The obedience of faith

III Len Monday - Genesis 6: 9-22

And these are the generations of Noe. Noe was a just man; being perfect in his generation, Noe was well-pleasing to God. And Noe begot three sons, Sem, Cham, Japheth. But the earth was corrupted before God, and the earth was filled with iniquity. And the Lord God saw the earth, and it was corrupted; because all flesh had corrupted its way upon the earth. And the Lord God said to Noe, A period of all men is come before me; because the earth has been filled with iniquity by them, and, behold, I destroy them and the earth. Make therefore for thyself an ark of square timber; thou shalt make the ark in compartments, and thou shalt pitch it within and without with pitch. And thus shalt thou make the ark; three hundred cubits the length of the ark, and fifty cubits the breadth, and thirty cubits the height of it. Thou shalt narrow the ark in making it, and in a cubit above thou shalt finish it, and the door of the ark thou shalt make on the side; with lower, second, and third stories thou shalt make it. And behold I bring a flood of water upon the earth, to destroy all flesh in which is the breath of life under heaven, and whatsoever things are upon the earth shall die. And I will establish my covenant with thee, and thou shalt enter into the ark, and thy sons and thy wife, and thy sons’ wives with thee. And of all cattle and of all reptiles and of all wild beasts, even of all flesh, thou shalt bring by pairs of all, into the ark, that thou mayest feed them with thyself: male and female they shall be. Of all winged birds after their kind, and of all cattle after their kind, and of all reptiles creeping upon the earth after their kind, pairs of all shall come in to thee, male and female to be fed with thee. And thou shalt take to thyself of all kinds of food which ye eat, and thou shalt gather them to thyself, and it shall be for thee and them to eat. And Noe did all things whatever the Lord God commanded him, so did he. – Genesis 6:9-22

“…Noe was well pleasing to God (6:9).” Why? Because “…Noe did all things whatever the Lord God commanded him, so did he (6:22).”

Noah and his family survived the Great Flood and laid the foundation for the whole future of the human race, because one person did “…whatsoever the Lord God commanded him…” Noah, by obeying God, preserved an earthly future for the entire race of man. His obedience foreshadows the perfect obedience of the New Adam, our Lord Jesus Christ, Who bestowed an eternal future upon our race by His obedience unto death upon the Cross.

It is fashionable today to say that Orthodoxy is only about a kind of “cool” mysticism and visions and “hesychasm” and miracles and so forth, and that insisting on obedience to the Ten Commandments and the moral precepts of the Church is some kind of a “fundamentalist” hang-up. People can believe this if they want (and people do tend to believe whatever offers the path of least resistance to their passions), but this approach will certainly lead them into both delusion and immorality. Without struggling first to practice the ABC’s of a moral life based on the plainly revealed requirements of the Faith, a Christian never attains genuine higher spiritual experience. Whatever exalted experiences the deluded person does enjoy are impermanent, illusory, and elusive. He refuses the boring obedience to plain commandments, the hard-won security of building his house on the rock of Christ’s words, and prefers to wander about a spiritual Disneyland hall of mirrors until a certain monster from the labyrinth comes out and devours him.

It is fashionable today to say that Orthodoxy is just one (maybe the best, but still just one) among many “traditional religions,” and that “many ways lead to God.” To believe in the exclusive claims of the Church is just more “fundamentalism.” “I just cannot believe,” says the “tolerant” nominal Orthodox, “that Orthodoxy is the only way to salvation.”

This is your problem, my friend: you cannot believe.You refuse the obedience of Faith. Noah, by contrast, obeyed God. This one person, exercising the obedience of Faith, saved the human race. He believed that everyone except his family was going to drown, because God told him so.

Be like him.

This commentary was taken from The Eternal Sacrifice: The Genesis Readings for Great Lent by Fr. Steven Allen. You can order a copy from Lulu at http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/FrStevenAllen

Today’s reading from Esaias (Isaiah), with commentary:

Thus saith the Lord: Sanctify ye the Lord himself; and he shall be thy fear. 14And if thou shalt trust in him, he shall be to thee for a sanctuary; and ye shall not come against him as against a stumbling-stone, neither as against the falling of a rock: but the houses of Jacob are in a snare, and the dwellers in Jerusalem in a pit. 15 Therefore many among them shall be weak, and fall, and be crushed; and they shall draw nigh, and men shall be taken securely. 16 Then shall those who seal themselves that they may not learn the law be made manifest. 17 And one shall say, I will wait for God, who has turned away his face from the house of Jacob, and I will trust in him. 18 Behold I and the children which God has given me: and they shall be for signs and wonders in the house of Israel from the Lord of hosts, who dwells in mount Sion. 19 And if they should say to you, Seek those who have in them a divining spirit, and them that speak out of the earth, them that speak vain words, who speak out of their belly: shall not a nation diligently seek to their God? why do they seek to the dead concerning the living? 20 For he has given the law for a help, that they should not speak according to this word, concerning which there are no gifts to give for it. 21 And famine shall come sorely upon you, and it shall come to pass, that when ye shall be hungry, ye shall be grieved, and ye shall speak ill of the prince and your fathers’ ordinances: and they shall look up to heaven above, 22 and they shall look on the earth below, and behold severe distress, and darkness, affliction, and anguish, and darkness so that one cannot see; and he that is in anguish shall not be distressed only for a time. 9:1 Drink this first. Act quickly, O land of Zabulon, land of Nephthalim, and the rest inhabiting the sea-coast, and the land beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles. 2 O people walking in darkness, behold a great light: ye that dwell in the region and shadow of death, a light shall shine upon you. 3 The multitude of the people which thou hast brought down in thy joy, they shall even rejoice before thee as they that rejoice in harvest, and as they that divide the spoil. 4 Because the yoke that was laid upon them has been taken away, and the rod that was on their neck: for he has broken the rod of the exactors, as in the day of Madiam. 5 For they shall compensate for every garment that has been acquired by deceit, and all raiment with restitution; and they shall be willing, even if they were burnt with fire. 6 For a child is born to us, and a son is given to us, whose government is upon his shoulder: and his name is called the Messenger of great counsel: for I will bring peace upon the princes, and health to him. 7 His government shall be great, and of his peace there is no end: it shall be upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to establish it, and to support it with judgement and with righteousness, from henceforth and forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts shall perform this. -Esaias 8:13 - 9:7

The first part of today’s reading, chapter eight, verses 13 to the end, depicts once again the near-universal apostasy of Israel, as the great majority of the people seek the truth not from God but from false prophets, mediums, and witches. Yet in their midst there is “one” who does not follow the trend. Remaining faithful to the true God, he says “…I will wait for God, who has turned away his face from the house of Jacob, and I will trust in him. Behold I and the children which God has given me; and they shall be for signs and wonders in the house of Israel, from the Lord of hosts, who dwells in mount Sion.” The Blessed Jerome reminds us that St. Paul, in his Epistle to the Hebrews, interprets this “one” to be Christ Himself:

…the blessed apostle in the letter written to the Hebrews…teaches that this passage ought to be understood with respect to the Lord and Savior. “That is why he is not ashamed to call them brethren, saying, ‘I will proclaim thy name to my brethren, in the midst of the congregation I will praise thee (Hebrews 2: 11-12). And again, ‘I will put my trust in him (Hebrews 2:13).’ And again: Here am I, and the children God has given me. Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself also shared in their sufferings (Hebrews 2: 13-14).” How these children became signs and wonders…that same apostle teaches, who said that the Lord and Savior “…chose what is foolish in the world and what is weak that he might shame the wise and strong (I Corinthians 1:27).” And the Savior said to the apostles: “Unless you turn and become like a child, uno will not enter into the kingdom of the heavens (Matthew 18:3).” – Homilies on Isaiah 3.8.1-4

Throughout the Old Testament, there are these lone figures, these unpopular righteous men like Noah and Moses, and Esaias himself, who buck the prevailing fashion of unbelief and corruption, remain faithful to the Lord, and thereby preserve the true belief, true worship, and true morality for future generations. By their heroic exploits of faithfulness, they not only prepare the way for Christ, but they also become types of Christ, that is, partial and mystical prophetic foreshadowings of the One Who was to come, not only by words but by their lives and deeds. Each one, according the measure of grace given him, can rightly say to God, “Behold I and the children whom Thou hast given me.” To attain this stature before God, they had to become fools in the eyes of the world. By becoming strangers to the world, they prefigured that Stranger who had nowhere to lay His head. By becoming like little children, they inherited the kingdom of God.

The point here is not that we should cultivate being odd for its own sake; this is not virtue but a species of vanity. Orthodox Christians do not aim at becoming the angry antiheroes of existentialist novels or eccentric dilettantes amusing themselves with the exotic rituals and religious artifacts of bygone ages, or Live Action Role Players in some kind of ecclesiastical Renaissance fair. Our faith is not a distraction from real life. It is real life. If we believe aright and strive to obey the commandments, the world will naturally become foreign to us, and we to the world. Our becoming outcasts is not the goal; it is a byproduct. Our eyes, after all, are not on ourselves; they are on the Lord. We go to him “outside the camp” not in order to to distinguish ourselves from the people in the camp, but in order to be with Christ. What the world thinks about us is neither here nor there.

The second part of today’s reading is, of course, one of the best known prophecies of the coming of Christ, quoted in part by the Holy Evangelist Matthew in the Gospel itself:

Now when Jesus had heard that John was cast into prison, he departed into Galilee; And leaving Nazareth, he came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is upon the sea coast, in the borders of Zabulon and Nephthalim: That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying, The land of Zabulon, and the land of Nephthalim, by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles; The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up. From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. – Matthew 4: 12-17

St. Matthew is stating that the words of Esaias are now fulfilled in his time, when he saw with his own eyes the true Light, Christ Himself, Who began His public ministry among His own neighbors the Galileans, who inhabited what was once the northern kingdom of Israel, which had become mixed with the pagans after the Assyrian conquest and therefore were a “people which sat in darkness.” St. Symeon the New Theologian reminds us that we too are sitting in darkness, and that to be enlightened we must choose to look towards the light:

You must learn and be convinced that those who sit in darkness will see the great light shine if only they look toward it. Also, though it shone in the past, one should not think that people today cannot see it while they are still in the body. If it were impossible to see it, why did it shine then, and why does it still shine even when it is not seen? In fact, the light always existed (John 1:1) and always shone and still shines in those who have been cleansed. It shone in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it (John 1:5), and it shines now, and the darkness does not overcome it. It does not even touch it.” – Discourses 34.12

We have a choice to make: We can become fascinated by the darkness in the world, even though we hate it, and we can become hypnotized by all the bad news, or we can occupy our minds with the Good News and let the light of Christ shine in our minds continually through the struggle for attention, the remembrance of God, and unceasing prayer. Through the prayers of the holy prophets and evangelists, our holy fathers like St. Symeon, and all the saints, may we tear our minds away from the darkness and turn towards the true Light daily. If we dwell in the light which the world cannot overcome – or even touch – the darkness of the world shall never overcome us.

“Be of good cheer,” saith the Lord. “I have overcome the world (John 16:33).”

Today’s reading from Proverbs, with commentary:

My son: 1 Thou shalt proclaim wisdom, that understanding may be obedient to thee. 2 For she is on lofty eminences, and stands in the midst of the ways. 3 For she sits by the gates of princes, and sings in the entrances, saying, 4 You, O men, I exhort; and utter my voice to the sons of men. 5 O ye simple, understand subtlety, and ye that are untaught, imbibe knowledge. 6 Hearken to me; for I will speak solemn truths; and will produce right sayings from my lips. 7 For my throat shall meditate truth; and false lips are an abomination before me. 8 All the words of my mouth are in righteousness; there is nothing in them wrong or perverse. 9 They are all evident to those that understand, and right to those that find knowledge. 10 Receive instruction, and not silver; and knowledge rather than tried gold. 11 For wisdom is better than precious stones; and no valuable substance is of equal worth with it. 12 I wisdom have dwelt with counsel and knowledge, and I have called upon understanding. 13 The fear of the Lord hates unrighteousness, and insolence, and pride, and the ways of wicked men; and I hate the perverse ways of bad men. 14 Counsel and safety are mine; prudence is mine, and strength is mine. 15 By me kings reign, and princes decree justice. 16 By me nobles become great, and monarchs by me rule over the earth. 17 I love those that love me; and they that seek me shall find me. 18 Wealth and glory belong to me; yea, abundant possessions and righteousness. 19 It is better to have my fruit than to have gold and precious stones; and my produce is better than choice silver. 20 I walk in ways of righteousness, and am conversant with the paths of judgement; 21 that I may divide substance to them that love me, and may fill their treasures with good things. If I declare to you the things that daily happen, I will remember also to recount the things of old. - Proverbs 8: 1-21

St. Bede the Venerable, in commenting on verse 15, “By me kings reign, and princes decree justice,” writes as follows:

“Those whom it calls ‘kings’ are the apostles and other saints, like the lawmakers and authors of both Testaments and the subsequent writers of the Church. They have learned first how to rule themselves, and then the Church that was put under their care. Those whom it calls ‘princes’ are governors and other powerful leaders of the faithful. But none of these would have anything were it not through wisdom, for He says, ‘without Me, you can do nothing’ (John 15:5).” – Commentary on Proverbs.

Here is a twofold lesson for all who have authority over others, a lesson we have all heard before and constantly forget: “They have first learned how to rule themselves…” and “…none of these would have anything were it not through wisdom…” and wisdom, of course, is Jesus Christ, whom St. Paul calls the Wisdom and Power of God (I Corinthians 1: 24). (St. Bede expresses the latter theological truth neatly here, by making “wisdom” the antecedent for the pronoun He -meaning Jesus – in the last sentence of the quotation above).

Whether as a husband dealing with a disobedient wife or a parent with a recalcitrant child or a priest with an erring parishioner, or a teacher with an obtuse student, or a supervisor with a troublesome employee – nearly all of us have had occasion to despair of being able effectively to rule someone over whom we have been given authority. The first impulse of one’s fallen nature is, of course, to blame one’s subordinate and curse his dullness and self-will. He may in fact be dull and self-willed, but that recognition on our part doesn’t get us anywhere. And the further bad news is that, most of the time, we cannot be relieved of dealing with this person any time soon, or even unto the grave. We have to keep trying, and in such a way that we do not compound the subordinate’s sin of disobedience with our own sins of anger, condemnation, impatience, and self-righteousness. As usual, however, the Scriptures and the Holy Fathers give us sound advice in dealing with what often is, humanly speaking, an intractable situation: We have to rule ourselves, and we have to beg for wisdom from Wisdom Himself, Our Lord Jesus Christ.

So there is a kind of spiritual jujitsu here: When faced with stubborn disobedience or uncomprehending non-cooperation of a seemingly impossible kind, we should first make a strategic withdrawal before returning to the attack. Here are three steps:

First, to prepare a good confession, asking our Guardian Angel to reveal to us any hidden passions or unconfessed sins that may be impeding our spiritual power to exercise authority in a godly fashion. We then go to confession with our father confessor, and the grace that is in the Church will cleanse us of our sins and passions.

Second, to fall down before the icon of Christ, the Wisdom and Power of God, admit to Him that we have no wisdom of our own, tell Him in our own words, in childlike fashion, of this seemingly impossible situation, and ask Him for words of wisdom to give our erring subordinate.

Third, when we return to the fray: Prior to the next encounter with That Difficult Person, to say the prayer “O Heavenly King,” asking the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, and then, saying the Jesus Prayer continually within ourselves, to engage the erring one with whatever words we may receive from above, submitting the outcome to the judgment of God.

Often the immediate problem will be solved. If it is not, and your sufferings continue, you will have acquired peace and patience to deal with them, always keeping in mind the real purpose of all successes and all failures in this life: your eternal salvation.

O long-suffering Lord, Thou only true wisdom, so patient with our unwisdom and stubborn self-will, enlighten us by the prayers of the apostles and saints, whom Thou hast truly made princes over all the earth (Ps. 44: 16).