with Palm Sunday, occupies a special position between Lent and Holy and Great Week. The Saturday before Palm Sunday celebrates the raising of Lazarus at Bethany This miracle is performed by our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ as A REASSURANCE TO HIS DISCIPLES BEFORE THE COMING PASSION; THEY ARE TO UNDERSTAND THAT, THOUGH HE SUFFERS AND DIES, YE THIS LORD AND VICTORY OVER DEATH. THE RESURRECTION OF LAZARUS IS A PROPHECY IN THE FORM OF AN ATION. IT FORESHADOWS CHRIST’S OWN RESURRECTION EIGHT DAYS LATER, AND AT THE SAME TIME IT ANTICIPATES THE RESURRECTION OF ALL THE RIGHTEOUS ON THE LAST DAY: LAZARUS IS ‘THE SAVING FIRST-FRUITS OF THE REGENERATION OF THE WORLD.’

This miracle is the last of our Lord’s Seven Signs in the Gospel of Saint John: These signs are: (1) changing water into wine; (2) curing the nobleman’s son; (3) healing the paralytic; (4) feeding the 5,000; (5) walking on water; (6) giving sight to the blind man; (7) raising Lazarus from the dead. The sign and miracle of Lazarus sealed the decision of the Jewish authorities to put Jesus to death. Bethany is on the Easter slope of the Mount of Olives, about 2 miles from Jerusalem. Lazarus is the same name as Eleazar (lit. "Gospel helps"). Lazarus’ sickness would not result in permanent "death" because he would be brought back to life by the Christ, an act which would bring "glory" to the Father and the Son. Our Lord Jesus Christ delayed visiting Lazarus to allow for the assured death of Lazarus, which underscores the magnitude of the miracle. As true man Jesus shows by example that weeping is the natural human response to death. As True God He shows compassion upon His creation when the soul is torn from the body. Our Lord comes to the place of burial. A corpse that has by the fourth day begins to deteriorate is enough reason for Martha’s warning. Embalming was prohibited in Judaism. The body was simply anointed with spices and other aromatic substances which would keep the stench of decomposition at bay for a brief time.

Again we see the Evangelist’s insistence on relating Jesus’ dependence upon the Father for all His works. Jesus prays for the bystanders, that they may have the insight to see the glory of God in the miracle. Jesus’ "loud" cry for all to hear is reminiscent of His earlier words, "The hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth" (John 5:28-29). Also, that Lazarus came out bound in his linen "graveclothes" is interpreted by Patristic writers as an indication he will need them once again: he will eventually die. Our Savior’s grave linens, by contrast, were left in the tomb. He will have no more use for them, for He will never die again.

In Orthodox Christian Tradition, Lazarus of Bethany is revered as the "Righteous Friend of Christ," who was raised from the dead after four days as a foreshadowing of Christ’s Resurrection and a prophecy of the Universal Resurrection. He was close friend to Jesus, lived in Bethany with his sisters Mary and Martha, and later became a Bishop in Cyprus after fleeing persecution, where he lived for another 30 years. Fearing for his life Lazarus fled to Cyprus, where it is believed Saint Barnabas and Saint Paul ordained him as the First Bishop of Kition (modern-day Larnaca. In our Holy Orthodox liturgical calendar, Lazarus Saturday immediately precedes palm Sunday and Holy and Great Week, setting the theme of Christ as Victory over death. Furthermore Tradition says Lazarus never smiled for the 30 years he lived after being resurrected, traumatized by what he saw in the underworld. The only exception was when he saw someone stealing a ot, saying: "the clay steals the clay." It is believed also that he met with the Ever-Virgin Mary the Theotokos in Cyprus and she presented him with Bishop’s robes or vestments she had woven herself. Lazarus died for the second and last time in Cyprus. His holy relics were later moved or translated to Constantinople in 898 A.D.

In holy icons, Lazarus is shown emerging from the tomb, still tightly bound in funeral cloths (shroud), symbolizing that while resurrected he was still subject to human mortality until his second death. He is of course considered a model of friendship with our Lord Jesus Christ and a living breathing witness to Christ’s power to conquer death. As a result of this miracle, many of he Jews that were present believed in Jesus. Others went and told the Pharisees what Jesus had done. In response the Pharisees and Chief Priests met and considered how they might arrest Him and put Him to death.

Standing with Christ are His Disciples who are witnesses of this great miracle, a true transformation of the power of God that would bring them assurance during the Passion of our Lord and Savior.

The Saturday of Lazarus is celebrated with the Divine Liturgy of Saint John Chrysostomos, which his preceded by the Orthros (Matins) service. On Friday before the feast, the Vespers (Esperinos) is done either in conjunction with the Presanctified Liturgy or if this is not held, according to the order of the Triodion. The day and commemoration receives its name from the miracle of Christ recorded in the Gospel of Saint John the Evangelist. Both this feast and Palm Sunday are joyous festivals of the Church, and thus bright colors are used for vestments and the Holy Altar Table. At the Divine Liturgy of Lazarus Saturday, the baptismal verse from Galatians ("As many as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ" (Galatians 3:27) replaces the Thrice-Holy Hymn, thus indicating the resurrectional character of the celebration, and the fact that Lazarus Saturday was once among the few great baptismal day sin the Orthodox Church Year. [Resources: Orthodox Study Bible and The Lenten Triodion]
Hymns of the Feast

Apolytikion (Dismissal) Hymn. First Tone

By raising Lazarus from the dead before Your
Passion, You confirmed the universal resurrection,
O Christ God! Like the children with palms of victory.
We cry out to You, O Vanquisher of Death. Hosanna
in the highest! Blessed is He that comes in the
name of the Lord.

Kontakion Hymn. Second Tone

Chriar — the joy, the Truth, and the Light
of All, the Life of the World and the
Resurrection — has appeared in His goodness
to those on earth. He has become the Image
of our resurrection granting divine forgiveness
to all.

Troparion Hymn of Saturday of Lazarus,
Orthros (Matins), Tone 1

O Christ God when Thou didst raise
Lazarus from the dead, before Thy Passion,
Thou didst confirm the Universal resurrection.
Wherefore, we, like babes, carry the insignia
of triumph and victory, and cry to Thee, O
Vanquisher of death, Hosanna in the highest,
Blessed is He that cometh in the Name of the
Lord.

____________
"Glory Be To GOD
For
All Things!"
+Saint John Chrysostomos

+ + +
With sincere agape in His Divine and Glorious Diakonia (Ministry),
The sinner and unworthy servant of God
+ Father George