Day 1 (Monday)
Exodus 13:1-22 (Festival of Unleavened Bread, Consecration of the Firstborn, Pillars of Cloud & Fire)
Last time we saw the death of the Firstborn, and the departure of the Israelites from where they had lived in Egypt, and the instructions for the killing and eating of the Passover. This time, we will see God give a new instruction to Moses about the firstborn of the Israelites, and then Moses will sum up to the people the commandment about the celebration of the Passover for coming generations, and then pass on God’s commandment about the firstborn.
The Festival of Unleavened Bread
13 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Consecrate to me all the first-born; whatever is the first to open the womb among the people of Israel, both of man and of beast, is mine.”
3 And Moses said to the people, “Remember this day, in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of bondage, for by strength of hand the Lord brought you out from this place; no leavened bread shall be eaten. 4 This day you are to go forth, in the month of Abib. 5 And when the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Hivites, and the Jeb′usites, which he swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, you shall keep this service in this month.
6 Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a feast to the Lord. 7 Unleavened bread shall be eaten for seven days; no leavened bread shall be seen with you, and no leaven shall be seen with you in all your territory. 8 And you shall tell your son on that day, ‘It is because of what the Lord did for me when I came out of Egypt.’ 9 And it shall be to you as a sign on your hand and as a memorial between your eyes, that the law of the Lord may be in your mouth; for with a strong hand the Lord has brought you out of Egypt. 10 You shall therefore keep this ordinance at its appointed time from year to year.
The Consecration of the Firstborn
11 “And when the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites, as he swore to you and your fathers, and shall give it to you, 12 you shall set apart to the Lord all that first opens the womb. All the firstlings of your cattle that are males shall be the Lord’s. 13 Every firstling of an ass you shall redeem with a lamb, or if you will not redeem it you shall break its neck. Every first-born of man among your sons you shall redeem.
14 And when in time to come your son asks you, ‘What does this mean?’ you shall say to him, ‘By strength of hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt, from the house of bondage. 15 For when Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the Lord slew all the first-born in the land of Egypt, both the first-born of man and the first-born of cattle. Therefore I sacrifice to the Lord all the males that first open the womb; but all the first-born of my sons I redeem.’ 16 It shall be as a mark on your hand or frontlets between your eyes; for by a strong hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt.”
The Pillars of Cloud and Fire
17 When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near; for God said, “Lest the people repent when they see war, and return to Egypt.” 18 But God led the people round by the way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea. And the people of Israel went up out of the land of Egypt equipped for battle. 19 And Moses took the bones of Joseph with him; for Joseph had solemnly sworn the people of Israel, saying, “God will visit you; then you must carry my bones with you from here.”
20 And they moved on from Succoth, and encamped at Etham, on the edge of the wilderness. 21 And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night; 22 the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night did not depart from before the people.
Reading 15
677 words
Discussion questions:
1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (The Leader should point out that Yahweh is making clear to the children of Israel that they are His own firstborn, and does so by claiming every firstborn for Himself, and requiring them to redeem them with a sacrifice. The point of this is not to threaten them with death, as the Egyptians experienced, but rather to remind them of WHY this came upon the Egyptians, because Egypt had enslaved and mistreated His own Firstborn Son, the people of Israel, and He had redeemed all Israel from slavery. It is worth noting that “firstborn” signifies a certain legal status; the firstborn was the heir of the father and administered the inheritance to all other children. There is, of course, a prefigurement here of the Lord, the unique Son of God, the Firstborn of all creation (not that He is intrinsically part of the Creation, as He is rather co-eternal with the Father, but rather that He is Himself the one with the authority of the Firstborn, and administers the grace of the Father to all of us who are children by adoption. He should also point out that the text says clearly that Yahweh HIMSELF led the people out, veiled in a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night, and that He was always with them. It is also important to note that, as they go toward the Red Sea, they carry with them the bones of Joseph, who had been buried in Egypt 400 years before, but who had trusted that Yahweh would fulfill His promise to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and would bring them back out of Egypt. So, trusting, albeit in a veiled way, in the Resurrection, they carry even the dead out of slavery to freedom, out of death into life.)
2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here?
3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us?
4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )
5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?
6) “What is the a) literal, b) allegorical, c) moral/ethical, d) anagogical/eschatological meaning of this text? (Think of these questions as a mountain which we can ascend, or as layers of meaning upon which we can reflect. Oftentimes, as we reflect upon a text in this way, we may find that the highest level, the anagogical reading (in which we see the text as revealing the glory of God and His kingdom in a deeper manner, opening up to us the grand scope of God’s great work of salvation in and for us) sheds new insights on the lower levels of interpretation.)
Day 2 (Wednesday)
St. Gregory Palamas on Encountering God
St. Gregory Palamas was a saint of the 14th century, and the Archbishop of Thessaloniki. In his writings, he speaks a great deal about the practical reality of the Christian life. In this passage, he sums up how a Christian should respond to Jesus Christ’s coming into the world. Since we are celebrating the Feast of Ypapanti, the Meeting of the Lord with those who were waiting for Him in the Temple, it is good for us to consider this, how it is that we should behave ourselves as we encounter God. We join the saint as he is reflecting on the coming of death to humanity through our rebellion against God, and proceeding with wonder at how even this rebellion of ours becomes the instrument by which the Lord delivers us.
St. Gregory Palamas on Encountering God
54. O the depth of God’s riches, wisdom and compassion (cf. Rom. 11:33)! Had there been no death and had our race not become mortal prior to death – for it is from a mortal root – we should not in fact have been enriched with the firstfruit of immortality, nor should we have been called into the heavens, nor would our nature have been enthroned ‘above every principality and power’ (Eph. 1:21) ‘at the right hand of the Majesty in the heavens’ (Heb. 8:1). Thus God in His wisdom, power and compassion knows how to change for the better the lapses we suffer as a result of our freely-willed perversion.
55. Many may blame Adam for being so easily persuaded by that wicked counselor and for rejecting the divine commandment, thus becoming the agent of death for us all. Yet to wish to taste a deadly plant before actually doing so, and to desire to eat of such a plant after having learned by experience that it is deadly, are not the same thing. The man who drinks poison knowing that it is poison, and so wretchedly causes his own death, is more culpable than he who takes poison and so kills himself without knowing beforehand that it is poison. Therefore each of us is more culpable and guilty than Adam.
But, you might ask, is that tree really within us? Do we still have a commandment from God forbidding us to eat from that tree? Perhaps exactly that same tree is not within us, yet the commandment of God is with us even now. And if we obey it, and try to lead our life in accordance with it, it frees us from punishment for all our sins, as well as from the ancestral curse and condemnation. But if we now reject it, and choose instead the provocation and counsel of the evil one, we cannot but fall away from the life and fellowship of paradise and be cast into the gehenna of everlasting fire with which we were threatened.
56. What, then, is the divine commandment now laid upon us? It is repentance, the essence of which is never again to touch forbidden things. We were expelled from the land of divine delight, we were justly shut out from God’s paradise, and we have fallen into this pit where we are condemned to dwell together with dumb creatures without hope of returning – in so far as it depends on us – to the paradise we have lost. But He who initially passed a just sentence of punishment or, rather, justly permitted punishment to come upon us, has now in His great goodness, compassion and mercy descended for our sake to us.
And He became a human being like us in all things except sin so that by His likeness to us He might teach us anew and rescue us; and He gave us the saving counsel and commandment of repentance, saying: ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has drawn near’ (Matt. 3:2). Prior to the incarnation of the Logos of God the kingdom of heaven was as far from us as the sky is from the earth; but when the King of heaven came to dwell amongst us and chose to unite Himself with us, the kingdom of heaven drew near to us all.
57. Since the Logos of God through His descent to us has brought the kingdom of heaven close to us, let us not distance ourselves from it by leading an unrepentant life. Let us rather flee the wretchedness of those who sit ‘in darkness and the shadow of death’ (Isa. 9:2). Let us acquire the fruits of repentance: a humble disposition, compunction and spiritual grief, a gentle and merciful heart that loves righteousness and pursues purity, peaceful, peace-making, patient in toil, glad to endure persecution, loss, outrage, slander and suffering for the sake of truth and righteousness. For the kingdom of heaven or, rather, the King of heaven – ineffable in His generosity – is within us (cf. Luke 17:21); and to Him we should cleave through acts of repentance and patient endurance, loving as much as we can Him who so dearly has loved us.
Palmer, G. E. H.. The Philokalia Vol 4 (pp. 451-456). (Function). Kindle Edition.
704 words
Discussion questions:
1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (Leader should point out that St. Gregory both thinks that repentance is the most essential way we should respond to God’s grace, AND that he sees many other virtues flowing from repentance as its natural fruit. That means these virtues can help us discern whether or not we are actually living in repentance.)
2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here? (We learn that He is with us and within us – and He calls us to be with Him.)
3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us? (We learn what the Christian life should look like, in very basic terms, and therefore what the blessed life, the fulfilled life, looks like.).
4) What do you find difficult about this story? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (In this case, it may be a good idea simply to define some of the words St. Gregory uses. Disposition means mood/character, compunction means regret for sin, ineffable means beyond knowledge or definition, cleave means hold tight).
5) Does this story make you think that you need to change anything in your life? (The list of virtues and habits that St. Gregory mentions is a good “measuring stick” for us to apply to our own lives. Not just once, but always.)
6) “What is the a) literal, b) allegorical, c) moral/ethical, d) anagogical/eschatological meaning of this text? (Think of these questions as a mountain which we can ascend, or as layers of meaning upon which we can reflect. Oftentimes, as we reflect upon a text in this way, we may find that the highest level, the anagogical reading (in which we see the text as revealing the glory of God and His kingdom in a deeper manner, opening up to us the grand scope of God’s great work of salvation in and for us) sheds new insights on the lower levels of interpretation.)
Day 3 (Friday)
Luke 19:28-48 (Palm Sunday, Jesus Weeps Over Jerusalem, Cleanses the Temple)
Last time we saw the Lord enter Jericho and meet Zacchaeus, bringing salvation to this tax collected when he repented of his sins. The Lord also told a parable, of the master who had entrusted his servants with His money in order that they might put His wealth to work on His behalf.. This time, as we begin the period of Triodion, we will see the Lord enter Jerusalem and begin visibly to prepare for His Passion; in this way, we will reach the Crucifixion at Holy Week, and the Resurrection in Bright Week.
Jesus’ Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem
28 And when he had said this, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. 29 When he drew near to Beth′phage and Bethany, at the mount that is called Olivet, he sent two of the disciples, 30 saying, “Go into the village opposite, where on entering you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever yet sat; untie it and bring it here. 31 If any one asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ you shall say this, ‘The Lord has need of it.’”
32 So those who were sent went away and found it as he had told them. 33 And as they were untying the colt, its owners said to them, “Why are you untying the colt?” 34 And they said, “The Lord has need of it.” 35 And they brought it to Jesus, and throwing their garments on the colt they set Jesus upon it. 36 And as he rode along, they spread their garments on the road.
37 As he was now drawing near, at the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen, 38 saying, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” 39 And some of the Pharisees in the multitude said to him, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” 40 He answered, “I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out.”
Jesus Weeps over Jerusalem
41 And when he drew near and saw the city he wept over it, 42 saying, “Would that even today you knew the things that make for peace! But now they are hid from your eyes. 43 For the days shall come upon you, when your enemies will cast up a bank about you and surround you, and hem you in on every side, 44 and dash you to the ground, you and your children within you, and they will not leave one stone upon another in you; because you did not know the time of your visitation.”
Jesus Cleanses the Temple
45 And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold, 46 saying to them, “It is written, ‘My house shall be a house of prayer’; but you have made it a den of robbers.”
47 And he was teaching daily in the temple. The chief priests and the scribes and the principal men of the people sought to destroy him; 48 but they did not find anything they could do, for all the people hung upon his words.
Reading 41
454 words
Discussion questions:
1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (Leader should point out how, even though the people greet Jesus saying: “Blessed is He Who comes in the name of the Lord,” they clearly don’t understand who He is and what He comes to do. This is why He says that they “did not recognize the time of [their] visitation from God.” They were excited to welcome Him as a miracle-worker, or even as a potential Messiah, a king of the Jews to lead a rebellion against the Romans…but they didn’t realize that He was God Himself come to visit and save them. We need to be careful that we don’t miss the point of the Lord’s coming to us; it’s very easy to do.)
2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here?
3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us?
4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )
5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?
6) “What is the a) literal, b) allegorical, c) moral/ethical, d) anagogical/eschatological meaning of this text? (Think of these questions as a mountain which we can ascend, or as layers of meaning upon which we can reflect. Oftentimes, as we reflect upon a text in this way, we may find that the anagogical reading, in which we see the text as revealing the glory of God and His kingdom in a deeper manner, sheds new insights on the lower levels of interpretation.)
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