Dear Bothers and Sisters in Christ,

Congratulations with the Resurrection of the Lord, as well as the fourth Sunday of Great Lent!

Last week the Gospel reading ended with the following words: “And [Jesus] said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That there be some of them that stand here, which shall not taste of death, till they have seen the kingdom of God come with power” (Mark 9: 1). When we heard these words on the Sunday of the Cross, they naturally bring to mind what came after the Cross, i. e. the Resurrection of Christ. We remember that it was then that the Kingdom of God truly became accessible to all the faithful, or, using the Saviour’s words, they saw the Kingdom of God come with power. Although there is nothing wrong with this explanation of these words, the Gospel text seems to point to a different understanding to the concluding words of last week’s Gospel.

Immediately after these words, all three of the synoptic evangelists (Matthew, Mark and Luke) pass on to the events of the Transfiguration of the Lord. We don’t read about this event during the time of Great Lent, nor do we celebrate this feast now, but it’s good to remember that the Transfiguration is closely tied to the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Christ. Remembering this, we can consider that three of the apostles, in the most literal sense, saw, as much as they were able, the Kingdom of God come with power at that moment when Christ transfigured before them.

Today’s Gospel excerpt follows immediately after the description of the Transfiguration. Thus there is a liturgical cue: “Don’t forget about the Transfiguration!” Today we heard the familiar and famous words of the father of the sick boy: “Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.” It would be good for us to pray with these words more often. We all know what our goal is and how we should live, but often it happens that we do not fulfill that which we know we have to do. It’s as if we don’t have the willpower or not enough faith or love to compel ourselves to act correctly. Therefore, in such moments, let’s join our prayer to the prayer of this man.

Let’s also take note of our Lord’s words that these types of demons do not come out “but by prayer and fasting.” We’re not called to cast out demons or to heal the possessed, like the apostles were, but these words are nonetheless important for us. All of us are possessed, not by demons, but by passions, and therefore fasting and prayer are important. After all, without them it’s difficult to drive out our bad, sinful habits.

Finally, let’s note that today’s miracle was the last one performed by Christ in Galilee. He no longer appeared in public, did not teach any more, and, separately from others, made His way to Jerusalem. Here there is a big hint as to what we should be doing. Pascha is right around the corner. We also, with Christ, must put aside our worldly cares and begin to make our way towards Jerusalem.

Dear Brothers and Sisters, let’s use the remaining days of Great Lent to redouble our prayers and fasting. In such a way, let’s drive out our passions and ascend to Jerusalem where, with God’s help, we will see the Divine Light of the resurrected Christ, through the prayers of today’s saint, John of the Ladder.

priest Alexis