Sunday<\/p>\n
John 12:\u00a0Then, six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was who had been dead, whom He had raised from the dead. <\/span> 2\u00a0<\/sup>There they made Him a supper; and Martha served, but Lazarus was one of those who sat at the table with Him. <\/span> 3\u00a0<\/sup>Then Mary took a pound of very costly oil of spikenard, anointed the feet of Jesus, and wiped His feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil.<\/span><\/p>\n 4\u00a0<\/sup>But one of His disciples, Judas Iscariot, Simon\u2019s son,<\/i> who would betray Him, said, <\/span> 5\u00a0<\/sup>\u201cWhy was this fragrant oil not sold for three hundred denari\u00a0and given to the poor?\u201d <\/span> 6\u00a0<\/sup>This he said, not that he cared for the poor, but because he was a thief, and had the money box; and he used to take what was put in it.<\/span><\/p>\n 7\u00a0<\/sup>But Jesus said, \u201cLet her alone; she has kept<\/span>\u00a0this for the day of My burial.<\/span> <\/span> 8\u00a0<\/sup>For the poor you have with you always, but Me you do not have always.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n 9\u00a0<\/sup>Now a great many of the Jews knew that He was there; and they came, not for Jesus\u2019 sake only, but that they might also see Lazarus, whom He had raised from the dead. <\/span> 10\u00a0<\/sup>But the chief priests plotted to put Lazarus to death also, <\/span> 11\u00a0<\/sup>because on account of him many of the Jews went away and believed in Jesus.<\/span><\/p>\n 12\u00a0<\/sup>The next day a great multitude that had come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, <\/span> 13\u00a0<\/sup>took branches of palm trees and went out to meet Him, and cried out:<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cHosanna!<\/span> 14\u00a0<\/sup>Then Jesus, when He had found a young donkey, sat on it; as it is written:<\/span><\/p>\n 15\u00a0<\/sup>\u201cFear not, daughter of Zion;<\/span><\/span> 16\u00a0<\/sup>His disciples did not understand these things at first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things were written about Him and that<\/i> they had done these things to Him.<\/span><\/p>\n 17\u00a0<\/sup>Therefore the people, who were with Him when He called Lazarus out of his tomb and raised him from the dead, bore witness. <\/span> 18\u00a0<\/sup>For this reason the people also met Him, because they heard that He had done this sign.<\/span><\/p>\n From St. Theophlact:<\/p>\n The Jews, when they called Him King of Israel, dreamed of an earthly king. They expected a king to arise, of more than human greatness, who would deliver them from the government of the Romans. But how did our Lord come? The next words tell us; And Jesus when He had found a young ass, sat thereon…See then the consequences of our Lord\u2019s passion. It was not to no purpose that He had reserved His greatest miracle for the last. For the resurrection of Lazarus it was that made the crowd believe in Him.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Monday<\/p>\n Devotions for Holy Week will utilize the summaries from the Antiochian Orthodox Church\u2026<\/p>\n Great Lent and Holy Week are two separate fasts, and two separate celebrations.\u00a0 Great Lent ends on Friday of the fifth week (the day before Lazarus Saturday).\u00a0 Holy Week begins immediately thereafter. Let’s explore the meaning of each of the solemn days of Passion Week.<\/p>\n Lazarus Saturday<\/em><\/strong>:\u00a0 Lazarus Saturday is the day which begins Holy Week.\u00a0 It commemorates the raising of our Lord’s friend Lazarus, who had been in the tomb four days.\u00a0 This act confirmed the universal resurrection from the dead that all of us will experience at our Lord’s Second Coming.\u00a0 This miracle led many to faith, but it also led to the chief priest’s and Pharisees’ decision to kill Jesus (John 11:47-57).<\/p>\n Palm Sunday<\/em><\/strong> (The Entrance of our Lord into Jerusalem):\u00a0 Our Lord enters Jerusalem and is proclaimed king – but in an earthly sense, as many people of His time were seeking a political Messiah.\u00a0 Our Lord is King, of course, but of a different type – the eternal King prophesied by Zechariah the Prophet.\u00a0 We use palms on this day to show that we too accept Jesus as the true King and Messiah of the Jews, Who we are willing to follow – even to the cross.<\/p>\n Holy Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday<\/em><\/strong>:\u00a0 The first thing that must be said about these services, and most of the other services of Holy Week, is that they are “sung” in anticipation.\u00a0 Each service is rotated ahead twelve hours.\u00a0 The evening service, therefore, is actually the service of the next morning, while the morning services of Holy Thursday and Holy Saturday are actually the services of the coming evening. Understanding that, let’s turn to the Services of Holy Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday (celebrated Palm Sunday , Monday and Tuesday evening).\u00a0 The services of these days are known as the Bridegroom or Nymphios Orthros Services.\u00a0 At the first service of Palm Sunday evening, the priest carries the icon of Christ the Bridegroom in procession, and we sing the “Hymn of the Bridegroom.”<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Tuesday<\/p>\n We behold Christ as the Bridegroom of the Church, bearing the marks of His suffering, yet preparing a marriage Feast for us in God’s Kingdom.<\/p>\n Each of these Bridegroom Orthros services has a particular theme.\u00a0 On Holy Monday, the Blessed Joseph, the son of Jacob the Patriarch, is commemorated.\u00a0 Joseph is often seen as a Type of Christ.\u00a0 Joseph was betrayed by his brothers, thrown into a pit, and sold into slavery by them.\u00a0 In the same way, our Lord was rejected, betrayed by His own, and sold into the slavery of death.\u00a0 The Gospel reading for the day is about the barren fig tree, which Christ cursed and withered because it bore no fruit.\u00a0 The fig tree is a parable of those who have heard God’s word, but who fail to bear the fruit of obedience.\u00a0 Originally the withering of the fig tree was a testimony against those Jews who rejected God’s word and His Messiah.\u00a0 However, it is also a warning to all people, in all times, of the importance of not only hearing the God’s word, but putting it into action.<\/p>\n The Parable of the Ten Virgins is read on Holy Tuesday.\u00a0 It tells the story of the five virgins who filled their lamps in preparation for receiving the bridegroom while the other five allowed their lamps to go out, and hence were shut out of the marriage feast.\u00a0 This parable is a warning that we must always be prepared to receive our Lord when He comes again.\u00a0 The theme of the day is reinforced by the expostelarion hymn we sing:\u00a0 “I see Thy Bridal Chamber adorned, O my Savior, but have no wedding garment that I may enter.\u00a0 O Giver of Light, enlighten the vesture of my soul, and save me.”<\/p>\n Wednesday<\/p>\n The theme of Holy Wednesday is repentance and forgiveness.\u00a0 We remember the sinful woman who anointed our Lord in anticipation of His death.\u00a0 Her repentance and love of Christ is the theme of the wonderful “Hymn of Kassiane” which is chanted on this night, reminding us one more time, before “it is too late,” that we too may be forgiven if\u00a0 we repent.<\/p>\n Holy Unction<\/em><\/strong>:\u00a0 The Mystery or Sacrament of Holy Unction is celebrated on Holy Wednesday evening. Actually this service can be celebrated any time during the year, especially when one is ill.\u00a0 However, because of our need for forgiveness and spiritual healing, we offer this service during Holy Week for the remission of our sins.\u00a0 We should prepare for this service in a prayerful way, as we do for Holy Communion.<\/p>\n Thursday<\/p>\n Great and Holy Thursday<\/em><\/strong>:\u00a0 On Holy Thursday we turn to the last events of our Lord and His Passion.\u00a0 Thursday morning begins with a Vesperal Divine Liturgy commemorating the Mystical Supper. As previously mentioned, this is actually Holy Thursday evening’s service celebrated in the morning in anticipation.\u00a0 Everyone who is able should make an effort to receive Holy Communion at this service as it was at the Mystical Supper that our Lord instituted the Holy Eucharist.\u00a0 At this Liturgy a second Host is consecrated and kept in the Tabernacle.\u00a0 It is from this Host that Holy Communion is distributed to the shut-ins and the sick throughout the coming year.<\/p>\n Thursday evening<\/em><\/strong> actually begins the services of Great and Holy Friday.\u00a0 The service of the Twelve Passion Gospels commemorates the solemn time of our Lord’s Crucifixion.\u00a0 After the reading of the fifth Gospel, the holy cross is carried around the church in procession, and Christ’s body is nailed to the cross in the center of the church.<\/p>\n Friday<\/p>\n Great and Holy Friday<\/em><\/strong>:\u00a0 This is a day of strict fast.\u00a0 As little as possible should be eaten on this day.\u00a0 It is the only day in the entire year that no Divine Liturgy of any kind can be celebrated.\u00a0 In the morning we celebrate the Royal Hours.\u00a0 These solemn hours are observed as we read the various accounts and hymns concerning the crucifixion.\u00a0 In the afternoon we celebrate the Vesper service of the taking down of Christ’s body from the cross.\u00a0 During the Gospel reading, our Lord’s body is taken off the cross and wrapped in a new, white linen sheet.\u00a0 This act commemorates the removal of Christ’s body from the cross by Joseph of Arimathea (John 19:38-42). Later in the service, the Epitaphios, or winding-sheet, with Christ’s body on it is carried in procession and placed in the recently decorated tomb.\u00a0 In the evening the Lamentations Orthros service is sung.\u00a0 This service begins in a solemn manner, but by the end of the service we are already anticipating the Resurrection of our Lord. \u00a0Remember again, that the Holy Friday evening Orthros is actually the first service of Holy Saturday, the day in which we commemorate our Lord’s body resting in the tomb while His all-pure soul descends into Hades to free the faithful of the Old Covenant.<\/p>\n Saturday<\/p>\n Great and Holy Saturday<\/em><\/strong>:\u00a0 This day is a day of hope and waiting.\u00a0 In the morning we celebrate a Vesperal Divine Liturgy which commemorates Christ’s victory over death.\u00a0 Bright vestments are worn as we anticipate Christ’s Resurrection.\u00a0 Laurel leaves are strewn throughout the church during the service, because in the ancient world laurel leaves were a sign of victory.\u00a0 As the leaves are strewn, the choir chants “Arise O God and Judge the earth, for to Thee belong all the nations.”\u00a0 The Old Testament story of Jonah in the belly of the whale is read at this service because Jonah is seen in the Church as a Type of Christ.\u00a0 As Jonah was three days in the belly of the great fish, and was then safely deposited back onto land, so our Lord was three days in the tomb before His glorious Resurrection.\u00a0 The Vesperal Divine Liturgy of Holy Saturday concludes the services of Holy Week, and brings us to the eve of Great and Holy Pascha.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Sunday John 12:\u00a0Then, six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus was who had been dead, whom He had raised from the dead. 2\u00a0There they made Him […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4618","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-orthodox-daily-devotional","has_no_thumb"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/orthodoxinsight.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4618","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/orthodoxinsight.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/orthodoxinsight.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/orthodoxinsight.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/orthodoxinsight.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4618"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/orthodoxinsight.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4618\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4619,"href":"https:\/\/orthodoxinsight.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4618\/revisions\/4619"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/orthodoxinsight.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4618"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/orthodoxinsight.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4618"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/orthodoxinsight.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4618"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n\u2018Blessed<\/span> is<\/i> He who comes in the name of the L<\/span>ord<\/span>!\u2019<\/span><\/span>
\nThe King of Israel!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\nBehold, your King is coming,<\/span><\/span>
\nSitting on a donkey\u2019s colt.”<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n