👉🏽👉🏽👉🏽Why Is the #Second #Week of #Great #Lent Called #Holy ?
Beloved followers of Orthodox teachings, peace and blessings be upon you. Let us now turn our hearts and minds toward the sacred truth of the season, for we stand in a time sanctified by the grace of God a time named holy by the venerable Saint Yared, who, through the praises he composed, has guided us in wisdom toward the mystery of this sacred week.
The Meaning of "Holy"
The word holy signifies that which is separate, chosen, and glorious (Book of Grammar and Dictionary, p. 784). Holiness is not a mere name but a divine reality, a calling bestowed upon the faithful to partake in the sanctity of God. The reason this week is called holy is that it directly reflects the perfect holiness of the Creator Himself, whose desire is that all His creatures might live in holiness and glorify His name.
The Sabbath, the day upon which we set aside worldly toil and turn wholly to God, is the union of work and rest, name and glory, time and eternity. It is holy because it sanctifies us, and in return, we honor it. It was for this reason that Saint Yared, in his sacred hymns, instructed the faithful with these words:
"Give thanks to God, declare His name and His good deeds to the nations, and give thanks to His name. Honor the Sabbath and do what is right. Lay up for yourselves a treasure in heaven that no thief can destroy and no one can get at. Be prepared and look up to Christ above."
Thus, the holiness of this time is not an arbitrary designation, but a divine commandment, a manifestation of God's love. He has given us His law so that we might walk in the path of holiness—fasting, praying, and living in righteousness.
The Holiness of Time
Saint Yared, the illumined one, calls this time holy for several reasons:
1. It is the beginning of the forty-day fast
This sacred period marks the commencement of the Great Fast, a time of purification and spiritual renewal, modeled after the fasting of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Just as He withdrew into the wilderness for forty days and forty nights, triumphing over the temptations of the adversary, so too are we called to enter into the discipline of fasting, subduing the desires of the flesh that our spirits may ascend toward divine grace.
2. It falls on the Holy Sabbath
The commandment resounds through the ages: "Remember to keep the Sabbath day holy." (Exodus 20:8) This is not merely a suggestion but a divine decree, for God Himself sanctified the seventh day from the beginning of time:
"And God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it He rested from all His work which God created and made to do." (Genesis 2:3)
And what does this mean for the faithful? That on this day, we must set aside all worldly distractions. Saint Yared, in his wisdom, exhorts us:
"Not even one of the believers should be busy with money on Sunday, saying, ‘Bring me my money,’ or take a pledge. All believers should come to church in purity and humility. They should not be afraid that the judge will say, ‘Bring me my tax,’ the lender my debt, the bishop the tithes, and the tax."
The Sabbath is a time not for the anxieties of the world but for the peace of God. It is a time to lay aside all burdens and enter into the divine presence with a pure heart.
3. It is a time of fasting, prayer, and spiritual labor
The saints and righteous ones have always held fasting as the foundation of holiness, for fasting is not merely the abstention from food but the elevation of the soul toward God. Saint Yared proclaims:
"Fasting is the mother of prayer, the sister of humility, the source of tears, the beginning of all good works."
What, then, is required of us in this time? That we fast not only from food but from sin, that we cleanse our hearts with prayer, that we bow our bodies in prostration, that we open our hands in almsgiving, and that we increase in good deeds.
Continues 👇🏽