Category Archives: Old Testament

Joy of all who sorrow

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This Russian icon of the Mother of God, the “Joy of all who sorrow,” depicts the Mother of God holding Christ in one arm while holding a scepter aloft with her right hand. She receives the prayers of various groups of the needy, those in distress or sorrow: the elderly, the poor, the hungry, those naked and cold. They pray, certain that she and her Son will provide what they need. They receive these gifts from her and from the Church.

“You have stolen my heart, my sister, my bride.” (Song of Songs 4:9)

“I think that the expression, You have stolen my heart, means the same as You have given us life or You have put heart in us. For the sake of clarity … I will call on the divine Apostle for an explanation of these mysteries. For he tells us, in writing to the Ephesians, about the great economy of salvation through the epiphany of God in the flesh, that the Church–the bride of Christ–reveals the manifold wonders and wisdom of God to the race of angels as well as to the human race…. If the Church is Christ’s body and he is the head of the Church, then it is his face we see on her. Perhaps this is what the friends of the Bridegroom saw when they were given heart: in her they see clearly what is otherwise invisible…. So the friends of the Bridegroom see the Sun of Justice by looking upon the face of the Church as though it were a pure mirror. Thus, the Bridegroom can be seen by his reflection.” (St. Gregory of Nyssa, On the Song of Songs)

Christ, the image (lit. icon) of the invisible God is seen in both his Body–the Church–and in his most holy mother. He continues to act in this world through both his mother–who gave him flesh–and his body, the community sustained by his Body and Blood.

It is too easy to forget that everything human about Christ comes from his mother Mary. His flesh is her flesh, his blood is her blood, his DNA is her DNA. When we see her, we see her Son; when we see him, we see his mother. And when we see him, we see the whole Christ–that includes his body throughout time and space. Wherever Christ is, there his whole body is. When we encounter him–whether in personal prayer at home or in liturgical prayer at church–we encounter ALL of him.

And when we encounter all of him, our hearts are stolen.

“I am wounded with love”

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Painter: Greek School 17/18th Century Medium: Tempera on panel Location: National Museum of Fine Arts, Valletta, Malta

The bride says: “I am wounded with love.” (Song of Songs 2:5) She explains that the dart has gone right through her heart and the Bowman is love. We know that God is love (1 John 4:8) and that he sends forth his only begotten Son as his chosen arrow (Isaiah 49:2) to the elect, dipping … its tip in the Spirit of life. The arrow’s tip is faith and unites to the Bowman whomsoever it strikes. (St. Gregory of Nyssa, On the Song of Songs)

The bride in the Song is wounded by the arrow shot by the divine Bowman. The arrow, whose tip is dipped in the Spirit of life rather than the venom or poison common in the ancient world, binds her to the one who shot the arrow: God, the Father. Christ is the arrow and—unlike most arrows we are familiar with—this arrow’s wound does not kill; it causes the bride to live. Forever. Bound by faith and love to the Bowman who shot the arrow into the world, she shares the divine life of the Bowman (the Father), the arrow (Christ), and the Spirit.

The Mother of God, brought to the Temple when she was three years old, is presented by her parents to be brought up serving the Lord in his house. We see in the upper left hand corner of the icon the angel that brought her bread from heaven each day; this is a pictorial way of saying that she trusted in the Lord for her sustenance and support and so was capable of conceiving the one who is the true bread come down from heaven. This bread that she received from the angel united her in love to the giver of the Living Bread just as the arrow united the bride to the Bowman. The bread brought by the angel is spiritual sustenance just as the arrow’s point was said to be anointed with the Spirit.

Annunciation is the only time we read of in the Bible when the first words out an angel’s mouth were not “Don’t be afraid! Fear not!” The daily visitation of the angel to bring bread to the Mother of God is also a way to explain why she was not shocked to see the angel Gabriel although she was shocked at the angel’s announcement.

“Peace Shall be a Pathway for His Feet.”

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A Byzantine icon of Christ as the Great High Priest, seated on a bishop’s throne (cathedra), as the donor and his son kneel in supplication. Christ’s hand is raised in blessing, typically accompanied by the greeting, “Peace be unto all.”
Christ depicted as a bishop at the Eucharist, giving Holy Communion to the apostles; St. Paul leads those approaching the chalice while St. Peter leads those approaching from the other side. The assembly of the apostles is typically a depiction of the Church assembled in peace as the Body of Christ, in which all peoples can be reconciled.

“Righteousness shall go before him, and peace shall be a pathway for his feet.” (Psalm 85:13)

On the most straightforward, historical level, peace was the pathway for the Gospel insofar as the pax Romana made it possible to preach the Gospel from Syria to Great Britain, from Egypt to the North Sea. Apostles and missionaries were able to travel the system of Roman roads–many of which still exist–which were kept safe by the Roman soldiers and the sheer number of people travelling on the roadways. Although it was safe to travel from one end of the empire to the other, it was expensive. Apostles and missionaries needed financial support from their home parish or would stop and work to support themselves as they made their journey.

The peace and stability of the Roman empire not only enabled the growth of the Church but made it possible for letters and communication to be shared. It was the re-establishment of the “Roman peace” that the many kingdoms of western Europe during the Middle Ages aspired to.

Peace is also understood to be the pathway for Christ to meet the worshipper at the celebration of the Eucharist. Each person who approaches the altar, walking towards encountering Christ in the Holy Gifts of the Eucharist, must first make peace with their neighbors either by exchanging the Kiss of Peace or by heeding Christ’s admonition to “leave your gift at the altar, if you remember that your brother has anything against you; go, be reconciled and then come to offer your gift” (Matthew 5:23-24). Peace and reconciliation between Christians was the road that had to be built or repaired to make Christ’s arrival possible.

Christ himself was also understood to be the peace of God; in Constantinople, the church of the Holy Peace is nowadays sometimes called St. Irene’s but which was always understood previously to be dedicated to Christ, the Peace of God.

“For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of two, thus making peace.” (Ephesians 2:14-15 )

(The great cathedral of Hagia Sophia was also understood to be dedicated to Christ, the Wisdom of God, rather than the woman-martyr St. Sophia.)