Fifth Sunday After Pentecost

(Matthew 8:28-9:1)

This morning we heard three Gospel readings… one for the Sunday, one for our commemoration of the Fathers of the First Six Ecumenical Councils, and one for the holy equal-to-the-Apostles Grand Prince Vladimir, whom we also celebrate today.

The Sunday Gospel reading spoke to us about the Lord’s coming into the country of Gergesenes and His encounter with the two men possessed by demons. The terror and evil of the demons made these men exceedingly fierce, such that no one could even pass by their way. Yet when our Lord Jesus Christ came by, the demons cried out, saying ‘What have we to do with Thee, Jesus, Thou Son of God?’ The fearsome demons crumbled before the grace and authority of Christ and begged Him to at least let them be sent into the herd of swine feeding nearby. This scene demonstrates for us both the reality of demonic evil, but also the absolute power and authority of Christ. It demonstrates for us the truth that darkness cannot prevail in the presence of light… the light of Christ.

Our second reading today is in honor of the Fathers of the First Six Ecumenical Councils. The Gospel for this occasion contains what is often called Christ’s High Priestly Prayer in which He glorifies God and in which He intercedes for all those who shall bear His name as Christians… that they may be one, as Christ and His Father are One. And what is it that brings forth this unity among Orthodox Christians? It is none other than Christ Himself… the Way, the Truth, and the Life. The Fathers of the Ecumenical Councils were those church leaders of the early centuries of the Church who rightly defined the word of Truth. When conflicts and heresies threatened the unity of the Church, the Fathers met in council to seek God’s will and the guidance of the Holy Spirit to define and defend the Truth of our Orthodox faith. And it was this clarity of Truth and the ongoing fidelity to that Truth that has united Orthodox Christians throughout the centuries.

And our third reading is the Gospel passage of the Good Shepherd – read today in honor of Grand Prince Vladimir, the equal-to-the-Apostles and enlightener and uniter of the Russian land. This Gospel passage speaks to us of the relationship of the shepherd with his flock, who trust him as their protector and know and respond to his voice. The Good Shepherd draws his flock together, watching over them, and knowing each individual sheep by name… it is a relationship of care and trust. Grand Prince Vladimir is honored as equal to the Apostles because he brought so many to the waters of Christian baptism. This call of their ruler to be baptized united the peoples of Rus – giving them a common worldview and literally making all of Christian Rus brothers and sisters – as they shared the same Blood of Christ now within their veins. As we sang in the Vigil last night: ‘Spiritually thou wast the father,/ and materially thou wast the king of the Russian people, O Vladimir;/ and as a true preacher, an apostle of Christ,/ thou didst proclaim the baptism of salvation./ And splendidly illumining all therewith,// thou didst sanctify the people in all the lands of thy kingdom, O blessed one.’

It is an interesting and instructive thing to contemplate these three readings, these three observances this morning. We see how the light of Christ conquers demonic darkness. We glorify the Fathers of the Ecumenical Councils who defined and defended the Word of Truth, which united Orthodox Christians in remaining faithful to that Truth. And we honor the Grand Prince Vladimir, who united his nation in the baptismal waters of their newly adopted Christian faith. A nation which is founded upon faith in God and unites around that faith, becomes a strong and healthy nation.

Most people I speak to believe that our nation is undergoing a crisis right now. The instability of our current political situation and future is certainly concerning to many. And that instability is but an outcome of the great instability we see in our modern culture where so many things are turned upside down and inside out… there is no firm foundation to stand on in a culture that drifts away from the foundation of faith and is given over to the rootlessness of nihilism.

Everywhere we turn, we see division being sown… left vs right, liberal vs conservative, democrat vs republican, this vs that, us vs them, etc, etc. Where there is no common vision, people splinter into different factions, each one suspecting the other and each one justifying itself and cementing itself into its belief in its own righteousness. It is a world where information is filled with lies and half-truths, presented to distract us, to confuse us, to lead us to rallying behind the lies which suit us best. A political philosopher, Hannah Arendt, once said: ‘This constant lying is not aimed at making the people believe a lie but ensuring that no one believes anything anymore. A people that can no longer distinguish between truth and lies cannot distinguish between right and wrong. And such a people, deprived of the power to think and judge, are, without knowing and willing it, completely subjected to the rule of lies. With such people, you can do whatever you want.’

It is an old story, and it bears all the markings of the Father of Lies… who’s game is called ‘divide and conquer’. I speak of this not to arouse opinion or frustration on a political level… but to reflect on the underlying spiritual causes and symptoms. For what is a nation, but a gathering of states; and a state is a gathering of counties; and a county is a gathering of cities; and a city is a gathering of families; and a family is made up of individuals. As the famous Russian writer Alexander Solzhenitsyn said: ‘The line separating good and evil passes not through states, nor between classes, nor between political parties either -- but right through every human heart -- and through all human hearts.’ 

And so, it is at that level of our own human heart where we must first seek to affect change. Today’s Gospels and commemorations show us the way…

In the Sunday Gospel wherein Christ confronts the demons possessing the men of Gadarene, we are shown the reality of evil and we are shown the absolute superiority of the light of Christ over any demonic darkness. In the celebration of the Fathers of the First Six Ecumenical Councils, we are shown the beauty and the value of the clarity of the revealed Truth of our Orthodox faith and the preciousness of holding fast in fidelity to that truth. And in the commemoration of our father among the saints, the holy equal-to-the-Apostles Grand Prince Vladimir, we are shown the unifying power of those joined together under the love and care of the Good Shepherd, our Lord Jesus Christ.

Every Liturgy, we gather together to pray with one voice… praying for this land and for those who in faith and piety dwell therein. Perhaps it is too ambitious and too naïve to expect that our nation would unite under the Good Shepherd, our Lord Jesus Christ. But at least let us, as Orthodox Christians, unite in our prayer for the good of our land… that God would watch over us, that His Most Holy Mother would spread her protecting veil over our land. Let each of us beware of reacting to the madness that we see with our own madness and anger. You don’t put out a fire by adding more fuel to that inferno… fire must be put out by the living waters of faith and hope and love.  

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, let us establish ourselves in the peace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Let us focus on acquiring the light and love of our Lord. It is only through those means, by acquiring and shining forth that light within our own heart, that whatever darkness may come our way will be conquered.

May God bless you!