April 09 Kandili
A MESSAGE FROM FATHER LOU
How is Your Wedding Garment?
“I see Your bridal chamber adorned, O my Savior, and I have no wedding garment, that I may enter therein; O Giver of Light, make radiant the vesture of my soul, and save me.” Hymn of the Holy Week Services of the Bridegroom
Spring is in the air – snowstorms and all. Among the fresh signs of spring, many brides are making final preparations for that special day in their lives. Final fittings for “that perfect dress”, their groom’s tuxedos, and bridesmaids’ dresses have been scheduled. Most of us have been here and experienced the excitement that fills the air in anticipation of such a great event.Within the Church, another special day is coming, with excitement of its own. In a few short weeks, the Church and all of her members are invited to participate in the annual “Day of Days”, the Resurrection of our Lord. She, the bride, and all her members are invited to spiritually unite with the Bridegroom, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Neither He nor she is decked out in the finest of clothes. The final fittings are not for outer garments, but rather for radiant souls. The Bridegroom is clothed in the extreme humility of His purple robe of mockery, a crown of thorns and the open wounds from the stripes of scourging. Carrying His cross of Golgotha, He invites you and me, as members of His Church, to be His Bride. But to do this we too must don the garment of extreme humility; submitting our lives to Him in order that His light may dawn within us; making radiant the “vesture” of our souls; a union of the Divine and the human then occurs which “no man can tear asunder”.
God’s great love for us is fulfilled in the death and glorious resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Through His incredible act of humility in becoming man, dying on the cross and resurrecting in glory, He is with us. Likewise, it takes humility from us to be with Him. May we glorify our loving Lord for His great humility and submit our lives to Him, dying more to sin in our lives and living anew with Him in His life-giving resurrection. Have a glorious Pascha.
With our Lord’s blessings,
Fr. Lou
(NOTE: The Holy week services of Palm Sunday evening, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday evenings, are the Matins Service of the Bridegroom. The parables of The Ten Virgins (Mt. 25:1-13) and Wedding feast (Mt. 22:2-15), provide the theme: preparedness to meet the Bridegroom. Metaphorically, our Lord Jesus is the Bridegroom and the Church (the faithful), is the Bride. The Icon of the Bridegroom placed in the center of the solea during these services, depicts our Lord after He has been beaten, a crown of thorns placed upon His head, and adorned with the robe of mockery, just prior to His crucifixion. Preparedness with repentance in righteousness lies in attempting to match our Lord’s humility and turning our soul to Him. Thus, humility is the proper garment in order for us to enter into our Lord’s wedding feast.)