The Crosswise Blessing of the Patriarch Jacob as a Foreshadowing of the Cross

 

In Genesis 48:8-20 we read:

When Israel [Jacob] saw the sons of Joseph, he asked, “Who are these?”

“They are the sons God has given me here,” Joseph said to his father.

Then Israel said, “Bring them to me so I may bless them.”

Now Israel’s eyes were failing because of old age, and he could hardly see. So Joseph brought his sons close to him, and his father kissed them and embraced them.

Israel said to Joseph, “I never expected to see your face again, and now God has allowed me to see your children too.”

Then Joseph removed them from Israel’s knees and bowed down with his face to the ground. And Joseph took both of them, Ephraim on his right toward Israel’s left hand and Manasseh on his left toward Israel’s right hand, and brought them close to him. But Israel reached out his right hand and put it on Ephraim’s head, though he was the younger, and crossing his arms, he put his left hand on Manasseh’s head, even though Manasseh was the firstborn.

Joseph the All-Comely as a Prefiguration of the Lord and as a Model for Us

By Metropolitan Kallinikos Karousos of Piraeus

"Jacob lamented the loss of Joseph; yet the courageous one sat on a chariot, honored as a king. For by refusing to be enslaved by the pleasures of the Egyptian woman, he was later glorified in return by Him who sees men's hearts and deals out the imperishable crown."

Tonight our Church sets before us at the beginning of Holy Week the Righteous Joseph. And the All-Comely Joseph has a major association with Passion Week for two reasons.

First, because in Joseph we have a prefiguration of the Lord.

Second, because Joseph with his prudent conduct provides us with good lessons for our spiritual struggle, especially now during Holy Week.

Why the Holy Spirit Descended as a Dove Upon Christ

By St. Cyril of Jerusalem

(Catechetical Lecture 17.9-10)

This Holy Spirit came down when the Lord was baptized, that the dignity of Him who was baptized might not be hidden; as John says, "But He which sent me to baptize with water, the same said to me, Upon whomsoever you shall see the Spirit descending and remaining upon Him, the same is He which baptizes with the Holy Spirit" (John. 1:33). But see what says the Gospel: "the heavens were opened;" they were opened because of the dignity of Him who descended; for, "lo," he says, "the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove, and lighting upon Him" (Matthew 3:16); that is, with voluntary motion in His descent. For it was fit, as some have interpreted, that the primacy and first-fruits of the Holy Spirit promised to the baptized should be conferred upon the manhood of the Savior, who is the giver of such grace. But perhaps He came down in the form of a dove, as some say, to exhibit a figure of that dove who is pure and innocent and undefiled, and also helps the prayers for the children she has begotten, and for forgiveness of sins; even as it was emblematically foretold that Christ should be thus manifested in the appearance of His eyes; for in the Canticles she cries concerning the Bridegroom, and says, "Your eyes are as doves by the rivers of water" (Song of Songs 5:12).

A Clarification on the Ascension of Enoch and Elijah by St. Gregory Palamas

By St. Gregory Palamas

Today the Lord not only stood with His disciples after His resurrection, but was also parted from them and was taken up into heaven as they watched, ascended and entered into the true Holy of Holies and sat down on the right hand of the Father, far above all principality and power and every name and honor that is known and named, either in this world, or in that which is to come. There were many resurrections before Christ’s resurrection, and similarly, there were many ascensions before His ascension. The Spirit lifted up Jeremiah the prophet, and an angel took up Habakkuk. In particular it is written that Elijah went up with a chariot of fire. But even he did not go beyond the realms of earth, and the ascension of each of those mentioned was just a sort of movement lifting them up from the ground without taking them out of the area surrounding the earth. Similarly, the others who were resurrected all died and returned to the earth. By contrast, Christ has risen and death no longer has dominion over Him, and now He has ascended and sat down on high, every height is below Him and bears witness that He is God over all.

- Homily 1 on the Ascension of Christ

God carried away Enoch too, but did He take him to Heaven? Certainly not! For "no man hath ascended up to Heaven, but He that came down from Heaven." ... If, however, it is written that Enoch was moved to somewhere on earth by God, he was clearly taken to a lesser place than that now allotted to the Virgin, for nowhere on earth is more sacred than the Holy of Holies.

- Homily 2 on the Entrance of the Theotokos into the Temple

On the Controversial Statements of Metropolitan Neophytos of Morphou

I learned lately about the issue created around the sacred personality of His Eminence the Holy Metropolitan Neophytos of Morphou concerning one of his pastoral messages and the uproar of many regarding this issue.

Because the pastoral issues of Bishops have universal power, I as a humble Bishop would also like to submit some thoughts, which I think are useful for this entire issue. What I will write will be done with simplicity, as a catechism for the people, by whom it will be read.

Who Sold Joseph? (Abba John the Dwarf)

Abba John asked, ‘Who sold Joseph?’ A brother replied saying, ‘It was his brethren.’ The old man said to him, ‘No, it was his humility which sold him, because he could have said, “I am their brother” and have objected, but, because he kept silence, he sold himself by his humility. It is also his humility which set him up as chief in Egypt.'

Abba John the Dwarf
(Sayings of the Desert Fathers)

Saints Martha and Mary, Sisters of Lazarus

Sts. Martha and Mary of Bethany (Feast Day - June 4)

Verses

The sisters of Lazarus from Bethany,
Believed you were capable of saving him although dead.
On the fourth Martha and Mary set out for the bright heavens.

One of the Lord's most beloved families, Mary and Martha lived with their brother Lazarus at Bethany, a village not far from Jerusalem. They are mentioned in several episodes in the Gospels.

Sermon on Joseph the Most Virtuous (St. Ephraim the Syrian)

By St. Ephraim the Syrian

Invocation

God of Abraham,* God of Isaac,
God of Jacob, * blessed God,

who chose the * holy seed of your
own servants * who love you,

as you are good grant, * that there may flow in me
the streams of grace * in great abundance,

that I may be able * to recount the radiant
and mighty spectacle * of the most virtuous Joseph,

who had become the ever * revered support
of the profound old age * of the patriarch Jacob.

For this, this youth * from his earliest years
depicted the two * comings of Christ:

the first was * from the Virgin Mary,
the other the one that is going * to terrify the universe.

Joseph the Patriarch in the Homilies of John Chrysostom

By John Lee Fortner

As Johannes Quasten has noted, “Among the Greek Fathers none has left so extensive a literary legacy as Chrysostom.” This collection of texts is particularly rich in the area of exegetical homilies, comprising sermons by Chrysostom on Genesis, Psalms, Isaiah and most of the books of the New Testament. Throughout these exegetical homilies, Chrysostom draws on key figures in Jewish history to illustrate the points of his exegesis. These figures include such notables as Job, Daniel, David, Moses, Abraham, Jacob, and most importantly for this study, the figure of Joseph. Chrysostom focused on two key events in the life of Joseph: Joseph’s relationship with his brothers and the attempted seduction of Joseph by Potiphar’s wife. These events in the life of Joseph were used to portray him as a moral exemplar, particularly focusing on his patience and endurance through suffering and his temperance or chastity in the face of his confrontation with Potiphar’s wife.

Commemoration of Righteous Abel, Son of Adam

Verses

Your blood and soul apart cry out to God,
O first of the dead, and first of the saved.

According to Genesis 4:1-12:

'Adam knew his wife Eve, and she became pregnant and gave birth to Cain. She said, “With the help of the Lord I have brought forth a man.” Later she gave birth to his brother Abel. Now Abel kept flocks, and Cain worked the soil. In the course of time Cain brought some of the fruits of the soil as an offering to the Lord. And Abel also brought an offering — fat portions from some of the firstborn of his flock. The Lord looked with favor on Abel and his offering, but on Cain and his offering he did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast. Then the Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.”

A Poem on Abraham and Isaac (St. Ephraim the Syrian)

Introduction

Among the many metrical texts in Greek attributed to Saint Ephraim the Syrian are a number of long poems devoted to Old Testament figures. The one presented here is particularly interesting since it is clearly related to a text of Saint Gregory of Nyssa On the Nature of the Son, which may be found in PG 46:565-576. It is very difficult to decide which text is the earlier and the few few scholars who have given any attention to the subject are divided. I am inclined to think that St Gregory’s text is the earlier, since it includes none of the passages in St Ephrem’s text which are explicitly Christological; for example the long typological series of stanzas (9 to 27) on the Incarnation, or that on Isaac and Christ (94 to 106). Whether the poem has links to the Syrian Ephraim is another very difficult question. The description of the tree on which the ram is found hanging as ’a Sabek plant’ must be based on the Septuagint, on the other hand the idea that the tree and the ram were a special miraculous creation is also found in St Ephraim’s own Syriac Commentary on Genesis, ’The ram had not been there, since Isaac asked about the lamb. The tree was not there, since the wood on Isaac’s shoulders shows it. The mountain threw up the tree, and the tree the ram; so that by the ram which was hanging from the tree and became a sacrifice for Abraham’s son, might be prefigured the one who hung like a ram from the wood, and who would taste death for the whole world’. [On Genesis, 20.1]

The Patristic Interpretation of the Seduction of Lot By His Two Daughters

By John Sanidopoulos

Genesis 19:30-38 describes how Lot's two daughters, shortly after the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, got their father drunk on wine, engaged in sexual intercourse with him on two successive nights, though he was unaware due to intoxication, and became pregnant, and eventually gave birth to two sons Moab and Benammi. Their sons, born of incest, are described as founding the Moabite and Ammonite nations, which became continuous enemies of Israel.

This scandalous event in the Book of Genesis has long troubled interpreters, especially when one considers the fact that Ruth was a descendant of Moab, and her offspring became a descendant of Jesus Christ. This means that one of the descendants of Christ was born through incest, between Lot and his oldest daughter. It also troubles readers because they don't know what to make of it, since incest seems so obviously wrong on many levels.

Synaxarion of the Holy and Righteous Abraham and Lot

Righteous Abraham and Lot (Feast Day - October 9)

Verses

To Abraham.

When Abraham died, what abode did he go to?
For there is no other bosom, than the abode of Lazarus.

To Lot.

For Lot heaven was like a new Zoar,
Which he arrived at after fleeing the fire of this life.

Orthodox Images of the Destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah

"Your children who follow you in later generations and foreigners who come from distant lands will see the calamities that have fallen on the land and the diseases with which the Lord has afflicted it. The whole land will be a burning waste of salt and sulfur—nothing planted, nothing sprouting, no vegetation growing on it. It will be like the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboyim, which the Lord overthrew in fierce anger." (Deuteronomy 29:22-23)

Saint Paisios the Athonite On How Abraham Used His Mind Properly

From the book With Pain and Love for Contemporary Man, which contains teachings of Saint Paisios the Athonite to his spiritual daughters, compiled and published by the Monastery of Saint John the Theologian in Souroti, Greece.

- In other words, Elder, we should use our mind against the passions?

- Not only that, but more generally, we should take notice of God’s beneficence and of the universe all around us and give Him thanks and praise. You see, it was Abraham that first sought God, not the other way around.

Righteous Abraham and Lot Resource Page

Righteous Abraham and Lot (Feast Day - October 9)

Verses

To Abraham.

When Abraham died, what abode did he go to?
For there is no other bosom, than the abode of Lazarus.

To Lot.

For Lot heaven was like a new Zoar,
Which he arrived at after fleeing the fire of this life.

 

Abraham

Synaxarion of the Holy and Righteous Abraham and Lot

The Promise to Abraham Fulfilled In Christ (St. Irenaeus of Lyon)

A Poem on Abraham and Isaac (St. Ephraim the Syrian)

A Homily On the Faith of Abraham the Patriarch (St. Nikolai Velimirovich)

Abraham, the Knight of Faith

Icon of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob With His Twelve Sons

Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus (video)

Saint Paisios the Athonite on How Abraham Used His Mind Properly

Lot

Homily on the Righteousness of Lot, Nephew of Abraham (St. Nikolai Velimirovich)

Why Is Lot Called "Righteous" If He Offered His Daughters To Be Raped?

The Patristic Interpretation of the Seduction of Lot By His Two Daughters

Orthodox Images of the Destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah

The Holy Monastery of Saint Lot in Zoara

Monastery of the Holy Cross in Jerusalem

The Method By Which St. Cyril of Alexandria Corrected a Theological Error of a Holy Elder

The same Abba Daniel told of another great old man who dwelt in lower Egypt, who in his simplicity, said that Melchizedek was the son of God. When blessed Cyril, Archbishop of Alexandria, was told about this he sent someone to him. Learning that the old man was a worker of miracles and that all he asked of God was revealed to him, and that it was because of his simplicity that he had given utterance to this saying, using guile the Archbishop said to him,

The Joseph Story: Narrative, Theology and the Christian Hope

By Patrick Henry Reardon

The following literary and theological reflections on the Old Testament story of Joseph have no other purpose than Christian edification. Besides studying the narrative as a normal part of lectio divina over the years, I have preached on certain aspects of it occasionally during more than three decades in the pulpit. I have also lectured on the text numerous times, both in parish ministry and as an Old Testament professor in college and seminary, and have researched the many technical questions connected with that text in preparation for those lectures. In these lines I intend simply to share my own reading of that section of Genesis with a wider audience of Christians. Although this reading follows sympathies that are very personal, I hope that they are not merely idiosyncratic and that others may find them helpful.1 Perhaps one will best think of the following lines as a sort of meditation.

The Analogy of Eve and the Theotokos (St. Irenaeus of Lyons)

By St. Irenaeus of Lyons

Against Heresies (Book III, Chapter 22)

1. Those, therefore, who allege that [our Lord Jesus] took nothing from the Virgin do greatly err, since, in order that they may cast away the inheritance of the flesh, they also reject the analogy [between Him and Adam]. For if the one who sprang from the earth had indeed formation and substance from both the hand and workmanship of God, but the other not from the hand and workmanship of God, then He who was made after the image and likeness of the former did not, in that case, preserve the analogy of man, and He must seem an inconsistent piece of work, not having wherewith He may show His wisdom. But this is to say, that He also appeared putatively as man when He was not man, and that He was made man while taking nothing from man. For if He did not receive the substance of flesh from a human being, He neither was made man nor the Son of man; and if He was not made what we were, He did no great thing in what He suffered and endured. But every one will allow that we are [composed of] a body taken from the earth, and a soul receiving spirit from God. This, therefore, the Word of God was made, recapitulating in Himself His own handiwork; and on this account does He confess Himself the Son of man, and blesses "the meek, because they shall inherit the earth" (Matt. 5:5). The Apostle Paul, moreover, in the Epistle to the Galatians, declares plainly, "God sent His Son, made of a woman" (Gal. 4:4). And again, in that to the Romans, he says, "Concerning His Son, who was made of the seed of David according to the flesh, who was predestinated as the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord" (Rom. 1:3-4).

Homily on the Banishment and Repentance of Adam and Every Christian (St. Symeon the New Theologian)

Homily 66

The Banishment and Repentance of Adam and Every Christian

By St. Symeon the New Theologian

1. CONCERNING THE BANISHMENT OF ADAM FROM PARADISE, AND THAT IF HE HAD REPENTED AFTER TRANSGRESSING THE COMMANDMENT OF GOD, HE WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN BANISHED FROM PARADISE.

In the beginning God created man as the king of everything earthly, and not only of everything earthly, but of everything under the vault of heaven; for the sun also and the moon and the stars were created for man. And so being king of all this visible world, did man endure from this any kind of harm for his virtue? No, he did not. On the contrary, if he had always given thanks for this to God Who had created him, and had dedicated all of this to Him, he would have advanced yet more in virtues. And if he had not transgressed the commandment of God, of course, he would not have lost the kingdom which he had, and he would not have fallen away from the glory of God. But since he transgressed the commandment of God, he was justly banished from paradise and began to live in labors and cares, and died in banishment.