Orienting to the Liturgy: 33rd Sunday After Pentecost--The Sunday of the Pharisee and the Publican

33^nd Sunday After Pentecost (Tone 1) Sunday of the Pharisee and the Publican

Тhe Beginning of the Time of the Triodion—The Zahalnytsa of the Armenians

[The week that falls between the Sunday of the Pharisee and the Publican and the Sunday of the Prodigal Son is designated as “The Zahalnytsa of the Armenians,” a period of non-fasting, which probably originates in the seventh century.  The history of its origin is carefully noted in the Typikon.  Every spring, before the onset of the Great Fast, the Armenian Church observes a special and separate week of fasting, known to them as “The Fast of the Ninevites,” commemorating the fact that the sinful people of Nineveh repented at the preaching of the Prophet Jonah. They fasted, and put on sackcloth as a sign of penance.  The Armenian Apostolic Church is officially Monophysite, that is, they reject the teaching of the Council of Chalcedon (451) that Jesus Christ is one single Divine Person, who subsists in two natures: human and Divine.  Therefore, the Byzantine Church regards the Armenians as heretics.  The Greeks, wishing to ridicule their neighbours’ heterodox faith, made up a story that “explained” the Armenians’ fast.  The story goes that the Armenian Patriarch Sergius IV had a favourite dog named Artsivurius. The Patriarch would send the dog out into all the villages and towns, which he himself intended to visit, carrying written greetings.  Then, one day, however, Artsivurius was attacked and killed by wolves on one of his errands.  The Patriarch proclaimed a fast to mourn for the dog, and the custom of this fast persists in the Armenian Church to this day.  Therefore, while the Armenians fast, the Greeks feast, because those Christians who have the right faith are not going to mourn for a dog.

     Although we certainly want no part in the nastiness and bitterness that led to the adoption of this custom, nevertheless, the Zahalnytsa is a good opportunity for us to eliminate all the excess meat in our freezers and refrigerators before the onset of the Great Fast, and to remember that having the right faith in Jesus Christ has benefits if we live according to that faith—the inheritance of the everlasting feast in the Kingdom of God.

There is no fasting during the week between the Sunday of the Publican and the Pharisee and the Sunday of the Prodigal Son, even on Wednesday and Friday.]

Enarxis—We prepare our hearts to hear the Word of God

[In the Beatitudes, we sing “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.” Poverty of spirit is the same virtue as humility.  We see this virtue very plainly in the tax collector of today’s Gospel.  The 19^th century spiritual writer John of Kronstadt writes: “To describe spiritual poverty, then, let us first consider bodily poverty, so we can explain like by like…The pauper in spirit is the person who sincerely admits he is a spiritual pauper, with nothing to call his own. He waits for everything from God’s mercy alone, he is convinced that he can neither think nor wish anything good if God does not give him a good thought or a good impulse, he knows that he cannot perform even one truly good deed without the grace of Jesus Christ…Where there is humility, a recognition of one’s own destitution, one’s poverty, and one’s wretchedness, there is God. [The Lord said] “He hath appointed me to preach the gospel to the poor,” that is, to the poor in spirit, and not the wealthy, for their pride pushes away the grace of God from them, and they remain an empty and foul-smelling house.”]

Tropar, Tone 1

Though the stone was sealed by the Judeans* and soldiers guarded Your most pure body,* You arose, O Saviour, on the third day,* and gave life to the world.* And so the heavenly powers cried out to You, O Giver of Life:* Glory to Your resurrection, O Christ!* Glory to Your kingdom!* Glory to Your saving plan,* O only Lover of Mankind.

Glory…Now…

Kondak of the Triodion, Tone 3

Let us bring sighs of sorrow to the Lord as did the Publican* and approach the Master as sinners,* for He desires salvation for everyone.* He grants forgiveness to all who repent.* For as God, the One-Who-Is, co-eternal with the Father, He became flesh for us.

Prokimen, Tone 1

Let Your mercy, O Lord, be upon us, as we have hoped in You.

v. Rejoice in the Lord, O you just; praise befits the righteous.

A READING FROM THE 2nd LETTER OF SAINT PAUL,

THE APOSTLE, TO TIMOTHY:

My son Timothy, you have followed my teaching, way of life, purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, persecutions, and sufferings, such as happened to me in Antioch, Iconium, and Lystra, persecutions that I endured. Yet from all these things the Lord delivered me. In fact, all who want to live religiously in Christ Jesus will be persecuted. But wicked people and charlatans will go from bad to worse, deceivers and deceived. But you, remain faithful to what you have learned and believed, because you know from whom you learned it, and that from infancy you have known (the) sacred scriptures, which are capable of giving you wisdom for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. (2 Tim. 3,10-15)

[The Holy Apostle Paul warns us that “all who want to live religiously in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” Naturally, this would lead us to question the quality of our Christian life if we feel no tension, no friction with the ways and expectations of the world.  If we are not, in some way, being persecuted for our faith in Christ, then we need to change our hearts and our ways to follow Him more fully. The way of poverty of spirit—that is, humility—is very foreign to the ways of the world, where the rule is self-promotion at any cost.]

Alleluia, Tone 1

God gives me vindication, and has subdued people under me.

v. Making great the salvation of the king, and showing mercy to His anointed, to David, and to His posterity for ever.

A READING FROM THE HOLY GOSPEL ACCORDING TO

SAINT LUKE:

The Lord told this parable: "Two people went up to the temple area to pray; one was a Pharisee and the other was a tax collector. The Pharisee took up his position and spoke this prayer to himself, 'O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity--greedy, dishonest, adulterous--or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week, and I pay tithes on my whole income.' But the tax collector stood off at a distance and would not even raise his eyes to heaven but beat his breast and prayed, 'O God, be merciful to me a sinner.' I tell you, the latter went home justified, not the former; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted." (Lk. 18,10-14)

[The description of the Pharisee’s prayer is even clearer in the original Greek.  This man prays “to himself.” He is his own god. He is his own source of perfection and righteousness.]

Communion verse

Praise the Lord from the heavens, praise Him in the highest.

Alleluia (3)