Within The Family

Scripture Readings: Is. 22:15-24; Eph. 1:1-14; Lk. 8:17-21 
Ընթերցուածքներ` Եսայ. ԻԲ 15-24; Եփես. Ա 1-14; Ղկ. Ը 17-21

In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Amen!

Last week we read the words of St. Paul on the feast of the discovery of the Holy Cross that “the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing” and this makes sense because the cross was a tool of death. That’s why Christ was crucified up high, so that when you saw the cross you would remember to behave. It would kind of be like saying that the message of the electric chair is salvation for us, it’s kind of strange. And so how do we understand the message of the cross, how do we understand our faith?

First of all, Holy Scripture is written not to be read verse by verse individually but as a whole as, an organic body, as God Incarnate in our life. And so, when the Church fathers on certain Sundays give us certain passages to read, there is something that they are trying to teach us. In today’s Gospel of Luke, we have two portions: First, Christ saying that all that is hidden, all that is secret, will soon be revealed. Then the second part kind of seems out of place, where we read Christ’s mother and it says brothers and sisters, Christ’s family has come to see him. And rather than say “oh welcome,” He says, “my mother and my brothers (my sisters) [my family] are those who hear the word of God and do it.”

So what how do these all tie together my dears? We are all baptized Christian, and we bear the name Christ. Christ means anointed one from the Greek Christos. And when we were baptized out of the holy font, we received the name anointed with the Holy Oil. Therefore, as one who bears this name, we belong, as St. Paul says, to this body, this family. We are not individuals each one doing our own thing. We serve God, as one organic body with our unique ways, we are a family, God’s children. And we gather with our Heavenly Mother, the Church, where we are together as a family come together. In fact, what’s the Armenian word for family? Unt-danik. Unt means under and danik is roof – we are all gathered under one roof, we are one family and we remain a part of God’s family, so long as we do what? What God has commanded as Christ says. So long as we love each other!

Think of our own families. In an ideal world our families are the ones where we come together, where we share Thanksgiving meals, where we share Sunday meals, where we share our dreams, our hopes, our tears, our losses. A family is strengthened by its coming together and within that family there are secrets there are things only shared within that family. Anyone on the outside we’ll never understand what’s happening within the family. That is what Christ is telling us my dears. That is what last week’s verse that the message of the cross is foolishness to those who do not believe who are perishing is. To us meaning, we who are part of this family, who bear the name of Christ, to us the secrets will be revealed, God will reveal to us Himself as our Father, in his fullness God will teach us. What it means to endure suffering; God will teach us what it means to be compassionate and forgiving and loving. But God will reveal to us, as we mature and as much and as faithful as we are in this family.

In the Gospels we read of the parable of the Prodigal Son. We only read that once a year right during Great Lent. There are two sons; the youngest son takes his wealth, takes his riches, basically says dad you’re dead to me, give me what’s mine, forsakes the family and is no longer committed, is no longer faithful to the family and squanders it. But then when he comes to himself, when he repents, he comes back to the family. His Father embraces his son, accepting him back into the family but at the same time the father says to the older brother that what I have is now yours. It’s not like the brother who wasted everything is going to be receiving another equal portion, no! There are consequences to being unfaithful. Well, when we are in the family, when we are with our Heavenly Father, when we do what God commands us, when we love, when we forgive, when we gather under the one roof then the message of the cross, the secrets that God has, our life’s purpose will be revealed to us. Yet, when we are unfaithful, we will always remain on the outside, we will not be part of the family. We will always retain the name but what good is a name if I don’t live it? What it good is being a Christian if I’m no different than those who don’t believe? Yet, when repent, God our Father, through the Church our mother, will embrace us back even with the consequences and scars we will live with.

The sad truth is my dears we’re looking to be part of God’s family but we’re denying it by how we live. A few days ago, we celebrated in North America Halloween. Whether or not we should be celebrating that’s a completely different discussion but during Halloween kids and adults wear masks. They run around pretending to be something that they are not. And whether we celebrate Halloween or not my dears, how many of us are wearing a mask? How many of us are hiding and not being part of this family, God’s family? How many of us are masquerading looking for something, looking for a “treat” elsewhere, when all that God blesses us with is here if only, we would take off that fake mask, if only we would recognize the name that we have been anointed with and the family we belong to. Not because we’re perfect, not because we have all the answers, but because we are a child of God and our Heavenly Gather calls all of us home. He loves all of us and I want you to be part of this body, this family as my child and through the Church our heavenly Mother we learn what that means. We are gathered under this roof, where the secrets will be revealed, where the message of the cross, where what the world says devalues us will be transformed into what really makes us valuable – the name of Christ upon our foreheads.

Let us take the masks off, let us come and be part of this family. Let us recognize who our Heavenly Father is, praying in repentance and in compassion and humility that all secrets be revealed to us in time. That the true value of who we are, the image and likeness that we were created in, the love of God strengthens and lift us up individually and as a family. And as a family, every Sunday and every day we will glorify God our Heavenly Father, the Son and Holy Spirit, now and always, Amen.